Falling In Love The First Time

Chapter 2 - The Morning After

Vegeta slammed the door to his room, almost breaking it as he found he had an overwhelming urge to kill something. He wondered if it was some sick cosmic joke that she, of all people, would say that to him. The bitch he had grown to tolerate was insulting his worth. Him! The Saiya-jin prince, the legendary with the birthright to be the strongest being in the universe!

Vegeta lay on his bed, contemplating his life. That was what he was meant to be. The most elite fighter ever to exist but look what he turned out to be instead. A prince with no people, a warrior forced to live on a peaceful planet of weaklings, an elite surpassed by a third class weakling. What pride did he have left? No people to order around, no eyes to look upon him with respect, nothing but the memory of royalty followed by the horrifying reality of years of bondage under Freeza.

Vegeta felt himself flinch as he was suddenly reminded of the date. It was a week before his scheduled insanity. The three days a year he would go to some random planet and kill everything in sight in order to smother the throbbing urge to take his own life. He closed his eyes as he blocked out the memory. In one week it would come; the nightmarish trio of days where he would be reminded of the true worthlessness of his life. He chuckled coldly as he suddenly realized that her words must have been some torture played by Freeza from the grave reminding him of the days to come.

Vegeta growled, he knew sleep was not an option for him tonight. Grabbing his sneakers, he headed to his sanctuary. The GR provided peace from all the pain, misery, and suffering he had endured in his life. It would help him achieve his ultimate goal; that which was keeping him alive, his inevitable ascension.

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When Bulma opened her eyes the next morning, death was the most appealing thought to cross her mind. She could still taste the bile in her mouth from the endless hours she spent with her head in the toilet. 'Oh what was I thinking, getting drunk over Yamcha cheating on me!' She groaned as she pulled herself out of bed and walked back into the bathroom she had become so intimate with the night prior. She tried to ignore the thought as she undressed and started the shower. She wanted desperately to be clean. Clean from the detestable combination of vomit and alcohol, clean from the violation she felt from sleeping with Yamcha, but most importantly, clean from the stupidity of her actions. She knew the warm water would cleanse the alcohol and vomit from her body but after a night like last night, she needed her soul cleansed.

She stepped under the water and allowed the hot pressure to blast her. She picked up a bar of soap and slowly began running it over every inch of her body to try and eliminate the dirtiness that overwhelmed her. She knew, all too well, which of her actions made her feel the most unclean. In truth, Yamcha's affair was not as painful as she would have imagined. They had been together for an eternity but she noticed they were drifting apart. She didn't feel the spark she used to experience every time he walked in a room. She didn't feel that overwhelming passion and need for him as she had when they were first together. She would always care about him, but upon reflection she wasn't surprised this happened. A few tears, an hour of gorging and asolid night of rest should have been cure enough for this mistake, but that is not what happened. In the heat of the moment the entire fiasco was multiplied by tens of thousands on the disaster meter because of him.

He was what plagued her mind in the middle of all of this. The arrogant Saiya-jin prince who she couldn't dare face after Yamcha's disgrace. She found herself almost more worried about the pain his insults would inflict, as opposed to that which Yamcha's cheating had caused. On several occasions, he had made rude comments about her intimacy with Yamcha, calling her nothing short of a whore. The fact that he was right stung the most. She used Yamcha as much as he used her and even the self-absorbed prince could see it. That was an even greater humiliation than Yamcha's affair. That was why getting drunk seemed a better alternative than coming home and facing him. A lot of good that did.

Bulma stopped scrubbing her body once she realized her skin was becoming red from rubbing too hard. Picking up the bottle of shampoo, she began lathering her hair as she thought of her foolishness the night before. 'I can't believe I threw myself at him like that!' her mind screamed, as the thought of avoiding him for all eternity became incredibly appealing. But that still wouldn't be long enough to live down her shame. Of course nothing compared to the words she spoke to him, not even pinching his behind.

She slowly ran her fingers through her hair as she rinsed out the shampoo. Turning the water off, Bulma grabbed a towel and dried herself. After wrapping the towel around her body, she headed back into her bedroom to search for an outfit. Her mind couldn't stop repeating the word 'alone' again and again. 'How could I say that to him?' Though Bulma was far from an expert on the Saiya-jin prince, if there was one thing she came to know about him, it was that he had feelings. Last night she used his most painful reality and belligerently threw it back in his face. She even went so far as to compare him to his mortal enemy just to prove Goku would always be better.

Once she finished dressing, Bulma closed her eyes as she slowly walked over to her bed to sit down. 'He didn't deserve that.' She wiped a tear from her eye as she sadly realized the cruelty of her words. He had lived in her house almost a year now, and though he would constantly insult her in every way possible, he was never cruel with her. He'd be brutal with Yamcha about how pathetic he was, her mother with how stupid she was (though the dense woman never seemed to realize it), but with her, he never crossed the line. He would only go so far before he'd stop pushing. It was almost as if he wanted to keep her at a distance but not as unreachable as everyone else.

On some level she wondered if Vegeta felt some sort of comfort with her, some sort of acceptance. That thought killed her as she realized she might have just severed whatever connection he had developed to her. She frowned, knowing exactly what she had to do. She owed him an apology. Even if that apology meant facing insult or ridicule, she had to offer it.

Pulling herself slowly off of her bed, she made her way outside towards the gravity room. She took a deep breath before knocking. She wasn't exactly sure if this was going to work but she hoped it wouldn't be as terrible as she imagined. "Vegeta," she called, hoping he'd answer. It was about five minutes before she heard a cranky voice bellow back to her. "WHAT!?!"

"I want to speak with you," she called back, almost hoping he'd refuse to listen. She heard no response for what seemed like an eternity before the GR engines turned off, signaling that the gravity was back to normal. She took the sign as an invitation. Hesitating only a moment, she opened the door. Upon entering, she saw him standing in the middle of the GR breathing heavily and looking rather furious. Composing herself, she walked over to him. "Look, I didn't mean to interrupt you but I just wanted to apologize for last night." She started, finding it too difficult to look him in the eye. "I'm sorry for my actions and for the things I said. I was really out of line. You didn't deserve to be insulted like that and I'm sorry." she finished quickly as she finally found the strength to look up at him. Once she did however, she wished she had not considering the look upon his face nearly broke her heart. He looked broken, like he had just been through emotional hell and back. She wondered if she was the cause for his pain or if he always looked this bad after intense training; somehow, she hoped it wasn't the first.

Vegeta watched as she looked up at him; her face turned teary eyed. He was surprised by her apology. He didn't expect her to have the guts to recognize her wrong, let alone admit it to him. However, his flattery at her apologetic words were short lived as his distrustful nature took charge. Trust and kindness were two things he didn't believe in. 'She insults me and informs me how I will always be alone and uncared for and then she comes to me today the image of concern? Does she think me a fool? Was this some kind of joke? Is she trying to insult me further?' He looked suspiciously at her as she stood staring at him, unsure what to say in return.

"Vegeta," Bulma whispered as she could not help but reach out to him, to wipe the sweat from his brow. Noticing him flinch, she immediately pulled away. Before he could react she said, "Look. I…I just wanted to let you know that I was wrong and whether it matters to you or not, you aren't alone. And if you ever need something or someone, I'm only a door down." Needing a speedy escape, she did not give him a chance to respond as she turned around and left.

Once she was gone, Vegeta felt his hand slip up to his brow right before he allowed his body to fall to the ground finally exposing the exhausted state he had been hiding. 'Why did she touch me?' He asked himself. He could smell the soft scent she had left against his skin. Was he wrong? Was her apology sincere? Did she really care what he thought of her? 'Well she should, I'm the Saiya-jin prince! She should beg for my forgiveness.' He sighed at the thought. His ego just wasn't as convincing as usual. Looking up towards the GR roof, he reminded himself that before the end of the week he would have to take the ship and leave Earth for the three days to find a nice planet to blow to pieces; it would be just like the old days!

The old days… That's why he had to leave in the first place. Vegeta growled as he got back to his feet. He wasn't going to let himself think about this now. In a few days he'd leave. He had no choice. If he stayed chances were he'd kill someone. He smirked, as he knew that wouldn't go over well with Kakarrot.

Vegeta walked out of the gravity room, heading towards Dr. Briefs lab. Leaving would be good for him. He would be away from all of the distractions, including the annoying woman who insists on confusing him. "Who gives a shit what she thinks anyway?" He hissed as he entered the lab, he had no time for hurt feelings and petty apologies. 'Yes, leaving would be an excellent solution.'

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Making her way into the kitchen, Bulma sunk into a seat and let out a deep breath. 'He said absolutely nothing!' She thought, too shocked and confused by his attitude during the entire exchange. 'Why not say something? Why leave me with no inkling as to what was going through his mind? No anger, bitterness, sarcasm, nothing! It was like he didn't even notice my presence!' She paused a moment as she realized that was not true. He did notice her presence. Maybe not when she spoke but when she touched him. For a brief moment she could feel the shiver that shocked his body as she stroked his brow. It was almost as if he had never known the gentleness of another being. 'Perhaps he has never had anyone in his life to care for him.' Bulma realized, 'No one deserved that, not even a cold hearted bastard like Vegeta. But then again, perhaps the lack of affection in his life is the reason he is the way he is.'

But what was she to do about it? If he wanted to be alone that was his choice. She apologized for her words, and anything more was for him to choose. 'Ah, why do I care anyway? I just broke off a long-term relationship and all I can worry about is whether or not Vegeta is lonely!?!?! Hell, I'm lonely!' She huffed while rising to her feet. Grabbing her purse, she went outside and opened a capsule car. 'I know just what I need.' She thought proudly before taking off into the air.

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"What the hell do you mean it's not ready!?!?"

"I'm sorry Vegeta, but had you given me more notice, I could've prepared the ship. There is just no way I can have it fixed for you by the end of the week. I need at least a month to make it suitable for space travel." Dr. Briefs tried to explain calmly.

Vegeta growled as his power began to engulf his body. "I want it ready by the end of the week!" He screamed almost as childishly as he did the day he ordered three times the gravity Goku had been given to train in by doctor a year ago.

"Honestly Vegeta, if I could get you off the planet by then, I'd be more than happy to, but I simply can't get all of the work done that quickly. Perhaps by the end of the month-"

"Having it finished by the end of the month will be useless to me, you fool! I need to leave now!"

Dr. Briefs gulped, he didn't think the Saiya-jin had ever looked as intimidating as he did at that moment. "Look Vegeta, I'm truly sorry but there is nothing I can do. Will staying on this planet another month really be that terrible?"

"YES!" Vegeta bellowed before he stormed out of the lab, breaking the door off its hinges in the process.

"I wonder what got into that boy?" Dr. Briefs asked himself as he headed back to his work.

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Author's Note: Excellent question. So what is making Vegeta want to get off the planet like a bat out of hell? What happens in one week? Well you'll have to wait to find out! Next chapter in a few…