Chapter 29
They both looked down at the woman lying on the gurney. Her chest lifted slowly as she breathed in and out. She never moved, not the two weeks she'd been laying there, never even fluttering her eyes. They lifted their heads, studying one another before glancing at the woman again.
"It was eating her alive, you know?" Goku said softly, his gaze on his sister.
There were a few beats of silence before Vegeta answered. "I know," he stated quietly, his gaze raking over her still form. He swallowed hard, his heart started to beat a little faster at the thought of her never waking up.
The only sound in the room was the beep of the heart monitor, the two warriors standing in compatible silence for a while.
Goku finally looked over at the prince. "Are you still going to kill her?"
Vegeta's head jerked up at the soft question. He studied his old rival, now best friend, for a few minutes before answering. "No."
He smiled a little. "You should've known that Kakkarot."
Goku snorted softly, smirking and looking back down at his sister.
"One never knows with you, Vegeta," he murmured, grasping his sisters' hand, squeezing gently.
The prince grunted, doing the same. They were quiet for a time, listening to the heart monitor beep.
Then Goku sighed, closing his eyes for a moment before meeting Vegeta's gaze. "Are you sure this is going to work?"
"No."
Goku breathed deeply, before letting it out slowly as he powered up, Vegeta doing the same.
"Well, here goes nothing."
They both grunted, pouring more power into Marie's body, watching her lift, her back coming off the bed, as they filled her with their life force. They breathed deeply, their bodies shaking with the loss of energy. Goku finally let go, falling and smacking on the floor with a thud. Vegeta kept going, never taking his eyes off Marie's face, as he grunted again, feeling his life force leaving him as he continued to pour power into his wife's body. The prince continued, even after he felt his heart skip, tears slowly running down his face, before he too, slammed to the floor, unconscious.
They both groaned after a few hours, lifting onto an elbow simultaneously, rubbing their eyes before glancing at one another. There was a beat of silence as they stared at each other. They both jumped up, looking at the gurney. Vegeta choked back a sob.
Marie wasn't there.
Their gazes met, both running towards the double doors leading out of the infirmary, their shoulder's meeting as each tried to squeeze out first. With a grunt, Vegeta got out first, sending Goku a smirk before his gaze roamed the grounds. At the sound of childrens' laughter, they both turned, walking quickly towards the back of the property.
Gideon, Brock, and Pace were rough housing, one of them growling as he launched himself at his brother. The other piled on top, small snarls and growls emanating from the dog pile as their tails swung behind them. The woman sitting on the ground softly laughed.
Vegeta and Goku stopped, staring at Marie sitting cross legged, her back to them. The prince's eyes widened, while Goku grinned from ear to ear. They watched as she turned, as if in slow motion, and looked at them. She softly smiled, her eyes gentle.
"Hi."
At her voice, Goku rushed up, grabbing his sister and twirling her around, whooping. She hugged her brother back, stumbling slightly as he finally deposited her back on the ground.
"You okay?" he asked, chuckling.
Marie sighed. "Yeah," she said softly.
She turned and looked at the prince. They studied one another, not noticing when Goku grabbed his three nephew's and, with a smile back at them, led the boy's into the house.
Vegeta slowly walked up to her, gazing down at her as she stared wide-eyed up at him, studying her for a moment before lifting his hand.
He softly caressed her cheek, sliding his hand down her face and cupping her neck. Their eyes met moments before he swooped down and captured her lips. His kiss was gentle, not wanting to overwhelm her with his presence. He heard her sigh, wrapping an arm around his waist, leaning her head against his chest when he broke the kiss. He could feel her shaking.
"Marie?" he questioned, his voice gruff.
She shook her head, her hair sliding against his skin at the movement. Vegeta wrapped an arm around her waist, gently squeezing, noticing that she was still so frail.
The prince didn't say anything else for a moment, just stared down at his wife. He slowly lifted her up, putting an arm up under her legs, hugging her to him as he walked towards the house.
He laid her down on his bed, studying her as she met his gaze, softly smiling before closing her eyes. Within minutes she was asleep. He continued to study her, watching the rise and fall of her chest, before turning and locking the balcony doors, knowing damn good and well if his kids got a chance, they would sneak in here. He walked to the bedroom door, pausing in the doorway to look back at his sleeping wife for a moment, before softly closing the door behind him.
Nobody saw Marie for a few days, not leaving Vegeta's room as the week went by. They all worried, studying the saiyan prince when he would come down from checking on her. "She needs time," is all he would say when the others would question him. Bulma, and Goku, would leave trays of food at the door, hoping to catch the woman and talk to her themselves. But they hardly got a chance, as Vegeta soon caught on to what they were doing, and starting bringing her trays himself, glaring at them as he left. The prince soon got fed up with their constant bickering, doing nothing but growling in answer at them as he passed.
The boys didn't get to see their mother again either. They pleaded and whined, but Vegeta was adamant about Marie getting her rest. "Soon," he would tell them, leaving them pouting, and Brock crying, as he closed his bedroom door behind him. The boys soon got angry, knowing their mom was just mere feet away from them, and they couldn't even see her. They sat on their bed, eyes narrowed, mouth stuck out, as they glared at their door. Every now and then one of them sniffled, but all in all, it was quiet. After awhile, Gideon jumped up, striding towards the balcony.
"What're you doing, Gideon?" Pace asked, jumping off the bed, staring at his brother.
Gideon turned, studying them for a moment before crossing his arms.
"I'm going to see mom!"
The boy's eyes widened. Brock wiped his nose, sniffling as he looked at his brother. "How?" he asked, his voice thick from crying.
"I'm going to dad's balcony," Gideon stated, turning back to the opening and climbing on the railing.
"But dad isn't stupid enough to leave it unlocked. He knows we would try to get in!" Pace cried, watching as his older brother by a minute, paused.
"We'll see."
The boys in the room looked at each other, before quickly following.
Pace was right. Their dad was no moron. The door was locked. But the curtains were pulled back, and the boys pressed their faces to the glass as they saw their mother lying on their dad's bed. She appeared to be sleeping. They jumped up, hiding, floating above the door as someone walked in. They waited to hear the door close before peaking down into the room. They saw their dad pause, gazing at Marie for a moment before sitting on the bed. He dropped his head in his hands, his fingers sliding through his hair.
The boys glanced at one another, Gideon swiveling his head back and forth between them, situated in the middle. After a moment, they looked back. Their dad hadn't moved.
"What's wrong with daddy? Isn't he happy mom's back!?" Brock whispered, watching with wide eyes.
The other boys were silent for a moment. Gideon hesitated, before he opened his mouth.
"I heard Uncle Goku tell Aunt Chi-Chi that they almost lost momma," he whispered, swallowing. Brock and Pace stared at him, wide eyed. "How did you hear them?" Brock asked.
Gideon rolled his eyes at his brother. "I eased dropped, stupid!"
"Hey!"
"SSHHH!" Pace hissed, pointing down into the window.
They looked, watching as Marie sat up, studying their father for a moment before laying a hand gently on his forearm. They saw her say something, the movement of her throat as she swallowed visible through the glass. Their dad didn't move for a moment, and just as the boys started to get angry, fixing to blast their thick headed father, he moved. They watched, wide eyed, as he gathered their mother in his arms, grinding his mouth to hers. The boys jumped back. They blushed, sneaking glances at one another.
"Uh, I don't think we should watch anymore, you guys!" Pace mumbled, still embarrassed at seeing his dad grope his mother. The other two nodded, and they flew back to their room, studying each other quietly as they landed on the carpet. They suddenly grinned at one another, jumping up and down.
"Mom's back!"
A couple days later, Vegeta walked into his room, pausing at the door for a moment before closing it softly behind him. He studied the woman sitting on his bed, her legs crossed, her gaze on the bed. He slowly walked over, continuing to study her as he sat, hiking one knee up as he turned to face her. It was quiet in the room, the ticking of the clock on the nightstand the only sound. Vegeta could see she was struggling with something, but he kept quiet, waiting for her to gather her thoughts. His brows furrowed after awhile, as his wife kept quiet.
She suddenly gasped in a breath, a sob escaping her as she raised her head to meet his gaze. Her eyes seemed tortured, wide and beseeching as they stared at him. She sucked in another breath.
"How do you do it?" she choked out, her body starting to shake.
Vegeta resisted the urge to grab her and cradle her against him. He clenched his hands, his teeth grinding with the effort. He knew she had to get through this on her own. He tensed, studying her for a moment.
"Do what?" he asked quietly, watching as she squeezed her eyes shut, turning her head sideways a little as she struggled with her emotions.
He closed his eyes, not being able to watch as she struggled to stay in control. After a few moments, her voice cut through the silence, making his eyes open again and land on her.
"How do you get over something like that? The people I-" Her hand came up, covering her mouth as a sob seemed to rip from her throat. Vegeta swallowed, watching.
"You don't." he confessed quietly, his gaze never leaving her as her head jerked up. She studied him, tears streaming down her face as she looked into his eyes.
"You seem to," she stated, watching as his jaw clenched, his gaze turning to the window, studying it for a moment before looking back at her.
"You don't," he said again. "The simple fact, Marie," he got up, sliding closer to her, coming within inches of her as he cupped her face. "Is in a warriors world, in my old life, it was either kill or be killed."
He listened to her sob for a moment before continuing. "You did what you had to do," he stated quietly, watching as her eyes met his once more. "And its over and done with. There's nothing you can do to take it back."
A sob escaped her, Marie's eyes squeezing shut as she leaned forward, feeling Vegeta's arms wrap around her as she broke down. She listened to his heart beat, the warmth emanating off him comforting. The crying slowly ebbed away, the timber of his voice rumbled through his chest as she stayed laying against him.
"You had no choice," he whispered, pulling her hair away from her face, studying her bent head when she didn't respond. "They were going to kill our son."
He felt her hands clench his shirt, her body moving as she seemed to try to get closer to him. Vegeta leaned her back, laying beside her, studying her and wiping a tear off her face before lifting the covers over them. She continued to study his face, the broken look still in her eyes as he pulled her against him. She layed a hand on his chest as he gazed down at her, rubbing her arm, squeezing lightly. She suddenly lifted up, capturing his lips and clutching his neck. He groaned, following her back down and gently grinding her lips with his. After a few moments, he pulled away, listening to her gasp as he stared down at her, his eyes heavy. He kissed her once more, before laying back down beside her, feeling her curl against him and burying her head in his neck. He wrapped an arm around her, gently clutching the back of her head when he felt her shudder.
"Go to sleep," he whispered, listening to her softly sigh.
After awhile, Vegeta felt her body relax, her breathing even out as she slumbered against him. He didn't move, continuing to hold her as he watched the sky darken, the sun finally setting hours later, the stars shining through the indigo sky. The prince lay there silently, holding his wife.
A/N: AAAWWW! I just love bringing out Vegeta's soft side, though I try not to make it too out of character! I hope you all enjoyed the chapter, and the little funny scene where the kids caught their parents making out! I'm currently working on the next chapter, this one not so mushy!
*Chapter 30 Teaser*: Who loves a good prank! And what happened to all that power Marie demonstrated!? The fighters soon find out it wasn't just a one...time...thing!
