Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Too Close for Comfort ❯ Mystery ( Chapter 9 )

[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]

Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ.

A/N: A nice long chapter for you guys! Chichi is becoming a major player in the story, it seems like I've had more scenes of Chichi and Vegeta rather than Bulma and Vegeta! There will of course be more B/V later, but I've got to solidify Chichi's position first. I'm really enjoying writing her character since her and Bulma are very similar, but I think Chichi can be even stronger because she's not as vain and not as self-controlled as Bulma. Sorry if there's been too much introspection, I really want to flesh out these characters and explain their motivations for things as things become more plot driven.





Too Close for Comfort





Chapter 9 - Mystery





Vegeta tossed and turned, sleep eluding him yet again. He was tortured by a transient dream, feeling engrossed when he managed to stay unconscious long enough to experience it, yet forgetting it immediately every time he awoke. Each time he became alert he felt the need to go back to sleep, thinking maybe, after one more time, he'd finally be able to remember it, then he'd wake again, feeling tricked, and becoming frustrated as it slipped away once more.



-



Bulma awoke early in the morning with a sick feeling in her stomach. Her conversation with her parents the night before had gone less than stellar. She had been expecting a pretty monumental meltdown by her mother, but the meltdown ended up coming from her father. He had demanded she return home immediately and begin working at Capsule Corp full time rather than a come-in-when-she-felt-like-it sort of schedule, and when she had refused, the results had not been pretty. His threats to cut her off were met with a resigned indifference on her part, since she had used a minimal amount of money just by moving out and putting down a deposit on her apartment, but he had said it with a finality that left her feeling absolutely terrible. How could you do this to us? After all that we have done for you? Your genius is going to waste. We need your help. Most of the things he had told her in his attempt to knock some sense into her were very true, aside from the “we need your help” part. There were plenty of other capable (yet in her opinion, overpaid) minds on the Capsule Corp staff that were likely all too willing to step in and take over where she left off. She had unknowingly made sure of that due to the impossibly high standards she set for the lucky few she deemed intelligent enough to hire for her father's company.

 The main reason her father had taken it much harder than her mother was because she hadn't told him the full story. Only her mom knew what the catalyst was for her big decision to move on and move out; her argument with Yaumcha. She explained that it really woke her up as to how much she was taking her life for granted, how easy she had let things come to her. In a surprising and unexpected moment of clarity on her mother's part, she told Bulma that she couldn't let the ideas Yaumcha put into her head  sway her decisions to the point she had let them. Bulma liked to think that it was mainly her own decision, but her mother's assertion that it was purely Yaumcha's challenge that guided her hit a little too close to home. Sure, she had thought about that herself, and simply reinforced that it was her own decision by doing everything independently from that point on, but from her mother's viewpoint, that was exactly the reason it wasn't completely her decision. I know my daughter. When she's challenged and wants to prove somebody wrong, no matter who or what it is, she'll do it. Bulma hadn't expected to hear those words from her and it made her feel even more horrible.

 What if she was making one big mistake and everything was just a misunderstanding? That Yaumcha was really blowing off steam and his words meant nothing? Regardless of whether she went back home or stayed on her own, she knew for certain that she and Yaumcha were absolutely and irrevocably over, and there was little that could change that, yet she couldn't deny that by letting him get so close to her heart she allowed him to say the words that would hurt her the most, therefore guiding her into making one of the biggest decisions of her life. Her father maintained that she would come crawling back home when she was sick of the world and wanting to return to the shelter under their protective wing. Not if she could help it!

Yaumcha had attempted to contact her several times since the whole mess began and she had ignored him. Her mother urged her to reconcile and realize what a silly mistake she was making, but Bulma was too stubborn to consider it. Due to the amount of break-ups and get-togethers they had, Bulma couldn't say they were stupid to think that she would change her mind when it came to Yaumcha. She didn't know if Yaumcha was still living at Capsule Corp under the delusion that she would eventually come back and everything would go back to normal. She wondered how long he would last before he finally got the picture and got out for good. He'd probably be living there until the day she died either just waiting for her or enjoying the luxury her parent's compound provided him, all three of them under the false impression that she was just having a “moment” that would pass. At least, until she could confront them after becoming a great success in the world they thought was too much for her. She was frustrated that she couldn't properly convey how much of a good change in her own life she was making, and even if it might not turn out to be permanent, it was completely altering the outlook she once had on life, something she once considered effortless and simple. Now from the outside she could see how beneficial these changes were, something her family could never see unless they were on the outside, too.

Bulma stretched and sat up in bed, realizing that she wasn't getting much more sleep. She was still a bit early, and she decided that what she needed was a nice breakfast and a jog outside. She fixed herself some eggs, threw some yoga clothes on and headed out into the crisp morning air, hoping that her brief bout of exercise would help to both clear her mind and invigorate her.

 

 -



Chichi sat in Vegeta's office, thinking about the last time she was in that very chair and how frightened she had been she would lose her job. She was still confused as to why she was still here and what Vegeta had planned for her, even though she could venture a guess as to why. She was being promoted to what, exactly? She was already in charge of everyone out in the office, being the one that did the final revisions of reports, what more could Vegeta give her? Would he give her a raise? He had remained tight-lipped at the end of their last meeting, telling her they would hash it out the next time they saw each other, and here they were, glaring at each other with every last ounce of hatred left in their bodies. It had become a game for her, too, just like the game that he played with everyone in the office. Yeah, let them think Vegeta's signature awkward silence that left an empty pit in their stomachs was an accident. They were all puppets in his big show, and she was ready to blow it all open, and she was pretty sure that he would have to let her due to the huge influence she had on everyone in the department.

Chichi couldn't place where her confidence had come from all of a sudden, but once Bulma had told her the night before that Vegeta had hired her as his assistant of all things, and that he had given her a bunch of new responsibilities, it solidified her suspicions that things were not what they seemed. What she had first seen as a fun investigation into the mysteries in her workplace had taken over everything in her life. When she was not at work, all she could think about was what had happened that day and what was strange about it, what she had read in this-and-such report that didn't seem right, what her coworker had said about something said to them, it became her. Vegeta's penetrating stare screamed to her the obvious. You know too much.

Readjusting herself in her chair, Chichi could feel the regret for involving Bulma in this. Her friend deciding to move out of her house and start a new life had come at a perfect time. She was glad to help her friend out, but the whole affair had brought Chichi more insight into the company than she had thought possible. By telling Vegeta about her, they established a rapport of trust, like she knew he needed someone like her best friend, and by Vegeta accepting and putting her into such a position let  Chichi know loud and clear that her previous suspicions regarding Seiya Corp had been one hundred percent correct. It was a smart move, in hindsight, but depending on what she heard from now on from Vegeta, she could only hope she couldn't regret bringing Bulma into this. The least she could do was warn her that Vegeta might try and jerk her around a bit and to not take any of his abuse, and Bulma told her she didn't intend to, and while that did provide her some relief, it wasn't enough to free her from guilt.

Vegeta looked at Chichi with a face he'd describe as fully accurate of how he felt about the woman. Annoyed, disgusted, full of a hatred that he could not quell, and (his least favorite part) respect. It had taken a lot of figurative balls to get herself into this position, and while she wasn't too graceful or subtle about it, feeling the need to constantly bother him, silently letting him know that he was under her “surveillance”, she had gotten herself this far all by herself. She was determined to find out the truth, and he knew she wasn't ready for it. He wasn't about to tell her all of it, either, that would be stupid. Depending on her reaction from what he did end up telling her, he'd be able to gauge how she could handle it. For all he knew, she'd hear just one piece of the nasty puzzle she was so desperate to put together, turn tail and run out, never to be seen again. Perhaps over-dramatic, but wholly possible, judging by Chichi's past behavior that sometimes bordered on the hysterical.

He hadn't anticipated he'd be having this talk with her, or anyone, for that matter. He could have kept to himself for the rest of his life, or carried out what he needed to do by himself, but her intense curiosity and bothersome prying led him to the conclusion that maybe he could use a little help. Perhaps not hers, but someone he considered worthy enough. He was already in a way indebted to her for finding Bulma for him without even asking or giving her any indication that he would need someone like her.

They sat for a bit, just looking at one another. Vegeta was waiting for his coffee and Chichi was just waiting for him to say something, so they stayed silent.

A light knock sounded at the door and without looking Vegeta waved whoever it was to come in.

“Good morning, Vegeta. Hey, Chichi!” Bulma pushed the door open with her shoulder as she carried two piping hot cups of coffee, a bright smile on her face, gracefully walking in on her high heels. She really was going to have to get used to seeing Chichi every day at work, and it was already strange seeing her in Vegeta's office. She hadn't seen them talk, ever, and she knew they had a meeting this morning, so it was her full intent to get in and get out as soon as humanly possible so her friend could figure out exactly where she stood with their grumpy boss.

Vegetra looked up at her with what Bulma considered a strange expression, as if snapped out of deep thought. “Did you make it like I told you to?” He asked, very much resenting her chipper attitude so early in the morning.

“Yup!” She trilled. She put one mug down in front of Vegeta and another directly across from him for Chichi, even though there was no way for her to reach it without standing up and getting it. Better than giving her a mug that was too hot to hold, Bulma figured. Chichi fully understood the sentiment and stood up to get it. “Now, it's my first time making such a big batch of coffee, and Vegeta told me how, so if it's bad, blame him.” That earned her a scowl from Vegeta but she could hardly care. He really needed to lighten up. She had tasted it and it was not bad, and she had followed his instructions completely.

Vegeta took a sip and frowned. Yes, she had made it exactly like he had told her to, which was exactly the way that Vegeta himself made coffee in the big hulking machine in the break room. The problem with this was that Vegeta was not great at making coffee in the first place so therefore he had inadvertently passed on his knowledge to her, making it so that he had basically just made himself coffee. He had fully planned to keep this tidbit to himself until Chichi ruined it.

“Wow  Vegeta, it's like you made it yourself...” The sarcasm was so thick he could just about feel it tangibly. In this moment, after thinking about it long and hard, Vegeta came to the conclusion that Chichi was a foul wench who ruined everything, may it be his coffee or his whole life at work.

Bulma was unsure how to react, looking back and forth between them, seeking approval. “So it's... good?” Chichi couldn't help but laugh. Bulma laughed too a little bit but she didn't know why.

“It's passable.” Vegeta told her, looking at her with a smirk as he continued drinking it. He could already tell what Bulma was about to say with the indignant look on her face, but Chichi stopped her with a look before she let herself chew him a new one. Truthfully, he would have liked that. Then he could fire Bulma with her best friend watching. God, he was sick.

Chichi sighed after taking a sip. “Bulma, next time make it how you want to make it. This tastes like Vegeta's coffee. I know you can make better coffee than him, right?” She winked at her friend and avoided eye contact with the man himself, already knowing the look he was giving her.

“Aw, thanks, Chi! I'll get going.” Bulma strode out as quickly as she had come in, not going far as her new office was right next to Vegeta's. If she just leaned her head up and to the right she could see everything going on in there, which she found to be a little strange. Hadn't Vegeta said something about blinds being installed?

Chichi clicked her tongue in irritation the second the door shut behind Bulma, her mood changing completely now that her friend wasn't around to hear her. “I can't believe you made her make coffee. Don't you usually make it anyway?” She asked, not at all innocently.

“I shouldn't have to explain myself to you.”

Chichi crossed her arms. “Indulge me.”

Vegeta rolled his eyes, continuing on in an attempt to lessen the anger of the petulant woman sitting across from him, as he had no desire to hear her screams.“I only made it because Nancy sucked at it. The one before was bad, too. You're used to it now, but for the majority of the time we've worked together, I have not made the coffee.”

“Hmm, you're right. It was good once, wasn't it? Couldn't have been you.” She said with derision.

Vegeta couldn't stand to look at her. He instead focused on looking out the wall of windows at the city. There wasn't an ounce of jocularity in her voice now that Bulma had left. He was appalled that he had let her get this familiar with him and he had done nothing to stop it. She had forced her way in and he wanted her out desperately, but there was no turning back now.

Chichi knew there was an even larger scheme she was being left out of. She had assumed the day before that he intended to fire her for knowing too much, or interrogate her until there was nothing left but an empty shell, which must be what Seiya Corp must desire of their employees, considering the complete lack of information they gave them. Her gaze hardened at Vegeta's continued silence, yet at that very moment he broke it. He composed himself for a moment and began tentatively.

“Before I say anything to you, I just want to make something clear.”

Chichi braced herself. “Go ahead.”

Vegeta thought for a moment for exactly how he should put what he was about to say. He began to think that he was taking too long pondering it and decided to just skip the formalities. She had heard worse from him. Probably, anyway. “I just wanted to let you know that I hate you.” He tried his best to sound sincere, and it wasn't as hard as he thought it was. Speaking from the heart was never his strong point, but when they were words like these, it always made everything easier. “With every fiber of my being. I cannot stand you, yet somehow I've allowed you to get here and fuck everything up.”

Chichi bristled, looking him right in the eyes. She tried to detect any amount of sarcasm and she could sense none. She wasn't sure how to react. “I... I hate you too.” She said, and while in a way she did hate him, she didn't mean it the same way Vegeta did.

“Okay. I'm glad we're on the same page.”

“Why did you feel the need to tell me that?”

“Did I hurt your feelings?”

Chichi could hardly suppress a snort at his attempt at condescension. “Hardly. Vegeta, I know you would most like to just keep playing games with me, but I think playtime is over.”

Vegeta felt his irritation flare up for a moment but let it drop. She wanted him to get on with it, he would. The sooner she realized her fate the better.

“I told you that because I wanted to make clear to you that if I could choose anyone to tell what I am about to tell you, you would be the last person on my mind. It is due to your persistent meddling that you're even in this position, and while I think you must be absolutely elated by your ingenuity, foolishly congratulating yourself on your success in getting totally and completely under my skin, I think you will regret your curiosity and involvement in what I am about to tell you for the rest of your life.”

Chichi wasn't sure whether or not to take him seriously. “Aren't you being a little extreme? This can't possibly be---”

“Yes, it can, and it is.” His tone of finality broke Chichi out of her skepticism. “You can either stay, and listen to what I am about to tell you, and agree to do everything I am going to tell you to do, whether you like it or not, whether you want to or not, or I am giving you the choice to go.” He stopped to take another sip of his mediocre coffee, leaving Chichi hanging.

“What, go?” She panicked. “What do you mean go?” She could feel her voice rising a little bit.

“Please don't yell, I can take anything but your screeching.” Vegeta said with equal vigor.

“You have no right to be rude to me! Aren't you trying to ask me to help you?” She yelled.

Vegeta couldn't help but close his eyes and rub his hand over his face in irritation. What did I just say, damn it! He had known that this would not be a fun conversation to have, but it was a very necessary one. He needed to know where she stood. There was no doing this halfway. Unlike what he had thought before, he realized that there was no point in telling her anything unless he knew she was completely one hundred percent on board with him, since anything he said could come back and bite him in the ass if she ended up refusing to do what he asked, or refusing the situation all together and denying everything he said.

Chichi's face softened as she watched him fuming behind his desk. They were being much too hard on each other. From what little he had said already, she already had an idea of what he was about to tell her and she knew it was very much a no-no for them to verbalize any of it, so cat-fighting would do them little good in this situation. As much as they had a mutual dislike for each other, Chichi understood that they were both moral people and they both wanted what was right... At least, she thought that Vegeta was a moral person. If he wasn't they wouldn't be talking right now.

She sighed. “Vegeta, I understand. Let's just be frank here, okay? I know how much you like to fight with me, but we have to stop. In your own special way, even though you hate me and I hate you, you are my friend, aren't you? ” She said softly.

“Without my will or permission, you overly curious wench.” He said without looking at her, suddenly finding something interesting outside the window. Chichi laughed a little at that.

“Okay. Now.” Chichi looked down at her hands clenched in her lap and then back up. Here goes nothing. “I agree to everything. I want to know everything that you want to tell me, and I'll help you in any way that I can. I won't run away. I know more than you think I know.” Vegeta did nothing but look at her until she broke eye contact and looked back down at her lap. “...I think I do...”

“You very well might.”

Chichi only nodded.

Vegeta took a deep breath. “This...”

Chichi waited for what seemed like a long time, and just watched him think with his brows drawn tightly together. She could tell it was hard for him to continue, not emotionally, but just finding the right words. She respected him a little more in that moment, watching him fumble around with his words a bit.

He cleared his throat and began again. “This isn't what you think it is. We aren't who you think we are. And you aren't doing... What you think you're doing. Do you follow me?”

Chichi nodded silently, saying nothing.

“Just for the record, what is it that you think you're doing? Just so that we're on the same page. Everything, from the beginning.” He asked.

“So, you want me to talk? I just want to make clear that I have your permission before you tell me to shut up...” Chichi said playfully, trying to lighten the mood that had become so serious.

Vegeta didn't feel like he should have to reply to that, so he only nodded.

Chichi took a deep breath. She already knew what she was going to say, as she had been waiting to say it for a long time. “When I first started working here, I was really happy. Right out of business school, getting to work for a top financial consulting company, or at least, that's what I thought this was... I thought I was pretty lucky. Few girls my age got to have that kind of opportunity.”

I had thought I would be working in accounting or investing, as that was how the job was represented to me when I was hired for it, so when I got stuck in this department, I was pretty confused. You and I both know that I'm nothing more than some sort of copy editor. All I did was write reports, which had nothing to do with my major, but I was being paid very well, and I still am... It seems like I'm complaining about that, but now I see that it's some sort of hush money to keep everyone complacent with doing something that's really just useless. I know that this is essentially the PR department where we clean up everyone's mess, but I was frustrated that I, as an individual, didn't do anything. If things got too messy, I transferred it somewhere else, and if someone needed advice for investments, even though I was fully qualified to help with that, I didn't do that, either, Radditz did that, and now you do.”

Vegeta nodded.

“Well, that wasn't what I expected to be doing at all, but at the time I figured it was necessary so I just dealt with it, hoping that I'd maybe move up and be able to work with something I found to be more interesting. If I ever had any problems, I knew I could talk to Radditz.” Chichi felt a pang of sadness as she talked about it. “Radditz was always so nice to me... I think he knew that I understood but it wasn't something that was ever verbalized. He had this unreal knack of investing money in companies that would suddenly skyrocket. It was beyond a hunch, beyond any sort of calculation. He could just feel it. That, along with the useless busywork I was being given, were the first indications that something was not right.

About a year and a half ago, I started paying more attention to the content of the reports I was writing. They're rehashes of information reported on people who work for the company and we sometimes attempt to cover things up, as I'm sure you know, but after we had our talk yesterday, I thought back and realized that some reports I had helped to edit before you came to this department had involved you. From what I remember, they contained silly stuff, mostly. One was about how you were out late at some club somewhere downtown, and I was thinking to myself, what is the point of these? It didn't make any sense. No one seemed to be asking, either, and still no one does because there is an unwritten rule that you don't talk about the content of the reports, you just write them and rewrite them, and no one will ask about them out of concern of jeopardizing their employment. It's ridiculous how we're all paid so well, even to do something I think could be individually handled by the employee involved.

I continued trying to figure it out, and then Radditz abruptly left, and was replaced by you. I don't know where he went in the company, or if he is still working for Seiya Corp. He just vanished. Ever since you became head of the department, the attitude of the whole office has changed. People didn't want to talk before, but now they're scared to. You can be a scary guy, Vegeta, and no one wants to---”

Chichi stopped as she felt a surge of anger watching Vegeta's lips slowly curl into a smirk.

“I know you must think it's so funny that your intimidation scheme is working, but the truth is, no one likes you like they liked Radditz! Everyone thinks you're an arrogant jerk who is lucky enough to actually be good at what he does so he doesn't get fired.” She snapped.  

She immediately felt a little embarrassed by her outburst, even though it felt pretty good to get out in the open, but the emotion dissipated once she saw that Vegeta's smirk hadn't faltered one bit.

“Do you like being hated?” Chichi inquired.

He shrugged. “I prefer it.”

“Why would you prefer that? That doesn't make any sense.”

He shook his head. “This isn't about me.”

“Oh, but it is!” Vegeta's attitude was getting to her, and she felt annoyed for letting it. “I was supposed to have revenge on you and figure all of this out for myself since you've been so cruel to me, but now I've realized that I can't!”

“Of course you can't!” Vegeta laughed at her indignation. “No one can unless I tell them, and I've told no one.”

“Tell me!” Chichi pleaded.

He shook his head. “I can't yet. Not until you tell me the whole story. There must be more that you know.”

Chichi was quiet for a moment. “Well, there are things that have happened that I don't fully understand, but I know that they're important.”

“Like?”

She sighed. “I don't know...”

Vegeta crossed his arms, getting impatient.

“Vegeta, I---” Chichi stopped herself, for reasons Vegeta couldn't fathom. She was fine before, why stop now?

“What?” He spat in irritation.

“I don't know how you can't understand what I'm feeling. I don't know if I should tell you more. What if they're just silly presumptions on my part?”

“If they were, do you think I'd even waste time talking to you?” He growled.

“I don't know...”

“Yes you do. Am I really trying to coax words out of you right now?  This is getting ridiculous. Out with it, or out.”

Chichi let a small noise escape indicating her surprise. “Come on! I don't know if I can trust you or not!” She whined.

He stared at her hard for a moment, then glanced out the window facing the office. “Let's assume you can't.” He flicked his eyes back to her. “Take a chance.”

She sighed. “This just sounds so sneaky of me...” Chichi let her eyes shift left, then right, readjusting herself in her seat. She started to feel a little afraid, even though she knew it was irrational. She felt as if someone could be listening in on their conversation.

“And here I thought you were so proud of yourself. What did you do?” Vegeta leaned forward in his chair, indicating that he was listening.

Chichi frowned, as if worried. “I managed to get a hold of one of the yearly fiscal reports of Seiya Corp.”

“And? Anyone could get one of those.” Vegeta's face was stony, yet to Chichi he seemed guarded.

“This wasn't an ordinary report. It was totally different than the kind you can get just anywhere. It seemed so ridiculous reading it at the time, I thought it was some kind of joke, but somehow it seemed to make sense. It was one that I wasn't supposed to see... That no one is supposed to see, maybe not even you.” Vegeta grit his teeth. She couldn't have... “It was sort of an accident, and I'm surprised that it was even put on paper, but... One day, around two months ago, I was coming in late to work, do you remember that day?”

“Like I keep track of your attendance record, get to the point.”

“Well, Vegeta, that's kind of your job.” He rolled his eyes in response. “I was walking into the lobby, and these guys in uniforms were rolling out these huge boxes, all taped up. There was a truck outside, and I realized that we must hire some sort of contractor to shred or incinerate our documents, since we're a huge corporation and we must have a lot of sensitive material, and that's what these guys were doing. I was minding my own business, walking to the elevator, and as a cart rolled by me a sheet of paper fluttered to the ground, probably stuck underneath some box. I bent down and picked it up, and some instinct told me that I should keep it, so I folded it up and put it in my pocket.”

Vegeta's eyes grew wide and his mouth dropped open. “You just picked it up? You idiot!”

“What? They dropped it!” Chichi said in her defense.

 “Don't you think someone saw you?!” He ground out through his teeth. “Your stupidity knows no bounds!”

“Oh really? Well, there wasn't anyone around! The security guard wasn't paying attention...”  

“You could really have just fucked yourself over, you know that, right?” Vegeta looked away angrily. God, what a winner I picked to tell everything to...

“Since when did you care? No one saw me, because if someone did, do you think I'd still be working here? Probably not.” Chichi said straight-faced.

“That may be, but that was damn lucky of you. What did it say?”

“I didn't open it right there, I kept it until I got home, and when I opened it up, it said...” Chichi checked out towards the office one more time to make sure they weren't drawing any special attention. “It said that Seiya Corp's net worth was in the trillions of dollars.” She said in a frightened tone. “Hell, there could have been even more zeros than that and I just didn't count them right. I thought it must have been a typo, and after I decided to tear that thing up and throw it in the trash, something occurred to me.

Those figures could have a possibility of being real. We've been doing so well in the stock market, it's almost like we're taking over everything. Every business seems to be going down but we're only going up, like we're eating them up. We're just gaining all of this financial power for not much reason. Of course, our net worth that's reported in the papers was nothing close to the amount I saw, yet I started thinking, what if they're real? What would that mean for the company? Where is all of this money coming from? As far as I knew we were just an investment firm, but this paper stated all other sorts of revenue that I couldn't have ever imagined that we were involved in. Apparently we're getting money from the government, a ridiculous amount of money, and I thought, for what? We don't do anything for them...

So, with all of this information, I was starting to piece together an answer, but I haven't made much headway since then, except for you hiring Bulma and that confirming that you needed help of some sort.”

Vegeta snorted. “Help? What makes you think I didn't hire her just so I could have someone bring me coffee and do things I don't want to do?”

Chichi was in no mood for jokes. “Come on. She's perfect. She's an absolute genius. If there's anything you're stuck on, you know she can help you. Really it happened in a perfect way. What I had originally intended was for you to hire her, which I knew that you would---”

“Pff, and how could you possibly know that?”

Chichi continued as if he hadn't said anything. “--and Bulma and I would work together to piece things out by ourselves, but then I figured, if you were trying to get me to earn your trust, and there was something that you might need help with yourself, bringing her to you would be perfect.”

“Hn. That's presumptuous of you.”

She scoffed. “Hardly. You were always so suspicious of me keeping my eye on you, so I figured you must have had something to hide, and by you slowly allowing me to see more and more, you were trying to tell me something. Aside from this, however, I had an epiphany just last night that was perfect timing. The situation with Nancy really helped me to realize it. I thought you were an evil man for sending her up there. Once I learned that you in fact hadn't done it, and that it wasn't up to you, it made me feel like that instead of the enemy, you were my ally, and not as much as a jerk as I thought you were.”

“Again, a little presumptuous...”

Chichi put her hand up. “Stop for a minute. Second, I did some research on Nancy, and she's a little famous herself. Her father is an engineer known for his work on the air propulsion system that makes our air-cars fly. Your assistant before that, Alexa, her father was an physicist. Four out of the past six assistants you've had have had a scientist of some sort as a relative.

Honestly, even though I've gotten this far, I'm unsure as to what it all means, but judging by the fact that I set you up for an interview with Bulma and you straight up hired her without any of the normal scrutiny you normally put our potential hires up to, and that you grilled her all about her schooling and wanted to know about all the theories she was familiar with, you need her for something. For what, I'm not sure, but regardless of whether I get your help or not, I'm going to figure this out.”

Vegeta sat staring at her. He had already assumed that she knew at least this much,  yet he felt pity for her that this was all that she knew. No one would put anyone they considered a friend in this situation if they knew the whole story, and Chichi had just unwittingly involved her best friend in an inextricable mess of a situation that even he didn't know what the proper solution would be, as of that moment. Yes, Bulma was the smartest one yet, and if anyone could help him, she could, but even though he had Bulma involved now, he was unsure if he could convince her to.

“I'll have you know that this is the longest I will ever let you talk ever again.” He finally said.

“Let me...?” She narrowed her eyes.

“Yes. I'll also tell you that you will soon realize what a complete mess you have gotten you and your little friend into.” He stood, walking in front of his desk, facing her. “This isn't just a little detective game anymore for you. When you walked in here, and I said I'd tell you what you wanted to know, you agreed that you'd do whatever I said, when I said, whether you wanted to or not.” Chichi nodded slightly, narrowing her eyes in suspicion. “Well, first things first. My new assistant will not hear about any of this. We will keep it from her until I deem necessary.”

Chichi was dumbfounded. “What? I can't do that!”

“That was fast...” He smirked.

She stood up too, matching his wide-legged stance and crossing her arms. “You're asking me to lie to my best friend! Of course I can't do that!” She said, incredulous.

Vegeta narrowed his eyes and set his jaw, nostrils flaring. Chichi could tell he was entering his “dangerously angry” territory, and while she wanted to avoid that, she wished she could avoid the current situation entirely. Lie to Bulma? That wouldn't be right for her as a friend! Apparently, Vegeta had never had a best friend before, since he didn't seem to understand the basic trait of loyalty! She would die for Bulma, and she knew Bulma would do the same for her. If I was Bulma, I would throw my coffee in his face right now and walk out. After telling him everything, though, Chichi felt she couldn't just walk away. Even through his silence (for the most part) all throughout listening to her story, Vegeta had somewhat confirmed that her suspicions were valid, and that Seiya Corp was more than what it seemed. After that kind of affirmation, she was more eager than ever to finally figure out what was going on, but why were things so dire? Things weren't life and death, were they? They couldn't be! This was just some big money scheme, she was sure of it! A big deal, for sure, but not as big a deal as Vegeta was making it out to be, right?

“You can, and you will.” He said quietly, in a tone of barely contained fury. “Or get out.”

Chichi clenched her fists. How dare he! “Fine then!” She marched toward the door and reached to open it, but stopped herself. She knew she was letting her emotions lead her far too much, but what was she supposed to do? This was the type of thing where “no” should be the definite answer, no matter what, but Vegeta, being the vile jerk that he was, was essentially threatening her with her job. A crappy, going-nowhere job for a company with questionable background that she was just itching to figure out, but it was not only her paycheck every week she would be walking away from, but also her pride. Vegeta would tell everyone he fired her, and everyone would think she was just some pompous girl who finally got her comeuppance for being the only one who could stand up to Vegeta. That thought alone made her a little sick.

She turned around and looked at him. He was still glaring daggers at her, the bastard. The implications of other things he might do remained unsaid, but she could think of quite a few things that would be disastrous. Firstly, if she were to leave, she would be leaving Bulma, and that was not an option. Would that be worse than lying to her? Another thing to worry about would be her future. Vegeta could ruin her life. This was her only job after being out of school, and she had no other job experience. He could spread rumors about her to all of the financial consulting firms in the city and make it so that no one would hire her ever again, unless she were to move somewhere else or work in a different field, but she knew with Vegeta's influence he could think of something to tell just the right people, making her so undesirable that she might not even be able to get hired flipping burgers. Even worse would be if he ratted her out to his own bosses, telling them all of the things she knew, and getting her into the sort of trouble she had difficulty comprehending. Just what would they do to her?

All of those things would be nothing to worry about if she had any doubt that Vegeta would want to destroy her after she rejected his trust and walked out on her job. The real question is, would Vegeta be so vengeful as to really intend to do those things to me?

...Yes. Yes he would.

She sighed dejectedly, letting her arms relax at her sides. Her spirit seemed to have left her..

“Vegeta...”

He raised one eyebrow expectantly.

“...I'm going to think about it, okay?” She said sadly.

Vegeta felt the strong desire to roll his eyes but didn't. Pathetic. He hadn't anticipated this reaction. With her earlier bravado he had anticipated little resistance, since he was offering her the knowledge she so desired, but he realized that he had expected too much from someone, as he often did. After all, all of this was probably too much for her mind in one day.

He turned away from her. “You do that.”

Vegeta turned his head to watch her go through the door and walk out into the office where a few people had stopped to watch their confrontation. Ignoring them, Chichi stopped for a moment by  Bulma's office, nudging her head in and saying something. She walked back to her desk soon after. After Chichi left her, his assistant leaned her head up and over, peering into his office, an inquisitive look on her face. Her expression quickly turned worried just watching him, and Vegeta realized he was standing stock still, very stiff, with his arms crossed. He quickly relaxed. She gave him a funny little smile, the kind you give someone when you're trying to cheer them up, and waved at him.

He scowled, a little confused by her acknowledgment of him, but he somehow understood the sentiment and gave a quick nod back, almost unnoticeable. She seemed to be satisfied by his response as she leaned back and smiled at him. He turned away and looked out his floor-length windows facing the city, closing his eyes for a moment.

Well, that went well.


 
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A/N: Hope you enjoyed that! This does explain a few things, but at the same time it adds even more mystery. I feel a little evil for writing this chapter. Some more things about Vegeta's situation will be explained next chapter. Hope you liked it.

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