It had been two weeks since Kimberly had returned home, and Tommy had never been happier. It was as if he had regained a portion of his soul he didn't realize he had been missing. I think I might have. He looked over at Kimberly, who was leaning against his shoulder, asleep, as they sat in the Movie Theater, watching whatever sappy romance movie she had wanted to see. When they dated before, when they were both Rangers, such a date wouldn't have been possible. An attack by Rita or Zedd could come at anytime, and it would be difficult to get out of a crowded movie theater easily.
Tommy slipped his arm around Kimberly's shoulder, and gently shook her, rousing her from her slumber. "Hey, Beautiful. Time to wake up." The words immediately brought a smile to both of their faces. It was those words that he used to rouse her when he reappeared as the White Ranger. She had fainted as he pulled his helmet off that time, so shocked that it was he. "Have a good nap?" he asked her.
"Mmmmm. Dreamt about you," she murmured sleepily. "What happened?"
"Dunno. With your snoring, I couldn't hear what was happening," Tommy said, laughing. Kimberly punched him lightly on the shoulder.
"Jerk. I do not snore. I think."
"Just keep telling yourself that, Kim. I'm sure one of these days you'll believe it." He stood, and offered her his hand to rise herself from the theater seat. "Feel up for Ice Cream, or you wanna head home?"
"Don't want to go home. Means I have to leave you," she responded, smiling up at him.
"I've actually been meaning to ask you about that. Where are you staying? With your Mom in Paris and your Dad in Seattle, I know you're not staying with them…"
"Mostly with friends. Kat's family is still here in town, even though she moved to London for school, so I've stayed there, with their invitation. Why?"
"Well, I know its kinda a big step, but… I've got a spare bedroom at my place, and I was wondering…"
"Tommy, that's sweet, but don't you think you should talk to your Mom before you offer me a spare room?"
Tommy couldn't help but smile to himself. "Not when she doesn't live there." Kim looked at him with confusion plain on her face. "I told you how I was driving for my Uncle right before and after I left the Rangers, right?" Kim nodded. Tommy had begun carrying a cell phone at that point, and she had been calling him on that. It was a lot easier then leaving a message, and waiting for him to get it. "Well, I won several big purses, and bought myself a place. Its not really more then a large apartment, but its got a place for me to lay my head. Its also got a spare room that David was using for a little bit there, before he left to go to school." She nodded again. David was Tommy's brother he told her about meeting sometime during his stint as a Zeo Ranger.
"Tommy, are you offering to let me… live with you?" Kim asked, her face turning what Tommy thought was a very cute shade of pink.
"If you'd like. No pressure. If you'd like, we can go there right now, and you can look over it. Plus, its over this store front, and I've been thinking about finding out how much it would cost to open my own school there."
Kimberly blushed again, and nodded. If nothing else, she wanted to see where Tommy wanted to open his Martial Arts School. He had talked about it for so long, and she knew how much it meant to him to actually be able to open it. "Sure. Let's go take a look."
***
Tommy pulled his truck to a stop outside a fairly modern looking storefront. Brick, glass, and metal adorned the walls, allowing passers-by to peer within the open room. As they approached, Tommy pulled out a ring of keys, and began to unlock the door.
"I thought you said you were only thinking about buying this place?" Kim asked, a gentle smile crossing her face.
"I am. The owner is a friend of my uncle's, and he said I could look over the place. He's also letting me use it to workout in." Tommy pointed to a corner as he opened the door and turned on the light, indicating a small workout bench.
"Nice little place, ya got here." Kim said, looking around. Wide open, mats covering some of the floors and walls, mirrors on other walls. It looked almost like all the dojos out of Tommy's Martial Arts movies. The only thing missing was a wise old man meditating and some bamboo doors.
"Well, it's still a long way from being finished. I have to make sure everything is structurally sound, and can take having people thrown around on it all the time. Then comes advertising for the school, supplies, equipment…" he trailed off momentarily. "But, if it works, it'll be worth it. I'll have another dream I can check off of my list."
"What was the other?" Kim asked as she walked over to the mirrors. Tommy stepped behind her, and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her back to him. She smiled, and leaned against him.
"Having you back," he said, kissing her cheek softly. Kimberly sighed softly, turning her head to look out of the front windows. It was then that Kimberly screamed.
"What?" Tommy said, shocked, almost letting her slip out of his arms as she squirmed away from the windows.
"It can't be. He couldn't have followed me!" she said to herself, not hearing Tommy.
"Kimberly! What is it?"
"I… I… think I just saw… 'Him'!" Tommy snapped his head towards the window. In the weeks since she explained why she sent the letter, Kimberly also told him how Trevor, the man she kissed, had become somewhat obsessed with her afterwards. He started showing up and watching her during practices, trailing behind her as she went for a jog, and showing up at the restaurant she went to with her friends. She tried calling the cops, but everytime she did, they weren't able to find any trace of him.
The last time she saw him was when Jason showed up. He walked up to Jason, and brazenly told him to "stay away from my girl". Trevor was lucky Kimberly was there, or Jason might not have stopped after the first punch to the nose. The sickening crack was enough to satisfy Jason, and the police who showed up minutes later thank the man who finally was able to stop the man stalking Kimberly. "Next time, though, try not to draw so much blood," the cops said to him, smiling. Both Kim and Jason realized that Jason was going to get off without any punishment. It was then that Jason told Kim about the Martial Arts competition, and they headed to Angel Grove.
Tommy ran over to the door, opened it, and looked outside. Despite the dark, Tommy was able to see a fair distance thanks to the lights from inside the dojo. He looked around, but saw no one. He turned back around, closed the door, and locked it. No sense in giving him an easy time getting in, if Kim saw what she thought. He turned back to where he left Kim, who was now lying on the floor, passed out. He ran over, and shook her gently. Nothing. Lifting her gently, Tommy carried her up the steps to his apartment upstairs.
***
Tommy pushed the door to his apartment open, thankful that, due to the stairway from the "dojo" below, he didn't need to lock this particular door. Trying to unlock a door with an unconscious young lady in my arms might have been a little difficult. He laid her down on the couch, and walked into the bathroom to grab a washcloth, wetting it down with cool water. He walked back to the couch, and gently brushed the cool cloth against her forehead and cheeks. Slowly, after a few minutes, Kimberly began to come around. "Wh… where am I?"
"Don't worry, Beautiful. You're safe," Tommy answered her, pressing the damp cloth to her forehead. "We're upstairs, in my apartment, and the doors are all locked. No one can get in here, unless we want them in."
Kimberly blushed, and looked up at Tommy, a rueful grin crossing her lips. "I fainted, didn't I?"
Tommy grinned, and shrugged. "I just figured you were tired, and figured the floor downstairs looked comfy." Kimberly chuckled at this, and stuck her tongue out at Tommy. "Cute," he said, pushing her tongue back in her mouth with his fingertip. Feeling playful, Kim bit softly on his finger, not letting him pull it out, and sucked gently on it. Tommy laughed, which caused Kim to laugh, letting his finger go. "Feel better?"
"Physically, yes," she said, grunting as she sat herself upright. "But emotionally… Not until I stop seeing him everywhere."
"I don't want to sound cruel, but, are you sure you saw him? Maybe it was just a trick of the light…"
"I saw him just as sure as I'm seeing you right now. I just don't know how he found me. I haven't seen him since Jason broke his nose, so he couldn't have heard that I was planning on coming back here," Kimberly sighed heavily. "Maybe I am going crazy. There's no way he could have found out I was leaving…"
"Kim, if you said you saw him, then you saw him. You're not crazy. And, as there might be some crazed man out there, trying to attack you, or who knows what else, you will be staying here tonight." Kim looked over at Tommy, smiled lightly, but then frowned.
"I can't stay here, Tommy. I don't want to be a bother…"
"You were more a bother when you weren't here, Beautiful."
Kim blushed. Even now, two weeks after explaining what happened in Florida, she still couldn't believe how easily he had taken her back. "I'm sorry," she started, but before she could finish, Tommy pressed his fingers to her lips.
"Shh. We've already gone over that. You are here by forgiven for any wrong doings you might have done in Florida. You're back, and that's all that matters." To punctuate the sentiment, he leaned over, and gently kissed her lips.
"What will I sleep in?" Kimberly looked into Tommy's eyes, biting gently on her lower lip.
"Well, what do you normally sleep in?" Tommy asked as he rose, offering his hand to her. "I've got some spare t shirts which would be big enough for a night shirt. And I think I've got a few pairs of flannel PJs Mom has gotten for me." He looked back at her, and noticed she was blushing even more then normal. "What?"
"Nothing."
"OK, why are you blushing, then?" he asked, not understanding.
"No. You asked what I normally wore to sleep in, and I answered. Nothing." Kim was now a bright shade of red, rivaled only by Tommy's previous Ranger outfits.
"Oh," Tommy said, realizing he was now blushing. Try as he might, he couldn't help but picture Kim, asleep. He thought his old, High School thoughts of her in baby doll nighties were intense. But to have her admit to him that she slept in the nude…Whoa.
"Well, you did ask. And I figure we should be honest from now on, right? And no, I didn't sleep in the nude when I slept over at Trini's or Aisha's, so get that idea out of your head right now, mister." Tommy smiled, and nodded. "Good. Then, I have one other thing I want to say." Tommy nodded again, and waited for her to speak. Kim inhaled deeply, and spoke before the courage left her. "I want to sleep with you. JUST sleep. I want to lie with you, and have you hold me tightly, and not have to worry about anything else in the world."
She looked up at him, her doe eyes slightly damp. He smiled at her, wiping the stray tears from her cheek. "Of course you can sleep with me, Kim. And I'll only do what you want me to. No more, no less." Kim threw her arms around his neck, and hugged him tightly.
Kim pulled back, and wiped at her own face, brushing aside the few remnants of tears. "Now, you said you had some Flannel PJs?"
***
Trevor walked into the dive he was renting out, only a block away from Tommy's apartment. He smiled evily to himself. "I'm here, Kim-kim. And I don't care if your White Knight is here to protect you. No one does what you did to me and gets away with it. No one."
He walked over to a suitcase, and opened it slowly. Inside were dozens and dozens of pictures, all of Kimberly. Some were pictures taken at the Pan Global's. Some were of her with the other gymnasts, but outside of competition. And a few were taken through her window at the training facility, in various stages of undress.
As Trevor looked over his pictures of Kim, an African-American woman walked out of the bathroom. Her statuesque body made her look like a supermodel, and she moved with the grace of a gymnast. Her only clothes were a towel around her wet body. Water still beaded on her shoulders and neck, making her mahogany skin glisten like it was covered with diamonds. "Hey, baby," she breathed, huskily. "Did you find her?"
Trevor looked up, and smiled. "Yeah, Ne. I did. And guess what, she found her Tommy boy, and they've made up." He laughed maniacally. "I think she saw me tonight, but when Prince Charming came out to look for me, I was no where to be found. I tell you, Renee, she's as good as ours." He pulled her to him, kissing her deeply. She let the towel drop from between them as they fell, pressed together, to the bed.
