3. So She Does Something About It
It was a little after eleven in the morning when Bulma finally figured out her plan for the day. She knew Vegeta had been up since five and had trained until ten, then stomped into the house, demanding food. She was finishing up the large pile of dishes he'd left in the sink when she heard the door to his room slam, which meant he was going to take a shower, then nap. It was the same routine everyday and Bulma used this knowledge to her advantage. She waited long enough until she was sure Vegeta had fallen asleep, then hurried up the stairs and into the nursery. She'd fully expected Trunks to be awake and alert, and had planned on using his noisiness and excess energy to annoy the hell out of Vegeta, but to her surprise, the little boy was fast asleep, curled into a ball in one corner of the crib, a blanket clutched tightly in his fists.
Bulma didn't have to heart to wake up her son, so she scooped him into her arms and arranged the blanket so that it wrapped around him, then walked over to Vegeta's room. She paused at the door, placing her free hand in her pocket and pulling out her secret weapon. The master key that could open every room in the house dangled from her fingers and she smirked as she stuck it in the keyhole. The door opened silently and swiftly and, with a deep breath, Bulma stepped inside.
The darkest room in the house, "darkest" being used in more than one way, was, without doubt, Vegeta's bedroom. Even with the sun shining its brightest outside, the room was shadowed in heavy curtains so that no light could enter. The walls and carpet were a deep color, although the specific color itself could not be named, as no one had ever seen them under a light source. Despite the darkness that shrouded the room, it was surprisingly clean. There was a large bed in the center of the room, covered with dark sheets and numerous pillows. To one side stood a dresser, with a simple television set on top of it. The other half of the room contained a long couch with a thin, silk sheet laid over it. There was nothing else in the room, save for a large window covered by drapes and two doors, one leading into the room from the rest of the house, and the other leading to a small bathroom.
For Bulma, this room also held one of her darkest memories. Her heart thudded loudly as her senses became overwhelmed, bringing back a flood of images that caused her head to spin. She paused and took a deep breath to clear her mind, but the simple act of inhaling the air around her made her heart speed up even more. Vegeta's scent was strongest in this part of the house, an exotic mix of smells that demanded her attention. Bulma's eyes narrowed as she struggled to regain the logical side of her. She tightened her hold on her son and placed her other hand against the wall, steadying herself lest her legs give away and she collapse on the floor.
She had mistakenly believed that she'd come up with the perfect plan, but in a flurry of emotions and frustration, she'd completely forgotten that there was much more beyond figuring out when and how to get into Vegeta's room. She was now at a loss, because Vegeta was lying motionless on the bed and Trunks was still asleep. The whole point was for Trunks to annoy the crap out of his father, but if he wasn't even awake, what good would it be?
Bulma decided she'd come too far to retreat now, so she shuffled over towards the couch, deciding she would wait it out. Her brain knew it wasn't the best idea, but at that time, she couldn't care less. When she finally made it over to the couch, Bulma was surprised to find it covered with books and pieces of paper. She shifted Trunks from one arm to the other, then picked up the nearest book and squinted in the dim light at the words on the cover. The Lunar Cycle for Dummies? The book looked thoroughly used, with wrinkled pages and a missing back-cover. A piece of paper fell out as Bulma flipped the page and she looked at it curiously. There were notes scribbled across the paper, and although she had never seen that handwriting before, she was sure it could belong to no one but Vegeta. "I'm surprised", she murmured quietly to herself, the tips of her mouth curving up in amusement, "who knew a barbarian could read and write?"
She was about to put the book back down and reach for another one, when she felt a trickle of warm air hit the back of her neck, causing her body to fall rigid. She could barely hold onto Trunks, and when something brushed against her arm, she shrieked and jumped about five feet in the air, dropping the book in her hand, as well as the sleeping baby.
Bulma watched in shock as the blanket around Trunks unwound itself and everything began going in slow motion. Her mind had already jumped a few steps ahead and was blaming herself for causing harm to her baby, when a hand shot out and caught Trunks before he hit the floor, waking him up, but keeping him from any injury. She froze as Trunks burst out crying, wailing at the top of his lungs in protest of being woken up.
"You-you're supposed to be asleep", she managed to gasp, her cheeks glowing red.
There was a scoff behind her, followed by an arrogant string of words with a tone that sent shivers down her spine. "I was awake the moment you pulled that key out of your pocket. You think you can get past me?"
"I-"
"And what are you doing in here, woman? Don't you think one of these is enough?" Vegeta stepped in front of her and held Trunks up, a smirk creeping onto his face as he waited for Bulma to process the underlying meaning of his words.
She didn't dare open her mouth, knowing that she would only be able to sputter something unintelligible and make a fool out of herself. In this case, silence was the better way to go. Her hands remained firmly at her sides, refusing to take back the child.
"Actually, that's exactly why I'm here", she retorted, struggling to keep up a calm, outer façade. "You helped make him too, so you take care of him now".
Before Vegeta could reply, she whirled around and ran out of the room, stumbling a little, but not daring to stop. She threw the door shut behind her as she landed in the hallway, gripping the handle and pulling it against the doorframe, as if somehow, a measly piece of wood with a knob could keep her safe from the likes of a saiyan. There! Now he's stuck with little Trunksie, Bulma thought, he'll be forced to take care of him!
It was only then, that she realized what she'd done. Vegeta was not one to be forced into doing anything, especially a task that he considered "women's work". If anything, she'd just put her son in mortal danger. "He's going to hurt him!" she smacked her forehead and groaned, "stupid, stupid, I'm so stupid!"
"Vegeta! I take it back! Let me in!!" Bulma pounded on the door, wondering vaguely in the back of her mind how Vegeta had managed to get it to auto-lock. "Trunks! Don't do anything to him!"
The door cracked open and Vegeta peeked out. The room was still just as dark as before, and with the minimal amount of light in the hallway, Bulma could only see a pair of rather intimidating eyes and a smirk.
"Hey, you said you wanted me to take care of him, right?" The door slammed shut.
After hearing the door lock behind him with a satisfying click, Vegeta turned to Trunks and gave him a triumphant grin. "I just gave your mother a little heart attack", he announced, not caring that the kid couldn't understand him. Trunks grinned in reply and looked up curiously from his spot on the bed, where he'd found a nice, cozy spot among the pillows. Vegeta sat down on the bed and sighed. He didn't feel like going back to sleep, not after he had been so rudely awaken. He sighed again and ran a hand through his hair, then looked at the little boy beside him. Trunks stared back with wide eyes.
"What are you looking at?" Vegeta scowled, "I could blow you into a thousand tiny pieces, you know that? They wouldn't even be able to find a body." Trunks grinned and reached out, punching his chubby fist against Vegeta's arm. He raised an eyebrow in amusement and slight surprise. Practically born yesterday, and he's already got more strength than the woman, he thought. The brat has potential. Encouraged by Vegeta's slightly more positive facial expression, Trunks reached out his other fist and punched his father again, grinning wildly when Vegeta picked him up in one swift swoop and dangled him upside-down by one leg.
"You're a half-breed kid; a complete disgrace to saiyans… but, we can change that, can't we?" Vegeta examined the baby in front of him careful, taking in for the first time the strangely colored eyes and small tuft of hair. Even in the dark room, the lavender managed to proudly display itself, a rare trait that resulted from Bulma's own uniquely colored hair.
Vegeta was about to put Trunks back down when he felt a sudden surge of energy in the house, immediately alerting his senses and causing him to jump to his feet. He threw open the door to his room and flew outside, yes, he literally flew, searching for the source. "Kakarot! What are you doing here?" he demanded angrily.
"Uh… Bulma said you were -ack! What are YOU doing?!" Goku's mouth fell open in surprise at the sight before him. Vegeta hovered a few feet in the air, scowling and holding Trunks as if he were a rag doll. "Y- You can't do that to him! He's a baby! Vege-"
"VEGETA!" Bulma's shriek drowned out Goku's voice as she lunged forward, quickly rescuing Trunks from his father. "WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?" she screamed, cradling Trunks to her chest. She was beyond shocked at the fact that she'd just seen her son hanging several feet in the air, face down, held by one foot.
"He's fine, woman", Vegeta scowled, "you underestimate him". He placed his feet on the ground and turned around, walking away smoothly without another word.
"I can't believe him", Bulma fumed, turning to Goku, who looked ready to bail at the sight of the angry woman in front of him. "He has absolutely no heart, no soul, no nothing! Just a worthless, empty shell of muscle! Agh! Trunks, Trunksie, are you ok?" She stalked past Goku, who'd backed himself against the banister of the stairs in fear of a wrathful Bulma, and into the nursery, where she settled the baby back in his crib. "I should never have dragged you into this", she murmured, "I was just being stupid. Stupid me, stupid Vegeta, ugh".
She sighed heavily and returned to the hallway, where she dismissed Goku and sent him home, thanking him for the trouble. "It's impossible to deal with him", she added after saying goodbye.
"Who, Vegeta?" Goku turned around, two fingers still on his forehead, "he's just misunderstood a lot, I think. He's really not that bad".
"You should keep your nice guy statements to yourself", Bulma replied wryly, "I'm telling you, he's impossible".
"Well, what do you want from him exactly?" Goku asked curiously.
"Just… a little responsibility", Bulma sighed, "He never does anything for anyone except himself. Trunks needs a father figure, you know?"
"I think there's more that you want", Goku said thoughtfully, "Like, maybe… you want his attention for yourself too?"
"What?! Th-that's absurd", Bulma rolled her eyes. "Why would I want that?"
"I don't know", Goku shrugged, "but that's what Chichi told me. She said I cared too much about training and stuff and I didn't pay enough attention to her. I mean, you two are both women, right? So it's probably the same thing". He grinned, unaware of the effect his words had on Bulma, then waved goodbye and disappeared.
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