Beta Read by ShadowMajin. Great help.

Note: ShadowMajin drew my attention on the fact that he considered Puar as a girl. Thus, I found out that this gender is specific to the english translation of DBZ. However, the cat is actually drifting between genderless and male in the japanese version (as well as in the french version by the way). So I have to let you know that I didn't intend to change the character's gender into a male. I just sticked to what I knew about him/her/it/whatever. Don't be shocked.

Chapter 6 - Turning Gold into Lead

The night had been tough.

They had won the game. Yamcha had the feeling he'd been blessed by a sort of godly grace - Not that he had ever believed in a God whatsoever, but he couldn't find better words to describe it. With some hindsight he was dumbfounded by the miraculous turn of events. His every move had resulted in a success. His runs. His hits. He'd been constantly at the right place at the right time, driving the opposite team crazy. Furthermore, his teammates had for once followed his pace and they had served him right. He'd been so focused on the game at some point that he could still hardly hear the audience's insane roar. It had been like drifting through a dream and truth was Yamcha hadn't felt that way for a very long time.

The game had ended in a crushing victory for West City's. Parsely City's team had no other choice than to mumble some half-hearted congratulations before climbing up into their bus back home.

West City's supporters had gone wild in jubilation and Yamcha had been their focal point. He'd been their hero that night and the boss of the club had thrown a celebration immediately afterward. Yamcha attended it – how could it be otherwise?

It had been nothing near the usual crappy parties they had with cheap beer and a small group of fans, including the stadium staff. No, it had been far beyond that. How the boss had time to organize such an incredible event, although he had no way to predict their amazing victory, Yamcha had no idea, but the party took place in a select club a few blocks away from the stadium in a crazy loud atmosphere.

Good, strong booze, deafening music, hot girls everywhere, Yamcha had been stunned at how good the club had been at planning everything. The party could easily compete with the ones Satan City's Baseball club organized. Yamcha felt like he had traveled back in time to the earlier years of his career. He'd felt carried away and soon enough, his old habits had been back, lurking in his mind and teasing his body.

He'd drunk too much, or at least much more than he was used to lately. At some point he'd found himself pinned to a wall by a tantalizing brunette in a dark corridor of the club with his palm cropping her unfamiliar breast. He'd been able to gather his wits just in time and he'd left the girl and the party behind.

It had been past two in the morning when a driver had finally dropped him at the place he was supposed to join Bulma. He'd felt dizzy while struggling the reluctant lock of the door, but when he'd found her waiting for him in a wicked silky robe, he'd been snatched out of his numbness in a blink.

Bulma was like the victory of the night before – an unexpected grace in his routine. He only mourned the fact that they couldn't have an official relationship. She refused it to him. It had been the first thing she'd told him when they started to date. Nothing could come out publicly unless they were willing to engage themselves in a serious bond – which meant obviously marriage. That was the deal.

Although Bulma had a casual nature most of the time, she nurtured a disturbing obsession when it came about the outside world, especially journalists. She liked to call them creepers. Yamcha couldn't blame her for that. He'd read a lot of gossips about her before they met and none of them did her justice.

In the beginning, Yamcha hadn't minded the secrecy of their romance even if Bulma's constant suspicion sounded somewhat excessive. In fact, he'd found the whole matter quite exciting. Yet, as time went by, his excitement had given way to a kind of weariness. It sometimes felt like their relationship was some shameful sin no one should ever learn about. It was all about secret dates in secret odd places and unexpected changes of plans - and he was sometimes hurt at the thought that Bulma might indeed be willing to hide him, or to prevent him from trespassing on her intimate life.

He wasn't even sure where she was really living. He had the feeling that she had a secret life without him and she could hardly be by his side in the moment he most wanted her to be, like a party about an outstanding victory of his. This was nothing near the way he'd like to live his life with her.

Yet, he wasn't ready to take the plunge and bring himself to propose to her. The mere thought of it scared him. He'd never had a girlfriend for such a long time before and their relationship still looked like the exploration of some unknown territory in his mind. As exciting as it was, he couldn't help but stay on his guard with the constant awareness of a possible trick.

Puar had often told him he was gifted to turn gold into lead. Puar knew him well and Yamcha couldn't deny his friend was somehow right. Life hadn't always been nice to him, but the few times great opportunities had appeared to him, Yamcha had grabbed them so clumsily that they'd slipped away.

Puar was smarter than him and he'd been his companion since their childhood in a bleak orphanage at the foot of Mount Frypan. Back then, they'd been taught Martial Arts with the lame prospect to become some local merchants' henchmen. None of them had any will for such a life though, so they ran away at the age of sixteen and with nothing else to do in a wild area like Salty desert, they'd settled down as thieves. Life had been hard at that time, but Yamcha kept precious memories of the way Puar and him had supported each other. They'd spent some years in that desert, hardly living from the fruits of their misadventures until Puar claimed they should move on. If it hadn't been for him, Yamcha might as well be still rotting in Salty's hellish backwater.

Lucky for him, Puar had made the decision for both of them to go and live with other human beings. Although Yamcha would rather die than admit it, he'd been somewhat scared. He couldn't bear the idea of facing real people. Puar had dragged him the whole way to the closest town.

As a matter of fact, Aru wasn't exactly a town, Yamcha realized it years later, but it had been a living place nevertheless. Puar had found shelter for them and even a job. Yamcha had a hard time adjusting to this demanding life. Getting up in time, eating in time, and being stuck doing boring things in the meantime, all this had been a true challenge to him. He'd been fired after two days. He was able to find another job, but it didn't last long either. Furthermore, Puar had caught him falling back into his old thief's habits. Things were going down the hill and Yamcha still hoped that Puar would accept to go back to Salty Desert.

That's when Yamcha discovered he was much more gifted to deal with women than with men. For some reasons, most women turned out to be rather compromising with him. He was especially proved right the day he was hired by a Lady-Farmer. She would never nag at him for being late in the morning and she would never check out the length of his breaks throughout the day of work. Yamcha enjoyed her cool attitude for it allowed him to have a job and to get rid of the guilt of having Puar pay for everything for both of them. He never made the connection between his outstanding working condition and the occasional sex he had with his boss until Puar pointed it out. Yamcha was that naïve at the time. He had lived most of his life like a savage and he still had a lot to learn about people, especially about women.

Puar had blamed him for being so foolish, but Yamcha was too dumb to get it anyway and as Puar had predicted, things turned awfully wrong. The Lady-Farmer happened to be married and they had to run away once more. They left an inglorious mess behind and it resulted in them needing to get lost in a much bigger town - which led them to Satan City.

Even though Puar had been mad at him, he'd never held a deep grudge to Yamcha for ruining everything they had built in Aru. Yamcha never knew much about family bound, but Puar had always been the closest thing to a brother in his mind. Yamcha was sure a brother wouldn't be more dedicated and forgiving than Puar. He'd saved him countless times and he'd never left him behind, so no matter the blood running in their veins, Puar was his brother. Even the day Yamcha had found out Puar had a clear liking for men, he hadn't felt shocked. Being a woman's lover, Yamcha had to admit that he wasn't exactly at ease with other guy's homosexuality, but Puar was something different. Yamcha didn't mind because they were brothers after all, so no awkwardness could taint their bond. Puar only asked him to stop wandering half-naked at home, pointing out he wouldn't do it if he was a girl and Yamcha thought it was fair.

When they arrived in Satan City, Puar had some saving left and they were able to find a small apartment in a wretched neighborhood. Satan City was quite different from Aru. It was much bigger and much richer too. They both found a job quite easily. Puar was hired by a secondhand car dealership and Yamcha found work as a cleaner in a mall.

It was nothing near thrilling and he had a weird work schedule. He would start early in the morning and get a five hours break in the middle of the day. This pace had been somewhat disturbing for his wild nature, but he had done his best to stick to the job as he still felt guilty about his misfortune in Aru.

That's how he discovered baseball. Being free five endless hours a day, he got used to hanging around on the playground next to the mall. A baseball team used a nearby lot for their practices. It was a small team made up with the boys of the neighborhood, but Yamcha had been mesmerized by their game from the very first time he saw them play. He'd never heard of baseball before, but it demanded a fascinating mix of skills.

Yamcha's body had been used to physical effort back to the time when he lived in the desert and even in Aru when he was giving hand on the farm. Yet, in Satan City he had few opportunities to exert himself. It bothered him after a while and he thought naturally about giving baseball a try.

He started to train with the boys of the mall during his free time. He happened to be talented. Even more than talented. He won a game, then two. Then, he was hired in a semi-professional team of the town and it wasn't long before he was offered a golden position in Satan City's team.

Puar and him had been living in Satan City for exactly two years when Yamcha signed the contract and they celebrated like they never did before. At the age of 22, Yamcha's life sounded like a fairy tale running from the orphanage at the foot of the gloomy Mount Frypan up to the stars of Satan City's baseball club.

However, as Puar said, Yamcha had an outstanding skill to turn gold into lead. He would turn any gift he was blessed with into a maddening curse.

Yamcha wasn't prepared to be a star. He was young, quite stupid, and he'd never dealt too well with people. Temptations and bad habits were all around as he discovered what it was like to be rich and adored, but once again, he fell for a girl.

He hadn't learned his lesson well and although Puar had kept an eye on him the whole time, Yamcha couldn't prevent himself from dating the daughter of the club's owner. Such a relationship would have screamed trouble to anyone sensible, except that Yamcha wasn't anyone sensible. He had considered the matter as nothing serious and so had the girl in the first place. She'd been glad to set herself as a handsome, promising baseball player's girlfriend and he'd been glad to be regarded as someone important in the best places of the town. It was fun and rewarding and it was enough for him.

He had forgotten the basic rules he'd been taught back in Aru. The day the girl found out she wasn't the only one to share his bed, she went mad. Her madness had been as fierce as her humiliation had been deep since she found out through the local newspapers about his infidelities.

Her father being the club's owner, she'd become a dreadful foe to Yamcha's career. The young man's results were already going downhill due to some excessive self-indulgence and poor attendance at practice and it hadn't been long before the club decided Yamcha's contract had to come to an end.

The young man had been quite devastated at the news. He was good. He knew he hadn't done things right, but he was still good. His coach had tried to comfort him by mentioning a lot of other teams ready to sign him, but Satan City was the top base ball club in the country. Being fired from it, Yamcha had hardly any hope to ever be the best again and he was well-aware of this fact. He'd felt hopeless.

Despite Puar's attempt to cheer him up, Yamcha refused all the offers any other team would send to him. He wanted to believe until the end that none of this crap was happening to him. Satan City's coach would call him back. He would realize how terrible his mistake had been. He would realize that no one could replace him and he would beg for his forgiveness. Thus, having some comfortable savings at disposal, Yamcha remained unemployed for several months.

That's when he discovered gambling. Gambling was very much like life except it was much more intense. One would win until they lost, or lose until they won, but adrenaline and hope would never let you down. Gambling clubs happened to be the best place ever to test Yamcha's skill to turn gold into lead. His attempts as a poker player turned into a total disaster and he ended definitely broke. After a while he had no choice, but to accept the offer from West City's baseball.

West City's baseball team was nothing near Satan City's. It was a second class team with limited means. Yet, Yamcha hadn't cared when he had signed the contract. He'd craved for escape in the first place. He needed to run away from the great waste of his life and to kill any hope of turning back. Puar followed him as always. He'd been able to attend night school and was now a state-certified teacher.

As a matter of fact, Yamcha's life in West City hadn't been much different than it had been in Satan City. It had only been duller. The games he played were less exciting, the fans supporting him were less engaged, the money he made was less impressive, the alcohol he drank was less expensive. Everything was less. Only the girls and the gambling would keep thrilling him as much as they always had.

All this had been going on for four years until he'd met Bulma nine months ago at a charity gala. He couldn't help but try to approach her as she stood as an enigmatic personality. Although she was shorter than expected, he was pleased to find out she was looking as good as the few pictures he'd seen in the newspapers. He was successful to have a quick chat with her and he realized with some bewilderment that she was following closely his team's results. He hadn't suspected such a woman could go for baseball, but Bulma was a surprising personality.

He tried to work his usual charms on her, but it didn't work out. She was very mistrustful and she wouldn't relax as easily as a normal person. She left him behind without the slightest hope to see her again.

He forgot about her until he received a gift after a match he'd won weeks later. She'd sent him a bottle of his favorite whiskey and he was stunned by her right guess about his taste. Along with the bottle, there was a congratulation card and while most women would have mentioned their phone number on it, Bulma had only left an email. At first, he'd been hesitant about the meaning of this detail and he contented himself with sending a short message to thank her. He was rewarded by an immediate reply that took him aback. "Let's meet."

He had gloated at the idea that she might have kept a constant eye on her emails while praying for him to get in touch with her. He sent a message of agreement, but she never replied. It left him quite puzzled for two days. That was until he had a day off and she showed up at his place. He'd been completely dumbfounded to find her standing at his door in the morning. She gave him a bright smile. "Your manager told me you had a day off. How about hanging around?"

And so they did. Bulma's life was as strange as that. It was completely unpredictable. He had to admit that he had only chased her out of interest in the first place. She was a challenge and he liked women too much to turn his nose on such an opportunity. Yet, things hadn't been as easy as he'd hoped and then, his attraction for her had grown out of hand. Now, he could say she was his first real girlfriend.

He sighed in satisfaction at this thought and turned his head to watch her sleeping by his side. A dazzling ray of light was making its way through the curtains of the room and he realized it might be lunch time. He was starving and he still felt somewhat dizzy from the alcohol he'd drunk the night before.

He rolled over to her and gave a slight peek on her shoulder. She was like a gold nugget in his life and he would be very careful not to turn it into lead this time. Since she didn't seem to wake up, he slipped out of the sheets and got up. He rubbed his eyes and yawned while contemplating the bedroom. It wasn't the same as last time. They never slept in the same bedroom and as usual, there was hardly any personal stuff in here. How many bedrooms did the Capsule building have? He still wondered if Bulma had a real home somewhere and if she would end up showing him her true place.

He walked to the window and drew the curtain open to enjoy the bright warm sun shining outside. The room being at fair heights, he enjoyed dreamily the sight of the city below. He was remembering the game of the night before and despite a slight headache, he felt good.

A small noise echoed in the room. It was like a brief crack, but it wasn't loud and he didn't pay much attention to it until he heard a second one. He frowned. It sounded like something coming from outside and he looked further through the window in an attempt to see what was going on. There was a third noise and for the first time he noticed a tiny point in the windowpane. He was bewildered when a second one appeared all of a sudden along with the same sound once again.

"Yamcha, get down!" Bulma's hoarse voice exclaimed. He turned to her in surprise as she was jumping out of the bed and grabbing his arm to pull him down to the ground. He obliged with some astonishment. "What's going on?" he asked in confusion.

Her blue eyes were wide open and she dashed to the curtains to close them in panic. Then, she rushed to the bedside table and grasped her phone before crawling back to him on all four. "Are you alright?" she whispered.

He arched his eyebrows. "Of course, I am. What's going on?" he insisted.

"Didn't you see? Someone was shooting at you," she explained.

He was so speechless at that statement that he didn't react. She peeked his lips. "Don't worry, the glass is bulletproof here," she resumed softly. She caressed his cheek in a comforting gesture and gave him a weak smile.

"I have to call Tien though," she added after a while.

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