After the Rain

Tori was having the time of her life. Although the summer was ending soon, the beaches were still swarmed with surfers, all trying to squeeze out the last ounce of sun's energy they could get. She was one of those eager surfers, dragging an oversized surfboard up the beach after a whole afternoon out in the sea. Admittedly, she found it hard to keep the smile off her face – nothing beats the warmth of the sun on bare skin and the raw strength of the sea merged as one with the body. And most of all, she could throw away her doubts when she was surfing, something she cannot really master while doing other activities, probably even ninja training.

"Hey, babe," Kelly barely looked up from the pieces of paper she was holding when Tori entered Storm Chargers. As with every Tuesday evening, Kelly was busy doing the stock.

"Hey, you need help over there?" Tori asked, even though she knew she was going to meet with a flat rejection. Of all things, Kelly was the most particular with the stocktaking, and she prided herself for being the sole person in charge of it. Tori made her way to the back of the shop where she began dumping her surf equipment in the under-utilized storeroom. "Dustin's not here today?" Tori grunted as she shoved the last of the bulky surfboard into the store. That should do it.

"Mmm, nope. He's been working hard lately. I've given him the day off. Hunter called to say he won't be coming in today. Some emergency."

Emergency? Right, so that was the reason why he wasn't here today.

As both girls geared into a comfortable silence, Tori's mind wandered to what happened last Sunday. Between Blake and her, that is. She had managed to keep it from most people, even Dustin, although he did ask her if the sickly look on her face that morning was due to the bad Chinese take-out they had the night before.

She slipped into the balcony, watching the now setting sun sink into the depths of the ocean. As of now, it had been exactly three days since she had seen Blake. And it was her fault. It was her insignificant self-defense guised as mistrust that caused their so-called relationship to crumble.

Why is it that after so long, she still finds it impossible to let him into her heart.

She knew the answer to this one, of course. Because he had betrayed her, just once but that was enough. Thinking about it made her heart ache again. Was she really that naïve? A part of her tried to convince herself that she never fell in love with the wrong man. How else could she explain the fact that she still feels so comfortable with him, even after the betrayal? Sometimes it felt as though it never happened.

The waves seemed to crash stronger than ever onto the coast. By now the crowd was fast thinning out, leaving only a small group of players at the bar, game enough for a drink throughout the night.

But then again, he had used her. Just like a tissue paper – insignificant, and meant to be thrown away after use. He had aimed for the crux of the women's heart, the everlasting soft spot for love. She hated him for that. She almost thought she could forgive him, but apparently not. For it was precisely that that caused what seemed to be a tiny line of weakness escalate into the first major quarrel for the couple.

Just like any other date in a blooming relationship, the young couple sat contentedly on the high rocks near the sea, overlooking the orange sea that was the setting sun, doing nothing but enjoying each other's company.

Maybe today, I can finally erase the scar from my heart. Tori thought, mesmerized by Blake's charming smile and twinkling eyes as he recounted yet another of his motorcross stories. The past few weeks had been hard, but she had slowly learnt to see Blake's persistent actions as sincerity, and allowed herself to give him another chance. Distancing herself from him physically and emotionally was her way of protecting herself, in case she got hurt, again. Yes, she was letting Blake into her life for now, but she certainly was not letting herself into his.

We're just friends. Make that very good friends, she reassured herself for the umpteenth time that day.

Tori hadn't even realized that Blake has stopped talking. Embarrassed, she turned toward him, but came within millimeters of his face. She shivered, and wondered if it is because of the sea breeze or… something else. There was this strange look in his eyes which made looking away near impossible.

You're leaning too close, she wanted to say. Even so, she tried not to let her uneasiness show.

"No, Blake!" she stumbled back just as he leaned closer. Flushed, Tori scrambled up from her awkward position on the ground, not even daring to peek at Blake. "I'm sorry… I just. Still couldn't get past…" The betrayal.

Blake smiled – the last thing Tori expected him to do – a disappointed, knowing smile. "I understand," He stood up, his hands placed uncomfortably in the front pocket of his jeans. He had looked as if he wanted to say more, but the moment their eyes met, he had turned around and left, slowly at first, but his pace quickening with each subsequent step.

"Hey guys!" Tori greeted them cheerily as she plonked herself comfortably on Dustin's sofa. There was no need to let them know that she was feeling down. Everything will be fine after a while, right? She didn't have any idea how, but somehow things worked out. Shane was flipping through the papers half-heartedly while Dustin was religiously reading the latest issue of his favorite comic. Tori breathed a sigh of relief when neither of them noticed her unusual chirpiness. "Any updates?"

"Nope," Shane looked up. "Everything's pretty toned down, for now. Haven't even heard from those Bradley brothers in days."

Tori flinched, but quickly composed herself in case anyone noticed.

"I don't suppose you know what's up with them?" Shane inquired, eyebrows raised quizzically at her. Luckily for Tori, Dustin spoke up in time.

"Oh, I forgot to tell ya," Dustin skimmed through the last few pages of the comic, a lazy, contented look spread on his face. "Hunter called this morning. Blake's been sick for a couple of days now. He hasn't stepped out of his room at all."

"Blake? Sick?" Shane snorted. "You've gotta be kidding! Power Rangers never fall sick!"

However silly, it at least held true to a fair extent. Given their superior constitution, it was rare, even hard, for a Power Ranger to fall sick.

"If he were sick, I'd say he's LOVE SICK," Dustin and Shane gave way to loud guffaws, as Tori turned a bright shade of pink. Little did they know… she wanted desperately to tell them what happened, but judging from the overly gleeful looks on their faces, she decided against it. She shifted awkwardly on the sofa, still contemplating about Kelly's mention of their "emergency".

Normally, their insensitivity would have grated her nerves. However, today she was more concerned with what they were actually saying. That Blake had fallen ill. How ill? Where was he? Was someone taking care of him? Her facial expression had obviously taken a 180 degree turn, for both guys had lapsed into silence, exchanging glances at each other this moment, and then to her the next.

"Guys, I'm going out for a while." She paused. "I don't think I'll be back for dinner." Before the guys could react, she bolted out of the front door, not even bothering to close it behind her.

Where was it? She glanced around the neighborhood. Right, Dustin's house was just two blocks behind the last corner. The Bradley's house was supposed to be only two corners away. Or was it three? No matter how familiar, the houses in the vicinity were clearly not the Bradley's.

Darn! Why do women have such poor sense of direction? But Dustin's neighborhood is not that huge… I'll find Blake somehow.

Blake woke up to the sounds of faint drizzling. The sky was darkening already. He had no idea how long he'd been asleep, but he certainly felt much better. Stretching, he got off his bed and proceeded across the room to draw the curtains. The weather sure wasn't too well of late – scorching one moment and rainy the next. It was no wonder he wasn't feeling too good of late.

Wait, that person sure does look like…

"Tori!" he exclaimed. He hoped he wasn't hallucinating. It had been… many days since he saw her and he must admit he had missed her. Muscles aching and with a strong bout of flu to boot, Blake nearly tumbled down the stairs as he dashed to the door, determined to catch her before she slipped away.

"Hey wait bro!" Hunter stood up from his position in front of the TV, a bowl of casserole in his hands. "You're not supposed to…"

"It's Tori!" Blake offered no further explanation as he fumbled with his shoes for a few precious seconds before doing away with it altogether. The determined look in his eyes made Hunter stop in his tracks. Like true brothers, they do not always need to talk to communicate with one another.

You should know how much she means to me.

"All right man," Hunter whispered as Blake disappeared from the front door. "But could have at least changed out from your PJs…"

Blake shivered as the rain easily soaked through his thin clothing. The last he looked, she was headed east. His eyes scanned the dark road for her blonde hair, her signature blue clothing – a sign of anybody at all – to no avail.

"Tori!" he shouted. But the road stared back blankly at him. Suddenly he felt like a fool. Out in the rain in nothing but wet PJs, shouting for somebody that slipped out of grasp, again.

"Blake," the voice came from behind. It was her! Then a faint giggle as he felt her arms around his waist and her head resting contentedly on his back. "Fancy coming out in the rain in tatty PJs."

"Tori… I…"

Tori turned Blake to face her. "Let's go inside," she said. "We really shouldn't be standing in the rain…"

"No," he tugged at her arm. She deliberately averted her eyes, facing an angle away from Blake. "I know I was in the wrong, but I just wanted to know, what must I do before you'd trust me again?" His words sounded harsh, even to himself, and he winced inwardly.

There was an awkward silence between the duo. The rain continued to fall lightly on the two reconciled lovers. This was a picture of a perfect ending.

"I'm sorry I hurt you," Tori began. With one arm placed over Blake's shoulder, she kissed him softly on his cheek. "But I do trust you."

AN: The end! That pretty much ends the Power Rangers challenge posed to me. I really enjoyed writing this story. Maybe one day I might write a full-fledged PR fic… we'll see! well, if you enjoyed this (or not), please feel free to comment:)