Chapter Nine: Rapids
Bulma owned these halls.
As soon as people spotted her, they would part like the red sea, just to make room for her to walk. As soon as she entered a room, people would glue their eyes to her, not even spending a second looking away. As soon as she would open her mouth to speak, other would shut up, just to hear the soft murmur of her silky voice.
And she loved every single second of it.
She truly had everything; being a beautiful, rich, and popular teen truly had its perks. Yet, like any other person in the world, she always wanted something more.
"Mmm….you smell nice.."
Bulma giggled, as her boyfriend had come and wrapped his arms around her waist from behind, pressing his face into her hair, just as she was closing her locker.
"Yamcha!" She shrieked playfully. "Too much PDA!"
"It's fine, babe." Yamcha said as he spun her around, still in his arms.
"Yamcha!" Bulma giggled again. "Stop it!" She yelled as he nuzzled her neck. "People are staring."
"Don't they always?" He started to plant little, mini kisses along her neck.
"Hmm…I guess..." She murmured, too distracted to think straight.
As her history teacher walked by, though, and licked his lips at the sight of Bulma moaning, she quickly regained her composure.
She pushed him off. "Yamcha! Save it for later!" She put her hands on her hips and swiftly turned around, her blue hair hitting him in the face as he frowned.
She started to strut down the halls, her hands on her hips and her blue locks waving around behind her. As girls looked at her envyingly, and guys opened their eyes while macking on their girlfriends to take a look at her, she decided she truly did want more.
Or rather, someone more.
Her eyes quickly found Vegeta, leaning against the far locker with his eyes closed and his arms crossed, and she smiled to herself.
Her stomach was in knots just at the sight of him, and she frowned at the feeling. Bulma was a rather confident girl, so she almost never got nervous over anything, or anyone, for that matter. Not even Yamcha.
So the stomachache she experienced now was a completely foreign emotion.
Bulma started to walk over to him, planning to ask him about the English homework while subtly stroking his strong arm, when she noticed his eyes flash open.
His onyx gaze quickly moved towards her end of the hallway, and she smiled widely, and twisted the end of her hair with her finger, thinking he was staring at her. She followed his stare more closely, though, and noticed that it wasn't towards her, but past her, towards a black-haired girl opening her locker.
Bulma blinked, for a second, not quite realizing what was happening.
Her mind was filled with a thousand questions that all meant the same thing; 'Chi-Chi?!'
As the girl in question was taking out her books, they all fell to the ground with a loud 'Smack!', and she quickly stomped her foot on the ground with a loud, frustrated groan, before smashing her locker shut, quite loudly, to pick up her books.
Bulma then looked back at Vegeta, to see that his gaze was still on Chi-Chi, but he bared, an extremely slight, smile.
Not a grin. Not a smirk. But a smile. An almost human smile.
It was only for an instant though, because all too soon Vegeta closed his eyes again, wore the same scowl, and leaned his head back against the locker.
Bulma couldn't believe her eyes. She was sure no one else had noticed this little exchange, and even if they did, they'd never understand the true meaning behind it. Bulma had always prided herself in her keen sense of observation.
But back to the point, was it actually what she thought it was?
Did he like her, or something?
And if he did, why?
Not that Chi-Chi was a bad person. No, not at all. She was a wonderful human being, and her best friend.
But….
Not very many people actually liked her. What made Vegeta so different?
As she frowned to herself, trying to solve this puzzle, the bell screeched throughout the hallway, and Bulma went towards her Social Studies class.
Chi-Chi looked in the mirror. She skimmed her hand along all the creases in her skin. Frowning so much really does damage your skin, after all.
She traced in the bags under eyes, before opening up her hair, and letting it fall to her waist. She then observed herself again.
She sighed. Why couldn't she be prettier? Yes, she was not that bad-looking, but she sometimes wondered what it'd be like to be so gorgeous. Like….like Bulma, for instance.
She sighed again. More times than none, she often found herself envying her friend. She was beautiful. Not just beautiful, but…almost enchanting, really. Her friend was, in a word, perfect. Anyone would prefer the beautiful heiress over her any day, and deep down inside, she always feared that Goku would one day do the same.
Hearing footsteps coming towards the bathroom, Chi-Chi suddenly brought her hands to her hair and tied it up in a high, messy bun.
Laughter echoed through the stalls as two girls entered the washroom. Their joy quickly stopped as they caught sight of Chi-Chi, and one of them merely rolled her eyes as they both moved past her to the other mirrors.
One of them fixed up her hair before looking away from the mirror and at Chi-Chi.
"Nice outfit, RuPaul. Salvation Army become too expensive for you?" She said, as the other girl snickered behind her.
Chi-Chi recognized the girl as one of the many teenagers who sat with them at the lunch table. The absence of Bulma quickly gave people the courage to openly mock her, and Chi-Chi had to all but keep herself from attacking the girl.
"Yeah, sorry for the mess in your closet, by the way." Chi-Chi said, smiling maliciously.
The girl was taken aback for a second, before just scoffing and rolling her eyes.
"I don't know how the hell Bulma can be friends with you. There is, literally, nothing good about you."
"Aww…." Chi-Chi grinned, faking excitement. "You really mean that?"
The girl stared at her disgustingly, before turning back to the mirror. "Whatever. I can't be seen talking to a loser like you, anyways."
"Oh….and here I was, getting all excited." She said in the same mocking tone.
The two girls just ignored her, though, applying make-up to their already-powdered faces.
Chi-Chi then rolled her eyes, stuck her hands in her pockets, and then strolled out of the bathroom, wanting to find some peace and quiet that she desired when she came into the washroom in the first place.
As she walked in the hall slowly, a gruff voice suddenly interrupted her.
"Ditching class, are we now, girl?"
Chi-Chi suddenly stopped; startled as she thought she was practically alone in the hall ways.
She slowly turned around, but there was no-one there except the janitor sweeping the floor way down the hall. She turned back around, and suddenly yelped and jumped two steps back, scared by the sudden figure in front of her.
She put her hand to her chest, taking deep breaths to calm herself down. "Damn-it, Vegeta…."
He stood in front of her, crossing his arms as he looked down at her, amused.
"Can't you just walk over like a normal person?" She asked.
"No." He stated simply.
"Well, are you following me, or something? 'Cause everywhere I go, you're there."
He scoffed, looking away. "Don't flatter yourself, girl. I'm merely obligated to be in these places."
"Yeah, school, I know. But what about the village, yesterday?"
"That's none of your business." He snapped, suddenly looking back at her. Chi-Chi, though, quickly looked away to avoid eye-contact. "Why would anyone bother to follow you?" He spat out harshly.
Chi-Chi then looked down at her shoes, studying the laces as if they were the most interesting thing in the world. She would not let him see the hurt look that quickly spread over her face.
"Geez, Vegeta. It was just a question. No need to get so pissy." She said as she continued to look down.
"Well, maybe, next time you should learn to think before you speak, girl." He said, though his voice contained less venom than before.
She sighed, finally looking up and meeting his gaze, refusing to back down. "Or maybe I should just learn to stop speaking to you in the first place."
"Maybe, girl. But could you really live without this sexy voice of mine?" He smirked, and Chi-Chi was surprised by his sudden mood change.
She rolled her eyes. "Bipolar bastard…." She muttered to herself, unaware that he could fully hear her.
He smirked at her audacity. People were usually frightened by him. He never had a conversation with anyone longer 2 minutes without getting frustrated and leaving.
But this girl…..
This stupid, foolish, girl...
He just couldn't leave her alone.
He shook his head from those thoughts. He was merely trying to pass time, and she was the only one around. That was it.
"So, girl, did you finally find the balls to ditch those hell-hole classes?" He asked.
"Must you be so vulgar, Vegeta?"
He shrugged.
She sighed. "So, I'm guessing you're ditching, then?"
"Didn't I just ask you that?" He said.
"Well….I asked you second."
He furrowed his brows. "Your logic makes no sense, woman."
She sighed, giving in and answering. "I'm not ditching, Vegeta-."
He scoffed.
She ignored him. "I'm simply taking a break from my chromosomally-challenged peers."
He chuckled.
She put her hands on her hips. "So you're ditching?"
"You're not the only one who requires some distance from those incompetent fools."
She raised an eyebrow in superiority. "I take that to mean that I'm not considered as 'one of those incompetent fools', then."
"And what makes you think that, girl?"
"Well, you're talking to me right now, aren't you?"
He smirked. "Fair enough. I must say, though, I'm surprised to see that those idiot females haven't killed your spirit."
She furrowed her brows. "What do you mean?"
He didn't answer, simply kept smirking at her.
She frowned even more. "You mean you were listening to my conversation in the bathroom?"
"You were speaking at a blatant level, girl. It'd be hard not hear your pathetic retorts."
She sighed. "Why do I even bother talking to you?"
"I don't know, girl. I wonder the same thing at times."
She blinked. "….about-about why I talk to you?"
He scoffed. "No, foolish girl. I merely meant-."
DDDIIIINNNGGG
"Oh no!" Chi-Chi exclaimed. "I missed the rest of class! I gotta go, Vegeta. I'll see you later." She said as she moved past him, leaving him scowling in the hallway as it soon became crowded with teens.
He stood there for a second, blinking at her sudden retreat, before a short freshman bumped into him.
"So-sorry." The freshman stuttered, looking up at him with frightened eyes.
Vegeta merely growled down at him and turned around to head for his locker, shoving people out of his way.
'Stupid girl.' He thought to himself, as he pulled his lock off and opened his locker.
There were only a few textbooks and a ripped-up binger inside, though they were stacked neatly to the side. There was a pack of gum in the corner and he quickly grabbed it and shoved four pieces into his mouth. Chewing on them sometimes helped him to calm down his exploding anger.
"Hey, Vegeta," He heard a cheery voice called behind him.
Vegeta groaned to himself as he threw the pack in his locker and shut the door. He turned around then and crossed his arms, facing Goku.
"Hn." He grunted, as if allowing him to continue to speak.
"What's new?" Goku asked, grinning.
"Did you only want small talk, or did you actually have a point to get to, Kakarot?"
"No, yeah, I had a point," He grinned again. "I just forgot how impatient you are."
"Get on with it, then."
"Okay, well, our project's due next week, so I was just wondering if you wanted to work on it today. After school?"
"Fine. Where?"
Goku rubbed the back of his head. "Oh, I hadn't thought about that…um…how about your house?"
"No." Vegeta stated firmly.
"Why not?"
"Because I said so. No."
"Aww, but Vegeta, there's nowhere else. We can't do it at my house, 'cause there's no room, plus we don't really have that internet thing….." He rubbed his head again. "It's only your house."
"No." He said again. "My house is not an option."
"Then where?"
"How about the library?"
Goku contemplated this for a second. "Where's that?"
Vegeta rolled his eyes. "You don't know what a library is, Kakarot?"
"I know what a library is, Vegeta. I'm tired of you thinking I'm so stupid all the time."
"Then what is your question?"
"I said, 'where', not 'what'."
He rolled his eyes again, as he turned to the left, away from the other Saiymayn. "Just meet me here at my locker after school, Kakarot. We'll go from there." He started to walk off again, ignoring Goku's yell of a good-bye after him.
"Okay, class," The teacher announced. "Today's class will be all about Dodge-Ball."
There were several cheers among the students.
"Okay, okay, settle down, class." The teacher spoke. "Now, stand in a line so that I can number you off."
The students went to stand in a line.
"Chi-Chi," Bulma told her. "Stand behind Lacy, and I'll stand in front of her so that we can be on the same team."
Chi-Chi laughed. "All right."
"1, 2, 1, 2," The teacher numbered all the kids off. "1's grab red shirts and go to the left side, 2's grab blue shirts and go to the right."
The students complied, grabbing their uniforms and going to their side.
Vegeta grabbed the red shirt, examined it for two seconds, and then threw it back on the ground, growling. He then walked to left side.
With everyone prepared, the teacher came in the middle, and aligned the red balls along the middle line.
"Alright, class, are you ready-." He suddenly looked towards the Saiymayn. "Vegeta, where's your red shirt?"
The boy in question scowled. "I'm not wearing that vile garment."
There were a few snickers around the class, with the exception of Chi-Chi just rolling her eyes.
"Why not?" The teacher asked.
"It's pink, and it smells horrendously."
"It's not pink, Vegeta, it's red. And you have to wear it. Everyone else is."
"No. I refuse to do so."
The teacher sighed. "Well, we can't start unless you wear it."
There were a few groans around the class. Many knew how stubborn Vegeta could be, and at this rate, they'd probably never get to play.
"Then I guess we'll just never start, then." He said, crossing his arms.
"Vegeta, I'm the teacher, and I'm telling you, you have to-."
"No."
The teacher sighed again, rubbing his temple. "Fine, Vegeta. Class, just remember that he's on the red team."
The class nodded, as the teacher moved to stand away from the playing area.
"Alright, well, we all know the rules, but just as a review, I'll say them again. Your objective is to hit the opposing team members with the ball, below the chest and not too hard, of course. If you get hit, then you have to sit out. If you end up catching the ball, then someone who was out on your team gets to come in again, and the person who threw the ball at you is out. This continues until there is one team left standing."
He brought his whistle up towards his mouth. "Alright, now at the blow of the whistle the game begins. Ready? One, two, screeeech."
Everyone then quickly rushed towards the middle, with the exception of Vegeta, who merely moved towards the back, and leaned against the wall, arms crossed, and eyes closed.
Krillin and Goku, on opposing teams, ran towards the same ball, though Goku grabbed it faster than the shorter teen.
"Sorry, Krillin," Goku grinned as he threw the ball at him. Krillin, though, was quick to dodge out of the way.
"You won't get rid of me that easy, Goku." Krillin said, picking up a ball and throwing it hard against the other teen. Goku dodged it with ease.
On the other side of the gym, Bulma and Chi-Chi each had a ball in their hands.
"Alright, Chi-Chi," Bulma said, as she jumped out of the way of a flying ball. "I have a plan."
"Yeah?" Chi-Chi said as she threw her ball forward with great force, smirking when it hit a blonde-haired boy.
"Yeah! So I throw a ball up high into the air towards someone on the other team," She stopped to move out of the way of another hit. "Then when they're trying to catch it, you hit them with another ball!"
"Alright. Good plan!"
"Okay, now you just go and find a ball, and-." Bulma suddenly gasped as something hit her in the knee. "OW!" She yelled loudly.
Looking up, she saw a bald teen across the gym, scratching the back of his neck in Goku fashion.
"Oops, sorry, Bulma!" Krillin said, laughing. "I was aiming for Goku!"
"Ugh!" Bulma yelled, throwing the ball in her hands towards him, though missing considerably. "You idiot! Me and Chi-Chi had a plan!" She then crossed her arms and stomped towards the benches, pouting.
Chi-Chi just shook her head and laughed, continuing to play the game by herself.
Goku took this time to quickly grab a ball, and whip it across the court towards his friend.
"OWW!" Krillin shrieked at the hard contact, jumping into the air.
"Sorry, Krillin!" Goku shouted as he finally hit his friend. "But you're out!"
Krillin rubbed his now-bruised arm. "Oh, that's….that's alright." He said, content that his friend hadn't thrown it any harder.
The game continued on for ten more minutes, until it was just a few boys and Chi-Chi, Goku, and Vegeta.
Grabbing a ball, Chi-Chi caught sight of the spiky-haired Saiymayn on the opposite end of the court, leaning against the wall with his eyes closed.
She laughed to herself, shaking her head. Such a fun-time, that guy.
She then threw her ball towards him, grinning triumphantly when it seemed like it was going to directly hit him.
Vegeta, without opening an eye, merely stuck out his hand and caught the ball mid-air, then threw it off to the side.
"Choose someone in your league, girl." He said, not yelling but loud enough for her to hear.
Chi-Chi groaned loudly and stomped off towards the benches.
There was only Vegeta, and two boys left on the other team, and Goku on the other now. Goku dodged all their throws with ease, taking his time before getting the two boys out. Finally, he picked up a ball, and threw it in a sideways hit, though not very hard, towards one of the boys, and as it hit him, the ball ricocheted off and hit the other boy.
The first one grumbled and walked off the court, though the second one stayed.
"Hey!" He called. "That doesn't count! It was an indirect hit!"
Goku furrowed his brows. "Oh….okay." He said, and in a split second he had picked up another ball and thrown it at the boy, hitting him on contact.
With nothing left to say, the boy stormed off court, muttering stuff about unfair standards.
Goku then started to grin widely. "Alright! I guess it's just you and me now, Vegeta!"
Vegeta suddenly opened his eyes then, as a wide smirk moved across his features. Uncrossing his arms, he finally started to walk away from the back and towards the middle, looking towards Goku.
"Ready for defeat then, Kakarot?" He said, still smirking.
"Don't be so sure, Vegeta!" Goku said, leaning on his leg to stretch it out. He jumped onto his hands then, and started doing push-ups. Other students gaped as Vegeta just rolled his eyes.
"Let's get on with it, Kakarot." He said impatiently. There were a few murmurs of the unrecognized name. Who was this 'Kakarot'?
"Yep!" Goku yelled as he got back on his feet. "Let's get started!"
A/N: I didn't end it here to make it a 'cliff-hanger' or whatever ('cause that'd be a pretty lame cliff-hanger). I just really didn't feel like writing anymore, and I hadn't posted in a while, so, I just posted what I had.
Next chapter will be a continuation of this dodgeball game.
As always, please review! I honestly work so hard at this fic, trying to make it the best that I can, and there's no better feeling than getting a review for it. It makes me feel like there's people out there that are actually reading my work. Makes me so unbelievably happy :)
Please review! :)
