~You can't escape it, you can't ignore it...
Sometimes, you have to runaway, in order to find yourself.~



"Reporting for duty sir," a sure voice muttered as she stood infront of her captain. The day had just started yet Jen already felt incredibly tired. Her lack of sleep for the past few days is probably to blame, she had been putting more hours at work and it was taking its toll.

She sighed and listened while Captain Logan briefed her on another assignment, "I must say this one is extremely dangerous Jen and I don't expect you to take it, actually you'd be smart not to."

Jen silently listened to the words that fell out of Capt. Logans mouth but not much of it was making any sense. She blinked a few times and narrowed her eyes. Her hair was pulled up in a ponytail and she had on her usual Timeforce uniform. The early sunrise was just creeping up and Jen absently wondered why she'd come into work so early.

"Jen, are you listening to me? I assure you that it will be okay if you turn this assignment down, I'm sure I can get someone else on it," Capt. Logan continued saying with concern slowly creeping into his eyes.

"You said it was dangerous? How so?" Jen awkwardly asked as she grasped for the words her captain had been uttering only moments earlier.

"You will be required to travel through time again in search of three mutants," Capt. Logan said flatly.

Jen's eyes glazed over and her breathing slowed down as she thought about what that meant. Travel back in time? She felt a gentle pang inside her chest as she remembered the last time she travelled through time. Her arms were locked behind her back, but they fell to her side. Two eyes stared at the ground as she asked, "What's the assignment?"

***

"Lucas, where were you this morning? You were suppose to meet us at the Mall!" Katie huffed quickly as she ran up to the the guy sitting at a crowded table.

"I got hungry," Lucas looked up from his plate of pancakes and frowned. "Besides, why do you need me to come with you guys anyway? You know I hate to shop."

Katie hopped into her seat next to him and put down her bags with a groan.

"That's not the point, you said you'd come and you didn't. Now me and Trip had to pick out the presents. I mean, how are we suppose to figure what you'd want to buy her anyway?" Katie went on complaining as Lucas continued stuffing his face with food.

"I would have picked the first thing I saw," Lucas mumbled through a mouth full as Katie looked away in disgust.

"I take it you'd have gotten her a yellow banana shaped vibrator then because Trip and I accidentally walked into the wrong shop first."

Lucas arched and eye brow and swallowed while shaking his head agreeably, "Sure, but I'd probably have gone for the blue one though, just so we match."

Katie rolled her eyes and grabbed an orange juice.

"How do you "accidentally" walk into a shop like that anyway?" Lucas chided just before wolfing down some more pancakes and bacon all at once.

"Uh...I was kidding about the bana--" Katie started to giggle as she watched Lucas grin and wink at her. Oddly though, the appeal he'd normally have when doing that kinda vanished when you have a piece of bacon hanging from your mouth.

"Hey guys, did you get the wrapping paper I picked out?" Trip asked excitedly as he took a seat on the table.

Trip took out his snack and started to peal it.

Katie started laughing quietly and Lucas just shook his head, "That's just too easy," and went back to his food.

"Wha?" Trip muttered as he chewed on his banana, his blank expression was priceless.

"Have you guys talked to Alex about the surprise b-day party for Jen?" Katie asked after she got control of her laughter. She was eating some salted peanuts and relaxed. The sun was high and they had about 10 more minutes to just chill out before they had to get back into work.

"No, I thought you were gonna tell him?" Trip said calmly, directing his question at the boy drinking two glasses of juice at once.

"I was busy, you know Nadira is high maintenance so don't blame me for forgetting," Lucas grabbed a napkin and whipped his mouth clean. "I need a mirror somebody," came his calm voice.

Katie dropped her head in her hands and sighed, while Trip rolled his eyes and hopped off the table.

"Great, now I gotta go look for him so I can ask him. You know we have to get time off to get everything together Lucas. You're so unbelievable sometimes," Trip turned away and stomped off annoyed.

Lucas watched him walk off and yelled a belated "Sorry!" Trip just threw his hands up in the air and shrugged it off.

"So, you and Nadira are getting pretty close these days," Katie said absently, she grinned as she passed him a mirror.

"Yeah, you could say that."

She nudged his shoulder and grinned even more, "So..... are you and her..... you know... in luuuuuurve?" Katie teased.

Lucas looked up from his mirror and frowned, "Are you nutts woman?"

"She cleans me out broke everytime I see her, she talks about nothing BUT clothes, jewellery and MONEY," Lucas put down the mirror and through on his shades.

"I swear if it weren't for those....erm.... pretty eyes, I'd have knocked her out by now."

Katie laughed, "Haha! You do luuuuurve her!"

"I know I love *some*things about her..." Lucas corrected with a grin, "but no, I don't luuuurve her like that, now shut up Katie. We have to get back to work, and God knows I need the money."

"Wait until I tell Jen we're going bridesmaid dress shopping real soon," Katie got up and ignored the glare she was getting from Lucas.

"You wouldn't dare!"

Katie flipped open her cell phone and hit speed dial.

***

Things have never been the same since she left and went back in time, something changed in her and she knew it.

Overtime she ran into Alex, cool awkwardness would fill the air around them. She'd barely been able to say more than two words to him since she returned. Avoiding him became a constant worry for Jen and she was getting tired of it.

Now that she accepted the assignment Capt. Logan briefed her on earlier that morning, strange clarity overcame her. He was right, the job was ridiculously dangerous. But despite that, she felt sure that leaving for awhile was something she really needed to do.

Jen didn't want to think about where she'd be in the next couple of days, or who she'd run in to.

Wondering about what she left behind was extremely distracting.

Instead, she tried to focus on this assignment and making sure she came back in one piece. She was assigned to track down and capture three unknown mutants and bring them back to the future.

"Shouldn't be too difficult." That was a lie.

Jen calmly sighed through various weapons as she mentally began sorting through the information in the file Capt. Logan gave her. The lighting in the room she sat in was bright and the constant chatter and noise from the outside was starting to bother Jen.

The door slammed open and then shut again.

Jen was startled and quickly glanced up.

It was Alex.

Jen's throat tightened as she absently eyed the shut door. She wanted to walk out and avoid the glaring look Alex was giving her.

"You're not going on this mission," Simple as that.

The harsh edge to his voice was slightly surprising. Jen stood up from where she was sitting and met his gaze.

His eyes were dark and dead serious.

"Alex," Jen began with a calm voice that surprisingly required more effort than she had thought.

"As far as this assignment is concerned, I'm going." Jen watched the slowly changing dark eyes of the man she once loved. An unwanted feeling came over her.

Everytime she was around Alex she always felt... guilty.

"Jen please, listen to me, you can't expect to complete this assignment. It's suicide!" Alex half yelled as he walked right up to Jen and stared right down at her, trying to reason with her.

"I'm a *ranger* Alex, I can take care of myself. This is my decision to make and to be perfectly honest," Jen sighed and looked away.

She tried to pick her words carefully, "I need to get away."

Alex looked even more stern as an eyebrow lifted slightly. Jen went on, "I need to get away from you." Her eyes met his at that moment and she knew with absolute certainty, that his heart was breaking.

He blinked and looked away from her, the weapons scattered across the table seemed to have caught his attention. He stared at the timeforce blaster laying at the edge of the table with a quaint interest.

He picked it up and sighed.

"You want to go back to him," His voice was barely there and somewhat shaky.

Jen opened her mouth to say that wasn't the reason, but the words wouldn't come out. Jen was left standing there speechless, despite her desperate attempts to say something. She didn't want to hurt him, but she felt she was doing just that everytime she saw him.

Jen took a breath and muttered, "I don't know what to say." But that wasn't true. She knew what she wanted to say, but she wanted to spare his feelings more. She had put him through enough grief already.

Alex looked up at her then with shaky eyes that seemed to glisten.

"Why?" His voice seemed to crack as Jen watched him lose his composure. Never once had she ever seen him like this before. Eyes strained and watery. His hands ran through his hair with frustration when Jen remained silent.

"Why, Jen?" He repeated, this time more urgently.

Jen felt sorry for him, and at that moment hated herself for putting him through this. He didn't deserve this and she honestly could not find the right words to tell him what he wanted to hear without lying to herself.

Jen didn't love, not anymore. How was she suppose to tell him that?

"I need to go." Jen turned and walked towards the door, with her head down blinking away her tears. She heard the deep defeated sigh escape Alex's mouth.

She stopped for a second and turned slightly glancing over at him quickly. His back still facing her, a slow tear drop fell down her cheek.

"I'm sorry." She truly was.

***
~You're running too far, and you just lost your way...~




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