AN: This is my first Goten/Paresu fic. I hope everyone enjoys it, although I am not sure you will. I tried to make it good, I just hope I am successful. I warn you, it may be a little sad.
"Hello?"
"Hello, Paresu?" He said, his voice slightly shaking. He knew it was her on the other end of the phone, but a force of habit made him ask anyway. Plus, he was slightly nervous, and when that happened, his brain didn't always function correctly. Beads of sweat trickled down his forehead as waited to hear her voice again.
"Oh, Hi Goten!" she said, her voice full of joy.
A year ago, he had moved out of his mother's house and bought a small, one bedroom home seven miles away from Paresu's. He loved being so close to her, even though part of him regretted letting his mother stay alone, but he needed the independence. Goten smiled, "Umm... I made dinner tonight. Want to.. come over and eat?"
"You made dinner? That's a first. You don't even know how to re-heat something in the microwave!" she responded in a cheery, upbeat tone. Goten didn't reply. She was right though, Goten couldn't cook to save his life. Despite his love for food, he didn't even know how to heat water without burning it. It didn't matter to her though. Just the thought of Goten even trying to cook her something made her happy. When he didn't react to her statement she chuckled lightly to herself, "Oh, I'm sorry sweetheart. Its the sweetest thing to know that you cooked me dinner. I'm sure it will taste great! What are we having anyway? Potato Chips?" she asked still giggling quietly to herself.
"Oh ha ha ha," he said sarcastically, "Real funny, Paresu! No, I'm making something special just for you."
"Really? Awww, Goten, you are too cute! That's the sweetest thing you've ever done for me! What's the occasion?"
"Ummm... No occasion! I just wanted to, invite you over to have some dinner. Is that okay?" He replied as his voice rose slightly in its tone. He swallowed hard, hoping she didn't sense his nervousness.
Knowing something was wrong, she tried to talk about, "Are you okay, honey?"
"I'm... fine. I'm just.. having a hard time doing two things at once." He got out some pots and pans and filled them with water. He purposely made loud noises so Paresu wouldn't suspect that he was acting slightly strange.
"What time should I come?"
He glanced over at his watch, noticing it was already five O'clock and he didn't even start making dinner yet. His eyes slightly widened as he realized it took two hours for the meal he was preparing to be ready. "Come at 7:30," he said as he opened the refrigerator in a rush.
"Okay," she replied, "I'll be there. I better get ready, and you better get cooking!" she let out a little laugh as she heard all noises of pots and pans clanking together on the other side of the phone.
"I'll see you then," his voice began to shake again as he told her this one last thing, "And... I love you."
"I love you too, Goten," she hung up. He grinned, knowing tonight would be the best night of his life. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a little black, velvet case. He opened it and gazed at the ring he had bought earlier that day. It was so beautiful, yet it could never be as beautiful as she was. He loved her with all his heart, more than life itself. He would trade the world just to be with her. He had prayed to Dende that she would want to spend the rest of her life with him, just as he wanted to spend it with her.
Goten sighed, "I'm glad I met her. I don't know how my life would be without her," he frowned when he realized he had been staring at the ring he bought her for fifteen minutes. He cursed himself lightly under his breath, and quickly searched the cabinets for plates and utensils as he set the table. The dinner sat in the oven, baking away, probably burning to little crisps, unknowing to Goten.
Before long, eight O'clock rolled around and there was no sign of Paresu. Goten figured that she was just running behind, knowing how long it usually took her to get ready. She always had to be perfect before she went anywhere, and she always was.
Goten picked up the phone and dialed her house. No answer. 'She's probably on her way,' he thought, but part of him worried slightly. He shrugged it off and tried not to think about it. The candle sticks he had lit had burned down to the very bottom of the wick, and he blew them out just incase they started a house fire.
When ten O'clock came, Goten had fallen fast asleep on his couch, still waiting for Paresu. The dinner he had taken so long to prepare, sat on the coffee table, ice cold and not even fit for eating. It had burned slightly around the edges, but it was still the best thing Goten had ever made, and would probably ever make.
He just laid there, asleep, possibly wondering why his girlfriend of three years had stood him up on the night he planned to propose to her. Of course, she had no idea for what he had planned, but it still angered him that she decided not to show up.
It didn't matter anyway, by the morning he knew she'd have a reasonable explanation for not coming, and he'd forgive her and welcome her back with loving arms. Just to make her pay for ruining the night though, he'd make her eat the leftovers of the food he made. He knew she'd hate him for it, but he loved joking around with her. Goten knew that part of her loved it, too.
The sun shone through the window and hit Goten's face. He squinted slightly, then rubbed his eyes until they opened halfway. As he got up, he checked his watch and noticed it was 8:30 AM. He let out a small sigh when he realized he was still wearing the clothes from last night.
"I wonder what happened to her," he said angrily. He was so disappointed that she never came, and that they weren't even engaged yet. Goten took out the black velvet case again and opened it. He frowned, realizing that he had to find another way to propose to her. 'Cooking dinner was too much work,' he thought, 'I'll have to think of a better way to do this. First I better call her though.'
Goten walked towards the phone and picked it up. He dialed her number. No answer. As he hung up the phone, the doorbell rang. "It must be Paresu," he smiled and walked towards the door. When he opened it, he was met with a familiar face.
It wasn't Paresu... It was her mom. Paresu's mom looked just like her, except she had slightly darker hair. "Why is she here?" he thought. He tried to see her face, but it was looking towards the ground.
"Umm..." he began. Paresu's mom, Belle, snapped her head up, and looked at him. She had red rings around her eyes as if she had been crying the entire day. Goten knew something was wrong, but he had no clue what. "Are you..." he began again, but promptly stopped when she fell into his arms sobbing and wailing like a little child. Tears streamed down her face and absorbed into Goten's shirt.
"Its Paresu," she started, trying to stop her endless cries so she could get more than just two words out. "She's.." She couldn't stop, she cried even harder, clinging Goten like a giant Kleenex tissue.
"What?! What happened to Paresu!? Tell me!" Belle cried even harder. Realizing screaming wasn't going to get him anywhere, he invited her in to sit down and relax. He knew something must of happened to her, and he prayed to Dende she'd be okay. He led Belle into his house and sat her down on the couch. "Now, What happened to Paresu? Please, I need to know."
Belle wiped her tears from her eyes and took a deep breath. She looked Goten in the eyes. "Sit down," she said, "You'll need to." Goten sat and she continued, "Last night, when Paresu was on her way to your house, she got in a car accident."
Without giving her a chance to finish, he blurted out, "Is she okay!!? Is she hurt?! Did she break any body parts?! What hospital is she staying at? I have to go visit her now, she needs me! I hope she'll be--"
"Goten!! Let me finish," tears swelled up in her light brown eyes as she went on, "Paresu... didn't survive the crash... She's, she's... she's gone." An outburst wails and moans escaped Belle's mouth as she covered her face in her hands.
Goten's mouth opened in shock. His hands began to shake and he just looked into space. Slowly, he closed his eyes and just stared into the blackness that was behind his eyelids. He felt as if his world was spinning, and as if he were spinning out of control, unable to stop this roller coaster of emotion. He couldn't speak, he couldn't see, he couldn't even hear. All feeling was lost, and he just felt as if his entire body was a empty shell of numbness. 'Gone?' he thought, 'She... She can't be gone.'
He reached into his pocket and felt the case of the ring he bought for her. He never got the chance to ask her if she'd be his forever. Now she was gone, and the chance he had, had passed him by. He opened his eyes, still unable to see what lied in front of him. He sat back further on the couch as his eyes began to water. He closed them promptly, as to avoid crying. He didn't know why but right now, crying wasn't going to make him feel better. It wasn't going to bring her back.
"But.. how?" he finally managed to ask as he opened his eyes once again.
Belle choked back her tears to say, "Her car was hit by a drunk driver. He... he managed to survive and drive away. Later, the police found him, crashed into a tree on the side of the road. Paresu... she, she... she was rushed to the hospital, but it was too late. The driver had hit her from behind and..." but she couldn't finish. The more she said, the harder it was to talk. She buried her face in her hands again and continued to sob.
Goten closed his eyes, unable to look at the mother of his only love. The only person who could make him feel special inside, was gone forever. He was destined to never see her beautiful face again, never feel her soft touch against his body, never hear her angelic voice. Was there even a reason for living now? If he couldn't hear her, why should he hear at all? If he couldn't touch her, why should he feel at all? What point is sight if there was nothing beautiful to see? He glanced over at Belle. He had to be strong for her, someone had to.
"Belle... Is her.. this may sound strange but, Is her body okay. I mean, the funeral... is it going to open casket?"
Belle Nodded. "She looks beautiful," she said, "I saw her, after she died. I saw her body, and her face was still the same as it always looked. I think... I think what killed her was... she lost a lot of blood... and her stomach was..." she stopped and turned her head away. She took a deep breath and continued, "It was... It had been..."
"Its okay, Belle, I understand," he wrapped his arms around her in comfort, hoping it would calm her down. "When is the funeral?" he asked as he felt a nauseous feeling rise in his stomach. Talking about his girlfriend's funeral was the most horrible feeling anyone had to face. He swallowed hard, trying to make this uneasy feeling sink back into his stomach.
"Tonight, at 7:30."
"I'll be there."
Later that night, Goten stood outside the funeral parlor. It was 7:15, and like all loving and caring boyfriends should be, he was early. He sighed and slowly walked in. Dozens of sympathetic eyes stared at him as he walked towards the front row. He sat next to his mother, who was crying uncontrollably after receiving the news of his son's girlfriend's death. Gohan was there with Videl, who both looked as if they themselves had died.
Goten glanced up at the casket. There she was, lying like a flawless angel, still as beautiful as he had seen her last. He was in awe at how great she looked after going through such a horrific car crash. Dozens of flowers decorated the room. He had sent some flowers earlier, and they sat on top of the casket, right near where her feet would be.
Someone from behind placed a hand on his shoulder and broke his trail of thought, "Goten, I'm so sorry." He turned around to meet the person face to face. It was Bulma. A look of sympathy was draped across her face. He noticed that Trunks, Bra... and even Vegeta was with her. He was surprised to see them here, since they barely knew Paresu at all.
"Thank you," he simply said and turned around again. He didn't want to be spoken to, and who could blame him? Everything had happened so fast that it wasn't ever registering quickly enough to believe.
The Brief family quietly sat in the row behind him.
Goten turned around to look at the door and saw Belle. She reminded him so much of Paresu, it made him frown when he saw her. He stood up and walked towards her. Her eyes were still filled with tears and her face was a bright cherry red color. He gave her a comforting hug and then led her to a seat next to his.
"Thanks for being here Goten," she said, "It means a lot to me."
"No problem. Though I am here because I love her, not because you need me to be here."
A small, practically invisible smile crept across her face, "I know, Goten, I know."
Just as they were about to engage in a small conversation, the Priest walked up to the podium and demanded attention, "Ladies and Gentlemen... We are here today to honor our loved one, Paresu. Friends, family members, mothers, lovers. Please, if someone would like to say a couple of nice things about Paresu, please stand up, and do so."
Goten stood up without even realizing it. He walked towards the podium and said, "I would like to say something, please."
"Sure, go right ahead," the priest replied, backing away from the stand to let Goten move into his place. He stood on the side watching him carefully.
Goten swallowed hard, and looked at the tear-filled eyes of everyone in the room. Paresu was loved, and he knew it too. He began, "Paresu..." he stopped, and cranked his head down at the floor. He promptly picked it up to finish, "She was my only love. I don't know if I'll be able to live another day without her, and I curse Dende for taking her away from me."
The priest flinched at those words, but realized that they were coming from a man who needed time to think things over.
Goten went on, "Its as if the life has been drained out of me... But that's not important. We are here to say why we love Paresu, and I love her so much that I cannot survive without her. She was my steady girlfriend for three years, and those years were the best of my life. We did everything together, and I'll never regret a day of it. I can remember our first date, I took her for ice cream... She didn't know how to eat it without a spoon. I guess she never had an ice cream cone before. Those things I think I'll miss more than anything. Paresu, I'll never forget you. You are my world, and you always will be. I love you," he said, as if he was talking to her.
Goten walked down from the podium and back into his seat. His mother hugged him while he sat down slowly into his chair. "That was beautiful, Goten," she said, in pure honesty.
"Thanks Mom."
Further into the night, Goten found himself staring at her coffin. Just the top part was open, and she lay there, hands on her chest holding a small bouquet of flowers. 'She looks so peaceful,' he thought.
He reached down into his pocket and pulled out a small little case. It was the case that he kept the ring in and slowly opened it. He looked at her, then at the ring. He took it out of his case and lifted up her hand. They were ice cold and as soon as he touched her, his entire body went numb. He placed the ring on her finger and gently kissed her hand.
It was as if his mouth just started moving without his control, because he began to speak to her, directly from his heart. "Paresu... You will always be mine, and I wanted to make sure you knew that. I just hope you do. Actually, I'm sure you do. Maybe it was just that I needed reassurance, but I think I know for sure now. Goodbye Paresu, may you pass on in peace," he said.
He stepped down from in front of the casket, leaving the ring still firmly planted on her finger. He sat back down, at stared at the casket with a blank face, not ever thinking to shed a tear.
But that was life, people die, you move on. Its one big cycle, and Goten just had a problem excepting it, like many people do. He just sat there, slightly paralyzed, unable to move, or maybe not even wanting to move.
Many would probably call him crazy, giving a diamond ring to dead girl. It didn't matter to him. Money was nothing, love was everything. Would he be destined to never love again, or would time heal his wounds and he'd find someone that he could be with? It didn't matter now, as long as she was dead, a part of him would always remain dead as well.
Authors Note: I wrote this fic, to warn people of the dangers of drunk driving. I also wrote it because I don't hate Paresu, I acually like her. Just because I killed her, doesn't mean that I don't think they are a good couple. Many may say this fic is "incomplete" but I am going to write a sequal to maybe fill in some of the holes if you think there are any. Possibly a fic where Goten Learns to love again.
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