My inspiration for this story was the question: How would DBZ have gone if Gohan took his father's death and absence after the Cell games harder than he did? Perhaps his teenage nature would've been less happy go lucky and more serious. Well, in this story I propose my own version of how the story could have gone, with certain romantic liberties taken as well. Rated for language and sex. Enjoy.

-SSJ

Disclaimer: I do not own Dragon Ball or Dragon Ball Z.

It was finished. Cell had been defeated and the world was safe once more, thanks to Gohan and the other warriors. Unfortunately this had come at the cost of Goku's life. There was a way to restore Goku but he refused, instead he chose to stay in the other world for fear that the next threat would be another result of vengeance against him once more. Gohan however did not see the logic in this. If a new threat did arise, what good would it do to not have him? It was ludicrous. But the fact that he had died at all, was his own fault, Gohan thought. If he had only killed Cell when it was simple to do so, instead of letting the power get to his head. Gohan regretted it, he swore to never let something like this happen again; and for that reason he trained hard over the following years.

At first Gohan helped his pregnant mother with jobs around the house and then taking care of baby Goten. By the time Chichi was able to take care of him easily enough, Gohan concentrated more of his time with training in between studying. He visited Vegeta often for sparring sessions, he recalled the first time he approached Vegeta with the idea.

"You want to fight me, kid? What for? You already know you're the strongest, what purpose would it serve to gloat in MY face about it?"

"Vegeta, I want to stay in top shape, and I can only do that by fighting the second strongest on the planet. That's you."

Vegeta didn't like being called second anything. But reluctantly, he agreed on account of it being the best way to improve his own powers. He didn't really train with him, but actually fought him every once in a while, refusing to acknowledge it as 'training,' for it hurt his pride. He refused to fight Gohan at anything less than 100% of either of their powers. Naturally, this resulted in Vegeta losing nearly 100% of the time. But it did increase both of their strengths, Vegeta's largely at first, considering the fast recovery ability and power boost of Saiyans. He didn't like losing to a child, but it only motivated him further during their next foray. Vegeta even allowed Trunks to train with Gohan once in a while. Having considered how his future version had turned out, Gohan wasn't a terrible teacher.

A number of years later, it was time for Gohan to go to an official high school, seeing how Chichi had taught him all she could with homeschooling. Orange Star High School was his destination. He set out flying on his own; it would be faster than using the Nimbus. He encountered some robbers on the way but dispatched them quickly, using his Super Saiyan powers as a disguise. He arrived to class and introduced himself, then took his seat. News of the 'gold fighter' had already spread. He was calm and collected, for he had black hair and eyes. After school he encountered more trouble but once again proved that common thugs are no match for his godly powers. Videl, who was of course in his class, became suspicious, noticing a resemblance between the fighter and the new student at her school.

"Gohan, you look an awful lot like that gold fighter guy. Want to let me in on it?"

"Hm? Not at all, nothing to tell."

Videl remained suspicious despite his calm demeanor. She would have to catch him in the act. Gohan asked Bulma to make him a disguise so that he was less conspicuous.

"How's about this one? Maybe you could use a code name too." Bulma said brandishing a green outfit with a cape. Gohan didn't approve and saw that Trunks didn't either.

"Um, no thanks Bulma, it's not really…my style. I think I'll just stick to being the gold fighter after all."

"Oh, well ok, suit yourself."

"Dodged a bullet there, buddy." Trunks whispered to him.

"My sense of style isn't that out of touch! Ugh!" Bulma groaned. While another disguise would've been more effective at concealing his identity, Gohan chose to not look like a complete fool. If he was going to be a serious fighter, he had to feel like one.

One day Videl reacted to a police alert and stepped out of class. Gohan followed soon thereafter, as was usually the case. Normally the gold fighter would show up and defeat the bad guys before Videl even arrived on scene, but this time it was close by and Videl had a head start. She was a little careless in her approach, simply wanting to beat the gold fighter to the punch this time. She ran into a group of the bandits robbing the bank. She got most of them but then a big guy came seemingly out of nowhere hit her with a metal pipe.

"Hah, if it isn't Videl Satan. You sure are a strong one. Too bad, this is the end of the line. But before I finish you off, how about a little fun?" The big guy then made a swipe to tare her shirt off. She tried to dodge but he still got a piece of her shirt.

"Hehehehe, I doubt you could do that again with your injury." He then made another go at her, she tried to dodge but more of the thugs had come around and blocked her. They surrounded her. Two of them grabbed both of her arms and the big guy approached. He then disappeared.

"Hey, where'd he go?" One of the other thugs asked. They then heard a crash a couple blocks right behind them, down the road. It was their comrade, his broken body in a pile of rubble.

"So, you goons think it's ok to do this to a lady? Well do ya?" The gold fighter then proceeded to kick two more of the thugs into and through some walls. Another two went straight over a few buildings, and the last one got punched straight into the horizon.

"Videl, are you alright?" He asked her, she was on the ground, barely able to keep conscious now.

"I can't believe I got taken by surprise by those pigs. I'm injured but…I'll be ok."

"The hell you will, I'm taking you to the hospital." He then lifted her in his arms and flew to the nearest one. It was dead obvious at this range that the gold fighter was Gohan. She just had to get him to admit it now.

"Gohan, why do you deny being the gold fighter? Are you hiding your identity from someone?"

"Oh, well I don't suppose there's a point in denying it now. Yes, I'm Gohan. I do it to keep my family's privacy. Though to be honest, Mother could probably make off with any paparazzi by herself."

"You know…flying…would be…great." Videl said as she fell unconscious. She awoke later to find him sitting in his normal state next to her bed.

"Hey you're awake. Your father's on his way over by the way."

"Thanks for everything Gohan…"

"Well, if you'll be ok till then, I guess I should probably go."

"Wait Gohan."

"What is it?"

"…Teach me."

"Teach you…?"

"Teach me how to fly. Like you did."

"Oh…well I don't know…"

"Oh please Gohan? It sounds way too convenient and useful for fighting crime and getting to places fast."

"Videl…"

"Oh c'mon there's this martial arts tournament coming up and-"

"Wait, what? You mean THE World Martial Arts Tournament huh?...Well I bet Vegeta would like to test me out in an official capacity. It's been half a year since we last fought."

Videl saw that his interest was piqued. "Oh, you're interested in that too aren't you? I heard your father was the champion before my dad."

"…You really want to learn how to fly?"

"…Oh right, yeah! I would be grateful."

"Oh alright, if you keep my identity as the gold fighter a secret, I'll teach you." Gohan also figured it would be nice to have someone else to hang out with for a while.

"Yay! Ouch!" Videl rejoiced too soon, her injuries were still fresh.

"Hey, take it easy, we'll get started when you've had some time to hea-"

"VIDEL! My sweetie pie, are you alright?" Hercule barged in and interrupted.

"Well, I guess I'll see you at school when you're feeling better." Gohan said and took his leave.

"Wait, who the hell are you?"

"I'm Gohan, I…found her in this state after fighting some thugs. I helped her here."

"Ridiculous! Hey Videl, is this your boyfriend? And how did-"

Gohan had already left. Videl used her injuries and need for rest as an excuse to not explain things to her father. It worked like a charm but it was only a temporary measure at best.

The next day, after school, Videl was hot on Gohan's heels.

"So where do you live anyways?" She inquired.

"439 East District."

"No kidding, I guess you can just fly to school and back so it's not a big deal to go so many miles."

They then took off, Videl on her capsule plane and Gohan as a Super Saiyan. It wasn't too long before they reached his home.

"Hey mom, I'm home. I brought a friend over."

"How lovely. Oh my, finally bringing home a girlfriend huh?"

"Mom! She's just a friend."

"Oh ok, whatever you say." Chichi said, winking.

"Nice to meet you, ma'am."

"It's Chichi." She stated, not wanting to feel that old just yet.

"We're going to go train. See you in a bit."

"Already? Oh alright, haave fuun~" Chichi suggested not so casually. Goten caught whiff of this. Although he didn't understand his mother's behavior, he was eager to know what they were up to.

"Hey Gohan, can I come too? I want to train."

"Sure but I'm just teaching her how to fly."

"I don't know how to fly!" Goten exclaimed.

"Oh you don't, do you…ok you can come along."

"Yay!" They then took off not too far away but out of sight from the house. Gohan taught the two of them the basics of energy control and how to use it. Videl had a harder time learning, since she wasn't used to using her energy for anything external. It was a couple days before they were flying for real. Goten was soaring like an eagle while Videl was still at the basics of flight control.

"Hey Gohan, you act weirder with Videl than with me. Why's that?" Goten asked.

"What do you mean 'weirder'?"

"Oh nevermind." Goten had been noticing Gohan being gentler with Videl, he seemed to have a different kind of soft spot for her than with him.

"Ok, maybe we should call it a day. Videl, would you mind getting a haircut?" Gohan suggested.

"Oh, you like girls with shorter hair?" Videl pondered.

"No, I'd say I like long hair best, but shorter hair might help with training."

"In that case, I'll keep my long hair."

"Oh, ok." Gohan took the hint. A number of girls had been fawning over him after seeing what he was capable of at PE, even though he kept his true abilities far suppressed. But Videl's spunk interested him some too. Goten on the other hand was getting bored, and there seemed to be no more training going on so he took his leave. "See you tomorrow, Videl."

Videl waved him off.

"So I guess I'll see you tomorrow, Gohan?" She turned back to face Gohan. He was much closer now.

"Gohan?" Videl wondered as he stood about a foot away.

He approached her and put a hand on her shoulder, Videl was still confused. He then moved it down her back. She seemed to be getting the idea, although it was quite straightforward of him, or so she thought until he cupped her face and met his lips to hers. He separated as quickly as he had joined them.

"Hmm, you didn't stop me." Gohan stated.

Videl was blushing now, realizing what he had done. She looked down and said "I was caught off guard but…also curious."

"Curious enough to do it some more?"

Videl nodded and Gohan repeated his earlier actions. She leaned into his kiss this time as well. Because of this positive reaction from her, Gohan became a bit bolder and proceeded to lick her lips, asking for entry. Videl thought a simple kiss was enough, but since it was the heat of the moment, she hesitantly opened her mouth a little. Gohan went straight in to meet her tongue with his. Videl recoiled and broke off.

"Sorry, too fast?" Gohan asked with a light laugh.

"Yeah…but I was mostly surprised. I haven't exactly…kissed a boy before."

"Want to keep going?" Gohan asked. Videl restarted the kissing this time. After a bit of that, Gohan lowered his hands to reach under her shirt.

"Ok, that's too fast." Videl stated.

"Haha, ok I know that too."

"Aw, you guys are cute. When's the wedding?" Goten spoke from above them. Gohan hadn't even sensed his approach. They both broke off, red with embarrassment.

"Don't worry, I won't tell mom you guys were all kissy." Goten then took off once more.

"So I guess we'll keep training tomorrow?" Gohan asked.

"Yeah…see you later. And don't forget about the tournament!" Videl opened her vehicle and turned to smile at him once more before taking off.

Gohan then heard a familiar voice. "Did I hear that right, a world tournament? Count me in!"

"Dad, is that you?"

"Yeah, I can secure transport to Earth for a day, and that sounds like a perfect time to do it." Goku spoke through King Kai.

"You mean you'll compete too? Awesome, I'll fill everyone in." And he did just that. First his mother who was elated to learn she'd get to see her husband again in this lifetime. Goten didn't know how to react, but he supposed he should be excited too. It wasn't too long before the day of the tournament. Everyone was gathered and awaiting the arrival of their favorite guy.

Well that's the first chapter, subsequent chapters will be longer. Leave feedback if you're interested!

-SSJ