Another chapter translated from my boo fleurlicorne. Thank u so much *hugs* Go and check out her stuff as well! :)

He stared into her blue eyes with disbelief while she gazed back at him expectantly. What was this woman looking for? It struck him as idiotic for her to come and join him on the roof just for the sake of discussing a new training suit . Of course he knew what her actual intent on coming up there was. She had been obsessing over that letter for days. Now that they both knew what the letter contained, she was dead-set on learning his honest opinion about it. Vegeta had the strange feeling that she was looking at him again. Couldn't she ask one of her girlfriends for advice instead? Or ask one of those stupid fighters that she always had buzzing around her? The baldy or maybe the pig, or whoever? The Saiyan was extremely annoyed. In addition, he was annoyed by the fact that although he did it reluctantly, he would still cave in and answer her questions. She had a knack with phrasing things so that he couldn't help but reply.

So what did he really think about the letter? He thought that it was all bullshit. Vegeta could only sense despair in the desert bandit's every word. There was no love, desire or connection. No, all he could sense was panic, which had grown enormously in the weakling. The fighter had been gone for a considerable length of time and he must be aware, that in contrast to himself, Vegeta was dangerously close to the woman. In a way, he could understand Yamcha's thinking, if one regarded the blue-haired woman like a possession. But it wasn't that simple. This kind of situation couldn't be described that simply, and she certainly wasn't someone that anyone could just claim to possess. Although, it really did appear that that was what the fighter believed. The Earthling had used all sorts of meaningless phrases to stretch his point. The desert bandit couldn't see but rather had tried to repress her true good qualities. One thing the Saiyan had to admit - she had a certain pride and self-confidence, which he recognized as being the same as his. Even if he dismissed her behaviour as insane, he realized that she had a lot of courage. Moreover, her most striking attribute was that she was completely without prejudice and that she always formed her own opinions without allowing anyone else, not even someone she loved, to influence her.

"Everything that dumbass wrote is bullshit."

However, beyond saying that, Vegeta would keep his thoughts on the matter to himself. It was more than enough that he had already made a disparaging remark.

"He doesn't seem to know you...like I do." he whispered, with the words escaping from his lips and with their exact meaning lost on the blue-haired woman. But that didn't matter, she would just interpret it with whatever fit the bill. Yet Vegeta was still surprised that she didn't demand that he explain the deeper meaning of his message. Instead, she changed the subject.

"Do you care if I say yes to Yamcha's proposal?"

Did he care how she would respond to her boyfriend's proposal? It was really all the same to him. It wasn't like he had any romantic interest in the Earth woman. Although, the fact that such a lowlife got to call her his girlfriend had slowly come to annoy him. How had this change occurred? He had never been envious of the desert bandit before and until recently, he hadn't been affected by the two Earthlings's relationship. What had happened in the past few weeks or even months, that he now felt almost angry about their relationship? Well, he had to admit that he was interested in how she would respond but she didn't need to know about his interest.

"Yes, you should."

Dammit, why was his heart beating so rapidly all of a sudden? Vegeta had to hide his blush. What was the purpose in asking him this? She seemed to be making a lot of assumptions. He couldn't imagine what she was trying to imply or what kind of reaction she was trying to provoke. His gaze shifted carefully over to her, but he couldn't look into her eyes. He looked grimly at her long legs instead that were covered by her knee-length boots. Without realizing it, his gaze wandered upwards from her pantyhose, to her thighs and up to her miniskirt, which concealed just the bare minimum of flesh. Why...why was she all dolled up like that? His eyes continued moving upwards until they reached her tight top. Although she had a jacket on, she had unzipped it, so that a hint of cleavage was being shown. Had she deliberately dressed like that? However, the more important question was, why was her appearance suddenly affecting him to this extent? Since when did the female body make him so embarrassed?

"Vegeta?" he heard her sweet voice sound out.

The Saiyan was shaken up and turned his eyes away from her again. God, hopefully she hadn't noticed that he was checking her out. Since when did such inappropriate thoughts enter his head? It was getting harder and harder to conceal his blush. His face felt extremely hot.

"Are you alright?"

Suddenly, he felt her hand brush gently against his forehead. Vegeta was so startled by this unexpected touch, that in the heat of the moment, he pushed her away.

"Take your dirty paws off..," he growled. He didn't finish cursing her, as he was interrupted by her screams. Shocked, he looked across at her but she was nowhere to be found. The fighter looked from right to left until his eyes finally looked down and he saw her. "Oh shit…," he stammered, for he could not believe what he had just done. Vegeta was always careful in controlling his power but what he had done had removed all the air from his lungs.

XXX

His blow came unexpectedly and hurt a lot. Everything happened so fast that it was a miracle that Bulma was able to grasp onto the railing. She frantically held onto the railing with one hand and tried not to look down. They were on the roof of Capsule Corp. and if she fell down now...then only the Dragon Balls would be able to save her. "Vegeta...help me," she groaned almost inaudibly, as she clutched the railing. Bulma was annoyed just then that she had not taken her power training in the gym very seriously. When was the last time she had done any physical activity anyways?

With each passing second, her body just felt heavier and she became more nervous. Her hands started sweating and the bar that she could just barely hold onto, began to slowly slip out of her reach. "Please…," she begged, as she no longer had any strength left to scream. Then the inevitable happened. Bulma could no longer support herself and she fell. With her last breath, she only prayed to heaven that Vegeta had heard or seen her. The ground was getting closer and closer. It was so incredibly close that she could already picture her impact. She closed her eyes, hoping that it would be over quickly, and that her parents would at least be responsible enough to resurrect her with the Dragon Balls. That was her last hope now.

No. Not the last hope. What happened next was as sudden as her fall, but in contrast to that, it was something wonderful. Bulma suddenly felt strong arms around her and shortly after, she felt a small jolt, that stopped her fall. The jolt was barely noticeable yet it had saved her life. She slowly opened her eyes and looked into the face of her saviour. It was none other than Vegeta who had come to her aid as quickly as he could. She had hoped that he would catch her, and up until the last moment, she had been undecided about whether he actually would do it or not. He had after all pushed her down, even if it had been unintentional. Bulma leaned her head against his chest, inhaling his body's scent. Without thinking, she wrapped her arms around him and pressed herself against him. Her heart pounded endlessly against his chest, as she realized his closeness to her. Or was it from the exhilaration of the fall itself?

The wind settled around her and within a few seconds, the ground was once again beneath Vegeta's feet. The blue-haired woman breathed a sigh of relief and looked once more into the face of her saviour. It was as if she could detect some concern in his face...or was that just her imagination? The Saiyan no Ouji was so uncomfortable with having her staring at him for so long that he broke the silence that reigned between them.

"Everything worked out for you this time. But next time, you better keep your paws off me," he warned in a stern tone.

"Do you mean to say that this was my fault?" she snapped.

"Whose else? You really can't keep your hands off me?" A slight grin curled around his lips, which only prickled her more.

"You should learn to control your strength!"

At that suggestion, his eyebrow twitched. She had apparently touched a sore spot with him. A smile flitted over her face. This had just been a dumb accident and nothing more. In any case, she trusted that the prince wouldn't just intentionally throw her down to her death. He had actually come to her rescue when she had called for him instead.

"You should know not to touch me without permission," he countered.

"Are you scared of being touched…?" she asked curiously, raising her left hand slightly while still lying in his arms, until she came to a halt right in front of his cheek.

"What do you think you're doing?" he growled, not taking his eyes off from her.

"Just stay still," she ordered and put her hand to his face. Bulma could tell by his reaction that he found her touch to be extremely strange. Why did he have such a big issue with getting close to someone? But now that she thought about, the answer came to her. He had only touched her directly once before. The blue-haired woman remembered standing in her dress, thinking every minute that her arm would be crushed, as he grabbed her as a consequence of lying to him and taking him for a ride. Only now did the inventor remember that he had shaken his hand vigorously after touching her as if she had been...dirty. He also made direct skin contact when fighting so why was he drawing the line here with her?

Even though he had been acting so surly, he was suddenly strikingly calm again. She felt his heated face in her hand and his heavy gaze upon her. His dark opal eyes were so piercing that they were making her forget everything else around her. Why was she touching him again? She really didn't know. Her brain seemed to be shutting off, as she unconsciously pulled his face closer to hers. A strange feeling and sense of longing arose in her, which she had not felt for a long time. And she would give in and satisfy this desire. All she wanted right now was to taste the Saiyan's lips.

"Am I...disrupting you?"

Another voice stilled the movement of her hand. Her heart, which was already beating rapidly, froze to ice as she realized who was asking this question. She cautiously looked to her left, and saw the very man she would have least liked to witness her encounter with Vegeta.

XXX

Yamcha dropped his sports bag in shock. What in the hell were those two doing? After his long absence, the black-haired fighter had returned to get the hoped-for response from his girlfriend about whether she wanted to become his wife. But now that he saw his supposed fiancée he felt as if she had never even received his letter. And there she was now also in the arms of a murderer. Vegeta was carrying her and it appeared as if they had been about to kiss. But that couldn't be...

"What the hell…?" he stammered, trying to recollect himself. Slowly, the two noticed his presence there. Bulma's head turned towards him and Vegeta dropped his girlfriend to the ground in horror.

"Ow...bloody hell…," she cursed, trying to get back up despite the pain. "Yamcha...I'm so glad that you're here." Bulma straightened her body and walked a few steps towards him.

Although it was dark, the former desert bandit could still detect her blush. She looked so different and it definitely wasn't just because of her haircut. He also saw how agitated she looked. The evidence was right in front of his face. Yamcha had decided to leave his jealousy behind, but her facial expression only revealed...guilt.

"It doesn't look like you're glad that I'm back. You're probably just trying to throw me off again…" He glared at her and picked up his sports bag from off the ground. Yamcha observed his adversary, who not wanting to participate in the conversation, had withdrawn as far away as he could get! Vegeta had tried to steal his girlfriend and now he was just going to quietly and secretly slink away? "Hey you!" he shouted angrily after him.

Vegeta felt that he had to be the one being addressed, so he slowed his exit. He looked at Yamcha in surprise. "Who me? Are you talking to me, maggot?"

He could not have said that more derogatively. Yamcha's anger was collecting and washing over him. He was livid now. "Don't try to spin this, you monkey. Don't think you can just take off after trying to seduce my girlfriend!"

"Seduce? You must have a few screws loose," the Saiyan no Ouji hissed contemptuously and placed his hands on his hips. "As if she could ever turn me on…"

At those words, Yamcha's gaze immediately shifted back towards Bulma, whose face spoke volumes. Her jaw was almost to the ground. It was like she had been expecting more from him and not an insult. The black-haired fighter let the Saiyan depart and decided to resolve this situation with his girlfriend on his own. "Bulma...do you have anything to say for yourself?" He exhaled and took a few steps towards her, until he stopped right in front of her.

XXX

Her heart was still beating wildly. Why had Vegeta said that? That she could never turn him on? Was she really that repulsive to him? First, he couldn't bear to be touched by her and now this. It hurt that he thought so lowly of her. But what did she expect? That just because their future selves had a thing for each other that the same thing would repeat in the present?

"Bulma...do you have anything to say for yourself?"

She was frightened by her boyfriend's accusatory tone. How could she hope to explain anything to him when she couldn't even explain to herself what was going on with her and Vegeta? Fuck it, she loved Yamcha so what was she doing? Her hand had just been attracted to the Saiyan as if by magic, hmm...hmm...God, what would have have happened if Yamcha hadn't interrupted them? Would she have really dared to kiss her extraterrestrial guest? What had gotten into her? It was inconceivable that she had almost cheated on her boyfriend.

"It's not what it looks like," she said pathetically and knew that she sounded extremely dumb. Of course it was exactly what it looked like. Being the idiot that she was, she had almost kissed the prince!

"Oh yes. You know, I think I've heard this one before." Her boyfriend bit down on his lip and she could see the disappointment in his eyes. "It's the same old excuses over and over again. I just can't take it anymore. I think I already know what your answer to my question is…"

"What question?" she asked, and then it hit her that he was wondering whether she wanted to be his wife or not.

"Just tell me...once and for all," he breathed, placing his hands on her shoulders, "will you be my wife?"

His hands were as strong as lead on her shoulders. Why was her boyfriend asking her this difficult question now? The reason she had wanted to discuss this matter with Vegeta was because she had no answer. Not yet anyways. Actually, she had wanted to be truthful about what she was feeling. Before the Saiyan no Ouji had dropped her from the roof, she had wanted to tell him that she was unsure. There was also something else that was still always on her mind that she had wanted to discuss with him too. She had wanted to talk to him about the future again and finally end the issue once and for all. But that chance had been denied by Yamcha, and he was now confronting her with the all important question instead. It was probably the most important question of both of their lives. All he wanted was a simple answer that would determine the course of their future together.

"Yamcha, I haven't had enough time to think about it yet," she replied, having to force that answer out of herself.

"No! No more excuses! Tell me the answer right here and now so that I finally know where I stand!"

His steady gaze wouldn't leave her. What should she do? Bulma wasn't ready to answer. She was having too many mixed feelings. She was just too agitated to make a proper decision. But she knew one thing: she loved Yamcha. She just had to ignore that surge of emotion that was stirred by something or someone else. At least for the moment.

If she thought about it, she really didn't have a choice. She didn't want to hurt her boyfriend and above all, she didn't want to lose him. Not again. So she did what was best for herself at this point in time...

"I want...to be your wife."

...even if something didn't feel right.

XXX

Vegeta had not ventured far from the two of them. He had been overtaken by his curiosity. Annoyed, he leaned against the wall of Capsule Corporation and eavesdropped on the conversation with his good hearing. When he heard her accept her boyfriend's proposal, a shiver ran down his back. This didn't make any sense. She had just tried to kiss him. And now? Now she was saying that she would become the wife of that blithering idiot.

Yes, she had clearly made a pass at him. He had frozen to ice when he had felt her hand on his face. Her blue eyes had broken his resolve, and he had immediately surrendered as she drew him closer. "How could I have let things go so far…?" he asked himself while clenching his right hand into a fist. How was it possible that he had completely forgotten himself for a fraction of a second? He had lost control of his body and his control was only sinking further out of his reach. He hit the wall behind him in rage. Although it was difficult for him, he held himself back, so that he wouldn't create a hole in the wall.

It had almost happened. He had almost given in to that woman...

And so he determined that the future that had already come to pass, was not as unrealistic as he had originally imagined. He could even somewhat envision how it all could have happened that…"Enough," he cursed and he tore himself away from the wall. Actually, Vegeta was glad that this had all happened for now he knew that he really had to apply the emergency brake on whatever was going on between them. But he didn't even have it do that anymore, since Bulma had beaten him to it by accepting that fool's marriage proposal. Yes, it was much better this way.

But if this was for the best...

...then why did something not feel right?