Chapter Text
When Foolish began walking in this park, there was no doubt in his mind that he was only there for fresh air, for the birds chirping in the sky, and definitely not to get the occasional glimpse of his neighbor, Vegetta, from down the street, who took runs at ungodly hours. We're talking crack of dawn; no one else is awake except for returning graveyard shift workers. But after one particular sleepless night, Foolish had been nursing a coffee by his window, eyes bleary from the long night, when a figure had stopped underneath the lamppost at the corner of his home.
The first thing he had noticed was the blaring glow-in-the-dark purple vest that looked like a runner's night vest but painted over by a child or something of the like. Had he never considered looking out at that moment, he might've never taken notice of just how handsome the other man was. Now, listen, Foolish had an eye for beauty, as any of his friends could tell you given the amount of art he'd managed to sell here and there. However, when Vegetta had stepped under the light, with a waxing moon set high above him, clouds dulled the background so that the centerpiece could shine.
Oh, and don't ask how he got his name. It took an embarrassing amount of begging and promises and deals with his friend Tina for her to hand over the information. Despite this, Foolish wondered if promising her the maid of honor at the hypothetical future wedding might've been hoping for too much from a passing crush.
Then again, Foolish huffed as he pumped his arms harder to not lose sight of Vegetta who was effortlessly running ahead of him; he had noticed how much fitter he was after starting his new morning routine. Granted, there were some days that Vegetta didn't come to the park for his run, but to Foolish's relief, he usually took evening walks with his daughter.
Yep, that's right. The man who Foolish was pining for had a daughter who he was sure knew about Foolish's crush. Every time he was ever within ten feet of them, and Vegetta was conveniently looking away, the daughter would whip her head around with sharp eyes and make a gesture indicating that she was watching. Scary protective. It made him wonder if she was born in the year of the dragon.
The fact that Vegetta had a daughter wasn't a concern for him at all, especially because he had known there was a chance of that. Despite his more fit figure, the silver streaks that ran through the swept-up hair were clear indicators that Foolish may be chasing someone with perhaps a little more life experience. Even then, there was no reason that things needed to be awkward between them.
Even when Foolish was thinking about the ways he could potentially connect with Vegetta, there was a sense that maybe this lifetime wasn't the one where he got to be with him. This thought had him sighing, wondering if there wasn't some universe where he wouldn't feel shy about his feelings. Agh, what feelings could he possibly have, though? They've exchanged only a couple of words here and there, but it was enough to make his heart skip a beat. Once, he'd tripped over his shoelaces right behind the other, making an embarrassing yelp that caught the other's attention.
Foolish couldn't help the lick of humiliation and mortification when the other simply offered him a hand up with a smile that could've melted him into a puddle. The only thing keeping him from a liquid state was the sight of the daughter's unimpressed eyebrow raise behind Vegetta. The little scoundrel. Foolish couldn't help but be amused at her reactions.
“Be careful, my friend. The rain can make things slippery.”
“Uh, yeah, I'll keep that in mind. Nothing wrong with a little falling, though.” Inside, Foolish begged the outside one to please stop talking and ruining any chance with the other. This was also met with a huffy noise from Vegetta's daughter, though the older man seemed oblivious to the implications and nodded along. Ugh, the wrinkles around his eyes when he smiled only made him more attractive. It wasn't fair that someone should be so handsome.
“Who would we run with in the early morning?” Vegetta teased as Foolish brushed off some grass that clung to his shorts. Ah, it looks like his tagging along hadn't gone unnoticed by the older man, and Foolish was unsure of whether to feel embarrassed or called out or simply to run away. “You've been getting faster every day. It would be a shame if you never caught up to us.”
“Oh, I never wanted to, like, intrude, so I kept my distance. But I guess we are neighbors; I, uh, live like three houses down in the yellow house. My name's Foolish.” Just random words escaping his mouth, everything was going to shit. Mayday! Mayday! Foolish lockdown in process.
"Vegetta.” The older man offered his name. “It's great to finally meet you.” There was a gleam to his eyes as their hands shook, and Foolish wondered if he'd felt the same warmth spread through his body as Foolish did.
“Yeah, for sure, and maybe I'll even be able to keep pace with you two.” He joked, which inspired the most beautiful sight of Vegetta laughing softly, chin tucked in and eyes shut, and a pure joy that made Foolish wish he could keep the other laughing forever. It felt like it wasn't a common sight, and he almost zoned out until Vegetta began saying his farewells.
He scrambled to respond in kind, and he sighed wistfully as the two departed again, with Foolish turning towards the direction of his house. But at least he'd finally gotten himself on the other's radar. Now he could approach the other without feeling like a creep, so that was a win in his books.