"It's a miracle he walked away from an explosion of that magnitude with such minor injuries. I've never seen anything like the resilience these saiyans display," Dr. Briefs mused from Vegeta's hospital room.
Panchy sniffled. "Oh poor, poor Vegeta." She cried softly into a hanky.
Bulma ignored her parents, staring down at the injured saiyan prince. He was lying in a hospital bed, bandages wrapped around his wounds, a respirator attached to his nose and mouth.
"Come, let's leave them alone for a while." Her father guided her mother out of the room, leaving Bulma to worry by herself.
She turned, unsure about whether she should stay by his side.
"Kakarot!" Vegeta growled in his sleep. "I will surpass you!"
Bulma watched him twitching, his eyebrows scrunched together in that irritated way of his. Even unconscious, he was a total grouch focused only on eclipsing Goku.
She pulled out a chair next to the table at his bedside. This was her fault. There was no way she could leave his side while he battled his inner demons. She sat, letting her mind wander.
He was completely alone.
She didn't know much about Vegeta's history. She knew that he worked for Frieza, the galaxy's most evil bastard, but defected and became a lone wolf. He was a prince, a warrior, a killer.
According to Goku, their planet had been totally destroyed by Frieza himself, leaving just a handful of saiyans left throughout the entire universe. Their numbers continued to dwindle. Now it seemed that it was just Goku, Gohan, and Vegeta left. That was their entire race. You could count them on one hand.
Tears burned her eyes. What a lonely existence.
Vegeta didn't even like the other saiyans! They grew up on Earth. He was truly the last of his kind.
And this was what he inherited as a prince…He had been destined to rule an entire planet, and now he was left with one of the world's most powerful warriors as his bitter rival.
How did he do it? How did he find the energy to remain in solitude the way he had?
Bulma shook her head. She couldn't help but smile to herself. If someone had told her while she was on Namek that she would be at Vegeta's bedside, praying for him to recover with tears in her eyes, she would've laughed herself to death.
People do change, after all.
She folded her arms on the desk, nestling her head in to rest. She would just close her eyes for a few minutes. She had to make sure Vegeta was okay.
He was going to be alright. He had to.
—
Everything was dark. His mind was hazy, as if it were wrapped in a cloud of fog. Vegeta slowly came to. He was laying stiffly on his back with some sort of breathing apparatus attached to his face. He couldn't remember what he had been dreaming about, but he felt unsettled by whatever it was.
He tested his muscles by rolling his head from side to side. His eyes widened in shock when he saw the Earthling woman, asleep at the small table beside him only a foot away. She was sitting in a hardwood chair, her head resting on her arms for support.
Why was she here?
What could she possibly gain from sitting nearby while he was knocked out cold? She wasn't helping anyone.
He suddenly remembered why he was here in the first place: the explosion. He grit his teeth. She must feel guilty for the gravity chamber collapsing on him. His first instinct was to blame her. It would be so easy. Her stupid fucking bots caught him by surprise, and ultimately, the entire gravity machine couldn't hold up to his force.
Vegeta reigned in that thought the instant it bubbled up. She actually did a magnificent job with those stupid fucking bots. They did their job, and then some. He should have expected more from them. After all, she worked very hard with her father to get them running with reflectors.
She couldn't help that their technology wasn't quite as advanced as what he was used to. The gravity machine was a marvel in itself. He was surprised it held up this long.
Tch. When did he start thinking like this? When did he start cutting the woman slack? She was here to help train him to defeat the androids and reach Super Saiyan, and here she was, soiling that!
He watched her calm breathing. Inhale, exhale. A bit of her long, blue hair had tumbled into her face, and was waving at him with every breath out. He had a sudden urge to tuck it back, to make sure it didn't tickle her face and wake her.
Vegeta snapped his head back to stare at the blank ceiling. When did he get so soft? His ancestors would be ashamed.
He needed to be training to achieve Super Saiyan. He couldn't waste time lying around in bed, staring at a beautiful woman.
With tremendous effort, he pulled his arms out from beneath the white sheet, raising them to pull the mask off of his face. He took his time to quietly hoist himself out of the hospital bed. It took more exertion than he would care to admit: his body was extremely damaged in the explosion.
But the pain inspired him to power through. He knew he was on the cusp of greatness.
He lifted himself out of bed, using what little energy he had left to float above the ground. He was ready to fly out of the door, to leave this place behind, but something stopped him.
She looked so peaceful. Hers was truly an exquisite beauty, not that he would ever tell her that. The gods themselves must have blessed her when she was created. Her face was heavenly.
Inhale, exhale.
Instinctively, Vegeta matched his breathing to hers.
Inhale, exhale.
He couldn't help himself…
Inhale, exhale.
His fingers reached out on their own…
Inhale, exhale.
He cautiously brushed her hair back behind her ear, tucking that stray piece away.
Inhale-
Time stopped. He held his breath, unsure of what would happen next.
Exhale.
That was a relief. He sighed, turning to leave-
"Vegeta…" she mumbled under her breath.
His stomach clenched at the sound, and he twisted back to face her. Was he caught?
She was still fast asleep. The faintest smile ghosted her lips. She looked serene. Angelic.
He flew out of the room, gently closing the door behind him.
—
She was trapped where everything was green and bright. The trees were tall, skinny little twigs, topped with blue puff balls. The sweet relief of night's darkness never came.
She was wandering, aimless. She staggered across the landscape, alone, her heart throbbing in her chest with a dull ache.
Bulma abruptly stopped dead in her tracks. Something told her to be afraid. A gut instinct that was trying to preserve her life spoke up from deep within her. She turned in dread, looking to see what had snuck up behind her.
It was him. That elegant, muscular, blue-skinned man. The one with the long green braid. But now she knew better. He wasn't a devilishly handsome hero, come to rescue her: he was an evil, ugly beast that worked for Lord Frieza.
He smirked at her, and her knees buckled. She knew it was over. Her life was forfeit the moment he laid eyes on her.
She closed her eyes, waiting for the end. She just hoped it would be quick. There was a whoosh of air beside her, gently blowing her hair back behind her face. With trepidation, she opened her eyes…
There he was! He was here!
"Vegeta…"
She smiled, her cheeks flushing. Everything would be okay. Her prince was here.
—
Bulma jerked awake, her body jolting up. "Wha…"
Oh. She must have fallen asleep at the table. She quickly wiped a little bit of drool from her cheek, looking around to see if anyone noticed her.
Good. No one was around.
Wait. No one was around!
"Vegeta!" She jumped out of her chair, searching around his bed as if he would be hiding flat under the bed sheet. "Where did that bastard go?!"
She turned on her heel, stomping off. He was nowhere near healed, and here he was, disappearing on her without so much as leaving a note! He needed to rest! Was he trying to kill himself?!
She was going to give that saiyan jerk a piece of her mind!
Hey everyone! Apologies for the day. Thank you again for all the love on my updates. It inspires me to keep going :)