Hello! Here is the chapter some of you have been waiting for! I hope you like it :)

I feel like all the previous chapters were just kind of a set up, and from now on, the story can really take off. I am SO excited to write the next chapter (the next chapter is already in progress!)

Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your point of view...) I am going on a trip for the next three weeks. Therefore, I won't be able to write during this time, so don't be surprised if the next chapter takes a little longer to be published. But it will come, be sure!

Thanks again for all the reviews guys, it really is a motivation to continue!

Enjoy! xx

Chapter 23 – Bulma

11 years ago

"Never again! Do you hear me? I'll never get back with him! Ne-ver!"

After her proud exclaiming, Bulma raised her elbow and swallowed her fourth glass of wine. She downed the liquid in one long gulp and placed her cup on the garden table to pour herself another. She and Chi-Chi were on their second bottle, all found in Mrs. Briefs' personal cellar.

"Oh Bulma" Chi-Chi sang as she took a sip of the expensive liquid. "This wine is even better than the previous one!"

Bulma took her own glass (filled much more than usual) and drank it again. She adjusted the straps of her bikini a notch before collapsing on one of the chairs placed in front of the outdoor pool of Capsule Corp estate.

"You're daaamn right" she agreed, raising her arms to enjoy the last sunrays of the day.

The two friends had arranged to meet up a little earlier to enjoy the nice weather, as well as to manage the existential crisis Bulma was currently going through. Chi-Chi, who did not have the luxury of owning a heated swimming pool, a private sommelier and an army of chefs, had rushed to the Briefs' home to help her best friend, whose love life disasters distracted her from her quiet and serene relationship with Goku.

"He'll come back begging to take him back in a few days. I'm sure of it" she said.

"Ha!" Bulma exclaimed, raising her glass. "And I'll be happy to welcome him… with a good kick in the ass!"

Chi-Chi smiled as she took off her sunglasses. The sun was no longer strong enough to justify her wearing them.

"You'll forgive him eventually" she said, laughing. "You do it all the time."

"Not THIS time!" Bulma replied firmly.

The young woman set her glass aside to hide the tremolo threatening to resurface. She poured herself another one before continuing.

"Before, it was for trivial things" she continued. "Like that time he completely forgot my birthday. Or when he canceled our romantic weekend at the last minute to train Kami knows where. But this... Chi-Chi, THIS is serious. This is unforgivable, and he'll never see the color of my sheets again. I swear!"

"It's true that he was a bit of an idiot this time" Chi-Chi conceded.

"A bit?! He was the biggest asshole, you mean! I caught Yamcha kissing another girl! Can you imagine?! He kissed her! In front of me! The idiot can't even get away with his lies now!"

Chi-Chi took another sip of wine and began to pick at the leftovers on her plate.

"Do you think they slept together?" she asked hesitantly.

The two friends had been talking about the "unfaithful Yamcha" case for most of the day. But this was the first time Chi-Chi had dared to ask the question directly. The breakup was fresh. She didn't want to trigger yet another round of tears… or one of the legendary temperamental Bulma Brief's tantrums.

To her great relief, however, the question didn't provoke either of them. Bulma instead gracefully got up from her chair and dove into the pool's crystal clear water. Chi-Chi watched her swim, before she emerged a few minutes later, her arms resting on the edge, her eyes red from chlorine, alcohol and tears.

"When I first met Yamcha two years ago…" Bulma said, looking at her friend. "Everything happened so fast. He was handsome, strong, adventurous… I immediately fell in love with his rebellious side. But I was young, and waaay too innocent…"

Bulma motioned for Chi-Chi to bring her glass. She got up from her chair, grabbed the half-full cup and handed it to her before sitting down and dip her feet in the water. She was ready to listen to her completely drunk eighteen years old friend talk about wisdom and maturity.

"At that time, I saw Yamcha as the perfect boyfriend! I should have known he would be so inattentive… and unreliable too!" Bulma said before downing her drink in one go.

Chi-Chi said nothing. She saw her friend wipe away a few tears, her gaze also blurred by the alcohol.

"Come on" Bulma insisted as she got out of the water. "Tell me what you think. I won't bite, I swear."

She sat down next to her and folded her long legs, ready to hear Chi-Chi's frankness, who had never really cared for Yamcha.

"I'm not afraid of that" laughed the jet-black hair women. "I just don't want to give you the usual - I told you so - ."

Bulma pouted. Chi-Chi placed a hand on her friend's to soften the emotional consequences of her words.

"What I mean…" she continued. "Is that I don't think Yamcha is the one for you. You're hard-working, brilliant, and extremely ambitious. You need someone who can support you in your projects, someone who allows you to progress, someone who challenges you. I agree, Yamcha is handsome, strong, and I have no doubt his adventurous side is very entertaining. But in the long run, you need more, and better."

"Someone loyal, that's for sure..." Bulma added between her teeth.

"Someone loyal, yes" Chi-Chi conceded. "But we knew it from the beginning. Yamcha is kind of a player at heart. In my opinion, going out with you awakened his self-confidence, and he began to enjoy the attention of other girls a little too much."

Bulma lowered her head and shrugged. She had never wanted to admit it, but her friend was right. The last two years with Yamcha had been hard, full of ups and downs, laughter and conflicts, breakups and reconciliations. The young woman had often questioned her relationship with him, wondering if he deserved all the attention she gave him or if it was she who was too demanding, as he liked to tell her.

"In any case, this time, it's for real Chi-Chi" Bulma exclaimed firmly.

Chi-Chi smiled softly at her friend. She had heard that phrase many times in the past.

"You always end up forgiving him… or "giving your relationship another chance" as you say" she said. "Do you think you'll be able to resist his sweet words and flowers bouquets?"

"Pff! If he thinks apologizing profusely will be enough to repair the harm he's done... he's a complete fool!"

Bulma slammed her fist into her palm to show her determination. The alcohol doing its job, her knuckles landed limply on her hand and the glass she had forgotten she was holding shattered on the ground. Shards of glass scattered everywhere, forcing them to extricate from this minefield, laughing heartily.

The sun having disappeared, the two friends took advantage of this interlude to remove their swimsuits and put on warmer clothes. Dusk also reminded them it was late, and the cool air that had settled encouraged Bulma to ask for blankets and more wine. Deprived of a glass this time, she began to drink straight from the bottle. Chi-Chi, more reasonable, poured herself a glass before settling comfortably on one of the lounge chairs placed in front of the pool. As a good friend, she tried to swallow the words that were probably burning her tongue. Bulma knew she doubted her determination to push Yamcha away once again. But the ounce of judgment the alcohol had not yet managed to eclipse encouraged her to keep her cruel honesty to herself.

And Bulma was grateful for it. She was not yet ready to admit her weakness.

"Well at least, you can enjoy it a little" Chi-Chi said to lighten up the discussion. "Yamcha always gives you nice gifts, and the bigger the mistake, the more effort he puts in. He'll probably spend an entire month's salary and take a singing lesson to serenade you this time. I'm not even sure Goku knows what flowers are!"

Bulma laughed at the thought of her oldest friend's innocence.

"Goku would buy chocolates and give you the empty box because he ate them all on the way."

Chi-Chi laughed, then pouted as she realized how realistic the joke was.

"Stop it" Bulma teased as she stretched out on a chair. "Goku may be a little simpleminded, but at least you can be sure he doesn't look at other girls."

"Ugh! He's so obsessed with his training that he even forgets he has one waiting at home. That's the problem with him..."

Chi-Chi having her own frustrations, she got into a tirade explaining why Goku was far from being the perfect husband and after a while, it was she who swapped the glass for the bottle. Bulma didn't object. She was happy to talk about something other than her dysfunctional relationship.

The evening went by quickly after that. Punctuated by stories, tears and laughter, it was only once the moon was high in the sky and the wine was consumed in its entirety that the two friends felt their eyelids grow heavy. Both lying on their respective chairs, their bodies wrapped in blankets and heavy from alcohol, the discussion had taken on an incredibly slow pace. Bulma was even on the verge of falling asleep when Chi-Chi spoke, her voice a little thick under the soporific effect of the wine.

"Tell me, what are you going to do with the Dragon Balls?"

The question had the effect of an electric shock.

The Dragon Balls.

Here was a subject, yet crucial, they had not yet discussed.

Suddenly alert, Bulma turned her head to look to her right, where she had put her gym bag down earlier that afternoon. Inside, were the seven Dragon Balls.

She watched the bag for a moment, silent and thoughtful.

She had been planning this for several months. Using her personal radar, she had gathered the balls in order to offer Yamcha a wish for his birthday. She had planned to give it to him the next evening, after a dinner planned for the occasion at their favorite restaurant.

But her plan had fallen through now. It was obvious she would not grant him this favor now that she had discovered his infidelity.

"I don't know" Bulma said in a small voice. "I could... make a wish for revenge, maybe?"

Chi-Chi gave a small, forced laugh, without sharing her opinion. She probably didn't agree with this spiteful plan. However, fatigue didn't allow her to find the strength to formally oppose it.

"Ah... forget it" Bulma finally said. "What good will it do? It won't repair the harm he did to me, anyway."

"Hum hum" Chi-Chi approved in a sleepy voice.

Bulma repositioned herself on her lounge chair. She tightened the blanket around her shoulders and closed her eyes, ready to join her friend in the arms of Morpheus.

"Maybe I should offer them to my parents?" she mumbled weakly. "Even though I know they already have everything they dream of, it would surely make them happy…"

Chi-Chi didn't answer. Bulma lifted an eyelid to look in her direction. Fatigue and alcohol had gotten the better of her. Her pretty face relaxed and her body weighed down, she had fallen asleep.

Bulma smiled seeing her friend being so peaceful by her side. Loyal, understanding, she had stayed with her all this time to hear her whine and share her pain. Her presence helped a lot to render this painful day much more bearable. Grateful, Bulma told herself she was lucky to have her in her life. They had met barely two years earlier when Goku and she had gotten together, and it hadn't taken much for them to become best friends. Chi-Chi was tidy. She was thoughtful and reasonable, always calm and rational. Everything that Bulma, the disorganized and reckless scientist, was not. They complemented each other well.

Happy and drunk, Bulma turned back to her gym bag placed a few meters away. What was she thinking? The wish would go to Chi-Chi, of course. Her best friend deserved it more than anyone.

"Shenron" whispered Bulma. "Wake up and grant us a wish."

The request had been made in a low voice, but the answer was instantaneous. As soon as the last word was spoken, Bulma felt a shiver run down her neck. A crackling sound, like an electric arc, then disturbed the silence. And that's when the sports bag began to glow. First with a faint amber light, then with a brighter one, the intensity of which grew as the seconds passed. Blinded, Bulma had to cover her eyes and it was only once she got used to the powerful lighting she perceived a shape stretching out in the black sky. The process only lasted a few seconds. And even if it was not the first time Bulma had called the dragon, the event was still just as impressive. The shape, at first not very distinct, became clearer before her eyes. It undulated for several dozen meters in the sky until reaching a peak. The sparkling outlines of green, scaly skin then appeared, and enormous arms with claws as long as her leg withered away on either side of the beast's slender body. At the end, a head adorned with two horned appendages appeared, and through the swirl of golden light, two scarlet dots began to glow to look at her.

And that's how, half asleep and completely drunk, Bulma found herself facing Shenron.

"Chi-Chi!" the young woman exclaimed without taking her eyes off the dragon. "Come on! Wake up!"

Her friend didn't answer. Bulma glanced at her furtively to see that, despite what had just happened, she was still sleeping.

"Chi-Chi!" she repeated with a little more enthusiasm. "Open your eyes! Look!"

Bulma stretched out her arm to give her friend a little pat on the shoulder. Chi-Chi made a brief movement of her hand, as if to chase away a particularly unpleasant mosquito. The blue-haired woman groaned as she let her head fall heavily back on her chair, discouraged. In a last-ditch attempt, she awkwardly leaned on the armrest of her chair and tried to get up to shake the sleeping beauty. But Bulma had underestimated how drunk she was. Unable to get on her legs, she instead found herself slumped on her lounge chair with uncontrollable dizziness and a nausea.

"Oh shit… I'm so drunk..." she breathed as she looked at the sky.

"One wish shall be granted to you" the dragon growled. "Tell me what it is."

Shenron's powerful and deep voice resonated in Bulma's body and head. She began to laugh stupidly as she realized how pathetic she must have looked in the eyes of the divine dragon.

"Chi-Chi!" Bulma repeated once more, swinging her arms towards the sky. "Come on, make a wish, the dragon is waiting!"

"Meh…" Chi-Chi mumbled. "Me… I… I just… sleep."

Her friend turned her back on her and buried her head under the blanket to hide from the bright light illuminating the garden. Bulma sighed. It was hopeless. Chi-Chi was too knocked out by wine to realize what was happening. It would have been wiser to wait until the next day, and call the dragon in all sobriety.

"So…" Shenron repeated, who was starting to get impatient. "What is your wish?"

The dragon's resounding voice brought Bulma back to reality. She turned away from Chi-Chi and looked up at the enormous beast undulating infinitely in front of her. She blinked to chase away the fog the alcohol had formed, and freely admired this incredible phenomenon.

The dragon was staring at her. And it was patiently waiting for a wish to be made.

Chi-Chi was clearly not in a state conducive to formulating this wish, so Bulma began to think about her own desires.

She was rich. She already had absolutely everything she wanted. She was young, beautiful and in perfect health. For the moment, nothing justified her wanting to change her appearance or physical form. She had friends, a wonderful family… she was happy. And she didn't really feel like she could wish for something for someone else.

"I would like... I think that..."Bulma stammered, looking innocently at the dragon.

What did she really want? There had to be one thing…

Undecided, Bulma brought her hand to her chest. As she wondered what she wanted, she felt the pain resurface.

Yes, at the moment, there was indeed one thing missing.

A heart that wasn't broken.

"Shenron..." she said, closing her eyes to hold back her tears. "Please, I want to meet someone... Someone not like Yamcha..."

The dragon remained silent, his thousands of scales perpetually shining to the rhythm of the waves his body made. He was probably going to need a more detailed request...

"A man, actually..." she specified, stammering. "Handsome and strong, like Yamcha."

Bulma rubbed her face with her hands. The alcohol was really a problem here. She had a hard time formulating a clear request, and she would end up wishing to get back with her ex-boyfriend if it continued.

"No! Not like Yamcha" she quickly corrected. "Well, actually, I would like him to be handsome and strong… but also very smart. Yes, that's it. A brilliant, gifted man, able to challenge me. And… I would like him to have a strong character, so that he is not afraid to contradict me if necessary."

Bulma slumped down in her chair. Even if she was a little unclear, she was satisfied with the wording. As she curled up under her covers, she thought it would be relevant to add a few details to prevent history from repeating itself.

"And above all!" she pronounced, limply raising her arm. "I would like him to be devoted, determined… and honest. I would like to be able to meet a faithful man, on whom I can rely, who will always be there if I need him. And who would never get out with other girls!"

She lowered her arm, considering that her request was now complete.

"There! That would be all!" she affirmed.

Ready to fall into a sleep that had been looming over her for several minutes already, Bulma pulled the blanket over her head to hide from the blinding light. She closed her eyes, telling herself that, despite everything, the day hadn't gone so badly. The good weather, the pool, Chi-Chi, the wine, the good food, sleeping under the stars... and to conclude in style, the wish that guaranteed her to meet the perfect man.

Bulma smiled stupidly as she thought of this "perfect man". It was a little ridiculous, but she had always had this innocent dream of making this kind of request to the dragon. As a teenager, she had even gathered the Dragon Balls in the naive hope of marrying Prince Charming. Fate had, of course, decided otherwise...

It was at this moment that something crossed her mind.

"Oh! Shenron! One last thing! It's not too late, I hope?"

Bulma poked her head out from under the covers and opened her eyes a crack. She didn't hear the dragon answer, but the amber glow was still there, so she figured there was still time. That's how, through all the realistic and rational demands she had just made, she asked her most thoughtless request of all.

And this time, it was the alcohol speaking for her.

"While we're at it... Make him a prince!"