A/N- All things Dragon Ball related belong to Akira Toriyama.
A chorus of feminine squeals and coos rang out when Bulma pulled yet another frilly, lace-collared dress out of an unwrapped box.
"Oh, how adorable!" Bulma gushed. She held up the garment and asked, "Vegeta! Isn't it cute?"
Vegeta rolled his eyes and jerked his head to look away.
The fifteen or so ladies in the room roared in laughter at his response. Vegeta clenched his fists and felt the intense urge to punch through the wall to his right. The veins on his neck bulged and one on his forehead twitched every time he ground his teeth together to keep from saying something nasty in front of Bulma's friends.
"I think the baby will look really sweet in that, Vegeta!" Kakarot said from his left. "I told you that you guys were probably gonna have a girl."
Vegeta scowled and strolled out of the living room into the kitchen. Kakarot following at his heels. That twentieth shriek of shared female merriment was the last straw. He wasn't sure how Bulma had talked him into attending the stupid baby shower-or whatever the hell it was called-for Bulla today. It probably had something to do with his wife's feminine wiles and him being extremely exhausted after a passionate round of intimacy the night before…
He groaned in defeat when he stepped onto the tile floor and saw Videl sitting in a chair with a nursing blanket draped over her shoulder. The scent of milk assaulted his nostrils and disgusting suckling noises escaped from beneath the garment. Could he never escape the onslaught of maternity?
"Hi, Goku, Vegeta," Videl greeted.
"Have you no shame, Girl?" Vegeta blushed, knowing that underneath the shawl, baby Pan was breastfeeding.
Videl shrugged. "I came into the kitchen to be alone. You guys were the ones who walked in here…"
"How's my little granddaughter today?" Kakarot asked, coming around Videl's chair and trying to catch a peek at the baby.
"Goku! I'm feeding her…" Videl snapped, clutching the nursing shawl tighter over herself.
"Hahaha, sorry. I just haven't gotten to see her in almost a month." Kakarot put one hand on his neck and the other out in a placating wave.
"You'd see her a lot more if you weren't always off training," Videl grumbled.
Vegeta smirked. It was always nice to see the younger saiyan male put in his place.
An ear-splitting cry sent shivers up Vegeta's spine as Krillin walked into the kitchen with a clearly upset child in his arms.
"Maron, you really need to take a nap, sweetheart," Krillin insisted.
"Nooooo!" Maron shouted through a purple face running with tears.
Vegeta's mouth slacked open as he watched Kakarot smile beatifically at the squirming child. Krillin patiently rubbed her back and whispered a lullaby in her ear.
He wasn't cut out for this. Vegeta had never soothed Trunks like that. Bulma had always handled their son's temper tantrums until Trunks was old enough to train with and follow Vegeta's authority without question.
Wishing to stop Maron's unending wails at all costs, Vegeta barked, "You can use one of the guest rooms upstairs if she needs to rest!"
Krillin's eyes widened as he stared at the saiyan prince. "Really? Thanks, Vegeta!"
The short man strolled out of the room, bouncing the child in his arms in another attempt to cheer her. When they left, Vegeta exhaled heavily.
Closing his eyes and crossing his arms, he counted silently to calm down his irritation. Bulma was seven months pregnant now. In all likelihood, if Trunks' gestation was any indicator, Bulla would be born in another month or so. Vegeta didn't know how he'd possibly handle all the noise… and the smells…and the intensification of all the foreign emotions he was beginning to feel at the sight of Krillin with Maron and Kakarot with baby Pan.
Regret flared in his chest. As ashamed as he was to admit it, Vegeta was actually regretful that he hadn't been more involved with Trunks during the boy's infancy. At least if he had, he would have felt more prepared for Bulla's birth.
"Are you alright, Vegeta?" Kakarot asked, a look of sincere concern on his face.
"I'm fine, idiot," Vegeta shot back.
Movement from Videl drew his gaze. Her nursing shawl was gone and in her arms, a drowsy Pan rocked gently. Her black hair was smoothed over her head and her cherub cheeks glowed with warmth.
Will Bulla have dark hair like that?
Videl must have caught Vegeta staring. "Do you want to hold her, Vegeta?"
"No."
"Can I hold her, Videl?" Kakarot was practically giddy with his excitement.
Videl smiled. "Just don't wake her."
Vegeta watched in wonder as his rival carefully lifted the tiny, sleeping body up into his muscular arms. Pan looked so incredibly small within Kakarot's sheltering embrace. The elder saiyan frowned. Kakarot did everything better than him, it seemed-even holding infants so naturally and with tenderness.
Vegeta resolved then and there that if Kakarot could hold his children, then the Prince of all Saiyans certainly could. He may have missed his chance with Trunks, but he had a second opportunity with Bulla.
When she's born, he thought, I'll hold her just like that.
The thought warmed his cold heart more than he could have imagined.
Videl stood up and stretched before stuffing her shawl into the diaper bag draped across the arm of the kitchen chair.
"I can watch Pan if you wanna head back to the party, Videl," Kakarot offered.
"That would be wonderful, thank you, Goku!" Videl said, planting a kiss on her father-in-law's unkempt head. "Just give me a shout if she needs me."
The man smiled as he watched her exit the room. Vegeta blanched. Now they were alone with the little beast. What if Pan woke up and started crying, too? With narrowed eyes, he glanced toward Kakarot. The grandpa was entirely absorbed in beholding his descendant. Growling, Vegeta pulled out a chair and sat down, re-crossing his arms immediately. Krillin returned to the kitchen a few moments later, rubbing the back of his neck as he cracked it a couple times.
"Man, I tell ya, parenting is not for the faint of heart," Krillin laughed. "That kid wears me out more than any of our battles ever did."
Vegeta sniffed.
Kakarot laughed softly for once-not his normal guffaw-and Vegeta realized he was trying to keep quiet for the sleeping baby. The kitchen fell into a comfortable silence as the men shared the age-old companionship of husbands waiting on their wives to finish with their own camaraderie.
"I could really use a beer right now," Krillin laughed.
"Yeah," Kakarot agreed.
For once, Vegeta didn't give the others a hard time. Instead, he stood up, walked over to the fridge and pulled out a six-pack of his favorite brand. Setting it on the table, he extended his hand.
Krillin eyed him with a wary bewilderment. "You sure are being nice today, Vegeta. Did you get knocked on the head like Goku did as a kid?"
The prince ripped off one of the beers from the plastic rings and sat down, popping it open without commenting.
"Would you mind opening one of those for me, Krillin?" Kakarot asked.
"Sure, buddy," Krillin answered, opening one of the cans and passing it to his best friend.
They shared the drink in silence for several more minutes and Vegeta was able to pleasantly ignore the obnoxious noises drifting into the kitchen from the party in the living room. Gods only know how much longer that racket will continue...
"So, Vegeta," Kakarot began, pausing for a moment. "How are you?"
"I already told you I'm fine, you imbecile," Vegeta hissed.
"Well, I only ask because Chi Chi told me about what happened to Bulma and how you had to take her to the Lookout for Dende to heal her..."
Vegeta's eyes snapped open and he rotated his head to view the younger saiyan. Bloodlust rose in his veins and he squeezed the beer can so hard that the alcoholic liquid spewed into the air. Baby Pan shifted in Kakarot's arms, but didn't wake.
"Easy, Vegeta," Kakarot said. "Don't worry. Bulma didn't say anything. It was Trunks. He was pretty shaken up about the whole thing when he came to visit us after that. He and Goten talked it all over and then, when Trunks started crying, Chi Chi got involved."
Vegeta's heart clenched. My son cried...he was that upset and I didn't even talk with him about what happened...
"I just wanted to see how you were feeling after that. Especially with her being pregnant and all. It's not easy being as strong as we are," Kakarot said.
Krillin remained patiently quiet while the saiyans spoke, but when Vegeta glared at the shorter human, he got the feeling that he already knew about the incident as well.
"It happened. It's in the past. There's no need to discuss it further," Vegeta finally said.
Kakarot stared at the tabletop. "I broke Chi Chi's nose once. Right after Gohan was born. I didn't even have a nightmare like you did. I just rolled over and my arm smacked her right in the face. She woke me up screaming and blood was everywhere. I hated seeing her like that and knowing I was responsible."
Vegeta listened-actually listened-to Kakarot's words and begrudgingly accepted that maybe the man did have an inkling of what it felt like to hurt the ones you loved most.
"All I'm saying is, don't beat yourself up too badly. Breaking her nose wasn't the worst thing I've accidently done to Chi Chi just because I'm strong. Believe me..."
It was rare to hear a serious tone in Kakarot's voice. When Vegeta studied the younger man's face, a haunted expression covered the normally jovial features. Seeing that Kakarot had finished his beer, Vegeta popped open another one and pushed it over.
"Thanks, Vegeta," Kakarot said.
"Whatever," the prince huffed.
Kakarot smiled.
"You two have some tough wives," Krillin finally said. "They knew what they signed up for. Living with two saiyans can't be easy. Makes me glad my wife is an android."
Both Kakarot and Vegeta shot the man an annoyed glance and when the prince realized their shared reaction, he actually chuckled aloud.
The three of them finished off all the beers and Vegeta retrieved another six-pack from the fridge. With the saiyans' heigtened metabolisms and Krillin's unusually high tolerance for alcohol, it took three more six-packs before the small group felt even slightly buzzed.
When Pan finally stirred in Kakarot's arms, it was nearly six o'clock. Vegeta, relaxed from the intoxicant, watched her features scrunch up in confusion and irritation when her black eyes opened and saw not her mother above her, but Kakarot.
"Hi, little one," Kakarot cooed.
Pan's face scrunched up even further and she let out a squall.
Vegeta roared with laughter at her indignant reaction.
"Aww, Vegeta, it isn't funny! Every time she's awake when I hold her, she just cries her head off," Kakarot whined.
The prince continued to howl and Krillin started snickering as well.
Vegeta hoped and prayed his daughter wouldn't cry when he held her, because after tonight, he was determined to not only hold her, but lavish his extremely reserved affections upon her. Life was too short not to give it a try at least. Besides, anything Kakarot could do...Vegeta wanted to do better.
A/N - Thank you, thank you, thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favorited, followed, etc. It seriously means so much. I am extremely humbled by the response this story has received.
Remember, reviews keep the moon in orbit...or something.