I do not own any of the characters nor do I profit from the publication of these stories. They are intended for the the hopeful enjoyment of the readers only.

A/N: This is another of the 'First Time' series of stories I've written that had been gathering dust on my hard drive for a few years. This one takes place after STD but disregards season 4 and takes place while Kim and Ron are in college.

I wish I could post the entire series as an anthology but a few are (horror or horrors) a bit to graphic for this, my favorite, site and were written as a challenge by an old and (sadly) now departed friend .

FYI

Work continues on 'The New Team Possible' but i am finding it slow going.

Due to many fine (and surprisingly encouraging) words from the readers and my fellow writers I have begun a new project picking up where 'The Return Of Kim Possible' left off.

I value any and all suggestions and/or comments on any of the pieces I submit.

Please enjoy and, as always, R&R.

Thank you all for reading.

Obbiejoe

Tight Confines

Kim tried desperately to keep from smiling as they walked toward the small structure that would be their refuge for the next two weeks. Ron was following behind her carrying both backpacks and the three duffel bags as he had insisted, he was also grumbling to no one in particular.

"Man, you'd think they would be able to do better than this. I mean we are here to help and they knew days ago that we'd be coming. I mean is there even a kitchen in that place? It looks so small from the outside I'm going to be surprised if there's not an outhouse around back. I mean we came all this way to…"

Kim let Ron ramble for another two or three seconds before she called over her shoulder, "Come on Ron, it's not that bad. You know we're not the only ones volunteering so things were bound to be a little tight. Besides, it's not like we haven't stayed in smaller places, so stop griping and let's just make the best of things okay?"

Kim allowed a small smile to play across her face as she walked toward the small structure. She had started planning as soon as they volunteered to help with the cleanup and, with Wades help, had succeeded in getting them placed together quite a ways away from where the other volunteers were being quartered. As far as she was concerned the tiny structure was just perfect.

It was spring break and, not unusual for Team Possible, instead of rushing down to Florida or Cancun to party and blow off steam they had opted to volunteer for a cleanup project in South America. A small village had been hit by an earthquake several weeks ago and had been without power, water, or many of the amenities that other surrounding villages took for granted. They were here, with other volunteers, to help restore what they could in the two short weeks they had.

Kim had hoped that she could use the opportunity to finally convince Ron that they should move their relationship to a more… well, physical one. She had been suggesting that, since the two of them had been requested to move off campus due to their all hours coming and goings, they pool their resources and rent a place together.

Ron had almost fainted the first time she had suggested that and, while he no longer fainted, he was still very reluctant to even discuss the possibility making excuse after excuse instead of sitting down and discussing it like the adults they were.

Kim hoped that by arranging things so they had to share living quarters while here that Ron would at least accept the possibility of the two of them cohabitating.

They had arrived early that morning and just had time to drop off their bags in their cabin before they were to report in at headquarters for their assignments. Thankfully Ron had stopped griping about the living arrangements just before Kim opened the door.

As she looked around quickly she smiled to herself, this was going to be perfect for what she had in mind. There were only two rooms, the large central room incorporated kitchen, bedroom and living room into one space, the only concession to privacy was a small bathroom, to Ron's chagrin complete with indoor plumbing, separated from the main area by only a curtain.

The remainder of the day was spent digging out what remained of the small power distribution facilities. Power had been restored to the main lines leading into the village but the distribution center was needed to get the power out to the village proper.

By seven that evening an extremely dirty pair of young adults were once again tromping up the steps to the small cabin. Unknown to Kim, Ron had had the foresight to bring along several of Wades latest wonders, small compact power generators. Ron had, on his own, brought an electrician to the medical center and had one of the generators wired into the system. Much to the relief of the medical personnel it even had enough power to allow the use of the air conditioning.

Another had gone to a central food storage unit that was now powering the cooler and freezer allowing proper storage of the food stuffs being brought in. A third was now supplying power to the dormitories where the rest of the volunteers were staying. But a forth unit had been kept in reserve by Ron. He would give it up at a moments notice if it was needed for anything important but for now Ron planned on using it to supply power to their little living space.

Kim had been surprised when Ron excused himself at the door and headed toward the rear of the building. To tired at the moment to question him about it Kim instead went about gathering what she would need to head back to the makeshift woman's dormitory for a shower.

She was tempted to just use the shower in their quarters, but with no power available yet there was no way to heat the water and an ice cold shower was not something Kim was looking forward to.

Kim had lit a lantern and was just starting to rummage through her bags for a change of clothes when Ron walked in whistling under his breath. She saw him reach for the light switch and was just about to remind him about the lack of power when light filled the room.

Ron looked over at Kim and smiled at her confusion, "I brought along one of Wade's cold fusion generators KP. Wade just walked me through hooking it up to the cabin's supply. We should even have hot water in a few minutes if you want to take a shower, I know I do."

Kim was about to tell Ron that there were better uses to put the generator to when he told her about the main dormitories, the medical center and food storage facility and Kim relaxed. She should have known that Ron would take care of others first, that's just the way he did things.

Smiling Kim sat and unlaced her boots since she was not going to have to trudge back to the dormitories to get her shower. After the boots hit the floor one at a time Kim leaned back on the chair and watched Ron in the small kitchen area whistling quietly as he pulled things out of the extra large duffel he had lugged with him.

She had thought that Ron had simply over-packed as he was prone to do but saw that Ron had also had the foresight to pack food as boxes and cans were pulled from the duffle and arranged on the empty shelves.

Kim was surprised that Ron was still able to move let alone do it so happily. She had seen him do more than a few amazing things that day as he outworked the other volunteers almost two to one.

The guys had been assigned the heavy work, which Kim had, of course, complained about until Ron pointed out that, with her organizational skills guiding the rest of the girls, their delicate work would get done in half the time.

She had still kept an eye on the guys from time to time and remembered seeing a shirtless Ron walk over to a group that was attempting to shift a large bolder from the entrance to the power station. The five had been struggling for a good three minutes and hadn't shifted the bolder an inch, but as soon as Ron joined the group she saw it roll quickly out of the way.

Kim watched with a smile on her face as Ron organized 'his' kitchen quickly and efficiently. She knew that Ron had filled out quite a bit over the last two years, she had felt the unmistakable feeling of hard muscle quite a few times as they snuggled watching a movie or just plain making out but hadn't really seen Ron shirtless for quite some time. As a matter of fact, now that she thought about it he hadn't lost his pants that she could recall for almost the same amount of time.

She was shaken from her thoughts when Ron called out to her. "Hey KP. The water should be hot by now if you want to grab a shower."

Looking up she saw that Ron's back was still turned toward her so she spoke instead of nodding, "Thanks Ron. I think I will."

She had been tempted to ask him to join her but figured she better take things slow, she knew Ron was a very modest person and still hid his eyes when she changed for missions and Ron was present.

She smiled as she stood thinking that she might have to take things slow but that didn't mean she had to do nothing. She gathered the things she had set out earlier to take to the showers in the dormitories and walked into the small bathroom setting them down and turning on the water in the surprisingly clean shower stall.

Walking back out she called out to Ron. "I'll be out in a minute Ron. I'm going to leave my dirty clothes out here, the bathroom's kind of small and I don't want to be stepping on them when I get out of the shower."

She saw Ron turn to face her with a smile on his face, "Sure thing KP. I'll gather them up and put them in the bag so we can get them washed tomorrow."

Smiling Kim reached down and quickly pulled her shirt over her head and dropping it on the floor outside the small bathroom. As she shook her hair out she saw Ron still staring at her as she reached down to unbuckle her belt. His mouth was open and his eyes were wide, normally she gave him warning that she was about to change clothes but this time she purposely didn't.

When she pushed the dirty pants down her legs she saw Ron now had his back to her. "KP! Why didn't you warn me?"

Kim smiled, "Come on Ron. We're going to be here for almost two weeks and this is kind of a small place. You're bound to see things you've never seen before, we both are. Honestly Ron, you seeing me in my underwear, or even less doesn't bother me at all."

She saw Ron stiffen slightly as he replied, "It doesn't? What about the rules KP?"

Kim stood there in her panties and bra having just pulled her socks from her feet, "What? What rules Ron?"

Ron was quick to respond but still had his back to her, "Your rules KP. The ones you told me about when we first started dating and stuff."

Kim stood there confused, "I don't remember any rules Ron. When did I do that?"

Ron's voice was quick to respond again. "Right after the prom KP. The next day when we went for that walk in the park."

Kim actually reached up and scratched her head. "I still don't remember any rules Ron. All I remember was telling you…." Kim stiffened herself, the memory of their walk in the park suddenly coming back to her. "Oh my God. You mean that stuff we discussed about dating and rebounds and… and… Erik?"

Ron's voice sounded a little nervous as he answered, "Well, I don't think there was any discussion about it KP. It was more like you telling me how we were going to do things and making me promise to give you time to sort things out."

The memories flooded back to her the more Ron spoke. They had sat on a park bench the afternoon after the junior prom and Kim had confessed to him that she was scared. Her mouth opened wide as she began recalling more and more of their discussion that afternoon.

Ron was right, it hadn't really been a discussion, it was more like her laying down ground rules for their relationship. She remembered clearly being more than a little frightened about things after hearing Bonnie talking to a group of girls in the bathroom just before they left the prom.

She had been in a stall and Bonnie wasn't even aware she was there when she heard her name being discussed, Bonnie had told the other girls in there with her that she figured Ron and she would only last a week, that Kim was on the rebound after Erik and latched onto Ron as the safest safety net around since she could control him.

The next day Kim had told Ron that she wanted to take things slow, very slow. She wanted to make sure that what they had felt the previous night was real and not simply a spur of the moment reaction. She clearly remembered using the term rebound.

For the life of her she couldn't recall the entire conversation but she knew it had gone on for almost a half hour. Looking over at Ron's still turned back she asked with a slightly shaky voice. "Ron? I remember talking to you now but I was kind of confused about things right then and don't really remember what I told you."

Ron's voice was tight as he answered, "Well, you told me no touching, anywhere I wouldn't touch in front of either of our parents was out. No heavy… ah… the term you used was petting, even when we were alone. You said that there was no peeking allowed, just because we were dating didn't mean I could take liberties if we ran into certain situations."

She heard Ron take a breath. "Then you said I should give you time to sort through your feelings and that we would talk about things when you were ready and not before."

Kim was shaken as more and more of the talk cleared in her mind, "But Ron that was almost four years ago. Why haven't you talked to me about it since?"

Ron was quite clear when he responded, "Rule six KP. I wasn't to talk to anyone about it, including you, until you told me you were ready to talk about it again. You were real clear about that KP, you said you didn't want me… ah… badgering you about it until you were ready."

Kim stood there in her underwear with the shower running behind her until Ron's voice called her back to reality, "Ah… KP? The hot water won't last forever. Go take your shower. If you want to talk about this later we can, but let's do it after we're clean and fed okay?"

Kim turned automatically and stepped toward the shower dropping her bra and slipping out of her panties on the way. The one thing she forgot to do was slide the curtain across the opening.

Ron heard the change in the sound of the water falling when Kim stepped into the shower and took a deep breath as he finished preparing the small meal he had already started. His own mind was spinning, was it possible that Kim had forgotten what she had told him that day? When she had said that thing about seeing things he normally didn't it had shocked him, it went directly against her rules.

By the time the meal was finished he had come to the conclusion that Kim hadn't remembered the talk at all until he reminded her and worried about what she might think about his avoiding any real physical contact for the last four years.

When he turned to gather what he would need for his shower he stopped in shock. He was looking directly into the bathroom and, since there was no shower curtain, he saw Kim, completely nude, standing in the shower, she wasn't moving at all, she was just letting the water cascade over her.

Ron knew he should turn away but something was bothering him about what he was seeing, something wasn't right. Then it struck him. Kim wasn't moving at all, he was still able to spot pockets of dirt what still pocked her otherwise perfect skin. She wasn't just letting the water run over her she literally wasn't moving.

Ron had to make a decision, if he waited long enough the water would get cold and hopefully shake her from the trance or whatever, or, he could call out to her and possibly embarrass her when she realized her naked body was exposed to his view.

When she didn't move for another ten seconds Ron started to worry and decided on the second option just in case there was something drastically wrong. Moving to the side of the doorway, out of sight, Ron called out, "KP!... YO KP!"

Ron heard no movement and there was not response so he peeked around the corner of the doorway and saw Kim still standing there frozen. He knew he would have to take more drastic action.

When Kim stepped into the shower she was numb, in her mind she saw herself all those nights getting a bit angry at Ron when he didn't respond to what she considered obvious invitations to advance their intimacy. There had even been a few fights and arguments when she had been frustrated at his apparent unresponsiveness.

Now she knew that he was simply doing what he always did, and did so well, he was caring for her. He was putting his own feelings on hold and waiting while he thought she was sorting things out in her mind. She remembered clearly the number of time she had seen a definite reaction to her advances, both mental and physical and each time Ron had made excuses and gone no further.

Each of the instances flew through her mind, but now she saw them in an entirely different light. She saw herself not enticing Ron but teasing him. It was like she was flaunting herself at him and daring him to react even though he thought she would reject any advances he made and possible use them against him in some way.

The more she remembered the more upset she became until tears were adding to the wetness sluicing down her body. She jumped when a hand was suddenly placed on her shoulder, looking over she saw the concerned face of Ron, with his eyes tightly closed, right in front of her.

Ron was standing partially in the shower, fully dressed and getting soaked, the dirt turning to mud on his clothes. "KP? Are you alright? You've been standing there like that for almost ten minutes and I'm starting to get worried.

Kim spun around and wrapped Ron in her embrace crying openly on his shoulder, "Oh Ron. I didn't remember, I honestly didn't remember. All those time I… I threw myself at you… all those time I yelled at you when I thought you weren't…. My God Ron how could you stand being around me. How can you ever forgive me for…"

Kim's voice cut off unable to speak as the memories flooded her mind. She felt Ron's arms wrap around her and heard his soft voice in her ear. "KP… Kim. There's nothing to forgive."

Kim pulled back slightly to look him in the face and saw his eyes still closed tightly, "But Ron? All the times I yelled at you, all the times we fought, it was all my fault. How can you not be mad at me?"

She saw the concern on Ron's face fade into compassion, "KP, that's simple to answer. I love you."

Kim had heard him say that before, as a matter of fact he said it all the time. She tried to recall one time she had ever responded with the same sentiment and couldn't, not once had she ever said back "Ron, I love you"

Her eyes opened wide at the realization, She was still scared, scared of being in love again. Finally she was able to admit to herself that, even though he wasn't real, she had been in love with Erik. Or at least she thought she was, and that amounted to the same thing in her mind.

Ron had offered her his love, and continued to offer it and subconsciously she was rejecting it, afraid of being hurt again, afraid it wasn't real, like Erik hadn't been real.

As she stood there, naked in Ron's embrace, the fears were suddenly washed away going down the drain with the muddy water dripping from the man she loved. She smiled when she realized that she was finally free of the fears she hadn't even known she was feeling. She knew without a doubt that the man holding her was not only deeply in love with her but she loved him just as deeply in return.

With the smile on her face and with a clear voice she looked up at Ron's face, "Ron? I know I haven't said this before but I love you."

She saw Ron's eyes spring open and search around a bit before locking onto hers. "WHAT?"

Kim smiled up at him as the muddy water dripped down his face, "I said I love you Ron. I love you with all my heart." After a short pause to make sure Ron had heard her, "I'm ready Ron. No more fears, no more waiting. I need you Ron, more than anything else on earth I need you."

She saw a smile appear on Ron's face, "Are you sure KP? Really sure?"

Kim smiled as she reached down and pulled Ron's shirt over his head, "Yes Ron. Really sure. Now lets finish OUR shower and get something to eat. We've got a lot to discuss…. and more than a few things to catch up on."

The lights in the cabin didn't go out for almost four hours and, even though the dormitory was almost a quarter mile away several of the residents were woken from their slumber when a loud 'Boo-Yaa' echoed across the valley not once, but four times that night.