To all my readers: I'll keep this short and sweet.
You all are amazing, and I love ya. Thank you for your patience.
To date, this is the longest chapter of my story, and my new favorite one.
This chapter was a labor of love. You are going to enjoy what happens (maybe).
Trust me, it was worth the wait.
Chapter 14- Across That Line
The Prince of Saiyans and his gorgeous escort arrived in style.
In style, of course, meaning their abrupt and unexpected appearance out of thin air had startled the majority of the guests there. Upon seeing them, nearby partygoers let out a small gasp and took a step back, the drinks in their hands sloshing from their sudden movement. However, their surprise could not be blamed…after all, it wasn't every day that one of the notoriously powerful, highly respected, and agreeably feared people throughout the universe suddenly manifested out of nothingness, coupled with a stunning female in tow.
Bulma had to steady herself as a moment of fleeting dizziness hit her. She inwardly thought to herself that she was nowhere near getting used to his Instant Transmission ability. As the dizziness subsided, she blinked a few times and looked around, noticing the startled faces that currently surrounded them.
Startled faces that quickly turned serious.
"Well, well. We're not as late as I thought you were going to make us." Vegeta said in a cooled tone, promptly removing his arm from around Bulma as he hastily changed the subject. "Unlike Earth, there is no such thing out here as being fashionably late." he referenced the familiar human saying as he took a moment to look around and survey the area. The awkwardness that fell between them from their somewhat intimate moment together inside her room a few moments ago was still fresh in his mind, and he wanted to get rid of those feelings as quickly as possible by distracting himself with a different focus.
He did not have his scouter on him, and in hindsight, perhaps that was something he should have brought along, if only for show. But, why would he want to? Having his scouter on meant he would have been harassed all day and night by his parents or his bodyguards, demanding that he answer their com-link, and refusing to end their constant transmissions to him until they stubbornly got a reply from their rebellious son. Besides, he did not need a scouter. Since very early on, during his first year's stay on Earth as a young child, he had been trained to sense ki, and inadvertently trained to strategically feel out the power levels of everyone around him, and gauge to see if there was any immediate threat around. It was an amazing ability, and one that he, along with Goku, managed to teach the current and younger generations of Saiyans to learn. It was a tightly guarded secret that the majority of Saiyans had learned over time to sense power levels without need of their scouters, which by and far gave them a great advantage when dealing with each other and with other races. So Vegeta, not having his scouter on, could possibly raise some unwanted questions.
But, sensing no threat around them in those few short seconds Vegeta took to analyze the situation, he let himself feel a small sense of ease, even though a part of him would always be on the edge and ready for battle. Luckily for him, those nearby who had seen his abrupt arrival had greeted him with deep, respectful bows, and now he stood strong and proud as he accepted their gestures. His regal aura reverberated throughout the crowd as murmurs were quickly passing along that Prince Vegeta was there.
At hearing him give her a smart remark about them being late already to this event, Bulma responded back to Vegeta with a slight roll of her eyes as she looked down at her dress. "Whatever. You wouldn't know 'fashionable' if it bit you in the ass." she replied, glad for the short, snippy exchange between them. She also welcomed a distraction from the awkwardness that remained between them. She self-consciously smoothed out imaginary wrinkles and lines on her formal dress, hoping her cheeks weren't still red from their strangely close moment together.
Someone suddenly and loudly announced the arrival of Prince Vegeta, royal heir to the Saiyan Empire, and his escort.
It was the quiet hush of the crowd that had caught Bulma's attention, as she then looked up and noticed the rest of the alien guests bowing down to Vegeta. Something struck her, and she wasn't sure what it was, but seeing them all bow down to him brought a strange sense of confusion to her. Normally she would not have thought anything about all those people bowing down before him…..after all, everyone on Vegetasei, including foreign dignitaries, always bowed down to him. She never really thought anything of it, continuing on with whatever business she had with him. As hard as it was to believe, and after all their years of being around each other….at times she really did forget that Vegeta was, in the complete sense of the word, a prince. No, perhaps 'forget' was not the correct word. Many times, she just didn't see him in that way.
He was just….Vegeta…to her.
Even though it had been engraved in her mind ever since she could remember that Vegeta was a prince, they had spent close to their entire lives growing up together and being around each other. The majority of the time she did not see him as a prince, or as an alien, or as a warrior, or as a killer. He just…was who he was…and he made no apologies for it, either. Maybe that was what had stuck her at that moment. She had always embraced everything that he was, and who he was, and thought nothing more or less of it. And it was in that moment she realized that, in all their years of knowing each other, she never saw him in a different light. What did that mean?
Was that normal?
Bulma didn't have time to further contemplate this, as she then realized the party guests were looking at her also, not just at Vegeta.
The genuine look of surprise that crossed her face was hard to hide as they were bowing down to her also, showing her some sort of due respect that she did not believe she warranted. It was an odd feeling to have aliens, the majority of which she had never met before, bow down to her as if she was someone important also. Bulma managed a small, difficult swallow, feeling as though she mistakenly was put on the spot. She glanced over at Vegeta by her side, expecting to see an annoyed look on his face….but the feelings she expected to read from him, in fact, were nowhere to be found. Instead, he looked back at her and gave her a small, encouraging nod of his head, and with all eyes on them she followed Vegeta's lead and stood confident as they gave a brief nod of acknowledgement to the crowd.
At seeing the Saiyan Prince and his esteemed guest receive their welcome, the partygoers began to relax again, quickly resuming their chatter and their pleasantries amongst themselves. Bulma lightly bit her lower lip, watching as the crowd visibly relaxed and diverted their attention away from them and returning to what they were doing previously. Vegeta sure had an effect on people, that she could bank on. She whistled low after a few quiet moments between them, feeling she could breathe comfortably again. "What was that all about?" she asked him in a soft tone, quickly glancing over the crowd once more, not yet aware of the beauty of the planet on which they were on.
"You're with me, woman." Vegeta offered simply, not wanting to delve into greater detail of the importance on the matter. "How often do you think I attend events such as these?"
Bulma eyed him for a moment. "Knowing you? Never." she replied honesty. "Not unless I somehow miraculously drag you to one. And you usually fight me tooth and nail about going to something like this! It's hard enough getting you to go with me to the Capsule Corp galas."
"Exactly. Consider this night a grand privilege."
"Privilege?" Bulma echoed in disbelief, giving Vegeta a sarcastic look.
"Yes. Any woman would kill to be in your spot right now. After all, not every woman can have a date with the Prince of All Saiyans." he smirked as he watched her give him one of 'those' looks.
"Oh please, Vegeta, you're so full of it." Bulma rolled her eyes again, used to his arrogance after so many years. "Any man would love to be in your spot too, you know!"
"Well, of course they would, woman. What man wouldn't want to be me?" he cleverly responded back, catching Bulma in her words and twisting them around.
"Ugh!" she responded in a huff. "You know what I meant! Any man would love to be here with me." she emphasized, annoyed that he had caught her in a rare verbal slip-up.
"Keep telling yourself that." Vegeta responded smugly as he extended his elbow out to her, offering his arm for her to take.
She watched him as he extended his arm out to her. "Jerk." she countered as she eyed him suspiciously for a moment before she hooked her arm around his, accepting his invitation as he then began to guide her somewhere. "Wait a minute! Did you say 'date'?" she blurted as the thought suddenly struck her, just now catching on to the last part of his previous sentence from a few moments ago.
"Hn. That's what your mother seems to think." Vegeta commented, his mild amusement slowly giving way into a frown as they began to near an empty area off to the side where guests were to check into the meteor event upon arrival. At least there wasn't a line to wait in. Not that he and Bulma would have had to wait in line anyway, but still, it reminded him they were later to this event than he had previously thought. As they neared the check-in area, his frown deepened more.
"Yeah, well my mom thinks a lot of things….it doesn't mean she's right." Bulma murmured in a somewhat tense tone, knowing there was a lot more weight held behind her words than Vegeta would ever know. "Like you and I would ever go on a date."
Vegeta's frown deepened, not so much at Bulma's words, but more at something else. "It's not a date." Vegeta assured her, and for some reason his response irritated her.
"Oh trust me, I know it's not." she replied just as assuredly back at him, which at hearing this, he turned to look at her with a rather pissed off look etched on his face. He fisted his hands and grew visibly angry about something, and it didn't help that for some reason her words bothered him more than they probably should have.
"Good, we're in agreement then." Vegeta said tersely, half his attention on her and the rest on something else, wanting to end the topic of conversation abruptly.
"Yes, we are." Bulma said moodily, wanting the last word on the matter. Whether she would get it or not remained to be seen, as she wondered what the hell suddenly got into the both of them. "It's amazing that we finally agree on something! It's a miracle. It only took us about almost 30 years!" she spat out sarcastically.
Vegeta let out an aggravated sigh. "Human brat."
"Saiyan jerk." she automatically replied.
"Remind me again why I brought you here?" the prince grumbled out, bringing his other hand up to his face and pinching the bridge of his nose. He was trying to reign in his temper at the moment.
"I don't know! So we could do something fun together?" Bulma bit out.
"So far, this isn't fun."
"Well, with that attitude, it won't be!" she snapped, highly irritated that their night out together was starting off badly already. And the night was only beginning! Vegeta felt her try to tug her arm away from his. He gave her a stern look as her effort made them stop in the middle of their tracks. He turned to Bulma as she somehow managed to pull her arm away from his. "Maybe we should just go home." she grumbled.
"Fine by me." Vegeta replied in an uncaring tone, crossing his arms across his chest, and tightening his tail even further around his waist.
Bulma let out an agitated sigh as she placed her hands on her hips. "But we just got here! Seriously, Vegeta, you're not going to be like this all night, are you?"
"Like what?" he said, looking around the area, not really paying full attention to what Bulma was complaining to him about.
"What the hell's gotten into you?" Bulma ground out, frustrated with how he was seemingly distracted, which was a rare occurrence when it came to an argument with her. "If you don't want to be here then why did we come?" she demanded.
The prince let out an annoyed huff. "I don't know what the hell you're talking about." he growled out. "Can we just check in and get going with the rest of the evening?" he said irritably, his tone of voice conveying the exact opposite of his words.
"Ugh, fine! Be that way!" Bulma spat out, feeling herself starting to sink into a bad mood at his sudden attitude change. She sarcastically gestured her arm out in front of her, bending slightly at her waist in a mocking bow as she motioned for Vegeta to continue forward to where they were previously headed.
Vegeta fisted his hands as he lowered his arms, making sure to point a finger at Bulma in warning as she was really beginning to push his buttons. "I swear, woman…." he growled in a harsh tone as he swiftly turned away from her, heading to his initial destination, not caring for the moment if she was following right behind him or not.
Bulma didn't appreciate his small threat. "Kami, you're in a bad mood." she continued to complain right behind him in a hushed tone.
"You're the one who's in a bad mood." Vegeta spat back at her, not knowing if she had meant for him to hear her or not.
"I am not!" she defied, trying to convince herself that she wasn't going to let his foul mood ruin her night.
"Well, neither am I!" the prince barked. Okay. That wasn't true. He was definitely in a bad mood now.
For more than one reason.
"Well it sure as hell seems like you are!" Bulma barked right back at him. She just couldn't leave well enough alone.
Vegeta growled, and without warning, he stopped in his tracks again and turned around to face her, startling her and bringing her to an abrupt halt as she almost walked right smack into him. "Woman, I swear, if you keep this up, I will be." he warned her seriously this time. Apparently she didn't like hearing that, because shortly after having told her this, she placed her hands on his chest and gave him a rough shove, which barely made him budge. He then watched as Bulma clenched her small fists in frustration and throw him a dirty glare. He saw the same unyielding, pissed-off look being reflected right back at him as she spun around and stormed off away from him, effectively giving him the cold shoulder.
The prince sneered angrily, deciding it would be best to ignore her for the time being as he watched Bulma walk away from him. It was bad enough that he had taken his frustrations out on her. Him keeping his mouth shut and not following after her was going to be the wisest move he figured he could make at the moment. A few more wrong, heated words to each other, and well…..the night was going to end on a completely different note than either of them truly wanted.
Vegeta took in a deep breath and let out an aggravated sigh as he continued on, approaching the front of a podium. He began to seriously contemplate cancelling their night out. He was too damn tired to deal with the bullshit that was going on. Nevertheless, he reached behind the top of his chest plate and pulled out the two gold-inlaid passes for the event and handed them to the alien, who hurriedly accepted them.
As Vegeta waited for the alien, he subtly kept one eye on Bulma, wondering if their night was going to end well at all. The top part of his tail flicked against his hip as he patiently waited, until the source of his frustration suddenly manifested next to him.
Vegeta had sensed his ki signal nearby minutes ago, and it had been too close for his comfort. It couldn't have been worse timing. That was initially what had set him off in a bad mood. After feeling his energy, he had known the fool would be showing there up at any moment.
"You're starting to piss me off, Kakarot." Vegeta warned, sensing Goku appear and stand right behind him.
"What am I supposed to do? Say 'no' and refuse the order to find you?" Goku said apologetically as he lowered his two fingers from his forehead and quickly took a look at his surroundings, realizing that he had inadvertently crashed some sort of fancy get-together.
"Will you just get the fuck out of here." the prince said angrily, shooting Goku a dark glare as he turned around to face him.
Goku sighed and held his arms out in frustration. "And what do I tell them? That I couldn't locate your ki and find you? They'll never believe it."
"I don't care if they fucking believe you or not! It took you until now to find me after leaving Capital World. It's not unreasonable to believe that after all your hours searching that you couldn't find me." Vegeta growled, as he then turned back to the alien whom he had given the passes to. Quickly, the alien handed the Saiyan prince two beautiful, golden strips of silken fabric that were trimmed with red designs.
"So you want me to lie to everyone? Is that it?" Goku said in disbelief.
"Yes." Vegeta said sternly. His demand was absolute, with no room for negotiation as he accepted the golden bands, and turned to Goku again. "I expect you to obey my order, because I expect nothing less from you."
"This is pretty unfair of you to ask this of me, you know." Goku sighed. He hated lying, and rarely ever did it. It was bad enough that he had lied to Bulma about Yamcha's whereabouts earlier this morning, but now this? "I'm not a good liar. Everyone will see right though me, you know that." He watched as the prince fisted his hands and uncurled his tail, watching as it snapped a few times in agitation. The way Vegeta's demeanor suddenly darkened made him gulp a bit.
"For your sake, Kakarot, you better be convincing." Vegeta began, as then a sudden movement from the corner of his eye made him turn to the alien behind the podium, who upon seeing Goku, was about to open his mouth and tell him he could not attend this event dressed so informally. Vegeta held up his gloved hand with authoritative command, immediately stopping the alien from opening his mouth. The alien took the hint and didn't say a word, knowing this was a matter that he would be wise to not interfere in. Vegeta took a quick look around, and roughly pulled Goku aside to talk to him in private. "Look, I am not going back home tonight, and there is nothing you, or my parents, or Nappa, or Raditz, or anyone else can do about it. Understood?"
Goku frustratingly ran one hand through his wild, messy dark hair. "I understand, but you need to know the order to find you has been given and the whole palace is on high alert. The Royal guards…even the Elites are on the lookout for your arrival! They are ready to pounce on you when you get back, and bring to straight to your parents, whether you like it or not." Goku told him. "And your parents….they're outraged. Seriously, it's been a long time since I've seen them this angry! Your father is saying it's outright treason. And your mom….oh man, she said she's going to cut off your tail!" he said the last part worriedly. "Vegeta, enough is enough. What are you doing? You have to come home now. You can't keep doing this!"
Vegeta responded by seizing Goku by the front of his gi, twisting the fabric into his fist, bringing the younger Saiyan face to face in a threatening manner. His eyes grew deadly, flickering with rage as he bared his canines at Goku. "Let me make this perfectly clear to you, Kakarot." he growled dangerously, "I do as I wish, and no one….NO ONE… tells me otherwise. Not my parents. Not Tarble. Not your father, or your brother. Not Nappa. And especially not you."
Goku couldn't help but notice that he left out Bulma's name from his list, but that was something he was not dumb enough to bring up at the current moment either. "Okay, okay Vegeta. Calm down….I didn't mean to piss you off. I wasn't trying to tell you what to do, you know that!" Goku tried to offer peacefully, as he held his hands up in a submissive manner. "Could you let go of me now? You're beginning to make a scene."
"Like I give a shit." Vegeta responded. "Now, go back home and leave me the hell alone." he ordered, giving Goku a rough shove in the process as he let go of the iron grip he held on his gi. "Tell them you couldn't find me."
Goku eyed him for a moment, trying to think of how he was going to reason with Vegeta again as he readjusted the front of his gi, smoothing out the fabric. This time he decided to take a softer approach. Whether it would work or not remained to be seen. "I can't say that." he said somewhat apologetically, quickly continuing his plea as the prince shot him another deadly warning glare. "C'mon, Vegeta, you have to give me something here. If I don't show up back home with you… then they said they're gonna cut my tail off! I don't want to lose my tail! I'm pretty attached to it!"
Vegeta eyed him for a moment, seeing there was genuine truth to what he was telling him. He knew it would fall on Kakarot to be the one responsible to find him and bring him back home. He imagined there would be consequences if he came back this time empty-handed again. He knew he was pushing his parents' buttons lately, but this must really have been the final time. "They won't cut off your tail, moron."
"Yes they will!" Goku insisted.
"No, they won't."
"How can you be so sure?!" Goku asked, concern in his voice as he tightened his own tail around his waist securely, the thought of losing it becoming a real possibility.
"If they do actually cut your tail off, then your father and the woman will find a way to reattach it, I'm sure. Or at least figure out a way to re-grow it." Vegeta grumbled, offering no consolation to Goku at all. He saw the worry on Goku's face, and the prince let out an irritable growl, as he thought about his next words carefully. Kakarot shouldn't have to lose his tail over him, he inwardly thought, but no way in hell was he going to go back home tonight. Not when he already was this deep in trouble. Besides, he was supposed to be having an evening out with the woman. So, what could he say that was acceptable enough that would make his parents calm down over him? After a few tense moments, Vegeta relented, knowing he would have to try to compromise. "Tell them I…" he hesitated, clenching his hands, unsure about the next words he was about to say, "…tell them I'm with the woman."
Goku then followed Vegeta's gaze out into the crowd, and that's when he saw Bulma standing off to the side, alone, looking up into the sky. Confusion crossed Goku for a moment. He didn't understand...he already knew this. The King and Queen and others already figured out he had gone off-planet with Bulma. So what was the significance of mentioning something that was already known? "Vegeta…they already know you went somewhere with her." he said, confusion laced in his voice.
Vegeta unclenched his fists and gave a frustrated sigh. "I figured as much. But they don't know why."
"Why?" Goku echoed, wanting to know just what was going through Vegeta's mind. It wasn't too hard to figure out though, Goku thought inwardly to himself, as he had seen how nicely everyone was dressed, and how beautiful the place was.
"It doesn't matter why!"
Goku gestured out towards the general direction that Bulma was in. "Look, I'm pretty sure I know what's going on here. And I'm sure you want to get back to whatever you two were doing before I got here. I'm sorry for interrupting your guys' night, but I'm under some pretty bad pressure to find you and bring you home," he reasoned, "and since that won't be happening, I'm forced to resort to the next option. So like I said, what do you want me to say to your parents? Want me to tell them that you're here on a date with her?" he dared to tease.
The evil glare that Vegeta gave him spoke volumes. If looks could kill, Goku would have been dead three times over. "It's not a fucking date!"
Goku rolled his eyes slightly. "Fine, fine, it's not a date. Well, then?" he urged.
Vegeta let out a huff of annoyance. "Tell them I'm spending time with her, and leave it at that. Is that understood?" he demanded with authority, and watched as Goku took a moment to contemplate, before nodding his head in reluctant agreement.
"Understood." the younger Saiyan relented, his face frowning in displeasure over the situation. "And you just keep digging a bigger hole for yourself." Goku murmured, unsure if he was directing his comment at Vegeta, or referring to himself. Or maybe he meant it towards both of them.
"You're really trying my patience, Kakarot." the prince warned, giving Goku one last warning look as he began to turn away from him and start heading his way toward Bulma. "You better not fail me."
"I hope my father and Bulma can re-grow my tail." Goku replied off-handedly, mentally rehearsing a way he would tell the King and Queen what he was supposed to say, and yet keep their wrath away from his tail somehow.
"They won't cut it off." Vegeta had begun to say as he walked off, only to quickly turn around again towards Goku as he remembered something very important. "Oh, and Kakarot….if they don't cut off your tail, then I will." he promised.
"What?!" Goku questioned in an alarmed tone. "Why?!"
"Oh? Don't tell me you've already forgotten? You didn't think you could really get away with it, did you?" Vegeta said in a cooled, even tone. "I know you destroyed my gravity room."
Oh shit.
"I…." Goku began, caught off guard as Vegeta's serious tone of voice sent a small chill down his spine. He snapped his mouth shut and gulped, not knowing what to say. Should he deny it? Should he try to explain himself? He didn't think Vegeta would be very understanding or appreciative of the grand master plan that he and his father and Bunny had devised to make him and Bulma spend time together.
Vegeta held a gloved hand up to him, demanding his silence. "I don't want to get into it right now, Kakarot. I don't feel like spilling your blood all over my armor at the moment. I will discuss this with you another day. Both the woman and I will discuss this with you another day." Vegeta emphasized with a painful promise, bringing a wave of dread upon Goku. Boy, was he in trouble. In trouble with the King and Queen, in trouble with Vegeta and Bulma, and not to mention he was sure Yamcha was pretty pissed at him also.
How in hell did he manage to get himself involved right in the middle of all this?!
"Right." Goku managed to reply despondently, accepting whatever his future punishment might be. He fisted his right hand and brought it over his heart, pounding his chest twice as he gave a hasty bow to Vegeta. He hurriedly placed his fingers to his forehead, and concentrated on King Vegeta's ki, vanishing from the area as abruptly as he had first appeared.
Bulma had stormed away from Vegeta, highly irritated and angry at how much of a jerk he was suddenly being. She didn't know what the hell had gotten into him, and as she gained some distance from him, she began to wonder if he was going to get utterly pissed and just call the night off. Well, it would be fine by her! She didn't want to be there if he was going to keep being that way! After finding a secluded spot where no one was really close nearby, Bulma stopped and crossed her arms across her torso forcefully, officially in a bad mood. She glared at the festive partygoers from a ways away, feeling resentful that everyone was having a good time except for them.
At first she thought Vegeta would storm after her also, and that an argument between them would ensue. But when she had glanced back over her shoulder, she had seen that he also had his back to her, walking away. That angered her more, and even now after a few minutes passed, he still hadn't come to find her. As a couple of more minutes passed, Bulma began to calm down as the adrenaline rush began to subside. She finally took the time to look around, and not just at the event, but at one of the most beautiful planets she had ever been to.
Demesor was a lush, gorgeous, exotic tropical planet. The terrain was landscaped with brilliant, colorful flora, and peaceful, gentle wildlife that happy roamed and grazed amongst this most rare gem in the outer cosmos. The oceans on Demesor were a beautiful purplish blue color, and the skies were almost always purplish as well. The rains that occurred were nothing more but light showers and mists, and the breezes were gentle and warm. The purple sky was dotted with many stars that shone bright and sparkling. It was a sky that never turned to the blackness of dark night, thanks to its unique atmosphere and to the very small sun that revolved around it.
Bulma continued looking upward, entranced by the glowing auroras that twirled and gently lit up the sky. Her eyes danced along as she watched the multi-colored light display weave its way through the atmosphere. She wondered when the meteor shower would begin, and what it would possibly look like as the falling rocks blazed against this beautiful purple night sky. Nights such as this one were absolute perfection. No wonder this fancy event was being held here.
The beauty and serenity of the planet did much to quell her temper and emotions, as she temporarily forgot about her gripe with Vegeta. She took the time to appreciate what her eyes were beholding…it was probably as close to heaven as she could imagine. They say you don't miss what you never knew…but how could she have missed this? Well, it was simple, really. If her and Vegeta hadn't gone out to lunch and seen the advertisement, then she would have missed out. Even so, just knowing about the meteor shower didn't mean anything. It was Vegeta who got them into this event at the last minute. If it wasn't for him, then she wouldn't be here on this beautiful planet, seeing the celestial show of a lifetime. She sighed inwardly, feeling like such an ungrateful woman. She took in a calming breath and breathed it out gently, willing her temper aside to try to make way for peace.
"It's beautiful." Bulma said softly, having heard his footsteps as they stopped behind her.
"That it is." Vegeta said to her, his voice remaining neutral.
An awkward silence fell between them for a few moments, before Bulma spoke up again. "Thank you…for bringing me here."
"Hn." Vegeta responded, as he decided that they seemed to be on okay terms again. After walking away from Kakarot, he had still been in a tense mood. He was making his way back to Bulma, and as he did, he studied her for a few long moments as he watched her captivation and enchantment by the auroras in the sky. Demesor was said to be one of the most beautiful planets in the universe that held a magical quality to it. He was skeptical of that last part, but had to wonder if there was some truth behind the claims, as somehow the beauty of the night sky had mostly calmed her down her frazzled ki. And for whatever reason, seeing Bulma look so beautiful against the celestial backdrop, and sensing her energy signal much more relaxed had done much to calm his temperment down as well.
Vegeta took a step closer to her and reached out, gently grabbing her by her upper arm and coaxing her to turn around and face him, even as she put up minor resistance. With reluctance, she complied with his non-verbal request, letting him turn her around to face him. His dark eyes searched her face as she tried not to look him in the eye, knowing she was still unhappy with him. Without saying anything to her, he slid his hand down her arm until he reached her hand. Bulma continued to look off to the side, trying to ignore what he was doing, even as small tingles ran though her from his gentle and almost apologetic touch. He held her hand for a moment as he draped one of the red-trimmed golden bands over her wrist, which caught her attention.
"What's this?" she asked, watching as Vegeta proceeded to wrap and tie the beautiful band around her wrist.
"It marks us as V.I.P." he offered simply, securing a knot, as he then let her arm go. He then raised his own arm out slightly, draping his band around the upper part of his bicep. He began to try to tie it, but his single-handed effort didn't last long as Bulma reached up, helpfully placing it around his arm for him.
"So this means we're staying?" she asked, a hint of happiness in her voice as she preoccupied herself with tying the band around his arm, still avoiding a direct gaze into his eyes.
"Yes." he told her softly as he watched as she finished tying his band. He kept searching her face, trying to get a read on what she was thinking or feeling.
She nodded, glad to hear they were going to stay after all. She kept her hands on his arm, mindlessly adjusting the band even though there was nothing wrong with it. "Are you going to tell me what's the matter with you now?" she asked quietly.
Vegeta let out a half-hearted sigh as he looked off to the side, taking a moment to contemplate before answering her. "I felt Kakarot's energy signal nearby."
Hearing this made Bulma finally glance up and look at him. "He's still looking for you?" the concern clearly evident in her voice.
"It doesn't matter now, he's gone." the prince said, turning his gaze back onto her, seeing a look of worry across her beautiful face.
She searched Vegeta's dark eyes, trying to figure out what was going on. "He was here? Was he still trying to get you home?" she asked, waiting for an answer from him, and didn't receive one. She bit her lip and stepped closer to him, squeezing his arm in worry. "Maybe something bad's happened?"
He shook his head. "Nothing bad has happened, woman."
"Vegeta, what's going on?" she asked in earnest, seeing that he was hiding something, but she just wasn't sure what it was.
"I already told you, it's nothing." he reassured her. "Just my parents trying to enforce some imaginary curfew they think I need. I told him to go home and leave me alone." Bulma studied him for a moment, searching for anything that might prove otherwise. This time though, he was closely guarded, and wouldn't let her delve any deeper into the matter.
After a few moments, she relented, and let out a breath of reluctant acceptance. "Alright." Bulma said quietly, as she let go of his arm and gave him a look. "But if Goku comes looking for you for a third time again, then we're going home, understood?"
He raised an eyebrow up at her. "You aren't in a position to give me orders." the prince warned lightly.
"Not yet, I'm not." she dared to say, giving him a smug look.
"Tch. That will be the day." Vegeta said bluntly, earning a playful smack on his arm from her, to which he gave her an amused look.
A ghost of a smile was on her face also. "So...are we going to stand here all night, or are we going to go have fun?" Bulma asked, trying to keep things light between them as she looked down and mindlessly toyed with the beautiful band around her wrist, wondering exactly how this signified them as being V.I.P.
"I have a choice in the matter?" Vegeta scoffed, watching as she looked back up at him, trying to read if he was joking or being serious.
After a moment, she decided he was being somewhat playful. "No, not really." Bulma smiled a little more comfortably at him, seeing that things were going to be okay between them after all. Pleased that they would be staying there for the meteor shower and for the rest of the festivities, she raised her elbow outward, offering Vegeta her arm to take, as he had done earlier with her.
Vegeta eyed her for a moment, raising an eyebrow again at her antics. He saw her expectant look and he sighed, giving her a slight roll of his eyes as he took her arm in his.
Delighted, she gave his arm an affectionate squeeze before hauling him off toward the party-going crowd.
The outdoor staging on Demesor was beautifully set up, with plenty of seating all around for the esteemed guests that were there. Amongst the seating were many small bonfires, which gave the event a beautiful, bright, warm romantic glow to it. The other lighting was provided by the energetic, colorful auroras that continued to swirl in the dusky, purple night sky. The seating had been strategically placed around a very large, open area floor, which many guests were slowly dancing on to the soft music of what could be considered an orchestra, by Earth's standards. The alien orchestra played instruments that were quite different looking than those on Earth, but they emitted beautiful sounds nonetheless.
Vegeta and Bulma joined the crowd, and immediately the excited hubbub over them being at the event was evident. She quickly realized how V.I.P. her and Vegeta were, since quickly after joining the party, small alien creatures came to their immediate service. These aliens were tiny and reminded her of Puar. These creatures resembled a feline, and could fly, but instead of having fur they had smooth, charcoal-colored skin, and no tail. They were friendly though, and because of the golden and red-trimmed bands held around her wrist and Vegeta's arm, the feline-resembling aliens brought them any and everything they wanted at a moment's notice. Whatever they wanted, they got. Bulma and Vegeta never had to leave who they were speaking with to get food, or another drink. They were waited on hand and foot, all with the simple raise of her wrist, or the raise of his arm.
The night had continued on quite well, to both of their surprise. Many of the aliens who were attending this event were loyal to the Saiyan Empire, and a few had very close rapport with the royal family and with Bulma. They made genuine efforts to put in some quality time with them, since it was a rare occurrence to have the Saiyan prince and the blue-haired genius beauty so readily available. Many of the aliens that Vegeta and Bulma were familiar with they had not seen in a long time, so it was almost like a reunion in some sort of way. The prince and the heiress remained closely together at first, enjoying the food and drink as they got into conversations with their allies. As the night continued on, they spoke of glorious battle stories from the past, got updates on the health and state of the economies of their respective planets, and they overall had a good time rekindling and reaffirming ties with each other and within the Saiyan Empire.
Other aliens that were not as close to the Saiyan Empire took this opportunity to try to speak with Vegeta and Bulma, making efforts throughout the night to try to begin conversations with them, that mostly led into business talk and proposed ideas for how they could better align themselves with the Saiyans. Over the night, both Vegeta and Bulma were slowly being guided away from each other. Vegeta was tied up with talk of business and issues going on within his Empire that he needed to know of, and Bulma was stuck talking with other aliens over upcoming technology the Saiyans were working on, as well as interplanetary trade. Still, talking about business did not put as much of a damper on the night as she expected, as Bulma would now and then look over to where Vegeta was, seeing him surrounded by a small group of aliens who were keeping him occupied with their conversations. Now separated, often they would glance over at the other, keeping a subtle eye on each other. Many times their eyes would lock, and it was in those times that Bulma would quickly flash Vegeta a smile, to which he would give her an amused smirk. So the night continued on, as the food and drink and conversations began to get more relaxed. Some partygoers took to the seats, gathering around the bonfires and they conversed and laughed. Some took to the open floor to dance and enjoy the beauty of the night. Bulma had been conversing with a group of female aliens, talking about the men in their lives, to which she had stayed silent on the subject. She didn't feel like talking about Yamcha.
Or Vegeta, for that matter.
Bulma had looked up into the sky, watching the auroras for the hundredth time, and wondered again when the meteor shower was supposed to happen. It was then that she felt a small tap on the side of her arm, and she turned around, only to come face to face with an alien man whom she did not know or recognize.
"Pardon me, forgive my intrusion, but I was wondering if perhaps I may ask you for a dance?" he said, his voice smooth, with a hint of refinement.
"Oh, um….sure." Bulma hesitated for a moment, caught off guard by the simple and humble request from the man as she looked back at her group, who all gave her a nod of their heads in understanding as she parted away from them. She glanced over at Vegeta again, who was currently distracted and in the middle of some conversation within his group. She then turned her attention to this man who had asked her for a dance, and the first thing she thought was that he was very handsome and exotic looking. He was very tall, with light blue skin, long green hair that was styled in one large braid, and he had amber-colored eyes. She noticed he also wore head apparel that resembled a tiara across his forehead, and wore earrings as well. Whoever he was, he carried himself as if he was royalty also. He held out his arm for her to take, which she did, and he guided her out to the open floor.
"I don't normally do this, but I figured this was worth a try." he chuckled elegantly, tentatively placing a hand on her waist and held her other hand with his as they began to slow dance.
Bulma blushed, feeling awkward for some reason. "Believe me, I'm not used to being asked for a dance."
"I find that hard to believe." the man responded, looking to her eyes, studying her face. "I would think you get asked all the time."
She blushed a little more red this time, looking away from his gaze, and out into the crowd. "Well…thank you." was all she could say, as she continued to dance with this handsome, mysterious stranger.
"My name is Zarbon." the alien said, continuing to study Bulma closely.
"Nice to meet you Zarbon. My name is Bulma." she responded, giving him a small smile.
"Bulma. A lovely name to go along with such a lovely face." he replied honestly, as he slowly guided her along the dance floor. "I must say…I've never seen a Saiyan with such exotic coloring as yours." Zarbon commented, intently studying her blue hair and her blue eyes.
"Oh, I'm…." she began to say, before hesitating to tell him she wasn't Saiyan. It had almost slipped her mouth. It was a tightly held secret that no one except the Saiyans and Riko knew she was a human from planet Earth. As far as the rest of the galaxies were concerned, she was Saiyan…or possibly from some other planet that no one knew about. But how could she be from another planet? No other race looked Saiyan. After all, no one else knew Earth or humans existed, or what they looked like. She very well could be Saiyan, except for her skin and hair color. "…I'm a rarity indeed. My coloring is a genetic flaw." Bulma recovered quickly, holding some truth to her statement, hoping that he couldn't see she was covering something up.
"A genetic flaw? Is that why you do not have a tail either?" Zarbon asked, seeming to accept her answer.
"I…was born without one." Bulma answered honestly. Well, it was true, she wasn't!
"Very interesting." Zarbon murmured, making Bulma start to feel nervous. She felt like she was under his scrutiny, and she began to not like his questions. "Well, genetic flaw or not, Princess, you are a lovely creature. I can see why Vegeta made you his."
Bulma's breath hitched in her throat for a moment at hearing Zarbon's words. She wasn't sure how she felt about hearing what he just said. It gave a strange feeling to her chest and her stomach. "You must be mistaken. I'm not his princess."
"Oh?" Zarbon questioned, mildly confused as he looked over at the golden and red band wrapped around Bulma's wrist. She followed the direction of his amber eyes to her band also. "This signifies you as royalty. Well, Saiyan royalty, to be precise."
She had no immediate response to that. She was left momentarily speechless as she looked away from the band on her wrist. Vegeta had said it signified them as V.I.P, but she didn't realize the gravity of it. So everyone here thought her to be Saiyan royalty? That she was….with Vegeta? She guessed it would have made sense. She was the only one wearing the same style band as his. She glanced around, and saw that no one else was wearing their type of band. Not even close.
"Well, I'm not Saiyan royalty." Bulma clarified to him. "But I can see how that could be misinterpreted."
"Forgive my mistake." Zarbon said charmingly, and brought Bulma a little closer to him. "Now that I know you are not his, then I'm sure the prince would have no qualms if you kept me company for the rest of the night?"
"As a matter of fact, I do." a deep, gruff voice sounded next to them, as Vegeta appeared and gave Zarbon a deadly glare. He wanted to get Bulma away from him as quickly as possible. Bulma had gasped, somewhat startled at his abrupt appearance. Zarbon released her from his hold, leaving her confused as she looked the two men glaring tensely between each other.
"Ah, Prince Vegeta. Nice to see you out and about." Zarbon said, giving him the slightest bow. "I didn't think you were the type to come to events such as these."
The prince stood strong and unyielding, crossing his arms over his chest as he stared him down. "There are a lot of things you may not think me capable of, Zarbon. You would be surprised."
Zarbon gave him an arrogant smirk, as he flipped his long braid back over his shoulder and stuck his nose up in the air at Vegeta's veiled threat. "I could say the same to you."
A low growl emitted from Vegeta's chest as he began to clench his hands. "Why don't you then? I've got nothing but time right now." Bulma's eyes widened, wondering just what came over the both of them. Apparently there was already some sort of underlying animosity between the two men.
Zarbon studied the prince for a moment, before looking back at Bulma. He smiled wickedly, turning his attention back to Vegeta. "Perhaps another time. If you both will excuse me, I have other matters to which I must attend. I will see you later, Vegeta." he promised, and with that, Zarbon turned around and left them.
Vegeta wrapped his tail lightly around Bulma's waist and gently pulled her toward him. He was feeling highly threatened, overly protective, and possibly a little scared. Zarbon could have killed her, in the flash of a moment, just like that. And where was he at while Bulma was talking with him? He had been busy talking politics and business with others, getting distracted and not keeping a closer eye on her. He was a fucking idiot, he inwardly scolded himself.
"Vegeta?" Bulma asked him a little worriedly, seeing a tense look grace his handsome face.
"Don't talk to him again. Stay away from him." he ground out as a warning, not as a threat against her.
She studied him for a moment, seeing him show genuine worry. She furrowed her eyebrows, wondering what the hell was going on. "I didn't know you two were so against each other. He seemed so nice to me."
"Yes, he's a master of deception. Don't let him fool you. Appearances aren't always what they seem. He is a dangerous man." the prince warned her as he continued to sense Zarbon's ki move further away from them and away from the event. The further away it got, the more he felt he could breathe again.
"That's interesting….because I've been told the same thing about you." Bulma couldn't help but smirk, stepping closer to Vegeta and giving him a playful nudge on his side, trying to get him to relax.
He turned his head and looked at her, a small, evil smile gracing his lips. "And everything you've heard is true, don't you forget that."
Bulma couldn't help but chuckle. "So that means I should stay away from you, then?"
"It would be wise if you did. Then again, you're not known for being too bright." he attempted to bait her, only to watch her roll her eyes at him in mild amusement.
"Nice try. Anyway, I think you're just jealous."
"Jealous? Of what?" Vegeta asked, giving her a confused look.
"Of him dancing with me." she teased, stepping closer to him as one of the guests almost drunkenly walked right into her.
Vegeta scoffed at the thought. "Why would I be jealous, when I know you'd rather dance with me anyway?" he told her rather confidently as wrapped his tail a little more securely around her waist and pulled her even closer to him.
She inhaled sharply as she was brought closer against him."You're pretty sure of yourself, aren't you?" Bulma mused.
"I'm not hearing you deny it." was all Vegeta arrogantly said as he moved his left arm around her waist.
"Well, why don't we then?" she offered, calling his bluff as she turned around in his hold, and faced him. She placed her right hand on his upper arm as she bravely took hold of his other hand in hers.
"Dance?" he asked, genuinely caught off-guard as he watched her intertwine her fingers with his.
"Why not?" Bulma shrugged her shoulders lightly, giving Vegeta a flirtatious smile as she squeezed his hand affectionately. He eyed her, a smug smile on his lips as he brought her right up against him, both of them suddenly committed to this as they began to dance with each other. Neither one of them was really paying attention to the rhythm of the music as they moved slowly and gracefully around the floor, being careful not to run into other couples. By this time almost everyone was getting intoxicated and weren't moving around as elegantly as before.
When they took their first steps out on the dance floor, neither one of them thought they would spend the rest of the night dancing with each other. They had lost track of time, and of the other guests that were there as they continued to dance together and talk and banter about random things that came up on a whim. Maybe it had been the alcohol that initally relaxed them, but they hadn't had any more to drink in a couple of hours, and yet here they were still attached to each other, with no sign of letting go anytime soon. Whenever Bulma wasn't looking into Vegeta's eyes, she was looking up at the sky, still awed over the beautiful auroras before looking back at him and being just as enchanted by the smolder in his dark eyes.
Honestly, he was just as entranced by the look she held in her blue eyes.
Bulma rested her head on Vegeta's shoulder, nestling it near the crook of his neck as she looked out towards crowd of people still there. She just couldn't describe the feelings she was having as they continued to slowly and gracefully dance around the floor, the both of them being so close to each other...and not just physically.
"Vegeta?"
"Hn?"
"Can I ask you something?" she said softly.
"Go ahead."
"What does my ki feel like?"
"What makes you ask?" Vegeta murmured, feeling calm and serene as he held her in his arms, gently placing the side of his chin on top of her forehead as they continued to dance.
She let out a small sigh, feeling oddly content. "I guess I never thought about asking you before. Earlier you said you felt Goku's ki nearby. And you knew it was him…so I wondered what mine feels like to you."
"It's hard to describe, since you can't sense ki yourself." he began, wondering how he would explain it. "You can recognize someone by seeing them, or simply by their voice, right?" He felt her nod her head 'yes' against him. "Same concept with ki. Everyone has their own individual energy signal. No two are alike. It's just another way of identification."
"You still haven't answered my question." Bulma said softly, closing her eyes, feeling utterly relaxed and happy against him. "What does my ki feel like to you? Strong? Weak? Stressed? Intellegent? Female?" she randomly threw out descriptive suggestions on how ki could possibly be described, not having a clue on what it felt like to sense ki at all.
Vegeta took a deep breath and let it out, taking a moment to contemplate his next words to her. What did her ki feel like to him? It felt like a hundred things to him. "Your ki is….familiar." he offered the simple description, after finding an adequate word to describe it.
"Familiar? That's it?" Bulma commented in soft surprise, opening her eyes and pulling her head away from Vegeta's shoulder only to look up at him with a puzzled look. "I thought you'd say something different."
"Like what?" he asked her curiously.
She shrugged. "I don't know. I guess I just wasn't expecting 'familiar'."
Vegeta looked back at her, affection hidden deeply in his eyes. "Familiar is a good thing, woman. I've felt your ki since before you were born."
"You were only 2 years old when I was born!"
"Yes, and already trained to sense ki signals around me. And I've felt yours ever since. You ki is familiar." Vegeta trailed off, hesitating to reveal something deeper to her, but after a moment, he figured what the hell. "You feel like home."
Bulma didn't know how to respond to such a rare and honest admission from him. What could she say to that? She felt her cheeks heat up in a blush as she looked away from his gaze. "I wish I could feel your ki, Vegeta."
At that point, he released his hold on her, much to her disappointment. But their separation was short lived as he proceeded to take off his gloves, tucking them behind his back, underneath his chest plate as he quickly placed his hold around her again. He wrapped his tail around her hips, bringing her close against him. He placed his arm around her waist, his bare hand coming in contact with the exposed skin on her lower back, earning a tiny, soft gasp from her at his somewhat intimate touch. He then took her other hand in his, interlocking his fingers with hers, glad to be rid of the small barrier between them. "What do you feel?" he demanded softly from her.
Bulma let in an unsteady breath as she felt his warm hand on her back, and the warmth of his other hand that was intertwined with hers. The feel of his bare skin against hers, as minor as the contact was, had somehow lit a fire inside her heart. "Warmth." she began, before shaking her head. "No. Not warmth. I feel heat. Strength. Confidence." she told him honestly, feeling the butterflies in her stomach running rampant and wild.
"Is that what I feel like to you, woman?" Vegeta murmured affectionately, giving her hand a gentle squeeze as he looked at her.
"For the most part." was all she could manage to say as she suddenly felt like she couldn't think very well, not with him looking at her like that. "Am I right? Is that what your ki feels like?" she said quietly, searching his face for a read on what he was thinking.
"Close enough." Vegeta replied, realizing he was getting too close to her for his own comfort. What the hell was he doing? Not to mention he was not a fan of public displays of affection, yet here he was with the woman. It was like he couldn't help himself, not when every move he seemed to make, she welcomed and returned. Damn this planet, he thought to himself, wondering if maybe there was some sort of magical aura on Demesor after all. Before he could contemplate the thought any further, gasps and loud voices from the crowd were heard, and their momentary trance with each other was broken as Vegeta and Bulma looked up into the sky, and saw the beginnings of fire burn across the atmosphere.
"The shower's starting!" she said excitedly, gasping in delight as she watched the pieces of meteorites blaze though the atmosphere, causing bright streaks of light and fire to appear randomly. The meteor shower was so close…. she never thought she could ever be so close to one! Bulma's joy was radiant, as she continued to gaze up into the sky, watching the most amazing celestial show she thought she would ever get to see. She turned her head back to look at Vegeta, who was also caught up in looking at the meteor shower. He then felt her eyes on him and he looked down at her, giving her a small grin, which she mirrored back at him. She let go of his hand and wrapped her arms around his waist, hugging him as hard as she could as a 'thank you.' He chuckled lightly as she turned her neck to look back up into the sky, keeping the prince in her embrace.
Vegeta took in a deep breath and slowly let it out, feeling contentment, and perhaps even happiness as he coaxed Bulma to remove her arms from around him. She looked up at him with a confused look before she realized he was turning her around and facing her away from him. He figured she could lean back against him and not strain her neck. She got the hint as she felt him place his arms around her, bringing her against him. It was a very affectionate move, and one that Bulma more than welcomed as she placed her hands on top of his, intertwining their fingers together again. She leaned back into him, tilting the side of her head against his as they together they watched the falling stars shoot through the sky. Vegeta couldn't help but think to himself that even though his parents would be furious at his disappearance today, he would do this all over again, no questions asked.
She was well worth it.
It was almost 4:25 in the morning, Earth time, when Vegeta and Bulma arrived back at her home after the meteor shower ended and the event started to wind down. The tiredness and sleepiness started to kick in for both of them towards the end of the night after the celestial showcase. After it was over, they reluctantly agreed it was time to go home and get some much needed sleep. It had been a very long day for both of them, after all.
"I swear I'm never going to get used to this." Bulma said, referring to his Instant Transmission ability as they appeared back on Earth inside her darkened home. She squinted her eyes, trying to adjust to the sudden darkness.
"With Kakarot always teleporting you, you would think you'd be used to it by now." Vegeta said, naturally being able to see much better in the dark than she could, as he removed his arm from around her waist and grabbed her hand. He began to lead them up the stairs and down the hallway that lead to their bedrooms.
"No shit." Bulma chucked softly, before lowering her voice. "But it's different with you." she said quietly, not wanting to wake her parents up.
"Why the hell are you whispering?" Vegeta asked.
"Because I don't want to wake my parents up! It's probably like 4 in the morning right now." Bulma whispered loudly back to him.
"Their bedroom isn't even on the same level as ours! How could they possibly hear us?" Vegeta reasoned somewhat loudly, prompting her to hush him.
"Shhh! That's not the point." she told him as she tried to stifle a yawn with her other hand. It didn't work. "It's funny...I feel like we're teenagers again, sneaking back into the house, trying not to make a sound so we don't wake them up." she laughed softly, as her free hand found the hallway light and she flipped the switch. The light was bright, but it worked for her, since now she could see much more clearly.
"You were always the bad influence, making me fly you somewhere." Vegeta told her as he yawned also, wincing a bit at the sudden light that appeared in the hallway.
"Me?" Bulma said incredulously, pointing to herself. "I don't remember you trying to stop me. You didn't have to come along."
"You really expected me to let you go out at night by yourself? You're crazy."
"Shhh! At least keep your voice down. And you wanted to come along with me." Bulma replied.
Vegeta gave her a small frown. "I did not."
"Yes you did, admit it! We have fun on our little adventures."
"I will admit nothing. Now get to bed, woman. You are to start working on my new gravity room as soon as possible. How much sleep is good for you? Two hours, right?"
"Ha ha." Bulma said sarcastically. "Give me at least seven."
"How about four hours, and I bring you tons of coffee?" Vegeta offered her, half-seriously.
Bulma rolled her eyes at him, shaking her head. "Jerk."
"Brat."
She stuck her tongue out at him. "How about five hours?" she compromised.
"Five is acceptable." the prince agreed reluctantly, looking at her for a few moments, studying her. It was with a look that Bulma had seen from him earlier.
"What is it?" she asked him, feeling something was amiss.
"Nothing, woman." Vegeta told her as he looked down, realizing they were still holding hands. Before he could wonder why they still were, Bulma squeezed his hand and stepped up close to him, prompting him to look up at her, wondering what she wanted.
"Thank you for tonight." she told him sincerely, looking into his dark eyes and seeing that he seemed confused about something.
"You're welcome." Vegeta murmured as he let her hand go. It was then that Bulma placed her hand on the side of Vegeta's face and leaned in, giving him a warm, affectionate kiss on his cheek. She then slowly pulled away…and as she did, their eyes locked for a short moment.
It was in that very moment that everything changed between them.
Vegeta's heart began to beat faster, and Bulma's had skipped a beat, when he leaned in, quickly closing the distance between them as he crushed his lips against hers. The kiss had only lasted for a few seconds, but as they were caught in that moment in time, it felt as though it was an eternity. He managed to break their kiss, his breathing somewhat labored as he looked at Bulma, alarmed at his actions, unsure of what she was thinking or feeling now. Hell, he wasn't even sure how he felt about what he just did!
Bulma managed a difficult swallow, staring at Vegeta for a few seconds, hardly able to make her voice work. Even if she could, what would she say?! She hadn't expected this, but truth be told, she didn't have time to reason anything out. Her heart took over as she quickly placed her hand behind Vegeta's head, pulling him forward, bringing his lips to meet hers again as she passionately kissed him back.
Any doubt that Vegeta may have had about kissing Bulma disappeared when she reciprocated his unexpected kiss.
After all their years of knowing each other, despite the distance between them...
-despite the time spent apart...sometimes years,
-despite their constant arguments and the pressuring demands their worlds placed upon each of them,
...they had somehow managed to fall in love with each other.
There was no obvious time or place that it had happened. When it came to destiny, how could anyone ever pinpoint an exact moment?
Vegeta placed his hands on her hips, the nervousness, awkwardness, and resistance no longer existant between them as he confidently stepped forward, pressing Bulma's back against the wall. She ran her hands over his scalp and through his hair, grazing her nails along his neckline as they kissed with fevered passion. Instinctually, she grabbed a fistful of his hair and pulled it, producing a growl of pleasure from deep within his chest.
Bulma broke the kiss after hearing him growl, worried she had made him mad. "Did I hurt you?" she asked breathily, her chest heaving with the intensity of the heated moment.
"No, it felt good." Vegeta's deep, husky response sent pleasurable feelings through her as he silenced her with his lips again. She did not protest against him, sighing against him in satisfaction, feeling his strong hands grip her hips and slide up and down her sides, making her want more.
"Vegeta..." she managed to breathe, urging him on as they kissed. She was overwhelmed from the emotions she had for him as her feelings were brutally pulled forward to the surface, after having been hidden deep within her for the longest of times. At the moment, she felt she could spend an eternity with him, and still never get enough.
Hearing Bulma breathe his name in desire...it only further fueled the fire that had ignited inside his soul for her. "Quiet woman, you'll wake up your parents." Vegeta smirked against her skin as he broke their kiss, trailing his mouth along Bulma's jawline and down the side of her neck. The elation at finally being able to claim her was overwhelming for him.
This was crazy. This was insane!
This was everything they never knew they wanted.
Vegeta snaked his tail underneath Bulma's dress, wrapping it around one of her legs as he ran the tip of his tail along the inside of her thigh, teasing her. Well, to her it was more like torture as he was rewarded for his effort when she mewled in pleasure. Satisfied that she still welcomed his advances, he began his trail of kisses back up her neck to her jawline. "What the hell do you bathe yourself in, sugar?" he murmured, beginning to nip at her flushed skin.
Bulma panted as she let Vegeta ravish her, continuing to run one hand through his hair, her other hand trying to grip his torso, only to be blocked by his armor. She decided to hell with his armor, tugging at it for a few seconds as the prince then took the hint, breaking away from her for a moment. He pulled his cape and shoulder armor over his head, tossing it aside as he then removed his chestplate, tossing that aside as well. He flashed her a sexy smirk, and she returned a sultry smile at him as he swept her up in his hold again, their lips crashing together once more as she ran her hands over his upper body. Vegeta growled again in pleasure, quickly losing the power to restrain himself. They still tried to be as quiet as possible, which was a difficult feat in and of itself, considering how quickly things heated up between them. It was faster than either one of them ever expected, but he figured to hell with her parents if they woke up from the noise.
"What are we doing?" Bulma breathed out in question, her voice raspy with desire as she felt his lips move down her neck again. It was hard to clear her head when all she could think of was how damn good he felt against her.
"I don't know." Vegeta breathed hot against her body, his lips soft upon her skin.
"This is wrong." she murmured, her mind starting to override her heart as sickening guilt had begun to rear its ugly head into the picture.
"Is it?" Vegeta purred against her neck for a moment as he then brought his face level to hers. He saw the desire flickering in her blue eyes...those eyes, they would be the death of him, he inwardly told himself as he pressed his mouth against hers again in another heated kiss. "It feels right to me." he mumbled against her lips.
"I know…" Bulma breathed heavily, agreeing with him as she continued to kiss him. "But...that's not what...I'm talking about…" she panted again as she managed to break his intense kisses and turn her head away from him slightly. "I can't do this to Yamcha."
Instantly, the mood in the hallway changed by those six simple, dangerous words.
She heard Vegeta growl for a third time, but this time she could tell it was out of warning, and anger, at hearing his name brought up. She winced, knowing it was horribly bad timing on her part, but she had to stop this before it really went too far.
Vegeta abruptly managed to tear himself away from her, feeling like she had just attacked him. He clenched his fists, his breathing still labored from the intensity of their moment together, mixed with an anger that he could not explain. "Why the fuck are you bringing him up right now?!" he snarled at her. He had so many feelings and emotions running through him right now, he wasn't sure what direction he was being pulled in.
Bulma breathed heavily, trying to will her heart and her body to calm down, forcing herself to think rationally. "Because I don't want to be like him!"
"Woman, you are nothing like him." Vegeta spat out distastefully, not understanding what she meant. All he knew was that he was pissed off at the abrupt change in direction this situation was suddenly going in.
"Really? Because I'm still engaged to him! If I cheat on him...then I'll be no better of a person than he was when he cheated on me!" Bulma said sternly, ignoring what her heart wanted as she tried to get Vegeta to understand why she couldn't go any further with him at this moment.
"Then go to scar-face, right now, and tell him you don't want to be with him anymore!" Vegeta demanded from her, seeing a very easy solution to her supposed problem. If her code of ethics was stopping them from being together, then Bulma's tie to the weakling simply needed to be severed. "In fact, I'll even take you over to him right now." he said firmly, grabbing her arm and beginning to raise his two fingers to his forehead, intent on feeling out the weakling's ki and teleporting them. Who cared if it was an ungodly hour in the morning?
Vegeta didn't miss how the look on Bulma's face immediately changed as she whipped her arm away from his grasp, stopping him from teleporting them. "Who says I don't want to be with him anymore?!" she mindlessly blurted out, feeling like he was trying to control her as she shot a dark glare at him. "You don't get to make that decision, Vegeta! No one but me gets to make that decision!" she said loudly to him, bringing forth to the surface some of the doubts and fears and full-grown resentment she had bottled up within her, inadvertently taking out her frustrations on him.
He glared back just as darkly at her. "Your 'decision'?!" He fisted his hands, trying to reign in his anger. "Have you ever thought to consider my opinion on anything?!"
"Your 'opinion' on what?!" Bulma demanded. "You and Yamcha have never gotten along since the day you two met! You two hate each other with a passion! I already know what your 'opinion' of him is! How can I not? You mention it to me every damn chance you get!"
Vegeta growled at her, his pride refusing to say the words he really wanted to say to her. "Yet nothing seems to register in that tiny brain of yours because you choose to remain blind to who and what he is! You pride yourself on being a genius, but your serious lack of judgement in choosing him for a mate is proving you to be a complete idiot!"
It was Bulma's turn to growl, hating to be called an idiot, or anything demeaning to her intelligence. "How dare you!" she yelled at him, her pride damaged. "You are unbelieveable! How can you expect me to drop everything like that, just because you don't like him?! I've got a massive multi-million zeni wedding happening in a couple of days! You want me to just end it with him, just like that..." she said, snapping her fingers, "...and not even show him the respect of taking time to sit him down and talk with him about anything?!"
"Yes." Vegeta spat out demandingly, clenching his fists as his tail lashed around angrilly. That was exactly what he wanted her to do.
Bulma looked at him incredulously, not believing he was truly expecting this from her. "So...what? You want me to simply go over to his place, right now, and tell him that I don't want to be with him anymore because of why?" she demanded from him. "Why, Vegeta? Because you said so?! You want me to tell him I'm leaving him for what...a fling with you?!" She immediately regretted the words that came tumbling out from her mouth as she winced, hearing her tell him such a heartless thing, knowing she had hurt him. She didn't know what had gotten into her. Perhaps it was her exhaustion, coupled with the overwhelming stress lately, that made her lash out at him like that.
As right as it felt when they were all over each other those few minutes ago, their newly-surfaced feelings for each other scared the hell out of them, as they unexpectedly crossed the line between whatever they were, to something much more.
"A fling?!" Vegeta's aura immediately darkened at her audacity. He shot her one of the most pissed off looks he had ever given her before. He was so enraged at her words that he wasn't even sure he wanted to speak to her. "A fling?! Is THAT what you think this is?!" he yelled at Bulma as an unfamiliar feeling clutched at his chest. Everything was going badly between them, as the pain began to take hold.
"Am I wrong?!" she yelled back, demanding an answer from him even as her breath inside her lungs tightened, feeling the bitter sting of regret from knowing she had hurt him. She felt like the downward spiral they were in would not stop, as the divide between them was quickly growing. She wasn't sure what answer she wanted to hear from him as she saw the vein on his forehead pop out, watching as he clenched his fists and was trying his best to restrain his anger at her. "Tell me what this is!"
Vegeta refused to answer her at first, as they stood tensely in the hallway. Bulma breathed heavily, worried at how pissed off he was, even more alarmed at how much she had hurt him. "I'll tell you what this was." he said after a few quiet, agonizing moments. "This was a fucking mistake."
The pain inside Bulma's heart grew even stronger. Her pride wouldn't let her try to prove him wrong. "I guess it was, wasn't it?!" she snapped back at him, feeling angered at the situation they now found themselves in.
"Yes, the biggest mistake of my life." Vegeta said tersely, thrown back by how quickly things went sour between them. The pain and hurt he was feeling was getting to be too much to bare, as he glared at Bulma. All he wanted to do now was leave her sight, and somehow get her out of his heart. "I take that back. You're the biggest mistake of my life." he told Bulma, regret hitting him at the last words poured from his mouth. He wanted to hurt her as much as she had hurt him. It must have worked, because he saw the tears quickly building up in her eyes as she gave him a stunned look that spoke volumes.
"Vegeta!" she pleaded sternly, shocked and hurt at his words, trying not to let her tears fall as she felt their bond quickly being severed. Their hearts were breaking, and it was horribly painful, and terribly real. The damage had been done, and their regret was just as strong as their anger and the feelings of rejection they felt. Unfortunately, their pride demanded that tonight was something that neither one of them would easily forget or let go of.
The prince growled dangerously at her, not wanting to hear another word from her mouth, especially not his name. "Do me a favor, Bulma. Don't bother me tomorrow, or from now on, unless it is absolutely necessary. As far as I am concerned, I expect you to build the gravity room in six weeks, as agreed." As Bulma was stunned into silence, he pointed a finger at her, unable to stop his outburst. "And don't you dare expect me to be there to watch you marry that fucking human weakling! In fact, you can forget me ever coming back to Earth."
Having said his final words, he raised his fingers to his forehead, glaring at Bulma. He forced himself to ignore the tears that were threatening to fall from her beautiful eyes as he concentrated on Bardock's ki, teleporting himself back to Vegetasei.
"Restless tonight 'cause I wasted the light-
-between both these times I drew a really thin line.
It's nothing I planned, and not that I can…
…but you should be mine across that line."
Fantastic verse from a song, and had to add this here because I felt it fit great with the chapter.
Okay, be honest with me. How did you like the chapter? I know you probably hate the ending of it. Believe me, I felt all these different emotions as I was writing this chapter, especially the ending. Even I'm heartbroken with what is going on now, and I'm the one writing the direction of the story! It's bad when it's starting to affect me in real life. I couldn't sleep well after I finished this chapter, guess I was too stressed out.
I hope you will leave me a review and tell me your thoughts on this chapter. All of them. I don't care how long your review is, I want to hear it! And thank you for continuing to read my story and follow it. Sorry for the long waits between chapters, but I'm trying my best to give you a good quality story. My biggest fear when I first began to write this, beside keeping everyone somewhat in character, was moving the story too fast. I know it has taken a long time to get where we're at, but I like to think that you have developed a relationship with the characters (especially Vegeta and Bulma), and that watching things slowly develop is more rewarding that having it all happen in the first few chapters. Like I said in my earlier chapters, this journey will be long, and I hope you're still down for the ride.
Love ya! Chapter 15 is under construction. It will be out as soon as I can manage. Thanks for reading!