Chapter 10
"I'm just saying that you could've had a better plan than thinking that you lost your contact," Alyssa said. She shook her head as she watched her best friend drop the plastic bag of icy water into the sink. When Violet shot her a glare over her shoulder, her eyebrows rose.
She was no w starting to wonder what sort of relationship her best friend and Billy had, if he rarely acknowledged her. Not only that, but he didn't appear to be happy to see whenever the two came in contact. As a matter of fact, it was as if he didn't really know her at all. And yet, Violet was the one that was consistently gushing to her about the things Billy did for her, the dates they went on, the time they spent together…all with bright smiles and giggly sighs that kept the two of them awake for hours on end when they had their sleepovers.
Every now and then she questioned what was going on with her best friend, never to her face though, as Violet always had a psychotic temper, but she questioned it. If the two of them were so close, then how come they never hung out with each other? Why were the others always disappearing at odd times? Sure she knew Billy had a tendency to be shy, it was why she never found him to be that interesting, to be honest. Jason and Zack had always been the ones that were open and outgoing, even when in kindergarten and most students just wanted to play with their toys all day, they were hanging out with each other. Billy, on the other hand, hadn't managed to come out of his avert shyness until he had become very good friends with the two boys, then Kimberly and Trini, starting especially in the second grade once friendships were formally established.
She had met Violet then and the girl had been just as shy as Billy was, and it was at that age that she had seen the beginning of the infatuation the girl had with the likeminded boy. It was cute at first, by the time they had hit middle school Alyssa truthfully thought that Violet had been holding onto her crush for a little bit too long. Then she had noticed Violet's shift in demeanor as she started talking about the boy more, hearing stories about their dates and everything. She deemed the two of them to be too shy about their peers' opinions of their budding romance and allowed herself to be enthralled by the enchanting and romantic stories of Billy sweeping Violet off her feet with each instance of the good manners that had been bestowed upon him since he was young.
Then she had seen how he was with Trini, or how Trini was with him. They were a little bit too comfortable with each other. She had seen the girl grabbing Billy by the hand and pulling him along a lot. But then again, they were 'the group' of the school and always hung out with each other. She had seen Trini and Kimberly do the same with nearly all of the other boys around them, so it wasn't entirely a big deal. Besides, it wasn't like she didn't get jealous of any girl that seemed to come around Jason as it was.
"It was the best thing I could come up with at the time," Violet remarked. She turned her attention back to the plastic bag that sat in the sink and viciously stabbed it with a fork she pulled out of the drawer of utensils beside her. "If I knew that little runt was going to punt me in the face with a volleyball beforehand, I would've come up with something else." She turned back to Alyssa with a small smile, bringing her hand to the right side of her face, where her skin puffed up.
Alyssa did her best to keep from smiling, bringing her hand up to her mouth as she did so. The she lost it, and lowered her hand from her mouth. "I'm sorry," she apologized. "But it was too funny! I don't think I've never seen people jump out of the way of the ball so fast."
"Well, I'm glad it was so funny to you," Violet said. She continued to press her fingers against the side of her face before walking into the living room and stretching out along the couch. "It still kind of hurts. But…at least Billy and I finally managed to get some time alone, even if it was because he had to check to make sure that I didn't get my contact knocked out."
"It was so cute how he did that," Alyssa said. But this time, her heart didn't agree with her. Beforehand, she would giggle and squeal along with whatever it was she said. But now…there were too many inconsistencies. "It would've been even better if he invited you over once they all left. I mean, I didn't see anyone attack them, but it stinks that it did happen. Maybe some of those monsters followed us out here."
"I don't think so," Violet replied with a light shake of her head. "They seem to be too into wanting to take over Angel Grove. Probably because of the advancements that we've made with space travel and all of that. I mean, we did get those two guys to land on the moon not too long ago." She tilted her head to the side. "As a matter of fact, that's just about the time that the monster attacks started here. And when the Power Rangers showed up."
"You know what you should've done with your project with Billy instead of making that computer?" Alyssa suggested. "You should have used it as a time to figure out who the power rangers are. I mean, Bulk and Skull tried, but they're about as useless as training bras." She laughed as Violet smiled, gently shaking her head. "You could've spent even more time together if you were to do that."
"Yeah…that would've been cool." As if suddenly renewed by Alyssa's suggestion, Violet sat up straight, her eyes lightning up. "But speaking of the computer, I really need to talk to Billy about it. If we're going to get a head start on the work we're doing, and win that award, then we'll have to make sure everything is ready to go by the time we get back to school."
With a light shake of her head, Alyssa rolled her eyes. "God forbid that we have a vacation to actually have a vacation. You're the only one I know that manages to get all of her work done as well as extra credit for the whole year rather than actually hanging out and having some fun." She pouted. "I thought that's what this week was for."
"It is. And to hang out with my boyfriend."
"He doesn't seem so interested in hanging out with you."
The words came out of Alyssa's mouth before she could stop them. And when she closed her mouth she knew she had made a big mistake. Not only had Violet's body suddenly stiffened, but she saw her eyes flash in anger as well as her face suddenly darken. No, it more than darkened. It was as if she was an entirely different person, her face taking on a dark mask, her eyes suddenly empty. In turn, Alyssa's eyes widened as she crunched herself back further against her chair, as if her best friend had suddenly rushed at her from across the room.
Yet, Violet continued to stay where she sat on the couch, glaring at her friend.
"You don't know what you're talking about!" She spat.
"Vi, you have to admit, not everything you've told me about your guys' relationship makes a lot of sense. "Alyssa voice quivered as she spoke. There was something in the way Violet was looking at her that chilled her to the bone, a stab of fear striking her in the heart. "He doesn't always talk to you—"
"—He's shy—"
"—He doesn't ever want to hang out with our friends—"
"—we don't have out with his friends either—"
"—He doesn't acknowledge you at all whenever he sees you. Half the time it's like he doesn't know you exist."
That seemed to have thrown Violet off for a moment as she blinked in surprise. It was there for a second, not much longer. Then her face darkened once more and she gritted her teeth. The mask was there, but now it took on a significant sense of sadness. If not depression. "We want to keep our relationship a secret," she finally said, causing Alyssa's eyebrows to rise. "It's not that we're embarrassed to be with each other or anything. When we're alone everything's just so great. I really had no idea that he was going to be here this week, which is why we're not really doing anything together. Because—"
"—because everyone else will know," Alyssa said. She nodded. That made a lot of sense. The longer the relationship was a secret, the longer they could go without outside opinions. And here she was, telling her friend that her romance was a sham. I guess I really am being a bit of a jerk. With a light sigh, she got up from her chair and crossed the room to flop down onto the couch next to Violet. Her heart continued to hammer against her chest, as if giving out a warning, but she pressed forward anyway. "I'm sorry, Vi."
Violet sniffed and turned her head away. Of course she wasn't going to make it easy; Violet had a flair for being overdramatic when the time called for it. Anything that involved Billy and she was sure to be as dramatic as possible. This was the first guy she really had any sort of feelings for; she just wanted to hold onto the relationship as long as she could.
"Is there anything I can do to make it up to you?" She asked.
Violet thought for a moment then turned back to her best friend with a mischievous glint in her eye. "You can keep the others busy while I go talk to Billy. I'm sure he's worried about me since they left the beach since Rocky was attacked. Which was really strange since nothing like that has ever happened there before."
"I know, I was worried about that, too," Alyssa agreed. She studied Violet's face, her eyebrows furrowing together. Nothing registered over her face as she mentioned the attack. "It was so strange. I mean, Rocky's a black belt, just like most of the rest of them…wouldn't he be able to keep from being attacked so badly? And how did the person manage to do it with so many other people on the beach?"
"I guess we'll never know." Violet pushed herself forward and off the couch. She ran her hands over the seat of her overalls and turned back to Alyssa, grabbing her arm and pulling her to her feet. "C'mon, we have to get going so we'll be back in time for dinner. I'm starving."
"Hey, maybe Billy'll invite you over for dinner," Alyssa said, taking Violet's hand as the two hurried to the front door and slipped outside. "Then you wouldn't have to worry about keeping your secret anymore."
"Yeah. Maybe."
Violet, her back towards Alyssa as she dragged her along the darkened street, rolled her eyes. Gosh, how stupid this girl was. And she never stopped talking. If it weren't for the fact they were best friends, she would've dumped the girl a long time ago. Plus, her obsession with her relationship with Billy was really starting to get on her nerves. What was her business in her relationship with her boyfriend? Why was she always asking soooo many questions whenever she said something about him or what he had done for her? No matter what response she gave, there was another question that was hurtled her way before she could even think of an answer that would finally cease them all.
Oh well. It wasn't anything she had to worry about much longer. Now that she was getting her chance for some alone time with him. The thought along made her grin, a light giggle coming from her lips. The two went up to the beach house and knocked on the door. She stood back and gave a pleasant smile as the door opened and David Cranston looked down at the two girls with a curious expression on his face.
"Yes? May I help you?" He asked. Before the two could respond, he seemed to recognize the two of them and looked back and forth up the street. "Right, Violet and Alyssa. Look, why don't you two come in? I don't want you walking around out there by yourself until we figure out what happened to Rocky." He took a step back and allowed the girls into the house. "Was there something you wanted? It's kind of late for you to be coming by."
"I wanted to talk to Billy about something," Violet explained. She turned around and looked at Alyssa with wide eyes and tilted her head towards the living room, where she heard the voices of the other teenagers. "We're working on something for school and I was getting started on it. But then I got caught up on something and now I really need his help. He's upstairs, right?" It was a guess, after not hearing his voice coming from the living room. Besides, he was like her in the aspect that he would probably be finishing off most of his homework before he went to have fun with the rest of the group.
They always were a bunch of slackers she thought as she went up the stairs, before David could answer her. Not like Billy at all. I don't understand why he decides to be with people that don't have anything in common with him at all. It's ridiculous. Shaking out her hair, Violet smoothed the ringlets down by the sides of her face then pulled it back behind her shoulders. Reaching the top of the stairs, she smiled when she saw the bedroom light on.
Yes. She knew Billy would be hard at work on his school work. And with the others downstairs that gave them some time alone.
She took a deep breath and walked through the doorway to find Billy hunched over his desk, right hand quickly moving across the sheet of paper that was in front of him as he alternatively consulted the textbook that was to his left. No matter what subject he was working on, it certainly had to be something far more advanced than the rest of the rangers. Something she would understand very easily. At least it was a conversation topic.
"You look to be really hard at work," she commented. Startled, Billy fumbled with his pen, shooting it across the room. As he turned to face her, his arm knocked his textbook and notebook to the ground. "Oh. Sorry." She hurried over and helped him pick it up, being sure to lay her hands on top of his or at least in his way when he reached for one of the objects he dropped. She smiled a she cast an odd glance towards her, quickly bringing his hands away. "I didn't mean to scare you."
Billy took a deep breath as he turned towards her. "Is there something I can help you with, Violet?" His tone of voice caused Violet to take a step back. She had never heard him speak to her or anyone that way before.
"I wanted to talk to you," Violet replied. She took a step forward, undeterred. "To have some time alone." She continued taking steps towards him, pausing for a few seconds between each one to be sure that he wasn't going to turn her away. Finally, she reached his side and stretched out her hand, placing it on his wrist. "I wanted to thank you for helping me look for my contact earlier today. And for being so concerned after I had gotten hit with the ball. It was so sweet."
An expression of complete discomfort splayed across Billy's face and he shifted in his seat. Still he didn't take his hand out of her grasp, not finding her to be coming on too forward by any means. "You're welcome, Violet. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some work I need to get back to." He started to turn, but Violet tightened her grip on his wrist, keeping him from moving.
"Really," she continued and leaned closer to him. She was going to have to move faster if he was going to be like this. After everything I've done for him, too, she thought with a light scowl. "I wanted to thank you. You've been so nice to me. For such a long time. Even when no one else seemed to want to have anything to do with me. I mean, you didn't even make fun of me for that sculpture I made of you. Everyone else thought it was funny."
"It…it was nice," he said to her.
"I'm glad you appreciated it." She started to rub his wrist and as she stared into his eyes, she could see him swallow thickly, his Adam's apple bobbing, eyes widening slightly. "It really means a lot that you really did like it. You're so sweet, Billy."
"Violet—"
He didn't get to say more than that as Violet moved forward and cupped his face in her hands, giving him a kiss. She could feel her cheeks burning red as her heart thudded in her chest. She was kissing him. Finally. It was all she had ever wanted and now she was finally doing it. She kissed him with everything she had in her, all the passion she could put into her lips moving over his, her grasp holding tightly onto her. And she continued to kiss him, until she realized something was off. Instead of him holding onto her, his hands pressing into her back and kissing her back just as enthusiastically; instead of kissing her with as much passion that would allow them to lend their hearts to each other, his moved his hands to her wrists.
Opening her eyes, she blinked down at Billy and slowly pulled back as he lowered her hands from his face. Then he dropped his grasp from her and dropped his hands to his lap, pushing back on the carpet with his feet so he gave himself more distance away from her. Violet took a step back away from him, curling her hands towards his chest.
"Billy?"
"Violet." The way he said her name was so final, it cut straight to the bone. "I'm sorry…if I did anything to lead you on. Or to make you think that we could be anything more than friends."
"Friends?" She repeated her voice cracking as she did so. She stared at Billy as if she didn't recognize him.
"Yes," he insisted and stood up so that he could look down at her. "Violet…we're just friends. And that's all we're going to be. I don't feel the same way that you feel about me. But I'm really flattered and you're such a really nice girl. But I just don't feel the same way."
I just don't feel the same way.
I just don't feel the same way.
I just don't feel the same way.
The words echoed in her head over and over again, she couldn't stop them. As she stared at Billy she could see he was watching her, waiting for her reaction. He would probably comfort her if she let it go to her, honestly. He was such a nice guy. The thought alone made her smile.
He's so sweet. He always cares so much about me. I'm so lucky to have a guy like him. She smiled up at him and Billy's eyebrows furrowed together as he watched the smile come up onto her face. She must not have understood what he was saying.
He started to say something else, but his eyes shifted behind her seconds before she felt something pin her arms to her side and she was lifted to her feet. A scream erupted from her mouth seconds before she got a mouthful of feathers. Spitting, she turned her head aside to see that a Tenga had grabbed onto her. She had seen many of them back in Angel Grove, but what were they doing out here at the beach?
From where she was, she could hear the sound of frantic movements from downstairs and realized that the rest of the bird monsters were attacking the others downstairs as well. Billy fell into a fighting stance and glared at the monsters around them.
"What do you bird brains want?" He asked, twisting and turning his head as he watched the birds continue to squawk and flop around.
"The same thing we always want, human!" The Tenga replied and leapt to attack.
A/N: At the moment I'm not sure how long this story will be, though I know I'm not going to have it drawn out for too long. Probably 20 or 25 chapters at the most.
Thanks to 1980sjfk, lizziestrong, Halfcent, and Guest for reviewing.
~Avalon