EPILOGUE

THE NEXT DAY…

"Amazing, Goten," Krillin said as he leaned forward in his chair. "Engaged? I had no idea you were even dating."

"Yeah, well," he laughed nervously. "I wasn't. It just sorta happened last night."

"Is that right…"

Eighteen came and sat on the arm of the sofa next to Krillin, her arms folded tightly across her chest. Her expression was reticent, with a tinge of kindness. "How long have you known her?"

"A VERY long time," Goten admitted. "But I just ran into her again six months ago. Believe me, I wanted to bring her home right then, but she wouldn't let me."

Eighteen, who was quicker on the uptake, frowned at the oddities of his story. "Why not?"

"Well," Goten sighed and wiped his sweaty palms on his pants. "Her story is a tough one. She got pregnant at a party a few years ago, and ran away from home because she was afraid of what people would say about her family."

Krillin's and even Eighteen's face contorted in anguish at the thought, no doubt remembering old wounds that had never healed.

"How could she do that to her parents?" Krillin asked. Eighteen just shook her head mutely.

"Being a pregnant teenager has a way of skewing someone's judgment," Goten reasoned. "She thought she was doing the right thing."

"So she raised a baby on her own? With no help?" Krillin asked incredulously.

Goten nodded. "Her son, Nicky, is almost three years old." Then he smiled. "You're gonna go nuts over this kid. He's a spitfire!"

They both smiled, residual pain still crinkling their eyes.

"So what's she like, Goten?" Eighteen asked.

Goten snorted. "She's a survivor, I'll say that. Strong-willed too. And beautiful, and accomplished… She's perfect."

"You sound crazy about her," Krillin commented.

"Oh, I am."

"What does she do?" Eighteen asked.

"She's a sound engineer."

Eighteen's eyes widened, and Krillin nodded mutely, undoubtedly having no idea what a sound engineer was.

"Has she returned home?" Krillin asked, invested in her story for reasons of his own.

"She will," Goten assured. "She wanted to make something of herself before returning home, so her parents could be proud."

Krillin pursed his lips and his eyes watered.

"So when do we get to meet your fiancé?" Eighteen asked, more out of curiosity than an attempt at being social.

Goten smiled, and found himself blinking back the moisture in his own eyes. "Right now." He got up and walked to the front door. With one last glance over his shoulder at the married couple, he swung it open.

Marron stood in the doorway, biting her bottom lip. Uncontained tears had already spilled down her cheeks, her large chestnut eyes glistening with emotion. She opened her mouth to speak, but her throat was apparently too constricted for sound.

Goten was tossed aside by two blurs, and when he managed to pick himself up off the floor he saw the three of them in a hiccupping, sobbing embrace. Satisfied that he'd done his part, he exited quietly out the back door and flew over the thinning trees to his home.

His parents were standing there, waiting for him when he descended. It made him laugh to see Nicky sitting atop his dad's broad shoulders, tugging at his green, pointed ears.

"How did it go?" his mom asked, her eyes still puffy from seeing Marron earlier.

"It's still going," Goten said. "I imagine we won't see her for the rest of the afternoon."

Piccolo grunted as Nicky yanked on one of his antennae. The namek propped his arms back and pulled the boy off, dangling the giggling child at arm's distance. "Hyper little toad," he muttered as he tried to scowl.

"I'm two yearsh old!"

"Hmph."

Goten laughed. "Ready to be a grandpa, dad?"

Piccolo tossed a side glance at Goten, and then looked back at Nicky. A mischievous grin tweaked the corners of his mouth. "I think the question here is whether or not Nicky is ready to be my grandson…"

With that he dematerialized as he sprung up in the air, coming to an abrupt stop when he reached the treetops. Goten could make out Nicky's wide-eyed, frozen face as he looked at the ground below. Piccolo's resounding chuckles could be heard clearly even from where they were standing.

Suddenly, Nicky squealed and a huge smile split his little face as he clutched at the namek's arm. "AGAIN! Do that again!"

Piccolo's eyes widened dramatically, the grin falling flat.

Goten laughed outright as he draped an arm around his mom's shoulders. "I think he'll fit in just fine." His thoughts then trailed to the boy's radiant, strong-willed mother, who had somehow managed to steal his heart while he was trying to heal hers. A sweet ache squeezed his chest - a sensation he'd come to recognize as love.

"I think they both will."

Thanks for reading, guys...