Last time:
"Well, I better get you home so I can get him in his crib."
She smiled warmly at him, but couldn't help but feel guilty as they walked to the car; she hadn't told him the whole truth. How would she keep this from him if he was going to the play?
************************************************************
Bulma squirmed uneasily on her lab stool, her professor's voice fading in and out of hearing; her thoughts were somewhere else completely. The play was in two days, and still, after having talked to him countless times, Bulma had not told Rikyu that Vegeta was playing Romeo. In truth it was because she was excited about the idea, she could still vividly remember the old days when they acted out Romeo and Juliet together, but to calm her guilty conscience, she told herself that it was because she didn't want him to over-react and not come to the performance.
"Miss Briefs!" Bulma's head snapped up, eyes meeting immediately with the professor's. "Well, now that you're well rested, would you mind completely this diagram I have up here on the overhead?"
"Of course," she said a little wearily, slouching off her stool and heading toward the board. She recognized the diagram immediately; she knew this stuff like the back of her hand.
When she finished it completely, she turned and walked back to her stool, falling back into her former daze.
************************************************************
"So, how's the play coming along?" Krillin asked Bulma as he took a seat on the other side of the booth from her, sliding her ice cream sundae to her.
"Oh, it's fine, I mean, well, it's really easy now, you know, without the audience there."
"Yeah, but I'm sure you'll do fine." He took a small bite of his own sundae, swallowed, then looked back to Bulma; he was anxious to ask her something.
"What?" She'd caught his eyes immediately, having sensed them on her.
"Have you told Rikyu yet?"
Bulma's heart sank. He was the third person that asked her that in two days. She looked at her ice cream, determined not to be guilty for not telling him.
"Bulma, you have to tell him. What do you think is going to happen when he sees Vegeta up there kissing you?"
"I-er-I don't know Krillin, I haven't thought about that."
"He's going to charge the stage and pound Vegeta's face in, you know that."
"He won't, I know him. He knows better than-"
"Bulma, remember their little chat a while back? How was he then? Did you know him then?"
"Krillin, please, I didn't come for ice cream with you so you could interrogate me about Rikyu. I'll tell him when I-"
"Tell me what?"
Bulma's eyes widened and she turned to see Rikyu standing beside the table, Sorai right behind him.
"Rikyu, sweety," she said, stirring her quickly melting sundae frantically. "It's a surprise, I can't tell you."
"What're you two doing here?" Krillin asked, trying to revert the subject.
"I picked up Sorai from practice, now we're having ice cream." He leaned over, kissing Bulma quickly on the lips. "We've got to get home though, just getting take out. I'll call you later Bulma. Bye." He turned from her hastily, pushing Sorai to the counter, whispering all the way. Bulma knew he suspected something, but she wasn't one to just give in when the fight wasn't over. But what was she fighting, her own boyfriend against her former boyfriend? She sighed deeply, dropping her spoon with a loud clang; that's exactly what she was doing.
"I have to tell him," she sighed, head in her hands.
"Then tell him Bulma. He's right over there."
"But-But-"
"Bulma, come on, what's he going to do?"
"You're right. He won't kill me," she laughed uneasily, heading over to her boyfriend and his brother. "Rikyu honey."
"Yeah?" His voice was cold and distant.
"I-I….I have something I think I should tell you."
"Oh, and what's that?"
She flinched at his words; she'd never heard him sound like this before.
"I-er-well, you know about the play?"
"The-The what?" Clearly this was not what he was expecting.
"The play, Romeo and Juliet."
"Yeah?"
"Well-er-I never did tell you who is playing Romeo and I know I should have, I'm sorry."
"Wait, what?"
"Rikyu, please don't be mad at me."
"Made at you, for what? Not telling me a stupid little thing like that? How cruel do think I am?" he said softly, cradling her into his arms. He pressed his lips to her forehead as she spoke.
"It-It-It's Vegeta, Rikyu. Vegeta is playing Romeo."
"What!?" he roared, pushing her away. Sorai's ears perked. "What!?"
"Rikyu, what's going on?" Sorai had been too busy with their orders to hear what she'd said.
"No! No! You will not do that play with him! No! Impossible!"
"Rikyu! What the hell are you saying?" Sorai grabbed his arms, whirling him around. "Why are you yelling at her?"
"That scum of an ex-boyfriend of hers is going to man handle her in front of a crowd of people!"
"What?"
"Vegeta is playing Romeo," Bulma told him over Rikyu's shoulder.
"And? What's so wrong with that?"
"What's so wrong!? What's so wrong!? I can't believe you! I knew you were going back to him!"
"Knew I was going back to him?" Bulma's voice was slow and steady. "No, I didn't just hear you right. I didn't just hear you accusing me of something you know I would never do, something that was done to me."
"Rikyu." Sorai turned him back to him, forcing him to look at his eyes. "Listen to what you're saying. You're accusing Bulma of cheating on you with Vegeta when he cheated on her in the past. I mean, just plain accusing her of cheating is outrageous. You know her Rikyu, she would never do that, to anyone."
"I-I-"
"Come on Krillin, something here is suddenly making me sick," Bulma spat loud enough for Rikyu to hear as she went back to the table. "I'll buy you a carton of ice cream at the store."
Krillin obeyed immediately, knowing it was better to get her out of there and cool off, rather than do something she was bound to regret in the future. Once they were in the car, several miles from the ice cream parlor, Krillin behind the wheel, Bulma burst into tears, cradling her face in her hands.
"How could he?" she sobbed.
"He's just jealous Bulma, you know how guys are when they feel invaded."
"No, I know how he gets jealous. Vegeta never did."
"Vegeta was arrogant."
"No, Vegeta was confident. He knew what he had and he knew the only way we would ever break up is from something he did, because he knew I would never leave him."
"But he cheated on you Bulma, Rikyu never would."
"Yes, but at least Vegeta never accused me like Rikyu just did. And especially after it was done to me. I mean, come on."
"You have to understand where he's coming from though. He has a lot of mixed feelings about all this. He loves you, but so does Vegeta, so he's jealous. You and Vegeta have a baby together so you'll always be connected. He doesn't have that permanent connection with you."
"But still, I mean, me cheating? It's absurd and he knows it."
"He's just confused. He wants to have with you what you and Vegeta had together, but he's scared that he can't have the same with you, like Vegeta will always have been better than him."
"Yeah, well, it's a stupid way of showing it. How will he be better than Vegeta if he's accusing me of cheating on him? Lashing out at me is not the right answer," she huffed, resting her head on the window, her tears drying on her cheeks; she was too angry right now to be upset anymore. "Turn here."
Krillin turned into the convenient store parking lot as she directed.
"What're you-"
"I said I would buy you ice cream, didn't I? What flavor?"
"Vanilla."
"You're a vanilla man, eh?" she laughed, climbing out of the car.
"Yeah, why?" He followed suit.
"Just don't seem so, you know, being with 18 and all. She's definitely not vanilla."
"Tell me about it. More like Rocky Road."
*************************************************************
"Another performance? When?" Bulma looked crossly at Miss Higashikuni as she told her and the rest of the cast the news; it was the night before opening night.
"Well, a few more," she answered shyly.
"How many?"
"Three."
"Three!? We have lives you know."
"Bulma, please, understand that this is a good thing. I mean, it gives all members of the community a chance to view it on different nights, plus the proceeds go directly to the theater. What's a few more nights while the words are fresh in your minds and the costumes are right here?"
She sighed deeply, glancing around at the other performers. Some seemed as on edge about it as her, though others were ecstatic, and some were just indifferent. Vegeta was indifferent, standing arms crossed in his blue velvet tunic and black cape.
"Alright, but when are they? I mean, is it like one after another?"
"No, they will be all month, ever Saturday."
"Well, that's better, I guess."
"Come on Bulma," said one of the girl attendants in a pledging voice; she'd auditioned for Juliet and was obviously turned down. "I mean, aren't you having fun?"
"Yeah, I am, it's just my schedule. I hope I can get out of things for this."
"It'll all work out for the best," the director assured her. She looked around to all her actors and actresses, smiling broadly. "Ok, that was our best dress rehearsal yet. So, just show up at 4:00 tomorrow, we'll have a quick run through, then the performance starts at 8:00."
Bulma packed her bags wearily; she was beyond exhausted from the rehearsal. Miss Higashikuni had insisted on running through the balcony scene and the imitated sex scene several times, more than Bulma thought necessary. It wasn't that she minded those scenes, not even the intimacy of the sex scene bothered her, it was done in a very tasteful way; it was that she knew they were doing them as best as they could, that they would look fine on stage. Unfortunately though, Miss Higashikuni did not have fine in her vocabulary; they must be perfect.
"Bulma." She turned, still crouched over her bag, at the sound of her name.
"Hmm?" It was Vegeta standing behind her, bag flung over his shoulder. For the past few days, ever since Rikyu's outburst, she'd been overly nice to Vegeta out of spite. She didn't even know if he was coming to the performance, or would come to any of the others after he knew about them, but if he did she would be sure to give him just the kind of show he deserved.
"My mother insists on bringing Tsukiyama tomorrow night. A-"
"My mom can hold onto Trunks."
"Right," he mumbled, turning away.
***************************************************************
"I can't do this. I can't do this. I can't do this," Bulma repeated over and over to herself as she paced around back stage, continually looking out at the quickly filling theater from behind the curtain.
"Bulma, yes you can, you'll do fine," Chi-Chi assured her, pulling her to a stop. She brushed a few loose strands of hair out of her eyes, tucking them behind her ears so they wouldn't show under her wing. "And you look great."
"But-But all those people!" She motioned frantically at the curtain. "They're all going to be watching me!"
"No, they're all going to be watching the play, not just you."
"But-But-"
"You'll be a knock out," 18 said, twisting her engagement ring around her finger out of habit.
"Oh, we better get to our seats. I don't think Goku's very good at saving them."
"Break a leg!" 18 called as they walked out the back door and around the corner towards the theater.
Bulma began pacing once again, still muttering to herself that she couldn't do it, that it was impossible, that they would just need to use her under study because she was way too nervous, surely she would mess up all her lines being this nervous.
"Everyone! Everyone gather 'round!" Miss Higashikuni called to all the people back stage, motioning for them to form a circle around her. "Ok, now it's five minutes to 8:00 and the theater is nearly full. I'll be going out in a few minutes to tell them we're getting started and to do the chorus." She looked around for the faces she wanted. "Ok. Aritomo, Hachiro, Goro, Matsuo, Tanzan, Tamuramaro, Heikichi, Eikichi, Denbe, Buncho, Shimpei, Itsuko, Juri, Yodo, and Umeka, are you all ready for the opening scene? Know all your lines?" The fifteen people in question nodded. "And Vegeta, are you ready to come in at the end of the scene? Know all your lines?" He too nodded, from the back of the crowd of actors and actresses. "Alright then. I'm off. Get into your places when I'm gone, ready for the curtain to rise." She disappeared onto the stage, her voice clearly audible to everyone back stage. The assistant director pushed people this way and that to get them into position, shooing those who didn't belong away and placing those who would enter later on in the scene in their respective places just out of view of the audience. "….the which if you patient ears attend, what here shall miss, our toil shall strive to mend." The crowd applauded, some hooted, and Miss Higashikuni walked swiftly back to her acting company. "Curtain call in ten seconds. Everyone ready?" Nods and yeses told her they were and she beamed brightly at them, obviously proud and confident that they would turn out nothing better than a perfectly brilliant performance.
Bulma sat, elbows to her knees in a chair, watching all the others run this way and that, to and from the stage, changing costumes or hurrying to help others. She knew she should have been going over her lines, but she'd already done it so many times that they words were permanently burned into her brain. If she messed up it would be from pure nervousness. It was the middle of Act I, Scene II, which meant she would make her first appearance on stage at in the next act. She was the third person to talk, entering after Lady Capulet and her nurse were already on stage. She could hear Vegeta talking with his servant, which meant the scene was nearing its end; she would need to get herself ready for the next scene.
"Bulma, are you ready? We're almost up." Yodo Hachirobei, the woman who was playing her mother, came to sit beside her. "Know all you lines?"
"I'll never forget them."
"You look nervous."
"I AM nervous. I haven't been on stage since I was eleven years old."
"You'll be great. All you have to do is pretend it's like a regular rehearsal. Ignore the audience, you don't have to look at them, they're not there for you to see."
"Yes, but how am I supposed to ignore hundreds of people whose eyes are on me?"
"Just try. Otherwise you'll mess up your lines."
"I know, I ju-"
"Yodo!" Miss Higashikuni hissed, motioning her over to her. "Scene III, come on!" She quickly wished Bulma luck, then hurried over as fast as she could in the tightly fitted dress she was wearing. "Get ready too Bulma. You're on in two minutes." She stood slowly, straightening out her dress, trying desperately to suppress her urge to run out of the building and never look back.
As Yodo and Hoshi, the woman who played Juliet's nurse, bustled out on stage, Bulma's stomach flopped. She had to go out in a matter of seconds.
"Nurse, where's my daughter? Call her forth to me," Yodo demanded of Hoshi, turning her nose up at her.
"Now, by my maidenhead at twelve year old, I bade her come. What, lamb! What, ladybird! God forbid, where's this girl? What, Juliet!" Hoshi called anxiously, looking around for Juliet.
Bulma took a deep breath, gathered her courage, and walked out on stage, trying her best to look confused and wondering. "How now?" she said loud enough for all the audience to hear, looking from Yodo to Hoshi. "Who calls?"
"Your mother," replied Hoshi, rolling her eyes so Yodo didn't see her.
"Madame, I am here. What is your will?" she asked, smiling at her mother.
"This is the matter—Nurse, give leave awhile, we must talk in secret." She pushed her hastily off stage, turned to Bulma, gasped, then went back to retrieve her again. "Nurse, come back again; I have rememb'red me, thou's hear our counsel. Thou knowest my daughter's of a pretty age."
Back stage Vegeta was slumped in a chair, lazily looking over his lines; he wasn't due back on stage 'til the next scene. It was the first one he wasn't in since the beginning of the play. He listened closely to their dialogue; they were quickly finishing up the scene, the servingman had entered, and Bulma hadn't screwed up her lines once.
"Go, girl, seek happy nights to happy days," Hoshi whispered loudly to Bulma, grabbing her shoulders from behind, smiling happily.
"Vegeta, Tanzan, Anzai, maskers and torchbearers, are you ready?" A group of nine men gathered around the stage left entrance, headed by Vegeta.
"What, shall this speech be spoke for our excuse? Or shall we on without apology?" Vegeta asked of Tanzan, who played his friend, Benvolio.
"The date is out of such prolixity. We'll have no Cupid hoodwinked with a scarf, bearing a Tartar's painted bow of lath, scaring…." Tanzan's voice drifted off as Bulma walked out into the hall and out the side door of the building for some fresh air; she was not in this scene nor half of the one after.
She sighed happily once outside; the play was going wonderfully, she hadn't messed up once, even after spotting her parents, siblings, and Trunks in the audience. She hadn't seen Rikyu and wondered if he'd shown up. *Probably not* she thought bitterly. But that didn't matter to her now, she was busy with her play, she didn't have time to dwell on fights with her and Rikyu over stupid little things. She needed to get and stay in the mindset of Romeo and Juliet. She was Juliet, she was Juliet, she was Juliet.
"I am Juliet," she said aloud, taking in another breath of fresh air before going back inside.
******************************************************************
---Chapter 13! Heeheehee! Yes, I'm cruel finishing it there like that. But I'm tired (it's late) and I wanted to get this chapter up tonight. It's at a reasonable length I think and I got in what I wanted to, I at least started the play and got the angst in there between Bulma and Rikyu like I wanted. I just hope everyone liked it :)
REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Reviews=More Chapters)
Next time: The rest of the play….Rikyu and Bulma make up? Or break up? Dunt! Dunt! Duuuuuuuuuun!
Note: I am not William Shakespeare, nor do I own the rights to his magnificent play, Romeo and Juliet.
"Well, I better get you home so I can get him in his crib."
She smiled warmly at him, but couldn't help but feel guilty as they walked to the car; she hadn't told him the whole truth. How would she keep this from him if he was going to the play?
************************************************************
Bulma squirmed uneasily on her lab stool, her professor's voice fading in and out of hearing; her thoughts were somewhere else completely. The play was in two days, and still, after having talked to him countless times, Bulma had not told Rikyu that Vegeta was playing Romeo. In truth it was because she was excited about the idea, she could still vividly remember the old days when they acted out Romeo and Juliet together, but to calm her guilty conscience, she told herself that it was because she didn't want him to over-react and not come to the performance.
"Miss Briefs!" Bulma's head snapped up, eyes meeting immediately with the professor's. "Well, now that you're well rested, would you mind completely this diagram I have up here on the overhead?"
"Of course," she said a little wearily, slouching off her stool and heading toward the board. She recognized the diagram immediately; she knew this stuff like the back of her hand.
When she finished it completely, she turned and walked back to her stool, falling back into her former daze.
************************************************************
"So, how's the play coming along?" Krillin asked Bulma as he took a seat on the other side of the booth from her, sliding her ice cream sundae to her.
"Oh, it's fine, I mean, well, it's really easy now, you know, without the audience there."
"Yeah, but I'm sure you'll do fine." He took a small bite of his own sundae, swallowed, then looked back to Bulma; he was anxious to ask her something.
"What?" She'd caught his eyes immediately, having sensed them on her.
"Have you told Rikyu yet?"
Bulma's heart sank. He was the third person that asked her that in two days. She looked at her ice cream, determined not to be guilty for not telling him.
"Bulma, you have to tell him. What do you think is going to happen when he sees Vegeta up there kissing you?"
"I-er-I don't know Krillin, I haven't thought about that."
"He's going to charge the stage and pound Vegeta's face in, you know that."
"He won't, I know him. He knows better than-"
"Bulma, remember their little chat a while back? How was he then? Did you know him then?"
"Krillin, please, I didn't come for ice cream with you so you could interrogate me about Rikyu. I'll tell him when I-"
"Tell me what?"
Bulma's eyes widened and she turned to see Rikyu standing beside the table, Sorai right behind him.
"Rikyu, sweety," she said, stirring her quickly melting sundae frantically. "It's a surprise, I can't tell you."
"What're you two doing here?" Krillin asked, trying to revert the subject.
"I picked up Sorai from practice, now we're having ice cream." He leaned over, kissing Bulma quickly on the lips. "We've got to get home though, just getting take out. I'll call you later Bulma. Bye." He turned from her hastily, pushing Sorai to the counter, whispering all the way. Bulma knew he suspected something, but she wasn't one to just give in when the fight wasn't over. But what was she fighting, her own boyfriend against her former boyfriend? She sighed deeply, dropping her spoon with a loud clang; that's exactly what she was doing.
"I have to tell him," she sighed, head in her hands.
"Then tell him Bulma. He's right over there."
"But-But-"
"Bulma, come on, what's he going to do?"
"You're right. He won't kill me," she laughed uneasily, heading over to her boyfriend and his brother. "Rikyu honey."
"Yeah?" His voice was cold and distant.
"I-I….I have something I think I should tell you."
"Oh, and what's that?"
She flinched at his words; she'd never heard him sound like this before.
"I-er-well, you know about the play?"
"The-The what?" Clearly this was not what he was expecting.
"The play, Romeo and Juliet."
"Yeah?"
"Well-er-I never did tell you who is playing Romeo and I know I should have, I'm sorry."
"Wait, what?"
"Rikyu, please don't be mad at me."
"Made at you, for what? Not telling me a stupid little thing like that? How cruel do think I am?" he said softly, cradling her into his arms. He pressed his lips to her forehead as she spoke.
"It-It-It's Vegeta, Rikyu. Vegeta is playing Romeo."
"What!?" he roared, pushing her away. Sorai's ears perked. "What!?"
"Rikyu, what's going on?" Sorai had been too busy with their orders to hear what she'd said.
"No! No! You will not do that play with him! No! Impossible!"
"Rikyu! What the hell are you saying?" Sorai grabbed his arms, whirling him around. "Why are you yelling at her?"
"That scum of an ex-boyfriend of hers is going to man handle her in front of a crowd of people!"
"What?"
"Vegeta is playing Romeo," Bulma told him over Rikyu's shoulder.
"And? What's so wrong with that?"
"What's so wrong!? What's so wrong!? I can't believe you! I knew you were going back to him!"
"Knew I was going back to him?" Bulma's voice was slow and steady. "No, I didn't just hear you right. I didn't just hear you accusing me of something you know I would never do, something that was done to me."
"Rikyu." Sorai turned him back to him, forcing him to look at his eyes. "Listen to what you're saying. You're accusing Bulma of cheating on you with Vegeta when he cheated on her in the past. I mean, just plain accusing her of cheating is outrageous. You know her Rikyu, she would never do that, to anyone."
"I-I-"
"Come on Krillin, something here is suddenly making me sick," Bulma spat loud enough for Rikyu to hear as she went back to the table. "I'll buy you a carton of ice cream at the store."
Krillin obeyed immediately, knowing it was better to get her out of there and cool off, rather than do something she was bound to regret in the future. Once they were in the car, several miles from the ice cream parlor, Krillin behind the wheel, Bulma burst into tears, cradling her face in her hands.
"How could he?" she sobbed.
"He's just jealous Bulma, you know how guys are when they feel invaded."
"No, I know how he gets jealous. Vegeta never did."
"Vegeta was arrogant."
"No, Vegeta was confident. He knew what he had and he knew the only way we would ever break up is from something he did, because he knew I would never leave him."
"But he cheated on you Bulma, Rikyu never would."
"Yes, but at least Vegeta never accused me like Rikyu just did. And especially after it was done to me. I mean, come on."
"You have to understand where he's coming from though. He has a lot of mixed feelings about all this. He loves you, but so does Vegeta, so he's jealous. You and Vegeta have a baby together so you'll always be connected. He doesn't have that permanent connection with you."
"But still, I mean, me cheating? It's absurd and he knows it."
"He's just confused. He wants to have with you what you and Vegeta had together, but he's scared that he can't have the same with you, like Vegeta will always have been better than him."
"Yeah, well, it's a stupid way of showing it. How will he be better than Vegeta if he's accusing me of cheating on him? Lashing out at me is not the right answer," she huffed, resting her head on the window, her tears drying on her cheeks; she was too angry right now to be upset anymore. "Turn here."
Krillin turned into the convenient store parking lot as she directed.
"What're you-"
"I said I would buy you ice cream, didn't I? What flavor?"
"Vanilla."
"You're a vanilla man, eh?" she laughed, climbing out of the car.
"Yeah, why?" He followed suit.
"Just don't seem so, you know, being with 18 and all. She's definitely not vanilla."
"Tell me about it. More like Rocky Road."
*************************************************************
"Another performance? When?" Bulma looked crossly at Miss Higashikuni as she told her and the rest of the cast the news; it was the night before opening night.
"Well, a few more," she answered shyly.
"How many?"
"Three."
"Three!? We have lives you know."
"Bulma, please, understand that this is a good thing. I mean, it gives all members of the community a chance to view it on different nights, plus the proceeds go directly to the theater. What's a few more nights while the words are fresh in your minds and the costumes are right here?"
She sighed deeply, glancing around at the other performers. Some seemed as on edge about it as her, though others were ecstatic, and some were just indifferent. Vegeta was indifferent, standing arms crossed in his blue velvet tunic and black cape.
"Alright, but when are they? I mean, is it like one after another?"
"No, they will be all month, ever Saturday."
"Well, that's better, I guess."
"Come on Bulma," said one of the girl attendants in a pledging voice; she'd auditioned for Juliet and was obviously turned down. "I mean, aren't you having fun?"
"Yeah, I am, it's just my schedule. I hope I can get out of things for this."
"It'll all work out for the best," the director assured her. She looked around to all her actors and actresses, smiling broadly. "Ok, that was our best dress rehearsal yet. So, just show up at 4:00 tomorrow, we'll have a quick run through, then the performance starts at 8:00."
Bulma packed her bags wearily; she was beyond exhausted from the rehearsal. Miss Higashikuni had insisted on running through the balcony scene and the imitated sex scene several times, more than Bulma thought necessary. It wasn't that she minded those scenes, not even the intimacy of the sex scene bothered her, it was done in a very tasteful way; it was that she knew they were doing them as best as they could, that they would look fine on stage. Unfortunately though, Miss Higashikuni did not have fine in her vocabulary; they must be perfect.
"Bulma." She turned, still crouched over her bag, at the sound of her name.
"Hmm?" It was Vegeta standing behind her, bag flung over his shoulder. For the past few days, ever since Rikyu's outburst, she'd been overly nice to Vegeta out of spite. She didn't even know if he was coming to the performance, or would come to any of the others after he knew about them, but if he did she would be sure to give him just the kind of show he deserved.
"My mother insists on bringing Tsukiyama tomorrow night. A-"
"My mom can hold onto Trunks."
"Right," he mumbled, turning away.
***************************************************************
"I can't do this. I can't do this. I can't do this," Bulma repeated over and over to herself as she paced around back stage, continually looking out at the quickly filling theater from behind the curtain.
"Bulma, yes you can, you'll do fine," Chi-Chi assured her, pulling her to a stop. She brushed a few loose strands of hair out of her eyes, tucking them behind her ears so they wouldn't show under her wing. "And you look great."
"But-But all those people!" She motioned frantically at the curtain. "They're all going to be watching me!"
"No, they're all going to be watching the play, not just you."
"But-But-"
"You'll be a knock out," 18 said, twisting her engagement ring around her finger out of habit.
"Oh, we better get to our seats. I don't think Goku's very good at saving them."
"Break a leg!" 18 called as they walked out the back door and around the corner towards the theater.
Bulma began pacing once again, still muttering to herself that she couldn't do it, that it was impossible, that they would just need to use her under study because she was way too nervous, surely she would mess up all her lines being this nervous.
"Everyone! Everyone gather 'round!" Miss Higashikuni called to all the people back stage, motioning for them to form a circle around her. "Ok, now it's five minutes to 8:00 and the theater is nearly full. I'll be going out in a few minutes to tell them we're getting started and to do the chorus." She looked around for the faces she wanted. "Ok. Aritomo, Hachiro, Goro, Matsuo, Tanzan, Tamuramaro, Heikichi, Eikichi, Denbe, Buncho, Shimpei, Itsuko, Juri, Yodo, and Umeka, are you all ready for the opening scene? Know all your lines?" The fifteen people in question nodded. "And Vegeta, are you ready to come in at the end of the scene? Know all your lines?" He too nodded, from the back of the crowd of actors and actresses. "Alright then. I'm off. Get into your places when I'm gone, ready for the curtain to rise." She disappeared onto the stage, her voice clearly audible to everyone back stage. The assistant director pushed people this way and that to get them into position, shooing those who didn't belong away and placing those who would enter later on in the scene in their respective places just out of view of the audience. "….the which if you patient ears attend, what here shall miss, our toil shall strive to mend." The crowd applauded, some hooted, and Miss Higashikuni walked swiftly back to her acting company. "Curtain call in ten seconds. Everyone ready?" Nods and yeses told her they were and she beamed brightly at them, obviously proud and confident that they would turn out nothing better than a perfectly brilliant performance.
Bulma sat, elbows to her knees in a chair, watching all the others run this way and that, to and from the stage, changing costumes or hurrying to help others. She knew she should have been going over her lines, but she'd already done it so many times that they words were permanently burned into her brain. If she messed up it would be from pure nervousness. It was the middle of Act I, Scene II, which meant she would make her first appearance on stage at in the next act. She was the third person to talk, entering after Lady Capulet and her nurse were already on stage. She could hear Vegeta talking with his servant, which meant the scene was nearing its end; she would need to get herself ready for the next scene.
"Bulma, are you ready? We're almost up." Yodo Hachirobei, the woman who was playing her mother, came to sit beside her. "Know all you lines?"
"I'll never forget them."
"You look nervous."
"I AM nervous. I haven't been on stage since I was eleven years old."
"You'll be great. All you have to do is pretend it's like a regular rehearsal. Ignore the audience, you don't have to look at them, they're not there for you to see."
"Yes, but how am I supposed to ignore hundreds of people whose eyes are on me?"
"Just try. Otherwise you'll mess up your lines."
"I know, I ju-"
"Yodo!" Miss Higashikuni hissed, motioning her over to her. "Scene III, come on!" She quickly wished Bulma luck, then hurried over as fast as she could in the tightly fitted dress she was wearing. "Get ready too Bulma. You're on in two minutes." She stood slowly, straightening out her dress, trying desperately to suppress her urge to run out of the building and never look back.
As Yodo and Hoshi, the woman who played Juliet's nurse, bustled out on stage, Bulma's stomach flopped. She had to go out in a matter of seconds.
"Nurse, where's my daughter? Call her forth to me," Yodo demanded of Hoshi, turning her nose up at her.
"Now, by my maidenhead at twelve year old, I bade her come. What, lamb! What, ladybird! God forbid, where's this girl? What, Juliet!" Hoshi called anxiously, looking around for Juliet.
Bulma took a deep breath, gathered her courage, and walked out on stage, trying her best to look confused and wondering. "How now?" she said loud enough for all the audience to hear, looking from Yodo to Hoshi. "Who calls?"
"Your mother," replied Hoshi, rolling her eyes so Yodo didn't see her.
"Madame, I am here. What is your will?" she asked, smiling at her mother.
"This is the matter—Nurse, give leave awhile, we must talk in secret." She pushed her hastily off stage, turned to Bulma, gasped, then went back to retrieve her again. "Nurse, come back again; I have rememb'red me, thou's hear our counsel. Thou knowest my daughter's of a pretty age."
Back stage Vegeta was slumped in a chair, lazily looking over his lines; he wasn't due back on stage 'til the next scene. It was the first one he wasn't in since the beginning of the play. He listened closely to their dialogue; they were quickly finishing up the scene, the servingman had entered, and Bulma hadn't screwed up her lines once.
"Go, girl, seek happy nights to happy days," Hoshi whispered loudly to Bulma, grabbing her shoulders from behind, smiling happily.
"Vegeta, Tanzan, Anzai, maskers and torchbearers, are you ready?" A group of nine men gathered around the stage left entrance, headed by Vegeta.
"What, shall this speech be spoke for our excuse? Or shall we on without apology?" Vegeta asked of Tanzan, who played his friend, Benvolio.
"The date is out of such prolixity. We'll have no Cupid hoodwinked with a scarf, bearing a Tartar's painted bow of lath, scaring…." Tanzan's voice drifted off as Bulma walked out into the hall and out the side door of the building for some fresh air; she was not in this scene nor half of the one after.
She sighed happily once outside; the play was going wonderfully, she hadn't messed up once, even after spotting her parents, siblings, and Trunks in the audience. She hadn't seen Rikyu and wondered if he'd shown up. *Probably not* she thought bitterly. But that didn't matter to her now, she was busy with her play, she didn't have time to dwell on fights with her and Rikyu over stupid little things. She needed to get and stay in the mindset of Romeo and Juliet. She was Juliet, she was Juliet, she was Juliet.
"I am Juliet," she said aloud, taking in another breath of fresh air before going back inside.
******************************************************************
---Chapter 13! Heeheehee! Yes, I'm cruel finishing it there like that. But I'm tired (it's late) and I wanted to get this chapter up tonight. It's at a reasonable length I think and I got in what I wanted to, I at least started the play and got the angst in there between Bulma and Rikyu like I wanted. I just hope everyone liked it :)
REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Reviews=More Chapters)
Next time: The rest of the play….Rikyu and Bulma make up? Or break up? Dunt! Dunt! Duuuuuuuuuun!
Note: I am not William Shakespeare, nor do I own the rights to his magnificent play, Romeo and Juliet.