The Bonded

Part Twelve

The very same evening as the day of the confrontation with Bulma there was a phone call. This time Goku answered, expecting it to be his second son. However, the face that appeared was of a gray-haired man dressed in a dated pinstriped suit. "Are you Son Goku?" he enquired immediately.

"Yes. Who are you?" The saiya-jin presented the question with his usual innocent frankness.

Tone insincerely warm the man replied. "Dr. Kudoi, Psychiatrist," he flashed a badge at Goku. "Pleased to meet you. To get down to business: your son..." he glanced down and read off the name from a paper in front of him, "Son Goten, requested that I call you. He would do so himself but is not available."

"What happened?" Goku questioned with growing alarm, sitting forward in his chair and gripping the armrests.

"Approximately four hours and forty-five minutes ago," the doctor began, "at her --"

"Just tell me what happened!" Goku demanded tensely.

The doctor cleared his throat unhappily but complied. "Your friend, Ms. Briefs, attempted to commit suicide approximately four hours and forty-five minutes ago. She was rushed to the hospital after being discovered by her son Trunks and myself."

"Shit." Goku rose and took a step back, pushing the chair to the side. He looked out the door behind himself and then back to the vidscreen. Quickly, a calm took over his mind, similar to the one that enveloped him in battle, and he made a decision. "Hold a second," he said hastily and then turned to stick his head out of the den doorway. "Vegeta!" he bellowed his mate's name and then hurried back to sit down again. "What happened?"

"Frankly, I don't know. We were unable to reach her for quite some time, and when we got in to the bathroom she was unconscious. I haven't been able to get a straight answer out of her son. Do you..." the doctor paused as Vegeta entered the room.

Goku turned in his seat and informed him breathlessly, "Bulma tried to kill herself some time after we left. She's in the hospital right now." Vegeta's brow furrowed and he frowned, moving to lean on the back of Goku's chair and face the vidscreen. The psychiatrist cowered slightly under the angry glare.

"You both know her?" Goku nodded. "She's at the Northern Central hospital. If you need directions --"

"We know where it is," said Vegeta, cutting him off. Goku rose from his seat, hand on the off button.

"Thank you, Doctor. Are you at the hospital right now?" The man nodded professionally. "We'll talk to you there." Goku switched off the machine and followed Vegeta out of the room. They exited by the living room window with Goku in the lead, and took to the air.

Trunks' eyes were dry but he was in a state of distraught shock. He sat in Goten's lap, held tightly by his mate who soothingly caressed his back and whispered reassuring words in his ear. They shared the single chair in the hospital room, as far away from the unconscious Bulma as the cramped space would allow. She looked lifeless and ancient, skin sallow in the empty expanse of impersonal white bedsheets, hair damp and forearms heavily bandaged. The gauze and cloth concealed vertical and horizontal slashes, evidence of Bulma's thorough efforts. An IV needle was inserted into a blue vein located at the inside of her elbow, slowly replacing her lost blood.

Again, Trunks looked across the room at his mother, throat tightening painfully. He was stiff in Goten's arms and suffered without words. It was his relationship with Goten that had caused the entire catastrophe, but with guilt he knew that he could not force himself to leave the damning embrace. Without it he would be lost. Goten had always been a companion, but now more than ever before Goten was his lifeline, grounding him and helping him hold on to his recently shaken grip on sanity. He was trying to resist the calming influence -- he feared it could unintentionally cause more pain -- but the comfort steadily gained ground and won. Trunks slumped down, pressing his face against Goten's shoulder, and his tail held them together closely. The younger male took both trembling hands and moved them so that Trunks' arms were wrapped around his neck, lightly kissing his silky purple hair.

The door opened with a slam and Goten looked up, his hold on his mate never lessening. Vegeta had opened the door and Goku stood to his side. Behind them, a sympathetic and rather frightened nurse was waiting. "Hey Dad." Goten smiled weakly. His father rushed immediately to Bulma's bedside, checking the bandages and blood transfusion. With a nod to the nurse he pronounced them satisfactory. She forced a thankful smile and left, looking curiously at the two males on the metal seat but making no comment. As the door closed behind her Goku turned back to the others, searching for an explanation.

"Trunks found her," Goten supplied quietly, "he broke down the door to get in. She slit her wrists. Her condition is stable now and she should regain consciousness soon, with any luck."

Trunks spoke from his place in Goten's arms, voice muted. "Her blood ... it was everywhere." He hesitated and then continued unsteadily. "This is all my fault."

"Don't place blame." Vegeta took two steps forward and laid an unfamiliar hand on his son's head, his fingers slipping into the soft bangs. "It is not your fault." The hand slipped down to Trunks' neck and the younger man reached up, squeezing it tightly and then wrapping his arms around his lover again. The motion was meant to be reassuring, but Trunks' eyes were suffused with self-doubt. Vegeta moved back to stand beside Goku and spoke to Goten over his offspring's head. "Will she be receiving professional help?"

"Yeah. Dr. Kudoi recommended someone already. She's a psychiatrist and a university teacher. They'll meet as soon as Bulma wakes up." He faltered. "Good God... I just wish it hadn't happened." Trunks nodded once, mutely, and Goku looked over at the prone body on the hospital bed. Hopelessness and regret saturated the silence that followed, broken only once by a dry sob that wracked Trunks' body.

Many days passed and over that time, life should have returned to normal.

Bulma was a week out of the hospital and according to her psychiatrist she was steadily healing and improving. Out of either fear or spite, the saiya-jin and their offspring had been alienated when the news spread, but that was to be expected and was already beginning to fade with time. The real problem was the damage done to the relationships between the Goku and Vegeta, and Trunks and Goten, and for that there was no hope in sight.

The relationships were not expected to be perfect -- happily-ever-after was not part of real life. However, they had become worse than either Vegeta or Goten had expected they could possibly be. Conversations were guilt-laden and restrained, as were all other forms of interaction. Vegeta had spent a week working to strengthen his bond with Goku; the relationship should have been secure. However, Vegeta was concerned that Bulma's reaction had scared his mate away. Kakarotto was hesitant, overly cautious when he saw or spoke to Vegeta. After an initial period of reluctance he could be convinced to go along with something, and when the passion overtook him he did so with his usual fervor, but he refused to begin anything himself, and never once acted as seme. At times he rejected his mate completely, even going so far as to escape by leaving the house. In those times both men suffered. There was emotional distress, of course, but also physical pain. Headaches, far surpassing any migraine with a pain that was nearly crippling, plagued Vegeta whenever Kakarotto left, and faded only when he returned. To say the least, the relationship had been roughly shaken.

The situation between Goku and Vegeta was unstable, but Goten was worse off. Before Bulma had become involved everything had been wonderful. He didn't believe there was any other purer joy in the world than his mate. But now... Goten's love hadn't changed, but Trunks' had. He left early for work and stayed late. At home, he was moody, removed, and very quiet. He avoided Goten's advances, complaining of headaches and fatigue, but slept poorly and was often up before sunrise. Trunks normally took out his anguish physically, and the atypical sullenness frightened Goten. He had tried to be understanding and provide comfort, and when that proved ineffective he made an effort to give Trunks some space. However, his patience was wearing thin. On top of that, he had become accustomed to having sex with his mate constantly -- rarely a day passed without it. But now, it had been over a week. Goten had reached the level of desperation he had felt in the time preceding the start of his relationship with Trunks, constantly thinking about the other male but incapable of action. A day or two after Bulma left the hospital he had found release by his own hand and had quickly adopted the habit. But masturbation was no substitute, and he was sincerely worried that he may never get his lover back.

Finally, Goten was forced to take action -- he went to see Vegeta.