Hey everyone, here's the next chapter. You're finally going to get a small taste of our villain who will be revealed in time. In the mean time let me know what you think. Also thanks to all of you who have reviewed so far, please continue. Enjoy.
Tommy woke up bright and early the next morning, and was looking forward to the day ahead of him very much. The night before he had once again met up with Heather Thompson and most importantly the spark was still there. After they parted ways Tommy spent what seemed like forever in the small grocer trying to decide what to buy for their lunch the next day, and he still couldn't believe that she had said yes rather than slapping him across the face. But that was what he liked so much about Heather, she was so laid back and fun to be around.
Tommy did his normal morning workout down by the lake as the sun came up over the horizon. Then, after a shower and a quick breakfast he set out for work. There was so much that needed to be done around the cabin even though it was kept up very well by his uncle. Still yet, six months of dust had collected on top of every surface thinkable, the windows were filthy, the floor needed to be vacuumed, and the outside grill needed to be hosed down and cleaned off. By eleven thirty everything was perfect, all that was left to do was prepare the food.
Heather pulled up to the small secluded cabin at around half past noon. She sat in contemplation for a moment before moving to exit her vehicle. She could see Tommy a ways off down by the lake, obviously grilling lunch. Deep down inside a smile was just fighting to get out but she wasn't quite sure if she could let it out. Last night when she had agreed to meet Tommy for lunch she wasn't really thinking straight. Just as the first time she met Tommy he made the butterflies in her stomach flutter a mile a minute. She couldn't believe that at her mature age such a silly thing like a handsome guy could revert her back to the feelings of a high schooler. Although, Tommy had a funny way of stealing her heart and she hoped that this time he would want to keep it.
As Heather watched the tall, striking man grill happily in black swim trunks and a white sleeveless T-shirt, she had to admit he was hot. But what was she getting herself into? She had been lucky the first time because she hadn't known Tommy long enough to be heartbroken when he left her back in Angel Grove, but this time he seemed as if he had no intention of skipping out on her. He was different now; he was more at ease. When they originally had met he always seemed to have something on his mind, granted he had just been dumped by his girlfriend of two years. But now his head seemed as clear as the sky.
Heather finally took a deep breath and opened the door, ready to give this whole silly thing a second chance. Who knows, maybe it would actually work out, after all it was Tommy. Tommy had wandered in and out of her thoughts sporadically through the years, usually whenever another guy once again used her for her fame and money, never actually caring for her. But through the years, out of all of the guys she had dated, Tommy had been the most genuine. It was odd that he had been the most mature and yet he had been the youngest man to ever catch her eye. Tommy had been two years younger than Heather when they met, on top of that he was merely a senior in high school, when she was already graduated and was at the time a college sophomore, through correspondence of course. She knew, even then that there was something very special about him.
Tommy glanced up casually when he heard the sound of Heather's car door slam from atop the hill. She walked toward him grinning with a beach bag on her shoulder, a mystery dish in the other, and the most amazing bikini, which she filled quite well. It was an aqua blue halter bikini with a ruffle boarder and as a cover up she wore an old worn pair of denim daisy dukes. In short, she looked absolutely enticing. Tommy was struck speechless.
"Hi there," said Heather cheerfully as she approached him and sat down the dish covered in tin foil on the old warped picnic table beside Tommy.
"Uh, hi," answered Tommy meekly, clearing his throat and then finally finding his voice, "I was just starting to wonder if you had decided to pull a Tommy and leave me hanging."
Heather chuckled, staring at the ground, "Never," she replied into her shoulder.
Tommy noticed her discomfort at his tasteless joke and realized that although he had thought it many times he had never actually apologized to Heather for the incident.
"Hey," he began, "I didn't mean to tense things up, I guess you can't really joke about something until you've actually addressed it first." He sat down the spatula gently.
Heather looked up at him, removing her white rimmed sunglasses. She squinted into the sun waiting for what was due to her.
"Look Heather, I was young and well I don't want to say stupid, but I wasn't the brightest guy around if you know what I mean," continued Tommy. "Back in high school things were pretty crazy and I had quite a few responsibilities for a teenager. It really doesn't matter what they were now, but the point is that I couldn't avoid them. Trust me if I could have I would have because, well…I really liked you then," he paused, "and I think I'm starting to like you even more now." Tommy grabbed Heather's right hand with his right hand and held it gently as he waited for her reply.
Heather stared at their hands interlocked together and couldn't help but notice just how perfectly her small pale hand fit into his large tan one. She then looked up at Tommy and with a wink she accepted Tommy's apology. Pulling her hand away from Tommy she quickly began to help set the table, opening the pasta salad and pulling drinks out of the cooler, anything to keep Tommy from seeing how ridiculously red her cheeks were.
"So, I didn't know you cooked," said Heather confidently, ignoring any awkwardness that may have lingered. "I have to admit, it's pretty sexy."
Tommy chuckled as he once again picked up the spatula and tended to the salmon on the grill. "Let me know if you still think it's sexy once you've tasted it." Tommy smiled to himself, Heather thought he was sexy!
The two chatted like old friends through the rest of lunch preparation and then finally they both took a seat on opposite ends of the picnic table.
"Oh," interrupted Tommy, forcing Heather to stop her fork in mid air, "I have a surprise." He quickly rushed to the second ice chest and pulled out two wineglasses, a bottle of wine, and a bouquet of white daisies. "For my lady," he said teasingly as he presented the flowers to Heather.
She graciously accepted them. Smelling them eagerly she said, "How did you know daisies were my favorite!" she was truly amazed and even more impressed.
"I didn't," answered Tommy, "they just reminded me of you."
Heather wanted to float right out of her seat, but before she could Tommy grounded her by pouring the wine into the glasses and offering a toast, "To new beginnings."
"To new beginnings," repeated Heather as their glasses clanked together making and enchanting click.
For Heather lunch was like a dream, a wonderful dream come true. Tommy was a complete gentleman and the salmon was fabulous. The more Tommy opened up about himself the harder Heather fell for him. She was stunned that he had willingly given up his promising racing career simply because he had a thirst for knowledge. She was even more impressed when she discovered that it had only taken him just over seven years to obtain a doctorate in paleontology. He was intelligent, funny, polite, and absolutely perfect.
"Tell me Tommy," said Heather before shoveling a fork full of strawberry shortcake into her mouth, " what was it that made you ask me to lunch?"
"Well, you gotta eat don't ya," he replied jokingly.
But Heather wasn't looking to laugh; "I mean it. What made you do it?"
Tommy stopped eating and carefully gulped down the bite which was already in his mouth, "I just figured that we were both gonna be here for a while, I had nothing planned and I didn't see a ring on your finger, so I thought…" Tommy faded out, pretending to be distracted by something in the lake, but there was nothing there other than the water.
Heather dropped her head in disappointment, trying not to look disappointed but it wasn't an easy task. Tommy noticed that she had been let down by his answer, so he realized it was time to just be a man and tell her the truth.
"Heather," he said trying to get her attention, but her chin was still buried in her chest, "the truth is that I missed you."
Heather's head snapped up immediately and her dark eyes filled with vibrance once again as Tommy continued. "I know that may sound odd but the fact of the matter is that I haven't really had a whole lot of time for women since high school. In fact to be completely honest my last girlfriend was Kat, and we broke up when I started college. And now that I actually have a minute to breathe I realize that there's a whole lot that I've been missing out on."
Heather appeared disappointed once again, "So, it's not really me that you've missed, it's just girls in general," she stated in annoyance.
"No," replied Tommy slowly, "I just miss having someone to laugh with, to have fun with, and joke around with and well…love. And as I recall I had no problem laughing and joking with you, and the last one I'm sure will come just as easily."
Heather had never been an emotional person, but the rollercoaster that she had been on this afternoon alone was nearly unbearable. She didn't know whether to hit him, leave him, or kiss him. But something told her that the first two options just wouldn't be nearly as satisfying.
"I'm gonna go for a swim," she announced casually, acting almost as if she hadn't heard a word he had just said.
Tommy was baffled, but he figured that she now knew his intentions so it was completely up to her.
"You know you're supposed to wait at least an hour before going swimming after you…" shouted Tommy, coming to a dead silence as Heather slid off her denim shorts, exposing her curvy hips and well proportioned back side.
Heather smiled to herself, finally she had the upper hand and she had absolutely no problem using it. It was no secret that Heather Thompson had an amazing figure, guys were telling her about it all the time. She just never really cared about it until now, now that it pleased Tommy. Heather quickly ran into the lake, she was going to make Tommy work for her this time.
Tommy quickly recovered from the eyeful and quickly peeled off his T-shirt revealing his washboard abs and impressive pecs. "Watch out girl" he yelled, "I'm gonna getcha!"
Tommy swiftly followed Heather into the water and once inside the cool lake all of the seriousness was forgotten. The couple swam for quite some time, splashing, chasing, and hiding. Tommy hadn't had quite so much fun since he was a teenager, and Heather found the experience even more exhilarating than plunging down a snow covered mountain at eighty miles per hour. Eventually, Heather was the first one to wear out just as Tommy captured her in his muscular arms.
"Time out! Time out!" she screamed, half-choking and half-laughing hysterically. "It's no fair, you're stronger than me!" She pretended to struggle to get out of his grip, but really she didn't want to.
Tommy's hold only tightened more as she struggled and finally he won the battle. He held Heather close to him as their laughter stopped and the mood took a more serious turn. Heather gazed up into Tommy's deep brown eyes as he returned the gaze through his long ebony lashes. Both were dripping wet and Heather's mascara had smudged off long ago. Soon, Tommy began to lower his head down to Heather and she didn't resist, in fact she couldn't wait to taste his sweet, sweet lips on hers. Finally, the two joined together, at first in a soft and gentle, closed lip kiss, which quickly evolved into a full blown passionate expression. Tommy had missed this, missed it a whole lot. Sure he had dated a few girls here and there whenever he had a Friday night free, which was rare. But none of them ever stuck around long enough to be kissed the way he was kissing Heather right now because Tommy never had any time for them.
As they parted the sun began to set, neither of them could speak, they had nothing to say. Actually, there was nothing to be said because they both felt the exact same way, like they were head over heals in love.
Trini Quan looked up from the dishes in the sink as she heard the doorbell ring on a Saturday afternoon. Glancing out the window she couldn't see anyone in her front yard, but turned and headed for the front door anyway. As she approached the front door she dried her hands on the white dish towel, which she had borrowed from the kitchen and once her hands were dry enough to allow her to get a grip on the doorknob she opened the door with a shocked and amazed expression strewn across her face.
"Billy!" she screamed as she jumped into the arms of the somewhat dorky, but still handsome man.
"Trini," he responded, "you look as beautiful as ever," he wrapped his arms around the pretty Asian girl tightly, smiling the whole time.
"What are you doing here? I wasn't supposed to pick you up from the airport until tomorrow," she finally released him.
"I know but I was so excited about seeing you that I told my assistant she was on her own and if I got any calls then she knew where to find me."
Billy had been working for NASA for only a couple of years now, but due to his extremely impressive intelligence he was quickly promoted and was currently working on the next moon landing. This naturally wasn't quite such a big deal to him since he had actually explored the galaxy several times. He loved outer space and being in on all of the action, but he missed his home way to much and eventually returned to Earth after only two years on the planet of Aquitar. It wasn't easy saying goodbye to Cestria, but he knew that Earth was where he belonged.
This weekend though, he decided that a visit to his old pal Trini was long overdue. She hadn't seen him since shortly after he returned from Aquitar. Currently, Trini was living in Seattle, and was working as a chemist; yes the former rangers had another scientist in the bunch. She hadn't seen any of her friends in a while and had been meaning to organize some sort of reunion, but to her dismay nobody's schedule allowed for it. However, that wasn't going to stop her from seeing her friends, even if it had to be one at a time.
"So, come on in," said Trini, holding the door open for Billy. He picked up his only suitcase and followed her inside the white and yellow house.
After settling in the guestroom, Billy joined Trini in the kitchen for coffee and fresh baked oatmeal cookies, which were originally intended for tomorrow.
"Have you heard from any of the guys?" questioned Billy, a little irked at himself for not keeping up with his correspondence.
"Actually, I spoke with Kim last week and I promised her it would be a surprise but I can't hold it in any longer," she paused for dramatic effect, "Kim's coming back in two weeks to see you in Florida and then she's coming to see me!" screamed Trini in excitement.
Billy was also elated with the news; he actually hadn't seen Kim since that one Christmas back in high school when she came back to Angel Grove for a visit. Kimberly had been one of his best friends since kindergarten, which was odd because she was so beautiful and popular and he was so nerdy and so Billy.
"This is great news," began Billy, "I'll have to clear away some –" he was cut short as his cell phone began to ring and although Billy had promised himself that he wouldn't worry about his job this week, he had to answer his phone because the call was from his assistant.
"This better be important Janet," he said into the small receiver, not bothering to say hi. He was rather annoyed since he told Janet that he would rather not be disturbed unless it was completely necessary.
"Well who was it?" he asked as he stared at Trini oddly. Trini continued to stir her coffee. "Well what did he look like?" another silence. "Well if you gave him my number I'm not going to worry about it. If it's important he'll call me." A pause, "Alright Janet, thanks for calling. Take care." Billy hung up the phone and Trini gave him her full attention.
"Well, that was odd," he huffed.
"What?" questioned Trini.
"That was my assistant Janet, she said some guy came to the lab looking for me this afternoon."
"What's so odd about that," asked Trini confused.
"Well apparently he became very upset and somewhat erratic when my assistant informed him that I was out of town. She didn't intend to tell him where I was, but she was alarmed and told him anyway just so he would leave. She even gave him my cell phone number."
"That is strange," added Trini. "Do you think we should be worried."
"I see no reason to be," responded Billy, "it's not like Janet told him the exact address where I was staying and besides if he was that upset then he would have already called my cell."
"I suppose your right," finished Trini taking a sip from her cup.
The two sat in silence for just a moment but then the doorbell rang once more.
"I wonder who that could be," questioned Trini as she rose from her seat at the table to answer the door.
"Maybe someone else decided to surprise you," said Billy jokingly as he reached for another cookie.
"I'll be right back, Billy."
Trini walked through the living room and into the foyer and without a second thought she opened the door.
Billy sat at the kitchen table content with an oatmeal cookie in one hand and a cup of coffee in the other as he skimmed over the front page of the Seattle newspaper. Suddenly, his calm was harshly interrupted as he heard a terrifying scream from the foyer, it was Trini. Billy came to Trini's rescue, responding faster than he had in his ranger days, but he was too late. By the time he reached the front door the grotesque creature had already poisoned Trini and another unfamiliar mutant was carrying her away over his shoulder. The monster quickly reached out and pulled Billy towards him by the ankle. As Billy hit the carpet, another tentacle engulfed his face and without any time for a struggle, Billy was unconscious.
"Vixor," said the beast in a deep, devilish voice as he tapped his sharp claws on his thrown, "tell me, is the task almost complete?"
Vixorstepped into the firelight, leaving a slimy film across the cold stone floor below him. "Not quite master. We have four in captivity and seven on our itinerary." The mutant bowed to the thrown.
"Excellent," awarded the villain, nodding in approval. "Those wretched humans will pay for what they have taken away from me if it's the last thing I do! Now go and bring me the rest of them!