Disclaimer: Power Rangers does not belong to me.
A/N: Between this one and my new story "Green With Envy," I'm really on a Bridge/Z kick this week, lol. I hope y'all will enjoy this next chapter!
Chapter 5: Hoping It Was You
"With the fire at the city homeless shelter, it doesn't look like Jack will be proposing to Ally tonight," said Bridge, as he sat in the passenger seat next to Z on the ride back to SPD. "Poor Jack."
"Poor poor people!" added Z, shivering as she recalled of how difficult life had been for her homeless.
"This all bringing back bad memories?" asked Bridge quietly.
"A little," admitted Z uneasily. "It's just growing up on the street toughens you up real fast. And as we both saw tonight, you certainly can't always count on having a roof over your head. You're short on food, clothes, just everything. Even love was in little supply."
"Well that's definitely not that case anymore," comforted Bridge. "Because you have a home now where lots of people care about you."
"I know Bridge," said Z, giving the green ranger a smile that made his heart melt. "Will you be my Valentine, Bridgey?" she teased. "I've never had a Valentine before."
"You have a secret admirer, though," said Bridge, making no effort to block the bitterness in his voice.
"So do you!" retorted Z as she reached for the shift stick, inadvertently laying her hand on job of Bridge's. The warmth of her touch made Bridge's body tingle. He quickly drew back his hand and turned to look out the window so that Z would not see the green ranger morphing red.
"I had never even gotten a Valentine's Day card before this year," continued Z, shaking her head once again in amazement. "Let alone now all these presents now from my mystery man. I gotta say it's been pretty exciting."
"Yeah, that secret admirer of yours is spoiling you rotten," said Bridge ruefully. "Like I would do for you if you were my girl," he thought downheartedly to himself."
"Speak for yourself!" laughed Z as she parked the jeep in the SPD garage. "If I recall correctly, you got a secret admirer even before I did. Although I seem to enjoy having one a lot more than you do."
"Yeah, I noticed," said Bridge dejectedly, slumping over in his seat.
"But Bridge look, about what you said earlier," began Z hesitantly. "About the two of us going out sometime on a date…"
"No please don't, Z," injected Bridge, cutting her off as he hopped out of the jeep and slammed the car door. "I really appreciate you being nice about this, but I get that you're really into your secret admirer."
"No Bridge," called Z as she ran after the green ranger. "That's not what I…"
"And honestly as much as I really want to be with you," continued Bridge as he bolted ahead of her into his room. "What I want even more is for you to be happy."
"Bridge, Bridge!" pleaded Z in vain as she knocked for him to open his door. "Don't you get it, Bridgey?" thought Z miserably to herself. "I won't have a great time with my secret admirer if I'm not happy. And I can't be happy unless the guy is you."
As Z trudged back over to her room and opened the door, she skidded to a stop as she felt something jabbed sharply into her stomach. Looking down at the slender, metal instrument of torture near her heart, Z felt the pain rapidly spread through her body and her blood run cold. "I'm finished," Z thought to herself weakly as she glanced up into the face of her attacker.
"Time for hair and make-up!" sang Syd cheerfully as she once again poked Z in the belly with her curling iron. "I can not have you going out on your date looking like anything less than a princess."
"No, no, NOOOO!" cried the low-maintenance Z in utter horror as Syd approached her with yet another small but dangerous object. "NOT THE MASCARA!"
"Oh stop being a baby," reprimanded Syd as she forced Z down in front of their mirror. "You're finally meeting your secret admirer tonight, and you should be dressing for the occasion."
"Why?" muttered Z moodily. "He's not Bridge."
Caught off guard by Z's comment, Syd coughed hard before floundering as to what to say to her hurting friend. "Z, if Bridge is truly meant to be your Valentine then everything will work out the way it's meant to be. Look on the bright side," said Syd, deciding it would be best to change the subject before Z got suspicious. "At least you're going out for Valentine's Day tonight."
"What do you mean?" asked Z, turning around to Syd surprised.
"Sky and I are just watching movies here tonight 'cause he's broke from giving all his money to help Jack buy the engagement ring," moped Syd.
"I'm really sorry, Syd," replied Z, feeling bad for her hopeless romantic of a friend. "Try not to think about it, and just enjoy being with Sky."
"And you try not to think about Bridge, and just enjoy the night meeting your mystery man," returned Syd in response, particularly amused by all of Z's dating drama.
"Just try not to think about Bridge," repeated Z to herself. "How difficult could it be?"
It that turned out to be much harder than Z thought as she waited for her secret admirer by the ticket counter at the New Tech City Cinema. Per his instructions, Z had worn as identification her yellow-and-green tie dye skirt that her mystery man apparently so adored her in. She kept smoothing down her sunshine sweater out of nervousness….but also from the nagging jealousy that overtook her whenever she wondered about how Bridge's date was going.
Looking back, Z now regretted how she had handled her whole secret admirer incident. She had developed feelings for Bridge long before both their anonymous pre-Valentine's presents had started showing up. Z mentally kicked herself for having gotten so distracted by trivial gifts when all she had wanted from the start was Bridge's heart. And now she had stupidly pushed him away by misleading him into thinking she wasn't actually interested in him. Cursing at herself under her breath, Z swore she would march right up to Bridge and confess how much she liked him the next moment she saw him.
In a flash, Z realized she wasn't going to have to wait that long. For walking over wearing his silly but sweet smile with blue jeans and a white polo shirt was none other than Bridge. He stopped dead in his tracks upon recognizing Z only a few seconds after, practically dropping the bouquet of yellow roses in his hand.
"How, why…." sputtered Bridge as he adjusted his green tie in shocked anxiousness.
"What in the world are you doing here?" gasped Z.
"When we got back from Jack's this afternoon," began Bridge, "I had a note from my secret admirer telling me to meet her at 6 tonight in front of the New Tech City cinema. And that the next note that will be waiting for me at the ticket counter. But this is just too weird because…"
"….because those same instructions were in my note from my secret admirer!" exclaimed Z in confusion.
"Quick, let's find the next note at the ticket counter and get to the bottom of this," urged Bridge.
Giving both their names at the ticket counter, the rangers were handed a note addressed to 'Bridge and Z' on the front. Both looking at each other intrigued, Z tore open the letter and found two movie tickets inside. Coming up behind Z, Bridge placed his hand on her back and looked over her shoulder as the yellow ranger began to read the note out loud:
To our sweet – and stupid – friends Bridge and Z,
We are sick of seeing the two of you dance around your feelings for one another. You both spend way too much time gazing at each other like lovesick puppies, and it's affecting your ranger training.
That was Sky. I apologize for my boyfriend's complete inability to appreciate anything romantic. But despite this shortcoming of his, I still love him dearly and that all started when you both set us up not so long ago. Sky and I are so grateful to you two for forcing us to see we had feelings for another. So we wanted to play Cupid for you both this time and return the favor. Enjoy the movie tickets – and the buttery popcorn – on us!
Love,
Sky & Syd
PS: Bridge, Sky says kiss the girl already or he'll put you on night duty for the next two weeks. And Z, I say if Bridge is being too chicken that you go ahead and plant one on him! ;-)
"I can't believe they fooled us like this!" laughed Z, pleasantly dumbstruck and delighted at the same time.
"Who would have thought that this whole time it was those two leaving the presents on my bed?" remarked Bridge in wonderment.
"I know," agreed Z, shaking her head in surprise. "Although the fact that Syd was writing me love letters does make me feel a bit uncomfortable."
"Look Z, I'm all for us doing this tonight," began Bridge as his nervous babble-mode kicked into high gear. "You know I like you. But you also know I like you to be honest with me. So if your honest feeling is that you just would rather us be friends, then that's fine. And it's fine if my ridiculous run-on sentences are making you want to go straight home right now. And right now if you…"
But Bridge quickly realized that right now all Z felt like doing was following Syd's advice as the yellow ranger leapt forward and fiercely pressed her lips against his own. With her arms wrapped around his neck, Bridge softly caressed Z's cheek and cradled the back of her head as his senses exploded with the warmth and tenderness of her kiss. He didn't need to take his gloves off to read how much Z felt for him at this moment.
"So I guess I have a new way to shut you up now when you start rambling," teased Z as she blushed bright red.
"And you think that form of 'punishment' is going to make me want to stop babbling?" joked Bridge in return.
"Well I don't know," replied Z coyly. "You still never answered my question. Bridge Carson, will you be my valentine?"
"Do you really have to ask?" grinned Bridge happily took Z's hands in his own and drew her toward him.
Z sighed happily as she rested her head against Bridge's chest in blissful contentment. It was ironic that here she had thought she had a mystery man when the biggest mystery all along was how she and Bridge could finally share their feelings for one another. But finally – thanks to Sky and Syd's help – there were no more secrets between them; just mutual admiration and adoration for one another.
"I was hoping it was you the whole time," whispered Z contently to Bridge.
The green ranger responded by sweetly kissing the top of her head and making a mental note to himself to send huge bucket of buttery popcorn later as thanks to Sky and Syd.