Birth and Rebirth I02: …and, they called it, puppy love…
Disclaimer/Author's Notes: Kim Possible and all the characters of the show are owned by the Disney Company. The original lyrics to the songs referenced in this story and the music are the property of the respective authors, artists and labels. All other characters can be blamed on the author (he, however, is not responsible for all of their actions at all times, being barely responsible for himself most of the time).
This is a strictly not-for-profit, just-for-fun work.
Enjoy! Please read and review.
A/N Forward:
"After I interviewed them," I wrote in my notes before the broadcast, "I understood what true love was," and I smiled and wiped tears from my face. They were so happy, together...
--
Birth and Rebirth I02: …and, they called it, puppy love…
--
I waited until I walked out of the broadcast center before I yelled:
"AAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLL RIGGGGGGGHT!" I yelled out at the top of my lungs as I slammed my fists into the air, just as the latest tour group of the NCN offices rounded the corner in time to have a front row seat to the action. The tour group looked at me strangely, and the tour guide introduced me to them. I signed some autographs (expected, and I still enjoyed doing it, after 'Scarlet Innocence' and that interview that turned into the breakthrough I'd dreamed of happening), answered some questions about Joss Mankey, the musician and the family man, and I headed to my vehicle grateful that I noticed them in time to catch myself before I did something really silly, like that victory dance I did sometimes back in Journalism school after getting a good review from the professor for my latest work.
I don't think my feet ever touched the ground, even in heels: Jason Johansson, the editor-in-chief, had called me into his office, and that dirt bag had not spilled the beans to anyone, not even his assistants or the other members of the senior editorial staff:
They called him.
They wanted to do their first interview, after the announcement, with NCN.
And,
They wanted me to do it.
I waited until I was alone in my car to cut loose with my seated version of the 'victory dance'.
"'You've come a long way, babeeee,'" I sang as I started my Gourde Destino and backed it out of the parking space. "Reserved space with my name in BIG letters, here I come," I laughed as I left the garage and headed home to tell my husband, face-to-face, and celebrate in that way that only he could: dinner, for the kids, and a special, private dinner, just for the two us, with some quality alone time afterward...
rowr.
I giggled as I pulled into traffic: I was doing the "'im'Possible'"...once again; only, this time, it was two of them.
--
Jason wanted the interview to be first-class, so I demanded first class, all the way, please and thank you: he shocked the air out of me and, amazingly enough, agreed to everything. I think that he was just still in shock over the fact that they wanted me for the interview.
I worked with their people (you knew that they would have people, didn't you?), and I would have sworn that I heard chittering in the background: from who or what, I had no idea.
I laughed. Here I was, Haley Goldstein Sanderson (I went by my unmarried name for work, since it was splashed everywhere after Kim's rebirth from the nuclear missile, five years ago), just a middle-class working Jewish girl from West Texas, now riding in the CEO's private jet with my crew (MY CREW!) and heading back to Middleton, Colorado, one more time.
"Are you all right, 'H'?" Ivy Sandstorm, my producer and best friend (outside of my husband) asked me, and she had a concerned look on her face (and, yes, we've heard all 'the Haley and the Ivy' jokes, thank you very much!).
"Nothing, 'I'; why?"
"You've got that look on your face, again, and the last time you had it was before Kim went 'mano-a-womano' with that nuclear-tipped missile and survived," she said with a smile.
'What did I have to worry about? It was just another interview, I told myself...
'Riiiiight, and Middleton, Colorado was 'just another town', too,' I grinned as we came in for a landing at the Middleton International Airport: Middleton, home of the Doctors Possible.
"So many 'Possibilities,' I whispered, and Ivy roared.
"Oops," I blushed. "You weren't supposed to hear that," I laughed.
We touched down, and the engines began to slow us for taxi.
"Ms. Goldstein?" The plot came on. "Tower has given us instructions to taxi to something called the 'Possible BlazeIT! Complex, Building Four.' They have also informed me that your limos are waiting."
"Limos?" Ivy grinned. "Girlfriend, you really scared Jason, didn't you?"
"He didn't say anything to me about limos," I replied, but then I remembered what I had learned during the Scarlet Innocence incident about Team Possible and Dr. Wade Load:
Jason didn't say anything because he didn't know about them.
--
The "Possible BlazeIT!" Complex, Building 4, turned out to be just a hanger: OK, one very LARGE hanger. One very large hanger, in a group of very LARGE hangers that created one entire side of the airport, and every hanger had the both of logos of Team Possible and BlazeIT! Search and Rescue emblazoned on them. The hanger that we pulled into held at least two vehicles that looked like airplanes, but with both BlazeIT! and Team Possible, it was best to remember something that Kim is famous for saying: "Anything is possible, for a Possible". It also held a number of other things, some even recognizable (in a corner in the back of the hanger, there was even a motorcycle, looking well-used and well-loved, sitting on a pedestal: why, I had no idea), and including, but not limited to, a line of vehicles that were waiting for us.
Ivy and I were guided to the first limo in line, the one with the Team Possible logo on the door, and the rest of the crew was guided to the second limo, this one with the BlazeIT! logo. The equipment was loaded into two MumVees, each with both the BlazeIT! and Team Possible logos on the doors.
The door opened from the inside, and-
"Hello, Haley: 'Come, Play for me?'" and a chortle came from inside the limo.
"That's not fair, Kim," I laughed as I stepped inside and shook hands with Kimberly Ann Stoppable.
"No cane, I see," I grinned as Ivy looked inside and blushed.
"Cane's gone; well, the canes are at home, now: hanging on the wall in my study," she replied. "Ms. Sandstorm? Welcome to Middleton, Colorado: I'm Kim Stoppable," Kim smiled as she extended her hand and helped Ivy into the limo.
"Wow," was all that Ivy could say as she sat down and the door closed.
Kim and I both laughed; that seemed to be the cue as we began to move forward.
"It's all right, Ms. Sandstorm: I get that a lot," Kim grinned. "But, there's nothing special about me. I'm just 'your basic, average girl.'"
"Yeah, and, I'm a naked mole rat," Ivy shot back, and Kim stared for a moment before she burst out laughing.
"Good point," Kim responded when she finally stopped laughing.
"What are you doing here, Ms. Stoppable?"
"Can't I see an old friend whose career exploded into goodness?"
I blushed. "It was all you and Josh Mankey, you know," I told her, but she shook her head 'no.'
"You're darn good, Haley, so don't try to kid a kidder: I've seen your hard-hitting pieces as well as your feel-good ones, and I like them all."
"Thank you," I reddened a bit more, and Kim chuckled.
"I do have one question to ask you, though, Kim, if I may."
"What's that, Haley?"
"What is it with Middleton and cheerleaders?"
"Personally, I'd like to think it was the bon-diggity mascots," a voice came over the intercom as the partition glass began to lower between us and the driver, revealing:
"Mr. Stoppable!"
"In the flesh," Ronald Stoppable replied and grinned. "Good afternoon, Haley."
I didn't want to ask...but before I could even get a breath, Ron spoke again:
"By the way, Ms. Sandstorm," I could see Kim start to grin, and I got worried, "there are some individuals up here who would like a word or two with you about that 'Naked Mole Rat' shot," Ron continued: and, before I could think, two Naked Mole Rats shot through the window and were in the back with us, and both were giving Ivy a piece of their minds...I think. If the way that both Kim and Ron were laughing was any measure of the conversation, it must have been more than just the image of a woman from Texas being told off by a pair of Naked Mole Rats, one on each side of her face: it must have been some of what the two of them were telling Ivy that must have been really, really funny.
I really didn't want to ask because they both looked like they could and did chew nails...and, besides, it was fun being on the watching end of one of these chewing sessions rather than the receiving: usually Ivy got to watch me getting chewed.
Instead, I reached for a bottle in the ice bucket and poured a glass of something white, and then I looked at the label:
Chateau TorBunk Nicole Sparkling White Grape Juice, and there was a horse standing in front of a large building on the label.
I sipped: it was good, so I didn't ask.
--
We got to the house where the interview was to take place: the Possible residence. It seemed that both the Doctors Possible were out and had asked Kim and Ron to host us in their absence.
We did a dry run in the living room for an entrance shot, blocked off in the kitchen for a relaxed shot, and set up in the study for the interview. Kim's PosComm went off, and she glanced at it and smiled.
"They're here," she grinned. I got up, microphone in hand, and headed for the front door, followed by the camera crew. The lights popped on, and Ivy cued me:
"I'm Haley Goldstein, and I'm coming to you from the home of the Doctors Possible.
"Yes, those awards-winning Doctors, the first couple in the history of our country to win both the Congressional Gold Medal and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in two different categories, and in the same year.
"You'd know," I smiled as the doorknob turned, "that, if it were 'Possible,' a Possible would do it: I'm sure that everyone remembers Kim and her one-on-one over the UN General Assembly building with the nuclear-tipped missile," and the door opened.
"Good afternoon, Doctors Possible," I said as I offered my hand. I blushed when the male half of this dynamic team grinned as he shook my hand, and then he surprised me and bent over and kissed it, coming up with the smile that I knew from his pictures: the smile that melted the hearts of women, everywhere, and angered their husbands and partners, everywhere.
Yes, he was that sexy, and I can't tell you why; he was cute, he wasn't a hunk, but he was sooo sexy...
"Please, Haley," the female half smiled as she took her turn and shook my hand, "it's first names, please; otherwise, we'll never get through this." She paused, and then added:
"It's Hope, and Tim," she smiled, and I realized that both Kim and Ron had quietly faded into the sunset.
"I would say 'welcome to our home,' but you're already in," Hope laughed, and the cameraman shooting laughed so hard that his camera shook.
Ivy waved her hand in front of her throat, and the camera crew stopped shooting.
"That was perfect, Hope, Tim!" She exclaimed, stepping to them. "I'm Ivy Sandstorm, your producer for this segment. Everything you don't like is my idea, and everything you like is Haley's," she grinned, and Tim and Hope chuckled.
"Do you want to see Hope's 'love me' wall?" Tim asked, and Ivy followed him into her study, downstairs and off to the right.
"Do you want to see some of the veggies?" Hope asked, and I nodded. She led me into the kitchen, smiling all the way, and one of the camera crew followed me, shooting all the way.
"I'm still marveling at what Tim and his brother Jim started," Hope continued as we entered her kitchen. One counter was covered with at least four types of squash that I recognized: butternut, pumpkin, spaghetti, and yellow, and what I thought were zucchini, each easily five-to-seven times their normal size. On another was a pair of the largest tomatoes that I had ever seen, each four pounds and perfectly-ripened. I also saw, on a third counter, sweet potatoes, Anaheim chilies, and eggplants that would have brought the grower a blue ribbon in any county fair in the country. All appeared to be perfectly ripened, and all were much bigger then I imagined. I did see what looked like normal beefsteak tomatoes, as well.
"The recovery of usable land from landfills for power and gardening has been a godsend for communities in the United States, but other countries have benefited, as well," Hope laughed heartily, "once, that is, they got used to working with large sheepdog-sized cockroaches."
"You mean, like Roachie," I said, still a bit squeamish at the idea. Hope could tell, and she laughed with me, more than laughed at me.
"You should have seen me: the first time I met Roachie, I passed out," she grinned, "but the mouth-to-mouth from Tim was soooooooooo worth it," she grinned even bigger.
I picked up one of the beefsteak tomatoes and sniffed: it smelled like any other tomato. Then I asked, "May I?"
Hope nodded her head and watched me carefully bite into it. It tasted heavenly, and I told her so, saying that I had never had a beefsteak that tasted so sweet.
Hope giggled as she told me that she was glad I liked the grape tomatoes as they were her favorites, and she added "All of the produce is washed thoroughly before it's distributed to stores and food stands."
To make up for my dumbstruck mind, I said the first thing that popped into it:
"So, whatever happened to Roachie?"
"He died, but he lived long enough to see his offspring taking over the work he'd started. The other giant roaches created by Chester something-or-other all died within a few months of living in the Middleton landfill, but Roachie, for some reason, continued to thrive there. When Ron and Tim found him still alive, Tim got the idea of trying to cross-breed him with regular roaches to create 'the next generation': one that wouldn't be as large as the ones that died but wouldn't breed like…well, like cockroaches," Hope laughed as she started to slice one of the monster yellow gourds.
She cut a thin slice off and handed it me. I bit into it, and it was the best yellow squash I had ever tasted.
"Tim's work with Roachie led him to decide to go into biology as well as computer science when he graduated from college. He was successful, finally, in creating the correct genetic sequence that would allow intelligence and a reasonable life-span (reasonable, for them, being more than 3 months). He began to try to address other problems at the same time; problems like what to do with all the landfills and the garbage that we were creating on the planet. After he and Jim were able to feed a good portion of our area of Colorado with the help of Roachie and his 'friends', Tim asked Roachie if he thought what he and his friends were doing would work in other locations."
"And, that's how Middleton's Own Home-Grown grew in scope," Tim came in with Ivy trailing behind him and smiling. I looked at her, and she nodded her head in Tim's direction and grinned.
She was checking out his buns…'Ivy, Ivy, Ivy,' I laughed inside.
--
We were in Tim's study, and we were waiting for Hope and Tim to come in.
"Ivy, you're bad, GF."
"Haley, those buns need no toasting: they're perfect, just the way they are, and they're the right size, too," Ivy replied, and the entire crew laughed out loud.
The door slip open, and Hope and Tim stepped in, holding hands. I stood, and Tim grinned and motioned for me to sit.
Hope wore a simple pale blue blouse, a striped skirt that reached just above her knees, a silk beige jacket that complemented the blue in the skirt she wore with her heels and stockings. Tim wore a tan blazer, dark slacks, and a white Meezod shirt that had the BlazeIT! logo emboldened on it in navy blue. They went to the love seat across from Tim's desk and underneath the two plaques that held replicas of their newest awards.
"Hope, Tim: you've met Ivy already, but you never got introduced to the team. Besides Ivy, these are the people that make me look good and will make you look wonderful, as well:
"Frank Allenson," the tall, large, smiling African-American man with a shaved head waved his left hand while checking settings on the massive handheld camera.
"Catherine Watership," the slender brunette smiled and waved her hand, and Tim marveled as he watched her manipulate the twin cameras she was controlling via remotes.
"Antonio Stellaveccia, coordinating it all," the auburn-haired, blue-jean-clad gentleman, wearing the fashionable black suede blazer and white Meezod shirt that was Antonio's signature outfit, waved and spoke softly into his headset. He frowned a moment, and then he said something that had Catherine move one of the cameras about three inches up and to the right. He nodded and laughed.
"And, on sound, Casey Pitts," the smiling, prematurely-gray, young man waved from the mixing board that reminded Tim of one of Wade's creations, and then Tim grinned: the front of the board was stamped BlazeIT! Media LLC.
Tim let Hope pick her spot on the love seat, and he sat to her right. She leaned into him and whispered something, and Tim laughed. Ivy walked over to them and clipped wireless microphones onto their clothes and stepped away and back, starting a finger countdown after I nodded.
3.
2.
1.
"Good evening. I'm Haley Goldstein, here in the home of 'the Doctors': Hope Chen-Golden Possible and Timothy James Possible. It's been three months since the announcement, and two weeks since the joint presentations of the awards. Doctor Possible…well, maybe that won't work," I smiled, and Hope and Tim chuckled. "Hope, what did you think when you got the call?"
"I was certain that it was my BIL, playing another practical joke on me," Hope laughed. "After all, how many times do you expect to answer the phone and hear 'Doctor Possible: please hold for the President of the United States?'"
"Your 'BIL?'" I asked
"My 'Brother-in-law': Jim," Hope explained. Ivy chuckled in the background.
The interview started well, and the cameras loved both of them. They were wonderfully expressive to both the camera and each other, but I needed to ask some background questions.
"So, Tim, are the rumors true that you met Hope for the first time when you joined the Middleton High School cheerleading squad?"
"Not exactly, Haley: big sis Kim had the cheerleaders over a few times when she was a junior in high school, so I had a chance to drool in advance," Tim laughed, and Hope swatted at his arm. "Hey, I was in the seventh grade, and most of you were juniors or seniors in High School: what was I supposed to do besides drool and worship from afar?"
"At least you showed good logic, Tim," Hope laughed and batted her eyelashes at him, and he faked a swoon.
"So, when Jim and I got 'Skipped' to high school as freshmen, Kim had a 'bit' of a concern," Tim began.
"Ya think?" Hope laughed, and even Tim had to laugh with her.
"And, it only got worse when Ron made the football team: Bonnie wanted to get back at Kim, so she suggested to Jim and me that we re-create Ron's 'Mad Dog' role as the 'Pep Puppies', and we jumped at the chance. Being 14 years old and getting to spend their time with beautiful junior and senior girls: we would have had to have been totally crazy to turn that down.
Tim reached over and took Hope's hand. "What I didn't know was that Bonnie suggested this to us only to tweak our sister, but there was a young woman who I had admired for a year that was on the squad, a very pretty young woman named Hope," Tim squeezed her hand, and Hope smiled, "that was my specific reason for taking Ron's old role and making a fool of myself. I had to figure out a way to be around her as much as I could; since I knew she wasn't paying any attention to a young fool like me."
"And, that's where he was wrong, Haley," Hope jumped in and squeezed his hand. "I had watched him and his brother walking into the principal's office that first day of school, and I was sure he was the cutest think I'd ever seen," Hope smiled, and she had a bit of a blush. "He had a cute smile, and a cute little rear end, too," and, this time, Tim was blushing.
"I was afraid that Tim didn't notice me because I was smart, but that changed when he showed up, enrolled in my calculus class. I got ribbed all the time for being a cheerleader and taking calculus. But Tim defended me by starting on the first day of class by focusing the jokes on himself and taking the attention off of me," she had a scrunch in her face.
"He finally asked me out, and Kim and the rest of the cheer squad came after him with a vengeance, or so I heard later from Tim."
Hope continued the story of that event while Tim winced as he remembered that conversation….
--
"Hope?" Tim struggled to keep his voice from cracking, and Hope turned to look at him.
"Yes, Tim?" the voice was music, pure J2000 rocket fuel to his engine.
"I was wondering…" he shuffled his feet on the gym floor and looked down.
"Wondering what, Tim?"
"Well, the 'Captain Constellation' Movie Marathon is Saturday, 12 hours of CC, and I was wondering if you'd like to go to it…with me, that is…." There: he'd done it: asked a senior girl on a date. He looked up, and Hope was …smiling?
"I'd love to, Tim: I love 'the Captain,'" Hope replied, and Tim's jaw froze in place. "I'll meet you there before the first show at 11 AM, all right?" Tim nodded, and Hope turned and walked away, grinning at the stunned group of the cheer-sisterhood staring at her. Then, she giggled and looked over her shoulder as she walked out of the gym, winked, and added "It's a date, Tim."
The door closed to a full cheer squad chorus of:
"WHAT!?"
"What in the wide world of sports are you doing?" The first scream, as expected, came from Bonnie
"Who do you think you are?" Marcella yelled. "You're waaay out of your league!"
"No way, little puppy-man!" Crystal snorted and crosses her arms over her chest.
"Are you crazy?" Liz yelled. "She's older than you!"
"Hope doesn't rob the cradle!" came from Tara, and Tim winced.
"You've got to be crazy, or that Mad Puppy head is cutting off your oxygen!" Jessica fired her shot.
"I'm going," he crossed his arms across his chest and scowled, "and you can't stop me." It might have worked, but two words cut through the assault:
"SHUT!"
"UP!"
Tim looked up in shock. It was his own sister...defending him?
"I'll talk him out of it," she said calmly, and the other cheerleaders nodded and left, mumbling to themselves.
Kim wanted to talk him out of going on a date?
The door closed, and Kim turned and stared at Tim.
Tim gulped: this was worse than the look she'd given him when he and Jim had published her diary on the Internet.
"Tim," she growled, "Hope is my friend, you get that?"
"I like Hope, too," Tim shot back.
"You don't understand: you hurt Hope, and I'll have one brother, not two, and they'll never find the body. I'll cook: you get my drift?"
Tim was ready for practically everything, but the cooking threat…that shook him to the very fiber of his being.
"Kim, I won't hurt Hope, I promise. If I do, I'll boil the water myself and jump in: that'll be safer for everyone since you won't be near the stove," Tim replied, and he knew his sister was serious when she didn't respond to his cutting remark. Auburn hair flying as she whipped around, she just stormed out, slamming the gym doors behind her and leaving Tim alone in the gym holding his head in his hands.
--
"…lucky for Tim, I came back to school smiling on Monday," Hope finished, and Tim smiled.
"Haley, do you remember your first kiss?" Tim asked, and Haley blushed.
"Somebody remembers," Hope teased, and that made Haley blush even more.
"It was like that, Haley, only 100 times better, because I learned some very important things with that kiss," Tim stated, and this time Hope began to pink a bit.
"First, I learned that Hope was only two years older than me, so I had a chance," and Hope grinned.
"Second, I learned that I loved her smile even more than I thought 'Possible,'" he grinned, and Hope winced.
"You, and your 'internal chicken,' Timothy James," Hope chided, and I watched Tom blush this time. I made a mental note to go back to that statement, later in the interview: I knew that Ivy would catch it, too.
"Third, I found out where she was going to college," Tim continued, and I saw the wince on Hope's face turn into a smile.
"Fourth, I learned that she really had a way of expressing her feelings, especially when she discussed things that she was passionate about," Tim added, and I could see in my monitor that one of the cameras zoomed in on Hope's face: she was more than a bit red, but she was grinning, too.
"And, finally, she was, and still is, a bon-diggity kisser, Haley," Tim grinned.
"The subject material has a strong impact, Haley," Hope replied with a grin of her own.
I smiled: 'these were two people honestly and truly in love: it was so nice to see this for a change.'
"Did you like the movies, Tim?" I asked, and Tim grinned.
"What movies, Haley?" he laughed, and Hope grinned, blushed, and kissed his cheek: that turned Tim a bit redder.
"And, we'll be back in just a moment," I smiled, and Ivy waved 'cut.'
"That was wonderful, you two," Ivy gushed at Hope and Tim.
"Thank you," Hope smiled.
"Hey: what about me? I was there, too!" I gave Ivy one of my pouts, and Tim laughed.
"It's in the chromosomes: the dreaded 'Puppy Dog Pout,'" he announced, and Hope looked at him with sad eyes.
"What do you mean, Timmy?" She asked in a soft voice.
Tim stood suddenly: "I'll be back: she wants something to drink," he hurried out of the room and headed to the kitchen.
"Isn't he well-trained?" Ivy laughed, and we heard a "WOOF" come from the hall.
Catherine was laughing so hard, she almost crashed her two cameras into each other.
--
"We're back with the award-winning Doctors Possible, Hope and Timothy. Timothy your sister, Kim was taken captive during the Lowardian incursion. Where were you and your family?"
"We watched her be taken into the Lowardian ship," Tim replied, and he looked uncomfortable. "It was her high school graduation, and the Lowardians rained havoc on the entire planet. I didn't lose anyone I knew, so I was far luckier than lots and lots of people, Haley."
"But, you were amazing, Tim," Hope beamed. "You powered the high school with Mystery Meat and, after everything ended, you and Ron went to Roachie.
"Haley," she looked directly at me and squeezed his hand, "that first night was when I knew that this was my hero, that this was the man I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. I watched him, his brother, and uncle, Dr. Slim Possible, provide electricity to the school. The three of them brought light to the darkness of the school, and Tim brought light to my personal darkness when I was scared, Haley." Hope looked like she wanted to say something else, but not on the record.
"Ivy, can you stop the cameras for a moment?" Haley looked at Ivy with sad eyes, and then Ivy motioned for all recording to stop.
"Haley, I was a virgin, and I was scared that I was going to die in the next day or so, and I didn't want to die that way. I offered myself, freely, to Tim, and he told me that I was going to live. He could have taken advantage of me, and he didn't, Haley," by now, Hope was crying, and Tim was squeezing her hand.
"Hope, I loved you, and I couldn't do that to you: I was sure we were going to make it, and I didn't want to have you hate me when we did," Tim explained.
"That was when I knew, Haley: that was when I knew, for certain, that I was going to marry him: it was only a matter of time and his 'internal chicken,'" she laughed as she wiped her tears with the handkerchief handed to her by her husband. She nodded after a few moments, and Ivy waved.
"The hardest thing I ever did, Haley," Hope continued, "was closing the front door of the car with my father behind the wheel when I was leaving for Texas and college. I knew that Tim was convinced that I was going to lose my head to a college boy and leave him behind, so I made sure he knew I wasn't going to dump him for some Texas 'hottie,'" Hope grinned.
"Haley," Tim laughed, "she kissed me, and I swear she curled my toes and feet inside my shoes. Then, she told me she was giving me one of those kisses every time she saw me until we both graduated from college.
"I feared for my feet," he added, and Hope punched him in the side.
"That was reason enough to trust her, especially since she had offered so much to me," he continued, but he refused to elaborate.
"When did you actually propose, Tim?" I asked, and Hope blushed really, really red.
"Hope was getting her Masters degree in International Relations, and I was getting both my of my degrees, Bachelors and Masters, in both fields, Computer Science and Biology, at the same time, so we were both on stage," Tim began, and she started to smile.
"I had the ring, but she didn't know I had it," he grinned, and she shook her head 'no, I knew,' and Ivy and Catherine both grinned. Allen, Casey, and Dean all smiled.
"But, I had an extra surprise for her," he continued to grin.
Hope broke in with a laugh: "he had arranged to be hooded right before me, and when I was hooded, I turned around to face a rubber chicken holding a ring box."
"'My internal chicken came out, Hope, and we both want to know if you'll let us spend the rest of our lives with you,'" and he dropped to one knee, right then and there on the graduation stage.
"'Hope Chen-Golden, I love you with all my heart,' he announced, and I realized that he was wearing a mike, so everyone in the audience could hear him. 'I can't imagine spending one more day without you in my life, so I have to ask you this one question,'" he smiled and me and then he opened the box, and I saw the most beautiful engagement ring I'd ever seen in my life.
"'Hope, will you marry me?' he asked, slipping the ring on my finger and looking up into my eyes.
"The audience started to chant, and the area resonated with the words:
"JUST!
"SAY!
"YES!
"JUST!
"SAY!
"YES!
"I pulled him to his feet and kissed him," Hope said as she smiled.
"And, she curled my toes, again!" Tim laughed and squeezed her hand.
"And, we'll be back," I laughed, and Ivy waved 'cut.'
The room filled with laughter as Hope pulled Tim into a kiss that we definitely couldn't show on the air.
--
We took a break (we couldn't hose Hope and Tim down on the air, now could we?), and Catherine still was chuckling at the return.
"We're back, with the award-winning Doctors Possible, Hope and Timothy James Possible.
"Hope, you were respected in your field of international relations from an academic perspective, but you didn't have any 'field experience.' How did you get the call to get involved in the very-visible international negotiations that you joined?"
"One of my students was on the embassy staff when the sitch exploded, and he saw things that reminded him of a discussion we had in class. No one understood what he was trying to get across because the idea was so far out-of-the-diplomatic-box that the Ambassador and his staff couldn't see the option, so he called his Aunt, and she hooked him up with a friend of hers," Hope grinned, and I was immediately suspicious.
"And, that friend was…?"
"Assistant Secretary of State English …well, Assistant, at that time." Hope continued to grin, and now I knew why.
'It is who you know, after all,' I thought.
"Claudia called Wade, and he connected us," Hope continued. "I explained the concept to Claudia, and she had a car and Secret Service at my office in 5 minutes. The next thing I knew, I was on a jet to Washington to explain the proposal to the Cabinet. I was talking for about 10 minutes before the door opened, Secret Service walked in, and then I watched the Cabinet stand, to a person, when the President joined us.
"He took his seat and then introduced himself to me; then he asked me, very politely, to start over," Hope laughed "like I wouldn't have for him! He listened to me for about 5 minutes, then stood, nodded to Claudia, and started to leave."
"Was that when Former Secretary of State Harvey Jones threw his famous 'screaming Harvey hissy fit?'" I asked, and Hope winced.
"Harvey didn't agree with me and my ideas, and he told the President that I was an amateur and a fool.
"That's when the President told him that he would accept his resignation, effective immediately. Harvey and his assistant stormed out, and the President turned to Claudia Rose and told her that she was the Secretary-of-State-Designate and that she would be his Secretary of State, if she wanted the job, and Congress approved. She accepted, and he directed her to put me and support staff on a plane to Sydney, where the Indian and PRC Prime Ministers and the head of the Tibetan government-in-exile were in stalled negotiations, and had been there for weeks.
"It didn't hurt, Haley, that Hope speaks fluent Tibetan, Mandarin Chinese, and Hindi," Tim beamed. "When you can talk to the person in their language, you gain immediate respect. When you understand their cultures, as well, you are 'in like Flint,'" he laughed.
"We spent several weeks in 'lively' talks; but, in the end, we walked out and announced to the press that we had reached a resolution. The Chinese Premier held up the hands of the Indian Premier and the Tibetan government heads, and the cameras captured that moment as all three smiled."
"That's amazing," I said, and I was serious: this woman was a politician's dream come true, and she had headed off a major shooting war that, most likely, would have gone nuclear in a heartbeat.
"She deserved both awards: I didn't do anything like that," Tim grinned.
"Oh, really?" Hope shot back. "You just made sure that people in countries that were starving had food and food sources that are sustainable, with a 'little help' from your 'friends,'" she leaned over and kissed Tim's cheek, generating another blush.
"Yeah, but the hardest thing was trying to get plane tickets for Roachie's family: the airlines don't look kindly to flying roaches around the world, let alone the Customs agents: do you know how hard it was to get passports for them?" Tim said, straight-faced, and Ivy cut the sound so the room could explode with laughter.
Just before we started up again, Hope's cell vibrated. She pulled it out of her purse, looked at it, and winced.
She flipped it open and spoke:
"Yes, Claudia Rose?"
Silence.
""Oh, not much: just an interview with Haley, that's all," and I heard the Secretary of State scream over the phone "HALEY!!"
That made me blush, and Ivy laughed.
Silence.
"All right: I'll head out now. Don't send a car: I'm covered," and she flipped the phone shut.
"Haley, we've got to cut this short: I have a sitch," Hope stood and headed toward me.
"Not a problem, Hope: we can finish this later." I shook her hand, and she hugged me.
"Thank you," she whispered. "I had a blast doing this."
"Tim, can I take your car? You've got me blocked in the garage."
"Sure, Hope," Tim replied, and he took his wife's hand and pulled her into an embrace that led to what had to have been another one of those toe-curlers.
"I'll be back soon," Hope called.
"I've got to go outside for a moment: all this positive energy is draining," Catherine laughed, and she and Hope walked out together, talking.
Tim went to the kitchen and came back with a rolling cart covered with cheeses, grapes, bottles of water, and sandwiches: how he made them that fast, I'll never know.
I was reviewing the footage when we all heard the squealing of brakes and the loud
CRASH!
Catherine ran back into the room and screamed one word:
"HOPE!"
Tim's car was T-boned at the driver's door in the middle of the intersection three houses down from their house, and the other car had bounced back, leaving a space between the cars….but there was a mass of foam over his car, connecting the cars, and covering the front two-thirds of the car that hit his car. The foam jets were still spraying, and I could see them retracting underneath Hope's car on multiple points as the slowed their spray.
The one that his wife was driving; and Tim howled and ran for the car.
Casey ran past Tim, reached the car, and plowed through the foam to reach the driver door handle. He yanked hard, and the door flew open. A foam-covered Hope stumbled out, looking more than a bit disheveled.
"HOPE!" Tim yelled and ran to his wife. He grabbed her and hugged her tightly. "Are you all right?"
"I think so, Ti-" and she started to fall.
Tim caught her in his arms and looked up to hear an ambulance coming in the distance. He placed her gently on the ground, brushing her hair out of her face and checking for heartbeat and breathing signs.
Ivy and Allen had the cameras, and they caught it all.
--
"Miss Goldstein?" I looked up and saw a nurse, that looked familiar, standing in front of me.
I nodded.
"Follow me, please," and I followed her to a private area in the Tri-Cites Regional Hospital Emergency Room.
The nurse pulled the curtain back, and I saw Tim, leaning over his wife, and he was…smiling?
"Did I come at a bad time?" I asked, and Hope looked over at me and laughed.
"No, Haley: Tim was just checking for cooties," she grinned, and Tim laughed as he lifted his head to look at me.
"Hope, are you all right?"
"She's fine, Ms. Goldstein," a vaguely familiar voice spoke, and I turned and laughed.
"Dr. Bradley Garrison, from New York: just what the devil are you doing here?"
"I work here, Ms. Goldstein: after Janet and I got married, we decided to head West, and this was open, so…" he grinned.
"Mrs. Doctor Possible, I'm happy to tell you that you have no broken bones, no major bruises, and no brain injuries that we could see. I understand that you were 'foamed,' and that protected you in the crash?
"Yes, Doctor," Hope smiled. "Dr. Load had the protection installed in all our cars, and it seemed to have worked well."
"I've heard about that foam from your sister-in-law a few years ago, back when she 'enjoyed' her high-stakes game of 'chicken' over the UN," Dr. Garrison smiled.
"You're a bit shaken and a bit bumped, but you should be fine. You and your babies came through it perfectly safe: you should thank Doctor Load for his planning and design."
Tim and Hope both looked up in shock and said the same thing:
"BABIES??"
"You didn't know?" Dr. Garrison smiled.
"Well, Doctor, you have an interesting time ahead," he said, and then he grinned. "I guess this was their way of telling you that they were coming, Doctor," and Hope and Tim both groaned.
"Twins?" Hope asked, and Tim winced.
"Three that I could see, but there was the possibility of a fourth. I'd need to run a second ultrasound to confirm, however."
"Twin Tweebs," Tim grinned, and Hope glared at him and then pulled him into a kiss that even made Dr. Garrison blush.
When she released him, Hope turned and looked at Dr. Garrison with tears in her eyes. "Doctor, I lost my mother and twin sister at birth. Could that happen to me?"
"Not if you have a good doctor and, knowing the Possible family like I do, that shouldn't be a problem. Just don't get into any arguments with nuclear-tipped missiles, and you should be all right," he laughed, and Hope smiled.
"I'd better go," he looked down at his cell and winced. "The other driver is starting to regain consciousness, and the police already want to talk to him. Nice to see you again, Ms. Goldstein, and congratulations, Doctors Possible," he headed out of the room.
"Three, or four, Tim," Hope said softly, and Tim nodded.
"Are you ready, Tim?"
"Hoo-sha," he replied, and he pulled Hope up and kissed her.
"Haley, we can finish the interview in a day or two, after I get home," Hope spoke after her lips were free.
"I've got a better deal, Hope: I'll show you the show I've put together in two days, and you can decide if we need more footage.
"Works for me," Hope replied. "Tim: how about you?"
"Sounds good, Haley: thank you," he came around the hospital bed and gave me a big hug.
"Thank you," he whispered again, this time into my right ear, and then he kissed my right cheek.
"I'll see you at the house in two days, then," I headed out before they could see me blushing any more than they had, but I peeked back into the room one last time:
I knew how I was going to end the segment.
"After I interviewed them," I said into the closing camera shot, "I understood what true love was," and I smiled and wiped tears from my face. "These two individuals, Hope and Tim Possible, are, together, a loving and happy couple, and they're even happier now with the news that they have even more happiness coming their way.
"On a related note: the driver that allegedly struck Doctor Hope Possible's vehicle was an employee of Rockwaller Industries. He has been charged with Reckless Endangerment, Vehicular Assault, and Driving under the Influence as he tested positive for crystal meth. The CEO, Lonnie Rockwaller, denies that the company has any involvement in the incident.
"Before we go, I'd like to close with some images of these two wonderful individuals that they didn't know that I got until they saw the ending," I smiled. "After they quit laughing and kissing each other, they authorized the pictures and the underlying music," and my face faded out as the music started:
The male voice began to sing, a-capella, and was joined by a soft rock band:
"And, they called it: puppy looo-ooo-ooo-ove...
Oh, I guess they'll never know
How a young heart, how it really feels
And just why I love her so," and the pictures, displayed as he sang the song, were images of:
Tim, standing on the sidelines of his first high school football game, holding his Pep Puppy head under his arm.
Hope in mid-cheer, seemingly suspended in mid-air over a smiling Tim.
Tim, watching the cheerleaders practices from further down the sidelines.
Hope, smiling as she watched the Pep Puppies run through one of their routines.
Tim, sitting on a bench with Hope in high school, her face scrunched as he explained a calculus problem to her.
Tim and Hope, obviously after the Lowardians, with Tim standing in front of the Mystery Meat pile in the cafeteria and Hope's arm around his waist, Hope's torn graduation gown still flowing in a breeze from behind her.
Tim, waving goodbye as Hope's father pulled away, Hope's face turned and looking back through the rear windows.
Hope and Tim, kissing quite passionately as they stand outside of what is obviously a college dormitory.
Tim, kneeling on the stage at graduation, holding the rubber chicken that was holding the ring box, and Hope's look of astonishment mixed with happiness.
Hope and Tim Possible, walking out of the church, Hope in her beautiful white dress and Tim in his black tails, the smiles huge on both of them.
Tim, holding Hope's hand, as the President placed the Presidential Medal of Freedom around her neck.
Hope, holding Tim's hand as the President placed the Presidential Medal of Freedom around his neck.
The two of them, standing with the smiling President, the Speaker of the House, and the Vice-President, and Tim and Hope are wearing both of their medals.
Hope, propped up in her hospital bed, and Tim sitting in it with her, their heads leaning into each other and their eyes closed.
That picture lingered as the music faded, and my voice came over the ending of the song:
"I'm Haley Goldstein, reporting live, from Middleton," and Ivy waved the cut sign.
"And, we're out!" Ivy called.
--
Author's afterward:
So, now you know what happened to Hope and Tim, and how they got to where they are from where they were. Love comes in many forms, and often when you least expect it…even at a Captain Constellation marathon. There are some re-appearances of several of my OCs, and you can expect them to appear in both the Birth and Rebirth and Retribution arcs.
The political issues over Tibet are real and, hopefully, will never get to a missile-launching stage.
And, for the record, I did not use the shampoo on the makers of the Olympic medals to have them include Jade in them.
My undying thanks to Stareva01, ja, and kt for their valuable assistance in listening to me ramble, beta-ing the story, and making me raise my own personal bar.
My thanks to my loyal readers: those who have been following the Blue Eyes, Shining arc and the JadeKimVerse. More is coming, and the 'verse is growing.
My thanks to the casual readers, as well: your continued interest fuels my creative juices.
Thanks for coming along on this romp with me. Please review...
GO, MAD DOGS!
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