Chapter Text
He stepped out of the airplane wide-eyed, his lips parted in an “o” of surprise. It wasn’t until someone angrily bumped into him that he was brought out of his daze. He turned to apologize for being in the way, flashing the young woman a happy grin.
She looked startled and turned an interesting shade of red, her lashes fluttering.
“Oh, ah, um, no, I’m sorry, I wasn’t watching where I was going,” the girl babbled, and he wondered what was making her so nervous. He shrugged and nodded, still with that wide smile and made his way to the baggage area.
His Grampy had told him before he passed away that trying to find his past might uncover more than he bargained for — especially since he’d been found on a beach, battered, broken and half-dead. No one in the remote fishing village he called home for the past five years had any idea what had happened.
Grampy had found him, nursed him back to health, gave him a home and a name — Goku. Grampy urged him to move on from the past for he was worried about the pain that had brought him to the shore. So, Goku had tried to move on and he was content with the simple life he shared with Grampy and the village… but one day Grampy had a heart attack, leaving Goku alone and without family once more.
He was still devastated.
Still, Goku knew he had to move on. The old man had added him to his will, leaving him with some money. Goku had been surprised that the modest man had enough to give him a sizable inheritance. Enough to leave the island, maybe figure out who he really was.
To find his real family.
They had to be somewhere!
Grampy and the village had shown him a lot of love, and when the old man died suddenly, Goku realized that he might have his real mother, real father, real grampy somewhere feeling the same sort of grief he did when the old man passed.
But Goku was very much alive.
He couldn’t stand the idea of purposely causing anyone pain and trying to find his family would only bring happiness, right?
Also, Goku couldn’t resist a great adventure! Since arriving on Grampy’s shores five years ago, he hadn’t left the island and he felt restless… like something was missing.
Like something was out there waiting for him.
Truly, he only had one clue as to his origins and that was due to this looks and his accent. He definitely didn’t come from the island. When the villagers were all speculating his origins, they said he must have been from Chikyuu, the mainland. Dr. Baba, who helped nurse him back to health, had speculated that he was most likely from West City, since that was the closest major city off the island.
Goku booked a ticket to West City as soon as he was able to cobble together his meager belongings and use the money from his small inheritance.
It was a good step as any.
Beyond that, he didn’t have much of a plan.
Still, since his Grampy passed, it was the first time Goku felt genuine happiness and excitement again. This city was new, the people looked different, there was a lot to see, oh and he was really looking forward to trying all the different types of food…!
Some of the more worldly villagers had woven tales of exotic dishes and banquets and interesting meats and sauces…
He couldn’t wait!
But most of all, he was ever so hopeful he still had family, somewhere.
.
.
.
On the other side of West City…
Chi-Chi Mau hummed happily as she walked her quiet four-year-old to the library. There was a weekly story time event, one that parents in the neighborhood volunteered for. This was her week to volunteer, though she went with Gohan every week, since he so adored stories and reading. He was quite advanced for his age, already able to read at a grade one level.
Honestly, Chi-Chi loved story time too, because she loved children. Had hoped to be happily married with a parcel of them by now, but no, she turned into a cliché like any other — met a very bad man and had very bad (naughty, amazing) sex…
… and was dropped like a hot potato the moment he got bored.
Then he disappeared without a trace, leaving her pregnant and alone.
Tale as old as time.
Still, after almost five years, the bitterness and heartbreak had long since faded.
And it was hard to stay mad when Gohan was her world.
Sometimes, when the night was still and Gohan was sleeping in her arms, she would see him in Gohan’s relaxed features. It was the eyes, mostly, a little bit his jaw… Gohan’s looks favored her more, but there was still so much of his father in him that it made her heart clench to think about it.
Still, she was a fighter. Her circumstances were much better than most women, as her father was rather wealthy and adored her. She also had a group of tight-knit friends who came to her aid.
She and Gohan had all the support systems in place and she was grateful for that.
She was happy.
It was enough.
.
.
.
Goku was really pleased with his decision to move to West City.
From the moment he walked off the plane, everyone was so kind… he wondered why his adopted island was so suspicious of city folk. Every time he asked a question or needed directions, people were willing to accommodate him.
The women, especially, were extremely nice.
Some even went as far as writing their names and numbers for him if he had more questions about the city and needed to be shown around! And they were so affectionate; the islanders made it seem like city folk were cold and aloof, but almost all the women he met gave him hugs and didn’t seem afraid to touch him.
It was through one of the women he met that pointed him toward the public library, so he could try to figure out next steps.
He knew the most important was figuring out how he could live and work with an identity that technically wasn’t real. So far, he had been using Grampy’s information for everything — Grampy’s full name was Gohan Goku Son — so whenever he introduced himself as Goku, people simply assumed that he was using his middle name.
Dr. Baba had warned him that he wouldn’t get far without getting all the right documents and had sagely told him to get a job at a restaurant ASAP, as they were the most likely to be sympathetic and accommodating to someone undocumented.
Dr. Baba had said to give it at least a year before he turn himself to the police. It scared Goku, but he was sure that was the old doctor’s last-ditch attempt to get him to stay. The old woman had gravely told him that the circumstances of his arrival were very suspicious and while no one thought he could hurt a fly, the way they knew him now, it was possible that he had been mixed up with something dangerous.
Maybe even criminal.
While that prospect terrified him, instead of scaring him to stay, it made his determination to go even more strong. He would never want to willingly put the villagers in danger if he was in any way shape or form a potential harm to them. He had an innate sense of responsibility he couldn’t explain, and his Grampy taught him about honor and honesty… if he had done something bad, then he would need to atone for it.
If he deserved to be in jail, so be it, though he really couldn’t imagine himself doing anything that could hurt anyone… the idea made him sick.
But the other alternative was that he was the victim… and if that was the case, then the police would be able to help ID him, he could be reunited with his real family (hopefully) and get some sort of closure that way.
In the meantime, Goku was going to try a year to figure it all out himself and see what it all meant, so that if the negative option was the reality, then he had at least a chance to live a new life on his own terms.
Losing his memory and identity was also an interesting mystery to uncover as well, and he would be lying if he didn’t find it a little exciting. There were things he knew innately that he couldn’t explain. For example, when Dr. Baba explained issues with documentation and fake IDs and passing as someone else…
For some reason, it didn’t feel confusing or alarming.
It felt… familiar.
And it was his idea to use Grampy’s identity. He figured out how to imprint his photo over all the necessary documents, had written up a plausible back story to not scare anyone who asked.
He had strange sense of calm about it all.
He wasn’t sure if that was a good or bad thing, yet.
So far, all he knew was that he wasn’t hurting anyone and he didn’t mean to hurt anyone, and so that meant things were still good… right?
He sighed as he looked at his hastily scribbled to do list. First, he had to get a pay-as-you-go cell phone, then a place to live… then a job. In that order.
He was grateful Grampy left him with enough money to make all of this happen, so he didn’t feel anxious or rushed.
Goku smiled happily as he scrolled through the rental listings in the internet kiosk at the library. Once he narrowed down a few viable places, he was going to get a cell and then try to score a place who wouldn’t mind a cash deposit.
Worse came to worse, he didn’t mind sleeping on a park bench for an evening or two. He loved the outdoors, anyway.
There was a silver lining to everything.
.
.
.
On the other side of West City…
“You know those give you cancer,” Chi-Chi drawled as she approached the emergency ambulance entrance.
Dr. Bulma Briefs flicked her fading cigarette, her lips curling up much like a cat. She blew a wisp of smoke to the side as she regarded Chi-Chi’s pink scrubs.
“Well, look at you, Nurse Mau. Welcome back.”
Chi-Chi’s eyes crinkled. The last time she’d stepped into this hospital was when she gave birth to Gohan. Her privileged status allowed her to take her sweet time before starting up her old career.
“So, you sure about this? The ER is a fucking zoo tonight,” her old college roommate went on.
Chi-Chi shrugged. “I took a short shift. Only four hours. Going to try to ease into it.”
Gohan was sound asleep at her father’s, and it was a perfect time to try to see if she could juggle working as an ER nurse while still being a good mother.
“Ha! The night shift is easing into it?” Bulma snorted, taking another swift puff.
Chi-Chi thought that she might as well dive into it head first. That was always her way — once she made up her mind, it was all or nothing.
Unfortunately, that applied to every aspect of her life… and it didn’t always turn out her way. She had long since made peace with her inner adrenaline junkie. She wondered if it was due to how she grew up so sheltered. Still, she figured as long as she addressed that urge through healthy means like her career, that she should be okay.
Bulma, too, was a little bit of an adrenaline junkie herself.
It was why they had gotten along so well in college.
And right on cue, they both heard the familiar blare of an ambulance as it zipped through the entrance. Bulma dropped her smoke and ground it under her Comme des Garçons sneakers and gestured her blue pixie-cropped hair toward the garage.
Chi-Chi felt her pulse begin to race as she heard the EMTs shout the patient’s condition to the attending physicians and nurses.
“Come on, let’s wash up and sign in,” Bulma said with a wide grin, her eyes sparking.
Chi-Chi grinned, thinking they resembled a medical Batman and Robin as they both jogged into the hospital, Bulma’s white coat flapping behind her.
.
.
.
He only had impressions of her.
Always in the periphery, just out of the corner of his eye. He could never quite make her out; there were flashes of the smoothest skin he’d ever seen, a clavicle, a shoulder.
Sometimes all he saw was dark hair, spread out against white, cascading like an inky wave.
Other times, he saw nothing at all, but heard… sighs, such breathy sighs, mixed with laughter.
The dreams came sporadically, with no discernible rhyme or reason.
Tonight had been one of the more vivid dreams.
He was still trying to catch his breath, blinking in shock and adjusting himself underneath his new bedsheets. He still hadn’t been able to truly get a handle of her features, get more than just sensation, but in this dream, she hadn’t simply flitted in between the corners of his mind…
… this had been explicit.
His hands still tingled from the phantom sensation of holding those creamy thighs.
Goku had no idea what to do with these particular dreams.
Grampy had taught him that women were special creatures, to be respected and cherished, and to treat them with the utmost care. Goku had taken all that to heart, never once trying to overstep any personal boundaries. It was rather easy since everyone on the island was so nice and Goku never wanted to harm anyone.
He also never really had whatever urges Grampy said most men had. He was often more excited about fishing and hunting, helping people build furniture or other odd jobs, working out, and training with Grampy in martial arts.
Women were fun to be with, sometimes really nice to look at, and he loved helping them carry and fix things… but he never wanted to do more than just talk and hang out. Sometimes, they cuddled with him and he was fine with that. He enjoyed the physical comfort.
Except in these dreams.
What he and this woman did in his dreams were definitely beyond cuddling…
It was rather confusing.
He wondered, often, if she was real.
Maybe he had this particular dream because he was in West City.
He wondered if she was in West City.
He wasn’t sure if that prospect excited or terrified him.
.
.
.
On the other side of West City…
Chi-Chi gasped as she shuddered in release, her fingers stilling as the warm waves of her climax washed over her.
What started as a way to get her quickly to sleep after her first night shift at work had grown out of hand… pun intended, she thought wryly, as she took a few steadying breaths.
She had thought of him for the first time in years. Normally, when she indulged herself alone, her mind was blank and she simply focused on the sensation.
Tonight, though, she conjured up images that she’d long since buried. And it had gotten her so turned on, thinking about those large calloused hands, that broad torso that tapered down to a perfectly chiseled stomach… and the way he used to drive into her… she almost felt ashamed.
Almost.
She knew it had to do with the hospital, being there for the first time in years, bringing back memories of when they first connected.
At least, the first time they connected that eventually led to Gohan’s existence.
She technically first met him at the playground when they were kids.
Though, bleeding out on a gurney was a long way from that… that was a definite turning point. She wondered about her own foolhardiness, getting mixed up with a patient, and one with a shifty background at that.
Had she really been that stupid?
That naive?
It felt like a lifetime ago. A different person ago.
She sighed, that familiar ache in her heart squeezing her again. It didn’t hurt that much to think about him any more, but Pre-Gohan Chi-Chi was a romantic and Post-Gohan Chi-Chi still had traces of Pre-Gohan milling about.
She wondered if that still made her stupid and naive.
.
.
.