Black Cover: White Sheets
His eyes felt heavy and the remnants of a headache lingered just behind those lids. Jeice felt like he had been in a training marathon the day before. In truth, he had done something horrible to a woman who probably did not deserve it. Only after the deed, he had recalled her warning about pregnancy as he succumbed to exhaustion and fell asleep. Now his head was reeling and the empty space beside him told him what he needed to know.
A part of him just refused to believe that she could be carrying his child. It must have been just a horrible memory of her being scarred into never sharing her bed with a man. Perhaps her parents had told her horrible tales of what sex might be like and she simply weaved together some tale so she would never have to deal with the experience.
With her gone and the way she had looked at him before pleading for a release, he found it hard to believe she would have been lying about such a thing. A clenching feeling overtook his stomach and suddenly the thought of getting up to grab some breakfast was more akin to torture than pleasure.
Running his slender fingers over the space that was once occupied by his long gone lover, he sighed.
She probably hated him and it served him right. He took what he wanted and ignored the pain of others. How ironic that he once mocked Saiyans like Vegeta and yet he had taken her in the Saiyan way. Take what you want no matter the cost. If you want it, it is yours. It seemed so stupid in hindsight and the guilt that loomed in his gut made him wish he could take it back.
At least with all the other women he had taken to bed, they knew what they were going to receive and were the type who enjoyed it. Shōkēki, well, simply was not. She always seemed so gentle and pure, a real housewife type of woman. Seemingly glowing with an innocence that had been long lost with all of the other warriors of Frieza's army.
The Ginyū Force almost seemed like some sort of farce, the way they paraded around and came up with dance routines, but a darkness loomed behind all of them. No one was innocent here and blood covered the hands of every man within these halls.
So now, sitting in a pile of filthy sheets, Jeice had a choice. Pulling himself up and running a hand through his tousled mane, he contemplated apologizing. Surely she could at least accept his apology even if she decided to never speak to him again. He would understand, plenty of others did the very same. Mostly they just cowered in fear and said whatever they thought he wanted to hear.
With this girl, he had wanted it to be different. Still, he made his choice and screwed it up. Even if she had enjoyed parts of it, he was sure that it was the first and last mistake he could make with her. A delicate doll that probably had cracks running over its body. She may act tough on the outside but he knew she was just as gentle as a lamb.
An experienced warrior such as Jeice could see the shame and misery hidden deep behind eyes that tried to hide such feelings.
Groaning and holding his hands over his face, he felt frustration set it. He had really done it this time. Screwing up when he actually cared about something. Hopefully no one would find out more about his little misadventure. Burter and the others already seemed to figure out there was something going on between him and the pink skinned female. Maybe if he just tried to act normal they would completely forget about it and go back to terrorizing other warriors.
Yeah, hopefully that'll work. Got to get those blokes off my back somehow.
Peeling the now blood crusted sheets from his body, Jeice stepped away from the bed and stretched his arms over his head. Right now he could really do with a shower to get all of this muck off of himself. If he wanted to apologize, there was no way he would be doing so covered in their mixed fluids from last night. He would not be caught dead doing that under any kind of circumstances regardless of the night before. It would be downright gross and simply not to his taste.
Feeling the cool tile against his feet, he made his way into the bathroom and flicked on the lights. Stepping in front of the mirror, he propped himself up on the counter and stared down his disheveled exterior. Hair sticking out at every corner, bags under his eyes, and a bit of blood that had lingered by his mouth during last night's escapade. Grimacing and pulling away from the sight, he moved over to the shower and started the water.
While waiting for the shower to finish warming up, he stopped by his cabinet to pick out something to cleanse himself with. Finding some citrus and floral products, he went back over to the shower and stepped inside. Feeling the warmth and prickling sensation of water beating down on his skin relaxed him.
There was nothing like a hot shower after waking up.
Nothing except maybe sharing the shower with the person he had spent the night with. He hung his head down and leaned against the wet wall of the shower. Letting the water cascade over his shoulders, he scowled. She could have been here, maybe behind him, running her delicate fingers over his back or even lathering up shampoo into his hair. Those small, soft hands coming up from behind him to grasp at his chest and feel his muscles.
He could almost feel her there, the heat from her body pressed up behind him as she dipped her hands lower and further down. He grasped his now painfully hard member and stroked it gently a few times.
Biting his lip, he picked up the pace and was now pumping himself with his rough hands. He began to pant, the heat from the action and the steam causing him to be out of breath.
Imaging her back against the slick wall of the shower, he pictured her getting down on her knees and reaching out to hold him in those hands. Leaning forward to meet the swollen head of his cock, she would open her mouth and lick the pre-cum from the tip.
Feeling his legs begin to tense up and the pressure pooling inside of his abdomen, his hips jerked and he tightened his grip gradually. "A-ah fuck, Shōkēki, babe..." Whimpering and closing his eyes, his hips bucked again as he started to rub himself with a faster pace.
Her mouth would open wider and its warmth would enveloped him, her tongue running around the sensitive skin. Teasing it as she used her hand to pump over the rest of his shaft and the other to caress his balls. Just the mere thought had him on edge and he knew he would be able to cum soon.
While he wished it would really be with her, this daydream could suffice.
The suction he pictured combined with the harsh pumping of his hand brought him his release. His seed sprayed out over the shower wall and dripping onto the floor before mixing with the warm water. With wobbling legs, he held himself up with both hands as his cock pulsed.
Now he felt satisfied and calm enough to face her. With the sexual tension gone and the need to release with it, he could focus on a sincere apology. Hopefully she would at least forgive him enough to clear his conscience.
Straightening up, he turned off the nozzle and wrung out water from his locks before stepping out into the steam. Grabbing a towel from the rack and pulling it over his head, he let it sit there to absorb what he missed. While his skin prickled at the sensation of cold air hitting it, he made his way out of the bathroom to finish getting ready.
Throwing on some basic relaxation clothes, he figured they would do for this kind of visit. He may have felt bad but it did not mean he was about to spend hours in preparation. This was a delicate operation, one he needed to do as soon as possible.
Jeice could only guess that she was in her room right about now. It was the only place she would ever go when she needed to hide. Shōkēki did not exactly have many friends here, with her being the lonely female on the ship.
So after pulling on some shoes and tossing his towel in a basket in the corner, he left his room in hopes to find the female's room unlocked. He thought of last night and the nervousness that had been lingering in his mind intensified. He did not even know how to start this conversation if she even let him into her room.
Turning a corner in the brightly illuminated hallway, he found himself standing before the door which led to that very place. Gulping, he knocked softly on the metal and waited.
Silence answered his call and caused him to frown.
He waited some more and decided to knock a bit louder. When no answer came and he found himself just standing out in the open looking like a fool, he decided to try opening it. The door had actually been unlocked which seemed strange. Either way, he took a step in and was cloaked in darkness as the door shut behind him. Fumbling, it took a minute to find the light switch and he was shocked to see the room empty.
So maybe she did go out or perhaps she was called on a mission? Jeice scratched his chin in thought and looked around the small space. His curiosity was brought back when he spotted the small black book that lay on her bed. He was sure it was on the nightstand the last time he saw it. This meant she either moved it after editing its contents or someone had been snooping around in here.
Deciding it must have been the former, he waltzed over to her bed and sat down. Grabbing the black covered book, he stared at it, almost unable to bring himself to opening it. Looking toward the door once more, he waited for Shōkēki to come bursting in but when nothing happened, he turned back to the book.
Slipping a finger under the cover, he opened it to the first page. "Hmm, looks like it's a diary. So she actually kept somethin' like this. Heh." He could only chuckle at how much of a girl she was. Taped to the page was a picture of a young Shōkēki, smiling bright and holding the hands of two people who were apparently her parents. It read "Property of Shōkēki, do not read!" in a child's handwriting, sloppy and colorful. Drawings of animals and strange faces accompanied it.
He grinned and turned to the first page which was almost blank. It held a small entry and really showed him what kind of girl she had been before.
"Age 729: Day 56
Mom says I should keep a journal. But it's not really fun...I'd rather go play outside. Nine year olds shouldn't be stuck inside with noses in books..."
A crudely drawn picture of a little girl chasing animals was right under the horrible penmanship. The crayon mess showed a pink skinned child and silver grass, animals of all shapes and sizes decorated the remaining space.
Figures, she sounds like she'd be a energetic kid. Laughing, he turned the page before flipped through a couple, seeing the entries grow longer before he settled one that looked particularly interesting. It had streaks from tears running through the ink. Most of the black marking were scribbled in and hurried.
"Age 740: Day 143
"I can't believe the nerve of that jerk! He really pissed me off this time. First he says he likes me. Then he says he doesn't know. Now he says he's been in love with some other woman this entire time! I just don't understand boys.
Know it all, selfish, pompous boys. Hope he likes getting his nose broken as much as he enjoys breaking hearts. Tomorrow isn't going to be his lucky day."
"Yikes, what a lil spitfire. This girl really had some spunk didn't she?" He scratched his head and swore he could see her trying to beat his ass just for peaking in her diary. Staring at the door in anticipation for the oncoming storm, when nothing happened. With uneasy clenching in his gut, he turned back to the book.
"Age 740: Day 144
Well, mom is really upset I went and punched Dofüreic right in his fat, ugly face. Not to mention how mad his parents were. They should be praising me for fixing that screwed up mug of his.
That'll teach him to break a lady's heart."
Pfft. Shōkēki would be sentimental and girly enough to get her feeling hurt so easily. With the knowledge that she never laid with a man, he knew it was probably only another young man just trying to woo all the women he could. Maybe even to see which one he could bed the fastest. Jeice could not really blame him for that either. If he was stuck with a race who were not able to procreate as fast as they could, he would have a bit of fun while he was young and stupid.
Flipping through a couple pages and ignoring the pictures of the long gone planet, he looked for anything that might be more interesting that a young girl's love problems. That is when he stumbled upon a page, filled with crusted blood and tears, something that definitely captured his interest.
"Age 766: Day ?
It's happened. HE happened. Frieza."
"Shit!" Lowering the book, Jeice could only stare forward and contemplate stopping. He could handle plenty of conquering and destroying planets himself but to read the accounts of someone he actually cared for. To relive what she did on that fateful day her race was wiped from the universe and her home destroyed, it was torture. Curious torture.
Everything told him to put the book down and go look for her but back in his mind, he just had to know what happened. So with tense hands, he lifted the book back up and continued on.
"He's taken everything. My parents are dead. My people are dying. My planet will soon follow the same fate.
They've given us an ultimatum. Return in an hour with the intention of joining – or dying. An hour to bury our dead, make our last decision, and to sign our own death wishes.
I will fight. I will not let my people die in vain. Frieza will regret letting some of us live."
So she was aiming to stay low and somehow take out Frieza? Fat chance for that little plan, with how strong that man was, no one would be able to beat him. He understood how she felt, sometimes he doubted what kind of things there were doing, but at the end of the day, he survived and that is what mattered most.
Her romantic notions were cute, at best, but he was glad she never got found out. It would have been quick work for Dodoria or Zarbon to turn her into mincemeat. Not to mention the things they might do to a rather attractive woman like herself.
There were not many pages left now, most seemed boring so he skimmed through them and kept flipping through the book. Some pages told the story of Shōkēki surviving Captain Ginyū's entrance exams and of the people who did not quite make the cut. She had made it in and stayed alive long enough to be placed in higher ranks, all the while staying low enough to be off the radar.
Growing bored with copy and paste entries about day to day life and how much scum lived in Frieza's army, he sighed and leaned back, letting the book fall from his hand and onto his lap. Staring up at the ceiling, he wondered just where in the world she was. Surely she had not been sent off on a mission quite yet. They were still deep in space, far away from most of the planets they were scheduled to wipe out.
Last night had been bad but it did not warrant enough damage to put her in a healing pod, hopefully. Suddenly a bit more anxious than before, Jeice bit his lip and wondered if he should go check. She could easily come back and leave again in the time it would take to get to the other side of the ship where the medical bay was. Sitting up and grasping her little black book once more, he decided to stick around for ten more minutes.
"Surely in ten minutes she'll be back. If not, I'm getting' the rest of the Ginyūs to help me look for her."
He slipped a finger in a random page and started there, reading through boring entries and watched as the entries grew shorter and shorter. Almost putting him to sleep, he stood and began to pace as he read, knowing that being asleep on her bed when she returned would not be the best idea. Especially with his secret diary open and laying beside him.
Only a couple more pages left, but it feels like there's somethin' more-
As he turned to the next page, a photograph fell out, swaying until it reached the floor. Jeice frowned and bent down to pick it up but stopped when he saw what it was. A picture of Shōkēki that must have been taken just days before Frieza's onslaught of her planet. She looked so happy and carefree, so utterly beautiful, even though she was drenched in sweat and donned a black eye.
Grasping it and bringing it to his face to get a better look. He flipped the photo over and noticed small writing on the back. "Shōkēki! One and only martial arts master! Finished first in the brawl! Look out losers!" Seems like she really was full of hot air and energy before becoming a warrior. It would have really be something to know her before all this mess. To meet her when she was full of life and attitude. The make up sex – and even the hate sex – would have been amazing.
Pocketing the photo, he looks at the last page where it fell from. One line was all the page said but it was only those few words that brought tears to his eyes. "Jeice, thank you. I will keep you in my heart, always." He felt those annoying beads of salty liquid prickling in the corners of his eyes. They threatened to fall and he wanted to stop them, everything told him to keep it together and be a man. There was only so much he could do before tears fell down his cheeks and trickled onto the floor.
A proud member of the Ginyū Force stood here, crying like a babe. He could not believe himself but something in his heart ached and his lips trembled. He swallowed a painful lump in his throat and could feel his nose began to clog up.
No one could ever see him like this and no one ever will. Wiping his arm over his eyes furiously as he hiccuped, a snarl ripped from his mouth. Angrily glaring at the floor as more tears fell, he was pissed at himself for being so soft towards a woman. This is why everyone in the Ginyū Force acted so carefree, moments like these should not exist. They are battled hardened warriors, brothers who fight together and men who do not cry.
"Fuck, I swear, I don't need this shit." Snorting the mucus back and brushing away the final tears that strayed from his eyes. He closed the black book, hiding it's white sheets and the remnants of the breakdown he just had. His face was bound to be stuffy looking now and he reminded himself of Shōkēki. Breaking and hiding away in this tiny little space, hoping to be free one day. Free and happy.
Lowering his head, he turned and made his way to the door, suddenly done with this room and its contents. As he was about to open to door, a guard came stumbling in. Covered in sweat and obviously in distress, he looked like Hell.
"Aaaaa-Jeice! Um, er, sir! We have a bit of a problem." The guard stopped to catch his breath and wiped a bit of sweat from his brow. "Seems like Shōkēki has taken a pod and run off! She's gone-"
"What?!" Jeice was positively fuming now. "Where in the world did she go? More importantly, how did she manage this? Shouldn't you have been there?" Grabbing the guard by his collar, he brought him up to his red and angry face.
He saw the guard gulp hard before stuttering. "I-it was my mistake, she said she had a mission and I, forgot to check the logs. Sir."
Throwing him into the wall of the large corridor, he sneered. "You're comin' with me. We're gonna see where the pretty lil girl has run off to."
Making his was to the bridge, he heard the hurried steps of the guard right behind him. This was certainly not the news he wanted to hear and it was not going to be the highlight of the rest of the Ginyū Force's or Frieza's day. While a lowly warrior running off was not too big of a problem, she took one of their space pods and possibly information regarding them. She had to be caught or stopped at all costs.
He may care for her but the idea of her getting in Frieza's way was just not an option. As horrible as some of the things they did were, he had the perfect lifestyle and just about everything he wanted. Damned if he was to let his feelings get in the way of that.
Coming around the corner near the bridge, he stopped for a moment to brace himself for what was to come next. With the guard still close behind him, they both entered the room. Consoles and bright lights lit it up, without any need for ceiling lights or lamps. Bleeps and blips along with the clacking of nailed fingers hitting keyboards were the only thing that echoed in the room.
Reaching the closest soldier, he grasped his shoulder tightly. "So it seems a lil mouse has escaped with one of the space pods. Where is it headed?!" Making sure his shout was heard over all the electronic noise.
The technician was startled and jumped before managing to get out some words. "Well, um, sir, the problem is, well...The connection to the pod has been disabled. It appears that, whoever escaped destroyed all the tracking equipment inside. The global positioning system is off the grid and we can't even get a read on the radar so –"
His voice was cut off by Jeice's large hand wrapping around his neck. He squeezed, tighter and tighter, until the man was barely gargling pleas for his life. Watching with glazed over eyes and a tight expression, Jeice simply waited until the body went limp in his grasp. Simply letting it drop back into the seat, he turned to the other men in the bridge. They all flinched and worried the same would be done to them but it never came.
Instead, Jeice stared out into the vast reaches of space and watched as the stars flickered in the distance. "A'right men. Keep at it and make sure you don't give up trying to track her down." Turning and making his way out, leaving cowering men behind him. "Frieza wouldn't like it if you lot messed up, would he?"
Hearing the men stutter and whimper, he let his hand trail across the door before opening it and stepping out into the cold air of the hallway.
Jeice lay on his back, hidden away in the darkness of his room, only illuminated by the passing stars outside his window. This feeling of sadness and emptiness was new to him. Living a life where his every need was fulfilled, cutting off most of his emotions and spending days killing those who were powerless to stop him. He could not get the one thing that might be what he truly wanted – unrequited love.
A woman who hardly knew him, only of his horrible deeds, sought him out and he ruined her. Took her and filled her with pain which caused her to flee.
It actually had not and as Jeice realized this, he sat up quickly and had to contain his shock. She had warned him, told him about her fertility. Was it possible? Did she run because she was carrying his child? How in the world had he forgotten about this earlier. He remembered waking up this morning and bits of her talk from before about it but it just had not hit him until now.
"Holy shit, it...can't be!"
His hands felt clammy and shook as he lifted them before his face. These hands helped take her and forced her to bear this responsibility. Shōkēki had known that there was no way she could have kept that child. If Frieza had found out, there was no telling what he might do. Would he have let her even think of keeping it, considering it was his kid, or maybe something more sinister would happen.
Even so, he had not been fast enough to catch her before she sped off. Stealing that space pod was clever but making sure to disable the tracking modules was genius. He really had to hand it to her, she made some smart moves and seemed to have some skills.
That idiot just had to run off without telling him where she went. It was his damn kid too! He should know where his offspring is going to be and have a part in their life. Best case scenario would be Frieza allowing her to live until she gave birth and then having her killed. At least then his kid would still be alive and he could train them. Of course, Shōkēki would die but...
It would not have happened anyway. Frieza would never allow it. There had been rumors spreading around that he even destroyed a planet where Captain Ginyū had gone to and fallen for a woman there. His Captain had neither confirmed nor denied it, simply shrugging off the rumor before yelling at them to get back to work. He was not sure he was telling the entire truth about it but the Captain would have no more talk of it. From then on, they just ignored anymore whispers of it and even making sure no one would speak of it again.
For them, love and relationships beyond flings and possibly using women just for their eggs was a distant wish. Not once had any of them been close to having a solid relationship. This sort of thing just was unheard of as a warrior in Frieza's army.
So this was it then. Shōkēki was long gone and there was no way to find her again, not until Frieza conquered each and every planet until they maybe found her. She could be light years away by then or possibly even dead.
Clenching his fists tightly, he wished that maybe things could have been different. What would life had been like if he could have seen this coming? Would he have changed anything?
For now he decided to just lay back down and rolled onto his side. Bringing the picture of Shōkēki from his pocket, he brought it close to his face and took in every detail. Her smiling face, the bruises, that bright and silver landscape behind her. Running his thumb across her cheek, he felt the itching cool sensation of a tear slip down his own cheek. With shaking hands, he brought the picture to his forehead and wept until darkness claimed him.
They had landed on the planet Namek moments ago, appearing before Frieza and receiving their orders to obliterate the people who stole his Dragon Balls. Obviously this just would not do, their leader needed his immortality so they could continue to work under him and live their very comfortable lives. Reading their scouters then saluting their boss, they flew off with their targets locked on. No one would defy Lord Frieza and get away with it, not on their watch.
Standing before them had been that traitor Vegeta and two short stacks he had never seen before. Vegeta's empty threats made them laugh while Captain Ginyū took the Dragon Balls and went on his way to meet back with Frieza, leaving the rest of them to take out the trash. It was not until the shortest of the bunch spoke and caught his attention.
"Hey Krillin, doesn't that red guy look a lot like the guy Shōkēki was talking about?"
His head whipped in their direction with his mouth agape before he took a step forward and growled. "What did you just say you lil punk? You said Shōkēki, don't try an' lie about it." Clenching a fist, he took another step forward with glaring eyes.
The boy called Gohan grimaced and looked to his friend for help. The bald one, apparently called Krillin, answered for him, "Yeah, you heard right! One of our friends back on Earth is called that. What's it to you?" Krillin took a defensive stance, ready to face off against these ridiculous goons.
The look on Jeice's face soured as he looked away. Everyone had to strain to hear his whispered words. "Was she pregnant?" According to her there had been a very large chance but he had to be sure, he had to know.
Gohan gulped, "Y-yeah, she had a little boy. His name is Chizukē. He...looks just like you."
The awkward moments of quietness that followed as his teammates stared at him in shock cause Jeice to nervously scratch his nose. Burter's mouth hung agape as he watched his partner stand there stiff as a board. Shōkēki had been pregnant and that was why she ran off, not only that, but it had been Jeice's child she was carrying. He and Guldo could not believe their ears and Recoome merely smiled before muttering "Called it."
"Gohan! Don't go telling these freaks everything, they could be her enemies!" Krillin cried out before huffing and hanging his head. "Too late now I guess."
Jeice hung his head and hid his face from prying eyes. So, he had a son, one that looked a lot like him. He swore he could almost feel tears prickling in his eyes. Surely his kid would grow up to be a fine warrior and maybe, even in the Galactic Little Leagues like he had been. After they were done here, he was going to pay Shōkēki a little visit. She would either come with him or he would be taking their son back – alone.
With hearty laughter Vegeta broke the silence. "So Jeice, finally got a woman pregnant? Guess your playboy days are over." His body shook with another chuckle. "You get what you give I suppose."
Jeice shot him a pointed look filled to the brim with malice before turning to Burter. "Let's get this over with mate. I have a trip waitin' for me." Facing the trio before them, he scrunched his nose. "I'm not in the mood for games anymore, let's do this."
A/N: This one wasn't planned but I got the idea almost immediately after I finished Desire That Clash. I just really wanted to try to write something from Jeice's point of view. I also wanted to keep it short and sweet, instead of trying to make it the same length as its counterpart.
Thank you so much to everyone who has read my stories and left reviews, you're all so very wonderful~