Disclaimer: I do not own the Power rangers or anything to do with them.
Timeline: Set about two years or so after the defeat of Master Org and Princess Shayla's return to her slumber
Summary: Alyssa has always had feelings for a certain lion master, but ranger duties and college have always gotten in the way of expressing her feelings. Now that things have calmed down, will fate bring these two together at last?
A/N: Thank you all so much for all the kind reviews. The re write will be stopping in the next chapter or so and the new material will start then. Enjoy chapter four!
Chapter Four: Lion and Tiger go to dinner
Cole, Danny, and Max's house; 6:15 pm
Always one to be ready long before he really has to be, Cole was spending the rest of the time before he went to pick up Alyssa pacing a hole in the living room floor. He is pacing because he does not want to be too early and seem too anxious to see her, which, of course, he is. He had to stop and think. He did not always look at Alyssa this way. For the longest time, he treated her more like a sister than anything. Just when the hell did he start looking at her differently, and just what was it that was telling him that she just may return those feelings?
Flashback:
It was just after a resounding victory over very tough org (this was the same battle that Alyssa was remembering earlier). He remembered getting all flustered at something that she had said and thought odd since he never did that around her. Then she had put him at ease and he had done something he had never done before, he kissed her on the cheek. He then left to join the others, but did glance back and saw that Alyssa was rooted to the spot. He would never forget the look on her face. It was a mixture of surprise and…hope? What had he done to get such a response? Could she…could she have feelings for him? At the time, he just shrugged it off and thought nothing more about it.
Flashback
She had been taken by Zen-Aku and Cole thought his heart would explode from his chest. At that point, he knew that she was more than a friend or a sister to him. But at the same time, he could not ever let her know. What were the chances that she would feel the same for him? Still, that look after the kiss….But he had found her and taken her to safety. It was then that Cole vowed to always protect her and also decided to never speak of his feelings for her.
End flashback.
But then, he had seen her today and everything else stopped. Nothing else mattered. He was having a very intense inner battle with himself on what he should do tonight when there was a knock at his door and Max entered.
"Hey man, ready for tonight?" Max said with a huge grin on his face.
"I hope so. Actually, I just hope that I don't screw things up too bad. By the way, is there a chance that I could borrow your car tonight?"
Max laughed and tossed Cole the keys.
"Cole, just relax. This is going to happen, so just be you. Alyssa already knows you so there is none of that awkward getting to know you stuff that usually happens on first dates."
Cole turned suddenly to face the former blue ranger.
"This is a date?!"
Max could not contain his laughter any longer.
"Like it or not my friend, it is. When are you going to open your eyes and see what everyone else does? You two are meant to be together. So just relax, have a good time tonight, and for the love of God, tell her how you feel!"
Max's words had the same effect as a slap would. He considered his senses returned. He said nothing in return, just walked past a smiling Max and put his hand on his shoulder as he passed. Yes, tonight would be the night, no use in waiting any longer.
Renaldo's Italian restaurant; 7:30pm:
Cole and Alyssa had just arrived and were shown to their seats. Cole, ever the gentleman, had helped Alyssa into her seat before taking his own. He ordered wine for the both of them and they both ordered what food they preferred. They then spent the next hour or so catching up on what both had been up to in the past two years. Cole was impressed with how she handled her classes and she was impressed on his love for animals. There was, however, a kind of tension in the air that they could both feel.
Damn he looks hot in that suit. It's a miracle that it can keep from ripping with those delicious pecs straining against it.
Alyssa knew that she was acting like a horny school girl, but it had been soooo long since she had had any kind of physical relationship with anyone. And this was Cole, the one she had wanted in more ways than physical for so long. Did she dare tell him how she felt?
Man she looks good in that dress. I mean the skirt and knee high socks were hot for sure, but this puts that to shame for sure. I wonder if I can go through with this
Cole chided himself for thinking like a pervert, but this was Alyssa, he had known her for so long and at the same time, he ached to just simply hold her in his arms and protect her against anything that may hurt his tiger. HIS tiger? Where the hell did that come from? He took a deep breath, this was it, this was the time he had to do it.
"Cole?"
"Alyssa?"
They laughed as they both spoke at once.
"Ladies first, you go." Said Cole.
Alyssa took a deep breath herself. He is ever the gentleman damn it, she thought. OK, here goes.
"Cole, this is not going to be easy for me to say, so please forgive me if I take my time." She stopped as he seemed to tense up.
"No, it's nothing bad, at least, I hope it isn't. You see Cole, I know that you have always seen me as a sister, someone you protect and look after, but I have to tell you, while I am appreciative of all you have done for me, I do not see you as a brother." She lowered her head and whispered…"I see you as a lover."
There she had said it. She kept her head lowered, afraid to look at him. Tears were running down her face and she was about to get up and leave, taking his silence as confirmation that he did not feel the same way, until he felt a hand on top of hers. She looked up and Cole was not only still there, he was looking directly into her eyes. It was at that moment that Alyssa Enrile fell head over heals in love with Cole Evans. For what she saw there in his eyes was total love and acceptance. Finally, he spoke.
"It was that kiss." She did not have to be reminded of which kiss. He had only kissed her once. "Alyssa, when you were taken from us, I vowed to do all I could to see you safe again, and I did, but I also told myself that I would never let that happen again, for on that day, I realized that you are more to me than a sister. I spent the past two years thinking of you and convincing myself that you looked at me as only a friend and a brother. I was planning tonight to tell you that I do not see you as a sister. Alyssa, I fell in love with you that day."
The tears were now falling freely down her face, and he reached to wipe each one away. Two years, two years were wasted. But that did not matter now. Cole had just told her that he loved her. Nothing else mattered. Hell, two years were nothing, she felt as though they had eternity to be together now. Still staring into those gorgeous eyes, she composed herself and finally spoke.
"Well, it's a good thing that you fell in love with me Cole Evans because I am totally and completely in love with you and I will do whatever it takes to be with you forever. I want to be your tiger forever and always and have you be my strong red lion, always looking out for me."
With that, they leaned in and shared the first of many, many kisses. They finally separated after a good two minutes and Cole called for the check while Alyssa went to the ladies room. Unbeknown to them, a few tables away, a certain former yellow wild force ranger, looking splendid in a tight, floor length dress turned to her fiancée and smiled.
"I think your quantum defender is safe honey."
This is NOT the end. There is much more in store for our couple. Look for updates in the next few days. Also, look for more of Eric and Taylor as well as Wes and Jen. I am also thinking of inserting Kim and Tommy for a short scene. As always, comments and suggestions as well as reviews are welcome.
