Chapter 3


Bulma stepped out of the gravity room for some fresh air and a cold drink. She wiped most of the sweat off her face with her arm, and took a long swig from a bottle of water. She'd been at it for five hours straight, and she was definitely ready for a break. She sighed. Yamucha had been pretty sulky last night. Vegita hadn't left his quarters since he went in, and Yamucha had spent most of the morning in his own room with Puar. Bulma wished he'd stop sulking and get out here. No one was going to be kicking Vegita out of here anytime soon, so he might as well get used to it.

Suddenly the door to Vegita's little capsule house swung open, and the gruff Saiyan stepped out into the crisp morning air. He looked well rested, at least, Bulma mused to herself. He must not have overdone it too much on his last training excursion.

He saw Bulma standing outside the gravity room and he stopped to look at her. As usual, his quiet staring made her rather uncomfortable, but Bulma sent him a half-hearted wave nonetheless. There was no reason to be rude, after all. He nodded back at her before flying off. Off to train some more, she supposed. Yawning and stretching her tired limbs, Bulma set out for Yamucha's house. She wasn't about to let him spend the whole day sulking, that was for sure!

"Yamucha!" She called loudly, banging on his door. "Get out of there, you lazy bum! Just because I'm letting you stay here for free doesn't mean you can spend all the day locked up in there!"

"I'm coming!" Came a muffled cry from inside. Bulma could hear loud footsteps, and she giggled as she heard the large crash and the angry curse that followed. He must have trashed the place already!

He flung open the door and nearly fell outside. Bulma grinned at him. The big goof.

"Are you gonna hide in there all day, or are you going to come spar with me?" Bulma demanded, trying to keep a straight face as she noticed what he was wearing: a pair of blue teddy bear boxers and one sock. That was all. On top of that, his hair was sticking up all over the place. He must have just come from bed.

Yamucha yawned. "Okay," he said groggily. "Let me go get dressed. I'll meet you at the gravity room in ten minutes, okay?"

"Okay," Bulma giggled as she began to lose her composure. "Love your boxers, Yamucha!" She called back as she turned around to leave, doing her best to stifle the giggles that were bursting to come out.

Yamucha looked down at himself and turned crimson. He then slammed the door shut and went running through the house again. Once again, Bulma heard a familiar crash followed by more loud, angry curses. "Poor Yamucha," Bulma thought with a happy grin. It sure was good to have him back. She'd really missed the goofy guy.

Bulma walked back to the gravity room. When she got there she found that her dad was inside, checking the equipment.

"You're being awfully rough on this stuff," he commented, getting up and clamping the control panel down again. "How far have you gotten?"

"Twenty g's is my max," she replied, sitting on one of the small benches along the wall. "But I usually go at seventeen. Twenty's still a little too strong for long periods of time."

Dr. Briefs nodded. "Well, when you get done today, I'm going to have to come in and make some adjustments. You've thrown the calibration off a few degrees."

"Okay," she said, waving at him as he left. She sighed and closed her eyes. She hoped Yamucha would go easy on her. She didn't know how far she'd gotten, but she was sure he was a lot farther.

It was more like twenty minutes before Yamucha finally arrived, but he did look a lot neater, and he'd even taken a shower. Bulma was brimming with energy. She couldn't wait to get started.

"What would you like me to set the machine for?" She asked as he shut the door behind him. "I can go at twenty, but I'm more comfortable at seventeen."

"Well, let's try twenty," Yamucha said with a devious grin. "I promise I won't go too hard on you."

"Okay," Bulma laughed, turning on the machine. "I don't think I'll offer you much of a challenge," she said, turning around and striking a defensive stance. She then did a double take. Yamucha was kind of hunched over, and his face was strangely contorted. It looked a lot like he was having trouble standing up!

"Maybe we should start at ten and work our way up," he laughed, sticking his tongue out. Bulma facevaulted.

"I don't understand!" She cried, getting back to her feet. "Can you move at all?"

"Yes," he said, jumping up in the air and hovering a bit. He fired off some fast kicks before flopping down to the ground onto his hands and knees. "Damn!" He said. "This is rough!"

Bulma gave a relieved laugh. "Well, it looks like you're not too much better than me after all, I guess," she said. "I would have imagined that training at Kaiou-sama's would make you a lot stronger than this."

"Yeah, well, I did train hard," Yamucha said, shrugging. "But the gravity there was only ten times as strong as Earth's. I got pretty used to it after a while, but this is twice as much, and it's not as easy. I guess I'll just have to work harder."

"Ah well," Bulma said, waving it away. "It's not so bad. You're really at about the same level I am. I can't do much more than what you did in gravity this strong yet. But I'm working on it. I guess I should turn it down a little, huh?"

"Yeah," Yamucha said with an apologetic grin. "How 'bout fifteen instead?"

"That's fine with me," she said, smiling brightly. She punched the number on the control panel, and everything immediately became five g's lighter. "Better?" She asked him.

"Much," he replied with a vigorous nod. "I'm ready!"

"All right!" She exclaimed, striking her defensive stance again. "So am I!"

Bulma started them off with a perfect lunge and a hard right kick, and Yamucha countered well with a tiger block and a strong jab to the ribs. The following hour continued in much the same way - with simple moves rather than difficult ones. Anything else would have worn them out too quickly. Still, Bulma had already had a grueling workout that morning, and Yamucha wasn't used to such intense gravity. So it was no surprise that they were both ready to take a break only an hour later.

"Hey Bulma," Yamucha said, interrupting the tranquility as they relaxed atop the dome of the gravity building afterward. "You wanna go for a walk? I need to talk to you about something, if that's okay."

Bulma sat up and looked at him. "Really?" She said, the curiosity as plain as day in her voice. "Well, okay then. We could go to the park in the city."

"All right," Yamucha said, nodding and getting up. "That's sounds great."

They flew off for the city, and in a matter of minutes, they were walking through the park. Bulma glanced at Yamucha's face. He had a strangely contemplative look about him, as if he were deep in thought. It was odd to see such a look on Yamucha. It puzzled her. He sure was acting strangely all of the sudden. Since when did he need to take a walk to talk to her anyway? But she figured she'd humor him just this once. Yamucha could be a bit strange sometimes. She supposed he was in one of his rare philosophical moods or something.

They walked over to a large elm tree, and they sat down in the cool shade to relax. "So, what is it you wanted to talk to me about?" Bulma asked. "Is something bothering you, Yamucha?"

Yamucha sighed, and he stared earnestly at her. "Bulma," he began, looking at her in much the same way that he did when he had first been brought back. "There's something I've been wanting to tell you for months. And now that I finally have the opportunity to say it, I'm not even sure that I'll be able to find the right words. But I'm damn well going to try!" His voice had become disturbingly harsh, as if his emotions were prohibiting his capability for speech. But he took a deep breath and took a few seconds to calm down a little before he continued. "Bulma," he said, taking her hands in his and locking her eyes into his gaze. "I haven't been able to stop thinking about you since I got to Kaiou-sama's planet. You're all I CAN think about nowadays. I've come to the realization that I just can't live without you, Bulma! Dammit, I couldn't even handle being dead without you!"

It was as if a nuclear bomb had just been dropped on Bulma's emotions. She gaped at Yamucha in dumbfounded silence, her face beginning to lose all its color. She couldn't believe this was happening!

Yamucha gently turned her around so that she was facing him, and he looked her squarely in the eyes. "I love you, Bulma," he said, his voice quiet but steady. "More now than I ever thought I did. And I can't bear the thought of having to live without you any more."

He then pulled her toward him to kiss her, but she closed her eyes and turned her head away. "Please don't," she begged as tears began to well up in her eyes. "Yamucha, please."

Yamucha stared at her in shock, mortified at her reaction. What had he done wrong? "I don't understand," he said, his voice neither quiet nor steady now. "What's wrong? Don't you feel the same way?"

Bulma shut her eyes more tightly and grit her teeth. "I… yes… no… Oh God, I don't know how I feel!" She wailed, tearing away from him and jumping up into the air. "Would you just… just please leave me alone!" She yelled at him, her face twisted with anguish. "I- I just can't deal with this!" And with that, she rocketed into the sky and flew as fast as she could for home. She just had to get away from him!

Bulma flew high in the sky, sobbing loudly and covering her face with her hands. How could Yamucha do this to her? She wasn't even remotely ready to think about dating any man right now, not even him! What she needed was a good friend, not a boyfriend. She still had that uneasy feeling whenever a man looked at her cross-eyed, and even if he was Yamucha, she didn't feel any less uncomfortable. Sure, it was upsetting to feel this way, but that didn't mean she could just ignore it. Bulma managed to stifle most of her sobs, and she tried to dry her eyes. What was she getting mad at him for, anyway? It wasn't really his fault. He couldn't help feeling the way he did. He'd poured his heart out to her, and she screamed in his face for it. If anyone deserved to be angry, he did.

Bulma sighed irritably as she landed outside the kitchen door to her house. She was so damn confused. She needed to talk to someone. But she could only think of one person she would be willing to bring this kind of problem to.

"Mom?" Bulma called as she came into the kitchen. "Are you here?"

"In here, Bulma honey!" Mrs. Briefs called back. She was in the living room. Bulma walked in and found her mother sitting in her favorite chair with a book.

"Why, Bulma!" She cried when she saw her red, puffy face. "You've been crying! What's the matter dear?"

Bulma sighed, plopped down on the couch, and buried her face in her hands. "Everything's a mess, Mom," she said in a tired voice. "But I don't want to worry with it now. I have to ask you a question first."

Mrs. Briefs nodded and came over so she could sit by Bulma. "Shoot," she said, smiling brightly at her.

Bulma gave her a rather weak smile in return. "I was just wondering," she said, looking down at her feet uncomfortably. "How did you know that Dad was the right man for you?"

Mrs. Briefs was fairly taken aback for a couple of seconds, but suddenly she laughed good-naturedly and smiled at Bulma. "You know, I never realized it before, but you've never asked me that, have you? Do you know how your father and I met?"

"No!" Bulma said in surprise, looking up at her with sudden interest. "I guess I don't! I've never asked you or Dad about that before!"

"Well, that's a long story," Mrs. Briefs replied, leaning back and getting herself settled. "A very long story indeed."

"I'd like to hear it, if you wouldn't mind telling me," Bulma said, watching her mother eagerly. "I can't even imagine Dad's ever being without you!"

"Well, he was, of course, before I met him," Mrs. Briefs said, laughing gaily. "And he was a mess, too! I met your father when he was just one of the lesser employees of a small technology firm in the city. At first I didn't really notice him, because I was always busy. I was a secretary for one of the highest paid men in the company when your father began working for us. But that job didn't last too long for me. My boss wanted me to, shall we say, 'work after hours' with him, and I flat out refused him. Back in those days, a woman who was in my situation was usually out of luck, because there really weren't many laws to protect from harassment and such, so it was no surprise to me to find out the next day that I'd been transferred to another department, and at a large pay cut, I might add. But I was glad to be rid of him anyway, so it really wasn't all that bad.

"At any rate, I was transferred to your father's department as a general secretary for a whole office of workers. Your father was one of them, and he was the only one who didn't come to visit me right away. I didn't know it at the time, but your dad was a very shy man around women in general, and to make things worse, he had developed a severe crush on me the very moment he saw me!"

"Awww!" Bulma exclaimed. "How sweet!"

"Exactly," Mrs. Briefs giggled. "But like I said, I didn't know. Anyway, it was a full two weeks before he worked up the nerve to come talk to me. And boy, was he a mess! His face was red all over, and he kept getting his words all mixed up. But he was absolutely adorable just the same! I just couldn't help but see how cute he was, all bumbling and fumbling like that! And I did something that he really hadn't expected. I asked him if he'd like to have dinner at my apartment that night. I don't think I need to tell you what his answer was!"

"Mom!" Bulma cried, aghast. "Don't tell me that you guys… after you had just met!" She was too embarrassed to say what she was thinking, but it was easy to tell what she meant. Mrs. Briefs laughed outright.

"Oh Bulma, don't be ridiculous!" She laughed. "I asked him to dinner; that's all! Just because I wanted to cook it at my place didn't mean I was inviting him to sleep with me or anything! Honestly, you jump to conclusions too quickly, honey!"

"Er… sorry," Bulma said, still quite red. "Hey, wait a minute!" She exclaimed. "Dad said you couldn't cook before you guys were married! And you invited him to dinner?!"

"Well, I wasn't really thinking, dear," Mrs. Briefs laughed with a shrug. "But I didn't want him to take me out to dinner. He didn't have much money at all back then. I figured I could save him the expense if I made him dinner! And besides, I thought it might flatter him more if I arranged it so that I was fixing the meal, and not letting someone else do it. In my warped little mind it just seemed more personal that way."

Bulma laughed. "That's not warped at all, Mom," she giggled. "I think it's great!"

"Thank you, dear," Mrs. Briefs said, beaming happily. "I'm glad you think so."

"Oh, but Mom!" Bulma laughed. "Dad must have had some second thoughts about you after that meal!"

"Well, I don't know if he did or not," she replied with a smart wink, "because he acted like it was the best meal he had ever eaten. Your father was a very good actor, I suppose."

"Wow," Bulma said. "Did you guys go on many dates?"

"Yes, quite a few," Mrs. Briefs replied, nodding. "But we hardly ever went out to expensive places. Although he insisted on taking me sometimes, your father was really quite poor back then, and I ended up spending a lot of the money myself, whenever I thought I could get away with it. But I didn't care. Before long, I had fallen for your father completely, and I would have spent any sum if it meant I'd be able to spend time with him. Your dad was a bumbling genius, even back then, Bulma, but he was the most charming and funny person I'd ever met. And on top of that, he always treated me like I was some kind of untouchable goddess. He was always so full of disbelief that I actually had the same feelings for him that he had for me, and it was very flattering, I must say! It's a wonder my head never got too big for me to walk through doors!" She laughed happily, and her cheeks were a rosy pink.

Bulma sighed dreamily. "So when did you two decide you wanted to get married?" She asked.

"It was only a few months after we'd met, and we were back at my apartment again when it happened. Your father was choking down another one of my horrid dinners, and doing a marvelous job of it, I might add. I apologized left and right for it; I couldn't even eat it myself, it was so bad. But your father just laughed, and he leaned across the table and took my hand in his. 'I'd marry you in a second if it meant I'd get to eat your cooking every day,' he said to me. It was kind of meant as a joke, so I laughed and followed suit. 'And I'd marry you in a heartbeat for your money,' I told him. But then he got this really serious look on his face, and he took hold of my other hand. And my heart raced at what he said next: 'would you really?'"

Mrs. Briefs got this faraway look in her eyes, and she smiled dreamily. "How could I ever say no to him?" She said softly. "He meant more to me than any other person had, and I knew at once that he was the only one I'd ever be able to give my life to. I asked him to stay with me that night, and every other night afterward. Oh, what a memorable night that was! That was my first time…"

"You mean," Bulma said in awe, "that Dad was the only one you ever…?" She cut her sentence short at the reproachful look her mother gave her.

"He certainly was," she said firmly. "Do you really find it that hard to believe?"

Bulma laughed. "Sorry!" She said. "I guess I'm just a little shocked that you never… you know… before Dad." She was blushing in embarrassment, but her mother smiled at her kindly.

"I know," she said. "I just never thought enough of any other man before your father. That's a sacred act of love and commitment, Bulma. And I never believed that any of my former boyfriends would respect it as I did. But your father did, and still does. Oh, he has his trashy magazine collection, of course. That's one habit I've not been able to break him of. And I suppose I am a bit too flirty around handsome men, but you know what? Neither of us would ever follow through with those vices, given the chance. I suspect your father would probably run like a scared rabbit if any one of the girls in those magazines happened to ever meet him and make a pass at him. And my flirting is all in good fun. I do it to tease your father, mostly. It's kind of my way of getting back at him for his stash of sukebe mags. Anyway, if one of the men I happened to flirt with ever decided to take me seriously, I'd probably smack him in the face. I am a married woman, after all," she said indignantly, "and they all ought to know that I'm not being serious."

Bulma laughed. "So I guess it wasn't too hard for you to decide that Dad was the one, huh?" She asked. "You guys got married pretty soon, but you sure sounded certain."

"Well, yes, that's true," Mrs. Briefs concluded, thinking for a moment. "After that night all my doubts had vanished. Anyway, I suppose the best advice I can offer you, Bulma, is that if you're unsure if a man's the right one for you, you'll have to make a decision. You can either dump him right there, and save you both the heartache of hanging on to a dying relationship, or you can give him some more time to grow on you. If you've been with someone for a good length of time, say a few years, for example, and if you think you know all there is to know about him, you probably may not want to wait some more to make your decision. But all I can say is that when you do find the right man, sooner or later you'll know for sure that he's the one. It may take some time, but eventually, you'll know."

Bulma sighed. "That's what I figured you'd say," she said morosely. "I'd already pretty much decided about him, I guess, but I wasn't sure I was making the right choice."

Mrs. Briefs smiled. "You're talking about Yamucha, aren't you?" She asked softly.

"I just don't think he's the one, Mom!" She exclaimed. "I mean, we were together for so long, and after all this time, I still have so many doubts about him that I just can't get over! What am I going to do? I thought we'd resolved this before he died, but now that he's back again, he's already asked me to take him back. But it just doesn't feel right! What should I do, Mom? For the first time in my life, I'm just all out of ideas!" She buried her face in her hands and sobbed. "I just… can't… handle this!"

"Oh, now, Bulma dear, don't cry!" Mrs. Briefs exclaimed, wrapping her arms protectively around her daughter. "Please try not to get so worked up about this! I know it's hard, but you have to be strong!"

Bulma fell silent for a moment, but then she felt the overwhelming urge to laugh, and when she tried, it came out as a hiccup. She leaned away and wiped her eyes dry. The she took a long, shaky breath to steady her breathing. "I'm sorry," she said shakily. "I just realized how weird it sounded for you to tell ME to be strong!"

They looked at each other for a second, and then suddenly burst out laughing. It was a rather funny thought, after all.

"I'm sorry Mom," Bulma said again, wiping the last of her tears from her red eyes. "It's just that Yamucha's got me so stressed out about this. I have no idea what I should decide any more."

Mrs. Briefs looked down thoughtfully. "You know," she said softly, "I didn't want to say this, because it's not my place to say it. But I think you're really in need of an outside opinion here, so I'll tell you. Bulma, I honestly don't think that you and Yamucha belong together," she looked back up at Bulma, who looked back in surprise. "I think he's a wonderful man; there's no doubt about that," she said quickly, before Bulma could say anything. "And there's no denying that he has a kind heart, but I know you, Bulma, and I know him, too. And I can tell that he's not what you need. I won't tell you why I think this; that would be unfair to the both of you. I've probably said too much anyway. But the bottom line is this, Bulma: when it comes down to it, what I think shouldn't even play a minor part in your decision. It's up to you to decide, and I have every confidence that you'll eventually find the answer you're searching for within yourself. Whether it proves me right or wrong is neither relevant nor important. I just pray that you wind up happy with the answer you discover."

Bulma wrapped her arms around her mother's neck and hugged her tightly, like she used to when she was little. "Mom, you're the best," she sighed as Mrs. Briefs patted her tenderly on the back. "How do you know so much about things like this?"

Mrs. Briefs smiled mysteriously. "I'm your mother," she said softly. "It's my job to know this stuff."

Bulma laughed and sat back. Somehow, her mother had always been the one to comfort her and give her good advice when she was growing up, and although she didn't rely on her as much these days, she had never totally broken away from her, and she was always glad of that.

"I don't know if I should tell you this either," Mrs. Briefs said suddenly, a mysterious smile playing on her lips. "I mean, it's not as if you don't have enough to worry about. But I just thought I might mention that there's another man who has his eye on you."

Bulma gaped at her mother in much the same way she might have if she'd said they were all moving out west to become slug farmers. "You're kidding," she said, very unenthusiastically.

Mrs. Briefs laughed. "No I'm not!" She exclaimed cheerfully. "I'm totally serious. Whether he realizes it yet or not, he's completely smitten already!"

"I suppose you think that'll make me feel better," Bulma said frustratedly. "So tell me. Who's the UN-lucky guy?"

"Ah-ah-ah!" Mrs. Briefs said, wagging her finger reprovingly at her daughter and getting up. "That wouldn't be fair either. You're just going to have to handle this one on your own too. But don't worry. I think you'll be all right. You're tougher than you look, after all!" Then she skittered off into the kitchen, laughing gleefully as she ducked away from the pillow Bulma hurled at her.

"Thanks a heap!" Bulma called after her. But she grinned anyway. She wasn't really all that angry with her mom. It was hard to stay angry with her mother, even if she was just a tad obnoxious at times. But what she had said had really messed with her thinking. She didn't even know how to handle the whole Yamucha situation! She certainly didn't want to waste any time or thought on any new love prospects right now, and whoever this guy was that her mom was referring to had better just stay the hell away from her! Bulma sighed angrily. She was tired of beating her brains over this. She needed to vent her frustrations somehow. Finally, she got up and walked out of the house. She'd take it out on the gravity room. A nice, exhausting workout was just the thing for relieving stress.



On To Chapter 4 ~~~>