Hey! A quick update, huh? Anyways, thanks for the reviews noctorro and Carrots and Veggies! They mean a lot to me.. Noctorro, thanks so much for saying I write good.. Carrots and Veggies, you know who the killer is? *smirks* Gina figured it out too.. don't tell anyone! It'd ruin the suspense.. oh, and thanks for the reviews! I'll review your fanfic when you update next! Dynishra, you really love my story? I love yours too! Great job with your poems and stories.. And Chuquita, aren't you dying to know if Veggie will know who the murderer is? Mwhaha.. the suspense is killing me too.. thanks for being a loyal reviewer so far! Ssjgoddesschico, you told me to update soon, so I am! I hope you like this chapter! Sholio, your dying for this chapter, huh? I knew you would be.. *smirks*

The real attention should go to Venni. Ok, first of all, I'm not mad at your review. I'm perfectly fine with it, but let's just get things straight. If there's any pairings here, it's Bulma and Vegeta. And, read the genres on this fanfic! Is anyone in there romance? I don't think so.. Bulma left the hospital because she knew if she stayed she would eventually go into shock. (You know the kind where you can't move, can't speak, you know a mental and physical state.) Anyway, Goku isn't being selfish! He does care about Vegeta, but only as a friend.. he's not only trying to see if Vegeta's okay just because he feels guilty.. anyone can see that! Well, I'm glad you like the fic, but just don't ever think of this as a Vegeta/Goku pairing, or that there's any romance between them at all.

I hope you enjoy this chapter! It's going to be really long.. a lot of events happen here.. pay attention to everything. You might think of this as too many things happening at once, but it'll all make sense and unwind at the end. Oh, and as for updating this fic, I will update this every Sunday.. or, sometimes twice a week, it depends.

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Nausea exploded into his head, making his state almost fall back into unconsciousness. His eyelids fluttered open and closed, and they finally made a decision. Cloudy, blurry figures were now becoming clearer; signifying that his state was almost back to normal. A twinge of absolute pain ran through his stomach, echoing into ribs and his ankle. What the hell had happened? Everything was a blur.. he was in the Gravity Room, training.. the blood, the voice.. the pain.. punches stabbed into his whole body and he finally gave into the black that was threatening to over come him.. He had almost died. The idea scared the shit out of him. He would never admit this to anyone, but for one of the first times in his life, he was actually scared.

"Vegeta?! Are you okay?"

That voice.. it was somewhat comforting. He hadn't heard a voice in.. in.. how long had it been? Months? A year?.. An eternity? Or at least that's what it felt like.. He looked up, his eyes still closed half-way, signifying that he was still feeling pain.

"Yes.. I- .I'm ..fine.."

Damn.. and even in his near death experience he had to be stubborn. But what did he expect? What could he expect? Saiyans were a race that were brilliant fighters, and very stubborn nonetheless. Saiyans were a race that could survive harsh conditions; they didn't die that easily. And yet, right at the very week, the prince of that race almost died..

Goku's eyes narrowed slightly, he hated seeing Vegeta like this. His face was scraped up with cuts; gashes of blood still took residence on his arms. His stomach was practically cut open, if not for the stitches that banded the whole thing together. His leg.. so severely damaged, it was nauseating to look at.. -- his ankle was hanging on merely by a thread of skin. Goku couldn't help but clench his fists in anger.. who the hell would do this?

The prince looked around the small hospital room, his pupils moving with every second that passed. He grunted softly.. the room wasn't much to say the least. The roof looked so uncomfortable it might've caved in. But that wasn't what caught his interest right then.. it was the objects that were sitting in the corner of room, on a small table. It was decorated with flowers, cards, teddy bears, and most importantly to a saiyan appetite, candy. It would've been inviting.. for him right then and there to engulf the chocolate and not care about his integrity. Oh hell, he was starving. His eyes rested on his rival once more, and a cold, hard look washed over them.

"Kakarot.."

The silence broke off, as the room echoed with Vegeta's call. Goku looked down on him, now pulling up a chair that sat next to the bed.

"Yeah?.."

"How long have I been in this state?"

Goku's relaxed face now broke into a serious frown.

"I dunno.. maybe about 10 days.."

Vegeta opened his eyes, wide with shock. 10 days?.. He had been out cold for ten days?! The idea seemed foolish.. but then again, how could the prince know how long he had been out?

"Kakarot.. tell me everything that happened when.. you found out I was...was.."

He couldn't finish.. how could he bring himself to say that he was almost murdered? It left a big dent in his unbridled pride, and the memory of it almost dulled his senses. Goku understood the prince's predicament very well.. it wasn't easy getting back on track after a big event trashed your life.

"Well.. I went over to Capsule Corp because I sensed that something was wrong. When I got there, Trunks and Bulma were outside, crying and feeling sad.. I.. I saw the doctors getting you on a stretcher and taking you away. Bulma and Trunks went to the ambulance too.. and I followed. I told Bulma she shouldn't be there, so they both left.. so, as the days passed, everyone have been giving you flowers and stuff. Krillin.. Gohan.. Goten.. everyone. Especially Bulma and Trunks.. their really worried about you. All we know about the 'murder', is the time it happened.. it happened at 12:13, and-"

"Damnit baka.. I don't care what time it happened! Do you know anything else about what happened to me or not?"

Goku lessened his tensed features and breathed a sigh.

"Not really Vegeta.. can I ask you something? It's really important.."

Vegeta looked away, not caring what the hell Goku was about to say. Even though the excitement of the question was exhilarating him beyond question.

"Fine Kakarot.. but don't waste my time.."

Goku felt this excitement stab at his heart, for this was the question he was dying to find out..

He took a deep breath, as the air calmed him.

"Vegeta.. do you remember who almost murdered you?"

Vegeta's whole body felt like it exploded with remorse. His head cracked with pain, and his heart ripped into a million pieces. He tried to remember.. remember the horrific details of that day.. the training.. something wasn't right.. the blood washing over his face.. the punches that punctured his ribs and ankle.. his memories flashed over his mind.. and then.. there was an unbelievably strong ki..

The prince grimaced in pain of the memories that dulled his senses, making his answer to his rival near to impossible. He looked up, his eyes still retracting with paranoia. The hurt that bathed his eyes was so distinctive, that it flooded the rest of his emotions with pain. He looked up, looking at the innocent younger saiyan straight in the eye, a tortured look radiating from them.

"I.. don't... remember.. Kakarot.."

Those four words echoed in the room, making an effect as if the room was empty. The words that escaped from the prince's lips, were those that were going to make a difference to something. And now, it definitely made a difference to Goku's and the prince's lives..

A stepping noise could be heard from down the hallway's long corridor.. and the footsteps kept coming closer.. and closer.. The door opened with an abrupt force that it startled the two saiyans. Mr. Johnson looked down at the two, a glint of rudeness shimmered on his glasses.

"I'm sorry, but visiting hours are over.. it's 9:30 at night.."

Goku looked over at Vegeta one last time before quickly standing up and walking towards the door. He stood there in the adolescent doorway, not wanting to leave the prince alone. Goku didn't know what to say.. how could you summarize what to say in one little phrase? But he knew he had to say something.. but what? He made an attempt to speak, but his tries failed miserably. But he had to try again..

"Vegeta.. be careful.."

The prince looked back at 'Kakarot', having no idea what to reply. He was at a complete loss for words.. instead of replying anything back, he merely nodded.

The door closed loudly.

Silence.

The darkness caved in on him, making the nausea come back. His eyelids felt heavy, and he wanted so much just to sleep and finally get the rest he deserved. But there were so many damned questions to answer.. who the hell was the murderer? Despite all they figured out, they weren't one step closer to figuring out anything at all. They needed to find something out.. before the killer took deadly matters into his own hands..

***

3 HOURS LATER...

It had felt so good to give into his sleep. He had been unconscious for 240 hours, and hadn't actually gotten a good night's rest. It was so relaxing to go inside the dream world.. where your away from all your emotions.. all the pain. He hadn't even had a dream in a long time.. it was mostly nightmares. And now, he could dream about everything peaceful in his life.. how comforting. That is, until he woke up...

His eyelids fluttered open, causing a headache to form on his forehead. He cringed; why did everything always have to hurt so damn bad? His eyes finally adjusted to the pitch black darkness. He looked around.. machines surrounded him, beeping constantly; kami knows why. A cold sweat protruded down his back.. what the hell was going on? That panic feeling ran through the pit of his stomach again.. as if he was right back at the Gravity Room.. getting tortured.. Vegeta looked straight at the clock that sat in front of him. It was 12:13 am..

::::[Hello Vegeta.. long time no see..]::::

Sweat poured down his face.. his heart beat uncontrollably.. who the hell said that?! That voice.. the voice in his nightmares!

"Where are you?"

His own unsteady voice surprised him. Why was he so damn scared?

::::[Ahh.. where am I? I can be everywhere Vegeta.. mostly inside your mind..]::::

"What the hell is that supposed to mean? Where are you?!"

Fear was invading into his system now..

::::[Temper Temper..you've always been like that prince..]::::

Vegeta clenched his fist in boiling frustration; he hated the mind games that this bastard liked to play.

"Why are you here? ANSWER ME!"

Damnit! His voice was now indefinitely filled with alarm and terror. That's exactly what he didn't want to happen..

A cold laugh pierced the air, causing shivers to go up and down the proud saiyan's spine.

::::[I'm here for a good reason.. to kill you..]::::

His heart withered up with this uncanny alarm and panic. More sweat fell down his already damp face.

"Well, if you think you can kill me, than your sourly mistaken.."

Good.. his voice was already calming down. But.. was that a good thing or a bad? Didn't everyone go into denial when they were about to die?

::::[Heh.. really? Well, I'll strike again soon.. and when I do, you won't survive again!]::::

Another laugh.. but this time, it was much more colder and taunting than the last. The laughter trailed on and on, filling Vegeta's ears. The prince couldn't take it anymore.. he had to shut the damn thing up! The laugh kept echoing inside his soul.. filling the very existence that was inside him.

And then.. silence. Even the ki disappeared. Everything seemed to stand still for a second.. and then time paced fast again.

His breath was very short, signaling that his fear became very evident when they were talking. His heart raced faster and faster with every second that passed. He didn't feel right.. shit! There it goes again with that feeling of total helplessness and dread. He couldn't take anymore of this.. he shut his eyes tightly, not wanting to take in the feeling of panic that still overtook him. Drowsiness set in until eventually he went to a dreamless sleep..

***

Beep.. beep.. beep..

Mr. Johnson glanced at his watch with total resent. It was past 3:00 in the morning, and he had to check up on any patients that might slip into comas and die in the middle of the night. Not exactly the job most people would pick.. but hell, somebody had to do it.

Beep.. beep.. beep..

There it went again.. the beeping noise. What was it? It was obviously coming from one of his patient's rooms.. but who's? All of the sudden, he recognized the noise.. it was the noise of someone's heart beat thinning. He rushed out of his chair and onto the shadowy hallway.

Beep.. beep.. beep.. beep.. BEEP!

Damn.. now it was getting worse. He ran all the way down the corridor; checking in and out of the rooms of patients. None.. everyone seemed to be in perfect health. Despite the fact of their conditions.. he stopped dead in his tracks. The only room he hadn't checked was the 12th room to his right.. and that was Vegeta's room. His feet kept moving forward, and he finally found himself to the 12th door. He rushed to the door knob, slowly opening it with shaking hands. The door creaked quickly opened.. and a scent filled his nostrils.

Blood.

He looked on the floor.. a trail of blood leaked all the way to the window.. then he looked at Vegeta. An enormous gash filled his left arm; small amounts of blood still trickling down his right arm..