A/N: This is an additional chapter to AngelMouse5's Sky/Bridge story "Stakeout Revelations".
I really suggest you read her fic beforehand to get the background info on how Sky and Bridge got to where they are in this chapter. Besides, it's a great story.

Fanfiction . net /s/ 2793376/3/

Chapter four

Three days later, life at SPD headquarters had pretty much returned to normal. The weapons cache had been recovered, Mikos, the alien weapons runner, had been arrested and convicted of multiple charges including kidnapping and sent off-world to a maximum security prison. Surprisingly, once in custody, the alien had quickly adopted an 'if I go down, I'll take as many with me as possible' attitude and that in turn had resulted in a dozen more arrests of high-profile criminals.

Bridge had declined Dr. Manx' offer to undergo a few sessions of psychological evaluations for post-traumatic stress, citing that the only therapists he needed were his teammates and Sky.

Commander Cruger, however, had put Bridge on light duty for a few more days - despite the former Green Ranger's protests - and also told Sky to keep an eye on his teammate. Consequently, the Blue and Red Rangers had quite a bit of downtime together - and they happily took advantage of it.

"Bridge, you know our lunch break was over ten minutes ago," Sky mumbled while he made a half-hearted attempt to sit up from where they were both currently lounging on his bed. The addressed Blue Ranger, however, put a gloved hand on his partner's chest and gently pushed him back down, kissing him thoroughly once more before he muttered against Sky's lips, "I don't know about you, but I'm definitely not in a hurry to go back to alphabetizing A-Squad's arrest records from the past three years just so Cruger can say he kept me busy around here." Bridge sighed. "I don't understand why I can't go on patrol with you, Sky. I feel fine - and I'll stay in the jeep if anything comes up."

"Yeah, right." Sky grinned as he pushed a strand of hair out of Bridge's face. "Bridge, you know I'd take you along if it was up to me, but if Cruger wants you to play secretary, there's nothing I can do about it."

Bridge rolled his eyes and Sky gave a soft laugh. "But I'm sure he won't be looking for you down in the file room any time soon, so I think we've got some more time," the Red Ranger said and captured Bridge's mouth with his own. Bridge reciprocated eagerly and their kisses deepened and intensified until Bridge suddenly let out a gasp and broke their liplock.

Sky backed off immediately, familiar with the routine by now. Bridge had reached his limit of physical contact; he needed space before his mind went into overload.

Bridge squeezed his eyes shut and rubbed his temple. "I'm sorry," he whispered. Sky put a hand on his arm.

"How many times do I have to tell you that you don't have to apologize?" he said. "I told you I would never do anything to hurt you, right? So don't worry about it."

"But it's just so frustrating, Sky!" Bridge exclaimed and the hand on his temple went further up to rake through his hair. "It's not like I don't want to… you know…do more, God knows I do, but I'm just so darn handicapped!" He hung his head, shaking it in exasperation and Sky changed his grip on Bridge's arm to gently tug him closer, settling him in the crook of his shoulder.

"Hey, we've got time," the Red Ranger said soothingly. "We'll take this slow. Maybe with enough practice – " Sky emphasized the last word with a grin, "- you'll eventually be able to sort of 'dial down' the psychic emanations. Or build up your endurance level."

Bridge sighed. "I don't know, Sky. It's not like I haven't tried before. And it's been a disaster every time." The Blue Ranger moved, shifting his position slightly so that he was able to look at his partner. "There was this boy in high school…I really liked him and when I found out that he liked me too, I asked him out. The date was a total mess. When we kissed, I got so overloaded on psychic images that I pretty much freaked out. Needless to say, we didn't have a second date." Bridge looked sadly down at his gloved hands. "That experience scared the pants off me and I didn't work up the guts to try again until years later. It was just before I left to join SPD. This girl I had known pretty much all my life and who lived in my neighborhood, she heard I was leaving for Basic Training and – out of the blue – asked me to come over to her house. She called it a private farewell party. I went there, thought I was better prepared this time…" Bridge sighed again. "I'm not even going to get into the details, but let's just say…that second attempt didn't turn out much better than the first."

Sky regarded Bridge intently and the misery on the younger man's face tore at his heart. He reflexively tightened the hold he still had around his shoulder and effectively closed off the little bit of distance again Bridge had put in between them. "I'm really sorry to hear that, but I hope you do see that this time things are already different," he said, putting as much conviction into his words as possible. "I mean, think about it: you've already kissed me more times than those other two combined, right?"

At that, a small smile appeared at the corners of Bridge's mouth. "True." But then, as quickly as the smile appeared, it vanished again. "But what if we can never…uh, do more than that?" He dropped his gaze from Sky's face and a blush crept up his cheeks. "I mean – I'm sure that by now you've figured out that I've never had sex before. What if I never can?"

Sky considered that for half a moment before he said, "We'll figure something out, I promise." There had to be something they could do about this, something!

"I…I don't really even know what to do."

"Don't worry," Sky grinned, "I'm more than willing to show you." He thought for a moment. "Have you ever tried meditating? Or maybe we could get something like a white noise generator or…"

"Water."

"Huh?" Sky blinked bewildered.

"Water," Bridge repeated. "All the images and emotions are least intense when I'm in the shower and under running water. It's like diving, I guess. The water somehow pretty much mutes out the psychic echoes." Bridge's mouth twisted into a sardonic smile. "Ironic, huh? The place where I have the most peace and quiet is with the noise of rushing water all around me."

"Hey, it's a start," Sky said, sounding hopeful. "So…water, huh? Well, I guess we can always…"

They both jerked and looked up as the alarm klaxons suddenly erupted in the hallway outside and the warning light above the door came on to bathe the room in a tone of deep red.

RED ALERT, RED ALERT, ALL RANGERS REPORT TO THE COMMAND CENTER IMMEDIATELY! REPEAT – RED ALERT…

With dual groans of exasperation, the two SPD Rangers rose and sprinted out the door.

They met up with Z and Syd in the hallway just outside the command center and entered to find Commander Doggie Cruger and Dr. Kat Manx assembled before the main computer, staring at the huge screen that showed downtown Newtech City under attack not only by an unfamiliar-looking huge robot but also by scores of Krybots. The robot was currently doing major damage to any building that came within its striking distance while the Krybots swarmed through the streets, chasing terrified citizens and overturning cars and trucks.

"Rangers, we have a full-scale attack of downtown on several fronts," their canine commander greeted them. "I have every available cadet moving out as we speak to contain the Krybots on the ground, but I need you to handle the robot situation."

"Yes, Sir!" they chorused and saluted. Commander Cruger, realizing the necessity of a full team to defend against this scale of attack, reluctantly allowed Bridge to move out with the rest of the B-Squad and the four Rangers sprinted towards the parking garage and their vehicles to deal with this latest Gruumm-induced assault on their city.

It took nearly three hours until they were able to return back to base. The heretofore unknown alien criminal in his robot had put up a tough fight, but the Rangers and their Megazord had eventually contained him and destroyed his battle machine. Once that task was done, though, they had to immediately move on to aid their fellow SPD cadets with the overwhelming force of Krybots still crawling out of every nook and cranny in downtown.

Consequently, when the weary members of the B-Squad finally dragged themselves back into the command center, they were a sorry sight; disheveled and sweaty, with dirt-streaked faces and grimy uniforms that were torn or singed in some spots.

The commander had mercy on them, kept the debriefing as short as possible, then announced to them that they were all to take the rest of the day off.

"Job well done, Rangers," he barked. "Dismissed!"

"Sir!" The B-Squad saluted as one and immediately proceeded to scatter in their respective directions in the race for their rooms and showers.

Sky naturally followed Bridge back to their old room. As soon as they were through the door, the former Green Ranger was shedding his boots and jacket.

"I'll flip you a coin for first pick at the shower."

"Na, that's okay." Sky chuckled and waved him off. "You go ahead."

Bridge cast him a grateful grin and dashed towards the bathroom, leaving a trail of two gloves and a blue t-shirt along the way.

Not two minutes later Bridge sighed happily when the hot water rained over him, sluicing away the dirt and sweat of battle. He took his time, scrubbing himself vigorously and had just finished rinsing his hair when he sensed the well-known presence nearby. He cast a glance to the right, spotted a familiar outline through the frosted Plexiglas door of the shower stall and his heart rate instantly doubled. 'Sky doesn't usually come into the bathroom when I'm in here...'

The shadowy form stood before the stall, unmoving, and Bridge's hand shook slightly when he reached out to push the door open. And suddenly, amidst gallons of hot water and steam, Bridge's mouth went completely dry.

Sky was standing not two feet away, only a white SPD regulation towel wrapped around his hips, and the look on his face was one between desire and wariness. They stared at each other for a long minute and Bridge had to give his partner credit for his self-control; Bridge was wearing nothing but hot water, yet Sky's steady gaze never wavered from the Blue Ranger's face.

"Well -" Sky finally broke the silence with a slightly abashed grin, "- since you said running water acts as a psychic inhibitor for you, I thought we could test that theory."

Bridge could not think of a single coherent thing to say in reply, so with his heart thundering in his chest he reached out instead and hooked his fingers over the tucked-in ends of the towel, tugging gently. Sky came forward only too willingly and the towel fell onto the bathroom floor just before the shower door closed behind them.

With two grown men inside, the shower stall was crowded, but that suited them both just fine, now that the moment had arrived and they finally faced each other as they never had before.

Over the years, Bridge and Sky had seen each other numerous times in various stages of undress, yet never completely naked and now Bridge's breath caught in his throat at the sight of Sky's nude, wet body. And if pretty much all of his blood hadn't been pooled below his navel right now, it would have been rushing in his ears at the searing look Sky was giving him. His fingers were itching to move over that broad, smooth chest and the urge must have been plainly written across his face, for Sky suddenly moved even closer.

"Go ahead," he said in a throaty voice barely audible above the noise of the water all around. "Give it a try."

But Bridge remained immobile except for a deep, shuddering breath, as if to brace himself for any possible mental assault. Sky stared at him intently. "What can I do to make this easier for you?"

"I dunno," Bridge said haltingly. "Just don't let your mind stray, I guess. Focus on the here and now."

Sky's eyes were impossibly blue. "Oh, I'm focusing, believe me!"

He exhaled and opened his mind, and Bridge immediately felt the familiar bond between them and the trust and love coming from his partner. He gingerly placed his ungloved hand on Sky's chest, half-closing his eyes at the sensation. The warm, wet skin felt so good…

There were images, of course; they couldn't be avoided, but the amount of sensory input he was receiving wasn't nearly as bad or as intense as he had feared. The water really was helping!

He felt some of Sky's lingering emotions from the earlier battle, but most of all his mind was enveloped in feelings of passion, desire and love from the Red Ranger. Bridge mentally sighed with relief and gratitude.

Sky tried not to shudder at that first contact between them without the ever-present leather gloves. "God, you are beautiful," he heard Bridge whisper and Sky blinked, telling himself it was because of the water streaming down his face, but knowing that it was because he wasn't sure how to respond to this unexpected compliment. It turned out he didn't need to; Bridge's mouth shot up to capture his lips, kissing him deeply while he kept on running his hands over Sky's chest and down his arms.

A groan tore from Sky's throat. The hunger with which Bridge was kissing him left no room for doubt. It was working! This was really working! Sky's heart soared when that realization hit him. He carefully wrapped his arms around Bridge, pulling him in gently, although he wanted nothing more than to crush the smaller man to his chest. The forced restraint with Bridge was sending waves of excitement through him in an intensity he had never experienced with anyone else before.

Bodies pressed together, they stood under the torrents of hot water, kissing and touching, until Bridge suddenly looked up. Sky could see his eyes shining.

"Oh my god, I get it now! It's you, Sky! I understand now why I couldn't do anything remotely like this with anyone else, man or woman. It's all about who I do this with. There's no mind-overload with you because pretty much everything about you is already so known to me. I mean, we've been roommates for, what, two years now, shared the same space for so long that your aura is as familiar to me as my own. I've dealt with the psychic vibes of just about every emotion you've ever had over the past few years. Sky, you are the safest person for me to be with! Because I've had so much time getting accustomed to you." He finally stopped his Bridge-babble to take a breath and Sky smiled affectionately.

"No one else has ever stuck around long enough for me to get used to him to that extend," Bridge added in a smaller voice.

Sky wasn't sure what to say to that, so he simply reached out, pushed a few soaked strands of hair out of Bridge's eyes, then bracketed his partner's face with his hands and kissed him once again. Tongues tangling with each other, they moved against each other in an instinctive rhythm and the friction and heat quickly built up between them. After a while, Sky felt sure – and bold – enough to take Bridge's hand and gently guide it to places further down below.

The hand went willingly until about navel-height, but then suddenly veered off-course to come to rest on Sky's hipbone instead. Bridge also broke their kiss at about the same time.

"Sky, I...uhm..."

"What?" Sky whispered hoarsely.

Bridge looked at him from beneath dripping eyelashes. "I, ah, I'm not sure what to do."

Sky cocked his head. "Bridge, you've taken matters into your own hands before, haven't you?"

It took Bridge a moment to catch on. "Huh? Oh, you mean..."

Sky had never seen anyone blush while thoroughly wet, but now he was treated to just such a sight. Bridge's cheeks were a shade of deep crimson and he kept his eyes on Sky's chest when he shyly replied, "Ah...yeah."

Sky tried to keep his smirk to as small as possible. "It's the same concept - just on someone else."

Bridge remained motionless, however, his hand still attached to Sky's hip and the Blue Ranger bit back a groan; Bridge obviously needed some more encouragement.

"Here, let me show you."

Bridge jerked involuntarily when Sky's fingers closed over where no one had ever touched him before.

"Is this okay?" Sky asked quietly, watching Bridge's face to gauge his reaction.

His voice failing him, Bridge could only nod. Lost in sensation, he fought against the impulse to close his eyes, focusing instead on Sky's face and those azure eyes that were watching him intently. The psychic onrush from Sky's emotions was getting stronger, but he could still deal with it.

"Tell me if it gets too much," Sky whispered as if reading his mind. Bridge shook his head, sending water droplets flying.

"No, it's okay, I'm...oh god, just don't stop."

Sky complied and kept up his ministrations until Bridge could do nothing more than writhe and pant helplessly.

Watching the expressions that played across Bridge's face was the most sensual sight Sky had ever seen. He wanted to lay Bridge down on the tiles, then replace his hand with his mouth and...He closed his eyes for a moment and breathed, reigning in his galloping imagination and trying to regain some control; not yet – too much too soon. He couldn't risk overwhelming Bridge. Had to focus on his promise of taking this slow. He reached up to caress Bridge's cheek and with his gaze firmly trained on the shorter man's face, Sky said, "I love you."

In reply, Bridge squeezed his eyes shut and with a sound somewhere between a groan and a cry, he convulsed under Sky's gentle hands.

If it hadn't been for Sky's arm around his waist, Bridge might have slid to the floor. As it was, his knees were still seriously shaking along with the rest of his body from the most mind-numbing experience he ever had. He leaned heavily against Sky, for the moment wholly occupied with catching his breath while the water continued to cascade over them and Sky's hand ran soothingly down his back.

"You okay?" he heard him ask. "You still with me here?"

Bridge nodded. "Yeah," he mumbled against his lover's chest. "This was, was...oh, man!"

Sky grinned wickedly. "Glad to be of service." He shifted slightly, a small movement, but Bridge caught the hint nevertheless. He first looked down, then up.

"Sky, I think now I can…"

But Sky shook his wet head and smiled. "It's okay. You don't have to do anything. I got it covered." He gently moved Bridge backwards until he was pressed up against the Plexiglas pane and moved in between his legs, digging into Bridge's hipbone and the Blue Ranger gasped at the feeling.

"Just as long as you can remain upright for a little while longer…" With one hand pressed to the wall next to Bridge's head and the other one clutching his shoulder, Sky ground his groin into Bridge's hip and the Blue Ranger instinctively pressed back.

Bridge's arm came around Sky's waist, hugging him tightly while at the same time he grabbed the back of the Red Ranger's head with his other hand, pulling him down for a languid kiss. Sky moved in a steady rhythm against Bridge, but it didn't take long until his movements became less coordinated and more urgent. Before long, he groaned into Bridge's open mouth and Bridge sensed the impending end as well as felt it at the same time. The sensations left Bridge almost as breathless as his own turn had done a few minutes ago. He tightly held on to Sky's shuddering body until Sky's breathing had evened out again. But the coalescing emotions and images of the past few minutes began to pound against his mind with ever-growing pressure and despite his best intentions, Bridge began to feel disoriented. As much as he hated to break the contact between them, he needed some space.

"Sky?"

"Uh-huh?" Sky mumbled against the side of Bridge's neck.

"If we stay in here any longer, we'll end up looking like boiled lobsters."

Sky chuckled. "I hear you! Let's get out of here and into bed."

They toweled themselves off and changed into casual clothes: sweatpants and t-shirts. Sky had wisely kept a few clothes in their old room and once they were dressed, they slipped beneath the covers of his old bed. They didn't speak much during the changing process, but Bridge had not been able to wipe the goofy grin off his face. It was mixed with weariness, however, and Sky sensed that Bridge needed to recuperate, more from what happened between them in the shower than from the long battle before.

They arranged themselves so that Bridge was lying half-draped over Sky, and one of his hands, once again covered by the leather gloves, was drawing indistinct patterns across the Red Ranger's chest. He was pleasantly drowsy, and from the way Sky's eyes were drooping, so was his partner.

Suddenly, Bridge grinned and looked up. "You know, I may be an empath and not a fortune-teller, but I foresee that SPD is going to be hit with exponentially high water bills from now on."

Sky didn't miss a beat. "Not to mention that we're going to be the cleanest guys in the entire base."

The two men shared a chuckle that turned into full-blown laughter, which in turn ended in an affectionate kiss. It was Bridge who turned solemn again first.

"Seriously though, Sky; do you really think you could be okay with all this?" He wiggled his gloved hand in emphasis while nodding his head towards the bathroom door at the same time.

Sky wove a hand through Bridge's hair. "You should know the answer to that by now," he said. "Look, now that we know the 'wet' part already works pretty well, we're going to take the 'dry' part slow, okay? And if you're more comfortable touching me with the gloves on, then yes, I'm fine with that. Just as long as you do keep on touching me." Sky's voice was steady, but the look in his eyes Bridge could only identify as a barely controlled plea. It touched his heart.

"Oh, you don't have to worry about that. I already can't keep my hands off you. I don't know how I ever could," the Blue Ranger replied with a small grin, but contrary to his words, his gloved hand now lay motionless on Sky's chest.

"Good," Sky returned and leaned back into the pillows, a note of weariness now creeping into his voice. "Now let's catch some sleep, okay? Otherwise I'll fall facedown into my food in the dining hall later on."

Bridge was only too ready to comply with that suggestion. "Okay."

Sky's hand, which was still caressing his hair, now extended gentle pressure downward and Bridge willingly settled his head back onto his partner's chest. Cheek pressed to red cloth, he closed his eyes, letting Sky's steady heartbeat and gentle rise and fall of his chest soothe him once again to the point where he knew sleep was moving in on him. But instead of succumbing to slumber, he found himself replaying in his mind the events in the shower once more and once again he was amazed at the relative ease with which they had managed to move their relationship to the next, and much more physical, level.

A mind-blowing experience that hadn't blown his mind. Bridge grinned at the pun and snuggled just a little closer into his by now peacefully slumbering partner's side, enveloping himself in a mental blanket of the feelings of tranquility and safety that Sky emitted even in his sleep.

Their deep yet easy-going friendship had finally moved towards an intimacy of body and mind that Bridge was pretty sure he could learn to be just as comfortable with. What had Sky said earlier? With enough practice...

Oh, they'd be practicing all right! He would make sure of that.

THE END