Chapter Twenty

Melissa sat on a bench in the park, scribbling some details into a notebook. She hadn't worked on her article at all, so she figured that now was as good a time as any.

Mesogog and his goons weren't defeated, completely. It was only for the time being. They could expect an attack at any moment. But, for now, they were given the chance to do the things that they enjoyed.

Conner was somewhere else in the park, playing soccer with a few friends. Kira was off somewhere, writing music. Ethan was most likely hanging around either one of his friends, playing on his computer. Tommy and Hayley were most likely working on something for the team, but the thing, Melissa noticed, was that Tommy wasn't speaking to Hayley for some reason. She figured she'd have to ask what was going on between the two of them.

But, that could wait until later. All she wanted to do was work on her article. The only problem was that there was just so much that she didn't know how she was going to include it all.

Her details had filled at least six pages of her notebook and that was something, seeing as though she had very small handwriting. But, she wanted to describe everything from the monsters to the Power Rangers, themselves. The only problem with that was that she couldn't describe the way the rangers were when they would fight, seeing as though she had never paid attention, since so much was going on around her. This was going to be difficult.

She was so lost in thought as she stared at what she had written that she didn't notice someone sneaking up behind her. The person grabbed her around the waist and picked her up from the bench in a big bear hug.

She was startled by all of this, until she was set down and she saw who had hugged her. Her eyes went wide at the sight of the man in front of her. She was surprised to see him standing before her and wondered if it was really him. But, it was him. From his brown hair and eyes to the color of his red shirt, it was him.

"Jason?" She asked, breathlessly.

He smiled as he answered. "Did I scare you?"

"Well, yeah. What are you doing here?" She gave him a once oer, which he didn't seem to notice as he answered. There was nothing different about him, except the fact that he did look slightly more mature.

"I just opened a studio in town. What about you?" He asked.

"Just visiting, sadly. I'm doing a report on the Power Rangers for the New York Times… God, it's great to see you." She said, hugging him properly.

"You too. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw you sitting on this bench. I thought I was seeing things."

"Nope. It's really me." She motioned for him to walk with her. "Come on. Let's get caught up.

"Okay."

They walked and talked for almost a half and hour, not really paying attention to where they were going. They were surprised when they found themselves in the middle of a soccer game. Melissa's eyes set on a kid weaving in and out through the other players.

She nudged Jason's arm. "Watch the kid in the red. He's really good."

"You've been coming here a lot, huh?" He asked.

"You know the park's always been my best place to think. I can't help it if I wander onto a game or two." She gave a smirk as she watched the kid in red, namely Conner, score a goal. She let out a loud cheer for him, as did a few others who were sitting by and watching, Kira and Ethan among them.

"Hey, there's Mel." Kira said, looking up from strumming her guitar. "Who's that guy with her?"

"I dunno, but he looks familiar." Ethan said, trying to remember where he had seen that face before. It just wasn't registering.

"Yeah, I know."

Melissa made her way into the house later than she expected. She hadn't realized how much time she'd spent with Jason, so before she knew it, it was almost midnight.

She walked in to find Tommy sleeping on the couch, an opened book draped over his slowly rising and falling stomach. But, something wasn't right about this picture and she knew it. She smiled slyly as she looked at him. "Nice try. I saw you at the window, I know you're awake." She said as she closed the door.

Tommy opened his eyes to look at her. She was smiling happily at him and it looked as though she was blushing. "What's up with you?" He asked.

"Well, mister worried-about-everyone-except-himself, if you must know... nothing." She gave an evil laugh as she walked passed him. "Oh, by the way, did you know your book is upside down?" It was his turn to blush. "You didn't have to wait up for me, you know. I am a big girl. I can cross the street by myself and everything."

"Sorry. It's just the way I am."

"You're not going to order me to report in every few hours, are you?" She asked, jokingly.

"No." He laughed, shaking his head. "So, where are you?"

"The park. I was working on my article."

Tommy gave her a puzzled look. There was something missing from this scene. "Don't you need something to write with to do that?"

She wondered what he was talking about, until she realized that she didn't have her notebook with her. She must've left it at Jason's studio, when he gave her a tour of it.

There was something bothering her, now that she realized it. She didn't really know if she should tell Tommy that Jason was in town. The two of them were like brothers, but she never exactly got to tell Jason that Tommy was living there. She figured she'd wait a day or two to tell them both.

"Yeah, I left it in my car. I'm going back tomorrow, so I figured that I'd just leave it in there."

He nodded as she let out a loud yawn. "Well, get to bed, then. You want that article to be your best ever, don't you?" She nodded. "Well, it won't be any good if you're half asleep."

"Yes, dad." She said, sarcastically as she headed to her bedroom.

Tommy just laughed as he heard her close the door to her bedroom.

Melissa changed directly into her pajamas, a pair of old, worn, baggy, black pants and a black and green layered tank top. But she didn't go directly to sleep. She decided to check up on things, since she hadn't done it since she returned to her normal self.

She logged onto her instant messenger to see her favorite computer buddy still on.

GreenEyedSerenity: What are you still doing up? You're usually in bed by now.

PinkLady105: Well, when I'm not worried sick, I do. Where have you been? You haven't be on in like four days.

GreenEyedSerenity: It's a long story.

PinkLady105: I've got time. What happened?

GreenEyedSerenity: Well, you're not going to believe this, but…

Melissa then began to tell her everything she had experienced since she's arrived in Reefside.

GreenEyedSerenity: …so, now Tommy is the Black Ranger, I'm the Green Ranger and to top it all off, I ran into another old friend, today.

PinkLady105: Who?

GreenEyedSerenity: Jason.

PinkLady105: And that's bad, why?

GreenEyedSerenity: Well, I didn't exactly tell him that Tommy was living here and I didn't exactly tell Tommy that I ran into him… and I don't know why I did it. I just don't.

PinkLady105: Maybe you still have feelings for Jason. I know you used to really like him before he, Trini, and Zack left.

GreenEyedSerenity: Yeah, but I never got the chance to tell him that… and I think those feelings are starting to resurface.

PinkLady105: Really?

GreenEyedSerenity: Oh, God. You know, when I first saw his face, I couldn't help but stare… and he's still the great guy that he always was.

PinkLady105: But, what is he doing down there?

GreenEyedSerenity: He opened a karate studio… I'm just wondering why he didn't do it back home.

PinkLady105: Too many memories. I know that's why I only ever go back every once in a while. Everywhere I go, I find that I remember all the things that've happened… I remember, one day, I went to go visit the Command Center, but there was nothing left of it.

PinkLady105: It just broke my heart.

GreenEyedSerenity: Yeah, I know. Me too. I can't believe everything is gone.