"Look I'm sorry, about before." Alex and Jen had gone out for a walk on the beach to get some fresh air, and hopefully to talk things out. "But there's things going on right now. Things I'm trying to figure out."

She stared at him longingly, wanting to know what it was he wasn't telling her. "Then please Alex, let me help you. Tell me what's going on," she pleaded with him. She hated being left in the dark and she really hated it when he would push her away. She missed the old Alex. The Alex that had taught her everything she knew about being a Time Force Officer, but he hadn't been that Alex for a long time.

"I can't." It was barely a whisper. He stared into her face, wishing that she trusted him in the way she had all those years ago, before everything got so messed up, before both of them had changed. Before… "You need to trust me on this."

She faced him, sadly. He wasn't going to tell her what was going on. "You keep on saying that, but how can I trust you if you wont even tell me what's going on?" She was hurt that this was how things had become between them, distance and secrets. "How can I trust you if you won't even let me in anymore?" She then started to walk past him, nearly brushing against his shoulder.

"As I recall, you used to be the same way," he replied harshly, turning around to watch her stop in her tracks. He remembered a time when she had been helpless and scared, afraid to trust or let anyone in…

That had been the day he met Jen, maybe even the day he fell in love with her. He had seen something in her that no one else had seen. He was able to look past all that uncertainty in her eyes, and with his help she had trained to be one of Time Force's top Officers. That seemed so long ago now.

She just stood there, stopped in her tracks, not moving, not saying a word. He was right. She was just like him, cold and distant, hardly let anyone in, or at least she had been… Someone had changed all that. Wes. He had opened her heart in ways she never knew before, and that all had started with one of their daily arguments. She felt a small tear run down her cheek. Now she would give anything just to have one more….

"Look, the only way we can work as a team is if we trust each other. But after this morning, how am I supposed to trust you!"

"Okay! Okay. So I messed up! But you know what, Jen? Trust is a two-way street."

"Meaning what?"

"You expect us to trust you to lead us? No matter what you say, we do it. But you don't trust us enough to open up! You never let anybody in."

….The words drifted away, along with the memory. That was the day she had let him know the real her. That she was scared. Scared to death. But she also learned that no matter what, they could always trust each other.

He walked up behind her and placed his hand on her shoulder. He knew he would never get the old Jen back, but that wasn't to say he didn't like the new Jen. She had just become a better person is all, which was something he needed to work on. "I know I haven't given you any reason to trust me right now, but believe me when I say this. I'm doing this because I love you, Jen. I always have and I always will."

She turned around. "Alex, we've been-"

"Look, I know you still love him." He smiled gently. "You probably always will."

"Alex…" she started.

He raised his hand up. "No. Please let me finish." He sighed, taking a deep breath. How could he say this without hurting her, more then he already had? What's the old saying, that the truth may hurt more than the lie? He couldn't tell her the truth. He knew if he did it might destroy her. "Just give me time to figure all of this out and when the time is right, I'll tell you what is going on."

It wasn't the answer she was looking for, but it was better than nothing. "Alright," she replied softly.

Dr. Oliver sat at his desk grading papers, but was having trouble concentrating. In the distance he could hear things start to quiet down in the hallway. The school bell had rung about ten minutes ago and the halls were starting to clear. But even as the voices cleared he still found himself struggling. He felt weary and tired and it wasn't that he hadn't slept well; in fact he had slept great. So what was wrong with him? Was he just worried about Trent with Mercer being in the hospital? Or was he worried about Zeltrax being hot on his tail? Maybe both, or a dozen other things. But he had been through stuff in the past and never had this much trouble concentrating.

He started to pack up his things, deciding maybe he would have better luck working at home.

Walking down the hall and outside, he headed down the stairs. He hadn't reached the second step when he tripped and went rolling to the ground. Several students outside rushed over to him.

"Dr. Oliver, you alright?" one of them asked as he and another boy helped him to his feet.

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks." He brushed the dust off his pants and shirt. One of the students handed him his briefcase. "Thanks again." He walked past them lightly waving, and then headed towards the parking lot and his jeep.

He reached into his pockets and pulled out his keys. His eyes widened when he saw that his hand faded in and out, and back again. "What's wrong with me?" First having trouble concentrating, then falling down the stairs, and now this. What's next? He got in and drove off, hoping just to forget the matter.

"Man, did you see? And I would have thought he'd have better balance. Him being into Martial Arts and all," said Gary to a group of teens.

"Yeah. And today in class, it was like he wasn't there, you know?" said another student.

"Maybe he's on something," suggested another. The three continued to ramble on and gossip about the whole situation, but unknown to them two people were listening.

Kira and Trent were on the other side of the school; they had been making out when they heard a group of students talking about one of the teachers, but not just any teacher.

"Do you think they're talking about Dr. O?" asked Kira, concerned.

"I don't know, maybe. I don't know of any other teacher that does Martial Arts."

"Maybe we should tell the others."

Trent nodded his head. "You're probably right. Come on." He put his arm around her shoulders and the two made their way to his car.

"Mr. Collins, it's good to hear from you…..Yes okay, Alec." Eric walked around the Collins cabin, wandering around, trying to pass some time. "Yeah, Jen told me you stopped by…..Yeah, she's….she's doing okay…..Me, okay. Hanging in there…..Yeah things with Hayley have been going fine….Thanks….How are you doing?...Oh okay, yeah I'll talk to you later. Bye." Once the conversation had ended Eric set his cell phone down on the counter.

"How's he doing?" asked Alex.

Eric turned around. "About what you'd expect."

Alex nodded his head. "Yeah." There was a long pause of silence. "Have you seen Jen? I haven't seen her since this morning."

"No. Not since you two left for a walk." Eric crossed his arm against his chest. "What'd you do this time?"

Alex was about to yell something out to Eric, but decided just to let it go. "Nothing. We talked and then she walked off on her own. I thought she could use some time alone. I came back here and she wasn't here."

"How long ago was that?"

"About six hours ago."

Eric sighed heavily. Jen had taken off in the past to go cool off for a few hours, but six, without calling to say where you were, was pushing it. "Come on, let's see if we can find her," said Eric grabbing his keys from the table.

"Thanks," replied Alex.

Eric smiled faintly and nodded his head as the two headed towards the front door.

Tommy lay on a bed in the dino cave, with a bunch of wires connected all around him. Hayley stood in front of the machine jotting down the readings. Once it was finished she turned off the machine, while Tommy took the wires off.

"Well, what's the verdict?"

Hayley let out a sigh, her face was filled with concern. "It's not good. It's dropped at least 20 since two weeks ago." Tommy let out a long sigh and ran his hands through his hair. "And that's not all; your readings are extremely low."

"How much longer do you think I'll be able to morph?"

"Tommy! Are you even listening to me?" She threw up her hands in frustration. Was that all he cared about, being able to morph, being a ranger? "I don't even know if you still have the capability to morph, your body can only withstand so much power."

"Look, I don't have much of choice." He hopped off the bed. "And besides Jen, Eric and Alex are doing just fine at their age."

"It's not just the age." She looked him hard in the face. "And you know it!" she yelled at him harshly. He didn't answer. "You've been doing this since you were fifteen; you have had more ranger power than anyone." She grabbed him by the shoulders. "Your body can't take any more of it!"

He lightly shoved her away. "So what do you want me to do, up and quit?" He paused for a moment staring into her concerned and uncertain face. "Because we both know I can't do that. I created this mess and I plan to finish it."

"Even if it kills you?"

There was a long pause. He took a deep breath. "If it comes down to that."

Hayley sighed and bowed her head down. "We should tell the others, let them know what's going on."

"No," He said, shaking his head.

"No?" She was outraged, she couldn't believe this. "Why the hell not!"

"I don't want to concern them. They have enough on their minds as it is." He eyed her closely. "This just stays between you and me," he stated firmly. He headed towards the computer.

"You owe it to them to tell them what's going on!"

He stopped and turned slightly. "I also owe it to them to be on the battlefield with them."

Unknown to them, four now very concerned teenagers had overheard the whole conversation, hiding behind the wall entrance from below the stairs. Conner turned to them, fear in his eyes, as well as in his teammates'. Their teacher, mentor, leader, and friend was in serious trouble.