Chapter 8

Dinner was a rowdy and sumptuous affair. Margie had made them baked chicken with three different types of vegetables and homemade clam chowder soup. Of course, Jason had plenty of reservation until he was assured that the thing that looked like chicken and smelled like chicken really was chicken.

After dinner, they had loaded the dishwasher and Billy had offered liquor, but neither Jason or Trini was a big fan of alcohol and the other three were still feeling the consequences of their over indulgence from the night before. So instead, Jason offered to make coffee while the others went into the living room to light the fire.

When Jason came out carrying the tray with five steaming mugs of coffee, it was to find Kimberly and Billy sitting on the long luxurious leather couch while Zack was sitting next to Trini on the matching loveseat. Jason frowned and set the tray down on the coffee table, "Sorry, guys, I forgot the cream and sugar. Zack, can you go get them?"

Zack chuckled and stood, "sure, man, Trini, save my seat, ok?"

Jason glared at him and was going to sit down next to Trini anyway when Kim sneaked around him and plopped down right next to Trini. Jason turned around with a frustrated look on his face while Kimberly wrapped her arms around Trini and snuggled closer, "my Trini." Kim winked at Billy and the billionaire started to chuckle. Zack came out with the cream and sugar, saw what happened and started to laugh along with them. Trini lowered her head but not before Jason caught the grin on her face. Zack put the cream and sugar down on the coffee table and took a seat at the other end of the sofa, "I see Trini let seat stealer Kimmy steals my seat. That's fine, who wants to sit with some stinky girls anyway?" Patting the seat between him and Billy, Zack lowered his voice an entire octave, " Jase, this here is the manly couch. See, I saved you a seat."

Kim burst out laughing and was soon joined by Zack and Billy. Jason turned red, but then figured since he was already embarrassed, he should get something out of it, and he really, really wanted to be close to Trini. So, he marched over and just pulled Kim out of her seat and gave her a gentle push toward the couch, "go sit over there with the rest of the laughing hyenas."

Kimberly staggered over and fell down in between the guys and finally stopped laughing, "Okay, so what's been happening with everybody? We never did get around to finding out last night?"

"That was because you were too busy bitching about all of Tommy's former fiancées," said Zack.

Kim pouted, "I did not. It's not my fault that they air all their dirty laundries in public. All I did was look them up on the internet. It was all right there, in black and right, and sometimes colors, too. I knew that chick from the Victoria Secret catalogue was anorexic and she only looked good because of all that plastic surgeries. Oh yeah, Tommy really picked a winner with that psycho chick with the temper tantrums and DOIs. And the one with the video—"

Trini interrupted her, "Kim, you do know that not all of that stuff is true, right?"

Kim shrugged, "videos don't lie. It's not my fault that Tommy only hooked up with freaks after he lost me."

"Well, we will be meeting one in a couple of days, let's reserve our opinions until then," said Billy diplomatically. "Right now, I would really like to hear from Jason and Trini. What you two been up to? Jase, this is the first time I have seen you since I left for Aquitar. All I have heard since I came back was that you were in the Navy."

Jason shrugged, "I was just getting ready to start my junior year at UCLA when September 11 happened. I enlisted the next day."

Zack glanced at his friend and nodded. Honor, integrity, principles, those were all synonyms of Jason Lee Scott. Of course he would feel it was his duty to enlist. "I know a lot of soldiers who served in the Army, but you are the first Navy Seal I know. What was it like?"

Jason shrugged, "The SEALs are pretty much like other military folks, just more…"

Kim cut in, "Come on, Jase. Even I know that they don't just let anyone become a SEAL. My step dad talks about them like they have three heads or something."

Jason rubbed a hand across the back of his neck and grimaced slightly, "I applied, got in, went through 24 months of training before I even gotten my first post. My specialty was diving, so for two years, I was on a lot of search and rescue missions. I was stationed in Afghanistan for a year, but ours was not a patrol unit. We spent that year mostly searching out high level terrorists and doing hostage rescues."

"Man, and all this time I imagined you parachuting into the middle of a jungle fighting off guerilla terrorists," Zack laughed. "I got that from the commercials."

"No, when we did have to parachute, it was into the middle of the ocean, defusing bombs or doing demolition work. I'm telling you guys, there really isn't a whole lot to tell. There's nothing glamorous or heroic about war. We lost four guys from our unit in one year. These were young men with promising futures and families. People die. I can't put it any other way."

Trini frowned. She could tell Jason was hurting, obviously reliving some painful memories. She knew that feeling well, way back from the days when they were all Power Rangers. But for Jason, that feeling was much more recent and raw. Out of instinct, she reached out and grabbed his hand, holding it tightly in hers. Jason looked slightly surprised, but at least that haunted look became less noticeable. He smiled at her, "I'm okay. You guys don't have to worry. I didn't come back all bitter and stuff, just…less naive. There are still things that I have to work through, but I will work through them."

"And you are now a civilian?" asked Billy.

"Yeah, I committed to a 4 year contract. I never intended for it to be a career. You know, when you are twenty and something like September 11 happens, your instinct is to jump in and protect your country. I guess I was kind of naive, thinking that we would avenge what happened that day and to rid the world of terrorists. But the reality was kind of disappointing. While I know the things we did were necessary, there's no way to win this war because at the end, there really is no winner. I've seen too many civilian casualties; sometimes it was our fault. There are too many people who shouldn't be in this war, but they are there fighting because they have no choice. When we were Power Rangers, we knew clearly what we were up against. We were fighting monsters, not humans. It became too real when your enemy is just another young man with idealistic dreams. Sometimes the lines can get blurry. I know terrorism is a threat, and the only way to get rid of that threat is to eliminate the people responsible. I don't have problem with that. But when the innocents get caught in the crossfire…Anyway, I'm just glad to be home. I've been away for too long."

"Well, we are glad you are home," smiled Kimberly and artfully changed the subject. "I heard you went back to UCLA?"

"Yeah, I tried to finish my Engineering degree on-line, but there were a couple of classes I wasn't able to complete on-line. The timing was perfect; I was able to enroll back into the fall quarter. I pretty much just stepped off the plane and then stepped back onto the campus. My last final was last Thursday. I'm officially done."

"That's great, man, but what do you plan to do now?" inquired Zack.

Jason shrugged, "Spend some time with my folks, reconnect with old friends, and start job hunting. Billy, your invitation came at the perfect time. I missed all you guys so much. I was planning on looking you guys up after the holidays."

"I would still like to discuss the option of employment with you," said Billy, quickly shaking his head when he saw Jason grimaced, "not tonight. Maybe after the new year, just keep it in mind, alright?"

Jason nodded, but his expression was still skeptical.

Zack rolled his shoulder, "Okay, Trini, let's hear your story. I know you went to the University of Maryland and you were studying Criminology, but then I called your house and your mom told me you were on assignment in Morocco, guarding some big shot from San Francisco. I swear I almost dropped the phone. How did that happen?"

Trini shrugged, "actually I had a double major, Criminology and Computer Science. I wasn't sure what I was going to do, but I figured if I didn't go tech, I would go into criminal law. After graduation, I decided that I didn't have what it takes to be a lawyer," she raised her hand when she saw the others were going to argue the point. "It's true. The laws do not give you any leeway, and I don't believe everything is always black or white. There are always shades of gray, but the law doesn't recognize that. So, I decided that I would go into technology, but I didn't want to just sit behind a desk and write applications all day. I talk to some people, my professors, my parents, and decided that I would combine the two. I decided to go into security, but I would offer both system security as well as personal safety. And having studied the law, I know where to draw the line."

Jason looked at her quizzically, "you plan to have your own company?"

Trini nodded, "I know what I want to do. I want to be able to offer companies ways to safeguard their electronic data, protect their premises and also personal security if they require it. But before I can do that, I need to gain some actual experience. I don't think I will have a problem with offering technical security, but the personal part, well, that would be a challenge. So, I decided that the only way for me to learn is to actually become a bodyguard. Plus, the pay was excellent, and I need the money if I want to eventually open up my own business. I went through six months of extensive training, from weapons, hand to hand combat, to learning how to read people, strategize, how to look for danger, assess different situations, and then I spent the last two years working for this firm in San Francisco."

"Don't hit me, but sweetie, you really don't look like a bodyguard." Said Zack.

Trini rolled her eyes, "I'm not really supposed to. As much as I hate to admit it, bodyguards are still predominately men. Celebrities are really the only ones who want their bodyguards to look bulky and menacing. I guess it's so that the paparazzi or the groupies would stay away. Most of the time, I was hired to guard the family members of politicians and businessmen. They would actually prefer their bodyguards to blend in. Sometimes I was little more than a babysitter."

"Okay, which celebrities did you guard, and what kind of gossips do you have for us?' asked Kim excitedly.

"Sorry, Kim. I signed a confidentiality agreement. I can tell you whom I have guarded, but I can't tell you anything about what I have seen or heard."

"Are you kidding me? I would share with you if I had any juicy details."

"Hey, I'm sure your team had a security detail when you were in the Pan Global games or during the Olympic tryouts. Would you have like your bodyguards to tell their friends everything they have seen?"

"Touché!"

"So, when and where is your next assignment?" asked Jason.

Trini shrugged and tucked her legs under her, "actually the reason why I went to see my boss yesterday before coming up here was to hand in my resignation. I spent the last three weeks in Italy chasing after two dimwits who thought the threat of kidnapping was a joke. I have had enough of treating spoiled brats like they are royalties. I did what I had to do, you know, served my time? Anyway, I have learned a lot in the last two years, enough for me to feel comfortable taking the next step, which is for me to put everything together. I am going to go home to Angel Grove after this and start planning, see if I want to establish my business in Angel Grove or some place else. Right now, I'm thinking I will most likely setup shop in either LA or Seattle. I don't want to move too far away. I have a lot to figure out, and of course, I will have to start thinking about hiring new employees, training and all the other stuff. I might even have to consider finding a partner, but I'm not going to think about all that until after the holidays. For now, I just want to catch up with you guys, have some fun." She smiled at the group, "Okay, enough about me, Zack?"

Jason slowly exhaled; glad to know that Trini would at least stick around for a while. Turning his attention to Zack, "Yeah, man, when did you decide to give up dancing?"

"I still dance; I would never give that up, and I would never deprive you guys the joy of watching me dance," grinned Zack. "I'm actually part owner of an amateur dance company in Los Angeles. We are in the process of putting together a show for the end of February. But, I also know that while dancing is my passion, I want more than just to live on bare necessities. A business degree was a safe choice, and I'm happy to say that I made the right decision. I started as a junior copywriter for this advertising firm, then, Billy called out of the blue and now, I have the best of both worlds. I have a job that allows me to have things that I want and I can still find the time to dance. Let me tell you, dancing is a lot more fun when it is not a job."

Jason nodded, "I'm glad you are happy."

"Yeah, life is good. Especially if I can convince our cute little choreographer to go with me to the New Year's bash that Crimson is throwing." Zack winked.

Kimberly smirked, "your so called charms not working?"

Zack shrugged, "she's playing hard to get. Let's move on. Kimmy, the floor is yours."

Kimberly stood up and playfully took a bow, "Well, actually my story is not so different from Zack's. While I love gymnastics, there isn't a whole lot I can do if I don't compete. I don't really see myself contended to teach for the rest of my life. And like Zack, I want a job that allows me to be financially secured. I went into Economics, weird, huh. Considering I had trouble balancing my checkbook. Anyway, Billy was back by the time I graduated and he was working on these wonderful new products but he didn't know what do to beyond producing that product. I volunteered to help. I made all these calls and gotten him into contact with the right people. Billy offered me a job, and there you have it."

"Life is good for you too?" Trini asked.

"Definitely. I'm happier than I have been in a long time. I admit initially it was a lot of work, getting the products manufactured and packaged, getting the word out to the right people, and trying to find distributors that were both high end and willing to take on an unknown. Putting up with rude assistants who kept trying to put me off. But now, it's the other way around. People are calling me. I have a good paying job, and I get invitations everywhere. I love what I do. I guess it would be difficult if I were trying to market encyclopedias or Tupperware or something equally boring, but cosmetics, hey, that's something I know and love. Gymnastics is now a hobby, and I actually love it even more without the constant pressure of doing everything right every time."

Trini nodded and then turned to look at Billy, "I think I'm most surprised by your career choice. Honestly, I'm having such a hard time with all this--" as she waved a hand around the room.

"Like I was telling Jason, I had to give up my dreams of being a NASA scientist or the founder of the next Goggle. I was disappointed, but life is full of trials and tribulations, and I was determined to succeed. I know, Trini, you think that of all the things I could have invented, I came up with some thing so frivolous—"

"Billy, it's not my place to—"

"It's okay. I thought so at first too. But then I realized that while cosmetics might not be life saving like a cure for cancer is, it is important to a lot of people. It makes them feel good about themselves, and that's important also. I like the idea that my product can bring joy and self-confidence to people. And the most important thing is I'm able to give back. I have three thousand employees working in the United States. Imagine that, I'm helping three thousand families to put a roof over their heads and food on the table. So, even if my product isn't as noble as a cure for cancer, it is not wasted."

"Billy, I'm sorry if I had given you the impression that I was criticizing you, I wasn't." Trini said.

"I'm sorry, too." Billy said. "I know you were not, Trini. It's just that I guess a lot of people had expectations of me and I know my dad is not happy about my choice. He thought I have sold out. I guess I was just afraid that you would also think of me that way."

"Billy, I'm proud of you. I don't think you have sold out. That's ridiculous. Just because you are a genius doesn't mean that you are going to be the one to come up with a cure for cancer or aids or any other kind of illness. I'm proud of you because you have made a choice and you are doing the best that you can with what you have chosen to do. Billy, there's nothing wrong with being successful. It's what we all strive to be."

"Thank you, Trini," said Billy, smiling a little.

Zack sat up straight and looked around the room. They have all grown so much. Life had changed all of them, but underneath they were still the same. Jason was still the same strong and noble young man that he remembered from way back when, but there was also certain weariness in his eyes, like he had lived and seen things, unpleasant things, which of course, he had. Trini was still that young, intelligent, quiet girl from high school, but it was apparent that she had gained a fair amount of self-confidence. Little Trini Kwan was all grown up, and she was the one in charge of her own destiny. Kimberly while appeared poised and sophisticated to the outside world, when among friends she was still that bubbly, engaging young girl with the Olympic dreams. Outwardly, Billy had gone from geek to savoir-faire, but he still retained that need to please and his love for Science had not disappeared. All one had to do was to visit his lab back home. And then Zack looked inside himself, sure, he was still the jokester but he also craved to settle down and having a family of his own. Zack sighed, ~in time, it will happen.~ "I see we all seem happy with our career choices," glanced at Jason, "or at least we are contend with them. What about regrets? The biggest disappointment you have since…leaving behind the powers."

"Well, it's not like I don't know that life sucks on occasion, but I never get to realize my Olympic dreams." Kim said dejectedly.

Trini remembered the week she had spent trying to cheer up Kimberly after it was announced that she did not make the team. She turned and smiled at Jason, he returned her smile with slight nod of his head. Trini got up and went over to the couch, pushing Zack over and sat down beside Kimberly, and Kim leaned her head on Trini's shoulder, seeking comfort. "I was so close."

"It's okay, Kim. Just imagine the lack of privacy you would be dealing with now had you won an Olympic medal." Jason said. "Besides, you were a medal winner at Pan Global."

Kimberly stared at Jason, a little put out. "Which no one had ever heard of? Do you know how many times I've gotten huh? what? when I mentioned the Pan Global? If it isn't the Olympics, it doesn't exist! I would have deal with the fame just fine. Damn it, I was born to be a diva. You would think all the good we did as Power Rangers would have guaranteed us some sort of return favors. And it's not like I am asking for anything that I didn't work for. I trained really, really hard. But no, my spot was handed to a pimple faced sixteen year old just because she managed a solid landing and was one fraction of a stinky point ahead of me." Trini patted her back sympathetically while Kimberly continued to rant. "A skinny little brat with zero social skills. And did you see what she was wearing when she went on Letterman? And she was gushing about Michelle Kwan on the Today's show. Hello, she was totally giving free advertisement for the winter Olympics! And the stupid twit got herself a tampon commercial!"

"Kim, you had the Mattel doll, remember?" Trini volunteered hesitantly.

"Which they pulled off the shelve when I didn't make the team! There were less than a hundred sold before they yanked them, and I wanted every girl in America to have one."

"I have one." Trini said, smiling.

"I gave that to you," yelled Kim.

"Right," Trini said, sinking back in her seat.

Jason grinned at Trini sympathetically, "Come on, Kim. Had you made the team, you would be missing all those Bloomingdale sales. You would be two seasons behind all the latest fashions and…shoes."

"Oh, shut up!" Kim grabbed a cushion and threw it at Jason, but she was starting to smile.

"Besides, they would drag you through the mud just on that YouTube video alone." Zack said, grinning somewhat evilly.

"What YouTube video?" Billy asked.

"Wait, you telling me you haven't seen it?" Zack said, that evil grin just gotten wider and a lot more evil.

Billy shook his head while Trini and Jason dug their heads to keep from laughing out loud. Kim pouted, "How was I supposed to know?"

Billy looked from one grinning face to the other, "Anyone wants to share?"

"Oh let me, Please!" Zack put his hands together and begged.

Kim gave a loud "humph" and sat back, crossing her arms in annoyance while Jason and Trini both smiled and waved at Zack, giving him the floor.

"Okay, now this was around the time Kim lost…er…parted ways with the Olympics. I guess you were still on Aquitar. Apparently Victoria Secret was having their semi annual sale, and of course our girl was right there. She got into a little tug-of-war with another shopper over a sexy little piece of pink thong with feather and there were some exchange of words which floozy, slut, skank, tart, trollop, and town whore were thrown around a lot."

"And walking VD!" Trini piped in and quickly made a motion of zipping her lips when Kimberly glared at her.

"Oh please, as if that heifer would have been able to fit into a size small!" Kim groused. "And what kind of pervert take videos with a cell phone at a lingerie store?"

Zack cleared his throat, "Anyway, our girl Kimmy and the…heifer ended up tearing the feather off the thong and I believe our Kim was wielding it as a weapon of sort and the whole thing was caught on video and shown on YouTube with the Rocky theme song playing in the background. There must have been like a million hits on the video."

Billy jumped up, "Computers are in the conference room!"


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