Chapter Nine
Damn woman. What the hell was she doing falling off of balconies? No, she didn't fall; she jumped. She . . . jumped.
Vegeta paced back and forth outside of the ICU door, looking at his wife as she lay inside, responding to nothing the doctors were doing. The damned people wouldn't let him in. She looked so battered. Her body was broken in several places and she had lost a great deal of blood, but she had survived and now she was in what the doctors called a coma, a deep sleep that she might never wake from. He ran a hand through his spiky hair and let go a shuddering sigh.
He never thought she try to commit suicide; homicide, possibly, considering she wouldn't have been able to kill him anyway. But suicide? It was all his fault. He had to push her, he had to push her over the Kami-blasted edge, and now she was on the precipice of life and death. What the hell was wrong with him?
"Daddy!"
He looked up and saw Bra running towards him. He opened his arms and embraced her. She had tears running down her cheeks and her eyes were extremely red. He held her tightly, feeling her body shake as the sobs came out of her small frame. She stopped and pushed him away. She pressed her face to the glass and looked at her mother.
"What happened?" she asked in a small voice.
"S-she jum-jumped o-off the ba-balcony," he said, his voice choking. He didn't know how much longer he could hold in the tears that were starting to surface. Kami! He hadn't cried in a long time.
Bra looked at him, her eyes wide. "Why?"
Vegeta looked away, unable to tell his daughter why. It was because of him. It was all his fault. She jumped because of him.
"Oh," Bra said, understanding. She placed a trembling hand on his shoulder. "Daddy, it's-"
Bra was stopped mid-sentence as Trunks came flying down the hall, knocking Vegeta to the floor. "See! Look what you did!" Trunks said, hitting Vegeta in the face.
Vegeta looked up at him, no longer able to hold the tears in. His eyes were pained and glazed over. He felt like he was losing his sanity. He deserved to die. He silently closed his eyes, letting Trunks hit him.
It took him a while to realize that Trunks had stopped and now was slumped over his body, crying profusely. Vegeta placed shaky arms around him and cried with him. This was the closest he'd ever been to his son, and it was only because of her, because of what she had done. It was a bitter revelation.
Vegeta got up, pulling Trunks up at the same time. Trunks got up and sniffled, two trails of tears falling from his eyes. Vegeta dusted himself off and walked back to the window, placing a sweaty palm on the window pane. "Bulma . . . ."
"Father, I'm sorry," Trunks said, placing a hand on his shoulder.
Vegeta looked at him, his face neutral. "I deserved it. It's my fault," he said, turning his gaze back to the body that lay within the room, his voice hollow.
"Father, you can't-" Trunks started.
"What? Blame myself? How can't I blame myself? She jumped because of me, because I'm such a bastard to her and everyone else. That is why she jumped. Don't tell me I can't blame myself!" he roared at Trunks.
Trunks backed away.
The doctor came out of the room. His face was grave. "I'm not sure how long she'll be in this state. She's taken a beating. She might be this way for the rest of her life," he said, his voice sympathetic. "You can go in, one at a time. It's good to talk to her. She might respond to your voices, which would be a great deal of help in helping her get out of this." The doctor opened the door for them.
Trunks and Bra stepped back, letting Vegeta go in first. Vegeta stepped into the cool room, closing the door silently behind him. He walked over to her and picked up her hand tenderly. She was covered in wires and bandages. Her blue hair was combed neatly behind her head, and her face was extremely pale. It reminded him of the time after John. He didn't know what to say.
He sat down on a chair next to her bed. "Woman, um, Bulma," he said, knowing she hated it when he called her woman. "The doctor said I should talk to you. I-I don't know what to say. You know how I am about displaying emotions. Why? Why did you jump? Because of me, right? Because I'm such a bastard," he said, sneering the last sentence. "It's all my fault. I wish I were where you are right now."
Vegeta fled from the room unable to stand the constant beeping and her still form. He felt hands grab at him.
"Vegeta!"
"K-Kakkarot!" Vegeta looked up at him, stunned. Then he pushed him away. "Leave me alone! It's all my fault!" Vegeta ran down the hall and out of the hospital, leaving everyone speechless.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Vegeta!" Bulma screamed.
Shakna looked up at her startled.
Oh, Kami! He thought it was all his fault. She could imagine the guilt that was festering in his already guilt burdened soul. "Oh, Kami! Don't do anything stupid, Vegeta," she whispered to herself, saying a silent prayer.
