02
When Trini arrived at school she immediately found her friends sitting on the front steps. Zack was moving and grooving to a hip-hop beat coming from a boom box nearby while Kimberly sat on the steps, braiding her hair. Billy sat nearby, tinkering with something in his hands, which Trini was sure had to be a morpher or a communicator, and Avalon sat on Kimberly's other side, aiding in braiding her hair.
They were all smiling brightly. Later she remembered how excited they were for the day, not knowing what was coming. How they were all so innocent.
But in that moment Trini was excited to see them all. She sat down on the steps with Kimberly and Avalon and turned to Billy, nudging him in the side with her arm. "What're you working on?" She asked.
"Well, I thought that while Zordon and Alpha were going on their reboot, that I would take the time to work on our morphers and communicators. I want to make adjustments to them to redefine the geographical server frequency rangers to make sure there's less high-end interference."
Kimberly paused in her movements and dropped her hands to her lap. "What?" She asked.
Trini smiled, tossing her hair behind her shoulder. "Basically he's saying that he doesn't want there to be any potential electrical surges that disrupt our connection to the Command Center and the morphing grid."
"So why didn't he just say that?" Avalon asked. Kimberly nudged her on the arm and the two laughed before going back to their hair braiding.
"Do you need mine?" Trini asked Billy. He nodded and she handed her communicator and morpher over. Her fingers brushed over the Saber-Tooth Tiger Power Coin that sat in the face plate and smiled as a little bit of yellow electricity surged around her fingertips. Much like it always did whenever one of them touched it. "D'you think its safe? With Zordon and Alpha being out of commission, too?"
"Plenty safe," Billy replied reassuringly. "Rita and Zedd seem to operate very similarly to Zordon and Alpha in terms that they'd need their own time to recharge as well. Chances are they're taking this day, too." His blue-green eyes flashed with mirth. "How many times can they be beat before deciding to take a break?"
Trini laughed.
She leaned forward and wrapped her arms around her legs, looking over the sprawling grounds of Angel Grove high school. Everyone was divided into their little group of friends, the jocks with the jocks, the brains with the brains, but everyone appeared to be so happy. They laughed and talked with each other as they laid out on the grass, sat on the concrete steps leading up to the school, and lounged all over the tables set up for them to eat at during lunch.
And she couldn't help but feel the happiness that a lot of them were feeling was from her own hand.
Being in high school was hard enough, but being in high school while feeling alone was the worst feeling. That's what she and the other students who were part of the Angel Grove Mentor Committee tried to keep from happening. They worked hard to really listen to the complaints and issues of fellow students and give advice when wanted. They linked them up to other students who felt to be a good friendship match or suggested different clubs and activities for them to become a part of, to step out of their comfort zone and meet new people. Sometimes they just listened rather than gave advice, other times they brought students' struggles to Ms. Appleby or Mr. Caplan if it were something too big for them to handle.
The Committee had been nothing but a success since it was first started, though there were some repeat offenders who came back continuing to state they weren't happy. But she continued to work hard, coming up with different ways to continue to be an effective listener. Though maybe we helped too much sometimes, Trini thought with a wry smile. There haven't been so many people that have come in lately.
A calm wind blew, moving Trini's hair through her face. Reaching up a hand, she smoothed it back and asked, "Where's Jason and Tommy?"
"They had a meeting with the football coach," Zack replied. He did a quick spin then pointed out his foot and turned off the boom box. He wiggled his way down the steps and sat down with his friends. "A captain's meeting or else Billy and I would've been invited to go along with them." He put his arm around Billy's shoulders and gently shook him. "But don't worry, my feelings aren't hurt."
"I don't think anyone could ever say your feelings are hurt, Zack," Trini teased him. "You never stop smiling."
"I just like to see the bright side of things," Zack said. Then he rubbed his hands together, a sly grin coming to his face. "Now, why on Earth were you wondering what has been keeping our dear, loving red ranger so busy?"
Trini couldn't keep her cheeks from flushing and she hoped there was another gust of wind that would make her hair frame her face. She couldn't help it; something about the red ranger had really caught her eye lately. Not that she hadn't noticed it before, he was very handsome and a lot of girls in school chased after him whether Jason noticed it or not. Actually, she wasn't sure if he ever did. When girls flirted with him he flirted right back but didn't seem to take it too seriously. His martial arts training seemed and ranger duties were much more important in his eyes.
And Trini admired him for that. Her own martial arts training was just as important to her and the two even worked out together, teaching a few things the other didn't already know. She cherished those moments they had together. Not that she didn't like being around her friends, but sometimes it was nice to get that one-on-one time. She could admit the way he smiled at her felt and made her feel really special and she found herself looking for it more and more as the days went on.
Trini was never one who embarrassed so easily, but Zack seemed to have a special talent for teasing people about their love lives. He worked hard to make original, teasing jokes about Tommy and Kim—especially stating that they could be likened to Barbie and Ken if they had the right colored hair. Of course, Trini noted, All of that does out the window once Angela is involved.
She spotted the pretty African-American teen talking animatedly to her friends, holding her books to her chest as they approached the front of the school. Zack looked over and smiled, raising his eyebrows when he saw her. As if sensing his eyes on her, Angela looked up and surprised him by waving as she walked by.
"Oooh," Kimberly teased.
"Oh, what that woman does to me," Zack breathed, pressing his hands to his chest.
"Hopefully something you can share, rather than horrify us with, mate," Avalon teased. She pulled her long hair behind her shoulders and secured with an orange scrunchie. "How long have you been chasing after her now, mate?"
"Long enough for her to decide whether or not she actually likes him," Billy remarked. He pushed the morphers and communicators into his backpack and hugged them between his knees. "She's been giving him the runaround for a while."
"And you still like her?" Avalon's eyebrows came together. "I don't know, Twinkle-Toes, don't you think you should give up? You shouldn't actually have to try too hard when it comes to liking someone."
"I agree," Billy said.
"Hey, you only get one chance at life and I'd rather say I tried than sat around and complained later when something doesn't happen," Zack crossed his arms. The ever-present smile still on his face.
At least he could make fun of himself for it.
Trini wasn't really sure how to react to her growing feelings for one of her closest friends. She knew he was handsome and had a smile that managed to charm everyone. But the growing butterflies in her stomach were starting to distract her more than it used to. She even got sweaty palms like everyone said would happen, sometimes even clamming up a little when Jason was speaking to her, only managing to smile and nod in response. He made her feel completely comfortable and uncomfortable all at the same time. She often looked at Tommy and Kimberly and wondered how they managed to do it. Sure, she and the rest of the group teased them about their need to be around each other all the time but it was mostly out of friendliness and a little bit of envy.
How were they always around each other and able to navigate though those nerve-wracking feelings of being their best self and not making a fool of themselves all at the same time? How did they manage first kisses and holding hands and staring lovingly into each other's eyes as if no one else was around when it made Trini even more nervous than she could ever comprehend?
How was Zack able to flirt up a storm with a girl that continued to turn him down? He said he was wearing her down as she didn't react to him with complete disgust anymore, but Trini wasn't so sure. Still, Angela did seem to smile a lot more when Zack was around now. How did he hold so much confidence?
Then there was Billy and Avalon. Avalon was new to Angel Grove having transferred at the beginning of the year and despite the culture shock of having from Australia to California, she and Billy hit it off pretty fast. Trini knew Billy was really shy and not as forthcoming with his feelings for girls—having had been all but pushed into talking to Melissa, Marge, and Laura, the last three girls he had been interested in. Bu he and Avalon seemed to have more in common than their Opposite Attract personalities—with Avalon being a more brazen and outgoing type—would have them seem. She and Kimberly spoke about it from time to time with Kimberly's ploys of playing matchmaker between the two despite the two seeming to be doing just fine on their own.
So how had they all managed to do that while she had never held a boy's hand except save for Zack the one time they were in that play together, posing as Mr. and Mrs. Noah Ark? And the thought of kissing one, let alone Jason, made her even queasier than her fear of heights made her. If she could get over that fear, how was she able to get over her fear of…closeness? Maybe if I had some putties threatening to kill me if I didn't kiss him…
Trini smiled at her little joke.
Kimberly immediately noticed and looked over, pressing her fingertip into Trini's dimple. "What're you smiling about?"
"I have a guess," Zack teased.
Kimberly turned and swatted Zack on the thigh. "Leave her alone," she warned. The students suddenly started to steam into the school to go to their locker, knowing the first bell was going to ring soon. Kimberly looped her arm through Trini's as they got to their feet and started towards the school. "Don't listen to him, he's a nut job."
"I heard that," Zack said, falling into step on Trini's other side with Avalon and Billy joining them as well.
"Well, you have ears," Avalon pointed out. She reached up and flicked them with her finger. "And pretty big ones at that, mate."
"Oh, you don't want to do that, Ava," Billy warned her. "Zack's a little sensitive about his Aurae."
"Why can't you just say 'ear' like the rest of us, Smurf?" Avalon asked.
"Because someone has to help you get your science grade up," Billy shot back. He laughed as Avalon reached out and shoved him on the arm, muttering 'boofhead' as well.
Trini and Kimberly exchanged knowing smiles as they all arrived at their lockers. "So where are you guys headed first period?" Trini asked.
"I've got political science," Avalon said, looking to the schedule that was taped on her locker door. "Billy and Jason, too."
"Yeah, and thankfully it's the only class with just Bulk. So we can actually learn something without Bulk and Skull interrupting every two minutes," Billy said. He put his backpack into his locker and took out the books for his class, locking it when the bag was tucked safely inside. "What about you?"
"Oh, we have a free period right now," Kimberly said, motioning between herself, Zack, and Trini. "But I really need to study for this killer Math test coming up so I was going to go to the study center. What about you guys?"
"I have a meeting with the Mentor Committee," Trini explained.
"I'll come with you, Kim," Zack said. "If we're going to fail this Math test then we should fail together." He put his arm around Kimberly's shoulders.
"Doesn't Angela have a free this period, too?" Billy asked.
Zack paused for a moment then held up his hands. "You caught me," he said dramatically, making Trini laugh. "I'm going to use this free period to try and convince her to go out with me."
"Again," Avalon pointed out.
"I didn't say it was the first time," he defended himself.
Trini laughed again. The bell rang, signaling the students to get to class. She waved to Avalon and Billy who turned to go to their class before she and Kimberly held hands and, with Zack, walked towards the student center, though Trini would be going to the library for her meeting. As they pushed through the crush of students, Trini spotted Marge Brown, Billy's ex, coming their way. She was part of the Mentor Committee, too, the Vice-President to Trini's Presidential role.
"Hey Trini," Marge greeted her. "Hey guys," She added to Kimberly and Zack.
"Hi Marge," Kimberly and Zack harmonized.
"Hey," Trini said with a light laugh. "Are you headed to the meeting?"
"I'll be there in a minute, I actually need to get something from Ms. Appleby," Marge said. She ran her hand over her long ponytail and added, "She has a list of different parts of the Angel Grove community that we could get to sponsor us and I was going to bring that."
"That's great!" Trini gushed. She couldn't help it, she really felt like they were helping the school and the community all at the same time. "Do you want me to go with you?"
"Oh, don't worry. I was just headed there."
"It's no problem, I…" Trini trailed off her as her eyes shifted to the side. Towards the student standing down the hall that was glaring in her direction.
No, not just glaring.
Trini gasped and swallowed hard. Her body went cold as she realized she was staring down the cold, metallic tunnel of a gun. Pointed directly at her. Everything moved in slow motion. She could hear Kimberly and Zack asking if she were okay, their voices muffles as was the rest of the sound of the hallway—she would note later. It was like she had suddenly gone deaf. She saw Marge start to turn her head towards the direction Trini was looking in.
Then there was a deafening sound.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Students screamed and started to run, the surge knocking Trini to the ground. She could feel Kimberly fall along with her, then felt the pink ranger's hand forcefully ripped from own before the two were swept up in the chaos.
Billy and Avalon had just sat down in their class with Mrs. Casey.
It wasn't more than two minutes after they sat down, and roll was being called, with Bulk interrupting with a burp after his name was questioned. Maybe Billy had a sixth-sense about this sort of thing, but the moment he sat down in his seat, spreading out his books, he knew something was wrong. A cold shudder went through him, a dark cloud hung over his head, something.
His ranger instincts kicking in?
He wasn't quite sure what it was but it wasn't good.
Mrs. Casey had just announced what the topic of class that day was, the American Government, when the atmosphere immediately changed. It happened in the split second that Mrs. Casey stopped speaking to catch her breath.
The three popping sounds.
Then the sound of rapid footsteps and screaming.
Billy sat up straight and looked around at his classmates, as confused as they were about the sudden noise, but Avalon immediately stiffened.
She knew the sound of gunshots anywhere.
Tommy and Jason had left the coach's office about five minutes before the gun was fired. Still, it took them that long to walk from the athletic complex to the main campus of the school. They heard screaming a few seconds before seeing their fellow students racing towards the buses that lined the front of the school.
"What the-?" Jason said, stepping out of the way of a crush of students heading right for him. Coach Nielson appeared behind them.
"What the hell's going on?" He demanded.
"Trini! Kimberly! Zack!" Tommy and Jason both turned around at the shouts of their friends names and found Marge running through the crowd, her head on a swivel as she went. "Trini!" She spotted Tommy and Jason and immediately ran to them.
Tommy gasped, noticing her disheveled look. Jason grabbed onto her. "Marge, what's going on?"
"Someone has a gun inside, they're shooting," She managed to say despite the tears coming to her eyes.
"Oh my God," Coach Nielson murmured.
"I was…I was with Trini and Kimberly and Zack—"
Tommy felt his blood run cold. "Are they okay?" He couldn't stand the thought of anything happening to her. But Marge continued to babble. "Marge! Are they okay?"
"I-I don't know. I-I lost them in the crowd."
"Marge," Jason said in a low tone. Tommy froze at the tone and locked eyes with Marge. She turned back to Jason then noticed his gaze on her blouse. She took a step back from him and looked down at her blue blouse, now dark purple with blood stained across her front. "Mare, are you…?"
"N-no," She gaped. "It's not…it's not my blood." She frantically wiped at her shirt. "It's not my blood, I'm okay."
"Someone's been shot," Tommy said. He brought his hands up to his mouth and started to call out, "Kim? Kim, where are you?" A hand grabbed at his arm as he started forward and he found Coach Nielson grabbing him. "Coach, let me go!"
"Like hell I will, get on the bus, Oliver!" Coach Nielson demanded, motioning towards the line of buses that continued to fill with students and pull away from the school.
Tommy wrenched his arm from Coach Nielson's grasp. Didn't he understand? "Coach, Kimberly's in there. I have to find her!" And he started running to the school before anyone could stop him.
Jason sucked in a deep breath, running his hand over his hair. "Where were you when the shots fired?"
"We were on our way to the study rooms," Marge replied.
"Thanks." Jason squeezed her shoulder before taking off after Tommy towards the school.
"All students on the bus now!" Coach Nielson shouted after them.
But Tommy and Jason continued running into the school.
Principal Caplan ducked down into his office and pointed at his secretary barking, "Call 911! We've got an active shooter!"
A/N: If you couldn't guess I got inspiration for this from the One Tree Hill episodes With Tired Eyes, Tired Minds, Tired Souls, We Slept as well as the Virginia Tech shooting which happened this month ten years ago. Also, I picture a realistic Angel Grove to be a fairly big school in terms of all of the rooms they could be in.
Also, I have decided to have Avalon in the story for the same reason that, apart from the more well known Power Rangers characters, I've decided to add Marge; different character personalities mean different reactions to shared scenarios. However, Av's not the main focus of the story at all; Trini is the main-main character.
Thank you so much for everyone who favorited and reviewed and alerted the story so far. I'm so glad you guys liked the idea. It's given me so much motivation to make this the best story I can make it.
~Av
