Legal: I do not own Power Rangers or the associated names, places, characters etc. Anything not covered by the above rights should be presumed to be purely the creation of the author.
Rating: T – may be some mild adult themes.
A/N: This will take place across the events of "Blue and Gold", and incorporate a slight re-imagining of it. Hope you all enjoy it.
Laughing, they were always laughing. It was like they were constantly high, or constantly drunk, or of course, what it felt like the most, they were laughing at him.
Kevin had never liked it when Antonio came to the Shiba House; he had made that much very clear. He was not trained in the proper Samurai way, and yet Jayden, because he had known the guy when he was 6 years old, had ordered that he was to remain and be taught in their ways.
Mike, he kind of expected to like Antonio and want him around. In some ways they were a lot alike. In the few days since he had arrived, he and Mike were pretty much always together, laughing and joking. Mike had someone to play his silly video games with, and Antonio had even taken to joining him in training, something Kevin really wasn't happy about since, as an untrained Samurai, he figured he should be paired with someone who was much better versed in their ways like him or Jayden.
Emily...he wasn't surprised she liked him. They were definitely alike. He was every bit as clumsy and accident prone as she was. Indeed, he got worse whenever he was around others, his natural propensity to show off and make a big show out of everything over riding what Kevin would consider common sense. Emily though seemed to find it cute, and seemed to think it was a good thing that she wasn't the only one that would occasionally knock over a fruit bowl or drop a drinking glass.
Jayden was his Shogun, and he had no right to question him, but that was the thing that vexed him. He seemed to be so focussed on the fact that his childhood friend had come back that he was blinded to the chaos he was causing. He was a distraction in training, even to Jayden, who in the time since he arrived, seemed to spend more time laughing than actually training. He seemed to think nothing when he and Mike started goofing off and stopped with the lesson they had been assigned.
He had even seen him with Emily a few times while she was at the computer, when she was meant to be doing one of her online lessons and heard them laughing. It was bad enough he was disrupting training, but Emily was still to earn her High School Diploma. It wasn't fair that he was keeping her from getting an education that would, one day, be what she'd be relying on when she got to go home and have her own life.
Right now though, he was finding the thing he hated the most. It was breakfast time, and Antonio was in the kitchen with Mia yet again, this time taking her through the finer points of making an omelette. It wasn't much, just a standard cheese and ham omelette, but it was something she had already uniquely bastardised in her infamous "PB and J omelette", which looked so bad that Emily had almost barfed when she saw it. He watched as Antonio held her, gently taking her wrist and helping her shake the pan.
"So you just wiggle the fork, and shake the pan like this." He told her. "That makes it a little fluffy when it comes out."
"So how long does this take?" She asked. "I mean, I normally have it in for about fifteen or twenty minutes..."
"Are you making an omelette or a discus?" He chuckled. "Seriously, if you heat the pan like I showed you, five minutes and a quick one of these...!"
He flicked the pan, causing it to flip over, much to Mia's amusement.
"Two more minutes and it's good to go!"
"I can't believe an omelette takes so little time!" She stated. "I mean, I always heard you need to be careful with eggs!"
"You have to cook them; you don't need to cremate them." He told her, patting her backside. "Tell you what, why don't you get the others and some plates. I should be ready to serve up shortly."
Kevin felt his jaw clenching and his shoulders tightening as he saw this. He had no right to touch Mia that way. She was his girlfriend. He had been re-teaching her to cook, but since this joker showed up, she had been listening to his every word. He had his hands on her at every opportunity in their "lessons". He knew that Mia had a lot to learn in the kitchen, but he was the one who was teaching her. It was just one of the few times they actually had to spend time with each other. When they were training, they were focussed on the lesson at hand. When they were in the house...well...with three other people in the house, two of which were energetic teenagers, it was impossible to get any peace and be alone.
Cooking together had been kind of their thing for a while. Now though, she seemed to have shoved him aside for this guy. It was like all the burns and hours of standing over her as she butchered countless vegetables and meat products were for nothing. He watched as they slid the omelette onto a plate.
"And that is how to do a perfect ham and cheese omelette mi amiga." He told her. "Now, if you use a heavy pan, it's even easier to make a frittata!"
"This smells amazing; I can't believe I made this!" She shrieked. "Guys, breakfast is ready!"
As the others filed in, Kevin just forced a little smile as they came in. Mentor Ji had a huge grin on his face.
"This smells wonderful Antonio!" Mentor Ji complimented him.
"Hey, don't look at me dude; it was all Mia's work." He replied. "I just gave her a few pointers."
"Yeah, I noticed." Kevin said a little coldly as he sat down. Mia had already started slicing up the omelette and portioning it out. He took his plate and took a little bite. He couldn't really say anything else, it was pretty much perfect. It was light, fluffy, and far better than anything Mia normally made. "It's pretty good."
"Pretty good, dude this is magnifico!" Antonio announced, wrapping an arm around Mia. "I wish everyone I taught picked stuff up this quickly!"
"Hey guys...hmm what smells so good?" Jayden asked.
"Ham and cheese omelette." Mia announced proudly. "I made it."
"Oh my god, are you sure?" Mike mumbled out through a mouthful. "No offence Mia, but this is great!"
"None taken!" She said with a smile. "I'm just glad to be able to cook without sending everyone to the bathroom!"
"It turns out all she needed was a little guiding touch." Antonio sated proudly. "She just needed to use the knife a little more like a scalpel and less like a sabre, and some guidance on cooking times but other than that she's a pretty magnifico student."
She giggled as he patted her on the butt at the compliment. Kevin let out a slight cough as he took down another mouthful.
"It's pretty good." He told them. Mia noticed the little look he gave Antonio as he continued to eat and could tell that something was brewing.
"Antonio, how are you booked for the next couple of hours?" Mike asked him. "I have a call of duty 4 group getting together in about fifteen, and I figured..."
"Dude, do you know how long it's been?" Antonio asked him. "You just know it!"
"But, you said you'd help me with Spanish." Emily chipped in. He just smiled.
"I'm fluent." He reminded her. "It'll take me no time to help you. Trust me!"
"Well just remember you owe me a rematch." Jayden told him as he got up. "I'm heading into town for some milk."
"I look forward to it amigo!" Antonio called after him. Kevin just didn't get it. Why did everyone think he was so wonderful? Sure, he could help Emily with her Spanish assignments, but that was just because he spoke Spanish. It would be like him teaching her to swim! Jayden was Antonio's room-mate, and seemed to be still totally digging being reunited with his old friend, while Mike...he just seemed to like having someone around that he could goof around with on the games consoles. Emily played with him, but wasn't really that into games, so it was a change of pace to find someone who actually would sit with him while he stormed the gates of Hell or took on the Daemon Prince or whatever he actually did on those games.
Mia just mumbled as she took a bite of the omelette she had made.
"Oh my god, this tastes great!" She called out, patting Antonio on the shoulder. "You are so awesome!"
"Tell me something I don't know." Antonio said cheerfully, before looking to Kevin. "So Mia said you're a big swimmer. I saw a great spot..."
"No thanks." Kevin stated. "I'm busy today."
"It's only a little way..."
"I said I'm fine." Kevin reiterated. Antonio looked around the others.
"Uh...Kevin, isn't that kid from Norway online around now?" He asked.
"Just let me get more of this." He replied, taking more omelette, before following Antonio into the living room. Emily just finished her plate.
"I have some homework." She told them. "I'll catch you later."
As she left, Mia put down her fork.
"What exactly are you doing today that's so important?" She asked him.
"Nothing really, just fighting Nighlocks, saving the world, you know, the usual." He told her.
"You know what I mean!" She put down firmly. "Antonio's just trying to be nice."
"I don't want to go swimming." He pressed on.
"He was just trying to help!" She reiterated. "The way you turned him away was just so rude!"
"I never asked him for recommendations for swimming spots." He grumbled as he finished his omelette. Despite everything, he had to admit that it was good, certainly better than anything she had cooked under his guidance, something that was just another reason he hated him.
"Would it really have been so hard to just hear what he had to say and say thank you?" She asked him.
"I don't know, maybe if he fondled my ass..."
She slammed down her fork, glaring at him angrily.
"Is that what this is about?" She asked him. "Kevin, is that it? He's just a tactile guy! Hell, you saw how he is with Jayden, and you don't see Mike going all apeshit when he touches Emily."
"Excuse me if I'm not exactly cool with the new guy groping my girlfriend!" He sneered.
"Kevin, he doesn't mean anything by it." She told him. "Hell, did you think Mike was molesting me when he was showing me that Gogopolata choke?"
"It's not the same thing." Kevin muttered.
"What about when Jayden helped me up when I fell over in training yesterday?" She asked him. "Did you think that was just him 'copping a feel'?"
"Mia it isn't the same!" He told her.
"I guess maybe I should see if there's somewhere else I can sleep." She interrupted him sarcastically. "I mean, I have been sharing a room with Emily..."
"It's not the same!" He roared, before tossing his dishes in the sink. "I'm going for a walk."
Mia just grabbed his arm as he was about to walk away.
"Just so you know, the whole jealous Neanderthal thing isn't terribly attractive." She told him.
"I just don't know if I can trust the guy yet." He replied. "I'll be back later."
With that, he leant in to kiss her, but Mia pulled away. Hurt by the gesture, Kevin just gathered up his jacket and stormed out of the house. Mia just groaned and carried on with her breakfast.
