CHAPTER THREE

It had been a progressing day for Bulma, she had spent the majority of it developing a new training program with her father for Vegeta. It had taken them quite a few hours to do, but the outcome had been successful. She had left her father to do some tweaks on it, and gone to find her mother, who was busy in the living room reading home magazines.

"Oh Bulma, there you are!" Bunny exclaimed as her daughter entered the room, a wide smile crossing her already cheerful face. "Hi Mom." Bulma replied, returning the smile as she sunk down on the couch beside her. "I feel as if I hardly see you anymore!" her mother continued, closing the magazine she had been reading and turning to her daughter. "I've been keeping busy, helping Dad, working on some new gadgets." Bulma explained, resting her head on the back of the couch.

"Well, I guess it's for the best, keeping occupied." her mother observed, and Bulma winced as she knew where this conversation was going. "It's been good. I enjoy working with Dad, even after all these years I still find myself learning a thing or two from him." she said, trying to keep on the subject. The last thing she wanted right now was for her mother to bring up the hurtful subject of Yamcha.

She had spoken to him only a few days earlier, the first time they had been in contact since ending the relationship. He seemed to be going well, he had recently moved into a new apartment, and she could tell that he was enjoying his new freedom. She only wished she could have felt the same. But working with her father had been a great distraction, and a good reliever of her constant boredom. And even if she didn't want to admit, having Vegeta around was also good fun, she loved having a battle of words with the Saiyan prince every now and then.

Thankfully, her mother seemed to sense Bulma's reluctance to indulge further in the conversation, and turned back to her magazines. Bulma stood up and wandered to the lower floor and then outside, making her way over to the gravity chamber, shivering slightly. She still hadn't forgotten the incident from a few days earlier. She wasn't sure what had been worse – almost dying, being yelled at by Vegeta or having him see her in nothing but her undergarments. The brief few times she had seen him since, he seemed to not be able to meet her eyes, and his cheeks would always go a flush of pink.

As Bulma approached the large round chamber, her thoughts began to swim. She found constantly wondering what the Saiyan warrior was up to in there, and had found herself in the habit of regularly peeking in and watching him – not that he knew.

She grabbed a nearby crate and stood up on it, trying her hardest to keep her balance. She peeked in, but couldn't see him. Was he not in there? No, the gravity was most definitely on, the room had the familiar red light. Looking around frantically, she finally she caught sight of Vegeta, who was in a handstand and doing something that resembled push-ups.

Bulma had to admire his strength and stamina. The Saiyans were certainly an amazing race, and seemed to be almost invincible. Growing up with Goku, she had always wondered about his incredible strength and fighting ability, there had always been something non-human about him. And then only a few years ago, they had all learned of his true origins, she had come to find out about just how powerful they really were. She had always thought of Yamcha to be so strong, but these days, watching the prince train mercifully, it seemed her ex had nothing on Vegeta.

Climbing down of the crate carefully, Bulma made her way back to her bedroom, sighing at the colossal mess that greeted her. She had always been a messy and unorganised woman, and especially of late she just hadn't felt bothered or motivated enough to do any cleaning up. Sighing, she knelt down and picked up the many papers that law strewn on the floor, piling them up on her desk. If there was any time to tidy up her room, it might as well be now.

Once her floor could finally be seen again, she moved her clean clothes into her wardrobe, stopping to look in the mirror first and analyse her current outfit and style. She had worn her hair in a large afro for a while now, whilst wearing one of her favourite long-sleeved dresses and a vest to match. But it was time for something new, she felt.

Bulma looked through her drawers in her dresser and found a short white skirt, which fit her snugly, showing off the curves of her hips and bottom nicely. Hard as she tried, she couldn't remember ever wearing it, and scolded herself for not pulling it out earlier. Bulma also found a purple and yellow fitted shirt that she had not seen nor worn for quite some time, and slipped it over her head. She admired her new outfit in the mirror, before turning her concentration to her hair.

An hour later, after much resistance and product, her aqua-hair was closer to being straight, but still held some waves that refused to budge. Bulma's bangs had grown longer, and she swept them to the right side of her face, tucking in the ends behind her ear, and had to admit it was a nice look for her. She stood in front of the mirror for a few more minutes, going over every detail before giving herself the seal of approval.

She went to find her mother, who also complimented her daughter's new look with a wide smile. "Oh honey, you look fantastic! It's such a good look for you! Your hair certainly looks very different." she commented with affection before giving Bulma a playful nudge in the arm. "This change couldn't have anything to do with a certain prince, could it?"

"Mom!" Bulma exclaimed, her face full of disgust. How could her mother think such a thing? Vegeta was the last man she could ever consider falling for, let alone dressing up for. Even is she died her hair bright orange and wore a plastic garbage bag, he would be too indulged in his training and himself to even notice. Bunny simply chuckled to herself and left the room, singing a love-tune shrilly.

Returning to her room, Bulma took note of the pile of papers on her desk that she had collected earlier, and sat down to go through them. Some of them were letters, others ideas and instructions for technology she had been discussing with her father. These were sure to keep her pre-occupied, and free her from any distractions. Flipping through the numerous pages, one caught her eye, it was for a new model of car that not only was faster and safer, but more efficient.

BOOM!

Bulma sat up straight in her chair. She had heard a similar explosion coming from the lawn before – this wasn't good. She stood up from her chair and flew down the stairs, running as fast as her legs would take her outside.

The sight that met Bulma's eyes confirmed her fears. Once again, Vegeta had managed to go and blow up the chamber, it had been reduced to a pile of rubble. As she scanned over the area, she realised with horror that she couldn't see any sign of the warrior. Footsteps approached rapidly behind her, and her parents appeared, Bunny letting out a wail of horror, and Dr. Briefs groaning in frustration. "Where is he?" Bulma cried out, moving into the rubble, picking up bits here and there, attempting to find Vegeta.

Her parents also joined the search, turning over pieces of debris, but it seemed Bulma was having no luck at all, there was no sign of the mighty Saiyan prince anywhere. Bulma began to get frantic, flinging scraps of metal in every direction. The last time this had happened, Vegeta had managed to pull himself out before collapsing, but it seemed like this time, he hadn't been so lucky. She was about to lose all hope before her father yelled out.

"I think I've found him!" Bulma and Bunny quickly ran over to Dr. Briefs, who was pulling sheets of metal off a bronzed body, which wasn't moving. Bulma knelt down and cleared away the debris from Vegeta's head, desperately searching for a sign of life in the warrior's face. "Oh my goodness! Is he alive?" Bunny asked, clutching her chest in fear. Dr. Briefs moved back as Bulma moved even closer to Vegeta, touching him softly as she moved her head to his chest, and breathed a sigh of relief as she heard his heart give a faint beat.

"He's alive, but only just." she told her father, who promptly pulled out his capsule box from his pocket. Rummaging through the numerous capsules, he found the one he wanted and clicked it before throwing it away from him. It turned into a hovering-stretcher, which he and Bunny both helped Bulma lift the unconscious Vegeta onto. Bulma cringed as she looked over his body – it wasn't good. There were many new wounds and bruises forming on his skin, and blood everywhere.

Once they had made it into the medical room, they managed to get Vegeta onto the bed carefully, and most of his wounds had thankfully stopped bleeding. Bulma then retrieved a wash cloth and warm water, her parents taking their leave from the room, her father off to get some equipment, her mother to possibly call up some of her friends and relay the news.

Taking a seat on the side of the bed, Bulma dipped the cloth in the bowl of water and drained it before gently wiping the blood away from his face, moving onto his chest next. The water in the bowl quickly turned a sinister shade of red, and Bulma wondered just how much blood the warrior had lost.. After cleaning one arm, she leaned over his body, trying carefully to keep her chest off his in an attempt to wash the other when suddenly Vegeta's dark eyes flew open, and immediately fixed their gaze on Bulma's startled ones. He attempted to talk, but she clasped her hand over his mouth.

"Don't talk Vegeta, you haven't got enough strength. You blew up the chamber. Again." she informed him in a steady voice, looking at him with worry. He was in pretty bad shape, and it looked like he was struggling just to keep his eyes open, but she was glad that was at least alright. "Don't touch me-" he grunted feebly, before passing out once more. Bulma glared at him momentarily, but her feelings of anger towards the Saiyan were replaced with sympathy as she continued to clean him up.

Bulma finished Vegeta's other arm and began to wipe down his legs, and couldn't help but blush as she reached up near his inner thighs. His pants, the only clothes he had taken to wearing whilst training, were quite torn and ripped, and there was only a small bit of the material left, which thankfully covered his groin. Once she was done, Bulma moved back off the bed, stood back and looked down at him. Her mother had admitted to finding Vegeta quite handsome on a regular basis, and reluctantly, Bulma now agreed with her.

A short while later, Vegeta awoke once more, this time more aware of his surroundings. He opened his eyes groggily, before wincing in pain. It was then that he noticed the many bandages wrapped around various parts of his body, as well as the bruises that accompanied them. It had been quite a stupid accident really, the training program had pushed him much further than it should have, and out of rage and a conflicted mind he let out a blast, one that was much to powerful for the chamber to contain. He should have known better, after all it had only been a year or so since he had done something similar.

He looked to the table beside him, but realised he was alone. It had been her fault anyway. He had been too busy thinking about the woman, and not concentrating enough on his training. Vegeta was furious at her, why should he be unfortunate enough to not be able to control his thoughts of the aqua-haired human? It was pitiful really, and he was disgusted at himself for having any thoughts of her at all. Since he had saved her from being crushed to death by gravity, all he could think about was the woman in her black undergarments...

Vegeta's moved his eyes to the ceiling, trying to concentrate on the light above him, when the door opened, revealing the person he least hoped to see – and at the same time, the person he most wanted to see. He also noticed that she had changed dramatically since the last time he had seen her, her hair was straight again, and she was wearing new clothes. With a slight blush on his cheeks, Vegeta was just glad that she was at least fully clothed.

Bulma realised with shock that Vegeta was awake again, and seemed to be watching her intently as she entered the room. "I'm just here to give you your medicine." she announced coolly, not wanting to get into an argument with the wounded man again. He gave her no reply, but his eyes stayed on Bulma as she sat down on the bed beside him, placing a cool hand on his forehead. The skin there was very warm, but she knew this to be common of Saiyans. She then poured a small dosage of purple liquid into a cup, and motioned for him to open his mouth.

To her surprise, he obliged. It was then that she figured he was simply too tired to fight her. Bulma moved one hand to the back of his head, her fingers tangling in his thick black hair as she lifted it up off the pillow and poured the medicine into his mouth with the other. As he swallowed, he choked slightly, but she kept his head tilted up until it was all gone. She lowered him back onto the soft pillow, and after keeping it there momentarily, removed her hand from his hair.

Getting back to her feet, she dropped the small white cup into the bin beside the bed and picked up the medicine bottle. She moved towards the door but paused, turning around slowly to take one last look at her patient. "Get well, Vegeta." she told him, before making her way outside, closing the door behind her and leaving Vegeta by himself again.

As he returned his eyes to the ceiling, he mulled over his thoughts.

With horror, he realised that he wanted her to come back.