"Twenty-one messages," Trini groaned. "And all from Kimberly."

Jason chuckled. "She was worried about you."

"She didn't have to be worried. She knew I was with you," Trini protested.

"You're still not the type to break curfew," he pointed out.

"I didn't have a curfew! We were supposed to meet for breakfast this morning," she complained. Glancing at the numbers on the phone, her expression darkened. "She started calling me at ten last night! And she didn't stop until... three in the morning!"

By that point, Jason was laughing outright.

"It's not funny! Okay, it's not that funny." Now she was starting to giggle, too. Stupid, infectious laughter. "You can stop laughing now."

Struggling to calm himself enough that he could speak, Jason added, "And she didn't call me until after eight this morning. I guess that means she just doesn't love me as much as she loves you..."

"That or she loves you enough not to bother you all night," Trini muttered.

Jason laughed and gave her a quick hug, which was nice but did nothing about the fact that she still had seventeen messages to (half) listen to and delete. "We should probably get going soon," she said, realizing that while she was technically on vacation, Jason was not.

"We could stop and get breakfast first if you want."

"Aren't you going to be late to work?"

He shrugged. "I'm already late."

"Doesn't that bother you?"

"Not enough," he said, grinning. "This was more than worth it. And it isn't as if I'm the only one there in the morning. They'll survive without me for an hour or two."

She gave him a skeptical look, but didn't push the matter. He was a grown man, if he wanted to play hooky from work there was really nothing she could do about it.

Jason dropped her off at her hotel after a quick breakfast, and from there she took a quick power nap, spent some time getting cleaned up, and called Kimberly to set up a lunch date. As she waited for Kim to come pick her up, she felt a vague sense of dread wash over her. She was going to have to explain this somehow, and hopefully do it with dignity intact. Kim was not exactly merciful when it came to her friends' love affairs.

Kimberly arrived exactly on time, but even when she had Trini effectively trapped in her car, she held her tongue. She was obviously excited about the news; Trini had to wonder what she was waiting for, but she didn't dare ask.

They headed for a small cafe downtown that Kimberly liked, where they could have a mostly private lunch together. When they were settled and the waiter was gone, Kimberly pounced. "So you finally jumped Jason?"

"I didn't exactly mean for this to happen," Trini sighed. "At least not this soon..."

"Really? That's not what he told me," Kim said with a grin.

Trini stared at her for a moment. "You talked to Jason already?"

"Of course! What was I supposed to do while you made yourself presentable? Twiddle my thumbs? Of course I called him," Kim admonished, her tone strongly implying that Trini really ought to have known better.

"I thought you were supposed to be a gymnastics coach or something," Trini grumbled. "You could try doing that."

"Aww, Trini, but that's so much less fun. I can do that every day. But it's not often that two of my best friends hook up!"

Trini couldn't argue with that, so she turned her attention to her menu instead. But it seemed Kimberly couldn't resist at least one question. "So, was it good? Jason said it was, but men can be so totally oblivious... and I need to know if I have to go kick his ass."

"Yeah, it was good," Trini said, wondering just how much detail Kimberly was expecting to get out of her.

But instead of probing, Kim laughed. "You should see how dazed you look. It must've been pretty good if you're still all smiley and adorable over it."

Embarrassed, Trini felt her face heat.

"Actually, I'm glad," Kim went on. "You two both deserve to be happy."

"You think I wasn't happy before?" Trini asked, but there was no heat in it. It was actually something she was wondering about, too. She hadn't felt all that unhappy before, although lately she had noticed a pervasive sense of discontentment. Now, she didn't really want to leave Angel Grove.

"I think you came home for a reason," Kim told her.

"I... wanted to see if Angel Grove was still home," Trini confessed.

"Do I detect a hint that you might be considering coming back on a more long-term basis?" Kim asked, quirking a brow.

"Remember those two days I was busy earlier this week? Well, the firm I've been working with is opening a branch here in Angel Grove," Trini explained, feeling suddenly nervous. "I applied for a job transfer, and I interviewed for the new position this week. I didn't tell anyone because I didn't want to get their hopes up. And because I wasn't sure everything would live up to my expectations... I was afraid I might have built it up into this utopia in my head, and coming back would shatter all my delusions."

Kim smiled sympathetically. She had gone through a similar crisis when she made the decision to leave Florida and return to Angel Grove. "And?"

"Now I'm waiting to hear back about the job before I make a decision," Trini said serenely, knowing it would drive Kim up the wall not to know.

"You are just the absolute worst sometimes," Kimberly grumbled. "Well, I expect to be the first one you tell when you know! When are you supposed to hear back from them?"

"Anytime now, actually," Trini said.

As if it had been following their conversation, Trini's phone began to ring...