A Light in the Darkness - part 6: A Saiyan's Idea of Romance
by Mia Skywalker & Wataruo

PAIRING: Bulma/Vegeta (this part)
RATING: G. Well, they kiss a couple of times, that's it.
WARNINGS: None
DISCLAIMER: Neither of us owns any of the DBZ characters, but we both wish we owned Vegeta. (We do own Vegeta action figures. Does that count?) These characters are owned by Toei, Viz, Akira Toriyama, and FUNimation, even though the last one is a crying shame. We do own what we've written here, and our specific storyline, just not Dragonball itself. We make no money off of any of these guys, nor off this fic.
SUMMARY: A Saiyan's idea of romance.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: A great thank you to Magnes for her beta'ing of this. Thanks to Selenity Jade and W-chan for the rebeta!

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Last time on Dragonball Z: A Light in the Darkness....

She looked back at her mother, and realized that what was happening between herself and Vegeta was something that her mother had expected in some manner. Not only had she expected it, but she didn't seem to have any real objections to it. That surprised Bulma. She thought that her mother would have all sorts of objections to any sort of relationship between herself and Vegeta, yet she didn't seem to mind.

Bulma stared at Vegeta, and then smiled shyly at him as she finished her omelet.

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Vegeta had finished his omelet long before Bulma did. He just sat there watching her eat, wondering what she was thinking. As always, Bulma was too complex to ever figure out. ::Which explains my attraction.:: The blue-haired female with her never-ending mouth fascinated him. And had for quite some time. It had taken the morning's events to get the warrior to realize it.

What made no sense to him was the fact that Bulma's mother didn't seem to mind their newfound relationship. Mrs. Briefs had made a few comments in the past year which now made him wonder if she had wanted this to happen. She had on several occasions pointed out to him what a 'cute' couple they would make, how handsome their children would be, various nonsense along those lines. He had just considered it her mother's odd ramblings and had dismissed it as her being a human. But now he wondered if there had been more to it than that. He was surprised to see Bulma smiling at him shyly and he found himself grinning back at her like an idiot. ::Sooner or later I am going to become worse than Kakarotto:: the warrior mused as he stared into Bulma's face.

Mrs. Briefs beamed at the two of them, apparently unperturbed by their continued silence. She removed the dishes from the table. "Now, children. Why don't you two go and play?"

Bulma ignored her comment, and protested when she saw her mother start wash the dishes. "Mother, you don't need to do that. We have robots that will do the chores!"

Mrs. Briefs shooed her away. "I like doing the dishes! Oh, I don't always do them, Bulma-chan. Just sometimes. But I do like feeling useful occasionally. Now... you two get going!" She practically pushed the couple out the door, back towards the living room.

Bulma stared at Vegeta, not entirely sure what she should say or do. Were they supposed to act like lovers now? How did lovers even act? She'd never had a lover before, so wasn't sure if they were supposed to be casual about it and just see each other later, or if they were supposed to act cuddly and lovey-dovey around each other. She couldn't imagine Vegeta acting cuddly and lovey-dovey; just trying to picture him that way made her giggle. She wasn't aware of the way her mirth was making her eyes sparkle as she looked at him, but Vegeta was very well aware of it, even as he wondered why she was laughing.

Vegeta raised an eyebrow as Bulma continued to laugh and he found himself wondering if she had any idea how beautiful she was when her eyes lit up. He found himself smiling back at her feeling a little foolish. Vegeta had no idea why he was smiling like an idiot, but he knew that being around Bulma certainly seemed to addle his wits. 

He placed his hands on his hips and tried to glare at her. "Just what the hell are you laughing at, woman?" He tried to sound angry but was failing miserably. "It had better not be me otherwise you will have to face the consequences." 

She continued to giggle although she managed to stifle her laughter a little. "It's nothing." She smiled tiredly at him. "I guess I'm still tired. I've only had a few hours of sleep...." Her smile faded as she remembered why she'd had so little sleep, and he saw a quick flash of pain cross her face. "I should go to bed." She turned to head back upstairs, starting to feel slightly depressed again.

"Bulma," he said softly making her pause in mid step. Vegeta hadn't called her anything other than 'woman' in the past year. He somehow sensed that she was depressed from the latest argument with Yamcha and he was feeling.... Vegeta frowned; he didn't know what he was feeling actually. Sadness? Sympathy? He couldn't put a name to it but he didn't want to leave her alone. "I...." He paused to gather his wits and continued more firmly. "Care for some company? I didn't sleep well either."

Bulma turned bright red when she realized why Vegeta hadn't gotten much rest. Then his words sank in, and she stared at him, her eyes wide. He wanted to... sleep with her? Did he just mean sleep? Or did he want to have more of what they'd done earlier? She flushed at the thought, and heat rose. Yet at the same time, she really did want to sleep. 

"If you... if you really want to. And if you really just want to sleep. I wouldn't...." She blushed slightly in embarrassment. "I wouldn't mind the company," she said with a shy smile.

"Well then." Vegeta strode over and scooped Bulma off of her feet. "Let's take a nap shall we?" Vegeta grinned as Bulma snuggled in against him. "Now the big question is, your room or mine?"

"My bed is bigger. So is my room," she said automatically. At his arched brow she said almost petulantly, "Well, it is. Of course I have the largest bedroom. You think I would have given the best room to someone I didn't even want here in the first place?" She flushed at her words, realizing how they sounded. "Well, I didn't want you around before. But it's different now...." She flushed even deeper, realizing how he might misunderstand her. Or maybe not misunderstand....

"Yes, things are different now," Vegeta agreed. He brought his mouth to hers and kissed her until they were both gasping for air. "Very different." He opened the door to Bulma's bedroom with his hip then kicked it closed when he entered the room. "I suppose this should be our room from now on." Vegeta bent to place her on the bed and started to peel off his bodysuit.

"Our...?" He wanted to stay with her? She stared at him in amazement. This wasn't just... for one day? Or did he just mean for right now? No, he'd said 'from now on.' Did he mean... forever? Maybe he just meant for a while? She stared at him in confusion. "Vegeta? What do you mean by that?" she asked him, feeling completely bewildered and more than a little overwhelmed.

"It's very simple woman," he told her as he stripped. "You aren't going back to Yamcha now." He grinned at her as he watched her eyes widen. "I don't think it would be good for his health."

"His health? But...?" Bulma looked at him in total confusion before understanding dawned, and she blushed. ::At least until he gets tired of me, I guess. Yamcha wouldn't want me now, anyway. He'd think I'm 'used goods'. And besides, he has all those younger, prettier girls....:: It occurred to her that she should be angry with Vegeta. After all, he shouldn't be able to dictate what she could and couldn't do. But she found herself unable to do so, and wasn't entirely sure how to respond. 

She was saved by the fact that she yawned in exhaustion, and she smiled wearily at him. "Can we go to sleep now, Vegeta?" she asked him, collapsing into the bed, too tired to even get undressed.

"Don't you think you should remove some of those clothes first?" he asked. "Or are you so tired you need me to help?" He smirked at her as he sat down next to her on the edge of the bed. "I really wouldn't mind."

Bulma looked down at herself in realization, and then picked up her nightgown from the bed. She glanced up at him and blushed. He was completely nude, and seemed to be comfortable with the idea, but she was not. "Vegeta? I... can you turn around, while I get dressed?" she asked nervously.

"Now why would I want to do that?" he asked as he raised an eyebrow at her. "There is nothing wrong with your body, woman. You should be proud of it." Vegeta grinned at her wickedly. "Not a single flaw."

"Because...." Bulma blushed, and realized that he wasn't going to change his mind, so she grabbed the nightgown and ran for the bathroom. "I'll be right out!" she called out to him as she locked the door behind her. ::I hope he doesn't think he can barge in on me in the bathroom!:: she thought in sudden panic. She thought it would be mortifying if he did so.

Vegeta chuckled as she bolted to the bathroom. After she got used to him, he realized that he was going to miss her shyness. ::Among other things.:: He knew that before long they would be squabbling again, not that he minded their fights. He had started most of their arguments on purpose. He had wanted to get her attention away from Yamcha, and it had worked to an extent. But now Vegeta had other things to occupy his time. He supposed that he should be getting up and going out to the gravity room to train, but he was feeling too lethargic to move. And he had this sudden need to explore this relationship more.

He placed his arms under his head and sighed. He wondered if Bulma would act different to him, now that they were lovers. ::Probably not, she'll probably still scream at me.:: He chuckled softly to himself at the thought. He did like their fights. He loved the way her eyes sparkled when she got mad. He found himself wondering what Bulma would think of that, when he heard the bathroom door open. 

"Took you long enough," he grumbled.

Bulma stared at him a moment, and then glowered fiercely. "Baka!" she muttered. "What the hell do you think I was doing in there? Maybe I should just throw you out of here! You don't have to stay here, you know!"

Vegeta grinned at her. "But your room is so much bigger." He rolled over onto his side, propped himself up on his elbow and looked her over. "Besides the scenery is so much better from here." She had no idea that where she was standing was letting the light go right through the sheer nightgown she had donned, and it concealed nothing from him. And Vegeta wasn't about to tell her that.

Bulma crossed her arms over her chest in irritation. "My room may be bigger than yours, but it's not twice the size. With two people that makes my room smaller. If you just want more room, then go to your own room! Or maybe I should leave instead!" She grabbed her robe, which was hanging on a hook near the door, and moved to open it.

Vegeta got up, oblivious the to fact that he was nude, and scooped Bulma up. He held her tightly against his chest and stared down at her for several minutes before replying. "Don't be a baka," he scolded as he carried her back to the bed. "I want to be here because you are." He deposited her on the bed, slid in with her and pulled the covers over them both. "Now go to sleep," he commanded before he pulled her firmly against him.

Bulma stared at him for several minutes, a look of shock on her face. Vegeta could be the most irritating person in the world, and then he'd say something so nice... even while he was ordering her around. She wasn't entirely sure what to make of the Saiyan Prince. Should she hate him? Like him? Want him around? Throw him out? She sighed, and snuggled in closer to him, enjoying his warmth. His arms tightened around her, giving her a feeling of security that she'd been missing for some time. She slipped her own arms around him and closed her eyes with a sigh, then reached up and kissed him on the chin. "Good night, Vegeta," she murmured as she let her weariness take over and drifted off to sleep.

Vegeta grunted by the way of a reply then closed his eyes. It took him a little longer than normal to fall asleep. His mind was still alert and he was also distracted by the way Bulma was snuggled in against him. The warrior was too aware of the way she was breathing, her heart beating, her own unique scent. He took a deep breath and sighed, forcing himself to relax. He pulled Bulma as near as he could get then before he knew it he was sound asleep.

To be continued.....

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And in the next exciting episode of DragonBall Z: A Light in the Darkness... Return of a Prodigal