Author's Note: Thank you to all my amazing reviewers: Koii, preciousjade76, DelSan 13, DamonaVeggi, Ashley, Su, Cloud Envy Shikamaru, Lexcie, Andrell, Addy661, Tevinssj3, and Shirochan21. Sorry for the long wait on this chapter - school started and yadda yadda yadda!

Set Me Free

Chapter 7


"Bulma?"

The young girl stirred within her sleep before slowly cracking her eyes open to find that she was laying in her own bed, in her own room. What happened last night? Was it all a dream?

Vague images crossed her mind as she tried to recall the events that took place the night before. Trying to figure out if the night was just a bad dream or really happened, Bulma rubbed her eyes attempting to wake herself up.

Bad idea.

She released a hiss as she rubbed her left eye, which was still swollen and bruised severely from the actions that took place last night. After attempting to sit up in her bed, two strong arms forced her back down.

"No Bulma, you need to take it easy and rest." A thick masculine voice echoed.

Bulma squinted, trying to see who was currently in her room with her. Her blurry vision kept the intruder in disguise and she pondered who it could be. Then she remembered earlier this morning and her hero from the night before: Vegeta.

"Vegeta I'm fine…" She groaned, batting away his hands.

There was silence at first then another figure joined and both whispered back and forth before a feminine voice spoke. "Bulma, dear, Kakarott is here… not Vegeta…"

Bulma rubbed her good eye and everything slowly came into focus. The two individuals looked at her slightly confused by her comment about the prince, for they had no idea what took place and only discovered her here in her room in this condition this morning.

"Bulma, what happened?" Kakarott prodded, Chi Chi closely by his side as they examined their friend closely.

The memories flooded back as she recalled the night before. She whimpered, remembering her evening with Yamcha and how he treated her. Tears slowly collected in her eyes. She took a deep breath and told the whole story about the events that took place. She told about the horrors Yamcha had committed and she also told them about her hero, the prince.

By the end, both people sat with the young woman on her bed, one clasping her hand in their own while the other rubbed her back in comfort.


The prince was currently residing in his study, attempting to finish some paperwork that needed to be read and signed. Something about future proposals involving a war and his army. It was kind of a big deal but Vegeta was having difficulty concentrating at the task at hand.

Finally, he released a low growl and brought his hands up to his temples, slowly rubbing them in frustration. He could not get the blue-haired girl out of his head and what took place the night before. Closing his eyes, he recalled her appearance and how that bastard ruined her beauty.

That bastard!

He slammed his fists down on the hard marble desk in front of him, causing several cracks to erupt from the force.

A low life soldier touching what should be his!

He released another frustrated growl and leaned back in his leather chair, inhaling a deep breath of hair before loudly releasing. He was stressed, even though he would never admit it. He needed to figure out this situation with Planet Mindora and their future army, which involved Vegeta and his men. The only problem is he could not focus. Not at all.

He abruptly stood from his desk and proceeded to exit his study. The prince decided a stress reliever was in order and he made his way towards his private quarters.

Meanwhile, the young woman sat on her enormous bed, her knees pulled to her chest. Silent tears dried to her black and blue cheeks. Everything hurt. It hurt to move, it hurt to speak, it even hurt to think. The one man she was trusting herself with and falling for turned out to be a monster.

She closed her eyes. Bulma could not think of the horror anymore. She felt…dirty. Destroyed. Used. How could she be such a fool?

But

There is hope. Bulma suddenly looked up from her fetal position into the darkness of her vacant room. Yes! A smile crept to her face.

Vegeta.

Her hero. Her savior. The knight in shining armor!

Bulma carefully pushed herself off the plush bed, minding her injuries as she cautiously changed into something more… presentable. She quickly dabbed some makeup over her bruises and lacerations and threw her hair into a neat bun.

Without a moment to loose, she was bounding out the door and heading towards the prince's wing of the castle. She wanted to thank him in person for his heroic actions the night before.


Her heart was racing and she felt the excitement as she came closer and closer to her destination.

What was she going to say?

What would he say?

Nervousness surrounded her as she reached her target. She gulped loudly. The young woman hesitated for a moment and reached for the doorknob.

Pause.

What was she doing? This was crazy! She was not even thinking right - probably due to the pain medications she was currently taking. She slowly pulled her hand back and clasped it with the other. Her heart rate was pounding in her ears.

What was she going to do?

Pacing in a small circle outside the prince's door, she thought about her actions and what the possible outcomes would be.

Well, he may sweep her off her feet and they would live happily ever after.

Wrong. So wrong.

She scrunched her nose at the thought. Stupid Bulma! She mentally screamed. Vegeta is not that kind of a guy. He's not much of the romantic type.

Second, he was the future husband of her best friend…who was currently in love with someone else.

Suddenly a muffled male voice behind the door interrupted her thoughts and she quickly pressed her ear against the oak doors. Yup, that was the prince alright.

Ok Bulma, now or never!

She quickly knocked at the doors and before awaiting a response (since she knew he was already in there) she immediately burst through the double doors and saw the prince on top of another woman. Fully nude.

She cursed under her breath as she noticed what exactly was taking place before her very eyes.

Vegeta instantly cocked his head in the direction of the bedroom doors and locked eyes with the woman he could not get his mind off.

"Bulma…" He whispered, audible to only himself.

Her face turned a bright red and she froze for a moment. "I-I-I'm so sorry! I will be leaving now-" She quickly mumbled and took off before another breath was taken.

The prince cursed and removed himself from the concubine lying in front of him. He quickly pulled on a pair of pants and bolted out of the door after the young beauty.


Bulma ran faster than she ever had in her entire life. She was humiliated. Mortified. How could she ever look at him again?

She bolted out the doors of the palace and onto the grounds. It was starting to rain, which was perfect to hide the tears running down her face as she stumbled to a marble bench. Taking a seat, she cupped her face into her hands and continued to weep for her misery. Why? By the gods, why her?

The young woman wept for the loss of her newfound hero. The horror she felt as she saw this man on top of another woman. Not only was she embarrassed but also hurt. She was just in that position herself, although not willing.

She closed her eyes and released a sob as she recalled the past events once more. She was definitely not ready for this… not yet.

Suddenly, her self-pity turned into anger and she cursed to herself for being so foolish. What did you expect? Him to sweep you off your feet? She scoffed again at the idea and at herself for living in this fairytale romance. This is not another one of your novels, Bulma!

The rain continued to fall, drenching her appearance. She did not care – she had bigger issues to focus on. What was she going to do about the prince?

"I guess I could always avoid him…" She pondered out loud. "Or leave this planet and never come back-"

"No! Don't do that."

The young woman stopped her bawling and turned her attention to the masculine voice coming from the entrance to the palace.

It was the prince.

Vegeta stood there topless in bare feet, slightly out of breath. He was starting to get soaked but still he stepped forward, signaling his wish to join the young woman.

Bulma was still in shock and stared open mouth at the man before her as he continued his walk until he was right in front of her. She stood up to his eye level, still not saying a word.

After moments of silence, she got the courage to apologize once more for the interruption earlier in the evening. "Vegeta, I am so sorr-"

Saying nothing, he cut her off with kiss as he immediately shoved his mouth over her lips. Grabbing her hips, he pulled her closer to him. To his surprise, she welcomed the gesture and gripped firmly onto the hem of his pants, pulling him to her.

And the rain kept coming down, however it went unnoticed to the couple standing in the gardens in the dark hours of the night. Without breaking the contact, Vegeta gently picked Bulma up and cradled her to his chest, carrying her inside the palace.

This was going to their little secret.


Author's Note: Sorry, its short! But I didn't know where to end it so I thought this was a good place. Don't worry, I'm working on another chapter already so it think of it as "two for the price of one." This chapter is kinda... weird. I wanted to get the story going so this was the only way I knew how so it may seem a bit rushed but we're already in chapter 7 so the story needs to get moving! I want to thank everyone for their patience - I was actually going to post this last night but Fanfiction was not working so I couldn't actually edit it like I wanted. Thank you to Ellie72127 for helping me figure it out. As always, I can't wait to hear what you think!