Disclaimers/Notes: OO isn't mine. Would I be writing this if it were? This fic picks up five years after OO ends; Mack and Rose are married. Ronny and Will are single (cough not for long cough); that's about all you need to know.
Dedication: To the Queen of Roll from the Queen of Rock.
Playing House
"And once again, Ronny Robinson is taking home the gold, folks!" the announcer's voice boomed over the loudspeakers. As Ronny climbed out of her racecar, the crowd applauded and cheered for the young driver.
She held up her newest trophy and received another wave of applause. Grinning, Ronny headed off to the locker rooms, answering just a few questions for the press.
"So what's it like to be back racing after being a power ranger? Do you find it just as exciting?"
"What's a racecar like compared to those zords you used to drive?"
"Do you have a boyfriend?"
Ronny pushed hair back behind her ears. "It's great to be back; zords are slow and clunky; and I don't have a boyfriend."
And after she'd showered, she found her yellow cell phone and speed dialed her best friends' home number. 'Hurry up already,' she thought as the phone rang.
"Hello?" Rose Hartford asked wearily after the eighth ring. "Who the hell is calling me at two in the morning?"
"Oops, I forgot about the time difference. My bad. But guess who just won the International Championship Races for the third year running?"
"That's great Ronny," Rose replied, covering the ear that wasn't pressed to the phone with her hand to drown out the baby's crying.
Then the noise grew louder. "Jamie sure has a healthy set of lungs on her," Ronny remarked.
"That wasn't Jamie; that was Mack. He's obnoxious lately; the baby won't stop crying and neither will he."
Ronny could hear the stress in her friend's voice. "It's that bad, huh? Remind me never to have kids."
"Not even with Will?"
"Oh shut up. Anyway, I'll let you go now so you can try to get the baby and Mack back to sleep. Talk to you later."
"Bye," Rose yawned as Ronny hung up. The former pink ranger tossed the phone in the vicinity of its cradle and stomped down the hall to the baby's room. She snatched the baby away from Mack and sat down in the rocking chair. "Come on sweetheart; go to sleep," Rose pleaded with her daughter.
Jamie promptly began to wail louder. Rose groaned softly and continued to rock in the chair. "Shh," Rose soothed. She rubbed small circles on Jamie's back until the baby's cries finally stopped. Her eyes slid closed and Rose gently placed the baby back in her crib.
Mack slipped his arm around Rose's shoulders as the two shuffled back into their room. "That was terrible. Why won't she ever stop crying?"
"I don't know," Rose sighed as she got back into bed. "I really don't know."
"We need a vacation. How does Hawaii sound, honey?" Mack asked as he climbed in next to her and slipped his arms around her waist.
Rose sat up and stared down at her husband of three years in shock and disbelief. "It sounds terrible. We have commitments, Mack: jobs, school, and a little bundle of joy that never stops wailing… what on earth are you thinking, wanting to go to Hawaii?"
"We're only twenty-three years old, Rose; we're stressed to the max. When we come back we'll be relaxed and much better equipped to handle our lives together."
"What about Jamie? Poor girl's only six months old; she'll think her mommy and daddy abandoned her. No way, Mack. No way."
"Jamie is sixth months, like you said. There's no way she could even know what being abandoned it. Besides, we'll have people she recognizes watch her for us. We're gone for a week or so, we're happy and our mental health is repaired. Everyone wins."
"Oh, and what about the people you want to bestow our extremely noisy child on? I have a feeling whoever gets stuck watching her won't want to talk to us again."
"Someone who would be good with a child…Dax?"
Rose's face grew from shocked to alarmed. "I don't trust Dax to take care of himself, let alone my innocent baby girl. Next?"
"Tyzonn and Vella. They're very responsible, you have to admit."
"They're newlyweds," Rose said dismissively.
Mack, not about to give up, thought for another minute. "Will is in town next week. You call Ronny; I'll call Will and they can watch the baby together. With any luck, they'll finally realize how right they would be for each other. Come on Rose, it's perfect."
He was wearing her down; he could tell by the way Rose suddenly looked thoughtful. After a moment's consideration, she nodded. "That's not a bad idea, actually. Ronny's good with kids and Will is fairly adult-like. That just might work."
--
A week later, the Hartfords were on their way to Hawaii. As Mack lugged suitcases out to the trunk of the car, Rose went over basic procedures with Ronny and Will.
"Now, when you warm the formula, make sure to test it on your wrist first so you know if it's the right temperature. There are plenty of bottles for her; they're in the cabinet with the coffee mugs. The formula's in the pantry."
She started up the stairs, motioning for Ronny and Will to follow. Once the three adults were in Jamie's bedroom, Rose picked up the baby. "She likes this bear; it plays 'Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star,' when you press its paw. Also, when you're gonna put her down for her nap, you should rock her; it puts her to sleep faster."
Rose looked at her friends apologetically. "Jamie has a problem with crying lately. We don't know why; we've tried everything. Sometimes she just needs a little extra attention, I guess, even though Mack and I-"
"Honey?" Mack called. "Will and Ronny have everything under control. Let's go. Our flight is in an hour and a half; we need to leave."
Rose covered her baby's face with kisses. "Mommy loves you so much, Jamie. She's not abandoning you. She'll be back in one week, just seven little days, my darling, my Jamie, my-"
"Rose!"
"He's right, Rose. We can handle this. Now get going. Go make out with your hot husband on a beach while we watch the baby. Have fun!" Ronny said as she practically shoved Rose out of the house. 'And now it's time to play house.'