Note: Continuing countdown: 1…
Not much to say anymore at this point, except that with this chapter, we've come full circle. One more to go, and please drop a little something in the feedback box? DB/CR
Seasons To Remember
Chapter 28: Second Chances
"Romantic proposal … yes, I think you could say that," Kat smiled once they'd settled back into their seats and accepted refills for their drinks. Even Lynne was having some eggnog – the interval before she was going to nurse Ricky again was long enough, and just a bit wouldn't hurt. Tonight was a night of celebration, after all. "The circumstances were certainly much nicer than the first time – not a dirty dish in sight!" She chuckled along with her audience. "And the location was … unusual, to say the least."
"More unusual than a messy kitchen?" Oliver wanted to know.
"Certainly," Tommy huffed. "I wasn't about to mess up my second chance at happiness!"
Jay winked at the family, leaned towards Lynne, who was just raising her glass to her lips, and stage-whispered, "More like Mom trained him too well!" She nearly choked on her mouthful, whereas Kat just nodded sagely.
"Well put, Jay."
His father tried to look insulted, but was still feeling too pleased with himself to take much umbrage. Asking Kat to marry him had been a very spontaneous decision, but it had felt very right, and seizing the moment had always come easy to Tommy.
"When and where did you propose to Aunt Kat, anyway, Dad?" Trini wondered. "I don't think you've said – or did I miss it in the general excitement?"
"You didn't," Rachel said decisively. "If they had, I would remember." Along with her intelligence, the redhead had inherited Billy's phenomenal memory. "Are you going to tell us, or is this one more thing we don't really want to know?"
Her question evoked loud agreement from the rest of the family, the Scott and Oliver children wisely choosing to disregard the possible implications. If their parents wanted to share that memory, they would be all ears!
"No, we can tell you all right," Kat smiled.
"With or without a memento?" Ramon asked. "I mean, you have stuff to remind you of events for practically everything; it'd be a shame if you didn't keep one for this, too."
"We can always use the photo Oliver took of us earlier," Tommy said complacently; he hadn't minded posing for the camera as he officially slipped his ring on Kat's hand.
"Yes, but I'm sure we have another, more significant reminder," his fiancée declared. "Just let me have a look …" she reached for a new album while the others leaned forward expectantly. However, the wait proved much longer than anyone had anticipated.
"Tommy, where's that flyer for the Stone County Country Fair?" Kat asked after a couple of minutes of fruitless searching at the back of the last scrapbook. A worried frown creased her still-smooth brow. "You didn't throw it away, did you?"
"Of course not," he soothed her. "I wouldn't do that … not when it's like the first chapter of the next book. It's at home, in my desk drawer."
"Oh, good," Kat sighed in relief.
"What's so important about that?" Jay wanted to know. "Didn't you go there the week before Thanksgiving?" It had been a family outing for grandparents and grandchildren. Four adults – Kat, Tommy, Rocky and Sarah – and five children – Scott, and the DeSantos brood: his buddy Esteban Thomas, called Steve for short, his twin sisters Colleen Kimberly and Caitlyn Sarah, and the youngest of Trini and Ramon's, Alejandro Ramon.
"Wasn't that the one with the hot-air balloon liftoff?" Ramon wondered. "The one where Alex got so sick later that evening because he ate too much cotton candy?"
"Yes … but that was due to a communications breakdown between Rocky and myself," Tommy admitted sheepishly. "Alex had asked me for some first while Rocky took Scott and Steve to the target practice stalls, and the little scamp badgered Rocky for more later, while they were waiting for us to come back …"
"Come back from where?" Jasmine asked.
"From a very special 'ride'," Tommy answered with a tender glance at Katherine.
~*~
"Would you like to go up in one of the balloons, kids?" Tommy asked his grandsons kindly.
The main attraction of this year's County Fair was a hot-air balloon liftoff, and about a dozen brightly-colored globes were already straining against their moorings, brilliant against the clear autumn sky as the party watched the preparations with fascination. A few of the operators offered to take passengers along, to a place at the foot of the mountains where buses would be waiting to return them afterwards. It was a spontaneous suggestion, made only when he'd noticed how the older boys' eyes looked so longingly at the rustling silk balloons. They were too well-mannered to ask for a not-exactly-cheap treat like that, but neither Kat nor Tommy missed their interest and desire.
"That'd be awesome, grandpa," Steve sighed. "But it's awful expensive, and I think they don't take kids under ten, anyway." Only he and Scott, at ten and eleven years respectively, qualified. The twins were eight, and his brother was only four. "That means the girls and Alex can't go, and if they can't, I don't wanna, either," he said loyally, if not quite truthfully.
"I'm got getting into one of these things, anyway," Colleen protested the mere thought. "What if it tips over when we're in up in the air with it?"
"Yeah, we'd all fall out and crash to the ground and break all our bones and bash our heads and get all bloody and stuff," Caitlyn added with what the adults thought was a completely inappropriate delight in gory details. "It'd be so totally cool!"
"That's so gross! Anyway, you're not ten yet, you can't go," her sister reminded her with a look of revulsion on her sweet face.
"Don' wanna fall out," Alex sniffled. "Falling hurts!" His mouth quivered and tears started to fill his dark eyes. Small as he was, he knew what he was talking about; only this past spring, he'd taken a tumble on the playground, resulting in a gashed head that had required a couple of stitches. He'd been more surprised than actually hurt, but the amount of blood even such a relatively small head wound produced, his mother's anxiety and the rush to the ER had frightened him, and the memory still lingered.
"We won't let you fall, honey," Sarah soothed her grandson. "And you know what? I don't really want to ride in a balloon, either," she added in a conspiratorial stage whisper.
"Really?"
"Yes, really." Her reassurance seemed to calm the little boy, and he wiped at his eyes with a grubby fist, determined not to cry. As long as Grandma was with him, he was sure the big boys wouldn't make him climb into that basket-thing. Even if it did look kinda cool.
Tommy shared a glance with Kat. She never had gone in much for adventure sports, but he knew she wasn't timid, and that she generally was open to new experiences. They might have piloted machinery more sophisticated than the space shuttle in their teens, flown on regular airplanes as passengers, but a balloon ride was unknown territory for them, too.
"How about you, Kat?" he asked quietly. "Do you want to go?"
"I'd love to," she replied, blue eyes sparkling. "But what about the girls? If we take the boys, Sarah would be left with three kids, and I don't want to overburden her." Rocky's wife suffered from a mild case of vertigo; not so bad that it impaired normal life for her – stairs were not a problem, for example – but she definitely preferred to keep her feet on terra firma.
Rocky had listened to everybody with an indulgent grin. Now, he piped up. "What if I take them to the Monster Trail?" he suggested. "They'll love it – well, at least Cait will; I'm not so sure about Colleen – and Sarah can take Alex on the small roller coaster."
Three pairs of eyes lit up at the suggestion.
"Yes, pwease," Alex pleaded, tugging at Sarah's hand eagerly.
"Oh, I love the Monster Trail!" Caitlyn gushed. "Way cool, Grampa!"
Her sister looked more thoughtful. "Can we go on the Tilt-A-Whirl after?" she asked. Colleen wasn't too fond of gore and splatter, but she definitely had inherited Tommy's love for things going fast.
"Sure, Shrimp," Rocky grinned, tousling her dark hair.
"Cool!"
"Then it's settled, I guess," Kat laughed when nobody objected to the plans. "Come on, boys, let's buy the tickets."
"Yay!" Scott and Steve ran off, to queue up in front of the booth while she followed more sedately. Tommy stayed behind with his old friend.
"I'd have thought you'd want to come with us," he commented with a slight smile. "You're not afraid of heights suddenly, are you?"
Rocky grinned back. "Nah. But if I remember Science class right, it gets pretty cold up there … and unfortunately, these days being out in really low temperatures is about the worst thing I can do to my back. An hour in a balloon might be fun, but hardly worth a week of aching bones and not being able to move," he added ruefully.
"Ouch. Yeah, guess not," Tommy conceded. Involuntarily, he rubbed his left thigh. Five years ago, he'd broken his leg in a fall off a ladder while taking down the house lights from Christmas. Although the break had healed quickly and cleanly, it now was more reliable to indicate a change in weather than a trained meteorologist. "Getting old sucks, doesn't it?" he murmured.
"No kidding," Rocky agreed as quietly. With age, they all had experienced the gradual lessening of their facilities – luckily not to any marked degree, and their minds were as sharp and lively as ever, but time had taken a toll on all of them. Glasses, dentures, aches and twinges … it came with the territory of growing older. However, it was still preferable to the alternative – joining Trini, Jason and Kimberly under the lush grass of Angel Grove Cemetery.
They were interrupted by their grandsons' return. Rocky shook off his mood and made a flipping motion with his hand. "Go on, go take the hellions flying," he grinned. "I'll have fun scaring the girls."
"Grandpa!" the twins protested indignantly. "We won't be scared!"
"As if," Cait muttered.
Rocky raised an eyebrow. "What, I can't expect you two to yell your heads off? Isn't that the purpose of riding the Monster Trail?"
"Well, yeah, but that's part of the fun," Colleen explained seriously.
Tommy chuckled. "Strange notion of fun," he told Rocky under his breath. "But, better your eardrums than mine!" He was prevented from adding more by Scott and Steve. The boys both grabbed Tommy's hands and started tugging him towards the balloons, urging him to walk faster.
"At least I'm not gonna freeze my butt off like you," Rocky called after his old friend before focussing his attention on the DeSantos kids. "We'll see you in a couple of hours, then! Okay girls – let's get your grandma and Alex on the roller coaster, and then we can go on our own ride."
~*~
Kat was waiting for Tommy and the boys, tickets held firmly in her hand. She greeted them with a smile, then addressed the kids.
"Okay, now I've been given a few instructions by the pilot, and we're all going to follow them to the letter, is that understood?"
"Yes, Gran," Scott replied, eyes sparkling. Steve nodded, too.
"Right, here it is: No touching anything without permission. No hi-jinxes – that means, you stay where you're told to, and keep to the handrails. No leaning out. No throwing anything over the sides of the gondola – not even a gum wrapper. That includes no spitting. And put on your jackets; it's going to be much colder up in the air than down here on the ground."
Eagerly, the boys complied. Kat fixed a stern gaze on Tommy. "The jacket rule is for everybody," she told him in exactly the same tone she'd used on the kids. Her eyes were dancing with laughter. "Button up, mister!"
Her own light blue fleece jacket was already fastened up to her chin, and she'd covered her hair with a lovely silk scarf.
Tommy threw her a snappy salute. "Yes, Ma'am!" he barked, to the boys' amusement. But it did have the desired effect. All bundled up in record time.
Kat nodded approvingly. "Very nice. Now come along, boys – we're in balloon number five, and takeoff is in ten minutes." Together, they walked across the lawn to the colourful globe, already straining against its moorings as the flame in the center of the basket heated up the gas mixture inside the striped silk. Scott and Steve clambered over the edge unaided, but Kat gratefully accepted Tommy's assistance; she was no longer quite as limber as she used to be.
Once his family was safely inside the gondola, Tommy tried to climb in after them as well, but to his chagrin couldn't quite lift his leg high enough and keep his balance. He scowled when the pilot offered him a solicitous hand.
"Why don't you sit on the edge, sir, and swing your legs inside? I'll make sure you don't slide off," the thirty-something man smiled. The former Ranger grimaced, but followed the advice. Once he had his footing again, he glared at Kat, who was having a hard time hiding her grin. She knew Tommy, and how it must gall him to be no longer able to perform such simple exercises unaided.
"Don't say it," he grumbled.
"Me? I wasn't going to," she protested with an angelic smile and a totally unholy delight in her eyes.
"Like hell you weren't," Tommy groused, but subsided when Kat motioned warningly towards the oblivious boys. Thankfully for Tommy's pride, they'd been too preoccupied with ogling everything about the balloon to notice his difficulties. I hope so, anyway!
Within a few minutes, all passengers were on board, the signal for liftoff was given, and the ground crews cast off the moorings. By ones and twos, the balloons rose majestically into the clear autumn sky. Scott and Steve were fairly hanging over the side, pointing out the Fair's attractions, and did their utmost to catch a glimpse of their family. To no avail, though; they had already been swallowed by the crowds. Scott, however, scored big time when he made out the two cars parked side by side – Rocky and Tommy had purposely chosen a very distinctive bush to leave their vehicles at, in case one of the kids got lost and needed a meeting point.
Soon, though, other things caught the boys' interest, and they flitted hither and yon, always under the watchful eyes of their grandparents, asking numerous questions which were patiently answered by the pilot and his assistant.
Seeing that his grandsons were safely occupied, Tommy then turned to look at Kat. She was standing in one corner looking at the landscape gliding slowly away underneath them. Her cheeks were reddened by the cool wind, and she'd tucked both hands under her arms to keep them warm. Carefully, Tommy made his way over to her. He didn't need to ask whether she was enjoying herself; it was evident in the rapt attention with which she gazed down.
"Pretty spectacular, isn't it?" he asked, letting his own eyes sweep over the familiar area. He'd flown both his Falconzord and the Phoenix around here often enough, and the memories of those times were coming at him stronger than usual.
"Oh, yes," Kat sighed. She'd piloted the Crane Zord only for a short time, but she, too, was overcome with reminiscences. I guess there are some things that are just unforgettable!
"Look, there's the park." Tommy pointed towards the left.
"Uh huh. How tiny the lake seems from up here!"
"Yeah. See any monsters lurking behind a bush?" he teased in a low voice. "Or La Diva's sub?"
She gave him a quelling look. "Of course not! You know as well as I do that the current Ranger team doesn't operate around here; there's no reason for the bad guys to return."
"Shouldn't make any difference," the former leader of the Rangers mused. "Just because we mainly stayed in the Southwestern USA never meant the bad guys couldn't have gone global if they'd chosen to do so. Like that time right after the turn of the millennium when they were based in New Zealand, remember? We were just lucky they didn't during our tenure; it would've played even more hell with classes," he grinned suddenly.
"Oh my, yes," Kat had to chuckle as well. "I always used to feel so guilty when I was late, or even missed school completely!"
"We all did, but we did have more important things to do … like saving the world."
"Would you have cared to explain that to Mr. Caplan?"
Tommy shuddered at the mere thought. "Er, not really. He'd have flipped his wig for sure – as Zack would say."
They shared a moment of laughter, then were called back to the present by the balloon's operator, who gave them a short explanation on where and when they would land – just on the outskirts of the reservation where David still lived, and in about twenty minutes.
"Think we have time to look in on your brother?"
"Nah – only if he just happens to be there, which I doubt. I think he's busy with completing the landscape calendar he's been commissioned to shoot in time for Christmas."
"Pity. It's been ages since I've seen David."
"We can always go visit him once he's back; I'm sure Scott would love to see his cousins again."
"Okay," Kat agreed readily, then shivered visibly when a fresh gust of wind shook their balloon, to the boys' delighted shouts. She gave them a brief glance, saw that they were fine, then hunched into her jacket's collar, rubbing her hands together vigorously.
"Are you cold?" Tommy asked solicitously. He didn't feel the cold temperature up here much; his down jacket was plenty warm. So were Scott and Steve's coats, he ascertained with a quick look. Then again, they're so excited, they probably would enjoy a blizzard!
"A little," Kat admitted. "I thought I was dressed warmly enough, but … I sure wish I had brought at least a cap and gloves."
He looked at her. Kat was wearing slim grey woollen pants, a matching turtleneck with a diamond pattern in pale pink and white, and her blue coat brought out the color of her eyes to perfection. However, now that he thought about it, Tommy could see that the fleecy material looked much warmer than it probably was. And the wind is pretty sharp …
There was a quite simple solution, though.
"Come here, I'll warm you," he said, stepping up behind her and wrapped his arms around Kat. To his satisfaction, her shivering soon stopped as she snuggled her back against his front.
"Thanks."
"Welcome."
Being so close to her, Tommy couldn't help but be aware of the subtle scent she was wearing; he didn't know which perfume it was – something light and vaguely fruity – and found that he liked it very much. Briefly, a pang of pain gripped him; it was different from the floral scents Kim had preferred, and which still seemed to linger in their house, due to the sachets of potpourri tucked into every closet. But his beloved Kimberly was gone forever, and there was nothing Tommy could do about it. Determinedly, he pushed the memory away – not to be forgotten, but to that special place in his heart that would always be Kim's, no matter what.
He was recalled to the present by Kat's soft voice.
"This feels so nice," she murmured. "I've almost forgotten how good it can feel to be held like this … Jason used to do that." As always, even after twenty years, the memory had the power to bring tears to her eyes. Determinedly (and with the ease of long practice), Kat swallowed them.
Instead, she concentrated on her companion. Tommy's hold was indefinably different than Jason's had been, but it was welcome nonetheless. How often had he hugged her like this over the years, showing her with a simple touch that despite her loss she wasn't alone? Kat could no longer count the times, just knew that she was grateful to have this special friend in her life.
"Yeah," he replied just as softly. "I guess you don't realize how empty one's arms can be when the one who belongs there has left you."
"Exactly."
Both fell silent again, lost in reminiscences of their dead spouses, but neither felt an urge to end the hug which was so comforting to both of them. Their friendship was so deep, they knew that they would always find understanding and support in the other … even silently sharing their grief brought its own rewards.
~*~
As the minutes passed, Tommy gradually became aware that his pain lessened the longer he held Kat; it was as if gliding soundlessly through the air like this with someone very dear made his heart feel lighter as well. Even almost … happy. Just like so many years ago, when he'd lost Kim for the first time and the woman he now held had eased his heart with her gentleness and loving spirit. It felt as if in his loneliness his feelings for Kat were slowly rekindling; differently, to be sure, yet just as encompassing. When he'd grown aware of the change in his perspective on Kat's birthday, the idea at first had seemed like a betrayal of his love for Kimberly, but that simply wasn't true; he still loved his wife as much as ever. Tommy realized eventually that he was not taking anything away from Kim, just ... adding something that had always been there in a slightly different form. Although the thought he might fall in love with another woman had been startling and upsetting only a couple short months ago, it now was starting to feel more and more natural. The only question was, dare he assume that Katherine might feel similarly? She had mourned Jason for so long … had never shown any interest at all in another man …
I'm not any 'other man', Tommy knew. Modesty aside, I'm about the only person who can totally empathize with her – as she does with me.
But did that mean that they should become more than friends … again? The longer he mulled over the question, the clearer it became to Tommy that he wanted just that – very much so. Just to feel a little happy again, instead of lost and empty. Now, if only Kat wanted the same …
If she did, could they have a second chance? Together? Without Jason and Kim? Briefly, he raised his eyes to the endless blue sky surrounding them.
You don't begrudge me a little happiness until we're together again, do you, Beautiful?
And it seemed as if from a vast distance, the wind carried Kim's voice to his ears, giving her approval.
*
Kat relaxed against Tommy, liking the feel of strength surrounding her for the first time in far too long. It was not the same as being held by Jason had been; he'd always given her the impression of a solid rock, a sheltering wall from life's storms that nothing could breach. Tommy was more like an energy barrier, leaner, more wiry, but just as protective … and she realized that she'd missed that protection. She'd had to find her own strengths when Jason had been taken from her, and she thought she'd done a good job all things considered, but that didn't mean that there hadn't been times, usually in the depths of night, when she'd been in sore need of someone to lean on. Tommy had always been there for her and her children; Kat knew that she would miss him terribly if he were no longer a part of her life. And recently, he had been even more solicitous of her … enough to make her wish for something she'd believed lost to her forever. A touch of happiness. Not quite the kind she'd shared with Jason, but … a close second, maybe. Her sapphire eyes were lost in the distance as she pictured her husband's face.
I had to carry my burdens alone for so long; is it so wrong of me to hope that I won't have to do it anymore until we see each other again, love?
Before her mind's eye, Jason's beloved features smiled warmly in mute understanding.
~*~
The balloon was sailing majestically towards its destination, and behind them there were sounds announcing imminent descent. Kat sighed softly and instinctively snuggled deeper into Tommy's arms, loath to see this time of closeness end. Her silk-covered head rested against his lean cheek, and she closed her eyes in quiet contentment.
Why does this have to end?
Tommy felt Kat yielding against him, and experienced an impulse to turn her face towards his, to lose himself completely in her presence. He tightened his embrace automatically, and to his surprised delight, she didn't resist. At all.
This doesn't have to end …
Out of the depths of his heart, he found the words.
"I could go on holding you like this forever."
Kat drew in a short gasp; was Tommy reading her mind? Slowly, she raised her eyes to his, incredulity warring with sudden hope. What she read in the chocolate gaze made her heart falter for just an instant, then a slow smile curved her lips as she felt peace settle all through her.
"I'd love that," she replied.
Tommy's breath caught as he found what he'd been missing in the blue orbs, then it was as if his world expanded, to make room for something new that wasn't new at all.
"I will, then – if you really want me to," he murmured huskily.
"I do." Kat's answer was a soft, gentle breeze that soothed his soul.
It was a promise that bound them together that instant, and the knowledge was written clearly in the serious yet warm look they shared.
Tommy bent slightly to kiss Kat in acknowledgement, but just then the boys bounded over to them, their fascination and absorption with flying having finally wound down.
"That was so totally awesome, grandpa! Thank you," Steve bubbled, as enthusiastic as Rocky had ever been.
"Yeah – you too, grandma!" Scott piped up, flinging his arms around both. For once, his delight overcame his preteen's disdain for showing affection in public. His dark eyes, a legacy from his grandfather, were dancing with excitement. Suddenly, though, he seemed to realize how close to each other Kat and Tommy were standing.
"Why are you hugging?" he wanted to know, with a young boy's incessant curiosity … and lack of tact.
Tommy suppressed a groan. This was not how he'd wanted the communion with Kat to end! He looked down at Kat, whose eyes shone with laughter and tenderness. With admirable calm, she addressed their grandson.
"Because I was cold, hon," she replied, her voice not quite steady as she gave Tommy a small, sheepish shrug. "Grandpa was just helping me keep warm."
"Oh. Okay." Scott's attention was already diverted by his cousin, who was fairly bouncing on his feet.
"Look, there are buses! I bet we'll be landing soon! Let's see who's down first!"
The moment was lost. Tommy gazed helplessly at Katherine.
"Kat, I …" He found his mouth sealed by a cold fingertip.
"I know. Later," she promised, then stepped back with an apologetic smile as their balloon began to lose height rapidly when the crew started the landing procedure.
Grudgingly, Tommy nodded. But he kept as close to Kat as he could, and when the buses were ferrying them back to the Fair, they held hands all the way.
~*~
It was already dark when the kids were returned safely to their parents and they'd taken leave of Rocky and Sarah, who confessed to feeling pretty exhausted. Truth be told, Tommy and Kat weren't feeling all that chipper either, not as they had when they'd started on their momentous outing. After all, they were getting on a bit in years … But neither wanted to be alone quite yet, and thus Tommy found himself wandering a bit aimlessly around Kat's cosy living room while she put on some water for tea.
He was looking at the various groupings of photographs she had displayed here and there around the house. The grandchildren's pictures were on a wall near the window; parents and family on a small cabinet. Their friends' occupied most of a sideboard, and right above them, a little separately, hung two frames showing the smiling faces of those who were no longer with them – Trini and Kimberly.
Tommy was tracing the contours of Kim's picture with a finger, lost in thoughts about his wife and wondering if he hadn't maybe misread Kat's reaction earlier in the day, wishing he knew a way to bring it up again, when Kat appeared next to him on silent feet. She reached out with a slender hand and took the frame off its hook.
"This doesn't belong here anymore," she said softly.
Before Tommy could react, ask whether she wanted him to banish any mementos of his wife – I couldn't do that! Ever! I wouldn't ask you to remove Jase's photos! – she turned towards the fireplace, where a large picture of Jason in his prime held pride of place on the mantelpiece.
"This is her rightful place … now."
Working the stand on the back of the frame loose, Kat placed Kimberly's picture firmly next to Jason's. They were nearly identical in size.
"We'll have to get matching frames," she mused.
Tommy's shoulders sagged in relief. Of course. He shouldn't have jumped to conclusions – especially ones he knew were against Kat's very nature.
"Sounds like a suitable Christmas present from one of the small fry," he suggested with a touch of humor.
"Possibly." Kat's voice was pensive as she regarded the two faces behind the gleaming glass.
Tommy came up behind her and put his hands on her shoulders. There was no resistance nor reluctance; she just tilted her head slightly towards him, and he pressed a small kiss against her temple. It was a gesture he'd offered her countless times over the years; less than he wanted, but it was a start.
"Are you having second thoughts?"
Kat didn't pretend to misunderstand what he was referring to. She'd never been coy, and she was too honest to shy back now, once her decision had been made.
"No."
Tommy still needed to ask, to make sure in which their relationship was heading from here on out.
"You'll marry me, then?"
She sent him a gentle smile.
"Of course."
Her answer, given without hesitation, opened the door to peace … and joy. Exhaling a breath he hadn't known he was holding, Tommy smiled back.
"Then why so thoughtful?"
She looked back at the two pictures. "I was just thinking … even if we'll be together from now on, they'll always be a part of our lives, won't they?"
"Naturally. I loved Kim too much to ever forget her, and I know you feel the same about Jase."
It wasn't exactly an orthodox thing to say to the woman he just had proposed to, but Tommy felt no qualms about it. After all, he knew that Kat would understand – because she was one with him in this.
"Thank you, Tommy," Kat whispered, a lone tear slipping from her eye. Whether it was one of sadness or happiness, neither could say. Tommy wiped it away gently.
"Don't cry," he begged.
"I'm not," Kat sniffled, then had to laugh. Just a little, but it was enough to make him draw her into his arms. With a small sigh, she rested her cheek against his, returning the embrace. The two stood like that for a few moments, then Kat bravely looked at Tommy.
"I love you," she murmured. "Not like I did when I was a teenager, and not like I loved Jason, but it is love."
"I love you, too," he replied in a low voice. "Just like that. It's weird … in a way, it feels like then, and yet it feels completely different …"
"Uh huh."
In perfect accord, they smiled at each other. Then, at long last, they kissed.
It was good-bye, and it was hello; a rekindling as well as an end … and a beginning. A circle closed.
An untold time later, Tommy prepared to leave. His arm was around Kat's waist as she accompanied him towards the door, but she stopped once more in front of the fireplace, before Jason and Kimberly's pictures.
"Is it my imagination, or are they smiling at us?"
"I think they are," Tommy answered. "After all, all they ever wanted was our happiness. And I am happy again – because you make me," he added with a quick kiss.
"Ditto."
Which was a gift neither had thought to receive.
~*~
"… so, while technically Tommy asked me to marry him in my living room, I'll always feel as if his real proposal was made in that balloon, gliding through the sky," Kat concluded her story.
"That's how I feel about it, too," Tommy concurred. "It just was the right time, the right place."
"In any case, it was really romantic," Jasmine smiled at them. "And you sure were right about the unusual location!"
"I guess you could say you were on Cloud Nine, huh, Dad?" Jay teased his father.
"Or that you had your head in the clouds," Ramon grinned.
"Definitely not a decision made with both feet firmly on the ground," Jared chimed in.
"Nah, they were floating on air," Oliver added, to loud groans from the rest of the family.
"Cut it out already," Trini scolded, glaring impartially at husband, brother and friends. "You guys have so no sense of romance!"
Lynne just shook her head, rolling her eyes exasperatedly. "Give it up, Trini," she muttered. "You'll never change them!"
"Not in this life, anyway," Rachel grumbled, as put out as the other girls.
The young men started to protest vigorously, and over their children's heads, Tommy and Kat exchanged a laughing look.
"Seems as if nobody in this room will ever change," he said conversationally to his fiancée. "All grown up, and still bickering like they used to as kids!" To which accurate observation Kat only nodded, her expression one of loving exasperation.
"Yes. And I guess that means they don't want to hear about our other decision," she remarked casually. As intended, it stopped the repartee surrounding them quite effectively.
"Oh? What's that?" Oliver wanted to know, his eyes narrowing suspiciously. "You're not planning to run off to join the circus or anything like that after the wedding, are you?"
Lynne gasped as his flippant remark gave her a most unwelcome idea. "Please tell me you're not going to elope!"
"Now there's an idea," Tommy grinned. "What do you say, Kat – we run off to Vegas tonight, get married by an Elvis impersonator in an incredibly tacky ceremony, and can be back in time for dinner tomorrow. It'd save us a lot of time, trouble and money!"
"Hmm, that's right," Kat mused, hiding her laughter with difficulty. "After all, you and I already had our big weddings. I'm sure I can find a pink dress to match most Vegas chapels."
Six voices immediately rose in outraged protest.
"NO WAY!"
"Are you crazy, Dad, or what?" Jay blurted – rather disrespectfully, but to Tommy's secret amusement.
"Mom, you're not serious, are you?" Lynne begged. "You just have to have a proper wedding, with everyone!"
"Yeah; I want to walk you down the aisle," Oliver announced. After a quick glance at his glaring younger brother, he amended his statement. "Make that Jared and I."
Trini looked equally incensed. "If you do that, I'll never forgive you," she told her father.
Rachel leaned back in her chair and smiled slowly … evilly. "Don't worry, guys," she drawled. "If your 'rents pull a stunt like that on all of us, we'll just get Uncle Rocky, Uncle Zack and Aunt Aisha to plot revenge on them. What do you want to bet that then they'll be sooo-r-r-r-y?"
Ramon's eyes lit up with unholy glee at the idea. "Go on, Uncle Tommy, I dare you," his son-in-law smirked.
"Oh really?" Tommy looked at him challengingly. "I've more than half a mind to take you up on it, kiddo!"
Kat sighed in exasperation. Really, despite his age sometimes Tommy could be as bad as the kids. Make that worse.
"Do any of you want to hear about the decision we made, or not?" she asked the room in general with more than a touch of asperity, very much in Mom-mode. Her three children instantly looked sheepish. They knew that tone.
More than willing to play peacemaker, Jasmine nodded. "Of course we do; sorry, you two." She quelled her friends and sibs-in-law with a stern glance she usually reserved for a courtroom. "What is it?"
Tommy was still balefully eye-balling Ramon, who gave him back look for look, but subsided willingly enough when Katherine reached for his hand with a pleading glance.
"Tommy?"
"Oh, okay," he grumbled, breaking the stare-off. "You haven't heard the last of this, Ramon," he muttered sotto voce.
"Didn't think I had," Ramon mumbled, still grinning, but secretly glad he wouldn't have to put actions to words. He admired and liked his father-in-law too much to ever want to seriously aggravate him. Teasing was one thing – and very much part of their large family's life – but he'd let his mouth run away with him, and things had been in danger of going just a little too far.
Rachel's mind had been working at lightning speed. Her whole face lit up with excitement when a whole chandelier seemed to light up inside her head.
"Let me guess – it's about your wedding date, isn't it? Have you set one already?"
Smiling serenely, Kat nodded. "We have," she confirmed.
"What? When?" The question hit them from several sides at once.
Tommy chuckled. Lifting Kat's hands to his lips, he kissed the back, then looked at his family.
"Well … as long as all of you guys are here for the holidays anyway … we thought New Year's would be the perfect time."
That instantly quieted everybody, then all eight younger people surged up and forward, breaking out in excited babbling.
"Perfect!"
"But that's in a week already!"
"Way too soon …"
"Hey, it's not as if Mom and Uncle Tommy need to get to know each other better …"
"Where will we get a room at such short notice?"
"Can we get the families all together, or is anyone out of town next week?"
"But I've got absolutely nothing to wear!"
"What about flowers, a caterer …"
"We'll never be able to get ready in time …"
In the general hubbub, nobody noticed when Tommy slipped out of his chair and drew Kat up with him, behind the Christmas tree. It hid them from view at least partially. Arms loosely wrapped around each other, they surveyed the happy pandemonium from their vantage point.
"Well, that went much better than I'd hoped it would," he murmured into her ear.
Kat kissed him on the cheek. "Yes. And while I never imagined our announcement would lead to such a long trip down memory lane, I'm glad it did."
"Uh huh. There were some rough spots that hurt to remember, but on the whole it was good. We have a lot of great memories to share, don't we?"
"Yes. And I'm sure that we'll add to them in the years to come," Kat agreed. In the distance, she heard church bells ringing midnight. Christmas Eve was over. Turning towards Tommy, she gazed up at him with misty but happy eyes.
"Merry Christmas."
He returned the look in equal measure, then kissed her.
"Merry Christmas to you, too, dear. And I'm sure it'll be an even better
new year."
To Be Continued …
.