Hello, I'm back with a new story that will hopefully be better than the previous Goku/Bulma story. The other was just a prototype, so I thought I'd take a different take on the Goku/Bulma idea. Please read, review, and enjoy this story.

Dragonball Z: Meant to Be

Prologue

It had been three, long years on the sanctuary known as Kami's Lookout, and Son Goku was ready to go back down to earth to compete in the Tenkaichi Budokai and beat Piccolo once and for all. Kami-sama had created a turtle school uniform that the now adult Goku could fit in, but the young warrior packed it in his bag, deciding to put it on when he got to the tournament. Goku, instead, wore a blue robe with white lining. Kami had warned Goku that it was raining at the island where the tournament was held, so Goku put on protective head-wrap, and even had an umbrella ready.

Goku stood at the edge of the lookout and turned around to look at Kami and Mr. Popo.

"Thank you guys for training me, I feel like I could take on an army of Piccolos!" Goku said with his wide, trademark grin.

"Let's hope you don't have to," Kami said with a small chuckle, "Now go, Son Goku, and show us what our training has awakened in you."

Goku nodded and leapt over the edge, rocketing downward. He grabbed the ladder that began at the edge of lookout and down to the bottom, where his Nyiobo still stretched downward, attaching the lookout to Karin's tower.

Goku slid down the ladder until he neared his staff and he leapt off the ladder and grabbed onto his magical pole, commanding it to shrink to normal. It immediately began shrinking, taking Goku down to the top of Karin's tower. Goku landed on the top of the tower and placed the now regular sized Nyiobo into its holder. He slid down the side and flipped into the opening of the tower, where a surprised Karin and Yajirobe stood.

"Hey, Karin," Goku said, "Long time, no see."

Karin nodded, "I know why you are here."

"You do?"

Karin looked to Yajirobe and pointed to Goku. Yajirobe dug in his robe; pulling forth a small bag filled with senzu beans and tossed it to Goku.

"Thanks Karin and Yajirobe," Goku said, rushing to the railing, "Seeya, I'm off to fight in the tournament."

Goku jumped from the tower and fell toward the ground.

"Kinto' Un!" he screamed.

Soon a yellow cloud swooped underneath him and caught him in midflight. Goku steered it toward his destination and let a smile come to his lips once more as he thought about seeing his friends again.

Bulma sat in the back of a taxi cab with Oolong and Pu'ar. She was busy putting on her makeup and red lipstick. Oolong looked at her and snorted.

"What're you getting all fancy for?" he asked sarcastically.

"If you're going to be as good looking as me it helps to put this stuff on," Bulma said, winking at herself in the small mirror of her compact.

"Pathetic."

"Don't listen to him, Bulma," Pu'ar said, "I think you look lovely."

"Thank you Pu'ar, at least someone noticed."

About a half an hour passed when they finally arrived at the Tenkaichi Budokai. It was still pouring down rain, so Bulma took out her umbrella and opened the door. She immediately opened the umbrella and held it above her head. She heard a familiar voice shout her name and she looked up to see Lunch standing with Kame Sennin AKA Master Roshi. Bulma made her way over to them and began talking with Lunch. Master Roshi placed a hand on Bulma's rear, ever the dirty old man, and looked her up and down.

"My, my, you've grown up quite a bit, eh?" he said, feeling Bulma's behind.

"Hands off my butt!" the blue haired woman commanded, slamming an elbow into Roshi's nose.

The old man rubbed his injured nose until he heard a greeting come from behind him. Everyone turned to see a man walking towards them wearing a blue robe, wrap around his head, and an open umbrella that was held above his head to protect from the unfriendly weather. Roshi asked if the man was a friend of Bulma's, but she denied it, not knowing who the strange man was.

"Hey, old timer, you did come back!" the man said with a smile, "Man, you all look great!"

Roshi's eyes widened, "No way!"

"Goku, is that you?" Bulma asked.

"Yeah, of course it's me. Don't tell me you don't recognize me because of this silly outfit?"

Goku grabbed the wrap on his head and began to unravel it, his wild hair poking through when it could, and when finally he got the wrap off, everyone knew it was Son Goku.

"There, obvious now, right?" he said with a smile.

Goku took a step toward them and stood directly in front of them, "Did you all shrink?" he asked, referring to the fact that they were all shorter than he.

"Stupid," Bulma said, though her face showed she was still awestruck, "You're huge."

Goku rubbed the top of his head, "Yeah, I guess I did grow a bit."

Bulma continued to stare at Goku, my god, he's so handsome, I can't believe it. Goku noticed Bulma looking at him strangely, and suddenly their eyes met. For a moment, the world around them turned dark, and it seemed that they were the only two standing there. Goku felt heat rush to his cheeks and he began to feel funny, he immediately looked to Bulma's lips. He needed to say something to break the anxiety.

"Bulma," he said quickly, "You're lips are red, do you have a fever?"

Bulma's blush became darker once she realized that he had only been looking at her because of her lips, "It's lipstick!"

Goku began to feel strange again, luckily, a friendly voice sounded to the right of them.

"Hey," it was Krillin, "Look at us!"

Everyone just looked at him, noticing that Yamcha, Tenshinhan, and Chaozu were standing behind him. The only thing different about the group was the fact that Krillin and grown a little, and Yamcha and some scars on his face.

"I was expecting a little more reaction," Yamcha said.

Krillin walked up to Master Roshi and smiled, "Look at how big I've gotten."

Goku walked up to Krillin, putting a hand on his friends shoulder, "You look great Krillin."

Krillin looked the wild haired man in the face, "Goku, is that you?" Goku just smiled. Krillin leaped into Goku's arms, embracing his greatest friend. "Goku, I missed you so much! I never got to say thank you for bringing me back to life!"

Yamcha's eyes widened, "That's Goku?"

"So it is," Tenshinhan said with the same look of disbelief plastered on his face.

Everyone just stood there in the rain talking to each other about the last three years.

Many long minutes passed when the loudspeaker cracked and an announcement was heard.

"Due to the severe weather, the Tenkaichi Budokai will be postponed until tomorrow! I repeat: due to the severe weather, the Tenkaichi Budokai will be postponed until tomorrow!"

A load groan emitted from Goku, Krillin and Yamcha. Roshi laughed and shook his head.

"Guess we should find a hotel and get some rooms before anyone else does," Bulma said, "Anyone have a Capsule car on them?"

Roshi took out a capsule and pressed the button on the top, throwing it a few feet away. The capsule exploded in a puff of white smoke and when it cleared a Capsule car was visible.

"Everyone squeeze in," Bulma said with a sigh, disappointed at how small the car was.

Roshi jumped into the driver's seat and Lunch sat in the passenger seat, while Oolong and Pu'ar sat in between the two front seats. Tenshinhan shrugged and he crawled into the back of the car, followed by Chaozu. Chaozu sat in Tenshinhan's lap as to make room for everyone else. Krillin jumped into the back and sat next to Tenshinhan, scooting uncomfortably close so that the three others could fit in. Yamcha got in and scooted as close to Krillin as he possibly could, but when he looked next to him he saw that only one more person could fit, unless the second person was okay with sitting on someone's lap. Goku entered the back of the car and sat down next to Yamcha. He tried to scoot closer but there was still no room left. He looked out the open door at Bulma, and she looked slightly irritated.

"Just sit on someone's lap," Yamcha said to her.

"I can't believe you guys; not even leaving me a seat," Bulma said crawling into the car. She sat down on Goku's lap and closed the car door. She put her arm around Goku's neck, holding it firmly so when Roshi began driving she wouldn't bounce around the place. "You better not let me bust through the windshield if we get into a crash," she told Goku with a jesting scowl.

Goku laughed nervously and placed his hands on her back, "No worries," he said with his trademark grin.

Roshi started the car and pressed the gas, sending them on their way toward the city. The road they were on was a little bumpy, for the road was undergoing construction, so the passengers were jerked around quite a bit. Bulma nearly fell off of Goku's lap but he instinctively grabbed her and pulled her in close. Bulma's breath was taken away when she felt Goku's defined muscles underneath his robe press against her body. Her heart began to beat like mad and she was sure Goku could feel it, which he did. He wondered what was happening, he had held Bulma this close before when he had saved her from the Red Ribbon Army, but it didn't affect him like it did now. Goku just looked ahead and tried not to look Bulma in the eyes, afraid that he would start feeling even funnier than he was now.

They arrived outside of a hotel that was just inside the city so they each hurried out, save Goku, and made their way into the building to escape the rain. Goku held back and stood underneath the awning that the hotel had above its doors. He looked out at the rain that was coming down in heavy sheets. He watched as it ruptured puddles making small to large rings expand and shrink atop its watery surface, and he let the loud pitter patter of the drops calm his mind as it hit the canopy above him.

No sooner had he cleared his mind, the thought of the moment he and Bulma locked eyes flooded into his head. What was that about? He wondered to himself, what happened in the last three years? Goku was scared; he had never felt this way before in his life. He decided he would talk to Krillin about it later, but for now he was just going to stand outside and enjoy the rain.

Bulma knew what was happening but she did not want to admit it. She liked Goku, but more than a little bit. She tried to tell herself that it was wrong, but the more she thought about it, the more she saw that it was right. They were only four years apart and he was eighteen years old now. She liked Yamcha, but Goku was friendlier, and more trusting, and she knew that with him she'd always be safe. She had no idea how to approach him about it; maybe she wouldn't approach him about it, what if he took it the wrong way? This was just too hard to think about, and she didn't have anyone to talk to about it. Perhaps Lunch would be comfortable to talk to about it, but Bulma didn't know how much experience the girl had with men. She sighed and continued to stare out the hotel room window at the rain, her chin resting on her upturned palm.

Oolong noticed this and took Pu'ar by the hand, taking him over to the corner.

"Hey, you notice she's been acting differently?" the pig asked the floating cat-like being.

"Yeah. It seems she's been acting this way since Goku showed up…" Pu'ar stated, looking at Bulma worriedly.

"You think she likes Goku?"

"But isn't she with Lord Yamcha?"

"I don't know, didn't he leave her to go on the training trip?"

Pu'ar just shrugged, again looking to Bulma. Oolong just shrugged, not extremely bothered that Bulma liked Goku, and because Bulma liked any "hot" guy she came across. But he didn't see how deep it affected her, because she usually got over it pretty quick, but this time she seemed distraught about it. Pu'ar felt like talking to her, but he didn't know how to go about talking about Bulma's problem.

Bulma watched as the grey sky became darker as the sun set behind the clouds. This had never happened to her before, she had never felt this deeply about a man before in her entire life, and it was even weirder that she was feeling these things about Goku. She couldn't take it anymore, she had to speak with someone, and Lunch was her best bet.

Goku walked inside of the hotel's lounge and sighed heavily. He decided he would just go up to his room and talk to Krillin about what was happening; perhaps his bald friend knew what was going on. Goku began walking up the stairs to find him and Krillin's room.

Goku reached the top of the stairs and saw Bulma walking down the hallway toward him. He smiled and waved at her. Bulma looked to him and smiled slightly, a blush coming to her face, and she looked away and waved to him as she passed. He shrugged, feeling relief that she had passed him. He continued down the hall to his room.

He went into the room and saw Krillin staring out the window with a grim look on his face.

"What's wrong Krillin?" Goku asked his friend.

"I'm just waiting for this rain to stop," he said, "I wanna fight in the Budokai so bad!"

"I know what you mean.

"Hey Krillin," Goku said softly, walking over to his friend to sit next to him.

"What's up, Goku?"

"I need your help with something."

"Lay it on me."

"You know how me and Bulma have been friends for a long time, right?"

"Right," Krillin replied, elongating the "I" sound as if telling Goku to continue.

"Well, I've been around her for a long time, and I've never felt weird around her, but today when I saw her for the first time in three years, I felt funny, like my stomach was doing flips. I don't understand. Oh, and, when we looked at each other, it was weird. I don't know what's going on."

"Wow," Krillin said, a sly smile coming to his lips, "You like Bulma."

"Of course I like Bulma, she's my friend. I just wanna know why I feel funny around her now."

"You idiot, you like Bulma as more than a friend."

"What do you mean?" Goku asked, truly puzzled.

"Are you really that stupid? Goku, you love her, like her."

"You mean…" Goku's eyes widened, "Oh no, how did this happen?"

Goku began to think about the last three years. What could have possibly happened to him during those past years that had changed him? He remembered the training, the growing up, training of the mind and spirit. Goku suddenly had a realization; the training of the mind and spirit had matured him and made him smarter than he had once been. He must have gained the interest in girls during the training process, so when he returned today, the girl he had been closest to for most of his life was, of course, the first person he'd be attracted to.

"Kami's training did more than just make me stronger," Goku whispered under his breath as he plopped down into the seat that was next to Krillin. He had a lot to think about.

"Lunch," Bulma said to the dark blue haired woman in front of her, "I really need to talk to you."

"Of course," Lunch said softly, she turned to Master Roshi, "Excuse me, but can Bulma and I please talk in private?"

Roshi nodded and exited the room, though of course he grumbled and complained, wondering what they were going to talk about.

"Go ahead, dear," Lunch said, nodding at the young woman who looked so distraught.

"I think I like Goku," Bulma said.

"Oh my," Lunch replied, a slight blush on her cheeks, "That is big news. Why now, all of a sudden?"

"I don't know," Bulma said honestly, "He just showed up and he's so handsome, and now he's all grown up…"

"Have you talked to him about it?"

"Yeah right," Bulma exclaimed irritably, "Like he would even understand that I liked him. For a moment I thought he did, but then he just said something about my lips, saying how red they were and if I had a fever."

"Are you sure he wasn't just using that as a cover up to hide how he really felt?"

"Doubt it," Bulma said, denying that Goku could ever feel anything toward her.

"I think you should talk to him about it. If you're too nervous you can wait until tomorrow."

Bulma smiled, "Thank you, Lunch."

"Anytime, dear," Lunch said with a genuine smile of her own.

The next day came and Bulma did not have a chance to talk to Goku, because the Tenkaichi Budokai was going to start early, so she decided she should wait until after the tournament to talk to Goku about their feelings.

During the course of the tournament, the second match, in fact, Goku was up against a strange girl that had had her name withheld. She held an angry look on her face as she yelled things at Goku. One of which made Bulma's heart sink; the girl had told Goku that he had promised to take her hand in marriage. Goku, of course, was clueless, which made Bulma's body flood with relief. But then Goku wanted to know the girl's name, so she said that if he could beat her in the match that she would tell him. So Goku punched the air with such force that just the wind from the blow knocked the girl back and out of bounds. So, as promised, she told Goku that her name was Chi-Chi, and immediately, everyone, save Krillin and Lunch, knew who she was. Even Goku himself remembered that he had, in fact, asked her to marry him.

Goku was standing next to the Capsule car waiting for Bulma to get back from keeping her end of her and Roshi's bargain. Chi-Chi, the Ox King's daughter, walked up to him and grasped her hands together shyly in front of her.

"You know," she began softly, "Maybe when you're old enough, my dad will give you my hand."

"Huh?" Goku replied, looking to Chi-Chi, "Your dad is gonna give me something? Well, whatever it is, I'll be sure to come and get it."

Goku shook out of the old memory and looked to the girl, "I guess I did say I'd take your hand. We better get married."

In the crowd, Bulma's heart sank deeper than it had the previous time. Now what was she going to do? She just let Goku slip through her fingers. She didn't like that, but what else was she supposed to do? Goku was going to get married, and Bulma didn't have the heart to intervene. Besides, she didn't know if Goku felt the same about her, so she decided it was best to just leave things the way they were now.

Goku looked into the crowd and saw Bulma with her head turned away. Goku so bad wanted her to look at him so that he could smile and make her feel better, but she never did look at him. Goku turned around and looked to the side of him where Chi-Chi was grasping onto his arm and leaning her head on his shoulder. Goku sighed and continued toward the competitor's waiting room. He looked back over his shoulder and noticed that Bulma was looking at him, he went to smile, but the blue haired girl quickly looked away and began talking to Oolong. Goku looked to Chi-Chi again and nodded. He would make the best of this, even if it killed him inside.

A/N: The other chapters will be taking place in DBZ, duh. So please review and tell me what you think! ^_^