Dragon Ball Z 1. The First Chapter

High School Reunions

Prologue

Shades of Crimson

* * *

-7 Years Later-

* * *

With the plastic edge of her Lexus' keyless entry that had the chain of her house key, office key, car key, and the large blue rubber key chain with two Cs overlapping, hanging heavily from it wedged between her teeth, she rummaged through her purse; balancing a cup of Starbucks and her cell phone in one hand while she pulled out a business card from her purse with the other.

"Oh, please do call me, Mr. Megaton." She said after taking the keys from her mouth and jamming then into her purse, brushing a stray strand of blue hair away from her face and watching the short man nod and get into his car.

She continued her walk down the parking lot, cursing under her breath about stupid business deals and taking the occasional drink from her cup of strong coffee.

"Miss Briefs."

The heiress in question whipped her head in the direction of the sarcastic sound of her name and smiled when she met eyes with her personal assistant.

Bulma almost laughed at the title. Juu had been an acquaintance of hers back in high school. She had worked at the local Starbucks and they really got to know each other when Bulma was visiting home after college.

She had a talk with Juu while getting coffee one day and quickly learned that Juu wanted to quit her job but she needed the money so was forced to stay. Bulma Briefs was a graduate of Yale University with honors and ready to help her father run the multi-million dollar company he had built. And just like that, Bulma offered Juu the position of her assistant.

A job that paid excellent in which Juu would get to travel and serve as the beautiful genius's palm pilot scheduling press interviews, keeping track of when and where her business meeting would go, and doing all the necessary arrangements that Bulma hated. But Juu kept Bulma company and make her coffee during long trips, and the pair quickly became friends.

They were both short-tempered, beautiful woman. Juu with her shoulder length blonde hair and icy blue eyes and Bulma, with her long cerulean hair and sharp sapphire eyes. She could pull of the short-skirted business suit and always looked excellent at every board meeting, using her appearance to her advantage to sway some of the men of the corporation.

Not that Bulma needed this asset she was more than qualified for her position. She took pride in being the "hottest genius of her time" and knew that being beautiful, rich, and smart was what had made her one of People magazines' top ten most eligible bachelorets.

But being single was how Bulma planned to stay. She was now twenty-six years old, eight years out of high school, and raising a seven year old son on her own. Well, not _completely_ on her own. She had Juu and her parents and ChiChi was always helping out but, she remained single.

She smiled as she and thought of her son. The purple headed little boy was deceiving and always plotting new ideas that would lead him into trouble but Bulma loved him dearly, and he loved her in return. And though he ran wild and fought and schemed, he was a sweet kid and his mothers most valued possession.

Bulma turned to Juu and unlocked her Lexus with her keyless entry remote and the blonde woman slid in the passenger seat of the sleek, silver car. She leaned back against the leather of the seat and laughed as Bulma got in, and sat her coffee in the cup holder having to throw an old, empty Starbucks cup in the backseat.

"You have a meeting in Denver in two weeks." Juu said, checking Bulma's calendar with a slight nod.

"And what about Trunks?" Bulma asked with a sigh, "I can't expect Chi to keep him for an additional two weeks."

Juu smiled at the thought of ChiChi home schooling both Bulma and her own wild little boy. They drove the dark-haired woman, who was determined to fill their little heads with all that she could teach, crazy.

ChiChi had gone to school a semester to become a teacher but her dream was replaced when she learnt that she was pregnant. She finished the semester and took off to have her baby while Goku studied to open his own Karate place with a business degree.

ChiChi was thrilled when she found out that Bulma was a few months pregnant herself and the two decided to raise their children together.

Bulma got her Masters at Yale in record time, and bought a mansion in Tulsa just less than a half hour away from the Son's.

Trunks and ChiChi's naive little Goku look-a-like, Goten, grew up together and became best friends schooled by ChiChi during the day and trained to fight by Goku at night.

Bulma felt more than guilty that her friends had done so much in raising her boy, but she was a good mother and looked after Goten when ChiChi and Goku took much needed vacations.

Juu smiled, "Well, you have two weeks at home until Denver so you might as well make the most of it."

Bulma nodded and smiled as she pulled out of the parking lot, "Did you ever call that guy back?"

Juu blinked, "Mr. Megaton?"

Bulma laughed and shook her head, "No, that guy that lives down the street from us," Juu lived in the guests house behind Bulma's mansion, "David or something, you know, the guy you went on that date with two nights ago?"

Juu rolled her eyes, "You mean the annoying man who wanted to know if both you and I would 'try stuff' with him?"

Bulma laughed again and shook her head, "Just kidding then... But seriously Juu, your a beautiful woman, young, and single don't you _want _to find someone? I mean, nobody wants to be alone."

Juu leaned back and turned the air conditioner, Oklahoma was too hot for her liking, "Do _you _want to find someone Bulma?"

Bulma shook her head as she switched lanes and sped down the highway at breakneck speed, Juu was used to her boss's reckless driving and was unfazed as a man in a pickup honked as Bulma cut him off.

"Juu, I'm not alone I have Trunks."

Juu nodded lightly, knowing Bulma didn't want to have this discussion. So she turned her head to look out of her window, watching the stretch of flat, Oklahoma land fly by her as Bulma sped along.

* * *

Her navy hair was pinned tightly to the back of her head as she smiled at the woman to her left, "And when this store opens, it will be number fifteen?"

The woman nodded and grinned at the corporation owner, Launch's shoe stores were growing into a successful business and the beautiful, navy haired woman was proud of her chain.

"Thank you Leah, I hope you don't mind the move to Orlando but I need a manager there and I don't know anyone in that area that I trust."

Leah, the skinny brunet nodded with a smile, "Oh, it's fine with me Launch. I mean you're going to be there and I'm already five-hundred miles away from my parents so I might as well add another... what is it?"

Launch laughed at her friend and shrugged, "Who knows a long way though."

Leah nodded and swept a lock of sandy brown hair behind her ear, "Wow, just think Orlando. Imagine a beach house where we can watch all the sexy shirtless men walk by!"

Launch smiled at the brunet and shook her head. Leah was one of the shyest people she knew and imagined that she would never get up the nerve to talk to a male. She barely had the courage to speak straight to some of the male clients, and the financial bosses at that. Launch guessed it would be nearly impossible for Leah to speak to "sexy shirtless" guys, but she had said watch and they would have no problem doing that.

Leah sighed as she shuffled through folders that held pictures of shoes that brands wanted them to carry, "Maybe in Florida we'll both find men, L."

Launch frowned as she pointed to a picture of a cute high heel shoe and Leah moved it from the folder to a stack of shoes to consider, "I sure hope we can Leah, because I am _through_ with being lonely."

Leah laughed as she skimmed the folder, only knowing small details of her friend's past with Tien, but knew enough to know that Launch had been on only four dates since him and only two turned into anything that could be considered a 'relationship', one was Chip who she was dating off and on. "Well it's about time Launch."

Launch nodded thoughtfully, "You're right, it is."

* * *

He rubbed his tired eyes with the back of his hand with a yawn, and threw his tool belt onto his apartment floor and listened to it land on the hard floor with a thud.

He lived her here, alone, in this one bedroom, two bath, cramped kitchen and living room apartment working for a small plumbing company.

Yamcha had claimed to have bagged his share of women who were waiting for him to check their pipes.

He smiled as he rummaged through his nearly empty refrigerator as he thought of them their hair all wet and their bathrobes tied and clenched in their patient hands as they waited for his opinion.

He hadn't settles down, nor made an attempt to do so. His small apartment and steady job kept his time and the news of Marron's flings with older men angered him more than he cared it to.

* * *

He watched the palm trees sway in the warm breeze. He leaned his head back, setting his drink on a coaster as he leaned back in the wooden lawn chair.

He sighed, feeling the heat of the sun on his skin and he pulled off his baseball cap momentarily and rubbed the top of his bald head.

"How about shrimp tonight?" Tien heard the female voice call from the kitchen, and then footsteps as the voice grew closer, "It's so damn hot I'll brew some iced tea."

Tien relaxed as he felt a pair of hands massaged the tense muscles of his bareback.

"Do you want some tea, Tien?"

He nodded as the pretty red haired woman stopped massaging him and took a seat in the chair beside him, looking off her boyfriend's front porch onto his oceanfront property onto the beach and her green eyes studied the waves as they crashed gently onto the sand.

Tien closed his eyes as he listened to his girlfriend hum a country song as she watched the ocean with a blank face.

He smiled at the thought of her she was sweet and soft and had this way of controlling her temper by biting her tongue with the tip of her teeth and smiling sweetly with tight lips and wide, green eyes.

Her name was Julie. Julie Gilmore. They had met at a seafood restaurant fifteen minutes away from Tien's beach house.

When he first saw her she had her legs crossed on the seat of her booth and was typing away at the laptop on the table. She picked at her plate of scallops with a fork, her curly red hair was pinned back and she wore a pair of artsy reading glasses over her green eyes.

Tien took a seat across from her and quickly learned that she was a writer. He laughed, a romance book writer the kind of books with a beautiful damsel in distress on the cover with her head tilted back and Fabio's arms wrapped around her.

They had been dating for almost a month now, though their relationship was not really physical, they found comfort in one another since hey were both lonely Tien taking a job as a stockbroker in Orlando alone and Julie just getting out of a two year relationship to find out that her boyfriend was cheating on her.

Julie found Tien's past relationship with Launch intriguing and she wanted to use it in one of her upcoming books.

Tien turned to look at her through his sunglasses and smiled, "Tea sounds great."

Julie jumped up and brushed her red hair behind her shoulders, "Alright, I'll have it out to you in a few minutes."

Tien nodded as he leaned back in the chair and listened to the waves crash against the shore.

* * *

He crossed his arms as he heard the sound of his business partner's laugh, they were walking down the crowded streets of the busy city, on the way to their next commerce meeting when the short man came to a halt in front of a magazine stand, eyeing a rack of candy bars.

"Vegeta, I'm going to pick up a Snickers."

A growl escaped the flame haired man's throat as Krillin walked up to the cashier and handed him a dollar bill.

Vegeta's eyes roamed across the magazine racks, boredom overcoming his dark features, until he spotted a familiar face and blinked.

He picked up the magazine, "People" was spelled out across the front cover and a headline read 'Top Ten Most Eligible Bachelorettes.' His expression remained emotionless as he flipped through the magazine until he was looking at large picture of her.

He frowned, she hadn't changed much. There she stood her long, blue hair cascading down her back and over her shoulders, a smile on her face and her deep, blue eyes shinning with laughter. She wore a cream colored dress dotted with pink flowers, a slit up the side that revealed the calf of one of her slender, creamy legs and her strappy high heels.

Vegeta scanned the article that appointed her bachelorette number six. She was beautiful, rich, smart, and single the writer of the article said. Vegeta chuckled lightly to himself wanting to add that though this list was true she was also temperamental, conceited, and great in bed.

His eyes rested on her face for a few moments until Krillin was standing at his side with a Snickers bar in his mouth, "Vegeta, what are you looking out?"

Vegeta shut the magazine and shoved it back on the rack, shrugging lightly as he watched Krillin devour the candy bar.

Krillin sighed as they continued walking towards the building where their meeting was to be held, he side glanced his partner, hoping that Vegeta didn't know he was looking at him.

Krillin and Vegeta had been partners for nearly three years, but the short man felt that he didn't know the man.

Sure Vegeta was smug and cocky and ruthless. He dominated most of their meetings and was a power hungry, immoral man who worked hard to strengthen his enterprise and take no mercy on the other companies they took over.

Krillin respected Vegeta a great deal, but was never sure if Vegeta in return had the same respect for him. Though he wasn't sure if Vegeta had respect for anyone.

He only knew bits of Vegeta's last, and only, relationship that could be deemed serious, and this was through a friend of Vegeta's who Krillin had grown close to, Goku.

Goku had said her name was Bulma and they had dated in high school and part of college. Their breakup was unexplained Goku said it was because Bulma was moody because of something she was going through though Vegeta had never known what. But Vegeta hadn't had a relationship since and made no attempt to mend the one with Bulma.

Krillin and Vegeta shared an apartment in upscale New York, so Krillin knew first hand that Vegeta had entertained himself at night never the same woman twice.

Krillin had turned his head to look briefly at the profile of his partner, Vegeta had a scowl on his face and his dark eyes were piercing forward.

Krillin sighed and stuff the crumpled wrapper of his Snicker's bar into his suit pocket, "After this meeting we fly to Tulsa."

Vegeta nodded lightly, "Then we go to Michigan to have a run through of what we've been up to with my father."

Krillin smiled and fingered the wrapper in his pocket, "But we have a break."

Vegeta rolled his eyes, "You need a break already, weakling?"

Krillin laughed meekly and shrugged, "Well, at least in Tulsa we can hang out with Goku."

Vegeta laughed and nodded as they approached the door to the building where their meeting was to be held, "Don't fuck anything up, alright?"

Krillin nodded and deposited the candy wrapper into a trashcan nearby, "Alright Vegeta, I'll keep that in mind."

* * *

She studied her perfectly manicured nails with her eyes and let out a bored sigh.

"Marron!"

Her head turned to sound of her voice and a bubbly smile rose to her face, "Richard!"

Her eyes grazed over him. He was balding slightly and had dark hair with gray strands poking through. He had brown eyes and wore an expensive business suit with a loosened navy tie. She had been sharing a room with him for nearly three years now. They lived in a mansion on a vineyard in California.

She was twenty-five with shoulder length purple hair and long eyelashes, and was happy with her life of riches.

Richard was a wealthy owner a vineyard and was in the wine business.

Marron sighed as she watched him descend from the stairs and start out for the days work with a peck on her cheek.

She decided that she was better off secure with him much better off than living with Yamcha in some dumpy apartment in New York as he went his way fixing pluming problems in the city pretending that she was in love, she told herself.

And sighed as she heard the large front door shut and she took a sip from her coffee cup and turned on the TV.

* * *

And that's the prologue...

* * *

I know much didn't happen in this chapter, but I was more setting everything up and putting a better understanding for the plot.

Thank you all so, so much for all of the reviews for the final chapter of High School Royalty. It means so much to me! Thank you!

I guess I don't know what to say, but I hope that you enjoyed this chapter and I hope to have the next one posted soon...

Please, please review!

Thanks _so _much!

Crimson


	2. The Second Chapter

**Thank You...**

Darkest Destiny: Yeay! The very first review for this fic. And so super awesome one, too! I'm glad that you did review, and I hope that you read this chapter and enjoy, and perhaps review, too. Thanks so, so much!

fujutsu: I'm glad that you liked the idea for a sequel! I hope that you like this chapter! Thanks for the review, it really means a lot to me!

Totally-fearless: Aw. What are you confused about? Man... I really hope to clear up anything that you didn't understand. But thanks for the compliments and I hope that you enjoy this chapter. Thanks!

CeltiCrimson: Yeay! Haha. You're review really made me smile! And I can't guarantee that this chapter will be perfect. Well... or even close to it, but I do hope that you like it.. and that you review again!

donkeykong27: I'm glad that you liked the first chapter. I really, really hope that you enjoy the second. Haha -- and I'm also glad that you liked Krillin in this story. He and Juu will be getting together soon, and they'll also play a part in getting Vegeta and Bulma together. Well, thanks so much for the review!

Hikari Heijin: So great to hear from you again! Here's the chapter, I know the wait was longer than usual, but... haha, you know how it is. Thanks for the review!

dbzfanjess: Eh. You weren't really 'harsh' just... honest. And that's all I expect reviewers to be. Your review was really sweet and thanks so much for all the compliments!

Ice: Yeay! I'm glad that you liked! And to answer your question .. No. Vegeta doesn't know that he is a father. I think that this will be cleared up in this chapter, I really hope that you enjoy this chapter and that I can hear from you again soon!

lenk: Haha. Thanks so much for the review! I'm glad that this story caught your attention and I really hope that you like this chapter and I hear from you again soon!

Trina Monkey: HEY! Haha. You're one of my favorite writers and I'm glad that you like this story and I hope that you enjoy this next chapter. Thanks for the review!

t2i2n2a: Yeah... the Bulma's Starbucks obsession was a classic. haha, and I'm glad that you liked! I hope to hear from you again soon! Your reviews are always super nice and I look forwards to reading them... Thanks!

Sensation0023: Juu and Krillin are going to meet through. ... haha, well I wouldn't want to give that away. But their meeting is going to help the b/v too. Thanks so much for the review!

Fiby: Glad that you liked the intro! And now, why would I be annoyed by you? Your reviews are great! Haha, thanks so much and I hope the wait wasn't too long for yah!

Luna-Divine: Hm. Wow ... I hope that this story will be as good as HSRoyalty too. I hope that you like this chapter and thanks so much for the review!

Dark Storm: Thank you so, so much! You're hoping that I have what in mind? Haha, sorry. But yeah, I hope that you enjoy this chapter and hear from you again soon!

Gothic Bulma: Wow. You are a wonderful reviewer. I'll check your writing soon! Sorry I haven't had much time... It took almost all of my spare time to write this chapter, but reading some of your works is on the top of my to-do list! I hope that you enjoy this chapter and I hope to hear from you again soon! Did you have a certain story you wanted me to check out?

Tsume-Hiei luver: Oh, don't worry, this IS going to be a Bulma/Vegeta fic. Haha. Hope that this update didn't take too long... Thanks for the review!

coachzgrl19: Thanks you so much for the review! Hope that you like this chapter and I hear from you again! Thanks again!

vbchickVLVR: Wow! I'm so happy that High School Royalty is still getting readers. And I'm also glad that you reviewed this story! And this will end up being a BV! Thank you so, so much and I really hope that you enjoy!

Goku's little sister: Don't worry about not reviewing sooner! Haha ... if anyone should be apologizing for being late it should be for not having this chapter out sooner. Haha. Well yeah, Happy Birthday! A little late... but, haha, I hope you had a wonderful birthday!

number 423601: Hm. I don't really think Gohan will be in this ... Since I put Trunks in here I wanted to include Goten ((because those two were soooo cute in the series as kids together)) and so I kind of skipped over poor little Gohan.. .Hm. I'm not sure how to include him in here. I could put him in here though if you really want, if you have ideas. Haha. I hope that you like this chapter and review again! Thanks for the review!

Kataan: Umm... Hm. Well Krillin wasn't in High School Royalty. But yeah, thanks for the review!

TrUnKsGiRl: Wow! Thanks so much for the awesome review! You're an amazing, talented, and popular writer and it means so much to me that you would read this. Haha. Thanks again and I hope that you enjoy this chapter!

spawn32818: Hehe. Thanks for adding me to your favs! That means a lot... You're the best and I really hope to hear from you again in this chapter. Hope that you enjoy it! Thanks again!

smiley66: THANKS!

Anime8: I hope that the wait wasn't too long. But thank you so, so much for the review! I'm glad that you liked both stories and enjoy this chapter. I really hope to hear from you again! Thanks!

Night Strider: First of all ... Wow. Thank you so much for the wonderful reviews. I would have to agree, Juu is one of the prettiest girls in DBZ. Though Bulma is my favorite female character, I think Juu and Launch are the prettiest. Yeah... and I left Gohan out because I really liked the cuteness of the young Trunks/Goten friendship. They were so adorable and I wanted to make them friends in this story... So that just had me leaving Gohan out. And I am not annoyed at all by your reviews! Wow... I am flattered! I really love long reviews! It shows that people actually read and think about my writing. I don't know, chatty reviewers are my favorite .. and with the couple of reviews that you have left me you are already one of my favorite reviewers? Do you write? Haha...I guess I could check that now, but you just have this style ((even through reviews)) Well, thanks again! I really hope that I don't let you down or anything with this chapter ... Thank you!

MAGNA DEVIL: Yes, it is a little depressing to have Bulma and Vegeta so far apart. But they will be a little closer ((mileage wise, of coarse)) in this chapter. Though it will take a little while longer to bring them back together. Thank you so much for the review! Hope to hear from you again! Bye!

bebex2xsweet: Yes. I know it was a crappy place to end High School Royalty ... but, like the chapter of this story says, there will be a reunion, and, trust me, everything will work out for the best! Haha. Thanks for the review!

Clouds Lover: Hope the wait wasn't too long... You're great and I hope that I hear from you again! Thanks for the review!

Dark Hope Assasin: And the amazingly talented writer comes and leaves me a freaking long review! Haha. YEAY! You made my day... I was wondering after reading your review, if I could ask you for some advice? How should I go about bettering my character development? You are totally right when you say that I am here trying to satisfy my readers hunger for romance. That does seem like my purpose ... But I was kind of wondering, how should I go about that? I'm really glad that you enjoy reading this , but I have been feeling like the plot is too thin. I want to expand my writing and make it ... well, I can't even describe it. But character development is what I seem to be poor at... and I was wondering if you wouldn't mind giving me a little advice ... Please? Well THANK YOU so much for the wonderful review and I really hope that I hear from you again!

inuluv922: Haha... You can thank yourself for me finally getting this chapter out. You, as my thirty-fifth reviewer made me realize that I seriously need to post a new chapter. Thanks! I hope that the wait wasn't too long, and I really hope that you enjoy this chapter and review again!

* * *

High School Reunions

The Second Chapter

Shades of Crimson

* * *

She tucked a piece of hair behind her ear and frowned as she looked over Leah's shoulder as they began to stock the shelves.

"Is this how you wanted it, Launch?" The brunet asked after stacking a display of sandals.

Launch smiled and nodded distantly, picking up a stack of shoeboxes in her arms and carrying them to the front of the store.

She pulled her hair back with an elastic she had on her wrist and watched as her partner, Leah, stood up from stocking the shelves and dusted her hands off on her pants, "Alright Launch, I'm going to check the backroom, there's only a couple of customers here -- think you can handle it?"

Launch lifted her eyes to meet those of Leah, to see that she was joking. Launch smiled, "I built this company Lee, I'm pretty sure I can handle the cash register for a couple seconds."

Launch heard her friend laugh as she continued to place boxes of shoes behind the counter, and her head shot up as she heard a masculine voice from the opposite side of the register, "Do you have these in blue?"

She glanced up momentarily at the blue flip-flops and nodded lightly, "Yeah, we have them in orange and pink, they're right over," she pointed in the direction of the wall on the opposite side of the shoe store, motioning to a display of multi colored flip-flops, "there."

"Launch?"

Her attention turned from the shoes to the man in front of the register and she froze.

"Tien?"

He laughed and shook his head, "Wow... I haven't seen you in forever, it's been, what, seven years?"

"Yeah." She breathed, taking in his appearance. He had matured, that was apparent -- but his face was basically the same. He was still bald thought, a pair of dark sunglasses covering his eyes in a stylish way and he was wearing swim trunks, a t-shirt, and flip-flops.

He took off his sunglasses and looked her over as well. She was as beautiful as ever. Her long, navy hair was pulled back into a ponytail and she was wearing blue jean shorts and a polo shirt with the company logo on it.

She smiled at him, still a little shocked, and a little surprised at how happy she was to see him again, "What are you doing in Florida?"

He laughed again, folding his sunglasses, "I live here -- a beach house like... a six minute walk from here."

She gasped, "Really? I just moved here. I have a beach house too, about a hundred yards off from The Cove."

Tien blinked, The Cove wasn't too far from where he lived. He studied her a moment longer, hardly believing that they were acting like this. Like a pair of old friends. He frowned, were they ever really even friends?

He thought about The Cove. It was a little restaurant down by the beach. He frowned, a restaurant where he had taken Julie on several occasions. He wondered if Launch was as taken back as he. She wasn't acting like it if she were. But neither was he, so he guessed that she probably was.

"So, what have you been up to?"

She blinked at his question. What? She thought, almost bitterly, besides being brokenhearted for nearly seven years without you? Then she smiled. But she had moved on. Or attempted to. And the sight of him here reminded her of an old friend -- not some ex-lover that had abandoned her for frivolous reasons.

She laughed as she motioned to the store.

He nodded, "You work here?"

"Oh." She shook her head, "I own it."

She hadn't tried to sound cocky, but her words were slightly brash. No. She hadn't just become some cash register girl. She smiled, she was a successful corporation owner with a beach house in Florida.

"What have you been up to?" She asked, the friendly smile returning to her face.

Tien blinked and motioned to the shoe and then he shook his head, "Well, I mean -- my girlfriend. She, uh, needed some new sandals."

Her smile remained. It was now apparent to her -- so she no longer held those feelings for him. She had expected his news of a new woman in his life to make her envious -- but she felt happy for him. Like an old friend. Her smile brightened at that thought. So she hadn't staid obsessive and jealous over him? She was glad. Maybe they could become friends now that they were living close and on speaking terms.

"We have some catching up to do, Tien."

He nodded and smiled back at her, relived that she wasn't angry or acting distant towards him. Then he decided that perhaps he was a little over confident -- thinking that this gorgeous woman could still hold feelings for him for nearly seven whole years?

"Yes, we do." He replied, "Do you have plans for tonight?"

She shook her head, "I just got in last night," she thought about Leah, wondering if she was planning on them doing something -- but she brushed off the thought and decided that they were living together, they would have plenty of time to hang out, "So I haven't really had time to make plans, or look around or anything."

Tien smiled and nodded towards her, "What about The Cove, say, seven?"

She smiled as she rang the sandals up, forgetting that he hadn't wanted to purchase them -- he had come up because he wanted another color. But as he looked back at Launch he had forgotten this too.

"Casual?" He asked, being used to wearing his swim trunks and flip-flops around.

She nodded and laughed as she handed him the receipt, almost catching a double meaning in his words, "Very."

* * *

Her dark hair was pulled back into a tight bun and her apron was tied neatly around her thin waist. She stood beside the stove, stirring noodles with a big, wooden spoon that were bubbling in the pot.

She smiled as she heard the front door open and her husband and son enter the house -- filling it with noise and laughter.

Goku came into the kitchen, setting his car keys and cell phone on the table, and kissed his wife from where she stood beside the stove.

"How was your day?" She asked, turning her attention back to the boiling noodles.

"Great." Goku said jovially, "Goten and I stayed after everyone left and the two of us just trained for a while. It was really nice."

ChiChi smiled at this.

"Mmmm. ChiChi, whatever your cooking smells great!"

The black haired woman laughed and shook her head, "It will be done in about ten minutes, go wash up Goku, you smell like sweat."

Her husband laughed and turned to exit the kitchen and then ChiChi stopped him, "Wait."

He turned back around to face her and she was looked at him, clutched apron and wooden spoon in hand, "Today, I was, uh, thinking Goku..."

He watched her with a calm expression as she fought for the right words. There was a smile on his face -- but that had long since become a natural feature.

"Goku, I want ... I want to have a wedding."

Goku blinked, "ChiChi -- but, you're _already_ married."

She nodded and sighed as she approached her husband, setting the spoon down on a dishrag aside the stove, "I know. But I want a real wedding. A big one. With friends and family and vows and a reception and flowers and invitations and... well, all that."

Goku nodded and scratched the back of his head, "And a caterer?"

She blinked and nodded excitedly, "Yes! Oh -- a caterer with millions of little appetizer platters and a big, white wedding cake!"

He grin wider, "Wow! ChiChi, can you do that? I mean, get married with already _being _married?"

She rolled her eyes, "Yes Goku, it's called 'renewing our vows' and people do it all the time."

Goku nodded, "Wow, it will be like... a reunion then."

"What?" ChiChi questioned, turning back to her cooking.

"Yeah," Goku said, leaning against the counter, "I mean, we'll invite everyone from high school and we'll all be back together -- it will be like our own little high school reunion."

ChiChi blinked, "Hm, I was so caught up in thinking about me, well... **_us_**, that I didn't even think about brining everyone back together. I mean, I haven't seen Launch in ages. Oh Goku, this is going to be so wonderful!"

Goku nodded at his wife and embraced her from behind, kissing the top of her head, "I love you ChiChi, but don't get all girly and bossy when we plan this."

She glared ahead as she stopped stirring the noodles, "Actually Goku, I'm planning on hiring a professional Wedding Planner."

Goku nodded, kissed the top of her head again, "I love you ChiChi."

"I love you too, Goku."

"Ew!" A small voice shouted from the entrance of the kitchen.

ChiChi and Goku broke apart and laughed as the miniature carbon copy Goku entered the room, "I hate it when you two kiss and stuff. That's gross."

ChiChi laughed and playfully hit her husband's chest, "Seriously Goku -- you smell, go wash up and by the time your back dinner will be done, I promise."

* * *

Launch was painting her toenails with Leah came in. A smile spread across the brunettes face as she watched her friend polish her nails.

"What's the occasion?" She questioned, tossing her keys onto the coffee table and fanning her face with her hand, Florida was too hot for Leah's taste.

"Um," Launch gently blew on her now red toenails and shrugged, "I guess I just didn't figure I would be barefoot so often here -- I might as well make my ugly toes prettier."

Leah laughed, she had, on more than one occasion, teased Launch about her toes. Launch was a beautiful, petite woman with a tiny waste, tiny arms and legs -- but as if to contradict her teeny feet, she had chubby toes.

"Oh." Leah said with a shrug, "I figured you were going out tonight or something."

"I am." Launch said, closing the bottle of nail polish, "I ran into an old friend and he invited me to dinner."

Leah smiled as she made her way into the kitchen to pour herself a glass of water, "Old friend, eh?

Launch rolled her eyes and leaned back onto the fluffy couch, "Leah, a _friend_."

Leah shrugged as she joined her roommate in the living room, now with a glass of ice water, "Good enough of a male friend to paint your toenails for?"

Launch laughed and sighed, knowing that this wasn't looking good for her.

Leah took a seat beside Launch and smiled, "So tell me, this old 'friend' of yours -- is he good looking?"

"He's not bad, if that's what you mean. Do you want me to set you up with him?"

Leah laughed, "Not really. How do you know him?"

Launch looked up at the ceiling thoughtfully, "We went to high school together."

Leah smiled, the only people Launch had talked about from high school were Bulma, ChiChi, and Marron. "Did you two date?"

Launch rolled her eyes, "Yes. Towards the end of high school anyway. We broke up because college was too complicated and we had this tiny fight and everything was blown out of proportion and... yeah."

Leah nodded but Launch frowned, "It's not like that though, Lee, we're friends."

Leah smiled, "He has a girlfriend, doesn't he?"

Launch nodded again and laughed, "I wish you were half as nosy as you are about me to some random guy -- then maybe you two could actually have a conversation that led to... I don't know, say, a date."

Leah rolled her eyes. So what? She was a shy person.

"Alright, well I'm out."

Leah nodded, "I'm probably going to take a walk on the beach tonight, it seems like a plain enough thing to do." She smiled, "I'll see you when you get back from your date, have fun."

Launch rolled her eyes but picked up her purse and exited their beach house without another word.

* * *

Bulma and Juu came over to ChiChi and Goku's house and ChiChi greeted them at the front door with a wide grin and Bulma shot her a quizzical look.

Juu smiled and laughed as she watched the black haired girl tap her foot anxiously on the porch deck.

"What took you guys so long?" ChiChi questioned motioning that it was nearly dark and Bulma usually came to pick Trunks up from his tutoring extra early on Fridays.

Bulma shrugged and Juu rolled her eyes, "Guess who needed a coffee fix and the closest Starbucks was in the Target, and then she spent two hours in the chip isle wondering what she would be in the mood for next week."

Bulma frowned at the blonde haired girl and ChiChi laughed, almost forgetting what had her so antsy all evening.

Almost.

"Oh my gosh! You two -- sit, sit!" ChiChi urged, shoving the two women into the living room and shutting the door behind them.

Bulma and Juu sat beside each other on the overstuffed couch and blinked as they watched ChiChi's flushed face overflow with excitement.

"I'm having a party, two weeks from now!" ChiChi blurted, barely able to keep control her happiness.

Bulma blinked and mentally checked if it were possible for it to be Goten's, then ChiChi, and then Goku's birthday. A questioning look crossed her face after she quickly calculated that it was none of their birthdays.

"What kind of party?"

Bulma frowned, leave it to Juu to be the straightforward one.

ChiChi became giddy again, slightly bouncing in one place, "A wedding party!"

Juu frowned, "What the hell's a wedding party?"

ChiChi froze slightly and shrugged, "Well... not exactly a wedding party, but a wedding. A real wedding with a reception."

Bulma's confusion was apparent, "Chi, didn't you already have a wedding?"

ChiChi frowned at her blue haired friend and sighed, "No. I got married. But I didn't have a wedding. I want a wedding. A really wonderful one with all the fixings and guests."

Bulma smiled and began to act similar to ChiChi's behavior, "Oh! That's so great! You know, I saw this dress in _Today's Bride _that was so wonderful! Oh my God, it would be perfect for you..."

ChiChi nodded, wanting to hear more about the dress.

Bulma smiled, "It was like a princess dress -- flowing and white and... Wait. Can you wear white in this sort of wedding? I mean, it's no secret since you have a kid... but, I mean, you were married, so does it really matter if you wear white to a second wedding when the only sec you had was with your husband, the husband that you are marring.."

Juu was having trouble registering what Bulma was babbling about.

"Bulma, what were you doing reading _Today's Bride_?"

Bulma frowned and picked at her thumb, "I never got to have a wedding Juu, some women can't help but want to be a bride."

ChiChi nodded, putting her hand on Bulma's shoulder and then the blue haired girl shook her head, "No, but this is about you Chi -- the one woman who found complete happiness and who deserves, and is going to have, the most wonderful and perfect wedding ever."

ChiChi smiled happily and took a seat on a chair that was cadicorner to the couch, "Two weeks, the twenty-third okay?"

Juu nodded as she pulled out a small pocket calender, "Bulma , you have that meeting in Denver on Tuesday of that week, but you'll be back -- it's just for the night."

Bulma smiled happily and then she froze, "Oh, Chi -- do you think you can watch Trunks while were gone? I mean, if it's not asking too much... now that you have this wedding to plan and..."

ChiChi laughed and shook her head, "Oh Bee, it's not a problem. He'll be more of a help keeping Goten away from everything. And as for planning," ChiChi laughed again, but a small blush rose to her cheeks, "I've been making plans since my first year of marriage."

Bulma laughed at this and even Juu couldn't help but crack a smile.

Goten and Trunks took this moment to rush into the living room. Goten had two toy cars in his hands and Trunks held a box for a Hot Wheels drag track. The box was open and worn, with a rip in the middle where a piece of orange plastic stuck through, displaying a cheap portion of the drag strip.

"Momma!" Trunks hollered, dropping the box as he ran towards Bulma and hugged her legs.

Bulma watched as her son dropped the box and the Hot Wheels track scattered across the carpeted living room floor.

"Hey baby, how was your week?" Bulma asked, kneeling down to her son's level and hugging his small frame.

"Great!" Trunks began to talk quickly -- talking about how Goku had ran into a squat bar at the gym and Goten and he had saved the day, about how ChiChi cooked noodles and how they had dared Goku to suck it through his nose, and then about how Goten had tried to jump off of the roof and into the pool.

Bulma blinked as she watched ChiChi's worried, and yet heavily amused, face.

Bulma ran her fingers through his purple hair and stood back up, "Never a dull moment here."

Juu laughed and then Goten showed everyone his elbow, "I had to get fourteen stitches."

Trunks nodded, "It was bleeding really bad, and ChiChi was screaming all the way in the car."

ChiChi rolled her eyes, "It was quit a cut."

"Hey, momma," Trunks began, in that voice where he was about to ask something.

"Yes baby?"

"Can Goten spend the night?"

Goten jumped up, "Yeah! Yeah! Can I?"

Juu tried to control her laughter as ChiChi's eyes narrowed and began to scold her son about being polite.

Bulma laughed and nodded, "If that's alright with Chi."

Goten blinked and whispered, "Can I go, mommy?"

ChiChi sighed and rolled her eyes, "Go pack a bag."

"Yeay!" The boys shouted in unison, rushing past the scatter of Hot Wheels cars and into Goten's room.

The boys were always excited to stay with Bulma. Trunks didn't have the concept of living in a mansion and being rich -- but the boys did know that when they spent the night together at Trunk's house Bulma always ordered them pizza and order Pay Per View movies and stay up as late as they could playing video games.

ChiChi smiled as Goku entered the living room, "Did you tell them about the wedding thing, or is that a surprise."

ChiChi rolled her eyes, "Yes, I told them. But if it had been a surprise it would long since been ruined."

Goku nodded, "So it Bulma okay with Vegeta being there?"

ChiChi frowned and Bulma blinked, "Of coarse. I can't wait to catch up with everybody. I haven't seen Vegeta," the word sounded almost strange coming from her lips, she wanted to say it again -- missing the way it felt, but she shrugged the feeling off, "or Launch or Marron or Yamcha in forever!"

Goku smiled, "I'm inviting Tien, too!"

Bulma smiled. She remembered how great of a guy he had been when she was visiting Vegeta at Duke.

ChiChi turned to Juu, "Oh, and you can take anyone you like Juu -- a date, a friend."

Juu smiled, "Well my brother's been waiting to come visit here, he lives in Florida -- I'll call him and see if he can come."

Goku smiled brightly as Goten and Trunks came into the living room, stepping over the scattered race track, a bag hosted over Goten's tiny shoulders and a pillow in Trunk's arms.

"Plus!" Goku said excitedly, "We're hiring a caterer!"

* * *

She felt the sand seep through her toes and she looked down to watch her bare feet press into the sandy shore.

The sun was setting off in the distance, causing the ocean water to sparkle. It nearly silent, hushed voices of people on the beach around her and the waves crashing into the shore filled her ears as she shut her eyes.

She frowned. What a perfect moment this would be if she wasn't single.

She continued walking for a moment, her eyes closed and her attention on the sound of the ocean and feel of the water splashing against her ankles as the tide began to rise.

He moment of bliss was interrupted as she felt herself collide with something, or rather someone.

Leah blinked as she looked up at the man she had just ran into.

A small blush tinted her cheeks as the man stared back at her, amusement apparent in his dark eyes.

He was thin, but muscular, shirtless -- which she noted she didn't mind, and that he was definitely allowed to be so -- and holding a surfboard in his left hand. He had shoulder length black hair and tan skin.

"Uh." Leah began slowly, knowing that she was probably blushing crazily, "I'm so sorry, I didn't see you there."

He laughed and shook his head, "It's alright -- I'm Jay by the way."

A polite person would take this hint and introduce them self. Leah wasn't impolite, she was just shy -- and she instead took this moment to notice how his words, 'jay' and 'way' rhymed.

He smiled at the pretty brunet that had ran into him, "You're a tourist, aren't you."

She blinked and then shook her head, "No, actually I live," she decided that it wouldn't be a good idea to give strange men your address, "right around the corner."

Lame. She mentally slapped herself. If Launch were here she would set her up a date with this cute surfer and she would have to build her nervousness up until then and she would take that opportunity to ruin things there.

He nodded, "Then you just moved in."

She blinked again. Had he seen that the house 'around the corner' had just been bought? Had he seen her moving in? Had he ...

He laughed, "Your skin," he pointed to her arm, "You're pale. Awfully pale to have a house so close to the beach."

She blushed and then nodded, "Yeah. We'll I just moved in -- today actually."

He smiled, "What's your name?"

"Leah." She said simply, extending her hand to him. She wondered if it were too dorky to introduce yourself with a handshake in Florida.

He took her extended hand and shook it, dorky or not, and smiled, "Nice to meet you, Leah."

She blushed at the way he used her name.

"And I'm guessing that you, Leah," He paused for a moment, "Can I call you Lee?"

She nodded with a smile, "Sure."

He continued with a small nod, "I'm guessing that you, _Lee,_ as a newbie to this beach haven't had a chance to look around."

She smiled, "That would be correct."

"And I'm also guessing that you haven't had a chance to surf."

"Well Jay, you're a good guesser."

He smiled at her and motioned to his board, "These are some of the sweetest waves on this side of the beach -- so I'm going to teach you how. Right here."

She blinked, feeling a little awkward that the romantic mood had been set and she was wearing a bikini top and a pair of surf shorts. She frowned, what was she thinking buying surf shorts? That moving to Florida it would be stylish. She frowned again. She decided that she wasn't a good thinker.

"Right," Leah tucked a piece of her straight hair behind her ear, "now?"

Jay laughed with a nod, "Yup, right now."

She took his out stretched arm, wondering if she really were that pale, and he led her into the waist deep water.

* * *

Launch laughed as she took another sip of her Captain Morgan and listened to the conclusion of Tien's story.

Tien smiled across the small booth as Launch set her drink down on the table. The atmosphere in The Cove was casual, the lights were low and there was a slight blue glow in the air. There were tables and booths sread around the bar with candles in the center of each.

If Launch hadn't had her hair pulled back in a pony tail with a tank top, denim shorts, and flip-flops on -- she would have mistaken it as a date.

Tien had felt a little guilty that he had told his girlfriend that he had was just meeting an old friend. But he decided that he shouldn't feel so bad about it -- this was all that it was, right?

"I still can't beleive that you've opened up so many shoe stores."

Launch shrugged and smiled, "And you never seemed like the big business man to me, you know?"

Tien laughed, "Yeah -- well Vegeta kind of shoved me into that field."

Launch blinked, "Vegeta?"

"Yeah," Tien began, taking a sip of his longneck bottled Budweiser, "In college I helped him study for some of his tests and he told me that I should major in buisness."

Launch's face held hits of confusion, "You and Vegeta went to college together?"

Tien nodded, "Yeah -- we were roommates."

Launch smiled, "Wow, I didn't know that."

Tien frowned, "I guess it isn't that great of a coincidence, we both ended up single because of that school."

Launch sighed sadly, "Yeah, Bulma was pretty broken hearted about that."

Tien smiled, "Do you still keep in touch with her?"

"Yeah," Launch began, "She and Chi live close so they do more so than I, but we get together every now and then -- I haven't seen much of Marron lately though, I hear that she's been living with a rich vineyard owner in California."

Tien nodded, taking another drink from his beer and smiled, "ChiChi and Goku living happily ever after?"

Launch rolled her eyes with a small laugh, "You know it. They live in this perfect little community and their son, who's a freaking Goku mini, I swear."

Tien laughed, picturing Goten perfectly.

"Bulma and ChiChi also get to see each other often because their sons are close."

Tien froze slightly, a shocked expression on his face, "Bulma has a son?"

Launch nodded lightly, everyone knew that Bulma had never told Vegeta about Trunks. She had thought it to be slightly selfish. Vegeta had every right to know that he had a son. But Bulma didn't think he wanted to know. And Launch knew, at the time of Trunk's birth -- that this was true. So no one said anything, knowing Bulma was still secretly crazy about Vegeta. They only broke up because of her raging pregnancy hormones and Vegeta's prideful refusal to apologize and explain what happened. But Launch thought that Vegeta should be told, he was more mature now, and besides, it was only a matter of time before he found out -- and that time wasn't going to make her beloved blue haired friend look too good.

"Yes." Launch said slowly.

"Wow. So she did move on." Tien almost whispered, shaking his head.

Launch frowned, knowing that it probably wasn't her place to let this all out, "Yeah, well she never actually moved on. I mean -- she's not married or anything."

She was slightly proud of her answer. Though it did make Bulma out to be slightly a whore -- but she hadn't lied, nor mentioned who the father was.

"I sort of miss how things used to be." Tien admitted, his honesty drawing Launch closer to him.

He shook his head as he finished his beer, "I guess I should be getting back, to, Julie, you know."

He said the last part quickly, as if it were his obligation to at least mention her -- it would be a phase of cheating if he had not.

Launch nodded and smiled, "It was nice to talk to you again, Tien."

He stood up from the booth and paid for each of their drinks, smiling back at her, "It was, we'll have to do it again."

* * *

"Dad!" Goten shouted, shielding his chest with his tiny, but surprisingly muscular for a boy his age, crossed arms as his purple haired friend sent a series of punches at his chest.

Goku looked up from the punching bag he had been concentrating on for the last few minutes and had ignored the two boys who were sparing. It had been two days since the boys had spent the night at Capsule Corporation.

"Whoa, whoa," Goku said with a small laugh, "Slow it down Trunks."

The purple haired boy paused his punches in midair and then quickly dropped his arms to his side and then bowed towards Goku respectably, "Oh -- I'm sorry sensei."

Goku smiled and shook his head, "No, no, you're an excellent fighter -- but you're just aggressive, you fight just like your --" Goku stopped himself from saying it.

Trunks smiled and Goku uncrossed his arms from their previous protective position across his chest.

Goku smiled, "Alright -- you two, take a break."

The dojo was completely empty, after lessons just the three of them stayed after Goku's last class and trained.

That's what surprised Goku when there was a knock on the door. And when he opened it up, he was even more surprised at what he found.

"Vegeta! Krillin!" Goku greeted happily.

Vegeta and Krillin entered the dojo, dressed casually.

Krillin shook Goku's hand with a smile, "We had a meeting in Tulsa last night and we're staying in a hotel not too far from here -- so we decided that we'd stop by."

Vegeta watched Goku with even eyes, "You're still driving the same car since the last time I saw you."

Goku smiled back at him, "Yeah, so Vegeta, how have you been?"

Vegeta shrugged as his dark eyes trailed across the training mats that were laid across the floor, "Not too bad, Kakerot."

Goku smiled as he watched Vegeta's distant expression, "You want to spar, Vegeta?"

A smirk appeared across Vegeta's lips and he nodded.

Krillin took a seat on a the fold up chair and watched as the two full grown men began to exchange blows.

Trunks and Goten entered the room and watched in awe as the two nearly equal in strength men fought.

"Wow." Goten whispered, taking the available seat beside Krillin, his eyes remaining on his father and Vegeta. Trunks to a seat, cross-legged on the matted floor.

After a few minutes of sparing the two men stepped away from each other, sweat collecting on their shirts and brows, both panting heavily.

Goku laughed as he wiped his forehead with the back of his hand.

Vegeta smirked back at his old friend with a slight nod of approval, "You've been practicing."

"Well duh, he owns his own dojo." A small voice spoke up from the opposite side of the room.

Vegeta's dark eyes snapped in the direction of the voice and his eyes landed on a young purple haired boy who was sitting cross-legged with his elbow on his knee and his chin resting in his palm. The boys eyes were focused on him.

Vegeta smirked, "Cute kid, Kakerot."

Goku smiled, "That's Trunks. Trunks -- this is Vegeta."

Trunks frowned slightly at the older man, "You fight good."

Goten spoke up, "He kind of fights like you, Trunks."

Goku blinked at his son's observation and Vegeta continued to smirk at the boy.

Vegeta didn't much care for kids, but a little martial arts student who appeared almost fearless and smarted off to him, was something new.

"Okay then, brat." Vegeta said, motioning towards Trunks, "Let's see how you fare."

Trunks stood up and walked towards Vegeta, his small frame positioning in a fighting stants.

Goku took a few steps back and watched as the two boys began to spar, Vegeta going lightly of coarse, mostly playing defense. But watching in awe as the small boy displayed a powerful blend of strength, aggression, and arrogance that mirrored his own in some distant way.

* * *

Bulma walked the short distance from ChiChi's driveway to the front door. It was pretty late, nearly midnight, and she guessed that Trunks and Goten were probably in bed, seeing as to how Goku was going to be working those two out today.

Bulma placed her key into the lock and opened the door.

She heard laughter coming from the kitchen and her thinly plucked eyebrows rose in question.

She tiptoed her way into the kitchen at peered in to see ChiChi sitting at the head of the kitchen table, pouring herself a glass of hot tea as she laughed hysterically at something Bulma guessed was said before she had let herself into the house.

Goku and a short bald man that Bulma didn't recognize were facing her direction, laughing along with ChiChi.

But it was the man that was turned away from her that made her heart stop and her breath catch itself in her throat. There, with his back turned to her, she could put a face to that jet black flame-like hair.

She froze momentarily, but caught ahold of herself and turned on her heel and rushed out of the house.

Krillin blinked after the pretty blue haired girl had made her quick exit, "Um, who was that?"

ChiChi, the only other person in the room who had noticed Bulma's presence, got out of her chair and quickly followed her out of the front door.

ChiChi frowned as she watched as Bulma's silver sports car backed out of her driveway and sped down the road.

ChiChi sighed as she rubbed her bare arms and shivered as a chilly Tulsa wind blew by her.

She imagined Bulma's shock, seeing Vegeta sitting there, and sighed as she made her way back into the house, and into her bedroom to make a quick phone call to her best friend.

* * *

Well... took me long enough, eh?

Super sorry for the wait, but hopefully the length of this chapter will make up for that...

I am so, super excited about the feedback from the first chapter! You guys are seriously the best and I really hope to hear from all of you again...

Krillin and Juu _will_ meet in the next chapter!

It should be out soon!

_Crimson_


	3. The Third Chapter

Long time, eh?

I would like the thank all **_forty_** of you who reviewed! Wow. **Night Strider**, **Pandoora**, **Dark Hope Assassin** -- you three have always been so helpful to me! --hugs-- Really! I don't know where I would be without you. And everyone else -- same goes for you. You are AWESOME! Thankies, and I hope that you enjoy...

High School Reunions

Chapter 3

Shades of Crimson

* * *

Bulma heard her cell phone ringing from her purse and knew instantly that it was ChiChi -- most likely standing on the front porch with the cordless phone in her hand, trying to hide herself from the men laughing from the kitchen.

Bulma pulled her phone out of her purse and sighed, "Chi?"

"You okay, babe?" ChiChi's voice sounded quite and smooth.

Bulma smiled sadly, ChiChi could almost feel her grief from the other end of the phone.

"I've been better." Bulma said softly, and then she frowned, "I should have told him years ago, shouldn't I have?"

"Bee, that's none of my business."

"If I would have told him seven years ago he would have been pissed -- but nothing like the pissed he's going to be when he finds out now."

ChiChi laughed and shrugged, "He'll understand."

"Vegeta?" Bulma laughed, "He's not the understanding type... I mean, he has every right to be mad at me. Hell, I'm mad at myself for being so damn selfish and moody and angry."

ChiChi wasn't sure what to say, Bulma was more talking to herself than her anyway.

"Chi, has he changed?" Bulma's tone had changed. Her voice was soft and sad, curious and sweet.

"He's different, but he hasn't changed." ChiChi said, almost thoughtfully, "I mean, he's still moody as hell and aragont, he's ego's only gotten bigger, if possible." ChiChi laughed, "But... he's more mature now. A little taller."

Bulma laughed, choking back on a sob.

ChiChi smiled, "Face is the same. Dresses in suites now though. Like you, Bulma."

Bulma looked down at her pinstriped business skirt and white blouse with a small laugh, "Does he still smirk?"

"Yes."

Bulma nodded, "I always thought he smirked for me."

ChiChi's heart broke hearing Bulma's voice, "He hasn't dated seriously since you two, though."

Bulma laughed, "I screwed him up more than enough for that."

ChiChi laughed, "Well you did break up with him and then accuse him of cheating afterwards."

Bulma laughed again, "I was a _little _moody Chi, I was pregnant for God's sake."

ChiChi nodded, "And stubborn, and you knew that..." ChiChi didn't finish her sentence, knowing that Bulma already knew what she was going to say, and her blue haired friend probably didn't need, nor want, to hear it in her state.

"Bee, you'll be alright?"

Bulma smiled to her self and nodded, "Yes Chi, I'll be fine. I'll send Juu to get Trunk's in the morning. And I'll bring him back before I leave for Denver."

"Alright Bulma, I'll see you then."

"Alright Chi. Later, love yah."

"Love yah too, laters."

* * *

She tucked a lock of her behind her ears and hummed happily to herself.

She was sitting on the couch waiting patiently for her next soap opera to come on, filing her nails and snacking on a bog of chips.

The front door open and one of the maids came in, Marron smiled brightly as the maid handed her a stack of mail.

"Oh Loretta, be a dear and turn to heat down, it is so hot in here!"

The woman nodded in Marron's direction and made her way to the thermostat.

Marron grinned down at a clothing catalog and flipped through the remainder of the junk mail, until her eyes landed upon an envelope, return address was to ChiChi.

The maid looked over Marron's shoulder from behind the couch and smiled, "It's a wedding invitation, Miss Marron."

Marron gasped, "I guess ChiChi's getting remarried!" she proclaimed, ripping the envelope open and then quickly reading the invitation over.

"Wow, she's remarrying the same guy she's been with, like, seven years or something. Wow. It's going to be a reunion. I haven't seen any of my friends from high school in forever!"

Marron's smile faded as she read the part about bringing a date. ChiChi had put three exclamation points there. Marron frowned, she probably was curious as to this mysterious, rich, older guy she had been living with the past couple of years was. Marron guessed that she was the source of some of their rumors.

"Wow. This is short notice." Marron mumbled with a frown. Then her eyes lit up, "Hey, Loretta, Do you think Henry will want to come to a wedding with me?"

The plump woman shrugged and smiled, "Well, he wouldn't want you going with anybody else."

"True." Marron said with a small shrug and then gasped, "Ahk! Loretta, look, we missed the beginning of our soap!"

* * *

ChiChi hung up the black cordless phone and sat back down at the table, politely asking if anyone needed more tea.

Goku jumped at this and ChiChi stood back up and refilled his small glass.

"Who was that on the phone?" Goku asked cheerfully, watching his cup fill up with tea.

ChiChi glanced worryingly across the table as Vegeta read an article in the paper about Goku's dojo, that ChiChi guessed Goku had passed to him proudly when she had been on the phone, and the short bald man sipped his tea.

"Bulma." ChiChi said casually. Turning her eyes downcast and taking a seat at the table, "Just saying hey."

Vegeta's chest tightened at the mention of her name. He hadn't heard it aloud for sometime, and hearing it so casually from her best friend shocked him a bit. ChiChi knew their history, probably better than anyone besides himself and Bulma. She was the woman's best friend, and woman have a tendency to discuss things like these.

Goku looked over at his wife, a little shocked himself. He knew not to mention Trunks, but he didn't quite know what else to say.

"Is she good?"

It was Vegeta who had spoke. It sounded strange, the way his deep voice pronounced the words; slowly, almost unnaturally. It shocked everyone in the room.

ChiChi smiled up at him, feeling the atmosphere becoming awkward, "Yes. She's fine. A little stressed about work and everything, but you know Bulma."

Vegeta nodded. Yes, he _knew _Bulma, but he didn't know her. Not anymore.

Goku smiled, "She lived in Tulsa."

ChiChi glared at her giddy husband and frowned at his ignorance and easy way to just jump into the conversation this way.

Krillin sat down his tea glass, breaking the silence of the room momentarily, and then he smiled, "Well, it's nice down here."

"Yes." ChiChi smiled, "It's wonderful here. We love it."

* * *

Juu knocked lightly on the door. A small frown had gathered at the corner of her mouth as she stood infront of ChiChi and Goku's front door step. Bulma had told her about how she had gone to pick Trunks up last night and how her ex boyfriend had been sitting at the kitchen table.

Juu didn't know all the details, but she knew enough -- Bulma and her ex split after high school, they had a fight in college and when Bulma found that she was pregnant she flew down to see him. Unfortunatily she found him with another girl.

It would be like Bulma to blow the situation out of proportion. Not to mention her pregnancy hormones and selfish pride. She was going to raise her baby independently. No "cheating" man who didn't want a kid in the first place.

Of coarse Bulma soon began to question her not telling him. But she had remained solid and Juu knew that Bulma's ex hadn't a clue that he was a father.

"Juu!" ChiChi exclaimed as she opened the front door and let the blonde woman into the quaint house.

Juu smiled as she took in the smells of breakfast floating from the kitchen, and the sound of masculine laughter.

A short man in boxer shorts and a T-shirt walked into the living room where Juu was standing, unaware that the pretty blonde woman was there, and smiled at ChiChi, "Hey, Chi, I left my toothpaste at the hotel -- do you have any I can borrow."

ChiChi smiled and wiped her hands off on her apron, "Yeah Krillin, there's some in the bathroom. Oh, it's ceinamin though, that alright?"

"Yeah." The bald man said with a smile, "That's fine."

"Oh." ChiChi said, a grin forming on her pretty yet makeup-less face as she watched Juu study Krillin, "Krillin, this is Juu. Juu, this is Krillin."

Krillin, noticing Juu for the first time, smiled at the well-dressed attractive female, "Hey."

Juu smiled back at him, "Hey."

Krillin laughed, "I'd talk longer, but... I've gotta brush my teeth."

Juu nodded, the smile fading from her face.

ChiChi watched the two with amused eyes and then cleared her throat, "Trunks. Trunks! Juu's here."

The purple haired boy ran from the kitchen and smiled happily at the blonde woman, "Juu! Hey! Where's momma?"

Juu smiled down at the boy, "Business."

"Oh." The boy spoke, almost sadly.

"But she'll be back by the time we're home." Juu added, cheerfully.

Krillin smiled, "Bye Trunks."

Trunks smiled back at Krillin and laughed, "Bye Krillin!" He turned to Juu, "He's really funny. Oh! You have to meet Vegeta. Vegeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeta!" The boy shouted the last part.

Juu watched as a breathtakingly handsome man with dark features, piercing eyes, and a daring hairdo that swept into a flame from a deep widow's peak entered the room and glared down at Trunks, "What?"

"This." The boy smiled merrily, "Is Juu. She's my momma's friend."

Vegeta's facial expression remained bored and his facial muscles didn't budge, "That's nice."

Trunks smiled back at the boy, Juu could tell that he was quite taken with the man. She frowned though, he was a hard-ass. Just the sort of rugged, burly, arrogant business brute would crush on.

"Alright Trunks, go get your stuff."

ChiChi smiled, seeing that Krillin was still in the room.

"Nice to meet you, Juu."

"Nice to meet you too, Krillin."

* * *

She drew a heart in the sand with her toes as she listened to Leah talk excitidly about the mysterious surfer she had met, and flirted with.

Launch smiled, "I'm proud of you, Lee."

Leah shrugged and smiled at Launch, "So, how was your date with your old friend."

Launch continued to study the ground, but nodded slightly, "It was good. We had a lot to catch up on. I've missed him."

Leah smiled, "I'll have to meet him. Hey -- Launch, can we stop by that little resteraunt down a bit? I heard that their drinks are wonderful."

Launch's eyes lit up, "Oh! The cute ones with the little umprellas in them?"

Leah laughed, "Yeah. Those are the ones."

After a few moments of silence Launch smiled, "Oh! Leah, my friends from high school are getting married and their weddings in about week. It's in Tulsa, bland, I know. But anyway, you should come. Chi said that I could bring some people, mostly a date, haha, but you'll have fun."

Leah smiled, "Sure! Wait.. are you taking chip?"

Launch frowned. She had been dating Chip, the attorney with the ranch slash business-suited wannabe cow boy off and on, mostly off, for nearly seven years now. And when she was with him, she was mostly miserable. But it was safe. She didn't have to date other people. And when they split, he saw other people, but was always asking her back out as a safety net. It was their system. They used one another. They weren't happy. But they each believed that it was better than the alternatives.

"He doesn't know about it." Launch said simply, "And I don't plan on telling him about it."

* * *

Trunks hoped into his mother's silver Lexus with a wide smile on his face, and his baseball glove in his arms.She was taking him to little-league baseball game and he was dressed in baseball uniform and his ball cap. 

Bulma smiled at him from her rearview mirror as he backed out of the driveway, "You're going to do great hunny."

Trunks beamed from the passengers seat as he buckled his seatbelt, "I hope so. Vegeta said that I was strong and quick."

Bulma blinked suddenly and cast her son a confused glance, "Vegeta?"

"Yeah." Trunks said, playing with his baseball mitt, "He's a friend of Goku's. He helped my train last night and stuff. He's really cool."

Bulma smiled meekly and nodded, "Yeah?"

Trunks continued to finger the soft material of the glove, "Yeah. He liked my training style and said I was a cute kid."

"Cute?" Bulma laughed, "Well you are a cute kid, Trunks."

The purple haired boy frowned from behind his oversized hat, "I'm not cute, momma. I'm tough. Just like Vegeta."

Bulma nodded and turned her attention back to the red light that was just switching to green, "Yeah. Just like Vegeta."

* * *

The small post office, dotted with small metal mailboxes all stacked on top of one another, some were bent in, it was grungy looking place with loiterers and people rushing in to check their mail.

Yamcha leant against the wall as he opened his mailbox casually, twisting the key and then swinging the metal door, traced with graffiti, open and sighed as he pulled out a stack of envelops and slammed the box shut.

He flipped through a pile of bills and then stopped as he eyed an invitation. He tore it open and smiled as he read that it was an invitation for ChiChi and Goku's renewing their vowels. He was asked to be a groomsmen. He smiled at the thought of being with his friends again.

But a frown quickly spread across his physique as he pictured Marron standing there, all dressed up with her arm looped around some rich older man.

He crammed the invitation in his coat pocket and discarded the bills in the trashcan on his way out of the post office.

* * *

The wedding planner nodded thoughtfully at ChiChi as she laid out a stack of books that was labeled 'Wedding Flowers.'

The wedding planner nodded again, "Alright -- we'll I really like this one, it's a bouquet of white, pink, red, and maroon roses. And I ordered extra so that the aisle will be a long stretch of petals from these flowers."

ChiChi smiled, "Wow. That sounds great."

The wedding planner smiled and nodded, "Your bridesmaid dresses should be here in about three days, the pink, red, and maroon dresses that you ordered. That away each of the dresses with correspond with the flower, and the groomsmen will each wear a flower of the bridesmaid's dress color that they walk down the aisle."

ChiChi smiled, knowing that Vegeta was walking Bulma down the aisle and Bulma's dress was a pastel pink. She frowned at the thought of Vegeta throwing a fit over having to wear pink, and then the fit he would put out when he found that he had to lock arms with Bulma and smile as the ascended to the alter.

Then ChiChi sighed, she wasn't sure what she was thinking pairing Bulma with Vegeta, Marron with Yamcha, Launch with Tien.

Well, she partly knew. She wanted her friends to come back together. A nearly impossible task, but it was her special day, so who knew?

* * *

Nearly a week had passed and Bulma and Juu were now boarding their plane for Denver.

Bulma was rummaging through her purse for a stick of gum and Juu was looking over their schedule for their meeting.

"We'll arrive at about noon, and since the meeting is at one thirty, we'll have about and hour and a half to get our bags, a taxi, and get to the Iselin."

Bulma frowned lightly, popping a stick of gum in her mouth, "Iselin?"

"Yeah." Juu said, not looking up from her palm pilot, "That's where your meeting is. Mr. Iselin, he's a major shareholder of Capsule Corps, he's selling his stocks back to you, and you're negotiating the procedures for a possible merge, he's retiring and trusts your company."

Bulma nodded and offered Juu a piece of gum, "And we'll be back to airport, when?"

Juu smiled, "We'll be back sometime before nine."

Bulma smiled back at Juu as they took their seats in first class on the plane and Bulma smiled, "Good. Chi's wedding is in three days and I would hate to spend anymore time away from her. She'd freak."

Juu laughed with a small nod, "Yeah, haha, you're probably right."

* * *

Launch sighed as she made her way into the shoe store, momentarily blinking as she saw her boyfriend, Chip, rise from a small bench and smile in her direction.

"Hey! Launch!"

She frowned lightly and blinked at the tall buisness man, "Ha-hey, Chip."

He hugged her, she stiffened a bit, and when he pulled away he handed her a CD.

She glanced down at it and faked a small smile, "Oh, Toby Keith. Wow. You shouldn't have."

She meant it, too. She hated country music.

He laughed, "I know, but I missed you, so I dropped by to say hey and bring you a gift."

She laughed and shook her head, "Wow. Well, thanks."

* * *

ChiChi pulled the dress from her closet and the wedding planner smiled at it, "Wow, it's as beautiful as the pictures."

ChiChi smiled, "Yeah, I love it. When I saw it in that bridal shop last year, I knew that I had to have it."

The wedding planner glanced down at her notebook, "Alright, well picking out the cake is the next thing."

Chichi giggled, "Well, that's the one thing Goku was interested in helping with."

* * *

Tien lay in the bed beside Julie, the lights were off and they were just talking since neither was tired.

"You know, Toby Keith is going to be in Tulsa when we are there for your friend's wedding."

Tien frowned slightly as he stared at the ceiling, he didn't care for country music, though his red-haired girlfriend was crazy about it.

"Tell me about Launch."

Tien blinked with a small frown, "What?"

"Yeah." Julie said, lightly, "I bet she's pretty."

Tien shrugged, "She's attractive, yes."

Julie smiled, "I could write a novel about this."

Tien frowned, he hated when she got in her romance novel mode. She would always try to include her real-life situations in her books.

"There's this poor woman who falls for this rich, handsome man. They are together, but she doesn't know that her fiance is having a secret affair with his attractive ex mistress."

Tien rolled his eyes, "I'm not your fiancee."

She frowned, rolling away from him so that he could only see her red hair shining from the moonlight reflecting from the window, "Oh, but you can have an affair?"

He laughed lightly and rolled his eyes, "I'll see if I can find any Keith Urban tickets tomorrow at work."

Julie sighed, "It's Toby Keith, Tien."

* * *

Bulma and Juu exited the buisness meeting and waited for a cab outside the skyscraper they had just attended a board meeting in.

Bulma hailed a cab while Juu pulled her scarf closer to her neck, "It's going to snow, Bee."

Bulma turned her attention to the sky as she opened the yellow taxi door and let Juu in, "Nah, it's just a little cold."

Juu shrugged as she hoped into the taxi and told the driver their destination was the airport.

Bulma kept her focus outside the window and watched as snow began to drift from the sky, slowly at first. By the time the girls had reached the airport, their was nearly three inches of snow and the Taxi driver warned them that they might think of getting a room, for their plane might not be leaving tonight.

* * *

Vegeta growled as his in-flight movie stopped abruptly and the seatbelt sign flipped on.

Krillin glanced at his business partner from his cushiony first-class seat and frowned, "What's going on, Vegeta?"

The two were on a flight from Tulsa to Denver, and they were only about an hour into their flight when the seatbelt line flashed on.

A flight attendant came across the speaker with a high, smooth, and pleasant voice, "I regret to inform each of the passengers aboard American Airlines, but due to inclement weather we will be taking an emergency landing at a nearby airport."

There was a murmur of complaints through the cockpit, and an overly pissed expression on Vegeta's face.

"We will be back in the air once the weather clears up, and I apologize for the delay. This is a matter of safety, and we make it our duty to put safety first. We know that you have choice when flying, and we thank you for choosing American. When the conditions are safe to land in Michigan, you will be granted a flight then. Until that time, and it will be as short as possible, we hope that you each enjoy your accommodations at the Denver airport."

Krillin frowned, clearly terrified, "Inclement weather?"

Vegeta frowned, "Fucking snow."

Krillin's frown deepened, "And what are we supposed to do in Denver?"

Vegeta laid his head back in his seat and shut his eyes, "Hell if I know."

* * *

Well... that seemed like a fine place to end.

Haha. Hm. Now who's stuck in Denver? ChiChi's planning her last minute wedding. Launch and Tien are stuck in country music-obsessed relationships. And Marron and Yamcha are on opposite sides of the country. Trust me, the next chapter will be better.

I really hope that you guys are still reading, please, please remember to review -- and I, of coarse, will remember to update!

I would like to thank **Trina Monkey **for the inspiration. Her update of her story "Business and Pleasure" made me get up and update quicker. And, of coarse, each of your reviews helped me to write this chapter! I hope that you liked and I hear from you again!

Thanks!

Haha. And while your waiting here's some pretty amazing fics you can read. ((and review, too, of coarse))

m

Scrambled Thoughts fic The Fast and the Furious

fic 

Padoora001s' You Stole the Rain, Something to Live and Die for, A Better Life, and My Name Is.

s' , and .

Sayain Passion's fics Love at First Sight and This Summer.

's fics and . 

And **DeathlyQuiet**'s fic When We Were Gods.

They're all wonderful. Trust me.

((if the links don't work, and has a habbit of doing so... then you can find the links under my "fav stories" thing))

Thanks again!

Crimson--


	4. The Fourth Chapter

High School Reunions

Chapter 4

Shades of Crimson

* * *

"No Goku, that is **not **a wedding cake."

Goku blinked in the direction at his dark haired wife, who was staring him down with displeased eyes and a scolding tone on her tongue.

Goku frowned, "Aw... ChiChi... But _this _ones chocolate!"

ChiChi scowled, "Goku, I don't care. Look at it. Look at it! That would be the tackiest wedding cake ever! I am not having my wedding cake looking like... looking like... looking like **_that._**"

Goku blinked again, "But ChiChi, it's **chocolate**."

"I don't care what it **_is_**, Goku! It's about what it _looks _like!"

The wedding planner, watching the couple with half amused, and half worried, eyes stepped in with a calm smile, "I have a plan."

The couple, who were engaged in the argument just moments before, froze -- ChiChi's arms in the air and a child-like frown imprinted on Goku's lips -- and then they turned to face the smiling, bubbly wedding planner.

She laughed, flipping a piece of her thin, sandy hair away from her cheek, "How about we make a compromise."

ChiChi frowned and crossed her arms, "A compromise? Feh."

The wedding planner continued to smile, "Yes, Mrs. Kakerot, what if you found a cake that was chocolate and looked nice?"

ChiChi blinked and her demeanor flipped 180 degrees, her face was lit with a smile, "Oh! A compromise! Haha. Sure."

The wedding planner laughed, placing her arms behind her head and watched Goku stand still, obviously confused. "Here Goku," she offered, pointing at a three layered cake with frilly brown frosting and chocolate covered strawberries lining the layers. Decks were stacked on top of one another, decreasing in proportional size the higher they got. The dainty strawberries, tips drenched in a dried, even chocolate, and a happy, plastic dark-haired couple in wedding attire stood proudly at the top of the refined cake.

"Chocolate Elegance." The wedding planner said the cakes name passionately, watching the couple eye the cake lustfully.

ChiChi smiled, "We'll take it."

* * *

A pair of blue eyes studied the pixel numbers that dotted the large computer screen. 

The owner of the deep blue eyes sighed, slightly frustrated, but mostly just with exhaustion as she watched as her flight times ran by, followed by the word "cancelled."

"It's pointless keeping up with it, Bee. Everything's cancelled."

Bulma jerked her head to the side as she heard the sound of her friend-slash-business partner's monotone voice.

"Yeah." Bulma sighed, "But I can't get up the nerve to call Chi."

"Why?" Juu said, raising one of her thinly plucked eyebrows in confusion, "She won't be mad, it's not like it's your fault."

Bulma laughed, "Can you imagine how stressed that woman is right about now? She's planning a very last minuet wedding, and ChiChi is a planner. The nervous kind, who does everything in advance."

Juu smiled lightly with a nod, "She'd freak if she knew that she was possibly a bridesmaid short."

Bulma smiled back at her, "Exactly."

Juu shrugged, "But we're going to be back before the wedding. I mean, you'll probably miss rehearsal and stuff, but that's no biggie. You just stand there anyway."

Bulma rubbed her closed eyelids tiredly, "And walk down the isle with him."

Juu smiled as she began to walk her boss to their hotel room, "Oh, so I finally get to meet this mysterious ex, hm?"

Bulma laughed and rolled her eyes, "Yeah."

"Well I can't wait."

Bulma shook her head as she watched Juu smile with anticipation as they approached the hotel room.

Juu pulled the card key from the back pocket of her jeans and quickly swiped it through the doorknob, "Well, it's a big thing. I mean, I get to meet the man you've been obsessed with for all these years, the mysterious man of your dreams, Trunk's father, the infamous jerk -- you know, this guys got a lot to live up to. You've all built him up to have quite a reputation, I only hope I'm not disappointed."

Bulma frowned playfully as she entered the hotel room, "Oh, and I assume this is all just a big joke to you, hm?"

Juu shook her head as she made a pot of coffee for Bulma.

Bulma frowned, "You don't have to do that, Juu."

Juu smiled, "You saw a Starbucks in the terminal, didn't you?"

Bulma laid back on the bed, "Right next to a shoe place. As soon as I nap, I'm there."

Juu laughed as she sat the coffee pot down and flicked the lights off, "Well I'm going for a walk then, maybe go shopping. Catch up with you later Bee."

Juu heard a small grunt before she shut the door and straightened out her hair, smoothed out her button up shirt, and checked her makeup in the reflective elevator door before she hopped in, and started off for the terminal.

* * *

For nearly five hours now he had been sitting on a plane. And not only had he been stuck sitting there, but he had been in coach. 

And now, here he stood, at baggage claim, and all of the other passengers had greeted their families and departed into cabs and family vans and company cars. But still he stood here. The rotating belt was still rotating, but there were no bags left on it. Not a single one.

He watched a Twix wrapper circle and come back to him for about the seventh time with a defeated sigh.

He made his way to the baggage claim office where a pretty woman sat behind the counter with a bored look on her face. Her chin rested in her cupped palm, her elbow digging into the hard counter which she was standing behind.

She was a petite African-American woman with large, brown eyes, and dark hair that was pulled back into a ponytail with a couple pieces of soft hair falling to frame her face. Her nails tapped with boredom on the information manual she was scanning through, and a Diet Cherry Vanilla Dr Pepper rose to her lips every now and then. But it was sat gently back onto the counter and she continued reading. She wore the standard American Airlines uniform, but it was more flattering to her small figure than to most.

Yamcha cleared his throat to get the woman's attention.

When she heard his deep voice her eyes snapped up, and she frowned, "Sire, Can I help you? Is there a problem?"

Yamcha nodded, "Yeah, I flew in from New York to Tulsa, and my damn bag didn't come around the conveyer belt, so I would conceder**_ that _**a problem."

The girl smiled a little at the cute, furious New Yorker before her.

"Alright, Mr..."

"Yamcha. Just call me Yamcha." He snapped with a frown.

The woman pulled a few strands of dark hair away from her face and nodded, "We'll lets see..."

She typed something onto the computer and smiled, clearly amused.

"What?" Yamcha asked, blinking with disbelief at her enjoyment.

She shook her head, "Seems our friends at Newark aren't the brightest little crayons in the box... your baggage was never checked. I asked them to send it down on the next flight. It will be here in about seven hours."

Yamcha frowned, "_Seven_ hours?"

She laughed, "Tulsa's not exactly the hot spot for vacationers."

"I've noticed." He muttered.

She sighed and took a sip from her Diet Cherry Vanilla Dr Pepper.

Yamcha eyed the can with a frown, "How can you stand to drink that crap?"

She sat the can down and shrugged, "It's great -- that's how. What's wrong with it?"

"Well, it takes longer to pronounce the fucking name of it then to actually drink the damn drink."

"T. T. T. Such language. You know, you should think of controlling your anger."

"And you should be politer, if you'd like to keep your job."

She rolled her eyes, taking another sip of her Cherry Vanilla Dr Pepper, "If they'd fire me, they'd only be doing me a favor."

He laughed, "Hate your job, too?"

She smiled, "Too? And what do you do, Yamcha?"

He smiled at the sound of his voice. He liked how she said it. But he frowned at her question, "I'm a plumber."

She laughed, and then frowned, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. This isn't exactly my idea of a dream job."

Yamcha rolled his eyes, "Mine either."

The woman smiled polietly at him. Yamcha smirked back at her friendly smile, it was perfect, revealing two rows of large, white teeth and a pair of dimples dotted her cheeks.

"So, what's your name?"

"Lana." She said, blinking slightly, knowing that her nametag had been in plain sight, but it was nice of him to ask her anyways.

Yamcha smiled, "When's your lunch break, Lana."

Lana laughed and shook her head, "Not for couple hours."

"Yeah? Well, I've got a couple hours."

She smiled, "Yes, seven, actually."

* * *

A pair of eyes traveled lazily across the airport shops. There was a gift shop, shoe store, a Starbucks, a bakery, a magazine stand, and an endless stretch of stores that weren't in they blonde's view. 

She smiled as she stepped into the bakery, taking in the scent of freshly baked bread. She bought a bagel and a cup of steaming, hot tea -- cursing the weather.

Juu ate her bagel and sipped her tea, watching the people as they walked by in solitude. She wished Bulma were here, she felt like a loner. But then she shook off the feeling. She had always been a loner, she didn't need others. When her twin brother had moved off to Florida to launch his surfing career, she had stayed in Illinois with her sick father.

Since the first day she had to get a job serving coffee she knew that she wouldn't have time for friends, no time for family, and barely enough time for school work.

After she had graduated she had kept her job, and continued to be a recluse. That was until the day Bulma had offered her a job, and Juu had dropped everything and gained a good paying job, a great traveling opportunity, and a friend.

But with Bulma came the whole crazy gang. ChiChi and Goku were a pair, the thought of those two made a smile spread across the icy blonde's face. She had only been acquainted with Launch and Marron, but liked those two alright.

Juu sighed as she finished the last bite of her bagel and threw her empty glass and napkin in the trashcan.

Juu started her walk back towards the hotel room, she couldn't seem to have as much fun as she used to. Maybe she wasn't capable of being a loner any longer. Maybe she was bored with herself. Maybe she had ---

"Ouch!" Juu muttered, as she tripped over something small.

She rubbed her soar thigh from her crumpled position on the ground and raised her eyes to meet a short man lending his arm out to help her up.

Juu smiled, something short and cute.

"Oh, I'm -- I'm so, so sorry Miss!" The man said, quickly.

Juu accepted his outstretched hand, dusting herself off and then laughed, "Oh -- Don't worry about it, I should probably look where I'm going..."

Krillin blinked and then laughed.

But the dark haired man standing just behind him spoke first, "Well I'd say. Idiotic woman.."

Juu glared at the man and then suddenly blinked, "Wait, Krillin! Hey!"

Krillin smiled back at her, "Juu! I **_knew_** I recognized you!"

"What on earth are you doing here?" Juu asked, a peppy curve in her usual monotone voice. It was still melancholy, but a minute tint of happiness surprised even her.

"Vegeta and I had a meeting and our plane landed here because of the 'inclement weather'."

Juu smiled and nodded back, "Yeah, our plane was supposed to depart here this morning, but the weather screwed our plans, too."

Krillin blinked, "Our?"

"Oh." Juu chewed thoughtfully on her lower lip, she couldn't mention Bulma. Not with Vegeta standing just meters away. She didn't really know him, but she recognized him from ChiChi's house. He was the one Bulma had run from. And she knew that her blue haired companion wouldn't be too happy with her blowing her cover. For whatever reason, she needed keep it hidden.

"Oh." Juu repeated slowly, "My business partner and I -- we're, going to Chi's wedding."

Krillin smiled happily, "Really! Us too! I mean, Vegeta -- he's, he's one of Goku's groomsmen. Wow. What a small world. Isn't this exciting, Vegeta?"

Vegeta rolled his eyes, "Wonderful."

Juu frowned at his sarcasm, wondering what Bulma had seen in him.

"Well," Juu said, "I guess I'll... I'll... see you around."

"Wait!" Krillin jumped, a little too quickly. Juu looked up at him, a blank expression covering her features.

"Have you eaten?"

Juu looked over at Vegeta, not wanting to ask him aloud if Vegeta would be joining them. She wouldn't want him to be accompanying them.

Krillin smiled, "Oh, Vegeta -- no, he was just about to... go somewhere."

The dark haired man rolled his eyes and stalked away.

Krillin smiled, "So, dinner?"

"Sounds great!" Juu said with a smile. Almost forgetting that jut moments before she had been filling up on a bagel, but she didn't much care.

* * *

"Would you ladies like something to drink?" 

Launch turned from the movie playing on the small screen in front of her and smiled at the polite flight attendant, "Oh, no thank you."

Leah frowned at Launch and then smiled at the stewardess, "I would like a Coke, please."

Launch frowned as her friend was passed another coke, "Another one, Lee?"

Leah shrugged, "Airplanes make me thirsty."

Launch laughed and turned her attention back to the movie, "Good thing you've got the aisle seat, I would hate to have to keep moving when you get up every five minutes to pee."

Leah rolled her eyes and stood up. Taking a quick glance at her blue haired friend in the center of their three-seat aisle, Launch's boyfriend, Chip, taking the window seat, only to sleep and snore softly as faint traces of country music blared from his headphones.

Launch smiled as she leaned back in her seat to take a nap, it wasn't a long flight from Florida to Oklahoma, but it wasn't short really, "Bathroom again?"

Leah ignored her friend and stepped back to the back of the plane, but she nearly choked when she saw Jay standing in the back of the plane, in line behind a heavy set woman and a small boy to use the pair of small restrooms.

Jay turned to her in surprise and smiled, "Hey!"

Leah laughed and stood beside him, "Tulsa?"

He nodded, "Yup."

"Wow." Leah looked down at her feet to avoid eye contact, "Small world."

Jay smiled, "Surfed lately?"

She shook her head, her eyes remaining averted from the black haired boy who was currently in a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, "Not since... last week was it?"

Of coarse she had remembered the day. But she didn't want him to think she was still caught up on it.

Jay laughed as a man in a business suit exited one of the bathrooms and the lady in line stepped in.

"Yeah. So... what brings you to Tulsa?" Leah asked, looking up at him. He was terribly attractive, with his friendly smile with a tint of cockiness on his tan, chiseled form.

"Visiting my sister." Jay laughed, "I haven't' seen her in so long." He studied her for a moment, "What about you?"

Leah shrugged lightly, "My best friends friend from high school is having a wedding."

Jay raised one of his eyebrows in her direction, "Sounds lame."

"Ooh." Leah taunted jokingly, "And catching up with your sister makes you a pimp."

Jay laughed and rolled his eyes at the pretty, pale brunette, "So, when we get back to Florida I'm going to give you another surfing lesson, and then I'm taking you to dinner."

"Dinner?" Leah smiled, "And what if I object?"

Jay shrugged, "Then I guess I'll just have to call one of those other chicks I hang out with, there's like a thousand of them all dying to date me."

Leah rolled her eyes, hearing his joking tone, "Riiiiight."

"You don't believe me?" Jay frowned slightly, "I'm hurt. Really."

"Okay." Leah said, smiling at him, looking him straight in the eye, "Let's say that I do go on this surfing lesson-slash-dinner --"

"And possibly movie." He interrupted.

She laughed, "Okay, surfing lesson-slash-dinner-slash-movie --"

"I said _possibly _movie. That all depends on how much I like you."

Leah smiled at the adorable look on his face and rolled her eyes, "Okay, well let's just say we do all that, and then --"

The boy exited the bathroom and Jay smiled, "I think your next, babe."

Leah blushed slightly, remembering just how bad she had to pee, and just how embarrassed she was that he knew what she was going to be doing in there.

Jay winked at her as the other bathroom opened as well, "I'll need your number."

Leah blushed again as she shut the restroom door and locked it with a sigh, rubbing her cheeks in an attempt to wipe the blush that seems to be permanently plastered there.

"Oh well." She muttered to herself, "maybe it could pass off as if I got some sun."

* * *

He smirked as he listened to her laugh. It was small and high, loud and cute. 

She shook her head, "Yamcha, I've eaten my lunch in this terminal everyday for as long as I've worked here -- and this is the best Chinese food restaurant there is."

Yamcha smiled, "Here?"

She shrugged as she chewed on a piece of chicken, "I guess I wouldn't know."

Yamcha laughed again with a shrug, "So... what do you do for fun in Tulsa, Lana?"

She shrugged, "I... I like yoga."

He blinked, "Oh, your the new age type?"

She smiled, "You could say that."

Yamcha smirked, picturing her doing yoga and then shook his head.

"So Yamcha, what do you do for fun? Besides pluming, of coarse."

Yamcha rolled his eyes, "I play baseball."

"Baseball, hm."

"I'm pretty good."

She laughed, "Okay Mr. Humble."

He shook his head with a toothy laugh, "No, but I've played since I was a kid. I was on the team in highschool, and I play for a minor league team in New York. Scouts said I could play pro with a little more practice."

She blinked, "Pro? Really? Wow Yamcha, that's great."

He smiled, "What are you doing in two days."

She frowned, thinking lightly, "Saturday? Um.. nothing, I don't think."

"Good." There was a serious look on Yamcha's face, "Then you should come with me to a wedding."

She blinked, "A wedding."

Yamcha smiled, "It's a friends -- and he said I needed a date."

She smiled with a small laugh as she placed some more rice into her mouth, chewed a little and the nodded, "Alright. I'll go."

Yamcha smiled, "Good."

She nodded and laughed again, "Great."

* * *

After Launch, Leah, Chip, and, consequently, Jay, had landed in Tulsa, they had gotten a cab and, minus Jay, went straight to ChiChi's house, where the taxi driver dropped them off at a pleasant looking redbrick house with a tall fence in the back and a row of green bushed leading guests up to the front porch. 

"Wow." Launch said with a smile as the trio made their way past the row of bushes and she knocked on the door, "This is exactly the kind of place that I pictured ChiChi and Goku living in."

Leah smiled and glanced at Chip, and then smiled, "They're the kind of people that you always pictured growing old together?"

Launch laughed, "Yeah. Stragely enough I pictured Bulma and Vegeta, Marron and Yamcha, and Tien and myself together, too."

Leah laughed, "You guys would get condos on the beach together and on thursday nights get together and play cards."

Launch shook her head, knocking again, "Though Marron and Yamcha, they wouldn't have ever worked out -- and Bulma and Vegeta, those two were just a disaster waiting to happen."

Chip nodded, "And this Tien guy?"

Launch shook her head with a small laugh, "High school romances never work out anyway, well, except for these two."

With that said, the front door opened up and ChiChi greeted Launch with reuniting hug.

"Oh! Chi! I've missed you so!" Launch said, continuing to embrace her old friend.

When ChiChi let go Launch introduces ChiChi to Chip and Leah.

ChiChi welcomes them inside and Chip asks were the bathroom is.

ChiChi smiled, "Down the hall, second door on the left."

She watched Chip go with dark eyes and then Launch blinked, "Are we the first ones here?"

ChiChi shook her head, "Oh, no, Goku took Tien down to dojo to show him around."

ChiChi watched Launch smile slightly and then she sighed, "He has a girlfriend, you know?"

"Yeah." Launch said with a distant nod, "He and I had dinner the other day."

"What?" ChiChi said, slightly taken back.

Leah smiled as she watched Launch blush, "Well, it was... just as old friends. He lives in Florida, and, uh, well Leah and I just moved over there to start a new chain of stores. I ran into him last week and we got a few drinks. It was nice catching up with him. I haven't met her, but he seems to like her well enough, and we're just friends, honestly, Chi."

ChiChi nodded, "Yeah. I haven't met her. She's staying with her cousin who lives here. Tien came by after he had dropped her off."

Launch smiled, "So when is everyone else expected to get here?"

ChiChi took in a small breath of air and smiled, "Well, Yamcha got his luggage lost, but it will be here in about an hour he said, so he'll be here shortly, I presume. Marron is taking her rich older man's private jet here, I'm a little anxious to meet him, as I'm sure we all are. I haven't talked to her since yesterday on the phone, I think they'll be in in the morning though."

ChiChi grinned, "But this is my favorite -- about an hour and a half ago I got a call from Bulma saying that she was stranded in Denver. Apparently there was some bad weather and due to ice on the runways they aren't allowing any planes to depart until they get it cleared up--"

Launch frowned, "What? And how is that god?"

ChiChi shook her head, a grin remaining on her face, "That's not all, Launch, listen. Well, I told this to Goku and he nearly flipped. Vegeta had called him earlier today to say that his plane had made a quick landing for fear that the runways would worsen where they were expected to land, so he called to say that he was stuck waiting for flight to Tulsa -- In Denver."

Launch's jaw dropped, "No!"

ChiChi smiled wider, "Yes."

Launch laughed, "Oh... wow."

ChiChi shook her head, "Those two are bound to run into each other.. I can hardly wait."

Launch laughed again, "I only wish I could see their expressions."

ChiChi sighed, "I'm almost glad that they will have already gotten over the seeing-each other part _before _they ruin my wedding."

"And what about Trunks?" Launch asked, the question suddenly filling her mind.

"He went to the dojo with Goku and Tien. Oh, and Goten, of coarse."

Launch smiled, then noticing Leah's confused expression, she obviously felt left out knowing none of these people.

"Laaaaaaaaunch!" A deep voice called from somwhere down the hall. Launch rolled her eyes at the sound of Chip's voice, "He probably can't figure out how to work the faucets, I swear, that man asks me every time we go somewhere new how to turn the water on."

Leah laughed, and after Launch had stalked down the hall she turned to ChiChi, "Launch doesn't really like Chip."

ChiChi blinked, "What?"

"No." Leah continued, "She can hardly stand him. She just doesn't want to be alone. Ever since she went out with Tein last week, well she's been a much happier person."

ChiChi smiled, almost evilly, "Hm."

Leah smiled back at ChiChi, "Yeah... It's kind of, complicated."

ChiChi shook her head, "Oh, it can't be that complicated. Those two were always crazy about each other. There's not a doubt in my mind that they're dying to be together."

Leah sighed, "But what about Tein's girlfriend?"

ChiChi waved her hand in the air, "Feh. If I got Bulma and Vegeta together, I'm sure this will be a piece of cake."

Leah blinked, "Haven't Bulma and Vegeta been furious at oneanother for almost seven years?"

ChiChi blinked, "No. Not furious... just... distant. But that's about to change, too. Just wait. Weddings bring out the true romance in everyone."

Leah smiled, "I sure hope so."

* * *

Juu sat across from Krillin in the Chilies that lay just across from the airport. Their booth was in a corner in the back of the light room. The other tables around them were completely filled, for their was a ten minute waiting list when the couple had arrived. 

Krillin laughed as Juu admitted her distaste for zucchini and everything that had zucchini in it.

Juu frowned, "Oh, come one. There has to be something that you don't eat."

Krillin shrugged, "Yeah. I'm a picky eater. Oh, but you should see my business partner, Vegetea, that guy would eat anything."

Juu blinked, remembering that Bulma had always said the same thing about Trunks.

Krillin laughed, "Of coarse, he eats so quickly I doubt he even has time to register what his food tastes like."

Juu smiled and then her cell phone began to ring from pocket. Krillin smiled as he regonized the tune and as he watched Juu stare at the name in the phone and curse under her breath.

"Jay?"

She looked up at Krillin apologetically.

"Oh, Jay, I'm so sorry... Yeah, my plane was laid over in Dever... Yeah. It does suck... Sorry... No, you go straight ahead to ChiChi's house, she understands what's happening... Yes... Yes I'm sure... Okay... Look, tell her that you can stay there... No... Okay... I love---... No... No... NO!... Haha. Alright... Okay... I love you too, bye."

Juu hung up her phone and rolled her eyes. Then she looked up at noticed a disappointed look on Krillin's sweet face.

She laughed, "Oh, that was my brother. He's coming in town for ChiChi's wedding and I was supposed to pick him up from the airport."

Krillin perked up a little. _Her brother! Haha... thank God. I thought she was with... oh, chill out. She probably is. Woman like her aren't still single._

"Do you have a girlfriend Krillin?"

Krillin looked up at her, she wore a calm expression with a teasing smile and he blushed furiously, "Umm... well... No. Not exactly."

She smiled again, "Not exactly?"

"Well.. not at all."

"Good." She said with a small nod, "Because I think I'm starting to like you. I mean, truthfully, I just went to dinner with you because I wanted to be with you. I'm not hungry at all. I had actually just eaten before I ran into you."

Krillin smiled, "Literally..."

She rolled her eyes, "I'm serious. And I'm not so dense to have not figured out that were stranded here for the same reason. We're both on our way to ChiChi and Goku's wedding thing. God only knows why a married couple would plan their own second-wedding, but I've figured something else out, too."

Krillin blinked, "And that would be?"

"Vegeta... and Bulma."

"Vegeta and, who?" Krillin asked, confusion in his tone.

Juu smiled, "Bulma. My boss. The one I'm here with. They're... old friends from high school."

Krillin blinked, "Wiat... Vegeta's Bulma... Old _girl_friend, is Bulma.. Bulma Briefs?"

Juu nodded and Krillin shook his head, "Unbelievable."

* * *

Vegeta had been walking aimlessly through the terminal for what felt like hours now, he glanced down at his watched and his eyebrows knitted together. Okay, so it had been only twenty-three minutes -- wait -- twenty-four. 

But still, he was bored, and Krillin, the only person in this place he knew, was even gone. He smirked to himself, imagine how bored he must be -- wanting to waste his time with that annoying short man who drove him crazy half the time.

But now, walking around purposelessly, just to waste time, he decided that he actually needed some company.

That was until he walked past a familiar coffee shop that always made his fist compress.

Whether it was with anger or grief or remembrance -- he hated the smell of the rich coffee coming from Starbucks. It was unfortunate that he often traveled to New York and was greeted with this same sight and smell every few blocks. It was like running into her again.

Bulma.

He frowned. Why did she haunt him so? Was she somewhere on the opposite side of the country drinking this very coffee as an obsession, he frowned, she was probably in Tulsa helping ChiChi prep for her wedding, thanking the lord that she wasn't stuck with the awkwardness of having him around.

He shook his head, cursing himself for being so weak. But he blinked when he thought he saw her.

Yes, right there. Purchasing a cup of coffee. He laughed at himself as he stared blankly at her. He had gone so preoccupied without her that he was now even picturing her at a terminal Starbucks in Colorado.

But he still watched the back of her head, or what he thought was her head. It looked enough like her. Long, blue locks, they were straight, and shiny, reflecting the lights above her as she paid.

He shook his head, cursing himself. He rubbed his soar eyes and opt to go back to the hotel and get some much needed rest.

That was until the goddess with the coffee cup turned in his direction -- and it was clear. It _had_ been her.

Same perfect face with it's petite features, but large, curious and fiery blue eyes. She wore a pair of jeans with a tight, pink trench coat and a pair of pink Old Navy shoes.

Vegeta could do nothing but stare at her. The cup of coffee was at her lips -- the very coffee that he had despised for all of these years for reminding him of her, had brought her back to him.

She blinked back at him, the coffee just resting there on her lips, her eyes wide with surprise.

But unlike the other night it wasn't terror that caused her knees to shake -- it was excitement.

"Vegeta?" She asked, stepping in his direction. Her eyes taking in his handsome features, he looked the same, but older and possibly darker. She smiled, possibly more handsome. Or maybe she had just forgotten the creases of his face, the perfect line of his jaw and the dark circles that were his eyes.

"Vegeta!" She repeated, but this time it wasn't a surprised question. It was a question cornered with happiness.

"Vegeta!" And, for a third time, it was repeated from her lips, but this time his name was loud and she ran to him, throwing her arms around his neck, being careful not to spill her coffee which was being held behind his head with her right hand as she took in his masculine scent. Wanting to believe that she was the only woman who had the privilege of being this close to him.

"Wow!" She said, pulling away, "What on earth are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in Tulsa?" The happiness in her voice surprised her. What happened to dreading to see him?

Vegeta smirked at her, "I was about to ask you the same thing."

She continued to smile at him. What had broken them apart? she wondered. How could she had ever been so furious at him? They seemed so good now.

Bulma sighed, "The weather, I guess it screwed up both our plans."

Vegeta chuckled, "No, do you know who's plans were _really_ screwed?"

Bulma smiled wider, "ChiChi? Oh, that poor woman, she's probably hysterical right about now. Frantic and in a panic, she won't get a wink of sleep until the wedding."

Vegeta smirked back at her and nodded, "I almost feel bad for Kakerot."

"Well it was his choice marring her." Bulma added, jokingly, "_Again_."

Vegeta chuckled, "Woman,"

Bulma looked up at him, this seemed unreal to her. She remembered Trunks. She knew how livid Vegeta was going to be when he found out. When he found how long she'd hid Trunks from him.

She felt like a wreck, here Vegeta stood -- they were having friendly conversation. He seemed to be the same Vegeta. The Vegeta she had fell in love with. The Vegeta that had broke her heart. And the Vegeta that she had spent the last seven years trying to get over, but the thought of him had been tormenting her at night, and she had to fight herself from crying in the single hours of morning.

She hated that she loved him, and she couldn't even fathom that he had felt the same for her all this time.

And here they had been -- standing face to face, like old friends. Just catching up.

No one around could guess their history. Their misery. Their passion. Not even they could quite grasp what was happening.

But they were both too prideful and too stubborn to admit that either of them had done wrong.

"Woman, are you hungry?"

"Hm?" Bulma asked with a blink, she hadn't been listening to him through her thoughts.

"Are you hungry?" He repeated, a little perturbed, but mostly just anxious to spend some time with her.

"Oh, yes." She laughed, a small suiting blush crossed her pale cheeks, "Starved, actually."

"Good." Vegeta smirked, "Let's go get something to eat." he finished, leading her through the glass doors of the airport.

Bulma smiled, "Alright Vegeta --let's."

* * *

Summer! At last! ... of coarse... I'm not sure what that's going to do about my updating. Hm. I'm going to be vacationing a lot, and with friends doing stuff... but... I'm sure I'll have plenty of time to update! 

Dark Hope Assassinsuggested that I get a beta reader. It's a good idea actually, my stories are littered with mistakes... I never proof read like I should. So -- if you are interested please say so in your review, thankies!

This chapter was a lot of fun to write, maybe it was because of all the support I've gotten from the past few chapters! You guys are seriously the best! Thank you!

As for the next chapter? Hm. We'll let's see... I'm promising some Bulma/Vegeta. Not full out romance. ((yet...)) But the chapter will defiantly concentrate more on them... with, of coarse, other couplings happening too... since this plot takes more than just those two to work. But, I hope to clear up some things between those two... And Trunks? Hm. Who knows.

What else do you guys want to see soon? Please.. .tell me!

Thanks again for all the great reviews! I hope to hear from you all again. And I hope that you have a **wonderful **summer! ((i know i sure will))

With love!

Crimson


	5. The Fifth Chapter

High School Reunions

The Fifth Chapter

Shades of Crimson

* * *

"You _didn't_!" Bulma said, wiping away the tears that were absent from her eyes. She had been laughing so had that she figured they might be there.

She and Vegeta had spent the evening in a restaurant in the airport and had entertained each other for so long that it was now coming on eleven, which Bulma figured that they must have been in there for over two hours.

Bulma shook her head as she began to follow Vegeta to their hotel, "Wow Vegeta, I'd forgotten how funny you were."

Vegeta watched her laugh with an emotionless visage. He really had enjoyed himself tonight, and he had almost admitted to himself that he had missed her company.

She smiled at him, "I bet all the ladies fall for your charm."

He shrugged, conceitedly, and smirked, "I guess so."

She laughed, and admitted casually, "I guess I did too."

He nodded smugly, "I know."

She frowned, "You always were arrogant, Vegeta."

He looked over at her plainly, his eyes never wavering, honesty in his haughty voice, "But don't I have a reason to be?"

Bulma frowned, "I guess."

He chuckled, "Oh? And let me guess, you turned into Miss Modesty."

She caught the sarcasm in his voice and averted her eyes from him, she frowned, guessing that he had seen her photo shoots. So what? She was a beautiful woman. She knew it. Everyone knew it. And everyone knew she knew it. And that didn't bother her . So maybe she was a little haughty herself. She frowned, "You think I'm incredibly vain."

He nodded his head. She frowned, so he did.

"But it's not a flaw." He told her plainly, "We were good together."

She almost blushed at his confession. It wasn't a blow to his pride. He was just being honest. She smiled, she _was_ a good a catch. Most eligible bachelorette number six. She almost laughed aloud, "We had fun back in high school, didn't we?"

But when he didn't answer, she looked up and caught him staring at the screen that showed the outgoing flights.

"Our plane leaves tomorrow morning."

She found the cancelled Tulsa flight and nodded, "At seven o'clock."

He frowned, knowing that she wasn't a morning person.

"Damnit." She groaned, "That means in order to be presentable, I'll have to get up at six.."

"And you should be there a half-hour before it boards," He smirked, "you know."

Bulma smiled at him, "Oh well, I'm just glad were getting out of here!"

He nodded and then watched her pull a cell phone out of her pocket, press a few keys, and place it to her ear.

After a few moments she smiled brightly, "Hey! Chi! Oh, good news!"

She looked up at Vegeta, barely able to hide her excitement, "My flight leaves tomorrow at seven. Yeah, so Vegeta and I should be there around... ten."

Vegeta could hear the surprise in ChiChi's voice on the other end of the phone, he couldn't quite make out her words -- but he could guess them. Evil wench, he thought bitterly, she had known that they were to be at the same airport, probably _hoping _that they would run into each other.

"Yeah Chi, he's here... Oh," Bulma said with a frown, "Don't sound like that. I know that you knew that we were both her, I'm not an idiot." Pause. "Haha. Yeah, no, it's cool."

Bulma lifted her blue eyes to meet Vegeta's dark ones, they stared at each other for a few moments, "No, we have the same flight home, so we'll be there at ten or so." Another pause and then Bulma frowned, "Nah, don't bother -- I can just get a cab to take me to my house, change and get everything there, and then come see you guys." She smiled as ChiChi began to talk again, "Yeah! I'm so excited to see everyone!"

Vegeta watched her as she said goodbye, said that she loved her, and then hung up her phone, and stuffed it into her purse. He almost smiled in remembrance of how she always used to do to so. Almost.

"Alright Vegeta, we'll I guess this is goodnight." She said casually as they approached her hotel room door.

He smirked at her, the corner of his mouth and his eyes holding an almost seductive suggestion and she laughed, "Oh come on Vegeta, seven years ago I would have shoved you into my hotel room, but things have changed." She laughed, "Besides, I have a roommate tonight -- remember?"

Vegeta smirked as he placed his hands on either side of her head, almost pinning her to the door. He wasn't sure why he was doing this. For some reason he couldn't help but want her. She was as hot as he remembered, and their history... he brought his lips down to her ear and smirked , "In college you had a roommate as well, but I think I remember you just locking the door."

She rolled her eyes, knowing that he was only playing with her, like old times. She frowned, "And in college you had a girlfriend, and I think I remember you --"

She let out a shriek as the door she was pressed against was thrown open and she crashed onto the floor. Vegeta, who had his weight resting against his hands that were pressed against the door as well, toppled after her, so that they were now lying in a heap on the floor, positioned awkwardly, Vegeta on top of her.

Juu, holding the open door smiled at the two, "Aw, did we do some catching up?"

Krillin, who had shocked expression on his face, held his brief case in his hands, in the position that he was about to walk out the door, looked down at the couple with surprise.

"Uh, hey Vegeta."

Vegeta lifted himself off of Bulma, who rubbed her soar bottom while she got up as well.

"Come on Krillin." Vegeta spat gruffly, "Our plane leaves tomorrow morning."

Bulma turned to Juu with a frown, "Early." She confirmed.

Juu smiled at Krillin as he followed his business partner out of the room, "See you tomorrow!"

Krillin smiled back at her, and with a small wave he returned her with a short, "See yah!" before Bulma shut the door and yawned, "Do you want to shower first, or me?"

* * *

Marron seated herself into the comfortable leather seats of the private jet.

She smiled across the seat at the older man obliquely positioned from her. He had on an expensive suit and was holding a glass of dark wine in his right hand. She smiled, it was his of the wine company that he owned.

She leaned back and turned her attention to the TV screen that hovered above the couple, and for a moment she tried to focus in on the movie that was going on above her, but she couldn't help but hold in the anticipation to see her old friends. They would finally get see her success!

She had done just what she said that she would. Marry rich, live a luxurious lifestyle -- freely, easily, happily.

She smiled as she looked back at the man across from her. He had sat the wineglass down on a nearby table and was concentrating on the palm pilot he held in his hands.

She could see a few strands of graying hairs in his head of dark, thinning hair. But mostly, she prided herself in picking him stylish and successful and handsome.

Yes, her friends would approve.

And for a moment, she almost felt like she wasn't using him. Like she _did _feel something for him. She watched him play with the palm and she sighed as she turned her head away from him.

Almost.

* * *

A brown suitcase was handed to Yamcha by an airport attendant with an apologetic smile.

Yamcha snatched his luggage and purposely avoided the apology with an angry expression.

He turned his head back to Lana who's dark, pretty face was holding in a small laugh.

He frowned at her.

So she found his anger amusing?

When he made his way to her desk she smiled, "Well they returned it early, that's good."

His frown remained and Lana sighed, "So are you going to give me your friend's address, or am I just supposed to pretended to forget that you asked me to her wedding."

Yamcha grabbed a piece of paper out of his pocket and then took a pen from Lana's desk and, on a sheet of paper that was laying in front of her, he scribbled his cell phone number and, copied ChiChi's address from the crumpled paper he had previously pulled from pocket.

Lana read over the number and the address with a nod, "Date. time?"

Yamcha smiled up at her and wrote those under the address, "Anything else?"

She shook her head and he winked at her, turning around and walking his way to get a taxi and take him to the address written on the crumpled sheet of paper he held in his hand.

* * *

Bulma and Juu boarded the plane. A little late... Bulma frowned at the flight attendant as she called for coach passengers seating in section three.

Bulma sighed as she showed them their tickets, marking their seats in first class.

The flight attendant let them go, and Bulma and Juu made their way to their seats.

As they put their carryon bags into the overhead compartment Krillin stood up from his seat and smiled at the couple, "Hey guys!"

Juu looked over at him and smiled, "Hey!"

Vegeta chuckled as he watched Bulma try to cram her purse in the already full storage bin, he smirked, "Let me guess, you woke up late and then took longer than you thought it would to get ready."

Bulma rolled her eyes and ignored him, but Juu eyed him with a frown, "Yeah, that's exactly what happened."

"Don't talk to him, Juu." Bulma said, trying to slam the bin closed, "He's a --"

Vegeta got up and helped her close the bin and frowned, "Jerk?"

Bulma looked over at him, the anger in her eyes slowly fading -- he took this as a thanks and turned to sit back down, but found Juu in his seat.

He glared at her and she smiled and Krillin shrugged, "I want to sit by her, Vegeta."

"Besides!" Juu said, turning her chair around so that it faced the two empty seats that were to become Bulma and Vegeta's, "We're all going to be together anyway!"

The four chairs were turned to face each other and there was a table unfolded in front of their chairs.

Vegeta growled and crossed his arms, "Well? Go ahead woman."

Bulma blinked at him and he frowned, "You have to have the window seat, right?"

Bulma smiled at him and blinked, _Is he going out of his way to be **nice **to me?_

Vegeta frowned as he took the seat beside her, across from Krillin, "You always had to look out the window in the car and shit."

Bulma couldn't help but smile at his favor. Juu didn't find it much of a favor, but Krillin found it strange that Vegeta would give Bulma something he knew she wanted, but hadn't even asked for.

"So." Krillin said, breaking the awkward silence, "How did you and Bulma meet?"

The question was directed towards Juu and she smiled, "We're from the same hometown. I actually worked at a Starbucks Bulma was a regular at, and when I was looking for a new job Bulma hired me. Gave me more than I asked for, really, but I love it."

Vegeta frowned, "You were addicted to that crap."

Krillin blinked, "What crap?"

Bulma smiled, "Starbucks."

Juu laughed, "She still is..."

Killin nodded lightly, "So where did you go to college Juu?"

Bulma frowned slightly at his question. Juu didn't really like talking about college, since she hadn't been able to go.

"I didn't." Juu said, slightly snappy. Clearly not happy that she hadn't attended a fancy university like the others surrounding her had.

Bulma smiled apologetically at Krillin, "Where did you go?"

"Yale." Krillin answered, his attention turned towards the unhappy girl beside him.

Bulma gasped, "No shit? So did I!"

Krillin turned his attention now to the blue haired girl cattycornered to him and smiled, "Really! What class?"

Bulma's face saddened slightly and she averted her eyes, "I actually ended up leaving school early." She confessed slowly, as if it were a bad thing, "I took all of my exit exams and passed with honors. I got my diploma privately, took care of a few things, and then took the position as the co-owner of Capsule Corps.."

Vegeta looked over at her with a frown, wondering what she had to "take care of" and why it was more important than her beloved university. He couldn't imagine her giving up her classes. When they talked on the phone she always seemed to like it so much. His frown remained, was she emotional enough to give up because of him?

Bulma smiled, "What class were you in?"

"'08." He answered, clearly proud.

Bulma smiled, "Really! That was my roommates class."

"What's her name?" He asked, curiously.

Bulma smiled, "Christie Fields."

Krillin laughed, "We dated a little in college actually."

It was difficult for Juu to hide her jealousy, Vegeta noticed this and felt a little out of the conversation a little himself.

Then Krillin blinked, "You were Christie's roommate?"

When Bulma nodded he smiled, "Your the one she always talked about! The one who got early graduation because you were a freaking genius?"

Bulma laughed and Vegeta rolled his eyes at her "modesty".

Then Krillin blinked, "The one who skipped class to go find her boyfriend at Duke because she was --" He stopped mid-sentence. Bulma's eyes were large, and Juu's breath was caught in her throat. Krillin's eyes darted nervously at the two and then looked at the unknowing Vegeta who had seemed to not have caught the significance in what he had said. Just that Bulma had took off of school to visit him -- and that much, he already knew.

Krillin frowned, "You cheated on her?"

Vegeta's head snapped in Krillin's direction., but it was Bulma who turned her saddened eyes to stare out the window and she frowned, "No... not exactly."

Juu's looked surprised and then Krillin blinked, "Not _exactly_?"

Bulma shrugged, and then Vegeta turned his attention to his saddened ex. Bulma shrugged, her focus still on the clouds below.

When Vegeta got up from his seat Bulma gave him a strange look, "Where are you going?"

He frowned, "I've got to take a piss."

When he was out of hearing range Krillin blinked, "You were pregnant!"

Juu looked at him and then Bulma frowned, "Yeah."

"And?" Krillin asked, shaking his head with disbelief.

Bulma smiled at the thought of Trunks, "_And_, I have the most amazing son in the world."

Krillin rubbed his eyelids tiredly, "Vegeta's son?"

Bulma frowned. She had never heard any one ever say it out loud before, they usually avoided saying it directly with her. It sounded... _nice_. Bulma's thoughts betrayed her. "Yes." She muttered meekly, "Vegeta's son." She had repeated it just to see how it sounded aloud on her own account.

Juu frowned, "But, still, he _did_ cheat."

Krillin looked at her, "You knew this?"

Bulma rolled her eyes, "Everyone does... except Vegeta."

Krillin blinked, obviously able to put two and two together, "Trunks... good God he looks just like the two of you!"

Bulma looked up at him and Juu smiled, "He does, doesn't he?"

Krillin shook his head, still in disbelief. Vegeta had a _son_? "I should have figured it just by looking at him... and the fact that when I first met Juu she was picking him up from ChiChi's house for a friend when he and Vegeta were there. God. I can't believe... Vegeta doesn't have a clue!"

Bulma sighed, "How am I supposed to tell him? He'll be furious at me... I don't blame him..." She sighed, looking defeated, "Vegeta never wanted kids. And then, when I decided that I had to tell him anyway, I found him with another girl. I took this as a bad omen." She frowned after a short pause, "Maybe it was me being emotional or the thought that Vegeta wouldn't want this anyway -- maybe I was doing him a favor. Maybe I was just being selfish. But I decided that I would raise Trunks on my own.

We had really only broken up because of my stupid raging pregnancy hormones and Vegeta's prideful refusal to apologize and explain what happened when I found him with that girl. We were both stubborn and arrogant... We would raise a horrible child."

Juu laughed and then shrugged, "Trunks is a really good kid tough."

"Yeah." Krillin said, looking down at his lap, "We met him the other night at Goku's dojo."

Bulma nodded with a smile, "Yeah... that kid worships him now. I wonder if Vegeta would..."

Krillin smiled and then he shrugged, "So, are you going to tell him?" He knew that what Bulma had said was right -- Vegeta _didn't_ want kids, and, honestly, he wasn't angry with Bulma for not telling Vegeta. That's not saying that his business partner wasn't going to be pissed. But he did find the thought of Vegeta being a dad kind of cute.

Bulma nodded, "Well... I don't have a choice.. as soon as we gets to Tulsa and this kid starts calling me momma, well.. I'm pretty sure he'll figure it out."

Krillin sighed, "He's coming down the aisle now."

Bulma frowned and turned her attention back outside the window and began to listen to Vegeta gruffly begin to explain about a brat that had been in front of him in line.

* * *

The ringing of the doorbell could be heard throughout the Son household. A frantic ChiChi rushed to the door, leaving behind a kitchen with a sink full of dishes that Launch and Leah were currently busy washing and a few pots cooking slowly on the stove.

Goku, Yamcha, Jay (who had shown up earlier in a taxi and had explained to ChiChi that he was Juu's twin brother), Launch's boyfriend Chip, Goten, and Trunks were all in the backyard and came inside to see who had come to the door.

When ChiChi opened the door she was greeted with a hug from Tien, and a handshake from his girlfriend. Who ChiChi noted was quite pretty.

Launch entered the living room where everyone had gathered and ChiChi explained that Marron and her fiance would be there later tonight and Bulma, Juu, Vegeta, and Krillin would be arriving in a few hours and then everyone would be here and ready for the wedding tomorrow.

Julie and Launch greeted each other, a little awkwardly, because both knew what they were in Tien's life. While Tien and Chip greeted each other with a firm handshake. Chip oblivious to who Tien even was. Just another friend of Launch's from high school.

Though he did admit that Tien's girlfriend was _very _pretty.

ChiChi wiped her hands on her apron, clearly stressed, and announced that breakfast would be done in a moment.

Goku smiled widely, and in the kitchen Leah had returned to help ChiChi sat the table.

ChiChi thanked her for her help and Leah smiled at the stressed soon-to-be-bride, "Why don't you go visit with your guests?" Leah suggested with a smile, as Jay entered the kitchen, "Jay and I can handle the remainder of breakfast -- you've done most of the work anyway."

ChiChi sighed and thanked her again, and, leaving the couple alone they smiled at one another -- both admitting that they didn't know anyone and they felt a little out of place.

Tien smiled down at Goten and Trunks. Introducing himself to the pair, "I'm Tien!" He greeted with a smile, "You must be Goten.." he said, pointing to the Goku mini and smiled, "And then, that makes you Trunks."

The boys blinked up at him boredly and Tien smiled as Launch came up behind him, she smiled at the little Bulma/Vegeta Goku/ChiChi fusions.

The boys ran off into the kitchen and Launch smiled at Tien as they entered the kitchen after them to eat breakfast as well, "They're cute, aren't they?"

Julie smiled awkwardly at Chip as he placed his hands into the pockets of his blue jeans casually.

"So.." She said slowly, "any plans while the two of you are here?"

Chip shrugged, "Yeah... um, were going to a concert."

Her eyes snapped, with jealously and curiosity. "Toby Keith?" She blurted.

Chip blinked and nodded, "Yeah."

Julie smiled, a wide grinned-toothy smile, "Oh, you're _SO_ lucky! I begged Tien to get some tickets while we were down here, but he just... isn't in to that sort of thing."

Chip smiled at her, "Yeah... Neither is Launch."

They looked at each other for a moment longer and then Tien came to the door frame, "You two coming?"

They smiled and looked away, Julie blushing and Chip rubbing the back of his neck.

"Yeah, Tien, We're coming." Julie finished, with a smile at the man across from her.

* * *

After a few moments of silence, a man, who was reading a magazine, cast a glance in Bulma's direction. Vegeta saw this and noticed the cover of the magazine -- it was the one that he had seen Bulma in not too long ago. The one that named her bachelorette number six. His eyes narrowed as he watched the man, with the disgusting looking of awe on his face as he studied Bulma's every feature, glancing back down at the magazine in front of his nose every now and then.

Vegeta let out a growl and then turned to Bulma. He saw she had an emotionless gaze on her face as she too saw the man. Vegeta guessed that she was probably used to it by now. Men, _perverts_, coming up to her. He fought the urge to strangle the man. Then he frowned at himself. Why did he still feel protective of her? She wasn't his. She didn't require his help with men. What the fuck was wrong with guys hitting on her? She was the sixth most eligible bachelorette in the county. He frowned as he watched the man flip the page and drool over bachlorette number five.

Juu had fallen asleep, her head against the window, and Krillin sat silently, listening to her quiet breathing through the pages of the book he was pretending to read.

Bulma turned to Vegeta and smiled at him -- "So... how have you been for the past, what? seven years?"

Vegeta shrugged and leaned back in his seat, he knew that the woman was ready to engage in small talk -- and he had missed her company. He knew that it wouldn't be long until they fought. They always managed to fight. He shrugged, "I've been okay. Busy."

She smiled, "That's good. Do you still talk to Tien?"

He shook his head and Bulma sighed, "That's too bad. He was a good guy. I never really talked to him in high school though."

"Yeah." Vegeta shrugged, "He didn't fit in with you and Kakerot's bitch's clique."

Bulma looked slightly hurt. Krillin winced from across their seat, he had been eavesdropping.

"No." Bulma said softly, "Do you regret high school?"

The question caused Vegeta to blink with surprise. What the hell was she talking about? "What?"

Bulma shrugged, "I mean -- you hated it. I know that. You didn't really like any of us. Your _'friends_.' Even Goku -- you couldn't stand him. Even though he was your best friend. I mean, you didn't _hate _him... but... you just, always had a weird way of showing how you cared. Unique, I guess. But, you hated the clique. And you hated prom. And you hated going to the mall with us. And you hated ... all of that stuff. Do you think it was just a waste of time?"

Vegeta shrugged, "Sometimes."

Bulma nodded, "I always thought you did. Like, if you had a choice, you would have skipped it. You probably could have, you know. You were smart and rich -- you could have just skipped high school, worked with your father. Gone to college, played football. Skipped it all."

Vegeta frowned, "Like you did with college?"

Bulma shook her head, "I didn't graduate college early because I didn't want to deal."

"Then why?"

She frowned, "Because I was stupid, I guess that's why."

He rolled his eyes.

Bulma frowned, "If you went back, would you?"

He shrugged. He honestly didn't know. "I didn't ... _hate_ high school." He confessed slowly, "The football team was good. And I had this girlfriend, she was alright." He smirked and Bulma let out a small laugh with a roll of her eyes.

"Yeah? I hear she was a real bitch."

His smirk remained while he shrugged, "Oh, she was. But I guess I kinda liked her that way."

Bulma couldn't help but smile, "I miss going to the mall with everyone. And dates. I miss dating. And... I miss football games, isn't that weird?"

He shrugged.

And she blushed, looking down at her hands, "I used to watch all of your football games in college."

He cocked an eyebrow in her direction and she laughed lightly, "They had that stupid picture of you in your uniform with that big smirk, and you arms crossed, you know? They always put it up when they talked about you."

He looked at her, a little taken back.

"In college I saw you in that damn picture more than I saw you in real life. When I thought about you, that's how I started to picture you, like you were in that picture."

He chuckled, "Yeah. We always said that we would keep in touch."

She smiled, "Well, you came down to see me, o_nce_."

He smirked at her, "Oh, yeah. I remember. That was the night of four times, wasn't it?"

Bulma turner her head away and blushed profoundly as Krillin, still eavesdropping, let out a surprised squeal and, with wide eyes, tried to focus on his book.

Then a thought came to Bulma. _Yes, that was the night..._

Vegeta laughed as he watched her blush, "So? How are the men nowadays?"

Bulma rolled her eyes with a shrug, "Haven't you heard? I'm an eligible _bachelorette_." She rolled her eyes, "Not very eligible though. Too busy to commit to anything. Serious or not."

Vegeta nodded, "I know that feeling. Well, the serious part anyway..."

Bulma smiled, "You can still do the _un_serious thing?"

He shrugged. Well, she knew Vegeta would be the kind to have a different woman all the time. She looked out of the window again and smiled, "Do you remember prom?"

Krillin blinked, looking up from the book, "You two went to prom together?"

Bulma smiled, "Yeah."

Krillin smiled, "Vegeta, aw -- how did you ask her!"

Bulam rolled her eyes, "He didn't ask me, know, this guy in my French class did... Ryan..."

flash back ...

"So." Ryan said, a smile grazing his lips, "Do you already have a date to the prom?"

Bulma blinked, she didn't know why but the thought of being linked to the arm of this guy for even just one night sickened her, and she had to fight the bile rising to her throat, "Ye-yes." she choked.

A lie, yes, but the famous Bulma Briefs was no saint. She frowned, that was for sure.

Ryan blinked, he had only said that as an opening, he hadn't actually expected her to have a date, but the question stung at him, "Who?"

Bulma's eyes winded, Who? Damn it Bulma... But when Bulma saw the flame haired boy walk up from behind them down the hall she smiled, "Vegeta."

"What?" Ryan asked, clearly surprised, "Your going with Vegeta?"

Bulma blinked as she played with the bottom of her skirt, "No--ummm... I mean yes. Yes. I. am..." she paused, and spoke awkwardly comfortably, "going to the prom with. Vegeta."

Ryan shook his head, "Unbelievable." He mumbled, "I loose you to the short arrogant asshole."

Bulma watched Ryan walk off, and as he walked by Vegeta, their shoulders momentarily brushing, he shot him a warning look.

Vegeta humphed, knowing that he could kick this guys ass easily.

Bulma sighed as she watched him go and than frowned at her predicament, "Vegeta." she breathed, guess there's only one way to do this... "I need you to go to prom with me."

Vegeta gave her a bored look and his eyes studied her, he folded his strong arms against his chest and frowned, "What?"

Bulma sighed, "I--I kinda told Ryan that I was going to the prom with you..."

Vegeta blinked, "Why the hell did you do that?"

Bulma frowned, "Well I told him that I already had a date and he asked me who and I saw you over there and it just all clicked."

Vegeta crossed his arms, "It just 'clicked'?" he shrugged, "Whatever woman. Prom is overrated, and don't get any high expectations because I'm not giving you anything special."

Bulma smiled as they began walking back towards the lunch room, "Vegeta."

He turned to her when they entered the noisy, crowded room, and she grabbed his forearm, "No more blondes in the parking lot."

Vegeta raised on of his eyebrows in question and Bulma sighed, "Please."

Vegeta watched Ryan glare at him from across the lunch room and he turned to face Bulma. She was beautiful, rich, smart, and his parents adored her, so he guessed that he could stick to just her, she was good enough. Plus, he thought with a smirk, there were definitely benefits when it came to prom night, "Alright woman, only you."

Bulma smiled, but as he walked passed her he whispered in her ear, "Besides, with prom night tradition I don't think I'll be needing anyone else."

His hot breath tickled her ear and as Bulma watched him walk over to the lunch table, a dumbfounded look on her face, she could practically see the smirk imprinted on his face, she sighed, "Well that's one way to get a date." she mumbled as she followed Vegeta back towards their lunch table.

Krillin blinked. "Aw Vegeta... That's... sweet."

Vegeta smiled, "Well, I was a sweet guy."

Bulma rolled her eyes at his sarcasm, and then a smile found her mouth -- "Yeah, at times, I guess you were."

Krillin looked across at Bulma, shutting his book with a smile, "Tell me something else that Vegeta did, something sweet." He mocked, just to make his business partner furious. But, he really was curious.

Bulma smiled, "See... we had this friend of ours, Marron, and one day she and I were...

flashback...

Bulma and Marron were walking through the hallway talking about their ideas from prom, and how excited they were about prom, and how their dates better be on their best behavior for prom, and... well almost anything that had to do with prom -- save prom night tradition and how they were going to dress.

Bulma straightened out the bottom of her short navy-blue miniskirt as they walked past the principles office as Marron pulled down the bottom of her pink top so that it fully covered her midriff.

The girls smiled as they waved friendlily at the principle, who returned the two pretty girls smile and raised his arm for a small wave back.

After the two were out of the principles site they exchanged a look and a giggle, causing Marron to accidentally ram into a tall brown haired girl.

The girl was in a pair of baggy pants and she had on a short green shirt that read 'i hate you too' across is. She had short brown hair that reached to about her shoulders and had too much makeup smeared across her pretty face.

"Watch it bitch." She spat as Marron crashed to the ground, her books spilling over the floor and her arms clinging to her skirt so that no one could see up it.

Marron looked up at the girl, Roxanne was her name, her eyes screaming terror, "S-sorry." She chocked.

Roxanne smiled and nodded, "You'd better be, idiot."

Bulma glared at the girl, "What did you just say?"

Roxanne turned to glare at Bulma, shaking her head, "I called you little cum bucket of a friend stupid, you got a problem with that?"

Bulma threw her books down on the ground next to Marron's and stepped closer to her, "Yeah, I do actually."

Roxanne laughed and her voice turned sarcastically sweet, "Oh, Bulma Briefs, what are you going to do? Have you're daddy fire my daddy?"

Bulma glared at the brown haired girl, rage flowing through her veins, but Roxanne continued, "Maybe you'll try to fight me, good luck doing it in that." She pointed to her high heels and then lifted her finger up to Bulma's skirt, "It's not your fault that your friends dumb or your daddies rich, so how about we settle this now -- you and me."

Bulma rolled her eyes, "Say one more thing and maybe you'll get your fight."

Roxanne smirked, wanting to egg her on, "Your just another screw to Vegeta, you know that? We all are, just another easy fuck."

And before Roxanne had time to register what was going on Bulma had lunged herself at the brown haired girl, pinning Roxanne's arms down with her knees and pounding Roxanne's face with her closed fists.

Marron rose from her spot on the ground to find a cluster of students, mainly male, closing in on the two girls, all chanting 'fight' and all smiling excitingly.

Marron pushed her way through the crowd about the same time Yamcha did.

Bulma was still beating Roxanne pretty bad, Roxanne looked like she got one pretty good punch on Bulma's left cheek, but Bulma was clearly winning.

Yamcha grabbed Bulma by the shoulders and lifted her off of the bleeding brown haired girl, this causing the crowd to moan in disapproval, "Bulma." Yamcha whispered as he still hung tightly onto her upper arms, "What's wrong with you?"

Bulma glared at Roxanne as she started to get up, she smirked at Bulma through a bloody lip, "The prep can fight." she said before a blonde boy wrapped his arms around her shoulders protectively and looked at her, concern filling his eyes, "You alright babe?"

Bulma brushed Yamcha's hands off of her shoulders and turned around to find the principle glaring at her, "Miss Briefs, I would have thought better of you."

Bulma smiled, "She asked for it." She muttered, rubbing her soar cheek and following the principle into his office.

-----------------

Vegeta took a seat in his History class with a bored frown, Decker, a guy on the football team who was too social for Vegeta's taste ran into the classroom and slapped Vegeta on the back, "Hey!"

Vegeta just shot him an un-amused look and Decker laughed, "Lighten up dude."

Another guy on the football team, Kyle, took his seat next to Vegeta and smirked, "Did you see the fight?"

Decker nodded quickly, "Dude, that was sweet!"

"I know, right?" Kyle said, shaking his head.

Vegeta quirked an eyebrow, "Fight? Was it any good?"

Decker gasped, "You didn't see it?"

Kyle smirked, "It was a girl fight, so of coarse it was good."

Vegeta rolled his eyes at his 'friends.' Though, he secretly had wished he could have seen the girl fight. Decker smiled, "Roxanne was all like," he raised his voice a few octaves as if to mimic a girl, "so your daddy's gana fire my daddy cause your friends a ho and that your fucking Vegeta."

Vegeta raised one of his eyebrows as he heard his name come from Decker's high pitched voice, but Kyle spoke up, "And so Roxanne was lying there on her back getting the shit beat out of her."

Yamcha sat down as the bell rang across from Decker and Decker frowned at him, "And this fucker broke up a perfectly hot girl fight."

Kyle frowned, "Why did you break it up?"

Yamcha gave the other boys a tired look, "Bulma would have killed Roxanne if I wouldn't have."

Vegeta turned his attention to Yamcha as he heard this, "Bulma?"

Yamcha nodded, "I've never seen her like that Vegeta, she was holding Roxanne down with her knees and she was beating the living crap out of her."

Vegeta smirked, almost proudly, and Kyle nodded, "Dude, I could like see up her skirt when she jumped on her and when you pulled her back and she was trying to kick her Yamcha, haha."

Decker smiled, "That was sweet though."

Vegeta smirked as he got up and walked to the front of the room, he grabbed the bathroom pass, with no intention of going to the bathroom.

------------------------------------------

Launch sat down next to Marron who was explaining the fight to group of people who were surrounding her and Launch frowned, "Marron, is Bulma alright?"

Marron nodded, "Yea, she only got hit like one time."

Launch sighed, "I can't believe B was that dumb."

Tien shrugged, "Well if she had a reason to fight..."

Launch smiled over at him, "But think of the trouble that she'll be in, I mean fighting means like, suspension."

Marron frowned, "And to think, it's all my fault..."

-------------------------------------------

Vegeta opened the door to the principles office to find Mr. Scott sitting behind his desks and the back of Bulma's blue slightly tangled hair.

"Hey Mr. S." Vegeta said casually as he took a seat next to Bulma.

The principle sighed and frowned, "Yes Mr. Ojie is there a problem?"

Vegeta smirked as Bulma turned to face him, he shook his head, "Nope, just wanted to see how Miss Briefs was doing."

Mr. Scott sighed, "Well she's fine, but Roxanne is another story, what do you think a proper punishment for her violence should be?"

Vegeta smirked as he leaned back in his chair, obviously very familiar with the principles office, "Oh, I don't know, it's only her first fight."

The principle sighed and closed his eyes, Bulma sat up straight in her chair, "Well, I'm sure my dad could pull some extra funds or--"

Vegeta laughed, "You plan on paying your way out?"

Bulma glared at him, turning to face him so that he could see the red mark on her left cheek. He frowned, "That's going to bruise."

The principle nodded, and Bulma's eyes widened in horror, "Oh, Mr. Scott! Isn't having a bruised cheek on prom enough of a punishment?"

The older man rubbed his eyes and shook his head tiredly, "No Miss Briefs, it's not."

Vegeta smirked, "I don't think your date will mind."

Bulma glared at him, "Well he'd better not."

The principle sighed, "Don't tell me you two are a couple."

Bulma shot him an award winning grin and he sighed, "Okay, Mr. Ojie, out of my site, I'm going to need to discuss Miss Briefs suspension period."

Vegeta lifted his chin and smirked, "Later."

As the door shut Mr. Scott sighed, "That boy... I swear..."

Bulma smiled and she turned back to him, "Okay, so what are we talking -- one, two days?"

Just then a very skinny boy with short, spiky brown hair came rushing into the office, holding his left eye, fighting the urge to cry, "Mr. Scott! Vegeta just punched me!"

Vegeta came in after him, taking the same seat he had earlier casually, "Mr. S, I got in a fight, looks like your going to have to suspended me too."

Bulma gave him a look of disbelief, he just gave her a smirk and she smiled.

Mr. Scott saw their exchange and he sighed in defeat, "Get out of my sight now and don't either of you show up tomorrow. Though the both of you better be here, early, on Monday to serve a detention."

Bulma stood up and smiled brightly, "Thanks Mr. Scott!"

She and Vegeta left the brown haired boy and Mr. Scott alone in the silent room.

"Yeah. You were sort of sweet Vegeta." Bulma remembered aloud, "But mostly, just a jerk."

Krillin smiled, and Vegeta rolled his eyes.

"So." Krillin said. Ready to play twenty questions with the pair, "Was he overly protective, or did he pretend to not pay attention to you, or --"

"Hm." Bulma said, thinking with a frown, "He was pretty protective." She confessed, as if he wasn't sitting beside her.

Vegeta rolled his eyes, "I was not."

"Oh?" Bulma laughed, "You weren't jealous?"

flash back...

"Okay Vegeta." Bulma said pointing at a denim miniskirt in the mirror of a shop they passed, "do you like it?"

Vegeta looked over at it and shrugged, "Too short."

"What?" Bulma said, shock filling her eyes, "Wha-- It's sexy Vegeta. I thought you would like something-" she smiled seductively at him and circled his thigh with one of her fingers, "--just for you."

He smirked down at her, "For me? Hm." He kissed her shortly and gently squeezed her bottom, "Well I don't want every other horny guy in our school looking at you in that."

She smiled up at him, "Jealous?"

He shrugged, "Well if you're going to be my ... girlfriend-or-whatever, then I think I have the right to be."

Bulma blinked and smiled, as they continued to walk, Vegeta grabbed her hand and she rested her head against his shoulder, earning looks from students from their school that they passed.

Vegeta stopped in front of Victoria Secret and smirked, "But you know woman, if you wanted to get something revealing, just for me--"

She slapped his arm and rolled her eyes, "Come on Vegeta."

He laughed and shrugged his shoulders and she smiled up at him as they continued to walk aimlessly in the large mall.

Krillin smiled, "You two were cute."

Vegeta rolled his eyes and Bulma smiled, "Hardly..."

Krillin shrugged, "What happened with college though? I mean, it seems like you would have kept in touch."

"Well..." Bulma began with a sigh, "That was the plan.."

flash back...

Bulma waited patiently in Vegeta's room. He had told her that he had a surprise for her, and so she had come over quickly. She loved gifts, especially ones for her.

Vegeta's mom had let her in, Vegeta wasn't home from the gym yet, and so Bulma went up to his room.

She began snooping around. Hoping to find jewelry. She smiled as she slid open the top drawer on his computer desk and found a small velvet box pushed off to the corner of the messy drawer.

Her eyes widened and she was filled with excitement as she tried to imagine what the ring would look like. She held the box in her hands, staring at the velvety cover, but before she opened the box an opened envelope caught her attention, and the navy print that read 'Notre Dame' peaked her curiosity, so she sat the ring case back down and stared at the envelope.

She held the envelope in her hands, and pulled a letter from it. She unfolded it, feeling a little guilty for snooping in Vegeta's affairs, but she felt it necessary if she were to ever find out about her boyfriends personal life.

Her big, curious, blue eyes scanned the letter and comprehended it. Vegeta had applied, and been accepted into Dame. They were offering him honors to play football.

She heard the door open and she quickly slipped the letter back into the torn envelope and, with her back turned to the desk and her face to the opening door, dropped the envelope into the drawer and closed it with her palm.

Vegeta smirked at her from across the room and she smiled back at him. Guilt feeling her, but sadness too. Why hadn't he told her?

He placed his hands on her waist, and she blinked up at him. He rolled his eyes knowing that she wanted to talk. But he decided that they had been talking a lot lately and so he brought his lips to hers and began kissing her roughly.

She pulled away after a couple moments, trying to ignore the since of lust burning within her, "I know about Dame."

One of Vegeta's dark eyebrows rose in question, and annoyance spread across his rugged features, "Nosey woman."

"Vegeta." She spoke softly, she looked so vulnerable, he just wanted to press her against the wall and screw her -- but resisted the urge and let her continue, "It's a really great school, and you obviously wanted to go by applying, getting accepted, and then not telling me about it. Why didn't you tell me?"

"You were being all unselfish and giving up Yale. I wasn't going to just.. leave you."

She smiled up at him and sighed, "Just because we would be going to different schools doesn't mean that we have to stop seeing each other. I mean we're both wealthy and we could make a point to see each other often." She paused and watched him contemplate things and then continued, "I want Yale as much as you want Dame."

He nodded, his face remaining emotionless.

She studied him a moment longer and then smiled brightly, "Now what did you have for me?"

He rolled his eyes and opened the drawer where she had been snooping just moments before, "I'm sure you already know, prying woman, but I got this for you. Just as ... a graduation present or something lame like that."

She laughed and took the ring out of the box. It was a modest size cut, shiny with a silver band, and she slid it onto her slender finger smiled up at him, "I think you just may love me Vegeta Ojie."

He chuckled and watched her admire the ring, "You might be right, woman."

---------------------

Vegeta laid on his back on his girlfriends bed and listened as she chattered away excitedly about Yale.

His attention was turned to a brochure of Yale that he had found on her bed and as he flipped through the pages he nodded every now and then to show that he was paying attention.

"What I should I wear Vegeta? I mean, I want to make a good first impression for the dean." She bit her lower lip and studied his profile.

He shrugged and tossed the brochure to the side of the bed, "And what the fuck gives you the notion that I know what clothes would make a good first impression woman?"

She laughed as sat on the edge of the bed, beside where he way laying. She smiled down at him and positioned herself to where she was on top of him, her hair spilling over her shoulders and her knees pinning either side of his torso. She studied his dark eyes for a moment and then brought herself down to capture his lips in her own.

When they pulled away, Vegeta smirked up at her and flipped her over and tickled her until she screamed, "Ah haha-- Ve--AH! -- geta--haha -- St-AH-op!"

He let her go and she pushed him off of her playfully.

"I'm going to miss you." She whispered, laying at his side and burring her head into his shoulder; taking in his masculine scent of cologne and sweat and aftershave.

He continued to watch the ceiling, his pride keeping from telling her that he was going to miss her too.

----------------------------------------

The summer drifted by and the first semester of college began.

Bulma and Vegeta exchanged a couple of phone calls a week. And as the semester dragged on their conversations died. Vegeta would ask Bulma how she was and she would repeat the question to him. They talk about other people, people whom the other didn't know. They would complain about hard work, football season, Bulma's perverted Algebra 101 teacher, and then they would sit in a few moments of silence until one of them said that they had to study, meet someone at the mess hall, or explain that their roommate had to use the phone.

So it was a huge surprise when Bulma opened her dorm room door to find Vegeta standing at her doorway a duffle bag slung over his shoulder and coat in his hand.

Bulma was in a pair of blue cotton shorts and a gray Yale T-shirt with her hair pulled back in a high, messy pony tail when she jumped into his arms and squealed with excitement.

He laughed when she pulled away and drug him inside her dorm, shutting the door and getting a good look at him -- physically he hadn't changed much, and she was glad that he hadn't.

"What are you doing here?" She asked, taking his coat and duffle bag from him and dropping them to the floor.

He smirked, "If you're busy then --"

"No! No, I miss you so much." She said, cutting him off and smiling up at him. She embraced him and took in his masculine scent that she had been missing so much, "Did you just decide to drop by?"

He nodded, "Yeah. I don't have any classes tomorrow and so I thought I would come see you."

She smiled and kissed him lightly, then she locked her dorm room door and made her way back to him they kissed again, roughly, and then before Bulma could register what was going on she was being pinned down onto her bed.

Well, she thought -- and she began unbuttoning Vegeta's belt buckle -- it had been nearly four months.

"Okay." Krillin said, shaking his head, "That's gross."

Bulma laughed and Vegeta smirked.

"But," Krillin said with a frown, "That doesn't make since. So you two saw each other -- but why did you leave Yale Bulma? -- Oh." He said suddenly with understandment, then he frowned, "And why did you cheat on her Vegeta?"

They both remained silent and Krillin sighed, turning to Bulma, "Okay... keep going..."

Bulma sighed, "Alright..."

flash back...

Bulma tapped her pencil impatiently against her desk and listened to the phone ring.

"Hey --"

"Hey!" Bulma blurted hastily as she dropped the pencil in her other hand and her head shot up.

"--this is Vegeta. I'm too busy for the phone right now, or I just don't feel like talking to you. So leave me a message. Later."

She sighed and hung up her cell phone with a sigh.

"Why won't he pick up his damn phone?" She shot angrily as she tried to concentrate back on the Physics book in front of her.

A feminine voice behind her laughed, "Aw, Bulma. Don't worry about it. He's probably just partying or, you know, doing normal college stuff."

Bulma turned around and met eyes with her roommate, Christie. She was a tall, skinny girl with long brown hair and flashy green eyes. She was at Yale because she came from an extremely wealthy family and had a knack for Journalism. She wrote for the school paper and even had a few articles published in Seventeen and one in Cosmo.

Bulma rolled her eyes and laughed, "Wow Christie, that makes me feel a lot better. He's not picking up because he's out partying."

Christie looked herself over in the mirror and straightened out her short skirt, "Oh come one Bulma I'm not talking like massive orgy party, just simple, everyday college drinking shit."

Bulma laughed and turned around, "See you later Christie."

The brunette sighed, "It's a Friday night Bulma, come to the clubs with Brittany and I."

Bulma shook her head, "Nah, you two go ahead, I'm going to keep trying Vegeta, and besides I have a major Physics test Monday."

Christie shook her head and her roommate and sighed, "Alright Bulma, see you in the morning."

When Bulma heard the door shut her phone began to ring and she jumped to open it, "Hello?"

"Bulma?" Vegeta's voice was low and irritated.

Bulma heard music blaring in the background and people shouting.

"What's the matter?" He asked, walking outside so the noisy sounds were slightly muted. He put one of his fingers over his ear and listened to his girlfriend sigh with relief through the other one that had his cell phone pressed against it.

"I was just ... missing you."

"Bull shit." He muttered, leaning against a fence post and looking up at the sky.

Bulma sighed, was she really that easy to see through? Even on the phone... "Are at a party?"

"Yeah."

She nodded, trailing her fingers over her midriff lightly, "I haven't seen you in two months Vegeta, I haven't talked to you in over a week."

He rolled his eyes, "If you missed me that much then why didn't you just fly your ass down here?"

Bulma closed her eyes, "I want to be closer to you, Vegeta. I can't stand this separation."

"Separation? We're not separated woman. Besides, what happened to all that 'we'll make this work' shit you preached before you left?"

Bulma listened to his tone and decided that he had probably had a few too many beers tonight. "Well, we're obviously not making this work."

"Then what do you want to do? Break up woman? Hm. Would that get you off my back?"

Bulma flinched slightly and sighed, "Am I really bothering you Vegeta? Hm? If I really don't mean anything to you anymore then go ahead, break my heart."

He rolled his eyes, "Oh, it's me that doesn't do anything? Hm. Woman, who flew down to see whom? I don't think you've come to a single one of my games, I don't think you've made an effort to--"

"Vegeta." She sobbed, "I need to tell you something."

"Are you cheating? Do you know what. That doesn't matter. We've been apart for so fucking long I wouldn't blame you."

"No. It's not that wait. Are you cheating on me?"

"Woman. Stop calling me."

She fumed, "Fine. I don't want to talk to you again Vegeta. I don't ever want to see you again."

Vegeta rolled his eyes, "So that's it? This is over. You're releasing me..." he let out a bitter, low laugh, "I'm free then, woman?"

"Yes, Vegeta." She spat, "You're free."

He shut his phone as he heard her hang up, he rubbed the brim of his nose and started for his car, wondering what the hell had just happened.

Bulma sat the phone down and sobbed into her desk. Did they just fight about nothing? Did they just break up? No. They hadn't broken up. She threw her Physics book to the floor of her dorm room and got up.

Vegeta was right. She wasn't making an effort to see him at all. She decided then, packing a light suitcase and applying finishing touches of makeup in front of the full length mirror that she would fly down and apologize to him. In person.

She smiled, he had a game tomorrow night anyway so she would see it, apologize, and then she would tell him what she had been trying to tell him on the phone in the first place.

"And so..." Bulma said with a sigh, "Technically, he didn't _cheat_."

Vegeta rolled his eyes and Bulma frowned, "But he did move on the _day _after we broke up."

Krillin frowned, the mood suddenly becoming awkward, "So then," he said timidly, "you went to Vegeta's game, found him with someone else, and left?"

"Yeah." Bulma breathed, "pretty much."

"Excuse me." A woman in her mid-forties interrupt politely, causing the three to turn their heads in her direction. She smiled, and motioned to the tray she was pushing, "Would you like a drink?"

Vegeta asked for a beer, Bulma ordered a coke, and Krillin told her that he was fine.

Bulma sighed as she turned her attention back down to the clouds and smiled at the thought of being back in Tulsa. She would get to see Launch and Marron and Yamcha and Tien, meet everyone's new boyfriend and girlfriend. Catch up. Watch ChiChi get married. And spend some time with her son.

At the thought of Trunks she tilted her head in Vegeta's direction and watched as he pulled out a laptop from his briefcase and begin to work on stock figures.

She sighed as she leaned her head against the window and decided that she would have to tell him soon. But for now, she would get some sleep.

* * *

Wow! I have the most amazing reviewers in the **entire** world! Seriously!

Everyone who reviewed I ... gosh, I appreciate it **soooo** much!

Okay, I know that the wait on this chapter was ridiculously long, but I promise that I won't make you wait so long next time...

And everyone who volunteered to beta for me ... THANK YOU! Really! But, as you can see, I went ahead and posted this chapter not proofread. I just couldn't let this chapter be posted any later...

But once again... Thanks to all of my reviewers... I seriously love you guys sooo much. And I hope to hear from all of you again!

Thanks! ... and hey, IM me guys -- BrandNewRain

I would like to talk to some of you ... comments, suggestions, just to say hey, or... haha -- _anything_.

Alright... until next time...

-Crimson


	6. The Sixth Chapter

Dark Hope Assassin: Your my freaking hero. Seriously. I look forward to every review you submit for me. Your always honest, as I expect you to be, but gentle and give good advice. I know my grammar is atrocious and my typing so fast that I end up using the wrong word usage and constantly over look things... My Junior English teacher, wonderful lady, used to call me the run-on queen. Eh. Really though, your an amazing writer and it's so awesome to receive reviews from someone so skillful.

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One of my favorite writers of all time. I read your stuff before I had a story posted. Hm. It seems so strange to have one of the writers who were legendary in my eyes taking the time to review one of my stories. I know I've been an awful review lately, but I take the time to review again soon -- tonight, actually. Thank you so much for everything, you're the best!

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---------------------------------------------------

The Sixth Chapter

High School Reunions

Shades of Crimson

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Bulma dumped her luggage out on her bed, ran to her closet and began to rummage through it, pulling out a light blue sun dress and holding it against her in front of the mirror. Vegeta frowned from the door frame as he watched Bulma discard the dress onto the heap of clothes on her bed and disappear back into her closet.

The front door of Bulma's mansion was thrust open as a freshly made-up and newly dressed Juu, in a pair of khaki pants and a polo top, followed by a grinning Krillin, entered Bulma's house.

"Woa." The short man said as he took a seat in Bulma's modernly stylish living room -- with it's spacious room and plush crème leather sofa's, it housed a large plasma screen TV with an entertainment center below it with an impressive DVD collection, the salt-water fish tank, and the dark coffee table decorated the room neatly, "Nice pad!"

"Yeah, I know!" Juu said, flopping down on the couch, "Bulma's so chic."

As the blonde haired woman began flipping casually through channels she laughed at the two men who were standing in uncomfortable silence, "Take a seat you two, it can take Bulma a year and half to pick out an outfit."

Bulma growled from her closet and yelled through the door, "I have to make a good first impression, Juu!"

The blonde woman shrugged as she tucked a stray piece of shoulder length hair behind her ear, "Whatever Bee, but could you please at least _try _and hurry up?"

Vegeta and Krillin took the seats beside Juu as the three began to watch a boxing match -- all very instantly drawn to it.

Bulma exited her room, now with fresh make up and a new outfit -- and she had also, miraculously, managed to curl her long blue locks in the time she had been in there. She was now wearing a pair of dark jeans with a silky brown spaghetti-strapped shirt with pink ribbon weaved across the top of the low-cut blouse. Her beautiful hair, one of her best features, was let down loosely, with the ends curled to fall just above her midback. At the base of her ensemble she had on a simple pair of brown Old Navy flip-flops and her pink pedicured toenails. She stared at the three, who were all fixated with the fight, and cleared her throat -- obviously beckoning a compliment.

Vegeta blinked at her, "Are you wearing your night shirt, woman?"

Bulma's cheeks flushed and her neatly plucked eyebrows knitted together, "For your information, Vegeta, these tops are _all_ the rage now. Seriously, very fashionable."

Vegeta rolled his eyes, "Whatever woman, but that shirt looks ridiculous at this time of day."

Bulma continued to glare at him until she let out a snobbish humph, crossed her arm over her chest, closed her eyes, lifted her nose into the air and frowned, "Good thing I'm not trying to impress _you _anymore, troll doll."

Vegeta rolled his eyes at her 'insult_.'_

Krillin watched the two with a nervous expression and Juu rolled her eyes at the pair, "Alright children, let's _go_ already."

The four climbed into Bulma's spacious silver Lexus and the road-raged driver put on a pair of her favorite chunky sunglasses and sped down the road, a little to Krillin's shock -- but the other two passengers had expected it.

* * *

Why did they have to fight constantly? She asked herself as she watched her 'boyfriend' wave a pair of tickets in the air excitedly in front of her face.

She frowned, thinking of those tickets. She almost shuddered, she hated country music! How many times was she forced to tell him? She didn't _want_ to go. She didn't want to be with him. She didn't want... "Oh Chip." She muttered, thinking just how stupid his name really was. She wasn't entirely sure if it was in fact his name. Perhaps a nickname? If so, she hadn't a clue from where.

She sighed, knowing that she was being an awful person. And an even worse girlfriend. He was a good guy. She knew that. But... she just knew that he wasn't right for her. If anything, she thought, he was too good for her.

"Yes Launch?" He said, freezing his hands for moments so that the waving tickets stopped, "It's tonight you know!"

She heard the excitement in his voice and sighed, "I don't want to go."

He blinked as he watched her for a moment and then frowned, "What?"

She frowned, "My friends from high school are reuniting tonight. I don't want to miss it because of some stupid country concert that I didn't want to go to in the first place."

He frowned back at her and she sighed, "I hate country, you know that."

Watching the hurt expression cross his features Launch sighed sadly, "I'm sorry Chip."

He nodded, trying to be understanding. For the first time, she had gotten her point across. She didn't like country. She didn't like any of the things he was into. He frowned -- and he wasn't into any of the things she was. He blinked, so why were they still together in the first place?

Launch wrapped her arms around him, holding his elbows in her hands and pressing her forehead against his.

He smiled back at her. Oh, that's why they were together. She was gorgeous.

Her smile flattened for a moment, "Just because I don't like country music doesn't mean that I can't like you..."

And with a quick kiss both decided that they would try and make this work -- no matter how much they were just leading each other on.

When Launch and Chip had left the room he found Julie and Tien on the couch -- Tein lazily channel surfing.

Launch took a seat beside him and Chip blinked at Julie, "Uh, Julie, right?"

The red headed girl lifted her eyed from the magazine she had been flipping though and smiled, "Yeah?"

Chip flashed her the tickets he had been holding, "Well, I've got two, and since you're into this sort of thing, and, I mean, if Launch and Tien don't mind --"

Launch watched the two and smiled, "Uh, yeah, you're a big boy Chip -- you can make your own decisions."

Tien shrugged, not completely aware of what was going on.

Chip smiled, "So, Toby Keith then?"

Julie's eyes widened and she jumped up from her seat on the couch, she ran her hands through her red hair and quickly pecked Tien's cheek, "Yeah! Oh, and I have my dads car so, uh, you want to leave right now?"

Chip smiled at the excitement in her voice and the pair exited the room.

Tien looked up from the T.V. for the first time, a confused look on his face, "Um, what just happened?"

Launch laughed lightly with a small frown, "I think our wedding dates are going on a date..."

* * *

Bulma pulled the car to a stop as they entered the driveway of the house that all four recognized as the Sons.

The quartet walked up to the front door and Bulma eagerly rang the doorbell.

On the other side of the door an anxious ChiChi, Goku, Launch, and Tien stood. All anticipating the arrival of Bulma and Vegeta.

How would they look when they opened the door? Would they be happy with one another? Would they both be crossing their arms, clearly pissed at the others presence? Had Bulma told Vegeta yet? Would they even both be there... together?

ChiChi sucked in a breath and swung open the door, to see Bulma smiling and Vegeta with his usual, bored expression. But no more anger than usual.

ChiChi hugged Bulma tightly and asked her how her trip was.

Bulma gleamed, flashing everyone her perfect white, toothy smile, "Great actually, considering that our flight was delayed. And you know how moody airports make me... But it was pleasant, actually."

Her blue eyes darted around the room, soaking in the appearance of everyone. It felt a little strange to have everyone reuniting this way.

She hugged Launch and when they broke away Launch smiled approvingly at her, "Wow! Cute top Bulma!"

Bulma grinned and then turned to glare at Vegeta, "See? I _told_ you it was cute."

Vegeta rolled his eyes at her and muttered something unautable under his breath. Everyone blinked. They were acting exactly as they did in high school.

Just then Jay and Leah entered the room and smiled, "Hey guys, were leaving you on your own, we're going out to eat, so, I guess we'll see you all in the morning."

Juu hugged her twin brother and everyone watched as she pulled apart -- their appearances more than coincidentally similar.

"Yeah." Juu said, smiling down at Krillin, "We'll join the two of you."

"Uh." Krillin said, as his blonde companion spoke for him, "Yeah..."

When the four had left with Bulma's car, driven by Juu, obviously wanting to let the remaining group, consisting of Bulma, ChiChi, Launch, Yamcha, Vegeta, Goku, and Tien, to have some time alone together, ChiChi happily clapped her hands together with a smile and brightly spoke, "Wow guys, it's just like old times!"

Bulma laughed at her friend, "So? What's the plan then?"

Goku smiled, "I've got some barbeque going in the back."

ChiChi nodded alongside her husband, "And there's plenty of beer in the fridge."

Launch giggled excitedly, "Sounds fun!"

Nearly everyone had left the living room to take their seats in the kitchen, only Bulma and ChiChi remained.

"So." Bulma said, knowing that ChiChi was going to want to have a talk, and she had every intention to make it short as possible, "Where are Trunks and Goten?"

ChiChi smiled, "They're out playing in the back."

Bulma nodded and then ChiChi sighed, "You still haven't told him, have you?"

Bulma grabbed her friend's arm and led her into the kitchen, "No Chi, I haven't. But I will -- don't worry. Tonight, maybe."

ChiChi smiled, "Good. You'd better not do it tomorrow though, I do _not _want a pissed best man ruining my wedding."

Bulma sighed and shook her head, "Come on Chi, It's been awhile, let's get something to drink."

* * *

Launch let out a sigh as everyone laughed at her story of how she and Chip had gotten together.

Bulma smiled, "You don't look a bit happy with him."

"Bulma! That's an awful thing to say." ChiChi frowned at her friend, "Launch, he seems lovely."

Goku smiled, "Wow. It's weird... you know? To have all of us together again."

ChiChi rolled her eyes at her husband, "Goku, Marron's not here."

Yamcha sighed, "Have you heard about her fiance?"

Bulma frowned, "Fiance? I thought she was married?"

Launch blinked, "Hm. I hadn't even known they were engaged."

Vegeta chucked, "I heard he's old and rich and they're using each other."

Yamcha took a sip of his beer and shrugged, "It's sad."

Bulma shrugged as she played with her own beer bottle, "Not really, I mean, that's what Marron always wanted."

ChiChi nodded after a few seconds of silence, "Yeah, well, she should be here in a couple hours."

Launch smiled, "I miss high school. I wish we were still there."

Tien laughed, "Really?"

Goku slipped his arm around his wife's shoulder and smiled, "Well I was glad to get out, marry the woman of my dreams."

Bulma rolled her eyes at the couple, "Please, you were just relieved that ChiChi finally put out on your wedding night."

ChiChi blushed furiously and glared at the blue haired woman across the table in shock, "Bulma Briefs!" Then the black haired woman crossed her arms and huffed, "Slut."

Bulma rolled her eyes at her best friends 'insult' and laughed.

Launch smiled, "So are two excited about tomorrow?"

This question was directed at the couple, which caused a happy smile to spread across ChiChi's face and for Goku to blink dumbly, "Tomorrow?"

ChiChi rolled her eyes, dropping her smile and replacing it with a set scowl, "Yes Goku, tomorrow, our _wedding._"

Goku laughed as he scratched the back of his head, "Oh! Yeah, very excited!"

Vegeta sat down his empty beet bottle and frowned as he rose from his seat and began to rummage through the refrigerator, "Your out of beer."

ChiChi frowned, "Impossible, we had, like, seven cases."

Goku shook his head, "No, I only brought two packs in, the other four are out in the garage."

"Five." Bulma interrupted impassively as she played with the label on her beer, "If there are seven total and two are in the refrigerator, then there are five in the garage Goku."

Goku blinked and ChiChi rolled her eyes, "Vegeta -- go out the backdoor," she instructed, "and the garage door is to your right."

Vegeta rolled his eyes and muttered a gruff "I've been here before, wench," before slamming the backdoor.

Launch frowned, "What's _he_ in a bad mood for?"

Bulma shook her head, "He's not in a bad mood."

Tien laughed and nodded, "Yeah, she's right, when he's in a bad mood, you'll know it."

* * *

Vegeta began his short walk across the front lawn when a football was hurled in his direction unskillfully and he caught it with ease.

The little Goku-mini gave him an apologetic smile as the ball was thrown at his feet, "Sorry Mr. Vegeta."

Vegeta shrugged as he watched the purple haired boy scold Goten on his technique, "You need to keep your elbow stiller, and flick more with your wrist -- and don't put your fingers so far apart."

Vegeta smirked at the kid and then the purple haired boy as Goten tried, again, to throw the football, once more, unsuccessfully.

Trunks sighed frustrated and Goten frowned, "Oh come on Trunks, this is boring anyway!"

Trunks frowned, "It's only boring to you because your awful at it."

Vegeta laughed as he listened to their conversation from the garage, where he now had a beer in hand and was making the short trip back inside.

Goten frowned, "Yeah? Well I'm a way better fighter than you!"

Trunks crossed his arms, "Nu-uh!"

"Yeah?" Goten smiled, "Well.. we're tied then."

"Yeah." Trunks agreed, and then smiled, "Let's go to your dads dojo."

Goten nodded, "Told you this was boring."

Trunks looked up at Vegeta as he walked by, "Will you take us?"

Vegeta blinked at the boy and Goten smiled, "You could fight my dad again."

Trunks frowned, "Hey, have you seen my mom?"

Vegeta shrugged, a little annoyed and unsure of how to act around kids, he frowned, "I don't even know who your mother is."

Trunks smiled up at the flame haired man, "Her names Bulma -- she's really pretty and gots blue hair and --"

The boy rambled on for a moment, but at the sound of Bulma's name, he knew who the boy was talking about, "Your... _Bulma's_ kid?"

The boy stopped mid-sentence and nodded, "Yep."

Vegeta looked him over, taking notice of how the boy resembled Bulma and... himself? He shook it off and frowned, though, he couldn't be younger than seven, maybe eight. Vegeta frowned, "How old are you?"

Trunks smiled proudly, "Seven and half! That's a _half _a year older than Goten."

Vegeta blinked. Either Bulma had been cheating on him or... His eyes narrowed and his composure darkened. No. She hadn't. The boy looked too much like him, it was...

"Woman." He growled, the corners of his mouth pulled into an angry scowl, his eyebrows knitted together, his eyes narrowed.

Tien blinked as Vegeta entered the kitchen, "See," he whispered to Launch, "_now _he's pissed."

Bulma blinked at him as he continued to glare at her.

"What the fuck? You have a _son_?"

ChiChi's mouth dropped and she stood up from the table, "Um... So, as I was saying, I've got to... go make sure I made everyone's bed up for the night..."

As ChiChi quickly exited the room Vegeta's eyes remained fixed on Bulma, "So? Were you going to tell me that I have a kid or just continue to keep it from me?"

Bulma blinked as Launch rose from the table, "Uh, yeah, I better call Chip... he's not so good with direction..."

Bulma remained silent as Vegeta slammed his fist down onto the table, "And, he _is _my son, is he not?"

Tien watched the table shake with the force of Vegeta's fist and blinked, "I -- uh, better go help Launch dial."

Bulma bit her lip, feeling tears burn the back of her eyelids as she sat in shock.

Vegeta glared at her, "What the _fuck_ were you thinking? Were you just never going to tell me? Was this your idea of a grudge? Was this your --"

Yamcha stood up, and let out a fake yawn, "Wow, I'm tired. Uh.. .goodnight Goku."

Bulma brought her saddened eyes down to her lap as Vegeta compressed his fists into tiny balls, and Goku watched as the veins in his arms became more and more visible, much like they did when they would spar.

"Why woman? Why didn't you say a damn thing to me?"

Goku blinked, an excuse to leave as the others had not coming to him.

"Oh... uh... I've got to ... um... do that... thing I had to do."

His presence was ignored as he quickly scampered out of the kitchen and left Bulma and Vegeta alone.

After a few moments in silence Bulma looked up and met eyes with her ex. Vegeta took a seat at the table and continued to glare sternly at Bulma -- her tear stricken blue eyes not wavering his angered state.

"Vegeta."

His name from her weak voice made him flinch inwardly. The tone of her voice... he growled, so he was correct in thinking it was his.

"Well woman? I think I deserve an explanation."

Bulma averted her eyes, "You deserve more than that..."

"So the kid?"

"Trunks."

"Yeah, the brat, he's mine?"

"He's not a brat Vegeta."

"But he's mine?"

"Yes. He's _yours_, Vegeta."

"Un-fucking-believable."

Bulma looked over at him and smiled sadly, "He's wonderful Vegeta, God, so much like you."

He stared at her for a moment, "Why didn't you tell me? Seven years and you never tried to--"

"I _did_ try." Bulma interrupted, "As soon as I found out... I tried calling, I tried... God Vegeta, I flew down to tell you and you..."

Vegeta's face turned emotionless, "You should have told me."

"I know." Bulma whispered, and shut her tired eyes softly, causing a tear to slide down her cheek, "I was emotional then... And afterwards, I hated myself for so long. I still do. I know you won't forgive me, and I don't blame you, I hate myself Vegeta, believe me, I do."

He watched her as she talked, "And Vegeta, I was going to make myself tell you when I saw you again, but at the airport..." She opened her eyes to look at him, their eyes met and Bulma smiled, "But everything was so good. Just like old times, you didn't hate me, you didn't know that I had lied to you. It was nice. I was selfish."

He smirked for the first time since he had come into the kitchen, "You always were selfish."

Bulma frowned at him, and then told herself that she had no reason to be angry at him.

There was a moment of comfortable silence in which the two made an unspoken agreement.

They had done each other wrong. Vegeta knew that he had hurt her. She had lied to him. She had a son! She had raised a boy. Vegeta had always told her that he didn't' want a son. Did he now? He pictured the boy talking down to Kakerot's son and he smirked.

Bulma smiled as Vegeta got up from his seat, "You should meet him."

"I have met him." Vegeta said shortly.

Bulma rolled her eyes, "I mean, meet him properly. I have to tell him that your his father..."

Vegeta nodded, almost awkwardly, "In a moment, first... I have to give you something."

Bulma smiled and opened the door, being greeted with her friends profiles and their ears pressed against where the door had been seconds before.

She frowned at them and they all jumped back, blushing and laughing with embarrassment.

Vegeta brushed passed them muttering 'nosey wenches..' and Bulma followed him, turning back before she entered the room Vegeta was staying in to glare at her friends.

When Bulma gently shut the bedroom door she turned around and saw Vegeta standing over his recently unzipped suitcase.

She observed him from across the bed as he opened the luggage with a frown.

"Woman, I brought something to give you to you when we got here, and I guess I should still give it to you."

Bulma stared blankly as Vegeta handed her a small box, and when she opened it she found her ring.

The ring. She smiled unconsciously as she studied it -- remembering how he had given it to her back in high school, and remembering how she had shoved it into Tein's hands when she had seen Vegeta with that girl. She frowned, "Wha--why did you bring it?"

"Well," he said, almost harshly, "I did give it to you."

She blinked down at it, "And I gave it back."

He reached over and snatched the small box from her grasp with a frown, "Fine then woman, if you don't want it, but since your still single I figured--"

"Ug! That _stupid_ magazine! And I thought it would be an honor... not a curse!" She interrupted, more talking to herself.

Vegeta frowned at her, "Woman! Listen!"

She blinked with an almost frightened frown as he continued, "Good. Silence from you, finally."

She glared at him as he nodded, "Well I saw you in that magazine I knew you were still single and I thought that I would, well, just in case."

A smile grazed her features as an adoring look came over her face and she took the ring back from him, "You wanted to start things up again!"

He rolled his eyes, "Possibly. If you were less annoying than I remembered. You aren't, but since I knocked you up, I guess I owe you the favor."

Bulma rolled her eyes as she slipped on the ring and studied it on her finger, half ignoring him she replied sarcastically, "_So_ romantic Vegeta."

He smirked as he gently kissed her forehead, "Woman, I wish you would have told me."

"So do I." She whispered, wrapping her arms around his back, "But is it possible to just pick up where we left off? I mean, it's been a long time and..."

He tucked a stray lock of blue hair behind her ear as he listened to her talk and they met eyes, she looked at him timidly and frowned, "Are you still mad at me?"

With his arms still wrapped around her he nodded, "Furious."

She smiled as she leaned her head into his chest and inhaled the scent she had missed so much, "You don't act it."

"I've never been able to figure you out."

"And I've never been able to figure you out either Vegeta, but I'm going to try, if you'll let me, I'll try." With that she looked up at him with a smile, "I want you to meet Trunks now Vegeta, you'll love him, I promise."

He nodded as they broke apart, a frown crossing Vegeta's features as he let out an almost nervous sigh, "Alright woman."

_

* * *

_

I know that this is a pitifully short chapter ... but it's really just an apology for the long wait of the last one combined with the overwhelming flashbacks in the previous chapter.

But the ending... Man, I'll have to make the next chapters update super quick, otherwise I'm going to have a handful of pissed reviewers... Haha. I love you all though!

And I'm going to extend my greatest thanks to Brina28. Wow. If your reading this chapter -- you owe her **big**! I was a little stuck with the Trunks/Vegeta meeting scene and she helped me out _loads_! Seriously! Plus, she's a freaking amazing writer and as soon as you review this chapter, go read her story Dream, Mkay? Good!

REVIEW!

Please?

_Crimson_


	7. The Seventh Chapter

**The Seventh Chapter  
**High School Reunions  
_Shades of Crimson_

* * *

_It's been a while .. So, um … here's a little recap …_

"Woman, I brought something to give you to you when we got here, and I guess I should still give it to you."

Bulma stared blankly as Vegeta handed her a small box, and when she opened it she found her ring.

_The ring. _She smiled unconsciously as she studied it -- remembering how he had given it to her back in high school, and remembering how she had shoved it into Tein's hands when she had seen Vegeta with that girl. She frowned, "Wha--why did you bring it?"

"Well," he said, almost harshly, "I did give it to you."

She blinked down at it, "And I gave it back."

He reached over and snatched the small box from her grasp with a frown, "Fine then woman, if you don't want it, but since your still single I figured--"

"Ug! That _stupid_ magazine! And I thought it would be an honor... not a curse!" She interrupted, more talking to herself.

Vegeta frowned at her, "Woman! Listen!"

She blinked with an almost frightened frown as he continued, "Good. Silence from you, finally."

She glared at him as he nodded, "Well I saw you in that magazine I knew you were still single and I thought that I would, well, just in case."

A smile grazed her features as an adoring look came over her face and she took the ring back from him, "You wanted to start things up again!"

He rolled his eyes, "Possibly. If you were less annoying than I remembered. You aren't, but since I knocked you up, I guess I owe you the favor."

Bulma rolled her eyes as she slipped on the ring and studied it on her finger, half ignoring him she replied sarcastically, "_So_ romantic Vegeta."

He smirked as he gently kissed her forehead, "Woman, I wish you would have told me."

"So do I." She whispered, wrapping her arms around his back, "But is it possible to just pick up where we left off? I mean, it's been a long time and..."

He tucked a stray lock of blue hair behind her ear as he listened to her talk and they met eyes, she looked at him timidly and frowned, "Are you still mad at me?"

With his arms still wrapped around her he nodded, "Furious."

She smiled as she leaned her head into his chest and inhaled the scent she had missed so much, "You don't act it."

"I've never been able to figure you out."

"And I've never been able to figure you out either Vegeta, but I'm going to try, if you'll let me, I'll try." With that she looked up at him with a smile, "I want you to meet Trunks now Vegeta, you'll love him, I promise."

He nodded as they broke apart, a frown crossing Vegeta's features as he let out an almost nervous sigh, "Alright woman."

* * *

Marron shifted in her seat. A pair of perfectly manicured nails picked at one another. Her previously bleached teeth chewed with nervous anticipation on her roused lips, and her high heeled feet kicked the wall of her fiancé's private jet childishly.

The man beside her gave her an amused look and then reached for her hand in a feeble attempt to calm her down.

"Excited?"

She lifted her eyes to meet his and the biting of her lips ceased as an honest smile spread across them, "Very."

Her voice was high and confident, and the man let out a small laugh as he continued to hold her hand, "Only a few more minutes, just relax until then."

She turned her attention back to outside of the window and nodded giddily, "Alright… I can't wait for you to meet my friends!"

He laughed, "I'm sure they're wonderful."

"Yep." She said, leaning her head back onto the seat, "They sure are."

* * *

Trunks and Goten entered the room and watched as the adults tried to listen in to Bulma and Vegeta's conversation through the door.

Trunks frowned, "Hey, where's my mom at?"

ChiChi turned and smiled at the boys, "Oh, Trunks, she's in there with, er-, Vegeta."

Goten yawned, wide-mouthed and so unmannered that it made his mother visibly grimace.

"I'm tired momma."

ChiChi nodded lightly and turned her attention from the barely audible conversation from the other room, "Let's get you ready for bed."

Launch turned to the two boys, smiling at Trunks and the blend he held of her two friends. With another bight smile she nodded towards ChiChi, "Yeah, it's probably about time for all of us to get to bed. Besides," she looked at the door that hid Bulma and Vegeta from their sight, "we should probably give our friends some privacy."

Trunks yawned, "Where's my mom at anyway?"

As if on cue, the door opened up, and Bulma peered into the crowded hallway with a frown, "Still being nosey, I see."

ChiChi blushed lightly and laughed, "No Bee, it's not even like that! Trunks was, uhm, wondering where you guys were because he's tired."

Trunks nodded with another large yawn, "Yeah, but there were already listening through the door when I got here."

Launch frowned down at the small boy and rolled her eyes, the bratty little snitch side of him must have come from Vegeta, she convinced herself.

Tien looked down at the digital watch that rested on his right wrist and frowned, "It _is _pretty late, and I have no idea where Julie is."

Launch looked over at him, "With Chip, no doubt. They certainly clicked."

Vegeta glared at them all as he tried to exit the room, "I'm staying over at Bulma's tonight, having one annoying woman around seems to be a much better option than you two and your mindless small talk," he said, casting a cold glaze at Launch and Tien, "and much less dreadful then staying with Kakerot and his screeching harpy."

Then he looked at Bulma and a teasing smirk crossed his dark features, "Though her breakfast would probably be much easier to stomach then anything _she_ will be making."

"Oh shut up, Vegeta." Bulma retorted, rolling her big blue eyes at him, "you need to learn to work on your manners, that is no way to return the favor of an old friend's hospitality."

Her attention turned to the young boy who was looking up at her strangely, the boy then turned to Vegeta and frowned.

"Mister."

His voice was almost haughty as his face held a look of scorning innocence, a few more days around his father though, and he would probably have the scowl perfected, "Don't expect her to make you anything, she's only a lousy cook _if _she ever gets around to making anything."

Vegeta chuckled as an embarrassed look crossed Bulma's features, "Trunks, do you have all your stuff?"

"Yeah." The boy said, making his way down the hall, "I'm already to go."

Bulma gave ChiChi and Launch each a quick hug and a promise that they would see one another early tomorrow to get ready, only to miss Vegeta looking curiously upon her son, a look of bewilderment and just the slightest hint of what Goku could only mistake as …. Pride?

* * *

Juu, Krillin, Leah, and Jay pulled into the Son's drive way at eleven thirty, the four of them laughing as they talked.

They had gone on a double date, consisting of the cliché dinner and a movie, but all four had a good time and as Krillin cast a look at Juu on the way inside he could only hope that Bulma and Vegeta would work things out, because he wouldn't mind seeing a lot more of her …

* * *

Yamcha laid back in the over stuffed guest bed in the Son's household. He reached over at the wooden dressed positioned neatly beside the flowery bed and plugged his cellular phone into the charger. His tired eyes stared into the glowing lights and saw that he had a voice mail.

His tired thoughts were now replaced with curiosity as he saw the unrecognizable number and picked up the small phone to check his voice mails.

A smile crossed his lips unconsciously as he heard the soft voice of the woman he had met earlier at the airport.

"Hey Yamcha, it's Lana."

There was a slight pause and her voice became slightly nervous, "The girl from the airport. Well, the uhm, worker from the airport. You took me out to lunch -- okay, hopefully you remember who I am."

Yamcha's smile widened, she had been on his mind a lot lately, how could he forget?

"Well, you invited me to your friend's wedding and I was wondering about the details, you said it was tomorrow, right?"

Another short pause and the she sighed, "Well I have a dress and I clean up nicely, so if you could call me back I would like to go, if you could tell me the time or where to meet you, or you could pick me up, or -- or you could just call me back because I would really like to come. Alright, well call me back when you get this, or tomorrow, or … well, talk to you later Yamcha."

The phone clicked off and Yamcha smiled at the pretty mocha skinned woman he had met earlier, there was no denying that he was extremely attracted to her, and as he pulled the phone away from his ear to return her phone call, he felt himself no longer tired, but anxious and nervous, like he was back in high school with a crush.

* * *

Julie stared over at Chip as they walked to her car.

The concert was a lot of fun, more fun then she had had as of late. And not solely because she had gone and seen her favorite artist perform, but because she had shared a few drinks with a nice, interesting man whom she had a lot in common with.

Chip smiled back at her as they met eyes and he thanked her for coming with him.

She returned his smile and stopped, thanking him for inviting her.

He took a step closer to her, and without either of them thinking clearly they leaned in for a short, simple kiss.

But as they pulled away, both blushing with nervous thoughts running through their heads, their situation didn't seem so simple.

"I'm -- I'm sorry." Chip apologized feebly.

"No, don't be sorry Chip." Julie said, turning her head away quickly, "It was the both of us. Not just you."

"But -- but I have Launch. And you -- you have Tien." he frowned, "This is wrong."

She looked up at him and nodded, "It doesn't feel wrong."

He looked back at her and frowned, "I won't be unfaithful to Launch, and I can't just leave her -- not like this."

Julie nodded, "Well, let's get back then, it's getting late and I'm sure Tien is wondering where we are."

Chip took one last glance at her and began walking back to the car, "Will you at least save me a dance tomorrow."

Julie didn't turn to face him, but nodded slightly, "Thanks for taking me, again."

Chip shrugged, "You're probably the only person who would have come."

They couldn't deny that they wanted one another, and they knew that Launch and Tien were probably feeling the same way, but the air on the ride home was one of, despite the loud country music playing, was full of awkward silence.

* * *

The ride to the Breif's mansion was relatively quiet.

Vegeta was seated in the passengers seat beside Bulma, who was driving slower than normal in, for once, no real rush to get home. Trunks was in the back with his head resting against the window, a tired yawn escaping his lips ever so often.

The man in the front stole a small glance at the boy through the reflection the soft glow of the streetlights were casting on the window, and blank expression crossing his dark features as he was barely able to register the word that was coming to his mind.

It was nothing more than a word to him, it seemed, barely tangible. The entire idea of his circumstance unreal.

It wasn't as if he had totally forgotten Bulma, she had been there in his thoughts, right before his head hit the pillow at night, every time he passed those disgusting coffee houses with that reeking odor that would loom around her, every time his cerulean haired secretary would deliver him a paper, or a wink, he would see his own cerulean beauty through a vague memory -- though, he would remember with a smirk, she was much more beautiful than his secretary.

It was strange to him that he was seeing her, and himself, in his -- there was that word again. Son. It was the most unnatural feeling. You don't become a father over night. And you certainly don't become a father to the boy of a woman you haven't spoken with in, what had it been? Six-seven years?

The car moved on, Bulma's driving gradually picking up to it's normal speed. Vegeta watched her switch gears from the corner of his eye.

They had so much history, but where was their relationship now? Certainly they weren't suddenly bonded by the birth of a son she had been keeping hidden from him for so long.

Though he was certain that he wouldn't just be walking out of their lives forever. It had seemed to him that he and Bulma had almost made up. They were now, at least, on speaking terms, and now that he knew the truth about his son, he certainly wasn't going to walk out of his life forever.

Simultaneously, millions of thoughts were running through the head of the woman seated beside him.

Her's were more of guilt, however.

She was, again, beating herself up with the thoughts of _why. _One thought that stuck out particularly was why hadn't she told him sooner?

He had seemed so shocked, hurt almost, that she would keep it hidden, and yet, here he was, sticking beside her with no visible signs of wanting to walk out of either of their lives again.

A smile spread across her face, causing her to involuntarily pick up speed, as she pictured the three of them living happily ever after as a family.

It was a silly thought, even if the three _did _live together they certainly wouldn't function like a normal family. She pictured Vegeta out playing catch with Trunks in the back yard while she made dinner and folded laundry. It was a ridiculous thought.

They would fight constantly, and … nothing else really seemed to matter to her though. She loved them both very dearly, and she knew she was only being unfair to both of them by keeping the truth hidden from them. They each deserved each other, and, she thought herself a little selfish, but she honestly wanted both of them in her life. To stay.

The boy in the back seat watched his, unknown to him, parents with sleepy eyes, remember how effortlessly Vegeta had kept up with Goku. He remembered how well he had fought and how sharp and insulting his tongue had been.

He was strangely captivated by the dark man and was thrilled to have him come stay with his mom and him.

A devilish grin spread across his face as he thought of his mother, the lonely, beautiful woman in the front seat … he knew that tomorrow was the wedding, and while all that gross grownup-mushy stuff was going on, perhaps his own mom would be looking for someone …

He now only had to think up a plan to get his mom and Vegeta together … little did he know, it would be so much easier than he thought …

* * *

Okay. Lame chapter -- I know. It was more of a filler slash look into a little more detail about Bulma and Vegeta and a kinda set up for the wedding. I didn't want to cram all of that into this chapter -- and my writings a little choppy and I haven't written anything in like a year. This wasn't proof read or anything but I couldn't bear to wait another day to get this chapter up. Hopefully I'll be back to normal writing and consistent updating and have a new, eventful chapter up soon.

Thanks to everyone who has put up with my extended period away from fan fiction, I am back now with a new idea for a story, and motivation to complete this fic before I even attempt to start anything new!

I would really like some feedback about what you guys want to see more about or who or … well, whatever really -- so please review! I would really appreciate it.

Sorry again for the wait, it won't be as long next time.

So thanks -- and **much** love!

_-Crimson_


	8. The Eighth Chapter

**The Eighth Chapter**

High School Reunions

_Shades of Crimson_

* * *

Poised.

Collective.

Confidant.

Exquisite.

Agile.

Angelic.

--Beautiful.

The words ran through her head. She had tried her hardest to put each of them to truth - but she was failing miserably. For the only word that seemed to register in her mind was frazzled.

She was clearly anxious and had more than enough stress laying on her tanned shoulders.

"Chi." A comforting voice coaxed, "Relax."

"Relax?" She shot back venomously, "How the hell am I supposed to relax in _this _dress and on _this _day and with my hair pulled back like _this_, Bee. Honestly."

"Chi." Another voice sounded as she glared at her black haired friend, "How about remembering your manners. You are a lady, you know?"

The black haired woman sighed in defeat and rolled her dark eyes, "Thanks Launch."

The two blue haired women in the room rolled their eyes simultaneously and sighed.

"Now Chi." Bulma began with a smile and brush in her hand, pointing the small brush towards the gorgeous woman in the long, flowing white gown, "To fix your makeup!"

* * *

The two boys stood in the doorway, the carbon copy of Goku fidgeted with his tie, "Trunks, why do we have to dress like this?"

The lavender haired boy shrugged as he glanced down at his small tux to glare at his own tie, "I don't know, they're _your _parents."

Goten frowned, "Why do they have to get married again anyway?"

Trunks shrugged again at his best friend, "Why do _you _have to ask me so many questions, Goten?"

The boy blinked at his friend and shrugged, "I'm huuungry Trunks - let's go find the buffet my dad kept talking about!!"

The two smalls boys made their way to the buffet table, only to find once they had approached the table that it was already being picked over by four very hungry men with large appetites.

Goten frowned at his dad, who was wearing a white tux with a pastel pink tie and matching booteneer in his pocket. It wasn't, however, the rare occasion of his father "dressed up" or the fact that he was donning a pink flower on his chest, but it was the fact that he was eating one of the many sushi platters his mother had hand picked out rather sloppily and wearing white while doing so.

The young boy knew well enough through all of his naivety that this was something his mom would _not _be too happy about.

Trunks, on the other hand, just shot a gaze to the other three men and asked if he could have some as well.

Tien, casting a short gaze at the lavender haired boy, blinked. He still could not grasp the concept of his old high school friends conceiving a boy, but he absently extended his hand to give the two small boys a platter and they began devouring it quickly.

He smiled at the boys. _So their fathers eating habits are genetic I guess …_

Tien was wearing a light purple flower on his jacket, Vegeta a light blue, while Yamcha wore a pastel green flower. The plan ChiChi had so strictly coordinated was for each of the men to wear a different color booteneer, while her bridesmaids would wear a matching color dress and carry white lilies down the aisle. ChiChi, however, would be in a traditional white gown while carrying pink lilies - to match her husbands booteneer and tie.

The guys however, were not so excited about wearing booteneers, and did not find the concept slightly well …

"Kakerot, these flower things are queer ."

Goku looked up at his flame haired friend, who was glaring down at the blue flower pinned to his black suite. He smiled sheepishly in mid-chew and shrugged, "Chi's idea."

Just then, the door to the reception area swung open and all six of the males in the room looked over to the woman who was frowning at them in the doorway.

Goku placed the tray he was snacking on back on the table while Trunks and Goten just shot her guilty looks.

The blue haired woman, in the quite flattering light blue dress, just continued to frown, "You boys know that if ChiChi found out about this she would be majorly pissed ."

Yamcha feigned a sigh, "Well Bee Babe - that's why you're not going to tell her - Right?"

Bulma rolled her eyes at him, "You guys just eat carefully, I doubled the stock of food for the reception. I knew you boys would go and do something irresponsible like this."

Vegeta blinked. That was all the bitching she was going to be doing?

The boy at his side stole the next thought and said it allowed.

"You look really pretty, Momma."

Bulma beamed down at her son and rubbed the top of his lavender head, messing up his previously combed hair.

She brought her attention back up to the men and smiled, "The wedding is about to start," she reached over and straightened Vegeta's flower, not without noticing that it matched her dress nicely.

He shot her a sexy smirk, causing her to roll her eyes at him, "Now go take your places boys - ChiChi would never let any of us live it down if her wedding got screwed up."

"Yep." Goku said, slapping Tien on the back nervously, "Let's go do this."

* * *

From the piano the cliché wedding march theme played. The song that always set the mood of the church with that surreal and happy, elegant feeling.

The large double doors of the church spread open and two small boys in tuxes made their way down the aisle with ring in each of their hands.

Four men stood next to the priest, one of which was growing very anxious to see his wife all dressed up and experiencing the wedding she always wanted but never had a chance to have.

After the boys made their was down the aisle and took their seats in the pew, the bridesmaids entered.

Launch first - looking stunning in her lavender, floor length dress.

She was followed by Marron, in pastel green, and then Bulma in light blue.

Each of them walked elegantly, holding their small orchid bouquets, their hair pulled back in buns, and smiles adorning their pretty faces.

After they were down the isle and standing opposite from the men, ChiChi entered the church and the people in the pews stood up, smiling adoringly upon the bride.

Goku watched his wife walk down the isle - his breath catching his throat.

She was beautiful.

* * *

The reception hall had been decorated rather lavishly with pastels, orchids, and a whitewood dance floor. There were two parallel buffet tables adorned with different kinds of sushi, desserts, and strawberry champagne punch.

It was ChiChi's picture perfect wedding.

From the wide double doors of the reception hall you could see people laughing as they gathered around the punch, various couples slow dancing to the live band, and ChiChi and Goku stuffing cake into each others mouths in the distance.

The couple who had arrived together, though _couple _as in two people together, not as in they were an item. Because … that they were not.

Yet.

Julie sighed lightly and couldn't help but smile as she watched her boyfriend Tien talk to Launch on the dance floor. They were an amazing couple, she thought, and she wouldn't mind being with the man beside her truth be told.

Chip watched the scene of his longtime girlfriend dancing with a blink. He had always been an incredibly jealous person, but now, watching this scene, he felt no ounce of envy.

Their eyes met, and Julie shot him a knowing smile. He returned the smile and sighed, "Well, I guess we know what we've got to do then, hm?"

* * *

Her eyes rolled as he finished up another joke and then sighed sheepishly at her response.

Krillin couldn't help but admire the blonde woman. She was beautiful, but something modest and monotone about her made her strangely attractive to him.

Maybe it was the fact that she hadn't thrown herself at him like the other girls he had met. The women he and Vegeta often met in bars were cute - they were clearly ignorant and giggled annoyingly and blew their think drunken breath on him.

He hated that.

But here was a genuinely beautiful woman with taste and class and brains, and he found himself cracking dumb jokes for her "amusement."

She rolled her eyes and flicked a stray piece of hair that had fallen in front of them.

A blush grazed his cheeks as he began to gather enough nerve to ask her … oh, he wasn't sure … on a date, perhaps?

Before he could open his mouth, a dark figure hovered above him and when he leaned back in his chair to catch a glimpse at the man that had so rudely interrupted his gut-gathering and was met with a narrowed pair of onyx eyes.

He gullped.

The tightly drawn lips parted shortly to request his presence.

Juu frowned.

More like commanded.

Krillin gave her a small apologetic nod as he followed his business partner to a corner in the reception room, not without casting an emotionless gaze at a Bulma haired woman holding a lavender headed boy in her arms as she spun him around the dance floor.

Krillin couldn't help but smile at this.

"We're relocating the company."

Krillin blinked at this statement, "What?"

"You heard me," Vegeta stated gruffly, "We're moving. To Tulsa."

Krillin's face was one of bewilderment, "But … why?"

Vegeta frowned, casting a gaze to the dance floor again, but Krillin's eyes only made it to the edge of the dance floor where a certain blonde was dancing with a very bored expression with Goku's long haired brother.

He smiled.

The move gave him no reason to complain.

* * *

Vegeta made his way to the woman who was holding their son on her hip as they danced.

The boy was giggling as his mom dipped him back and tickled him with her free hand.

The song the band was playing was an upbeat tune, and Bulma swayed her son to the beat of the song.

Vegeta couldn't help but admire her being a mother. It was something that he wasn't sure he could grasp the concept of - Bulma being a … parent. He was one too. But not in the since she was. She had raised a child. Their child. And from what he could tell, she had raised him well.

The song came to a close and a slow song began sounding from the band, and Vegeta took this opportunity to approach.

"May I cut in?"

Trunks looked over at the flamehaired man and nodded as his mother sat him on the ground and he scurried off to find Goten.

Bulma smiled at him as he took her hand in his and placed his other hand on the small of her back. She, in turn, placed her hand around his neck and smiled at their closeness.

She could smell him, and couldn't help but resist to take a deep breath to inhale the scent she had long since forgotten.

They were close as they danced, and Vegeta looked her in the eye.

"I'm relocating to Tulsa."

Bulma blinked as a look of surprise crossed her face. He smirked at this.

"What woman? Don't want me around?"

She shook her head and smiled. A genuine smile.

She was breathtaking.

Though diction such as _breathtaking _probably wasn't the word that Vegeta would have used to describe her.

"I'm … happy."

He cast her a strange glace and she sighed, "What? I am. I've missed having you around."

He pulled her closer and took in the scent of her perfume and glanced down at the creamy pale skin of her neck.

"I don't want to miss another seven years of my sons life."

Bulma rested her head on his chest and sighed.

He couldn't see the expression that grazed her angelic features then, but her knew her well enough.

It was guilt.

* * *

Yamcha smiled at the beautiful mocha skinned woman across from her.

She had honestly made him laugh like no woman had before.

"You know Yammy - you're kind of making me interested in you." She flashed him an award winning grin, "Too bad you're going back to New York."

He smiled back at her, "Who knows, all of my friends are coming back her - and I'm kind of needing a fresh start.

She giggled as he winked and he and couldn't help the seemingly permanent smile on her lips, "Well, you better call me for a date or something if you decide to stay."

He nodded, almost eagerly, and she laughed again.

* * *

"You know…" She began as she watched her boyfriend flirt with his girlfriend, "They would be perfect for each other."

The situation seemed a little unrealistic to him. Was she saying that she _wanted _them to get togher?

He frowned.

He couldn't say he would be too upset about it.

"Yeah," He watched his girlfriend lean her head back to allow a loud laugh to escape, "And they both live in Florida so it would work out."

Launch sighed as her eyes darted around the room, "ChiChi and Goku are perfect for each other. They make me sick."

He laughed at her mock-jealousy and watched as Bulma and Vegeta held each other closely on the dance floor.

"They look pretty cozy, don't they?"

Launch smiled, "I hope so, they look awfully close anyway."

Tien nodded, "And their coworkers," he pointed in the direction of Krillin and Juu who were seated at a table with Launch's own coworker and Juu's brother, "I guess they're somewhat of an item now."

She nodded, "Leah and Jay as well."

He shrugged, each of them knowing the point they were trying to get across.

Tien extended his head to her, and she blushed slightly at the offer.

"Would you … like to dance, Launch?"

She smiled and took the outstretched hand.

Before they had made their way to the dance floor ChiChi made her way over to them and smiled, "I'm so sorry to interrupt you two but … I would like to ask you both for a favor."

Launch blinked quizzically, "Uhm, sure Chi, anything."

She sighed, "Well, I was originally planning on having Bulma watch Goten for eth evening but…" She trailed off as she watched Bulma and Vegeta dance, "I have a feeling the newly united family would like some alone time."

Launch smiled and nodded eagerly, "Of course Chi! We would love to watch Goten for you!"

ChiChi smiled graciously and thanked the couple. Nodding slightly towards to Tien in an apologetic gesture for interrupting their dance.

Tien, his fingers still intertwined with Launchs' just continued to lead her to the dance floor, frowning slightly as a faster paced song came on, but Launch took the opportunity to dance anyway.

He laughed at her and she frowned, "C'mon Tien!! Have some fun."

His eyes studied her for a moment and let out a defeated sigh, taking the chance to mirror her movements to the song.

* * *

Across the dace floor another couple parted when the quick paced song began playing.

The blue eyed woman laughed as Vegeta finished his story with a smirk, and she led him to the buffet tables to pour herself a glass of strawberry champagne punch. Noticing the way the pastel pink matched the theme of ChiChi's wedding.

She turned to see the smirk still present on Vegeta's face and couldn't help but roll her eyes.

Upon seeing the scowl that replaced his smirk she cracked a smile and allowed a small giggle to escape her lips.

The band announced that the next slow song would be the final dance of the evening, and Bulma set down her glass and dragged Vegeta back towards the dance floor. Not wanting to miss another opportunity to have him hold he in a comfortable embrace.

* * *

After the wedding ChiChi and Goku drove off in their recently tagged car (compliments of their _wonderful _friends, of course) towards their hotel.

It wasn't much - just a honeymoon suite in a fabulous hotel in Shreveport a few house southeast from Tulsa.

The couple was quite excited.

ChiChi sighed as Goku drove, "It will be nice to have the weekend to ourselves."

She stretched her legs and placed her bare feet on the dashboard and wiggled her painted toes. Though she enjoyed feeling like a princess in her white gown, it was nice to be in shorts and t-shirt.

Goku smiled at her and then glanced at a note just inches away from his wives feet. ChiChi gave the note a questing glance and picked it up and opened it.

She smiled as she instantly recognized Bulma's note.

It wasn't much, but written out in Bulma's excellent handwriting read,

Chi - Have fun on your honeymoon. But not too much fun. ; ) Thanks for the High School Reunion. We love you. -Bulma, Marron, and Launch!!

She smiled.

For she had enjoyed the High School Reunion herself.

* * *

The airport was crowded with families hugging and preparing to depart and business men in suites hurrying quickly to catch their flights with only their suitcases in hand.

Juu and Krillin were just leaving after dropping off Juu's brother and Launch's coworker Julie to fly them back to Tulsa.

The couple seemed eager to have some alone time and cast their friends a small wave as they scurried onto the plane.

Juu and Krillin, however, just glanced at each other with unsteady eyes.

"So …" Krillin began, trying to break the silence as he slid into the blondes SUV.

She cast him a side glance and frowned, he monotone voice steadily cutting the silence, "So?"

Krillin shrugged. He knew that they were going to try and stay up late to give Bulma, Vegeta, and Trunks some alone time. What they were supposed to do, however, was in the air.

A smirk crossed the blondes face as she exited.

The shorter man blinked. "What … Where are we going?"

He looked ahead and couldn't help but smile as he spotted a glowing marque off of the service road.

"Laser quest?"

Juu just continued to smirk, "24 hour laser tag Friday and Saturday."

Krillin's eyes widened, "Are you _serious??_"

He always loved this type of thing.

The blonde frowned at him, "Of course I'm serious, dimwit. Are you in?"

He nodded eagerly.

He knew that she was extremely competitive and that this was going to be one of the greatest nights of his life …

* * *

After a night of ice cream and a stop at a carnival, Launch and Tien drove in contempt silence as a sleeping carbon copy of Goku slept in the backseat. There was a soft snoring sound coming from his wide open mouth, and there was a large, half eaten was of cotton candy in his right hand, while a stuffed bear was clutched under his left arm.

Launch smiled as she cast the boy a glance, and then turned her smile to Tien who was switching lanes, casting a glimpse in the rearview mirror at the sleeping boy.

"Tonight was a lot of fun." She commented softly, remembering the three of them running through the carnival riding rides until they each were sick.

Tien laughed quietly, "Maybe we'll have kids someday, Launch."

She turned her head quickly away from him to hide the blush rousing her cheeks. She had been thinking the exact same thing just moments prior - but she had never expected him to say something like that aloud.

She turned her gaze back to him and found him smiling and she couldn't help but smile in return, "Maybe…"

* * *

She quickly spun the key and swung one of the large double doors open to reveal the emptyness of the large house.

She shooed the two boys behind her inside and sighed, "Brr, it's cold!"

Trunks flipped on the lights and looked up at his mother who was sipping on her freshly brewed star bucks cappachino.

He then glanced at the flamehaired man with a smile. He was really excited to have the man staying with him. He really looked up to him, and he had said something at the drive though at Starbucks about helping him train so he could be stronger than Goten!

Bulma smiled at the two boys and cleared her throat, "Well I'm going to make some hot chocolate for you two, make yourself comfortable Vegeta."

When the blue haired woman scurried out of the room, an almost awkward silence filled the Brief's living room.

Trunks blinked up at the intimidating man, "Do you want to play some Xbox with me?"

The darkhaired man looked down at the small boy and nodded lightly, "Sure."

Trunks smiled happily and dropped to his knees, scavenging through his pile of Xbox 360 games excitedly, "Do you want to play Gears of War?"

Vegeta glanced down at the boy and took a seat beside him, "Sure. I'm not great at third person shooter - I'm more of a first person-"

Trunks blinked and then interrupted him, "Woa!! Seriously!! You're really cool Vegeta!!"

Vegeta couldn't help but smirk at the compliment the boy had shouted at him and then frowned as he watched the boy start the game, "Aren't all of the guys your mom brings home cool?"

Trunks shrugged lightly and shook his head, his attention focused on the game, "My mom doesn't like boys. At least, I don't think so. You're the first guy she's ever brought home." He replied, absently.

Vegeta couldn't help but smirk again.

Bulma chose this time to enter the room with a mug of hot chocolate in her hands, she leaned against the door frame with a smile as she watched her two most prized men in the world begin to play.

* * *

She gasped as she dropped her duffle bag when their hotel door swung open.

Gokue smiled as he sat the bags he had been carrying down on the floor.

ChiChi just continued to blink from the hallway as he husband turned back to her and led her inside.

She gaped at the bed, roses strewn across the crème comforter, the lights dim, two bottles of champagne and a cake lined with chocolate covered strawberries sitting on the table.

"It's … beautiful."

Goku smiled at her again and took her gently in his arms, kissing her lips gently, "I love you, ChiChi."

She turned her attention from the beautiful room to he husband and smiled at him, the dim lights casting shadows across his face.

"I love you too." She whispered, just before he captured her lips once again.

* * *

Bulma cleared her throat as she entered the living room and sat the mug down next to her son as he took a sip of it and thanked her.

Vegeta's eyes darted from the screen and watched as the lavender haired boy sipped on the hot drink.

His nose wrinkled in disgust.

"You're brainwashing him, woman."

She rolled her eyes at him and frowned, "It's hot _chocolate _Vegeta, chill."

He frowned and paused the game, "Drink your shit boy-" Bulma glared at him and his language, but he ignored her, "I'm going to the bathroom."

"Third door on your right."

He nodded as he disappeared into the hallway and the woman's eyes began to glow, "So? Do you like him?"

Trunks nodded animatedly, his face and quickness unable to hide his excitement, "Yes! He's the coolest."

Bulma smiled as she rubbed his head, messing up his hair, "Good, because we'll be spending a lot of time with him."

Trunks smiled, "Really?"

He then frowned, "Why for?"

A sudden grotesque look crossed the young boys face and he stuck out his tongue, "Is he your new _boyfriend_?"

Bulma poked him in the stomach with a playful smile, "_Nooo. _My old boyfriend, actually."

Trunks nodded, "Well I like him."

"Good." Bulma stated, slowly. A nervous look crossed her face, "Because … that's … your …" She sighed lightly, "Because Vegeta is your father, Trunks."

The boys eyes lit up and watched in confusion as a small tear cascaded down his mother cheek.

Vegeta sat down on the other side of Trunks after a few moments of silence and, just when he was about to unpause the game, a pair of small arms wrapped around his waist.

He froze, his eyes wide with confusion, and looked down at the small boy who was hugging him tightly.

Vegeta then turned to the woman and blinked as he watched the sad expression on her face, a small tear escaping form the corner of her eye.

Vegeta relaxed in the embrace of his son and Bulma couldn't help but crack a smile as Trunks pulled away quickly and blushed with a quick apology.

The flame haired business man watched the two figures in the room with emotionless eyes.

He recognized them for the first time as what they were.

They were … his _family._

It was a strange word. But there was no denying it. He was going to be a father figure for his son, and Bulma and he had some undeniable connection. That was that.

They were a family.

Vegeta smiled, an awkward expression for the cold man, and watched as Bulma frowned from the corner of his eye as she swallowed a gulp of her hot chocolate.

"Ew. It's cold."

He frowned at her and Trunks watched the two timidly, "Momma, we can go to Starbucks again."

A smile crossed the beautiful woman's face and she shook her head, "I don't want coffee right not hunny, I just want to be with my family."

Trunks couldn't quite comprehend the concept. Family? Like what Goten had. With a dad who could teach him to fight and mom who would cook them dinner and then they would all eat together …

He then smirked at his father who was looking at his mother and smiled wikidly, quickly unpausing the game and letting out a yelp of excitement, "You let your guard down!! Loser."

Vegeta growled as he picked up his remote and began to play, the scene causing Bulma to laugh.

"Tomorrow … Dad." He tried the word, "Will you teach me to fight?"

The onyx eyes continued to focus on the screen but he nodded, "Of course under the instruction of your damn mother you haven't gotten much proper instruction."

Bulma jumped in offence, "Hey Mister! I'll have you know that I have been giving him lots of help! Not only by brining him to Goku's gym for lessons but by building him things to train with as well! Besides, you can't go around using words like 'damn' in front of him and go calling _me _a bad influence!!"

Vegeta smirked, "I said _proper _instruction, woman."

A humph escaped the womans lips as she crossed her arms angrily, she seethed through clinched teeth "Jerk."

Trunks watched his parents with a frown, "Uhm, want to watch a movie?"

A few moments latter the family was snuggled on the couch, Vegeta's arms around Bulma's trim waist and Trunks asleep beside them.

Vegeta shot the boy a small glance and smirked, "You know woman, the brats asleep now …"

His hot breath teased her ear as he purposely breathed on it.

She turned to face him and captured his lips in a short kiss.

When she pulled away Vegeta immediately clamped down on her lips, in a hard, forceful kiss. Seven years of suppressed passion went into the fiery kiss.

When the couple pulled away Bulma smiled sexily at him, however a small sigh escaped her lips.

Vegeta smirked at her, "What woman? If I'm going to be here then we may as well 'rekindle things.'"

"Vegeta …"

"What woman?"

"Does that mean that you will be living here??"

"Is that okay?"

She blinked in confusion while he continued, "Besides, that annoying assistant of mine and your friend seem to be a thing now"

A smile grazed her lips as she threw her arms around his neck, a small sob was muffled in his masculine shoulder.

He blinked.

She sobbed again, "I'm glad you're here, Vegeta."

He couldn't utter the words, but the way his arms wrapped around her and he held her rocking body against his was enough. He knew it and she knew it as well.

He was glad he was here, too.

* * *

The End.

* * *

It took me a while to post this chapter … Sorry!! And ... yes, it is the final chapter. Though I did go back a reread both High School Royalty and Reunions, and I have to say that I am happy with the ending result. I hope you are as well. Do tell me how you feel!! And if you want a short epilogue (and have any ideas for one??) then be sure to shoot those requests this way!!

I love you guys. Seriously, the reviews have carried me this far and it is such an honor to have such wonderful support.

Thanks!!


	9. The Epilogue

This chapter is dedicated to Candy Dragonstar - an excellent reviewer who came up with the idea for this story.  
You are seriously the greatest and I hope you know how much I appreciated your review!!

I would also like to thank each of you who have reviewed in the past - bringing the total of the combined High School stories to nearly 800 reviews. Wow. You guys are awesome and I really, really hope you enjoy the final chapter to this story.

Please remember to review at the end and let me know how you felt. I really look forward to reading your thoughts and such - so please just take the extra two seconds to review ... even if it's just a two word responce.

You guys are amazingly awesome and have been terrific supports, and so I want to give you all one last huge thank you and let you know that I honestly lovelovelove you all!!

* * *

High School Reunions

The Epilogue

* * *

The silver convertible sped down the parking lot in the front of the school, as it drove on past the other cars the sun seemed to emit it's rays especially on it so that the silver paint sparkled and glistened as the other students stared. The car pulled into a space in the front of the school and three girls stepped out of the car, each simultaneously slamming the doors.

"Uh, Marron." The blue haired driver complained, taking off her sun glasses and straightening her skirt, "Careful with the paint -- Daddy would **kill **me if I chipped it again."

The blonde haired girl that she had been referring to flipped a lock of light hair away from her shoulders and rolled her eyes, "Bra, really, like _your _dad would really get mad about anything you did, honestly."

The blue haired girl grinned, her two rows of perfectly white teeth gleamed with pride at the mention of her beloved father. Yes, it was true … she had the normally selfishly proud man wrapped around her little fingers.

A dark-haired girl stepped out of the backseat of the air car and sighed, "Your poor brother though, _he _would probably get an earful."

The blonde haired girls eyes narrowed as the trio began making their way towards the school, "Speaking of Trunks, he never called me back, the prick."

As the three walked towards the large building and another day of school, their heels clicked on the concrete pavement and all eyes seemed glued to them. As they made their way, people literally stepped out of their way so the most popular girls in the entire school could make their grand entrance.

The leader of the clique stood between her two best friends, laughing at something the blonde girl beside her had said. As a boy opened one of the large glass doors to the school open for her she shot him another one of her signature grins. He merely blinked back at the breathtaking blue haired girl.

She was quite a beauty with her shoulder length cerulean hair and deep blue eyes. Under her small arm she hosted her designer bag that her brilliant and beautiful mother and recently purchased for her seventeenth birthday. They were a wealthy family - her mother being a world famous inventor and her father running their family's business. Her parents were always quite embarrassing for her to bring boys home to. Her mother usually catching the eye of her date, still being quite beautiful and flirtatious for her age. Her father, on the other hand, was terribly intimidating with his fierce scowl and budging muscles. Needless to say, boys never stayed around too long.

She had an older brother, Trunks, who was shy and noble and nearly as brilliant as her mother was. He also had their fathers strengths imposed upon him, and was forced to train with his father every night when he was still living at home. He was now currently a college student getting a degree to one day take over their parents company.

Bra smiled at the thought of her parents, but the smile soon disappeared as she let out a small sigh and her blue eyes roamed the hallways. Her parents were a great couple - even though they fought and teased each other every day, they loved each other so much it was sickening. And their forwardness towards everyone about their sex life was way more information than teen Bra ever really needed to know.

The thought of growing old and never having a husband saddened her - for no matter how many boys she dated, they were never right for her. So what is she was high matennce? She was a princess, and she deserved the best.

To her right was Marron - the beautiful blonde girl who had a knack for shopping and was often discarded as being slightly superficial. She was a kind girl and quite pretty. Actually, she had been dating Bras brother for almost six months now and the couple was quite happy.

Marron and Trunks had been friends since they were young - their families being so close that they were raised together.

Her parents were business partners of his parents, and both Juu and Krillin were extremely proud of their beautiful daughter.

They had actually lived in Bulma and Vegeta's guest house for a few months until Krillin proposed to Marron's mother and they moved down the street into a mansion of their own.

The final female member of the clique was Pan, a short-tempered and very tomboyish dark haired girl. She was a member of the wrestling team, though frowned upon by her two friends, and found no pleasure in her two best friends pastimes of shopping.

Though they were constantly buying her things to wear she grudgingly complied. For, they were her very best friends and they made her laugh and she cared about them like no one else. They were practically sisters.

Her parents were the fun loving Goku and ChiChi, her mother being a stay-at-home mom and part time baker at a nearby cake shop. Her father was still the naïve and goofy man her friend's parents and told her that he was in high school - he however ran his own dojo and was funding their family quite sufficiently.

Her older brother, Goten, was roommates in college with Trunks. They went to school nearby and were constantly visited by the three girls. They, of course, visited home often as well so there was really no separation between them.

As they continued their walk down the hall, a boy ran up to them, panting slightly.

The three girls frowned at him and he inhaled deeply and then stood up straight, "Hey guys."

Bra frowned at the boy, their fourth high school companion, "How many times do I have to remind you, we're _girls_, Uub, stop referring to us as if we were male."

Uub was a boy in their grade who had also been practically raised with them as well. He being the only son of their parents longtime friend's Launch and Tien.

He had moved to Oklahoma with the others when he was two and they had been together practically ever since.

"Pan, you did great at practice last night." Uub began, Marron and Bra both knew that he had always had a crush on the dark haired girl.

She nodded casually at him, "Yeah, you too. Any idea what we're doing today?"

Marron and Bra rolled their eyes as the two began discussing wrestling practice and then Bra gasped excitedly, "Oh! Do you want to go visit the guys this weekend?"

Uub nodded eagerly and Marron smiled excitedly, always up for an opportunity to see her older boyfriend.

Pan shrugged, wanting to see both her brother and Trunks, but not as excited as the others and their animated reactions.

"Alright!" Bra smiled, "I'll call Trunks and tell him to make reservations at that steakhouse on 7th."

As soon as Uub was about to respond, the bell rang and the four teens spilt up, making plans to meet at the Breif's mansion after school.

* * *

The plan was for the other three teens to arrive at Bra's house shortly after school, giving themselves time, of course, for going home to dress and redo their hair and makeup and virtually make themselves perfect. 

Uub, however, was exempt from this, and arrived at the Brief's household long before the other two girls, and knocked on the door timidly - hoping that it would be Bulma to open the door.

His luck failed him, unfortunately, as a pair of onyx eyes loomed above him - a snarl being thrown in his direction.

"What do you want?" The voice snapped, only to be echoed by an angry female voice.

"Vegeta! That is _not _how we talk to our company."

He was pushed out of the way and replaced by a beautiful blue haired woman, one who resembled Bra quite well. Or … perhaps it was the other way around?

She smiled graciously at him and opened the door to let him inside.

When Uub made his way into the large house, he averted his eyes to avoid Vegeta's.

"Can I get you anything? A snack? A drink?" The blue haired woman smiled again, and then turned her gaze to her 'beloved husband' to glare at him.

"No mam, thank you though." The manners Launch had imposed on him had sunk in, "Is Bra here?"

"Yes, she's up in her room getting ready." Bulma sighed dreamily as she glanced at the stairs, "She's got to make herself look absolutely perfect, you know."

Uub shrugged lightly as the woman continued, "She has a huge crush on that Goten. I don't blame her - he has grown into _quite_ the looker."

Vegeta growled, "My daughter does not have a pitiful …. _crush _on that **idiot's **son. The weakling! Feh."

Bulma blinked at him with a blank face and then rolled her eyes, "Anyway - she'll be down in a minute."

As if on cue, the doorbell rang and Marron let herself in the house.

A pair of blue eyes widened excitedly as she threw her arms around the thin girl, "Oh!! Marron!! It's so great to see you again!"

The blonde smiled, though she saw Bulma nearly ever day, she loved that her best friend and boyfriends mom adored her so much.

Bulma released her and backed away, smiling at the girl with a nod of approval, "Cute skirt!"

Vegeta rolled his eyes at the scene and Bulma laughed, "Oh, my son has _great _taste!"

The door was opened and Pan entered, wearing a tank top and a pair of knee length shorts.

She tossed her bag over her shoulder and frowned, "What's taking Bra so long?"

"Excuse a girl for making herself look good!"

Each of the eyes were turned to the blue haired girl who was making her way down the stairs, wearing a short denim skirt with a brown tank top and dark green polo over it, "But I'm ready to go now."

They loaded up the car and the four teens climbed in, Bulma handing her daughter a bag of 'goodies' for Trunks before they took off for the weekend.

As they drove off Vegeta let out a small growl, muttering something about letting their daughter dress like a slut.

Bulma glared at him, "Oh, honestly Vegeta, like we were complete saints in high school. Let the kids have some fun."

He smirked as he remembered a random high school memory, "You did dress like a skank, didn't you?"

She feigned a hurt expression then grinned, "You seemed to enjoy it, didn't you?"

"I was a hormone raging teenage boy, forgive me."

She laughed at the smirk playing on his handsome features.

"Come on woman, the brats are all out of the house for the weekend, let's have some fun."

She rolled her eyes at him and then sighed in defeat, "Still a hormone raging boy, aren't you?"

He shook his head, lightly nibbling on her neck, "No woman," he whispered in her ear, "I'm a man now."

She laughed with a small blush, "Well let's get out of the driveway at least."

Just as they were about to turn around Goku and ChiChi jogged by, in matching sweat suites giving the couple excited waves.

Vegeta growled angrily as his fist compressed into two tight wads.

"Vegeta," Bulma coed, squeezing his wrist lightly, "After a short chat, Okay?"

He looked his beautiful wife over and let a complying growl escape his throat.

She smiled and turned her attention to the two matching jiggers at the foot of their driveway and returned a wave.

* * *

"Oh, it's been so long since we got to go out and eat like this, Trunks!"

The lavender haired boy felt his girlfriend slide next to him in the booth as she spoke.

He turned to smile at her, taking in her gorgeous physique. Some of the guys, mainly his player of a roommate Goten had given him a hard time about dating a high school girl, but she was not only his best friend and a great person, but she was much more beautiful then any of the girls he had spotted around campus.

"Yeah, I've missed you Marron."

She blushed lightly at hi comment and then smiled, "It's been four days, Trunks."

He shrugged and leant over to whisper in her ear.

He had never been Mr. Suave, but he still knew how to make his girlfriend blush, "Tomorrow night what do you say we dump these guys and spend some alone time?"

Her cheeks flushed as her eyes widened and she embarrassedly pretended to look over the menu in front of her.

After she had gotten over her embarrassment she turned her gaze to her gorgeous boyfriend and smiled sweetly, "That sounds great."

He grinned back at her and planted a short kiss on her forehead, then he pulled back and looked into her eyes - placing a lock of blonde hair behind her ears.

"Would you two get a room. Honestly, some of us came here to eat, not watch the two of you and loose our appetites."

The cheeky blue haired woman glared across the table as her brother and best friend ignored her and sighed.

When she looked up, she found herself seated next to Pan's gorgeous older brother Goten, Uub and Pan sitting at chairs on opposite sides of the table.

She tucked a strand of blue hair away from her face and took a deep breath of air - making sure to inhale Goten's cologne.

It was a scent she had always adored but had never been able to replace.

She cast him a small side glance and watched the dreamy male glance boredly over his menu.

Her father had always said that Goten had been a naïve boy much like Goku, but she found it hard that the sleek ladies man beside her that was emitting such allure that the beautiful Bra felt intimidated.

So what if she had always had a crush on the older boy? He _was _a charming college boy, a friend of the family, her brothers roommate, and drop dead gorgeous.

She sighed in defeat as she sat down her menu, opting for a salad.

"So, what's up Bra?"

She blinked at the boy beside her and smiled sweetly at him, "Not too much, how are you?"

They engaged in small talk, swapping stories and sharing embarrassing past relationships.

"Really? A beautiful girl like you?"

She laughed timidly as her cheeks tinted with a slight rogue, a strange feature for such a confidante girl.

He shook his head, "I always thought Trunk's little sister would be quite the heartbreaker."

She rolled her eyes as she stared at her water with a frown, "Nope. For some reason it seems to be the other way around."

He shrugged, "Well, you'll just be the hottest Freshman on campus next year - won't you?"

She laughed and stood up straight, feigning sarcastic confidence, "Who knows, I might even outdo a certain Senior."

"Well," He smirked, "I don't know about that."

She smiled at him, and the older boy noticed that she was quite attractive, not the superficial eye-catch that he had always seen in her … but real, surreal beauty.

Yes, there were probably a lot of guys that wanted to get in her … he frowned as he noticed … very, very short skirt.

He almost frowned at himself for his thoughts of himself included and shrugged, "Well, maybe next year when you're here I'll have to buy you a drink or something."

She frowned lightly, "I'll be underage."

He nodded, as if just remembering, "Oh yeah."

Then he smirked, "Well that's why I'll be doing the buying."

She laughed at the cute boy and then smiled.

Yes, she was already looking forward to next year …

But for now, she would have to stick to just being high school royalty.


End file.

Dragon Ball Z, Humor, Romance