Warning: Language

Facing the Future

Chapter 21

The Next Morning…

Vegeta let out a groan as he awoke, squeezing his eyes shut and rubbing his forehead. What the fuck happened last night!? He ran a hand over his face as he sighed, blinking his eyes open. His head felt like it had been crushed under a heavy boot, though he didn't spar with anyone last night. He had trained on his own…. Why do I feel so drained? He groaned again as sat up. It took him a moment to realize that he was naked, and the scents permitting the air…. What the fuck!? He practically flew out of bed, scrambling to get his underwear on when he froze, the scrap of material hanging from his fingertips. He stared wide eyed at the person laying in his bed, her face turned away. But there was no mistaking who that was.

Oh No! NO! NO! NO! NO!

What the fuck happened last night!? His nostrils flared with the scent of sex and blood, one more prominent than the other. Vegeta let out a shaky breath as he took a step forward, his eyes widening even further when he saw the blood on the woman. He felt his face drain of color. Shit! He felt nausea coat the back of his throat as he reached a shaky hand towards her. His trembling fingers hesitantly moved her hair away from her neck, the proof of how much he fucked up smacking him in the face. Vegeta swallowed hard as he backed away, shaking his head. There's no fucking way! I can't…. I wouldn't…. Air hissed out between his teeth as he scrambled to make sense of what had transpired last night. He blinked when he heard the woman whimper, just now taking note of how low her energy was. He scrambled to find a stronger link, but it just wasn't there. The woman was dying.

He hastily pulled his underwear on, pulling those pants on the woman had insisted they wear while on her planet. He didn't bother with a shirt. Hell, he didn't bother buttoning his pants before he put two fingers to his forehead and blinked out of sight.

XXX

Goku was having the greatest dream. He wasn't sure of the particulars, but he was pretty sure it involved banana cream pie. …" mmm" …. He subconsciously licked his lips, almost feeling the cool, creamy substance on his tongue. His mouth actually started watering.

BAM!

He wheezed, grabbing his chest with a cough. Shit! He was awake now!

"Wake the fuck up, you clown!"

Vegeta stood beside his bed, his hands balled into fists at his sides. He looked extremely mad. …. huh?… Goku groaned as he sat up, rubbing the spot the temperamental saiyan had hit.

"Jeez, Vegeta. What was that for?"

"Give me a bean! NOW!"

Goku winced, still rubbing the tender spot on his chest as he eyed the saiyan in front of him. "Why?"

Vegeta's expression turned thunderous. "I don't have time for all these asinine questions! Give me a fucking bean moron!"

Goku lifted his hands up. "Okay, okay. Jeez, you don't have to be so mean Vegeta."

"What's it for?" Goku asked as he went to his closet, pulling out two beans that he'd been storing in his gi. He heard the prince growl behind him.

"None of your fucking business, you defective piece of shit!"

"Hey!" Goku turned, a scowl on his face. "You don't have to call me names. I didn't do anything to you. Gods, what's your problem!?"

Vegeta let out a snarl, ignoring the question as he snatched both beans out of Goku's hand and quickly disappeared.

"Hey, Vegeta!"

Goku pouted, crossing his arms over his bare chest. "I was saving one of those," he grumbled, trying to think of a reason why the prince would want a senzu bean in the first place. After a moment, he gave up with a sigh. One never knew with the angry prince, he'd come to realize.

He suddenly sniffed the air, his mood vastly improving. Ooooh! Breakfast!

XXX

Raditz turned to watch as she shifted on the bed, her energy fluctuating as she awoke. He turned back to stare out the window, his arms crossed over his chest.

"Raditz," the woman's voice cut through the silence of the room, bringing him out of his musings.

Raditz glanced over his shoulder at her before turning his gaze back to the window. The sun beamed down on him, warming his skin. It reminded him of home, which he desperately wanted to get back to. He closed his eyes. He had something he needed to do first.

"I am a saiyan warrior," he suddenly stated, not realizing he was going to say anything at all. He kept his gaze on the tree line outside as he continued.

"I was becoming one of the top warriors, beating out those that always thought I would amount to nothing. I was moving up in rank, bypassing those that thought I would never surpass them."

Raditz paused, his brows furrowing a little. What was influencing him to say this, he didn't know, but he felt compelled to get the words out. His shoulders tensed a little when he heard her move. He glanced back. Athea was sitting up in the bed, her eyes wide as she watched him. He turned back to the scenery before him.

"I was one mission away from joining my fathers' team. I had one more to do than I would be moved up. One mission. Do you know what that was?"

He didn't expect an answer. And he was right; she didn't say anything.

"It was to go and retrieve my brother. Go to the planet he was sent to as a child and bring him back."

There was a long pause before he spoke again. "But things didn't go as planned."

A muscle ticked in his jaw as he let out a long breath. "I anticipated a little resistance. That was to be expected. After all, he wouldn't have remembered me. I was only a few years older when he got sent away."

He heard the rustling of the bedding, glancing over his shoulder to see the woman sitting on the side of the bed. She was still watching him, a perplexed expression beginning to form on her face.

Raditz turned, focusing his gaze on the woman that he couldn't escape. "I didn't count on you."

Athea's eyes widened as she blinked, tilting her head a little in question.

"I had a plan; get Kakkarot, by force if necessary, and take him back to the planet. Simple and straightforward. I would have been able to enter my fathers' garrison and earn my spot in the elite guard."

"You were not a factor I was counting on," Raditz stated simply, "But when I landed on that shore, everything changed."

"Do you know what I thought when I first laid eyes on you," he asked softly, his brows narrowing when she shook her head. "I thought, "She's too beautiful to be real," Athea flushed and averted her gaze. "Then I witnessed how you protected that brat of his, and how unfair it was that my brother found you first."

Athea bit her lip, not sure where this was going. She didn't say anything though, waiting for Raditz to continue. What point was he trying to make?

"I was going to kill you, you know." Raditz stated almost in a whisper, watching as she jerked her head up, wariness in her eyes.

"I wanted to punish my brother, and you. I didn't like what you were doing to me. I'm a warrior; warriors don't feel. I was immune to such things; I didn't understand what was happening to me. I began to question the actuality of these…. emotions. Then something occurred to me as I watched you struggle on my planet…."

Athea swallowed, remembering exactly what he was talking about. Those months hadn't been the best.

"I realized I was jealous of my brother."

They were both silent for several seconds, Raditz finally taking a step closer. Athea fought the urge to scoot back.

"I hated you for that. I wanted to punish you for it, punish my brother for having you…. I decided the best course of action, to stop all these nonsense emotions, was to kill you and hurt my brother in the process."

Athea studied the saiyan in front of her, a hand creeping up to her throat.

"Yes," Raditz stated, his tail flicking behind him. "I was going to snap your neck that day. I wanted to do it. I hated the fact that you could influence my emotions that way. A mere human, causing me to hate the brother I didn't even know."

Raditz took another step closer, now only a few feet from the woman staring at him.

"But I couldn't. I hated you even more for that. I couldn't do this one simple act when I had done it on purging planets so many times before. The fact that you were so weak irked even more. I was cowed by a mere human."

Athea bit her lip, swallowing as Raditz got closer, his tail swaying forward and caressing her arm.

"Everything changed after that," he stated softly, his gaze following the movements of his tail.

"H-how?" Athea whispered, a little afraid of the answer. She bit her lip as his gaze shot to hers, his eyes penetrating, bordering on uncomfortable.

"I realized that I couldn't fight it," Raditz stated, his tone almost angry. "I wanted you; there was no getting around that. But the fact that you were Kakkarots' mate didn't sit well with me. I pushed you away, trying to get you to hate me."

He took another step forward, his knees almost touching hers. Athea gasped as he suddenly bent forward, causing her to fall backwards on the bed. He loomed over her, his hands settling on either side of her head. "Then I realized you were a virgin. Untouched. That my brother had no claim over you."

Athea swallowed hard, holding his gaze as he continued. "I hated my brother for finding you first, for knowing you and protecting you. I was the oldest, I should have gotten you first."

"I wanted to thank him and kill him at the same time for it. These emotions were causing me to appear weak, and I did the only thing I could; I ignored it, trying to reason with myself that I just needed a good lay. I didn't feel for you so strongly. That was for pansy asses like my brother."

He trailed his finger along her cheek. "Then you died, and I couldn't deny it anymore."

"I figured, when I found out that you could be wished back, that maybe I could do something different. Make you not fear me so much."

Raditz eyes suddenly narrowed. "Then you denied me upon returning. That almost killed me."

Athea gulped as his face inched closer to her. "But you belonged to me. That wasn't going to change that fact. So I figured I'd win your trust. Show you that I wasn't such a monster you believed me to be."

"And now," Raditz hand ran down her side, gently squeezing her hip. "The only question remaining is "Do you want me?"

Athea nervously licked her lips, a shaky breath escaping her. "I- "

"Do. You. Want. Me?" With every word, Raditz moved closer until his nose touched hers, his penetrating gaze holding her own.

Athea gave a small, hesitant nod. "Y-yes," her voice coming out a mere whisper.

A small noise emitted from Raditz throat as his eyelids lowered. He suddenly leaned forward and licked along her neck.

Athea gasped as Raditz nipped her flesh. He slowly lifted his head, meeting her gaze.

"Come home with me," he breathed against her mouth.

Athea swallowed, nervousness flitting through her body. Was he asking me to live with him!?

"You mean go to planet Vegeta?" she whispered, her breath catching as Raditz nodded.

They studied one another for several seconds before Raditz suddenly scowled. "Well, woman?"

Athea's gaze lowered to her lap, her teeth nibbling at her bottom lip. "I…. I don't know Raditz," she whispered, inwardly wincing at the low growl that came out of him.

"Why not?"

Raditz straightened up, folding his arms across his chest with a scowl. His eyes narrowed. He was not pouting. Does the woman not want to be with him!?

"This is my home Raditz," Athea finally stated, lifting her gaze to his. "I belong here, not on your planet. Besides…" she hesitated for a moment before continuing, "I don't think I'm wanted there."

Raditz didn't say a word for several seconds, his penetrating gaze boring into her. He suddenly leaned down until she could feel his breath on her face.

"I want you there," he stated gruffly, "that's all that matters."

Athea's mouth opened and closed for a moment before she finally blew out a sigh.

"Can…. can I think about it? Please."

The large saiyan grunted in answer, finally moving out of her personal space and making his way towards the window once more. He lifted it, putting one foot on the ledge before looking back at her.

"You have 24 hours to make up your mind," a muscle worked along his jaw, "then I'm leaving."

XXX

Her energy was fluctuating when he got back. Vegeta bit out a curse, hurrying over and shoving one of the beans down her throat. He massaged her throat as she gasped and wheezed, a hacking cough coming out of her. He didn't want to admit it to himself, but he had been terrified. Afraid that he wouldn't make it back in time. This is all my fault! He growled low in his throat, guilt blinding him for a moment before it suddenly cleared. No…. if she had just left, this wouldn't have happened. Vegeta scowled, stepping away as the womans' ki slowly leveled out. She was going to be okay. This is her fault! If she had left when I told the bitch to, this would never have happened! Vegeta felt anger course through him; at her, at himself, at the situation. He bit out a curse, running a hand through his disheveled hair. He didn't know what to do, how to handle this. He was always in control! Always!

Why the fuck did it have to happen last night! And with her of all people! Vegeta let out a growl, yanking on a patch of hair and ignoring the sting. How was he going to explain this to father!? He was always so careful. He never lost control of himself! What the fuck happened last night!?

He snapped out of it when he heard the woman on the bed groan. She shifted, but didn't wake up. Vegeta scowled. The bean should have fixed everything, no matter what happened between them last night. He let out a low snarl and crossed his arms, leaning back against the wall. He settled himself to wait for a while until the woman woke up. He needed to find out what exactly happened between them. His eyes travelled to the womans' shoulder, swallowing with difficulty.

They needed to figure out where they went from here.

XXX

Not a very long chapter, but I felt that I should give a glimpse into what the saiyans' were feeling right about now. Let me know what you guys think!