Chapter 13:
The Doll Queen Part II
Kim let out a slow breath as she looked down briefly to make sure her feet were in the perfect position. She brought her arms down, bent at the knees, and jumped backwards, successfully performing two back tucks before landing on the mat, raising her arms to the air proudly.
"That was amazing, girl," Aisha praised her, holding out her pink water bottle. "You're going to kill at the school's Expo."
"You sure that was good? I don't think I stuck the landing, I was off balance a little," Kim said between gulps of water before wiping her mouth with the back of her hand.
"From what I could see you were amazing," Aisha replied. "You have nothing to worry about, Kim. Your dismounts are great. As long as your head doesn't get a bit too big to knock you off balance you'll be fine." Aisha laughed as she lightly pushed Kim on the forehead.
"Stop," Kim giggled, swatting Aisha's hand away. "I wonder where everyone else is. They said they'd meet us here a few minutes ago."
"What's a few minutes? They're boys; they're known to be late."
The gang had woken up to a beautiful Sunday morning so they decided to spend it having a picnic at the lake. The girls had arrived at the Youth Center, their meeting spot, on time. The guys, however, were now ten minutes late.
"Do you want a smoothie while you wait, Kimberly?" Ernie asked, wiping down a counter.
"No thanks, Ernie, I had a big breakfast," she replied, rubbing her stomach for emphasis before looking at the clock. "I'm going to shower and change. They should be here by the time I get out," Kim said as she gathered her things.
"So that'll be in the next hour?" Aisha grinned as Kim playfully swatted her on the arm. Kim went off in the direction of the girls' locker room as Aisha went over to the table where Trini and Melody were sitting, drinking their smoothies as they waited. "What ever happened to that dance with Rocky?" She asked, nudging Melody on the shoulder.
Melody let of the straw that was in her mouth and looked at Aisha. "What?" She questioned simply.
"Rocky was saying how he was going to ask you to dance the last dance with him. We got him to talk to Zack to try and convince you to get him to play one more song before we left. We knew you were going to call the party at a certain time," Aisha explained.
"You California girls are not subtle are ya?" Melody asked. "See, we Florida girls are a little more laid back."
"And in denial," Aisha said in a singsong voice.
"Oh don't get me started."
"Girls, please. We're supposed to spend this day enjoying each other's companies and enjoying the sunshine, not fighting," Trini quickly cut in. "Although I do hope they get here soon so we cans set up the volleyball net. I want to be in shape for volleyball club once it starts up again."
"What club are you in, Aisha?" Melody asked.
"The music club," Aisha replied. "We perform at some school events. We're trying to get the school board to let us play at Prom. They keep saying now but we think we're close to getting them to budge. What about you? You have to join a club soon, don't you? Why don't you join the music club?"
Melody scrunched up her nose. "No thanks, I like music, but not school-approved music."
"Hey, some of it can be cool."
"Whatever you say, Ms. Glee Club."
"Hey ladies," Zack cheered, walking into the Youth Center. "Are you ready to rock and roll?" He did a few intricate dance moves that ended with a little spin. "Hey, dudes, where's Kimberly?"
"She's showering, she'll be out in a few minutes," Trini replied.
"Aww, we don't have three hours," Zack joked.
"Gee, Zack, I love you too," Kim said as she walked out of the locker room and stared at him, her arms crossed over her chest.
"Gee, Kim, your hair is looking lovely today," Zack said with a grin, turning to face Kim.
"Thanks Zack," she said with a little eye roll. "What took you guys so long?"
"We had to make a little pit stop to get all of the food."
"All of you?"
"Yeah, now come on, the guys are waiting. Jason's going to drive you girls and Rocky's taking the rest of us," Zack said as they all moved towards the exit of the Youth Center. "Is there anything you girls need before we head out?"
"No, we're good, let's just go!" Trini said impatiently, shoving Zack out the doors. They laughed as Zack was shoved out the door with Trini's firm hand. By looking at the beautiful Asian woman you wouldn't know she was that strong. She actually took on the air of someone delicate, with her soft features and her soft voice. But she, like Aisha, could become quick to anger and was one fierce competitor. That's probably why they were both drawn to the power of the saber-toothed tiger.
Kim looked over her shoulder when she noticed that Melody was walking a bit slower than the rest of them. She slowed her own walk and fell into step with Melody, throwing her arm around her shoulder. "Are you ok, hun?" she asked in concern.
Melody tore her eyes away from the pavement and looked at the girl. "Yeah, I just didn't get much sleep last night. With the party and all…" She forced a smile.
"Yeah, it was a good one. Rocky outdid himself this time," Kim agreed. She glanced at Melody again when she didn't respond. "But something else is on your mind."
"No, not really." Melody shrugged. Kim stared at her. "Ok, just…don't tell the others. I don't want them worrying over nothing and you know how they worry over nothing." Kim nodded and bit her lip. To her it was nothing; to them it was the fear of being attacked at any moment. Melody glanced around and saw that the guys were still packing the two red jeeps that were sitting in the parking lot. Melody lowered her voice just to be safe. "I had this dream…I think it was a dream. It felt so real I just…I don't know. Anyway, in the dream we were at the lake having fun and then it…suddenly switched. I remember being in pain, a lot of pain, and…and hearing Rita and Zedd's laughter. Evil, malicious laughter as the pain got worse. I remember, the Power Rangers were trying to get to me but…something was stopping them. I just don't know what and…I woke up."
"Wow, some dream," Kim said with a nervous laugh. "I'm sure that's all it was, a dream because the Power Rangers have always succeeded in rescuing anyone that's been captured. Now relax. It's a beautiful day." She took Melody's hand and pulled her over to Jason's jeep.
"All right, we're ready to go!" Adam announced before hopping into the passenger side of Rocky's jeep.
"Ok, which one of you ladies wants to ride in the front?" Jason asked, spinning his keys around his finger.
"Trini does," Kim said, shoving the Asian.
"I don't want to put anyone out," she replied calmly although she was glaring at Kim.
"Why don't I just think of a number?" Jason suggested. "Ok, I got one."
"Eight," Aisha replied.
"Twelve," Melody said.
"Nine," Kim said.
"Thirteen," Trini said.
"It was fourteen; looks like you're the lucky one, Trin." Jason smiled.
"Right," she said a little half heartedly.
Adam glanced over at Rocky as they drove down the road. Tommy, Zack, and Billy were in the backseat discussing what they wanted to do first at the beach. Rocky and Adam were the only ones that were silent and that's what bothered Adam the most. Rocky was a livewire, always jumping into topics giving his opinion, making jokes here and there. He was as still as a statue, keeping his eyes on the road, his jaw clenched as if he was trying to keep words from coming out of his mouth.
"What's up?" He finally asked.
Rocky glanced at him and quickly returned his attention to the road. "Nothing," Rocky replied.
"You're not talking," Adam pressed.
Rocky shrugged. "I'm tired."
"Rocky, I've known you for a long time. I can tell when something is bothering you," Adam said gently. "Now tell me what's wrong."
Rocky let out a sharp breath through his nose. "You know how I was telling you about how my mom kept my letters from me?" Adam nodded. How could he not know? Rocky's been obsessing over it for the past couple of days even though he hadn't done anything about it, until now that is. "Well, I finally talked to my mom about it." The hard look settled once Rocky's face once more.
"Annnnd?" Adam prompted.
"She kept my letters from me because she was afraid that I would have found out her secret and told Mel," he responded.
"What does Melody have anything to do with it?" Adam asked, confused.
Rocky clenched the steering wheel a little bit tighter. "Mom had an affair with Melody's dad," he replied through clenched teeth. "It went on for years, apparently. Even after we had moved. All the business trips she went on were to see Mr. Williams. The entire time my mom's been cheating on my dad with my best friend's dad. The entire time!" He smacked the steering wheel 'causing Adam to jump. The others didn't notice because of the rushing wind that filled their ears.
"Wait…does your dad know about this?" Adam asked.
"Yeah, he found out two years ago, but that was supposedly after they had stopped the affair. Dad was upset for a while. Remember that time when I stayed over at your house for a few weeks?" Adam nodded. "It was because I didn't want to be at home because mom and dad were fighting all the time. After a while they went to counseling and they say that they're doing fine but…I don't think dad trusts her that much anymore."
"Well, what about you?" Adam questioned.
"What about me?"
"How're you feeling?"
"How'm I feeling?" Rocky repeated. "I'm pissed off, man! How could my mom do this to my dad? How could she throw away such a perfectly good relationship like that? I mean, what drove her to do it in the first place?"
"These are the things you're supposed to be asking her, not me," Adam pointed out. "What are you more upset about, the fact that she cheated or the fact that she cheated with your best friend's father?" Rocky stayed silent. "I think you need to talk to Melody about this."
Rocky shook his head. "I don't think I can. I mean, I don't know where to start. What if she doesn't know?"
"But what if she does and she's waiting to get an idea if she can talk to you about it?"
"She would've told me if she knew."
"Would she? What makes you think she didn't tell the girls instead?"
"Because she always tells me things first."
"She's not the same Melody that you grew up with."
Rocky's anger flared. "How would you know? You don't know her like I do. Trust me; I'll be the first one she tells."
They finally arrived at the lake about an hour later. The girls went in search for a place to put their things as the guys unloaded the two jeeps. Zack, grinning, grabbed two water guns and walked up silently behind the girls.
"Oh, he's going to regret that," Jason sighed, watching Zack moving as quickly and as quietly as possible. "Trini's going to kill him."
"My bet's on Kim," Tommy said, glancing at his friend. "Five bucks?"
"You're on."
The boys all turned their attention to the African American boy that had finally reached his target. Laughing manically, he started spraying them with water as they yelled at him. Aisha and Melody started laughing as Kim complained about getting her hair went. Trini yelled something at Zack before chasing him down the beach.
"Ha! You owe me five bucks, bro," Jason said as he held out his hand and wiggled his fingers.
"I was sure it would've been Kim. She just got her hair done," Tommy muttered as he dug in his pockets for money. He slapped the five dollars into Jason's palm, who smiled smugly. Tommy rolled his eyes and grabbed a cooler, walking over to the girls who were drying themselves with their towels.
"Face it, man, you just don't know the girls as well as I do," Jason said with a shrug, grabbing the cooler of food.
"And you do?"
"Of course, well I know Kim and Trini well, at least."
"So you think you know more about Kim than I do?" Tommy asked in a friendly challenging tone.
"Isn't that what I just said?" Jason replied, lifting an eyebrow. "I've known her longer, hence I know her better." He started walking onto the beach as Tommy followed him.
"I bet you don't," Tommy replied.
"What is with people wanting to challenge me all of a sudden?" Jason asked with a little laugh. "First it's my replacement and now you. Next thing I know Adam's going to want to fight me because I said hi to Aisha." Adam blushed and turned his head away as the rest of the guys laughed. "Don't think we haven't noticed, man. You two are pretty close."
"We're friends," was all Adam said.
"You must not think of her that way by the way you look at her," Rocky said, elbowing him in the ribs.
"You do have a certain way of beholding her in a way of utmost jubilation," Billy pointed out. They all turned to look at him. He sighed and said simply, "He has a certain way of looking at her that's different from looking at Kimberly or Trini."
"See, even Billy's noticed," Rocky said lightly punching him on the arm. "Why don't you do something about it, man?"
Before Adam could reply a volleyball rolled in their direction. They looked up to see Trini standing in front of them, her hands on her hips. "Could you hurry it up, boys? I want to play some volleyball."
"Well, maybe if you'd help us carry these things we'd get there faster," Rocky pointed out. She smiled and took the volleyball gear from him and carried it back to the beach by herself. "She's not human, I swear."
"I heard that," she called over her shoulder and Rocky flinched as the others laughed.
They finally got everything set up and they rushed into the lake. Melody stayed behind, promising to guard their things. Kim and Aisha tried to convince her to get into the water with them but she politely decline each time.
"Something's going on with her," Aisha said as they walked into the lake, climbing onto their inflatable raft and laying back on it.
"I thought I was the only one who noticed," Kim sighed. "She was telling me about this dream she had last night and how vivid it was. She said not to worry but I think it scared her."
"Really? What was it about?" Aisha asked. She sat there, listening intently as Kim repeated word for word what Melody had told her. "Wow, some dream. I'd be out of it as well if I had that dream."
"That's not it," Kim continued. "I'm worried that something's going on at her home. She's acting kinda the way I did when my parents split up from what Trini and Jason told me."
"Do you think something's going on with her parents?" Aisha asked.
"I don't know. But that letter thing? Remember what Rocky was telling us? If his mom kept his letters then Melody's parents would have had to keep hers as well if Rocky didn't get any. They said they were finally going to ask their parents about it. Maybe they did and they told her something that upset her. It would explain why she's suddenly totally bummed."
"Let's see if she'll talk about it. If not we can let her know that we'll be here for her when she's ready to talk."
"Good idea." The two girls rolled off of the raft and waded to the shore. "Wait," Kim said suddenly. "What about Trini?"
"She's doing fine on her own," Aisha laughed, looking where Aisha was playing Chicken with some of the guys. The girls laughed as Trini knocked over Zack. "C'mon girl, let's go." They walked up onto the beach and dropped down beside Melody, grabbing their towels and drying themselves off.
"If I didn't know any better I'd say that you were afraid of the water," Kim tried to joke. Melody barely cracked a smile.
"I just don't trust it, what with monsters running around and all," Melody replied.
"It's perfectly safe," Aisha told her.
"Yeah, I've been coming here all my life. I've never seen a monster," Kim agreed. Melody didn't respond, she just kept looking out at the horizon. Kim glanced at Aisha who nodded and she sighed. "Look, Mel, we're worried. You were quiet on the way up here and you didn't even sing along to your favorite songs on the radio. What's going on?"
"Nothin'," Melody replied.
"Ok, I'm going to ask you again and this time I don't want you to lie to me," Kim said sternly. "What's wrong?"
Melody slowly shook her head. "My parents," she responded. "They are, uh, thinking of moving to Los Angeles." Why did you lie, Mel? Why not just tell them the truth about your parents divorcing? It's not that hard, Kim's parents are divorced as well. She knew the answer to her own question, it was because she didn't know if she wanted to move with her mother or not. She had an amazing dance opportunity in Los Angeles but she didn't want to leave Angel Grove either and she knew if she waited any longer her parents would probably decide for her.
"What? Why? You just got here," Aisha said.
"I know. Mom got a good job offer in Los Angeles and Mom and Dad usually don't pass up chances like that. That's why we moved here in the first place," Melody replied. "It's just…I don't want to go but they keep pushing it on me saying that I'll have an amazing dancing opportunity in Los Angeles."
"What're you going to do?" Kim asked.
Melody shrugged. "There's not much I can do, is there? If my Mom decides to take it I'll have to go." Stop lying! She yelled to herself but she couldn't get the words to stop coming out of her mouth.
"If you do leave…when do you go?" Aisha asked.
"Saturday," Melody replied. Kim and Aisha sucked in their breaths. "I know, it sucks." She sighed. "Don't…don't tell Rocky about this, ok? Not until my parents have made a decision, at least. I don't want to bum him out."
"But don't you think he will get bummed if you randomly leave?"
"I'll tell him, eventually, just not now. He's too happy."
"Ok," Kim sighed.
"Promise," Melody said firmly.
"We promise," Aisha said, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. "Just don't wait too long to tell him, ok?"
"I won't," Melody promised.
"Hey guys, we're going to break out the jet skis," Rocky said as he and Adam ran up onto the beach. "You have to come out."
"Uh, no thanks, I'm going to get something to eat. I'm kind of hungry," Kim said with a small smile. "But don't let me stop you, go and have fun. I'll have everything set up for when you get hungry."
"Then you might want to get it set up I the next instant knowing Rocky," Aisha said, standing, and lightly slapping Rocky on the stomach with the back of her hand. She gave him a teasing smile and he rolled his eyes in return, smiling as well.
Adam watched the exchange with a tiny smile on his face however, on the inside; a tiny monster was clawing at his chest trying to get out, wanting to pummel Rocky into the ground. He's my best friend, he wouldn't do anything to hurt me, he told himself, shaking his head a bit to knock out any bad thoughts that threatened to enter his mind.
"Bammers, are you coming, or are you still afraid of the water?" Rocky asked with a good natured smile.
"I never was afraid of water," Melody replied.
"Right, you just wouldn't go into it because you didn't want to get your hair wet." She glared. "Come on, it's a lot of fun, I promise, and if you do fall off or start to drown or whatever I'll get you. I'm a lifeguard."
"Since when?" She asked, lifting an eyebrow.
"Since I took the test a few months ago," he replied.
"No, I think I'll just go after lunch," Melody said, shaking her head a bit. "Besides I think they're getting kinda antsy. Don't want them to wait."
"Ok, but you're taking a spin around the lake before we leave."
"Yeah yeah." She pushed Rocky's finger out of her face. They quickly did their 'secret' handshake before the Stone Canon trio dashed down the beach.
"You should've gone, I would've been fine by myself," Kim told her.
"I just didn't feel like it right now," Melody replied, watching them get the jet skis up and running and started moving across the surface of the lake.
"Hey ladies, how come you're not in the water?" Jason asked, walking over to the girls, a Frisbee in his hands.
"I wanted to get lunch set up for when they get back. They're sure to get big appetites," Kim replied.
"And I just didn't feel like it," Melody said.
"Well, do you feel like taking a walk with me?" he asked. Melody glanced at Kim, as if asking for her permission. Kim laughed and nodded, patting Melody on the back. She got up and brushed sand off of her shorts and started walking with him down the beach. They walked in silence; the only sound that filled the air was the sound of the jet skis and the water that gently lapped against the shore.
"Hey Melody, are you ok? You were kinda quiet the entire ride up," Jason finally spoke up.
"It's nothing, I just have a lot on my mind," Melody replied, pushing her hair behind her ear.
"Well, it's not good to keep it bottled up. I think I can give good advice."
Melody sighed and looked up at the clear, blue sky. "You know how Rocky was saying how his mom kept his letters from him?" Jason nodded. "And if his mom kept his letters and he never got mine that means one of my parents kept mine," she continued. "Well, last night I found out why my dad kept my letters."
"Why?" Jason asked, urging her to continue.
"My dad kept my letters because my dad had an affair with Rocky's mom," Melody admitted, feeling a weight lift off her chest. She looked at Jason to see that his lips were parted slightly as if he were trying to find something to say. "So, a few days ago apparently, my mom found out. She got mad at my dad, yelled at him for a bit, and she moved out. She's planning on moving to Los Angeles and stay with my Aunt until she gets a new job."
"Oh. Mel–" Jason started.
"That's not the worst part," Melody said with a bitter laugh. "Apparently my mom and dad are letting me decide if I want to move to Los Angeles or stay here. Mom is pressuring me with a dancing opportunity in L.A. while dad is begging me to stay here and I have to decide by Saturday 'cause that's when Mom is moving out all together."
"Wow," was all Jason uttered. "I…uh…maybe you can…um…huh…"
"Yeah, it's not that easy," Melody commented shaking her head. "They're being so…so damn selfish!"
"How?" Jason asked.
"Because they don't care how this is going to affect me. They don't care at all; all they care about are themselves. I mean, they didn't care when they decided to just uproot us all and move here in the first place. I mean, my dad kept this from me for years. Years. And it's my best friend's mother too! He's…he's the reason Rosalie hated me for a few years. The entire fucking time I've been wondering what I did to make her hate me and now I realize it was my dad the entire freaking time!" She paused in the middle of her rant to take in a breath. "And my mom wants me to uproot against just like that? She doesn't care that I just got reconnected to Rocky, unless she wants me to move because of him and if that's the case then she's being a huge bitch about it. I mean, she's just giving up a friendship because of something stupid my dad did? Well, in her case I understand but Mom shouldn't make me choose to leave my friend behind again!"
"Uh, maybe you should sit down," he suggested, leading her over to the small dock and sat down at the edge. Melody, still steaming, glared at the horizon of the lake. "Have you talked to your parents about all of this? How you think it's unfair to you?" He asked gently. She shook her head. "I think, most importantly, you talk to your parents and make sure they understand how you feel about what they're doing to you. Otherwise, they won't understand how you're feeling at all."
"Easier said than done," she commented with a scoff.
"I know it's hard. Parents are on a different planet than us, but you'll feel better once they know," he said putting a hand on her shoulder.
"This…is just so fucked up," she muttered, wiping furiously at her cheeks at the tears she didn't know had fallen.
"I know, but it'll be ok. You have all of us here to help you through it and…if you decide to leave, we'll accept that decision as well." He hugged her to his side, resting his cheek on top of her head as she rested her head on his shoulder.
"Hey guys, lunch is…ready…" they turned around to see Kim standing behind them, squinting because of the sun, pushing her hair behind her ears. "Am I…interrupting something?" She asked slowly.
"Nothing at all," Melody replied, standing and brushing dirt off of her shorts. "I'm starved, we better get back before Rocky eats it all."
"After knowing Rocky for a bit you should know that I've come prepared in case he does end up eating everything," Kim laughed although it sounded strained.
"Ok then, let's go," Jason said with a small smile. The trio walked back to where their friends were and sat down, reaching out for some of the lunch.
"Where were you guys?" Trini asked.
"By the dock, talking," Jason responded.
"About what?"
He shrugged. "Just stuff." He shifted his attention over to Kimberly who was picking at her sandwich, staring hard at it. "It won't bite you," he joked. Kim looked up and smiled at him. He frowned. The smile on her face was bright but her eyes didn't light up like they used to. "Are you ok, Kim?" He asked in concern, getting everyone's attention.
"Yeah, I'm just kinda tired," she replied. "Didn't get much sleep, I'm excited for the school's Expo. What are you guys going to do for it anyway?"
"Jase and I were thinking of doing a martial arts demonstration," Tommy replied, nudging his friend and grinning.
Kim rolled her eyes and frowned in a playful manner. "That's what they expect you to do. Last I checked this Talent Expo was to show people something that others don't know."
"Yeah, like I'm going to do some magic," Zack said with a grin. "I'm sure to win Angela over that way." The others laughed. This was idea # 347 in the book of ideas to win over the girl of his dreams. "What about you, Trini?"
"I wanted to do something for the Japanese part of my family instead of the Vietnamese side so I decided to do a demonstration on the art of Origami," she replied happily. "Not only does it take delicate hands and patience but it also helps take away stress."
"It's just folding paper," Rocky commented with a full mouth, bits of chicken falling out of his sandwich onto his knee. He scooped up the pieces and shoved them into the mouth as the others looked at him in disgust. "How does that help you 'relax'?" He did finger quotes with one hand.
Trini's eyes flashed. "Origami is not as easy as it looks."
"Then what do you call a cootie catcher?" He asked.
"Hey Rocks, what's your favorite flower?" Melody asked suddenly.
"I don't know, daisies? Why?" He questioned.
"I'm just trying to figure out what flowers you want for your grave," she replied, noticing the murderous look in Trini's eyes.
"Don't, Trin, he's just being ignorant," Jason said, patting her on the knee. She nodded but didn't take her eyes off of Rocky who seemed to shrink under her gaze. "What were you planning on doing?"
"I don't know, I haven't thought of anything yet. I don't really do anything besides martial arts," he replied with a shrug.
"Except eat," Adam pointed out. "You could have an Expo all about eating."
Aisha suddenly got a mischievous grin on her face. "Or you could do your Expo with Melody on dancing."
Rocky laughed. "I don't dance, Sha."
"Yes you do," she insisted. Rocky's eyes hardened and he stared at Aisha as if begging her not to continue. Her smile got bigger as she looked at Adam. "Remember? Summer, eighth grade?" A light bulb must've gone off in Adam's head because he started laughing hysterically.
"What's going on? Did we miss a joke?" Tommy asked. Adam managed to shake his head before bursting into another round of laughter. "Then what is it?"
"Rocky–" Aisha started.
"Aisha, I swear…" Rocky threatened, suddenly serious. Kimberly's eyebrows flew up. She has never heard Rocky sound so serious before, but he surpassed normal seriousness. No, he was dead serious. His jaw was clenched and a muscle was twitching in the side and his brown eyes were hard, glaring at Aisha.
Aisha decided to take him on. "Rocky DeSantos, this Rocky DeSantos, can salsa dance." Everyone was dead silent before sounds of air passing through pressed lips filled the air and they burst out laughing. Kim didn't laugh; she just had a look of disbelief on her face. Billy actually seemed interested in what she had said and Melody was sitting there with a half amused, half intrigued look on her face. Rocky blushed and looked down at his lap.
"You promised you wouldn't say anything," he muttered as the laughter died down. He could feel Melody's eyes burning holes into the side of his head.
"I don't get why you've been keeping it a secret, you're really good at it," Aisha said, shaking her head. "Good enough to win three first place prizes in the competitions you've entered," she continued in a firm tone, causing the laughter to die down. "The way I see it, you and Mels could team up and enter the Expo together. It'll be a great way to show the students a dance from a different culture and I'm sure Ms. Appleby will enjoy the demonstration."
"That's not the point, Aisha!" Rocky cried, jumping to his feet. They all stared at him in shock. The serious side to Rocky was something rarely seen but the mad side of Rocky was even rarer. "I told you I didn't want to talk about it but you go and blab anyway."
"Whoa, man, I think you need to calm down," Tommy said, getting to his feet and holding his hands out in front of him incase Rocky decided to strike something. "Aisha was just trying to help."
"I didn't ask for her help. She needs to mind her own damn business."
"That's enough, Rocky," Adam said sternly, also getting to his feet. "Aisha was just trying to give you an idea for something to do at the Expo, it's not like she stabbed you in the back or anything. We know you're having a rough time at home but there's no need to take it out on her."
"Just…forget it!" Rocky snapped, shoving Adam away from him. He stomped down the beach to get to the jet skis that were sitting on the lip of the sand.
"Rocky, stop!" Kim called after him but he wouldn't stop moving. "Sorry Aisha," she hastily apologized for him. Aisha had been sitting there, her mouth open slightly as Rocky yelled at her, a hurt expression on was on her face. "I'll go get him."
"No, I will," Melody said, jumping up and running after him.
"I was only trying to help," Aisha explained.
"We know, Sha," Adam said, kneeling next to her and putting a hand on her shoulder. "Rocky's just in a bad place right now. I don't want to make excuses for him, but he's not himself. Please don't take it personally, I'm sure once he calms down he'll come back and apologize for everything. Ok? Don't dwell on it; things have been rough for him." Aisha nodded and patted Adam's hand, whispering thank you under her breath. "Everything will be ok, you'll see."
Rocky had gotten to the jet ski and was hastily pulling on his life jacket when Melody reached him. "Pebbles, stop, you're being ridiculous!" She said sternly, pushing her jet black hair out of her face. "Get off that thing and go back and apologize to Aisha."
"I told her to stop talking about it," Rocky said without turning around.
"She was just trying to help you, Pebbles! It's not like she killed your dog!" Melody cried out, throwing her arms into the air. "Aisha's your friend."
"She didn't act like one," Rocky muttered. "I didn't want anyone to know for a reason. I didn't want anyone making fun of me."
"Do you hear us making fun of you? And if anyone should be upset it should be me."
"You!" Rocky whirled around and looked at her as if she were crazy. "Why should you be upset?"
"Well, for one thing, you kept that from me. We don't keep things from each other, Pebbles. For all I know, you could have been keeping the fact that your mom and my dad had an affair from me, too. Because of you finding out about the freaking letters that your mother kept in the freaking first place, I found out that because of your same mother my parents are getting divorced!" Melody shouted at him.
Rocky stood there, stunned. "Your parents are splitting up?" He questioned.
"Yes! My dad kept my letters so I wouldn't tell you of the affair that my dad and your mom had. My mom found out and she's currently packing up her stuff and leaving for Los Angeles while my dad mopes around like a freaking wounded puppy! All the while you're acting like a jackass because Aisha spilled one secret. You're acting like it's the end of the freaking world when, really, you're lucky your family is still intact!"
Rocky didn't know what to say. She just dropped a huge bomb on him and he suddenly realized how ridiculous he was acting. "Woooow, Imma jerk," he muttered.
"You get that way sometimes," Melody commented.
"Do you want to go for a ride now? I don't know about you but I don't think I'm going to be welcomed back that easily, especially after I blew up at Aisha."
"Uh…yeah sure. They wanted me to make sure you cooled off anyway." She took the lifejacket he was holding out to her and slipped it on before helping him push the jet ski into the water. He got on first and she got on behind him, resting her hands on his waist as she surged the jetski forward.
"Yes! Now's the perfect moment!" Rita cackled, moving her telescope out of the way. "Goldar! Go to the park with Putties to distract the Rangers. VooDoo Monster, I want you to get Melody and bring her back here."
"This is a big waste of time," Zedd announced. "I am finally close to finding the location to our ultimate weapon to defeating the Power Rangers."
"I've spent too much time planning this to stop now," Rita snapped at Zedd. "Go, now, before it's too late!" She ordered.
"Yes your evilness," Goldar said with a little salute before he, some putties, and the VooDoo monster disappeared in a flash of light.
"You're wasting your time," Zedd repeated to Rita.
"You're right, I am," she replied, turning to face him. "I'm wasting my time being with you. I haven't done anything but become held back whenever it comes to fighting the Power Rangers or sending down monsters. I have more power than this but you're what's stopping me from coming out on top."
"Newsflash, Motormouth, the Power Rangers are what's stopping you from coming out on top, not me," Zedd pointed out.
"No! You're the one who keeps holding me back and stopping me from reaching my full potential! I can beat the Power Rangers! I can!" Rita ignored the fact that she sounded like a kid throwing a tantrum. Zedd could really get on her nerves sometimes and it was that that drove her to wanting to prove herself to him.
Zedd chuckled. "We'll see, Rita, we'll see. I might as well get comfortable, once your plan fails again you're going to want to kiss my feet and beg me to help you."
Rita made a face.
"What was that?" Melody yelled over the side of the jet ski as they sped across the lake. Something had shot at the water next to them and exploded. She ducked when a beam of energy flew over her head and hit the water behind them, spraying mist onto them. She glanced towards the beach and saw that some Putties and Goldar had appeared. "Looks like we have some company," she told Rocky.
"Yeah, one that apparently wants to turn us into Swiss cheese," Rocky added, jerking the handlebar of the jet ski to avoid another beam of energy. Melody looked in the direction where the energy blasts were coming from and saw a monster standing on the little island in the middle of the lake. It was human-like in shape but had a giant clock on its stomach and seemed to resemble a grandfather clock. "Hold on, Mel." She wrapped her arms around his stomach as he sped up and quickly turned, creating a wave of water as he tried to speed off in the opposite direction.
"There's no point in running. You might as well give up the girl," the monster called.
"Oh great, now they're looking for me personally," Melody muttered sarcastically. 'The monster's not going to stop until it gets me. There's no point in letting the others get hurt but I don't know what they–'
Her thought was cut off when a beam of energy hit the water right underneath the jet ski. The force of the blast made the jet ski flipped. Her world spun around as she and Rocky were hurtled towards the surface of the lake. She closed her eyes before she smacked into the water. The next thing she knew her body slammed against cold, stone floor.
"Finally the monster got you," Rita's voice rang out. Melody slowly pushed herself to her knees. She tapped her chin. "Maybe I won't need to use the monster. Maybe I could just turn you evil and use you against the Power Rangers. They wouldn't be able to touch you and I could finally take over the world."
"I wouldn't help you do anything," Melody spat, glaring at the witch.
Rita rolled her eyes. "You're helping me by just being here. You, little girl, are going to help me defeat the Power Rangers once and for all."
"How?" Melody questioned, glaring hard at Rita.
"You're not going to survive so I might as well tell you my plan," Rita said as calmly as someone saying that a tissue box was on a table. "The monster that I sent to attack you and your friends? It has a part of your DNA in it." She smiled maliciously. "Whatever attack they land on the monster…hurts you instead. It's up to them to decide if they're rather save the Earth and sacrifice you or sacrifice the Earth and save you." She cackled as the color drained from Melody's face. "But what makes you so special?" Rita continued. "Why would I want to capture you, a normal human? What makes you so special?" Rita then laughed.
"What's so funny?" Melody demanded, trying to stall for time.
"What you don't know what's right under your nose," Rita replied. "What you don't know?" She asked in fake shock. "Since it's your last moments of life I'll tell you the one thing your so called best friends wouldn't tell you." She took a step closer to Melody. "Your friends, your former friends really, are the Power Rangers."
"You're lying. They wouldn't keep something like that from me," Melody snarled but in the back of her head all her previous suspicions pointed towards the answer. They did run off randomly quite a bit, which was odd because they all went off together and came back blurting out some random excuse. If a group of Putties attacked more times than not they made her leave them to fight the Putties alone. Now that she thought of it, after watching numerous news reports their fighting styles really did resemble those of her friends, such as how the Pink Ranger tended to use more of an acrobatic fighting style. And they did dress in the same colors as certain rangers for the most part…
Rita smiled when she saw that the news was sinking into Melody's brain. "Sorry to break it to ya, but I figured you might as well know before your own friends kill you."