Confessions-A Goku and Jiren Story-Rewritten

Chapter 6: Nightmares

Darkness, that was all he saw, darkness.

Jiren looked around, unsure as to where he was or how he got there. He tried moving, but soon found himself unable to, his feet were glued to the ground.

The Pride Trooper cupped his hands to his mouth and called out, "Hello? Is anyone there?"

Suddenly, a bright flash occurred and Jiren blocked his eyes to shield them from the light. When he opened them again, his eyes widened to find himself... home.

His village was bustling with many familiar faces and all the Grays were chatting, playing and working in the field. Jiren stood as he watched everyone he cared about living their lives, oblivious as to what was going to happen to them. Another flash occurred and he found himself staring at the two people he never thought he would see ever again: his parents.

There they stood, talking to each other and smiling as they didn't notice their older version of their son staring at them.

"Mother... Father..."

Jiren tried to call out to them, but it seemed that they didn't hear him whatsoever. All he could do was watch them.

"Where's Jiren?" the man asked his wife.

"He's on another one of his 'adventures'. He should be home soon."

"That boy's got a wild imagination, that's fo-"

Suddenly, the door burst open from behind them and the man stood in front of the woman to protect her. Jiren turned around and his eyes widened as he saw a purple aura grab his parents' necks. Jiren's sweat dripped down his face as he saw those piercing red eyes. He tried to move again, but he couldn't, he could only watch as the demon sucked the life out of his parents.

Jiren's eyes were filled with tears, "Please, stop! Don't hurt them!"

However the demon didn't seem to hear him as he punched a hole through his father's chest. The Pride Trooper screamed in agony as he watched his father's lifeless body fall to the ground.

"P-Please... don't..." the woman whispered, choking as the creature tightened his grip around her neck, killing her slowly.

Jiren could no longer hold back the tears as he yelled as loud as he could, "MOTHER!!! FATHER!!! PLEASE!!! Please... stop it... STOP IT!!!!"

The demon turned to Jiren, making the Gray freeze. After a few seconds the demon narrowed his glowing red eyes.

"You're next." he charged at Jiren, purple binds pulling him to the floor.

"Let me go, you monster! Let... me... GO!!! GRAAHH!"

---

"NO!!"

Jiren gave a sharp yelp as he sat up from his position on the bed, drenched in sweat and breathing heavily. He looked around and found he was in his bedroom.

"It was... a dream?" Jiren shook his head to rid himself of the painful memories, wiping his tears with his hands. Jiren held his head as he sighed, staying like that for a few moments until he got out of bed, not noticing that Goku wasn't in the room. Jiren quietly walked to the dining room with a ki-ball in his hands to light up the house and noticed his mate in a chair with an empty glass in his hands.

"What are you doing up?" Jiren asked, grabbing an empty cup and pouring some water out for himself.

"Couldn't sleep." Goku mumbled, "What about you?"

Jiren sat down in a chair next to Goku and sighed, "Nightmare, though it was more of a memory, I guess."

Goku stared at the empty cup in his hands as he spoke, "You too, huh?"

To that, Jiren didn't respond. Goku didn't push the subject further and gazed out the window, staring at the crescent moon and the beautiful stars glimmering in the darkness. Jiren noticed the mix of emotions in Goku's eyes and placed his gloved hand over his.

"Do you... want to talk about it?"

Goku didn't respond for a few seconds and looked down. The Saiyan let out a shaky breath as he intertwined his hand with Jiren's.

"I was... in a house of sorts, and I saw two Saiyans with your normal Saiyan armour. One was a woman with long messy hair and the man was basically me except with a scar and Saiyan armour. I recognised their names somehow... Bardock and Gine."

"Did you know them?" Jiren asked. Goku shook his head, "For a while, no, until the woman mentioned the word 'son' and I realised who they were... my parents."

Jiren looked at Goku in shock. He had a dream about his parents? In all his years of staying with Goku, he never bothered to ask about them, and he didn't think he cared about them too much, and who could blame him? He was given a bad impression of Saiyans by Raditz, Nappa and Vegeta, though one of the three managed to have a family of his own and Broly never really counted since he wasn't brought up as a true Saiyan, just as a weapon by his father Paragus, or so he heard.

Goku ran his free hand through his silver hair as he continued to speak, "They were talking to each other in front of my nursing capsule, my... mother trying to convince my father to not send me to Earth, but he said it was for my own safety because Frieza was scared of the Super Saiyan coming. They grabbed a pod and sent me to Earth, my mother screaming to not forget them. After that... after that my... dad, he... he tried to stop Frieza's Supernova and he... he... I couldn't do anything... I... I..."

Goku was practically shaking now and tears were threatening to spill. Jiren moved in closer to Goku and hugged him, rubbing his back. Goku dug his face into Jiren's chest as he began to sob quietly.

He wasn't crying because his father and mother died, nor because he was sent away, he was crying because for all these years, he never once cared about his parents. He was never curious about his parents and he always considered Grandpa Gohan to be the one he cared for the most, but after what he remembered and what his parents did to protect him and how much they cared about him, he realised that not all Saiyans were bad, and he regretted not reviving them sooner.

Goku's sobs died down slightly and he pulled away from the hug, wiping his tears away with his arm. Jiren wiped the rest of them away with his thumb and gave a small smile.

"Are you feeling better?" Jiren asked. Goku nodded and gave a grin.

"Yeah, thanks Jiren... I-I needed that."

Jiren smiled, but it soon faded and he looked away, clenching his teeth in he process. This got the Saiyan concerned as he placed a hand on Jiren's shoulder.

"Are you okay? You seem distracted."

Jiren sighed, "It's nothing, don't worry."

What he didn't know, was that Goku was looking through his mind (a neat trick that only Saiyans can do if they have a mate) and he saw what horrid nightmare he had. Goku gasped slightly, and squeezed his grip on Jiren's shoulder.

"You're still thinking... about that day, aren't you?"

Jiren didn't respond, making Goku even more concerned over his well-being. After a few moments, Jiren turned to Goku, shocking the Saiyan with the silent tears trickling down his face. He shook out of his stupor and wiped his eyes, giving a sad smile to him. Jiren's smile returned with gratefulness to everything Goku had done for him.

"I guess we've both had some low points in our life." Jiren whispered, to which Goku nodded in response.

"Yeah..." Goku suddenly stood up and pushed his chair in, "I'm gonna try and sleep now... you coming?"

Jiren merely responded by walking side by side with Goku back to sleep, feeling ready to move on and continue with their new lives, but they both knew that no matter how long their journey may be, they knew that they would always keep the past close to them.