Thanks: Thanks to Cynthia and Akasha for pointing out the mistake I made about Tanya's parents. I fixed the parts where I mentioned Tanya still living with the Hillards.
Chapter One
Tanya Sloan folded the last of her clothes into her suitcase and sighed wistfully as she glanced around her nearly empty bedroom. The only things that were still in the room were her night stand and one bookshelf, which she had decided not to take with her to Los Angeles. The rest of her furniture had already been delivered a week ago to the apartment she had bought.
The former Yellow Zeo and Turbo Ranger crossed her arms as she reminded herself why she was leaving everything in Angel Grove and going to L.A. In L.A., she would have a good chance of becoming a famous singer and signing a record contract with a record label, maybe even one of the biggest ones in the country. She had thought that working at Angel Grove's local radio station would help in that department, but it didn't. So after finishing her freshman year at Angel Grove University, she bought an apartment in L.A. with the money she earned from working at the radio station. She spent all summer fixing her apartment. It was now the end of summer already, and her apartment was finally ready to be lived in. Moving to L.A., she told herself, means that you're on your way to becoming a famous singer. You've wanted this for so long. You're finally gonna have your dream come true.
"Are you almost ready to go?" Kat Hillard asked as she stepped into Tanya's bedroom. It was only six-thirty in the morning, but Tanya had wanted to get an early start on her drive to L.A, and Kat wasn't going to let her best friend leave without saying one final good-bye in person.
Tanya smiled sadly. "Yeah, just about."
Kat crossed the room and embraced her best friend. "I'm going to miss you."
"I know. I'll miss you, too." Tanya squeezed her eyes shut to prevent tears from falling. "I'll email you, I promise. I'll call, too. And I'll try to visit once in a while."
"It's going to be so lonely here without you," Kat said softly as she pulled away. "Sure, I still have Tommy, but it won't be the same with you." Tommy Oliver was Kat's boyfriend, and while Tanya knew they were extremely close, she also knew that Kat told her things she couldn't tell Tommy.
"It won't be the same without you in L.A, either," Tanya said as a tear managed to escape her eye and roll down her cheek. "Or the rest of the guys."
Tanya knew she would miss Tommy, their friend Rocky DeSantos, and her ex-boyfriend Adam Park as much as she would miss Kat. Truth be told, all five of them had been close, seeing as how they had all been Power Rangers together in high school. Their Ranger days were over now, but Tanya knew she would also miss the memories of fighting that Angel Grove held.
"Tanya!" James Sloan called from the living room. "You better start packing everything into your car now if you want to leave before seven!"
Tanya and Kat glanced at each other.
"Your father's right," Kat agreed reluctantly. "You should get going. Come on. I'll help you carry your luggage downstairs."
With help from James, Tanya and Kat carried all of Tanya's boxes and suitcases outside to Tanya's sports car and piled everything into the trunk and backseat. Tanya turned to her father and her mother Claire. "Mom, Dad. I'm going to miss you two so much. It feels like we're finally getting together as a family, and now we have to be split up again."
"We'll always be a family," James insisted. "We know how much you love singing, and we're not going to stop from pursuing what you want."
"We're very proud of you," Claire added. "And we'll miss you a lot."
"I'll miss you guys, too," Tanya said as she hugged them.
"Good luck in LA," Kat said as she hugged Tanya again.
"Thanks," Tanya said softly as she pulled away. She sighed as she looked towards her car. "I guess I should go."
Claire, James, and Kat stood on the front patio and watched Tanya climb into the driver's seat of her car.
Tanya turned the ignition on and called a farewell out the window as she pulled out of the driveway. The James, Claire, and Kat waved in reply, and kept waving until they couldn't see Tanya's car anymore.
* * * * * * * *
Two and a half exhausting hours later, Tanya pulled into a parking spot in the parking garage of her apartment. Deciding she would carry in her luggage later, Tanya walked to the front entrance of the building and entered the lobby.
She wasn't seeing the place for the first time, so she was pretty familiar with the building already. She quickly started heading towards the elevator, anxious to get to her apartment so she could rest. She was about halfway there when she suddenly bumped into a young guy who also was walking rather hastily. A bunch of textbooks he had been holding fell to the floor.
"Oh, I'm so sorry!" Tanya gasped. She started to help the guy pick up his books. "I wasn't looking where I was going."
"That's okay," the guy replied. "I was in a rush and wasn't paying much attention, either."
The ebony-skinned girl straightened up as she vaguely recognized the voice. She looked up at him, and her eyes widened and her mouth dropped open in shock. "Jason?!"
Jason Lee Scott blinked as his eyes focused on the girl in front of him. "Tanya!"
Tanya beamed as she and Jason embraced. "Oh my gosh! What are you doing here?" she exclaimed.
"I'm taking classes at UCLA, but I'm living here. What about you?"
Tanya stepped away. "I just got here a few minutes ago. I'm moving here so I can hopefully get a contract with a record label."
"That's cool. Uh, look, I hate to be rude and everything, but I've got to go or I'll be late for my first class," the ex-Gold Zeo Ranger said in a rush.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hold you up," Tanya said.
"It's okay." Jason ripped out a piece of paper from his notebook and quickly scribbled something on it. He handed it to Tanya. "Here's my apartment and phone numbers. Call me later, and we can make plans to hang out sometime."
"Thanks. That sounds great."
"Okay. I really have to go now. See you later."
"Bye," Tanya called after him as he ran off.
Smiling at the odd coincidence, Tanya stepped into the elevator and pressed the button for her floor. She hadn't seen Jason in over two years, not since the Muranthias disaster occurred. Now they would be living in the same apartment building. That comforted her. At least now, she wouldn't be completely alone. She grinned slyly to herself. And now I have someone to help me carry my luggage in later, she thought smugly as she stepped off the elevator and walked down the hallway to her apartment.
* * * * * * * *
As Jason had suggested, Tanya called him later that night. After talking for a few minutes, Tanya invited him over to her apartment.
"I don't really have a lot of food yet," she admitted sheepishly, "Just some chips and stuff. But we can order a pizza for dinner. It'll be my treat."
Jason couldn't refuse that offer, so forty-five minutes later, he found himself sitting in Tanya's kitchen biting into a slice of cheesy pizza.
"So, you still want to be a professional singer?" he asked, bringing up the rushed conversation they had had in the lobby earlier that morning. He remembered how she would constantly talk about being a famous singer one day when they were high school students back in Angel Grove.
Tanya nodded. "Singing's always been a huge passion of mine. After we passed on our Turbo powers, I worked at Angel Grove's radio station hoping to get noticed by someone, but it didn't work."
"So you come out here," Jason concluded as he swallowed a rather large bit of pizza. He nodded approvingly. "This city is full of record managers. I'm sure you'll make it in the music business if you stay out here."
Tanya smiled. Jason had always been one to encourage his friends. "So what about you?" she asked. "I didn't know you were taking classes at UCLA."
Jason nodded proudly. "I came out here not long after the Muranthias catastrophe. I'm working at a dojo in the center of town, too, so I can pay for my own tuition. But living on campus and having to pay for room and boarding would have been way to expensive, so I moved here."
Tanya nodded in understanding as she glanced up at the chocolaty eyes of her friend. She had always thought Jason was very good-looking, but when she had first met him, she was already going out with Adam. And he eventually started dating Emily. Which brought up another point….
"How are things going with you and Emily?" Tanya asked casually.
"We're stuck in an on-off relationship," Jason replied. "Right now we're off. It's hard being apart, you know? But we still really like each other, and we still talk a lot."
"Oh." Tanya felt something wash over her at his last statement. Was it disappointment? Or maybe jealousy? Nah, it couldn't have been. She had only met up with Jason a few hours ago. She couldn't possibly start having romantic feelings for him, could she?
"What about you and Adam?" Jason wanted to know.
"We broke up," Tanya answered. "We just kind of drifted apart. But we're still friends."
"Oh. That's good."
The two friends were silent for a few moments.
"You know, it's getting late," Jason broke the silence. "I should go back to my apartment now."
"Yeah, you're right," Tanya agreed. She crumpled up their used paper plates and threw them away.
"Thanks for the pizza. You really didn't have to pay, but I appreciate it. If you ever need a favor done, you know who to ask."
Tanya smiled sweetly. "Well, there is one thing I can think of."
"What's that?"
"I have a car full of boxes and suitcases out in the parking garage…."