Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters. That's all.

This comes after Early Morning Patrol. Hope you all had a nice Valentine's Day :).

Ok, this one kind of got out of hand. I had to reel it in towards the end so that it would fit the romance thread. Bridge is one of my favorite all-time Rangers and I've seen him as one of the most interesting characters, especially after several fanfic authors pointed out that he always had to wear gloves and therefore didn't get to have human contact.

Not Meant to Have Someone

By

Eileen (Psycho Tangerine)

Bridge Carson yawned as he panned the computer's camera to yet another section of New Tech City. It wasn't enough for the cadets to patrol the city by foot; Cruger also insisted that someone man the cameras in the public areas- just in case. He was right, of course. Only two days ago, A squad had been alerted to an ongoing arson in a corner of the city where the cadets weren't patrolling. You could only cover so much by foot. Bridge grinned to himself. Someday, he'd get to be a Ranger, and then maybe he'd get out of boring assignments like this one.

He focused on yet another part of the city. But then decided to skip over it as his friends were apparently patrolling through it. Bridge was about to press the key, when he gasped at what he saw. Without realizing it, he slowly panned the camera over the sight of Sky and Syd's brief kiss. "All right, Syd!" he grinned to himself. He was well aware of the pretty blonde's crush on their stalwart teammate. She never stopped gushing to him about how great Sky looked in his uniform or about how skilled he was during their training sessions. And Bridge thought it was great, he really did.

Bridge had long ago shoved his own crush on Syd deep inside himself. All he wanted was for her to be happy. He felt a little twinge and quickly busied himself with watching other parts of the city. No, he wasn't jealous of them, not one bit. But still, if he had to be honest with himself, he did feel a bit envious; not of Sky and Syd, but of the fact that they could have each other. Even the impoverished young couple he had spied kissing just before his friends' interaction had each other. That was something that Bridge Carson felt he could never have.

His psychic powers were more of a curse than a blessing to him. But he never let the others know that. There was nothing they could do about it, and he didn't want them to worry over him. He protected himself from others' emotions and thoughts through the use of specially adapted leather gloves and as much clothing coverage as possible. And, whenever he found people's feelings beginning to seep into his mind he began to babble about whatever was currently going on. Babbling seemed to help keep unwanted things out of his mind. And, lately, he had begun to read thoughts as well. Just what he needed, another thing to invade his mind. He knew what would happen if he let his guard down.

Once, he had somehow forgotten to put his gloves on immediately after washing his hands in a public restroom. When he grabbed the door handle, he immediately got over washed with the emotions of the man who had held it previously. It took him the rest of the day to filter the stranger's hatred of his boss and despondency over his pending divorce from his own thoughts and feelings.

Bridge sighed as he looked at the clock. He had no idea how he survived before he had been sent to SPD at the age of eight as a junior cadet. Kat was the one who had designed his special gloves. Before then, he did whatever he could to keep his hands covered. But almost everyday, the child felt himself psychically attacked from all sides. And the constant taunting and ostracizing by the other children in his class and neighborhood never helped. No, there was no telling what would've happened if Bridge hadn't been 'rescued.' He wasn't all that sure he'd even still be alive.

And that was why he'd never have anyone to love. Any physical contact would most likely be overwhelming for him, perhaps to the point where it could do serious damage to his mind. Bridge remembered the one time, almost two years ago, when a grateful classmate had unexpectedly kissed him on the lips after he volunteered to tutor her for a science exam. All her thoughts and personal feelings slammed so hard into him that he fell to the floor groaning in pain. And the young girl ran off in tears, convinced that Bridge didn't find her attractive. This negative emotion only added to the deep pain Bridge was already in. He didn't even want to think about what contact of an even more personal nature could do to him. No, he just wasn't meant to have someone to love.

Bridge picked up the pad and keyed himself off duty. He then handed it to the female cadet who was relieving him. The pretty brunette shyly smiled at him and Bridge shyly smiled back. Maybe, just maybe, he'd ask her to the dance. That is, if she didn't mind dancing with someone wearing gloves. That is, if she didn't mind the omission of a good night kiss. At least then he'd have a date. At least then he'd seem normal.