Kimberly would have liked to say that she put the baby in the truck, drove back to the Olivers' and took a nice relaxing bath and then napped beside Bianca, for a calm, serene sort of afternoon. She would have liked to say that, but she couldn't if she was trying to be honest. The fact was from the second her friends teleported out of the Youth Center, toward whatever unforeseen danger they had to face, she had been a basket case.
The thought of the people she cared about being out there, doing battle with one of Rita or Zedd's monsters while she tried to do anything but worry wasn't going well. The fact that, as usual Angel Grove's number one news station was covering the battle wasn't helping any either. While she was trying to study and distract herself, every few minutes, the retired Ranger would turn on the TV to catch a quick update, which was of course a terrible idea. Every clip contained another explosion, another attack by the monster and another chance that her closest friends and her first love were in danger. Kim was a nervous wreck.
After an hour of torturing herself with the television, the short statured student gave a loud frustrated sigh and heaved her remote control under her bed where she wouldn't be able to reach it. Thankful that Tommy's parents hadn't returned home from work yet, she wouldn't have to explain what all the commotion was about it. She would have had to make up some sort of a lie about why she was so stressed and as to where her daughter's dad was and she didn't think anything she came up with right then would have sounded convincing.
What she did know however, was if this was what Tommy felt like when he'd lost his powers… She now had a whole new level of respect and love for the boy. Because feeling completely useless and powerless when all you want to do is help and protect your friends and family is the pits. Bianca on the other hand was having a blast playing in her activity walker, completely aware of the fact that her father was currently engaged in battle with an evil alien overlord's puppet. The innocence of an infant, untouched by the black abyss that was the world.
With the remote control out of reach and the baby content for a while, Kimberly was eventually actually able to get some of the studying she had been trying to accomplish all day done. Laying on her stomach, with her chemistry notes propped up against her footboard, the brown eyed beauty skimmed through the pages. Her legs were bent causally at the knee, with her feet pointed toward the back of her head and withe nimble flexibility of a gymnast she was only inches away from having her toes touching her hair. For most people that position would have been terribly uncomfortable, if not completely impossible, but for Kim it was as easy as stretching.
Her attention now focused on her Science, the young mother didn't even hear the sound of boots on the hardwood floor outside of her room, or the slight squeak of the hinges when the door opened slowly. Her body still bent at an odd angle and her face still pointing to the end of the bed, she didn't notice anyone enter her room either, until they spoke.
"How can you just lay like that, like it's natural?" Asked the voice, making the girl jump in surprise.
Rolling over to face the intruder, Kim found herself looking up at her ex-boyfriend as he bit his lip sheepishly. Clearly he had gotten a kick out of scaring her and was trying very hard not to laugh at the reaction he'd enticed out of her. He couldn't remember her ever being that jumpy before. But things had changed in the time they were apart.
"Tommy!" Getting to her tiny feet, Kimberly had advanced on her former flame in what swift movement. The boy making a gesture with his arms to accept what he anticipated was going to be a hug, glad to see him home safe, only to get smacked hard in the arm.
"Ow, Kim, easy. I'm still sore from the battle." Tommy winced, rubbing his upper arm, and offering what would have been an adorably playful pout, if his ex wasn't annoyed with him at the moment.
Folding her own arms and glaring, her pretty face scrunching up in exasperation, Kimberly grumbled, "Serves you right. I've been sitting here worried sick and on edge for a couple hours and the first thing you do when you get back is sneak up on me! You're lucky I didn't shoot an arrow at you or something!" To add emphasis to her statement the young woman waved her hand to indicate the pink and black compound bow that was tucked in the corner of the room, between her dresser and a bookshelf, a full quiver beside it.
Tommy could only offer an apologetic smile, and gentle squeeze of her hand in response. Sure she may have been a bit more cautious and nervous than he remembered, but she was still the same feisty, strong girl on the inside. The same girl who when she learned he was working for Rita all those years ago hadn't even been afraid to confront him twice, on her own. And he had no doubt she wouldn't think twice about putting one of those arrows through his chest if he ever went evil again.
This was actually the first time since Kimberly had moved in with him and his parents that Tommy had spent any amount of time in her room. At least since she'd finished unpacking… And as his dark hazel gaze scanned the room, he spotted several things he'd remembered seeing when he'd helped her pack to move out of the Campbell's over a year ago. Some other things he didn't recognize, parts of the new life she had built on her own in Florida. The life he still knew very little about.
His attention turning back to the bow and arrow, the White Ranger walked over toward the weapon, with his long strides, reaching out to touch the bow, "Did you keep working on your archery at your other school?" He queried, looking back over his shoulder toward his child's mother. Kim had seemingly calmed down some, and was now seated on the edge of her bed, watching him.
"No, the Mother of Hope Academy for teen moms didn't really support any sports that required the use of weaponry," Responded the graceful girl, as she let out a quiet chuckle. Her annoyance had begun to wear off, "Probably something to do with infants and sharp objects… You know." Sometimes men were so clueless.
"Right… I didn't think of that."
Turning around Tommy walked back from where the bow and arrow were placed, and flopped himself down in Kim's desk chair. Wheeling with his long legs, he pushed himself across the floor, so he could peer into the crib, where Bianca slept peacefully taking her midday nap. She looked so precious and innocent in her sleep… Tommy couldn't imagine how someone like himself, someone who had at one time embodied evil, controlled by Rita could ever father someone so angelic.
If he had spoken that question out loud Kimberly would have had an answer ready and waiting. She would have told him it was because no matter what he had done in the past under the spell of that wicked Space Witch, his heart had always been and always would be pure. However when the teen spoke next the question that left his lips was something entirely different, "So what did you do, while you were there?"
There was a brief pause then, as Kim thought of the best way to answer that question without revealing more of her own heart than she was prepared to at that moment. The truth was most of her time in Florida had been spent wondering about Tommy, worrying about him and missing him. Feeling guilty about lying to him, but being too afraid to admit the truth and all the while being the best mother she could to their child. But this wasn't the time to reveal all of that. To brandish that exposed nerve and give the boy access to it. Things were already hard enough, she didn't need to add more awkwardness to their lives. They were managing to coexist so far, however confessing that she'd never gotten over him would only make things uncomfortable and awkward.
She also couldn't outright lie, because Tommy always knew when she wasn't telling the truth. He said she had a tell, when she was being dishonest she would crinkle her nose up like a rabbit. So instead she gave a shrug and let out a sigh, "Nothing much. Mostly I just sat around missing things. My friends, my family, my home, my hobbies." There it was honest, but vague. If she played her cards right her long haired lover wouldn't suspect that she had been holding back anything.
"We missed you too. Things weren't the same without you. Especially for the team." After Jason, Trini and Zack left, there had been a brief time of sadness and adjustment. Aisha, Rocky and Adam were great, but it just wasn't the same. But during that time of acclimation, they had had Kimberly's always sunny and bubbly disposition to make things better. She had been a bright pink ray of sunshine when they had been going through the transition. When she left however she had taken her sparkling persona with her.
Pursing her lips, Kim tried to appear nonplussed, giving a nonchalant shrug, and a gesture of her hand as though she were merely sweeping the thought away, "You had, Kat… You still have, Kat. You probably forgot all about me as soon as you left the airport after dropping me off."
"Oh, come on Kim, you know that's not true." Tommy wanted to say more about it. He wanted to tell he'd missed her every single day she was gone. He wanted her to know that he'd left the airport that day feeling like a zombie. But he'd held on to hope that they would make their relationship work long distance and that one day she'd come home. But things hadn't worked out the way they had hoped. And yes he'd moved on with Katherine but that didn't mean what he'd felt for Kim wasn't strong, or real. But because he was afraid of the ramifications of confessing things that would only lead to opening old wounds and creating new ones, he changed the subject.
Reaching into the crib, where his sleeping daughter lay, the handsome hero picked up a stuffed toy that was in the bed with the infant. Then kicking off with his legs he sent himself rolling across the floor on the desk chair, straight toward where Kimberly sat on the bed, "Didn't I win this for you on our first date?"
In the young man's strong hands was a stuffed Pink Power Ranger, made of a combination of velveteen and vinyl. Tommy had in fact won it for her in a claw machine on one of their dates, "Technically our first date was that dance that took you forever to invite me to… But yeah, that was our first date where the rest of the gang didn't tag along." Kim had been mildly surprised that her ex even remembered that. Particularly how long ago it had been. The boy had the best heart and he was a strong and intelligent leader… but he was also a bit of a scattered brain. He was chronically late for things, was always misplacing things and had a terrible memory… So how could he recall something as insignificant as that doll.
"I remember. You were wearing this light pink dress with little holes all over it… you called them eyelets I think and these black little ankle boots with the toes missing and I could see you painted your toenails the same color as your dress. We were supposed to see a movie, but I spent so much on the game trying to win it for you, that I couldn't afford the tickets," Laughing at the memory Tommy shook his head. It was a sweet, soft bit of nostalgia that he was happy to share with his first love, "But you'd said it was the first time you'd ever seen a toy in your likeness so I just had to win it for you…" Still holding the toy in his grasp, he made one of the arms of the doll wave cutely at Kim.
"I wasn't even mad that we missed the movie." The girl admitted. If there was one thing that was absolutely certain, she had been smitten with Tommy Oliver the second he'd come into her life. He had always been the kindest boy she'd ever met. From defending her against Bulk and Skull in the hall the first day to selflessly encouraging her to follow her dreams on their last. He spoiled her, with gifts like exotic plants and romantic dates, but also with his love and attention. From fixing the diorama of the float she had made, when putties destroyed it to backing out of the school council race to ensure she won. He'd always done everything for her. She had to wonder if she ever deserved him.
"So what else do you have in here from old times?" Asked the White Ranger, spinning around on the chair to get a view of every surface of the room. He was actually having fun strolling down memory lane. It was also nice to prove that he wasn't as forgetful as everyone thought he was. There was a total difference between forgetting a book for class and forgetting some of the best moments of your young life.
Looking around he could easily spot the white teddy bear he'd given to Kim when she was in the hospital healing from the injury she sustained falling off the balance beam. But likely discussing that would just remind her of Katherine and how his current girlfriend was at least partly responsible for that accident. If Kimberly got angry he would feel obligated to defend Kat and he really didn't want to be pulled into the middle between the mother of his only child and the girl he loved. So he'd avoid that drama if at all possible.
Finally his ever penetrating stare fell on something that seemed rather benign and safe. A white bandana that Kim was using as a tieback on one of her curtains, "Hey, isn't that mine?" Tommy asked, getting up from the chair and walking over to the window. Pulling on the bandana a little, it came untied, allowing the curtain to swing closed on just that side. Bathing half of the room in darkness.
Kimberly's big brown eyes had followed the lead Ranger across the room and watched as he took the piece of fabric up in his hands, "Correction it was yours. It looked better on me," She teased in response. She wanted to be impressed by the boy's memory, but it was a white bandana in her room… there was at least a 75% chance that it had at one time belonged to Tommy, so it could have just been a lucky guess.
"No argument here." Admitted Tommy, thankful for the partly shaded room as he bit his lower lip at the memory. Reminiscing with Kim had been great so far, but as he ran through the memory of that bandana was in his mind a little bit racier than it should have been, "I remember, the team was all hanging out at Ernie's and Bulk and Skull started harassing us as usual. When Jase and Zack stood up to deal with them, they lunged so Jason and Zack sidestepped… Bulk and Skull went head first into the table behind us, and sling shot a half empty glass of Coke into the air and right across the front of your shirt." Pausing to catch his breath from laughter Tommy wiped his eyes, as they began to water in the corner.
"Then you just reached over, stole my bandana off my head and ran into the ladies' room. When you came back out…" The mental image had Tommy responding in the way any teenage boy would recalling his ex in a way he considered sexy. Swallowing hard, his voice came out slightly huskier than he meant to as he continued, "You'd tied it around yourself like a halter top. You looked hot."
Closing her eyes for a moment Kim leaned back against her pillow, the shadow of the half closed curtains falling over her lovely features and shielding the blush in her cheeks from her past paramour. If Tommy could see her face in that instant he would see her blushing a brighter shade of pink than her old uniform, "I can't believe you remember that. You forget everything…"
"Not everything. I remember the important things…" As Tommy's voice trailed off into silence, the only sound was that of his boots on Kim's bedroom floor. For a moment Kimberly could feel her heart pounding in her chest wondering if her ex was approaching her bed. And for a second he had thought about it, but instead he veered quickly toward the door, whispering a gentle, "Good night, Kim." Before disappearing into the hallway and turning toward his own room.
Meanwhile, in a castle on the moon, another couple watched the two teens with interest. Rita, still sore over the loss of her precious Green Ranger, never seemed to be more annoyed than when Tommy seemed happy. And Zedd, who had once wanted Kimberly as his queen, was also filled with jealousy. They certainly couldn't allow the High Schoolers to be happy.
"Zeddy," Rita wined, giving her husband her usual pout, "I can't stand those two Power Pests… Kimberly's just so perky and perfect. I hate it!" Her shrill screams filled their lunar layer causing every monster, gnome and gargoyle to grimace at the sound.
Zedd drummed his fingers on the arm of his throne, gazing loathsomely down on Earth, his vision fixed on the Oliver home, "Don't worry my love," The vile villain clucked, "I have a plan. If Tommy and Kimberly are to be punished… What better way than by using their progeny? Once that brat is in our hands, the White Ranger will truly suffer."