Note: Now the REAL fun begins -- Tommy and Kat start remembering. Hope you'll enjoy ...
Seasons To Remember
Chapter 2: Choices
"When did I realize that things weren't going to work out for Tommy and I?" Kat reiterated thoughtfully. "With the benefit of hindsight, I would have to say right around graduation."
"But you guys went to the prom together!" Lynne protested.
"And Mom told me once that you and Dad didn't officially split up until the Summer of 2000," Trini interjected. She and Kim had discussed the difficult path her and Tommy's relationship had taken once upon a time when Trini had experienced a rough patch with Ramon.
"That's right, but that was because we were too stubborn to let go," Kat continued.
"At the time, I just couldn't lose my relationship with Kat. I was still hurting from Kim breaking up with me, and I didn't want to fail at love again," Tommy explained his motives.
"And I had wanted a relationship with Tommy for the longest time," Kat revealed. "I'd had a crush on him since I'd first met him – but this was before I ever laid eyes on your father."
"What happened, Mom?" Lynne asked.
"You guys studied the Power Rangers in school, right?" Kat asked, testing the waters.
"Yeah, we had a semester of local history in Mr. Washington's class," Jared spoke up.
"You know, then, that about the time Tommy and I finished high school that the Turbo Rangers had just replaced the Zeo Rangers."
"Their nemesis was a space pirate named Divatox," Jay supplied helpfully.
"She made her début in Angel Grove by kidnapping some civilians," Oliver added.
Kat and Tommy traded secret smiles. How much of their boys' knowledge had come from the classroom and how much had come from the Command Center archives?
"The first two taken were not-quite friends of ours: Bulk and Skull – you guys know them better as Mr. Bulkmeier and Mr. Lovich," Tommy said.
For those who had known them as teens, Bulk and Skull's success in their adult lives was quite surprising – especially to the twosome. Ever since Bulk – and his wife Tammy – started managing his café and the pool, he'd become very much a fixture with the youth of Angel Grove. The Oliver, Scott and DeSantos children hung out at his place as much as their parents had hung out at Ernie's.
As for Skull ... his was probably the most unlikely success story of all. After graduating from High School, he'd tried his hand at a variety of jobs, finding contentment in none, until quite by chance he was 'discovered' as a musician. At Kat and Jason's wedding, no less. Now the former shiftless punk Eugene Skullovich was a respected pianist, going by Gene Lovich, and very much a local celebrity.
"No way!" Ramon gasped.
"Divatox's next two victims were Kim and Jason," Kat murmured. She and Tommy were following the script that they had given out to their parents at the time.
"You guys never told us that before!" Trini yelped.
"It's ... kind of hard to talk about," Tommy replied evasively.
"The Rangers had to tell us ... It was horrible. It was like someone had torn open a hole in all our souls – but most especially Tommy's," Kat went on.
"Why Dad's more so than anyone else's?"
"Because his best friend and the woman he still loved were in danger and there was nothing he could do to help them."
"You knew Tommy was still in love with Kimberly even then?" Rachel asked.
"I'd thought he'd put her ghost behind us – so had he," Kat said gently, "But when we got the news ... the look on Tommy's face ... Anger. Fear. Determination – I saw all that play across his face when he first heard Jason's name mentioned, but I saw them again when he learned about Kimberly, only there was something more ... I'm not sure how to describe it. Grief, maybe? A sense that his world had been violated and all but destroyed? All I know was that knowing Kim in trouble had shaken him to his core. And what's more, he didn't even realize it – at least, not consciously."
"I didn't know you could read all that in me," Tommy murmured, feeling a tad guilty for what he'd once put Kat through.
"You never could disguise your feelings when it came to Kimberly," Kat said kindly. Resuming the tale, she continued with, "Even worse than knowing they'd been kidnapped was seeing what had been done to them. Divatox and Maligore sent them after us – after they'd been put under a spell, turning them evil."
"One of the hardest things I'd ever done was face Jason that day. His eyes glowed red, and the hate filling him ..." Tommy shuddered at the memory. "I wanted to break the spell on him so badly ..."
"I know," Kat murmured comfortingly, patting his hand. "When Kim came after me ..."
"But what could you guys have done? You didn't have super powers or anything like that," Ramon interjected.
"We had to let the Power Rangers take care of them, but it wasn't easy," Tommy concluded.
"Why did Aunt Kim and Uncle Jason hate you guys so much?" Jasmine wondered.
"The spell magnified little resentments, disappointments, insecurities – blowing them out of proportion," Tommy explained. "After the spell had been broken, Jase and I talked things out and dealt with the root of the problem."
"Kim and I did something similar, but there was something else that I'd discovered while Kim was under Maligore's spell: she still loved Tommy ..."
~*~
Adam, Jason and Tommy had won the tournament, helping out the children's shelter with the prize money. They'd quickly disappeared into the locker room to get cleaned up before heading to the victory celebration. Tanya was staying with Justin, but Kat had followed Kim into the powder room. They touched up their make-up in awkward silence.
Finally, Kat could take it no longer.
"Kimberly, we need to talk," she ventured at last. Kim had barely said two words to either her or Tommy since leaving Muranthias.
"I know ... I'm just not sure I'm ready to," Kim answered with a heavy sigh.
"Please, Kim. I need to know – what made you hate me so?" Kat implored. "When you came at me, it seemed too personal somehow. No one's ever fought me harder." She steeled herself to ask the all-important question, "Was it because of my relationship with Tommy?"
Was she really wanting to hear the words? Not really, but she had to know.
"Mostly, it was resentment that you've taken over all the things I ever cared for: my friends, my Powers and place on the team, and yes, Tommy. I felt like if you hadn't come along, my life wouldn't have been turned topsy-turvy."
"That's pretty harsh," Kat murmured, stunned by the magnitude of Kim's ill feeling. "You know I never meant to ..."
"I know you didn't do any of that on purpose, and when I'm in my right mind, I know you're not to blame." The brunette offered her a weak smile. "I know it's unworthy of me to think that of you; after all, you're as much my friend as any of the others."
"Well, that spell did stir up some serious issues between Tommy and Jason, and look how close they are," Kat had to concede. She finally felt brave enough to ask a question she'd wanted answered for months. "Did you really find someone new in Florida, or was that letter a lie?"
For a moment, Kim was too astonished to speak. When she could finally muster the words, she asked, "How did you know?"
Kat's small smile was wistful. "I trained for the Pan Globals, too; remember? I know how grueling the schedule can be. You have virtually no life outside the pool – er, gym. It's difficult enough to maintain existing relationships, let alone create a new one."
The brunette hung her head but not before Kat detected a glimmer of tears.
"I didn't want to let him go; I had to," Kim admitted at last.
"Pressure from the coaches?"
"Something like that."
"I'm sorry, Kim, truly."
Really, Kat didn't know what to say. At the moment, she was gripped by the fear that once Kim talked to Tommy, it would all be over for her and her long-haired boyfriend.
Things had been going so well, too, before Divatox showed up!
"Kat, Tommy can't know any of this. Please don't say anything," Kim requested, as if she'd known what was going through her friend's mind.
"W-Why not?" Kat stammered in disbelief.
"I hurt Tommy," the gymnast began her explanation, finally looking up, and it became apparent just how much she'd hurt herself as well. "He didn't deserve what I did to him, and I can't make it right for him – if he even wants me to make it right. I wouldn't be surprised if he hated me."
"Trust me, Kim; he doesn't hate you."
It was unnerving to see how much relief her words brought Kim.
"I saw how Tommy hugged you after the match," Kim rushed on, "I saw how his eyes shone and the way he smiled at you. You've made him happy, Kat. I want him to be happy, and he is now – with you ..."
~*~
"I remember wondering what she saw that I couldn't," Kat went on, glancing down at her tightly interlaced fingers. "Had I read Tommy wrong? Or did Kim think Tommy was happy with me because she needed to believe it to ease her guilt?
"I did take heart from her words and waited hopefully for things to get better for me and Tommy, but how could they when he was hardly ever around? It was shortly after that tournament that Tommy started driving for his uncle. It seemed like he was always at the track" Kat let out a slow breath. Even though things had ultimately turned out for the best, it was still hard to recall those days when her heart hurt so much.
"I never meant to hurt you," Tommy murmured; it was difficult to hear just how much he had taken Kat for granted.
"I know. And to be fair, you did try ... It was just that there were times when I wished you could have been there and you couldn't."
"When ...?" Trini asked puzzledly. Considering that her father had always been so attentive of her mother, she was having a hard time believing he could ever have been so oblivious.
"The big one was when I auditioned for the Royal Academy. I wanted Tommy beside me so badly, but he couldn't make it. At least Tanya was there for me ....
"Then there was the camping trip we'd planned. I'd hoped that we'd be able to recapture some of the spark in our relationship. But it never happened, thanks to Divatox intruding on our lives once again."
"You really can't blame Tommy for that," Ramon spoke up.
"I don't, but back then it kind of hurt. After all, I had a big decision to make. I had wanted to be a ballerina ever since I could walk – even more than I wanted to be a diver – and the Royal Academy is one of the most prestigious schools in the world. However, both Kim and Tanya had faced similar decisions: staying with the people they loved or chasing their dreams. Tanya deferred her dream. Kim went after hers – but at a cost. What would I do?"
"Ultimately, you decided to go," Rachel summarized.
"Yes, and when I had to leave for London, it was one of the scariest things I'd ever done. I'm so glad everyone was there to see me off at the gate. Mum, Dad, Tommy, Jason ..."
~* ~
"British Airways flight 112 to London now boarding first class passengers at gate B-2...."
"Oh gosh, Kat, it's time!" Tanya gasped as she threw her arms around her best friend.
"I'm going to miss you all so much," Kat said, smiling bravely and fighting back tears. Good-byes were always so difficult. She was grateful her parents allowed her these last moments with her friends – the best friends anyone could have wished for.
Everyone had a parting hug and words of encouragement, until only Tommy was left. She hugged him fiercely, trying not to remember the angry words they had spoken the previous evening on what would be their last date until Christmas.
Tommy had been unusually quiet, almost withdrawn, throughout the night. As she chatted away about what it might be like in London, she noticed that he didn't seem to share her excitement. This puzzled her; after all, Tommy had been as happy as any of her friends that she had won her scholarship. He'd offered her advice about making her choice, and he seemed to genuinely support her decision to go, but now ...
"Tommy, what's wrong?" she asked, holding his hands, her blue eyes imploring him not to put her off.
"I don't know ..." he began with a tell-tale rub of the back of his neck. "It's just that – you're leaving me just like Kim did."
Kat felt as if she'd been doused by a bucket of ice water. Her back went rigid and she spoke before really thinking, "I thought you'd stopped comparing me to Kim a long time ago."
"I didn't mean it like that!" he protested, feeling as if he'd been slapped. "It's just that you're leaving me to chase a dream. I'm just afraid of losing you, too."
Kat truly felt horrible about lashing out at him like that. She hadn't meant to, but she'd already confronted her insecurities about the similarities in their situations.
"I'm sorry, Tommy; I didn't mean to overreact," she apologized. "I don't want to lose you either, but I have to go. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. If I don't go, I'll always wonder 'what if', like with missing the Pan Globals. What ifs leave you very empty inside."
She knew that he understood on some level, but from his expression she could almost read his thoughts: "That's what Kim said, and look what happened."
"Tommy, I'm not leaving you. This is no different than going away to college."
"I know," he admitted defeatedly, "but ..."
"Our relationship doesn't have to suffer – not if we both work at it."
Tommy winced, and she realized he had taken her words of encouragement as a rebuke for his perceived failure to do so – but with Kim or with her, she wasn't certain.
Suddenly, a burst of inspiration hit, and her face brightened. "Why don't you come with me!"
"To London?"
"Why not? It'd be perfect. We'd still be together ... I wouldn't have to be alone in a strange country ..." Kat gushed, her idea gaining momentum the more advantages she enumerated. "It could work; I imagine there are dojos in London that could use an instructor of your caliber. We could share a flat – my scholarship only covers my tuition and school expenses, but my folks are giving me a stipend for living expenses. I know you couldn't come right now – you'd need a passport and so forth, but maybe in a month or so ..."
"It sounds great, Kat, but you know I can't," he declined.
"Why not? You've finished high school. We're no longer Rangers. I'm sure your parents would agree; it would be a wonderful opportunity for you ..."
"I have other obligations. To Uncle John and his racing team. To my students at the Youth Center – I'm still teaching there when I can. To Jason and Rocky – we're talking about opening a dojo once we get the money ..."
And they left it at that.
"Good luck, Kat," Tommy said, his voice thick with emotion, as he released her but not before giving her a peck on the cheek.
"You could change your mind," she said softly, a hopeful smile reflected in her eyes.
Tommy shook his head sadly. "This is your dream, Kat. Your choice ..."
"... and you have your dream. Your choice ..."
And with that, she took her place in line to board the plane.
~*~
"Wow," was all Jasmine could say at the conclusion of Kat's tale. "Those were some pretty tough decisions to make – especially at eighteen."
"Your parents faced similar choices," Kat reminded her. "Your mother deferred her music career until she finished high school ..."
"Adam had an opportunity to work as a stuntman," Tommy added, "but he chose to follow Tanya to New York. He followed his heart ..."
"... without regret," Jasmine finished for him. "He earned his degree in creative writing and journalism."
"Dad always said Uncle Adam's first love was writing," Ramon spoke up.
"I think you guys did follow your hearts and not just your dreams," Trini commented. "Your hearts just didn't lead to one another back then."
"I never thought of it that way," Kat mused.
"It's too bad we didn't know that then; it would have made things a lot easier on all four of us," Tommy said.
~*~
A thoughtful silence settled over the family, then Tommy shook himself once and picked up the scrapbook again.
"Weren't we going to look at some pictures?" he asked with slightly forced cheerfulness.
"Sure, Dad," his son said amiably, although he would have preferred listening to more tales of his parents' past. Even if he would've rather died than admit to something so sentimental. "What's next?"
"I don't rightly know," Tommy admitted with a sheepish grin. "It's been ages since I looked at these last … I kind of lost track of what's in where." The rest of the Prom pictures were quickly explained, familiar faces pointed out.
Next came a photograph of Justin on his birthday, proudly displaying his new bicycle.
"Who's that? He looks sort of familiar," Rachel wondered. Kat grinned.
"You don't recognize him? That's Justin Stewart."
"Of course," Rachel exclaimed. "It was kinda hard to tell under that mop of hair, but now I can see it … but what is a boyhood picture of Dad's chief researcher doing in one of your scrapbooks?"
"He started attending Angel Grove High the year we graduated," Tommy explained. "And since Kat was working there as a teacher's assistant for a while, we got to know him. As a matter of fact, Kat and Tanya both used to mother him a little."
"Which Justin very much resented," Kat murmured. "If I remember correctly, you and Rocky were his heroes." Changing the subject adroitly, she pointed to the next page. "Oh look, there's Adam!"
The picture in question showed the former Green Turbo Ranger in his stunt show costume, and it evoked a few titters from everybody. "No wonder your Dad hates cameras," Oliver grinned at his wife, then his eyes lit upon a still photo from the music video Adam and Rocky had filmed of Tanya.
"Hey, here's your Mom, too!"
"Oh yuck, look at Mom's clothes," Jasmine groaned in fascinated horror. "Yellow shirt, bright orange skirt and blue tights?!? What was she thinking?"
"At the time, she looked very fashionable and, um, snazzy," Kat defended her friend, even though she remembered having been rather dubious about Tanya's outfit as well. "It looked good on film, anyway."
Her daughter-in-law gave her a very skeptical look. "If you say so," she murmured, keeping all other comments to herself.
Next came a candid shot of Kat in the classroom, looking very teacher-like as she wrote something on the blackboard; Jason on campus of AGU; Rocky in front of the first small dojo he'd opened right after graduation; another picture of Tanya at the radio station behind a huge sound-mixing arrangement; Tommy in racing overalls leaning against his car, helmet tucked into the crook of his elbow … it was a veritable catalogue of the friends' activities that summer. It ended with a group shot of the one-time Turbo Rangers in front of the Youth Center, with a put-upon looking Jerome Stone sweeping the steps in the background.
"That was taken the last time we were all hanging out together," Tommy
explained. "The next day, Kat and I had our last date … but you just heard
about that. From here on out, everybody went their separate ways – for
a while, at least."
To Be Continued ...