Fallen – Chapter 6

Previously

Several hours later Dr. Briefs wandered his way back to the Med Lab to check on his only child. He didn't see Vegeta in the waiting room and assumed he was inside so he quietly opened the door. As he suspected he found Vegeta asleep in the chair next to the bed. He was still holding Bulma's hand.

The next thing Vegeta knew, someone unfamiliar was in the room. He flared his ki and was almost disappointed to find one of the doctors tending to Bulma. He stood and stretched his back. A meek appearing nurse entered the room and said something about a bath and changing some bandages, Vegeta only paid half attention to her. He took one last look at Bulma and was pleased with her coloring, her ki levels were beginning to return to normal, and one of the two of them was in sore need of a shower. He left the room and was pleased to see guards posted at her door. As he made his way down the halls to his own private chambers he noticed increased security outside as well. "Good," he said with a slight nod of his head, "the old fool is taking this seriously. He should." The fact that there had been an attempt on Bulma's life had rattled the good doctor. His mind froze when he thought what might have happened to her if Vegeta had not been around to track her down. That old boyfriend of hers would have been as useless as he himself would have been, paying the ransom and praying she would have been returned unharmed.

Vegeta finally let his shoulders down when he crossed the threshold to his private chambers and shut the door. He never bothered to lock it unless she was in here, no one dared enter his room. He lifted his shirt and sniffed it. Yup! He was the one in need of a shower. He stripped his clothes off and let them lay on the floor in a trail from the door to the shower. Once inside the shower his mind went a separate path from him. He pondered at what point did The Woman become My Woman. He knew he was always more protective of her than he should be, but she was the mother and caretaker of the heir to the throne of Vegetasai. That alone had earned his respect. Many women back home died bringing life to their offspring, but she owned it like a piece of fine jewelry and it looked good on her.

What if she never wakes up? What will you do then? His mind had a way of screwing with him. His chest tightened at the thought. Then there is the boy, you haven't dealt with that either. Vegeta didn't want to think about these things. He was still unsure of these foreign emotions his woman put in his head and yet he was now trying to work out what to do if she didn't wake up. Ýou could always leave like you always intended to. . . yes, that was an option. With Goku and Bulma dead he wasn't sure he would want to stay on this planet anymore. Then there was his child. The old woman could raise him to a point Vegeta could take over then leave, minimizing his time here. He shook his head, this was all too much right now. One step at a time. His stomach growled and that was his cue of what the next step was.

Vegeta had not eaten in nearly two days and with everything else that had happened his mood was far beyond foul. As he entered the kitchen what he saw made him stop in his tracks. Bunny was cooking, this was no surprise, but based off the amount of food in the kitchen she had been since some time over night and had yet to stop. Trunks was sitting on the floor banking a wooden spoon on an upside down pot. Vegeta quickly walked over to Trunks and grabbed the spoon from him. That was at least one part of this entire chaotic mess he could fix. Trunks looked angrily up to see who took his banger when he saw it was none other than his father. He cocked his head to the side, "Da-Da," Vegeta froze. He had been planning on avoiding the boy until things sorted themselves out but now here he was staring down at the toddler. Trunks grabbed Vegeta's pant leg and used it to pull himself to a standing position, "Up. Up" the toddler commanded with his arms reaching up. Vegeta bent over and picked the child up by the straps of his coveralls. Trunks giggled, this was a great game.

On seeing this Bunny swept in and grabbed Trunks, "Not like that dear, like this" she said as she shoved Trunks closer to Vegeta until they were chest to chest and used Vegeta's right arm to cradle under Trunks' bottom to support his weight. He looked wide-eyes in disbelief at Bunny. That's when he noticed the dark circles under her eyes and the lines in her face. Today she looked more her age. He decided not to argue with the woman's crazy mother and get something to eat. He walked to the counter and grabbed a stack of pancakes and some syrup and returned to the table. He had almost forgotten he was carrying Trunks with him until Dr. Briefs walked into the room and chuckled, "That would be easier if you put him in his chair, my boy." Vegeta stopped for a moment and looked from his plate to his son and then to Dr. Briefs. Vegeta's brain was running on fumes and failed to connect the highchair into the equation.

Vegeta shrugged at the doctor as he sat Trunks directly on the table, "Don't move!" he commanded. Trunks sat quietly on the table as his eyes never left his fathers. Vegeta collected another plate with bacon, plates and forks. He then handed Dr. Briefs a plate and fork and sat an empty plate in front of Trunks. He sat down with the last plate and fork and began loading his plate up with pancakes and bacon. Trunks just watched him. Dr. Briefs was amused by the site of what appeared to be Vegeta attempting to tend his own son. Vegeta began to eat when he heard the clank of a fork on an empty plate and looked up. Trunks was still sitting on the table, waiting for his father to feed him, "Hnn." Vegeta said as he tossed the boy a pancake and two strips of bacon. Every time Trunks emptied his plate he would bang his fork on the plate with a clank and Vegeta would reload it.

It was a scene of domestic bliss and Dr. Briefs' heart sank wishing Bulma could see how much of a man and more importantly a father Vegeta was stepping up to be. Dr. Briefs felt his pager silently vibrate in his pocket and he silently excused himself from the table and rushed back to the medical lab to see what new development had occurred. He had instructed the doctors to page him in any change in Bulma's condition. He carefully opened the door to Bulma's room and his heart leaped in his throat. Bulma lay still in the bed, staring forward. She was awake!

One of the doctors rushed him, "Don't get your hopes too high yet." Dr. Brief's turned to him in confusion. "Her brain waves are still abnormal. She make be awake in that her eyes are open but she is not fully conscious," the doctor stated. Dr. Briefs' brows furrowed in frustration as we walked over to his daughter and pulled a chair close to the bed. He held his daughter's hand and squeezed it but it remained limp. He waves his hand in front of her eyes yet she did not see it. He stood and pulled a light from pocket and shone it in one eye and then the other, papillary responses were sluggish but present. He silently nodded his head. He pulled a needle from the table drawer out and went to the foot of the bed. He uncovered her feet and pricked her big toe, her foot jumped. He nodded his head again. He drew in a deep and thoughtful breath before turning to the doctor, "Repeat the EEG and perform another CT Scan of her brain, let's check on the swelling. We may be looking at extensive brain damage."

Down stairs Vegeta was clueless to these newest developments. Trunks had finished eating and was watching his father eat. When Vegeta finished he looked up at his son and looked at Bunny. Without having to be asked Bunny came up with a face cloth and cleaned up Trunks and sat him on the floor to go play. Vegeta stood from the table and carried his coffee with him, running into Dr. Briefs on his way out the door. Vegeta stopped for a moment and reviewed the catastrophic condition the kitchen was in. Dr. Briefs seemed to be doing the same as he retrieved his own coffee, "Everyone deals with stress in their own way," said Dr. Briefs. Vegeta realized that perhaps Bunny was in no condition to watch Trunks today and perhaps he was being selfish in expecting her to watch his son while her only child lay broken in the medical lab.

He turned around and fetched the boy by the straps of his coveralls again. Trunks really did like this game. It took a millisecond for the foulest odors Vegeta ever smelt in his like to hit his nostrils and cause him to almost lose his breakfast and he growled, "You will not cause me to lose another meal, brat." Vegeta looked around, lost for what to do. "I thought you learned to do this in the toilet!" Vegeta grumbled. He was certainly not changing him. He carried his son as far from him as he could manage back to the kitchen and handed him to Bunny who had stopped what she was doing when Vegeta entered the room. "The muffins have fifteen minutes before there done, no worries, I got it" she said as she took Trunks upstairs to be changed.

Bunny returned Trunks to Vegeta and hazily walked away. He was once again holding this child close to his own chest. On inspection this new outfit was lacking the necessary straps for Vegeta to carry him any other way. He smirked, she had done that on purpose and he promised to get even when this whole mess was over. He looked down at Trunks, "Let's go check on your lazy mother and see if she is ready to get up." He turned and carried Trunks up the hall in the direction of the med lab.

Dr. Briefs was back in the med lab reviewing Bulma's EEG as they were prepping her for the CT scan. He shook his head, "Not good at all" he said bleakly. He put the folder down and walked out to the balcony and lit a cigarette. He turned as he heard them bring Bulma back in and lock her bed in position. Moments later the door swung open in a grand fashion as Vegeta strode into the room and placed Trunks on the bed. "Ma-ma!" he cried out as he crawled up the bed. Dr. Briefs rushed back into the room, "I don't think that is a good idea Vegeta!"

Vegeta who had been leaning against the wall walked in closer. "I see no reason to keep the brat from his mother." He crossed his arms in front of his chest in defiance. "He won't hurt her." He added in an attempt to pacify the doctor. Dr. Briefs sat down defeated, Vegeta was going to push this and there was no changing his mind. Trunks sat on his mother's lap waiting for her to soothe him and when it did not come he began to cry. Dr. Briefs was about to pick up the boy but the look on Vegeta's face said otherwise. A few minutes passed and then Bulma's eyes opened, returning her stare at the wall in front of her.

Vegeta's eyes widened momentarily in shock and then he smirked. He dropped his arms to his sides, "It's about time you got up." There was no response. He leaned in closer and examined her features. Perhaps she was toying with him. "You're going to get fat laying around all day." Still nothing. Confused, he picked Trunks up and handed him to Dr. Briefs and walked away.

After fifteen minutes the CT scan results were back and Dr. Briefs walked the halls in search of Vegeta. First he found Bunny and gave her a kiss on the cheek as he handed her a sleepy Trunks. After a while he found Vegeta in the library looking for books and answers. He floated down from the higher shelves to the doctor and said only one word, "Why?" Dr. Brief's eyes turned downward, this was going to be a hard conversation. The entire house was turned upside down since Bulma's accident and everyone was coping in their own way. Everyone that is except for Vegeta who didn't seem to truly understand the full extent of Bulma's injuries.

Dr. Briefs walked over to a set of reading chairs and sat down. Vegeta understood the unspoken request and followed him to the chairs but refused to sit. Instead he positioned himself at the wall nearest the window and leaned against it, armed crossed in front as if to shield himself from the painful news he was about to hear. Dr. Briefs felt pity for the man, he was lost without Bulma. He knew Vegeta loved Bulma even if he wouldn't admit it to anyone, even himself.

He pulled his cigarettes from his pocket and lit one. He drew in a breath of thick smoke to calm his nerves before beginning. "Bulma is awake, but not awake. Her responses are purely autonomic and reflexive neural activity at this point." Vegeta seemed to turn more and more red with each passing word. How can she be awake but not awake! Dr. Briefs put his hand up in a gesture to stop the interruption before it began. "Bulma's brain still has extensive edema or swelling if you will. It is inhibiting her brain's ability to function on higher levels like conscious thought. Her pupils respond to light and she withdraws from painful stimuli, which is good and indicates the possibility of her brain functions returning to normal as the swelling goes down. But if it takes too long for that to happen the swelling can destroy those parts of the brain responsible for higher brain functions. Her skull fractures are over the frontal lobes where these things take place in humans. The recoil from the accident may also be affecting her limbic system located on the underside of the brain responsible for speech. We will know more in a couple of days" He got up and grabbed a book from the shelf of human anatomy of the brain and neural functions and handed it to Vegeta, "Perhaps this will help" he said as he walked away hoping Vegeta understood half of what he was trying to tell him.

Unfortunately he did and he didn't. What he understood what was that if the brain swelling went away she would return to normal. The Senzu Beans! That would fix all of her physical injuries and she would be back to normal. With that one thought to cling to Vegeta flew off out the open window and headed to Koren's Tower.

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