Lower Instinct - beginning of vegebul (+ gochi, tienlaunch)

Full moon (vegebul)

A few weeks had passed since the bathroom faux pas and once again Vegeta and Bulma had managed to avoid each other as much as possible.
By now it couldn't be denied - for either of them - that there was a certain, delightful tension between them. Even though Bulma was fed up with the male world and Vegeta didn't want to allow himself any unnecessary distractions. And this 'annoying woman' was clearly an unnecessary distraction for him!
So he preferred to go about his daily training. Because becoming stronger - stronger than Kakarot! - and defeating the androids, that was still his top priority! To his displeasure, however, Bulma kept popping up in his thoughts and the mere fact that he even had to think about her made him angry. But this anger in turn spurred him on to top performance!

Bulma, on the other hand, had no idea that Vegeta felt this way. That he even gave her a thought.
To her, he was still a grumpy stranger who certainly had his charms... but nothing more! In the meantime, she had put aside the shame about her impulsive action in the shower and, moreover, blamed it on her exhaustion at the time. Because at the time she just wasn't herself. Totally reworked and completely screwed up! Yes, that must have been the reason!
Because Vegeta wasn't exactly a prime example of a typical, charming prince, like Bulma knew from the fairy tales of her childhood... How the hell did it happen that she still couldn't get him out of her head and constantly had one eye on him?
Because even now she was leaning over the railing of the large common terrace, head in hand, looking down at the space capsule in which he had been training for hours.
The last fleeting encounter was days ago and only an empty fridge showed that she had a Saiyan in her house. This guy's daily rhythm really just seemed to consist of eat, sleep, train and repeat. He seemed so intent on self-improvement that Bulma wondered if he ever thought of anything else. If he ever felt joy... Healthy, genuine joy! Not that perverse satisfaction that obviously came with seeing a freshly battered opponent. Because in fact, he could grin arrogantly or laugh like a madman. But smile really satisfied? Bulma had to shake her head in amazement at the mere idea.
Then she was startled from her position as the door of the gravity room suddenly opened and a completely exhausted Vegeta stepped out. She saw him place one foot next to the other as if he weighed several tons. The 400-times gravity he was in there was supposed to make him feel lighter than air out here. But once again he had tortured his body to the brink of exhaustion, that was plain to see. He leaned forward, put his hands on his knees, gasped and babbled something to himself and Bulma thought she heard "Kakarot" and "get stronger" again.
No, there was no way this guy ever thought of anything else... let alone he was happy.

Sighing, Bulma finally turned around - and was startled when she saw the faces of her friends and family! In addition to her parents, Oolong, Master Roshi, Chichi and some work contacts were suddenly gathered on the terrace. And in the middle they held a big round cake with the words 'Happy Birthday' written on it.
A touched smile appeared on Bulma's face and she pressed a hand to her chest.
"Oh my, how sweet of you!" she exclaimed in surprise. "With all the stress lately, I almost forgot my own birthday... Can you believe that?"
"No, it's really hard to believe," Oolong murmured, looking sideways and crossing his arms, because Bulma usually celebrated her birthday with drums and trumpets.
For this cheeky remark he got a headbutt from Chichi.
"Ouch! Hey!"
"We know that," said Dr. Briefs then to Bulma. "But now that you're done, we actually have two reasons to celebrate, don't you think?"
Because Bulma had finally finished the presentations and submitted them on time! And now it was only a matter of waiting for the green light from the local companies. But with Capsule Corporation's strong reputation and Bulma's work as usual brimming with brilliance, the Briefs were as confident as ever. They were really proud to have such a talented and intelligent daughter!
They all happily clinked their champagne glasses.
"To you, Bulma!!"

And while the party was getting under way, everyone was celebrating, laughing and dancing to the music, Bulma couldn't help but glance down at the space capsule from time to time. Vegeta, meanwhile, had disappeared into it again.
And at that moment she felt a little sorry for him. Because this snapshot, this comparison of their lives showed her clearly what a lonely guy he actually was. She herself was such a happy and sociable person, but Vegeta on the other hand... seemed so bitter and so full of frustration. Coupled with his proud, independent nature, he was truly a tough nut to crack.
And Bulma now also realized what it was that had made her want to be there for him, despite - or maybe even because of - his always negative attitude.
She wanted to crack this tough nut.

And she seized the first opportunity that presented. Because unexpectedly - she couldn't remember having seen him up here before - she found Vegeta late one evening on the large terrace.
She actually only discovered him by accident, because thanks to her newfound free time, she had just returned home from an extensive shopping tour, followed by a visit to the cinema and restaurant. Now that the stressful presentations were over, she finally had time for herself again and she enjoyed it to the fullest!
So she had walked through the house with her arms full of shopping bags and caught a glimpse of Vegeta through the open terrace door as she passed.
//Well, look at this?//
She paused and watched him for a moment as he stood by the railing, arms crossed across his chest, looking up at the night sky. He looked thoughtful.
And Bulma also seemedthoughtful for a moment. If she avoided him all the time, she might never stop thinking about him! She had to strip him of his special status and just treat him like a normal human - or rather Saiyan!
So without further ado she put down her purchases and then went out to him on the terrace. No doubt Vegeta sensed her approach, but apart from a cool look out of the corner of his eye, he had no greeting reaction for her.
Curious as Bulma was, she just spoke to him straight away. "What are you doing here?" she asked, standing about two meters away from him.
Vegeta didn't make a face but answered her anyway, albeit in his usual harsh manner. "I'm looking at the full moon."
He sounded slightly annoyed but seemed to tolerate her proximity because he made no move to leave the terrace again or even drive her away. He probably wouldn't have succeeded in the latter with Bulma anyway. And that was probably also the reason for his tolerance: she was tough and had often shown courage and perseverance towards him! In a way, he respected her for it - although he would never have told her that to her face.
His statement now drew her gaze up to the full moon as well, and her eyes immediately began to shine with delight.
"It's beautiful," she had to admit. But the next moment she pulled a startled grimace and jerked her head towards Vegeta. "Y-You're not going to turn into a giant gorilla, are you?"
A mild snort of disdain escaped Vegeta's nose.
"No," he said. "Not since that little bastard cut off my tail."
Relieved, Bulma exhaled. "That's right..."
Then she looked up at the moon again.
A moment of silence passed before she finally asked him, "What was it like on your home planet? Were you constantly transforming and destroying everything?"
At the same moment, it felt a little strange for Bulma to ask him about his 'home planet' because it showed her that she was talking to an alien. A strange thought... Because in contrast to the Namekians, who alone made visually convincing picture book aliens, Vegeta and Goku looked like normal people. Hard to imagine that they were born on a completely different planet.
"On Vegeta the lunar cycles were longer than here on your Earth," he explained without looking at her. "There was only a full moon there about every eight years."
Bulma listened with interest to the words of the alien she was standing with on her terrace. She eyed him, wondering since he just seemed so human, both physically and mentally, what was the difference between them... Quite apart from the unnaturally high fighting power.
So she asked him more questions about his home planet, his people and his family - which he answered surprisingly willingly, albeit not in a very friendly tone.
It must have been just the sight of the full moon that made Vegeta suddenly a little talkative. This large, glowing disk in the sky triggered the raw, animal power of a Saiyan and thus reminded him of his origins, so to speak.
And so Bulma learned, among other things, that Vegeta had a 10-times higher gravity than on Earth and that the Saiyans had very resistant bodies because of this. She also learned about Frieza's recruitment - which sounded more like enslavement to her - and how it ended up destroying their planet. Vegeta didn't go into too much detail and Bulma was tactful enough not to dig deeper.
The mere thought of Frieza sent chills down her spine anyway. However, during her stay on Namek, he hadn't been the only one she had feared deeply. Vegeta also knew how to scare the hell out of her back then. She had called him a 'monster' because she had perceived him as such.
But now she was standing here with him, side by side. And while he was telling her about Frieza - he had talked about him in a haughty and arrogant manner - Bulma realized that this time had certainly left its mark on him.
//His life under Frieza must have been pretty awful,// she thought, looking sadly in his direction. //With a past like this, it's no wonder he turned out like this...//
She knew that that was in no way an excuse for his gruesome murders, but she began to understand his cold, unapproachable nature.
Without really paying attention, she had reduced the distance to him and since she was still looking at his face from the side, she now literally sank into his black eyes, in which the moonlight was reflected. As he spoke, he kept looking up at the moon.
"But the full moon seems to have a special effect on you," she remarked in a calm tone and when Vegeta looked at her out of the corner of his eye, she didn't take her eyes off him.
He, on the other hand, does. And as he did so, he frowned a bit angrily.
Because //Just like you...// was the first thing that came to his mind and he was immediately angry at the thought.
He just wrinkled his nose, which shows fury folds then and pressed his crossed arms a little tighter against his chest.
But he stayed by Bulma's side and so the two looked up at the night sky in silence for quite a while. And maybe they looked at each other in turn... whenever the other wasn't looking.


pic by TokyoSaiyan https://www.deviantart.com/tokyosaiyan/art/Goku-and-Vegeta-SSJ4-908137829