Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Whatever It Takes ❯ Chapter 21 ( Chapter 21 )

AN: You will see another first in this chapter. I'm not going to hint at what it is this time, since I'm sure that you're all sharp enough to notice it once you read it.

Aside from that, more big changes are happening. Read on, and make sure to review when you're done. Seriously. Review! I always said I'd never demand reviews and I won't, but if you're enjoying this story, think about this point of view. I have lots of things I could (and should) be doing instead of this during my lunch hour. Convince me to do otherwise.

For those of you who wanted more Bulma and Vegeta interaction, here you go. Drink it up.

Per my husband's suggestion, in order to avoid confusion I am creating a list of named original characters that you have previously seen below. I am not including family members. If you don't know them by now, tsk. Start re-reading now.

Rita: the friendly waitress at Buffalo Bob's (where Vegeta ate the three steaks).
Yoshi: the little brat from the grocery store parking lot.
Mr. Imano: the butcher Bulma and Vegeta visited.

Tsukiko: Dr. Briefs' personal assistant.

Natsue Yamamoto: Bulma's longtime friend and obstetrician.
Nuiko Abe: Bulma's personal assistant.

Gai Tottori: rude Human Resources Director at Capsule Corp.
Tsumugi and Orika: flirtatious Capsule Corp R&D employees who hopped in Vegeta's Jacuzzi and made lewd comments at Anya and Geta's wedding.

Dr. Ueda: a colleague of Dr. Briefs and Bulma. Sold some of Vegeta's Wethion stone for him.
Dr. Morita: another colleague of Dr. Briefs and Bulma.

Kazue: Bulma's friend who sent Bulma an invitation to her wedding.

Rikae: the woman at the caf? who flirted with Vegeta and slipped him her phone number.
Etsuko: the family's occasional babysitter.
Yae: Capsule Corp employee who works in Payroll.

Soba: the man that Goku pops in on Yardrat.
King Herr?n and Queen Evalina: Anya's parents, the king and queen of planet Gerdia.
Marius: King Herr?n's personal servant.
Yajeel: the royal bodyguard.
Dotelli: Princess Anyakita's nanny.

Jankar: head pastry chef at the palace in Gerdia.
Pallia: one of King Herr?n's masseuses.
Miwa: Capsule Corp employee who works in Bulma's office with Nuiko.
Mr. Mochizuki and Mr. Ohayashi: Energy Technologies representatives who Vegeta signed the big deal with.
B: future Bulma.

Benito: one of the Capsule Corps security guards.

Whew... I think that's everyone. I'll update this list periodically. Let me know if I missed anyone. :)

Special thanks to my husband for reading this for me, as he always faithfully does.

Enjoy!


Disclaimer: Dragonball Z was created by Akira Toriyama. It is owned/licensed by Toei, Bird Studios, Shonen Jump, Funimation, and Viz, not me. However, you will see some characters that weren't created by Toriyama-san, and those are my brainchildren. No money was made in the production of this work, more's the pity.


Chapter Twenty-One

"Good morning, everyone." Vegeta sat down at the table, where Mrs. Briefs was setting up breakfast.

He was met with a smattering of greetings in return.

"Good morning, Dear!"

"Hey Pops."

"Morning Father."

"Good morning! Glad you decided to join us, my boy." Dr. Briefs was unaware of what exactly had transpired between his daughter and the young man seated beside him, but it had evidently been bad enough that he'd kept himself scarce while Bulma was around. He'd shown up for breakfast today, and not coincidental in the least was the fact that Bulma was currently out of town on work related business. The doctor tucked his newspaper away as his wife sat down, redirecting his thoughts to the issue at hand. "I know I'm jumping right to it, but I have a favor to ask of you, if you can spare some time."

Vegeta put a few thick slices of ham on his plate and passed the dish on. "Of course. What is it you need?"

Dr. Briefs hesitated before speaking. "Well, there are a few loose strings to tie up with Energy Technologies. Meetings, some paperwork, things like that. Normally Bulma would handle it, but she's at that conference I was supposed to go to, and well, to be frank you are much more acquainted with her contract than I am..." He trailed off.

"Of course, Son. There's no one else I'd rather have at my side in Bulma's stead," Dr. Briefs said confidently.

Vegeta hadn't realized that he'd voiced his thoughts. "All right," he agreed. "I'd be happy to go for you, especially since you need to keep off your knee as much as possible," he pointed out, making the last bit of his statement in a no-nonsense tone. Vegeta knew quite well where Bulma got her stubbornness from.

Dr. Briefs looked like a weight had been lifted off of his shoulders. "Thank you, Vegeta."

"I can come in if you need any help in the office with things like typing and filing, Pops," Anya offered.

"That would be very helpful," Vegeta told her gratefully. It would have been rather awkward if something had been given to him that he was unable to read.

"Wonderful! I'll contact Bulma and tell her not to worry about it." Dr. Briefs looked and sounded completely at ease now that things were in order.

***

"I'll have to find a place where you can set up. For now, feel free to use my office. I'm always out and about anyway." Dr. Briefs lowered himself down onto his chair and propped his crutches against the edge of his desk. "All right now." He picked up a thick file. "A copy of the contract and a flash drive containing the final plans are in here, among other things. Energy Technologies will be in today very shortly to pick up the plans. They said we could just hold onto the plans for now since they wanted to come in and discuss a few details."

Vegeta took the file from him. How could he deny this man such a simple task after he'd always treated him so favorably? "Not a problem. I'm happy to be of assistance for as long as you need me."

"Thank you again, Vegeta. I honestly don't know what I'd do without you." Again he paused. "My health has been steadily going downhill and I had planned on retiring in the next year or so, but we've had so many conferences lately along with this new contract, so I just don't know how I'll be able to," he confided. "Add to that the fact that we have a couple other potential deals in the works, and I certainly can't expect Bulma to be able to handle everything once I'm out of the picture."

Vegeta contemplated this. "Will you need to hire another executive?"

Dr. Briefs nodded. "I'll probably have to hire an AVP for Bulma to train to take over her job when she becomes President."

Vegeta cocked his head, unknowingly reminiscent of the motion Goku often made when contemplating something he wasn't familiar with. "AVP?"

"Assistant Vice President, sorry. We'd phased them out a while ago, but I think we'll really need another body in here soon," Dr. Briefs explained.

"Ah. Well, as I told you previously, until you hire the help needed I am happy to offer my assistance," Vegeta reminded him.

Dr. Briefs chuckled. "I suppose you'll need something else to do now that you can't train, hmm? While I certainly feel that such dedicated attention as you've shown my grandchildren is both noteworthy and commendable, you should do something else now and then other than change dirty diapers all day," he said pointedly. "Bunny was complaining about how she never gets to watch them any more."

Vegeta laughed at that. While he didn't mind watching the children, the man did have a point. "I guess so." When the doctor reached for his crutches, he helped him to his feet.

"Thank you again, Vegeta, so very much. I don't think I have the energy to do much else than be the proverbial fly on the wall today," Dr. Briefs said a little glumly.

"Don't you worry about that," Vegeta assured him. "I've got it all under control. You can always jump in if things get hairy."

Now it was the doctor's turn to laugh. It was so amusing when Vegeta used Earth expressions like the one he had. "Yes indeed."

"Energy Technologies is here, Sir. I've escorted them to Bulma's conference room," Tsukiko's voice came over the intercom.

"Thank you. We'll be there shortly." Dr. Briefs pressed the button again to release the call before turning to the Saiyan beside him. "All right, my boy. Let's go on in there and take care of business, shall we?"

***

Dr. Briefs found himself suitably impressed as the members of the meeting filed out of the conference room and into its adjoining office. Vegeta had fairly astonished him with his tactics and easy going yet professional communication style, and had swiftly charmed the entire group attending the meeting regardless of which company they represented. The younger man had turned to him for his opinion on one occasion during the meeting, at which point the doctor had simply waved off the question and told him his judgment was completely and implicitly trusted on the issue. Vegeta had taken the decision seriously and, while he said he would discuss the outcome of the meeting with Bulma and get back with them on one item in particular, had taken the bull by the horns full force after that.

Hmmm...

"So, how do you like them apples?" Vegeta's voice interrupted his thoughts as he re-entered the conference room. "Do you think that Bulma will be pleased?"

Dr. Briefs chuckled. Yes, Vegeta was definitely picking up a lot of Earth slang. "Oh, I dare say that she'll be quite pleased indeed. Fabulous presentation you gave, young man," he praised. "Perhaps I should keep you on staff here. I have a few projects that could use some fine tweaking."

Vegeta made a little don't-be-ridiculous noise but smiled and accepted the praise nonetheless. "Thank you, Shatsu."

As they left the conference room together, they saw Gai standing there watching everyone leaving. He snorted and rolled his eyes when one of them shook Vegeta's hand and thanked him before following the rest of the Energy Technologies staff out.

Dr. Briefs noticed but decided to again let Vegeta hold the reins on this one. "I'm a little tired so I'll head on back," he announced. "Wonderful job, Vegeta."

Vegeta nodded his thanks and gave the doctor a two-fingered wave as he left the office, aware that the older man had wanted the others to know that his efforts were appreciated and indirectly granting him a measure of respect in the eyes of his peers in the process.

Some people, however, didn't see things the same way.

Several employees cleared their throats or shifted uncomfortably. It was well known that Vegeta had a temper not to be reckoned with, and they were waiting to see what he'd do.

Vegeta just stared at his aggressor with an expression that clearly stated he wasn't sure how to take what Gai had said. "Excuse me?"

"Uhm, Gai?" Nuiko spoke up. Vegeta was facing away from her, but she could see the backs of his ears turning red, quickly followed by the part of his neck not covered by his suit. She knew what Vegeta was capable of and was growing increasingly uncomfortable. "I don't think-"

"Oh, butt out, Abe. You're just her cute little assistant, after all," Gai interrupted snidely, smirking at her affronted reaction. "Looks like it doesn't take much to climb the corporate ladder around here. Bulma's pretty hot. Who wants to earn a promotion when she gets back?" He laughed heartily at the angry expression on Vegeta's face. "What's the matter, did I ruffle your feathers little man?" he mocked.

"You are treading on very thin ice," Vegeta growled in a low voice, plainly making a supreme effort to keep his cool. "I suggest that you don't ever speak of Dr. Briefs, Bulma or my son again." He crossed his arms. "If I had the authority, I'd kick your sorry carcass out of here."

"He does, because I'm giving it to him."

The two men turned to see Dr. Briefs standing behind them, looking quite perturbed. "Dr. Briefs?" Vegeta ventured, horrified by the thought that the older man must have heard the majority of the conversation. In the back of his mind he realized that he had indeed heard the door unlatch again shortly after Dr. Briefs had left the office, but he'd been so angry by Gai's words that it hadn't registered in his brain what it was that he'd heard.

Vegeta slowly turned to face Gai, a malicious smile spreading across his face. "You're fired," he hissed, baring his fangs menacingly. It felt good, refreshingly good to do, and even more so that Dr. Briefs respected and appreciated him enough to elevate him to such a lofty position.

Dr. Briefs nodded his approval. "You have one hour to remove yourself and your personal belongings from the premises. If you are not off of Capsule Corp property before then, I will have you escorted out. Any questions?"

Gai glared at him. "I can't believe you would favor this idiot over a loyal employee," he snarled.

"By the way, Gai, while I am under no obligation to supply you with an explanation of any kind, I would never give either an assignment or a position to someone unqualified or undeserving of it. I think you should know that Vegeta sweetened up that deal more than you can imagine, and he's done more good for Capsule Corp in less than a week than you've done in six years," Dr. Briefs informed him. "You will receive your termination papers in the mail."

Seeing that he had no supporters, Gai stormed out of the room, muttering curses as he left.

Vegeta suddenly became acutely aware of several pairs of eyes trained on him. He shot a sideways glance at Dr. Briefs and was about to speak when he heard one of the employees standing nearby spoke up.

"Thank you. You have no idea how much everyone around here hates that man," the employee said boldly.

"He was always rude and degrading to the everyone," Nuiko agreed. "I guess he picked the wrong time and place to do it today."

~And the wrong person as well,~ Dr. Briefs thought guiltily. "I had no idea," he admitted. "I'm very sorry that he harassed so many of you and for so long. Why did no one ever say anything?"

"Fear of reprisal," another employee interjected.

"At least he's out of the picture now." Dr. Briefs shook his head. "I feel terrible about all of this."

The door opened again and Miwa came in. "What just happened in here?" she asked as she tossed the mail she was carrying into the inbox on her desk. "I saw Gai leaving and he was in such a huff that he practically ran me down."

"He just got fired, and didn't take kindly to it," Nuiko told her, sounding a little smug.

Miwa turned to Dr. Briefs. "You fired him?" she asked excitedly.

"No," Dr. Briefs responded, noting the girl's pleasure at the prospect of being rid of Gai. "Vegeta did."

Miwa looked at Vegeta with confusion. "You did? But..."

"His first action as AVP," Dr. Briefs told her. "Well, it appears that not only is my problem of being short an executive taken care of, but so is where his office will be." He patted Vegeta's arm. "Would you mind grabbing the file I left in the conference room for me, Son?"

"Not at all," Vegeta responded. "I'll come back with you." He grabbed the file from the conference room and followed the older man out of the office, leaving behind several stunned employees.

Vegeta drew in a deep breath and shook his head. "Whew..."

Dr. Briefs chuckled. "Not exactly what you expected to happen today, hmm?"

"Not exactly, no." Vegeta gave the doctor a weak little smile. "Well, I suppose I should put a little something together for Bulma before she gets back tomorrow."

Dr. Briefs didn't miss the little note of trepidation in Vegeta's voice at the mention of Bulma's return. "Don't even worry about that, my boy. I was there, so I can put something together for you. You have more important things to concern yourself with right now."

"Oh?"

"Why, yes," Dr. Briefs assured him as they entered what had at one time been Gai's office. "I'm sure you'll want new furnishings for your office so you'll need to pick them out. Oh, and I think that you'll need some more attire suitable for the office. It wouldn't do to have you wearing the same thing every day."

"No, I suppose it wouldn't," Vegeta murmured. His head was fairly swimming with everything that had just happened.

Momentarily Gai came out of his private office. He scowled at Vegeta. "Here to escort me out?" he asked sarcastically.

"No, he's here to decide what furniture he wants until I can get him a better office," Dr. Briefs interjected.

Vegeta found himself surprised; this office was one of the bigger ones in the building. He wasn't the only one.

"You've got to be joking," Gai spat.

"Not at all. I assure you that I am quite serious. You'll need a bigger private office, don't you think, Vegeta?" Dr. Briefs commented as casually as if they were discussing the weather.

"Oh, definitely." Vegeta decided that this was not the time to be wishy-washy. He wanted to pour as much salt in the wound as possible. "I think a conference room would be ideal as well. Something similar to Bulma's office. After all, I'll probably be heading up many more meetings which I know nothing about."

Dr. Briefs laughed and smacked Vegeta on the arm. "You're all right, Son, you're all right. In fact, you're old coot approved." He paused. "Gai, is there something you need help packing?"

Gai scowled. "No."

"Then chop, chop," Vegeta said, clapping his hands in emphasis. "Time's awasting, and I need to redecorate my office."

Gai grabbed the rest of his personal items and stormed for the door.

"Don't forget to leave your keys," Dr. Briefs called after him. "I'll need to give Vegeta your set."

Gai threw his keys on the floor and called Vegeta a very unsatisfactory name before slamming the door behind him.

"Tsk. My, what an attitude."

"Trust me, I didn't assume anything else. You really don't seem the type."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

"By the way, would you mind serving as Human Resources Director until I can hire a new one? After all, you did fire him and take over his office."

A long pause. "I see your point."

***

Bulma entered the break room, a smile on her face when she saw Vegeta was there getting coffee. Dr. Briefs had told her about his work the day prior and she had been pleasantly surprised that he had agreed to help out with Energy Technologies again. She'd even sought Vegeta out and thanked him, putting him more at ease around her. Since her attitude had improved and he would be working as her subordinate- something that didn't exactly thrill him given their history- Vegeta had decided to let the last ugly incident between them slide, making interaction between them much more comfortable.

"Did you hear that the Human Resources Director got fired yesterday?" Bulma asked excitedly. "I'm glad, because he was a real jerk. If I would have had a solid reason to, I would have canned him myself." She picked up her coffee and threw the stir she'd used in the trash.

Evidently her father hadn't told her the whole story, probably figuring that Vegeta should tell her personally. "I didn't care much for him myself when he took care of my hire on paperwork. And yes, I saw the whole thing. The look on his face was priceless, I must say." Vegeta proceeded to pour large amounts of cream and sugar into his coffee.

"You were there? I always seem to be out of the office at the wrong time," Bulma complained. "How'd it happen?"

"The guy mouthed off to another employee he deemed beneath him and made some really out of line comments about his family, not knowing that your father was in earshot," Vegeta explained. He took a sip and grimaced. "Ugh. Needs more sugar."

"Let me guess. Daddy decided he'd had enough of the jerk and fired him on the spot," Bulma supplied in a triumphant voice. She noticed Vegeta dumping more sugar into his mug. "Want a little coffee with your sugar there?" she quipped.

"Just the way I like it, you know that," Vegeta responded. "But you're only partially correct. He had the new AVP do it."

Bulma eyed him skeptically. "We have an AVP now? Wow, somebody must've really pulled something huge off. Why wouldn't I have been in the loop on something like that?" she mused, not even considering the possibility that her father would appoint Vegeta of all people, let alone a newly hired employee, to such a high station in the company. "I thought we phased AVPs out, and now we're promoting new ones. Oh, well. Looks like I've got a new grunt to break in," she joked, chuckling evil villain style and cracking her knuckles. "Who is it?"

Before he could say anything, a few more employees strolled into the break room. "Hey, Vegeta!" one of them who Vegeta recognized as Akimitsu from Financial Services greeted him. "I heard the news, good for you!" he said with a thumb up. "That's huge, man."

"Thank you," Vegeta answered, shaking Akimitsu's hand politely.

Bulma smiled, pleased that Vegeta's efforts with the Energy Technologies contract were being recognized. "Isn't it, great?" she agreed. "Vegeta's a tough negotiator."

Akimitsu gave her an odd look; the only choice that Vegeta had given Gai was to leave the property within the hour or be escorted out. "Tough negotiator- oh! You're talking about the Mochizuki deal. That's right, congratulations on that, too."

"Yeah, congratulations, Mr. Vegeta," another employee piped up. "Sorry to run so quickly, but we've got to get moving. We've got a conference call in three minutes."

Vegeta nodded to them with a little two fingered wave as they left and took another sip of his coffee. "Now it's too cold," he grumbled. Bulma couldn't help but giggle as he put it in the microwave and tugged at his collar. "I hate ties."

"And I hate pantyhose. Aren't we a bright little ray of sunshine today?" she joked, earning a sideways glance from the Saiyan leaning back against the countertop the microwave sat on.

"After the last two days, he ought to be," a young woman Bulma recognized as Rioko from shipping and receiving commented as she entered the break room. "I thought I heard your voice, Mr. Vegeta. Your furniture is here and it's all set up. It looks great, by the way. Just sign for me and I'll send the delivery people on their way."

"Thanks." Vegeta took the clipboard she held out and signed where she pointed. "That was quick."

"Yes, well, you'll soon discover that when Capsule Corp speaks, the world listens. Thank you!" she said as she took the clipboard back. "Oh, and congratulations on AVP!" She gave him a bright smile and left, sneaking what she thought was a surreptitious little glance at him as she went through the door.

Vegeta turned back to the microwave to retrieve his coffee without looking at the flabbergasted woman standing behind him. "Ah! Too hot."

Bulma stared at him with wide-eyed shock. "You mean... are you saying...?"

"Yes, Bulma. I'm your grunt." He sighed. "Look, I didn't ask for this, but seeing as I can't train, I suppose I would have had to find something productive to do, anyway." He shrugged. "Your father has done more for me than I could have ever expected him to do. How could I turn him down when he asked me to do something for him? Besides, it feels good not to be so useless for once around here." He blew on his coffee and took another gulp of it.

"Vegeta, you're not-"

"We'd better get going. Your father isn't paying me to stand around and drink coffee," he interrupted. Vegeta hadn't wanted a salary at all, insisting that the Briefs already did far more for him than he could ever need, but Dr. Briefs had insisted right back that he couldn't have him working without a salary, especially considering the position he held. "Kami knows I've already got plenty to do. Good thing I have temporary help until I can get an assistant. She doesn't type very fast, but she's cute." He grinned at her blank look. "Come on, I'll show you what I ordered."

"Hey, Vegeta!"

"Congratulations, Mr. Vegeta!"

"I heard about how you canned Gai. Good for you, I wish I could have seen that."

"They gave you Gai's office? Wow, talk about rubbing salt in the wound! Does Gai know?"

Vegeta continued on into the room and into the smaller private office. "Oh, yes he does. I enjoyed every moment of it. So, how do you like the desk?"

Bulma eyed the large, simple but stately wood desk and leather executive chair he had selected. "Very nice," she commented, running her hand across the desk's highly polished surface.

"I thought so, even though your father insisted that I should get something more contemporary. But that's just not me," Vegeta agreed. "It's nice and sturdy. Solid." He sat down on the corner of the desk and looked out the window. "I'm sure it would support quite a bit of weight." There was a hint of suggestion in his voice.

"Yes, which is good for the project I'm about to give you."

Vegeta turned toward the owner of the voice and made a face. "I never thought I'd frown to see you come in the room. But you've been extremely helpful to me so I'll forgive you this once."

Anya giggled and set a rather large box on his desk. "Of course you will. You're also quite fond of my banana bread, remember?" she reminded him.

"Anya?" Bulma asked incredulously. "You're working here, too?"

"Temporarily, until Pops gets a permanent assistant," Anya said with a nod. "Isn't this a Briefs family business anyway? After all, you did give Geta employee status and signing rights, remember?"

Bulma chuckled as Anya left the room. "Yes, I did. People are going to start talking soon."

"So what? I know what some of them are already saying about me," Vegeta informed her dryly.

"Oh? What's that?" Bulma inquired.

Vegeta sighed. "Think about it, Bulma."

"You mean- oh." Her eyebrow rose. ~It must have something to do with his relationship with me.~ "You're the employee who received the rude comments, aren't you?" she asked quietly.

"I'm not going to repeat them, so don't ask," Vegeta informed her. "But let's just say that they were out of line enough that your father refused to overlook them."

"I see." Bulma didn't look pleased.

"I didn't tell you that to upset you, Bulma," Vegeta said quietly. "But I thought you deserved to know."

"I appreciate hearing it from you instead of through the office grapevine, I guess," she mumbled. "I just didn't expect it so soon. Oh, well. Anyway," she continued, changing the subject, "we'll have to go over what you're supposed to be doing and what you've got on your plate right now."

"I know." Vegeta sighed.

"What's wrong?" Bulma asked, concerned.

"I hope I can do this, Bulma. It's not exactly what I was born to do," he admitted. "Of course, neither was living on this planet."

"You'll be fine," Bulma assured him. "I've never seen you give up on anything you set out to do. You're one of the most determined people I've ever met."

His eyes locked with hers. "You can count on it," he whispered.

Her mouth opened slightly; his meaning had not gone unnoticed. "I... Well, we can talk about it over lunch. How does Thai sound?"

Vegeta was enjoying the flush of pink over her cheeks but wisely refrained from saying anything else that might be construed by others as inappropriate for the office. Anya had just taught him that lesson moments ago. "Whatever you like," he told her.

"All right. How does 12:30 sound?" Bulma decided.

Vegeta nodded. "That's fine. I'll meet you in your office then."

"Okay." Neither of them spoke for a moment. "Well, I see you have plenty to do so I'll leave you to it." Bulma quickly left the room.

Vegeta sighed and sat down at his desk. This would not be easy. Dealing with how he felt about her never was.

***

Vegeta entered Bulma's office at 12:30 sharp. "Good afternoon, Miwa," he greeted the young lady manning the phones.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Vegeta. How is your first day going so far?" Miwa asked, gracing him with a smile of encouragement.

Vegeta shrugged. "So far, so good I guess. I've gotten some really important things done already, like figuring out how to program a voice greeting into my phone."

Miwa giggled. "Can't forget an important detail like that, or your personal identification greeting either. Otherwise, everyone will think Gai is still working here sharing an office with you," she teased.

Vegeta grimaced. "I'm double checking that phone as soon as I get back to my desk," he groused, making her giggle again. "Is Bulma ready? We were supposed to discuss a few things over lunch."

Miwa's face promptly fell and she nibbled at her lips. "Well, uhm, she has someone in her office right now."

"Oh?" Vegeta was tempted to reach out with his ki to see if he knew who it was but resisted it. Not only was he restricted, but it would be rude to Bulma. "Should I come back later?"

Miwa hesitated for a moment, grateful she didn't have to be the bearer of bad news when the door to Bulma's private office opened, but at the same time a little nervous to see what Vegeta's reaction would be.

"Come on, Bulma. We haven't had lunch in a while," Hiroshi coaxed, leading her out of the room. "We'll go eat at that new Thai place you've been wanting to try."

Vegeta scowled. Not a snowball's chance in hell was he going to back down on this one. "Oh, did I miss your phone call, Bulma?" he spoke up in an icy tone. "You never mentioned what's-his-face having any input during our lunch meeting today."

Bulma sighed. This was going to be ugly, she just knew it. "Hiroshi, I told you that it'll have to be another time, okay? We can do lunch on-"

"Oh, no you don't," Hiroshi interrupted rudely. "The king of the apes is your lunch meeting? You cannot be serious if you expect me to gladly take the back seat to that freak of nature."

Bulma noticed Miwa's eyes continually widening as she couldn't help but witness the ugliness taking place. It was like looking at a car wreck as you drove by- gruesome and horrific, but you still couldn't manage to make yourself turn away.

"Really?" Vegeta's face brightened with mock surprise. "Takashita, it's perfect for you! You're hired. Go see Hina about your uniform later. Good man." He took Bulma by the arm and steered her toward the door. "Thanks, Miwa. I'll bring you back some spicy peanut chicken."

Hiroshi was fairly fuming with rage. "You arrogant son-of-a-"

Bulma stopped in the hallway and faced him. "Now you look here," she began in a low voice. "Do not do that again," she told him, clearly accentuating each word individually. "I'm serious. Daddy may have hired you to work for me but that doesn't mean I will tolerate any bullcrap from you, got it?"

Vegeta gave her a lopey smile. "You're beautiful when you're angry."

"Vegeta! I'm not joking here!" Bulma hissed, not missing an employee walking down an intersecting hallway watch them as he went by.

"All right, I'm sorry I picked on him," Vegeta groused irritably as he headed down the hallway again. "Had it been a misunderstanding on his part I would not have said what I did, but I simply would not stand for him trying to muscle his way into having lunch with you after we already had plans, as if he is of more importance."

Of more importance than what Vegeta hadn't said, but it was clear what he meant. Bulma sighed. He was forcing her to not only take a side, but fill in what he meant. "Vegeta, please don't do this. We're having lunch as planned, all right?"

She turned as the office door slammed and Hiroshi walked by, nose in the air and looking quite put out. "Have a nice lunch with King Kong today," he spat. "I'm sure he'll be happy to peel you a banana for dessert."

Bulma saw Vegeta shift a little out if the corner of her eye, silently thanking Kami that he didn't respond with an insult of his own in return. "Let's just go, okay?"

"Fine."

They walked out to the parking lit in silence, ignoring the hushed whispers as they passed by random employees in the hallway.

Bulma dropped a car capsule and sighed as it opened to reveal one of her favorite sports cars. "Ugh, I've got such a headache," she complained as she opened the driver's side door.

"Want me to drive so you can rest a little?" Vegeta offered.

Bulma looked at him with surprise but tossed him her keys. "I didn't know you knew how to drive."

Vegeta shrugged. "It's easier than piloting a spacecraft," he assured her as he got into the driver's seat. He smiled as the engine turned over and rumbled to life. Power...

Bulma rested her head back and covered her eyes with one hand as they pulled out of the parking lot. "So when did you drive?"

Vegeta wracked his brain for a way to get out of this. She was already mad enough at him. "When Kakarrot's mate took you to see your physician when you were pregnant with Vegeta and I took the boy..." He paused. "What's his name?"

"Gohan."

"Yes, Gohan. We went to get breakfast and he whined that it was too cold to fly," he responded.

"Huh. Neither of my parents ever mentioned loaning you a car," she mused. She turned her head to look at him. "Where did you find a car?"

"Turn left. And I'm just curious. Gohan never mentioned anything either."

~She's going to pester me until I give her an answer.~ "I found a capsule car laying around, so I borrowed it, then put it back where I found it. No big deal," Vegeta told her, facing dead forward, eyes locked onto the road.

~Hmm... What would have been-~ "Oh!"

Vegeta didn't need his ki to feel the change in her mood; obviously she'd figured it out. "Hmm?" he asked innocently.

"You drove my Ferrari, didn't you?" Bulma howled, hitting him on the arm. "That's why Gohan didn't say anything! He knew I'd be mad about it, and he's right!" She hit him again. "Damn it, Vegeta! That's my car, my baby! How could you just take it behind my back?"

Vegeta sighed as she continued to whale on him in emphasis of her words. "For Kami's sake Bulma, don't do that while I'm driving."

"Fine, I'll wait until we stop," she snapped.

Bulma sat sullenly in her seat, not knowing what could she say to refute his argument.

"I didn't tell you this to anger you, Bulma," Vegeta said in a soft voice. "I suppose that's part of the reason I didn't tell you to begin with."

Bulma frowned. "Just part of the reason you didn't tell me you took my favorite car for a joyride? What else, pray tell, could be a reason?"

"I'm a jackass, remember?" he told her matter-of-factly. "Swiping your car for a couple of hours is child's play compared to other misdeeds I've committed against you." He grimaced as another driver cut them off. "Look, I don't want to fight anymore. I'm tired of fighting with you." He reached over momentarily to squeeze her hand before taking it away to upshift. "Let's just put the whole past ten minutes behind us and have a nice lunch together, okay?"

Bulma blinked her eyes against the tears welling up. "I'm sorry, Vegeta," she whispered. "I don't want to fight with you, either." He gave her a little grunt that she'd come to understand to be one of acceptance and agreement in lieu of speaking the words. "Oh! You were supposed to have turned right here!" she exclaimed, taking her turn to grimace when he whipped around the corner from the wrong lane, causing an irritated driver he turned in front of to lay on his horn and give him the finger.

Vegeta tried unsuccessfully to hold in a laugh when he peeked out of the corner of his eye and saw her clutching the arm rests and looking as terrified as Gohan had.

Bulma sat up straight in her seat and glared at him. "What's so funny?" she demanded.

"You look just like Gohan-" Vegeta abruptly shut up when he realized what he'd just inadvertently admitted. "Uhm, you looked like you did when you saw that spider in the shower," he supplied.

Instead of getting mad, a faint blush spread over Bulma's cheeks. "So, you were actually looking at my face then."

Vegeta's nostrils flared in amusement. "I was looking at all of you, Darling," he told her saucily. "I didn't mean to, but you know, old habits and all that good stuff." He gave her a sad little smile. "Is that it?"

Bulma looked up from her hands in her lap and nodded. "Yes, there on the corner."

He pulled the car into the parking lot, which was filling up rather quickly. "Here, I'll drop you off at the door so you can find a table while I park," he told her, pulling up alongside the building. "Besides, those heels don't look very comfortable," he added, not voicing the thought that they made her legs look like a million zeni.

Bulma smiled appreciatively as she got out of the vehicle, but once again her mind was warring. Why was he completely disagreeable one moment and such a sweet guy the next?

***

Okyoito paused as his cell phone rang. A wave of nervous excitement twisted in the pit of his belly as he recognized the number of the individual calling him. Was today the day? "Hello?"

"We need to talk," came the voice from the other end of the line. "Can you get away for lunch today?"

"Yes, absolutely," Okyoito responded immediately. "When and where would you like to meet?"

"There's a small deli at Main and 22nd," the man decided. "Do you know the place?"

"Yes, I know it," Okyoito responded, growing a little nervous as another employee passed by.

"Good. Meet me there at 1:00, and bring the item that we discussed."

"I will." Okyoito paused, as an employee known for being nosy was standing at a nearby workstation pretending to work. He knew better. "Okay, Mom. I'll see you at lunch."

"Mom?" the man asked dryly. It wasn't difficult to deduce what was going on. "Nosy employees nearby?"

"Yes, Mom. Okay, I love you too, Mom. Bye!" Okyoito didn't miss the sarcastic snort just before the call disconnected. He hoped the man wasn't too irritated at him. After all, if things worked out well, he could make a boatload of money on this.

"Going to lunch with your mom?" the nosy employee asked. " Aww, that's so sweet."

"Yup, gotta go or I'll be late." Okyoito grabbed a capsule from his desk drawer and stuffed it into his pocket before rushing out to his car. He pulled his phone out and called his contact back as he pulled out onto the street. "Sorry about that," he apologized as the call connected. "Everyone knows what a busybody that chick is."

"Whatever. Do you have the schematics?" the man asked.

"Yes, I have them." Okyoito put his hand on his thigh, where he could feel the capsule in his pocket. "I just want to remind you that this design isn't complete. It definitely needs some fine tuning."

"Don't you worry about that. I've got my own team to handle it," the man assured him.

"Okay. But I have nothing to do with this," Okyoito insisted.

"Yes, yes, I know." He was starting to sound a little irritable again. "What's wrong, are you worried about Bulma finding out?"

Okyoito straightened up in his seat. "I couldn't care less about her or what she thinks, as long as she doesn't suspect me. I'll be glad to see that prissy little bitch get her comeuppance," he said boldly, then paused when he remembered who he was talking to. "No offense."

To his surprise, his conversational partner merely laughed. "None taken, trust me. Saying she's a bitch is being kind. When I get this little invention of hers working, she'll be dumped so fast that she'll never know what hit her."

"And I get a cut of the profits, remember?" Okyoito persisted.

"Yes, yes, and a position in the lab." He definitely sounded irritable now.

"All right. Traffic's heavy, so I've got to hang up now... Hello?" Okyoito shrugged and tossed his phone onto the seat next to him. "So much for goodbye, Mr. Takashita," he muttered.

***

Vegeta choked on his popcorn and leaned forward on the loveseat. "Damn paparazzi!" he shouted, setting the enormous bowl he was snacking on onto the coffee table.

Geta rushed into the den, having heard yelling from within. "Father, what's wrong... Oh." There on the television were his parents having lunch while the show's host narrated what he thought had happened.

Vegeta growled as the talk show host grinned toothily at the camera. "We were exchanging a frickin' piece of paper, not holding hands! Any idiot could see that!"

Geta shrugged and flopped down onto the couch. "Better get used to it, especially now that you're AVP. How that happened so quickly is worthy enough of gossip. Forget about your connection to this family. I'm surprised that you've managed to evade the fact that you still live here and aren't-"

"I get the point, all right?" Vegeta interrupted. He grabbed the remote and shut off the television. "I'm going outside for a smoke."

Geta frowned. "Father, I really wish you wouldn't," he objected.

"Oh? So I suppose you'd rather I leave for a few hours and come back like I did last time, hmm?" he challenged, well aware that it had been his son who'd gotten him home after he couldn't even walk in a straight line.

Geta's shoulders drooped. "No, and I wish you wouldn't do that either," he said quietly.

Vegeta frowned at his son's discomfort. "Look, Son. I appreciate your concern but I need something to calm myself down that does not involve blood on my hands."

Geta watched him go and sighed. He could completely see how his father would be upset by what had been on the television. Vegeta desperately wanted to regain Bulma's love, and rumors insinuating that they must be having an affair would only be like a slap in the face to his father. He wished he could help, but was powerless to do anything that would make his parents' situation better.

Bulma rushed into the den. "What's wrong?" she exclaimed. "Was that you yelling?"

"No, Father saw something on the television that really upset him," Geta told her.

Bulma frowned. "What was it?"

"Well..." Geta related the story.

Bulma winced, going a little pink herself. "This isn't good," she mumbled.

"Yeah, Hiroshi isn't going to be pleased when he finds out that you're cheating on him and Father is the other man, huh?"

Bulma chose to ignore the sarcasm in her son's voice. "I'll deal with him," she assured her son. "For now, I should go talk to your father."

Geta nodded in agreement. "He said he was going outside for a smoke."

Bulma didn't look happy but nodded nonetheless. "Thanks." She headed for Vegeta's room, figuring that he might have gone outside through his balcony. Instinct served her correctly when she saw the glow of the end of the cigarette he was smoking as he inhaled. She opened the balcony door and went outside, the instant cold of the air causing her to wrap her arms around herself. "Vegeta?"

Vegeta turned his head to look back at her, as he was straddling the metal railing that enclosed the balcony, one knee bent up and his other leg dangling over the edge. "Bulma."

The night sky was amazingly clear, and the light of the stars illuminated his profile slightly. "That's a good idea."

He turned, swinging his legs back over the railing so he was facing her. "I thought you disapproved of me smoking," he commented, reaching into his pocket to tap another cigarette out of the box. He lit it with the butt of the first one, which he then flipped over the side of the balcony.

Bulma frowned. "Nice. But I was referring to the hoodie. It looks warm."

"It is." Vegeta had even managed to pull up the hood, his long hair poking out above his forehead.

She shivered. "I didn't see what you saw on the television, but Geta told me about it," she told him. "Look, you're just going to have to get used to this sort of thing, okay?"

Vegeta sighed but nodded, remembering their conversion months ago when he'd been upset over her picture in a gossip magazine. "I know. But I do not approve of the untruth of what that man was insinuating was taking place."

Bulma bit at her lip a little as he spoke. "You know, a lot of well-known people get trash talked about all the time. You've just got to let it roll off your back, because most of it isn't true and people know it. It just amuses them to gossip about other people who aren't every day 'normal' people," she explained, gesturing with her fingers as she spoke.

"And these people make money out of titillating the masses," Vegeta finished, taking another good drag on his cigarette.

"Yes, exactly," Bulma agreed, shivering again.

This is what Vegeta had wanted- for her to seek him out while he had gone to seek solace. Now that it had finally happened, it was because of a stupid reason that wouldn't allow him to be comforted by her presence. But, he couldn't just let her freeze even if she was foolish enough to come outdoors unsuitably clothed. "Oh, come here," he groused, reaching out to grab her wrist and pull her toward him.

She gasped in surprise when he heaved her up onto the railing beside him. "Vegeta, are you crazy? I'm going to fall!"

"No, you won't."

"How do you know?" she demanded. "This railing isn't very wide, and we're high up enough that I could be seriously injured."

"No, you wouldn't, because I could never let you fall." Vegeta turned back around to face the night sky. "Come on, turn around with me."

Bulma had a death grip on the railing and shook her head. "No way."

Vegeta frowned. "You said you trusted me with your life when I brought you and Vegeta outside through the nursery window," he reminded her. "That hardly seems to be the case now."

Feeling a little guilty at the remembrance that she had indeed said that, Bulma gingerly slid one leg over the railing and turned a little, then slowly repeated the process with the other leg.

"See? You can do anything you want to if you forget about being afraid and just try," Vegeta told her. He scooted a little closer and put an arm around her.

"Vegeta-"

"Hush, now. This balcony is practically shaking from your shivering," Vegeta chastised her gently. "Why didn't you put a coat on, silly woman?" He rubbed her arm briskly in an effort to generate some heat.

"I don't know. Maybe I didn't think I'd be sitting outside on your balcony railing, silly man," Bulma retorted. She frowned at the long exhalation of smoke he let out. "All right, hand it over."

"What?" Vegeta took a turn at frowning when she leaned forward to pluck the half smoked cigarette from his fingers and flip it onto the ground below. "Bulma, what the hell?"

"And the pack." Bulma held out her hand, wriggling her fingers insistently.

"No way," he imitated her.

Bulma didn't look amused. "Come on, hand it over."

Vegeta growled but handed her the pack. "What difference does it make to you? After all, it's not as though you're my..." He sighed, shutting up before he said something else to hurt her.

Bulma did look hurt. "It does matter to me, Vegeta," she said in a quiet voice. "No matter what happens to us, you'll always be my baby boy's father, and my friend."

Bulma's face fell, tears threatening to fall. "Vegeta, I..." Her lips trembled and she looked down at her lap.

Vegeta sighed again. "Once again, I have hurt you," he murmured, reaching over with his other hand to tip her chin up. "Don't cry. You are a stronger woman than that."

"How can I not cry-"

He placed a finger over her lips. "Shhh." He drew her closer, leaning in. Perhaps this evening wouldn't be a total loss after all.

Their eyes locked. "Vegeta," Bulma whispered.

"Yes, Bulma?" Vegeta whispered back, tilting his head still closer to hers.

"I..." Bulma felt herself weakening. He'd always made her feel so stupid in the head when he did this to her. "Maybe we should go inside. It's awfully cold out here."

"I'll keep you warm." Both arms wrapped around her as he kissed her.

Bulma couldn't help but respond as he held her close and kissed her insistently. Gods, he always felt so right, smelled so good, and kissed like nobody's business. She let go of her grip on the railing, her arms sliding around him as well.

They wobbled a little unsteadily, making her gasp and cling even tighter to him. "Oh!"

Vegeta kissed her neck. "I could never let you fall, Bulma," he repeated in a whisper. He gave her another kiss. "I want to work things out between us. Just let me be a better man to you, the man I know I can be," he continued urgently.

Her face softened and she felt tears once again forming in her eyes. His eyes were pleading with her, begging her to consider. "Oh, Vegeta..."

A knock at the balcony door startled them both, and they turned toward it. Geta stood at the other side, looking rather apologetic.

~Damn it, just when things were going well for once.~ Vegeta scowled and gave his son a look that clearly demanded to know what was of such importance that Geta would interrupt him getting somewhere with Bulma.

:I'm sorry to interrupt, but Hiroshi is on the line demanding to speak with Mother,: came the tired sounding mental response. :He says if I don't put her on the line, he's coming over to deal with her.:

There was a long pause. :Fine. I'll tell her. Stupid bastard.:

"Vegeta, what is it?" Bulma asked, noting the angry scowl on his face as their son walked away.

"Evidently your boyfriend is on the phone demanding to speak with you," Vegeta reported darkly. "If you don't pick up the phone, he's coming over to deal with you."

Bulma's eyebrow rose. "Deal with me?" she repeated, sounding rather offended.

Vegeta shrugged. "That's what Geta said."

"Help me back over the railing please, so I can 'deal' with him," Bulma said irritably.

Vegeta nodded and got back onto the balcony, then lifted her up beside him.

Bulma couldn't help but feel a stab of pain at the hurt he wasn't bothering to conceal. "I'm sorry, Vegeta. I know we needed to talk. Come back inside, okay?"

He sighed but followed her inside, peeling the hoodie off and throwing it onto the bed before leaving the room.

"Come with me, so you can answer any questions about that picture. I'm sure that's what he's crabbing about." They walked to the kitchen in silence, and she picked up the phone. "Hello-"

It took all of half a second before Vegeta could hear Hiroshi's voice yelling from the phone. He put down the food he'd gotten from the refrigerator and came over to her, holding out his hand in a silent demand for her to hand it over.

Vegeta refrained from asking her "so what else is new?" and held up a bowl of triple chocolate fudge brownie ice cream he'd just prepared. "Here, have some. You'll feel better once you calm down."

"Oh, that's too much," she objected. "Maybe just one scoop."

He held the bowl closer. "You aren't fat, Bulma, no matter what anyone else says," he told her matter-of-factly, leaving out who he was really referring to. "Two scoops are not going to change that."

Bulma smiled at him gratefully and accepted the ice cream from him. "Thanks, Veggie," she told him in a soft voice.

Gods, she was beautiful. "You're welcome," Vegeta responded in turn.

"Want to watch a little TV while we eat it?" Bulma asked. "I promise no news or talk shows."

Vegeta snorted and picked up the container and a spoon. "Sure, why not?"

***

"Mmmm... That was so good." Bulma leaned over and placed her bowl onto the coffee table next to Vegeta's empty container.

"Indeed it was," Vegeta agreed. He turned to sit back against the arm of the couch, then leaned down to grab one of her feet, peeling the sock off of it.

"What are you doing?" she asked in surprise.

"Rubbing your feet," he responded. "You said it feels good during your menses, didn't you?"

"You don't have to do that," she told him, remembering the time she'd asked him to rub her feet and he'd flatly refused.

"I know. I want to."

Bulma giggled when he made a face and pulled a piece of sock fuzz from between her toes. "Thanks."

"You're welcome, Bulma," he told her, reaching over to turn off the television before resuming his task.

She sighed in contentment as he rubbed gently, repeating the process with her other foot. By the time he was done, she was fast asleep. Moving slowly so as not to wake her, he lifted her bridal style and carried her to her room, placing her onto the bed and pulling the blankets over her.

"Good night, Princess," he whispered, leaning down to kiss her cheek before creeping out of her room.

He peeled off his sweatpants and t-shirt and flopped down onto his bed. The evening had ended up amicably between them, and he couldn't help but wonder what might have happened that day had they not been interrupted, had he actually spoken his mind to her.

***

Vegeta's phone rang and he set down the file he'd been working on. It wasn't Bulma's extension or Dr. Briefs', so he answered it in the safest way he knew. "This is Vegeta."

"Hey, Vegeta," came Bulma's voice. "How many languages do you speak?"

Her voice sounded like Dr. Briefs' had when she'd put him on the speaker phone, so Vegeta figured she must have turned the speaker of whatever phone she was using on as well. How many people were also listening was unknown to him, and he didn't want to incite panic or excitement by asking whether she meant all languages or just Earth ones. Some people knew he was an alien to this planet, but not everyone did. "Ask me if I speak a particular language and I'll tell you."

"Okay," Bulma agreed. "Do you speak Rocoto?"

"Yes." Vegeta could hear a buzz of surprised interest from others who must also be in the same room. "Are you in need of assistance?"

"Yes. Could you come to my conference room, please?" Bulma asked.

Vegeta paused. No one else was there at the moment. "Certainly. I will be right there." He hung up, checked the neatness of the accursed tie around his neck, and headed down the hall. While on the topic of "accursed," if he had heard Bulma correctly the evening before while she'd been on the telephone, there would be someone there who fit the description. He nodded to Nuiko and Mina, then rapped briefly on the door.

"Come in," Bulma called out from behind the closed door.

Vegeta entered the room, where quite a few people were in attendance, including, of course, Hiroshi. ~Damn.~ "Good morning, everyone."

"I think most of you know Vegeta," Bulma spoke up.

"I'll say," a female voice piped up, and Vegeta felt his cheeks turn a little pink. This flirtatious woman had seen him on numerous occasions where he'd been training and had been clad in nothing more than a pair of spandex training shorts, shoes, and sweat.

"For those of you who don't, this is Vegeta, our new AVP," Bulma reported, shooting the woman a look that clearly told her that this was neither the time nor place for such comments.

Vegeta nodded politely to everyone in attendance. "How can I be of assistance, Bulma?"

"Mr. Haraguchi's contact Mr. Piquant in Pepperland only speaks Rocoto, but our translator was in a car accident this morning and is unable to attend today," Bulma explained, indicating a man seated across the table from her. "This contact will be of great use to us, so I'm relieved to hear that you'll be able to translate. Have a seat."

Vegeta nodded in agreement and sat down in an empty chair at the table. "If you can give me his name and a brief synopsis of the situation, I would be pleased to assist you." He ignored Hiroshi's rather dramatic roll of his eyes. Bastard.

The man Bulma had indicated earlier gave him an overview. "So he actually has all of the materials we think will work for Ms. Briefs' project, and we need to place an order as soon as possible so that we can meet our deadline. He is anticipating this call so it would have been devastating to this project to have not made it."

"All right, I'm ready when you are," Vegeta told him. He couldn't help but feel a little nervous as Mr. Haraguchi placed the call, and didn't know why he'd feel that way. After all, he did know the language, even if he didn't have opportunity to speak it very often. When the call connected, he spoke to the woman who answered.

"Is he there?" Bulma asked when it became evident that their call had been placed on hold.

"Yes, she is going to connect the call-" Vegeta stopped mid-sentence when the call picked up again. There was a brief conversation between them. "Mr. Piquant sends his greetings to all parties of this meeting, and I have returned the sentiment to him in your behalf," he told them. "He says that he is aware of your desire to obtain a list of materials that Mr. Haraguchi's assistant forwarded to him and confirmed that he is able to provide all of them. He is open to negotiations regarding quantity, price and delivery time."

"Here is a list of what we want," Mr. Haraguchi told him, sliding a list over.

Vegeta felt his heart sink; the list was composed entirely in Western Standard. "Thank you," he said quietly, accepting the paper. He stared at it for a moment but said nothing.

"Well?" Hiroshi demanded. "Why are you just sitting there?" Suddenly his face brightened, and Vegeta's heart sank even further as he realized that the horrid man had figured it out. "You can't read Western, can you?" he crowed triumphantly. "That's why that text you got from Bulma's mother was in Eastern." He laughed heartily as an extremely embarrassed and peevish expression crossed Vegeta's face.

"Hiroshi!" Bulma exclaimed. "Please, this is important." She looked at Vegeta apologetically. "Vegeta..."

"No, Mr. Takashita, I cannot read Western," Vegeta admitted, attempting to keep his tone of voice neutral to avoid an ugly tone that their contact would pick up. Why hadn't he just had Frieza's computer programmers input the character systems of all of the languages he'd ever learned along with the language absorption? Rather than considering it to be a waste of time since he simply wanted to find the Dragonballs and leave, perhaps even destroying the planet after he left, it would have made his life now so much easier. He slid the paper over to Hiroshi. "Why don't you offer me your valuable assistance, or could it be that you speak Rocoto and my presence is no longer required here?"

"Whatever." Hiroshi scowled, unable to answer in a way that would allow him to save face, and began to translate the short list to Eastern Standard.

Mr. Piquant spoke briefly and Vegeta responded. "Mr. Piquant wanted to know what had happened, so I told him that Mr. Takashita had been very pleased to hear that we could obtain everything from him." He eyed Hiroshi pointedly. "Shall we begin?"

Hiroshi slid the list back over but said nothing. A string of unuttered curses ran through his mind, but this stupid monkey wasn't worth losing his job over. Besides, if Bulma got mad enough at him, he might be put out of the loop, something he didn't want since it would hurt him financially. If he could only put up with these two idiots and their equally idiotic family a little bit longer, he'd be free of her before he knew it.

***

"Vegeta, hang back for a little, please," Bulma requested as everyone began to file out of the meeting. "This won't take long. Hiroshi, please wait for me while I finish up here." She gave Hiroshi a look that clearly meant that she wouldn't put up with anything else from him.

"Sure, fine," Hiroshi groused, leaving the room with the others.

Bulma closed the door. "Vegeta, I'm really sorry about what happened just now," she told him.

Vegeta frowned, recalling the looks of surprise the others had exchanged, all eyes ending up on him. "I've already told you that I don't want you apologizing for anyone else's behavior," he responded, wisely refraining from adding "especially Hiroshi's."

She nodded. "Yes, I remember," she acknowledged. "But just the same, I never wanted you to be embarrassed by your situation, especially in the way it came out in the open." She placed a hand on his arm. "I'll take care of him, okay?"

Vegeta nodded but didn't make any comment.

Bulma sighed. "Listen, I'm going to have Gai's assistant Hina work for you. She needs to be permanently reassigned and she's fluent in both Eastern and Western. She should be of great assistance to you, especially where all of your HR duties are concerned."

"Thank you," Vegeta told her.

"You're welcome," Bulma said. "If you need anything just let me know, okay?"

"I will." Vegeta decided that he wouldn't let an idiot like Hiroshi bring him down. He couldn't stand tall if he let the man win.

"Good." Bulma paused, gathering her thoughts. "I'll bring you something back for lunch."

Vegeta figured on the reason she'd made her statement so brief. "Where are you two going?"

Bulma found herself grateful that he had been so tactful about it. "I'm not sure yet, but I know what you like." She gave him a little smile. "Hey, don't let this bring you down," she said, patting his arm. "Your help was invaluable today. Thank you."

He nodded again. "You're welcome, Bulma."

The look in his eyes made her feel warm all over. She knew he had done this for her and no other reason. "I've got to go. I'll bring you something back." She left the conference room, leaving him alone with his thoughts.

***

Mrs. Briefs knocked at the bedroom door. "Vegeta?" she called out. "Could you give me a hand please?"

Momentarily the door opened. "Sure. What did you need?" he asked.

"My arthritis is bad today and the trash is too heavy for my wrists," she told him. "I should have changed it sooner."

"Don't be upset with yourself," Vegeta told her, detecting the irritation in her voice. "You felt fine yesterday, didn't you? Besides, you shouldn't be taking out the trash yourself. From now on, ask me or Geta to do it."

Mrs. Briefs smiled at him fondly. "You're such a dear boy," she informed him. "Thank you."

He nodded. "You're welcome." He followed her to the kitchen and took out the trash.

Mrs. Briefs regarded him thoughtfully as he came back into the kitchen and washed his hands. He looked a little melancholy. "What's wrong, Dear?"

Vegeta sighed deeply. She'd hear about it sooner or later anyway. "Takashita figured out that I can't read Western and blabbed to everyone in the middle of a meeting yesterday," he told her. "I was determined that I wouldn't let it get to me, but my illiteracy bothers me more than I thought it would."

Mrs. Briefs pursed her lips. ~The poor boy, embarrassed by that horrid man.~ "Come with me," she said softly. She lead him to the den and removed some paper and a pencil from a box beside the couch. "Sit down with me, Dear."

He did as she requested, watching as she flipped through the pad on her lap. "Did you draw these?"

"Yes, I did. Do you like them?" she asked brightly.

"They're quite good," Vegeta told her sincerely.

"Oh, thank you, Dear. This is a koi pond I'd love to put near my gardens. This is a dinosaur I saw. This is a very nice beach that Shatsu and I went to on our honeymoon..." She described each picture as she turned the pages.

"Very impressive," Vegeta told her.

Mrs. Briefs beamed even more. "You know, drawing can be very therapeutic. Watercolors, too. Maybe you should consider taking one of them up. Meanwhile, here's what I wanted to show you." She found a blank page and began writing, verbalizing each Western Standard character as she made it. "You can practice these, then we'll go over some more when you're ready." She handed him the pencil and sketch pad.

He accepted the items gratefully. "Thank you, Bunny."

"You're so very welcome, Vegeta. You're a bright young man, so I'm sure you'll be back to see me soon." She got up from the couch and kissed him on the cheek before heading for the door.

Vegeta looked at the pad in his hands. Shouldn't small children be doing this? He sighed. At least he was learning, right?

***

The next few days passed by quickly for Vegeta, mostly because he was trying to learn the ropes of his new position while Bulma was once again out of the office. Fortunately for him Hina was proving to be extremely helpful during his transition.

His phone rang, interrupting his thoughts, and he picked it up. "Yes, Hina?"

"I have our representative from Itou Chemicals on the line. We buy a lot of our lab supplies from them. They have a surplus of a certain chemical we use that he wants to sell at a discount. The call was routed here because Bulma isn't in. I tried calling her myself but she's not answering," Hina explained. "It's almost time to place our regular order, so I'm sure that Bulma would definitely buy a little extra to get such a great deal."

"I see. All right, put them through," Vegeta directed.

"All right. This is Mr. Kotani on the line."

"Thank you." Vegeta waited until the background noise changed. "Good morning, this is Vegeta."

***

Dr. Briefs' cell phone rang. "Oh, it's Vegeta."

Mrs. Briefs turned onto the expressway. "Ask him what he wants for dinner," she told him.

"Hello, Vegeta," Dr. Briefs said brightly as he answered the phone.

"Good morning, Shatsu. How is your leg feeling?" Vegeta asked.

"Good, good, thanks for asking. The missus and I just left my doctor's office. X-rays look good and I had my first physical therapy session. He'll send someone out to our place next time."

"That's great news," Vegeta told him.

"Hi, Vegeta!" Mrs. Briefs sang, earning an amused chuckle from the Saiyan on the other line.

"Tell Bunny hello for me, and ask her what's for dinner," Vegeta requested.

Dr. Briefs laughed. "She asked me to ask you what you wanted," he said, shooting an amused look his wife's way.

Mrs. Briefs giggled. "Ask him how lamb chops sound."

"Sounds delicious," Vegeta responded immediately, having heard her.

"He said that sounds delicious," Dr. Briefs reported.

"Shatsu, I don't mean to cut this short, but I have our representative from Itou Chemicals on hold. He's offered to sell us his surplus of magnesium five. I tried all of Bulma's numbers, but no one can get hold of her, so I'm asking your permission to buy it. I wanted to wait to ask her, but he said take it or leave it because he has someone else to sell it to if I don't order it now."

"Oh. I see. What are the terms?" Dr. Briefs asked.

"He offered me a ten percent discount if we paid half down and the balance upon delivery," Vegeta reported. "I suggested a one-year standing order at a fifteen percent discount, and then we'd talk. We eventually settled at a one-year standing order at a thirteen percent discount, and added a few other items I noticed that we also use frequently."

Dr. Briefs laughed jovially. "Vegeta, once again your negotiation skills have proven to be absolutely amazing!" he exclaimed. "Yes, order the supplies right away and approve the payment. I'll get in touch with Bulma on this, since I know you need to get moving on it."

"Thank you, Shatsu. The shipment will arrive tomorrow. I'll request that they e-mail you a copy of the invoice," Vegeta told him.

"Wonderful! Thank you, Vegeta. I'll let you go now." Dr. Briefs' voice was full of pride for the younger man's accomplishment.

"All right. I'll see you for dinner. Goodbye."

"Goodbye." Dr. Briefs ended the call. "Bunny, that boy never ceases to amaze me."

***

The elder Briefs entered the kitchen, depositing their purchases onto the counter. "Geta, is Bulma home?" Dr. Briefs asked.

Geta turned from raiding the refrigerator and plunked sandwich fixings onto the counter. "No, she went out to dinner with Hiroshi," he responded, sounding a little disgusted.

"Oh. Well, I'll try calling her. There's something very important that I need to tell her." Dr. Briefs took his phone out of his pocket and placed the call.

Presently a vibrating noise was heard and they all looked over toward the sound. Sure enough, Bulma's phone was on the counter next to the junk bowl.

"Great," Dr. Briefs muttered. "I guess I'll have to catch her when she gets home tonight."

***

Bulma opened the brochure she was holding and held it out to her boyfriend. "What do you think of this one, Hiroshi?"

Hiroshi looked at the brochure and shrugged apathetically. "I suppose it looks nice."

Bulma let out an exasperated huff. "Come on, help me decide."

Hiroshi frowned at her. "I still don't see why you want me to come," he groused, tossing the brochure back on the table in front of her.

Bulma took a turn at frowning. "This is for my birthday, remember? Of course I want you to come. Sandy beaches, beautiful blue skies, plenty of things to do. What else could you ask for?"

~For you to shut the hell up, you freaking nag!~ "We'll talk about it. Laying around doing nothing sounds pretty boring if you ask me," Hiroshi said, sounding quite boring himself.

"Fine fine, we'll do something or whatever. I don't know why you waited so long to plan this." Hiroshi waved to the waitress passing by. "Check please. Sheesh Bulma, I'm surprised that not everyone can tell you're on the rag. Tone it down a little, will you?" This he said in front of the now startled waitress, who quickly put their check down and rushed off, mumbling something about being back to pick the check up in a few minutes.

"Oh! You're such a jerk sometimes," Bulma hissed. "Why'd you have to do that?"

Hiroshi rolled his eyes. "You're too sensitive. Take a pill or something." He looked at the check and pulled some money out of his wallet. "Here's my half."

Bulma made a disgusted noise and got some money from her purse. "Just leave the change so we can get out of here."

"Fine. You're not being a very pleasant dining companion tonight anyway," Hiroshi commented rudely.

" 'Dining companion'?" Bulma echoed. "Is that all I am to you?"

"I told you, you're being too sensitive," Hiroshi badgered her. "Let's go."

***

"Stupid jerk. Who does he think he is?" Bulma growled as she hung up her coat.

"Bulma, are you all right?"

Bulma turned around and scowled at who she saw. "Don't you start with me too, because I'm not in the mood for it. Ugh, you men are just a bunch of inconsiderate jerks!" She stormed off.

Vegeta took another swig of his beer and watched her go, muttering curses as she headed for her room. "Okay... That must not have been a very good date."

***

Bulma shuffled through the stack of papers on her desk. She had just booked her birthday vacation and was still stewing over Hiroshi's stupid comments the night before. "Stupid Hiroshi." She crumpled up one of the papers and threw it at the trash can she'd placed by the door. Instead of feeling a sense of satisfaction at the sound of the paper hitting the bottom of the can, she felt herself growing even more irritated as the paper bounced off the edge of the can, joining several other unfortunate pieces already on the floor. "Uhhh! Stupid men!"

She scribbled her signature on the next paper and tossed it into her outbox for Nuiko to take care of. "Always thinking they're right..." She paused, a frown creasing her brow. "What the hell?" She picked up the next paper, a faxed invoice from Itou Chemicals, to examine it more closely. "I never authorized this order."

There on the page was a signature that was not hers. She frowned. "Who else could this be? I don't recognize this signature," she murmured to herself. "Who else besides Daddy and me..."

It suddenly struck Bulma who that someone might be. She got up from her desk and stormed out of her office. "Nuiko, whose signature is this?" she demanded, waggling the invoice in front of her face.

Nuiko pursed her lips and took the paper from her irritable employer. "Oh, that's Vegeta's," she told her. "Didn't he tell you he authorized that payment?"

"No, he did not," Bulma replied crisply. "He's going to hear it from me when I see him again, believe me."

"Bulma, I thought you knew that... Bulma?" Nuiko trailed off as Bulma snatched the invoice back and went into her private office, slamming the door.

Miwa winced. "I guess no one told her," she said in a tiny voice.

Nuiko sighed. It was times like this that she hated working for Bulma. She picked up the phone to call her when the main door opened.

"Good morning, ladies," Vegeta said smoothly as he strolled into the office. "How is everyone this fine morning?"

~Oh Kami... He's in such a good mood, too.~ "Okay, I guess," Nuiko ventured.

"Just okay? That's not so good." Vegeta leaned against Nuiko's desk casually. "What's wrong?"

Before either woman could respond, Bulma's door opened and she stormed over.

"Ah, Bulma. I didn't get to talk to you yesterday. Did your father-"

"What is this? You authorized payment on this account?" Bulma interrupted accusingly.

He took the paper she shoved at him. Fortunately he recognized the invoice as the one he'd approved partial payment on just the day before, so he didn't have to admit in front of the others that he was unable to read the document, although they probably both knew by now. Dr. Briefs had been absolutely delighted with the arrangement Vegeta had made and had immediately supported approval of the payment. What was the problem? "Oh, yes. I was about to tell you about this," he responded. "In fact-"

"Save it," Bulma interrupted tersely. "You've been AVP all of a week. What makes you think that gives you leave to just take over things you know nothing about without even consulting me first?"

Vegeta was stunned. He was under the assumption that her father was going to tell her of the deal he'd struck with Itou Chemicals Industrial. Evidently that had not happened. She had no idea what he had just done and was chewing him out in front of everyone before he could even tell her about the situation. "You weren't here and I was unable to contact you, so I-"

She interrupted him a third time. "That's exactly it, Vegeta. I wasn't here, and I didn't assign this account to you. You'd better damn well hope they come through on this order." She grabbed the paper back from him. "Next time, don't even think about butting into anything I haven't asked you to do, got it?"

Vegeta felt his astonishment melt into indignance. "Bulma, if you would allow me to-"

Vegeta couldn't believe it. He was used to that type of verbal mockery and abuse coming from someone like Frieza, but from her? This, he didn't know how to take. She'd never asked him to address her formally here before, and she'd never cut him down the way she had just then, either at work or elsewhere. She had just hit him where it hurt the most- his pride- knowing full well who he was and choosing to degrade him in front of everyone. He realized that this was how he had sounded when he'd chastised Geta before leaving for space, and she was throwing what he'd done back in his face. ~I suppose I deserved that.~ He said nothing, but only nodded.

"Are we clear on this?" Bulma continued.

"Yes," he murmured.

"I'm sorry, I don't believe I heard you properly." Bulma looked at him expectantly.

"Good. Now get back to work. Make sure you're doing something you're actually supposed to be doing this time," Bulma snapped. She went into her private office and slammed the door, leaving him standing there with all eyes on him.

Silence.

Vegeta felt sick. This was Bulma. Good, sweet Bulma, who always tried to see the best in everyone, who was maliciously unkind to no one. "Perfectly clear," he muttered again. He couldn't stand knowing that the other two women in the office were looking at him and were probably feeling sorry for him, especially since they knew him well enough that they were aware that he was not only Bulma's ex but also the father of her son.

The women exchanged uneasy glances as Vegeta quietly headed for the door. They weren't stupid. Anyone who knew him before he had left for space could see that his behavior had changed, and anyone could see that he had feelings for the blue-haired woman. Being witness to her treating any employee the way she had was awkward enough; knowing what they did of his former relationship with Bulma made her treatment of him all the more humiliating.

~Oh, Vegeta... you poor man.~ Miwa wanted to say something of encouragement to him but knew that he wasn't the type to want what he would view as sympathy. She wracked her brain helplessly until she noticed his coffee on Nuiko's desk right before he got to the door. "Mr. Vegeta, you forgot your coffee!" she called out to him, snatching up the mug and bringing it over to him. Perhaps this would do.

Vegeta turned and took the coffee from her. "Thank you, Miwa," he told her quietly.

"You're very welcome, Mr. Vegeta," she responded, giving him what she hoped was an encouraging smile.

"Vegeta, m'boy, there you are," he exclaimed jovially. "I've been looking for you."

Vegeta accepted the doctor's extended hand and shook it. "You have?"

~Oh, Kami, I'm going to be sick... Why is this happening here and now?~ Any other time Vegeta would have been pleased to receive such heartfelt commendation from the older man, who he had come to very much respect. "Thank you, Dr. Briefs. I appreciate that."

Dr. Briefs waved his hand, dismissing Vegeta's statement. "Come now, Vegeta. I have already told you that it's Shatsu to you, here or elsewhere." He frowned; the prince didn't look like he was feeling well. "Are you all right, Son? You look a little ill." Concern colored his voice; this was highly unusual for Vegeta.

Vegeta chuckled weakly. "Yes, I'm fine. Just something I ate, I imagine. Saiyan stomach or not, I guess all those fast food breakfast sandwiches must finally be getting to me," he joked. "Serves me right for not eating a good breakfast."

"Yes, I have you on my calendar." Vegeta managed a little smile.

"Good, good. I'm sorry to cut this short, but I need to run a few last minute things by Bulma before the missus and I leave. Thank you again, Son. I truly am very much impressed by your resourcefulness in the way you handled this contract." Dr. Briefs patted him on the shoulder.

"Thank you, Shatsu. I'll see you Monday, then. You and Bunny enjoy your weekend." Vegeta nodded to everyone in the room. "Ladies."

Nuiko and Miwa waved as he left the office. Dr. Briefs waited until the door closed. "All right. Would one of you care to tell me what's going on? He looked awful." He crossed his arms over his chest and gave them an expectant look.

Nuiko and Miwa exchanged a hesitant look but neither made a move to volunteer any information.

"Nuiko?"

Nuiko sighed. "Bulma found out that Vegeta approved payment on the Itou contract and got really upset," she began quietly. "She basically accused him of letting AVP go to his head and nosing in where he doesn't belong, then reminded him who he was here in comparison to her, and told him to get to work doing what he was actually supposed to be doing. She wouldn't let him try to explain, and when she asked him if he was clear on what she'd said, she refused to back down until she got him to say 'yes, Ms. Briefs, perfectly clear.' Then she went into her office and slammed the door. Kami, I felt sick having to watch it. I guess you could say she pretty much emasculated him in front of us." Nuiko's eyes shone with unshed tears. "After all they've been through..." She shook her head sadly. "Even if he'd done something really bad, she could have spoken to him privately."

Miwa nodded wordlessly. She rather liked Vegeta and it hurt to see such a proud man look so defeated. She had begun to cry while Nuiko was speaking and dabbed at her eyes with a tissue. "Oh Dr. Briefs, I felt so bad for him. He looked like someone who'd just lost his best friend."

Dr. Briefs remained silent until the women were done speaking. "I see," he said quietly, but they could see that he was upset. "I realize now that I neglected to inform Bulma that I told Vegeta to approve that payment. I was so pleased by his efforts that it slipped my mind." He turned on his heel and headed for Bulma's door.

"Dr Briefs!" Nuiko called to him as his hand touched the doorknob. "Please... Vegeta wouldn't want this. If he did, he would have said something in his own defense. I know they both can give as good as they get, because I've watched them knock heads before. I can see in his eyes that he still loves her, and I'm sure you can see that too. Please remember that before you say anything to her."

Dr. Briefs drew in a deep breath. "You're right, Nuiko. Thank you. Miwa, please contact Hina and let her know that he and Bulma had an argument, so that she doesn't ask him any questions." He knocked on Bulma's door, then went inside to find her on the phone.

Bulma waved him in. "I have to go. Daddy just walked in. Okay. Talk to you later. Bye." She hung up the phone and folded her hands, looking up at her father expectantly. "What's up, Daddy?"

Dr. Briefs closed the door behind him. "I wanted to touch bases with you before your mother and I leave town," he told her. "Anything you want to run by me?"

Bulma thought about it. "Hmmm... No, I guess not."

~Well, that just guarantees that everything I was going to leave for you will be heading elsewhere.~ "Really? Looks like you've got things under control then, Daughter." He smiled.

"Yep." Bulma tossed her pen onto a file on her desk and leaned back in her plush leather executive chair. "I run a tight ship around here."

It took everything Dr. Briefs had to bite his tongue on that one. Instead, he approached her desk and sat down in one of the guest chairs. "Good, good. Well, you know how to reach me should anything go amiss." He paused. "By the way, I ran into Vegeta leaving as I came in. He looked troubled when I commended him for his efforts on the Itou contract. That's odd, don't you think? Did he say anything to you about something troubling him?"

"C-commended him? Daddy, what do you mean you commended him? I just..." She trailed off.

"Th-thirteen percent?" she gasped.

"I... I had no idea..." Bulma stammered, suddenly feeling rather ill herself. ~Oh, no... oh, Vegeta... what have I done?~

"That young man is just full of surprises. But why he'd act so strangely the way he did instead of just accepting my commendation is so odd, as was his excuse. Something he ate, he claims." Dr. Briefs shook his head. "That's the last story I'd believe. I thought he looked like someone had sucker punched him."

"Oh, Daddy... I... I can't believe what I did," Bulma whispered, fighting back tears. She felt absolutely wretched, sickened by the thought of how she'd just treated the man who had not only done the company- but even more so her- a great deed, retaining the services of a client who may have otherwise taken his business elsewhere and saving them a sizable sum in the process.

The worst part of it all was the reason she'd done it, the reason she'd been in such a bad mood. Vegeta didn't deserve that.

"Bulma?" Dr. Briefs prompted, knowing very well what was going through his daughter's mind.

A knock at the door interrupted them. "Hold that thought," he told her. "Yes?"

The door opened slowly to reveal Hina holding a clipboard. "Itou is here making the shipment," she informed them. "I need a signature, please."

"Why didn't Nuiko sign?" Dr. Briefs asked innocently, knowing that Nuiko signed for Bulma's projects on a regular basis. He twisted in his chair to face Hina and raised an eyebrow in a manner that let the young woman know that he was playing the innocent.

Bulma blushed slightly when she heard Nuiko declare "I'm not touching that thing with a ten-foot pole," in a loud, matter-of-fact voice from the main office and found herself grateful that her father was facing the opposite direction.

Hina gave him a 'don't kill the messenger' look and held out the clipboard.

"Really? That's odd. Hina, you could have had Vegeta sign for the shipment, you know. Wasn't he at his desk?" Dr. Briefs raised his eyebrow again.

"Yes, Sir. He declined to sign."

Dr. Briefs pretended to be surprised. "Why would he do that?" To Bulma's surprise, he leaned over and hit the speakerphone button on her phone, then dialed Vegeta's extension.

The line picked up after a few rings. "This is Vegeta," came his deep voice.

Bulma noted that he hadn't answered promptly with a pleasant "yes, Bulma," as he normally did when she called him. It hurt that he no longer felt comfortable addressing her. ~Not that I could blame him,~ she thought soberly, feeling ashamed.

Dr. Briefs spoke up before she could say anything. "Vegeta, it's Shatsu. I'm still in Bulma's office. Did you know that Itou is delivering the order you approved right now?"

There was a brief pause. "Yes, I am aware that it has arrived. Is Hina there yet?"

"I'm here, Sir," Hina spoke up.

"I have to wonder why you sent her here instead of receiving the shipment yourself. You're perfectly capable of doing that, you know," Dr. Briefs informed him.

They heard a deep intake of breath and a low creak from his chair as he shifted in it. He exhaled slowly before speaking. "I... I thought it would be more appropriate to have one of you sign," he murmured. "It isn't my project to authorize." The discomfort in his voice was evident.

"Nonsense, m'boy. You don't need to hold Bulma's and my hands for everything. You clearly know when to ask questions when appropriate, as you did yesterday," the doctor insisted.

"Is something wrong, Son?" Dr. Briefs' voice interrupted his thoughts. "You seemed rather out of sorts today. Are you sure you're feeling all right?"

"No, no... I just have a lot on my mind," Vegeta responded carefully. "I will report there presently. Hina, could you please return here before I leave so that the office is not left unattended? I am anticipating an important phone call."

"Of course, Mr. Vegeta," Hina told him. "I'm on my way." She handed the clipboard to Dr. Briefs and left the office, shutting the door behind her.

"I, uhm, just wanted to let you know that Etsuko called," Vegeta spoke up. "Her son's school called and she may need to go there. I told her that if that is the case to bring Vegeta here on her way in. I know that Anya and Bunny are shopping so I will watch him. You needn't worry about it." Once again he avoided addressing Bulma directly, despite not having spoken to her at all yet, and the logical recipient of the statement being her.

"Oh. I hope it's nothing serious." Bulma spoke for the first time during the conversation.

"No, I think he did something naughty. She didn't seem very pleased. Regardless, it shouldn't hurt anything if she drops the baby off here. I can mind him. He's a good boy." Vegeta's voice softened, and she could hear the pride in his statement. "Hina is here. I will be there shortly." The call disconnected.

The room was silent for a moment. "Daddy, I-"

"I know. I weaseled it out of Nuiko," Dr. Briefs interrupted. "I truly believe that he let this slide because he cares for you and doesn't want to hurt you."

Bulma's eyes filled with tears. "I... I don't know what to say," she whispered.

Bulma nodded and grabbed a tissue from the box on her desk. "Oh, Daddy... what should I do? This isn't just some random employee."

"I think you know the answer to that," Dr. Briefs responded gently. "Now, shhh. He's on his way here." He got up from his chair and opened the door.

"Daddy?"

He turned back to her. "Yes, Pumpkin?"

"I know he's upset and probably doesn't want to see me, but please ask him to come in before he leaves," Bulma requested in an almost timid manner.

He nodded. "I'll do that." He shut the door behind him.

Bulma sighed and dabbed at her face. "Oh, Vegeta... I'm sorry."

***

"Sign at the 'X' please, Sir." Vegeta could feel all eyes upon him as he accepted the clipboard from the Itou Chemicals Industrial employee and signed it, then handed it back. The employee tore off a copy and handed it to him. "Thank you. Have a good one."

"Thanks. You too," Vegeta responded as the man left. He suppressed a sigh and looked down at the delivery acknowledgment in his hand. He'd been tempted to sign his name and add 'for Bulma Briefs' or sign her name and initial it, but decided against it. Dr. Briefs had been adamant that he had no problem with him receiving the order, in front of Bulma herself, no less, and he didn't want to undermine the older man's direction. "Nuiko, I assume you will want to place this in your file." He held the paper out to her.

"Actually, you can give it to Bulma. Dr. Briefs told me as he was leaving to send you in because she wants to see you." As predicted, the Saiyan reacted ever so slightly before nodding to her.

~Now what else have I done? I only did what I was asked to do.~ It hadn't occurred to him that Dr. Briefs might have said something to Bulma since he'd seemed pretty clueless during their conversation. He drew in a breath and knocked on her door.

"Come in," came Bulma's voice from inside the office.

He opened the door and stepped inside. "You wanted to see me?"

"Yes. Please shut the door and have a seat," Bulma requested.

Vegeta did as she asked and looked at her expectantly, but said nothing.

"Is that the shipping receipt?" she asked.

"Yes, it is." Vegeta held the paper out to her.

She took it and slipped it into a file folder. "Thanks."

"You're welcome."

Silence.

"Vegeta, I..." Bulma sighed and bit at her lip. "Daddy told me what happened."

Silence.

She looked at him. He was looking past her shoulder at the wall, his face expressionless. "Vegeta, I should have listened to what you had to say this morning and I didn't. Instead, I said some hurtful and untrue things to you in front of Nuiko and Miwa. I'm very sorry for that."

He dropped his eyes and remained silent.

"Vegeta, please. This isn't easy for me, either. I feel terrible enough without you rejecting my apology," she continued in a shaky voice. "Please look at me."

Her stomach twisted when he shifted his gaze to her. His eyes were filled with sadness and hurt.

He only looked at her, still saying nothing.

Her eyes flooded with tears. "What else do I need to do or say to you to make you see that I feel terrible about how I treated you?" she cried.

Vegeta got up from his seat. "You have already said enough," he told her softly. He pulled her up from her seat and turned her to face him. "I know how you feel, believe me," he whispered.

She realized what he meant- he was referring to what he'd said to her the day he'd left for space. She began to cry in earnest then and nodded.

Vegeta sighed. "Why must I always make you cry?" he murmured, taking another tissue from her desk and tilting her chin up. He dabbed ever so gently at her cheeks. "Don't cry, Bulma. I hate seeing tears in those beautiful blue eyes." He guided her against his chest and held her close, caressing her hair.

She sniffled. "Thanks, Veggie," she whispered.

"I would do anything for you, Bulma. You know that," he murmured. "Anything." He kissed the top of her head, stealing the opportunity to breathe in her scent deeply. She always smelled so good. He missed that.

"I know," she told him in a muffled voice. "But I should have figured that there was something I didn't know and asked you about it. I mean, look at what you did for the Energy Technologies contract. You completely knocked my socks off with that one." She turned her head to rest it more comfortably upon his shoulder.

He curled his arm a little more snugly around her and continued to stroke her hair. "Yes, well, I didn't consult you on that one, either," he reminded her guiltily. "I didn't know the terms of the contract so I had Nuiko read it to me before I went in. I was a little surprised because considering the amount of time and effort you'd put into this contract I figured that you would have negotiated better terms than what you had. There was no time to call you and since you were so sick, I couldn't bear the thought of waking you even if there had been time. I knew I'd have to do something a little drastic since I wouldn't get something for nothing, but at least it worked out." He sighed. "I... I just wanted to do something special for you. You've always taken care of me, even though I'm an utter-"

Vegeta sighed and nestled his face against her palm. Oh, how he missed her gentle touch and loving caresses. "I could say the same of you," he countered. "I never thought I would have an heir, and here you have borne me a beautiful son. But that wasn't enough," he whispered, running his fingers through the length of her hair and playing with it as he used to do while she laid in his arms after lovemaking. "I am truly sorry for what happened between us, Bulma. I hope that someday you can accept my apology and..." He sighed again.

"I know. I'm sorry too," she whispered.

They stood together in silence.

He drew in a deep breath.

She unconsciously licked her lips and swallowed.

They drew closer together.

Their eyes slowly closed as their lips touched. It wasn't a hot, heavy kiss of passion. Instead, he gave her loving, gentle, sweet kisses that stole her breath away and left her weak and trembling in his arms. She gasped and let out a low moan when he nipped at her lower lip. His hands stroked up and down her back. Bulma was so moved that she felt like crying; Vegeta had always been passionate with her during times of intimacy between them, but she hadn't known that he could be so tender. Normally his kisses had been more demanding and insistent.

Vegeta gave her one last kiss, then moved to nuzzle her neck. "Bulma," he whispered, placing a kiss behind her earlobe. "I... I-"

The intercom on Bulma's phone beeped, interrupting him, and they both jumped. "I'd better answer that," she told him breathily. Regretfully, she pulled away from him and went over to the phone. "Yes?"

"Somebody's here to see you," Nuiko informed her.

"Okay..." There was another pause. Bulma wondered why her assistant was being so vague. "Nuiko, who's here?"

"Who do you hear?" Nuiko asked, as if she was prompting someone.

A little voice came over the speakerphone. "Mama!"

Bulma's face split into a wide smile. "Is that my baby boy I hear?" she cooed. "Mama's coming out now." She disconnected the call and rushed out of the office. "Hi Baby!" She scooped the little boy up from his carseat and cuddled him close.

"Vegeta, your assistant told me to bring him here. I'm so sorry about all of this," Etsuko apologized. She set VJ's diaper bag down. "That boy is going to get it big time for this, I assure you."

"It's not a problem, truly," Vegeta assured her. "You just go take care of your son. What did he do, anyway?"

Etsuko made a disgruntled face. "Trust me, you don't want to know," she insisted, "suffice to say that it involved the teachers' lounge and a bottle of rubber cement."

Vegeta laughed. Actually, he did want to know but wisely refrained from asking. "Too much like his old lady, huh?"

She blushed. "Oh, shut up."

"Hopefully this one will be like his mama too, and not his old man," Vegeta commented. "Hey, kiddo."

The baby beamed at his father and leaned toward him, his arms outstretched. "Da-ee!" he shrieked excitedly.

Vegeta held out his hands to his son, accepting the child from its disgruntled mother.

"Uh-oh! Looks like you've got competition, Bulma," Etsuko teased.

"Oh, he probably just smells the cookies I was eating," Vegeta commented in an effort to spare Bulma's dignity.

VJ had been playing with his father's tie and looked up at him with wide blue eyes. "Ooh, yum-yum!" he exclaimed.

Etsuko giggled. "Didn't you know that's one of the words you have to substitute around that boy?" she teased.

"Hmph. He'll be fine." Vegeta shifted the boy higher up in his arms. "I've minded my own son often enough to know how to handle him."

***

"Yum-yum, Da-ee!"

"Daddy's getting it," Vegeta responded for what seemed like the billionth time. He was trying to be patient with the boy, who had been badgering him ever since he'd heard the word 'cookies'. He poured some fresh coffee into his mug and stirred in a large amount of cream and sugar.

"Yum-yum! Yum-yum!" VJ had spotted the vending machine and the treats it contained.

"Daddy's getting it," Vegeta repeated. "Don't burst a blood vessel."

"Yum-yum yum-yum..." the boy babbled. Now that he'd really started talking, once he got going he chattered constantly.

"Yep." Vegeta reached into his pocket. Nothing. He shifted VJ to his free arm and tried his other pocket. Still nothing. "Well stinky boy, it looks like Daddy forgot to put any money in his pocket."

"Da-ee, yum-yum!" VJ began to sob.

Vegeta sighed. "Look, I'm sorry," he murmured, stroking the boy's hair. "I must have something yummy at my desk you can have. I'm sure as hell not asking your mother for any money," he grumbled under his breath.

"Did you need some change, Mr. Vegeta?" a feminine voice asked.

Vegeta turned to see Masami, Ume and Rika from Purchasing standing behind him. "No, thank you. That's all right. I'm sure I-"

VJ began to wail. "Yum-yum," he told his father mournfully. His large blue eyes pleaded with him.

Vegeta sighed again. "Son..." ~Don't do that to me, boy.~ "You get enough snacks."

"It's no problem, really." Ume dropped some coins into the machine. "What did you want, Cutie?" she asked the now happy baby.

"Yum-yum." VJ's chubby hand pressed against the glass of the machine.

"Thanks," Vegeta mumbled, embarrassed. "He would have thrown a fit if I'd have left to get some money." He removed his selection from the machine and sat down with his son, who was squirming with excitement. "You're spoiled," he accused the child.

The women giggled. "No problem at all," Ume assured him. She leaned down to address the boy seated on his father's lap. "You're just adorable," she cooed, tickled pink when the baby cooed back at her and wriggled happily.

They giggled some more and sat down at the table with their coffees.

VJ suddenly looked shy. "Hi," he said bashfully, earning another round of giggles from the group of infatuated young women.

***

"Hey!"

Vegeta turned. "Hey," he repeated softly.

"Where's VJ?" Bulma asked as she approached him in the hallway.

"Don't worry, he's fine," he assured her. "I needed to use the men's room, so a couple of ladies from Purchasing said they'd keep an eye on him for a couple of minutes."

"Oh." Bulma followed Vegeta, who promptly made a beeline to pour himself still another cup of coffee, into the employee lounge. One of the aforementioned women was holding her son, who was happily gumming on a sugar-laden cookie. "Hi, baby!"

"Yum-yum Mama!" The baby beamed at her and held up his cookie.

"I see!" Bulma responded. "Is that tasty?"

"Uh-huh."

Bulma pretended to be impressed. "Wow, it even has frosting. How nice! Who gave you the cookie?" Bulma prompted.

"Da-ee!" VJ squealed excitedly.

The women continued to giggle with delight. "Ms. Briefs, your little boy is the biggest sweetheart," Rika told her solemnly. "He's also the most attractive baby I've seen in a long time."

"Thank you," Bulma responded with a smile. "He's my pride and joy, aren't you baby boy?" She blew him a kiss.

VJ cooed happily at his mother. "Love love Mama."

"Oh! Mama loves you too, baby boy." Now it was Bulma's turn to pause. "So much for hoping he acts like his mother," she said dryly. "Have fun." She left the lounge.

There was a surprised gasp followed by more giggles from the group of women. Vegeta turned to see what his son was doing and nearly spit his coffee across the room. "You are too young for that," he informed his mischievous young son, who was taking far too many liberties with Rika's low cut blouse. He retrieved the boy, unable to keep from blushing. "I'm sorry about that."

"It's okay. He didn't mean any harm," she told him. A broad smile spread over her face. "He's just adorable."

"Thank you," Vegeta responded, relieved that the woman hadn't been offended.

Another employee entered the lounge. "Oh! Mr. Vegeta, is this your son?" She came over to coo at the baby.

"Yes, this is my son Vegeta," he acknowledged proudly.

"Can't you tell, Kotone? He looks just like his daddy," Masami pointed out.

"Yes, you do," Kotone told the boy. Her eyes moved over from the baby to its father. "Lucky you."

Vegeta couldn't hold back a blush, and Ume decided to take pity on him. "How old is he, Mr. Vegeta?"

Vegeta found himself grateful for the change of subject. "He's nine months old."

"Awww... Do you have any other children?" Kotone asked.

"No, just Vegeta." He couldn't hold back a smile when the baby rested his head on his shoulder and began to suck his thumb contentedly.

"He's such a sweet baby." Kotone had inquired and heard through the grapevine that Vegeta was currently single, which she had been delighted to hear. "Are you planning on giving him any brothers or sisters?" she asked, not quite getting the point that they had changed of the topic of conversation.

"Absolutely," he told them. He turned his son to face them, simply beaming with pride. "I mean, look at this little man. Who wouldn't want a dozen just like him?" Vegeta answered, surprising the three women from the lab. Knowing the history of the child's parents, they had expected that he would have recoiled at the question.

"Really? I think that's sweet," Kotone commented. "Although I don't know how well your wife would go for that."

"I..." Vegeta had no idea what to say, especially when VJ sat up straighter in his arms.

"Mama!" the boy exclaimed, reaching out with one hand and opening and closing it rapidly in a child's gesture of greeting.

Bulma had come back to the lounge, some coins in her hand. "Hi, baby." She stroked her son's hair. "I thought the cookies you were feeding him looked good, so I was going to get some for myself."

~Damn it! How much did she hear? That's what I get for fraternizing with motor-mouth employees.~ "I... I think this is the last bag," Vegeta managed. ~Although, if she did hear the conversation, maybe she will know that my feelings toward having children with her have changed.~

"Oh." Bulma peered inside the machine, maintaining her composure. "You're right."

"I think he's done if you want the rest," Vegeta offered. "He only ate one of them."

"No, that's okay," Bulma declined politely. "Oh, by the way, Mom and Daddy's flight got delayed, so they won't be leaving until late. Mom's making dinner tonight so we won't have to order out. Thought you might like to know."

Vegeta nodded. "Thanks."

"Well, I think our break is over, girls," Masami spoke up, breaking the awkward feeling in the room. "Bye-bye, Sweetie." She waved to the baby as she and her two coworkers left.

"I should go, too," Vegeta murmured. He grabbed his coffee and left the lounge with the baby.

Kotone had been silent until now. "You're his baby's mother, Ms. Briefs?"

Bulma sized the girl up. "You're new here, aren't you, Ms...?"

"Ishikawa," the suddenly nervous young woman stammered.

"Ah, yes. You're the new employee in Marketing. Well, Ms. Ishikawa, how do you like it here so far?" Bulma asked pleasantly.

"I like it very much. Everyone is very nice and everything good I've heard about working here is true," Kotone told her.

"Good, good. I'm glad to hear it." Bulma shrugged and picked up a cookie. "Waste not, want not I suppose. Help yourself to a cookie." She turned when she got to the doorway. "Oh, and Ms. Ishikawa?"

"Yes, Ms. Briefs?" she asked in a small voice.

The girl blushed. "Thank you, Ms. Briefs," she said meekly.

Bulma nodded and left the lounge.

Kotone let out her breath and sank down into a chair. She rested her forehead in the palm of one hand tiredly. "Why not?" she muttered, taking a cookie.

***

Vegeta trudged into the house and wriggled out of his coat. Mrs. Briefs had insisted upon picking up VJ when she had found out that Vegeta was watching him so he hadn't minded his son for very long, but he was still tired from the day.

He hung up his coat and kicked off his shoes, then slipped on a pair of houseshoes before making his way to the kitchen. The family was sitting around the table eating dessert when he entered.

"Oh, Vegeta! You look so tired, Dear," Mrs. Briefs exclaimed, abandoning her food and getting a large container full of leftovers from the refrigerator.

Vegeta nodded and sank down into his seat. He knew all about being tired from training, but this was a completely different type of fatigue. "I had a few phone calls from crabby, bitchy people today," he grumbled. Then I had to deal with an employee caught stealing, and some mistakes made while building the addition..." He sighed. "I'm sure you don't want to hear the rest of the sob story."

"That's rough, Pops," Anya said sympathetically.

"You poor dear," Mrs. Briefs told him, placing the container into the microwave. "I tried to hold up dinner for you, but the turkey was starting to get a little dry."

Vegeta perked up immediately. "I thought I smelled turkey dinner," he told her.

"Oh my, yes," Mrs. Briefs agreed. "Shatsu said you seemed to be having a rough day, so I made your favorite meal."

Not wanting to embarrass Bulma, he kept his gaze trained on Mrs. Briefs. "You're the best, Bunny." He grinned at her as she giggled and proclaimed him to be such a dear young man. He'd found her giggling to be annoying at first, but after getting to know her better, he found it to be pleasant to be able to make her laugh despite the pain she felt over her daughter's boyfriend. "So, Bulma. Want the sucky part of your job back?" he joked half seriously, looking at Bulma out of the corner of his eye.

Everyone laughed. "Noooo... That's quite all right," Bulma assured him, making everyone laugh some more.

He let his eyes twinkle at her as Mrs. Briefs brought him his dinner. "Thank you, Bunny."

Bulma couldn't help but feel warm all over because of the way he was looking at her. She'd always wished he would have before, and now she didn't quite know how to think. Added to that, she was grateful that he'd let what happened between them earlier that day drop, when he could have made a big deal over it.

Most of all, she'd overheard his declaration of wanting a dozen children, which, while she was sure he couldn't be serious about the number, she could only assume he meant was with her. Despite him continually either stating or hinting that he wanted her, it had taken her by surprise and, she was forced to admit, had aroused her. She hadn't realized that he'd felt that way.

Again, she wasn't sure what to think.

Hiroshi didn't want children.

"Bulma!"

Bulma shook out of her trance. "Huh?"

"I was just asking if you were done with your pie, Dear," Mrs. Briefs told her.

"Uhm, yeah... Just spaced out a little, that's all." Bulma pushed the plate containing her half-eaten slice of pie toward her mother.

Vegeta made a noise of objection before swallowing. "I'll finish it," he told Mrs. Briefs before she could remove the plate.

Mrs. Briefs smiled. "Just like old times," she intoned softly.

Bulma got up from her seat. Her mother was referring to the time Vegeta had finished not only her pie but the rest of what was left of both pies her mother had made along with an entire box of ice cream. Vegeta had frequently finished Bulma's food when she couldn't, not leaving anything to waste. She sighed and got up from her chair. "Guess I'll turn in. Good night, everyone."

"It's early but I'm tired," Anya agreed. "We'll head up, too." She scooped up her dozing son from his high chair and took Geta's hand. "Good night."

"Good night, kids," Dr. Briefs called after them. He eyed Vegeta speculatively but decided to keep quiet, knowing how private the boy was.

Vegeta finished his meal and brought the container over to the sink. "Delicious as always. Need any help, Bunny?" he asked, indicating the large roaster pan and several heavy looking pots.

"Oh, no Dear," she responded, "but it was sweet of you to ask. You look so tired. Maybe you should get some sleep, too."

Vegeta nodded. "Good night, Bunny, Shatsu."

"Good night, Dear." Mrs. Briefs waited until the kitchen door shut. "What happened, Shatsu?"

Dr. Briefs sighed, not at all surprised by how perceptive his wife was. "Just a little misunderstanding between Bulma and him that turned ugly. I wouldn't press him on it."

Mrs. Briefs frowned. "That bad, huh? The poor dear."

***

Vegeta opened his closet and took a thin box from the shelf. It was wrapped in silver paper with a shimmery silver bow on top. He went out into the darkened hallway and over to the very familiar door he had once called his own. Drawing in a deep breath, he knocked lightly on the door.

Momentarily, footsteps approached and the door opened. "Vegeta?"

"Hey."

"Hey." Bulma tilted her head. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." Vegeta paused. "Would it be all right if I, uhm..." He shifted a little uneasily on his feet. "I feel a little weird standing in the hallway." He didn't know if he should be hinting like this, but which was worse- inviting her to his room, doing what he was about to do in the middle of the hallway for all to observe, or inviting himself in?

"Oh! I'm sorry. Come in." Bulma stepped aside so he could walk past and shut the door behind him, feeling a little nervous as he did so. "What's up?"

Vegeta hadn't been in this room since he'd broken down her door and saw her in the shower. "I, ah, wanted to give you this." He handed her the box.

Bulma looked up from the neatly decorated box to him. "This is for me?"

Vegeta nodded. "Open it." He indicated the box with a tilt of his head. He kept his gaze away from her, as she was wearing pajama bottoms and a clingy white t-shirt.

Bulma examined the box. "My birthday isn't for a few more days."

"I know. But I went to the mall myself to find this, and I... I wanted you to have it now."

Vegeta scowled a little. "Yeah, yeah. Just open the damn box if you're going to."

She giggled a little and carefully peeled the tape from the paper. "Okay, what do we have here?" She lifted the lid.

"I made the saleswoman try it on," Vegeta told her as she removed his purchase out of the box. "She assured me that it's warm and quite cozy." He snorted. "Cozy."

Bulma looked up from the sapphire blue hooded sweatshirt to him. "I love it. Thank you." She came over to him and gave him a hug.

He returned the hug awkwardly. Gods, he couldn't do this. This was a bad idea. She felt so good against him. "You're welcome," he murmured. "I'm glad you like it."

Bulma crossed her arms, making the situation even worse. "You're acting so weird. What's the matter with you?"

"I told you, nothing. Other than the fact that it's obviously a little chilly in here."

Bulma blushed when she realized what he meant. "Too many memories," she murmured. She slipped the shirt over her head and pulled up the hood. It fit perfectly. "Well? How does it look?"

He looked up at her and drew in his breath. "Yes, too many memories." He smiled sadly at her. "I'm reminded of the time it was snowing and you came out to the GR to get me," he said quietly. "You had that big hood on, and a lock of your hair was poking out from beneath it, just as it is now." He reached out to tuck the errant strands behind her ear, unconsciously swallowing as he did so. He wanted so badly to guide her back over to the bed-

He shook his head to clear it. No, he couldn't deal with this tonight. "Good night, Bulma."

"Good night, Vegeta." She watched him go and sat down on the bed, hugging her arms around herself. "Good night."