Daisy31- Hey, thanks for reviewing! Trunks's new car is probably my
favorite in the whole world right now!!! Now, don't worry. This isn't
exactly like Gilmore Girls. Vegeta hasn't knocked up another woman. The
reason he's going back is at the end of this chapter Akira and Arthos talk
about it. As for the blackmail thing, I was referring to her mother's
proposed dinner ever friday night. As for 'My Name Is', yeah I kind of ran
into a little writer's block for that fic, but I'm working on it. Still not
sure when I'm going to have the next chapter out, but hopefully soon!
Thanks again! ;)
DBZ-fan-JESS- Hey! I hope you got my review for that fic. It's definitely a good start! ;) Thanks for reviewing!
Hikari Heijin- Wow, you've been tied to that chair for a while now, huh?! Sorry bout that. ;) Thanks for revieing, and I'm so glad you like my stuff!
Vegeta's baby sister- Thanks for all your reviews!! I appreciate it a lot! ;) Sorry about your virus. That sucks. I've been there many times.. haha anyhow. Yeah, don't worry Bulma and Vegeta will be together in the end!
PunkOnna- I really liked that Ferrari part too! It was a cute little scene to write! Thanks a bunches! ;)
Seruleyan-Wings- What would I do without you, girl?! hahaha Luv ya! You've read most of this new chapter, but I did change just a couple things around and I added a lot more to the ending than I had originally planned to. The next chapter's gonna have tons of flashbacks in it, hopefully! Thanks for the support, gal! ;)
Kataan- Hi! Yeah, this fic is semi-based off of Gilmore Girls, which is one of my favorite shows in the world!! Thanks for reviewing! ;)
Shades of Crimson- Hiya!!! haha everyone liked that ferrari part, and so did I! I personally liked the Goku/ Chichi part too!!! They make a cute Sooki/Jackson huh?! haha I love them in the show! Thanks for the review!!! Hope you like this new chapter!!! ;)
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Chapter 09: That Old Feeling!
"That car is so awesome!"
Trunks grinned. "I know. I can't believe I'm going to be driving it!" He opened the front door. "Hey, mom! We're back," he called out.
Vegeta followed the teens into the house and shut the door behind him. "Did she leave already?" He checked his watch. She'd asked him to make it back by 5, and it was only ten minutes after.
"I'm upstairs," Bulma yelled. "I'll be down in a couple minutes!"
Keelin walked over to Vegeta and extended her hand. "It was really nice to finally meet you, Mr. Ouji. Thanks for lunch."
He shook her hand gave a slight nod. "Not a problem."
She smiled and turned back to Trunks. "I'd better get home."
"I'll walk you home," he said. "Just give me a sec to drop this stuff off in my room."
"Okay! I'll be out on the porch."
Trunks ran up to his room and came trotting down the steps a few seconds later. "I'll be right back, dad!"
Vegeta nodded to him and waited for him to run out the door before he climbed the stairs slowly. He stopped half-way up, glancing at a couple pictures on the wall. They were mostly of Trunks as a little boy, but there were a few from when him and Bulma were younger. His eyes wandered to a medium sized photo. It was taken at one of those annoying debutante balls that Bulma's mother and his own step-mother had demanded they attend. He was dressed up in a fashionable tux, and he smirked, remembering how irritated he had been. Bulma was standing next to him, looking equally grumpy, but beautiful none-the-less in a shimmery, white ball gown.
"I remember you complaining in the limo the entire way there that you couldn't get comfortable for all the tulle surrounding us," Bulma commented, reading his mind.
He looked up toward the top of the stairs and saw her leaning against the wall. "Why do you think I helped you get out of it so quickly?" The memory of the night was still fresh in his mind, and probably always would be.
Bulma let out a hearty laugh. "I don't remember that being the reason you wanted me out of the dress," she teased knowingly. "As I recall, you had much more interesting things in mind."
He walked up the flight of stairs, realizing that she was standing in her robe and her hair was still damp. 'Getting ready for her date,' he reminded himself quickly. "You wanted to talk?" He desperately needed something to distract him from his thoughts.
"Yeah," she said. She grabbed his hand and led into her room. "Have a seat," she told him, motioning to the bed. "I've only got a few minutes before Yamcha shows up." She picked up a navy blue cocktail dress from a nearby chair. "So, I got locked out of my parents' house last night." She moved to the part of the room that his back was facing.
She hadn't needed to say anything more. Vegeta knew exactly what she had been referring to. "It was not my intention to get you locked out, though I find it hard to believe that you're heartbroken over it," he responded. He knew all to well the inner workings of the Briefs' household. He'd practically grown up there. "I only wanted to be the one paying for my son's tuition," he stated.
"I know," Bulma sighed. "I just wish you had told me first."
"You're not mad?" He inquired, somewhat surprised.
She laughed. "At the time yes, but after a night of grumbling over it, no. I'm grateful. I know I need to fix things with my parents, but I'm not ready for that yet. You've saved me from Friday night after Friday night of torture." She quickly slipped into her undergarments and lifted the dress up to examine it. "They still treat me like I don't exsist."
"Lillian was always good at that," he agreed. He heard her sigh in frustration. "Having problems?"
"Yes! Stupid zipper," she muttered.
He chuckled. "Come here."
Shyly, Bulma walked over, standing in front of him. He gave her an annoyed look. "I can't do anything about it unless you turn around," he growled.
She glared at him and turned her back to him. "Hurry up!"
"Calm down, it's nothing I haven't seen before," he paused to smirk as he stood up behind her and moved closer. "Many, many times before," he finished, dangerously close to her ear.
Closing her eyes, she tried to ignore the tingle that went up her spine as he deliberately caressed her skin as he worked the zipper up. "Are you finished?" She didn't realize she was whispering.
He didn't answer. Instead, he let his hands fall to rest upon her hips. Standing there, within his embrace, she felt an old, familiarity that only they could share. He knew her better than anyone, and vice versa. Bulma turned around slowly, relishing the feel of his arms as they pulled her close. Vegeta moved his hand up her side and around her back until came to rest on the nape of her neck. Slowly, he leaned down, and their lips brushed against each other's.
"Vegeta." She glanced at him from beneath her lashes.
Grabbing her wrists gently, he moved her arms so they were draped around his neck. Within no time, they were locked in a passionate kiss. Out of habit, Vegeta turned them toward the bed, gently lowering her onto the cushy mattress. This seemed to snap Bulma back to reality, and she broke away from the kiss.
"Wait, Vegeta," she whispered. "Stop."
The man above her simply moved from kissing her mouth to kissing her neck. "Why?"
She managed to slid out from under him slightly and attempted to catch her breath. "We can't do this," she told him. "I'm seeing someone."
Vegeta moved away and sat on the edge of the bed, also trying to catch his breath. He stared at his hands, thankful his back was to her. If she could see his face, she'd know exactly what he was feeling. Hurt. "You hardly know the guy," he shot back, trying to cover up how very insecure he was feeling at the moment.
Sadly, Bulma shook her head. "But I really like him, and this is wrong."
"Whatever," he quickly responded, standing up. "Is it fine with you if our son spends the weekend with me?"
His tone was harsh, and Bulma bowed her head. She knew she had hurt him, but what did he expect from her?! It was bad timing. "Vegeta, can we please talk about this?"
"I would like to spend some time with the boy before I go back to California," he told her. "Yes or no?"
"Yes." The word came out shakily and barely audible, but he heard it.
"Fine. He'll be home Monday night. Enjoy your date."
----
"Here ya go."
Akira took the bottle of soda from him and smiled. "Thanks. You can go. It's alright," she told Arthos.
"I don't want to leave you here by yourself."
"I'm sure one of my other brothers will be here soon. It's okay. We'll just reschedule our date if you want."
Turlis and Jarec burst into the waiting room a second later, proving Akira's point for her. She jumped up and ran over to them. Turlis caught her in a bear hug and swung her around. They hadn't seen each other in a couple months! She laughed as he sat her back on her feet. Jarec pulled her into a quick hug, and she smiled at him. Meanwhile, Arthos stood back, praying to god that these guys were her brothers.
"It's about time you made it," she scolded them playfully.
"It was a long drive," Turlis defended.
"Were you able to get ahold of Goku?" She asked.
Jarec shook his head. "No. I think his cell phone went dead, 'cause he's not picking up, and I don't remember doing anything to piss him off lately."
Akira laughed and turned back to Arthos. "Oh, hey. Guys, this Arthos Ouji. Arthos, this is my older brother Turlis, and my younger brother Jarec."
Arthos stepped forward and shook both their hands. "Nice to meet you," he said politely.
Radditz came into the room with a huge grin on his face. "I'm a father!"
His siblings glanced at him expectantly. "Ausrin's okay?" Jarec asked.
"Would I be smiling like an idiot if she wasn't?" Radditz shot at his younger brother.
Akira rolled her eyes. "Boy or girl?"
"Boy," he told them. "Riodan Bardock Son."
----
"Are you okay?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah. I'm sorry," Bulma said, pushing her food around her plate with her fork. "It's just been a very long day."
Yamcha picked up the napkin from his lap and placed it on the table. He sent her a charming smile and leaned forward. "Why don't we get out of here? You don't seem comfortable here right now, and I'm desperate to make you happy right now."
She blushed. "That's very sweet, Yamcha." Tossing her napkin on the table she smiled back at him. "Let's go then."
Her date quickly signaled the waiter for the check and paid for their half- eaten dinner. A few minutes later, they were walking down the sidwalk through town, arm in arm.
"Do you want to talk about it?"
She sighed, not sure if she wanted to drag him into the emotional rollercoaster that was her life, but there was something about the sincere tone of his voice and the concerned look in his eyes that made her feel at ease around him. "Have you got a few hours?" She joked.
He pulled her gently to a halt and looked into her eyes. "I've got all the time in the world, and I'd gladly spend a lifetime getting know you."
Bulma tried not to burst into tears. "But you only just meant me a week ago," she whispered shakily.
"I know, and I shouldn't feel this way already," he admitted. "But I do." He nodded toward a bench.
They sat down next to each other, and Bulma leaned back on the bench. It wasn't the most comfortable seat, but it'd do for now. "I've told you all about my son," she started. "But I've never told you about his father."
Yamcha nodded. "What about him?"
"I grew up with Vegeta since we were in diapers. We attended school together, we were best friends," she told him with a fond expression on her face. "Of course, we started going out in first grade because he was jealous of all the other little boys that tried to play with me," she laughed. "It wasn't until we turned thirteen that we really started to realize we were much more than friends."
"Sounds like you have a lot of history with this guy," Yamcha commented, trying not to sound too disappointed over it.
"Yeah, a lot. Anyway, he's been around lately, and things have just been weird. I'm not use to seeing him so much." She went on, telling him about the events of the last two weeks, leaving out certain details about her kissing Vegeta earlier that day. By the time they finished talking, it was almost midnight. Yamcha drove her home and walked her to her door.
"I had a good time tonight. Thanks for just listening to me," She told him.
"I'm glad that you feel better." He raised her hand to his lips and kissed the back of her hand. "Can I take you out again?"
"I'd like that."
Yamcha leaned in slowly and kissed her. It was sweet, and Bulma smiled as he pulled away. He returned her smile. "I'll call you tomorrow."
"Okay. Goodnight."
"Night."
----
Mid-Sunday afternoon, Bulma was in withdrawals. She couldn't remember spending so much time apart from her son, and that fight between her and Vegeta was still bugging the crap out of her! Bored, she grabbed the salt shaker from the table and started salting her fries to death. Akira frowned across the table at her and snatched the condiment out of her hand angrily.
"What's your deal?! That stuff costs money, ya know!"
"We kissed. We kissed for the first time in a couple years, and I just let him walk off mad at me."
Chichi, Eighteen, and Akira exchanged shocked looks. "You wanna run that by us again?" Akira asked.
"Yeah, feel free to include proper nouns," Eighteen added with her typical sarcasm.
"And eloborate with details," Chichi also put in.
Bulma sighed, resting her chin in her hand. "I kissed Vegeta last night before my date with Yamcha, and I stopped it before it could go any further."
"Go on," Eighteen urged.
"It's just that, I've dreamed of getting back together with Vegeta for a long time, and when the opportunity arose, I squashed it just like that. What the hell is wrong with me?! I mean, he's never stayed in a room with me for longer than four hours since I ran off, and he finally made a move."
Chichi patted her shoulder sympathetically. "It's been a long time since you two were together, and maybe what you thought you wanted all this time, wasn't it after all. You look so happy when you're talking about Yamcha."
"Yeah, perhaps you stopping a potentially rated 'R' moment with Vegeta was your head's way of letting you know that your finally over him, that it's time for you to really, truly move on."
The blue haired woman stared at her plate of fries with intensity. After several seconds, she nodded. "I think you might be right, June."
"I'm always right!"
Akira stood up, causing her three friends to glance her way. She smiled at them. "Sorry, guys. I'll be right back. I want to check and make sure everythings okay in the kitchen." She walked into the back room, out of sight, and ran up to the second story office. Shutting the door behind her, she made her way over to her desk and started shuffling through some papers. "Come on! Where'd I put it?" She whispered to herself. A small slip of yellow paper fell onto the floor, and she dove for it. "Got ya!"
Picking up her phone, she dialed the number quickly.
----
Arro opened the door of his parents' house and grinned at the woman standing outside. "Wow, didn't expect to see you around here?"
"It's nice to see you again, too. Is Arthos here?"
The youngest Ouji was pulled backwards roughly, and in his place, was an older man that was unmistakably Vegeta's father. The resemblance was uncanny, except for the well trimmed mustach and goatee.
"Did I not teach you better manners than this, brat?! You do not leave a beautiful woman standing in the cold," he scolded Arro. He moved aside. "Please come in."
Akira smiled at him. "Thank you." She stepped into the warm house and took off her coat. "I'm sorry to just be dropping in like this," she apologized.
Mr. Ouji took her coat and tossed it at Arro. "Make yourself useful, since your just standing there."
The young man walked away, rolling his eyes. "Is Arthos here?" Akira asked. "He told me to meet him here."
"You're his girlfriend?"
"Um, I, ah."
"Akira, what are you doing here?" Trunks asked, surprised to see her at his grandparents' house. His eye's searched around frantically. "Wait a sec! Is everything okay with my mom?! Is she hurt?"
"No, no! Trunks, she's fine. I called your uncle, and for some reason, he wanted me to meet him here that's all, sweetie," she replied quickly.
The teen settled down after her explaination. "Oh, hey. You've never meant my grandfather," he told her.
Akira smiled at Mr. Ouji. "I figured it out. You and Vegeta look too much alike to be anything but father and son."
"Where the hell is everyone?" Vegeta demanded, walking into the crowded foyer. He looked as surprised to see Akira as Trunks had. "What are you doing here?"
"Do none of my sons have any manners?" Mr. Ouji asked, glaring at Vegeta.
Vegeta simply stared back at him. "Whatever, old man. So?" He questioned Akira again.
She was about to speak when the door opened, and Arthos walked in. He smiled at her. "Sorry, I meant to get here before you."
"I broke several speed limits getting here," she told him. "I need to talk to you." Akira turned to see the others standing by like spectators. "Alone, if possible."
He nodded. "Sure." He motioned toward the staircase. "We'll be right back down," he told his father, brother, and nephew.
----
Akira looked around curiously at the large room decorated in darkly colored woods furniture and navy blue carpeting. "Nice room," she commented.
"It's my old bedroom," Arthos told her. "So, what was this emergency call about? I thought we were supposed to go out Wednesday night."
"Yeah, well," she walked over to one of the enormous picture windows. "Oh gosh! You have horses and a stable!"
He chuckled. "Family obsession, and you're trying to change the topic."
"Sorry, it's just I'm not sure if I should be talking to you about this or Vegeta."
Arthos frowned, taking a seat on the side of his bed. He'd spent years in his older brother's shadow when it came to everything. 'Why should it be any different with her,' he thought sarcastically. "What do you mean?"
"Did he talk to you about him and Bulma kissing the other night?"
"What?!"
She gave him a look that clearly said 'keep it down!' "Bulma drops this enormous bomb on us girls at lunch today that they kissed before her date with Yamcha. I've gotten pretty close to her over the years, enough to know that she's always been holding on to the notion of them getting back together."
"So has Vegeta," Arthos added.
Akira walked over and sat down next to him. "Yeah, it's pretty noticable. So anyhow, B tells us she stopped it before it could go any further because of Yamcha, and she completely buys into Chich and June's 'maybe it means your over Vegeta' speech."
"Well, maybe it does."
"You're joking right?" She had a serious look on her face. "She's not near as happy with this guy as she thinks she is."
"How do you know for sure?"
She sighed. "I just do. I don't want to see her unhappy anymore."
Arthos leaned to his right against one of the posts on his old bed. "I hate to tell you, but Vegeta's going off to California, so if you plan on getting them together, you better work fast," he told her.
"What?! Why's he going back? I thought he was moving here."
"There were two smaller insurance companies that we were merging with on the west coast, and the one is trying to back out. Vegeta's the one that set it up, so father's left it in his hands to sort out. We could lose out on millions of dollars if the contract is breeched. He has no choice."
"What time is Vegeta leaving?"
"Very early Tuesday morning. Mother's planned a huge dinner party tomorrow night for him. To wish him good luck." He eyed her nervously. "You should come to it. As my date, if you want to." Suddenly, he felt awkward, and he blushed.
Akira saw the slight tinge of red across his cheeks and laughed. "What are you blushing about? You've asked me out before, and I said yes."
He averted his eyes. "It's not so much that as, I, um. I've never had a girl, I mean, a woman," he corrected himself. "In my room before, or on my bed. This is kind of really weird." He got up and walked over to the window she had been looking out before.
"I find that hard to believe," she said. "A good-looking guy like you?"
"No, it's true. I was a major geek in high school. As a matter of fact, my name was 'Vegeta's dorky little brother'," he laughed.
"That's horrible! I can't imagine you like that," she told him.
He turned toward her, smiling. "You know, our cook is amazing, and she always overdoes it. You want to stick around for dinner?"
Akira stood up. "I'd love to."
"Great."
"So, is there a way to get Bulma to this part tomorrow night?"
"Of course. My parents always invite her to everything," he told her.
"Perfect!"
----
"This car is amazing, Trunks!" Akira said, ruffling his lavender hair. "I'm jealous! I've always wanted to test drive a WRX."
The excited teen pulled a set of keys out of his pocket and tossed them to her. "Then let's go," he said, jogging toward the passenger side door.
Akira sent a smile toward Arthos and Vegeta. "You guys coming?!"
"You're hyper," Arthos said. "I don't know if I want to ride in the back of that thing with you driving it!"
"Pansy! Vegeta?"
He smirked. "No thanks. I prefer to stay in one piece."
"You Ouji's have no sense of adventure," she taunted. "Alright, whatever. See ya!" She slid into the driver's seat, and a few seconds later, the black subaru wrx was speeding down the drive.
Vegeta shook his head. "So, little brother finally has himself a girlfriend. I never thought I'd see the day," he joked, slapping Arthos on the back while laughing.
"Jealous?" His brother asked.
"Hardly," Vegeta scoffed. "I'm going inside. It's too fucking cold out here."
"You just got too use to California weather."
----
WRX, god I want one!!!! I nice, pretty silver one! Hey! A girl can dream right?!
Next Chapter: Vegeta's going away party, which is probably going to be a small portion of the chapter. Bulma and Mr. Ouji finally have the little talk, and the majority of the chapter will probably be in flashback mode... But all this is subject to change since I never really know what I'm going to come up with as I sit here and type away!
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PANDORA ;)
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Please review!!
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DBZ-fan-JESS- Hey! I hope you got my review for that fic. It's definitely a good start! ;) Thanks for reviewing!
Hikari Heijin- Wow, you've been tied to that chair for a while now, huh?! Sorry bout that. ;) Thanks for revieing, and I'm so glad you like my stuff!
Vegeta's baby sister- Thanks for all your reviews!! I appreciate it a lot! ;) Sorry about your virus. That sucks. I've been there many times.. haha anyhow. Yeah, don't worry Bulma and Vegeta will be together in the end!
PunkOnna- I really liked that Ferrari part too! It was a cute little scene to write! Thanks a bunches! ;)
Seruleyan-Wings- What would I do without you, girl?! hahaha Luv ya! You've read most of this new chapter, but I did change just a couple things around and I added a lot more to the ending than I had originally planned to. The next chapter's gonna have tons of flashbacks in it, hopefully! Thanks for the support, gal! ;)
Kataan- Hi! Yeah, this fic is semi-based off of Gilmore Girls, which is one of my favorite shows in the world!! Thanks for reviewing! ;)
Shades of Crimson- Hiya!!! haha everyone liked that ferrari part, and so did I! I personally liked the Goku/ Chichi part too!!! They make a cute Sooki/Jackson huh?! haha I love them in the show! Thanks for the review!!! Hope you like this new chapter!!! ;)
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Chapter 09: That Old Feeling!
"That car is so awesome!"
Trunks grinned. "I know. I can't believe I'm going to be driving it!" He opened the front door. "Hey, mom! We're back," he called out.
Vegeta followed the teens into the house and shut the door behind him. "Did she leave already?" He checked his watch. She'd asked him to make it back by 5, and it was only ten minutes after.
"I'm upstairs," Bulma yelled. "I'll be down in a couple minutes!"
Keelin walked over to Vegeta and extended her hand. "It was really nice to finally meet you, Mr. Ouji. Thanks for lunch."
He shook her hand gave a slight nod. "Not a problem."
She smiled and turned back to Trunks. "I'd better get home."
"I'll walk you home," he said. "Just give me a sec to drop this stuff off in my room."
"Okay! I'll be out on the porch."
Trunks ran up to his room and came trotting down the steps a few seconds later. "I'll be right back, dad!"
Vegeta nodded to him and waited for him to run out the door before he climbed the stairs slowly. He stopped half-way up, glancing at a couple pictures on the wall. They were mostly of Trunks as a little boy, but there were a few from when him and Bulma were younger. His eyes wandered to a medium sized photo. It was taken at one of those annoying debutante balls that Bulma's mother and his own step-mother had demanded they attend. He was dressed up in a fashionable tux, and he smirked, remembering how irritated he had been. Bulma was standing next to him, looking equally grumpy, but beautiful none-the-less in a shimmery, white ball gown.
"I remember you complaining in the limo the entire way there that you couldn't get comfortable for all the tulle surrounding us," Bulma commented, reading his mind.
He looked up toward the top of the stairs and saw her leaning against the wall. "Why do you think I helped you get out of it so quickly?" The memory of the night was still fresh in his mind, and probably always would be.
Bulma let out a hearty laugh. "I don't remember that being the reason you wanted me out of the dress," she teased knowingly. "As I recall, you had much more interesting things in mind."
He walked up the flight of stairs, realizing that she was standing in her robe and her hair was still damp. 'Getting ready for her date,' he reminded himself quickly. "You wanted to talk?" He desperately needed something to distract him from his thoughts.
"Yeah," she said. She grabbed his hand and led into her room. "Have a seat," she told him, motioning to the bed. "I've only got a few minutes before Yamcha shows up." She picked up a navy blue cocktail dress from a nearby chair. "So, I got locked out of my parents' house last night." She moved to the part of the room that his back was facing.
She hadn't needed to say anything more. Vegeta knew exactly what she had been referring to. "It was not my intention to get you locked out, though I find it hard to believe that you're heartbroken over it," he responded. He knew all to well the inner workings of the Briefs' household. He'd practically grown up there. "I only wanted to be the one paying for my son's tuition," he stated.
"I know," Bulma sighed. "I just wish you had told me first."
"You're not mad?" He inquired, somewhat surprised.
She laughed. "At the time yes, but after a night of grumbling over it, no. I'm grateful. I know I need to fix things with my parents, but I'm not ready for that yet. You've saved me from Friday night after Friday night of torture." She quickly slipped into her undergarments and lifted the dress up to examine it. "They still treat me like I don't exsist."
"Lillian was always good at that," he agreed. He heard her sigh in frustration. "Having problems?"
"Yes! Stupid zipper," she muttered.
He chuckled. "Come here."
Shyly, Bulma walked over, standing in front of him. He gave her an annoyed look. "I can't do anything about it unless you turn around," he growled.
She glared at him and turned her back to him. "Hurry up!"
"Calm down, it's nothing I haven't seen before," he paused to smirk as he stood up behind her and moved closer. "Many, many times before," he finished, dangerously close to her ear.
Closing her eyes, she tried to ignore the tingle that went up her spine as he deliberately caressed her skin as he worked the zipper up. "Are you finished?" She didn't realize she was whispering.
He didn't answer. Instead, he let his hands fall to rest upon her hips. Standing there, within his embrace, she felt an old, familiarity that only they could share. He knew her better than anyone, and vice versa. Bulma turned around slowly, relishing the feel of his arms as they pulled her close. Vegeta moved his hand up her side and around her back until came to rest on the nape of her neck. Slowly, he leaned down, and their lips brushed against each other's.
"Vegeta." She glanced at him from beneath her lashes.
Grabbing her wrists gently, he moved her arms so they were draped around his neck. Within no time, they were locked in a passionate kiss. Out of habit, Vegeta turned them toward the bed, gently lowering her onto the cushy mattress. This seemed to snap Bulma back to reality, and she broke away from the kiss.
"Wait, Vegeta," she whispered. "Stop."
The man above her simply moved from kissing her mouth to kissing her neck. "Why?"
She managed to slid out from under him slightly and attempted to catch her breath. "We can't do this," she told him. "I'm seeing someone."
Vegeta moved away and sat on the edge of the bed, also trying to catch his breath. He stared at his hands, thankful his back was to her. If she could see his face, she'd know exactly what he was feeling. Hurt. "You hardly know the guy," he shot back, trying to cover up how very insecure he was feeling at the moment.
Sadly, Bulma shook her head. "But I really like him, and this is wrong."
"Whatever," he quickly responded, standing up. "Is it fine with you if our son spends the weekend with me?"
His tone was harsh, and Bulma bowed her head. She knew she had hurt him, but what did he expect from her?! It was bad timing. "Vegeta, can we please talk about this?"
"I would like to spend some time with the boy before I go back to California," he told her. "Yes or no?"
"Yes." The word came out shakily and barely audible, but he heard it.
"Fine. He'll be home Monday night. Enjoy your date."
----
"Here ya go."
Akira took the bottle of soda from him and smiled. "Thanks. You can go. It's alright," she told Arthos.
"I don't want to leave you here by yourself."
"I'm sure one of my other brothers will be here soon. It's okay. We'll just reschedule our date if you want."
Turlis and Jarec burst into the waiting room a second later, proving Akira's point for her. She jumped up and ran over to them. Turlis caught her in a bear hug and swung her around. They hadn't seen each other in a couple months! She laughed as he sat her back on her feet. Jarec pulled her into a quick hug, and she smiled at him. Meanwhile, Arthos stood back, praying to god that these guys were her brothers.
"It's about time you made it," she scolded them playfully.
"It was a long drive," Turlis defended.
"Were you able to get ahold of Goku?" She asked.
Jarec shook his head. "No. I think his cell phone went dead, 'cause he's not picking up, and I don't remember doing anything to piss him off lately."
Akira laughed and turned back to Arthos. "Oh, hey. Guys, this Arthos Ouji. Arthos, this is my older brother Turlis, and my younger brother Jarec."
Arthos stepped forward and shook both their hands. "Nice to meet you," he said politely.
Radditz came into the room with a huge grin on his face. "I'm a father!"
His siblings glanced at him expectantly. "Ausrin's okay?" Jarec asked.
"Would I be smiling like an idiot if she wasn't?" Radditz shot at his younger brother.
Akira rolled her eyes. "Boy or girl?"
"Boy," he told them. "Riodan Bardock Son."
----
"Are you okay?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah. I'm sorry," Bulma said, pushing her food around her plate with her fork. "It's just been a very long day."
Yamcha picked up the napkin from his lap and placed it on the table. He sent her a charming smile and leaned forward. "Why don't we get out of here? You don't seem comfortable here right now, and I'm desperate to make you happy right now."
She blushed. "That's very sweet, Yamcha." Tossing her napkin on the table she smiled back at him. "Let's go then."
Her date quickly signaled the waiter for the check and paid for their half- eaten dinner. A few minutes later, they were walking down the sidwalk through town, arm in arm.
"Do you want to talk about it?"
She sighed, not sure if she wanted to drag him into the emotional rollercoaster that was her life, but there was something about the sincere tone of his voice and the concerned look in his eyes that made her feel at ease around him. "Have you got a few hours?" She joked.
He pulled her gently to a halt and looked into her eyes. "I've got all the time in the world, and I'd gladly spend a lifetime getting know you."
Bulma tried not to burst into tears. "But you only just meant me a week ago," she whispered shakily.
"I know, and I shouldn't feel this way already," he admitted. "But I do." He nodded toward a bench.
They sat down next to each other, and Bulma leaned back on the bench. It wasn't the most comfortable seat, but it'd do for now. "I've told you all about my son," she started. "But I've never told you about his father."
Yamcha nodded. "What about him?"
"I grew up with Vegeta since we were in diapers. We attended school together, we were best friends," she told him with a fond expression on her face. "Of course, we started going out in first grade because he was jealous of all the other little boys that tried to play with me," she laughed. "It wasn't until we turned thirteen that we really started to realize we were much more than friends."
"Sounds like you have a lot of history with this guy," Yamcha commented, trying not to sound too disappointed over it.
"Yeah, a lot. Anyway, he's been around lately, and things have just been weird. I'm not use to seeing him so much." She went on, telling him about the events of the last two weeks, leaving out certain details about her kissing Vegeta earlier that day. By the time they finished talking, it was almost midnight. Yamcha drove her home and walked her to her door.
"I had a good time tonight. Thanks for just listening to me," She told him.
"I'm glad that you feel better." He raised her hand to his lips and kissed the back of her hand. "Can I take you out again?"
"I'd like that."
Yamcha leaned in slowly and kissed her. It was sweet, and Bulma smiled as he pulled away. He returned her smile. "I'll call you tomorrow."
"Okay. Goodnight."
"Night."
----
Mid-Sunday afternoon, Bulma was in withdrawals. She couldn't remember spending so much time apart from her son, and that fight between her and Vegeta was still bugging the crap out of her! Bored, she grabbed the salt shaker from the table and started salting her fries to death. Akira frowned across the table at her and snatched the condiment out of her hand angrily.
"What's your deal?! That stuff costs money, ya know!"
"We kissed. We kissed for the first time in a couple years, and I just let him walk off mad at me."
Chichi, Eighteen, and Akira exchanged shocked looks. "You wanna run that by us again?" Akira asked.
"Yeah, feel free to include proper nouns," Eighteen added with her typical sarcasm.
"And eloborate with details," Chichi also put in.
Bulma sighed, resting her chin in her hand. "I kissed Vegeta last night before my date with Yamcha, and I stopped it before it could go any further."
"Go on," Eighteen urged.
"It's just that, I've dreamed of getting back together with Vegeta for a long time, and when the opportunity arose, I squashed it just like that. What the hell is wrong with me?! I mean, he's never stayed in a room with me for longer than four hours since I ran off, and he finally made a move."
Chichi patted her shoulder sympathetically. "It's been a long time since you two were together, and maybe what you thought you wanted all this time, wasn't it after all. You look so happy when you're talking about Yamcha."
"Yeah, perhaps you stopping a potentially rated 'R' moment with Vegeta was your head's way of letting you know that your finally over him, that it's time for you to really, truly move on."
The blue haired woman stared at her plate of fries with intensity. After several seconds, she nodded. "I think you might be right, June."
"I'm always right!"
Akira stood up, causing her three friends to glance her way. She smiled at them. "Sorry, guys. I'll be right back. I want to check and make sure everythings okay in the kitchen." She walked into the back room, out of sight, and ran up to the second story office. Shutting the door behind her, she made her way over to her desk and started shuffling through some papers. "Come on! Where'd I put it?" She whispered to herself. A small slip of yellow paper fell onto the floor, and she dove for it. "Got ya!"
Picking up her phone, she dialed the number quickly.
----
Arro opened the door of his parents' house and grinned at the woman standing outside. "Wow, didn't expect to see you around here?"
"It's nice to see you again, too. Is Arthos here?"
The youngest Ouji was pulled backwards roughly, and in his place, was an older man that was unmistakably Vegeta's father. The resemblance was uncanny, except for the well trimmed mustach and goatee.
"Did I not teach you better manners than this, brat?! You do not leave a beautiful woman standing in the cold," he scolded Arro. He moved aside. "Please come in."
Akira smiled at him. "Thank you." She stepped into the warm house and took off her coat. "I'm sorry to just be dropping in like this," she apologized.
Mr. Ouji took her coat and tossed it at Arro. "Make yourself useful, since your just standing there."
The young man walked away, rolling his eyes. "Is Arthos here?" Akira asked. "He told me to meet him here."
"You're his girlfriend?"
"Um, I, ah."
"Akira, what are you doing here?" Trunks asked, surprised to see her at his grandparents' house. His eye's searched around frantically. "Wait a sec! Is everything okay with my mom?! Is she hurt?"
"No, no! Trunks, she's fine. I called your uncle, and for some reason, he wanted me to meet him here that's all, sweetie," she replied quickly.
The teen settled down after her explaination. "Oh, hey. You've never meant my grandfather," he told her.
Akira smiled at Mr. Ouji. "I figured it out. You and Vegeta look too much alike to be anything but father and son."
"Where the hell is everyone?" Vegeta demanded, walking into the crowded foyer. He looked as surprised to see Akira as Trunks had. "What are you doing here?"
"Do none of my sons have any manners?" Mr. Ouji asked, glaring at Vegeta.
Vegeta simply stared back at him. "Whatever, old man. So?" He questioned Akira again.
She was about to speak when the door opened, and Arthos walked in. He smiled at her. "Sorry, I meant to get here before you."
"I broke several speed limits getting here," she told him. "I need to talk to you." Akira turned to see the others standing by like spectators. "Alone, if possible."
He nodded. "Sure." He motioned toward the staircase. "We'll be right back down," he told his father, brother, and nephew.
----
Akira looked around curiously at the large room decorated in darkly colored woods furniture and navy blue carpeting. "Nice room," she commented.
"It's my old bedroom," Arthos told her. "So, what was this emergency call about? I thought we were supposed to go out Wednesday night."
"Yeah, well," she walked over to one of the enormous picture windows. "Oh gosh! You have horses and a stable!"
He chuckled. "Family obsession, and you're trying to change the topic."
"Sorry, it's just I'm not sure if I should be talking to you about this or Vegeta."
Arthos frowned, taking a seat on the side of his bed. He'd spent years in his older brother's shadow when it came to everything. 'Why should it be any different with her,' he thought sarcastically. "What do you mean?"
"Did he talk to you about him and Bulma kissing the other night?"
"What?!"
She gave him a look that clearly said 'keep it down!' "Bulma drops this enormous bomb on us girls at lunch today that they kissed before her date with Yamcha. I've gotten pretty close to her over the years, enough to know that she's always been holding on to the notion of them getting back together."
"So has Vegeta," Arthos added.
Akira walked over and sat down next to him. "Yeah, it's pretty noticable. So anyhow, B tells us she stopped it before it could go any further because of Yamcha, and she completely buys into Chich and June's 'maybe it means your over Vegeta' speech."
"Well, maybe it does."
"You're joking right?" She had a serious look on her face. "She's not near as happy with this guy as she thinks she is."
"How do you know for sure?"
She sighed. "I just do. I don't want to see her unhappy anymore."
Arthos leaned to his right against one of the posts on his old bed. "I hate to tell you, but Vegeta's going off to California, so if you plan on getting them together, you better work fast," he told her.
"What?! Why's he going back? I thought he was moving here."
"There were two smaller insurance companies that we were merging with on the west coast, and the one is trying to back out. Vegeta's the one that set it up, so father's left it in his hands to sort out. We could lose out on millions of dollars if the contract is breeched. He has no choice."
"What time is Vegeta leaving?"
"Very early Tuesday morning. Mother's planned a huge dinner party tomorrow night for him. To wish him good luck." He eyed her nervously. "You should come to it. As my date, if you want to." Suddenly, he felt awkward, and he blushed.
Akira saw the slight tinge of red across his cheeks and laughed. "What are you blushing about? You've asked me out before, and I said yes."
He averted his eyes. "It's not so much that as, I, um. I've never had a girl, I mean, a woman," he corrected himself. "In my room before, or on my bed. This is kind of really weird." He got up and walked over to the window she had been looking out before.
"I find that hard to believe," she said. "A good-looking guy like you?"
"No, it's true. I was a major geek in high school. As a matter of fact, my name was 'Vegeta's dorky little brother'," he laughed.
"That's horrible! I can't imagine you like that," she told him.
He turned toward her, smiling. "You know, our cook is amazing, and she always overdoes it. You want to stick around for dinner?"
Akira stood up. "I'd love to."
"Great."
"So, is there a way to get Bulma to this part tomorrow night?"
"Of course. My parents always invite her to everything," he told her.
"Perfect!"
----
"This car is amazing, Trunks!" Akira said, ruffling his lavender hair. "I'm jealous! I've always wanted to test drive a WRX."
The excited teen pulled a set of keys out of his pocket and tossed them to her. "Then let's go," he said, jogging toward the passenger side door.
Akira sent a smile toward Arthos and Vegeta. "You guys coming?!"
"You're hyper," Arthos said. "I don't know if I want to ride in the back of that thing with you driving it!"
"Pansy! Vegeta?"
He smirked. "No thanks. I prefer to stay in one piece."
"You Ouji's have no sense of adventure," she taunted. "Alright, whatever. See ya!" She slid into the driver's seat, and a few seconds later, the black subaru wrx was speeding down the drive.
Vegeta shook his head. "So, little brother finally has himself a girlfriend. I never thought I'd see the day," he joked, slapping Arthos on the back while laughing.
"Jealous?" His brother asked.
"Hardly," Vegeta scoffed. "I'm going inside. It's too fucking cold out here."
"You just got too use to California weather."
----
WRX, god I want one!!!! I nice, pretty silver one! Hey! A girl can dream right?!
Next Chapter: Vegeta's going away party, which is probably going to be a small portion of the chapter. Bulma and Mr. Ouji finally have the little talk, and the majority of the chapter will probably be in flashback mode... But all this is subject to change since I never really know what I'm going to come up with as I sit here and type away!
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PANDORA ;)
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Please review!!
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