AN - I would write a recap, but too much happened in the last chapter, and it all happened in a way that it's hard to simplify in a simple paragraph. If you need a refresher, just go back and re-read it. ;) Sorry!


Laughter was ringing in Gohan's ears, and that was what roused him awake. He'd been fast asleep and yet dreaming of nothing, and the harsh cracks of manic humor that were howling in the distance seemed to completely disappear as soon as be opened his eyes. He heard the rustling of leaves blowing in the wind, claps of waves in the lake as they blew from the breeze. Above the treetops was the whistle of breaking air that indicated someone was flying away, leaving the boy with the sensation that he'd missed out on something big while he'd slept.

Blinking some of the grogginess from his eyes, Gohan pushed himself up to a seated position. It was clear that he was in the middle of the forest, and he had been laying in a hollow dip of soil near the root of a large tree. The air was humid, the taste of gritty Earth on his tongue. Gohan was completely disoriented, and he really didn't understand how he got there.

The last thing he remembered was transitioning into a super saiyan, and the fear that had been pumping through his heart. He had been whispering words of encouragement to himself as he prepared for his upcoming match with the Androids… But after that? There was nothing.

"Ah!" He hissed, clapping a hand to his side as he stood. Every bone in his body felt as if it were being stung by pins and needles, and he found that his legs were resistant to budge as he pull them as he moved through the trees...

… Why was he all alone? Where was everyone?

... By the lake was where Vegeta lay, and he was sprawled flat on his back as the breeze slapped him in the cheeks. Not a sound rose from his parted lips, as blood trickled down the sides of his wounded face. His right arm was twisted in an unnatural and completely broken position, a result of the large fall he had endured. And it had cracked loudly when he hit the ground, though he hadn't been aware enough to hear it.

He was practically naked, his clothes having disintegrated off his skin. There were a few scraps of his pants that had managed to withstand Eighteen's blast, and each fiber of exposed flesh was burnt so bad that it had been charred to a black leather-like state.

The breeze that was hitting his face slowly came to a halt, and after there was only silence.

Where had it all gone wrong?

Android Seventeen had been crushed - destroyed under Vegeta's giant oozaru boot! Bulma had even said that finding a way to crush the two teenagers was one of the only likely options to even consider when it came to defeating them. And he'd listened to her. He'd done just that!

But, as he'd been readying himself to do the same to Eighteen, he had felt a sharp pain that rendered him motionless. It was a burning sensation that had radiated down his spine, bringing a numbness to his extremities and taking any ability to form words from his mind. Unlike anything he had encountered in his life, his limbs had instantaneously given out, and that was when he fell.

By the time he'd even landed he had already lost the majority of his size. The force of his humanoid body crashing into the Earth from such a height had been bone crushing. The irony of this hadn't been lost on the saiyan, who had tried so hard to do the same to the Androids just a few minutes prior.

It hadn't ended with just that, and Vegeta really wished it had. To revert back from his Oozaru form was always unpleasant, but this last one had been the absolute worst. It wasn't just uncomfortable - it had been excruciating. He'd felt as if his skin was folding inside-out, every crevice on his body churning and burning as his ape features violently dissipated, his pores shaking and his muscles rattling. He wasn't just de-transforming - the ape was being sucked right out of him! It didn't cease until he was a sputtering mess, and all will to do anything had left him. Too spent from everything to even move as he lay in his own blood, spit, and all other filth that had been exerted from his body as a result of the pressure, he couldn't bring himself to want to fight any more. Overwhelmed with all of the grief he'd felt in his lifetime, the saiyan knew that what had just happened was going to change his life forever.

Or, at least it would have, if it hadn't been for the whole dying thing...

He didn't even feel it when the Android blasted him. His nerves had already been through too much, and if anything it only felt like a warm blanket of relief that all of the bullshit he'd been through was finally coming to an end...

... And now he lay completely still, listening to the air around him, unable to even gather a straight thought. He couldn't replay what had happened, couldn't think of anyone or anything that might have been involved. Despite the pain that was throbbing over every slit of his skin, inside the saiyan felt absolutely nothing at all, and he never wanted to feel anything again.

He had heard what they'd done to Piccolo, but that didn't even register with him. It had only been noise, and now the night air was still.

The only thing he was able to focus on was his impending fate, and it was more of his body than his mind that had alerted him that he was dying. His brain was already gone. And his muscles were accepting of this fact, gently letting him know of reality as he seemed to sink even deeper into the damp soil he lay on.

Vegeta was going to die here, and that was simply that.

... Or was it?

Because, as it was, there was a nudging inside that kept trying to lure him out from the abyss his head was trying so eagerly to rest into. Somewhere in his limbs was an urge telling him that it wasn't yet his time. He felt as if he were merely trying to fall asleep after an exhausting day, but there was a small sound that was keeping him from doing such a thing.

'Senzu', it said.

Senzu? What did that mean? How annoying this was! Couldn't he at least die in peace, without the burden of words and thoughts invading his personal space?!

'SENZU'

'Stop it.' He thought back, the sides of his mouth twitching. 'Just shut up! I've already lost everything! Now leave me be!'

Even as he thought the rebuttal, he knew this wasn't true. Vegeta hadn't lost everything... Shewas several kilometers away, she was waiting for him, and she was the only thing he had left. What good would come to her if he just allowed himself to simply fade away like this?

'SENZU.' The voice said it again, this time with even more urgency.

And then he realized what was going on, and his jaw tightened. That voice speaking was very familiar, and it was all starting to register with him. What he was hearing wasn't just a pest that had made a game out of refusing to let him indulge in eternal slumber - he was experiencing a memory! Suddenly the images were coming to him, catching up with the sounds. Vegeta was back at the capsule house, and he was getting ready to take off for this dreaded battle with the Androids.

"Veggie!" She had screamed the last time he'd seen her. Even in his memory, the sight of her blue hair had his stomach quivering, making him want to be near those silky strands so he could will her fear away. "Veggie! The senzu beans!"

Oh, how he hated when she called him that. Every time that word left her lips it sent shivers down his spine, and it left goosebumps forming all along his skin. It threatened every aspect of his masculinity, insulted his proud heritage, and made him feel like a subpar brute. And yet at the same time, as soon as he'd hear her voice calling "Veggie", he always felt the need to run to her, drop to his knees, and make sure that everything was okay. To make sure that she was okay...

... Even in death, that woman still had that power over him…

But it was true - and suddenly it was all making sense. SENZU was the name of those regenerating beans, wasn't it? And, thanks to Bulma, he had a small fortune of them stowed in his pocket. He didn't know if the beans were even still there after everything his body had been through, but he knew he had to check. He had to at least make an effort to fetch one.

… And, with that came another burdening realization… 'Great.' He thought. Now he had to actually try to move.

.

Before he saw him, Gohan could hear him. He had spent the last six minutes trying to figure out how to get out of the forest with the low amount of energy he had. His ears were ringing, and anytime he moved too quickly it seemed that his head would take twenty seconds just to catch up with his body.

But he could sense Vegeta's ki, and he knew for sure that he wasn't waltzing into some trap that had been set by the Androids. When Gohan stumbled out through the clearing of the trees, he saw Vegeta's figure by the shore of the lake. The saiyan didn't acknowledge him as the boy slowly drew closer, though, for he was too consumed by what he was doing to seemingly care. Vegeta had his back turned to Gohan, the spandex rags he wore revealing chiseled muscles as he splashed himself in the face with the lake's cool water. He was trying to clean the dried blood from his skin, the black char resisting to crust off as he worked.

How he'd managed to somehow keep the senzu beans intact, he had no idea. But Vegeta had managed to use his less injured arm to retrieve one from his pocket. And now that he had his mind back to its normal capacity, he was having a hard time coming to terms with all that had occurred. Somewhere behind him the saiyan prince listened as the boy came to a stop, and he knew he was being watched.

Furrowing his eyebrows as he continued scrubbing at his face, Vegeta tried to ignore the boy's attention for as long as he could. Gohan wasn't taking the hint, though. And when the saiyan turned to glance at the kid, the boy was watching him with wide eyes.

"What is it?" Vegeta finally snapped, turning back around so he could lean over the lake and get a view of his face. The sun was rising in the sky now, and he was able to make out enough to see that he hadn't done a great job at cleaning himself off. This only made his mood even more sour.

"Um..." Gohan stumbled, as if he didn't know what to even say. "What are you... doing, sir?"

"What does it look like I'm doing?!" Vegeta shot, standing upright to send the boy a hard look. Gohan cowered under his eyes, backing away and scratching at one of his arms nervously.

"Well?" He continued impatiently.

"… Huh?"

"Are you well enough to live, or not!?" Vegeta obviously didn't like that he was even having to speak to the boy. "... Or do you need a senzu bean!? Tell me!"

"Oh..." The child looked down at his own body, taking note for the first time of how battered he really was. "Well... I'm in pain... but I think I'll be alright."

"Good." Vegeta stepped away from the lake and began to march towards him. "Because I don't know where Bulma's healing beans come from, or how accessible they are, so we need to ration the supply we have. Now, come on. We need to head back."

Gohan didn't feel the need to explain that he had his own small supply of senzu beans, shrugging his shoulders instead. "Okay. What about Mr. Piccolo?"

"What?"

He looked up at Vegeta, and the expression on his face gave the boy an uneasy feeling. He gulped before repeating himself, the silence between them making reality horribly apparent. "What about... Mr. Piccolo?"

The look on Vegeta's face said it all. It wasn't quite an expression of remorse, but rather of realization. Of surprise. The saiyan prince was taken aback that Gohan didn't already know, and that he was the one who would have to break the news to him. The anger and tension had drained from Vegeta's eyes, and now he was looking the boy up and down as if considering his words...

'Oh, no...' Gohan thought with a gulp. There was a word on his mind that his mother would have scolded him for even thinking, but it was rather suiting of the situation so he just couldn't help it. As he took a step back, not wanting to even hear what Vegeta had to say, the boy shook his head. "Fuck..."

.

The sun was high in the sky by the time the door swung open. Bulma had been trying to decide if she should just pack everything up and head back to West City on her own, after having spent the majority of the morning suffering between crying spells and waves of stress induced nausea. And when she heard the clatter that indicated that someone was home, she was beside herself with joy. The Bluehead was so ecstatic that she jumped from the couch where she'd been sitting, leaping to greet her companions in a cheerful celebration that they had survived. She bolted across the living room and to the foyer, throwing herself at Vegeta and slamming into his form as she wrapped her arms tightly around him. "You're okay!"

He had been standing still the entire time, watching with not even a hint of amusement as she'd moved. And when she fell into him he didn't utter a sound – he didn't even let out a breath of recoil from the force. His arms did not reach out to steady her, his eyes not moving down to give her a look. Vegeta simply stared straight ahead, scowling silently as she fawned over him. This was a stark contrast to how concerned he'd been with her they last time they'd been together, and Bulma uneasily pushed herself from him, stumbling a few steps back.

"Oh - I! I'm just so happy you're both okay!" She tried again, looking down to see that Gohan appeared to be just as grim as the saiyan prince did. Neither of the two responded, and the Bluehead shifted her weight uncomfortably. Despite knowing what had happened to Piccolo, she was still excited to learn that these two had not suffered the same fate. But now she was quickly coming down from that high, and her glee was now transitioning to dread. There was clearly a giant elephant in the room - one that she was sure they didn't know she was even aware of.

Moving back to the couch to give them some space, Bulma tried to keep a calm composure in order to compensate for how animated she'd been just a few seconds earlier. And now that she was getting a proper look at them, both boys appeared as if they'd been thrown from a train while simultaneously wrestling with a winged dinosaur. Vegeta's clothes were in shreds. His entire chest was on display, with no sign that he'd ever been wearing a shirt to begin with. His pants had been dissipated into something that resembled boxers instead, and it was impressive that somehow the pelvic area of his clothes had managed to stay intact at all. There was muddy muck caked on the prince's skin, but he actually looked rather radiant despite everything. Surely he'd used one of the senzu beans... That had to be it.

It was actually Gohan that appeared far more beaten and bruised, and he looked as if he would never smile again. "Do you..." She stuttered dumbly, fishing for something to break the silence." A-are you guys hungry?"

"I don't know." Gohan mumbled. Much like Vegeta, he was avoiding any threat of eye contact with her. But instead of staring straight ahead into an unseen abyss like the saiyan prince was, his focus was locked on his own two feet.

"Oh." The Bluehead trailed. "Then..."

"We don't want anything, Woman! Would you just shut up?!" Vegeta suddenly erupted. "We've only been here for two short minutes, and you're already pestering for information! God - just leave us alone! Let us breathe, damnit!" And then he stormed for the bathroom, muddy boots leaving a trail where he clomped.

Now Gohan was standing alone in the entryway as a new silence fell over the two that were left in the room. Bulma's mouth had dropped open as Vegeta had yelled at her. Even the front door was left wide open, as the boy's chest began to twitch, his head lowering between his shoulders.

An indicator of the shower sounded, as water began running through the pipes in the walls. And at that precise moment, Bulma also heard as the water began to run from the child's eyes as well. He choked through a failed attempt at stifling a sniffle, and his shoulders began to convulse even more visibly than they already were.

Gulping down the indignance that came from being spoken to in such a way, the Bluehead pushed herself from the couch. She was trying not to move too suddenly as she went for the boy. When she got to him Bulma pulled the front door shut before turning to him. He was still shielding his face from her view, a hand to his eyes in effort to hide his tears. "Gohan..." She put a gentle palm to the top of his head.

Back when they were still by the lake and he had seen the look on his remaining mentor's face, the boy had told Vegeta not to even explain what had happened to Piccolo. He didn't want to risk having an emotional reaction in front of the saiyan prince. Their flight back had been in silence, though the boy was internally struggling to keep himself together. Gohan had been doing all he could to keep from crying in front of his Vegeta, not wanting to be seen as weak or incapable of adapting. But now, with just the feel of Bulma's tender touch on his hair, he was practically screaming as he let it all out.

It was an ear shattering sob that left his throat aching, and as soon as he caught his breath he did it again.

And then he turned to her. This was when she saw for the first time that one of his eyes was nearly swollen shut, tears glistening down his puffy cheeks. "He's gone!" Gohan squawked. In a swift movement his arms were wrapped around her waist, burying his face in the cloth on her belly. "It's all my fault! And now he's gone! He's really, really gone, and it's all because of me!"

"Gohan..." Her hands moved to his shoulders, and his body went limp against her own. Kami - the boy was more muscle than she realized! She could hardly support his weight as he leaned on her, and Bulma carefully slid the two down to the floor.

"Oh, Gohan..." She was sighing, unable to find any other words that would be even close to appropriate. "Gohan... Oh, Gohan..."

.

The saiyan prince did not return after he finished bathing. The Bluehead had been in the kitchen with Gohan, and she'd listened as Vegeta's footsteps moved straight from the bathroom and to the front door. The Bluehead wasn't too terribly surprised that he had opted to slip away instead of speaking to her. It would definitely take a long time for him to calm after this last defeat, that was to be certain. But still...

… This latest battle was something they would all need to have a conversation about at some point, and the sooner they got it over with, the better. She wished Vegeta would at least give her an opportunity to say something to him. She wished that he would at least be willing to look her way, instead of choosing now to lash out at her and then shut himself away.

And Gohan? The boy had been practically inconsolable since he had broken down in the entryway, but Bulma had managed to finally get him to stop crying. He now sat at the table, eying her glumly through his swollen face as she made her way to him with a couple of cups of herbal tea. He was still refusing to eat, and Bulma was trying to keep from pushing him so hard that he got overwhelmed. "Gohan," She took a seat beside him. "I know a lot has happened today, but I want you to remember that we will fix this."

"I know..." He took his cup from her with a shrug. "But..."

"Did Vegeta say anything to you about the dragon balls?"

"No... The only thing he said to me was 'we need to go back'."

"Okay. That's what I thought." Bulma put her hand over the boy's. The act made him visibly uncomfortable, but he didn't pull away. She smiled, trying to do anything she could that she thought might be soothing. "I need to have a talk with him later. Listen - please try to remember the fact that this is going to be fixed, okay? My Dad and I were working on a spaceship before everything started. We'll go get it, and we can use it to travel to Namek. It's going to be comfortable and cozy, too, okay? The ship is just like this house, except there's actually two bedrooms. You'll have your own place to sleep, and in a few months we'll have everything sorted out."

The boy actually cracked a small grin. "I didn't know you had a spaceship, Miss Bulma."

"I do, back at home. My house got destroyed by the Androids, but we were keeping the ship capsulated when it wasn't being worked on. So I know it's okay. We'll go get it, I'll run tests to make sure it's safe, perform any necessary adjustments, and then we'll be on our way. You and I will wish our parents and Piccolo back, and then we'll wish the Androids away. Everything will be just fine. You wait and see."

Knowing fully well that any effort to cheer the child would be futile, Bulma hadn't expected Gohan's face to light up as brightly as it did. "You aren't just saying this to make me feel better?" He asked. "Do you promise?"

"Of course! What would the point be in me giving you false hope?"

An even wider smile spread across his face, and Gohan exhaled one residual sniffle. "Miss Bulma?"

"Yeah?"

"I think I actually am a little hungry... That is - if you don't mind cook-"

"Of course not!" The Bluehead was already making a dash for the pantry. "Oh, I'm just so relieved that you're okay!"

.

What had started out as a mixture of worry and relief had slowly churned into a simmering anger for the Bluehead as the day went by. She had spent her time with Gohan, and she had watched him as he transitioned between hopefulness, grief, and then back to cautious optimism again. She'd tried her best to offer support, which he was receptive to at certain times more than others. And he had eventually told her he wanted to brood in the gravity room by himself, and had ultimately left the Bluehead on her own inside the dark capsule house… Yet again.

It was night, and the entire day had gone by without Vegeta making his return. And when she realized this, it only made her mad.

She knew he was likely off somewhere safe - either blowing off his steam with some unusually tough training regimen, or pensively meditating on everything that had happened like he had done in the sewer.

'Either way,' Bulma thought. 'How dare he?'

How dare he ignore any type of reason she tried to speak to him, insult her so arrogantly when she tried to collect the dragon balls without him, predictably fail with his assault on the Androids, have the gall to yell at Bulma as soon as he got home when all she did was express her relief, and then refuse to speak to her for the rest of the day?! He didn't even yet know that the dragon balls were now useless, thanks to himself and Piccolo, and he was already throwing a temper tantrum!

She had been the one who warned him, and had just lived through one of the worst nights of her life. She was the one who should be acting out! She should be the one ignoring HIM!

Sometimes Bulma wondered if Vegeta could somehow sense when she was thinking about him. He just always had a way of showing up right when she felt she might explode. This instance was no exception because, as if on cue, the front door swung open and Vegeta came clomping in.

"There you are!" Bulma stood, but the saiyan didn't so much as look her way. Much like he had done earlier that day, he was choosing to focus on an interesting speck of the wall rather than make eye contact with the Bluehead that was so ready to discuss everything with him. "Vegeta?"

He sighed loudly, striding through the living room and towards the hall. And then, without a word, he closed himself away in the bedroom. Bulma listened to the door slamming shut, and she furrowed her eyebrows.

THAT was IT!

"You spoiled little-" She grumbled, balling her small hands into fists as she began to storm after him. Bulma was planning to throw that door open and start yelling at him. It was all prepared in her quick-witted mind, the lecture on how HE was the irresponsible and stupid one, and how he had acted so selfishly and didn't even care of the costs. She was going to scream, point her fingers, demand an acknowledgement that he'd been wrong, and demand an apology for being so difficult with her during the days leading up to this.

But when the time came for such a speech, and she had stalked into the bedroom, she found that she just couldn't do it. Standing in the center of the room, Bulma was getting a good look at Vegeta for the first time. And now she was taking in just how torn he appeared…

… The saiyan was sitting with his back reclined against the headboard. Considerably cleaner from the earlier shower he'd taken, Vegeta was clad only in a pair of boxers that Bulma had bought for him weeks earlier. He had his arms crossed over his toned chest, his face flexed into a pitiful grimace as he glared towards the foot of the bed. He looked as if he were wrestling with the same emotions that Gohan had been all day, and his jaw was clenched as his lower lip stuck out in a rather expressive pout.

Pitiful, indeed.

Shocked at how shattered he appeared, the Bluehead felt she owed him the dignity of dropping her gaze as she tiptoed to the bed. Wordlessly she crawled on the mattress to take a seat beside him. When her shoulders touched his own, Vegeta sighed in defeat.

"We need to talk about what happened." Bulma said softly. "There's no point in putting it off."

"I know." He muttered.

Kami, his tone was just as pathetic as his appearance. Yet there was an underlying hint of chaos in it - as if he might crack and explode into a fit of rage as any moment. As if, given the right trigger, this entire room might go up in flames. He was a fully grown adult who was rather experienced when it came to death and loss, as unfortunate as it was. And he had spent all day processing what had happened, and yet he was still this upset. Bulma knew Piccolo had died, but she couldn't help but wonder. In comparison to anything previous, had this last battle really been so substantially worse?

"Vegeta..." She slid her hand to his own, grazing his skin with her fingertips. He let out another sigh at this, but this one was different than the last. It was much less reluctant - and far more relaxed.

And then, the next thing she knew, the Bluehead was on top of him.

The saiyan prince had finally moved, and Bulma gasped as he pulled her onto his lap. She was seated on her knees, resting her chest against his own. The saiyan's fingers were on her hips, curling tightly into her skin. Vegeta was still resisting eye contact, and instead was scowling at a certain spot on the center of her neck.

'Well.' Bulma thought. At least he was looking at a part of her body - even if it wasn't her face. That was progress, wasn't it?

But there was a look of hate in his eyes - a deep pool of disdain that Bulma didn't recognize. He'd never had this expression before when looking at her – but, then again, he seemed to be looking through her rather than at her. He might not even be registering her presence at all, with how faraway his pupils were. Vegeta's expression was so strained that he seemed as if he might start throwing things at any minute, his lip twitching. The Bluehead held her breath, waiting anxiously to hear what he was about to confess.

But no words came, as his eyes found a new spot of her collar bone to glare at instead.

Kami, it didn't take any explanation for her to understand the turmoil that must be welling inside. And it was now obvious that he not only didn't want to have the conversation, but he didn't know what to even say. He knew more than she did how wrong he had been, and it was killing him… She could see it.

Bulma put her hands to the top of his head, her fingers penetrating the thick of his hair and nails pressing into his scalp. Tracing them along his skin, she sighed as she continuing peering into the saiyan's unstable irises. His brows were furrowed, yet his eyes widened as she touched him. And the Bluehead was only able to rub him for only a couple of seconds before his hand reached up to push hers away. Bulma paused, raising an eyebrow when he still refused eye contact. "Do you want me to just leave you alone?" She asked, even though he had been the one to pull her onto his lap. "Am I bothering you that much?"

And then, in the next moment, his lips were on hers.

It happened so quickly that she hadn't seen it coming, and a raspy breath instinctively released through her nostrils. His arm had already wrapped its way around her waist, and he was pressing his mouth so tightly against her that her jaw was aching from the force.

And his tongue - his tongue was already exploring her mouth! It was so swift, and so intense, and Bulma's nerves were heating so suddenly that it was almost unpleasant. Vegeta had closed his eyes as his hand began to run down her front, but his tense posture was anything but relaxed as he worked.

His arm was still around her waist, and it was so tight that the Bluehead couldn't have moved if she tried. Not that she wanted to - for her mind was finally catching up with her body, and she was starting to ease into his hold. She muffled a gasp into his mouth, putting her hands to his head for better leverage as he sucked her lower lip.

Vegeta was acting just as quickly as he had the first time they'd had sex. He was allotting hardly any time for foreplay or appreciation, which was something she'd grown accustomed to with their more recent encounters. His hand had already slipped up her shirt, and he was admiring one of her nipples between two of his calloused fingers while he massaged her breast. It seemed that he had also forgotten all about the tenderness she had demanded and required of him, his actions so rough that they left her with the sensation that she might be aching in the morning.

And yet it wasn't enough to turn her away, because all she was able to concentrate on was him.

The way it felt to be so close against him as she sat on his lap. How right it was to have his face in her hands, the way his fingers were pulsing against her chest and starting to trickle down towards her stomach as she gasped with anticipation. Just 15 hours earlier she had been hyperventilating in a dark living room, terrified at the possibility that this man had gotten himself killed. Wondering if she might feel alone for the rest of her life. And now he was alive and well, they were together again, and he was going at her as if she was the only thing he needed in order to survive.

His hands - one on her hip, and the other on her rear - were working together to gyrate her body against Vegeta's growing erection. It was amazing how effortlessly he was handling her - she couldn't even feel the force of gravity as he supported all of her weight.

"Ah!" She hissed when he pushed his hips up to grind himself into her groin. There were only a few thin layers of fabric separating the two of them, and the friction was already leaving her breaths shallow as he worked. She could feel the dampness of anticipation that had already formed and was now seeping through his boxers, could feel her own reaction as her core throbbed with desire. For the first time since they'd started, Vegeta pulled away from the kiss. And he nipped at her jaw precisely when he grabbed her crotch. The last time they'd been intimate was when Bulma had to keep reminding the saiyan to stay quiet while she played with him, and now she was the one who choked out a scream when he pushed his finger in, tearing through the fabric, and shooting right into her most sensitive spot.

She only hoped Gohan was still locked away in the gravity room - Bulma was gasping and bucking her hips as he pressed the entire length of his finger into her. And then Vegeta swirled his digit, hitting a spot that momentarily took her vision away and had her moaning yet again.

He wasn't speaking to her, not even groaning in response to the sounds she made. But his breaths were shallow, his hand working with determination, and just when Bulma was about to let out another moan he pulled away.

The Bluehead didn't even have time to react or object, for as soon as his hand was gone, it was being replaced with something even greater. And she had her arms wrapped over Vegeta's shoulders as he pulled her down on his member, gasps escaping her lips as her body adjusted to throbbing his size.

"Veg-" She began, but her attempt at speaking faded away as he began to maneuver her over his body, gripping her hips tightly as he guided her up and down his shaft.

Much like when he had been grinding her against him before, Bluehead wasn't even having to do any work. He was doing it all for her, and he didn't seem to mind in the slightest. The saiyan's eyes were still closed, concentration lining his features. He was finally speaking, and low curses were trailing out from under his breath as he pulsed into her delicate frame.

When the two reached their release, it was almost at the same exact moment. Bulma could feel Vegeta shuddering with her as she came, and he let go of her hips to allow her to fall against his body as she convulsed and moaned. Both now a breathless and sweaty mess, they sat together for several seconds as they came back down to Earth.

Now Vegeta was finally looking her in the eyes, but his mood didn't seem any higher than it had been before they'd started. Not even the afterglow would relax him, it seemed... His forehead was crinkled, the skin around his eyes drooping with exhaustion that he should have been decades too young to be burdened with. As Bulma continued to hold him, staring into his dark orbs, for the first time she got a strikingly clear view of what was looming inside. His eyes acting as a window, she was able to take in the part of his being that he always tried so hard to hide, even from her. She had always seen it within him, but this was the first time he was truly revealing it to her, and her lip started to tremble as she watched.

The hardened and tough mask he always seemed to be hiding behind was now completely gone, and in its place she only saw torment and desperation instead. The isolation from years of biding his time in solitude, the pain at losing everyone he'd felt comradery with, the humiliation and shock of failure, the frustration of incapability... There was no hope or optimism in his world - only an expectation of the absolute worst. Vegeta blinked, and for a moment Bulma thought he might actually start to cry, and she could feel the wetness of tears forming in her own eyes.

But instead Vegeta only sighed, and he leaned forward to rest his face against her shoulder, sinking into her body as he did so. He sighed again, nuzzling his face into her skin, his body softening into her own. He was exhausted, he was torn, and all she could do was run her hands through his hair as he silently composed himself against her flesh.

The two stayed like that for countless minutes, until the saiyan finally moved to pull away. The Bluehead took the hint and returned to a seated position beside him, leaning sideways against his shoulder as she did so.

"Before you came in here..." He muttered deeply, closing his eyes again. As was typical for the saiyan when he was about to confess something, Vegeta seemed to be searching for the right words he wanted to use. The Bluehead waited silently, and then he finally continued. "I've spent my entire day trying to decide what to do. I couldn't even feel. Inside there was nothing. I've been completely numb. And then you came in here... and..."

His words drifted to a silence, and he fell back into his trademark scowl.

"So I... came in here... and knocked some sense into you?" The Bluehead teased. She was only kidding, though. Bulma was pretty sure that she knew exactly what the saiyan meant, and she was simply trying to lighten the mood. It seemed to work, for Vegeta opened his eyes and the sides of his mouth tightened into a smirk. "You mouthy little-"

But she cut him off when she rested her head against his shoulder. "In my own way, I think I know what you mean."

"What?"

"Well, you know... I think I get it. I mean, I just feel like meeting you was supposed to happen. It was meant to be."

"Oh god..."

"I never felt like I was missing anything before you, and I was genuinely happy. But then you came here, and we met, and now I wonder what life was even like before you. I mean-"

"Woman, stop." Vegeta put his hand on her arm and gave her a light push.

"I mean it! My life has changed so much since I met you, and-"

"YOUR LIFE has changed because your planet is being destroyed by two little shits." The saiyan seemed to be growing angry now. "Your life has changed for the worse, and it's been that way since the first day we spoke. Don't get it twisted. We met during a time of coincidence, and that's all it was."

"You KNOW that isn't what I mean!" Bulma frowned. He always reacted like this when she tried to speak to him in such a way, but it still hurt all the same. "I KNOW that everything around us sucks, but-"

"You need a shower." Vegeta narrowed his eyes. "And you need to remember that you had a perfectly good life before we met. All that has happened since then has been hell. Meeting me has only caused complication. Now stop talking so sentimentally."

"I'm not even saying anything different than what you just said!" The Bluehead's cheeks were reddening. "How come you're allowed to tell me those things, but when I try to return the favor you think it's okay to just cut me off!?"

"Because it's NOT okay." Vegeta gave her a light shove, pressing her towards the edge of the bed. "You are wrong to feel such things about me. I've explained this so many times. Now go bathe."

Completely dejected, Bulma pulled herself off the mattress and marched to the dresser for a clean set of clothes. They'd just had an interesting round of makeup sex, and now he was literally kicking her out of her own room because she had tried to express her admiration for him! It was clear he wanted to be alone again, even after their reunion. How was she supposed to feel about that? Trying to decide if it was even worth it to say something snappy, the Bluehead began to head for the door. Just when she had her hand on the knob he spoke again. "Oh, and Bulma."

"What?" She made sure he saw the scowl on her lips when she replied.

"Make sure you get the water nice and hot."

"Why? What business is it of yours? I'm getting tired of you always telling me what to-"

"Because I will be joining you shortly..." Vegeta was rolling his eyes. "I'm a mess, too."

"Joining me?" Suddenly Bulma didn't feel quite so rejected anymore, though she still raised a hostile brow.

"Of course." He grumbled, kicking his legs off the bed. "I told you to shower. I didn't say I wanted you to leave me alone. Now, off you go."

"Whatever, Vegeta." Bulma put a hand to her hip. This man was so hot one moment, cold the next, and then boiling all over again in the following instant. She didn't know how she didn't get whiplash from all this sporadic behavior. But he had finally stopped with his brooding, and even seemed glad to be with her. Vegeta wasn't going to let their little disagreement ruin the nice moments they'd just shared, and she couldn't help but smile about that. "I'll go get the shower started for us... Whatever you say... But after that, we really need to talk about that stunt you and Gohan just pulled with the Androids."

"Whatever." Vegeta echoed, pushing himself up from the bed. He was holding his groin with both hands, an effort to try and contain what he could of his own bodily mess, and Bulma was only just now realizing that he had ripped his boxers off during their fondling. She looked him up and down, studying his figure as he moved. The Bluehead couldn't help but think that something was missing from the picture as he walked towards her. But as he grew closer, it clicked, and she tried to shield her surprise.

Where was his tail?

It was gone, and he had made himself so scarce that day that she was only just noticing... But why?

How?

He always kept it wrapped so protectively around his waist, so how had the opportunity presented itself for one of those Androids to cut it off? The only thing that made any remote sense was if he perhaps had been in his Oozaru form - she could swear that she vaguely remembered it had been unprotected when she had seen him as an ape...

Had he tried to fight them under his transformation? ...Was that what his plan had been? For some reason she hadn't even considered that approach to be in the realm of possibilities! It seemed rather brilliant in theory, and Bulma was not only stunned that he had done it, but that it had somehow managed to fail.

"Woman!"

Bulma jumped. Vegeta was standing right in front of her now, his face so close to her own. "Snap out of it, Woman! I have no more energy for another go. I know I am a rare sight to behold, but you've seen me naked plenty of times before. Get a hold of yourself."

Despite how sternly he'd spoken, Vegeta had a knowing grin on his face. Bulma suddenly became aware of the fact that her eyes had gone wide, and her mouth had also dropped open. She quickly realized that the saiyan had misconstrued her face as a reaction to his naked body, and he'd assumed she was becoming aroused again. She shut her mouth and shook her head, opening the door and stepping back into the hall as the saiyan followed. "Whatever." She said yet again, slipping into the bathroom. "By the way, have I told you yet that I'm so glad you're okay?"


AN - So, when I posted the last chapter, I had the majority of this drafted and ready to go. I really wanted to get this one up quickly because I didn't want to keep you all waiting. But then life happened. As the legendary saying goes, "it's been real"... In all honesty though, it really has. I wanted to get this posted ASAP because I didn't want to keep you guys waiting for too long, but I had to take a few weeks to let some things settle down in my personal life before I could dedicate the time I and focus I needed to make sure this was just right. Things are still "real" for me, so it might be a few more weeks until I can post the next update. I haven't even started on it yet. In the next chapter we finally get to see Bulma make her long awaited return to Capsule Corp - that's all I can say. ;) Thanks for all your patience and feedback.

(By the way, even if it is negative feedback, you wouldn't exactly be correct to think I wasn't expecting it!) Vegeta is smart, but he can sure be a fool when he lets his ego control his actions, and sometimes that means paying a heavy price... :) I'm just a story-teller, after all. The characters dictate their own actions, and I'm just here to relay it all.

I hope you enjoyed, and I really hope to be back again soon!