She was my first and maybe my best girlfriend. Most of all, and above all, she was my first and very best girl friend. I've known for years that we weren't going to be together forever. I'm surprised we lasted as long as we did. I don't know if she ever understood why I was terrified of girls. The true reason: Because I knew that I could and would fall in love one day. It scared the hell out of me. It still does. Love hurts. She can think that I got over it. In fact, I know that she thinks exactly that.

I'm getting ahead of myself. You see, when she and I started out she was looking for the perfect boyfriend. I was looking for a way to get over my fear of girls. We were good for each other at the time, but somewhere along the line we grew out of each other. I guess we were training each other for the real thing. I know we were meant to be together, but I also know we meant to separate. We still dated, because we were still in love. But deep down we were both waiting. We knew it was over years before it ended, but we both knew we hadn't found what we looking for, yet.

I don't know when it changed exactly, but I know it did. And it didn't start with me going out with other girls. That came after, when I realized she had outgrown me. She might not have believed it was true at the time. For a long time, though, I think she knew as well as I did that I wasn't going to be the man to whom she would pledge to forever give her love, her life, and her children.

Until the day that he landed in front of her, too busy trying to kill his greatest enemy to notice her at first. But she saw him. Love at first sight, for her. He was the one she'd been waiting for, as if fate had planned it. I don't blame her for finding him; I'm glad she is happy because she really is my very best friend. I just was completely baffled when it turned out to be him. I mean, what guy is ever going to think that his high school sweetheart is going to come back from an alien planet and end up marrying an alien who has destroyed entire planets of people? I wasn't there when Vegeta dropped out of the sky on Namek and into Bulma's heart. But Krillin told me about it, in great detail. I didn't believe it. But I knew.

"Let's stay at my place," she invited everyone, "We have lots of rooms there."

"Hey handsome!" Bulma suddenly shouted, "You wanna come? You don't have money for a hotel anyway."

"Huh! What do you mean handsome!" Vegeta yelled back, because it was so new for him, to have a beautiful woman admiring him instead of fearing him.

"There's lots of food at my place. Perhaps you and Goku have the same appetite," she encouraged him, genuinely wanting him to be near him.

"You can stay there for as long as you like, but don't go jumping me, even if you do find me seductive!" she teased, as if she needed to be any more obvious about how she felt about him.

"What a mouth! Low class woman!" he said, resisting her.

"If you stare at him really hard, he does have good looks!" she told me once, or something like that.

Puar cautioned me not to be jealous, but even when you've been expecting it for years this sort of thing isn't easy. I watched in shock when she confronted him, basically telling him that he stunk, and instead of blowing something up he followed her. It chilled me; because I had proof it was over. Even worse, when he actually wore the clothing she left for him.

I didn't want to bring Bulma into battle, mostly because it humbled me to see how courageous she was, but also because she would be in danger. Of course, if we'd lost she would have died one way or another anyway. He saw her bravery. He knew then, though he did not believe. He resisted her. It was inevitable. I lifted her into my arms, thinking it might be one of the last times I would have left to hold her. Still, I could feel his eyes boring holes into my back. As he glared I smiled to myself, because I knew he was already lost.

Bulma wasn't irresistible just because of her looks; she was far more than just a pretty face. I still didn't know if it would work out, though. I worried about her. I still had some hope left, I suppose. I hate change. And by hate, I mean fear. When the Gravity Room exploded I expected the worst, that Vegeta was a dead man.

"Vegeta!" Bulma shouted, and I could hear terror in her voice.

"Do you think he's…" I started to ask, but she cut me off.

"No!" she yelled, as if saying it louder would make it true. As she began clawing through the rubble I watched, feeling like an intruder. She called his name and finally, unbelievably, a bloody hand shoved itself up and out of the rubble.

"It's only a few scratches," he said, trying to reassure her. It was odd that I didn't think it strange for this warrior to care. His voice and his posture betrayed him, though, and he was in trouble. I watched as he tried to stand, but collapsed.

"You never listen to me," she said, angered by his needless pain.

"I need to equal Kakarott," he said, as if it was the only purpose he had for living. And, really, I think for a while after Frieza died that it was.

"I won't care if you don't equal Goku," she insisted, and then I heard words that sealed all of our fates.

"All I care about is you."

"You know," I heard him say in a low voice, "You're beautiful. But don't order me around, okay?"

Like I said before, it was inevitable.

"Hey, Vegeta!" Bulma said, "Come back here! You're not healed yet!" She was worried about him, and that alone was disconcerting for the alien.

"Why?" he queried brusquely, "Would you like to have only three years left of your life?" He reminded her why he was training, to see if that was why she wanted him to be healed.

"Of course not," she retorted, "I want to live longer than that." He expected her to point out that if he didn't heal he couldn't properly to train.

"So leave me alone, then!" he yelled, as he began to rotate in midair. He thought maybe she would say that the androids would destroy her planet if he lost. But she didn't. She showed him her heart instead.

"I can't just leave you to die in there like that," she said, and her tone should have prepared him but it didn't.

"It would be a shame to lose a guy who is as handsome as you!" she said with honesty. Was it any wonder he fell to the floor in shock? The woman was exasperating. Not that he'd ever admit it out loud.

"There! I told you!" Bulma said, and instead of triumph he heard concern in her voice. The woman was a wonder; he'd give her credit for that. At least, he would in his own mind. He was not at all surprised when he felt himself falling in love with her. He was still unwilling to admit he'd been wrong.

"Shut up, will you!" he growled.