Warning: This chapter isn't very sappy, but it's building up for the climax chapter, which will come next. I'm REALLY excited about it! I'll be posting it probably in the morning. (I'm sure this chapter will have come up by then and a few people will review so I have proof of that) Anyway, I can't wait until then and I hope everyone enjoys THIS chapter!
A/N: Sorry to anyone that didn't know, but the reason I haven't updated this last WEEK (and it has ONLY been one week...) is because fanfiction grounded me for that period and I COULDN'T update. However, REVIEW because I have this story done now, but I'm going to post chapter by chapter and wait for a few reviews before posting the next chapter so that I can be SURE each chapter is being posted.
Vegeta stared out the front window. His mind was deep in thoughts he couldn't rid himself of and he'd finally just given in to. There was something about Bulma he really missed, but he wasn't quite sure what it was. He had a new appreciation for her after all of this, but he was still torn.
Trunks was depressed. That was obvious. And he was acting strangely too. He'd refused to take his nap today, even though he was clearly tired. Deep down Vegeta knew he needed to see his mother, but he wasn't ready to give him up. Even Trunks himself had tried to reason earlier after asking for the billionth time if he could see his mother and being told that would mean not seeing his father. He reasoned that his father and him were BOTH a million times stronger than Bulma, and therefore she couldn't' keep them from seeing each other even if she tried. That didn't fly with Vegeta though. It was more the principal of the matter than the reality he was concerned with.
Sighing he stood and went to the bathroom. Trunks had been in the tub an awful long time. At first he knocked, but when there was no answer he just opened the door. Trunks arms were hanging over the edge and his head was rested on top of them. His eyes were glazed over with exhaustion and had it not been for the tiny bit they were still open, Vegeta would have assumed him asleep.
"Get out of there and get ready for bed," Vegeta ordered.
Groggy, Trunks looked up, not moving anything but his eyes. He yawned and only twitched a finger or two before his eyes half shut again. Vegeta blinked. Why wasn't he moving.
"I said get out of there..."
Slowly Trunks moaned and sat up, then proceeded to stare. He looked like he would fall over again at any moment. Vegeta grabbed a towel and lifted him out of the bath, quickly drying him off, then taking him in his room.
"Are you sick again?"
Trunks blinked and paused before acknowledging that he'd been spoken to. "Huh?"
"Are you sick again?!" Vegeta pronounced the words slowly and irritably.
"No...," Trunks stretched and yawned, pulling on his night clothes.
"Go right to sleep."
"I can't sleep in here."
"Don't start THAT again! You CAN sleep in here, Trunks. Right now you can sleep ANYWHERE! You just about slept in the bathtub, for heaven's sake!" Vegeta shook his head. "Now get into that bed and SLEEP!"
Trunks climbed onto his bed, leaning against the wall and clutching his pillow against his chest in a rather protective manner. Somehow he seemed a lot more awake now that he had a few seconds ago. He looked across the room and out the window, slowly placing his small finger in the corner of his mouth.
Vegeta watched for a few seconds, but decided to leave it alone. Except for one thing. "Get your finger out of your mouth," he ordered as he exited.
Trunks turned and stared at the door for a little while. He was determined not to sleep in here again. This room was especially bad now. Every time he slept in a room his father wasn't in he was having terrible nightmares and now he was resolved not to sleep at all. At the same time he was SO tired he could hardly stand it.
Again he turned toward the window, his finger instinctively drifting back toward his mouth. It really wasn't a habit he practiced that often. Usually it only happened when he was worried about something or facing something difficult. Both things applied right now.
Quite some time passed as the young demi-sayain stared, his eyes becoming more and more heavy. Finally he couldn't stand it anymore. But instead of just falling asleep, he listened for his father's ki. He was asleep in his room. Groggily, Trunks grabbed the blanket from his bed, still clutching his pillow and stalked quietly to Vegeta's room. He was careful and lingered at the door for a few seconds to be sure he was really asleep. Then he walked in and quietly set up camp on the floor next to his father's bed.
A feeling of relief came over him as he snuggled under his covers. The floor was rather cold and pretty hard, but he was incredibly tired and these conditions were better than staying in his own room and facing the terrors that haunted him when he slept alone.
* * * * *
"Ow!"
Vegeta looked down with surprise to see he'd just stepped on his son. Slowly the covers shuffled and Trunks lavender head appeared from beneath them. He looked up, eye glazed over with sleepies, to see his father staring down at him.
"What are you doing in here?" Vegeta demanded.
"I WAS sleeping," Trunks slowly sat up, stretching. He felt rather sore from the floor, but relatively rested.
"Your bed happens to be in the other room."
"I know...," Trunks started, but couldn't think of what else to say.
"This is NOT acceptable. You can NOT sleep on my floor, do you understand?"
Trunks frowned, but nodded. He followed his father into the kitchen and the two ate a rather uneasy breakfast.
* * * * *
The battle continued in the afternoon as nap time once again rolled around. Trunks had exerted himself more than usual in his two training sessions and now he was ready to sleep, but refused to.
"But I'm not tired, Dad, really! If I just rest my eyes for a few minutes I'll be fine," Trunks argued.
"I don't care whether you are or not," Vegeta KNEW his son WAS, "YOU are the child and I'm telling you to get in your room and take a nap...NOW."
Trunks let out a breath of frustration and frowned. The two of them stared for a few seconds, until the child was completely defeated. He didn't stay in his room for more than a few minutes though. Quietly he snuck back toward the control room, pillow in hand. At the door he lingered, watching his father carefully before getting down on his hands and knees and creeping slowly toward him. Once he thought he was close enough, behind his father's chair and completely out of his line of vision--unless he turned around, Trunks silently placed his pillow on the floor and laid down, falling right to sleep.
Nearly half an hour passed before Vegeta moved, deciding to get a drink. "What the...?" his eyes narrowed as he placed his hands on his hips and glared at the little heap behind his chair. "Does this kid have the shortest memory in history, or does he genuinely have a death wish?" he wondered out loud, letting out a small growl as he picked the boy up and carried him back into his room--not as gently as he knew he should have. Even so, the boy didn't wake up.
"What is the matter with him?" Vegeta shook his head as he left.
Trunks hadn't been in his room but three minutes before another nightmare started. His parents were screaming at each other, completely oblivious to him and Majin Buu in the background. Trunks was trying to call out to them for help, as Buu pummeled him. Suddenly he shot awake with a gasp, blinking a few tears out of his eyes as he looked around, noticing he was in his room. He KNEW he hadn't fallen asleep in there. Vegeta must have found him and put him there.
It took a few minutes for him to calm his nerves, but as soon as he had, he snuck right back into the control room. He was about to curl up again when his father caught him.
"NO! Trunks!" Vegeta was exasperated. "You are NOT going to sleep on this floor! Now, get BACK in your room and finish your nap IN THERE, or you're backside is REALLY gonna regret it!"
Trunks pouted. "I'm not tired anymore," he lied.
"Then go in there, sit on your bed, and MEDITATE for the next half hour!"
Trunks sighed as he obeyed. Why did his father have to be so staunch about everything? He NEVER bent the rules! And what was the big deal anyway? Why COULDN'T he sleep on the floor? Yes, it was cold and hard--considering the control room had a tiled floor--but it was he that would have to deal with that, not his father.
Trunks pouted, staring out the window while he reflected on his mother. He wondered what she was thinking right then. Did she missed him as much as he missed her? And the ever-prevalent question: Why had she made Vegeta leave?
* * * * *
It was close to 11:00 and Trunks was exhausted, but his music was on and he was playing with Trusei to keep himself awake. The more he leapt around and chased after his cat, the longer he could keep awake. He'd stopped to rest once before, but he'd almost fallen asleep then and that's when he discovered that wasn't such a good idea.
Vegeta laid awake, staring at the ceiling with a frown on his face. He could hear the music and bumping coming from his son's room. Trunks bedtime was two hours earlier and he'd been warned an hour ago to go to sleep. All that had done, however, was turn the radio down. Vegeta was surprised at his child's defiance. It wasn't like him to continue doing something after being warned not to. The music was supposed to be off, and Trunks was to be in BED, going to SLEEP. He'd made that ABUNDANTLY clear. Something was wrong with the scenario.
Sighing heavily, Vegeta slowly climbed out of his bed. He really didn't want to do it, but he'd WARNED Trunks, so now he HAD to, right? To Vegeta, not carrying out what he'd said he would do was a disgrace and the same as going back on a promise or an oath. Perhaps it was just the royal blood in him that made him feel this way, but whatever it was, he would do as he'd said. Trunks would have to regret disobeying.
Trunks looked up with surprise and apprehension when his father opened his door. For a second he froze, then he stood up straight, clutching his kitten to his chest as he watched his father nervously. He KNEW he was in big trouble. His father had TOLD him to go to bed and he hadn't.
"Why are you still awake?" Vegeta asked in a low and calm voice.
Trunks chest became heavy. That was the spanking tone. He stared, eyes widening a little, but didn't answer.
"Your lights are on, your music is on, and YOU are not in that bed," Vegeta pointed out. "Why?"
"...Uh...," nothing was coming to Trunks' mind.
"Put the cat down and come here."
Trunks' eyes widened further and he took a step backward, holding the kitten even closer. "No," he shook his head a little.
Now Vegeta's eyes widened. "Did you just say 'NO' to me?"
Trunks mouth was open, but he didn't say anything.
"Come here!" Vegeta repeated, starting to show his anger.
Trunks backed away further. "No....Dad, I'll go to bed, I promise!"
"This is NOT a compromise! You will COME HERE, and THEN you will go to bed!"
Trunks glanced off to the side, frantically looking for an escape route. "Please, Dad...I can't sleep in here...."
"Then you give me a GOOD reason why NOT!" Vegeta demanded harshly.
Trunks didn't know what to say. He couldn't tell his father he was afraid to because of the nightmares he had every time he was alone. His father would NEVER have any respect for him! He would call him weak and useless! Just like in his dreams!
Vegeta was loosing his patience fast. He clenched his fists in frustration and yelled. "GET OVER HERE!"
Trunks flinched, cowering a little. He let the kitten jump out of his arms, but didn't move until Vegeta completely lost it.
"Oh, that's it!" he said to himself, advancing quickly on his son.
"NO!" Trunks screamed with fear, as he immediately jumped to the side and ran past Vegeta and out of the room.
Vegeta was dumbfounded by his reaction, but quickly recovered from it and chased after him. Trunks NEVER ran from his punishments! He KNEW not to do such a thing! As much as it angered him, he also felt immense puzzlement by it.
Vegeta stopped in the middle of the kitchen for a moment, breathing rather heavily. Trunks was trying to hide. He was even surpressing his ki, but Vegeta wasn't in the mood for games.
"Trunks! You had BETTER get out here RIGHT NOW!" His eyes darted toward the table as he thought he may have seen movement. As he walked closer, Trunks scurried out from under it and would have sprinted off, except that in the blink of an eye Vegeta caught him by the waist and lifted him off the ground, giving him a HARD swat.
Trunks yelped and began struggling to get loose as he cried and pleaded. "No, Dad, don't spank me! I'm sorry! I'll go to bed! Really...I'll turn my music off and I wont make anymore noise!"
"You are already an HOUR too late for THAT, and evasion of punishment is EXTRA penalty!" Vegeta spat, taking the boy into his room and sitting down on the bed with him. At that, Trunks struggled even harder and started screaming.
"NO!!!! DADDY, DON'T!!!"
Vegeta hadn't heard him call him 'daddy' since he was five years old! But still, he ignored it and laid in with ten hard and unrelentless blows. About half way through Trunks gave up on trying to get free and was no longer pleading. He'd known all along it would do no good anyway. Not with his father. Once he'd made up his mind about a punishment, NOTHING could change it. Unfortunately, that was a lesson Trunks refused to concede to.
By the time it was over, Trunks felt completely limp and void of strength. Vegeta lifted him from his lap, noticing the rag-doll effects, and set him on his bed. He spoke calmly again as the boy continued to sob, almost as if unaware it was done. "Trunks, you KNOW better than to behave like this. You are not a baby anymore and I expect you to behave with the dignity of your age, which includes doing as you're told. I will NOT be defied. Do you understand? You have NO excuse for disobedience."
Trunks ignored his words, refusing to look at him. Vegeta gave him a few seconds before going on.
"Now I KNOW you are perfectly capable of sleeping in your room. Why is it you keep refusing? Are you having nightmares?" he decided to confront the issue he suspected head-on.
Trunks turned away from him, pulling the covers over his head as he continued to sob.
Vegeta sighed. "Fine. Have it your way," he hesitantly left the room.
Trunks sobbed for quite some time and Vegeta listened from his own room, waiting for his son's ki to relax into its sleeping state. Even after an hour, he could still hear sniffles from the other room.
Trunks laid in his bed, staring out the window to try and stay awake. His face was puffy and it hurt. And he was still crying, just not nearly as much. His fear of falling asleep was much deeper now and he really didn't think he would be able to make it. After what had happened, he was SURE he'd have a nightmare to top all others and the reality of that was fueling his tears. He wanted DESPERATELY to just stay awake. This desire kept him awake for another hour, but then even that wasn't enough for the young boy. His eyes finally fluttered closed, this time to stay.
Vegeta let out a sigh of relief as he FINALLY felt the boy's ki at rest. It was an hour past midnight! How had he managed to stay awake that long? And why? Vegeta was DETERMINED to get to the bottom of this. But for now, he would just get some sleep himself.
Not long after Vegeta fell asleep, Trunks shot up with a startled gasp, tears immediately streaming down his face. He sat up and moved against his wall, holding his pillow to his chest once again and letting it muffle his cries. Just as he'd expected, this nightmare was worse. His father was HELPING Majin Buu--cheering him on and laughing at Trunks' defeat. When Buu knocked him away, Vegeta knocked him back as if he were a football and the two of them were the players. He was NOT going to fall asleep again! Not this time!
* * * * *
Vegeta frowned, staring straight ahead. Trunks was asleep on his school books, and while he knew it, he'd decided to do nothing about it. Something was terribly wrong. When he'd gone in his son's room to wake him, the boy was already awake and had the most pitiful look on his face Vegeta had ever seen. His eyes were bloodshot and he was all scrunched up in a ball, holding his pillow to his chest with his pinky in his mouth.
He was asleep with it in there NOW. Vegeta had an inkling, based on the times he'd seen his son do that, that he did it mostly when he was distressed about something. He knew Trunks had gone to sleep the night before, but he obviously hadn't STAYED asleep very long.
"It's nightmares. It HAS to be. What could possibly be causing him that much stress though?" Vegeta spoke quietly to himself. He turned, glancing at his child and decided to try reading his thoughts now.
Nothing interesting was going on in his mind at the moment though. He was having a sparring match with Goten while Bulma sat on a blanket on the grass with a basket full of food. And Trunks was winning too. It was a perfectly innocent and nice dream.
Vegeta frowned, questioning his theory. Was it really something else that kept Trunks from sleeping at night? Wait. It wasn't just at night that he wouldn't sleep. In fact he WOULD sleep, if it was on Vegeta's floor...and in the afternoons he would sleep if it was in the control room. Just not in HIS room. Every time he was in HIS room, he wouldn't sleep. What was it about his room that was upsetting him so much?
Then an idea came to him. He would experiment with his new theory at Trunks' nap time. But the boy wouldn't be tired enough for it if he didn't wake him up now.
"Trunks...," Vegeta shook his shoulder. "Wake up and read your health book."
"Huh?" Trunks slowly opened his eyes and noticed his father.
"Read your health book," Vegeta repeated.
He had plenty of trouble keeping the kid awake while he waited for nap time to roll around, but with his constant vigil he was able to manage.
"All right, Trunks, take your nap. You can sleep in my room today."
Trunks was a little surprised at the offer, but agreed. However, he could feel apprehension weighing on him even as he laid in his father's bed, eyes wide open and staring for a few seconds. No, he couldn't sleep in here. Not without his Dad there with him. He would have more nightmares. So, he got up and went back to the control room, blanket and pillow in hand.
"Now what?" Vegeta was mildly irritated.
"I can't sleep in there."
"Why not? You did a few nights ago."
"Well I can't now," Trunks dropped his pillow and sat down on the floor, holding his blanket and staring at his father as if WAITING to be kicked out.
"All right fine, sleep in here then," Vegeta rolled his eyes and stood.
"Really?! Thanks Dad!" Trunks was surprised. His excitement quickly dwindled as his father walked toward the door. "Where are you going?"
"I'm going to train for awhile."
"But we just finished training..."
"So? I'm going to train alone." The look on Trunks' face didn't escape his notice, even though the boy was trying to hide it.
Trunks' laid awake in the control room for about fifteen minutes. He wasn't at ease and refused to fall asleep as long as that was the case. Finally he couldn't stand it anymore and he went to the training room where his father was.
"What are you doing up?" Vegeta asked, eyes widening slightly.
"I'm really not tired," Trunks lied, fighting the urge to yawn.
Vegeta stared at him for a few seconds, then sighed. "Fine. Go do your school work then and I'll be there in another fifteen minutes."
Trunks nodded solemnly and left, jumping straight into his vocabulary lessons. He looked up when Vegeta came back in and not ten minutes later, he was asleep again. That clenched it for Vegeta. It was HIM! The child wouldn't sleep ANYWHERE that HE wasn't. It wasn't his bedroom, or the control room, or ANY room...it was VEGETA'S presence. But WHY? When had such an attachment formed? It hadn't existed when they started out on this journey. It hadn't even existed a week ago!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Hey peoples... I've got more chapters done, but I'm going to post one at a time and wait for some reviews to make sure the chapters are showing up and then I'll post the next chapters. I really would love to hear your reviews. And I THANK everybody for them! I've gotten to fall in love with them. Here's another rose for everyone reviewing.
--{--@
and if you're a first time reader and you review...I'll think up something special for you! I'd love to hear from EVERYONE that reads this! (Unless they're intentionally not reviewing because they want to flame based on something they were already warned about...)
My loyal reviewers, though...you all get a special sparkly star sticker. And a poster of Chibi Trunks and Vegeta (a NICE poster of Veggie holding his son--based sometime after the END of this story of course...) for sticking with me through every chapter and being so nice!!! *blows kisses to the crowd* THANKS. (BTW: For those of you I e-mailed and gave those things to already...well then, you get ANOTHER, DIFFERENT poster and sticker!)
A/N: Sorry to anyone that didn't know, but the reason I haven't updated this last WEEK (and it has ONLY been one week...) is because fanfiction grounded me for that period and I COULDN'T update. However, REVIEW because I have this story done now, but I'm going to post chapter by chapter and wait for a few reviews before posting the next chapter so that I can be SURE each chapter is being posted.
Vegeta stared out the front window. His mind was deep in thoughts he couldn't rid himself of and he'd finally just given in to. There was something about Bulma he really missed, but he wasn't quite sure what it was. He had a new appreciation for her after all of this, but he was still torn.
Trunks was depressed. That was obvious. And he was acting strangely too. He'd refused to take his nap today, even though he was clearly tired. Deep down Vegeta knew he needed to see his mother, but he wasn't ready to give him up. Even Trunks himself had tried to reason earlier after asking for the billionth time if he could see his mother and being told that would mean not seeing his father. He reasoned that his father and him were BOTH a million times stronger than Bulma, and therefore she couldn't' keep them from seeing each other even if she tried. That didn't fly with Vegeta though. It was more the principal of the matter than the reality he was concerned with.
Sighing he stood and went to the bathroom. Trunks had been in the tub an awful long time. At first he knocked, but when there was no answer he just opened the door. Trunks arms were hanging over the edge and his head was rested on top of them. His eyes were glazed over with exhaustion and had it not been for the tiny bit they were still open, Vegeta would have assumed him asleep.
"Get out of there and get ready for bed," Vegeta ordered.
Groggy, Trunks looked up, not moving anything but his eyes. He yawned and only twitched a finger or two before his eyes half shut again. Vegeta blinked. Why wasn't he moving.
"I said get out of there..."
Slowly Trunks moaned and sat up, then proceeded to stare. He looked like he would fall over again at any moment. Vegeta grabbed a towel and lifted him out of the bath, quickly drying him off, then taking him in his room.
"Are you sick again?"
Trunks blinked and paused before acknowledging that he'd been spoken to. "Huh?"
"Are you sick again?!" Vegeta pronounced the words slowly and irritably.
"No...," Trunks stretched and yawned, pulling on his night clothes.
"Go right to sleep."
"I can't sleep in here."
"Don't start THAT again! You CAN sleep in here, Trunks. Right now you can sleep ANYWHERE! You just about slept in the bathtub, for heaven's sake!" Vegeta shook his head. "Now get into that bed and SLEEP!"
Trunks climbed onto his bed, leaning against the wall and clutching his pillow against his chest in a rather protective manner. Somehow he seemed a lot more awake now that he had a few seconds ago. He looked across the room and out the window, slowly placing his small finger in the corner of his mouth.
Vegeta watched for a few seconds, but decided to leave it alone. Except for one thing. "Get your finger out of your mouth," he ordered as he exited.
Trunks turned and stared at the door for a little while. He was determined not to sleep in here again. This room was especially bad now. Every time he slept in a room his father wasn't in he was having terrible nightmares and now he was resolved not to sleep at all. At the same time he was SO tired he could hardly stand it.
Again he turned toward the window, his finger instinctively drifting back toward his mouth. It really wasn't a habit he practiced that often. Usually it only happened when he was worried about something or facing something difficult. Both things applied right now.
Quite some time passed as the young demi-sayain stared, his eyes becoming more and more heavy. Finally he couldn't stand it anymore. But instead of just falling asleep, he listened for his father's ki. He was asleep in his room. Groggily, Trunks grabbed the blanket from his bed, still clutching his pillow and stalked quietly to Vegeta's room. He was careful and lingered at the door for a few seconds to be sure he was really asleep. Then he walked in and quietly set up camp on the floor next to his father's bed.
A feeling of relief came over him as he snuggled under his covers. The floor was rather cold and pretty hard, but he was incredibly tired and these conditions were better than staying in his own room and facing the terrors that haunted him when he slept alone.
* * * * *
"Ow!"
Vegeta looked down with surprise to see he'd just stepped on his son. Slowly the covers shuffled and Trunks lavender head appeared from beneath them. He looked up, eye glazed over with sleepies, to see his father staring down at him.
"What are you doing in here?" Vegeta demanded.
"I WAS sleeping," Trunks slowly sat up, stretching. He felt rather sore from the floor, but relatively rested.
"Your bed happens to be in the other room."
"I know...," Trunks started, but couldn't think of what else to say.
"This is NOT acceptable. You can NOT sleep on my floor, do you understand?"
Trunks frowned, but nodded. He followed his father into the kitchen and the two ate a rather uneasy breakfast.
* * * * *
The battle continued in the afternoon as nap time once again rolled around. Trunks had exerted himself more than usual in his two training sessions and now he was ready to sleep, but refused to.
"But I'm not tired, Dad, really! If I just rest my eyes for a few minutes I'll be fine," Trunks argued.
"I don't care whether you are or not," Vegeta KNEW his son WAS, "YOU are the child and I'm telling you to get in your room and take a nap...NOW."
Trunks let out a breath of frustration and frowned. The two of them stared for a few seconds, until the child was completely defeated. He didn't stay in his room for more than a few minutes though. Quietly he snuck back toward the control room, pillow in hand. At the door he lingered, watching his father carefully before getting down on his hands and knees and creeping slowly toward him. Once he thought he was close enough, behind his father's chair and completely out of his line of vision--unless he turned around, Trunks silently placed his pillow on the floor and laid down, falling right to sleep.
Nearly half an hour passed before Vegeta moved, deciding to get a drink. "What the...?" his eyes narrowed as he placed his hands on his hips and glared at the little heap behind his chair. "Does this kid have the shortest memory in history, or does he genuinely have a death wish?" he wondered out loud, letting out a small growl as he picked the boy up and carried him back into his room--not as gently as he knew he should have. Even so, the boy didn't wake up.
"What is the matter with him?" Vegeta shook his head as he left.
Trunks hadn't been in his room but three minutes before another nightmare started. His parents were screaming at each other, completely oblivious to him and Majin Buu in the background. Trunks was trying to call out to them for help, as Buu pummeled him. Suddenly he shot awake with a gasp, blinking a few tears out of his eyes as he looked around, noticing he was in his room. He KNEW he hadn't fallen asleep in there. Vegeta must have found him and put him there.
It took a few minutes for him to calm his nerves, but as soon as he had, he snuck right back into the control room. He was about to curl up again when his father caught him.
"NO! Trunks!" Vegeta was exasperated. "You are NOT going to sleep on this floor! Now, get BACK in your room and finish your nap IN THERE, or you're backside is REALLY gonna regret it!"
Trunks pouted. "I'm not tired anymore," he lied.
"Then go in there, sit on your bed, and MEDITATE for the next half hour!"
Trunks sighed as he obeyed. Why did his father have to be so staunch about everything? He NEVER bent the rules! And what was the big deal anyway? Why COULDN'T he sleep on the floor? Yes, it was cold and hard--considering the control room had a tiled floor--but it was he that would have to deal with that, not his father.
Trunks pouted, staring out the window while he reflected on his mother. He wondered what she was thinking right then. Did she missed him as much as he missed her? And the ever-prevalent question: Why had she made Vegeta leave?
* * * * *
It was close to 11:00 and Trunks was exhausted, but his music was on and he was playing with Trusei to keep himself awake. The more he leapt around and chased after his cat, the longer he could keep awake. He'd stopped to rest once before, but he'd almost fallen asleep then and that's when he discovered that wasn't such a good idea.
Vegeta laid awake, staring at the ceiling with a frown on his face. He could hear the music and bumping coming from his son's room. Trunks bedtime was two hours earlier and he'd been warned an hour ago to go to sleep. All that had done, however, was turn the radio down. Vegeta was surprised at his child's defiance. It wasn't like him to continue doing something after being warned not to. The music was supposed to be off, and Trunks was to be in BED, going to SLEEP. He'd made that ABUNDANTLY clear. Something was wrong with the scenario.
Sighing heavily, Vegeta slowly climbed out of his bed. He really didn't want to do it, but he'd WARNED Trunks, so now he HAD to, right? To Vegeta, not carrying out what he'd said he would do was a disgrace and the same as going back on a promise or an oath. Perhaps it was just the royal blood in him that made him feel this way, but whatever it was, he would do as he'd said. Trunks would have to regret disobeying.
Trunks looked up with surprise and apprehension when his father opened his door. For a second he froze, then he stood up straight, clutching his kitten to his chest as he watched his father nervously. He KNEW he was in big trouble. His father had TOLD him to go to bed and he hadn't.
"Why are you still awake?" Vegeta asked in a low and calm voice.
Trunks chest became heavy. That was the spanking tone. He stared, eyes widening a little, but didn't answer.
"Your lights are on, your music is on, and YOU are not in that bed," Vegeta pointed out. "Why?"
"...Uh...," nothing was coming to Trunks' mind.
"Put the cat down and come here."
Trunks' eyes widened further and he took a step backward, holding the kitten even closer. "No," he shook his head a little.
Now Vegeta's eyes widened. "Did you just say 'NO' to me?"
Trunks mouth was open, but he didn't say anything.
"Come here!" Vegeta repeated, starting to show his anger.
Trunks backed away further. "No....Dad, I'll go to bed, I promise!"
"This is NOT a compromise! You will COME HERE, and THEN you will go to bed!"
Trunks glanced off to the side, frantically looking for an escape route. "Please, Dad...I can't sleep in here...."
"Then you give me a GOOD reason why NOT!" Vegeta demanded harshly.
Trunks didn't know what to say. He couldn't tell his father he was afraid to because of the nightmares he had every time he was alone. His father would NEVER have any respect for him! He would call him weak and useless! Just like in his dreams!
Vegeta was loosing his patience fast. He clenched his fists in frustration and yelled. "GET OVER HERE!"
Trunks flinched, cowering a little. He let the kitten jump out of his arms, but didn't move until Vegeta completely lost it.
"Oh, that's it!" he said to himself, advancing quickly on his son.
"NO!" Trunks screamed with fear, as he immediately jumped to the side and ran past Vegeta and out of the room.
Vegeta was dumbfounded by his reaction, but quickly recovered from it and chased after him. Trunks NEVER ran from his punishments! He KNEW not to do such a thing! As much as it angered him, he also felt immense puzzlement by it.
Vegeta stopped in the middle of the kitchen for a moment, breathing rather heavily. Trunks was trying to hide. He was even surpressing his ki, but Vegeta wasn't in the mood for games.
"Trunks! You had BETTER get out here RIGHT NOW!" His eyes darted toward the table as he thought he may have seen movement. As he walked closer, Trunks scurried out from under it and would have sprinted off, except that in the blink of an eye Vegeta caught him by the waist and lifted him off the ground, giving him a HARD swat.
Trunks yelped and began struggling to get loose as he cried and pleaded. "No, Dad, don't spank me! I'm sorry! I'll go to bed! Really...I'll turn my music off and I wont make anymore noise!"
"You are already an HOUR too late for THAT, and evasion of punishment is EXTRA penalty!" Vegeta spat, taking the boy into his room and sitting down on the bed with him. At that, Trunks struggled even harder and started screaming.
"NO!!!! DADDY, DON'T!!!"
Vegeta hadn't heard him call him 'daddy' since he was five years old! But still, he ignored it and laid in with ten hard and unrelentless blows. About half way through Trunks gave up on trying to get free and was no longer pleading. He'd known all along it would do no good anyway. Not with his father. Once he'd made up his mind about a punishment, NOTHING could change it. Unfortunately, that was a lesson Trunks refused to concede to.
By the time it was over, Trunks felt completely limp and void of strength. Vegeta lifted him from his lap, noticing the rag-doll effects, and set him on his bed. He spoke calmly again as the boy continued to sob, almost as if unaware it was done. "Trunks, you KNOW better than to behave like this. You are not a baby anymore and I expect you to behave with the dignity of your age, which includes doing as you're told. I will NOT be defied. Do you understand? You have NO excuse for disobedience."
Trunks ignored his words, refusing to look at him. Vegeta gave him a few seconds before going on.
"Now I KNOW you are perfectly capable of sleeping in your room. Why is it you keep refusing? Are you having nightmares?" he decided to confront the issue he suspected head-on.
Trunks turned away from him, pulling the covers over his head as he continued to sob.
Vegeta sighed. "Fine. Have it your way," he hesitantly left the room.
Trunks sobbed for quite some time and Vegeta listened from his own room, waiting for his son's ki to relax into its sleeping state. Even after an hour, he could still hear sniffles from the other room.
Trunks laid in his bed, staring out the window to try and stay awake. His face was puffy and it hurt. And he was still crying, just not nearly as much. His fear of falling asleep was much deeper now and he really didn't think he would be able to make it. After what had happened, he was SURE he'd have a nightmare to top all others and the reality of that was fueling his tears. He wanted DESPERATELY to just stay awake. This desire kept him awake for another hour, but then even that wasn't enough for the young boy. His eyes finally fluttered closed, this time to stay.
Vegeta let out a sigh of relief as he FINALLY felt the boy's ki at rest. It was an hour past midnight! How had he managed to stay awake that long? And why? Vegeta was DETERMINED to get to the bottom of this. But for now, he would just get some sleep himself.
Not long after Vegeta fell asleep, Trunks shot up with a startled gasp, tears immediately streaming down his face. He sat up and moved against his wall, holding his pillow to his chest once again and letting it muffle his cries. Just as he'd expected, this nightmare was worse. His father was HELPING Majin Buu--cheering him on and laughing at Trunks' defeat. When Buu knocked him away, Vegeta knocked him back as if he were a football and the two of them were the players. He was NOT going to fall asleep again! Not this time!
* * * * *
Vegeta frowned, staring straight ahead. Trunks was asleep on his school books, and while he knew it, he'd decided to do nothing about it. Something was terribly wrong. When he'd gone in his son's room to wake him, the boy was already awake and had the most pitiful look on his face Vegeta had ever seen. His eyes were bloodshot and he was all scrunched up in a ball, holding his pillow to his chest with his pinky in his mouth.
He was asleep with it in there NOW. Vegeta had an inkling, based on the times he'd seen his son do that, that he did it mostly when he was distressed about something. He knew Trunks had gone to sleep the night before, but he obviously hadn't STAYED asleep very long.
"It's nightmares. It HAS to be. What could possibly be causing him that much stress though?" Vegeta spoke quietly to himself. He turned, glancing at his child and decided to try reading his thoughts now.
Nothing interesting was going on in his mind at the moment though. He was having a sparring match with Goten while Bulma sat on a blanket on the grass with a basket full of food. And Trunks was winning too. It was a perfectly innocent and nice dream.
Vegeta frowned, questioning his theory. Was it really something else that kept Trunks from sleeping at night? Wait. It wasn't just at night that he wouldn't sleep. In fact he WOULD sleep, if it was on Vegeta's floor...and in the afternoons he would sleep if it was in the control room. Just not in HIS room. Every time he was in HIS room, he wouldn't sleep. What was it about his room that was upsetting him so much?
Then an idea came to him. He would experiment with his new theory at Trunks' nap time. But the boy wouldn't be tired enough for it if he didn't wake him up now.
"Trunks...," Vegeta shook his shoulder. "Wake up and read your health book."
"Huh?" Trunks slowly opened his eyes and noticed his father.
"Read your health book," Vegeta repeated.
He had plenty of trouble keeping the kid awake while he waited for nap time to roll around, but with his constant vigil he was able to manage.
"All right, Trunks, take your nap. You can sleep in my room today."
Trunks was a little surprised at the offer, but agreed. However, he could feel apprehension weighing on him even as he laid in his father's bed, eyes wide open and staring for a few seconds. No, he couldn't sleep in here. Not without his Dad there with him. He would have more nightmares. So, he got up and went back to the control room, blanket and pillow in hand.
"Now what?" Vegeta was mildly irritated.
"I can't sleep in there."
"Why not? You did a few nights ago."
"Well I can't now," Trunks dropped his pillow and sat down on the floor, holding his blanket and staring at his father as if WAITING to be kicked out.
"All right fine, sleep in here then," Vegeta rolled his eyes and stood.
"Really?! Thanks Dad!" Trunks was surprised. His excitement quickly dwindled as his father walked toward the door. "Where are you going?"
"I'm going to train for awhile."
"But we just finished training..."
"So? I'm going to train alone." The look on Trunks' face didn't escape his notice, even though the boy was trying to hide it.
Trunks' laid awake in the control room for about fifteen minutes. He wasn't at ease and refused to fall asleep as long as that was the case. Finally he couldn't stand it anymore and he went to the training room where his father was.
"What are you doing up?" Vegeta asked, eyes widening slightly.
"I'm really not tired," Trunks lied, fighting the urge to yawn.
Vegeta stared at him for a few seconds, then sighed. "Fine. Go do your school work then and I'll be there in another fifteen minutes."
Trunks nodded solemnly and left, jumping straight into his vocabulary lessons. He looked up when Vegeta came back in and not ten minutes later, he was asleep again. That clenched it for Vegeta. It was HIM! The child wouldn't sleep ANYWHERE that HE wasn't. It wasn't his bedroom, or the control room, or ANY room...it was VEGETA'S presence. But WHY? When had such an attachment formed? It hadn't existed when they started out on this journey. It hadn't even existed a week ago!
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Hey peoples... I've got more chapters done, but I'm going to post one at a time and wait for some reviews to make sure the chapters are showing up and then I'll post the next chapters. I really would love to hear your reviews. And I THANK everybody for them! I've gotten to fall in love with them. Here's another rose for everyone reviewing.
--{--@
and if you're a first time reader and you review...I'll think up something special for you! I'd love to hear from EVERYONE that reads this! (Unless they're intentionally not reviewing because they want to flame based on something they were already warned about...)
My loyal reviewers, though...you all get a special sparkly star sticker. And a poster of Chibi Trunks and Vegeta (a NICE poster of Veggie holding his son--based sometime after the END of this story of course...) for sticking with me through every chapter and being so nice!!! *blows kisses to the crowd* THANKS. (BTW: For those of you I e-mailed and gave those things to already...well then, you get ANOTHER, DIFFERENT poster and sticker!)