Disclaimer; I do not own Power Rangers.

A/N: For info on Sam Oliver, she appears in 'Wedding Bells' and 'Dear Tommy' (sort of). I considered upping the rating, but I don't think I should have to...if you disagree let me know and I'll up it. Also, Kai is from Courtship of Kai aka Kai from Lost Galaxy. Am I the only one who could see him tearing people new one if he had to and be good at it? "Postage stamp apartment" just means that it's really (really, really, really) tiny. Like the size of a stamp.

Dating Conner was a lot like being friends with him, in that you never really knew what was going to happen but it was always going to be fun. Nia had expected to be wined and dined on the way to a bedroom, but Conner wasn't like that. Although she had somewhat discouraged him before the Christmas break, when they met up again, Conner actually seemed reluctant to go farther than making out. A few times, he seemed about to try something, and she wanted him to, but he would back off at the last moment.

One night, when they were at her postage stamp apartment, kissing, Conner's hand slipped off her shoulder and down her back. He immediately pulled back, "Is something wrong?" Nia asked, tired of the evasions, she was going to get to the bottom of things.

Conner blushed, "No, I," he stopped, "I'm trying not to pressure you or force things."

"Really?" Nia replied.

"Yeah," Conner replied, "I know this guy, he's with a man who is asexual, and this really hot chick. Sorry. Anyways, the asexual guy, he was at the New Years Eve Party and I guess someone said something and he just tore the whole room a new one. He said that romance wasn't about ending up in bed with someone; it was all the things people skipped over to get to the bedroom. The thing is Kai, that's his name, Kai; he damn near shamed every single guy in the place, and about half the married ones. It really made me think about what I was doing with the girls I dated. You matter to me, Nia; I didn't want you to think I was only after that."

"Only?" Nia repeated dryly.

"Well yeah," Conner replied with a shrug, "I'm not saying I wouldn't want to, I just don't want that to be the total sum of our relationship."

Although Nia made a joke at the time, it really showed her a lot about Conner in that moment. The athletic student she had stereotyped the first time they met had a lot of depth that she'd never expected to find. He was, as her mother would say, a catch.

Of course, being Conner, the decision to move forward in their relationship was subject to Murphy's Law. It was another Friday night, in her tiny apartment, a candle light dinner and more after, with Conner talking about his dream of getting an apartment in the fall if he could afford it. Then Conner's phone rang, not the usual ring tones that Conner answered or ignored on a whim, but a very simple, somewhat catchy, series of six beeps that drained all the color from Conner's face. "I'm so sorry, Nia," he said and stood up, "I have to take this outside, keep eating."

Nia watched him step outside, and toyed with her lasagna as she waited.

Ten minutes later, Conner walked back in, distracted, and worried, "Nia," he said.

Nia stood, "Is everything ok?"

"That was my friend Trent's dad, Anton Mercer," Conner said hesitantly, "I have to go back to Reefside in the morning."

"What happened?" Nia asked.

"Doctor O, Tommy Oliver," Conner began and stopped, closing his eyes tightly for a moment, "He just heard that his wife, Sam, died. She was a soldier in Iraq."

"Oh," Nia said, she reached for Conner, who clung for a brief moment as if she was saving him, and then he relaxed. "I didn't really know Sam," he admitted, "She was overseas during my senior year, and then she stayed around because she was pregnant with Lexi and Leigh. I'm just the closet person to Reefside right now. I'm going to go up and look after the twins until one of Doctor O's older friends can get there. Jason's got this big case; he can't leave Angel Grove, Trini's at a medical conference in England. Adam and Tanya have a family issue. No one can contact Zack, but Angela promised she'd try. Kimberly has a meet, she can't even think about flying out before Monday. Kat can't fly because she's pregnant; Aisha needs a week or more to get through customs. Who knows what Justin will do, but I wouldn't count on him doing anything. Billy and Rocky need travel time to get back. Trent and Kira are in New York, but their spring break is in a week and they were flying back anyways, Ethan is in Japan, semester abroad. Hailey is probably worse off than Tommy is right now because Sam was her sister. Mr. Mercer is leaving tomorrow for some botanical conference that he can't get out of, Ms. Randall will be going with him."

"I understand," Nia said, touching Conner's lips with a single finger. "You don't have to keep babbling at me. Let's reheat your dinner and finish eating. Do you want me to come with you?"

"That's ok," Conner replied, "Doctor O is very paranoid about who gets near the twins and I don't want to put any more stress on him by meeting you now." He hesitated, and then kissed her lightly, "If you wanted to do something, if I'm needed to stay past the weekend, maybe you could pick up my assignments next week?"

Nia smiled, "Sure thing, Conner."

Watching Conner leave later that evening, knowing that he'd probably drive straight to Reefside as soon as he'd packed, Nia couldn't help the feeling of admiration that crept through her. Conner was, by his own admission, a reformed shallow jock. Whatever he didn't talk about his senior year, Conner was a good man. As she cleaned up from dinner, Nia wondered if he'd ever consider her worthy of dropping everything to help.

When Conner got back on Tuesday, he met her after her last class holding a beautiful red tulip, "Hey," he said, offering it to her.

"Hi," Nia said, "thank you for the flower."

Conner blushed, "My friend suggested it," he replied and kissed her cheek. "I have a question."

"Yes?" Nia asked, looking up at him as she delicately sniffed the tulip.

"Will you come to the funeral with me?" Conner said, "I-I know a lot of people who will be there, but I don't want to go alone."

Nia kissed his cheek, "Of course, Conner."

"Great," Conner replied with a shy smile. "It's not how I planned for you to meet everyone, but we can't predict these kinds of things." He paused, "Oh," he said, "and there was something else I wanted to ask."

"Yes?" Nia said.

"I have to go to a wedding next month, and I'm going to need a date," Conner said. "It's in Angel Grove."

"Do you need a date or a place to stay, Mister McKnight," Nia said archly.

"Just a date," Conner said firmly, "I already have a place to stay lined up." He slipped his arm around her waist, "I know Kira made a big deal about it, and so if you need to know, the wedding colors are green and yellow."

"I guess I'm going to have to go shopping then," Nia said.

Conner hesitated, "Can I make a weird request?" He asked finally.

"What is it?" Nia replied.

"Remember that orange dress you wore for our dinner out two weeks ago?" Conner said, watching her cautiously. "If you don't want to wear that particular dress, could you wear one like it?" He rolled his eyes a little, "My friends are color crazy, and if you wear orange, or brown, or tan, they'll be less likely to try and include you in the crazy side of things."

"Orange, brown, or tan," Nia repeated.

Conner shrugged, "You could wear red," he said, almost casually.

"What does that mean?" Nia asked wearily.

"That we're together," Conner said. "You don't have to, I know it's weird of me to ask, but it would mean a lot."

"Conner, are you keeping secrets from me?" Nia asked hesitantly.

"Yes," Conner said, "but only because I have to." He brushed some hair off her face, "Maybe, I can tell you in the fall, Nia. I know we've only known each other a few months, but sometimes when I look at you all I can see is forever."