"I'm just saying you could be a little more gentle with your driving."
The longer Raditz and Bulma spent together, the more Bulma was positive that Raditz had exactly no chance of being her dream boyfriend. At this point, Goku took to napping in the back of the car as Raditz and Bulma bickered back and forth with one another.
"You know if you're going to help, a better attitude might be more useful," the teen girl shot back.
"I'm only traveling along because my little brother wanted to do something nice, and I don't trust you with Gramp's dragon whats-it."
"Again, it's a Dragon Ball. Besides, I already told your brother that I was just going to borrow it. As soon as I wish for my perfect boyfriend I won't want anything to do with it."
The two glared at one another again, holding their gaze before Raditz was the one to break. His head turned to the side, watching over the moving lands around them.
"... How many wishes does the dragon grant again…?"
Bulma's eyes glanced back towards the other teen. "What was that?"
Raditz's body remained in position, but he spoke again. "Just… How many wishes can the dragon grant?"
"Now hold on there Mister! I'm the one who started this search in the first place! It's only one wish per year and I'm going to be the one who wishes for it!" Bulma exclaimed, reconsidering whether it was a good idea to bring the Son brothers along.
Raditz glared at the land, but his body stayed still. To Bulma's surprise, the other teen remained silent, focused either on the road ahead or checking on Goku in the back of the car. The silence lasted until Bulma finally pulled to an open clearing.
"We stopped." It was more of a statement than a question as Raditz finally turned to look at Bulma again for what had probably been hours.
"It's getting dark out. I'm tired, and your little brother will probably be starving when he wakes up. It's a win win." Bulma hummed, grabbing her bag of capsules.
"I don't take you for the "sleeping outside" type. You got a fancy capsule thing for shelter?"
"Only the best~" Bulma hummed, holding up her hand to show a peace sign.
One moment Bulma was throwing a capsule on the ground, and the next was a large living space. Raditz gave it a look over before looking back to Bulma. Raditz's gaze lingered for a moment. Bulma blinked at the look, flushing slightly as her mind began to justify that Raditz was still an attractive boy her age, even if he was a little bit of a jerk.
"Are you sure you're not a witch?" Raditz asked flatly.
"What is with you and your brother asking that!?" Bulma yelled, any lingering attraction disappearing.
"If you say so…" Raditz murmured, still not completely sure that Bulma wasn't some type of witch. Instead, he walked back towards the car and lifted Goku onto his shoulder. "Yo, it's time to wake up."
"Huh…? That was a good nap. Where are we anyway?"
"We just set up camp. If you sleep anymore, you won't be able to go to sleep tonight." Raditz ruffled his younger brother's hair before setting him on the ground.
"Come on you two, it's going to get cold out!" Bulma called out, already inside the capsule home.
Bulma couldn't help but peek in as Raditz was making sure Goku was properly washed off. While she has made her peace that Raditz doesn't fall for her charm, she still enjoyed seeing him shirtless in her bathroom. As she followed his arms, preoccupied with dumping water on his younger brother's head, she noticed that the tail on Goku seemed to be moving on its own.
"Don't tell me you let him wear that tail all the time."
"Wearing what tail? It's part of me?" Goku commented, his tail grabbing a scrub brush.
"W-Wait! It functions! Why does your little brother have a tail!?"
Raditz blinked slowly again. "What's so wrong about having a tail?"
Bulma was about to open her mouth as she watched the "belt" tied around Raditz gi trousers unravel until it showed its true form. Raditz's tail, similar to Goku's grabbing the brush, grabbed a towel that was hanging to the side.
"Boys aren't supposed to have tails!... A-At least not like that!" Bulma stuttered, though she really wasn't the authority on what boys did and did not have,
"Grandpa didn't have a tail, but we do!" Goku chimed in, walking past Bulma in a towel. "Maybe it's like why you have a butt on your chest!"
"That's not what that is!" Bulma glared before turning back to look at the teenager near her.
"He's 11… which is probably still a little too old to not know some of these things, but he hasn't been around anyone besides me and Gramps."
"Why has it only been just you guys…?" Bulma asked, watching Goku find his gi.
"You saw where we live. Gramps found us one day when I was about six. Took us home and decided to try and raise us the best that he could. We liked it out there, so there really wasn't any reason to try and venture out any further."
"I guess… but… what about friends or other things?" Bulma asked, starting to clean up a few things from Goku's bath.
Raditz paused, thinking for a moment before finally shaking his head. "Right now, I need to take care of my little brother. He's the only family I have left, and he needs someone to make sure that he's raised right."
"I…" Bulma hesitated "I have a big sister. When I was younger, she always tried looking out for me too. As long as you care about Goku… I don't think you need to worry too much about whether you're doing a good job or not."
"... who knows. I suppose we'll just have to see what sort of man Goku grows into." Raditz responded, attempting to walk out of the bathroom.
Before he was able to leave, he felt a surge of nerves shock through his body, all the way through the base of his tail
"Oi oi!? What the hell are you doing?!" Raditz hissed, his head slowly twitching to look at Bulma.
Bulma looked at the other teen, a scowl now adorning her face "No way are you leaving until you at least rinse off too! You smell way worse than your brother!"
"Okay, Okay! Just let go of the tail! It's sensitive!"
Bulma smiled and let go, moving herself out of the bathroom. "I'm going to go check on Goku~. Be quick, I still need to take a bath later~"
As Bulma disappeared from sight, Raditz couldn't help but murmur under his breath
"Not escaping those witch allegations I see…"
Goku was easy enough to get back to sleep once he had a full stomach. Raditz made sure that he was tucked in the blanket fort before going to sit outside of the capsule home. After a moment of silence, he was joined by the teen girl he found himself arguing with most of the day.
"... Sorry again. I wasn't planning on having company so the capsule only has one bed"
"It's fine, really. Goku could sleep anywhere."
There was an awkward silence between the two, one that Bulma wasn't exactly sure how to break. She had only known the duo for a little under a day, but they were interesting to say the least. Her general interest over the boys with the monkey tails only added a twinge of guilt in the reaction Raditz had early when she snapped at him about her wish.
"... So, about earlier. I know I probably sounded really mean." Bulma started to say, only for the other to raise his hand.
"Your wish is important to you. It's something you've probably been thinking about for a while."
More silence filled the air, this time ending quicker than the last.
"... What would you wish for if… you got to make a wish on the Dragon Balls?"
Raditz paused again, turning his head as his stomach turned at the thought.
"Bulma, it really doesn't matter."
"No really. O-once a year sounds like a long time, but it really isn't! I'm sure that the dragon has enough power to do two wishes back to back!"
Raditz sighed, glancing back over to the girl next to him. While he did still think she was at least a little bit vain, he could see that she was trying.
"... I'd just want to try and wish for our Grandpa to come back. Goku really misses him and I…" he hesitated "... I really wish that I could tell him a few things. I don't know, like I said. Don't worry too much about it."
Bulma sat quietly with Raditz for a while, grappling with her clashing thoughts. Of course she'd be the one to come across an orphaned pair of kids who seemed good hearted enough. A perfect boyfriend compared to wanting one's family member to come back to life was just silly sounding when you mentioned it outloud. Not to mention the sinking feeling she got implying second wishes, knowing that the Dragon Balls would disappear for one year.
"Geez… See, this is why I said it wasn't any big deal." Raditz shook his head "I'll figure something out. Just focus on trying to find a boyfriend or something."
Bulma was about to open her mouth, only closing it when she looked at the other boy's expression. It was a lot softer than what she would have expected, especially after dealing with him all day. It seemed a little familiar, like it was a smile aimed towards a younger sibling to let them know that something was okay.
"Just try and get some rest, radish boy. We have a big day ahead of us."
Raditz laid sprawled out on the floor, wrapped in the blankets. For what it was worth, the floors of the capsule home were fairly comfortable. Everything was calm in the morning until he heard the sound of his brother screaming.
Raditz bolted up, just as he saw Bulma running towards her satchel.
"Goku! Don't scare me like that! The Dragon Balls are fine!" She turned her head quickly to Radtiz, "You still have your Grandpa's Dragon Ball, right!?"
Raditz quickly patted his gi pocket, pulling out the orb. "Yeah? Why? What happened? Is Goku okay?"
Bulma sighed in relief, zipping her satchel closed again "He must have had a nightmare…"
"A nightmare? Goku doesn't usually have night terrors like that…" Raditz moved to try and see where his brother was.
Goku was in the corner, murmuring something about "balls" and "being gone". Despite trying to coax an answer out of him, the older teens were left at a loss at what could have scared Goku that much.