Warning: this chapter contains some sickly sweet sappiness… if you have a week stomach, you might want to skip a couple of the paragraphs near the beginning.

Ok, this chapter is dedicated to BluEydMnstr, hell the rest of the fic can be dedicated to her(/him?)! I can't believe you're apologizing for the length! I love long reviews, and yours put such a smile on my face. Not that I don't absolutely adore simple reviews (they rock! I love them!) but yours was so touching and personal that it was really refreshing. I normally don't drag out my personal life in these notes but this was a really emotional story for me to write because it's been a sort of therapy for me to help work out some of my own issues… I love the word you used… 'crafted' because it fits so well. This wasn't a 'hey let's throw some words together' sort of thing like, I'll admit, some of my other fics were. I was almost hesitant about posting this because it's been sort of my baby. In Bulma and Goku, I see a lot of what my situation was (only in the show I think they were a lot smarter not to get involved). If you cried when reading parts, It touches me because some of them I cried while writing. It was a really good way to get out some of the emotions I didn't know how to express in my real life. So thanks, you're review meant a lot to me and I just really wanted you to know that. And anyway… the wonderful thing about fiction is that I hope to give them the happy ending real life didn't give me…

so enough depressing talk…. this chapter is a bit lighter in parts and a lot of stuff happens… one of those if you blink you'll miss something parts… as to the warning… right after Bulma and Goku talk in the beginning, there's an extremely sappy part that you'll want to skip over if you're not into that. Just want to give you fair warning…

'smell of brimstone dancing in the flame'

Bulma stared up at the ceiling, willing herself not to vomit as the implications finally set in. Sitting up, she tugged the sheet around her to hide her body in belated modesty. A thin sheen of sweat coated her body and she pushed back her damp hair, closing her eyes she said the lines she knew she had to.

"This- this was a mistake."

Two hearts constricted painfully at the simple statement.

"That was so wrong Goku, god… what have we done?"

He stared at her, silent.

"… so wrong. How could we have let that happen?"

"Could we have stopped it?"

She ignored his quiet question and swung her legs over the bed, her back to him.

"Do you have any idea just how wrong that was?"

"Yeah…" he agreed somberly but then changed his mind, "No, actually I don't Bulma. Why was it so wrong?"

"Why? Chi-Chi… Gohan… Trunks… there's too many people this could hurt."

"I don't want to hurt them either but… what do you feel?"

"I feel… I feel like I don't want to hurt people I care about."

"Well then maybe I'm just being selfish, but I don't want to lose that feeling I get when I have you in my arms."

"Goku-"

"Last night, I told you I didn't know if I could love… but I think I just didn't know what love was. I know now Bulma, because I-"

"Don't. Just don't…"

She silenced him with a kiss, the desperation and urgency from the night before replaced with a gentleness. She loved the way he kissed, it was so like him. He put his entire soul into it. She wanted to tell him he wouldn't last a minute out in the real world. That he had to hide his feelings better, that he shouldn't let her know how much he wanted her. That it was supposed to be all a game. Out there, the guys were all control and expertise and cool stealth. They knew exactly what to do to get them what they wanted, petty things like emotions and feelings never entered into play. With them, a kiss was just a kiss. With Goku… it was so much more.

The night before was about passion and need. It had been so long since a man had touched her. But when they came together this second time, there was an indescribable softness there that hadn't existed before. She melted into him and it became more then a union of bodies, but a meshing of souls.

When they finally collapsed, satisfied, he drew her to him until her head rested on his chest, her small hands captured in his large ones. He marveled at how soft and fragile they were. He could break the bones in her hand with a sneeze. But he'd never hurt her, and he quickly abandoned the morbid train of thoughts. She had such perfect fingernails, clean and clear and strong. He looked at his own callused hands and his dirty fingernails. He dropped her hands and instead idly ran his hand over her back.

"Let's go on an adventure Bulma."

"Goku," she smiled at him wearily, "we've been over this before. You know we can't."

"I know… but let's just say we will, even if we never do… let's just say were going to go on a grand adventure."

She yawned a little, smiled a bit more, and snuggled up against him.

"Where would we go?"

He gave her body a slight squeeze and a goofy grin spread across his face.

"Outer space."

"Would it be dangerous?"

"Hopefully!"

"But you'll protect me."

"With my life."

He kissed the top of her head.

"And what would we do on this 'grand adventure'?"

"Well we'd…."

Hours later she stood at the door to her house wrapped up in a soft robe. Goku had just stepped outside.

"Do you have to go?"

"Yeah, I better." He planted a kiss on her lips, her hand reached up to pull him closer but dropped short of its goal once she regained control.

"Call me?"

"Yeah." He kissed her one last time.

"How long has this been going on?"

"Chi-chi!"

The two pulled away, their earlier guilt returning full force, as well as panic and fear.

"I was worried! You didn't come home last night! Something told me I'd find you here but I never imagined…"

"It's not-"

"What it looks like? Funny, I think it's exactly what it looks like!"

"I'm so-"

"sorry? You're sorry alright, as well as a coward and a snake! You couldn't even tell me to my face! You had to go screw her behind my back!"

"Chi… I never wanted to hurt you. I'd die before I hurt you." He reached a hand out to the hysterical woman but she flinched away from it.

"Die? Well you're still alive!" She took a couple of deep breaths to try and slow her racing heart. "Do… do you love her?"

"I-" he looked between the two women. Chi Chi seemed to deflate and Bulma just stood still, transfixed.

"You should have told me."

"I didn't want to hurt you."

"What did you think I was going to do? Curl up and die just because of you? I'm not that weak, you know." Tears threatened to fall and disprove her statement, but she bit them back.

"That's not-"

"What? What Goku? What did you think I was going to do? Try to make you love me as much as I love you? Could you be so cruel?" She blinked her watery eyes furiously in an attempt to keep the tears at bay and hold on to some of her anger. "My heart will be fine, Goku. Just stop wasting my time!"

It wasn't until she was safely out of sight that Chi Chi let the tears slip down over her cheeks. Her small frame shook violently with the sobs that wouldn't stop coming. She knew the day would come but she never thought it'd be so soon. She thought she'd have more time with him. And she thought he'd at least be man enough to come to her and tell her himself… She wasn't lying though. She would be fine. Maybe not any time soon, but she was stronger then he gave her credit for. She'd be fine on her own. She placed a hand on her stomach, over the small baby growing inside. They'd be fine on their own.

Then end scene with Chi chi was heavily inspired by a Barenaked Ladies song called "Break your heart" ( I think) and so some of the dialogue is from that… I just thought it was fitting…..oh well… so what, you didn't think I'd not let Goten be born? I love the little kid! So yeah… I've finally figured out how I want to end this story and don't worry, it's a happy ending! Now that I actually have a plan… there should only be a couple more chapters left. So you know the drill… tell me what you think!