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Date Night
By koinekid
“How did we get roped into this?” Krillin said.
“Don’t ask me,” his wife replied. “They’re your friends.”
Krillin laughed. Lazuli long ago caved in and accepted the fact that she had become friends (to one degree or another) with most of her former enemies. But whenever one of them annoyed her, that person became “Krillin’s friend” once more. It reminded him of Bulma grousing at Vegeta over “his son’s” behavior, and Krillin could easily imagine Lazuli employing the same tactic should their little one get into mischief.
His fingers suddenly itched to caress his wife’s pregnant belly, but this far along, any pressure to her stomach caused discomfort. He settled for pressing his lips to her temple as she leaned into him.
Seated on the couch with Lazuli in his arms would have been a fine way to spend an evening—if the couch were back home and not in one of the living areas of Capsule Corp with Trunks, Goten, and a little girl they met only an hour before shrieking from room to room in a makeshift game of tag. At least Krillin convinced them to play no-powers to “make it fair” for the girl.
With Lazuli’s due date rapidly approaching, Bulma had persuaded the couple to relocate to Capsule Corp. Eighteen needs to be near the hospital in case there are complications.
Krillin knew Bulma was right—blunt but right. As they discussed her offer, Lazuli confessed she too was nervous. “I wasn’t designed to give birth,” she said, the word twisting into a curse on her lips.
And so, they accepted, grateful for a friend who cared enough to provide a temporary home for them and their unborn child. Bulma also arranged twice-weekly visits to the nearby hospital to meet with specialists flown in at her own expense. So far, the doctors were optimistic, and the relief that flooded Krillin’s heart after every positive report was palpable.
He could never repay Bulma for her kindness. Unfortunately, he made the mistake of telling her that. The glint in her eye should have sent him running.
Thus began his career as Krillin the babysitter. Oh, he’d watched the children of Earth’s Special Forces members before, even taken care of Gohan for months on an alien planet. But Gohan was studious, well-behaved, and respectful. Goten and Trunks were anything but. And Krillin always seemed to get stuck with both of them at once. Bulma called it Parenting 101. Krillin called it boot camp.
At the end of one particularly trying day, as he and Lazuli lay in bed together, she joked, “Are you still sure you want to have a kid?”
“Ours won’t be anything like them, right?”
“I hope not.”
Lazuli spoke not from experience but from the horror stories she heard spending most of her days in the company of Bulma and ChiChi, her self-proclaimed instructors in the art of motherhood.
After recounting the worst of the tales, Lazuli told him in all sincerity, “Krillin, I am so glad I fell in love with a human, because I could not handle a Saiyan child.”
He didn’t tell her, but he thought she could handle just about anything.
The babysitting woes continued for weeks, at last culminating in tonight’s festivities: Bulma’s so-called date night. She had invited every couple in the group—except them. Not that Krillin felt slighted; with Lazuli so close to her due date, a night on the town couldn’t hold a candle to a quiet evening alone. But they were getting neither, and Bulma hadn’t even bothered to ask them to babysit, merely assumed they would.
This time, Lazuli shared his irritation. He could practically see a vein throbbing in her temple as the group departed in a procession of aircars: Naturally, Vegeta and Bulma led the charge, followed by her parents and Yamcha with his new girlfriend (it was her daughter playing with the boys). Even ChiChi tagged along. Krillin felt especially sorry for her “date.”
“Mommy’s little man is taking her out for a night on the town!” she proudly announced when dropping off her youngest son. Her eldest, Gohan, looked intensely uncomfortable.
The kids flying by the open doorway snapped Krillin out of his reverie. So much for no-powers. They were growing rowdier as the evening continued, and Krillin decided it was time to usher Lazuli off to bed. Half-Saiyan children at play were a recipe for disaster around a pregnant woman.
Ironically, the human girl proved the most troublesome to Lazuli that evening. Before he could speak to his wife about going to bed, the girl barreled into the room at full speed and stumbled, splashing the contents of the cup she carried all over Lazuli. She gasped.
Krillin easily checked his anger. He’d experienced far worse indignities babysitting the boys. “Kiddo, you need to be more careful. You spilled water all over Eighteen.” The couch was soaked.
The girl stuck out her tongue and bolted.
“Krillin—”
“Don’t worry, babe. I’ll get a towel.” He rose, but she grabbed his wrist.
“This isn’t water,” she said.
“What is it, juice?”
His wife shook her head.
“Then what?” That’s when he noticed the smile spreading across her face. His eyes widened. “Oh, oh, is it—?”
“Yes, honey. It’s time. The bag’s in the closet, and the numbers are by the phone.”
Krillin took a deep breath. The logistics of bundling into an aircar three rambunctious children and a cyborg wife going into labor seemed daunting, but he willed himself to stay calm. As he retrieved the phone and dialed the hospital, a part of him—a tiny part, mind you—smugly anticipated his next call: the one to Bulma that would bring both date night and his babysitting career to a merciful end.
People have been comparing the K18 dynamic to Wall-e before so I decided to run with it. Making their costumes was a challenge, especially Krillin’s but I just LOVE the way it came out.
Well whaddya know! I actually made it for all five days! GO ME!
This one is a bit longer than the rest, but honestly... worth it. I’d actually been working on this concept for a while but could never make it flow. Today, I did. Special thanks to @chestnutisland and @deadlybeautydbz for the encouragement!
And so, without any further delay, please enjoy this entry for K18 Day!
“I'm just saying, I don't understand why they insist on renaming this place 'Satan City'. Especially when it's probably not even the man's real name.”
Chi-Chi shifted her shopping bag to her left hand and smoothed the front of her dress. “I mean, they're keeping the park's name the same for crying out loud. Ain't no consistency anywhere, I tell ya.”
Krillin nodded politely and forced a laugh, peeking from behind a large stack of boxes on the picnic table in front of him. He and 18 had agreed to accompany her and Gohan and little Goten, on a shopping trip, and he'd been deemed the designated pack mule once again..
18 had thought it a bit strange at first; if Gohan was with, why did she need help? After seeing the mountain of supplies and clothes being hauled along, however, she was quickly beginning to understand. Krillin had once told her that Saiyans had appetites that put even his own to shame, and the massive amounts of food certainly seemed to support that claim.
Still, she couldn't complain. She'd needed to pick out some new clothes as well, and her husband wasn't exactly the best person to ask on this particular excursion.
After all... he wasn't likely to know much about maternity clothes
Her gaze shifted to Gohan, pulling faces and making strange noises at the overalls-clad, spiky-haired toddler in his lap. Goten clapped and giggled and tried his best to copy his older brother, only to make himself laugh harder. She smiled at the sight, wondering if her child would be so bubbly.
Her child. Krillin's child. Their child. To learn they even could have children had been incredible in and of itself. When they'd learned they were to be parents, that their child was already on the way, they'd been ecstatic.
At least, initially. After a bit, however, a realization had dawned over the both of them. They had no idea how to be parents. Neither she nor Krillin even remembered their parents. The closest they'd had were Gero and Roshi, and... well, one was a monster, the other not exactly an ideal role model.
It was scary to them. And this, in part, was another reason they'd agreed to this trip. It was nice to get their minds off things for a bit.
“Something on your mind?”
At least, it was nice.
“Yeah,.Chi-Chi. Just... thinking about some things, is all.”
The other woman leaned forward. “Is it anything I can maybe help you with?”
“Well...” Krillin spoke up. “We're-ah... we're expecting, actually. We're gonna be parents.” He placed a hand behind his head. “Found out about it earlier this week.”
“Oh my goodness, that's wonderful!” Chi-Chi practically had stars in her eyes, zipping all over the place. “Why didn't you tell me before we got the groceries? We need to get you to the mall! There's baby clothes, maternity clothes, a crib-well, I suppose I could give you Goten's old one, it's still super sturdy, oh my gosh!”
“Congratulations, you guys.” Gohan smiled, patting a now-sleepy little boy resting on his shoulder.
“Thanks,” Krillin replied, and 18 allowed a small smile.
Gohan's eyes went wide, and he stood quickly, being careful not to disturb his baby brother. “Hey mom, they have a bookstore over there! Can I go look for something real quick?”
“Sure hon, but try to hurry. We gotta get all these back and then mommy and your auntie have to go do some baby planning~!” Chi-Chi was practically floating while 18 did her best not to cringe. She'd been touched, really, about how accepting Goku's wife had been of her, the whole 'I was trying to help hunt down your husband' thing notwithstanding, but she hated when Chi-Chi referred to her to her sons as “auntie”. It made her sound so old. And 18 was most definitely not old.
“Here, can you hold him for a bit, please?” Gohan stood in front of her, offering her a tired little bundle. Goten yawned slightly and reached.
18 hesitated for a moment before reaching up and taking the little boy and resting him against her shoulder. He leaned back a bit to look at the owner of this new perch, and giggled before nestling against her, ready to resume his nap. She looked over to the table and couldn't help but notice her husband watching her, a dreamy smile on his face.
It was nice, she had to admit. Very nice.
“Sooo,” Chi-Chi began, “since this is gonna be the first time for both of you, I think it's time we have 'the talk'.”
18 smirked. “I think we're well past that at this point, given the baby and all.”
Chi-Chi giggled. “Not that talk, obviously. I mean.. well... about parenting.”
18 and Krillin both shot each other a nervous look. Could she have known? Did something give it away?
Krillin stood. “Uh... well, while you two chat, I think I better stretch the ol' legs for a bit. Hah, with any luck it might stick and I'll grow an inch or two.” He laughed nervously before bolting to the other end of the park.
18 sighed and hung her head. “I swear, sometimes I think I already have a child.”
“Oh that's rather normal, unfortunately.” Chi-Chi sighed. “Men tend to try to avoid talking about this sort of thing. Feelings make them nervous.”
“Krillin's never really been one to hide them though. Not from me, at least.”
Chi-Chi pursed her lips. “He's just trying to calm himself down, I think. He did this a few times when he'd come to visit and I'd ask him when he was getting married too. Poor man was worried sick he'd never so much as get a girl to look at him.” She motioned to 18's belly. “Obviously not much of an issue anymore, but..”
18 chuckled. “It's hard not to look sometimes.”
The two sat in silence for a bit before 18 spoke up.
“The thing is... we're nervous. Scared, y'know? I mean...” she struggled to put things as delicately as possible. “Well, neither of us really know our parents. Krillin's basically ditched him as a child. Me... I have no memory of mine at all, even if I wanted them. No memory of a life before, even.”
“Hmm. And has that been a source of stress for you?”
18 shook her head. “Not really, no. I made my peace with that fact a few years ago. My life is here and now, with him. The past is just that.” She bit her lip. “I just don't really know... I'm not sure I'm cut out to be someone's mother.”
Chi-Chi shifted positions to better look at her friend. “How so?”
“Well like I said... I've never really had an example of it. Not sure I can run off of just some vague sense of instinct and whatnot. Besides, I know I can be a bit ornery at times. I still have to catch myself with Krillin sometimes, and when I don't I try to make it up later. It's hard enough seeing myself do that with him; how much harder is that going to be on a child?”
Chi-Chi placed a hand on the other woman's free shoulder. “That's a really rough feeling, I know. Believe it or not, I know how you feel.” 18 raised an eyebrow at her. “When I was very young, my mother died too. I only really had faint memories and photos of her, and even most of those were lost in a fire in my father's castle.”
“Oh. I'm sorry, I hadn't been aware.”
“It's no big deal,” she said. “You couldn't have known. But I went through similar when I learned I was having Gohan too. I wasn't exactly super ladylike back then.” Chi-Chi was gradually becoming more animated, her voice deepening as she went on. “I enjoyed getting out there with the boys, fighting, watching with glee as I dominated them and reveled in their frustration of being beaten by “just a dumb girl”!...” She cleared her throat as 18 stared, wide-eyed. “Goodness, I got a bit carried away there. But yes, I wasn't sure I'd be the best mother in the world, and Goku was always a bit aloof and air headed, and I wasn't sure he was ready to be a dad either..”
Goten started to stir a bit and 18 shushed him, gently patting his back and rocking him slightly until he was back to sleep. “So then... what happened.”
“Well, she smiled, “our little boy came! And the first time I held him, I knew I wanted to protect him, to do what was best for him, make sure he had a good life and could provide for his family some day... that's the instinct bit. The rest, I read books, I spoke with people I knew who'd had children, I even consulted with my old nanny for advice.”
She held up a finger. “That's one thing to remember, never be afraid to ask someone for help or advice. No one is perfect at raising a kid, even so-called experts disagree on how best to do it, and different methods work on different kids.”
“So... I can call and ask you about things then?”
“Of course!” Chi-Chi was beaming. “I'd be honored to be your go-to consultant!”
18 smiled. “Thanks. That... actually helps me feel a bit better, honestly. I just wish Krillin were here to hea-” A loud cry echoed across the park and 18 and Chi-Chi turned to see a little girl under a tree, crying and pointing to the branches.
“Someone, help! My kite got stuck!” Krillin turned to see a little girl under a nearby tree, pointing up in distress at a bright blue kite trapped in the branches, in danger of being potentially skewered. 'Oh man...'
He trotted over to the tree quickly. “Hey hey, kiddo, no worries. I can help, you, ok?”
The little girl sniffled ans wiped her eyes. “Y-you can?”
He grinned. “Sure can. I'll have that sucker down in a jiffy, no worse for wear. Promise.” He turned and looked at the tree, trying to find any natural handholds. Normally he'd have just zipped up and grabbed it for her, but 18 had wanted to keep a low profile and have as normal a life as possible, and the Cell Games rather necessitated they all maintain a low profile besides unless they wanted to be the center of a media circus.
Finding what he deemed a suitable starting point, he gripped the tree and began a rapid ascent, almost leaping from one handhold to the next until he reached and mounted the long branch. He crawled along it quickly, until he reached the point where the kite was nestled among the long, spindly points of the twigs at the end. He'd have to be careful here; too much push in either direction would result in the paper being potentially skewered or shredded. He reached slowly, carefully, and...
A sudden gust of wind blew in from the east, roughly shoving the little blue kite from its place of safety. Without so much as a second though, using all his speed, he snapped forward and grabbed it, stopping it just shy of the sharp points on the branch, his arms wrapping around it protectively as he thudded down onto the ground below.
“MY KITE!” The little girl ran to him fast as she could, her pigtails trailing behind her in the breeze. She snatched it up and hugged it close. “Thank you so much mister!” Her happy smile faded when she looked down and noted the scratches on his arms and face. “Oh no! You're bleedin', mister!”
Krillin sat up and forced a strained laugh. “That's okay, kiddo. Don't worry about me.” He rubbed his ribs and tried to catch his breath. “I've been skewered by a lot bigger before. This is nothin'.” A small pair of arms wrapped around him, and Krillin smiled.
“Thank you so much mister!” The girl stood and ran back toward the playground. “Bye!”
“Buhbye, kid! Be careful now!” He rubbed the scratches on his arm and started back toward the picnic area where his wife waited, a warm smile on her face.
“Hiya hon. I'm back. Kid had a kite in the tree and I sorta helped.”
“I saw. Nice work.” She smirked. “Especially the graceful dismount.”
Krillin sat back down at the table and turned to Chi-Chi. “So, uh... yeah. About earlier...”
“Krillin, you, of all people, don't need to worry about being a good dad.” Chi-Chi smiled at him. “Gohan told me about the things you did for him on that Namek planet. You took care of him for over a month, you regularly visit and play with him and heck,” she gestured toward the tree. “You even do stuff like that for kids you've never so much as met. You're a natural.”
Krillin averted his eyes, blushing. “Y-you really think so?”
18 nodded in agreement, her smile still bigger than he thought he'd ever seen before. “Mhmm. You've def got good dad qualities.” There was a certain twinkle in here yes, however, that gave him goosebumps.
It was then he noticed Goten's sleeping form, nestled comfortably on his wife's shoulder, a serene and happy look gracing his features. “Well it looks to me like somebody's gonna be a natural mom too.” It was his wife's turn to blush and he laughed.
“He's right though,” Chi-Chi agreed. “Goten certainly does love to be held by you, and it's very unusual for him to trust anyone but Gohan and me enough to sleep on them. You must have a pretty calming presence to children.” She looked back to Krillin. “And like I said before, if you ever have any questions, don't be afraid to ask me.” She puffed out her chest. “I've handled two Saiyan boys after all, so I think I'm qualified to advice.”
Krillin was still mesmerized by the sight of 18 holding Goten, unable to look away from her or that gleam in her eye. “Uh-huh. We'll be sure to do that.”
“I'm back!” Gohan came sprinting across the park with a bag in his hand. “Sorry it took me a while to find this, but I wanted to get you guys something.”
“Aww, thanks bud.” Krillin took the bag from his hands. “You didn't have to.”
“That's okay, I wanted to! I just want one thing in return.” He put his hands behind his back and grinned. “When your baby's born, you gotta bring it to visit with you.”
18 chuckled. “Sure thing, kiddo. So what's in the bag?”
Krillin reached inside and lifted out a small book of baby names. “Oh, thanks Gohan. That's actually gonna be pretty helpful.”
“Can I see it?” 18 asked. Chi-Chi stood and allowed him to sit next to his wife as he flipped the book open to a random page. “Hmm.” She furrowed her brow.
“You know,” Krillin said, “it never really occurred to me how many names seem to have their origin in food. Odd, that.”
“Kinda, yeah.” 18 agreed, handing Goten back to his mother. She peeked over at her husband as the situation dawned on her. The nervousness was still there, but nowhere near as strong. They were finally able to fully embrace the news for the first time since they'd been told. And there they were, looking for baby names for their child. The child they made together. She felt that familiar warmth in her cheeks.
Krillin was halfway through the C's when he felt his wife's hand caress his cheek and lift his face away from the book to look her in the eyes again. That gleam was back, stronger than ever, and the goosebumps came back with it. “I love you,” she said.
“I love you too,” he replied, as she gently pulled him in for a lingering kiss.
Chi-Chi cleared her throat. “Gohan, sweetie, stop staring and start loading the groceries in the car, please. We'll be heading home on our own, I think.”
Gohan carefully lifted the stack of boxes and crates from the picnic table. “I thought you and 18 were supposed to go shopping for more stuff later.
Chi-Chi smiled as the couple left the park, hand-in hand, 18 resting her head atop Krillin's. “We can do that tomorrow. Right now, I think they'd like to be alone.”
In the air over the open ocean, 18 and Krillin flew back to their home, hand in hand. Krillin felt so happy he could burst. He was gonna be a dad! A good dad! Shoot, probably the best ever, if he had anything to say about it! And he was having a child with the most wonderful, beautiful woman in the world.
Without so much as a word, he pulled down a bit and swooped up behind her, putting on an extra bit of speed to scoop her up into his arms, carrying her bridal-style through the air.
“Honey, not that I'm one to complain when you act on your urges, but what's the occasion?” She smirked and raised an eyebrow.
Krillin shrugged. “I just don't want the mother of my child to strain herself or anything. Gotta protect the baby and all.”
18 smiled and felt her cheeks go flush once again. Ordinarily she'd have picked on him relentlessly for this sort of thing, but given the occasion, she opted to allow it, wrapping her arms around his neck, nuzzling into its crook. “Hmm, I see. Well, I suppose we can't be too careful, can we?”
“No, ma'am.”
18 smiled at him again, the gleam once again returning to her eye. “We should celebrate when we get home. We never did get to do that, after all...”
Krillin blushed and swallowed hard. “O-oh yeah, you think so? What's you have in mind?” His wife leaned in closer, whispering into his ear.
And on that day, Krillin reached Kame House in record time.
