In My Darkest Hour

second chapter....whoa man!

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Feeling the sun on his back, Vegeta rolled over with a groan. Squinting up at the window, he noticed that the sun was far too high for it to be early morning. Staring for a while, he determined that it was mid-afternoon. That meant the party was already in full swing. Without wanting to get up, he threw his legs over the side of the mattress and heaved himself out of bed.

Just as he was exiting his room, he heard the loud laugh that belonged to the man that was plaguing his thoughts the night prior, the one and only Kakarot. He winced at the sound. “Of course he is here; for once, not late.”

Grumbling and setting the famous scowl in place, he decided it was time to join the fools before he was forced to by Bulma or Kakarot himself.

“So, Bulma, where is the birthday bo-..Man?” Goku asked after just winning a quick spar with Gohan.

“He is still sleeping I think.”

She eyed Goku’s clothing, just imagining Vegeta’s reaction to the appearance of her long-time friend. His orange shirt was completely gone and the blue one underneath had a hole in it. His pants weren’t half as bad, but you could make out the man’s muscles.

“Sleeping?! Ha! Oh, you’re so funny, Bulma. I know Vegeta gets up at the crack of dawn! Don’t you mean he’s probably training?”

Seeing Bulma shake her head, his smile turned into a frown. Vegeta?! Sleeping?! STILL?! It was unheard of to the young Saiyajin. So he excused himself and entered the house, searching for the birthday boy.

Having continued the ritual of the last four days, Vegeta was in the bathroom emptying his already empty stomach. Feeling an energy level close to his room and the determining whose it was, though it wasn’t hard, he forced himself into a standing position and brushed his teeth quickly before the idiot went through his stuff.

“Kakarot, what are you doing?” he asked as he looked at the tattered clothes of the other.

Jumping at Vegeta’s voice, Goku took his hands off the door handle of the room across from the bathroom and turned with a sheepish smile on his face.

“Hi, Vegeta! Happy birthday! I was just coming to see if you were awake.” The smile stretched into that of a grin before he continued. “But seeing as you are up and about, I’ll head back downstairs and tell everyone you are coming.” Without waiting for a reply, Goku turned and left.

Vegeta opened his mouth to say something but caught himself instead staring at a rip in the other’s pants, a rip that was dangerously close to showing the male’s bottom. Shaking his head lightly, he followed the other.

“Word to the wise clown: you might want to get a new pair of pants,” he said in a volume only Goku could hear. With that, he walked in front of the younger man and proceeded outside.

Once outside, the Prince winced at the brightness and went to go find some shade. Upon finding it, he sat his rump down comfortably on the grass. Surveying his surroundings, he noticed that all the freaking world had attended this ‘little’ party; Chichi, Gohan, Goten, Videl, that dumbass Hercule, the pink blob known as Buu, their dog, Piccolo – much to the Prince’s surprise, - Yamcha, Krillin and of course, OF COURSE, Kakarot. He sighed. This was going to be a long day.

Resting his back against the tree with his arms crossed across his chest, he closed his eyes, ready to ignore everybody, when something fell into his lap. Opening an eye, he peered down at the wrapped, boxed object, and then looked up to the person who dropped it.

“What.” It was more a statement than a question, but it was answered anyway.

“Well, generally you get presents on your birthday. You would think after all these years here on Earth you would know that, Mr. Vegeta,” little Goten said as he smiled happily at the father his best friend and turned away before he could get shot at. “Oh, and you are looking a bit pale..maybe you should come play!” With that, he scampered off.

Vegeta snorted. ‘Play,’ he would sure play with Kakarot when he got the chance. Picking up the gift and setting it to the side, he stopped to rethink his last thought. Of course, he didn’t mean it like THAT. Not at all. Nothing had changed in all the time he knew the low level fighter, or had it? As if answering Vegeta’s internal struggle, Goku came out of the house wearing one of the spandex suits.

“Looks like he took my advice,” he thought as he found himself checking the man out, making sure no one noticed what he was doing, least of all, the younger male himself.

Minutes passed, and since Goten, no one had bothered him, which was good; it gave him time to reason with himself. He finally gave up. After staring at Kakarot’s ass and watching the man’s leg muscles work as he walked, the Prince knew there was no use fighting it anymore. For years he knew he had feelings for the idiot, but he never would have dreamed they went so deep.

If birthday wishes came true, he knew what he would ask for.

“Vegeta, you’re staring.”

Gohan silently appeared seemingly out of nowhere next to Vegeta. This both irked and worried the man. He didn’t feel Gohan approaching.

“Hn.”

Hearing a chuckle emit from the eldest of Kakarot’s sons, Vegeta looked at him from the corner of his eyes.

“You know, I thought I was kidding myself. When my dad died after the Cell games, you took it the hardest. I thought it was ‘cause it had something to do with him being a full-blooded Saiyajin. Then I thought it over after Goten was born. I told myself you had a crush on my dad.” Gohan laughed again, getting nervous at the way the prince was staring at him. “Eheh, then I started noticing the way you acted around him when he came back. And, Vegeta, you staring so openly only proves my theory.”

Giving the man a smile and placing a small gift on top of Goten’s, he said, “My dad won’t understand your feelings if you don’t tell him. Good luck and Happy Birthday.”
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Dude!..i forgot to say R& R last time ..but you all knew that.