By the time Tommy finished his workout every muscle in his body was burning, his heart rate was pumping and he felt totally alive. It was the best natural high and he was buzzing all over. Jogging up the few stairs between the gym and the juice bar with a towel hanging around his neck, the young man was smiling as he wiped the sweat from his forehead, approaching the table that was originally occupied by just Aisha and Kimberly, but now the entire team sat around. Billy, Rocky, Adam and Katherine having all straggled in and joined the two girls in the time their leader had been exercising/
"Hey guys," He greeted the group, grabbing a chair from a nearby table and pulling it over. Spinning the chair around, Tommy sat straddling it, resting his forearms on the back. On instinct the boy extended his hand across the table and picked up Kim's glass taking a sip of her drink before placing it back in front of her, "MMm, that's good. What is it," He asked
The familiarity with which Tommy had drank from her cup caught Kimberly a bit off guard. Sure it wasn't as though he'd never done it before. In fact they'd shared more than a few sodas when they were dating. But it seemed a bit odd that after being apart for over a year her ex had found it so easy to slip into old habits. He was so natural and casual about it, that she wondered if her former flame even realized what he'd done.
Raising her brows slightly, still puzzled Kim answered, "Lemon Berry booster," She supposed she shouldn't have been so weirded out by the situation. Her ex-boyfriend had stolen a sip of her smoothie, it wasn't like he'd whipped his pants down and flashed her in the middle of the Youth Center. Besides she'd carried his DNA in her womb for nine months as she gestated their daughter. What was a trace amount of his saliva on the rim of a glass?
Odds were now that Kim was living with the Olivers, awkward moments like that were bound to happen. She would have to learn to ignore them, as bringing them up would only add to the weirdness. Drawing attention to things that were nothing often had a way of turning them into something. And as long as the White Ranger was able to reign in the comfortable manor he had with his child's mother around his actual girlfriend, things would be alright. And Kat didn't seem to notice.
Sitting beside the original Pink Ranger, Adam was playing with Bianca, when her father approached. The kind hearted young man had already imprinted the little girl as his surrogate niece, and had her perched on the table, manipulating her little arms as if she were punching and making little kaia noises. This was causing the baby to let out the cutest little giggles, no one was quite sure if it was because she was having fun or if she thought her Uncle Adam was certifiably insane.
"What are you doing to my daughter," Asked Tommy, giving a snorted laugh watching the joy that both his friend and his little girl were having at that moment. In their young lives, the seven teens seated at the smooth table in the Juice Bar had seen and been through so much. They had risked their lives more than once. Had lost out on important rights as passage due to their jobs as heroes and sacrificed so much. For them brief instances of pure happiness were rare and to be treasured. Even little moments like this.
Chuckling Adam looked over at his friend with a grin, "Starting her training early. Zordon's going to need a new generation of Ranger's eventually."
"Oh no," Kimberly objected quickly, "She is staying out of the family business," In the time that Kim had been in Florida, the young mother had lived with the never ceasing fear that one day Rita or Zedd would come for her baby with the intention of extracting revenge on herself and her ex by harming Bianca Jade. She couldn't imagine the terror she would feel if the little girl had ever grown into a Ranger herself. As a parent she wanted to keep her child away from that world at all costs.
Laughing good naturedly Rocky decided to chime in on the matter, "Are you going to let her make that decision Tommy," He asked in a playful manner, causing Aisha to elbow him lightly in the ribs.
Tommy just held up his hands in surrender, "So, I bet it's been a while since BJ's been changed," Said the young man standing up and shouldering the diaper bag, "I'm on it… Com'ere Princess, come to Daddy," Scooping up the infant into his arms, the White Ranger made a quick exit toward the locker rooms to not only clean up his daughter but to escape that conversation before he said anything that was going to get him into trouble with his former flame. After 2 ½ years dating Kimberly he knew when to push and when to shut his mouth. And he was not about to disagree with her when it came to whether or not they would be raising their only child to be a fighter. Though he would like it if Bianca was interested in karate when she grew up, he wasn't sure if he wanted her to be a Power Ranger either.
"Tommy's really taken to being a father, hasn't he," Aisha asked as their friend retreated into the bathrooms with his daughter.
The question caused Kim to quirk a smile in response. She had always known that Tommy would be a good dad. He had all the best qualities for it. He was gentle, patient and kind. Plus he loved kids and had been teaching karate for years… That had been part of the reason she had been so reluctant to bring their little girl forward. Been aware that the instant father met daughter they would bond, and Tommy's life would become all about their child and he would lose so much of himself.
Before Kimberly could respond however Katherine had cut in with her opinion, "He's so in love with her. It's so sweet. He even takes her along on our dates sometimes. It's the cutest thing," Something about the expression on the pretty blonde's face said she didn't exactly find the idea of sharing her boyfriend with his kid was either sweet or cute. From the first time she'd met Tommy, Kat had become incredibly jealous and possessive of him, long before she had any right to be. She had hated sharing him with Kim, even when the other girl was his significant other. And now more than anything it drove her insane that she wasn't the center of his world anymore all because of a mistake he'd made more than a year before.
A few minutes later Tommy returned with BJ in his arms, both freshly changed after their trip to the locker room. In the time they had been gone, the rest of the teens had broken into individual conversations, discussing everything from Billy's newest invention to Miss Appleby's next history test. For those few brief minutes the sextet were just 6 regular High school students with the same problems as everyone else their age. But as usual that wouldn't last long…
Suddenly all of their attention were brought back to one single focus by the sound of their communicators. The familiar tone alerting the young heroes that it was once again time to spring into action and do their duty of protecting Angel Grove. As five chairs pushed back from the table, Kimberly instinctively did as well. The gesture came so naturally to the petite brunette that she was up on her feet in an instant, ready to follow her friends into danger.
Until her ex-boyfriend caught her eye, "Kim, take my truck and get BJ home," He told her taking his keys out of his pocket and handing them over. His dark brow was arched questioningly when he noticed his child's mother standing. Their eyes met and Tommy knew in a second what was happening. The girl had spent close to three years of her life as a Ranger, she had dedicated herself to stopping Rita and Zedd and though she had taken a step back from saving the world when she had fallowed her gymnastic dreams to Florida, now home in Angel Grove, the beeping of the communicators had triggered something in her. Kimberly Hart was still a hero in her soul.
"Head to the Command Center and check in with Alpha and Zordon," Tommy instructed the rest of the team, "I'll meet you there," As the Blue, Yellow, Red, Black and Pink Rangers nodded and got up from the table to head toward the hallway lockers to before teleporting, their leader toward back to their ex-member, "Kim, I know you want to help, but without you powers its just too dangers. And Bianca needs you," Gently the boy squeezed her upper arm in a supportively affectionate gesture. An emotion playing behind his eyes that spoke more than his words had. Tommy Oliver had done everything in his power to keep her safe when they were together, he had fought harder to protect and save her than he had for anything else. Being in love with her, it felt like his ultimate duty to be her knight in shining armor, he wasn't about to give up that role now. Above all things Tommy needed Kim, healthy and whole. He needed her safe, he hoped she could understand...
~* I just want to thank you all for taking the time read my work and I truly appreciate those who send me messages and reviews. I am a Kimberly and Tommy fan and always have been. I appreciate the encouragement for me to get them back together. I have this fic roughed out in my head so I hope you will all be satisfied in the end.*~