Wounded Heart - A DBZ character-based song fix

[miyuchan]

THE WOUNDED HEART
A Dragonball Z Fanfic

Written by: Miyu, Vampire Princess

*****************************************
I will remember you.
Will you remember me?
Don't let your life pass you by.
Weep not for the memories.
*****************************************


'I can hardly believe it's been ten years,' Videl thought to herself. She looked carefully at her reflection in the mirror, smoothing the line of her short, navy skirt into place.

At 28, Videl Satan was an accomplished writer. She had two books published in the past year and the company was screaming for more. Her father was very proud of her, glad that she had not chosen a dangerous profession. He was so afraid that she would have decided to go off to the police academy.

But writing was not her first love. No, she HAD wanted to become a police
detective. She had always been heavily involved with the local police
department, helping to put a stop to crime. A smile briefly passed her lips at the memory of herself in high school. Fighting crimes was what she loved.

'No,' she corrected herself. 'The fighting had never meant that much to her. At least not in the end.' What meant the most was spending time with her fighting partner, Son Gohan.

As the Great Saiya Team, the two of them had put an end to more crimes than the police, not to mention saving the city more than once. They were unstoppable as crime fighters. As Gohan and Videl, they were good friends sharing in each other's secrets. What started out as friendship had become a strong bond, nearly inseparable. Under the coercion of friends and family, they started dating.

But all that came to an end after graduation.

Gohan was accepted to a school overseas, taking him thousands of miles away from Satan City while Videl planned to study locally. He had promised to keep in touch -- calling once a week and visiting on holidays. He was as good as his word too. Videl looked forward to his phone calls every week and she anxiously awaited his first vacation.

But after about two months, the phone calls had stopped.

Videl became worried. She tried to contact him at school, but with no success. She tried talking to Chi Chi, but all she would tell her is that Gohan had to go away.

What did she mean 'go away?'

Chi Chi apologized, saying no more on the matter.


*****************************************
I'm so tired but I can't sleep,
Standing on the edge of something much too deep.
It's funny how we feel so much but cannot say a word,
Though we are screaming inside, but can't be heard.
*****************************************

Videl became frantic, almost obsessed with finding Gohan. The nights became restless. Sleep escaped her. She had used every resource at her disposal and had been able to ask the help of her father. But after two months of desperate searching, there was no sign of him. It was like he had disappeared. POOF! Just vanished into thin air.

She wept for days, closed off from the world at large for weeks. For a while she thought to herself that perhaps he HAD been an illusion. That she had dreamed him all this time and had finally woken up. No, he had been real. She remembered the feel of his hand in hers. Remembered how warm he was when they were close together. These were not things of illusions. Regret stung her to the very core of her being.

She was never able to tell him she loved him.

It was some time before Videl finally tried to get on with her life. Her father
tried very hard to make her happy, but nothing would do. So, she turned to
writing. A few of her college professors encouraged her to continue writing as a hobby after reading several of her short stories published in the college journal.

It wasn't her first choice as a career, but it had proved promising.

And it brought her closer to Gohan, who wanted to become a scholar.

*****************************************
And I will remember you.
Will you remember me?
Don't let your life pass you by.
Weep not for the memories.*****************************************

The drive to the school was uneventful. She turned the car stereo up as loud as it would go, hoping to keep her mind off of Gohan. She tried to think of other things - other people - and wondered what her classmates would look like. She hadn't even seen her best friend, Iriza, for nearly five years.

Slowly she pulled in front of the school, parking her car in the last available
spot. Taking a deep breath, Videl stepped from the vehicle. The sign on the door read 'Welcome Back to Orange Star High'. She smiled briefly, walking through the double entrance doors.

No sooner had she stepped through the doors, those memories hit her once again. Walking down the hallway, she found herself staring at the corner shadows and darkened doors, remembering the times she and Gohan had spent in there. Remembering their times together as they studied in the library. Remembering the lunches they shared in the cafeteria.

"Videl-san?"

Remembering the talks they had before and after school by the stairwell that led to the roof.

"Videl-san?"

Remembering his laughter as he waved to her from down the hall.

"Videl-san?"

Videl jumped when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned quickly, for an instant hoping it was Gohan.

But it wasn't.

*****************************************
I'm so afraid to love you, but more afraid to lose.
Clinging to a past that doesn't let me choose.
But once there was a darkness, deep and endless night.
You gave me everything you had, oh, you gave me light.*****************************************

"Videl-san, it's me, Iriza."

Videl forced a smile, hugging the blonde woman before her. "Iriza, I wasn't sure you'd make it."

"It took some doing, but I told them that I was long overdue for a vacation and they couldn't stop me," Iriza replied. She smiled in return as they embraced, waning only slightly when they separated. "I was more afraid YOU wouldn't make it. Why are you wondering the halls?"

"Oh, you know," Videl said, her smiling becoming more genuine. "It's been a long time, or at least it seems that way." She sighed, looking again down the hallway. For a moment, she pictured Gohan standing there, waving to her. She could almost hear him call her name as he came running forward.

Then he disappeared.

"Yeah," Iriza replied looking in the same direction as Videl. "We had a lot of good times here."

"Yeah," Videl murmured, her smiling fading.

Iriza placed a hand on her friend's shoulder. "Still no word, huh?"

Videl never looked away, only nodded.

"I'm sorry," Iriza replied, her smile also fading.

They stood there, just staring at the hallway.

Videl's attention was now focused on something outside. A ki. Very faint, but still there. It was a familiar sensation. Like when Gohan would hide his powers from her, a light humming would buzz in her chest. Her eyes widened, clutching a hand over her heart.

It was the same feeling.

Could it be?

Finally Iriza said, "Let's go inside the gym. I'm sure Sharpener and the others are anxious to see you again."

Videl turned towards Iriza again, her eyes pleading. "Go on ahead. I'll be in
shortly."

"Are you sure?" Iriza was concerned.

Videl nodded again, clasping her friend's hands with a smile. "I'll be in
shortly."

Iriza stood silent for a moment before she smiled in return and released Videl's hands. Slowly, she walked towards the gymnasium, glancing back only once to make sure her friend was all right.

Videl watched her friend leave, and the feeling of ki had grown stronger. Once Iriza disappeared in side the gymnasium, Videl bolted for the stairwell leading to the roof. She could feel the ki getting stronger the higher she went. The heels she wore made it difficult to run, but she paid little heed to them, increasing her pace. There was only one thing on her mind.

'Gohan. I'm coming Gohan!'

*****************************************
But I will remember you.
Will you remember me?
Don't let your life pass you by.
Weep not for the memories.*****************************************

The door to the roof swung open easily. Videl rushed out onto the rooftop. Her eyes quickly searched for a sign of life. A sign of Gohan. She looked around anxiously, calling his name and hoping for an answer.

But she got none.

Videl sighed in defeat. It had just been her imagination. The ki had
disappeared. Slowly she walked over to the one of the poles, wrapping her hands around it and hugging it like a person.

"Gohan," she said into the night. "I miss you."

With another sigh she turned to leave, only to stumble upon a hidden object. She cried out in alarm, falling to the ground with her hands to break the fall. She looked down at her feet, eyes wide in amazement.

There, sitting in the darkness, was a dragon ball.

Videl blinked in surprise. What was a dragon ball doing on the roof of the
school? Was she imagining this too?

She stood, reaching for the small yellow orb. She picked it up, cradling it
gently in her hands. It wasn't as heavy as she remembered. She examined it carefully. There were no markings, except for the four stars on it.

'Is this where the ki came from? Am I going mad? Gohan, I miss you so much, it hurts.'

She remembered hearing Gohan's father, Gokou, talk about the four star ball. Apparently it held the spirit of HIS grandfather, whose name was also Gohan. She turned the ball in her hands, staring at it in wonder. She began to tremble.

"Gohan? Is it you?"

The tears that had remained hidden finally appeared, and Videl made no attempt to hold them back. She leaned against the pole, sagging until she reached a sitting position. She hugged the ball to her as she wept. The tears streamed down her cheeks like tiny rivers. Her sobs echoed in the evening air.

*****************************************
I will remember you.
Will you remember me?
Don't let your life pass you by.
Weep not for the memories.*****************************************


~~FIN~~


DISCLAIMER:
I do not own Videl, Gohan, or any other Dragonball character mentioned above. That credit goes to one Akira Toriyama and all the companies around the world that has licensed his show to be aired and/or published. No permission was asked for their use, and no profit is being made from this story.

"I Will Remember You" is sung by Sarah McLachlin and published by Sony/ATV Songs LLC, Tyde Music/Fox Film Corp., Seamus Egan Music (BMI)/Twentieth Century Fox (ASCAP) (c) 1998-1999. Again, no permission was asked to use the lyrics of this song, and no profit is being made from its use.