Chapter 47: Breach
Authors Notes: That was a tearjerker, even for bitter 'ol me ^_~ Will Bulma and Vegeta go back for Stogie? Who knows, I might be cruel, I might not be. You'll just have to wait and see. Also, this story isn't going to be nearly as long as everyone thought it was going to be. I think I'm going to be content with 50 chapters, though I promise these next few will be extra long!
Warning: Angst.
~Jesa
Koru opened the door to see Bulma and Vegeta standing side by side. She smiled at the sight of her friend, and opened the door wide to allow them entrance. "Hello, Bulma! Hi, Vegeta. Come in!"
They obliged, Bulma with a slightly sad smile on her face. "What's wrong?" Koru asked once they were inside. "You don't look very happy." A suddenly worried look crossed over her face. "You're not.its not."
Bulma sighed, shaking her head. She knew what Koru was asking. "Vegeta and I just gave the Roctorn's away." She said. "After you told me that you and Arden wouldn't have time for them, we went searching for somebody. We ended up giving them to a very nice little girl named Jeryn."
"I know Jeryn, and her mother Keisha. They're in good hands with those two. Oh, Bulma." Koru said sympathetically. "That must have been hard."
Bulma lifted her chin. "It was difficult.but it felt good, as well. It was Jeryn's birthday, and her mother didn't have enough money to buy her a pet.so." She shrugged, and a small silence filled the room. Bulma looked around. "You have a nice home, Arden."
Arden grinned, his canines glinting in the firelight. "Thank you." He replied, stepping close to Koru.
A genuine smile crossed Bulma's face as she thought of the tiny ki growing inside her belly. "I suppose I have some news for you." She said suddenly, stretching her hands over her stomach, which had not begun to swell.
Arden stepped out, only heightening Vegeta's discomfort. He was feeling rather 'trapped' at the moment, knowing exactly what it was that Bulma was about to tell them. They hadn't discussed the baby yet, with Bulma still trying to come to terms with it. For the last few days, it had only been soft smiles and whispers at night when they lay together, Vegeta with his hand tucked protectively around her belly. Now, he frowned. Did he want the entire Storkrin race knowing he had sired a half-breed child with an Earthling? He stepped forward to stop Bulma, but she beat him to it.
"I'm pregnant!" She said happily, her hands resting on her belly. "We're going to have a baby."
At first Koru looked unpleasantly startled, but her expression quickly changed to happiness for her friend. "Well!" She said. "That is news!" she drew Bulma into a hug. "Congratulations."
Bulma laughed. Inside, her heart called for Stogie and his brothers; the pain of the separation having been almost too much for her to handle, but the thought of her baby warmed the chill their parting had created.
Behind her, Vegeta crossed his arms and looked away, his eyebrows drawing together in a deep frown. Where did she get off, parading around, telling whomever she pleased? And yet.as he watched her, laughing and pressing her hands gently to her stomach, he felt a barely perceptible smile cross his hardened features. She was beautiful, she was his, and she bore his child within her. It was enough to smile about, was it not?
He felt Arden's clawed hand touch his shoulder. Still glaring, he met the Storkrin's gaze and recognized the mans nod as a sign of respect and compliment. He nodded back. "He will make a fine warrior." He said to Arden. Bulma looked over her shoulder from where she and Koru stood and smiled in that way that always made him melt, though he'd never admit it.
"With you as his father, how could he not?"
For a moment Vegeta had no words to say. Besides their verbal battles, he and Bulma rarely complimented one another. It suddenly occurred to him that what she had just said had struck him deep, but not in the manner that always made him want to tear her head off. His face must have given away his feeling, because he suddenly noticed Koru and Bulma giving him the sort of look that girls huddled together and giggled over.
Mumbling to himself, he turned to follow Arden into their dimly lit living room.
Koru turned to Bulma once they were gone, motioning her to sit. "Bulma, I can't tell you how happy I am for you." She took the woman's hands in her own, smiling with all her glittering fangs. "Do you think everything will go smoothly?" She asked, the smile dissipating slightly.
"Well," Bulma took her hands away and rubbed them nervously in her lap, "That's the thing, I'm not sure. Back on Earth, my friend Chi-Chi is married to a Sayajin, Son Goku. They have a son, his name is Gohan." She said. "Since Chi-Chi is human, we were all worried as to how the delivery would go."
"And?" Koru's eyes widened. She seemed fascinated by Sayajin-Human relations.
"Everything went fine." Bulma replied with a smile. "Gohan was born a healthy Sayajin, his tail intact and with all his fingers and toes. Chi-Chi said it wasn't the -easiest- thing she had ever done, but it was well worth it."
Koru stood up and took some cups out of the cupboards. Bulma watched her, still intrigued by how civilized the Storkrin race was, and how similar to Earth's it sometimes proved to be. "Will your baby be born with a tail, as well?" Koru asked.
Bulma found herself taking a nervous glance toward where Vegeta and Arden had departed. No doubt Vegeta was standing somewhere in the darkened room, his Sayajin senses letting nothing she was saying get by him. She swallowed. "He will." She said softly.
Koru poured Storkrin tea into the two cups and asked the question Bulma was dreading. "What will you do? Will you remove it?"
Bulma knotted her fingers together in her lap. She knew Vegeta would scoff at the idea of removing their child's tail. It was a difficult situation for both of them. On one hand, Vegeta was the Prince of an entire race, be it a dead race, he was the Prince nonetheless. Being the Prince held certain responsibilities, though none really needed to be carried out, seeing as he lived on Earth now and had basically changed his entire life because of it. Yet there was his pride.no son or daughter of his would be seen walking around without a tail. He would be enraged if Bulma ordered the Doctor's to remove it, and would probably resent her forever more. Yet, on the other hand was Bulma's side of the story. She was going to give birth to a Demi-Sayajin whose father was Vegeta, one of the most powerful beings in the universe. It was only natural to worry that her son or daughter would be born with unfathomable powers, which of course led to the fact that if they had a tail, even more unthinkable things would happen every full moon. What mother would want their child transforming into a giant, uncontrollable were-beast who terrorized the city? The damage would be billions, not to mention the danger of the Ozaru possibly trying to kill one of them. She sighed. No, it simply couldn't be done.
"We would probably remove it." She said finally. When Koru asked why, she replayed her previous thoughts to the Storkrin woman. Koru looked relieved to see Bulma's decision was to remove it.
"That wouldn't be a pretty sight at all." She agreed, handing the cup to Bulma, who was grateful for it's warmth; her hands felt chilled.
"How do you feel? I mean, now that you're a healed woman?" Bulma decided to change the subject. Koru leaned over her cup, smiling into the murky water. "Amazing. There hasn't been any side-effects." She lifted her head. "You?"
Bulma half-smiled, half-frowned. "For a while there, I didn't feel very good at all." She took a sip of the tea, cringing a bit at its sour taste. "I'm just so glad that it didn't effect my ability to have children." She breathed.
Koru smiled. "I'm so happy for you two." She said. Both women involuntarily glanced toward the living room. "It's strange." Koru remarked after the silence. "We both met infected with Fortricres, and soon we will both depart, cured, and with husbands." She downed her tea in a single gulp. "It's strange the way things work out, isn't it?"
Bulma nodded her agreement. "That it is. Who ever would have thought I would have ended up with Vegeta, of all people? He's not even human, and he's a Prince to boot." She giggled. "And damn, is he ever good in the sack. I mean, he has the stamina of a thousand men!"
At that very moment, Vegeta and Arden chose to walk back into the kitchen. Bulma and Koru covered their mouths with their hands and tried desperately to cover muffled giggles. Vegeta's face flared with anger and embarrassment, and Arden slapped the Prince on the back, despite the threat of being decapitated for doing so.
"Bulma sssoundsss like a lucky woman." Arden said, joining the laughter.
Vegeta grabbed Bulma's arm and hefted her up from the table, where he led her over to the doorway, listening to her hysterical giggles all the way. "Come on, woman." He said gruffly.
He shut the door to muffled laughter.
"Oh Vegeta, it was just a bit of fun."
They had arrived back at the ship. Bulma was slipping off her shoes and hanging up her coat, still giggling mildly at the memory of Vegeta's expression. "Why should you have been embarrassed anyway? It was a compliment."
"You're such a vile woman." Was his reply. He tossed his coat onto the rack without much care and stalked over to the kitchen. Bulma rearranged his coat and listened to him rummaging around for food.
"Before you scream at me, I know what to do about the food." She called. He reappeared in the doorway, holding a crumple box in his fist. "Do you?" He growled. "It had better be good, woman, because not only do I have a Sayajin appetite, but you are now eating for two."
The words hung in the air between them. Bulma found her hands reaching to her stomach out of habit.
"We.haven't talked much about the baby." She said quietly. Vegeta grunted softly, disappearing back into the kitchen. "Don't you think we should?" She called, following him into the kitchen.
"What is there to talk about?" He growled, tossing empty boxes onto the floor. Bulma watched them crumple and hit the linoleum, and a strange anger came over her. "What is there to talk about?" She cried. Vegeta closed his eyes at the sound of her voice.
"There's tons to talk about!" She suddenly screamed, feeling her anger rise viciously. Who was he to rampage in here and start hollering about food and throwing garbage all over the place? What in Kami's name did he think he was saying? What was there to talk about? How dare he!
Vegeta screwed his eyes tightly shut, feeling his own temper rise. "I'm not in the mood, woman." He growled. Bulma heard the warning in his voice. His gloved hands clenched on the edge of the counter, his stare fixed resolutely ahead of him.
"I don't care if you're not in the mood! You're never in the mood for anything, except sex, which is precisely what has gotten me into this predicament!" She bellowed, walking up behind him. "We are in this together, Vegeta, and you're damn well going to treat me with the respect a pregnant woman deserves!"
Vegeta's jaw clenched tightly. Her shrill voice sent waves of pain through his head, jabbing needles at his sensitive Sayajin hearing. "I said, I'm not in the mood." He managed through his clenched teeth. A vein throbbed at his temple.
Bulma hadn't heard him. She was pacing now, her fists clenched at her sides, her movements jerky and angry. "Did you even -ask- me if I wanted children? Is that all you were using me for, to get your fucking heir from me? Your goddamn PRINCE? I can't believe you, Vegeta! What is there to talk about?" She mocked. "WE ARE HAVING A BABY! That's what we need to talk about!"
He whirled on her, his own fists shaking; his eyes narrowed into two slits of red-hot hate. "You are the one who said we didn't need a condom! It's your fault, woman, and you'll deal with the repercussions! I won't be part of some sniveling half-breed's life!" he roared, drowning out her cries with his rumbling crescendo of sudden rage. "Coming from you, he won't be worth it anyway!"
Vegeta stopped, hearing his words echo through his head. He watched the transformation on Bulma's face happen with frightening speed. The anger, the frustration, and the rage vanished from her eyes like smoke and filled with a hurt that cut him deeper than any look he had ever seen.
He had gone too far.
Shaking, Bulma wrapped her arms around her midsection, her eyes slowly lowering to the floor, wide and awake with shock. Her bottom lip trembled and she furrowed her brows together, spilling the pools of tears that had been gathering in her eyes. He made no move to console her, his pride not allowing him. He had been too soft, all these weeks with her. She'd made him a weakling, and he was not about to revert to apology now. Not any more.
And yet, as he watched her, his pride did not run deep enough to prevent him from knowing he was wrong, and had dealt her a great deal of pain with his words. He wanted to take her in his arms, bury his face in her soft hair, and tell her over and over that he was sorry. Instead, he stood rock hard against the counter, his chin raised, his eyes unfeeling.
"Then. . .I won't burden you." She whispered, her voice dull and lifeless, her eyes dead as they wandered slowly over the patterns on the linoleum floor. "He doesn't need to be born."
Something twisted in Vegeta's gut at her words. "What are you saying, Bulma?" he growled, trying to hide the revulsion in his gut at what he suspected she meant.
She looked up, staring past him, tears pouring from her eyes and pooling at their feet. "He isn't worth it, right? That's easily solved." She said bitterly.
"Don't you dare." he whispered with venom. "It is my child, and-
Vegeta blinked, stunned, as he felt Bulma's hand connect with his jaw with nearly enough force as one of Kakarott's halfhearted attacks. By the sound it had made, he knew she had broken her hand, but she made no move to cradle it uselessly against her body before she was screaming at him again, her words true, her anger powerful, shaming him.
"DON'T YOU DARE SAY THAT!" she wailed, her voice hoarse. "I hate you, Vegeta! I hate you, and I have no more use for you in this life!" she stepped up to him, her body shaking with unrestrained rage, and he let her. "I don't care if you did save my life! You're a selfish, unfeeling bastard with no soul, and I hope for your sake that you never approach me again, because I swear Vegeta, I will make you feel like the pitiful excuse for a man you are!"
He felt himself tense at her words, but said nothing. He was no fool. He knew when he was wrong, pride or not.
"I am having this child, and it will be MY child in every way! Don't you dare try and have anything to do with him!" She sobbed, her voice cracking. "You don't deserve him! You don't deserve ANYTHING!"
He watched, stunned, as she turned from him and stalked to her bedroom. The fine line between going too far had been breached, and he did not know if he would be able to repair it. Some part of him raged at her, wanted to decimate the entire ship, wanted to follow her and scream at her until she felt as worse as he did. Yet another part knew he could not, would not.
"Have I lost her. . .?" He whispered aloud, rubbing his jawline. Surprisingly, it was tender. Had he truly ruined everything he had so tentatively allowed himself to build with her?
For the first time in Vegeta's life, he prayed to Kami.
Authors Notes: That was a tearjerker, even for bitter 'ol me ^_~ Will Bulma and Vegeta go back for Stogie? Who knows, I might be cruel, I might not be. You'll just have to wait and see. Also, this story isn't going to be nearly as long as everyone thought it was going to be. I think I'm going to be content with 50 chapters, though I promise these next few will be extra long!
Warning: Angst.
~Jesa
Koru opened the door to see Bulma and Vegeta standing side by side. She smiled at the sight of her friend, and opened the door wide to allow them entrance. "Hello, Bulma! Hi, Vegeta. Come in!"
They obliged, Bulma with a slightly sad smile on her face. "What's wrong?" Koru asked once they were inside. "You don't look very happy." A suddenly worried look crossed over her face. "You're not.its not."
Bulma sighed, shaking her head. She knew what Koru was asking. "Vegeta and I just gave the Roctorn's away." She said. "After you told me that you and Arden wouldn't have time for them, we went searching for somebody. We ended up giving them to a very nice little girl named Jeryn."
"I know Jeryn, and her mother Keisha. They're in good hands with those two. Oh, Bulma." Koru said sympathetically. "That must have been hard."
Bulma lifted her chin. "It was difficult.but it felt good, as well. It was Jeryn's birthday, and her mother didn't have enough money to buy her a pet.so." She shrugged, and a small silence filled the room. Bulma looked around. "You have a nice home, Arden."
Arden grinned, his canines glinting in the firelight. "Thank you." He replied, stepping close to Koru.
A genuine smile crossed Bulma's face as she thought of the tiny ki growing inside her belly. "I suppose I have some news for you." She said suddenly, stretching her hands over her stomach, which had not begun to swell.
Arden stepped out, only heightening Vegeta's discomfort. He was feeling rather 'trapped' at the moment, knowing exactly what it was that Bulma was about to tell them. They hadn't discussed the baby yet, with Bulma still trying to come to terms with it. For the last few days, it had only been soft smiles and whispers at night when they lay together, Vegeta with his hand tucked protectively around her belly. Now, he frowned. Did he want the entire Storkrin race knowing he had sired a half-breed child with an Earthling? He stepped forward to stop Bulma, but she beat him to it.
"I'm pregnant!" She said happily, her hands resting on her belly. "We're going to have a baby."
At first Koru looked unpleasantly startled, but her expression quickly changed to happiness for her friend. "Well!" She said. "That is news!" she drew Bulma into a hug. "Congratulations."
Bulma laughed. Inside, her heart called for Stogie and his brothers; the pain of the separation having been almost too much for her to handle, but the thought of her baby warmed the chill their parting had created.
Behind her, Vegeta crossed his arms and looked away, his eyebrows drawing together in a deep frown. Where did she get off, parading around, telling whomever she pleased? And yet.as he watched her, laughing and pressing her hands gently to her stomach, he felt a barely perceptible smile cross his hardened features. She was beautiful, she was his, and she bore his child within her. It was enough to smile about, was it not?
He felt Arden's clawed hand touch his shoulder. Still glaring, he met the Storkrin's gaze and recognized the mans nod as a sign of respect and compliment. He nodded back. "He will make a fine warrior." He said to Arden. Bulma looked over her shoulder from where she and Koru stood and smiled in that way that always made him melt, though he'd never admit it.
"With you as his father, how could he not?"
For a moment Vegeta had no words to say. Besides their verbal battles, he and Bulma rarely complimented one another. It suddenly occurred to him that what she had just said had struck him deep, but not in the manner that always made him want to tear her head off. His face must have given away his feeling, because he suddenly noticed Koru and Bulma giving him the sort of look that girls huddled together and giggled over.
Mumbling to himself, he turned to follow Arden into their dimly lit living room.
Koru turned to Bulma once they were gone, motioning her to sit. "Bulma, I can't tell you how happy I am for you." She took the woman's hands in her own, smiling with all her glittering fangs. "Do you think everything will go smoothly?" She asked, the smile dissipating slightly.
"Well," Bulma took her hands away and rubbed them nervously in her lap, "That's the thing, I'm not sure. Back on Earth, my friend Chi-Chi is married to a Sayajin, Son Goku. They have a son, his name is Gohan." She said. "Since Chi-Chi is human, we were all worried as to how the delivery would go."
"And?" Koru's eyes widened. She seemed fascinated by Sayajin-Human relations.
"Everything went fine." Bulma replied with a smile. "Gohan was born a healthy Sayajin, his tail intact and with all his fingers and toes. Chi-Chi said it wasn't the -easiest- thing she had ever done, but it was well worth it."
Koru stood up and took some cups out of the cupboards. Bulma watched her, still intrigued by how civilized the Storkrin race was, and how similar to Earth's it sometimes proved to be. "Will your baby be born with a tail, as well?" Koru asked.
Bulma found herself taking a nervous glance toward where Vegeta and Arden had departed. No doubt Vegeta was standing somewhere in the darkened room, his Sayajin senses letting nothing she was saying get by him. She swallowed. "He will." She said softly.
Koru poured Storkrin tea into the two cups and asked the question Bulma was dreading. "What will you do? Will you remove it?"
Bulma knotted her fingers together in her lap. She knew Vegeta would scoff at the idea of removing their child's tail. It was a difficult situation for both of them. On one hand, Vegeta was the Prince of an entire race, be it a dead race, he was the Prince nonetheless. Being the Prince held certain responsibilities, though none really needed to be carried out, seeing as he lived on Earth now and had basically changed his entire life because of it. Yet there was his pride.no son or daughter of his would be seen walking around without a tail. He would be enraged if Bulma ordered the Doctor's to remove it, and would probably resent her forever more. Yet, on the other hand was Bulma's side of the story. She was going to give birth to a Demi-Sayajin whose father was Vegeta, one of the most powerful beings in the universe. It was only natural to worry that her son or daughter would be born with unfathomable powers, which of course led to the fact that if they had a tail, even more unthinkable things would happen every full moon. What mother would want their child transforming into a giant, uncontrollable were-beast who terrorized the city? The damage would be billions, not to mention the danger of the Ozaru possibly trying to kill one of them. She sighed. No, it simply couldn't be done.
"We would probably remove it." She said finally. When Koru asked why, she replayed her previous thoughts to the Storkrin woman. Koru looked relieved to see Bulma's decision was to remove it.
"That wouldn't be a pretty sight at all." She agreed, handing the cup to Bulma, who was grateful for it's warmth; her hands felt chilled.
"How do you feel? I mean, now that you're a healed woman?" Bulma decided to change the subject. Koru leaned over her cup, smiling into the murky water. "Amazing. There hasn't been any side-effects." She lifted her head. "You?"
Bulma half-smiled, half-frowned. "For a while there, I didn't feel very good at all." She took a sip of the tea, cringing a bit at its sour taste. "I'm just so glad that it didn't effect my ability to have children." She breathed.
Koru smiled. "I'm so happy for you two." She said. Both women involuntarily glanced toward the living room. "It's strange." Koru remarked after the silence. "We both met infected with Fortricres, and soon we will both depart, cured, and with husbands." She downed her tea in a single gulp. "It's strange the way things work out, isn't it?"
Bulma nodded her agreement. "That it is. Who ever would have thought I would have ended up with Vegeta, of all people? He's not even human, and he's a Prince to boot." She giggled. "And damn, is he ever good in the sack. I mean, he has the stamina of a thousand men!"
At that very moment, Vegeta and Arden chose to walk back into the kitchen. Bulma and Koru covered their mouths with their hands and tried desperately to cover muffled giggles. Vegeta's face flared with anger and embarrassment, and Arden slapped the Prince on the back, despite the threat of being decapitated for doing so.
"Bulma sssoundsss like a lucky woman." Arden said, joining the laughter.
Vegeta grabbed Bulma's arm and hefted her up from the table, where he led her over to the doorway, listening to her hysterical giggles all the way. "Come on, woman." He said gruffly.
He shut the door to muffled laughter.
"Oh Vegeta, it was just a bit of fun."
They had arrived back at the ship. Bulma was slipping off her shoes and hanging up her coat, still giggling mildly at the memory of Vegeta's expression. "Why should you have been embarrassed anyway? It was a compliment."
"You're such a vile woman." Was his reply. He tossed his coat onto the rack without much care and stalked over to the kitchen. Bulma rearranged his coat and listened to him rummaging around for food.
"Before you scream at me, I know what to do about the food." She called. He reappeared in the doorway, holding a crumple box in his fist. "Do you?" He growled. "It had better be good, woman, because not only do I have a Sayajin appetite, but you are now eating for two."
The words hung in the air between them. Bulma found her hands reaching to her stomach out of habit.
"We.haven't talked much about the baby." She said quietly. Vegeta grunted softly, disappearing back into the kitchen. "Don't you think we should?" She called, following him into the kitchen.
"What is there to talk about?" He growled, tossing empty boxes onto the floor. Bulma watched them crumple and hit the linoleum, and a strange anger came over her. "What is there to talk about?" She cried. Vegeta closed his eyes at the sound of her voice.
"There's tons to talk about!" She suddenly screamed, feeling her anger rise viciously. Who was he to rampage in here and start hollering about food and throwing garbage all over the place? What in Kami's name did he think he was saying? What was there to talk about? How dare he!
Vegeta screwed his eyes tightly shut, feeling his own temper rise. "I'm not in the mood, woman." He growled. Bulma heard the warning in his voice. His gloved hands clenched on the edge of the counter, his stare fixed resolutely ahead of him.
"I don't care if you're not in the mood! You're never in the mood for anything, except sex, which is precisely what has gotten me into this predicament!" She bellowed, walking up behind him. "We are in this together, Vegeta, and you're damn well going to treat me with the respect a pregnant woman deserves!"
Vegeta's jaw clenched tightly. Her shrill voice sent waves of pain through his head, jabbing needles at his sensitive Sayajin hearing. "I said, I'm not in the mood." He managed through his clenched teeth. A vein throbbed at his temple.
Bulma hadn't heard him. She was pacing now, her fists clenched at her sides, her movements jerky and angry. "Did you even -ask- me if I wanted children? Is that all you were using me for, to get your fucking heir from me? Your goddamn PRINCE? I can't believe you, Vegeta! What is there to talk about?" She mocked. "WE ARE HAVING A BABY! That's what we need to talk about!"
He whirled on her, his own fists shaking; his eyes narrowed into two slits of red-hot hate. "You are the one who said we didn't need a condom! It's your fault, woman, and you'll deal with the repercussions! I won't be part of some sniveling half-breed's life!" he roared, drowning out her cries with his rumbling crescendo of sudden rage. "Coming from you, he won't be worth it anyway!"
Vegeta stopped, hearing his words echo through his head. He watched the transformation on Bulma's face happen with frightening speed. The anger, the frustration, and the rage vanished from her eyes like smoke and filled with a hurt that cut him deeper than any look he had ever seen.
He had gone too far.
Shaking, Bulma wrapped her arms around her midsection, her eyes slowly lowering to the floor, wide and awake with shock. Her bottom lip trembled and she furrowed her brows together, spilling the pools of tears that had been gathering in her eyes. He made no move to console her, his pride not allowing him. He had been too soft, all these weeks with her. She'd made him a weakling, and he was not about to revert to apology now. Not any more.
And yet, as he watched her, his pride did not run deep enough to prevent him from knowing he was wrong, and had dealt her a great deal of pain with his words. He wanted to take her in his arms, bury his face in her soft hair, and tell her over and over that he was sorry. Instead, he stood rock hard against the counter, his chin raised, his eyes unfeeling.
"Then. . .I won't burden you." She whispered, her voice dull and lifeless, her eyes dead as they wandered slowly over the patterns on the linoleum floor. "He doesn't need to be born."
Something twisted in Vegeta's gut at her words. "What are you saying, Bulma?" he growled, trying to hide the revulsion in his gut at what he suspected she meant.
She looked up, staring past him, tears pouring from her eyes and pooling at their feet. "He isn't worth it, right? That's easily solved." She said bitterly.
"Don't you dare." he whispered with venom. "It is my child, and-
Vegeta blinked, stunned, as he felt Bulma's hand connect with his jaw with nearly enough force as one of Kakarott's halfhearted attacks. By the sound it had made, he knew she had broken her hand, but she made no move to cradle it uselessly against her body before she was screaming at him again, her words true, her anger powerful, shaming him.
"DON'T YOU DARE SAY THAT!" she wailed, her voice hoarse. "I hate you, Vegeta! I hate you, and I have no more use for you in this life!" she stepped up to him, her body shaking with unrestrained rage, and he let her. "I don't care if you did save my life! You're a selfish, unfeeling bastard with no soul, and I hope for your sake that you never approach me again, because I swear Vegeta, I will make you feel like the pitiful excuse for a man you are!"
He felt himself tense at her words, but said nothing. He was no fool. He knew when he was wrong, pride or not.
"I am having this child, and it will be MY child in every way! Don't you dare try and have anything to do with him!" She sobbed, her voice cracking. "You don't deserve him! You don't deserve ANYTHING!"
He watched, stunned, as she turned from him and stalked to her bedroom. The fine line between going too far had been breached, and he did not know if he would be able to repair it. Some part of him raged at her, wanted to decimate the entire ship, wanted to follow her and scream at her until she felt as worse as he did. Yet another part knew he could not, would not.
"Have I lost her. . .?" He whispered aloud, rubbing his jawline. Surprisingly, it was tender. Had he truly ruined everything he had so tentatively allowed himself to build with her?
For the first time in Vegeta's life, he prayed to Kami.