Chapter Two: Library Night

For some reason, Bulma could only concentrate when she was surrounded by the rich mahogany desks and bookshelves of Camden Library. She used to attempt studying in her room, but TV of conversation with Chi Chi would always draw her eyes away from her book. Then she came up with the infallible idea of studying during lecture class, but she found that when the professor asked questions and no one knew the answer, she was always called on to pick up the slack of her classmates, so concentration was key for Bulma during class.

And recently, Bulma had begun skipping class because her classmates hated her. She never got a question wrong, and she never lacked hateful stares and snide comments from frustrated students. Once in astronomy class, Professor Walick asked at least ten struggling students what the first postulate of special relativity was before Bulma let the correct answer roll of the tip of her tongue.

"Sir, the first postulate of special relativity is that the laws of physics hold true for all frames of reference." Bulma hadn't even cracked a book, and in one single moment, all of her classmates' eyes shrunk to malicious slits.

"That's right," Walick said, applauding Bulma.

"She thinks she is sooooooo smart," Bulma heard a girl sneer.

That's the last astronomy lecture Bulma attended, and she was still making an A in the class.

So, between lacking the will-power to concentrate in her room and her neglect of classes, Bulma decided to force herself to go to the library for three hours every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday night. Bulma found that Camden Library had become her safe haven. She didn't need the library because she was already intellectually gifted, but she loved the library because it gave her quiet and peace of mind. Recently, Bulma found herself unhappy and restless, and she couldn't pinpoint the reason why. So Bulma's library time, while she allowed mathematical figures and scientific theories to drain from her mind onto paper, she also allowed her mind to wander and clear itself of the restlessness that came to torment it at night.

However, this Thursday night was completely different. As soon as she stepped into the wide oak doors of Camden, Bulma's cell phone began buzzing. The caller ID alerted Bulma that Yamcha was calling, and deciding to ignore the call, Bulma settled into a cushiony chair hidden in a quiet corner of the library. She pulled her physics book and opened it on her lap.

After five minutes of studying, her phone began buzzing, and Yamcha was calling again. "Jeez, Yamcha," Bulma muttered, quickly flipping her phone open and pressing it to her face. "I can't talk right now," she whispered into the phone, hanging up before Yamcha had a time to respond. "Finally," Bulma thought to herself, "I can get some work done!" With that, she slumped further into her chair and buried her eyes in the confusing world of physics.

But, once more, Bulma was wrong. No sooner than she had flipped a page, Yamcha began calling Bulma's phone again. Bulma slammed her book shut and sauntered into the girl's bathroom. Violently flipping open her phone, she said, "Yamcha! You know it's my library time! What is the deal?" Bulma made it completely clear through the tone of her voice that she was extremely unhappy.

"Bulma, babe," Yamcha began, a few beers wavering the sound of his voice, "I know it's your library night, but I really need you right now." On the verge of pleading, Yamcha held his breath, hoping Bulma would loosen up and reply affirmatively.

"What is it?" Bulma sighed, exasperated. Yamcha sometimes frustrated her beyond belief. He was always thinking only of himself.

"Babe," Yamcha said warily, not wanting to piss Bulma off. Little did he know, calling her "babe" had already pissed Bulma off. "You'll never guess what happened tonight! I was sitting at the pub, right, drinking a beer and reading the paper, when all of the sudden I ran into these really cool guys, Bulma!"

"So…the point?" Bulma hissed, growing tired of Yamcha's babble.

"The point, Bulma, is that one of the guys is a foreign exchange student from some place I can't pronounce, and the other is his host roommate, right? And the exchange guy, well since he is new around here, he wants to meet some new people. And he is studying physics just like you, so I thought you could come down here and meet them, you know? Show them your stuff, babe!" Yamcha exclaimed happily, as if he had just accomplished some great feat.

"Show them my stuff?" Bulma questioned. She wasn't planning on showing strangers her boobs, so she didn't know what the heck Yamcha was talking about.

"Yeah! Impress them with your smarts!" Yamcha beamed, and Bulma could nearly feel his energy through the phone. "C'mon…please!"

Bulma contemplated the idea. She had been wanting to meet new people lately, and she didn't have any tests coming up soon, so she sighed again, and agreed to meet Yamcha at the pub in 15 minutes. She hung up her phone, placed her books back in her book bag, zipped her back up, and walked out of Camden, into the cold November evening.

Bulma shook out her legs and arms as soon as she stepped inside the pub in order to regain heat in her limbs. The pub glowed with an enchanting yellow light and warmth, and Bulma was immediately glad she made the choice to take up Yamcha's invitation.

She was contented, that is, until Yamcha spotted her.

"Bullllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllma!" Yamcha yelled, swaggering towards Bulma, who was still standing in the doorway of the pub. Bulma winced at Yamcha's exclamation. "Oh Kami," she thought, "He's had one too many drinks." Yamcha tumbled over to Bulma and embraced her in a rough hug, kissing her sloppily on the lips. Bulma felt like she couldn't wince enough in that one moment.

"Hey GUUUUUUUUUUUYS! Here we come," Yamcha yelled and laughed happily, stumbling as he dragged Bulma towards the backs of two dark-haired men.

One of the guys turned towards Bulma. His hair stuck up oddly on one side. At the sight of Bulma's beauty, the man's face lit up, and he held out his hand. "Hi, I'm Goku," he said, shaking Bulma's hand.

"I'm Bulma," Bulma smiled. "Nice to meet you, Goku." From his accent, Bulma could immediately tell that Goku was the host roommate.

And then, the other man, a man of shorter stature turned on his stool. Immediately, his dark eyes pierced into Bulma's crystalline blue ones. He held out his hand, and Bulma immediately grasped onto it. The man seemed to flash Bulma a sadistic smile. "I'm Vegeta," he said in a thick accent, shaking Bulma's hand slowly.

"And I'm in love," Bulma thought.

A/N: Ok, so B and V? Hmmmmm? But doesn't V think B is with Y? We'll see. And who is this stranger anyway. Continue to read on…