Author: Jadelyn Ja Lee
Story: Lonely
Pairings: Merrick/Kimberly
Disclaimer: I own no one.
Summery: ONE SHOT Two people, one bar, a couple games of pool, endless possibilities…
Author Notes: (Sighs) One of these days, I'll actually write a cannon couple…Anywho, this was a challenge from a friend and was a half-hour drabble so don't expect a whole lot more. Enjoy!
Merrick had seen and done a lot of thing in the years he'd been released from the curse of the wolf but somehow it all paled to what he was about to do.
He was about to get married.
Next to him, Cole was grinning and chattering with Max and Danny. The former red ranger was Merrick's best man while Max and Danny were groomsmen. Of course, most everyone there knew that had Merrick had his way, he'd probably have eloped. But because his fiancée was so excited about an actual ceremony with flowers, and groomsmen, and too many odd traditions, he'd agreed to the time-honored ritual.
It had been really hard to disagree considering she had been massaging his neck at the time.
Merrick glanced around and smiled sadly when he saw Princess Shayla sitting near the front. He had no idea how Cole had managed to get her their, and Merrick wasn't asking. It had been a little startling when he'd first seen her two days before but that had quickly passed when he realized that for the first time in practically forever, his heart didn't skip with the sight of her, which, considering he was about to marry another woman, was a good thing. He'd finally put her behind him.
Of course, she'd asked questions about his lover and he'd been hard-pressed to answer them all, she shot them so quickly. Of course, the moment they met it was like an instant bond. Shayla absolutely loved Kim and Kim couldn't stop giggling at all the stories Shayla remembered from three thousand years before. It had made him rethink his desire for them to get along, especially when Shayla asked how they had met. Kim had started grinning like mad and everyone nearby who knew the story burst into laughter.
He'd met his fiancée when he was in Paris with Zen-Aku. Zen had gone to have a night on his own in the woods which left Merrick bored.
He'd quickly found out that being bored was not a good thing.
Within an hour, he'd surfed every channel on the TV and after finding nothing in English but an old movie he really didn't like, he'd grabbed his jacket and walked out of the hotel room he'd rented.
A couple blocks away he found, much to his pleasure, a pool hall. An hour later he'd successfully managed to win over a thousand franc's which, considering the conversion rate to American dollars, was really rather good. He was setting up another game when a hundred dollar American bill was placed on the table. Merrick glanced at the owner of the dollar and tilted his head. She was shorter than he, with brown hair and brown eyes. She was wearing a pair of jeans and a pink tank top with a blue jean jacket. She barely looked like she could lift the stick.
Five games later and minus both his earnings from that night and a hundred of his personal stash had proved him wrong.
Not only was she good, she had fun while she did it. When she'd won the fifth game, she picked up the pot, grabbed her jacket, and walked out into the night before he'd even registered his loss.
Needless to say, both were back the next night, and every night that week. It was Friday before he'd finally asked her if she wanted to get a bite to eat. She'd agreed and they had left the pool hall, much to the amusement of the various onlookers.
Despite Merrick's natural loner personality, he'd found himself looking forward to the games and burgers. That first night he'd learned she was in Paris visiting her mom and step-dad for a month and that she was a native to California. He'd told her about his trip and how he was trying to figure out some personal issues. One thing he liked about her was that she never pushed and unless he was willing to share, didn't ask.
Two weeks after there initial meeting, Kimberly had left Paris for her home and school in Briarwood. A couple days later, Merrick and Zen-Aku had moved onto England. Neither had remembered to get contact information.
Three months later they ran into each other at Cole and Alyssa's wedding. Merrick was there as the Best Man (which he hadn't understood at all) and Kim was there as Jason's date and in honor of the fact that, as far as Kim was concerned, Alyssa was both a white and pink ranger.
When he'd found out she was a former ranger, he'd choked on his water. Of course, she'd tripped over her own feet and fell into Jason's lap when she found out about him being the former lunar wolf ranger, so he hadn't felt so embarrassed. As she picked herself up off Jason, he could hear her muttering something about "falling" and "bad boys" and how she really needed to find a better cliché. He hadn't understood what she was talking about but Jason and a couple older rangers nearby had started laughing.
Merrick smiled slightly now as he remembered her comments. Though he hadn't understood what she meant at the time, he understood perfectly now. She'd been falling for him, another "evil ranger turned good" and it annoyed her a little bit that she couldn't seem to go for the so called "nice guys." In the end she didn't seem to care.
Eventually, Merrick had found himself in Briarwood and teaching at Kim's gym. Despite all the grinning and teasing they got from their various teammates, they'd found the arrangement enjoyable. Kim taught the gymnastics classes and Merrick taught defense. The deal ended up being so good in fact that a year after he came on, they opened up another gym in Angel Grove that Jason and Rocky co-ran.
And he'd found himself completely and utterly in love with the original pink ranger. Lucky for him, the feelings were mutual and there was nothing standing in the way of pursuing a relationship with her.
Except his own insecurities.
Eventually, it had been Kim who had taken the first step. They'd been having an argument, he forgot about what, when she had thrown up her hands and launched herself at him. Within minutes they were in the middle of one of the most intense make-out sessions of Merrick's life. After that, he needed little encouragement to asking her out on a formal date.
Even now, two years later, Jason and Tommy still laughed at the two of them because of how similar it was to when Kim and Tommy had begun dating.
Merrick was mused out of his thoughts when the cue for everyone to find seats sounded. The former lunar wolf ranger instinctively straightened, a small smile tugging at his lips. Any moment now…
"Are you ready?" Cole asked quietly next to him. Merrick nodded, glancing over at his friend.
"Yeah. I am."