A/N: I don't own DBZ or the characters, that honour belongs to Akira Toriyama. I use British English spelling. Please review!

Bulma let herself cry for exactly twenty-two minutes. She hadn't cried for any longer when she broke up with Yamcha, so she wasn't going to do so for Vegeta of all people. Instead, Bulma dried her eyes, cleaned up the broken glass, and went to the one place guaranteed to distract her. Her lab.

Bulma was no stranger to throwing herself into work when she felt upset. After her last break up with Yamcha, she'd even made a few scientific breakthroughs because of her increased productivity and dedication. Who knew what breakthroughs she would make because of this little blip? And that's all Bulma would admit it was - a blip - because despite being an amazing kisser and making her body feel things that she didn't know were possible, Vegeta was still a world class jerk and not worth it being anything else.

She wandered towards her lab, opened the door and walked in, feeling better already. Yes, she would work on her alloy project, check the results of an experiment she'd set up yesterday, and maybe have a look at the tent fabric her father was working on to see if it was suitable for armour. Actually, no. Scrap that last one.

Bulma sat down on her office chair and started sorting through her paperwork. In the early hours of the morning, her lab was peaceful. It would be easy to get some work done and forget all about that damn Saiyan... Bulma stopped shuffling papers, frowning at another piece of paper sitting on the edge of her desk. She'd recognise that small, curved script anywhere. She'd studied it for long enough. Vegeta had written out the new mathematical equation from the white board. He'd made lots of notes around it, and started to solve it. At the bottom of the paper was a note that read, It appears you aren't the only "genius" around here. Fix the GR and I'll finish this.

Bulma could help but smile. He'd clearly written this while she was out on her date, and therefore before everything between them went sideways. But it was definitive proof that it was indeed Vegeta who had solved the first math problem and that maybe, just maybe, he cared a little bit about her.

The dawn air was frigid, but Vegeta maintained his cross-legged position even as a cool wind whipped through the Capsule Corp garden. He'd caught a couple of hours of torture filled sleep that left him more tired than anything else. As usual, his dreams involved Frieza, who always appeared bigger than he had been in reality. This time, not only was Frieza playing cruel games with him, but he'd dragged a certain blue haired woman into it as well, torturing Bulma until Vegeta couldn't bear it anymore and begged - begged! - Frieza to stop.

Vegeta tried to clear his mind, and erase the vision of blue hair stained with blood. It was harder than usual, with a head that felt heavy from the alcohol. What a mistake that had been. He rarely drank before, knowing that lowered defences meant giving the enemy the upper hand should someone try to kill him. He hadn't expected Bulma to come home though - she'd told him not to wait up, after all. Having a drink (or three, maybe four...) had finally let him relax, and his mind slow.

He should have stuck to his rule.

Bulma might not have wanted to kill him (although perhaps she did now) but he felt like he'd been to war. He'd lost control - something that rarely happened to him - and it was terrifying.

Vegeta tried to concentrate on clearing his thoughts. He usually found meditation outside was a way to start the day and avoid injuries due to tiredness, and was hoping it would also work for... whatever he was feeling now.

Not that he minded getting hurt - that was all a part of training - but unnecessary wounds meant he couldn't train as well the following day. And Vegeta liked training almost as much as fighting. There was something satisfying about pushing himself to his limit, only to break that limit again and again. And who better to push Vegeta than himself? Kakarot aside (as if he would ever train with that idiot), no one on earth offered a challenge suitable for his strength, Super Saiyan or not.

But despite training daily, the elusive Super Saiyan form remained out of his grasp. Some days Vegeta was close. He could almost taste it - the air took on a bitter, electric scent, the fine hairs on his arm stood up, and his skin buzzed... but every time he felt like it was happening, it would all drain away, leaving him feeling like there was a hole where all of his drive and ambition had been.

Still, Vegeta kept training. After all, he had his pride, if nothing else.

"Vegeta, honey, you must be freezing out here!"

Vegeta groaned inwardly at the blonde woman's voice. And just as he'd emptied his mind of all thoughts too.

She came bustling over, gardening tools clanking against her bucket. "You really should wear a shirt if you are going to spend time out in the cold. Not that I'm complaining - you do improve the view." Mrs Briefs knelt at a garden bed to Vegeta's right and continued babbling, not seeming to care that Vegeta hadn't even opened his eyes. "It's such a nice morning too be one with nature, isn't it? Perfect for gardening too. After all, the early bird catches the worm. Oh look, there's one now!"

Vegeta cracked and eye open and saw Mrs Briefs dangling a slimy, wriggling creature. He took in a sharp breath and slowly stood up and began backing up.

"Worms are such wonderful creatures, don't you think? They might not look like much but they irrigate the earth and make all my flowers grow beautifully. Vegeta? Where are you going?"

Vegeta broke into a run towards the GR and slammed his hand on the entry panel to open the door. Once inside, he closed the door and leaned against it, finally letting out the shudder he'd been repressing.

If that woman had taken a liking to gardening in the mornings he was going to have to find a new spot to meditate. Somewhere far, far away.

Bulma heard the GR door open and close. She didn't hear any movement from Vegeta though, so she tightened the last bolt then rolled herself out from under the console on her mechanic's trolley. Vegeta was standing at the door, his back pressed against it. He was pale - an unusual look for someone with his tan skin tone. Dark circles surrounded his eyes, and his hair, which normally stuck up in a streamline peak, was dishevelled. If Bulma wasn't so angry about the stunt he pulled last night she'd feel sorry for him.

"I thought I told you to stay the fuck away from me." Vegeta growled slightly, baring his teeth like a wild dog. Yeah, Bulma didn't feel sorry for him.

"You look like crap," Bulma said, standing up and brushing grease off her hands and onto her already filthy overalls. "Maybe stick with green tea next time?"

Vegeta grimaced slightly, but he still managed to surface a small smirk and run his gaze up and down over her. "Hm. Well, you look like you slept in a trash can."

Bulma fought the urge to cross her hands over her stained top and gave him the sweetest smile she could muster. "I haven't slept. I've been fixing the gravity room."

"You certainly smell like you haven't slept," Vegeta said, crinkling his nose in disgust.

Bulma gritted her teeth. Honestly, could he be any more of an arsehole? She sashayed towards him and prodded his bare chest with her finger. "I got your note. A deal's a deal. I expect the rest of the equation to be solved by the end of the day."

Vegeta closed his eyes and ran his hand over his face. When he opened them he looked bone-weary. "Fine." He opened the door and stepped to the side. When Bulma didn't move, he rolled his eyes heavenward. "You can leave now."

Bulma sighed and gathered up her tools. "It's fixed now, thanks for asking," she said sarcastically as she left the GR.

Dawn had just started to break as Bulma stepped outside. Red ray broke through light clouds, making the yellow paint of the walls of the main house at Capsule Corp glow slightly. Her mother was tending to pink carnations in a flower bed nearby. She looked up as Bulma walked by and smiled at her.

"Good morning dear, did you see Vegeta? He took off so fast, I don't know what happened."

Bulma sighed. "Don't mind him, Mom, he's in a weird mood today."

Mrs Briefs shook her head sadly. "He's been through so much, poor thing. And he's such a sweet man too."

Bulma snorted at that, but turned it into a cough at her mother's sharp gaze.

"You really should be kinder to him, Bulma. Anyone can see he hasn't had an easy life. Why, all I did was hold up a worm and he took off like I was threatening him with a nuclear weapon!"

"A worm, you say?" A slow grin crept onto Bulma's face. "I'll be sure to keep that in mind." If Vegeta thought he could keep treating her like crap, well he was going to get a taste of his own medicine.