In Your Dreams: Chapter 12

For once Goku slept peacefully throughout the entire night without nightmares. The shivers that usually wracked his body were absent, and he felt as if he could lay there for hours; but he couldn't. He needed to leave before Vegeta woke up.

As the younger Saiyajin slowly woke from his deep slumber he began to notice a few things. He noticed the heat of another body pressed firmly against his back and he also noticed the weight of what must have been Vegeta's arm slung over his side. He could also feel the steady even breaths of the older man as they hit the back of his neck.

Goku basked in comfort for several minutes, but just when he thought he was going to slip back to sleep, something abruptly brought him back to reality. Not only could he feel the prince's breath on his neck, but now the older man's tongue was lapping at the skin there too.

The younger man's eyes snapped open and he bit his lip as he forced himself not to tear himself out of the other's grasp. Vegeta was obviously still asleep and unaware of what he was doing, so there was still a chance he could leave without waking him.

Goku felt his heart rate increase as thoughts of how angry the older man would be if he woke up at this very moment and realized he was LICKING his rival's neck. The prince must be dreaming about Bulma or something.

Goku slowly reached down and grasped the other Saiyajin's wrist, and he gently began to lift it away from his body. Unfortunately, strong fingers almost immediately fisted in his shirt, making it impossible to move. The younger Saiyajin bit his lip even harder and squeaked when Vegeta suddenly shifted his weight against him, pinning him between the mattress and the older man's body. Soon after that a rumbling purr erupted from the prince's chest and he began kissing and sucking at Goku's throat.

The younger Saiyajin fisted his fingers into the sheets as frantic thoughts raced through his head. ''He's going to kill me! How do I get out of this without waking him?! Kami, I... that feels kind of good though... NO! He's going to kill me!''

Goku found himself stuck and at Vegeta's mercy for the next ten minutes, and just when he was sure he was going to have to push the other man off and run like hell in the hopes of not being seen, he was released.

He exhaled the breath he'd been holding and peeked over his shoulder. The prince had rolled onto his side and was facing away from him now. It seemed like whatever dream he'd been having had passed now.

Goku kept his eyes on Vegeta as he slowly scooted off the bed, and when there was no movement from the other man he quickly made his way to the door and slipped into the hallway. That had been a close one...

Meanwhile, as his bedroom door was clicking shut, Vegeta poked open an eye and finally let the smirk he'd been fighting spread over his face. He'd woken up nearly an hour before the other man, and he simply hadn't been able to pass up the opportunity to do some... 'innocent' exploring.

One thing was certain... Kakarotto tasted just as delicious as he smelt.

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After a quick shower to rinse off Vegeta's smell and spit, Goku had been horrified to discover that he had two circular bruises on his neck where the other man had been...well, sucking on him. A furious blush had spread over his face, followed by the immediate concern as to how he was going to cover the marks; or at the very least explain how he'd gotten them. The younger man wasn't completely naive. He knew what a hickey looked like when he saw one, and there was no doubt in his mind that everyone else would know too.

With very limited options Goku settled for selecting an outfit that included a shirt with a higher collar. He flipped the material up to cover as much of his neck as possible. It wasn't exactly subtle, but he didn't know what else to do.

After checking, and frowning, at his reflection in the mirror Goku left his room and traveled down the stairs and into the kitchen. His tail immediately fluffed behind him upon discovering that Vegeta was already dressed and seated at the table, eating his breakfast.

Dark eyes rose to meet his own upon entering the room, and the younger man shivered at the seemingly knowing grin on the other's face. Did he know? No... He wouldn't be smiling if he knew...

''Sleep well, Kakarotto?''

Goku's back stiffened as Vegeta's humor filled voice reached his ears, and he nodded without turning back to face him as he prepared a bowl of his favorite cereal. He stalled for as long as possible, but it only too so long to pour cereal and milk into a bowl. The younger man swallowed hard before he returned to the table and sat across from the still grinning prince.

Goku deliberately kept his eyes down in the hopes Vegeta might get the hint that he wasn't in the mood for 'chatting', but that tactic failed.

''What's with the collar?''

The younger man looked up.

''You'd better fold it right before Bura sees you; unless you want a two hour lecture on fashion don'ts.''

Goku fidgeted nervously, but made no move to fix his shirt. Now what?

''I got it.''

The younger Saiyajin nearly choked on his cereal when Trunks suddenly made his presence known behind him and flipped down his collar before he could stop him. A heavy silence fell over the room immediately after his bruised neck was exposed.

The demi-Saiyajin raised an eyebrow and prodded at the discolored flesh. ''Hey, are these hickeys?''

Vegeta growled and leaned across the table to bat his son's hand away from the other man. ''Stop pawing him, boy!''

Trunks scrunched up his nose and made a sour face at the older man. ''I can see you're in a good mood today.'' Two pairs of eyes watched him as he retrieved a glass of orange juice before taking a seat beside a blushing Goku. ''So Goku, you feel up to sparring a little with me today?''

''NO, he does NOT! I'm training Kakarotto!''

Blue eyes darted across the table to challenge dark ones. ''I was asking Goku, Father!''

Vegeta slammed his fist down on the table, making Goku jump at the sudden move. ''Watch your tone, boy! What the hell do you want to spar for anyway? You haven't practiced your fighting skills in well over a year!''

''Exactly, and I figured now is a good a time as any to start again!''
Trunks turned back to the man beside him and smiled again. ''So, how about it?''

Goku looked back and forth between the two men. Now... how was he going to get out of this one without pissing off one of them? Grant it, he was sure refusing Trunks would result in the lesser of two tantrums, but he felt bad about turning him down. He'd asked first, after all...

Seeing that there was a chance the younger Saiyajin might ditch him in favor of spending the day with his son, Vegeta felt a surge of jealousy wash over him. The rational part of him was saying that Trunks was no threat to him, but his instincts were screaming at him to eliminate the competition.

Instead of killing the demi-Saiyajin however, the prince did the first thing that came to mind. He decided to separate the threat from his 'prey'.

Vegeta stood up abruptly and rounded the table, grabbing a wide-eyed Goku's wrist before tugging him along toward the door.

''We're going to see Dende, Kakarotto. I'm growing tired of playing twenty questions with you.''

Despite Trunks' protest and the obvious displeasure of Goku, Vegeta swept the younger man into his arms once he'd gotten outside and shot into the air with a blast of ki; more ki than was necessary. It was a clear warning to Trunks, and lucky for the demi-Saiyajin he knew how to take a hint.

The prince focused his attention on the man in his arms again when he finally noticed his struggling. Goku looked angry at being so abruptly dragged along, and he was making that fact known.

''Kakarotto, stop squirming around or I'll drop you!''

Angry black eyes met his and a second later Goku drew his fist back and punched the older man across the jaw. Needless to say, the hit didn't hurt, but Vegeta was a man of his word....most the time.

A brief look of confusion crossed the younger man's face, followed by intense fear at the prince's next words.

''I warned you.''

Vegeta waited only long enough to see those eyes narrow before he let go of the other Saiyajin. He crossed his arms and smirked as he watched Goku plummet through the clouds. Apparently the younger man still didn't have enough ki to fly, but he already knew that. He just wanted to scare him a little. It was all in good fun, after all.

After waiting a few more seconds Vegeta finally summoned his ki and dove down after the other Saiyajin. He was a little surprised at how much distance was really between the two of them. He hadn't waited THAT long, had he?

With a curse the prince burst into his Super Saiyajin mode and put more speed into his downward plummet. He was quickly coming up on Goku, but so was the ground. He grit his teeth when he was finally close enough to see the sheer panic in the other man's eyes, and he reached out a hand as the distance closed between them. Goku's own hand shot out to meet his, and after a few failed attempts their fingers finally locked.

Vegeta hauled the other Saiyajin against his chest and he cursed loudly as he twisted around in order to put himself between the ground and Kakarotto. Even though the prince had managed to slow their descent, they still hit the earth with bone jarring force. Vegeta clutched Goku tightly in his arms as his body dug a trench in the dirt as they skidded across the ground. Their momentum sent them tumbling almost half a mile before they finally came to a stop.

For several minutes the two Saiyajins just laid there clutching to each other tightly and breathing heavily. Vegeta was the first to crack open a teal eye, and he looked down at the man that lay heavily against his chest. His face was buried against his shirt, making it impossible to tell if he was even conscious or not.

''...Kakarotto?''

The younger man stirred at the sound of his name and a moment later he finally looked up at Vegeta. The intense expression of anger his face held surprised the prince; but the tears that flowed down his cheeks surprised him even more.

Goku growled and pushed himself up and off of the older man. He intended to storm off, but he only made it a couple steps before his wobbly knees gave out and he collapsed.

Vegeta jumped up and quickly approached him, worried that he might have gotten injured in the fall, but his hand was swatted away the moment he tried to touch the other's shoulder. It was only then the prince noticed that Goku's entire body was shaking, and he'd buried his fingers deep into the loosened dirt below him.

He was terrified.

Vegeta sighed and rubbed at his temples when he felt a headache coming on. Of all the stupid things he could have done... He hadn't meant to cut it that close, but he'd misjudged the distance between himself and the ground greatly. He also didn't consider how quickly Goku would fall. Even when the younger Saiyajin had gone into a freefall before, he'd always used just a little bit of ki to control his speed and the direction of his fall. He hadn't accounted for that this time.

Now it seemed Goku was on the verge of a panic attack, not to mention he was seriously pissed off. Who could blame him really? Someone he'd trusted had just nearly killed him.

Vegeta frowned and sat on his haunches beside the other Saiyajin, careful to keep plenty of distance between them.

''I'm sorry, Kakarotto. I didn't intend for that to happen. I misjudged the distance betw....''

The prince's jaw snapped shut when shimmering, but enraged eyes snapped up to meet his. The intense anger didn't last long though, and an emotion far more hurtful to the prince took its' place; disappointment. The older man swallowed the lump that was quickly forming in his throat.

''I suppose you don't trust me to take you back home?''

Black eyes narrowed and Goku's expression hardened again, giving Vegeta a clear answer.

''Very well.'' The prince stood and cupped his hands around his mouth before calling out for the nimbus. The yellow cloud quickly made an appearance, having now associated his voice with Goku.

The younger Saiyajin shakily pulled himself onto the nimbus and pointed back toward Capsule Corp. The cloud didnt need any further instructions, and it took off immediately; though it traveled at a much slower speed than it normally did. Apparently it could sense its owner's fear.

Vegeta crossed his arms and watched until Goku was nothing more than a speck in the sky. His tail lashed in agitation. When it came to courting the other Saiyajin, he felt as if he were taking one step forward and a hundred steps back, and at this rate, he would lose the younger man for sure.

To be continue...