Title: What Might Have Been

Author: Sierra Crane

Rated: R

Disclaimer: I do not own, Alex, Jen, or any other characters in the series Power Rangers: Time Force; nor do I own the song What Might Have Been by Little Texas.

Summary: Two former lovers reunite after years . . . can they rekindle their old flame, or will they move on and try to forget about their long-lost past?

A/N: I'm leaving tomorrow for my deployment, but I'll still try to write and maybe post a little. I'll miss you all . . . I love you.

Alex Drake stood with his hands folded in front of him, his handsome face coolly impassive, his dress uniform sparkling in the sun rays coming through the windows of the small building. He kept his eyes on the bride and groom, the latter a friend of his for many years; Lt. Lucas Kendall was marrying the daughter of the most infamous criminal of the times.

The admiral said the final words, and Lucas bent over to kiss Nadira, who giggled and threw her thin arms around his neck; as they turned and faced the group of people gathered to watch the ceremony, applause erupted and they were showered with rose petals as they walked down the aisle.

Alex sighed quietly as he watched their backs disappear through the doors, a shiver ran up his spine and he shuddered involuntarily as distant memories crossed his mind. They didn't visit him often anymore, but every now and then something would happen that would bring it all back . . . her timid touch . . . her gentle, brown eyes . . .

"Alex?"

He forced a smile and gazed at the woman standing before him in a long, dark red dress that clung to her well-sculpted figure perfectly; her long hair fell over her exposed shoulders, her eyes were intense, outlined with black . . . wasn't there a rule about looking more beautiful than the bride?

"Jennifer."

"You look good-" Jen Scotts' voice was tinged with apprehension, what should she say after all these years?

"So do you." He bit his lip nervously, casting his eyes downward.

"I heard about your promotion," Jen said, "congratulations . . . I wish I could've been there, but I had stuff going on." She paused. "It's been a long time."

"Yes . . . five years."

Five years since his world came to a crashing halt when she handed him a tiny, diamond ring and told him she didn't love him anymore . . . five years since the fight that had injured him too badly to ever be put back on the streets . . .

"Well, we should get to the party," Jen said, "Lucas and Nadira will be wondering where we disappeared to."

"You're right," Alex agreed, hesitating: "H-How long are you staying?"

"Only till tonight," she answered, "I have to get back home."

Disappointment filled him at her words, such a short reunion . . . but what else did he dare hope for? "Maybe," he began, "we could go for dinner, if you have time. Catch up a bit."

She smiled. "I'd like that . . . " she whispered, "but let's go, for now, we'll just skip out early."

The reception was beautiful, the fence surrounding the field decorated with ribbons and the tables adorned with delicious food; but Alex found his himself uninterested with the festivities, he had eyes only for her, sitting across from him and enjoying the company of old friends. Her face glowed with happiness, he could hear her cheerful voice even from far away, and he savored every second of it.

Once, she caught him staring at her and their eyes met for one blazing second, the fire that burned between them sparking in each other's eyes; his breath caught in his throat, he was dying to ask her so many things . . . but most of all, dying to hold her in his arms again. It had been so long, he had almost forgotten what it was like to feel her beneath his hands, to hear her soft moans as he made love to her-

"What'd you say we get out of here?" Jen interrupted his fantasy, "I think the bride and groom are too involved in each other to notice."

"I'd have to agree with you on that," Alex laughed, watching Lucas dip Nadira down into a passionate kiss.

He rose and followed Jen across the field to her car, pausing for a moment just to watch her as she got in, brushing her hair aside; he sat down next to her, avoiding her eyes for fear of what his own might reveal.

"So," she said, "where'd you wanna go?"

"I don't know," he replied, "wherever." She gave him a look, and he added hastily: "I don't really go out often, couldn't tell you any place."

"All right . . . " she pulled out and onto the highway, smirking slightly. "How about your place? We can order out."

He blinked in surprise at her suggesiton, but was unable to refuse it, something inside him told him to go with it; they were silent on the ride, he stared at her out of the corner of his eye the whole time, hoping she didn't notice.

"You still live here, right?" Jen asked, stopping at the apartment complex she remembered.

"Yeah," Alex said, "same old place."

They got out and went inside, up the three flights to his dark apartment; Jen stood silently as he turned on the lights, then scanned the little room quickly, surprised to see a picture of herself sitting on the table near his bed.

"I haven't forgotten you," Alex said, simply.

"I haven't forgotten you, either," Jen said, "but . . . well, things ended badly between us. I-I wasn't sure you'd want to talk to me again."

The intense pain of their break-up came rushing back to him, and all he could manage to say was: "Why, Jennifer?" After a moment of collecting himself, he continued: "For five years that's all I've wondered . . . why'd you give up so easily?"

"'Give up'?" she echoed.

"Give up on us," Alex explained, "we had so much together-that could've been us today."

"I know . . . " she sank down on the sofa, and he saw her tremble a bit. "I loved Wes, like I loved you. But we were so different, nothing was the same."

He carefully sat down beside her, his blue eyes soft and open. "Change isn't always bad," he said, quietly, "I thought we could work through it."

"It was too late," Jen said, "I had already fallen for Wes."

Wes . . .

"Do you still think of him?" he found himself asking, his old jealousy creeping back up.

She was silent, looking down at her hands, folded on her lap; the lights flickering outside the window illuminated her face, and her eyes seemed to be mysteriously moist. "Of course," she murmured, "we were in love . . . I think of him almost every day." She finally looked up and directly at Alex. "Just like I think of you almost every day."

Alex shifted uncomfortably, his mind racing with questions and longing for answers, what did she mean by that? Did she still care after all this time? He shook his head, trying to clear it: "What'd you want to eat? I-I can get you some wine before dinner, if you'd like."

"That'd be nice," Jen said.

He stood and walked into his small kitchen, reaching into the food preservor and pulling out an old bottle he had bought for a special occasion that seemed like an eternity ago. Glancing over his shoulder, he saw Jen sitting quietly, hugging herself as if cold; he could hardly believe he was watching her, in his apartment again, where they had spent so many nights.

He poured their drinks and finally gathered enough courage to go back to her, smiling a little as he handed her a glass: "Hope you still like red."

"Of course," Jen replied, "my favorite."

She took a sip, closing her eyes and enjoying the flavor with nothing to distract her from it, she slowly opened her eyes, sighing quietly. "You seem . . . content," she said.

"I am," Alex said, "for the most part. I know you're doing well in Time Force."

"Yes-" she smiled "-never thought I'd go this far, Special Forces. It's really an experience." Suddenly, her eyes darkened and she lowered her head. "I know you always wanted a position there."

A place in the Time Force Special Ops, his dream since becoming an officer; but he just nodded, a small smile still on his face. "I did," he admitted, "but you deserve it, you've really become an incredible officer."

"I couldn't have done it without you," Jen countered, standing. "I'm gonna fix something up for us, no need to order out."

She took a step, but her long dress caught in her high-heeled shoes and she tripped, falling forward; Alex jumped up, putting his arm out to keep her standing, but her glass tipped over, spilling all over the front of her dress.

"Oh . . . shit," she whispered, softly, her cheeks flaming red.

"Don't worry about it," Alex said, "the stain will come out."

She laughed quickly. "Only now I'm soaked," she pointed out, looking at her dress and shaking her head. "Maybe I should just head back to my room and get changed . . . I'm sorry."

Alex wanted to stop her from leaving, but he didn't know how; slowly, he realized his arm was still wrapped around her tiny waist, both were breathing heavily. "I have some old clothes you could toss on," he offered, "they'll be huge on you, but at least you'll be comfortable on the ride home."

Jen blinked. "All right," she said, "thanks."

Alex sank back down as she disappeared into his room, he held his breath and waited, unsure himself why he had suggested that; a moment later, she emerged wearing a large T-short and sweatpants, still blushing. "I feel a little dumb now," she laughed.

"You look good in anything," Alex said.

She was silent for a few seconds, just looking at him in obvious surprise, trying to figure out what her next move should be. "I-I guess I'll go now," she said, "it was really good to see you again."

"Yeah," Alex said, "I'm glad you're doing so good."

He followed her to the door to say goodbye, wondering if he'd see her again anytime soon, or at all; she turned, her lower lip trembling. "I hope I see you around," she said, "don't be such a stranger, okay?"

"You, too," he replied.

They stood inches from each other, their old passions building up; Jen raised her hand and pressed it to his broad chest, her breaths unsteady. "Oh, Alex," she murmured, "I'm sorry . . . for hurting you."

"So am I," Alex said, "I-I shouldn't have-"

She threw her arms around his neck and covered his mouth with her own, moaning softly as she pressed her body to this, dropping her dress; he slid his hands down her sides and around to her firm butt, squeezing it. She broke this kiss only for air, and he seized the opportunity to run his soft lips down her neck, nibbling gently at her earlobe; she grabbed his shirt and lifted it up, revealing a toned abdomen.

"Oh my God, Alex . . . "

He tossed the shirt she had been wearing aside, then unhooked her bra, it fell away and he stared down at two, round breasts; her nipples were hard, he couldn't resist running his hands over them and pinching one playfully. She moaned aloud, her eyes squeezed shut; Alex lifted her easily, it was too late for either one of them to turn back now.

As he gently lay her on his bed, Jen opened her eyes again and grabbed his pants, unzipping them and yanking them down; she could see through his boxer-briefs that he wanted her. Alex slid the loose pants she wore down around her ankles, then completely off, gasping quietly when he saw the tiny thong she was wearing. With trembling hands, they removed one another's last articles of clothing and lay naked, their bodies pressed to each other.

"So beautiful . . . " Alex mumbled, gazing down at her before leaning down for another kiss.

She raised her arms above her head and he traced the outline of her breasts with his fingertips, watching her body squirm beneath his; he longed to feel her, but he wanted to make the most of it, so he kept going. He covered one nipple with his mouth, sucking on it hard; but Jen wasn't about to lie still and take it all, suddenly, she sat up and tossed him onto his back. He felt a sharp pain from his old injury but ignored it as pleasure overcame him, she ran her hand down his stomach and squeezed him; he bit his lip to keep from crying out.

Finally, Jen straddled him with her long, slender legs, easing herself down on top of him; with her hand, she guided him into her, crying out loud when she felt him enter. Her hips bucked, she threw her head back, grinding her teeth together as he drove in deeper; Alex grabbed her waist and flipped her over again, never leaving her. He buried himself within her and she brought her legs up around his hips, her hands pressed against his butt, pulling him to her; he thrusted as gently as he could, but the hungry look in her eyes urged him to go further.

Again, he thrusted, but this time harder, he felt her tightening around him and groaned loudly; her fingernails clawed his back, sweat was running down her flushed face. The intensity of his thrusts increased, both were too overwhelmed to make a sound; he felt himself explode within her and vaguely heard her cry. Her hips were tight against his, above the bed, she was frozen; then they both went limp, the climax lessening.

Alex rolled to the side and lay panting for a moment, Jen was gasping for air, but there was a smile on her face; he looked over at her, brushing his thumb across her cheek. She's here . . . next to me. It had been so long since he felt her, or even saw her face-to-face; he tried to read her mind, he desperately wanted to know her thoughts. Did she feel like he had used her? What did she want? They were so different from the young, happy couple they had been so many years ago.

"Where do we go from here?" he asked, quietly.

She adjusted herself so she was lying on her side facing him, she placed her hand on his cheek, seeming to be searching for the right words. "I'll always care for you, Alex," she whispered, "but we both have different lives now . . . "

"I know that, Jennifer," Alex said, "but that doesn't mean-I told you earlier, change isn't always a bad thing."

She sat up, reaching over and grabbing her clothes, beginning to get dressed as she spoke: "Of course not. And I can't leave you now, not after . . . a night like this one."

He got up, grabbing his pants and stepping into them, dreading what her next words would be . . . would she leave him again? He hated thinking of living his life without her again, not coming home to her waiting for him, a gorgeous smile and dazzling eyes on her face; out of the corner of his eye, he saw her fully-dressed figure going to the door.

"Jennifer, wait."

She stopped, turning around slowly, tears glistening in her eyes; the light was dim, but he could see her trembling. He hurried to her side, taking one arm and holding it firmly: "I won't let you leave like this-not again." He pressed his hands to her cheeks and cupped her face, leaning over and kissing her; she made a small sound, not quite a moan.

"Alex-" she pulled back, her hands against his chest.

"Tell me you don't love me," Alex demanded, "and mean it."

"I-I can't . . . "

"Then why fight it?"

"Because it won't work!" she insisted, "it didn't last time so what makes you think it will now? We don't even live near each other."

"Isn't it worth a try?" Alex asked, "neither of us are quitters, so why are you so willing to give up on us?"

"I don't want to, Alex!" her voice shook with emotion, "the time I had with you was the best time of my life! I'd give anything to have that again."

"You have that choice!" He took a breath, calming himself down. "Please, Jennifer, don't walk out on me again. I don't want to beg . . . I love you."

"I love you, too," Jen said, "but that's not enough."

"Just give it a try," Alex pleaded, "if it doesn't work out, then at least we'll know we did our best."

"I have to go," Jen said.

"Answer me."

She paused, then reached up and pulled his head down to her, pressing her lips to his; when they separated, she smiled unsteadily. "Damn you," she said, "how could I say no?"

"Keep in touch," Alex said.

"I will." She ran her hand down his muscular arm. "I'll see you seen . . . I'm not giving up."

With one last kiss, she disappeared through the door, his eyes following her; he sat down on the bed where they had just made love, his emotions in conflict. Perhaps it would all end in heartbreak again, but he would have her for a little while longer . . . and maybe-just maybe-things would work out.

After all . . .

We each make our own destiny.

THE END