Glass was flying everywhere as the young woman crashed through the window into nothingness. It replayed a hundred times in slow motion in Vegetas mind before he finally jumped into action. He shoved the drunken man out of the way and jumped after her. He lost her once he'll make sure that it didn't happen again. Vegeta could see her a few meters below and he pushed himself to fly faster. He could almost reach her.
***
Bulma felt like something was sucking her down. The darkness was calling her again. She felt cold and dizzy. She was scared and as she slowly opened her eyes it felt like a dream as she could see the windows rushing in a blur past her. The night sky was a dark blue and she could see the stars sparkling above her. Her arms flailing helplessly at her sides she slipped in and out of consciousness as she seemed to fall for an eternity. Her head felt so very heavy and her body was numb by the cold night air. Finally Bulma managed to steady her gaze and it fell straight into coal black eyes looking anxiously into her slightly glazed blue ones.
The monster called darkness didn't grab after her anymore.
The falling stopped.
She found herself wrapped up in Vegetas arms pressed tightly to his chest as if he was afraid that she might slip away from him. Bulma snuggled closer to the warmth that surrounded her. For the first time in weeks she felt safe and welcomed. Vegeta hugged her closer raising his ki to keep her warm. She didn't really want to think about what he thought of her state. She barely clang to consciousness as the pain in her body returned. But as the minutes passed she slowly blacked out.
***
It was warm. Comfortable. As Bulma slowly opened her eyes she registered that she was back in her room laying in her bed. Somebody had tended to her injuries and dressed her in her pj's. Her head hurt as she sat up trying to register what had happened to her. Some things were still fuzzy but the full memory would come back sooner or later.
'Wait a second. Somebody tended to my injuries and dressed me in my pj's. Oh, my god. That's bad. Very bad.'
Bulma panicked and dragged herself out of her bed. She remembered going to her favorite club with her friends last night and she thought she had hooked up with a good looking guy but she wasn't so sure about this anymore.
'God, do I feel sore. And just where did those injuries come from and how did I get home?'
Bulma sighed.
'Maybe I should really stop taking the pills. It's certainly not doing any good to my memory. I don't remember being out for this long before.'
"Although one more time can't hurt."
She said to herself and leaned over to the small box where she usually kept the small bottle. But it wasn't there.
'Damn. Where are they?'
Frantically she crawled out of bed looking furiously for the pills. She could feel the need crawling up her throat and her heart began beating faster in her near panic.
"Are you looking for those?" Said a deep voice behind her.
Frozen she stopped in mid-movement and slowly turned around to come face-to-face with Vegeta. He leaned at her door frame holding up the small bottle with the pills she needed so badly. Coming out of her stupor she hissed at him.
"Those are mine. How dare you search through my stuff! You better give them back right now or I...I..I..."
Bulma was at a loss.
"You what, mhm princess?! Come and punch me with that puny small fist of yours. Well, you could try although it'd be doing your more harm than good in your state."
Bulma unconsciously flushed at his words. She was still in her Pajamas and she felt like shit she probably looked like hell as well. It only made her more angrier.
"What are you doing here anyway? Aren't you supposed to be training or something? Go and annoy somebody else! My head hurts like hell and I don't wish to put up with your attitude right now. Just leave me alone already and before you leave hand over those damn pills."
In an instant Vegeta stood right in front of her.
"So you care more about those pills more than yourself?"
Bulma was slightly taken aback.
"I never said this."
"But I can see it. See how desperately you're trying to hold yourself together to get your hands on this tiny bottle."
He wiggled the bottle in front of her face. The pills clucked together. Bulma grow more irritated with each passing minute. Since when did Vegeta take so much effort and cared about what she was doing. And how she hated him for teasing her if he knew full well what was going on.
'Wait a sec. He knew. ..... He knows what those pills are. Oh my god. How? Oh shit oh shit. This can't get any worse.'
Bulma had to knew and headed straight to the point.
"Did you follow me last night?"
This wiped the knowing smirk of Vegeta's face and was replaced by a frown.
"So if I did it's none of your business. I can go where ever I want to go."
He almost sounded like a small boy caught by doing something forbidden.
"Oh really." Bulma was being sarcastic now. "Well listen up princie. I want to know exactly what you where doing there last night! And no excuses. You better spill it now."
Bulma prayed silently he would do as she asked hoping he would bring some light into the blackness that were the hours of last night.
Vegeta watched her closely and knew right away that she had a black out about what happened last night. He didn't knew if he should be happy or angry about it. For one thing it was probably better if she didn't remember what had happened to her but it was still annoying that she also didn't know that HE rescued her. Unconsciously he sighed.
Bulma was wondering.
'Just what is going on in his thick head.'
Suddenly Vegeta began to speak.
"Yes, I followed you yesterday night but only to the club. You didn't actually think I would follow you into there. My ears are way too sensitive to put up with this terrible loud noise you call music. So I just flew back here, trained some more, took a shower and went to bed. There, satisfied?!"
He looked at her in challenge and Bulma could only nod dumbly. "What about my pills?" She piped up again.
"What about them?" Vegeta couldn't resist to tease her some more. Even though she looked ruffled and worn out he wished he could stay longer in her presence. Since last night he figured so much that he was drawn to her and it was hard not to gather her up in his arms to kiss away all her pain and confusion. Yep, she was confused. Most definitely, and now she would get angry at him again and yell something like...
"Vegeta, you baka. Stop playing with me. All you ever do is piss me off and annoy the hell out of me. Why can't you even be once considerate enough to see that I don't feel well and not making this any harder on me as it is."
Bulma had to fight hard not to start crying and she believed she could see something like hurt in his eyes which was replaced by worry a second later.
'Great. Now I'm already hallucinating. Since when would the almighty prince of all saiyans care about something lowly as me.'
And she hated to admit it to herself but it was painful to realize that she had been in love with Vegeta all along and still she couldn't have him. 'That's it. That's it.' Suddenly Bulma's eyes were wide and she started screaming at Vegeta.
"Get out. Get out of my room. Get out of my life!"
Vegeta was too shocked by the sudden turn of events to do something about being pushed out of the room. In a matter of seconds Bulma had the door slammed into his face and Vegeta just stared dumbly at the door.
'Well, this didn't go too well.' He thought sadly. 'But it wasn't to expected that she would suddenly think she could feel something for me.'
Vegeta retreated quietly to his room only to pause at the bathroom to flush the pills down the toilet. They already had done too much damage. He would make sure she wouldn't take them again.
The rest of the day went by without any incidents. Bulma briefly wondered why Vegeta didn't take up his training already. Their encounter occurred around lunch and since then she didn't see or heard of him. Maybe she was too hard on him. Bulma carefully made her way back to her room. She had just eaten some dinner. And didn't plan on throwing it up again. Her parents were out for the evening and so she had the house to herself. Well, besides Vegeta. But Mr. Grumpy didn't even come down for dinner and she probably would have apologized for being so rude but since he preferred to sulk in his room it can't be helped.
Bulma made her way into her adjacent bathroom having a nice long bath in mind. She let the warm water flow in and now all she needed were some of those calming essences her mother got her for her birthday.
"Geez, it's supposed to be somewhere here." She muttered to herself as she rummaged through the cabinet. She climbed up on a small stool to have better access and leaned forward on her tiptoes to grab the bottle on top of the cabinet. "Yay, that's it."
But since she was still feeling weak from last night she lost her balance and crashed onto the floor along with some bottles from the cabinet.
***
A faint noise awakened Vegeta from his light sleep. He sat up in his bed listening for more but nothing came. Frowning he let himself fall back onto his bed thinking about a way to fix the situation between him and Bulma. He hadn't wanted to make her mad at him. She just looked so beautiful when she was angry and he simply couldn't resist. And the other problem was her obvious dangerous life style. Vegeta was mad at himself for not figuring out sooner that something was not right with the woman. He groaned and combed with his fingers through his unruly hair. 'I should go and train. I really should. It would help to take my mind of the woman.'
***
It hurt. God, it hurt so much. Bulma felt numb as she regained consciousness. A small trail of blood trickled down from her temple.
'Oh, that's just great. Well done, Bulma."
She tried to sit up as her gaze came across blood. On the floor. She could feel it trickle down her thighs.
A familiar feeling.
Hands reaching out for her. Groping her. Touching her.
Raping her.
Bulma's eyes flashed open as the memories from yesterday night came back full force.
"No. No this isn't happening. Not to me. No no no."
Bulma cradled her head in her hands as she let herself fall back onto the ground. The night in the club. The man at the bar. The single room with windows from the bottom up to the ceiling. The hands reaching out for her. Touching her. Claiming her. Raping her. Again and again.
"No. Oh, god please no. No no no." She chanted to herself. Unwilling to accept the truth.
And she remembered something else or better somebody else and her eyes snapped open as realization hit.
"He was there. He watched me." She whispered to herself.
And then she fell through the window. That was when she thought she would die. Smashed on the cold ground like a worthless porcelain doll. But he caught her. He had saved her.
"So it was him who brought me home, tended my wounds and changed my clothes. Oh god. Oh god. Oh god. This can't be happening."
Bulma hid her face in her hands. "But why didn't he tell me right away what happened yesterday night? Why did he have to lie?" A strangled sob escaped her throat.
'Oh Bulma you're such a fool to believe he would actually care about you....Probably he is disgusted by me. Who wouldn't be? Used, raped, dirty and addicted to drugs. Way to go Bulma.' She thought bitterly.
And the tears flooded from her eyes as she curled into a tight ball on the bathroom floor tiles. As she pulled her knees up to her chin she connected with something like a bottle. Probably something what fell along with her onto the floor. Bulma opened her eyes and to her amazement she found a bottle containing a handful of pills.
Just like the one Vegeta had taken from her while she was asleep. Reaching out with her hand she grasped the small bottle. Slowly she opened it spilling all of the pills in her open palm.
'Looks like this is it. I never thought it would end like this. I mean considering what kind of adventures I'm through. But I don't care anymore. I don't intend on putting up with this shit anymore. It's enough.'
And before she could change her mind she dragged herself up to the sink, swallowed all of the pills and spilled them down with lot's of water. After doing this her gaze fell into the mirror. For an eternity she simply stood there and stared at her reflection. Tired blue eyes with shadows beneath them looked back at her. Limp hair and skin so pale you could have thought she was already dead. A thin hand traced the features in the mirror.
'What have I done to myself? This isn't me. This isn't me.' Bulma shook her head violently and screamed at the mirror.
"THIS ISN'T ME!!!"
As her fist connected with the mirror sending it crashing into a thousand pieces. The sudden movement made her dizzy and the world began to spin as she dropped to the ground where already small puddles of water were beginning to form dripping from the already full tub.
***
Vegeta was almost down the floor as he heard the angry scream and the crashing noise.
"Alright. This one was real."
He spun around and raced back to Bulma's room. An uneasy feeling crept up his back at the sudden silence in her room.
'Please let her made nothing foolish. Just hold on.' Vegeta pleaded silently to himself as he burst through her door and headed straight for the bathroom as she was nowhere to be seen. The saiyan almost yanked the door out of the frame anxious to see what had conspired the crash. But he was not ready to see the picture displayed on the naked tiles. Bulma's pale wet body lay motionless on the floor. Her hair cling to her head sticky with her own blood that trickled from a small wound on her head.
Vegeta was confused. 'Did she hit her head and blacked out?' After awhile he realized he was standing in water and he moved to turn off the water and pulled out the plug. The water was already cold. Vegeta carefully gathered Bulma in his arms. She was cold as well. Vegeta began to panic. Something was definitely wrong. He just couldn't figure out what....wait, she wasn't breathing.
'Oh fuck. What did she do now?' In a rush he took the surroundings in and his gaze fell on a small bottle which was still clutched tightly in her left hand.
'Oh no not again. You don't get away from me like this.' Vegeta quickly checked her pulse. It was there even if faintly and as he took another look at her he saw that she was still breathing but it looked like it was slowing down until eventually it would stop. Vegeta's mind raced as he carried her quickly into her room. He dropped her onto the bed and flew to the main bathroom down the floor to get to the drug cabinet. He pulled out a small bottle which he knew would trigger a need to vomit. Vegeta managed to get her to take it as she opened her eyes at one point of the ordeal. Bulma managed a soft moan.
"What are doing to me?"
"Shhh, stay calm, everything is gonna be okay. I promise."
Shortly after Bulma began to throw up. According to the time of the intake of the drugs she probably had got them all out of her system. She would be left terribly weak for a couple of days but it should pass. It was only his luck that he had already ran a check up on these drugs as he got them from her purse last night. Living around two scientist it was easy to pick up a thing or two. He grumbled to himself after he cleaned her up already the second time within two days.
"You silly thing." He said affectingly. "How can you put me through something like this? You really drive me insane you know. You're constantly in my dreams. Geez, I already started daydreaming about you in case you wondered why I'm not training in the gravity room. You're such a distraction. You're not good for me, I know but I still hope I could stay with you."
Vegeta sighed as he put her carefully into her bed and turned to go. But before he could get up fully from the bed a hand snaked around his wrist lightly pulling him back down onto the bed.
"Please. Stay." Came the small whisper.
Vegeta didn't know what to do. She wasn't supposed to hear what he just said but seeing her so vulnerable he couldn't just yell at her something in his usual manner. Before he could say anything she beat him to it.
"Why did you save me? - Twice." She added with an after thought. This made Vegeta uncomfortable and Bulma could see this but she wouldn't back down. He had pulled her from her only way out of this mess.
"Why did you try to kill you?"
"Oh common Vegeta don't play this game with me now. You know full well why I tried to kill myself."
She saw him wince at her harsh words.
"I hadn't meant what happened last night. Don't you think those pills wouldn't have killed you sooner or later? Why did you wanted to throw your life away?"
Bulma looked into his dark eyes for a moment. He was serious. He wasn't playing.
"Okay, if I answer your questions you'll answer mine. Agreed?" Vegeta nodded. Bulma was silent for awhile before she began to speak.
"You see I had everything since I was a small girl. I was rich, used to be in the center of attention, I could get whatever I wanted. Then I came across Goku-san. And through our adventures together I made a lot of friends. I never had any real friends before. That may sound arrogant but my supposed friends at school simply couldn't live up to me. There was always a big gap between us. Even my looks were different. As a small child they used to say I'm a clone made in my Dad's laboratory because of my blue hair. Children can be really cruel you know that."
Bulma paused flashing Vegeta a look. He was still listening quietly.
"Anyway since the saiyans appeared on earth everything became different. They are all wrapped up in their own lives now and the battles against our enemies are getting crazier and crazier. Or maybe it's just me going insane. I needed something to escape to have some room to breath. I'm not strong enough to deal with reality. Guess you were right from the beginning. I am weak. So I really don't understand why you didn't just let me die."
Vegeta was stunned by this confession. He hadn't expected that Bulma had so many worries and insecurities hidden beneath this beautiful facade. He always thought she led the perfect life.
"I'm sorry. I guess I was too engulfed with my revenge to see that I hurt you."
Bulma bit her lip. She hadn't said anything like that to deserve such an answer but he could look right through her.
"You wanted to know why I saved you, ne?! Well, I think you already heard what I said when you were supposed to be asleep."
Vegeta frowned at that and Bulma blushed. He got up from the bed and began pacing the room running his hand through his unruly hair.
'This wasn't supposed to be so difficult. Why can't I just say that she's important to me? Argh! That woman!'
Bulma watched him with an amused smile from her bed and decided to cut him some slack.
"Do you care? About me?"
Vegeta stopped his pacing and looked at her. Finally gathering his courage he answered.
"Yes, I do care. And I'm so sorry that I couldn't prevent what he did to you."
He dropped his chin on his chest feeling suddenly ashamed. Another feeling he didn't came across for years.
'Hell this woman stirs feelings in me I didn't even know I possessed.'
Vegeta walked over to her bed and dropped to his knees. He carefully traced her cheek lost in her beautiful eyes.
"You know I think you are the most beautiful thing I ever met."
He said wonderingly more to himself than to Bulma. She smiled at that.
"Well, don't you want to kiss me? All the super heroes do that at the end."
She grinned mischievously at him. Vegeta smirked back.
"Nah, how could I pass on that my princess." And with that he leaned over to capture Bulma's lips in a sweet kiss.
************************************************
Yay, I'm done finally. I know it's pretty long in comparison to the other chapters and I could have split it up but since I wanted to get this story done I simply left it like this. Since a lot of people who reviewed me were sad that I didn't want to write any DBZ stories anytime soon again I changed my mind. I decided to dedicate the deathly sin "Pride" to DBZ Vegeta & Bulma. It will be the third story of my "The seven death sins" arc. I mean are there any anime charas out there who would be a better match than those two to this sin? Alright thanks for reviewing my story. Love you all. ^_^ Hellcat