(Sometime Later)
After Gohan's previous misconceptions in regards to what high school was really like in the big city, his first day attending the institute was actually turning out to be quite a blast. So far, in the two hours that had passed since entering the academy, there had been very little to no heckling, no paddle chases, no teasing, no rite-of-passage trials, and no harassment related abuse directed towards him whatsoever. In fact, from what he'd been able to witness, everyone seemed to be blown away by his presence, as he could sense the eyes of almost every single student glued onto his back wherever he went.
Whether this was a good thing or a bad thing he would reserve judgment on that later. But for now the hero of earth was just content with sharing the same classes as his girlfriend and her companions. Hopefully he would be able to carry on this streak throughout the rest of his tenure here at Orange Star High and make many fond memories.
Eventually the first period of the day came and went, and as soon as the bell rang at half past ten, all of the kids emptied out into the quads and hallways for recess. This was pretty much the cue Gohan was waiting for ever since the first hour. The moment the isle he was sitting in began packing up for the break, he speedily headed out to his locker to grab his food.
He didn't go alone. Videl, Erasa, Sharpener and Touya also went with him, and joined the young man on the seats outside. It was here under a large cherry tree the demi-Saiyan unpacked his food and began helping himself to the intermediate snack his mother had prepared for him.
With everyone arranged comfortably around the table, the situation was primed and ready for conversation.
"So… how is it that you two girls know this guy?" the voice of Sharpener spoke up while looking across at the two females he'd known since middle school. "I mean, I'm guessing you three must be pretty close if you're already acting so chummy on the first day."
Videl, opening up a box of assorted vegetables, fruits and peanuts, smirked back at the curious jock in the purple singlet top. "Well… I've known Gohan for over seven years now, and Erasa has known him for around two. So, next to her, you could say that he's my second childhood friend."
Raising his hand as if he were in class, Touya also added his own name to the list, "And I met Gohan a few months after Erasa did. Just around the time I was starting out at this school."
"I see," Sharpener murmured, counting up the scores with his fingers before resting one of his big arms on top of the table. "You must have quite a bit of history together then, huh?"
Giggling a little, the blonde girl sitting on the other side of the demi-Saiyan leant against his arm and grinned up at the new kid. "You could say that."
Giving Erasa a bit of a look, Videl then redirected her focus to her other classmate and continued on with her exposition. "Gohan's… actually my martial arts teacher and training partner. He taught me most of everything I know today."
"This guy?" Sharpener asked incredulously, poking a thumb at the spiky haired male. When he saw the Saiyan and the crime fighter grin, with the city's number one idol also throwing the new student a fond look, the blonde sportsman dropped his arm and smirked. "Come on, Videl. Seriously? You're, like, the second strongest person on this planet. What can some kid from the mountains possibly teach you when you were practically born and raised on the stuff yourself?" He then gave the new guy a momentary smile, "No offense, dude."
Gohan shrugged, "None taken."
"Oh. Shoot. I don't think we've been introduced yet." Setting down his protein bar, Sharpener held his hand to the teen across from him. "The name's Sharpener. I'm also a friend of Videl's."
"Nice to meet you," Gohan replied, reaching out and gripping the boy's hand firmly. "I'm Gohan."
Withdrawing a second later, the jock whistled and shook his hand out, "Woot. That's some grip you've got there."
"Oh. Sorry about that. I didn't mean to-"
"Ah, don't be, man. I'm used to it. Being a friend of Videl's kind of requires you to have a bit of a strong arm if you're planning on shaking hands with her or her old man," Sharpener replied, waving off the kid's apology and smiling. "Growing up out in the sticks, tipping cattle and pushing plows must've really toughened you up. Does your family own a ranch up there or something?" It was this question that drew a series of chuckles from the girls as well as a light-hearted laugh from Gohan.
"Not exactly. My family owns an estate, but we don't have a farm next to it or anything. Our place is more like a cottage out in the groves."
"Ah. So your family is one of those self-made ones, is it?"
"Yeah. In a way." The spiky haired hybrid rubbed the back of his head in that characteristic manner. "My dad set it up for us on his grandfather's property. Since we don't need much up there in the mountains, we've been able to hold it together pretty well over the years."
Sharpener grinned, "I haven't visited many places like that so I can't imagine what it must be like." He then tilted his head towards him inquisitively. "So if I heard the girls correctly, you do martial arts as well?"
"Uh-huh," Gohan nodded while grinning. "My entire family does martial arts. You… could say it's in my blood." More than that. It was in his genetics.
Hearing this answer drew a chuckle from the blonde across from him, "I can see why you and Videl get along so well. But considering who her dad is, I still find it hard to believe that she's been taking fighting lessons under you." He then gave the Saiyan a sincere shrug. "Sure, I guess you might have some sort of old-timey folksy-wisdom that she may not know much about when it comes to trading punches, but aside from that I just don't see her taking many sessions from anyone except her old man."
After hearing Sharpener's piece on the matter, Satan City's staple girl shook her head at the man before then casually picking at her fruit salad. "Just so you know, Sharpener, the world is a lot bigger than you think it is. There are other fighters out there that are way stronger than my dad."
The jock scoffed and shook his head, "I'll believe that when I see it."
Touya jabbed his fork in the jock's direction, "If you behave, maybe you will." Upon receiving an odd look from the sportsman, he then glanced across at the girls sitting alongside him. "Do you… think we should tell him?"
His question was quickly followed by a shake of the head from Videl and a cautionary glance from Gohan, "Not yet. Just let him stew for a little bit longer before easing him into it. If we try to tell him everything in one go his head might explode."
"Ah. Got yah," Touya exclaimed, giving them the 'O.K' sign.
Erasa, trying to finish her apple, glanced up at the demi-Saiyan cheerfully. While doing so, she ended up completely missing the confused look being thrown at her by their blonde haired gym junky. "When it comes to keeping big secrets, yours has to be the best one yet, Gohan."
The spiky haired fighter gave the girl a humorous look, "And you just love that stuff, don't you?"
"It's my number one fix," the blonde replied while winking. "Got any more juicy secrets you want to whisper to me? Huh? Maybe something to do with-"
"Now now, Erasa. Take it easy," Gohan said while waving a finger warningly at her when she leant in closer with that captivating smile of hers. "You know what happens when you hear too much gossip… what it does to you when you try to take it all in?"
"It starts to spill out. Yeah, yeah," the girl moaned, before huffing in disappointment and propping her chin on her hand. Poking the table in front of her, Erasa then started absently drawing circles across the wood. "It's just that there are so many people in this school with so much to tell. Where do I even begin?"
Videl snickered at her friend's sulking. "How about hanging onto the eggs you've already bought for a little while and just bear with it for a couple more weeks?"
"Aww… but Vi…"
"No buts, Erasa. Behave. Otherwise I'm going to disown you," the raven haired girl threatened half-heartedly, despite the fact that she was also wearing a smile.
Exhaling deeply, the blonde then nodded in resignation, "Fine. I'll be good." This earned a pat on the head from Gohan, which prompted the cheerful teen to smile at him kindly.
Looking between the three in front of him, Sharpener blinked a few times in confusion and turned his attention to Touya sitting alongside him. "Okay… what exactly are they talking about? What's this big secret?"
Leisurely dining on his first period snack, the brown haired young male in glasses smiled, scrunching up his empty muesli bar wrapper and tossing it into the nearby bin. "You'll find out when you're old enough, Sharpie." This response drew a sour look from the man in the tight singlet. "This is something only grownups can talk about."
"Ugh. Tight-ass…"
"It's what you get for teasing me about my choice of clothing," the boy jabbed while throwing the guy a smirk. "If you take back your snide remarks, maybe I'll do you a favor and spill the beans on what these guys are hiding, right here, right now."
Staring back at Touya for several seconds in silence, Sharpener then looked over to see Gohan and the other girls listening to them intently from the sidelines. After taking in their collective expressions as well as the outfit the guy was still sporting, the blonde bit his teeth together in a brief moment of hard contemplation, before turning back to his recess.
"Nah. It's not worth it."
Touya smirked, "Hmph. Your loss." Deep down though, he was extremely disappointed.
With their parts said, the group returned to enjoying their post-opening period break. After several more minutes of conversation, in which the girls spent the entire time catching up with their favorite Saiyan, the bell to the institute soon rang, beckoning all students scattered across the campus. The tide of teenagers slowly flowed back into the main building, where Gohan and his companions quickly made their way to their next class. Along the way, the demi-Saiyan was approached by Videl, who began briefing him on their planned set of activities for the rest of the day.
You could say that the announcement she had to make came as quite a surprise to him.
"Club open day?"
"Yep. It's a day where all of the clubs in the school open their doors to new students who wish to try out for their organizations. It's basically a chance for all newcomers to hone their skills in whatever extracurricular field they choose," the raven haired girl explained to the boy as they stopped in the middle of the hallway. With the rest of their gang filing up behind them, the duo gave each other their undivided attention. "If you have a career path in mind and want an extra push to get there, joining a club is one of your best options."
"Think of it as an association that provides specific activities that will help you in accomplishing your goals," Erasa chirped in from the sidelines, drawing Gohan's gaze over to the smiling girl. Lifting a hand, the blonde placed is proudly against her ample chest. "I plan on going to university to get my degree in International Studies."
"Really?" Gohan asked, looking across at the girl curiously before smiling. "You want to become a journalist?"
The girl nodded enthusiastically, "Uh-huh."
"That's an interesting career choice," Videl murmured, eyeing her friend incredulously with her arms folded over her chest. "I thought your parents wanted you to do accounting after you graduated from high school."
The blonde girl shrugged, "Let's just say I found a new calling in life. I talked it out with mum and dad and they both think it's a terrific idea. Besides…" She then beamed towards the demi-Saiyan standing next to her. "As long as what I do makes me happy, then nothing else matters. Right, Gohan?"
Her comment earned a fond glance from the newcomer from the countryside. "Yeah."
Erasa tilted her head at him and pressed her text book firmly against her stomach. "It's only common sense."
"Well… I guess that explains why you've been so focused on doing media studies lately," Videl replied while folding her arms over her chest comfortably. "We can go have a look at all the clubs during afternoon period. Classes have been cancelled so that the students can go check out the venues spread out across the campus, so you're gonna love it."
"Oh, I bet I will," Gohan chuckled.
Stepping up to the spiky haired fighter, Sharpener placed a hand on his shoulder and spoke with him man to man. "You should definitely try your hand at some of the sporting clubs while we're showing you around. I'll swing you by a couple of them so you can check 'em out."
"Thanks. I appreciate that," the half-Saiyan replied sincerely.
While the blonde jock began leading the raven haired teen down the hall at a faster pace, telling him all about the martial arts clubs they had at this school as well as various other contact sports, Videl, Erasa and Touya hung back and watched the pair amble on.
With a bright smile on her face, the blonde girl leaned over and whispered to her friend, "He looks so happy."
"Yeah," Videl nodded. "Being surrounded by so many people his age, I figured he would be a lot more nervous than this. But he seems to be settling into the school quite well."
"That's no surprise," Erasa stated with a fond smile in play. "Gohan's a really friendly, out-going guy. The fact that he's getting along with Sharpener of all people says a lot about his character."
Touya chuckled while slipping his hands into his pockets, "Must be his magnetic personality."
"Whatever the case, I'm really looking forward to spending a lot more time with him," Erasa informed with a giggle, a response that quickly drew the crime fighter's attention to her blonde haired classmate. Hugging her books to her chest even more, the cheerful young girl turned to her friend and spoke to her with an excited tone of voice. "I've got a lot of stuff planned over the next couple of months… and I can't wait to get started." She then wasted no time in moving to catch up to the demi-Saiyan and the jock, with Touya following them close behind.
After hearing her friend's remark and considering her words carefully, the raven haired crime fighter stared after the group uneasily before jogging after her…
OOO
(An hour or so later)
The class the group had after recess was literature studies, something that Gohan found rather enjoyable whereas the rest of his peers simply paid lip service to everything the teacher had to say. It was only when the bell for the end of class period rang that all of the students were excused for the day and instructed to go explore the many clubs the institute had to offer. All presidents and current members were out prepping their venues, and all newcomers to the school as well as those still 'free' denizens of the community were looking forward to trying out some of the extracurricular services that were available.
Gohan was especially eager to get started, so much so that he was one of the first students from his room at the front door and ready for action. With his bag slung over his shoulder, the spiky haired teen waited for his friends to catch up before the more seasoned attendants of Orange Star High began leading him around the main building. With a list of all the clubs available on hand, it was clear that the young Saiyan warrior had plenty of options to choose from. The only question now was which club he would end up picking, if any, to express whatever creative genius he had.
There was only one problem…
"What exactly is my talent?" Gohan asked aloud, scratching his head as he stared down at the sheet of all the clubs and where they were located. As he, Videl, Erasa, Sharpener and Touya strolled by dozens of other students roaming the hallways with similar objectives in mind, the demi-Saiyan couldn't help but address his current problem with the other members of the band. "What do I want to do with my skills?"
You would think this far along in his life he would've picked something other than martial arts and scholarship as dreams to pursue. What did he want to do alongside his role as a defender of earth and after all of his education was done? It was a question that he was unable to address until now and it was beginning to bother him as the group filed down the hallway with labored footsteps.
"That all depends," Videl cut in, siding up next to her boyfriend and throwing him a warm smile when he directed his gaze towards her. "What kind of stuff do you do in your free time? What are your hobbies?"
"Hobbies?"
"Yeah. Stuff that you're good at," Touya spoke up, pulling up next to his taller friend along with an intently listening Erasa and Sharpener. "Why don't you list them off for us? Give us an idea as to what you can do?"
Placing his thumb and finger to his chin, Gohan began to think in stages. "Well… I'm good at math, literacy, science, chemistry, quantum physics…"
"Aside from all that," Sharpener cut in, shooting the guy an amused smirk. "Geezus, Einstein. What about something that you enjoy doing?"
Gohan threw the blonde a surprised look. "But…I do enjoy doing that stuff."
His answer had the jock stare blankly at him. "Seriously?"
Shaking her head at her boyfriend's innocent reply, Videl then stepped back into him and nudged him in the ribs. "How about something that'll get you outside of the classroom? Something that's fun and you're really passionate about?"
"Oh," the hybrid teen replied, with a grin forming across his lips. "I get it. Let's see…" Rubbing his chin once again, the spiky haired hero then began pulling ideas out of the air and arranging them accordingly. "I'm good at martial arts…"
"That one's a given. Go on," Videl encouraged with a bright look in play.
"I like fighting, running, swimming, weight-lifting, flying…"
Sharpener raised an eyebrow, "Wait. Flying?"
"Gesundheit," Touya interjected, smacking the teen Saiyan in the shoulder and drawing his attention. "Sorry, mate. Keep going."
Grinning sheepishly at his little yet inconsequential slip-of-the-tongue, Gohan did as instructed and continued, "I like baseball…"
"So generally a lot of sporty stuff? That's cool," Videl summarized with an understanding nod, before then pointing at the list in the teen's hand. "The clubs out by the track and field should be right up your alley." Those items were the less intense sporting activities. Hopefully her idol would be able to find something he enjoyed out there on the grass.
Stopping in his tracks so that the others did so as well, the half-Saiyan smiled and showed the rest of his group the document he was carrying. "How's this for an idea? Why don't we go check out all of the clubs closest to us first before heading outside to have a look at the venues on the ovals? That way we'll be able to cover all of the indoor groups before getting into the more spread out ones. What do you guys think?"
Seeing his friend's logic, Touya nodded, "Sounds like a plan."
"Alright. Let's do it," Erasa chirped, clenching her fist victoriously and thrusting it forward.
Completely psyched and beaming from ear to ear, the half-Saiyan was then taken by the hand by his friend Videl and dragged down the locker-lined corridor. When Erasa and Touya quickly followed after the pair, they left Sharpener standing in place and staring after them with a bewildered expression slapped across his mug. After they got about a few yards away from the stumped jock, the long haired sportsman raised a hand as if to ask a question.
"Wait… nobody else heard him say 'flying'?"
Realizing he was being left behind, the long haired man quickly kicked his body back into gear and chased after them.
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