tongue tied

goin' 'round this roundabout

Goten hurried out of school, his steps quick and purposeful. He made sure to avoid crossing paths with Trunks, not wanting to deal with the awkwardness that had settled between them lately. Ever since that night at Capsule Corp, when he saw how Trunks demeanour immediately changed when he saw Mai, things had been strained.

As Goten boarded the bus, he found a seat towards the back and slumped into it, feeling a heaviness in his heart. The bus was mostly empty except for a few scattered passengers, including Sami, a girl in his grade with long brown hair and bangs. To his surprise, she settled into the seat next to him."Hey, Goten," Sami greeted him with a warm smile."Oh, hey, Sami," Goten replied, trying to muster a smile of his own.

"How was your day?" She asked

"Good, yours?" To be truthful Goten wasn't in the mood to talk but he tried to be kind.

"Mine was okay. Maths has been really hard." She said with a frown.

"Ah that sucks." Goten replied and for a while, it was silent. As the bus ride continued, Sami opened her mouth again.

"You know, Goten, I've heard you're really good at studying. I was wondering if you could help me out with math sometime?" Sami asked, her voice light and friendly.

Goten hesitated. "I'm not sure if I have the time..." Also his Mom would probably tell him to focus on studying.

Sami leaned closer, and placed an arm on his bicep. "How about 10,000 zeni per lesson?"

Goten blinked in surprise at the generous offer. "Uh, I mean, I guess I could help..."

"Great! You're a lifesaver, Goten. When can we start?" Sami beamed at his acceptance. They exchanged contact information, and Sami continued chatting animatedly, though Goten remained somewhat oblivious to the subtle flirtation in her tone. The bus rumbled along its route, nearing their stop, when suddenly, a commotion erupted at the front. A man with a wild look in his eyes stood, brandishing a gun.

"Everyone hands up! This is a robbery! Put everything you have in the bag."

He walked through the bus with a black sack and panic rippled through the bus as passengers began frantically handing over their belongings. Goten, however, remained oddly calm, his expression neutral as the man approached him, demanding his wallet.

Sami tugged at Goten's sleeve urgently. "Goten, give him your money!"Goten shook his head slightly.

"No... I can't." His last few Zeni that his Mom had given him were in there and if he lost that he wouldn't eat for the rest of the week.

"I said give it to me!" The man's hand tightened on the gun, his patience wearing thin. He cocked his gun, aiming it directly at Goten's face.

Before the situation could escalate further, a loud crash echoed through the bus as Trunks, wearing his Saiyaman-X costume burst through the window with a flying kick, knocking the gun out of the man's hand and sending him sprawling to the floor.

"Is everyone okay?" Trunks asked, scanning the bus quickly.

Goten's initial relief at Trunks' timely intervention quickly turned to irritation. "What are you doing here? I had it under control!"

Trunks frowned, his concern shifting to annoyance. "Under control? Goten, you were just sitting there!"

Their argument sparked, the tension between them escalating as Trunks accused Goten of being careless, and Goten defended his choice not to escalate the situation further. Everyone watched them in disbelief, how could they be arguing whilst a man with a gun was right there? Goten shoved Trunks in frustration, the force pushing him down the aisle. Trunks looked at him angrily and shoved him back. To everyone else it looked like it would escalate to something dangerous but if someone like Gohan had seen it he would've asked them why they were fighting like toddlers. The robber, momentarily forgotten, began to stir, reaching for his fallen weapon.