Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ That'll Do, Son. ❯ Bardock's Nightmare ( Chapter 10 )

Chapter 10, author's notes: This hit me at 2 in the morning after I tried to fall asleep. Sorry if I'm too lazy to look up the real name of the Grove of Whassitcalled, but I'm tired and I wanna get this done with so I can sleep.

Yes, the title's lame. Go on, read.

Fucking writing urges hitting me at ungodly hours.. *grump* anyway. Very short filler chapter so that I can get this out of my mind, I'll elaborate lots and lots once I get a good solid session of snooze. Enjoy. Lots of angst in this one.

Chapter Ten: Bardock's Nightmare

Meanwhile, Bardock made it through the Grove of ...Whatever safely. He hummed a small tune to himself as he decided to walk the rest of the way. He hadn't seen Toma in ages; ever since he'd been dragged off to the Army of Hell (he had sent in a petition to change the name, but they beat him up and sent him away) he hadn't been allowed visitation to any real extent. He wondered if Toma had changed at all...? He chuckled and brushed his bangs back. Nah, Toma couldn't change! He was Toma! Bardock arrived at the modest hut with a wide grin.

Stepping up to the door, he knocked loudly out of respect and let himself in. It was darker than it should have been; maybe he wasn't home? Bardock looked around in the very few rooms and finally found Toma asleep on a large bed, tail twitching and drool running. The grin returned to his face: Toma hadn't changed one bit.

Bardock took a flying leap and landed on Toma's stomach. The poor landing pad let out a large puff of air and promptly reached up to strangle whoever sat on him with such force, but faltered when he realized that it was not, in fact, an enemy, but his old friend, Bardock. He frowned and sat back, which was obviously not the reaction Bardock was expecting, as the latter saiyan frowned in return and cocked his head. "What, aren't you happy to see me?"

Toma made a strange choking noise and reached up to Bardock's face, stopping just short and whispering, "You haven't changed at all..."

Bardock frowned deeply and narrowed his eyes. "You have. What's wrong with you? You're all... Wispy. Dreamy. Not yourself. What happened to you?"

Toma looked away at the far wall. "Nothing, I'm fine. It's just...seeing you again.. it brings back so many memories. Where have you been all this time?"

Bardock smiled and ran his fingers through Toma's hair. "Sorry I was gone so long, chibi. I... well, they drug me off to that whole Army of Hell deal and we weren't allowed very extensive visitation rights... I'm so glad that I could see you again, I missed you."

Toma lowered his eyes and smiled a very small, sad smile. "I missed you, too."

Bardock leaned down and tilted Toma's chin up so that they met eye to eye. "Chibi, is something bothering you?"

"I..."

"You can tell me, you know that, right?"

"Yeah..."

Bardock frowned and leaned down, brushing his lips against Toma's, but was forced away by a strong hand as Toma whipped his head to the side. Bardock's brows drew together as he bit back the hurt and confusion and instead displayed anger. "What's wrong with you? You used to love it when I kissed you like that!"

"I...still do... it's just that..."

"That what? That you don't want me anymore? Is that it?"

"No, I..."

"You what? You found someone else?"

Toma winced and looked again at the far wall behind closed lids, trying to ignore the rebel tear that slid down his cheek. Bardock, who hadn't even considered the possibility that Toma could have said "yes" to that question, couldn't keep the two suppressed emotions from showing this time. His jaw fell ajar, his eyes grew wide, and his hands started to shake. Toma's head was still wrenched sideways, decorated with a small tear streak that trailed his perfect complexion and ended at his jaw line. Bardock didn't quite trust his voice to sound strong, but he had to know anyway.

"W-who is it, Toma?"

Toma sucked in a shaky breath and opened his eyes to look up at Bardock warily.

"Who's stolen your heart from me, chibi?"

Toma looked again at the far wall, squeezed another tear out, then whispered almost inaudibly, "Turles..."

Bardock choked back the sudden sob that erupted in shock. "You...my..." Twin tears found themselves in a race down Bardock's cheeks as he got up from Toma's stomach gently and walked backwards out of the room; his eyes never leaving Toma's. Once he reached the door, his hand groped for the handle and he bolted out of the doorway, leaving Toma alone and never seeing the man curl up on his side and bury a fist in his hair.

Once outside, Bardock fell to his knees and began to cry. He and Toma had been mated when they were alive, and he knew that HE at least had planned to stay together with the other saiyan during their afterlife. He had never felt so...betrayed in as long as he could remember. Sure, he had been gone a long time, but he didn't think that the relationship that they shared was such an unimportant thing that Toma could just go and...

He couldn't say it. He could not say it, not out loud, not to himself, and certainly not to anybody else. His tears dripped off of the end of his nose as he continued to let them go, but instead of kneeling in the dirt outside of his former mate's home, he hauled himself upright and began trudging back towards home. He sobbed quietly every now and then, and even the oppressing darkness of the Grove of Despair couldn't darken his mood. He didn't really look to see if he was still going in the right direction; he didn't care. He was too focused on Toma, his heartbreak, and his boiling emotions.

Before he knew it (quite literally, as he ran into one of the poles on the porch), he was back to their small house. It was night time on this side of hell, so he stepped back quite a few steps and looked to the starless sky with bloodshot eyes.

Not expecting an answer, he blinked and let his eyes drift unfocused.

"Chibi...how could you replace me?"