…:::Come back for me:::…

Hey everybody, I know I still have to finish my other stories but I've got a serious lack of inspiration for them… (TTA and ITHOF) So I decided to write this little one-shot in the meanwhile to let you know I'm still very much alive ^^;;
I guess you could call this an AU, Bulma died in a car-accident (ever notice how she gets hurt a lot in my stories o.O;;) Newho, for some unknown reason, or just because I wouldn't have a story otherwise, Piccolo and Kami are dead leaving the earth without Dragonballs and no knowledge of Namek. It seems all hope for our Sayina prince is lost…but what when Goku gets an idea?

=^o.O^=

Vegeta watched as her eyes closed slowly, the last breath leaving her body with a relieved sigh. These last 60 seconds had seemed like an eternity to him, her last words refusing to leave his mind. Why did she have to go, he didn't even get the chance to show her how he felt, not even the chance to tell her the feeling was mutual…now he was all alone. He could hear the rain tapping against the window, his heartbeat pounded in his ears as everything seemed twice as loud just to drown out the deafening silence that hung in the air like a black cloud, ready to suffocate everyone in it's reach.

He didn't know how long he had sat there, just staring at her lifeless form like frozen stone before the medics came in to take her away, he wasn't sure if he even cared. He didn't seem to care about anything at the moment, all he could think about was how the only thing that gave his life meaning had finally left him. Was it his punishment for all those people he had murdered in his life? It seemed like fate only wanted to see him suffer, as if it had just been waiting for him to bond with the earthling, just to suddenly tear her away from him, exactly like everything seemed to end up in his life.

But this was much more than anything else in his life, she had meant so much to him and it slightly disturbed him that he only found out about this now that she was gone. Was that the plan all along? To make him understand how good he had it, the love of such a wonderful woman…and he had never once returned it to her. Maybe that was it, maybe that was what he had to pay for. He just didn't know, he would have never thought her death would mean so much to him and it left him terrified.

=^o.O^=

Goku walked in the large building, led through the hallways by a Mrs Briefs who wasn't nearly as cheerful as she used to be, but who could blame her. She directed him towards what used to be Bulma and Vegeta's bedroom, he said thanks and she left again giving him a small smile. Goku swallowed hard and knocked on the door like he had every week since 'it' happened. He got no response, which wasn't too much out of the ordinary so he just opened the door. With half a smile he walked in, assuming Vegeta would be sitting on the bed looking out the window as always, he was right.

"Vegeta, how are you doing?" Goku carefully asked his friend who just sat there staring at the forest outside with his usual blank stare. "I'm fine Kakarrot, leave me be." The once proud Sayian replied in his monotone voice, hardly moving from his position. Goku was getting seriously worried about the Sayian in front of him, it had been a couple of months since Bulma's death and they had all been strongly affected by this but strangely not as much as Vegeta who had hardly done anything for over 2 months and no one had a clue as to what was going on in his mind. The Briefs had asked several doctors about his condition but they all said it was probably some kind of shock and that there was no telling when it would pass, they just had to wait.

So now there was little Goku could do, besides check up if he was alright every once in a while, but it wasn't as if Vegeta enjoyed the weekly visit. It was like he didn't even register it all. Goku just gave a small sigh and put a hand on his friends shoulder who immediately stiffened but still didn't move from his seat. "Vegeta, it's time to snap out of it. You can't continue living like this." He said patiently and blocked his view, staring him straight in the eye for any sign of recognition.

Vegeta just looked away, refusing to give in and face his feelings. Goku frowned slightly at this "Vegeta, you can't keep running from this. It's time you face the truth, Bulma is gone! But it's not the end of the world." He said firmly, watching the Sayians face contort into an annoyed look. Vegeta frowned, focusing on the third-class in front of him with an angry glare.

"What the fuck do you know Kakarrot! You have any idea what it's like to lose everything, your hope, your faith, the only thing possible to make you the least bit happy, the only thing that understands you, the meaning of your life!? I think not so just leave me the fuck alone!" Vegeta yelled, clenching his fists in the anger and hurt that was finally released after so many lonely nights.

Goku looked down, he had gotten what he wanted, Vegeta had snapped out of it in some sort but then why wasn't he happy? "No Vegtea, I don't know." He said carefully, not for one second wanting to think about losing Chi chi or Gohan, "but you cannot sit here for the rest of your life mourning about your loss. What if you would have done that after being imprisoned by Freeza, after you father's death or after the destruction of our planet. You did not, you just kept going to become the fighter you are today!" Goku said, hoping to get through to his friend. Vegeta just glared at him with bitter eyes, spitting the words like venom.

"And look where that got me."

=^o.O^=

A month later Goku was still upset about Vegeta's last words, he couldn't get them out of his mind and mainly because deep down he knew they where true. In those thirty days things had begun to improve just a little bit, Vegeta could be seen wandering around the compound and sometimes even training in the gravity room yet not in his usual driven way, but training none the less. But still Goku couldn't find peace, how could anyone just move on after losing such a big part of their life, and it angered him that he couldn't do anything about it but watch his friend live like a zombie.

So now he stood high above the clouds on Kami's lookout, it had been Chi chi's idea for him to go up there. No one had ever considered going here since the guardian himself had died two years ago, but Chi chi had suggested he went to see his servant who might have an idea. Goku asked him if he knew anything about the Dragonballs they had missed, anything that would give them information to rebuild them or something. The alien mulled over the thought for a moment until he remembered a room in the sanctuary dedicated to all the Kami's histories, maybe that contained the clue they had been looking for.

Goku wandered through the room, not seeing anything of importance when he suddenly got an idea. "Mr Popo, Kami was an alien, right?" The servant nodded his head. "Do you know from what race?" Popo shook his head, kami had often wondered about that himself but was never able to find an answer. "Why do you ask, Goku?" he inquired. Goku told him with a happy grin that if Kami had made the Dragonballs himself and if he was an alien, there should be other aliens of the same race who could possible make Dragonballs as well. Popo was dumbfound, why hadn't anyone thought of that before. And to think he had always assumed the Sayian to be 'slow minded'.

=^o.O^=

It's been one year, exactly…a whole year that seemed like 10, a whole year of pain and regrets, a whole year since she died. If the Dragonballs where still here it would be too late by now, but they're not here anymore so it's just useless to think that way Vegeta thought, desperately keeping himself from gaining hope as he stood high above the ground on the balcony of the room which he used to share with 'her'. He bit back a sob but was unable to hold one lone tear from making it's way down the slightly curved cheek only to disappear into the darkness beneath the distraught prince. He listened to the distant calls of the animals hidden in the forest in front of him, the soft noises from the leaves and the slight breeze that caused everything to suddenly gain life.

He took a sniff of the fresh air, hoping it would take away some of the sleep that dulled his mind caused by hours of training, but instead he got a strange surprise. He took in some air again, it couldn't be, its impossible! His mind screamed yet unable to stop himself from glancing around the area looking for the source of what he'd smelled, her scent. His eyes scanned for a sign of anything out of the ordinary but after finding nothing at all, he leaned back on the balcony letting out a disappointed sigh, angry at himself for believing in something impossible, even it was for only a fraction of a second.

As he looked at the millions of small lights that dotted the sky, a soft whisper filled the air. Soft as the breeze that ruffled the prince his hair yet still audible enough for him to make out what it was calling for, it was reaching out to him. His breath stuck in his throat and heartbeat suddenly fastened as he whirled around, not sure at what he thought he'd find when there was nothing there. But his heart didn't slow it's pace and breathing still didn't come as easy as before while his eyes ran over the surroundings. He could have sworn he heard her voice but again he told himself it was impossible, repeating that one dreaded word over and over in his mind, impossible. And still he couldn't stop a small trace of hope from lighting his world.

After a couple of minutes, just when he had started to convince himself he was imagining everything, he could suddenly sense her, she was so close.. A soft breath tickled his ear, sending a shudder all the way along his spine, causing the tiny hairs on his neck to stand straight up. But he didn't move as he felt soft, delicate fingers tracing the muscles of his upper arm in a soothing way, like she always used to do when he was upset about something. Vegeta let out a tired sigh and carefully leaned back in the slight warmth as he could hear her voice whispering his name. He just let out a small groan and closed his eyes, knowing that if he did anything more than that, the amazing dream would shatter like a frail rose to leave him alone, again.

"Vegeta…" The voice grew a little louder, "Veggie-chan…your not dreaming you baka." It said, a small trace of amusement tugging at the edges. Vegeta's eyes snapped open at this, could it really be? He turned around in a swift motion, only to freeze into solid rock as he was immediately swallowed by the deep blue pools that he knew all too well. His lips slightly parted to let out a harsh breath, he could only stare, hypnotised by the small sparkles that shone in an unseen light. "O-onna..? But h-how…" he could only stutter the words as he blinked a couple of times to get himself together as much as possible at the moment. His eyes unfocused and he was met by the slender form he had missed so much, setting off beautifully against the dark night's sky, covering her in a magical glow.

The woman hushed him, carefully placing two fingers against his lips in a silent gesture, stepping closer and gently placed her hands on his chest, enabling him to relax at the familiarity of her presence. He stared down at her in wonder, taking in every aspect of her beautiful body just in case she'd disappear again. And as if reading his mind the woman gave him a sweet smile, closed her eyes and rested her head against his broad shoulder, whispering the words he had longed to hear for so long. "I won't leave you, ever again."

…:::The end:::…