The sun beat down in the top story of the innovators of capsule corporations home where the Saiyan prince Vegeta squinted in the light as it seemed to shine through and stab his brain.
Pain buzzed through his body that he noted was wrapped in white bandages. He licked his lips and winced at how dry his throat was when he swallowed.
Some things never change he thought. Although he wasn't in a vat of water like usual. He turned his head and was shocked to see the rude woman that had greeted him by telling him he needed a bath, but she had tried to help him when the gravity pod exploded which he also did not understand.
It seemed she was always showing that concern of hers.
Vegeta didn't care for company and he always was convincing himself that he needed to be alone. He especially did not need the pathetic company of weak earthlings. For a moment he was just surprised at her being here. Then he was skeptical and annoyed.
Then for a moment he felt something like appreciation stir in him. He looked away up at the ceiling wondering at how soft the bed was and how eerie it was to be rescued by people who he had at one point tried to exterminate. He looked back at the woman at the desk when he sensed her movements.
The sun beat in on her pretty face and she stirred and awoke and rubbed her eyes.
"Hey Vegeta. Are you feeling better tough guy?" She asked she sounded hoarse and tired.
"Why are you here?" he asked as he looked away from her.
"Well, you were pretty messed up and it just didn't seem right for you to be alone I guess. I mean you've been out a couple days" She said as she smiled a little sadly with a bit of pity mixed in her face that made Vegeta feel a tinge of annoyance.
"I don't need your pity, and I don't mind being alone." He snapped making his hands fists, immediately feeling pain.
"I never said anything about pity. Sheesh. Calm down yo-" she started but he interrupted her.
"Wait did you say a couple days!" his eyes widened and he tried to push himself up he grunted as his stomach felt like it was being ripped in half.
"Ah!" he cried shaking a bit, but kept trying to sit up. Bulma ran to his side and put her hand on his shoulder.
"Hey! You need to be careful Vegeta. You're really hurt this time. I recommend at least a couple weeks of rest, and that's considering your Saiyan blood. I mean you were messed up when you got here and then you just kept going. Rest please!" She said trying hard to convince the hard headed Saiyan to listen.
He looked at her like she was insane.
"Shut up you idiot!" he shoved her hand off of his person.
She held it like she had been burned.
She didn't snap back or anything just looked hurt.
"Hey, don't think I can't care for myself okay? I can do this on my own I have to beat Kakkarot." He shoved the blankets off and tossed his legs around and a zap of pain went straight up his spine into his head and he leaned forward in pain.
"See? You're pushing yourself too hard. I respect your drive, but seriously you'll never surpass Goku like this! Even he takes break…elongated ones. Mostly to eat." She smiled a bit thinking of her old friend.
Vegeta's pain ridden body seemed to just shake as his eyes narrowed with fire.
"How dare you! I'm acutely aware of the gap between me and Kakkarot, which…" he took a pained breathe "…which is why I have to work harder than him! That clown should never surpass a prince like me!" he held up a fist the room filled with invisible electricity.
Bulma folded her arms.
"That's a nice speech there Prince, but you won't beat him if you do it like this. I'm right and you know it."
He stood up.
"No one tells me what to do, especially some stupid earth woman"
She gaped "You idiot. I'm not ordering you around or anything I'm just telling you how it is and recommending the right course of action and it this case. That's rest!" she unfolded her arms and walked toward him.
He stood and shook but he wasn't going to budge. He stared her down as she continued her approach and he was further surprised when she held up her pointer finger and pushed it into his chest he gasped as he was pushed down easily back onto the bed.
She glared at him steadily before speaking.
"You can't even beat me in this state." She smirked as she crossed her arms and looked down at him.
"How dare you." He shook with rage outwardly but inwardly he was giving his course of action second thoughts. Perhaps, she was right and he should rest, but it seemed ludicrous. He never took breaks on the exception of the healing tanks, but then again that was just mandatory. He definitely wasn't about to let this woman give him orders though. On that the prince was certain.
She looked down at him with a sharp look of authority.
"Fine. I will rest of my own violation." He said finally as he lay back down he struggled to get the blanket out from under himself. He started to feel really embarrassed by this woman seeing him like this and was about to tell her to get the hell out of here so he could be alone, but his angry face was interrupted with a look of surprise as he felt a soft hand on his chest.
"Here." She said simply holding his legs up as she pulled the blanket out and placed it atop him. He just couldn't erase the look of bewilderment on his face.
"If you keep looking like that it'll become permanent! It's cute though." She winked at him putting his face in a square between her upraised hands connecting thumbs and pointer fingers.
"I'm a warrior! I am certainly not cute!" he cried as he leaned back onto the hard head of the bed and took a pained breath. She placed the pillow up behind him so he would be more comfortable.
She scoffed.
"Yeah, I guess you're right." She rolled her eyes. And she looked down at him again in with that face again. He was about to tell her to leave when she jumped.
"Oh yeah! I'll go get your breakfast and your medicine." She sprinted off land left him to just lay there and wonder about her kindness especially since she knew exactly who he was. A killer. A murderer. He had not realized how tired he still was in his weakened state and before he could comprehend the thought he drifted into darkness.
Bulma came back in the room and sighed at the sight of his sleeping face. He actually did look kinda cute like that she thought as she sat his breakfast on the desk next to his bed and his medicine. Should she wake him up? She wondered. She decided she would in a few minutes. She left to put his breakfast in a preserving unit in the kitchen. She went downstairs and quickly showered and changed into a long sleeve red shirt and jeans as she did her hair quick straightened her curls and applied make-up.
When she returned she sat down at the desk noted the time to already be about forty-five minutes but she just could not wake him up just yet. So instead she opened the drawer and pulled out a book with diagrams and sketches and started to work on filling in gaps and parts. She wanted to rebuild the new gravity room even bigger and better.
Maybe that would impress the prince. Well, of course it would because it would be down by yours truly! She thought as she stuck her tongue between her teeth and concentrated on her task.
Twenty minutes more passed and Bulma went to the kitchen to retrieve his breakfast and a fresh glass of water for his medicine. The I.V. could probably be removed today if he stayed conscious long enough.
When she got back she sat the breakfast and the medicine down again she also brought a warm cloth with her. A small vial was also on the side of the bowl of hot water.
She squeezed the extra water out of the blue clothe and folded it gently in half. She sat down on the very edge of his bed carefully and leaned forward as she smoothed the edges of the cloth.
"Alright, you have to wake up" She said as she placed the washcloth on his head gently her being so close to him was a bit of a thrill she thought. She blinked as his eyes began to twitch and finally opened. He freaked out and threw the washcloth off his head and hit her smack dab in her face.
"Geez!" she cried throwing the offending cloth down.
"Well at least you're awake." She said as she rubbed her face with her red sleeve.
"Well of course I am! Stupid woman. What are you trying to do?" He said groggily rubbing his forehead. He leaned back to try and drift off again but she walked briskly over and grabbed the vial with a purple substance.
"Don't fight me Vegeta you need to stay awake to eat it's been almost three days and you have to take your medicine. Unless, you want a feeding tube. Do you?" she uncorked the vial and leaned in putting it under his nose.
His nose twitched and he looked at her
"I can go without food for longer than a blasted human you know." He realized that liquid worked quite well.
"What is that substance?" he asked.
"Just something I invented." She smiled with pride.
"Guess I'll be lucky if I survive then it will probably kill me." He leaned back wearily.
"Hey! Shut up. I happen to be a genius! And I'm not all brains either." She posed her hands around her face to emphasize that see was indeed the picture of beauty.
"Whatever." He sighed feeling a serious headache coming on but not sure whether it was his condition whatever was in that vial or the stupid woman's presence. Could be all three he thought.
"Ugh!" she said placing the tray around his thighs and sitting it down on its unfolded legs.
"I suppose you can just doctor yourself. Just follow the instructions on the bottles." She put her nose up in the air.
When she looked back at him she cocked her head to the side at his very focused expression as he scrutinized the bottle.
Her mouth twitched.
"What's the matter?" she asked already getting a hunch.
"Nothing" he said shortly putting the bottle down and started spooning into his soup. He put the spoon in his mouth
"Hot!" he cried and dropped it.
Bulma jumped a bit.
"Um, maybe I should stay and help you after all." She said getting a bit concerned.
He shooed her with his hand.
"Just go. I don't care." He tried blowing on his soup this time. He had begun to survey the rest of his tray littered with alien foods.
"You should probably take your medicine first Vegeta." She prodded as she walked over to his bedside.
"I will. When you leave." He said quickly as he continued blowing on his soup.
She raised an eyebrow and smiled
"You can't read it can you?" she asked finally after a moment of silence.
He almost choked on his soup.
"You really can't you dope! And you're so prideful you won't even admit it!" she pointed at his nose right in the center of his scowling face.
"Can't I eat in peace!" he said as he bite down his soup and cringed as he swallowed the still hot liquid.
"How damn hot does this food have to be! I miss Frieza's disgusting space food at least it didn't try to scald my esophagus!" with that he tossed the offending spoon into the now scorned soup.
"Oh my…" she was about to make a snide comment about how he was avoiding the subject at hand but her curiosity was peaked.
"What was that like?" she asked.
"I just said it was too damn hot don't you—" she stopped him.
"No, I mean working under Frieza…I mean did you…you know—" she was interrupted this time.
"What?" he looked at her from under a dark veil that dared her to make the right choice of words.
She sighed and shrugged trying to ignore the tension in the room as she grabbed up the bottle from the tray and poured two white pills and handed them to him. He took them and bit down into them.
"No!" she cried as he spat them out.
"You're supposed to swallow them silly!" she said as she poured another two and handed him a glass.
"Well, how am I supposed to know if you don't tell me!" he said taking the pills and downed both of them.
"Okay now this is going to taste bad" she said as she poured a red liquid in a red medicine cup and handed it to him.
"You're supposed to drink it." She said.
"I know." He snapped cringing at the taste as it slid down his still burning tongue and throat.
Bulma pursed her lips and moved the chair from the desk and sat it by his bedside and looked at him with that expression of sadness again.
"Do you regret the things he made you do?" she asked.
Vegeta was surprised "He didn't make me do anything. I rather enjoyed what I did. Now do you have something else you need to do around here? Whatever pointless activities it is you earthlings do, please do go find one and indulge in it you stupid woman." He waved a hand at her dismissively.
Bulma would not look at him now and instead was looking down at the floor her body trembling.
"Ugh!" she cried out as she stood up and let the chair fall on the floor behind her and stormed out a swirl of silent agitation being left in her wake.
"Idiot woman." He said as he looked off at nothing in particular wondering how long this primitive technology would take to heal him.