Disclaimer: I don't own the PR characters and I don't even want to think about what I would do if I did. All other characters are mine.
Author's note: Here it is, my long awaited next Tommy/Kat story. There you go I've given away the pairing so if you don't like it please don't read the story. Just once I'd like to have a fic that doesn't get any flames because someone doesn't like the pairing. So you've been warned. Now for all the rest of you who happen to like my stories, I hope this one will please you as much as the others have. I know I've been promising to write it for sometime now so here you go.
"Everyone hang on!" the command was shouted as a huge wave came and nearly turned the boat over.
The sky had quickly gone from blue to dark grey as the storm appeared out of nowhere. The boat was now being tossed back and forth violently against the waves and the people aboard struggled to hang on.
"My little boy, has anyone seen my little boy?" a mother was frantically crying.
Tommy and Katherine were standing on the deck next to her parents and holding on for dear life.
"Mommy!" came another frantic cry and they looked out and saw the little boy in the water being held afloat by his life jacket.
"Oh no, that poor little boy," Kat said.
"Kat, don't even think about it," her father said. But it was too late, Kat had let go of Tommy and was already diving in the water after the little boy.
"Kat, no!" her father screamed.
"Don't worry dear, there's no stronger swimmer than our Kat," her mother told him and they could see that Kat was almost to the little boy.
"I'm gonna help her," Tommy said diving in after his girlfriend.
"Kat, I'm here," Tommy called as Kat swam back towards him.
"Here take him," Kat said as she handed the boy back to Tommy.
"Don't worry, I'm right behind you," she said as they began to swim back towards the boat.
Tommy reached the boat where some of the crew was waiting and he lifted the boy up. He then turned around to Katherine to make sure they pulled her up first.
"Kat, where you," Tommy shouted upon seeing that she wasn't there.
"Kat, Kat, answer me!" Tommy shouted.
"Kat!" Tommy shouted out loud as he awoke from the dream. He looked around and realized that he was back in his bedroom in Reefside. The doorbell began to ring and Tommy tried to ignore it but the ringing wouldn't stop.
He then raced down the stairs of his home in Reefside after hearing the doorbell ring for the fifth time. Whoever was on the other side was obviously not going to stop ringing it until he answered.
"It's about time," Hayley said when the door was finally opened to reveal Tommy on the other side.
"You could have used your key," Tommy said as he stepped aside to let her in.
"I know but you gave me that key for emergencies and this isn't an emergency," Hayley replied as she carried a bag of groceries in her arms.
"Well in that case, do you mind leaving I'm not up for company right now," Tommy told her.
"Actually I do mind, I've been trying to get a hold of you for a week and I've tried respecting your privacy and given you some time alone but Tommy you can't start doing this again," she said.
"Doing what?" he asked as he walked into the living room and sat down on the couch.
"This place is a mess and you look terrible," she responded.
Tommy hadn't bothered to throw any thing away. Around the room, there were discarded take-out and pizza boxes and a stack of empty beer bottles that covered the coffee table.
"Thanks a lot," Tommy said.
"Now I want you to march up those stairs and into the shower while I clean up this mess," Hayley told him.
"You're not my mother," Tommy retorted.
"No but she's worried to death about you, she's left you a dozen messages and you haven't returned her call once, the least you could do is call her and tell her that your still alive," Hayley replied.
"Well unlike you, maybe my mom's figured out that I'll call her when I'm ready," Tommy said.
"Honestly Tommy, I can't believe that you're the same guy who a year ago was mentoring and fighting alongside the dino rangers, how do you think Conner, Kira, Ethan and Trent would feel if they saw you like this," Hayley replied.
"Luckily for me, they're off at college so I don't have to worry about it," Tommy told her.
"Thank goodness that it's summer or else you'd have to worry about losing your job too," Hayley replied.
"That's right Hayley, it is the summer which means that I should be able to do anything I damn well please, even if it means not showering for a week, is it so bad for me to just want to relax and do nothing," Tommy said.
"It wouldn't if that's what you were doing, just relaxing, but we both know that's not what you're doing at all, Tommy it's been nine years don't you think it's time you stopped mourning your loss and lived the way she would want you to," Hayley said.
"I tried that already, I mean didn't I let my parents talk me into going to college and then you talked me into getting my doctorate and then into teaching, not to mention concentrating all of my time and energy into developing the dino rangers and fighting Mesogog," Tommy replied.
"So why stop now, what happened to make you want to throw it all away?" she asked.
"Because I forgot, I did what all of you wanted me to do and somehow I ended up forgetting, I started living like she didn't even exist I forgot about her and that's the one thing I swore I would never do," Tommy yelled.
"Tommy, moving on with your life isn't forgetting her, it's what she would want you to do, you know that," Hayley told him.
"I forgot her birthday, I always send flowers to her parents on her birthday and I looked at the calendar and realized that I totally forgot," Tommy replied.
"Yeah but Tommy they know how busy your life has gotten, I'm sure they're very happy that you've managed to move on with your life, it doesn't change the fact that you loved their daughter and she'll always be in your heart," Hayley said.
"I love her Hayley, love, not past tense, I will always love her, she was it for me and I will never love anyone else," Tommy told her.
"But from everything you've told me about her, don't you think Kat would want you to open your heart to someone else, she wouldn't want you to be alone and still in love with her when you have the chance to have a life with someone else," Hayley replied.
"That's enough, I don't want to talk about this anymore, if it'll make you happy I'll go shower and put on some clean clothes," Tommy said.
"Good, I'll clean this stuff up and make you something to eat," Hayley said.
"Fine, do that but please don't be here when I get out," Tommy said as he left the room and ran upstairs to his bedroom.
Hayley went into the kitchen and got a trash bag. She then went into the living room and started picking up all the trash. When she was done, she walked upstairs and into Tommy's bedroom. She could hear the shower still running in the bathroom. The mess in the bedroom looked similar to the mess in the living room and Hayley set out throwing all the trash away. Once the bedroom was clean, she went down to the kitchen to make Tommy some food.
Sometime later, Tommy emerged from the bathroom having shaved and wearing clean clothes. He looked around his bedroom and saw that Hayley had cleaned everything up.
"At least she knew better than to put these away," Tommy said as he sat down on his bed and stared at the pictures of Katherine that were covering the bed. It had been a long time since he had felt safe to keep them out in the open. He would usually keep them hidden in a box in his closet and only took them out when he was assured that one of his students wouldn't barge in and start asking questions.
"I thought I asked you to be gone," Tommy said as he entered the kitchen where Hayley had finished cooking.
"I was just leaving, you look much better by the way," Hayley replied.
"Thanks will you go now," he said.
"Yes, but I'll be back in the morning," she said giving him a kiss on the cheek before leaving.