Goku followed Bulma to the shopping district. He knew he couldn't get out of it today. More than half a year ago, he had gone with her once, and by the end of that day, he had felt more exhausted than after a full day of training. He hadn't gone with her again since.
Goku rubbed his stomach. Since he couldn't get away, he figured he might as well take care of his hunger first. Then he gently took Bulma's hand.
"Bulma, how about we eat first? I'll go shopping with you afterward."
Bulma had never imagined Goku would take her hand of his own accord. His hand felt dry and warm against her palm, and her fingertips trembled slightly. The flutter of excitement and shyness made her feel like a girl of seventeen or eighteen, so nervous she hardly dared breathe.
"Y-yeah, sure!" Bulma's voice trembled slightly as she spoke.
When Goku tried to pull his hand away, he found that Bulma was holding it tightly, as though she had grasped the whole world in that moment.
Goku looked at Bulma, who was staring straight ahead, and smiled. Instead of trying to pull free, he let his hand rest at his side.
Hand in hand, Goku and Bulma walked into a restaurant. A server immediately came over to greet them and led them inside.
"Give us a large private room," Bulma said when she saw that the server seemed about to take them to a table for two in the main dining area.
"Are there more than two of you?" the server asked, a little puzzled.
"Just the two of us. Take us there."
With Goku's appetite, there wouldn't be room for all the dishes unless they got a bigger table. Even then, there still wouldn't be enough room, but it was better than nothing.
The server understood at once. Young people these days really knew how to have fun, huh?
Bulma saw the knowing look on the server's face but didn't think much of it.
After Goku and Bulma entered the private room and sat down, the server brought them a menu. Bulma put it aside and said to the server:
"No need for that. Could you bring us ten servings of each of your signature dishes to start?"
Ten servings? The server wondered if they had misheard.
"Ten servings?"
"That's right. Don't worry, we can eat it all," Goku said from the side. They might even order more afterward.
"Okay, okay!" The server walked out in a daze. It seemed they had misunderstood earlier.
After ordering another five servings of each dish, Goku finally ate and drank his fill, then walked out with Bulma.
In the kitchen, a group of people finally breathed a sigh of relief when they heard there were no more orders. They cursed inwardly. Had some damn company come in for a team-building event?
"Goku, did you see how that server looked at you? I was embarrassed for you," Bulma said with a look of disdain.
"Tch, if he can't eat that much, that's his problem. What's so surprising about it?"
As far as Goku was concerned, he wasn't the one who was wrong. The world was.
"Goku, want me to take you to get your hair done? Your hair looks pretty cool, but it's too much like a crab."
"No. Because of my constitution, my hair always ends up like this, no matter what I do."
Saiyans' hair stayed the same. Even if it was changed, it would gradually return to the way it was.
"Huh? I was wondering why you've had the same hairstyle all these years without ever changing it. Then how about I take you to a clothing store and buy you some clothes?" Bulma said, sounding a little disappointed.
"A clothing store? Buy clothes? I usually wear a martial arts uniform... It feels too monotonous. Buying clothes sounds good, really good. Let's go."
Goku had originally wanted to say that wearing his martial arts uniform was fine, but the death glare Bulma gave him made him change his tune immediately. He wasn't chickening out; he was following his heart.
The frost on Bulma's once icy face instantly melted like snow in spring, revealing a satisfied smile.
"Hmph, at least you know what's good for you," Bulma said quietly.
"Huh? What did you say?"
That evening, after Goku and Bulma had dinner in the shopping district, they returned home.
As soon as he got home, Goku collapsed onto the sofa.
"I'm exhausted!" Goku complained under his breath. He didn't dare say it too loudly. If Bulma heard him, he'd be in for it.
"Goku, what are you saying?" Bulma, who had just put away the things she'd bought, turned and asked him.
"Nothing. I had a great time today," Goku replied offhandedly.
Hearing that, Bulma's lips curled into a smile, and she spoke slowly and softly:
"Oh? Really? Then shall we go shopping again tomorrow?"
With that, Bulma looked at Goku with a smile, though there was a hint of mockery in it.
"Huh?" Goku immediately panicked, unsure what to do.
Seeing his expression, Bulma couldn't help laughing aloud.
"Haha, all right, I'll stop teasing you. I'm already really happy you spent half the day shopping with me today."
For some reason, hearing Bulma say that made Goku's heart feel even heavier. He wanted to say something, but couldn't get the words out.
Just like that, half a year of peaceful life passed. The feelings between Goku and Bulma gradually grew stronger, but neither dared to be the first to say those words. It seemed all that remained was to break through the thin membrane between them.
(Not that kind of membrane. I'm not driving.)
After finishing a day of training, Goku walked out of the gravity room.
"Why? My Power Level has already reached a little over ten million, so why can't I transform into a Super Saiyan?"
Goku looked troubled. He knew that the transformation required anger, and it wasn't as though he hadn't tried imagining things that would make him angry. But he simply couldn't think of anything that would make him angry enough. A little anger here and there was nowhere near enough to make him angry enough to transform.
"Goku, what's wrong? Why do you look so troubled?"
Bulma had come to call Goku to dinner, only to find him looking worried. She couldn't help feeling curious.
"Oh, it's nothing. I have a way to solve it. Let's go eat."
It seemed his previous life and this one had both gone too smoothly. He had a peaceful heart, but no anger. Now it looked like he could only turn to Shenron for help.
During dinner, Goku suddenly told Bulma that he wanted to look for the Dragon Balls.
"Bulma, let's go look for the Dragon Balls tomorrow," Goku said after swallowing the food in his mouth.
"Huh? We're going to look for the Dragon Balls again? Sure!" Bulma figured she had nothing better to do anyway, so she might as well go out and look for the Dragon Balls.
"You two are going to look for the Dragon Balls again? Speaking of which, when are you going to make your relationship official?" Mrs. Brief said from the side.
The Briefs had been worried sick these past few years. There was clearly only a thin membrane between the two, yet neither was willing to be the first to break through it.
"Mom, what are you talking about?"
Bulma was already used to it. She had lost count of how many times her mother had said the same thing over the past six months.
"You two know perfectly well what I'm talking about, don't you? And you, Bulma, with such a strong personality, why won't you be the first to say something? That's not like you, is it?"
"I'm full!"
With that, Bulma stood up and left, leaving an embarrassed Son Goku at the table. Why didn't Son Goku leave, you ask? As far as Son Goku was concerned, nothing in heaven or earth mattered more than eating.
"And you, Goku, let me ask you: do you like my daughter?" After watching Bulma leave, Mrs. Brief began lecturing Goku.
Goku fell silent for a while before speaking three words.
"I like her!"
"Then do you know my daughter likes you?"
"I know!"
Goku had actually known all along. After they returned from their first search for the Dragon Balls, Goku had noticed that Bulma had special feelings for him.
"Then why don't you talk things through with Bulma?"
"I, I..." For a moment, Goku didn't know what to say.
"What do you mean, 'I'? Take some advice from your auntie. Don't let things go on like this between you two. If Bulma won't make the first move, why can't you?"
Goku thought seriously for a few seconds, then nodded and said solemnly, "Yeah, I understand, Auntie."
(This chapter was about Goku and Bulma's feelings. As for why I'm dragging out their relationship, I can give you a little spoiler: it has to do with Goku becoming a Super Saiyan. That's all I can say for now. As for how it'll happen, you can guess for yourselves.) (ಡωಡ)hiahiahia