Author's Note: I am so sorry, folks! As I mentioned before, I just graduated from nursing school (YAY!) so it has been crazy for the past few months getting ready. Plus, now I am trying to study for my boards but no worries, updating this story was not far from my mind. I apologize for any spelling mistakes or grammar errors, I JUST finished it and I wanted to post it ASAP.
Without further ado, enjoy!
A dark world aches for a splash of the sun
-Young the Giants
Set Me Free
Chapter 13
"Once more, Vegeta" She purred in his ears. The prince rolled his eyes but followed her wishes and twirled her around the dance floor as her dress billowed behind.
Bulma was in absolute ecstasy as she tilted her head back and relished in the beautiful moment, praying it would never end.
"Woman." His gruff voice interrupted her thoughts and she quickly turned her attention back to her date, scowling.
"Once more-"
"Woman."
"Vegeta! I said once more!" She snapped, irritated by the harshness in his tone.
"Woman, wake up."
Bulma stopped and looked at the prince, a confused look upon her face. "Vegeta, what are you talking abo-"
"Woman!"
A slight shake to her shoulders caused the young woman to snap her eyes open and face the man before her. Vegeta.
"Ugh! I was having such a nice dream!" She hissed and rubbed her eyes to adjust to the room around her.
It appeared she was located in a medical wing of the palace, so she assumed. Various devices and computers were strewn about the room. As she brought her hand to her face, she noticed a small intravenous catheter (IV) poking through the skin and she studied it intently, tracing the thin tube to its base, which consisted of bags of fluids.
"Where am I?" She finally asked, turning her attention back to the man before her.
"The medical unit located below ground of the palace." The prince said, shoving his hands into his pockets and taking a seat at the foot of the bed, dropping the eye contact.
She nodded, noting she was correct. "Why? How long have I been here?"
Vegeta turned back to her, carefully examining her face. She looked frail and pale, due to the lack of food and water. Bruises were peppered around her neck; the purple and blue clashing against her white skin. Then his eyes traveled to her's, which remained blue as ever and pleading for an answer.
"Do you remember what happened?" He asked and she nodded in return. "Well, due to your lack of nourishment and water, you were severely dehydrated. This is the third day you have been in the medical bay and the first time you have been conscious. But thanks to me, I saved your ass and you will make a full recovery." Vegeta smirked, waiting anxiously for her response.
Instantly she released a growl and quickly kicked the man seated at the end of the bed. Right in the ribs. She smirked at his defeat until she saw his face change, his grin dropping to a slight cringe.
Bulma frowned at the reaction and crawled to his side to examine him. With difficulty, she tore away his shirt to reveal the wound he had received from the fight with Yamcha. A sloppy dressing was draped around his waist but it was clear that it was not helping.
"Vegeta, you idiot! You are going to need sutures!"
The prince leapt to his feet and pulled down his shirt in a matter of seconds before she get another glance. "Its fine." He growled. Truth is, he was ashamed that the weakling got a simple hit on him, much less a stab wound. Stupid!
"Tsk tsk tsk. Maybe you should take your own advice. I suppose you were just so worried about me little o' me…" She grinned, looking up into his dark eyes.
He glared at her, trying his best to hide the humor from his face. "Yeah right." He grumbled, shaking his head as he left the medical unit.
Bulma leaned back, smiling at the thought of Vegeta saving her once again. What a guy…
"WHAT!"
"My lord. She is alive."
"Where is she?" The king growled, staring out of the massive windows from his private office. If things did not improve soon, objects were going to be thrown.
"Located in the medical wing. Expected to be released this afternoon." The cowering servant responded, clearly uncomfortable in the presence of his king. He slowly inched towards the door but was stopped in his tracks as the king turned his attention back to the man.
King Vegeta's anger was never one to be controlled and he immediately threw the drink he was sipping early against the opposite wall, shattering it. The action caused the servant to cringe and pray he would make it out alive.
The king advanced towards the trembling man, anger seething in each step he took. Just as he reached the servant, he was interrupted by a group of soldiers entering through his door.
"Sir, he is here."
King Vegeta stopped his rampage and turned his attention to the interruption. "Good. Bring in Lord Frieza."
A Few Weeks Later…
Bulma wandered aimlessly through the halls of the palace. She already finished several romance novels, took a few walks in the gardens, and even assisted the cooks make lunch and dinner. Ever since she returned to Planet Vegetasei, she was absolutely bored with her life.
Her thoughts drifted off towards the prince. It was rare that they saw each other. He was either in meetings all-day or training with Kakarott.
And then there was Chi Chi, who was busy all day with her civic duties of being the queen-in-waiting (since it was not public about breaking off the engagement).
This left poor Bulma with absolutely nothing to do.
She looked up fro her thoughts and smiled at the man who was walking towards her at a face pace. Just the man she was hoping for.
"Vegeta!" She called, waving.
He rolled his eyes as he neared. Her absurd emotional excitement.
"What?" He barked, anxiously peering a glance at his pocket watch.
Bulma took in his appearance. He was handsomely dressed in a black suite and by the look on his face, he was in a hurry.
"What?" The prince questioned again, annoyingly.
"Well, I, um-"
"Hurry it up, woman!"
"I want a laboratory!"
The prince studied the woman before him, slightly confused. "Why?"
"There is nothing for me to do around here."
Vegeta nodded, pondering to himself. Then nodded in agreement. "Alright. I'll try to set something up for you." He gruffly added and stalked off towards his meeting.
Bulma was ecstatic and also turned to leave to plot her next invention but called out to the prince once more before he was completely out of sight. "See you tonight?"
He was soon out of sight but not before giving her a smirk.
The prince sat down in a conference room, next to his father and several other guests. The king glared at his son.
"You're late."
Vegeta nodded his head but remained silent as he prepared himself for the meeting. The king looked up and nodded his head towards the guards positioned at the doors. They opened the double doors and lead in a group of alien-creatures, followed by what resembled their leader (or so the prince assumed).
The king immediately leapt to his feet and the prince soon followed as a sign of respect. "Vegeta, this is Lord Frieza from the Icejin Empire. My lord, may I present my son, Prince Vegeta."
Both bowed their heads in acknowledgement and they began their meeting. As the king and Frieza were discussing specifics, Vegeta found himself studying the being before him. A muscular, white creature with purple lips that were perfectly formed to a smirk on his face. When he spoke, his voice almost sent shivers down the prince's back. There was just something about him….
"It is settled then!" The king boomed, gaining Vegeta's attention. "You will have our services to win the war!"
Vegeta frowned and cursed to himself for completely missing the entire conversation. "How many?" He asked, referring to the number of soldiers.
Frieza leaned back in his leather chair, lacing his hands together. "As many as you got."
Vegeta sneered. He had never fought an army so large that it required all of Planet Vegetasei's men. Never.
"Really? That is very doubtful."
The king glared at his son's idiotic remarks. "Boy…" He warned but the prince ignored him.
"These creatures are vast in numbers and highly intellectual."
Vegeta rolled his eyes. "You clearly have never seen a Saiyan in action."
For a second, Frieza's left eye twitched in annoyance but he calmly collected himself. "Like I said, I will require all of your soldiers. And I will reward you handsomely."
King Vegeta smirked. "We have a deal then!" And excitedly shook hands with the creature sitting across. The prince, however, studied the alien once more before leaving the room. He did not trust him, not one bit.
The prince followed his father back to his office, eager to discuss this new contract. As soon as the door was shut, the prince announced his thoughts. "I do not trust him, father."
The king was not in the mood to be arguing with his son, especially about the one good thing that occurred in the day. "We are not going to discuss this further." He growled, slamming stacks of papers down. "He is paying us triple our asking price!"
"But why does he require the entire Saiyan army? It does not make sense!"
"Enough! I am king of this planet and as such, you will adhere to that!"
The prince turned to exit the room but forgot to mention one more thing. "Lady Bulma requests a laboratory."
The mention of her name made a vein pop on the side of his forehead. "No." He gritted out between clenched teeth. He was done hearing about this girl and for his son to be parading her in his face –
"Yes." Vegeta defiantly announced. "She is quite smart and I am sure she would make an excellent addition to the weapons industry."
"I said 'no'!"
"You are being an idiotic fool, old man!"
"Watch yourself, boy! You are in the presence of a king and I will not excuse you because you are my son. Now leave, I have nothing more to say to you."
Vegeta angrily stormed out, slamming the door. He would still give the woman a laboratory – all the more reason if it means defying his father.
A heavy knock on the wooden doors caused Vegeta to look up towards the intruder. Seconds later, blue hair appeared, followed closely by a grinning face of a young woman who cautiously peeked around the room before fully emerging herself into the prince's personal quarters.
The prince smirked and set down his liquor, arising to meet his guest. She approached him excitedly and talked about the rest of her day, which included making blue-prints of new inventions.
"This one would completely change how you fight battles!" She happily said, shoving the drawings in his face, one after another. "-and this one is a work in progress but if I succeed – which I will – it will improve healing and reduce the amount of time!"
At this, the prince grabbed the print and closely examined it in the fire-lit room. His eyes carefully studied the invention. Minutes later, he looked up at her and nodded, giving his approval. She squealed in excitement and threw her arms around his neck.
"I cannot wait to start!" She cried into his neck and gave him a peck on the cheek before pulling back. "So how was your meeting?"
The prince shrugged and downed the last of his drink. "Just another upcoming war…"
Bulma frowned. She severely disliked when he was gone, especially when it meant he was off into battle. She knew that he was the best fighter and nothing ever happens (besides minor injuries) but she still had that feeling in the back of her head.
Suddenly, she jumped to her feet and outstretched her hand to the man before her. "Let's go for a walk! It's so nice tonight."
Bulma loved taking walks in the gardens, especially on warm, breezy nights. The prince and her often took walks together, sometimes discussing their days or other times just walking in silence. Tonight felt like one of those nights.
Vegeta thought for a moment before he stood up, releasing a heavy sigh, and accompanied her for a walk. Once she got an idea in her head there was no use trying to stop it.
The moon brightened the night sky and lit a path along the gardens. Bulma dragged the stubborn prince along with her on the palace grounds, chatting nonstop about how beautiful it was outside and how they never take walks anymore.
The young woman paused in her ranting to look up once more and frowned. "Looks like its going to rai-"
A crack of lightning split across the darkened sky, followed closely by a boom of thunder. They both gave each other a frown before attempting to dash back to the castle to defeat the incoming showers.
Too late.
A curtain of rain poured down upon them. The heavens opened up, drowning everything in its path. Including the couple spotted in the gardens.
"Damn you, woman." The prince mumbled, not pleased by the outcome but not entirely angry either.
Bulma scowled at the comment as they continued to run back into his warm chambers. Their attempts went unnoticed and they were dripping wet from the rain. The prince immediately headed for the bathroom and stripped off all his clothes, except for his black briefs.
Meanwhile, the young woman also stripped down to her bare essentials, which included her black bra and panties. She cowered in the corner, shivering and attempting to cover herself up as much as possible by throwing her arms around her.
The prince stalked out of the bathroom and smirked at the display. "I know a way we can warm up..." He said, advancing towards her.
She rolled her eyes at his ridiculous comment. "Does that really work on other girls?"
"Usually." He shrugged and reached towards her, grabbing onto her hips and pulling her into his warm body. Her mind drifted back to just a few months ago when this scene started off very similar.
"Vegeta…" She looked into his dark, obsidian eyes. She could feel herself getting weak at the knees and before she knew it, her mouth lunged for his.
The prince could feel himself growing harder and he desperately yearned for her touch. With little effort, he carried Bulma towards his massive bed and gently laid her down, never breaking the embrace.
A blur of pesky fingers and foundling hands covered each other's bodies, as they roamed one another's muscles curves.
The prince briefly pulled himself away from the beautiful woman before him. Bulma whimpered beneath him and beckoned him to come back into her arms. He smirked and leaned forward to capture her lips once more but asked her one thing:
"Are you sure, Bulma?"
Author's Note: UH OH! What is Frieza planning!
So, Vegeta may be a little OOC in this chapter... oh let's be honest, he's pretty OOC in this whole story! And I apologize for that but since this is an AU, his character is going to be portrayed a little different in my head - I hope that doesn't bother you too much.
I promise I will get the next chapter up after I pass my nursing boards - which will be HOPEFULLY by the end of June. Fingers crossed! Review :)
