Ranma 1/2 Fan Fiction / Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ A Light in the Darkness ❯ Sick Friends ( Chapter 30 )

A Light in the Darkness - part 30: Sick Friends
by Mia Skywalker, Wataruo

PAIRING: None that I'm willing to acknowledge in this chapter. ^_~
RATING: G
WARNINGS: None
DISCLAIMER: Neither of us owns any of the DBZ characters or anything about DBZ, but we both wish we owned the Saiyans. All of them. At least the ones with hair. These characters are owned by Toei, Viz, Akira Toriyama, and FUNimation. We do own what we've written here, and our specific storyline, just not Dragonball itself. We make no money off of any of these guys, nor off this fic. We just have fun writing it.
SUMMARY: Two strange visits with sick friends. Yamcha attempts to 'cheer up' Bulma, and Vegeta tries to fight Gohan.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT: Thanks to saiyengerl for the beta!

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After Chi-Chi's call, Yamcha reluctantly left his apartment in Satan City and headed towards the Briefs home. The last time he had seen Bulma was three nights ago, and they had gotten into yet another fight.

 

He never understood why she was always so angry with him. Just because he was friendly to someone who was a fan didn't mean she should get all riled up. He was a famous baseball player and had a lot of fans. He had to be nice to his fans, after all. He couldn't be rude to them. That just wasn't done.

 

He let the wind whip through his long hair as he drove his aircar to the Capsule Corp. residence, and he parked the car in the small lot reserved for non-capsular cars. He noticed Gohan shooting out of the house as he approached; the small Saiyan boy shouted a greeting at him as he zoomed off.

 

Yamcha smiled and shook his head. He headed into the house to face Bulma, carrying the flowers he had bought for her. He hoped they would prove some sort of peace offering. He wasn't entirely sure what he was doing there. He hadn't told Chi-Chi they had broken up again; she would have been angry with him if he had. But she had coerced him into agreeing to come here, and if nothing else he was a man of his word.

 

He wished he had been able to get Krillin to come with him, but he hadn't been able to reach the smaller man before he had left. And he knew he couldn't delay the visit. Chi-Chi would find out if he did.

 

He knocked on the door and Mrs. Briefs answered. He almost thought he saw a startled look in her eyes, but it vanished so quickly he was sure he was mistaken. She smiled with her usual empty-headed expression.

 

"Yamcha-san! How nice to see you! What can I do for you?"

 

"Um...." He looked at the ground, hesitant to meet her eyes for a moment. "Um, I've come here to see Bulma. I was told she wasn't feeling well. Can I... can I see her?"

 

Mrs. Briefs smiled at him happily. "Oh, certainly!" She appeared almost concerned for a moment. "But Bulma really is ill. You mustn't tire her out. If she looks fatigued or asks you to leave, then it's a good idea to leave."

 

He nodded, suddenly relieved. It would give him a good excuse not to stay long. He didn't really want to get into another fighting match with Bulma. He loved her, but he was a little afraid of her. Sometimes she could be... frightening. More frightening even than enemies like Frieza or Garlic Jr.

 

Yamcha went up to her room and saw Bulma curled up on her bed wearing only her nightgown. It was obvious she hadn't been out of her room all day; he wasn't even certain she had gotten out of bed. She looked up at him in horror and immediately drew the covers over her head.

 

"Yamcha, go away!" she shouted at him, her voice muffled under the covers.

 

Yamcha looked at her in dismay. He knew that if he didn't talk to her for a little while that Chi-Chi would be furious with him. He had to stay and try to talk to Bulma for at least a few minutes.

 

"Bulma..." he began, and then hesitated. "Bulma, are you still mad at me? Do you want me to go away?" He managed to make his voice sound very hurt and pitiful.

 

Bulma peeked slightly from the covers to look at him. Yamcha had sounded very much like a little boy whose toy had been taken from him, and he looked like a puppy that had been kicked.

 

"I'm not mad at you, Yamcha," she said with a sigh. "But I'm a mess! I don't want anyone seeing me!"

 

Especially him, she thought. Somehow the idea of looking like a fright in front of her ex-boyfriend was just... wrong. She wanted to make him regret losing her, and why would he regret it if she looked terrible? She knew those feelings weren't logical, but that didn't matter much.

 

Yamcha looked at her in confusion and then clumsily attempted to reassure her. "A mess? Oh, that's all right, Bulma. I don't mind if you look like a mess."

 

Bulma sighed in irritation, realizing he was just as clueless as he had always been. She could never hope to change him, and she wasn't sure if he would ever change. She didn't think he would ever get a clue about what was bothering her.

 

"What did you want, Yamcha? Why are you here?" she asked, sighing in resignation.

 

He blinked. "Chi-Chi said you weren't feeling well. She said I should stop by. To cheer you up, you know."

 

Bulma eyed him cynically. Chi-Chi had told him to stop by. Not 'I wanted to stop by because I was worried,' but 'Chi-Chi told me to stop by.' She knew, somehow, that he would never have come here if her friend hadn't pressured him. Some boyfriend he had been to her. He was too interested in himself to care about anyone else.

 

"That's nice, Yamcha. You've stopped by, now it's time to leave."

 

Yamcha scratched his head in confusion, and then smiled abruptly. "I brought you some flowers!" he said brightly, holding them out to her.

 

She stared at him blankly and then took them with a small sigh. "Fine...." She buzzed the intercom. "Mother, can you bring up a vase, please?"

 

Mrs. Briefs arrived in the room in a few minutes with a vase and she smiled at Bulma. "Your voice is better, Bulma dear! Are you feeling better? Do you want to get out of bed yet?"

 

Bulma considered it for a moment and then shook her head. The idea of facing the world didn't appeal to her. She had a computer in her room that would allow her to keep up her Capsule Corp books, although she didn't really feel up to that, either. She still felt like bursting into tears at the smallest things and knew she wouldn't do any good at the moment.

 

Mrs. Briefs eyed her shrewdly when neither of them was watching her, and then she turned her empty-headed smile at Yamcha again. "Yamcha honey, why don't we leave Bulma alone? She looks like she's still tired. You can have some breakfast if you didn't have some earlier!"

 

Yamcha was secretly relieved that he wasn't expected to visit with Bulma any longer. He smiled at Mrs. Briefs and trailed happily after her, happy to get something to eat.

 

Bulma sighed in relief when he left, glad she no longer had to pretend everything was all right. He was more concerned that she was upset at him than that she was sick, and his casual self-centeredness irritated her. She curled back up on the bed after he left, tears starting to fall once again.

 

"Oh, Vegeta," she whispered. "I wish you could have loved me, too...."

 

~~~*~~~

 

Vegeta was so preoccupied with his own thoughts that it took him a while to even notice Gohan's presence. He sat still for several minutes hoping the boy would just go away; when he didn't, but just waited for the older man to say something, Vegeta sighed and raised his head from his hands to look the boy in the face.

 

"Is there something you want, brat?" he asked. "If not, then leave."

 

Gohan shifted from one foot to another curiously. Vegeta seemed positively... despondent, to him. This was something he had never seen in the other man before.

 

"Do you... do you want to train?" he asked him hesitantly. "You came here, so I thought maybe you wanted to train with me some more. Would you rather I leave you alone? I can go, or if you want me to bring you something to eat or something...."

 

Vegeta's ki was dangerously low, he sensed, almost as though he hadn't eaten in a while. For some unknown reason Gohan was worried about him.

 

Vegeta gave a bitter laugh. "I am not hungry, kid."

 

What was the point of eating when the woman he was bonded to did not want him? The sensible half of him was screaming for him to be reasonable, but he had no intention of being reasonable. He was acting on emotion, not logic. This was dangerous considering that Vegeta had very little experience with emotions other than anger.

 

"But if you want to train...."

 

He gave Gohan a cruel smile as he got to his feet. Maybe he would get lucky and the kid would kill him. This thought should had warned the prince that something was very wrong with himself, but Vegeta was ignoring things that made sense and acting purely on instinct.

 

Gohan's concern for Vegeta increased. On the surface he seemed normal, but something was amiss. Gohan was anxious, but decided to watch Vegeta closely and see if there was anything he could do. But he knew that Vegeta wouldn't allow him to stay unless they sparred, so they would spar.

 

"All right," he agreed. "What do we do today?"

 

Vegeta considered him. "Hand to hand. Come at me with everything you've got, brat."

 

Gohan nodded, fully expecting a training session like he used to have with Piccolo, where Piccolo gave no quarter nor expected none. He came at Vegeta full strength, but it was only after they had gone at it for a while that Gohan realized Vegeta wasn't always blocking when he should have been. It was almost as though the man were deliberately leaving himself open on occasion, allowing some of Gohan's hardest attacks to go through. The openings weren't coming at intervals he could time or expect, though, so he couldn't pull his punches easily. 

 

He tried to slow down so he could pull them when Vegeta opened himself, but the older man snarled at him in fury.

 

"What are you doing, brat? You're a warrior! Don't leave yourself open, and don't treat me like an invalid!"

 

He punched Gohan hard, sending him flying. The little boy came back, noting that as hard as Vegeta had hit him it hadn't even bruised him. He could feel Vegeta weakening and he pulled back, panting slightly.

 

"What are you doing?" Vegeta growled. "It's not over yet. Come at me or I'll kill you."

 

"I'm tired, Vegeta!" Gohan explained. "In a minute. Let me catch my breath."

 

He ignored Vegeta's growls and considered what he could do to drag the match out. He was afraid this time not of getting hurt, but of hurting Vegeta so badly that the other man couldn't heal himself. He had the feeling Vegeta would allow his body to die. It made a cold shiver run down Gohan's spine. He had no idea what had done this to Vegeta, but there was a desperation in the other man's face and demeanor, something that made Gohan want to help him.

 

After he pretended to catch his breath he moved towards Vegeta again. He thought carefully about what he wanted to do, then concentrated his ki and began moving even faster than normal. It wasn't faster than Vegeta could move, but he knew he stood a better chance of holding him off this way. He still landed blows - he knew Vegeta wouldn't be satisfied unless she felt that Gohan was fighting - but he was pulling his punches just a little, hoping it wouldn't be noticeable.

 

Vegeta stopped to catch his breath after a moment, realizing Gohan had caught on to what he was doing. He glared at the boy. He knew Gohan was holding back, and this frustrated as well as angered the warrior. He was worse than his father.

 

"Kid, you are no help," he said without even realizing he had spoken aloud.

 

He sank to his knees, breathing hard. Not eating for a day and a half had affected him badly. It wasn't widely known that if Saiyans didn't eat at least their weight in food every day they would end up starving to death; their ki needed fuel, and if they didn't eat enough it would start feeding off their own bodies. The stronger the warrior, in fact, the faster this would happen; Vegeta wouldn't last very long at all.

 

Vegeta folded his legs underneath himself and looked up at the boy. Gohan was watching him with such a look of blatant worry that Vegeta almost laughed. ::Why should he care what happens to me when I don't?:: 

 

"Get lost, kid," he commanded. "I am finished with you." 

 

Gohan didn't leave, however, but continued to hover above Vegeta. "Are you all right?" he asked in an anxious voice. He was tempted to force the older man to eat, but didn't know how he could go about doing that. Vegeta would just fight him and nothing would be accomplished.

 

"If you're not feeling well, you should go back with me. Yamcha's over there right now. I don't think they'd be mad if you came too."

 

Vegeta felt a white hot flash of jealousy. His jaw tightened and his hand clenched into a fist. That bastard! He seethed inwardly. If Yamcha thought he could have Vegeta's mate he was seriously mistaken.

 

"I am perfectly fine, brat," he ground out, although it was apparent he was not. "I have no intention of ever going near that place again." 

 

::Liar!:: came the unbidden thought. ::When the kid is gone you'll go back there won't you?:: He pushed that thought to the back of his mind and glared at Gohan. 

 

"Go away, brat, unless you want me to kill you before I kill your father."

 

Gohan's concern grew when he saw Vegeta almost double over. He couldn't tell what was wrong with him, but he was worried. ::I better go back and tell Bulma.:: He frowned. No, he would tell Bulma's mom. She might be able to help Vegeta.

 

"All right," he said reluctantly. "But if you get hungry later I'll bring you something to eat, all right?" 

 

He flew off again, heading back towards the Capsule Corp as quickly as possible. He landed in the front yard and headed into the house, seeing Yamcha and Mrs. Briefs chatting happily in the living room. "Mrs. Briefs!" he shouted at the woman. "Vegeta's sick! I need to get him something to eat!"

 

For almost the first time since they had known her a look of real concern passed over Mrs. Briefs face. "Sick? Are you sure?"

 

Gohan nodded, his small face serious. "Uh huh. His ki was really low. And he was letting me beat him up, he wasn't fighting back when he was supposed to be training me. He got mad because I didn't want to hurt him."

 

Training him? Yamcha thought, startled. He wondered if Chi-Chi knew about this. He wasn't about to be the one to tell her, though. 

 

"I think I'd better leave," he said hastily when he saw Mrs. Briefs get up to gather some things for Vegeta. She didn't know what he would need, but she gathered up what she thought a sick person would need. "I'd just be in your way right now."

 

Mrs. Briefs nodded absently and continued to gather blankets and food while Yamcha exited the house. He hesitated at the stairway, and then decided to say good-bye to Bulma before he left. He went upstairs but when he saw her curled up on the bed with her back to him he decided not to wake her.

 

Bulma stirred when the door to her bedroom opened and shut. She hadn't been sleeping but was glad that whoever it was hadn't come in to see her crying.

 

Yamcha went downstairs again and walked slowly out the door, heading out to his car.

 

~~~*~~~

 

Vegeta was greatly relieved when Gohan left. He was starting to shake with fatigue and hunger and he hadn't wanted Gohan to see his weakness. After several deep breaths Vegeta got his trembling under control and he carefully stood up. He took to the air but soon realized he was too weak to fly and was forced to land again. 

 

He was suddenly annoyed that he didn't have the strength to even fly and recognized that even though he had no appetite he needed to eat something. Otherwise he would die before he had a chance to kill that lowlife Yamcha.

 

Thus motivated, Vegeta got to his feet to search for food.

To be continued.....

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And in the next exciting episode of DragonBall Z: A Light in the Darkness... Goku worries about a certain Saiyan Prince.