The Track...
Hunter was on a roll. He had just passed the rider in the Number Two position, and there were only three more laps to go. Now he only needed to get closer to Blake...but his little brother had a lead of more than half a lap. 'If I move to the inside some more, take the corners a little tighter...'
Suddenly, at the edge of his peripheral vision, he saw a flash of green. A forest-green windbreaker. A very familiar forest-green windbreaker!
But by now he had already shot by that spot. Hunter sped up, not concerned with reaching Blake anymore. He just wanted to get around the lap and back to that spot.
He was still there, in the exact same place, windbreaker flapping in the breeze.
Cam.
Hunter could not let his eyes stray from the track, but he tilted his helmet just slightly to the right, acknowledging Cam's presence. During a race, the adrenaline was always high, but now Hunter's heart was starting to beat just a little faster.
He rounded the track again, but when he passed the spot, Cam was gone.
He finished the race in second place, just behind Blake.
Hunter forced himself to smile and accept the congratulatory slaps on the back from his fellow riders, but his eyes were darting in all directions.
Cam was nowhere to be seen. 'Why had he been here, then?'
Hunter took the first opportunity to split, right after the prizes had been awarded. Still pondering Cam's sudden appearance - and disappearance - he went to retrieve his backpack from his locker. But when he opened the door, he found the bag unzipped.
"What the...?" he mumbled and quickly looked through its contents to see if anything was missing. What he found was that not only was everything still there, something had been added. With a frown he pulled out the CD.
Just listen, waswritten in black across its surface, and Hunter recognized the flowing handwriting immediately.
'But how had he gotten it in here?' The answer hit him before the thought was even finished and Hunter smiled a grim smile as he looked at the simple key lock he had on his locker. Of course, such a mere lock was no problem for Cam Watanabe, Green Samurai Ranger and techno wizard.
The one he had missed every hour of every day since he had moved back into Blue Bay Harbor. Hunter stared at the CD, not daring to let the spark of hope he felt ignite.
Cam, who drove him crazy in more ways than one with his incredible knowledge of just about everything, his cockiness about it, his bossy attitude, his beautiful eyes, his warm, sensual lips...
Hunter, with his good looks and charming demeanor – or loud and obnoxious attitude, depending on who one spoke to – had never had any problems attracting the attention of whomever he was interested in at the moment, whether male or female. This had resulted in a few relationships over the years, but just about all of them had been short-term, and the ease with which he had always walked away from these relationships had never really fazed him. Attraction had so far never equaled connection for him.
This time had been very different. He had left a big part of his heart behind when he moved out of Ninja Ops, and it had been very unsettling for him when Cam just...let him go.
Hunter knew beyond any doubt that Cam cared about him, because he had been on the receiving end of Cam's TLC countless times. But Cam was confused – and scared, even though he would never admit it.
Bottom line was that Cam needed time to sort out his feelings, and Hunter was determined to give him that time. Except that waiting had been getting harder and harder lately. But now, with this mysterious CD here...
'With my luck Cam just decided to pursue a career in country music and wants me to critique his demo CD,' he thought darkly.
During the six months of 'cohabitation' in Ninja Ops, Hunter had found out that Cam had quite a few unexpected talents; playing country songs on his guitar was one of them.
Kissing was another talent in which he definitely excelled.
Or haircutting. Hunter grinned at the echo of that memory...
Ninja Ops, about two months ago. Hunter was getting seriously distracted. He was trying to study for his history exam, but Cam had been staring at him from his computer console across the room for a full minute now. Hunter never looked up, but was aware of it nevertheless. Ninja senses came in handy sometimes. Finally he did look up.
"Should I be flattered or annoyed at your staring, dude?" he said with a lopsided grin.
"Sorry," Cam actually looked a bit embarrassed. "I was just...thinking something."
Hunter grinned mischievously. "Would that 'something' have anything to do with the practice room after curfew?"
"No," Cam replied, cheeks turning a pretty shade of pink. Sensei was currently not in the control room, so they were free to talk. "I was thinking that...well...you need a haircut."
"No, not really," Hunter ran a hand through his longish banks. "I can still see."
"Barely."
"Hey, if I had ten bucks to spare, I would already have been to a barber." Hunter replied.
"I could cut it for you," Cam offered.
Hunter waved his hands in front of him defensively. "Oh no! Last time I had a home haircut, it ended up with an emergency after-hours visit to the barbershop. And that came out to twice as much."
As if on cue, Blake walked in. "Hey, guys."
"Speaking of Edward Scissorhands..." Hunter grumbled, and Cam chuckled at the mental picture that came into his mind.
Blake frowned. "Hu?"
"Just relaying that haircut disaster. You know, when..."
"You still moping about that?" Blake rolled his eyes. "You blew that whole thing way out of proportions back then, bro. It didn't look that bad." Blake turned to Cam and shrugged innocently. "I did the best I could with the tools at hand; what can I say?"
"I should have never let you near me with those hedge shears you called scissors." The dour look on Hunter's face was downright comical, and Cam couldn't help but laugh.
He rose from his chair and headed towards his room. "Well, I have the real tools, so don't worry, ok?" He grinned at Hunter's groan.
A few moments later he was back with scissors, comb and towel.
Hunter gave a resigned sigh as Cam draped the towel around his shoulders. "I hope you know how to forge a signature on the apology slip for me missing school tomorrow," he grumbled.
Cam gave him an encouraging clap on the shoulder. "Didn't I tell you not to worry? It won't come to that, trust me."
And it didn't. Hunter actually had to admit, when looking in the mirror a short while later, that Cam really had done a pretty darn good job.
"Check it out, Blake," Cam said with a complacent grin. "There actually is a half decent-looking guy under all that hair."
"If pale and blond is your type, then yeah, I guess so," Blake grinned back and winked at Cam. The Navy Ranger was the only one who knew about their relationship, because the Bradley brothers didn't believe in keeping secrets from each other.
But it had not been right from the beginning...
Blake hadn't been sure about it until one night when Hunter had tried to creep back into their room after a late night make-out session to find his brother sitting up in bed, looking straight at him.
Busted!
"Mind telling me where you've been for the past..." Blake pointedly glanced at his wristwatch. "...two hours? Oh, and before you answer, let me just tell you that the 'bathroom break', 'snack attack' and 'I got lost in Ninja Ops at night' excuses won't work this time."
"You mean I've already used all those up?" Hunter replied jokingly, trying to sound way more lighthearted than he felt. But he wasn't fooling Blake, who just kept on looking at him until Hunter plopped next to him onto the bed with a sigh. He was still thinking about how much to tell Blake when his little brother decided to make it easy for him.
"Bro," he said, gazing at Hunter intently, his brown eyes warm and caring. "It's cool. Really. Whoever makes you happy, man."
They exchanged a long, silent look and Hunter saw the sincerity in Blake's eyes. He reached out and enveloped him in an affectionate brother-hug that Blake gladly returned.
"Thanks, bro," he mumbled.
"No sweat." Blake grinned and gave Hunter a friendly shove in the direction of his own bed. "Let's get some sleep, ok?"
A little while later Hunter was poised at the edge of sleep when Blake's voice cut through the darkness. "Hunter?"
"Hmmm?"
"Don't take this wrong, ok? I'm just curious..."
Hunter waited.
"Why Cam?"
It had taken Hunter a minute to respond. "Blake, believe me, if I knew the answer to that, I'd be sleeping much better tonight."
'That free haircut ended up costing me quite some time in the practice room later that night,' Hunter reminisced with a smile which was quickly replaced by a frown as the by now familiar feeling of loss and loneliness wedged itself into his heart again.
It wasn't like they had broken up, but it sure felt like it nowadays.
The revving of a bike engine outside the locker room snapped Hunter back into reality. He blinked rapidly, then stuffed the CD back into his backpack.
Suddenly, he was in quite a hurry to get home.
A message...
Thirty minutes later, Hunter stepped through the front door of the Bradley apartment.
Or their semi-bachelor pad, as Blake called it. In the two weeks they had been living here, Tori had visited half a dozen times. Cam hadn't been here once.
Hunter went straight for the stereo system and popped in the disk. The display showed only one track. He pressed 'Play', and a moment later, the sultry, whiskey-smooth voice of Macy Gray filled the small living room. Hunter's eyebrows arched in surprise at the first few notes of "I Try".
Games, changes and fears,
When will they go from here?
When will they stop?
I believe that fate has brought us here
And we should be together
But we're not.
Hunter's heart started to accelerate again. He stared at the CD player as if it were the sole piece of furniture in the entire apartment.
I play it off, but I'm dreaming of you
I'll keep my cool, but I'm fiendin'
I try to say goodbye and I choke
Try to walk away and I stumble
Though I try to hide it, it's clear
My world crumbles when you are not near
Afraid that his legs, which by now had seriously begun to wobble, wouldn't carry him any more, Hunter sank onto the couch. Cam was sending him a huge message here!
I may appear to be free,
But I'm just a prisoner of your love.
I may seem all right and smile when you leave
But my smiles are just a front.
"Took the words right out of my mind," Hunter mumbled, the first onset of a smile beginning at the corners of his mouth.
I play it off, but I'm dreaming of you
I'll keep my cool but I'm fiendin'
I try to say goodbye and I choke
Try to walk away and I stumble
Though I try to hide it, it's clear
My world crumbles when you are not near
Here is my confession,
May I be your possession!
Boy, I need your touch
Your love, kisses and such.
With all my might I try,
But this I can't deny.
Cam had made his decision! As the feeling of joy and relief washed over him, he let out the breath he had been holding with a 'whoosh'. It came out as a mixture of exhalation and chuckling. Hunter was glad he was alone.
I try to say goodbye and I choke
Try to walk away and I stumble...
The apartment door opened and Blake walked in to find his brother sitting on the edge of the couch, staring at the CD player as if hypnotized, a goofy smile on his face. He didn't even seem to have heard his little brother come home.
"Hey, Macy Gray!" the Navy Ranger exclaimed. "This is such a cool song, but I didn't know that was your style, bro."
Hunter's head snapped around, and he stared at his brother with a faraway expression.
Blake frowned. "Uhmm, Earth to Hunter. You ok, man?"
But Hunter was already on his feet, grabbing his jacket from the back of the couch.
"I gotta go!" he grinned as he shot by Blake and out the door.
Blake was puzzled. Not typical Hunter-behavior. Then his eyes went towards the now silent CD player. He opened the cover, saw the CD in it, and recognized the hand writing as well.
Blake smiled. So Cam finally called. In a way.
At Ninja Ops...
The cool October breeze, heavy with the scent of the sea, felt good on Cam's face. He sat on a large boulder in the concealed training cove by Ninja Ops, gazing out over the ocean, trying to slow down his racing mind. Not much luck on that yet, though.
Normally, the softly lapping waves were a calming sight for him, but today he lacked the inner tranquility to appreciate their serenity.
After returning from the race track, Cam had attempted to get some work done on the Tsunami Cycles' upgrades, but his mind just wouldn't stay on the task.
Hunter had seen him; that much was sure. 'But had he listened to it yet?' Cam wondered.
After a few unsuccessful attempts of code writing, he finally decided to get some air, and that had led him here, to this spot. Normally a good place for thinking, but today he wanted anything but to think. He just wanted to sit here...and wait.
Cam closed his eyes. 'Maybe with some meditation...'
Soft footsteps on the sand, coming closer, a familiar voice, the only one he cared to hear right now. "You know, if you scoot over, there would be space for two on that rock."
Cam smiled, opened his eyes and looked up at his boyfriend, who was watching him in return, hands stuffed in his jeans pockets, his trademark lopsided grin plain on his face. Cam moved, and Hunter sat down close to him. For a moment, neither one spoke.
Cam broke the silence first. "Congratulations on your race."
"Are you kidding? I hate second place," Hunter replied with mock disgust. "And how did you know the turnout anyways? It's not like you hung around to see it."
"I stayed long enough," Cam said with a mysterious smile.
Hunter nodded. "Obviously." Then he turned his head a bit more towards Cam and said what the Samurai Ranger had been waiting to hear. "I got your message."
Cam inclined his head, looking somewhat nervous. "Hope you didn't think it was too cheesy."
Hunter shook his head, and Cam was surprised to see the smirk replaced by a serious expression. "Wasn't cheesy at all."
The Thunder Ninja shifted, just a little bit, and that movement pressed his thigh against Cam's for a brief moment. It was only a subtle touch, but it was the first contact they'd had in two weeks, and they were both intensely aware of that. They looked at each other, and the longing in Hunter returned with a vengeance.
All he wanted to do was wrap his arms around this man and stay locked in that position until Christmas, but before he could do that, they had to get a couple of things out of the way. So he kept the wings of hope tucked in tightly and waited, watching Cam's face.
Cam was the one who had sent the message; it was his call.
But apparently, Cam had something else in mind, since he reached into the leg pocket of his olive cargo pants, withdrew a twice-folded sheet of paper and wordlessly handed it to Hunter.
The Thunder Ninja took it with a quizzical look, but he knew better than to ask. His eyes dropped to the letterhead of the paper: Harbor Bay Clinic.
Hunter frowned, throwing Cam a quick, uneasy glance. Was he sick?
But Cam just lifted his chin, indicating to him to continue reading.
Hunter read through the content of the sheet...and then read it again. And even though his hands stayed steady, his heartbeat certainly was not.
He was looking at the negative results of Cam's HIV test. Dated from this morning.
"Cam, what is this?" The moment the question left his mouth, he felt stupid for asking.
And he couldn't tell from Cam's expression whether he thought the same. "It's the test result..." he began, but Hunter held up his hand. "Let me re-phrase this: Why?"
Cam's eyes flickered with controlled emotions as he responded simply, "Because I want us to be safe when...the time comes."
His hunch confirmed, Hunter was nevertheless taken aback by Cam's symbolic gesture.
It was a huge step for the samurai, for he had just committed himself to the next level in their relationship. The wings of Hunter's hope expanded to their full circumference, and he was emotionally airborne, joy expanding outward in his chest until it felt as inflated as a balloon. Yet he felt the need to explain to Cam the huge grin the Green Ranger undoubtedly saw on his face. With another quick glance at the address of the clinic, he handed the sheet back to Cam. "I'll go there tomorrow, then."
Then he reached out and surprised Cam by taking his hand, and his grin turned serious. "Cam, I want you to know that this goes much deeper than sex for me, ok? I want to be with you, spend time with you, and whether that means ending up in bed or just watching movies on the couch all night...either way would be ok with me. We'll go at your pace."
Cam's almond eyes narrowed. "And just how long would you wait?"
Hunter avoided his gaze. "As long as it takes." Suddenly, the Crimson Ranger found the gentle pacific waves intensely fascinating.
But Cam wasn't deterred. "Hunter?"
"Yeah?" Hunter answered the ocean.
"You were worried, weren't you?" Cam probed. "Worried that I'd break this off."
Hunter just shrugged, still looking away.
Cam squeezed their still interlaced hands. "There was never a reason to worry about that."
"You sure?" Hunter wanted to know, now finally turning his head. "I know this whole thing is...well...weird for you."
"Was," Cam corrected him. "I mean, it's still strange at times, but..." Cam made it a point to look straight into Hunter's eyes. "It's something I'm looking forward to getting used to."
Hunter returned the gaze, blue eyes shining. "I'm glad."
Suddenly, that look turned into a somewhat abashed expression. "Look, I suck at metaphors, but... I understand your hesitancy, and your confusion. You are leaving the familiar path you've walked on all your life so far."
"The road less traveled?" A slight, amused smile played around Cam's mouth.
"Or, in your case, the road never traveled." Hunter's smile mirrored Cam's for a moment, then he turned serious again. "I don't want to sound all mushy and stuff, but I just want you to know that you will never be alone on that path, ok?"
With a lump in his throat, Cam nodded solemnly, not quite trusting his voice. And for a while they just sat side by side in silence, holding on to each other, until Cam continued the metaphor line. "But there's one more stone in the way, and I have to move it aside before we can go on."
Hunter threw him a quizzical glance. "The others?"
Cam shook his head. "No. I think they have shrunk down to pebbles, because I'm pretty sure they'll be ok with it," he replied. "I'm talking about a stone I've been pushing ahead of me for months now."
Hunter nodded, understanding dawning in his eyes. "A stone with brown fur and the nasty habit of bouncing off people's heads?" he grinned, trying to make light of Cam's impending task. Cam nodded, but his own smile came out just a bit too crooked and insincere. Hunter could feel the nervousness coming off him like a rising tide. He squeezed his partner's hand. "Want me to come with you?"
Cam's expression was grateful. "Thanks, but that's something I have to do on my own."
Cam pulled himself up. Hunter, unwilling to let go of his hand yet, rose with him, and the two men embraced without hesitation. The Samurai Ranger hugged the Crimson Ranger just a little tighter, as if to draw strength from him. Then, with a heavy exhalation, he turned towards the tunnel that led back to Ninja Ops, but Hunter held him back and pressed his mouth to his lips for their first real kiss in weeks. Cam's eyes fluttered closed, felt the familiar heat rising in him again when Hunter's tongue thrust into his mouth. He molded his body tightly onto the blond man as he gave himself over to the delicious sensation that was...Hunter. God, he had missed him!
And Cam knew. Knew without a doubt that, whatever his father's reaction would be, he could not, would not, ever walk away from Hunter again.
Only when the need to breathe became too obvious did they pull away reluctantly.
"I'll be right here, waiting, ok?" Hunter said huskily.
"Ok." Cam's glazed eyes were slowly returning to normal as he disentangled himself out of the Crimson Ranger's embrace and started towards Ops.
Hunter's eyes followed Cam until he had disappeared into the tunnel. Then he plopped onto the sand with a sigh, ready to wait.
Epilogue...
Nearly an hour later he was still sitting in the same spot, so absorbed in the task of just staring at nothing that, when a small voice suddenly addressed him with "Your mind seems far away, son," he almost jumped out of his skin.
Hunter looked around for the source of the voice, and his eyes widened in surprise when he saw Sensei standing in the sand, almost right next to him.
"I'm sorry, I did not mean to startle you, Hunter," the guinea pig said.
"No, no need to apologize, Sensei," Hunter said quickly, "I just didn't expect you here."
That was the truth. Sensei never left Ninja Ops, or at least Hunter had never seen him outside the control room; not voluntarily, anyways.
So was it a good or a bad thing that he was here now?
"No offense, Sensei, but what are you doing out here?" Hunter asked warily.
Sensei inclined his brown head. "I came to get you, my son."
My son... Hunter peered at Cam's father, but guinea pigs were hard to read, especially this one.
Sensei must have seen the uncertainty in the Thunder Ninja's eyes, for he held up his paw. "Cam and I had a very honest and insightful conversation in which many things were finally revealed. Some of them surprising, yet none unexpected."
None unexpected? "What do you mean?" But even though Hunter feigned ignorance, he was afraid he already knew the answer.
"A ninja's greatest attribute is the mastery of stealth, Hunter." A sly smile spread across Sensei's furrowed face. "And while the two of you have most certainly improved your skills in that regard over the past six months, you have not yet excelled in them."
Despite his best intentions, Hunter felt himself blush.
Fortunately, Sensei decided to overlook his student's obvious embarrassment. He suddenly leapt up and landed squarely on Hunter's right shoulder. His voice was close by the Crimson Ranger's ear. "A father's love manifests itself in many forms, Hunter. My son has made an important decision about his life. I trust him, and I believe that he has chosen his companion well."
Hunter turned his head. It was rare to see an unguarded emotion such as plain happiness on the young man's face, but now Sensei was treated to just such a sight.
"Cam should be finished preparing tea by now," the Wind Ninja teacher continued. "Let us go inside. We shall drink and speak of the future, and of family."
Sensei had giving them his blessing! Hunter closed his eyes and sent a quick, silent 'Thank You!' up towards the heavens before he rose from the sand.
"I would like that, Sensei," he replied sincerely. "Thank you."
He swallowed hard and added, "For everything."
The guinea pig just patted the Crimson Ranger's shoulder with his tiny paw.
Hunter was almost at the tunnel entrance before he became aware of the figure waiting just inside the murky darkness.
Cam met Hunter's gaze, smiled, and held out his hand.
Together they turned and slowly walked down the tunnel towards Ninja Ops, the waiting tea... and their future.
THE END