Summary: After a nasty fall forced her to end her gymnastics career, Kimberly returned to Angel Grove. Once there she must face not being a Ranger, a new Summer job, and Katherine and Tommy's new relationship. Takes place after Turbo. AU One-Shot

Notes: This takes place in 1996. Lets just pretend the timeline makes sense.

Angel Grove

July 20, 1996

Ernie's Juice Bar

3:07 pm

It was all starting to become a blur as the waves of the crowds were becoming endless. The Youth Center was typically not as busy as it was today. The new promotion that Ernie had was a bigger hit than expected, and to say that they were understaffed was an understatement. Kimberly, Aisha, Rocky, and Billy all just received summer jobs at the Juice Bar and it was not as glamorous as they thought it was going to be. Even just earlier that week they were in high spirits.

"Yes! I am so excited to start working at the Juice Bar. I can just picture it now- hanging out with my best friends, drinking smoothies all day, and getting a nice little paycheck at the end of week! Can life really get any better than that," an enthusiastically Kimberly said.

This was the dream summer job to her. Kimberly had recently returned from Florida and was ready to start school again in the Fall. Her gymnastics career was ended by a nasty fall about a year into her training. She thought about everything she had lost because of that fall and she was not talking about her so called friends in Miami.
She learned just how quickly everyone she thought was her friend turned their back on her. For some reason the girls at the gym only wanted to be around people like them and once you are injured, you..are..out! At first it's "Girlfriend, I missed you so much during winter break" double air kiss to boot and the next it's "Sorry, I don't talk to Humpty Dumpty." Ouch... That stung a little bit. Since her nasty fall she dove straight into her music. Her life as a ranger was long over and although she was sad about it, she knew that it was time to move on. She had passed on her powers to Kat and she was knew she picked the right person for the job. She also wasn't talking about Sam. He dumped her and moved on to the next girl fairly quickly. She wasn't heartbroken at all. She shed tears from a lost love but they weren't for Sam. She was never really in love with him. She felt that she had lost the true love of her life to chase a guy that she didn't honestly care for. She just thought it was love.

About 4 months before she fell, she returned home with her childhood friend and ex-teammate, Jason. They were captured by Divatox and- well, that's a whole other story in and of itself. Anyway, she was face to face with Tommy after months of no contact. They sat at the lake where they once shared many wonderful and happy memories. They talked and she was surprised to learn that he wasn't upset with her. She apologized profusely and he accepted her apology. She cried in his arms and caught up on what had been going on in their lives for the last few months.

"So... Kat huh.." Kimberly softly said.

"It's nothing serious right now. She's here and well, she's nice. We don't have much in common but she is fun to hang out with and share things with. She's different than you... Not bad in any way, just different." Tommy let out a small smile.

"I'm happy for you. I hope that one day you open your heart to Kat and are as happy as Sam and I are." Kimberly returned a smile and reached out to give him a warm hug.

Tommy would be fooling himself if he said that he still didn't have feelings for her, but Kimberly had clearly moved on. He had to accept that while he was still very much in love with her, she was not. She was in love with another man and that tore him up inside to admit. He remembered the old saying 'if you love something, you let it go', and that is exactly what he was doing with her. He loved and respected her enough to let her live out her dreams and not stand in her way.

"I'm glad that we can be friends, Kim"

"Me too," she said as she reached out to grab his hand, "I was really worried that you wouldn't want to see me after everything. You are still very special to me, Tommy. I can't imagine not having you as a friend in my life."

"I'll always be there for you, I hope you know that. I also hope that you might give me a heads up if you ever decide to bring him over to Angel Grove," he smiled. "I am still technically the ex. I have to make sure that I look like you made a huge mistake," He laughed.

She chuckled at his response, "I will do just that when the time comes. Oh gosh, it's nearly midnight! I can't believe we've been out here for five hours. I should get going to my hotel."

Tommy stood up and took her hand to help her up. He walked her to her hotel and they said their goodbyes followed by Kimberly planting an innocent kiss on Tommy's cheek. Innocent for her but painful for him. He just couldn't get the image out of his head that in just a few short hours, she was going to have her arms wrapped another man and she would be kissing him like they used to. As she closed her door, he leaned against it, tilted his head back, and let a single tear fall. He quickly wiped it when he could hear her giggling on the phone and hearing a series of 'I miss you' and 'I love you'. She had moved on.

She had come to the realization that letting Tommy go was her biggest loss and now it was too late to do anything about it.

When she returned from Florida a few weeks ago, no one was happier to see her than Tommy. He greeted her at the airport and just held her. He just let the past be the past and never once brought up Sam. He helped put her bags in his jeep and started his route to Kimberly's dad's new home in town. Kimberly was hopeful about a possible relationship with Tommy until she heard him say...

"Kim, I just wanted to thank you for what you said to me at the lake a few months back. I took your advice and opened myself up to Kat. We aren't official but I would like to say we are working our way to becoming more than friends."

She smiled at him but inside she could not believe it 'good going... You just led him into the arms of another woman. Well, technically you were with someone else at the time and you thought it was going to work out. You're just bitter because he could have someone and you won't. Kat is a nice girl, so I guess I have to be happy about that. Ugh, I did this'

"Um, Kim are you alright?"

snapping out of her thoughts Kim came back to reality. "Oh yeah, never better. Umm, I'm glad I could have been of some help with Kat," she lied.

Since she figured that Tommy had moves on and was happy with Katherine, Kimberly started to think about her own happiness. A few guys had expressed interest in dating her and she reluctantly accepted a few dates. She had some fun but there was no spark. They were nice guys but she couldn't bring herself to develop feeling for any of them when her heart was fully invested in Tommy. The dates never went past 2 and they didn't get anything more than a friendly goodbye hug.

That was 6 weeks ago and this is now.

Aisha Campbell had just returned from her trip to Africa. She had been gone for a few months using her veterinary knowledge to help animals. It was a beautiful experience that she would never forget but it was time for her to return home. She selflessly worked day and night for the health of those animals. She was confident that the people in the small village had learned enough to continue the work on their own. Once she had returned home, she was greeted by her best friends and to her surprise, a newly single Kimberly. She hadn't written to her friends often because she had been so devoted to her work, but felt so awful that she had completely shut everyone out. She learned about the letter straight from Kimberly.

Aisha smiled, "How about spending that nice little paycheck at the end! I have all my catalogs circled with exactly the items I want. This girl is about to become the new fashionista of Angel Grove"

"All I heard was 'smoothies all day'," Rocky contributed.

"I'm especially looking forward to accumulate a hefty salary in the credit union. I'm assisting my parents in tuition for university," Billy added.

Kimberly couldn't hold her excitement to start working any longer, "I can't wait!"

Later that week

"I quit! Look at my shoes! That is so not going to come off," she said as she was kicking off the leftover smoothie from her new Gucci sneakers.

"No one told you to wear your new shoes to work, Kim" Aisha replied with a smirk.

"Ugh, yeah yeah" Kimberly said with a slight eye roll, "but... They are so cute and-"

"Sorry to break up this important discussion but we could really use your help," Rocky interrupted.

They spent the next few hours cleaning up spills, making smoothies, forcing smiles, and giving change.

"Well we knew working would require.. Well, to work" An exhausted Aisha states, "but I am so tired. If I hear the words 'strawberry banana smoothie' again today, I will lose it"

"I hear you," replied Kimberly standing behind the counter. She rested her forehead on the bar counter, "but it's going to make that check just a little more rewarding."

"Well, look who we have here," the words came from skull, "its my princess in distress"

"skull, I am not in the mood right now. Can you bug me some other time," Kimberly said. Her head never moving from its position.

"As long as I get my kiss for rescuing you from Maligore," he said before taking a sip from his smoothie

"How about you just leave her alone," Billy finally said

"I will.. When pigs fly," Skull responded with a laugh

"Oh, you fly?" Kimberly countered with a smirk as she lifted up her head to look him in the eye

Rocky, Aisha, and Billy sharing snorted laughter

"Cute. So movie tomorrow? I'll have my mom pick us up," he continued reaching for her hand. "I'll even spring for the popcorn and candy if I get my kiss before the movie," he finished with a wink.

"uh..ew."

"Come on, Kim. We both know you're single. I knew things wouldn't work out with you and long hair boy."

"I have had a long day. Please.. Not today"

"Alright, I'll leave you alone but Tomorrow. movies. My mom. Be there.

And with that he departed kissing his pointer and middle finger and placing the kiss on Kim's lips

"Uggghhhh," Kimberly let out as she rested her head on the counter again.

"Hey guys, how was your first week on the job?" Tommy said as he took a seat on one of the bar stools.

Kimberly lifted her head when she heard his voice and they shared a sweet smile.

Every time she was around him, she couldn't help but feel hopeful that there could be a possible chance they could give their relationship another go. Unfortunately for her, her hope was always crushed when-

"I was thinking about ordering a strawberry banana smoothie," Aisha's eyes grew wide, "but then I saw that you were all getting slammed," said the blonde Australian beauty taking a seat next to Tommy.

Ahh, good ol' Katherine Hillard or public enemy number one as she and Trini nicknamed her. It's not that she didn't like Kat, it's just that she was jealous of the relationship that she had with Tommy. Although she was friends with him again, she didn't ask him what exactly he and Katherine were. She couldn't stand the thought that they were actually in love and in a committed relationship. She knew that it was childish to think that way but it was the truth.

"It was a rough day, " Rocky mumbled as he rubbed his temples coming from behind the counter to take a seat next to Katherine.

Katherine smiled and put an arm around Rocky. "Tommy, we should probably get going if we're going to make that movie," she said as she started to rise from her seat.

'Ugh, do you really have to flaunt your relationship in front of me. Sometimes I just want to slap her. We all know you're going to be alone with him in the theater.. Where its dark and-'

"You guys should join us," Katherine added.

And just like that she felt guilty. Katherine is a damn angel.

Rocky, Billy, and Aisha declined the offer. They were exhausted from working all day.

"What about you, Kim? Want to join us?"

She really shouldn't because she was exhausted, but she couldn't stand the thought of them being alone..

"Sounds like fun, thanks."

Grove Cinemas

Theater 5

Scream 8:15 pm

Normally she wouldn't be caught dead with her work outfit, but there was no time to go home and change

Tommy sat in a Kat and Kim sandwich. They ended up watching Scream, and she honestly didn't even remember what the movie was about. Something about a psycho killer in a mask and robe, hunting a teen and her friends. Kim was never really a horror movie junky, but watching Katherine cling onto Tommy when she was scared made her want to take some tips from this movie. Kim was totally kidding, of course.. She also couldn't stand to see them whispering into each others ears and smiling.. and Katherine even had the nerve to steal glances at Kimberly. That's it, someone is getting slapped.

Kim jumped into the back of Tommy's jeep so he could take them home, and she was surprised that he decided to take Kat home first. Kim watched as he opened Kats car door and took her hand to help her out. Katherine and Kim shared a friendly wave of their hands signaling goodbye. He walked Kat to her door where she would give him a light kiss on his cheek and they parted with huge grins on their faces. Kim just decided to make herself comfortable and moved into the newly unoccupied passenger seat in the front row.

What was she doing? Did she really just tag along on their date and become the third wheel? Kim knew she had to put a stop to this and just let them be happy. She just wished she wouldn't have been so stupid and let such a great guy like Tommy get away.

Tommy walked back to his red jeep in quick strides

"Ready to go," he said with a smile

"Ready."

The drive home was uneventful. When they finally did get to Kim's house she just wanted to run inside but that's not what was going to happen. They sat in silence for a few minutes until-

"We'll, thanks for letting me tag along. I should get inside"

"Hold up a second," Tommy said with a smile as he reached for her arm, "I wanted to talk to you. Is that okay?"

"What is it," she said with a sigh as she looked out the passenger side window and shifting her body away from him.

Tommy Oliver was having a difficult time adjusting to having Kimberly back in his life. Before she had come back from Florida, he was starting to finally open up to Katherine.
He took Kimberly's advice and was trying to move on. They would occasionally go out to dinner and movies but he always knew that something just wasn't right. It was nice to have a gal friend who understood what they were going through but he just couldn't bring himself to like her the way he liked Kimberly. Sure there was attraction, Katherine was a gorgeous woman, but beyond that there wasn't much. When he found out about Kimberly returning he was slightly hopeful, but remembered that she had moved on. Even though she was no longer with Sam, she would probably want to date new people. He felt horrible for stringing Katherine along because he knew that she really did have feelings for him. That's why earlier that day he had told Katherine about his feelings.

Tommy had been exercising at the Youth Center earlier that afternoon.

"BOO," a smiling Katherine hollered coming from behind Tommy

"Hey," A startled Tommy replied as he returned a smile

"Tanya said you wanted to talk to me"

"Yeah I did," he said as he motioned her to the dining tables over at the Juice Bar, "I don't know where to start"

"Are you alright," Kat said with a worried tone

"I'm not so sure. Katherine, I have to be honest with you right now and I don't know how you're going to react," Tommy sighed as he ran a hand through his locks, "you're such a sweet girl and these last few months together have been wonderful and joyful, but I just... I don't.."

"You don't see a future between us," Katherine finished.

"I'm sorry"

"Don't feel sorry, Tommy. I could feel that you were being a little distant recently," she said as she looked over at Kimberly working at the bar, "you're still in love with her aren't you?" She continued with a smile, "I don't blame you, your first love is always the hardest to get over"

"I don't want you to think that I didn't take us seriously," Tommy declared, "I really wanted this to work out and to give this a shot, but I realized I wasn't being fair to you when all I could think about was Kim when we were together. Please forgive me."

"As long as you forgive me for wishing I was on a date with Jason," Katherine admittedly chuckled

"Wow, well then I don't feel so bad after all," he teased

"I am disappointed but we just aren't right for each other and that's okay. We gave it a shot and it didn't work"

"I'm still really sorry"

"How about you get me a strawberry banana smoothie and we call it even"

Tommy smiled at her response, "You got it."

Just as he was about to make his way to then bar, he was passed by a bunch of unruly teens with great thirst. He could hear Rocky yelling at Kimberly and Aisha for help.

"Maybe next time," Katherine shouted to Tommy over the sounds of the obnoxious teens

"How about I take you to a movie instead," he countered

"That would be fantastic," Katherine agreed

Katherine sought the perfect opportunity to get Tommy and Kim alone by inviting her to their movie. During the movie, Kat kept whispering Tommy her master plan.

"Why the hell would you bring me to this movie?"

"I'm sorry but its supposed to be a great flick"

"Anyway, drop me off first tonight and take her home and talk to her. Tell her how you feel."

"What if she doesn't feel the same way?"

"Well, what if she does. You can't live in a world of uncertainty. You could live forever wondering what if," Katherine continued quietly as she looked over to Kim, "she's looking at us you know"

" Is she really?"

"No, I'm just saying it for kicks, yes really"

Once the movie was over Tommy drove Katherine home. He walked her to her door and began to thank her for accompanying him that evening.

"Thanks for everything, Kat."

"Hey, I can never turn down free popcorn," she said with a chuckle

"I hope you had some fun despite my choice in movie"

"It was great, thank you. Go get your girl," Katherine said and then gave him a small kiss on his cheek, "goodnight"

"Um, I just wanted to make sure you were okay. You seemed a little distant tonight and I.. Well, I just wanted to make sure you were okay," he said as he looked into her eyes.

"I'm sorry, I guess I was just a little tired from work. I didn't mean to come off cold," Kimberly answered

"Don't worry about it." Okay moment of truth, it's sink or swim from now on. Tommy hadn't been this nervous since he had asked Kimberly to the school dance all those years ago. Just then he lost all his courage and all he could do was just stare at her. They sat in silence for minutes. The awkward situation couldn't be ignored much longer. Tommy was trying to gather his thoughts.

"Um, I really should go inside," Kimberly said. She quickly unbuckled her seatbelt, jumped out of the Jeep, and closed the car door. She made her way up the pathway and headed for the front door with not even a goodbye.

Tommy just sat there in silence until the sound of the slamming door made his brain register that she wasn't in the car anymore. He started to panic and quickly got out and caught up to her.

Without thinking he spun her around and caught her off guard with an overdue kiss. That wasn't the smartest thing to do but he had to know. When he noticed she wasn't returning the kiss his mind raced with so many different thoughts.

It's not that Kimberly didn't want to kiss him back, it's just that she was too shocked by his actions to do anything.

Completely embarrassed by his impulsive actions, he quickly pulled away. It was over. She didn't feel the same way and he was devastated. The sky was no longer blue, the birds no longer sang, and the sun no longer shined.

"I am so sorry," he let out. He swiftly turned around and made his way back to the car.

Kimberly stood there in so much shock. 'What just happened? Why did he..how could he..what is going on here?'

Kimberly ran to him.

"Tommy?"

He had just reached his car door..

"I'm sorry," he finally said letting go of the door handle as he slowly turned around to face her rejection, "I shouldn't hav-"

Before he could complete his sentence, he was being pulled back into a passionate kiss. Kissing Kimberly was just like he remembered, only better. His left hand instinctively went to the back of her head and his right to her lower back. Kimberly couldn't remember the last time she had a kiss with so much passion. Their soft lips swaying back and forth naturally.
They broke apart to catch their breath.

"Don't be sorry," a smiling Kimberly finally let out in a whisper

He bent down resting his forehead to hers. Both smiling from ear to ear.

"Did we just..," they both said

"I've been wanting to do that for a long time"

"Me too," she said with a smile. Remembering when they said those words to each other for the first time long ago.

"I missed you," Tommy finally revealed

"I missed you too," Kimberly returned

A loud creak was heard startling them both. Quickly separating to see what caused the noise.

"Kimberly?" the sound came from her father at the front door. He walked outside where he would find the two teens. Kimberly's brother following him closely behind.

"Umm, I'll be right in," Kimberly said as she turned to her father

"Oh, Hi Tommy. I'm sorry to have interrupted you two," Mr. Hart said apologetically

"Its alright, Mr. Hart, I should probably let Kimberly go inside," Tommy said with a smile

"You can keep her for a little bit longer," Mr. Hart said, "I've always liked you"

"Yeah but kiss her again and you're a dead man," Kimberly's older brother, Scott, threatened

"Oh God, Scott, get out of here," Kimberly spat

"I'm just teasing you, Kim" Scott revealed with a laugh. "Come on, Dad, let's leave these two lovebirds alone," Scott finished as he put an arm around his Dad and guided him to the front door.

"What were they doing.." Mr. Hart questioned Scott. "There better not have been any kissing going on back there," he shouted from the front door.

"I was joking…"

Tommy and Kimberly had a sigh of relief once they heard the front door close

They took shared a light laugh at what had just happened

"You should go inside," he said with a smile

She nodded her head in agreement

"I just wanted to ask you about Katherine"

"There's not much to say, honestly. I told her I didn't feel a connection and she agreed with me. She's nice but," he admitted as he took her hands, "she's not you. I've tried to force feelings for someone for too long. I'm tired of fighting my emotions"

"Wow, I had no idea you felt that way. I thought that you two were very happy. I felt horrible for disrupting your date today"

"it wasn't a date," he smile. " It was basically my way of making up the situation to her. You tagging along was her idea of trying to get me to get the courage to tell you how I felt. I choked and ruined the plan but I'd like to think that it worked out the same in the end," Tommy finished with pleading eyes

"Well… I don know..," she teased

"Really," he said in confusion

She smiled," God, Oliver, I thought you knew me better than that."

"Don't toy with me," he said with a laugh, "I don't think my heart can take it"

She wrapped her arms around his neck and he leaned down to give her a kiss..

"WHAT DID I SAY ABOUT THE KISSING!" could be heard coming from Mr. Hart a he was looking out the living room window

The two teens gasped in being caught. Tommy Oliver may fight monsters and save the world from evil everyday but his biggest fear has always been losing the approval of Kimberly's parents

"Gotta run," Kimberly shrieked as she ran inside

Tommy smiled from ear to ear as he went inside his Jeep, his engine roaring as he started it. Not even Divatox could ruin his happiness today.