Disclaimer: I own it just as much as you do... Yeah, I know... ^^
CB: GAAAW! Awesome feedback you guys! I just had to update for ya, since you were all so nice! ^^ Sorry if it took too long, it was supposed to be out last week but all of my internet severs were down. -_-; Sorry in advanced if you find any typos. I had to write this thing in WordPad.
Anyway, yes I did make it seem like Bulma was a real ...you know... But I write everything for a reason. *gasp* Yes, there is actually a method to my madness! ^-^ At any rate, I'm very pleased with the way I wrote it and I hope you'll like this too.
Oh, and I'm not 100% in-depth technical with my medical stuff, but I did watch a whole bunch of ER, so I hope that's enough. It seems pretty accurate anyway. ^^;
To See Saw, thankies for the suggestion! I kind of sorta had plans for the exact same thing but I wasn't sure when I would use it. But you gave me that extra boost I needed. Thanks. =) *huggle* Now I'll rambling on so you can read the fic. I know you're dying to since that delightfully evil cliffy! XD Thank for your patience everyone. I really do appreciate it. Now sit back and grab a drink, this could get long. ^^;
*Try listening to this while reading this chappie*: "The Outsider" by A Perfect Circle
~*~*~
The hours appeared to linger and drag since last night's little incident; the terribly rainy and grey weather seemed to subtly portray the mood of every person that witnessed it. What the hell happened to this house? Wasn't it once so happy? No, it wasn't. Just lie built upon lie, truth be told. Bra thought to herself while lazily flicking the loose charm of her necklace with her fingernail, her head was resting on her forearm that was perched on the vanity mirror's desktop.
She was in the dark capsule mansion all by herself since late last night. After Trunks left in quite a hurry, Vegeta had left too, taking off through the back exit without a word. She didn't expect to see them for a while later. It was entirely understandable after the storm of the shockingly brutal things that had come into the light. All she could do was cry until she had fallen asleep after the initial trauma had settled in. Her rest wasn't as long as she needed, but a large part of her being couldn't relax. It was like a huge slap to realize all of those years of her older brother's griping were actually true and not in the least bit fabricated, even more so then even he probably wanted to know.
But not only was his world was thrown out of whack, but hers as well. She didn't even know who she was more shocked at, her father or her mother. She did know that her mother got her way by any means necessary, but not literally any means; this particular situation was both over the top and low at the same time. And her father's actions were a real blow to her view of him. Bra had always thought of him as a protector of the family, the strong leader, but last night, she saw a side of him that she'd only heard from her brother. The most stunning thing of all was that he actual hit Trunks. It wasn't just one of those hits during sparring either. He was deathly cold and pungently uncaring to what was going on, and she'd never witnessed that sort of thing with her own eyes. Trunks was even bleeding for God's sakes, and it was a lot too. Bra shuddered from a sudden chill that ran up her spine. That was a night she wouldn't soon forget.
A large feeling of guilt then consumed her like a whirlpool. Maybe if she would have just listened for a change... then probably things could have been different, even in the slimmest chance. Well, at least to make the relationship with her brother a touch stronger. Of course they had to love each other for being blood relatives, but they didn't like each other very much. They just argued so damn much... She had just thought Trunks was jealous of not being the only child anymore, and did the things he did just to make it more difficult for her. Boy, was she wrong.
She winced on the inside knowing this was the type of thing that wouldn't be swept under the rug after a while. It was kind of like a glass ornament; once it's broken, you could put it back together but the cracks will always be there. Sad but true. She felt so sorry for her older sibling that she almost cried again just thinking about it, but she managed to suck it down with a partially silent hiccup. Through the stillness of the house, the steady tapping of the rain on the windows, she began to wonder. Would he even come back? There was no telling now. Trunks could leave forever, if not already gone. He does have the money to do it from any one of his multiple accounts...
Her mind trailed. Now it did seem right to have some things better left unsaid. Things would have probably gotten better on its own, some things would have probably stayed the same... Steadily she'd lost herself in a plague of false thoughts, and continued to blankly flick the charm of her necklace as she'd been doing since the early hours of the morning.
~*~*~
'Come on, come on, where are you? Damn, I knew I should have gone with him...' Goten paced back and forth in his room, tapping his pointer fingers together with anticipation. Last night, he'd waited, and waited, and waited for the phone call his best friend told, even promised, he would do before the night was over. Needless to say, the call never came. Goten was up for most of the night, until the small hours of the morning, and even gotten up early to make sure he wouldn't miss the phone if it rang. The hauntingly strange part was, he couldn't pick up Trunks's ki for quite sometime. He'd already sensed it was weak by yesterday morning, but didn't mention it.
"Hey Goten, are you coming out here at all today? Chichi wanted me to check on you." Goku's happy face suddenly appeared in the small crack of the door as his head stuck around the frame. His expression shifted into a curious one when he noticed the concerned look on his youngest son's face. "Goten, what's going on? Is something wrong?"
"Oh nothing. Just waiting for a call from Trunks is all. Even though he said he would do that yesterday..." Goten trailed off and continued to pace as Goku fully entered the room.
"Is that all?" Goku's voice didn't change from his usually gentle tone as he asked.
Goten paused and looked to the floor with some brief thought.
"Hey, you can tell me, you know? I only asked because I did sense you guys fighting in here the other day ago."
"Oh... you knew about that...?"
"Yep."
"Then... why didn't you say anything?"
"I didn't need to. I knew if it was important enough, you would have told me without me even having to ask."
"Yeah..." Goten was lost in his thoughts once again for a moment. This was something important, but he did promise Trunks not to say anything and he wanted to keep his friend's trust. Though it was beginning to drive him crazy with worry...
"Hey, that's the phone. I bet its him now." Goku said and moved back down the short hall so Goten could go answer it.
"Trunks is that you?" Goten sighed heavily as he almost snatched the phone right off the wall.
"Um... no. This is me, Bra..."
"Oh..."
"I was just calling to see... if Trunks was over there."
"Wha? He's not at Capsule Corp.?"
The line grew quiet for a second or two before she cleared her throat. "N-no. He left last night, and he hasn't come back either..."
A freezing cold shot ran through Goten's body as his heart wrenched for a second. "...And... that's it. You haven't heard anything from him?"
"No. That's why I called. I... was beginning to get a little worried, you know..."
Goten was partly stunned by her response. Bra never called to check on Trunks before, something was definitely wrong with this picture. "Alright. I'll... I'll go out and look for him, okay?"
"Alrig-" The line dropped silent for a moment before the sharp sound of static ran through it, followed by a short and muffled scream.
"Bra! Bra, what's doing on!? Bra?" The screams continued for a little while until Bra shakily picked up the phone that had dropped to the floor.
"G-Goten... T-Trunks! I-I was turning past... on TV and... Oh my God!..."
Before the confused and scared demi saiyan could piece together the problem, he heard the startled gasps coming from his own living room. Rushing around the corner, his dark eyes immediately fell onto the TV screen, a sight that he couldn't have imagined.
A bad car accident had been reported an hour or so earlier and multiple news channels were scrambling to get the first live look. The trucker seemed to be alright, but the other driver didn't seem so lucky. A wiry newscaster came into view, trying to talk over the loud roars of the machines that were trying to un-pry the wreckage with the "Jaws of Life". The truck's front grill was crumpled like an old soda can into the much smaller automobile's frame, which now resembled a toy car that got caught under a bullet train. Goten recognized that car anywhere, but somewhere in the back of his mind he hoped fruitlessly about its owner.
Then, through the twisted metal, a body was pulled from the car, and there, Goten's best friend was being placed on a bright orange stretcher in the middle of a icy rain storm. From what the wet camera lens had shown, his clothes were covered with a lot of blood before the EMTs swarmed around him completely. Only a few spots were visible to where you could see his scarlet stained lavender hair. The vivid images were all too much for the brunette teenager, who promptly fell to the floor in a semi-conscious heap. Both Goku and Chichi, who were watching TV before the emergency broadcast aired, had jumped around the couch when they noticed Goten was even in the same room.
"Goten?"
Without hearing the voice of his father, the boy only shook his head in disbelief, burying his facing in trembling hands. 'This can't be happening! It can't...'
Seeing that Goku had Goten, Chichi moved to pick up the phone that was presently somewhere on the floor with Bra still crying on the other end.
/...Due to the storm's power outage, the victim will be life flighted to South City Hospital until power is restored at West City General.../
Jumping from the floor, Goten's head snapped back to the TV, where a helicopter started flying toward its destination.
"South City!" He blurted, much to Goku's bewilderment at his son's sudden outburst. "Come on! South City, we have to go!"
"Right. I'll get the car..."
"If we're going, we have to pick up Bra too." Chichi added as she grabbed her coat from the rack. "The poor girl's home alone and doesn't have a ride."
"Okay! Okay! Let's just go!" Goten yelled on his way out the door with his coat barely over his shoulders, hardly aware of the still raging storm.
~*~*~
The ride from the Son residence to Capsule Corp, and finally on a course to South City, was too long and too quite for Goten's taste. There were a few words thrown around from Chichi about how he and Bra would catch a cold from rushing outside without proper coverage in that type of weather, or Goku's speed on the slippery freeway; neither comment was as harsh as a scold, but more of in concerned tone from the present situation.
Goten now stared out to the passing lanes, while twisting his seat belt in fearful anticipation. What the hell was going on? What made Trunks leave from home last night? Goten wanted to ask Bra, who was presently sitting next to him, sniffing a hiccup every now and then with mascara running from the underline of her eyes. He opened his mouth for moment, but thought it was better to ask later. If there was time later.
Goten couldn't help but frown to himself as he drew a few conclusions. Something was definitely wrong here, and where was Vegeta anyway? 'Dammit Vegeta, this better not be your fault, or I swear to Kami, no matter how strong you are, I'll kick your ass myself...'
After another half an hour of riding, the full car finally pulled in the hospital's visitor's lot. Goten and Bra didn't even wait until the car was all the way in park before they jumped out into the elements and into the building's entrance.
"This way!" Goten said to the preteen girl behind him. Since Trunks was near, he could sense his ki to which floor. It was faint, deathly faint, but it was enough.
As soon as the pair hit the right floor, Trunks was being quickly wheeled into surgery. In that one instant where the rushing mob of doctors and the two demi saiyans met, they actual had gotten a chance to see their friend and brother's mangled state up close. He was covered in cuts and bruises, their dark crimson and purple colors contrasting greatly from his paper white skin. His face was partly stained from blood that was slightly washed away when exposed to the rain. Pale blue lips and dark blue veins were apparent through the skin from being in the cold too long as well. In the mad rush, no one had noticed one arm hanging limply over the side of the table. Blood ran from an unknown place to the finger tips, where it dripped a droplet to the tiled floor.
Time seemed to start again as the group burst through metal doors of the operating room. The doctors had also pushed Goten and Bra from the way while doing so. Now both youths stood watching through the small window of the door in mute shock until it all came down in one emotional crash. Bra immediately folded to the floor and began cry quite heavily once again as Goten simply walked over to the drop of blood and wiped a bit up onto his fingers. It was cold like ice and not warm like it should be. Goten's heart wrenched in his chest as if it were being mulched in a blender. This didn't look good, and he could sense his friend's ki plummeting even more so with each passing second.
'Don't... don't you die on us Trunks...'
"You here me! You can't give up! You have to fight! You can't die now! Not just yet... please..." He voice trailed off from a loud cry as he pleaded in front of the double doors, then finally breaking down in body racking sobs too.
Chichi and Goku, who had collected Bra from the floor after finding where they ran off to, moved to gather Goten as well as he continued to weep onto his parents. The entire floor seemed quiet, all but for the sound of gulping down a few loose cries.
Through the emotionally thick stillness, someone from the 'OR' suddenly gave a distressed and panicked shout, "He's not breathing!" Within the room, the doctors scrambled to get their patient's lungs to working again. While trying to feed a chest tube down Trunks's throat, the lavender haired teenager began to choke thickly suppressed coughs. His back arched wildly until blood finally erupted from his chest, coming through his nose and mouth. The thick liquid splattered onto the previously clean dressings of each doctor that was near.
"Dear God!"
"Dammit man, get me suction over here!"
"Heart rate is dropping!"
Each person worked with tense and heavy hearts while Trunks subconsciously fought to suck in air, but was blocked the gurgling flow that was now pouring over his blanched cheeks. Though the boy was just a stranger to them, no one wanted to see him die, being that young at least. Pretty soon the uncontrolled movement began to fade into sporadic jerks until his young heart had stopped completely.
~*~*~
'What the...? Where... where am I?' Trunks shook his head and rubbed his sandy eyes with back of his hand as he sat up. The ground beneath him was cool grass and he was surrounded by a field of "Bleeding Hearts". The sky was so bright it couldn't have been the same place where he'd seen the chilly grey skies from what only seemed like a few moments ago. 'But I... I don't understand... What's going on? I... can't remember...'
His vision blurred for a second before focusing on the turquoise haired being moving closer to him. Before he could see completely, the figure came overhead. Its face was shadowed as the light behind it made it too blinding to recognize. 'Who the...?'
"Oh no... No... Trunks you can't be here!"
As soon as the person held him in a hug, he immediately knew who it was. All of his memories suddenly kick started in fast forward mode. He remembered work, Goten's house, the truck... but most of all right before it. He face twisted into a hateful snarl as he pushed the person to the ground with enough force to crush the unsuspecting flowers into twisted bits.
"Trunks, its me!" Bulma yelled as she sat up on her side.
"I know!" Trunks still frowned much to Bulma's surprise.
"What the matter with you then?" She stopped and thought for a moment, then started again with a more gentle tone. "Trunks, I know its hard to accept at first and you have a right to be angry, but, I afraid you're...you're dead, honey."
"I know that already! But I'm more angry with you than that! No wait, I'm past angry! I hate you, you stupid bitch!"
Bulma gasped and frowned, hovering closer since her spirit form didn't have legs. Where in the world did all of that come from? "Trunks Vegeta Briefs! How dare you use that type of language-"
"How dare you?!" He pointed an accusing finger angrily, his rage causing him to shake. "I know mother! Father told me the whole damn thing! How you only kept me to get back at him! How could you do that to me? How?! And then you didn't even tell me!"
His face twitched, his eyes quivering until a salty drop fell from his ultramarine glare. Bulma seemed to shrink as she drew her hands together up to her chest. She wasn't excepting that. But what would she say? Bulma didn't know, but she just started to say the first thing that came to mind.
"I... I'm so sorry Trunks. I was wrong, I know that. I had to live with that secret everyday and it torn me every time I looked at you. I didn't tell you because... because I didn't want to hurt you. You have to believe me! I did love you Trunks. I do love you!"
"No you don't! You watched as I tried to get father's approval and you did nothing! I didn't even know why it was happening to me! Why couldn't I have a father to love me and hug me like everyone else?!" Trunks hiccupped and didn't even both to wipe the river of tears away. He wanted her to see his pain, and if she did by some slim chance care, he hoped she was suffering. "And now that I do know, I wouldn't blame him not to care! Who would accept something used against you! So you see, it's your fault my life is so twisted and I'll never forgive you for that! NEVER! I wish you'd gone to hell, you don't deserve heaven!"
"...Trunks..." Bulma seemed frozen to her spot. Lost in guilt and hurt, she really didn't know what to do. She bit her lip and reached out to him, only for Trunks to back away warningly as if he was ready to strike.
"Don't touch me!" He spat the words coldly and began to look around frantically. "I don't want to be here with you! Do you understand?! I want to leave! Now! I can't be here yet! I want to go back! I want to go back..."
"Clear!"
The head doctor placed the fibrillator onto the patient's chest and sent another shock to the heart. The monitor was still flat as the body jerked on the table.
"Alright, crank it up to-"
"Doctor, its been ten minutes... We should call it." Another doctor cut in grimly, speaking for the others who were too exhausted to voice there opinions. They all knew the minimum time after flat-lining was five minutes, so there was a zero to none chance there was anything left here.
The head doctor nodded with a heavy sigh and pulled the mask down with a bloody teal glove. This was the hardest part of his job, or anyone else's in that position as a matter of fact. "Time of death... 6:39-"
"I'll be damned! Look at that!"
The doctors all stirred to the monitor as a small wave jumped to a more defined one. They all gaped; its was impossible, or a miracle as one put it. Either way, they all busied themselves quickly on finishing up before he relapsed. His pulse was still weak. Everyone seemed mildly relieved to the luck this kid had, but was fully unaware of the larger matter at hand.
~*~*~
Goten paced back and forth in the hallway with a cold cup of coffee in his hand. Of course it was hot when he got it, but he was too nervous to drink it. His hands were still shaking from when he felt his friend's ki disappear entirely. He almost lost it completely and nearly pitched over himself in a dead faint. Of course it was because Trunks was more than his friend, but his brother, and this type of thing never happened before. They've fought numerous times together like in the World Tournament, or when they fused to battle Buu, and he still remembered when they fought Brolly, well his clone anyway, where they both came close to meeting there demise at a young age. But this time it was different. Trunks was hurt more that what a good rest and a senzu bean could cure, he was sure of it. And most of all, he was suffering from something neither of them knew about. Goten sighed and pitched the cup in the trash when he realized that he didn't even want it anymore. He didn't even know why he bought it. Probably a failed attempt to keep himself busy.
"Ah! How long is this going to take? We've been here forever! Would they tell us something already?!" Bra said aloud from the chair she was sitting in behind Goten. Her voice came out hoarse and screechy from crying.
Goten paused then sat next to her in another chair. "I'm sure it won't be much longer..."
He tried to be comforting but his own voice came out nervous and strangled. There was a long silence before he sat back in the seat. He didn't know what else to say to the silently fuming blue-nette. She had most likely grown irritated from the long time spent waiting in the nearly vacant waiting room. That's probably how Bulma would have acted if she were here. That and the threat of the hospital being sued for the delay of information. Goten would have laughed at the similarity if he didn't feel so restless.
"But this is taking a long time though..." Goten started again slid down further in the chair. Bra nodded and wiped her eyes with a tissue to remove any leftover tears. That's when Goten noticed how terrible she looked. With make up running around puffy red eyes and hair partly wild from being wet earlier, he was mildly shocked that she would even be seen in public like that since her looks seemed to be her main priority.
"Hey Bra, can I ask you something?"
"Like what?"
"Um, well, are you really worried? I know its a little silly to be asking, but I've never seen you act this way. About Trunks anyway..."
"Well, that's a pretty stupid question, Goten." She frowned and turned her head so he could see her expression. "Of course I'm worried. He is my brother you know."
"Right, sorry..." He shrugged and got up to walk away. His face couldn't help but twist itself into a frown. He knew that was a lie. It was more like she felt obligated to be there than out of pure love. Something was not right here.
Catching a white over coat of a physician coming down the half, Goten ran down to catch up with the man. "Excuse? Excuse me, sir? Hi. I was wonder if you knew anything about my friend? He came in earlier today from a car accident."
"And his name?"
"Oh, Trunks Briefs."
"Oh, yes, yes. I was just on my way to meet with his family."
"Well that's me, and his sister's in the waiting room."
"I see. Here, why don't I meet you in his room in a few minutes? You two may go in and see him now, and I'll bring his vitals chart to fill you all in."
"Yes, that fine."
After the doctor told Goten the room number and which wing of the hospital Trunks was in, Goten went to get Bra from the waiting room. Since his parents were filling out paper work in absence of Trunks's own guardians, he left a message with the receptionist who glad wrote it down.
It turned out to be quite a tense walk around the large compound. Trunks was in the north wing as Goten and Bra were in the south, so it took awhile to get around. Goten's legs wanted to move faster, but his mind slowed him down considerably. Did he really want to see what was behind that door? He did and didn't at the same time. Bra must have been having the same trouble since he noticed her walking slowly behind.
"Here it is. Room 317." Goten pause at the closed door and looked at Bra. "Ready?"
She bit her lip and nodded before Goten walked in first. She nearly ran back out at the sight of the body lying in the stiff looking bed, but Goten grabbed her hand and told that it was alright.
"Yeah, it wouldn't make any sense to run away after this long, right?"
Goten nodded and walked over to the bed with her. Neither of them couldn't help but wince. Never had they seen how fragile and ghastly Trunks could get. All of the previously opened cuts were cleaned and bandaged, and the bruises seemed to have doubled in size. One in particular was perched on Trunks's cheek. Bra reached out and ran her fingers over it. She already knew that wasn't a result of the accident.
"This... This kind of seems like a dream or something, doesn't it?" Bra was the first to say something aloud; the room was still except for the pumping of the "Iron Lung" Trunks was hooked up to. "You wouldn't think that a saiyan would be hurt from something like this. Right?"
"I... I really don't know, but I do understand what you mean."
"Hm, its like a billion blasts would go without a scratch but this would put him in a hospital bed...?"
"Well, he hasn't been training for a while..." Goten lied. He knew that even without training, this wouldn't have happened. It must have been a result of the unknown illness. Goten still wanted to keep his word, so he still didn't mention it. It was a good thing Bra didn't train much herself or she would have known that and pried further. But thankfully, she somehow accepted the answer, or so he thought.
"...Do... you think he tried to kill himself?"
"Bra!" Goten gaped. "That's just crazy! Why would he try and do that, anyway? For what reason?"
Bra caught herself from what she was saying and bit her lip again. "N-nothing! I just... It's just still seems a little weird is all."
Goten narrowed his eyes but didn't say anything else. Now he really had his suspicions. He hoped that Trunks would wake up soon so he could get some answers, but immediately retracted though. Trunks should be resting now most of all, Goten figured. He had an unshakably strange feeling of something bad happening soon.
"Excellent. You both found your way." The doctor from earlier let himself in with a clipboard in hand and walked over to Trunks's bed side. He pulled out a small flash light and lifted Trunks's eyelids to check the pupils' dilation before jotting some lines down on the clipboard.
"Alright. I guess I should start then." The doctor said and looked both of them in the eyes. "Well, it seems that Trunks here has suffered some minor cuts but substance some major contusions to the chest. He has suffered a massive hemorrhage from the lungs, one in which collapsed from the initial force of the accident... and we lost him for a few minutes during surgery as well..."
"My Kami..." Goten heard Bra whisper only loud enough for saiyan hearing to pick up. He reached up and squeezed her shoulder for support at the news since he was equally but silently shocked. He was determined to keep himself composed.
"We have him stabilized now and he should recover, but it will probably be a long road ahead." The doctor moved toward the door, after feeling all of the necessary info was out there. "You can stay if you like, but he'll most likely be out until sometime tomorrow evening."
The doctor left the room with the silent click of the door as Goten was left to watch Bra cry again from the new trauma. The doctor turned into the hall and met one of his colleagues coming down on the way.
"How are you today, Dr. Raku?"
"I can't complain. And you." The older doctor greeted his associate.
The other man sighed and shook his head. "Alright I suppose. I just finished informing one of my patient's family about his condition. Car wreck. Toughest thing too with the boy being so young. He's still just a kid... Its so odd that his mother only died a few months ago too." The younger doctor looked around for a moment then said in a lower tone, "But just between you and me, its all strange that these Briefs die one after another. First the Mrs.'s, then Dr., then the daughter and now the grandson's hanging on by a thread... What? What did I say?" The younger doctor raised a brow at the elder's thoughtful expression.
"You just said Briefs. Is Trunks Briefs your patient?"
"Well as a matter of fact he is. Why do you ask?"
"Oh my, I just left a message at his home not too long ago. Apparently, that accident is the least of his worries now..."
~*~*~
The rain storm outside was still pounded heavily by the time it was well into the night. The door to the Capsule Corp. Mansion swung open as the saiyan walked in with a blazing blue flame encircling him. His ki shield had kept him dry and warm since the temperature had dropped considerably since last night. The house was dark and silent, and no ki signatures were present in the home as well. If figures. Bra must have high tailed it a while after he left himself.
He'd sensed Trunks in the distant while flying off from Capsule Corp. He traced it for a while until it cut off abruptly only a few moments later. He didn't bother to go follow where the trail left off either. If the boy wanted to be found, he would have kept his ki high enough, and it was apparent he didn't want that. Besides, there was no reason to go looking for someone that running on purpose. A simple waste of time.
But in the back of his mind, he knew the boy was in pain. So much emotionally that it was almost physical. He could feel it and see it before Trunks had ran. But what mostly likely went unseen was, it pained him too to tell the truth like that. Well, afterward. That look in his son's large blue eyes shattered a part of him behind that cold exterior. Though it was bound to happen someday, he didn't mean for it to come out in that way. But what could he have done? He didn't know. The boy asked and he got his answer, simple as that. At least it would have been if Trunks hadn't grown on him in the last seventeen something years.
Did he really think he hated him? That was a shock to say in the least, but he understood. He had to admit that it was hard to look past his son's original purpose to the innocent child he really was. But he'd never once said he hated him, nor even the thought crossed his mind.
He didn't mean to strike him either. It was more of an auto defense thing that was built into his saiyan psyche. He wasn't expecting for Trunks to try and strike him, or whatever the boy was trying to get at. He simply reacted before he knew it, then immediately regretted it behind his unfaltered facade. And with his thoughts unclear from the instant rush of "battle" in his blood, he'd forgotten the boy was related to him that quickly, and the cold interior proceeded to shine through. A frown pulled over the saiyan's features in the darkness of the room. He was disgusted at his lack of control but was equally upset with his deceased mate.
'Dammit Bulma. If you would have just told the boy the truth from the beginning, this wouldn't have happened.'
He continued to muse mentally as he walked to the kitchen. Without even bothering to turn on a light, he dug in the refrigerator and pulled out a slightly chilled soda. He noticed the neon numbers of the answering machine blinking "01" in the darkness. Nonchalantly, he pushed the button to replay the message. He didn't really care who it was. No one called that often anyway. Except for Goku, who had called everyday after Bulma's funeral to ask if everything was alright. Humph, like he would really tell him.
/You have one new message/ the machine proceeded on to the beep. /Oh hello Trunks. This is Dr. Rank here. I tried calling your cell number but your not answering it. But for whatever reason, I've just gotten your test results back.../
'Trunks? Doctor? Test results? What the hell?' Intrigued, the saiyan put the now empty bottle on the counter and listened intently to the rest of the message with his arms folded over in the usual fashion.
/I've looked over them, and I have even gotten a second opinion on it and, well, I don't know how to put this exactly so I'll be straight forward. I'm afraid... that your test results show that you've been diagnosed with.../
~*~*~
CB: *manic laughter* Evil cliffy! Sorry, but I couldn't help myself. XD Gaaaw! What a long frickin' chappie, ne? Well, to me it was! I didn't mean to write it this long, it just kind of flowed. ^^ Anyway, what will Vegeta do when he hears the results and while not even knowing that his son's been in an accident?! You'll have to read the next chappie to find out! See, he's not as big as a jerk as you thought huh? And no, I'm not going to make it so obvious of what's next. I did promise to make it as non-cliché as possible after all. ^^
I hope I didn't make anyone too OOC here. I don't write for Bra and the others often, so... Che... Gosh, I just keep bashing Bulma too, huh? Oh well. I'm tired of reading fics where Vegeta is bashed for being a crappy father and Bulma is let off scott free. *sighs annoyed* Why doesn't she do something other than nag then?! And Bra isn't gong to get off that easy either. We all know she's not that innocent! XD
Oh, and if you're wondering, Bra and Goten has more of a semi-close cousin relationship going on. NO PAIRINGS HERE PEOPLE! G/B fics irks me just as much as T/P, so I won't even go there. =P
More drama and angst to unfold. My goal is to have at least one person crying by the end, so you have been forewarned. Be prepared. I'm known for making twists. ^_^ Now review please!