From: West City Oak Apartments

To: me

Subject: Friendly Community Reminders :)

Dear cherished residents,

We hope this email finds you well! We are reaching out to provide reminders of our community policies. Please review the below carefully!

1) We strongly believe in recycling here at West City Oak Apartments. It has been brought to our attention that one resident was seen polluting our grounds with plastic water bottles. Please deposit any plastic water bottles into the appropriate recycle bins (or even better, invest in a metal water bottle that you can reuse!) Doing your part can help save the planet! :)

2) The laundry rooms are meant to be shared with all tenants in each building. Please cooperate with your fellow neighbors, so that everyone may wash their clothes at the times they wish. When everyone's clothes are clean, everyone will get along better! :)

Thank you for being a cherished resident in our wonderful community. Please reach out to us if you have any questions or concerns!

Kind regards,
Your friendly neighborhood management team

Vegeta was grinding his teeth while he read over the email on his phone, his other hand loosely on his waist while he breathed heavily. He had paused halfway during his morning run to switch music playlists, and had been greeted with that shitty email instead. The smileys were annoying enough, but more annoying was that it MUST have been Bulma's doing. Although the email seemed to be sent to all of the residents, the contents itself were much too targeted to be a coincidence. Instead of fighting him with honor, she had straight up Karen'd him and gone to the management team.

He debated if it was worth a reply. Professional passive aggressive emails were his specialty after all, and this email was practically begging for it. However, he decided against it; doing so would be admitting guilt, and he refused to give Bulma an inch. He scowled and put his earbuds back in, fired up his playlist, then re-strapped his phone on his arm to resume his run.

If his jerk of a neighbor wanted to play these games with him, then he would play.

An hour later, Bulma was living her best life, dozing snugly under her blankets and pillows. Only some strands of blue were visible from the top of her head, as she was buried well and good. It was quiet and peaceful, her curtains were drawn, she was having a lovely dream where she had a lifetime supply of strawberries, and life was perfect.

And then, the loud heavy metal music suddenly began blasting from next door.

Startled, Bulma shrieked and promptly fell off the bed in a tangle of blankets, for the second time that week. Life wasn't perfect anymore, it was a fucking disaster now as she furiously pulled free from her web of blankets, glaring at the clock. It read 6:45am. It was criminal, CRIMINAL to play music at this ungodly hour, and for an insane moment she debated calling the police.

Forcing herself up, Bulma decided against it; giving an anonymous tip to her apartment management was one thing, but she would not be defeated by this man. She resisted the urge to grab a knife, lest she be tempted to stab the bastard (though he did deserve it, as she could hardly hear herself think from how loud his music was – and it wasn't even GOOD heavy metal!). She lamented the stupid decisions of the apartment complex – the units were sound-proofed floor to floor, so that no one had to listen to people walking above them. But the walls were paper thin in between the units on the same floor. Considering that she and Vegeta held the only two units on the third floor, no one else was tortured except her (of course).

Less than a minute later, Bulma was banging on his door like she wanted to knock it down entirely. "Vegeta!" she yelled furiously. She leaned her ear close to the door, but all she could hear was the obnoxious heavy metal. "VEGETA!" she screamed, banging harder. She kicked the door for good measure.

Inside his apartment, Vegeta was leisurely taking a shower. He could vaguely hear the banging on the door, but it wasn't louder than his music. He smirked and took his sweet time, in no rush to get out.

Bulma was wondering if she had grounds to sue this awful man for the emotional damage of costing her precious sleep, when the music finally, mercifully, stopped. Moments later, Vegeta opened the door.

"Good morning, how can I help you?" Vegeta greeted with fake sincerity dripping in his every word, a maddening smirk on his face. Bulma sucked in a breath when she saw that he was soaking wet from his shower, only a loose towel around his waist. He wasn't a blind man; he saw the way she admired his body, and thus his current choice of attire was on purpose. Anything to give him an edge in this psychological warfare she was trying to engage with him.

However, because he wasn't a blind man, he also couldn't help but notice HER choice of attire. Having literally rolled out of bed, Bulma was in short shorts and an obscenely snug tank top. What caught his immediate attention though was the very obvious fact that she wasn't wearing a bra.

"You are THE MOST inconsiderate jackass on this whole planet, blasting that god awful shit you call music so early in the morning! I'm going to-" Bulma paused when she saw his eyes roaming her chest. She gasped dramatically, hugging herself and covering her breasts as she screamed, "How DARE YOU ogle me, I HAVE A BOYFRIEND!"

His dark eyes immediately shot back up to hers, as he scoffed. "Woman, you make it sound like I walked into your bedroom while you were changing! You came to my door dressed like that!"

"Well you don't have to look! I'm a LADY!" she shrieked.

"Well why don't you go let the apartment management know about it?" he sneered.

"You know what? Fine!" Bulma yelled, lowering her arms and resting her hands on her hips. She purposely straightened her back to raise her breasts as high as possible, but Vegeta forced himself to maintain eye contact as she glared at him. "You can look, cause you're NEVER gonna touch anything as good as these babies!"

Vegeta exhaled roughly, and she could have sworn she saw a blush starting to creep on his face. Before she could tell for sure, he stepped back, slamming the door shut hard. Bulma kicked his door for good measure, shouting, "Jerk! See if I don't tell my boyfriend about-"

The heavy metal music started blasting again, drowning her out. Bulma took a deep breath to resist the urge to scream, before marching back into her apartment, slamming her own door shut too. She marched back to her bedroom, digging through her blankets like a madwoman until she finally found her cell phone. She snatched it up, cursing the world when Vegeta's heavy metal kept intruding on her thoughts. Maybe she could hire a hitman! No one would miss the jerk next door.

No, she decided, forcing herself to calm down. Goku. That's who she needed. She immediately began to text him, knowing he was an early bird and would be awake already.

Your "friend" is blasting heavy metal right now, and it's barely 7 in the morning!

A few moments later, her phone began to ring, and she saw Goku's goofy profile picture flash on her phone. Unable to hear herself think, she muttered to herself and left her bedroom, heading to her balcony. Barefoot, she stepped out into the hot morning air, sliding the balcony door closed behind her – but leaving an inch of space. The door liked to jam hard enough that she could never reopen it without help, and she didn't want to risk getting locked out on her balcony with Yamcha nowhere in sight. But at least out there, she could actually have a conversation, the heavy metal muffled in the background.

"Hello, good morning," she greeted her best friend with a sigh.

"Hey Bulma, I'm getting ready now for work," Goku greeted, trying in vain to brush his wild hair in his bathroom while he had his friend on speaker. "What's going on?"

"I told you in the text! Vegeta is being a complete asshole, blasting his awful music, I had to come onto the balcony to talk to you!"

Goku just chuckled, making Bulma scowl in annoyance. "Might have to do with that email he got this morning."

"What email?"

"The one from the apartment. He forwarded it to me…he had some strong words about it. That wasn't very neighborly of you, ya know."

Bulma flopped down into a lawn chair she had on her balcony, coming awfully close to pouting. "Well he isn't exactly being very nice to ME either, Goku!"

"Vegeta is…tough sometimes. He's a good guy though, once you get to know him!" Goku said cheerfully, trying to do his tie while he leaned in close to his mirror. "Both of you are pretty stubborn, the most stubborn friends I have. If you guys can get past that, maybe you can be friends too!"

His optimism was maddening sometimes. If they hadn't been best friends since childhood, she might have hated him for it. "Can't you just move back in with Chi-Chi?" Bulma pleaded. "Maybe Vegeta can swap with you guys?"

"Sorry, no can do! Anyway I gotta run – but I'll see ya for your birthday! And hang in there, things will get better!"

They exchanged their goodbyes, and Bulma sighed, sulking into her lawn chair. Goku had a way of challenging her to "rise above" and "be better" – a really annoying quality of his. Even if she DID want to start over with Vegeta, that would require her to back down and extend him an olive branch of some kind. Or worse…an apology. Backing down was not in her DNA; upon imagining Vegeta's smirk of triumph over knowing he had won, a severe frown came over her face. No, she refused to give the bastard the satisfaction – especially when she was sitting on her balcony to get away from the heavy metal he was blasting!

Her phone buzzed again, and she raised it to see that she had a text message from her mother. She went to swipe the notification away, when suddenly, an idea came to her.

And then, a grin spread over Bulma's face.

In hindsight, Bulma should have known there was a reason why Yamcha had dropped by unexpectedly that night. Sure, he was her boyfriend and she would have been pleased if he was over every single night, but his fame due to his baseball team kept him in social circles she wasn't interested in joining. After all, she was an heiress to the largest company on the planet – she did not need additional fame, although she could admit to herself that she always did look like a fucking rock star on TV. Upon realizing that she was not going to immediately step up at Capsule Corp, and that she was in fact more interested in building her name outside of the company (before she inevitably took it over), the media had moved on to more interesting and salacious topics. She knew the moment she called her father and said she was coming back, the media would be her enemy once again, but until then, keeping them at arm's distance was just fine. And so when Yamcha wanted to play the hero for his adoring baseball fans in front of the cameras, she was rarely seen with him.

So when he said he was going out that night with his team, and would see her the following day for her birthday, Bulma had taken him at face value. Thus she had been surprised when Yamcha had knocked on her door that evening. Her blue eyes sparkled as she smiled with content. Why wouldn't he just drop by to see her? A man had to show appreciation for his gorgeous girlfriend, especially when she was easily the most beautiful woman on the planet (she had the framed magazines for proof, having been named "sexiest woman alive" three years in a row; she was shooting for ten in a row, for that was what she deserved).

Yamcha sat heavily on her sofa, kicking his feet up on her coffee table. Bulma came in from the kitchen and gave him a glare, and he sheepishly lowered his feet. She handed him a beer bottle, and sat down next to him with her own.

"So how was work?" he ventured.

"Fine. I'm thinking I'll probably be running the place before the end of the year," Bulma mused out loud, before leaning back with her bottle.

"Excited for tomorrow?"

"Yup. I've got tomorrow and Friday off work, and Chi-Chi's already made the arrangements for the pub we're hitting once we're all off work, and then the club we're hitting afterwards. 6pm sharp, make sure you're there!" she exclaimed, eyes bright. Prior to going out with her friends, she was going to sleep in, have lunch with her parents, then relax in her underwear all day long and watch her favorite movies until it was time to go out that evening. It would be glorious.

Yamcha chuckled nervously, and suddenly, Bulma became suspicious. Before she could comment, he began, "So…about tomorrow…"

Her eyes narrowed dangerously, and he gulped. "Tomorrow, my 30th birthday? Yes, what about it?" she demanded.

"Um…well…"

Just then, there was a knock on the door. Bulma glared at him, telling him silently that this wasn't over, and then got up to go answer it. She smiled when she saw that it was her mom and opened the door.

"Hello dear!" Bunny greeted brightly, hugging her daughter with one arm. Her other arm was holding two boxes. "Now, the top box is for you, a pre-birthday treat! I have another for you tomorrow when you come over for lunch! Now then…where is your new neighbor friend?" she asked with a giggle.

Bulma grinned, taking the top box for herself. "He's right next door. You should go say hello!"

"Oh but of course, dear, we mustn't be rude!" Bunny tittered. She waved to Yamcha, "Hi, dear, good to see you!"

"Good to see you too!" Yamcha called out. Bulma then closed the door as Bunny walked over to Vegeta's apartment, and went back to take a seat next to her boyfriend. "What's that all about?" Yamcha whispered.

"Shh, just listen," Bulma whispered back. She was about to see if Goku was right about his opinion regarding Vegeta. She and her mother were thick as thieves; she had told her mother about all the problems she was having with her new neighbor, and then asked her to come and "assess" the situation. Bunny was a great judge of character, and had never failed Bulma in this regard.

Vegeta was loosening his tie with one hand after work while rummaging through his fridge with the other hand. He wanted something light, for he was going to change into his workout clothes soon and go for his evening run, his last run for a couple nights as he took some rest days.

He immediately got suspicious when someone knocked on his door, since he was not expecting anyone. He could hear that Bulma had company, and thus wasn't trying to be obnoxious with his heavy metal, unless she gave him a reason to be – which he was sure she would, annoying as she was. Vegeta scowled, closing his fridge door, then walked over to the main door leading to his apartment while he continued loosening his tie and unbuttoned the top few buttons of his shirt.

He checked the peep hole and frowned in confusion when he saw the blonde woman outside his door. She didn't live in the building, he knew that for sure. Muttering to himself, Vegeta opened the door, his frown worsening. He looked her over in mild disgust like she was there to convert him to Satan's church.

"Can I help you?" he gruffly demanded, his tone implying he had no desire to help with anything.

"Oh, why HELLO dear! Why, aren't you handsome! Oh my, those muscles, practically ripping through your shirt!" Bunny giggled, earning a bewildered look from Vegeta. "I'm Bulma's mother, and she told me about the new friend she's made who lives next door, and said I just had to come meet you! Oh, please step aside dear, there we go," Bunny said with a smile, nudging her way past Vegeta and into his apartment while he blinked with a dumbfounded look on his face. "I brought you cookies to welcome you to the neighborhood!" she called back, as she disappeared into his kitchen.

Distantly, he thought he heard laughing next door, and he scowled. Bringing in her mother was a devious move, and while Vegeta was well aware that he was an asshole (and he was damn proud of it), he was not such a foul shithead as to kick a mother out of his apartment – especially one bringing him cookies. Bulma had gambled correctly, and had gotten the upperhand once again, but it would not last long. Sighing in defeat, he closed the door and went over to the kitchen, only to see the blonde woman getting out food from his fridge.

"Would you like me to prepare you a dinner? You look famished!"

Vegeta blinked in surprise, but then shrugged and took a seat at the kitchen table. Might as well get something out of this.

Meanwhile, next door, Bulma was laughing while she leaned into Yamcha. He was grinning from her happiness, and also because she had for the moment forgotten their conversation before her mother's arrival.

But it wasn't for long. Finally, she sat up, chuckling as she got her beer. "Oh, I wish I could have seen his face," she laughed, picturing Vegeta dealing with her mother, before she chugged down the drink. Her blue eyes then shifted over, as though she suddenly realized her boyfriend was still there with her. She licked her lips a little, and then the amusement was replaced by suspicion. "So, you were saying?"

Yamcha sighed, and figured it was best to rip off the bandaid.

"So, there's this big exhibition game tomorrow in Angel City-"

"Are you going to miss my 30TH BIRTHDAY?!" Bulma shrieked.

"It's just, Manager Berry will be there and he's the biggest name in the game today, and so I can't pass up this opportunity because we are getting the chance to meet him face to face, I could get recruited for the best team in the league, but that means we gotta fly out tonight," Yamcha got out in one rushed breath, his desperation mounting as Bulma's anger visibly grew during his spiel. "Babe, this is a huge chance for my career! I'll make it up to you, I promise-"

"When? This weekend?" she challenged.

Yamcha winced. "Well, I'm not sure if we'll be back by this weekend, but when I do get back, I'll call you and I'll spend the whole day with you-"

"Get out."

"What? But I-"

"You knew I wanted to do something special for my 30th birthday, and now you come with this? I don't want to see you right now, so get out."

Yamcha looked deflated, but he stood up. He looked down at her, but Bulma was not standing with him, or even looking at him. Her calm voice in telling him to leave was scary. He gulped, but not wanting to anger her further, he simply walked towards the door.

He paused then, looking back sheepishly. "I am sorry, and I will make it up to you when I get back, I promise."

Bulma snorted and looked away towards her balcony, holding her head in one hand as she sat cross-legged on the sofa. Yamcha sighed, then left. Once he did, Bulma reached over for the box her mother had brought and opened it up. Inside was an assortment of cookies, and she took one chocolate chip cookie out. It was still warm, and so she gobbled it up. Nothing like chocolate to make her feel better, though she didn't know how she felt about Yamcha bailing. Disappointed? Not surprised? She grumbled and put Netflix on, sinking into her cushions.

An hour later, her mother came back into her apartment, positively buzzing. "Oh dear, that neighbor friend of yours, what a polite boy!"

"What?" Bulma asked in surprise. She was 99 percent sure that her mother was going to return saying that her neighbor was a total jackass, but she hadn't even realized how long Bunny had visited with him.

"Yes, quite a looker too," Bunny giggled, showing Bulma the empty box. "He ate all the cookies, and the dinner I made for him! What a healthy appetite that boy has."

"Great," Bulma sighed, rolling her eyes. "So he got a free dinner out of it."

"Where is Yamcha? Did he leave already?" Bunny asked as she sat down next to her daughter.

"Yep," Bulma muttered, emphasizing the final 'p'. "He's not even going to be around for my birthday, even though we had planned to do something for weeks. I don't even know when he'll be back." She paused, then admitted, "Sometimes, I wonder if it's worth it, or if we have outgrown each other."

Bunny nodded with understanding, patting Bulma's knee. "Well, dear, there is nothing wrong with exploring other options if Yamcha isn't making you happy. Life is too short!" she brightly said, before deviously adding, "Especially when you have such a handsome neighbor. It would be easy to date Vegeta too, with him living next door and all."

"VEGETA?!" Bulma cried out, then cursed under her breath when she remembered how thin the walls were. She snorted a mirthless laugh. "Me and Vegeta? Please. He's the worst neighbor EVER!" She then turned to the wall, her voice escalating, "You hear me? Worst neighbor EVER!" she shouted, hoping he heard.

On the other side of the wall, Vegeta smirked while he laced up his running shoes.

"No, no, dear – I spent good time with him, and I like him very much. You should give him another chance," Bunny whispered to her daughter, knowing how thin the walls were. "Maybe you two can be friends!"

Bulma looked deflated that Vegeta had passed the mom test. The mom test with Bunny had never – ever – failed her. Even when she'd first introduced Yamcha to her parents, her mother's reaction in private had been lukewarm, something that she wondered if she should have paid more attention to. Her mother had certainly not sounded as enthusiastic upon meeting Yamcha as she sounded now talking about Vegeta.

"I know Goku wishes we would be friends," Bulma admitted. "But I can't do it, Mom. That would be giving in, and he's been such a jerk to me!"

Bunny just smiled. "Well, we will see what happens, all in good time."