Chapter Eleven: Nice New Beginning For A Dirty Old Man

Kame House…

"I hope that Candy heard my songs," Roshi said wistfully, as he sat down in his recliner. He was unusually quiet, not even turning on the television. The only sound in the room was the music playing from the radio. Baba was meditating on top of her crystal ball with her eyes peacefully closed shut. Oolong and Umigame were sleeping, with Oolong resting on top of Umigame's shell. Juuhachigou and Krillin were playing gin rummy while Marron pensively played with her "Candy Apple The Academy Award Winner" doll in the "Candy Apple Dream Mansion" on the floor. By this time, Marron had two other Candy Apple dolls, a "Candy Apple The Policewoman" doll, and a "Candy Apple The Schoolteacher" doll, and all three dolls were "sleeping" in their luxurious bedrooms in the Dream Mansion. Marron no longer felt much like playing; she wanted the real Candy Apple back.

"I wish that I could go get the Dragonballs, so that I could wish that Candy could come back right now," she said mournfully, as she made sure her Candy Apple The Academy Award Winner doll was tucked in her bed correctly

But Marron would not need the Dragonballs, for at that moment, a red compact car materialized right behind Roshi's green leather couch! And inside the car were Goku, Chichi, Goten-and Candy!

Everyone jumped up with a start, and Marron started racing towards the car when she saw Candy. Oolong fell to the floor hard when Umigame abruptly arose, and Juuhachigou and Krillin dropped all of their cards.

Chichi was already yelling at Goku, "Goku, couldn't you have teleported outside Kame House instead of inside with the car?"

"Sorry, Chichi," Goku apologized meekly, as he turned off the car's engine. "My instant transmission technique always takes me to wherever I can sense someone's ki. No one was outside at this time."

Roshi and the other Kame House occupants coughed on the fading exhaust before it completely dissipated. Candy hurriedly climbed out of the car that was still parked inside of the Kame House living room, and after giving little Marron a loving hug and kiss, she rushed over to Roshi. But before she could reach him, she slowed down and began walking slower towards the man that she had come to love so much. Roshi looked at her hesitantly, longingly, as Candy came closer and closer to him.

"Roshi?" Candy said timidly, as she finally made it to him. She held out her hands and Roshi slowly took them, as he looked up into her deep green eyes. Gently, he laid an aged hand on her still-flat stomach. He could feel the tiny trace of ki emitting from her abdomen.

"I don't believe it," Roshi whispered. "Even though I feel it, I find it hard to believe that I'm going to be a father." He laughed nervously. "To be honest with you, Candy, I always thought that by this time that I'd be too old to father children, but…it seems that fate had other things in mind for me, for us." He winked at her, as Candy watched him with all her heart in her eyes.

"Do you truly want to be a father?" she asked nervously. A part of her still feared that Roshi would not want to help take care of their child, even though Goku assured her that Roshi wouldn't abandon her.

Roshi chuckled. "I'm not going to lie to you, Candy; I am a bit worried about how an old man such as myself would do for a father, but…I'm willing to give it a go. After all, I wouldn't mind having someone to train to become a fine warrior again."

"If he can get away from the girlie mags long enough to do so," Oolong snickered in a whisper to Umigame.

"He promised that he wouldn't look at those mags anymore," Umigame whispered back in response. Of course, Umigame, like the other Kame House occupants, were skeptical as to how long this promise of Roshi's would last. They also wondered how long Roshi would be able to keep his eyes (and his hands) off of young ladies.

"Actually," Candy began, "I've been doing some serious thinking on the way home from the doctor's office, and if no one minds, I would like to speak to Roshi alone outside."

"No problem," Roshi told her, and he followed the love of his life outside. When Roshi and Candy had gone outdoors, Goku patted his stomach and smiled.

"Boy, am I hungry," he said. "What's here to eat?"

Krillin began to rattle off the names of some of the foodstuffs in the house, but Chichi interrupted him, saying, "Before Goku eats anything, I want him to get that car out of the house!"

"Yes," Juuhachigou agreed. "This is a living room, not a garage."

"Will do!" Goku piped up cheerfully, and he touched the car and teleported himself and the vehicle outside. When he left, the Kame House occupants sighed and moaned.

"Have we been grocery shopping at all this week?" Umigame asked.

"Nope," Oolong stated. "And most of that stuff that Krillin mentioned me and Roshi ate yesterday. We did what girls did when they get depressed-eat enough for three Gokus! We don't have enough food right now to feed ourselves, let alone him."

"Hey, we don't eat like that when we get depressed!" Chichi protested angrily.

"I don't anyway," Juuhachigou added wryly. "I just go beat up someone."

"And what will you so depressed about, Oolong?" Krillin wanted to know. "I figured that you were happy not to have to pick up after yourself while Candy had been gone."

Oolong sighed, "My girl, Connie, won't talk to me anymore. In fact, she told me never to call again. And all because I said that I wanted her to mail me a picture of her wearing whip cream on her boobs and private parts."

"Just WHO is CONNIE?" everyone asked.

Umigame grinned. "Connie was Oolong's favorite phone-sex operator."

Everyone fell over backwards, just as Goku teleported himself back into the house. Oolong was too embarrassed to go on to add that the other girls in "Connie's" phone-sex company had also told the perverted pig never to call them again.


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On the beach of Roshi's island…

"What was it that you wanted to talk to me about, love?" Roshi asked Candy. He and Candy were sitting on the shore with their bare feet in the rushing tides of the ocean. Candy was wearing a simple knee-length white dress with puffed sleeves, and Roshi was in one of his usual suits.

"Roshi, do you truly love me?" Candy asked softly.

"Of course I do," Roshi told her firmly. "You are the first woman in years who has seen me as more than just a dirty old man. You make me feel young, Candy; you make me feel whole. It's been a long time since a woman has accepted me and loved me unconditionally. I want you in my life, Candy, and if I have to give up my girlie magazines forever to keep you, then I will do just that. Paper dolls don't compare to you. In fact, they don't even come close. I'll even stop flirting altogether with other women and girls."

Candy smiled. "Do you really mean that?"

"Absolutely," Roshi said decisively. "It's going to be hard to give up that habit, but with you around, I believe that I can do it."

"And you would never leave me for another female?"

"No way!" Roshi exclaimed. "Candy, you are the most beautiful woman in the world to me, don't you know that?"

"I do now," Candy said chokingly. "Especially after you sang those songs to me on the air; that was very sweet. Roshi, I threw out all those magazines because I was afraid that you found those girls prettier than me. I was afraid that you would fantasize about them every time that you and I made love; I was afraid…that you were secretly comparing me to them, and that I would never measure up." A tear slipped from one of her emerald eyes, and Roshi caught it with his thumb.

"You more than measure up, Candy," Roshi assured her, drawing her into his arms. Candy rested her head on Roshi's shoulder. "And yes, Candy, I do find other women and girls attractive, but you are the most beautiful in my eyes. Those other females catch my eye, but you're the only one who catches my heart. I would never betray you, not for anything."

Candy said softly, "So, if you were ever able to look at those magazines again, I would still come first?"

"Definitely. But I've given them up for good, so you don't have to worry about that." Roshi was prepared-somewhat-to give up his prized pornography forever, but he wasn't prepared for Candy's next words:

"Roshi, what if I were to tell you…that I now know that I am the only woman in your life…that you could keep your magazines?"

Roshi looked at her incredulously, with his eyes bulging out. "Ca-Candy, are you sure that you want to let me do that?"

Candy smiled. "I still don't entirely approve of those things, but I realize that there are worse things that you could be doing. Besides, those girls are just pictures, and I know now that you'll never leave me for them. And none of them are the mother of your child. So, Roshi, if you agree to keep those magazines of yours out of the hands and away from the eyes of this child and anymore that we have, I'll have no more objections."

"And about the flirting?" Roshi asked with a wink.

Candy narrowed her eyes. "Don't push your luck, mister," she warned. "You're my man now." She wouldn't mind as much now, if Roshi flirted with other girls, because she was secure in the knowledge that she was his one and only (of course, she had no intention of telling him this thought). However, if he touched those other ladies…

Roshi chuckled. "Just wanted to get a rise out of you!" He and Candy both knew that Roshi wouldn't completely stop being his old, perverted self, but now it would be a milder version of the old Roshi. And the rest of the younger female population would be safer, now that the "dirty old man" had a love all his own.

Candy leaned over and kissed him firmly on his lips. "And if you promise to behave yourself, I'll work on my jealous streak. I'll always be possessive of you, Roshi, but I'll try not to fly off the handle when some young thing tries something on you."

Roshi chuckled. "Actually, I find your jealousy flattering…just as long as no girlie winds up dead or permanently harmed."

Candy smiled and cuddled closer to the aged martial artist. "Seriously though, I will do better to control myself…as long as those young things keep their hands to themselves!"

Roshi laughed and said with a grin, "How about some good old-fashioned skinny-dipping?"

"Works for me," Candy said brightly. "I'm not wearing any panties or a bra at the moment." She casually slipped off her dress.

"Woo, yeah!" Roshi cheered, like an overly sexed sixteen-year-old boy. He began to undress himself.


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An hour later…

"OOLONG, STOP LOOKING OUT THAT WINDOW!" Chichi screamed.

Oolong grumbled something about loudmouthed women, as he reluctantly drew away from the front picture window, where he had been excitedly watching a nude Candy swim in the frothy ocean with Roshi. "It's not my fault that Candy decided to go swimming au naturel, although it would have been nice, if that old man had kept his clothes on."

No one disagreed with the last half of Oolong's sentence.

"It looks like they made up," Krillin said contentedly.

"I'm glad that Master Roshi's happy," Goku said cheerfully. "Although, I never thought of him having a girlfriend, I'm thrilled for both of them."

"I pity Candy," Baba, Chichi, and Juuhachigou all said at once.

"What do you see in Candy and Roshi's future, Baba?" Goku inquired.

Baba grinned, deciding to give this prediction for free. "I see…Candy becoming my future sister-in-law, and me having a nephew that'll drive me nuts, but will be loved very much anyway. Now as to whether marriage will settle my pervert of a brother…well, that remains to be seen."

Yes, that did remain to be seen, but for now, Candy and Roshi were happy. The Kame House residents could hear the happy shrieks of Candy and Roshi playing and splashing about outside. And Krillin and Juuhachigou were now seeing if they had enough money to treat everyone to pizza, and to give Goku the prerequisite five large pizzas that he always ate every time.


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Dende's Palace…

"So the doll and the pervert are back together…and they're going to have a baby…you help that poor child, especially with parents like Candy and Roshi!" Piccolo sighed heavily.

Dende laughed, smoothing out his robe. "C'mon, Piccolo, it won't be that bad. Not bad at all really, as long as Roshi keeps his magazines out of his child's reach. Candy and Roshi will be good parents, no matter what their faults, and that child will be loved to pieces with all the people in Kame House to look after him."

"What makes you so sure that that child will be a boy?" Piccolo asked sharply.

Dende chuckled. "Baba's never lied yet."

A/N: It's near the end--finally! I bet those of you who are still reading thought that I was never going to finish this, but I'm just one or two chapters away from the end.

Also, in a week or so, I hope to come out with a continuation, a sequel of sorts to "Be Careful", only this time, it will be an Oolong romance, and then possibly later there will be a Yajarobe/Mai romance (yes, I know you are wondering how I will pull THAT one off, and frankly right now, so am I). I'm thinking seriously of doing as many romances as I can for some of the oddball male characters in DBZ, the ones that never get paired with anyone. So don't stray too far; details will come soon enough.