Dangerous Bond

Chapter 41 : Don't break me

It had been five days since Vegeta refused the antidote and Bulma was becoming increasingly anxious. None of the scientists had found anything, not even one lead, one 'could-be-but-isn't'. She'd overheard two of them talking on their coffee break. Both of them had agreed on what Bulma didn't want to hear: It's hopeless, they're going to die and we're just wasting our time looking for an antidote. Every night since she had cried herself to sleep, sometimes in Vegeta's arms as he had taken to staying with her through the night. The thought of having to sleep alone was looming on the horizon and she found herself unable to take it.

"That's it!" She suddenly shouted in the middle of lunch, ramming her fork onto the table.

"That's what?" Bunny inquired with a curious look on her face.

"I can't sit around anymore! I'm going to help those scientists and I'm going to find a cure!"

"Well that's nice dear but do you think you could keep it down? You're going to wake our guests."

'He's not a guest.' Bulma thought to herself, glancing over her shoulder at Vegeta's darkened window as she left the house, 'He's as good as family now. We're as good as fucking married! He can't go and die on me!'

The door to the lab slammed open, sending the light fittings shaking on their chains. The scientists glanced up at her momentarily, then got back to their work. Bulma couldn't help but see that one of them didn't even have any work and just seemed to be sitting there silently, trying not to be noticed.

"What are you doing?" She hissed furiously, her voice barely over a whisper.

The scientist she had seen talking about the hopelessness of it all looked up at her over half moon glasses.

"Resting." He replied calmly.

"Giving up more like!" She screeched, !If you're just going to sit here and do nothing you might as well leave!!"

"I will then." Responded the scientist and left the lab, followed by three others.

Fury reaching its peak Bulma grabbed all the samples the now-absent scientists had been working on and plopped herself down in a chair, taking a testing chart from the desk and following the instructions carefully. She didn't care that she was slower than all the biologists and doctors and who knows what else. All that mattered was that she got her lazy butt in gear and did her best to save her beloved mate and his sister.

Up in his room Vegeta watched the four scientists leave the lab, clenching and loosening his fists in silent pain. So they were leaving. That could only be a bad sign, right? He moved away from the window and leant against the wall, doing his best to ignore the sharp pangs of pain that shot through his head and chest. They were with him all the time now, a constant reminder of the time limit, now only two days away. He glanced at the clock; two o' clock. The real pain would be coming soon.

"Damn it." He hissed to the empty room, "If I was a Super Saiya-jin this wouldn't have happened!"

And then the pain hit. It slammed him like a tide, receeding momentarily to gather its strength before pummeling on his resolve with full force. He could feel himself beginning to loose control as he sank to the ground, doubled over in pain.

"Shi...matta..." The Saiya-jin no Ouji found himself saying as the attacks increased their speed and force.

Sweat broke out on his forehead as he gritted his teeth against a scream and tried to fend off his pain with his ki. All that did was drain him of his strength almost completely.

'Am I going to die?' He wondered faintly, 'Right here and right now, two days before they said I would?'

Gohan sat up from where he lay in the snow, having been knocked there minutes before.

"Hey, dad? Piccolo?" He called up to them, "Do you sense that?"

"Sense what?" Goku asked, landing in the knee deep white beside his son.

"Vegeta's ki. It's... really low."

Goku put his head back for a second before responding, "Yeah, I feel it."

"Vegeta's always beating himself up," Piccolo reminded father and son, "He'll beat you up if you go and bother him."

"Piccolo's right, Gohan." Goku agreed, "Vegeta's fine."

Gohan didn't look so sure. "Could you please go and check on him dad?" He begged. It wasn't that he liked Vegeta, but he was sort of hoping that the Saiya-jin prince might get nicer over the years and tell him about their race, something Gohan was really interested in.

Goku shrugged, "Yeah, alright. I won't be a minute guys!"

Vegeta was just about to black out when Goku apeared in the room, startling the prince enough to keep him awake.

"Woah! Vegeta, are you alright?" The younger Saiya-jin asked, worry etched on his face.

"I'm fine... Kakarot. Now get lost... before I make you." He threatened, hating having the third class baka seeing him in this state.

"Nuh-uh, Vegeta, I'm gonna go get Bulma."

"Kakarot no!" He was that much too late, Goku was already outside, opening the door to the lab.

"Damn it." Vergeta cursed, and blacked out.

Bulma was busy running further tests on the poisen when Goku entered the lab, looking around in surprise at the numerous scientists seated at the tables. She didn't notice him until he was standing right behind her and had tapped her on the shoulder.

"What? Can't you see I'm busy?" She muttered without looking to see who it was.

"Bulma..." Goku's familiar voice whined.

"Son-kun?" She turned to face him and was surprised to see the lack of his normal happy-go-lucky smile on his face. "What's up?"

"Um, it's Vegeta..." He began, "He's not looking too good at all..."

Bulma's eyes widened. "What? What's wrong with him? He's not dead yet is he?!"

She didn't even wait for a response, running into the house and up the stairs toward the other end of her bond. Goku followed her, not missing the fact that she knew exactly where the prince was without being told. Slamming open the door she slid into the room and crouched beside her mate, lifting his head from the ground and placing it in her lap.

'~Vegeta wake up already!~' She called to him, '~You're not dying yet!~'

Completely forgetting that Goku was there she ran her hand through Vegeta's hair and kissed him lightly on the forehead. She ran through her mind a list of things to do but found nothing. But she couldn't just leave him like this!

"I'll get him a sensu bean." Goku decided and disapeared.

'Sensu bean?' Bulma wondered to herself, 'Could one of those heal him completely?' She looked down at the man in her lap, 'I hope so..'

Vegeta woke just after being fed the bean by Bulma. He sat up, surprised that the pain was almost completely gone, and looked from Kakarot to Bulma. They were watching him as if he were some kind of freak show.

"So... Is it gone?" Bulma inquired, her sapphire eyes full of hope.

He blinked, wha...? Wait, that, of course. "No."

Her shoulders drooped and he saw that damned hurt look take over her face, eye brimming with tears.

Goku scratched his head, "Should I be going?" He wondered.

"Yes." Vegeta replied coldly, "Any time now would be nice."

"Okay then." And he left, leaving the couple alone.

"I guess I shouldn't keep raising my hopes so high." Bulma commented, wiping her eyes on the back of her hand, "Everything's been a failure so far... All that happens is that I end up crying."

The Saiya-jin no Ouji reached out and drew her close, "There will be a cure." He said forcefully, "We just have to wait for it."

Just then there was a knock at the door and a young woman scientist with short red hair stepped in. She looked from one to the other, the look on her face not a happy one. Reaching up she adjusted her glasses on her nose and straightened the collar of her coat.

"I've got bad news." She said in that professional voice they always use before saying something nasty, "We've run out of posible antidotes."

Hosted by www.Geocities.ws