Wow! I'm glad that I waited to post this. Seeing all of your responses to that ending was a bit disheartening, at first, but I can understand your complaints. Allow me to clear some things up for those of you who seemed confused.

I can admit that the last few chapters weren't as cohesive as I wanted them to be, but that was due to me making some changes(aka, bringing Tala back and making her the big bad). It was originally supposed to be Kaede who wound up killing Bulma, which would have still pushed Kakarot over the edge, but I couldn't go through with it because everyone was expecting that. As for how things ended with Vegeta. He has done nothing right throughout this story, but that was due to ignorance not stupidity. He didn't know what he was coming into. When he set out to make it right, he didn't have a plan. He jumped into a machine, that he had never used before, right after watching his wife die. Being frustrated and distraught is not uncommon after a death. Me making him go through those memories was a way of giving him a better understanding of why certain things have happened.

Even though he had nothing to do with what happened before he got there, he still came and disrupted their lives, which, in turn, caused the death of loved ones and the destruction of peace on that planet. He wasn't prepared for this. By the end, he was a broken man. I saw it as him not wanting to live with the memories of being king. Choosing, instead, to not be a burden by going back in the condition that he put himself in. And, if you can recall, I did address the question of him taking the other Vegeta's place. And the answer was, he didn't feel like she was his Bulma anymore, and because it wasn't right. Just like it wouldn't have been right for him to tell Bulma about what happened to him, especially since he chose not to stick around. Why put that in her head? Why damage what the other Vegeta had? Someone also mentioned that he was too weak, that he was saying sorry too much, but that was only because he had the most to be sorry for. The whole story is about him.

BTW, the thing about the storm being a time traveling portal was a mistake that I didn't see until I went back and read it after Spellweaver10's review. Thank you for pointing that out, because it was only supposed to be a portal between dimensions. My fault for never proofreading.

I don't know if you all even care enough to read this, but I wrote it anyway. You had to be expecting this, you know, on account of the first chapter being a prologue. Enjoy, I guess.

Now, the blue-haired genius found herself in a daze, staring at the man who was sitting across from her, still thinking about the strangeness of the night that only she could recall.

The sight of the man who woke her up that night was still fresh in her memory. He was clearly damaged by whatever trials he had been put through before making it back, it was evident in his every movement. She was no fool. She knew exactly what caused that burst of light, and she was hurt by the fact that she couldn't do anything to help him.

Along with that, she was also still not ready to fully forgive her mate for his actions throughout that day that caused everything.

As she stood in the darkness of her backyard, with the cool, gentle breeze of night surrounding her, she watched as the man flew until he disappeared into the distance of the sky. She gazed thoughtfully for a while, remembering the things he just told her. She felt almost afraid to go back into the house. The Vegeta that just flew away was obviously more appreciative after his little trip, but how would she know if the Vegeta that lied unconscious inside was truthfully the same way? And what would become of the broken man who wanted to reassure her?

She sighed before turning around to walk back into the house. She was stopped by a small ache in her heart. Her instincts caused her to look straight up, just in time to a burst of light in the sky. The bright blue light told her that she no longer had a reason to wonder about the other version of her husband, and what he would do out there.

She closed her eyes and steeled herself before going inside. She stepped into the kitchen and shut the sliding door before locking it. She slowly made her way into the large living room and switched on a light. She walked around to stand in front of the long couch in the middle of the room.

Bulma stared down at his unconscious form for an uncertain amount of time before she sat down beside him. Tentatively, she reached out a hand to place gingerly to his cheek, causing his eyes to open. But, before she could so much as open her mouth to speak, he shot up to a sitting position.

"Bulma, no!" He exclaimed, almost in a panic.

She placed her hands on his shoulders to keep him from knocking her off the couch. "Vegeta, I'm right here." She told him. His chest rose and fell with his heavy breathing. "Are you okay?"

He met her eyes and stared wildly at her. "I...I thought that you were..." he does a scan of the room, seemingly having just now realized where he was. He met her gaze once more. "Didn't I leave?"

She dropped her gaze downward. She wasn't sure if she wanted to tell him the truth, but lying might only make things worse. Without looking up at him, she nodded. "Yes." She breathed. Anxious blues met confused black. "Do you remember what happened before you passed out?"

He rubbed the side of his face. "I remember that something happened to the ship, but that's it. I know that I wasn't on the planet, so how did I get back here?"

She shrugged. "I don't really know the answer to that myself." She said, honestly. All she knew was that there was another Vegeta, but she didn't know if he had anything to do with his return. She noticed that he was still very flustered. "Is there something wrong? You look like you just saw a ghost."

He let out a deep sigh. "Just a nightmare. A really bad nightmare."

"Alright." She accepted. She stood from the couch and stared down at him. "I guess you'll be on your way again, right?" The question was one of extreme importance. She needed to know if he would be staying or going.

He wore an ashamed expression. "Bulma..."

"You did say that you needed to get away from all of this, correct?" It was a low-blow, but it was necessary to be said.

He swung his feet to the floor before standing along with her. "Bulma, I did say that, but I-I...I didn't mean it that way." He struggled to get out.

She crossed her arms under her bosom. "So what did you mean by it?" There was hurt evident in her tone.

"I don't know. I honestly don't know. I was letting my anger do the talking and that's what came out."

"That still doesn't change the fact that you left!" She snapped at him. "And the only reason you're back is because something happened to your ship. "

He sighed. "I can't deny what you're saying, but I will say that it only a half-truth."

"How so?"

He reached his hand up to cup her cheek. "Because I'm glad that I came back."

She hated the way she leaned into the contact. "Why?" She asked, trying to keep her voice strong.

"Let's just say that this is where I want to be. And the only place I was thinking of heading to was bed. If that's alright with you." He was asking if he were still welcome in his own home.

She grabbed his hand from her face and held it. "Of course. But that doesn't mean that you're allowed to just sweep this all under the rug, so I think it would be best if you slept in your old bedroom for tonight." She released his hand. "We have to finish this discussion in the morning. Until then..." she trailed off, waiting for him to respond.

He flexed his jaw and averted his eyes for a moment. "That's fair."

"Thank you." She moved away from him and started towards the stairs. She stopped and looked back at him. "Goodnight Vegeta,"

"Goodnight Bulma,"

It had been a week since that night. True to what she said, she picked up their conversation the very next day. She knew that he really didn't do anything wrong, but only because he didn't get the chance to. He might have actually allowed his pride to take him away from their, and that hurt more than she let on. Their discussion ended with him vowing to never do it again, and they left it at that.

He made that vow understanding that, though she never said it, she wouldn't try to wait for him next time. She loved him. She was loyal to him, but not blindly so. She was not a dog who would spend forever waiting for their owner to come back. She was better than that.

"Mom."

She was pulled from her thoughts by her title being called. "Yeah Trunks?"

"I asked if you wanted more juice. I was about to get some more for myself." Her son said, already standing.

"No thanks." She smiled at him. She gazed around at the other occupants at the table. She watched as her daughter spoke very animatedly about something to her father, and watched as he continued to eat his breakfast while pretending to listen. Trunks returned to his seat with a glass of juice before he proceeded to eat his food.

Bulma couldn't help it when a content smile came to her lips. Though her life wasn't exactly the way she wanted it to be, it was hers. Even with the issues in her marriage, she still had a reason to try. That's all any of us could ever do, right? Try.

In life, you have to expect the worst and hope for the best. She wasn't as happy as she could have been, but she had hope. And with that, life goes on.

I know that I disappointed a lot of people with my ending, but if any of you are willing to give me another chance at this I will be starting a new story pretty soon. It will be much shorter than this one, I promise. -MLH