I Still Love You
Chapter 4: Short Lived Forgiveness
AN: Me again. Sorry for the long absence but I've been attempting to get a better feel for some of the things I'd like to do with this series. Hope you enjoy where this is headed.
Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ or any of its characters.
Last Time:
Bulma and Yamcha had another fight over Vegeta after he nearly killed himself as a result of his confrontation with Yamcha. Bulma dumped Yamcha, but the idea of a date with him changed her mind. Whilst Bulma sulked over Yamcha's claims that Vegeta was getting between the two of them, Vegeta and Yamcha had a talk of their own. Vegeta claimed that Yamcha was losing Bulma while Yamcha claimed that he wasn't. The two made a bet that will ultimately decide Bulma's relationship future. Will she end up with Yamcha? Or Vegeta? Find out in the continuing adventures of I Still Love You.
I allow Bulma to cry into my chest as I hold her lithe form in my arms. God is she sexy. She's so tiny but also so incredibly physically fit probably due in part to her constant work with machines and partly due to her adventures hanging with our gang of mismatched oddities. For her small size you'd never guess she was that strong but she is. I doubt that anyone would ever claim that she was only strictly physically strong despite her appearance. I've seen first hand how mentally competent she is.
Holding her to me and knowing that she's MY girlfriend makes me feel like the luckiest man alive. I flash Vegeta a smirk, but I'm not sure if he catches it or not because his eyes have started closing. I'm pretty sure that he's only pretending to sleep again. It wouldn't be his first time faking sleep, and I highly doubt it would be his last.
"It's ok, Baby," I say as I rub her back. I kiss her on the forehead before we break away. I hold onto her shoulders as she wipes her tears away with her sleeve.
At my concerned expression she says," I'm ok now."
"You sure?" I ask. She nods, and I let her go. I smile warmly at her, and she returns it weakly.
"Ok. Well, I'm starved. Want to come downstairs and get some lunch with me?" I ask. She glances at Vegeta.
"No. Vegeta needs me right now so I'm staying here," she says. I watch angrily as she walks over to sit on the bed next to that arrogant Saiyan bastard. She runs her fingers through his hair, and to my amusement and delight, he stiffens at the contact.
"Ok, Babe. Well, I'm gonna grab something for myself. Want anything?" I ask, pretending I didn't just see her playing with Vegeta's hair.
"Sure. Thanks," she says without ever once taking her eyes away from him.
"Kay. I'll be right back. Then we can have lunch together," I say as I turn to leave.
Before I can even take a single step she says," Bring a little something for Vegeta too." I turn back to her angrily.
"Don't get started with this again," I complain. She turns on me.
"Well, it's not like he can just up and get it himself. He's injured and can't even walk," Bulma argues. I watch as a smirk climbs up Vegeta's face. I knew that he had to be faking. He must be feeling pretty high and mighty now because of Bulma's anger at me. He must be feeling pretty smug right about now thinking that I've finally lost the love of my life, but he'd be wrong about it, dead wrong. I may not like their relationship, but she does have a point. He can't walk on his own because of all of his injuries, and it's for this reason alone that I give in to her request.
"Alright, fine. But I'm only doing this because he can't walk. I'll be right back," I say, a little harsher than I had originally intended. I turn to exit, and once out of the doorway I release the door, which slams to. Another unintended action. She probably thinks I'm pissed off now. I sigh as I head back downstairs. Once I hit the top of the stairs, Puar is there to greet me.
"How did it go? Did you tell her about the date?" she asks. I smile.
"She almost broke up with me again, but she changed her mind after I told her about taking her out," I tell her.
"That's great, Yamcha!" she exclaims.
"Yeah, I know, isn't it?" I say.
"So, where's Bulma now?" she asks.
"She's upstairs still taking care of Vegeta," I say.
"Aren't you worried about them being together alone, Yamcha?" Puar asks.
"Of course I am. She's right, though, Vegeta does need her help right now. So, it's not like it's something that they can help. I just hope that they don't get too carried away," I say. Silence falls over the two of us as we walk into the kitchen. Mrs. Briefs doesn't interrupt her conversation when we enter the room. Dr. Briefs, on the other hand, seems to have tuned out most of the conversation as he looks up at us when we enter the room.
"Hello, guys. Where's Bulma at, Yamcha?" Dr. Briefs asks.
"Upstairs in the medical room," I say.
"Is she alright?" he asks.
"Oh yeah, she's fine. Vegeta's the injured one," I say.
"Again?" Dr. Briefs asks.
"Yeah, again. Anyways, I've just come down here to get some lunch to take up to her and Vegeta," I say. I move about the kitchen until I have a tray full of food, enough for two people. Mrs. Briefs hustles around besides me until she has another tray piled high with enough food for a small army.
"How do you intend to take all of that upstairs by yourself? It's an awful lot of food for one person to carry alone," Dr. Briefs asks.
"I'll just have to make two trips, I guess," I say.
"No need for that, Yamcha sweetie. I'll help you," Mrs. Briefs says. I put down the tray that I'm holding onto the counter. I reach out to grab the other tray, but Mrs. Briefs stops me with a hand.
"I'll take that up to that sweet man," she says.
"Vegeta is most definitely not sweet," I say as I pick up the tray again. I head upstairs with the tray in my hands. Once I get to within a few feet of the door, I hear Vegeta talking with Bulma about my relationship with her.
"If her loves you so much, then why does he cheat on you?" Vegeta asks. My anger rises when I hear this. There's a brief pause before I hear Bulma answer.
"He hasn't cheated on me in a while," she says.
"Oh? Then where was he last night?" Vegeta asks. I enter the room after he speaks.
"I was celebrating with my team," I say from the door. The two both look stunned to see me. Vegeta's face soon turns to anger. More than likely it's anger at himself for not having noticed me.
"That's right. His team won another game and were celebrating. It ran on until late," Bulma agrees. I can't believe that she so easily bought that story. Vegeta shakes his head.
"I can't believe that you'd believe all that bullshit," Vegeta says.
"But it's not bullshit," Bulma says.
"That's right," I say. I glare at Vegeta, daring him to contradict me. He unusually gives in and slumps back down onto the bed. I can't believe that that lie is still working. It doesn't surprise me that Vegeta saw through my lie, but most of the reason why is due to our meeting last night. What really astounds me is how easily he gave in to the argument. He's normally so stubborn so the change in his demeanor is really odd. I walk over to the empty chair by the bed and sit down. I put the tray I've been carrying onto the table beside me. Bulma glances at the tray before sending me an angry glare.
"You didn't get anything for Vegeta, Yamcha," she notes angrily.
"I only have two hands, Babe. Besides, your mom insisted on delivering it personally," I say. She relaxes upon hearing that. I run my fingers through her turquoise locks and she tangles her fingers in my long wild locks of onyx. From outside, a faint sound of whistling can be heard. It must be Mrs. Briefs. She's always whistling or humming something. As she gets closer, I can start to make out the tune. 'Deck the Halls'. Why she insists on whistling that during summer, I'll never know. Though, one could argue that she could be whistling it because of Christmas in July. She walks in with the tray full of sandwiches still whistling. She only stops when Bulma greets her.
"Hey, Mom!" she says.
"Hello, Bulma sweetie!" Mrs. Briefs says. She trots into the room and over to the other side of the bed. I watch as she unfolds the tray's hidden legs. Vegeta manages to sit up but only with Bulma's help. Mrs. Briefs places the tray on his lap once he's upright. Mrs. Briefs does a quick scan of the room until her eyes fall upon the other wooden chair in the room. She crosses the room to get it, and once she has it, she proceeds to drag it to the side of the bed. Once it's next to Vegeta, she sits down on it and stares at Vegeta, worry and concern filling her eyes and expression.
"How are you feeling, Vegeta dear?" she asks.
"Nothing I can't handle," he says. I swallow back a snort. I reach over to the tray and attempt to hand Bulma her plate of sandwiches, but her eyes and attention are turned towards Vegeta. Resigning myself to the fact that she may never turn my way, I put the plate back down.
"Want some help eating, Vegeta dear?" Mrs. Briefs asks.
"No," he says. Of course he wouldn't. He's the "Mighty Saiyan Prince." Hmph. Some mighty prince he is. Not even strong enough to beat a "low class" as he'd say. "Mighty Saiyan Prince" indeed.
"If you guys need anything just let me know," Mrs. Briefs says as she practically hops up from the chair.
"Okay, Mom," Bulma says as Mrs. Briefs starts trotting back downstairs. Once she leaves, I attempt to hand Bulma her plate again, which she finally takes after I poke her with it. She nods her thanks before once again turning her attention back to Vegeta. The two of us eat in silence as we watch Vegeta attempting to eat. Bulma watches out of concern; while I watch out of morbid pleasure. That's why when Vegeta flinches in pain while reaching for a sandwich Bulma barely resists reaching out to help him, and I barely resist the urge to burst out laughing. I have to give the man credit, though, as he doesn't cry out once even though he clearly is in a shit load of pain. That man is stronger than he looks by far.
With the speed that Vegeta typically eats, it isn't a surprise that he blazes through five sandwiches before we even finish one. What stuns me is that after that fifth sandwich, Vegeta slumps down onto the pillow and falls asleep with a still full tray of food.
"Yamcha, get this tray off of him. You can put it on the table next to you," she commands.
"What do you want me to do with the tray that's already sitting there?" I ask.
"Don't start with me again," Bulma warns.
"I'm not. I just wanted to know cause it's taking up room," I explain.
"Oh," she says, flushing. She looks around the room and points out an empty space on one of the counters.
"Put it there," she says.
"Why do you want to put that one there and not Vegeta's one?" I ask.
"For when he finally wakes up," she says.
"Alright, fine, whatever," I say as I get up. I pick up the empty tray and carry it over to the counter, where I drop it. On my way back I lift the other tray, and whilst balancing it with one hand, I fold up the legs with my free hand. I pass it over to Bulma, who places it on the bedside table.
"Any changes with his condition?" I ask as I sit just to make conversation.
"No, doesn't look like it. Some of the minor cuts have started closing, but the more serious ones haven't. I'm so worried about him," she says.
"He'll be fine. He's Saiyan. He'll pull through no problem. And afterwards the two of us will go out, and he'll go back to training," I tell her.
"Speaking of training shouldn't you be getting back to your training?" she asks.
"Don't worry about it. I'd rather spend my time here than working up a sweat outside," I say with what I hope is sincere affection. Her eyes narrow angrily.
"At this rate you'll never get any stronger, Yamcha. The androids will be here in just over two years time. Don't you even care about them?" she rants.
"Of course I care. It's just. . .two years. It's a long time, and I'd rather not waste all that time that I could be spending with you entirely devoted to training. Or would you rather that I become a training maniac like Vegeta and spend whatever time I'm not spending training or being an ass on recovering from recurring injuries? Is that what you want?" I argue, raising my voice at the end.
"Don't start with this again," she warns.
"Is that why you like him? Because every couple of days you get to play nursemaid to him?" I ask.
"Stop it, Yamcha," she warns.
"Or is it because he's a total ass? Maybe I should be an ass, maybe you'd pay more attention to me if I was," I shout.
"Yamcha, stop," she says. Her eyes begin filling with tears, but I continue my rant.
"Or do you like being treated like crap? If I started treating you like crap would you love me more?" I ask.
"Shut up, Yamcha! I can't stand this, and I can't stand you anymore! Just leave us alone!" she yells.
"So you can whisper sweet nothings in his ear while he sleeps?" I ask.
"Get out! Out! Get out of my house!" she screams as she throws her arm out, a single finger pointed towards the door.
"Fine, me and Puar will leave, but you'll be sorry you ever kicked us out," I say.
"I'm sorry I ever invited you two here in the first place," she says. Before leaving the room, I catch a smug self-satisfied smirk on Vegeta's face.
AN: Sorry this took so long, but work has left me feeling completely wiped. But I've endured the sleeplessness for my fans sake and am currently working on the next installment.
Will Bulma ever forgive Yamcha for his newest mistake? Will Bulma and Yamcha ever go out on their date? Has Vegeta finally won their little bet? Find out on the continuing adventures of I Still Love You.