–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

Gohan grunted in effort as he pushed the barbell up one final time before shifting it to sit on its rack. Sitting up, he wiped his brow and huffed out a breath. It was amazing how much the ki suppressor affected him, making him have trouble with simply working out in a gym. He wondered idly if they would actually be effective when it came to properly training, like with the gravity rooms. Figuring he'd ask Bulma, Gohan reached over to his water bottle to take a quick swig.

"Holy shit dude! That was fucking epic."

From his position behind the bench as a spotter, Sharpner grinned wildly at him. The man was dressed in a simple black tank top, his skin shining slightly with sweat. Gohan took a small moment to admire his large shoulders as he looked at his friend. 'In a totally platonic way, of course.'

"Seriously, that was 250 pounds! All those years running around in the mountains must have paid off big time."

The half-Saiyan chuckled slightly as he stood up to take Sharpner's place behind the bench. "I guess so" he replied as Sharpner adjusted the weights to his lower wetting. "So how are things going with that girl, um… Angela right?"

"Pretty shit" Sharpner lamented with a roll of his eyes. "She's cute and all, but a little crazy. One date and she's wanting to follow me everywhere, do everything together. I need my space, dude!"

Gohan laughed, getting in position as Sharpner laid down to begin his reps. "Maybe you're just afraid of a little commitment" he teased.

"Commitment is one thing, man." He let out a breath of air as he pumped his arms up and down. "This chick" another huff "is fucking batshit."

After finishing his set, Sharpner turned his gaze on Gohan. "Enough with this grilling of me, though. What is even up with you dude? We gotta get you a girl."

Blanching slightly at the change of target, Gohan followed Sharpner over to the free weights. "Ugh, please don't. I'm only just getting my footing with actually having a life. I don't need to throw a girlfriend into the mix."

"I'm not talking about a girlfriend. I just mean we should get you out there, you know, playing the field."

"What?"

Sharpner looked at Gohan like he was clueless. "Come on. A hook up? One-night stand? The dirty deed?" He lifted a pair of dumbbells, alternating his arms as he curled them up towards his body.

"Ohhh." The realisation of what Sharpner meant set in. "N-no, don't do that. I'm not sure if I'm really ready for that."

"You're so freakin' cute sometimes, G" the blonde laughed. "Seriously dude, a pretty face and innocent. I don't know how the ladies haven't scooped you up yet."

–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

"I'm just saying, it would be nice to actually see him around the house once and a while."

Chi-Chi sighed as she looked over the balcony she was sitting on at Capsule Corp., Bulma and Eighteen next to her as they watched their children play in the garden below. Trunks and Goten were kicking a soccer ball around, Marron running around after them while occasionally getting side-tracked by something nearby.

Beside her, Bulma smiled knowingly as she sipped her glass of lemonade. "You shouldn't worry, Chi-Chi. The way Gohan is behaving is completely normal for someone his age. In fact, I'd be a bit worried if he wasn't breaking out of his shell a little bit."

"What's that supposed to mean" Chi-Chi asked as she crossed her arms.

"I didn't mean it like that." Bulma held her hands up in a gesture of peace. "I just meant that Gohan has lived a pretty sheltered life these past seven years. He needs to grow up and make friends his age. And that means going out at night and on the weekends."

"I guess you're right. I doesn't mean I have to like it. He's only been at this school for a month and it's like he's a whole other person." Chi-Chi responded as she watched her son run around. Things were so simple to the young boy, unlike with his older brother. Where Goten was sweet but loud, Gohan was becoming more and more secretive and quiet by the day. He still treated her with respect, of course, but more often than not found himself out somewhere in the city without notifying her where he was. Chi-Chi found herself regretful that Gohan's childhood had been littered with such tragedy, and that he had never had the opportunity to be a kid like Goten had. Was Gohan's current rebellious state a result of his messed up childhood perhaps?

Bulma giggled a little, smiling wistfully to herself. "Boy, do I miss those days. At least Gohan hasn't run away from his home and family, like I did, right?"

The black haired woman grinned despite herself, thinking of Bulma during her teenage years. Turning to their other friend, Chi-Chi continued the conversation. "What were your teenage years like, Eighteen?"

The android woman looked up from where she had been watching her daughter play, a small smile on her face. Sometimes, Chi-Chi thought, it was easy to forget that the woman appeared to be only in her early twenties. Eighteen had long since started to dress above her age, wearing her hair in such a way that made her appear much older than she was stuck being for eternity. 'I suppose she does it to try and match Krillin's older age.'

Eighteen paused, mulling over the question. "Before Dr. Gero took us, Seventeen and I used to jump from place to place, drinking and partying our lives away. We fell into some pretty bad circles, actually. So as long as Gohan stays away from what we did, he'll be fine."

"Wow, sounds like you lived quite the life" Bulma laughed as she reclined back in her chair. Turning back to Chi-Chi, she spoke continued. "Have you met any of Gohan's friends, anyway?"

"No, he barely talks about them. It really bothers me that he won't open up to me anymore."

The blue haired woman smirked at Chi-Chi, before digging around in her purse. "Well, he hasn't said anything to me either, but we could always stalk his Facebook profile."

"His what?" Chi-Chi questioned, completely lost.

"His Facebook. It's an app on the phone that lets you connect with and see what other people are up to." Bulma switched on her phone. "We can see if he has any photos of him and his friends."

Still not quite getting it, Chi-Chi looked over at Bulma's screen. "So what, Gohan will just put a picture up on this app and anyone can see it?!"

"Only his friends," Bulma explained as she scrolled through the app to find Gohan. "Ah, here he is. See? He's got a picture up of him and someone. Hang on."

Chi-Chi waited as Bulma pulled the picture up to full screen, before seeing it in full. Gohan was there, grinning brightly in a button up shirt beside an attractive girl with dark hair, the two of them each holding a beer as they sat at a table. Chi-Chi took a moment to examine the photo, first noticing the girl next to her son. She was very pretty, that was certain. Her hair was dangling in twin pigtails, sitting lightly on her shoulders. The mother of two also noticed how happy her son appeared to be, his eyes lighting up as he grinned at the camera.

She hadn't seen that light in Gohan's eyes since his father had died.

"She's a very pretty girl," Eighteen commented as the three all looked at the photo. "You don't think that…"

"No! My Gohan would know better than to get mixed up with a girl so soon." At the knowing looks of the other two women, Chi-Chi continued to protest. "Gohan went to school to learn and to make friends, not to get a girlfriend thank you very much."

Bulma smirked at Eighteen, before continuing to scroll through. The three women looked over picture after picture of Gohan, oohing and aahing at the three or four new pictures he was tagged in. The majority of them seemed to include the same dark haired girl, a blonde girl with short hair, or a blonde man with a muscular body. In every one, however, Gohan appeared sporting that same grin that Chi-Chi had seen so often on Goku.

It wasn't until they grew a little bored of doing so that Eighteen suddenly grabbed the phone out of Bulma's hands, eyes glued to the screen. "You've got to be kidding me…"

Before Bulma or Chi-Chi could ask, the blonde android turned the phone back around, showing it to the two women.

"Since when was your son friends with my brother?"

–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

The sounds of grunting and panting filled the room as Gohan and Erasa sat watching their friends train in the Satan gym. Sharpner was busy pounding his fists into the punching bag in front of him, boxing gloves keeping his hands safe, while Videl dismantled opponent after opponent in the ring. Gohan had to admit, he was impressed. The girl was small in stature, but what she lacked in size she made up for in skill and technique. The way she used her opponent's body weight against them was amazing.

'With some proper training by Piccolo or someone, she could become a serious fighter,' he thought, watching as the raven haired girl swept the legs out from under a man twice her size, sending him crashing to the floor.

"She's amazing, isn't she?" Erasa spouted from beside him. The blonde was tapping away at her phone, occasionally holding it up to take a picture of herself. "Some people reckon that Videl's gonna give Mr. Satan a run for his money at the next World Martial Arts Tournament!"

Thinking back to the tales he had been told of his father in those tournaments, facing off against Jackie Chun, Tien Shinhan and Piccolo, Gohan smiled wryly. It was amazing how the quality in fighting had decreased since Mr. Satan had filled the world with his propaganda. These days, no fighter even thought to practise the techniques of old, brushing them off as cheap tricks.

"Yeah, she is" he replied to his friend. Looking over at Sharpner, he asked "have the two of them ever fought before?"

"Once or twice, I suppose. Videl always wipes the floor with Sharpie, though."

In the ring, Videl paused after dropping another fighter, sweat dripping down her brow. She signalled something to the training coach, before ducking under the ropes, grabbing her water bottle and a towel as she approached them.

"Uh, shit. I'm so spent" she huffed out as she collapsed next to Gohan and Erasa, wiping her face with her training towel. "I think I'm gonna call it a day. What have you guys been chatting about."

Erasa pouted slightly as she crossed her arms. "Gohan won't let me experiment on him. I told him I need a male subject to help me out for my future, but he won't do it!"

"I like my hair how it is, though" Gohan protested. The blonde had been extremely persistent in her pursuit to cut Gohan's hair, claiming that it was to be practise for her future career as a beautician.

"C'mon! Just a little bit off the top, to get rid of the spikes. And maybe that bit that dangles down." She reached over to point at Gohan's hair.

Gohan gasped in shock. "Not the bang! No way, you're crazy." He clasped his hands over the lock of hair that lay over his forehead. "Ask Sharpner, he's got more hair than all of us combined."

"Please" Videl scoffed. "Sharpner would sooner give up his muscles than his hair." No sooner had she said that when the man in question sauntered over, towel around his neck.

"Damn right. You touch one beautiful hair on this head and its bye-bye friendship, E." Sharpner looked down at Videl. "Are you done for the day?"

"Yeah, but I thought you had another half hour to go."

The blonde man shook his head as he grabbed his gym bag. "Nah, I'm gonna be naughty and skip my last set. Having a bit of an off day, to be honest."

Videl looked like she was about to berate him, but was distracted by the loud noises coming from everyone else in the gym. The various gym goers and coaches were crowding around something, chattering excitedly and clapping.

"Now, now, fellas. It's good to see you all too."

"Oh, shit," Videl groaned, throwing her head in her hands. "What is he doing here?"

The crowd seemed to part like the Red sea, and Hercule Satan marched through, people yelling behind him. After a few brief moments signing autographs and talking to them, Mr. Satan made his way over to the group of four, the rest of the people in the room either going back to their training or chatting excitedly among themselves.

"Videl, baby. How come you're not training?"

"I just finished, Daddy. What're you doing here?"

Mr. Satan laughed loudly, his hands resting on his hips. "You mean to say a father can't want to see his daughter without raising questions?! HAHAHA!"

Watching the man act like… well himself, Gohan inwardly rolled his eyes. 'Can't he see that he's acting like a complete nutter?'

Suddenly, he found Mr. Satan's gaze on him, as the older man narrowed his eyes. "Who's this squirt? You didn't tell me you were bringing another boy over. I haven't done a background check on him yet."

"Daddy" Videl groaned, "this is the gym, not our house. Besides, I've already mentioned Gohan to you before, he's a new friend."

Gohan waved his hand slightly, grinning despite himself. "Hello, sir. It's nice to meet you."

The conversation was quiet for a few seconds, before Mr. Satan spoke again. "So what's your deal then, son?"

"I'm sorry. My what?"

"Your deal." The world champion glared at him from his position standing up. "Are you planning on trying to woo my daughter? Or are you just gonna ride her coat tails and reap the perks? Guys like you always want something." The two stared at each other before Gohan went to open his mouth. He was, however, immediately talked over by the older man. "No! I don't wanna hear your excuse. I want you to stop seeing my daughter."

Videl gasped. "Daddy! That's not fair. I-"

"It's okay, Videl." Gohan stopped her. "I can talk for myself." Feeling all eyes on him, he stood up to stand level with Mr. Satan. "Sir, I can assure you that my reasons for befriending your daughter are completely real. Money is not something I either need or desire, and I'm not trying to date her."

"How dare you speak back to me!" Mr. Satan roared. "I outta-"

Growing tired of the conversation, Gohan discretely fumbled his watch to turn off the ki suppressor. Knowing that Videl, Erasa and Sharpner couldn't see his face, he let his eyes flash green for a second. The words Mr. Satan was shouting died on his lips as his mouth dropped open and his eyes went wide. Although he couldn't see his own face, Gohan knew he wasn't smiling. He could feel the hard glare of his eyes as he stared at the man.

"Y-you… you're- how is this…"

"Like I said, my intentions are innocent. I just want to be friends with your daughter. Is that okay?"

Mr. Satan stared at Gohan, dumbfounded. Behind him, he could feel his friends' confusion growing. After another moment of silence, Mr. Satan let out a bellowing laugh.

"HAHAHA! I like you, kid. You've got balls. I reckon you're exactly the type of person she needs around her at this age." He paused, suddenly looking worried again as he turned back to his daughter. "Listen, Pumpkin. I gotta get going. My publicist wants to talk to me about our new line of energy drinks. Okay, gotta run. See ya!" Without waiting for a reply, Mr. Satan hightailed it out of the gym, not even pausing to farewell his desperate fans.

Videl stood dumbfounded beside him. "What just happened?"

"I don't know." Sharpner muttered. "Gohan?"

The half-Saiyan turned, his trademark grin on his face. "I guess he likes me?"

–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–DBZ–

Later that night, after Videl had gone to bed, Hercule sat on the couch in his room, nursing a glass of whiskey. He couldn't get the confrontation from earlier that day out of his head. Surely he had been mistaken, right? There was no way those guys from the Cell Games were back. The green man with the pointy ears had said they wouldn't bother him again.

So why had that puny kid's eyes flashed green? Hercule remembered those eyes vividly, piercing into him from the four golden haired warriors at the Cell Games. The golden haired fighter in the orange gi had vanished partway during the tournament, and from the cries of his friends Hercule had figured he was dead. So it couldn't have been him today at the gym. Guessing the punk's age was similar to his daughter's, he realised it would have to have been the kid to actually killed Cell.

'What are you talking about? You're imagining things. There's no way the scrawny kid was the Delivery Boy. Pull yourself together!'

As he changed the channel on the TV, a loud noise made him startle. Looking at the curtains to his balcony blow in the night breeze, he slowly got out of his chair and walked towards them. Shit, he needed to get over this thing with the green eyes. Suddenly every bump in the night was making him crap his pants.

Walking out onto the balcony, Hercule was relieved to see that there was nothing there. Shaking his head quickly, he turned to go back inside. 'See? No one would even think about-'

"I always figured you were more of a Scotch man, y'know?"

Startled, Hercule yelped as he spun back around to see a man sitting on the wall of his balcony, facing out towards the garden with their legs dangling over the edge. In his hands was the bottle of whiskey that Hercule had left in the room. The man's golden hair stood out against the night sky, and when he turned to face Hercule, it felt like those emerald green eyes were bearing into his soul.

"W-what? You're h-him!"

The golden haired demon smirked at him before taking a swig of the whiskey. "Shit, this stuff tastes horrible," he grunted, wincing. "But hey, it's free alcohol so I can't complain." The man swung his body around, before hopping off the railing. "I take it you know why I'm here?"

"Y-you're gonna expose me! Aren't you?"

The man chuckled, putting the bottle of whiskey on a table nearby. "No, of course not. As much as you annoy me, I'm actually glad you took the credit. The shit Videl has to deal with on a daily basis is something I wouldn't want, for me or my family."

Hercule gulped, the truth cementing itself. "So that was you today." Suddenly feeling brave, he raised his voice. "Stay the hell away from my daughter, you punk!"

"No."

"What?! What do you mean, no?!"

The Delivery Boy just threw that shit-eating smirked at him again. "I meant it. I like your daughter." Obviously seeing the displeasure in Hercule's face, he rolled his eyes. "Not like that, jeez. Apparently all anyone thinks about is sex these days. What I meant was that I want to be friends with your daughter. I'm not planning to seduce her, or tell her the truth, or whisk her off into the mountains. I just like being her friend. Is that okay, or are we gonna have a problem?"

It seemed too good to be true. Here he was, the moniker of Hercule's past, coming back to haunt him. He had thought the man would be wanting money, or to threaten him, yet here he was, sitting here laughing as drank all of Hercule's whiskey.

"What's the catch?"

"There is no catch." He smirked his annoying smirk again. "Although remember if you try anything I can always reveal the truth about you. Or just kill you."

Hercule's heart skipped a beat. "You wouldn't."

"Nah, you're right. I wouldn't do that. You wanna know why? Because I'm a nice guy. Are you a nice guy, Mr. Satan?"

The silence grew between them as Hercule quivered under the man (his name was Gonad, right?) stared at him with his green eyes, as if he was picking him apart piece by piece. Finally, he managed to get out a shaky nod.

The golden haired man grinned a wide grin. "Awesome. I want us to be friends, Mr. Satan, I really do." He suddenly turned around, grabbing the bottle of whiskey back off the table. "Give Videl my regards, and thanks for the alcohol." With that, he flew over the side of the balcony and off into the night.

Hercule stood there for a second, before heading back inside. Sitting back down in his chair, he reached out to pour himself another glass of whiskey before realising the man had taken his bottle.

And flew away with it.

Holy fucking shit.