AN: Hi everyone, long time no see! Sorry to anyone who has been wondering about my absence. I had to take a break from writing due to a heavy amount of schoolwork. If you are following me and noticed that I was updating my other active story, Finding Immortal, it was because I had been posting prewritten chapters on occasion. I promise I wasn't neglecting this one in favor of my other!Today's update is actually the first piece of work that I have been able to sit down and write since August. I'm going to be getting busy again with school soon, but I'll try and update this story as much as I can before then.

Thank you for understanding! You have no idea what you guys mean to me!

Wiping a messy line of saliva from her lips, Bulma sat back from the toilet and sighed. Her hairline blanketed with sweat, jaw trembling with the threat of another round of sickness, she looked up at the ceiling and clutched her aching ribs. This was the third consecutive day that she'd found herself kneeling over the toilet, and she wasn't feeling good about it…

"Mo-om?" A small voice called from the other end of the bathroom door. The call was following by soft little knocks, and then another "Mo-om?"

"Just a minute!" Bulma forced, trying to sound cheerful despite her miserable state. She didn't want Trunks to worry any more than he already was, but she knew her attempt would be in obvious vain.

"Mama?" The two-year old tried again, before slapping his palm on the door. "Open up!"

"Not right now!" The Bluehead tried, and then her lungs let out a telling gasp of air. Oh jeez – here was that dreaded second round. She couldn't keep in the groan as she scrambled to position herself over the toilet, coughing audibly as her stomach resumed its spill into the white porcelain below.

It was at this moment that Vegeta rounded the corner of the hallway, and he raised an eyebrow to see his little lavender-haired tot leaning against the bathroom door. "Son?" He asked lazily, and the child looked up at him.

"Mama's sick." Trunks explained, before pointing an irritable finger up at the doorknob. "Open up!"

"Your mother isn't sick, bo-" Vegeta began, but then he picked up on the sounds that were erupting from the other end of the door. This was only the third time he could remember Bulma ever being sick, and with alarm he turned the doorknob. "Bulma?"

What he saw was his mate, hunched over the toilet and making pitiful noises between the lurches of her stomach. The saiyan's face twisted, unsure of what to do. How did one handle someone else who was in the act of bodily expulsion? The only thing he could think of was to leave her be until she was at least finished, and so he carefully backed away while closing the door.

"Mo-om!" Trunks called out, indignant that his father had turned them away. Dad was supposed to take him to her! Dad was supposed to understand!

"We shouldn't bother her right now, we'll only make matters worse." Vegeta explained sternly, and to that Trunks stomped his foot. "Boy, don't start. Go to your room and play with your toys."

"But I want mama!" Little Lavender replied. "MO-OM!"

"Enough, boy!" Vegeta shot. He bent down and put his firm hands on the child's shoulders, lowering his voice. "I told you we mustn't bother her! Keep your voice down!"

"No!" Trunks snapped. His plump cheeks were reddening with the threat of calculated tears. He didn't care how often his parents told him that he needed to be a big boy! If they pushed him far enough, he would do it if they made him! He was going to cry!

"Look, son. I am going to check on her. She will come see you once she is finished in there. We mustn't overstimulate her. Understand?"

To be honest, Trunks didn't understand this at all. What did overstimulate mean? And what was she even doing in there, in the first place? She sounded like she was in pain – so why would she need to finish at all!? She should just stop! What Dad just said didn't satisfy Trunks at all. Trunks wanted to make his opinion known, but the look on his father's face was enough to deter him from yelling anything else. In fact, it was enough to make him decide not to cry.

Dad had asked him if he understood, but his frown made it clear that he didn't actually care if Trunks was on the same page or not. Little Lavender knew that if he yelled for his mom one more time, his Dad was going to take away his cake privileges for the rest of the day. Dad always took away his cake privileges when he put up too much of a fuss, and this was exactly one of those types of moments! What was the point to eating dinner if he wouldn't get cake afterwards?

With a howl of protest, Trunks balled his hands into fists and went racing down the hall. When he got to his room, he threw himself on the floor, worming his way to his toy box so he could dig around and find his newest toy truck.

"Strange boy." Vegeta muttered, watching the child's exit. And then the saiyan turned back to the bathroom door, creaking it open slowly as he reentered the room. By this time Bulma had resumed her position of resting against the wall, catching her breath and hoping that the cramps in her stomach would finally cease. "You okay?" He asked, taking careful steps towards her.

"I'll be alright." She sighed. "I just need a shower."

"You're sick." The saiyan replied, completely ignoring her attempt at dismissal.

"These things just happen. I think I ate something bad." The Bluehead groaned, avoiding eye contact with him.

"You've been eating the same things as the rest of us, and you're the only one having a reaction like that." Vegeta knelt down beside Bulma. He frowned as he forced her to look in his eyes, trying to make it clear that he wasn't going to accept her excuses. He had her with this point he made, and there would be no getting out of it!

"Yeah, well I don't have saiyan in me like you guys do." She said back. "You guys can stomach a lot more than I can." Now Vegeta's frowned deepened even more. Shit – she'd actually made a good point.

"I promise, I'll be okay." She forced a smile, patting Vegeta on the hand unenthusiastically. The saiyan noticed how clammy her skin felt. "Call me weak, if you will… I am a human, after all. Hah."

"Hm…" The saiyan shifted awkwardly. Vegeta was completely out of his line of experience with this. What did a human typically want when they were heaving uncontrollably and suffering from disease? Was it better to give her distance, or stay by her side? The last time Bulma was sick, she had mainly wanted to be alone. That being said, it was back when they weren't on the best of terms. The circumstances were quite different then, so there was no telling if she would desire the same distance now, or if solitude was just a natural recuperation instinct.

What Vegeta could remember from her last sickness, though, was how pleased Bulma had been when he'd surprised her with soup in bed. She'd actually smiled about it! And so, with that little piece of data, the saiyan decided to ask. "Want any food?"

"Food?" Bulma's eyes widened.

"I could find something in the cupboards." He explained. "Or, I could take the boy out to catch a large fish."

"Fish?" Oh, God! Bulma was pretty sure her cheeks were turning a color to match her blue hair. The idea of a fishy aroma filling the house was too much to bear… Her stomach had finally been starting to settle, but now it rumbled and bubbled all over again. "Oh, God… Oh God!"

"I could cook it over a flame. Or, I could just give it to you as is. I know you sometimes like to eat your fish raw, and I oop- …Oh…" Vegeta paused midsentence as Bulma threw herself back at the toilet. She was moaning out loud as she heaved, and the saiyan carefully stood upright as he watched cautiously. Had he just made things worse somehow? It sure seemed like it.

"Oh, no!" Bulma groaned between hurls. "No, no… No fish! Please!"

"Woman..." Vegeta cringed. He felt even more uncomfortable now. It didn't seem right to just walk away and leave her in a state like this, but his presence seemed to only be exacerbating the situation… "Uh… I guess I will be going… Now?"

The Bluehead didn't reply, too occupied with the task at hand. So, without another word, the saiyan quick-stepped from the room. Perhaps he should check and see what Trunks was up to… It seemed that the woman needed some time alone…

.

… A couple of minutes later, Bulma was stripping off her clothes and running pale fingers through her greasy hair. Her stomach now settled once again, she felt that it was safe to step into the shower and try to go about with the rest of her day. Unlike her usual steamy showers, this time she would need to keep the water temperature fairly cool. The coldness would be soothing on her skin.

The truth was that Bulma knew perfectly well she hadn't eaten anything bad. In fact, she'd hardly eaten at all in the last week, aside from the occasional smoothies that she managed to ingest. Even before her nausea had escalated into full blown sickness, it had been hard to stomach anything these days. Something inside was telling her that this was no mere virus she was simply afflicted with. It was something much, much larger. Something far more permanent.

It had been two months since that trip to space, and for the last two months things just hadn't felt right. It was her stomach cramps, which came and went so inconsistently. It was her night sweats, and her fatigue. Her headaches, and the fact that her breasts felt like they were on fire most days. These were all occurrences that had been bothering her long before this week of nausea, and all of it seemed to point to one definitive cause.

Of course, there was an even more telling sign, and that was the fact that she was nearly two months late…

"How am I going to tell him?" She moaned, her voice stifled by the loud sound of running water. The cool stream was running down her back as she stood so stiffly under the shower head, her arms weakly crossed over her aching chest as she considered this predicament. All she could think of was the saiyan's reaction with her last pregnancy, and it gave her a sinking sensation inside. She knew things between them were far different from how they were back then. They were both much more mature now, and their relationship was healthier than ever. She felt incredibly close to the saiyan – closer than she could've ever imagined - but this?

This was really big news! What if this came as such a blow that it sent him into a reverted state? He could react really bad… Trunks was a handful enough as it was. How would they manage to make things work with two small children? Would he get overwhelmed at the thought? Would he freak out? Would he blame her?

As much as she tried to guess what his response would be, the only bit of experience she had with the matter had been how upset he'd gotten when she was pregnant with Trunks. And, despite how many times she told herself things would not play out in the same way, memories of these times circled in her head and riddled her with anxiety... What if something similar happened this time?

… Bulma wasn't ready for this. She had decided long ago that Trunks would be an only child. As much as she loved him, and as much as he'd changed her life in so many good ways, she didn't think she could handle a second one. She just wouldn't be good enough at balancing her time… How was she going to be able to delegate enough energy to chase after two?

She had to tell Vegeta. Things had gone on long enough, and he had the right to know. It wasn't fair to keep this from him. It wasn't fair that she'd lied when he tried to ask her what was wrong… She had to tell him… But how?

Bulma sighed, putting her hands to her face as she shook her head. Perhaps it was her own fault for being so secretive about the matter, but she felt so incredibly alone…

.

"Are you okay?" Vegeta asked. It was nearly thirteen hours later, and he was laying on his back as he looked up at the Bluehead undressing in front of him. "You sure you aren't sick?"

"I feel a lot better… For now." Bulma muttered. She pulled the nightgown on over her head, avoiding a glance in the mirror while her stomach was bare. She was terrified that if she did look at her reflection, she might notice a small bump, protruding and telling, despite it being so early on. It wasn't until she was dressed that she turned to face Vegeta, offering him a nod.

"It seems weird to me." He said, eying her with suspicion as she toed her way towards him. The saiyan had been locked away in his training room the other times she'd been sick that week. Today's incident was the first time he encountered this, and he'd been asking her if she was alright all day. Each time she insisted that she was, he would give her a long glare as if he didn't believe her.

And he shouldn't have believed her.

Of course, she knew that she wasn't telling the truth. Vegeta had a seamless bullshit detector, and he was onto her. She could tell by the way he looked at her, as if he was staring through her, but she just couldn't explain the situation to him! At least, not yet. Of course she needed to tell him, and she would. She just needed a little more time to process it, herself! That's all she needed!

"We haven't spoken much about the union ceremony." Vegeta finally said, relaxing deeper into the mattress.

Bulma actually smiled at this, happy that he'd decided to let the matter go. She snuggled closer to his body as she found a comfortable position in bed, eager for the change of subject. "The wedding? Don't you remember our last conversation?"

The saiyan frowned. Shortly after they arrived back on Earth, nearly two months ago, Bulma and him had sat down together to talk about getting married. She had told him that she didn't think it would be possible to ever be legally married to him, since he wasn't born on Earth and had no paperwork or legal documents of identification. He wasn't a citizen of this planet, so how could they?

"Of course," Bulma had said. "That's okay. You can still call me your wife. We can act just like we really are married, and nobody will ever need to know that we aren't."

This hadn't been a good enough solution for Vegeta. Since then, they hadn't spoken of it, and he hadn't once referred to Bulma as his wife. He wouldn't – not until they made things official. There needed to be something else they could do.

And it didn't help matters that she'd been acting strangely distant lately. She acted as if there was something wrong – something major - and yet she refused to reveal anything to him whenever he tried to ask her if she was okay. In fact, whenever he pried, she almost acted as if he were the one acting strange. It was infuriating.

Now they were lying together, and he was ready to try and have another conversation. He'd been doing a lot of thinking on the matter of marriage, and he was ready to propose his idea to her. "Tell me again what Earth customs are for marriage?" He asked.

"Hm…" Bulma sighed, laying her head on his chest. "It depends on where you live. There's usually a big party that you invite everyone to. The woman wears a wedding dress, the man wears a suit… They agree in front of all their witnesses that they're going to take their marriage seriously, and that they'll stay loyal to one another. And then, they usually seal the deal with a kiss. After that…"

"And after?" Vegeta smirked.

"Well, after that, the couple are married. Husband and wife. There's some paperwork to sign to make it technically official, but that's usually done behind closed doors."

"Then I think we should do that." The saiyan announced. "We should plan an event of our own."

"But we can't actually get married?" Bulma picked her head up to look at him. "Don't you remember?"

"Who cares?" Vegeta replied. "Nobody needs to know that. Let's have a union ceremony. We just won't sign any paperwork."

"YOU?" Bulma was grinning. "You want to have a big party and invite everyone?"

"Why? Don't you?" Vegeta frowned.

"Well, I…" She raised her eyebrows. Of course she did! She'd never brought it up, though, thinking that Vegeta would never go for such a thing. What did it matter, after all, when they couldn't even get legally married? "I mean, yeah! I'd love to do something like that, but you aren't really the type to-"

"No, I'm not. I hate parties! But this is different. It's a marriage." Vegeta huffed. "You know, you Earth creatures aren't the only ones to have mating traditions. Us saiyans had our own, too. It's not like I'm not acclimated with the idea."

"Really?" Bulma laid her head back down, returning to its rightful place on Vegeta's chest. "What did you guys do for weddings?"

"Mm… For royal matings, it was required that all saiyans gather to the combat arena and view the official unionizing."

"All?" The Bluehead started to ask, and then she stopped. That single sentence he had offered left her with too many questions, and she couldn't decide which one to ask first. What in the heck did he mean by unionizing? That sounded so dirty. "Wait – combat arena?"

"Yes. Royal matings took place within the combat arena. And all saiyans on our planet were required to attend."

Combat arena only summoned images of what gladiators might have fought in back in Rome. A circular stadium, with onlookers seated so high as they observed the match. Bulma might have asked Vegeta to elaborate on what these combat arenas looked like, but she was actually quite sure that they were rather similar to what she was thinking of. Why bother asking? Instead, she settled on saying, "Wow, that's a lot of saiyans. You guys had quite the audience, huh?"

Upon hearing this, Vegeta began to shift his weight under the Bluehead. He scooted to a sitting position, and then he turned to glare right into her face.

"What?" She asked, as his eyes grew closer to her own.

"What's with you?" He replied, not blinking.

"What do you mean?"

"I figured you would be more enthusiastic about this, Bulma. You don't seem excited at all."

"I am excited! I'm just a little surpris-"

"And your words. You aren't even talking normally. You speak like a robot these days."

"I do?" Bulma's eyes lowered to the mattress. She knew he was right. The Bluehead had thought she'd been doing a better job at masking her anxiety, but evidently that wasn't the case. The truth was that she really was excited about the idea of having a real wedding, but her secret was casting a dark cloud over everything. Would he be so keen of having a wedding after hearing what she had to say?

"You stubbornly insist that you're of a normal state, but it's obvious you're lying." Vegeta continued. "So, I will ask you again. What is wrong with you?"

Suddenly the room was feeling stuffy. Heat was racing to Bulma's cheeks, and she fought to think of something to say. Once again, he was right. What she was doing wasn't fair. She had to tell him. She needed to tell him! But how? What could she do?! "Honestly..." Bulma dragged the word out, cringing at how pathetic she must look and sound.

"What is it?" His tone was short. It was understandable that Vegeta was getting irritable, but that only made it harder for the Bluehead to confess. Not when she was already worried that the news might set him off. Not when she could only think of how badly he'd handled to news back when she was expecting Trunks.

"Honestly... You're right. I haven't been honest, but it's because I've been-"

"MO-OM!"

Bulma fell silent. She drew her eyes up to Vegeta's face. He looked as if he were about to explode.

"MAMAAAAA! AHHHHH!"

"Great." Vegeta growled. "Are you kidding me?"

"MAMA! MAMAMAMAMA!"

"You've got to be kidding me!" The saiyan let out a huff of air as he slammed his back down into the mattress. Obviously, Bulma wasn't going to be making her confession now. He'd been so close at getting her to spit it out, too!

It was clear by the way he was screaming that Trunks had just woken from a nightmare. Bulma launched from the bed as if it was on fire, a mixture of frustration and thankfulness that she'd been given a diversion. Now she would have a few more minutes to gather her thoughts. Now Vegeta would have a little bit of time to calm down before she broke it to him!

"AHHHH!" Trunks was still shouting, as Bulma made her way down the hall.

"Sshhh..." She said, as she finally turned into his room. Little Lavender was shaking while he screamed, his hair a sweaty mess as if he'd been tossing and turning in his sleep. She took a seat next to him on his small bed, and immediately he threw himself into her arms. "Hey, hey... It's okay! Ssh, it's alright... I'm here now... Sssh..."

As she stroked the boy's back, easing him out of his tears, her mind was stuck on the man that was waiting for her in the other room. This was an example of all her recent worries. Trunks was still such a young boy, and he required a lot of attention. It was a regular occurance for her to have to get up at any random hour of the night to tend to the toddler in her arms. If it wasn't because he'd had a bad dream, then it was because Trunks needed water. Or it was because Trunks had managed to roll out of bed, and was so angry at the floor for "hurting" him, that he was insistent on punching a hole through it. Sometimes Trunks wandered into their room in the middle of the night, where he would insist that he needed to sleep with them because it "wasn't fair" that Bulma and Vegeta got to share a bed, but he had to be all alone in his "scary room".

Now there would soon be another child in the picture, and what if both of them needed her attention at the same time? What if Trunks had a bad dream at the same exact time that Bulma was having to feed the baby? Or, what if the baby needed a diaper change while Trunks was demanding a glass of water? What if both of them had bad dreams at the same time, and Bulma would find herself with two hysterical children in her arms at once?

Of course, Vegeta could help, but there was only so much he was capable of. He wasn't exactly the type to rub Trunks' back while coaxing the toddler back to sleep. There had been several times already that Bulma had forced him to be the one to get up and check on Trunks during his nightly screams, only for the saiyan to return within a few minutes with the boy shrieking at his feet. "See? What did I tell you?" Vegeta would say. "If he's demanding his mother, he WANTS his mother. Now he really won't shut up! I can't get him to stop!"

Bulma sighed, shaking the memory from her mind. She looked down and noticed that Little Lavender had finally fallen back asleep. "You sure are a handful." She whispered, pulling the blanket over his shoulders. "But I wouldn't trade you for the world."

.

"She was so close to telling me…" The saiyan muttered. He glowered up at the ceiling, the house once again filled with silence. "The boy couldn't have waited another five minutes?"

He knew that this was just the way Trunks was. His nightly scream sessions were nothing new, but they could be so damned inconvenient at times!

Whatever it was that had been bothering Bulma for so long, Vegeta felt he had a right to know. They were mates, weren't they? And he'd been waiting long enough – he couldn't stand the thought of having to wait another single minute! What on Earth could it be that would make her act the way she'd been lately?! Why was it that even her throwing up earlier that day seem so suspicious? And why wasn't she even a little bit cheerful at the idea of having a wedding? She'd been completely beside herself when planning the birthday party she threw for Trunks a few months earlier; why wouldn't she care about her own wedding!?

The sound of the door was what snapped Vegeta out of his thoughts, and he sat up to see Bulma standing at the other end of the room. She had a determined look on her face, and yet she still gazed at him with that fearful sadness in her eyes that she'd been carrying for so many weeks. It was irritating that she had gone so long without explaining this to him. How was he supposed to help resolve any issues she might be having, when she wouldn't even tell him about them?

"Alright." She said, before taking a deep breath. "Where were we?"

"You were going to tell me what's been going on." Vegeta glared at her. He didn't expect her to offer any information. She was just going to stall for time, before finding a way to change the subject. What was the point of even prying?

"I don't know how to say it." The Bluehead replied. She was standing so still in the doorway, maintaining her distance between the two.

"Just say it!" Vegeta replied. "Why won't you spit it out?!"

"Because I don't know how!" Bulma shot back. "Don't snap at me!"

"You're not exactl-"

"Look, Vegeta. Fine – okay, I'll just say it."

Vegeta felt as if he were going to explode. "If you're going to say it, then do it already!"

"I will!" Bulma put her hands on her hips. "You want to know what my problem is?!"

"Yes!"

"Fine. I'm pregnant."

"See?! Was that so hard to-" Vegeta's eyes widened. "Wait – what?"

"I'm pregnant, Vegeta!" Bulma crossed her arms over her chest, her eyebrows creasing as she scowled. She looked down to her feet, taking in another deep breath as she did so. "I'm pregnant, and I don't know what else to say. I don't know what to do."

Pregnant? The saiyan's mouth dropped open, and he stared at the woman standing in front of him as if he were seeing her for the very first time. "Are you sure?" He blabbered. He knew he sounded stupid, but he couldn't help his reaction. "Are you really sure?"

"Not completely. I haven't taken a test. But I don't need one. I just know I am... I can tell."

Still, she was glaring down at her feet. She was waiting for him to say something else. To let his emotions be known, to indicate exactly how he felt about hearing something like this. Several seconds passed, though, and all she received was silence.

Finally, Bulma looked up. Her gaze lifted to the man that was sitting upright on the bed. He was staring at her, studying her, his facial expression rather blank considering the circumstance. "Well?" She muttered. "There you go. I've told you. Happy now?"

"Wow." Was Vegeta's reply. He stared at her for a few more moments before reaching a hand up to scratch his head.

"Wow?" Bulma asked.

"Yeah." The saiyan licked his lips. "Wo-ow."

AN: Ooh, cliffhanger! The next update shouldn't take too long, though! I promise!

I haven't been feeling the best lately, so I'm hoping this chapter flowed well and made sense. I hope you're all having a great weekend. Thanks for reading! Take care, guys! Xoxo!