Til I Collapse

by eclyptyk neo

COMPLETED. Sequel to: ORDINARY WORLD. A new school year starts for the students of Reefside High. Mesogog and Zeltrax are gone. But a new evil has entered the scene with a shocking past. Can the rangers defeat their newest enemy?

40. We Belong Together

'TIL I COLLAPSE - PART FORTY: WE BELONG TOGETHER
SEQUEL TO: ORDINARY WORLD

SUMMARY: Relationships seem to have hit rock bottom for some couples. Can it be restored before the big night of PROM?

DISCLAIMER: Power Rangers is not mine. I just like to make our heroes suffer and go through a lot of difficulties as they try to balance out a personal life with saving the world. But don't many of us do? That's why we got the power of fanfic to do whatever we want. I would like to dedicate this chapter to Mariah Carey's "We Belong Together", a treasure to our hearts in the game of love. Thank you for your contributions.

A/N: So, PROM is coming up...um in the story. Mine passed a long time ago, if you didn't figure that out. I will be semi-tying it into my own time at PROM. AU, okay? I'll be ending the series soon enough. I know. (tears streak face) But some things must come to an end, right? Yeah. They really gotta. I can't just make the time I want to continue on. But, it will go out with a big bang, all right? I mean, hopefully, it will. I promise you that.

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"I know I have not been one the best people about trying to keep a strong relationship going, but I am trying. I really am. I just cannot do this on my own. This is in need of two people, not one to let it grow. And no one is perfect."-Eclyptyk Neo
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The hours passed slow.

Ethan had managed to drag his unconscious science teacher into the master bedroom and place him on the bed. But he had been pacing trying to figure out what could have triggered such mayhem in the Oliver homestead.

He called up Adam requesting his presence, but he had his own hands full. He had heard from the medical doctor that Kim had caught her husband kissing another woman and jumped the wall, fleeting with Serena to Adam's place. Adam had refused to leave her side, and could only give the simple instructions for Ethan to stay with the science teacher until he awoke. And to place a cool towel on his head only concluding that he was knocked out by something.

But Ethan had his own set of problems, knowing he would have to tell his science teacher the news about Krista's discovery of their identity as well as hope to find out what had gone on with himself and his wife. And he figured he should tell his mentor the news about the unexpected attack from the blue psycho ranger and an army of cybots.

Ethan was tired of waiting though. He had to get home and finish some last minute math homework before he could really hit the sack. Not that late nights were ever a surprise to the computer gamer, he figured he just needed some time to clear his head of the day's events. He nearly jumped out of his skin when his cell phone began to ring.

He moved out of the room, taking the call, realizing it was Trent. "Oh, hey, man, what's up?"

Trent sighed deeply through his side of the call. "Bad news. I think Kira and I might be breaking up."

"What!" Ethan breathed as he shook his head. "Dude, what happened?"

"I don't know. I had to go close up the café, and some girl started to hit on me. Things happened so fast, and when I thought I could finally get away, she pushed me against the wall and kissed me. Kira saw it and thought otherwise. Now, she won't pick up my calls or answer my texts..." Trent said quietly, but it seemed as if he was all out of tears. But was in desperate need to let them go.

Ethan began to listen to the story, as he felt another burden lay on his shoulders. "And you tried explaining it to her? But she wouldn't listen. ...Man, that sucks. ...Look, I know this isn't the best time, but it seems Conner and Krista are having problems, too. ...No lie. We got into a battle and we powered down and she saw who we were. She was upset. ...No, Dr. O don't know. And speaking of that. More bad news. Rumor from Adam, says Coach saw Dr. O kissing some other girl. ...No, I'm serious, bro."

"But he would never do that, would he?" Trent protested.

"No way. At least I don't think so. He loves her too damn much to that. There is something not right about this entire thing. Dr. O is seduced by some other girl. Krista is upset at Conner and now knows our secret. You and Kira are at a stand still. It doesn't make any sense," Ethan thought a moment.

"Think Mindshatter is behind it?" Trent asked as if he knew it was, but needed another opinion on it.

"That's the only explanation I got. It's a little too coincidental to have all of this happen in just one day. Something has got to be up," Ethan said.

"So, where are you at, now?"

"Over at Dr. O's. As far as I could tell, Coach and Serena are at Adam's place to get their head straight. I was gonna tell Dr. O the news about the recent attack and what Krista knows, and found him unconscious on the floor. He's been out ever since. Just sorta waiting to see if he wakes up any time soon. If not, I'm just gonna head out, but leave him a note."

After straightening out the other set of news, Ethan had let his friend go. He figured that Trent needed some time to put his head together and figure out a way to explain it all over to Kira again. And Ethan knew he had more problems to spread to his mentor. But he had a right to know. He paced the hall for a moment, until he finally heard a groan from inside the room.

He peeked in, to finally see the figure on the bed stir. The dazed man winced as he slowly sat up, pushing a hand to his head, noting the towel there. He looked around for a moment, until his gaze locked on the teen in blue who slowly treaded into the room.

"Now, Dr. O, before you decide to bite off my head about possibly invading your privacy, there are just some things I would like to get straight," Ethan began to say as he stepped farther into the room. "What happened here?"

Tommy sighed as he looked around the room. He saw it was still tossled full of scattered clothes and drawers, indicating the departure of someone very quickly. He shook his head as he slammed his hand into the side drawer. "How could I let this happen! I kissed my ex-girlfriend in front of Kim. This was never supposed to happen. What am I supposed to do? She left me and took Serena with her. And even if I tried to explain it to her, she probably wouldn't listen to me. She knew what she saw. I know what she saw, and it won't change her decision."

Ethan took a step back, knowing his teacher was in need of some time alone. That hurt, guilt, anger and a line of mixed feelings ran through his bones. But he still needed to know exactly what happened. "Well, I guess that sums it up. So, I guess this wouldn't be the best time to admit that Krista knows about us now. And that her and Conner are having problems. And that Kira and Trent are also having problems. And Conner and I ran into a little unexpected attack by the cybots and the blue psycho ranger."

Tommy looked up at his student collapsing on the bed. He ran a hand through his hair as he dropped his head. "Well, this changes everything, doesn't it?"

Ethan nodded slowly. "It does." He wanted to say more, ask his teacher the thoughts on the number of surprises, but didn't know what to say. He figured it was time to call it in, and have his teacher get some time to himself.

And despite the news, Tommy had fallen silent, analyzing the news and trying to look at their options. He had looked back at Ethan, noticing that he, too, was looking at their options. But it was clear they needed some more time to look at their other options.

"I should head out. Let's hope we can settle this sooner than later because if this goes on for a long time, we might have a problem working as a team," Ethan sighed.

Tommy nodded as a light smile passed his lips. "I agree. Now, there is just one problem. Getting the girls to listen to us. Either this is a really sick joke or Mindshatter is really behind all this. He could be trying to divide the team. I just hope that's not true, or we could have an even bigger problem on our hands," Tommy nodded.

XXXXXXXXXX

The next day was slow to begin.

Trent even thought about skipping school today, but saw no point. He knew that Kira was going to avoid him and that was not what he wanted at all. It wasn't even his fault. It never was. But he knew that Kira wouldn't listen to him right away.

He had casually walked passed Kira at her locker, but didn't bother to stop and greet her. He just retreated off to first hour, even if it was still early. She had noticed his presence, as her own line of guilt fell over her. She didn't even stop him just to say a greeting of her own. But something inside her kept telling her to let him explain the mishap of the previous night, but she had ignored it. The image of seeing her boyfriend lock lips with another girl crushed her, even if she felt she was in desperate need to talk to him. She had even gotten a call from Ethan trying to explain it, but his words seemed to go in one ear and out the other. That it didn't matter. She didn't want others to know about it, but it was clear that Trent had to tell someone. She could only hope no talk would go around school about their fiasco. She knew what she saw, but why was she hurting? Feeling like some of this was her fault, too.

Conner nearly surprised her as he collapsed against a line of lockers beside her. But it was clear that his own line of feelings had struck him, too. He was trying to explain himself to Krista nearly the entire night, but she didn't hear him at all. He even agreed to bring her by Dr. Oliver's place to reveal more about his secret life just to get her to listen to him. But she didn't bother. He hadn't even seen her all morning before classes started. And he knew that she was avoiding him. And when Kira finally turned to greet him, she had noticed the low visor of a cap on his head, not typical to the jock. His eyes were shielded behind it, but she knew he had been crying. He, too, was hurting and she knew from Ethan there it had to do with a possible break up between him and Krista.

"Is everything okay between you and Trent?" Conner asked quietly, hoping to relay any talk about his relationship with Krista at that moment. "I usually see you guys hanging out before the first bell."

Kira turned away as the name of her boyfriend passed her friend's lips. She wasn't quite sure what to do. She wanted to talk to Trent. There was a part of her that wanted to break up with him. She never felt so confused. "We had a fight."

"What!" Conner breathed. It was clear he hadn't heard the news from Ethan, and Kira couldn't blame him. Conner was already dealing with his own problems. "No way. You're one couple I would never picture in a fight unless he might become evil again but..."

"I saw him kiss another girl, Conner," she said as her voice rose. But tears slowly welt in her eyes as she hid her face beyond her locker door to control them from falling. It was clear she wasn't exactly a person to show sign of tears or possibly anger, but she was after all, human. And with Trent being her first boyfriend, the terms of love seemed to be more devastating and surprising at the same time. A new feeling she was still getting used to.

"What!" he wanted to ask for details, but knew it wasn't the best time as she tried to avoid crying or possibly a ptera scream to let go of some anger. "Yeah. Well, I guess I ain't got it any easier. Krista and I aren't on the best grounds either after what happened yesterday."

Kira asked the red dino ranger what happened, wanting to know what could have caused it. When he began to tell his story, she didn't want to believe that he was telling the truth, but he was. He was hurting with every word as he told her what happened. He even told her that Krista had found out about them being power rangers. And feared that their mentor might ask him to hand over his morpher after letting that one out of the bag.

"So, do you think that Dr. O is gonna be mad at me?" Conner asked, slightly worried to even go anywhere near that science room during the day.

Kira shrugged as worry fell over her. "She had a right to find out. I mean, with as long as your relationship has been, I would think she had a right to know. Dr. Oliver will understand. He has to."

"Yeah, I just hope he does," Conner sighed. He watched as Krista had moved passed them, but hadn't bothered to say anything to either of them as she passed. Conner looked away as he shook his head. "And I don't know if Krista will ever trust me again. She thinks I'm lying about other things, too, since I had that huge secret to keep. Once you lose her trust, you really can't gain it back."

"We could try getting Coach to talk to her or something," Kira suggested.

"Yeah, I heard that something happened between Dr. O and Coach from Ethan. Any idea what it is?" Conner asked in a low voice, not wanting it to be the talk around school. And could only hope that their attitudes wasn't gonna dwell on the day's activities.

Kira shook her head. And it was clear that she had not heard it either. Ethan was walking up the hall, greeting those who recognized him with a head nod, but was stopped when Conner grabbed him, pulling him into their conversation.

"We hear that the falcon and crane are having some problems on the homefront," Kira stated looking at the blue dino ranger for some answers. "What happened?"

"Um...they are. I was hoping to catch Dr. O and see if anything has changed. But I doubt it." Ethan shrugged as he took a step back.

"Why don't you explain it to us? I didn't quite catch what you were trying to tell me on my voicemail," Conner said.

Ethan sighed as he began to slip the news, keeping it strictly on a coded basis to avoid having others really understand what was going on. He, himself, though had not gotten a chance to hear both sides of it and was hoping to get to it. Conner said he could try to see what he got from Coach during his student assistant hour, but found that it was not quite a guarantee. He had dealt with the wrath of a pregnant P.E. teacher worse than the others, and hoped she wouldn't completely blow him off for butting into her personal life with their mentor.

But the first bell had rung and they had to get to class. Though they had wondered the news on their mentor and his wife, they knew they had to get back into the mix of school. Back to their normal lives, despite all that has happened and flew through their heads.

On the other side of the school, Trent had made it to class without saying a whole lot to anyone. But when he had stepped into his first class, immediately he felt a huge burden on his shoulders. His teacher could only greet him with a simple pat on the shoulder, knowing what had gone on with him and his girlfriend, as reassurance. But he knew he would be talking to his mentor in the following hour about what had happened the previous day.

Trent couldn't help but notice the missing light in his teacher's eyes as he began to file out a packet of reading and questions on genetics to his AP Bio class. Even after spring break, he had pushed a lot of work down their throats. And even as they complained about the workload, for a class of 10 seniors, the look in Dr. Oliver's eyes made it clear that he wouldn't be changing his mind about it. It was settled, and he allowed them to work the rest of the hour to get it started. He was in no mood to have anyone argue with him, and Trent knew that. When he was upset, you just let him teach the class as he decided and not argue with it.

But as the bell rang to send the class to their next class, Trent had relaxed just a little. Even in Dr. O's darkest moods, he knew that they both relaxed a little with just a line of conversing in the following hour. But it was clear, though, he didn't want to talk and even as the door closed behind the rest of his classmates, Trent didn't really want to talk about what had happened with him and Kira, but wouldn't be getting out of it.

"Ethan already told me what happened. For the most part," Dr. Oliver spoke, but didn't look up from his desk. "You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to, Trent. I just hope you know that this could effect us as a team if we don't settle this."

Trent had zoned out, pulling out a sketch book and began to sketch something in it. But he had heard the words of his science teacher enter his head. "Yeah, I know. But I can't help but ask you what happened with Coach, Dr. O? Ethan told me something happened to you, too."

The science teacher let out a breath as he moved toward the white dino ranger, taking a seat in front on him at the lab station. He noticed the sketch that Trent was creating, a guitar. "It did. I don't know how it happened, but somehow, I had locked lips with my ex and Kim saw it. But it wasn't my fault. I swear. Now, even if I tried to explain it to Kim, she may not believe me at all. With or without proof."

Trent looked at him confused. He didn't quite know what his teacher meant by that, but knew that it was a serious issue. "What do you mean with or without proof? It wasn't your fault."

Dr. Oliver nodded as he looked away for a moment to catch his breath. "I know. But there is a big thing here called trust and cheating, especially in a marriage. I don't know..." He thought for a moment, trying to figure out exactly what happened. but it didn't seem to click in his head. He could only remember locking lips with Isabel, trying to stop his wife from fleeing and found himself on a bed with his ex. But after that, he wasn't quite sure how he had fallen unconscious or why. His head was still spinning around the events of the previous day, but couldn't seem to detail every little thing after Kim had fled with his daughter. But he was glad to have Ethan there to tend to him. "I don't even remember what happened to tell you honestly, Trent. It's all a blur. My head still feels like it's spinning."

Trent nodded slowly, but wasn't quite sure how to ask his next question. He knew he had gone to the science teacher and his wife about going out in the past, and they had given him numerous amounts of advice. "Man, that's rough. But what do you do when it wasn't your fault and you try to explain it to your girl, but they don't seem to hear you?"

Dr. O shrugged as he let out a breath. "I really don't know. I figure give them a few hours, if not days, but this is some serious stuff, Trent. If things happen on the battlefield, and we're still divided, we will suffer."

Trent nodded again as he had to agree with that. He knew all about divide and conquer and knew how efficient it was. He sunk his head as he looked down at his sketch book. It surprised him to see it was a drawing of a guitar. He didn't seem to realize what it was until that moment. "How could I let this happen, Dr. O? I mean, I didn't even know that other girl. And she kissed me. But Kira didn't see it that way. She just saw the kiss and thought I was the two-timer."

Dr. O nodded as he was re-living his own mistake. "Yeah, sounds just like me, Trent. And it isn't easy to admit you've done something wrong until you realize what you've lost. I just hope we can find a way out of this."

Trent had to agree with that again. "I figured you also heard the news with Conner, too?"

The science teacher looked away as if those words stung, but nodded, knowing that bit of information, too. "I did. From Ethan. Says that Krista now knows the truth about who we are. And that there was an untimely attack by the psycho blue ranger and a few cybots. Kinda a big twist on things."

"It is. But wouldn't you think it is rather odd that all of that has happened? On the same day?"

"It does strike me as a little odd. But, without real proof to my theory, no one is gonna really believe me."

XXXXXXXXXX

It was now third period.

Kim had sent her class outside to run some laps around the track, even if they had just gotten back from Spring Break. Conner had stood beside her, waiting for times to be recorded, unsure how to approach her about what he heard from the previous day. He knew that she was in no mood to talk. And even as some students were wondering what was wrong, or argued with her, she had only added to their run. Only so few learned not to mess with the moody pregnant woman and others were only driving her to more insanity.

Conner had cleared his throat as a few students raced passed them, Kim yelling out their times. But she was driving them to work harder and faster. Anything to relay what was going on as Conner coughed again to get her attention.

"Coach, I don't mean to be rude, but is everything okay?" Conner asked quietly looking down at the clipboard in his hand. He knew if this didn't go right, he would get double the work in a few hours. Not that he would participate in the activities of the young freshmen class, he just liked his own P.E. class among friends and upperclassmen later on in the day.

"Would you like to join them, Conner?" Kim turned to look over her shoulder at the slightly shaken teen in a red T-shirt and black shorts. It was clear she didn't want to talk about it, but he didn't want to give up. He wanted to know how she was doing, if not get her side of the story. And he hoped that he could possibly cheer her up even a little.

Conner shook his head as he took a step back. "Look, I understand you can get a little moody at times. Be harsh, especially with this whole pregnancy thing, but is it necessary to take out your hurt on your students? They'll notice something is wrong and think something of it. Do you really want that?"

The P.E. teacher whirled around to look at her student, as if wanting to strike him for saying something bad. Tears began to welt in her eyes, but she turned away, knowing that he was right. And that he had no real right to know, but wouldn't be surprised if he already knew what had happened. "It just happened so fast... I didn't know... no, I know what happened. I saw it. I saw Tommy kiss her..."

Conner held his breath unsure what to make of it as he slowly walked over to her and pulled her into a hug. The young freshmen stopped to see what was going on. Many making a big deal about it, claiming that was against school rule to engage in public affection-or comfort-or whatever it was- especially between a student and teacher - as Conner drove them to continue their run, despite what he was doing to comfort his P.E. teacher.

He had escorted her to the stands, hoping that maybe he would find some more information and try to provide some comfort for her. Many freshmen girls stopped to ask their P.E. teacher what was wrong, but Conner had shooed them away, telling them it was not their place to be. Conner stayed silent for some time as he allowed the pregnant woman some time to catch her breath.

Kim finally wiped away her tears, knowing if any more came out, her freshmen class would confront her husband about it, bringing about more attention at school, which she didn't need. "Was I too quick to judge without giving him a chance to explain himself?" Conner had shrugged, unsure if that was intended for him to answer, or just a question she needed to ask herself. "Would he do this to me, just to get me back for what I did to him years ago? I don't know. I don't want to make anything of it, but it is so hard to believe anything right now."

"Well, what does your heart tell you? I mean, if you truly love him, you would know if he were telling the truth or not," Conner said, despite his own problems. He was hurting too, and as the P.E. teacher looked over at him noticed that something else was on his mind.

"Yeah, I know. But right now, every time I try to think about him, I can only see that image..." she paused a moment as her fists clenched and anger fell over her. The cruel image of seeing her husband lock lips with his ex, on a very deep basis, crushed her. "... how that skank just stuck her tongue down his throat and..."

Conner calmed her down, knowing if she could, she would strangle the neck of that woman and dump her into the pier with no mercy. "Okay, okay, I get that you're mad, but remember, public eye. We don't need this to go around the school. But you will talk to him, right? I mean, if you're both in a crappy mood, it will just make our day, as your students, harder to get through."

"I don't know. I think I deserve a huge explanation from him. And right now, I don't think I'm ready to accept it. He doesn't realize what he's done..." the P.E. teacher watched as some of her students had completed their run, collapsing on the grass in an exhausted heap.

"No," Conner shook his head. "I think he does. He just doesn't know how to put it into words for you to understand. Or words that won't make you tick."

The P.E. teacher looked over at her assistant again, noticing the distance in his eyes as he looked away, slightly guilty and embarrassed. He was needing to say something, but didn't know how to put it.

"You're having problems with Krista and now you're worried she won't trust you again, aren't you?" the P.E. teacher spoke up as Conner nodded, obviously surprised to find out that she had figured it out. "I've been around many types of relationships long enough to know what is goes on. So, does it have to do with what you haven't told her?"

Conner nodded. "Let's just say she found out something she wasn't supposed to. And now she thinks I'm lying to her about other things, too, but I'm not. It was just that huge secret I've swore my life to."

"Give her some time, Conner. But in the end, talk to her and see if you can't work it out. Try to avoid the gifts, as much as it may work to save your relationship. She might think it is a bribery that could just result in just using her. Which isn't what you're trying to do at all. Maybe, just maybe, we could add her to the list of people who has a right to know what we do, and she should understand why we do what we do. And the whole deniability we carry with it."

Conner nodded, knowing that her advice helped. He had to take her word for it, and could only hope that there was a way for Krista to listen to him.

XXXXXXXXXX

By the time lunch had finally come around, Ethan had found Trent by himself by the soccer field. He figured he could keep the white dino ranger busy, knowing that it wasn't his place to talk to Kira or Conner. Nor was it quite right to talk to the artist, but he felt it was the best thing to do, hoping he could push away other thoughts in Trent's mind.

"Hey, man. Haven't seen you all day, everything cool?" Ethan asked as he popped a squat in front of the artist.

Trent looked away and shook his head. "Don't you need to go breath down Kira or Conner's back on their love life? You already got me and Dr. O."

"If you're mad that I told Dr. O what was going on with you and Kira, I'm sorry," Ethan apologized as he held up his hands. "Look, he had a right to know. And you know that, bro. Haven't quite got a whole lot out of Conner and Kira anyway. They're hurting pretty bad."

"And you think I'm not?" Trent said as he tried to avoid getting mad. But it was clear that Ethan was pushing him just a little.

"No, I know you are, too. I just wanna know or make sure this doesn't spread like wildfire around school. I mean, especially with you and Kira. I mean, you guys hardly make the whole PDA a show, but they know you got a thing going. And talk goes around fast."

"Look, I know you're trying to help out, Ethan. But let's try to leave my love life out of this. That's my business. Don't try to get into it. Maybe it was never meant to be between me and Kira," Trent shook his head as he got to his feet. "I need some time alone, all right?"

Ethan could only watch his friend go. He knew he wasn't the best guy to go to about getting involved in a relationship, but he hated to see his friends take a spill for the worse. In this case, the team was suffering and he didn't like being in the middle of it all. In many cases, he was glad not to be involved with anyone, just for the sake that the whole team was in on it. But he hated being the odd man out. He could see it in Adam, how they would just sit around on the net chatting away about their single lives, loving it, but hurting, too. They wanted someone to love and someone to love them back.

He let it go for the moment, giving the white dino ranger his space. And he figured it wouldn't do much good to see the progress in Conner or Kira. He had just seen Conner the last hour, knowing he was doing a little bit better, but would prefer to be left alone. So, that's what he did. He saw Kira before lunch started, and knew she too, wanted to be left alone. And he couldn't wait until last hour to confront his science teacher about his own setback, and had to find out if there was any way he could reunite any of the couples back together.

Ethan treaded into the school. It wasn't like it was not allowed to roam the halls during lunch, it was just not many people were around the halls. Especially on a nice day. And those that were in the halls were considered the actual geeks and smart people of the school, not that he wanted to judge them.

But some people would stare and talk. Many had found it shameful, if not weird, that a guy like him was finally breaking out of his shell during his senior year. He didn't like to be the one who was the center of their attention, but somehow he had brought it to himself by being apart of the dance team.

He rounded the corner letting out a breath when there was no one in sight. He figured he would drop the subject and ask his teacher later, but knew that something like this just couldn't wait. He needed to talk to him.

XXXXXXXXXX

Dr. Oliver sat in his classroom liking the quiet air just to keep himself straight. After the long morning, he wasn't quite sure if he could go on like this. He needed to talk to his wife, and he felt it was stupid to avoid her anymore than he needed to. He didn't need talk to go around the school, nor did he like the fact that he had been acting more like his drill sergeant strict self on the day returning from Spring Break rather than his laid back self.

He knew talk had already gone around, as his students would talk in class quietly, choosing him as the subject of their conversation. But he wasn't rude to butt in, not that it would take much effort to hear what they were saying. It just wasn't his place.

He looked away from entering grades into the computer, down at the single band hanging on his left ring finger. For a long time, he couldn't get those images of his ex out of his head. The way she had seduced him under some sorta spell, to follow her lead. To fall into her embrace. And to touch his lips against hers. But as he shook the images away, the rage grew. He didn't need this. Not now.

He got to his feet, heading for the door, nearly running down the figure that seemed to be looming out of his door. It was his wife. He took a step back unsure what to make of the gesture as she didn't bother to look up at him. He couldn't blame her as he sunk back into the room, inviting her in.

Kim didn't say anything as she treaded into the room as he closed the door behind her. A silence fell over the two. The man was in desperate need to pull his wife into his arms and lay a warm, passionate kiss on her lips and never let her go. But he didn't budge. He couldn't. The woman was still hurting, but couldn't help but find herself in need of talking to her husband. She knew that Conner kept telling her to go see him, and she had done it.

"So, um...I was gonna head on over to see you. Kinda surprised to see you outside my door," the man spoke quietly, still getting over the fact that she was here in his classroom.

"Don't think that this is a formal greeting for me to come back home because I still need some time to think this through," the pregnant woman spoke as if she had not heard him speak. She turned to look at the man as he looked down, nodding. Nor wanting to argue with her. "How could you do this to me, Thomas?"

"Are you gonna make a scene by doing this here?" he countered. It was clear that this business didn't need to be seen by their students or fellow staff members. This was their own personal business, no one else's.

"Why did you do it?" she demanded, clearly not hearing him at all. Either she didn't care that this would cause an audience, or she wanted the school to see what was going on.

"If you're gonna let me explain, you'd better let me talk," he rose his voice a little bit. He never liked raising his voice to her, but if she wouldn't let him explain. And it led to his angry side, which he didn't like to let go.

"Fine. Go ahead. Talk." she found a place in his executive-style chair. She crossed her arms, looking at him and waiting for an explanation.

The man took a breath, trying to fumble over his words and figure out what was best to say. He knew if he screwed this up, it would be harder to win back her heart, if he even had a chance to win it back again. "Look, to tell you honestly, I don't know what happened. I tried to stop it. I did." But as he had said that, it seemed to not register in her head. "But she just kept coming back like a dog. She just didn't stop. I pushed her out of that door and off of our porch, but she took me by surprise and kissed me."

"And you didn't stop? Just like you somehow ended up without a shirt?" she glared at him.

"Kimberly, baby, please," he fell to his knees, taking her hand. But she had shrugged it away, looking away. "We had this discussion before she even came by the house. What we have is nothing compared to what I had with her. Not a damn thing. What we share is more pure and rich and intimate than anyone else I have really gone out with. I told you what she did to me after we broke up. I thought I could never love again. But you showed me the light again. You showed me it was okay to love again."

"But I know what I saw. You don't realize what I'm feeling inside right now," she shook her head. She could only look at him briefly, but looked away quickly pushing him away. "We're not dating anymore, Tommy. We're married. We've made it into the next chapter of our lives."

"Exactly." he breathed agreeing with her instantly. "And..."

"Which makes it clear that touching another woman is clearly off limits. Possibly even looking at them," she got to her feet, heading for the door. "I could make the exception to our friends. But how can I trust you anymore, Tommy? How do I know you're not really lying..."

"But I'm not," he shook his head as he tried to counter her words. "And remember you came to me about wanting this little chat."

"Don't put this all on me, Tommy Oliver. If you didn't go and kiss her in the first place we wouldn't be in this position. And you have Conner to thank for making me do this, but I guess I was wrong about it. Things aren't okay. I thought we could discuss this as adults, as husband and wife."

"Only because you're accusing me of kissing another woman and I didn't. She kissed me."

"Why's that matter? Your lips were still on hers. And she was your ex, Tommy. Your ex! Don't tell me that there is something wrong with that!" she pushed him back as she finally headed over to the door, opening it. "That is still considered cheating in my eyes."

Tommy took a step back as those words stung his heart. No matter how she had looked at it, even if he had told her it wasn't his fault, she was still mad at him. She didn't find comfort in him, only betrayal. And even if he did try to stop it, he didn't stop it long enough to avoid the lips of his ex touch his own, or the fact she had managed to destroy his shirt, too.

"Oh, and running away to Adam's place isn't out of the ordinary either? In case you're forgetting, he's single, which gives him..."

The woman turned to look at the man, eyes glaring with a fiery rage. "Don't you put him into the middle of this. He's our doctor and friend. And he would never do anything like that."

"How do I know that? I was under the impression that you were cheating with him, but it was another one of those nightmares and fears I don't want to live with. And you can't begin to tell me you find that isn't wrong either?"

"This all goes back to you, Tommy. Just remember that. You're to blame. If you didn't fall into the hands of your ex none of this would have happened," She turned and left the room just as the man raced out to stop her.

But it was no good. As the door slowly creaked back into his hand, the science teacher had not realized it almost came into contact with a certain blue dino ranger. The man looked at his student, shaking his head as a rage fell over him and he closed the door. Ethan held his breath as he watched the pregnant woman woddle down the hall, also holding an angry fit.

He raced up the hall, hoping to find some information on the situation, but it was clear she didn't want to talk to him. He looked through the halls, noticing the peeking heads and confused looks on staff and students. It was clear that they had heard some yelling, but didn't bother to deal with it or kept it to themselves.

"Wait, Coach," Ethan pleaded as he stopped her, but she pushed passed him. "Talk to me. Don't tell me you and Dr. O got into another fight."

"That's not your business, Ethan," the woman said simply. "I'll be expecting double the work from you when gym class comes around."

The teen in blue stopped, letting the woman make her way back to the gym. He kicked himself feeling like this was somewhat his fault. And didn't want it to continue. He needed to fix this soon or things would just get worse.

XXXXXXXXXX

That afternoon was strictly locked to be left alone. Ethan was left with no real options as he moved to the cyber caf130, despite seeing Trent at work. Hayley had confronted him, asking what was going on, being briefed by a certain wolf ranger who gotten word from a frog ranger.

"Break ups, that's what," Ethan said simply. "I don't know how or what the exact deal is, but someone out of each of their relationships is hating the other right about now."

Hayley sighed as she bent over the counter, keeping her voice low. The number of customers increasing, and the absent eye of Trent wasn't too far behind. "Yeah, I won't be surprised if this has already spread to the other rangers."

"What are we gonna do?" Ethan asked slightly worried. He didn't like this had already gone on for a day. And didn't want it to go on for another day, if not week. He wanted them to settle their differences and fast.

"We can only hope that they can settle it on their own. I really don't want to get involved, but if it comes down to it, we may need to." But even as she said that, she too, was worried if the results turned out bad or would come about soon.

XXXXXXXXXX

One week and a half had passed.

But things were still on a stand still. The two teachers still weren't really talking to each other, even with the number of calls he would make to her, or to Adam to see how she was, and he had told him the same thing. No progress. Adam told Tommy that even she didn't really talk to him. She had constantly dragged Aisha and Zack over for a talk, just to comfort her, but nothing seemed to be around her marriage. She had refused to speak of it, looking for other things to talk about.

She knew that if she were to call up Jason or Kat for a chat, they would drive her to talk to her husband, but she was not ready to confront him again.

Conner and Krista were talking again, but it wasn't anywhere near what one could even call a friendship. It was more a greeting in the hall, ask how the other was doing and drop it as they went on about their lives.

Though both Kira and Trent were in need of wanting to talk to the other, neither of them seemed to find the courage to talk to the other. Even in the halls, or in the class, they would look at the other when they weren't looking, but turn away when the other noticed the other's glance. But they hadn't actually really talked in the last week.

Ethan didn't know what to do. He didn't like to be the messenger to the other rangers as they asked him how the progress was, but he told them anyway. He didn't like being stuck in the middle. In the past week, he must have spent more time with his computer friends and the dance team than he ever did with is ranger comrades. And he didn't like it. He didn't like the distance. Nor did he like that the two teachers were piling work on their students for the loss in their connection as a married couple.

"At least Mindshatter hasn't attacked," TJ spoke up one night several rangers decided to crash at the café late night.

It had consisted of the blue dino ranger, the DT technical adviser, the Space Rangers, the red ape ninja, the blue wolf ninja and the two Time Force Rangers.

"But that would give Mindshatter the time to gear up for that last battle," Karone spoke up. "It only makes sense why he's attacked in small numbers in the last week."

There had been several battles, all only consisting of no more than ten cybots on the town. But the dino rangers had only fought in two or three, but never the full team. And once the battle was over, they had parted ways. But, Ethan had been at every battle, totaling now five of them.

"And their still not talking?" Andros shook his head, not needing to be told twice as he looked over at the blue dino ranger.

"Maybe we should do something about it. It's already been a week," Ashley said.

"No. No way," Rocky shook his head. "If I knew Tommy, he would kill any of us for getting involved."

"He's already kicked me out of his personal life. I don't even risk going by the lab knowing he might shoot me or something," Ethan said.

"Billy and I refuse to go, too. I know Tommy. When he is mad, and mad like he has been, no one wants to mess with him," Hayley said.

"But this is effecting his work at school and as a ranger," Wes said.

"If you want to go about and fix it, go ahead, I'm not getting involved. Even if it is effecting all of us," Eric patted his friend on the shoulder.

"It is bad enough that we don't even have our powers right now," Carlos said. "If I could, I'd go up to that fortress myself and end all of this."

"You and me. And the rest of us sitting ducks," TJ agreed. "But Tommy was only looking out for us. If we didn't hand over our powers, they would be in the hands of Mindshatter."

"TJ is right. But powers or not, we're still rangers." Andros spoke like a true leader.

"Thanks for the power boost, but I don't think it will do us any good if we're divided." Ethan sighed as he dropped his head.

"Give it another week, Ethan. I just hope they realize what kind of position their putting the rest of us in if we have to choose sides. We should never do that," Billy said.

"Reminds me of deja vu," Rocky groaned under the thought of what had happened years ago, if not months ago regarding placing them in the middle of setbacks in a relationship.

XXXXXXXXXX

Another week later.

And still no progress. It was driving the rest of the team nuts. If things weren't gonna get settled in this week, they knew they would have to take action.

The good part was that the two teachers had stopped the work load just a little. And were a little more approachable, if you didn't bring up their personal life. But by this time, talk had gone around the school about the breaking couples, not just from those three couples, but a few others. But that didn't concern the rangers, only the three couples within their circle of friends.

Conner and Krista were talking a little more, but still not on good enough grounds to be considered on the status of dating again. There was no progress from Trent or Kira, even if Trent was trying his best to talk to her. She didn't respond. Or was still refusing to talk to him.

Jason was sick of it, and wanted to get in, but the other rangers had stopped him. They had refused to get the original red ranger involved in another's love life, and didn't want to pull him into it. They believed that he would only make it worse for all of them.

The other rangers were a little worried to get involved, unless they were actually pulled in by one of the hurting rangers for a talk. That had included Adam, Aisha, Zack, Rocky, Tanya, Kat, Karone, Ashley and Andros. The others sorta just ducked into the shadows, waiting for their call for assistance.

Luckily, there was no attack from Mindshatter, but it had the team worried if that was the sign to open up the doors for their epic battle. Hayley, Billy and Cam had worked secretly in the lab to prep up weaponry and other tools for their final battle, hoping it would be coming later rather than sooner.

XXXXXXXXXX

Another week had passed.

And it was the Saturday before Prom. Ethan was shaking with fear. Not for the fact that he may be going stag, but that his friends were still not really talking to one another. None of them didn't really talk to him, knowing he was a messenger to the other rangers. And even if the other rangers tried to talk to one of the hurting rangers, none seemed to get through to them.

He wasn't looking to find a nice tux to wear, knowing the cost, but had gone to the mall to find something decent for the night's occasion. Only to notice a certain pregnant woman stagger around with a young woman, who one could mistake to be a younger version of herself. It appeared as if they were shopping, but the pregnant woman didn't seem all too excited about it. It was as if the other person had dragged her out of the house to do what women did best - shop.

He sunk into the comfort of grabbing his Mickey D's bag and getting out of there before a possible boot in the head for thinking he was spying on her. And he wasn't.

He began to ascend the stairs to the upper part of the food court, but lost his footing and slipped, crashing down the stairs. He had caught a few bystanders off guard, including the teen who was hanging around his P.E. teacher. He groaned as he felt a hand wrap around his arm, pulling him to his feet.

"Hey, you okay? You took a pretty nasty fall," the voice of a female rang in his ears.

Ethan sighed deeply, nodding as he looked at the person who decided to help him up. His heart sorta stopped at that moment as he felt somewhat lost in words, but managed to dust himself off as a light smile passed his lips. "No. I'm fine. I'm kinda clumsy when..."

"Ethan?" another voice cut him off as the figure of his P.E. teacher walked up to the two teens. "I didn't think that was you. What are you doing here? You weren't sent to spy on me..."

"No," He shook his head quickly. "I was here by myself. Looking for something for Prom. I swear."

"This is Ethan?" the other teen said. She was no taller than Kim with short dark brown hair with red highlights, the back of her head spiked up as opposed to the long bangs in the front. She had a set of two piercing in each ear, but didn't appear to be in much use, despite the stud earring in them now. If one could be mistaken by her appearance, she was the sporty-type, tomboy sorta. Or even a punk with the wrist bands, but he doubted it since she wore them more like arm bands. Or it could merely be an image, Ethan wasn't quite sure. The teen held out a hand for the teen in blue as he took it as a greeting. "I'm Kelly. My cousin Kim has told me a lot about you and your friends."

"Cousin?" Ethan turned to look at his teacher, wondering if this was true. They seemed so different, but still so similar in other ways. But the appearance in itself, made the two look so different.

"Yeah. She just came by yesterday to see the progress of the baby. And to visit. She was looking at colleges throughout California. She's graduating this year, too, Ethan," the pregnant teacher said when they had found a seat among the food court.

Ethan couldn't help but find some interest in that as he looked back at Kelly. "You don't say. So, what? Are you taking a break to visit or something?"

Kelly nodded. "For the week. My flight is Sunday.. I mean, not tomorrow, but next week. So, what are you doing here at the mall? I know you've changed your ways about computer games, but you mentioned prom."

"Well, he says he might go stag, but that might change," Kim spoke up as she let a wink pass across the table to the blue dino ranger. "He claims that being single is better than a love life."

It was clear that she had seen the sparks fly between the two. And it seems like she was playing cupid for them. And as the two had looked at the older woman, on their own terms, they saw what she was trying to do. And as Ethan had looked over the table, he had not realized that he had been holding Kelly's hand. Kelly casually took it away, laughing uncomfortably as she got up, hoping to get something to eat, but Kim pushed her back in the seat.

"Don't be silly, Kelly. I'll go get you something to eat. You two should talk. Get to know each other," Kim spoke up.

"But you're pregnant," Ethan blurted out, not liking the idea of being left along with a girl he just met, despite her relation to his P.E. teacher.

"Pregnant, Ethan. Not crippled. You still want some Chinese food, Kelly?"

Kelly nodded slowly, but still didn't like the idea of being left with the teen in blue, despite what her cousin had told her about him and his friends. But before she could oppose, the woman had left the two alone. "Are you under the impression that my cousin is trying to hook the two of us up?" Kelly finally turned to look at the teen in blue.

Ethan nodded as he let out a breath. "Yeah, I think she is. Not that I'm trying to be rude, but you're a free agent, right?"

"Yeah. I'm kinda with the whole single thing senior year with the drama that goes on with it."

"No kidding. That's how I'm feeling right now. I mean, my friends are having their own set of problems with love. Including Coach. But should we just go along with it?"

"Creating a natural conversation?" she asked as Ethan nodded. "Okay. Well, what do you want to know? I'm 17 years old, I will be turning 18 on July 10th. I will be graduating at the beginning of June, don't know the exact date, but am glad to finally be getting out of high school. I attend classes in Florida and plan to go to college here in California."

Ethan nodded slowly, as he listened in on her story. "Well, I don't know how much your cousin has told about me, but I'm one of those strange computer geeks who knows computer jargon like a second language. I joined the school's dance team and have landed a few deals, but haven't decided if I'm gonna go through with it. I'm kinda still wanting to go to college and do the whole software design/computer science stuff. And I actually turned 18 back on January 17th."

"Well, that's cool. I've always wanted to learn how to breakdance. I know a little bit of hip-hop, but it's probably nothing compared to what you do."

"Yeah, it's kinda all that stuff they do in that movie, 'You've Got Served.' I ain't the master behind breakdancing, but my friend Trent is. Kinda that whole stereotype that Asian/Pacific Islander people are good at everything they do."

"Yeah, my cousin says that about Tommy, sometimes. He's got his weak points just because he isn't full. Not that I would be judging. But Kim tells me they're having some problems, but wouldn't tell me what. I was hoping to see him today, but she's been a little cranky about me even bringing up his name. Do you know what happened? I mean, they are your teachers and all."

"Um...yeah," he looked down, falling silent. He wasn't sure if he was allowed to say anything, but hoped she was a person who could keep a secret. "I'm not supposed to say anything, but in case you haven't noticed, they aren't really crashing at the same house these days. I know they've talked, but she is still hurting for what he did. Or was accused of doing. Something about him locking lips with another woman, but he's said it over and over again that it was never his fault and he tried to stop it, but couldn't. But off topic, how come I don't remember ever seeing you at their wedding back in December? Did you even go?"

"I was there. I had long brown hair at the time, and I looked like an actual cheerleader, which I was. But after I decided to be a little different, look more sporty/hip-hop/punk, I guess one would say, they sorta kicked me off the team since I didn't look like a cheerleader anymore. They're kinda the white-wash school where popularity was a big deal. And if you do something out of the ordinary, they looked at you as a freak. Most of my friends though are mixed races."

"That's cool. I mean, that you got a variety of friends. But they judged you just because you were different for cutting your hair and changing your style of clothing?" he asked sorta surprised as she nodded. "Sounds like my school. You got the popular people. Then you got the ones who are really smart and popular, then the geeks, the punks, the druggies, you name it. We got some cliques at the school. There are some people who's friends with everyone, but not that many people."

"See, that's why I can't wait to go to college. At least you're around people who share some interest with you. I mean, they chose that college over others, you'll find people who want to major in the same thing you do, and you even got people from all over the world, if you're lucky."

Ethan nodded as another smile passed his face. "Yeah. And it beats having to go to school earlier. You choose what time you go to school and there is more freedom. And it beats being with your parents if you decide to go out-of-state."

Kelly had to agree with the other teen. "You got that full ride scholarship to go to MIT, right?"

"Well, I had some help from my friend Hayley, Dr. O., and Dr. Mercer. I had a lot of connections, so in some cases, I don't want that to go to waste if I decide to go down another path."

The two had continued to talk a little more about other hobbies they liked to do. Kelly had mentioned she was looking for a break in Hollywood because she did drama and theater, but if that didn't work out, hoping to nail some sorta fashion design major or along those lines. She liked hip-hop and r&b music, hoping to learn how to dance in those videos. Then Ethan had brought up movies he was hoping to catch during the summer, especially a certain sci-fi movie with an epic place in pop culture, Star Wars: Episode 3.

"I hear it is worth the wait. That the graphics are incredible, and that epic battle at the end..." Ethan caught his words, as if realizing he had screwed up their conversation by going into 'geek mode'. "Um...sorry. You don't look at all interest in that."

"What are you talking about! Go on. I must be one of the idiots at my school who can recite every single word from the five movies already out. I must admit I even have a Jedi outfit I'm planning to wear when it comes out. And the Matrix. I love that trilogy."

Ethan relaxed a little, not feeling too out of the way for looking like a geek in front of her. But she didn't seem to blow him away when he had talked about his computer gaming, or the latest hard drive for gaming pleasure. And as a sci-fi guru, something like the Matrix was up there in his standards. But as he looked around, he had wondered where his P.E. teacher had gone. "You know, Coach had been gone a long time. How come I have a hunch she is just chilling out, watching us talk?"

"Yeah, I wouldn't be surprised. But it seems we've hit it off rather well. She told me that talking to girls wasn't one of your strong point."

"Maybe my Jedi tricks are finally pulling someone in," he couldn't help but laugh. She looked at him rather intrigued by his choice of words. "Which leads me to my next statement. Since we did manage to hit it off, it'll only be a matter of time before we get a chance to do this again. What if I interested you in a date, let's say next Saturday, for my senior prom?"

Kelly looked away, blushing and laughing. "You want me to go with you to prom? Okay. I'll go. I think it'll be fun. Plus, I wanna meet your friends."

Ethan couldn't help but turn away, letting a smile pass his face. But as he looked back at her, the smile dropped and as if by cue, the pregnant woman had returned with two boxes of Chinese food in hand.

The two teens turned to look at the pregnant teacher, despite the wordless smile on her face. They both knew what she had done, but didn't really say that they didn't like what she did.

But Ethan couldn't help but pull up his own set of questions regarding her own problems with her husband. Nor didn't want to be rude feeling that little Serena was neglecting to see her father in the passed few weeks.

"We've talked, Ethan. I'm planning to see him later today for us to settle a few things and head back home. But if he screws up, he's getting booted out," Kim said simply before burying her face in her food.

"Can you guys fix this? I'm tired of the talk going around school, let alone seeing both of you hurting from this," Ethan pleaded.

Kim felt like the teen had pushed her over the edge, ticked her off, but she had refused to get mad. She knew that he was right about this, and sick of seeing the two fight. She had talked to Kira about Trent, knowing the two weren't on good grounds yet. And that Trent had come to her time and time again when her husband wasn't at his best for giving advice. And she was hurting for never seeing her husband, especially in their off hours just to talk.

And as Kim looked at the two teens, who had slowly played their hand and found some interest in the other, she had missed her own time in high school. And she knew that maybe it was time to make some amends that she and her husband could live with.

Later that day.

Ethan had offered Kelly a tour of the city while Kim had returned to the place she had called her home for the last few weeks. Not that Adam did mind, or was even around much, since he was out and about being Mr. Zen or finding peace in nature. He was not there yet again, but with his more frequent times of being out, she knew that it was his way of saying that she and her husband were in need to settle their differences. He had even told her the night before when Kelly had come by that he was tired of being stuck in the middle of their feud. And he spoke for his friends when Kim and Tommy needed to fix their marriage.

She had collapsed on the couch, letting out a breath looking around the quaint apartment. Though, it was never quite a permanent resident to the black ninja, only on his frequent stays in Reefside, Adam made it manageable enough for a bachelor, though homely enough for any visitors to his door. She knew that Serena had been spending time with her big brother, as she had wanted and didn't oppose. She looked down at the single band and its mate on her ring finger as tears began to welt in her eyes.

All of a sudden she felt like the idiot for ever accusing Tommy of doing such a thing. That from the very moment she had seen his ex, she knew that Isabel was bad news. That the time she had spotted them at the mall, he had been trying to push her away from the very moment they ran into one another. And the times they had talked, he had avoided to ever bring it up, only talk about memories the two of them shared, or the latest rumors spread by the staff at Reefside. They never really brought it up, but as they parted, one of them would mention it and it would start up more fire between them. She didn't want that to happen this time. She was tired of their fights, and pulling their friends in all these directions.

A small knock came to the door as she moved to answer the door. And sure enough, it was the man she had loved with all her heart. But like all the times they had talk in the last few weeks, he had locked himself in a distant place. He had pushed away as much as any physical contact with her, and she was the one to do it. A pull of his hand and a quick hug pulled the two into the apartment for another talk, hoping to resolve their mistakes.

He slowly stepped into the apartment, never at all liking the idea of one of his fears running through his head. He had to keep telling himself that Adam would never stoop as low as to do something with Kim. But with the end of the month coming around, and her presence has been there for nearly all of April, he was wavering.

Even at school, he knew his performance as a teacher wasn't quite where it was. He could talk to his students, but if they ever got anywhere near the subject of talking about his personal life, he would nearly zone out. Hear the conversation, but not register with it. And time and time again, he would see his team and their own concern for him and his wife. He knew, but could never quite tell them the progress on it. Not that it was going anywhere with it at all, but at least they were talking. Sorta.

Kim slowly strode over to the couch and sat down. He had moved over to the recliner and slowly sat down, but didn't as much as look at his wife. He was still not in the position of screwing up what they were trying to re-build.

"How you doing?" Kim said barely above a whisper to start conversation between them.

Tommy shrugged absently. "I'm okay. What about you?"

"I'm all right. It's good." She nodded slowly.

"How's Serena doing?" Tommy asked as if it wasn't that much of a big deal, though it was.

"She's okay. She's hanging out with Trent right now."

Tommy nodded again as he seemed to sink lower into his own world. It was clear he just wanted all of this to go away, and for things between them to just go away, but that didn't seem to work. And it would only take more time for things to be better between the two. "That's good."

A silence fell over the two. And it just didn't seem like the best sorta time to talk, but it was clear that either of them liked how far along this had come without being really resolved. It had been effecting both of them. And it was clear that a lot of people were also concerned with their relationship.

Tommy had gotten several calls from Jason about fixing it, but he had refused to call back his best friend about it. Nor did he like the idea that his other friends were also ratting him and getting on his ass for fixing this. It wasn't there problem, but it sure was effecting them, which made it all the worse putting them in the middle.

Kim, herself, had been encouraged by Adam, when he was around, to stop moping around his place and just go home. That she and Tommy had to fix things and that this whole thing was a mindless devotion to divide the entire team. And that wasn't what they needed at all. It was hurting them all. Destroying everything they were working for as the protectors of the planet.

"Can we make this work out?" Kim asked, but she wasn't sure if she had actually said that aloud or it was just a thought.

"Life is full of choices and chances. But I can only promise you what I can if you give it to me in return," Tommy replied.

Kim finally looked up to see the man sitting on the chair, knowing that he was hurting really bad. If he hadn't held on to the little dignity or chance of saving their marriage, he might as well be dead on the corner. But even as she looked, hoping to see him, look into her eyes, he only lowered his head more, zoning into that lonely world for him alone.

It crushed her to see him in that state of mind, but she knew that her contributions had pushed him into that place yet again. Into a place she never wanted him to fall into. And would take some time for him to get out of.

"If I do decide to come back home, I don't want your pampering, okay? I know you may find that is the only way for me to enjoy your company, but it's not. Right now, we just need to talk," Kim spoke quietly yet again. And she still wasn't sure if it was a thought or actually spoken.

Tommy nodded, but it seemed like the words had not registered in his head. "That's all I ask. Let alone, for you to come home. I miss you. And I'm sorry about what happened between us. And I know I've said this several times, I really don't like that you decided to crash here out of all places. But I am grateful that Adam has decided to keep an eye on you, even if I don't quite feel comfortable with it."

"Adam's been treating me well," she spoke, knowing that he seemed to go deeper into his world. Any deeper, he may not be approachable from anyone. "And I speak the truth when I say there is nothing going on between the two of us. You can ask him yourself, or Serena, too."

"So, can I help you with your things or..."

"I need a few hours to think this through again, but I'll be there."

Tommy felt like he needed to argue that statement. But he was all out of nerve to yell at her again. He was tired of the distance between them, despite the talks they had. But he had to respect her request and allow her to do what she wanted. He could only simply nod as he got to his feet.

And in a desperation to just kiss her, he didn't. He simply left the apartment, hoping to see her later on in the day.

XXXXXXXXXX

But before anyone could really realize what was going on, the end of April was fast approaching, and the three couples were still not where they should be.

Kira somehow found more comforting talking to Conner than Kim. And he had done the same, even allow her to hang with him and Krista. Though, they weren't still on the best grounds, they were talking and still agreed to go to prom together.

Ethan still felt like he was in the middle of it all, talking between Trent and Conner and how their relationship was going, but there was no go with Trent and Kira. Trent felt like he was just gonna give up with her, but Ethan told him that he couldn't. Even if they weren't talking, they were still doing something together that required them to work as a team. Yet, Ethan had to admit that he had gotten on more than acquaintances with Kelly, Kim's cousin. But had not mentioned anything to his friends. He had hoped that he could fix things before Saturday.

They were all relieved to find that Tommy and Kim had resolved their difference enough to have Kim and Serena move back home. But there was still some distance between the two. They didn't seem to hold the same love they have before the incident, and it seemed more like they were in the company of the other for the sake of keeping the family intact. But they had gotten somewhere. Just not what they had hoped would take a whole month to fix.

Coming Monday, Trent had absently gone on with his normal life as a teenager. Going to school, trying to get over the feeling he may never find true love again, and just hoping to get through the final weeks of high school.

First hour had gone by slow, which felt like the worse part of his day next to second hour, just seeing his science teacher and knowing what he had gone through in the past month, too. But what made it worse was that he knew the two teachers were now okay, and he and Kira weren't.

His science teacher had been talking about the number of phyla in the animal kingdom, but he didn't seem to register any of the information. And in a class of only 10, it wasn't hard to really pick out who didn't care, daydreamed, sleeping with their eyes open, and the one or two who actually wanted to learn about it. But still, Dr. Oliver had continued his lesson despite the lack of ears or eyes on him.

Then a knock came to the door, as the teacher stopped short of his sentence, waiting to see if the door will open. It opened slowly to reveal two juniors, Cristina and Megan, both were apart of the yearbook staff and also apart of Junior Council, which was in check with Senior Council to make up the Prom Committee. Selected few from each council would discuss Prom, and they were among them next to Cassidy. And they were an obnoxious duo, but respected their teachers at all cost if they weren't goofing-off. If one could say, Cristina was the brains of the two, a Puerto Rican girl, while Megan, a white girl, was more the one getting the disses from her friend, just because she was slow for a blonde. Not that it was a bad thing, but they still managed to get the work done.

"Hey, Dr. Oliver. Can we borrow Trent for a few minutes?" Cristina asked as she pointed to the zoning teen in a white flannel.

"How you doing, Dr. O? Things cool with you and Coach?" Megan couldn't help but ask as Cristina nudged her on the shoulder.

The science teacher pushed open a little smile as he nodded. "They're better. We're okay now. Have you guys gotten things done for the final deadline?"

"Dr. O! We still got until the end of the week," Megan protested.

"Yeah, and I'm not Ms. Obie. I'm not as lenient about getting that stuff completed as she is, especially at the end of the year."

"Or me," Anika, their editor-in-chief butted into the conversation. "I expect those things to get done by Wednesday just so I can make sure they're completed."

But before the two could say anymore to the editor, they had pushed out of the door with Trent following. It was clear that the trio had had enough of their editor, but could deal with their teachers' watchful eye. They weren't the Hitler in the staff, just pushing out a more direct approach, but efficient way to get the pages completed.

Trent had crossed his arms, hoping to get whatever they wanted him for done and over with soon enough. He just needed his time to zone away and not talk to anyone. "So, what's up, guys? Is this yearbook-related?"

"Actually no," Megan shook her head as she handed over a slip of paper to him. "Try that big night this Saturday."

"You know how we were holding nominations for Prom King and Queen last week?" Cristina began as he looked over the note, a note of congratulations for his nominee and if he accepted. "Yeah, well, congrats, Trent. You're one of them."

"What!" he breathed as he looked at the note again. But it had said it true. He was a nominee for Prom King. "No way. How is that even possible?"

The two girls shrugged as they looked over the note. Cristina held the master paper that showed the nominees as well as a questionnaire for each of them, while Megan was holding the notes to give to the nominees for their acceptance.

"It says it here. The librarian was the one who checked the tallies. And your name came up quite a bit, both under Fernandez and Mercer. But we accepted both since we know that legal action was still underway about your last name," Cristina stated.

"So, do you accept it?" Megan asked.

"Who else was nominated?" Trent asked as he began to waver over the thought of who else was on the list. He was still getting over the fact that his name was under a Prom King nominee. He never quite considered himself a popular guy, let alone Prom King material.

"For King; Ethan James, Michael Lopez, Conner McKnight, Sean Richards and you," Cristina spoke as she looked down at the list. "And for Queen; Cassidy Cornell, Stella Cruz, Megan Smith, Kayla Johnson, and Kira..." But she had stopped short of finishing that last name as Trent took a step back.

Out of all the people to get nominated those were the bunch. First off, Trent couldn't believe that he had heard Ethan, but wasn't surprised with his status on the dance team. But so were Michael and Sean. He was an unofficial member to the team. Then there was no surprise for Conner. Then to hear the nominees for Queen. Megan was his competition for the top spot in the class next to Erin, who got the position of Homecoming Queen, so couldn't get nominated again. Kayla was a big sports athlete especially in volleyball. Stella was the Senior Class President. Cassidy, no surprised. And then Kira...what is going on!

"Are you serious?" Trent asked as if he didn't hear the names the first time around, but he did.

"Yeah, we are. Your class is weird about nominating people," Megan shook her head.

"Okay, Ethan is sorta a surprise. But how are you gonna vote Cassidy without Devin? Or in this case, Conner without Krista? And then decide to put me and Kira and we're not quite on good grounds," Trent still couldn't believe the news he was hearing.

"Like I said before, you guys are weird about nominating people," Megan said again.

"So, do you accept it?" Cristina pointed to the slip in Trent's hand. "Think of it more of an honor. I mean, this is Prom."

At that point, Trent must have not been thinking at all, or seemed to care what he was up against in the following week, but he had accepted his nominee. Cristina asked if he could fill out the questionnaire and return it to them by the end of the day.

When the two had moved over to the English hall, Kira was speechless with the news. She didn't as much as really show much expression, her face a mirror of a ghost. No real expression. No real thought. Conner had his own thoughts, but had no idea so many people would consider him Prom King material at all.

She, too, had asked about who else was nominated. And when the two had told her, she couldn't believe who was on the ballot. How could there be no Devin, but Cassidy? There was Conner, but no Krista, though they've talked? And Ethan? He must be just as speechless. But Trent? Trent? What is this world coming to?

"So, do you guys accept?" Cristina asked as she held out the slip for the senior in yellow and sports jock in red.

Kira looked down at the slip, saw her name on it and thought back to the long month that had passed. She had been hanging around Conner, which seemed rather odd, even if she seemed to find comfort in his company. She could not believe it. But felt no harm in accepting, despite what it could mean by the end of the week. Being escorted by her former boyfriend, Trent. She had exchanged a look with Conner, who made no hesitation to accept, though still shocked with the news. She had done the same, to confirm her acceptance, but didn't seem to realize that she might have made a mistake just as she and Conner had returned to their seats. She was no Prom Queen, let alone a nominee, but the acceptance had already been made. She was a nominee.

When the two had gone to see Ethan, he was nearly jumping through the halls, trying to find his breath over it. He kept looking over the slip in his hand, freaking out. He just could not believe that his name would ever come as close as anything on a ballot for Prom.

"Well, that is your name, is it not?" Cristina asked him as she pointed at his name on the list.

Ethan took in a breath as a huge smile fell over his face. "No way! This is nuts. Of course I'll take it. But who else is on it?"

He had been too excited to realizing the other names and when Cristina had gone through it again, he had stopped short. And she had to repeat it to him several times, slowly, just so he could catch it right, as well as see the list for himself, to confirm what she was saying was actually true.

"I don't really get the Class of '05. You guys are a weird bunch," Megan shook her head, still not believing the choice of nominees on the ballot.

Ethan shrugged as he took a breath. His head spun with worry. And with the confirmed slips of the other nominees, he was the last, he could not believe who else was on it. He would be competing with his fellow dance team members and friends, let alone seeing the faces of Cassidy and Kira on the same stage minus Devin and Krista. He could not get over that, even as he retreated back to class, he couldn't believe it.

But by nightfall, on that coming Saturday, they would be crowning the King and Queen for the Class of 2005 for Reefside High, and he pondered how it would all turn out.

XXXXXXXXXX

Days later, Wednesday night.

The last two days had gone by, and lots of upperclassmen were feeling the rush of Prom as it got closer. But talk was still going around about the nominees, as everyone had heard who was on the ballot and who wasn't.

And for Cassidy, who was on the committee, which everyone thought was unfair, found it odd and out of the ordinary to not vote for couples, or couples that were actually together and not fighting.

There was a lot of complaints for the fact that the nominees were tweaked and it was a flaw to make those choices. There was just so much badger over it, it drove everyone nuts, even for the ones who could care less, but were tired of hearing about it in the last few days.

Krista, despite their status as a couple, still wished him luck, knowing he deserved to be up there among the nominees. She was not discouraged too much about it, but both felt worried about Kira and Trent. With the time Kira had spent with Conner, she had spoke of wanting to talk to Trent, even if he was trying to talk to her, but she was too afraid of getting hurt again. If Trent had known what he knew about the yellow dino ranger, things would be different and they would be back together, but it wasn't that way.

It was good to see Tommy and Kim back in the light of their love, though it was still not where it once was. There was still that line between them that had not been broken. Things were just not being said, or couldn't. Not enough physical contact for the two that worried the teens on sight of them.

But Ethan had his own set of plans as he had informed the other rangers, with their curious selves, to make sure that each of the couples were gonna listen to the radio during the 8 o'clock hour.

"Are you sure this is gonna work?" Kelly had asked him over the phone.

"Trust me. Just make sure that Dr. O and Coach are gonna listen during the 8 o'clcok hour," he had instructed her.

And it had reached the 8 o'clock hour. Many students at Reefside High were hanging out at the cyber café. Trent was working that night. And despite her luck, she had no idea how, but Kira was there too, doing some homework.

In other locations, students had listened intently to the radio, knowing there was a few guests to the hottest night show, NightBeatz on the Beat station from Reefside High. Conner had been out tuning up his car as a friend's place. Krista was at the animal shelter, working. Kim's cousin had taken little Serena out for some ice cream, but had left the radio on, despite the distance from Tommy and Kim. Tommy was in the study working on preparing finals for his seniors and Kim was in the bathtub soaking up a nice bubble bath, while listening to some tunes.

XXXXXXXXXX

Down at the radio station, three out of the five Prom King nominees were gonna help the night radio DJ, Karson, run the show. Karson was a black male, in his late 20s, with a close crop haircut, but sorta a big guy. Kinda like a big teddy bear but could pull off a really deep voice if he wanted, but kept it to his street style.

Each were hooked up to a set of headphones, and a mic, while Karson hit up the main mic. During the mix of tunes, off air, the three had spoke of what was going on, and gonna talk a little about each nominee, and add in that special surprise that they themselves had secretly set up at lunch in the past three days. Karson was cool with it, saying he would give them support, even if he was the DJ set to run their night.

Then it was time for the show. Or the 15 minutes they had to steal the show and do what had to be done.

Karson pushed the on-air key, grabbing his mic and pulling it to his mouth. "Well, all right. It's time to start up the NightBeatz here on Reefside's newest hit station, the Beat. I got with me three guys representing Reefside High's Dance Team as well as giving you guys the low down on their big night this weekend, Prom. Guys, introduce yourselves."

One by one, each of them had said their names, said what they liked to do for fun, besides dancing. They had talked briefly about the theme of the night, 'Once Upon A Starry Night' and began to talk a little about each of the nominees, but in no way trying to embarrass any of them. They had talked to Karson about his spot as their DJ, asking him what they expected to hear. Etc.

"So, you guys also got a little surprise - or twist, I guess you can almost say - for Prom night, didn't you?" Karson asked.

"Yeah that's right," Michael, the Hispanic, replied. Despite his height, he was kinda small, he was one of the best guys on the dance team for doing any type of flip, and skilled in breakdancing next to the Asian guys and unofficial member, Trent.

"Ya'll know about the whole Prom King and Queen for the Senior class. That's how it is traditionally done," Sean, a black guy, spoke. He was the lead man on the dance team, running the entire team.

"Well, we decided to open up a ballot at lunch toward who should be Prom King and Queen for the staff. We just thought it would be sorta a nice way to bring about more school spirit. We've sorta lacked it with all those chaotic attacks in the city. And we got the whole student body in on it. Not just the senior class deciding the nominees," Michael said.

"That's cool. School spirit can lack quickly these days. So, do you guys have any idea who was nominated?" Karson said.

The two boys turned to the teen in blue as he sorta sunk in his chair, but had to step up and do what he had to do. "We got the winners, and we want it to be a surprise. But I'll say this, these two are real lovebirds, and I think they might know what I mean. Or at least they should."

"Well, I want to thank you guys for coming by to spread the word of Prom. Any last words for the listeners?" Karson asked.

"As Gladiators, protection always," the three had said as a joke, with a burst of laughter. As their mascot, a Gladiator, they had gotten disses from other schools about it.

"Actually, can I make a shout out?" Ethan had offered as the DJ nodded, starting up the intro to his song request. "This one goes out to you guys over at Reefside High. Kicking off the Prom season with a great song. To Conner and Krista, I hope you guys find a way to fix your differences and understand that not everyone is perfect and sometimes, it takes time to speak the truth in a relationship. To Kira and Trent, I know you guys ain't talking like you should, but don't be afraid to make this work out. What you guys got remind us of a love we all wish we could have. Innocent and pure. To Tommy and Kim, yes I'm talking to the two of you. I didn't come this far, none of us did, to see you two fall apart after all you've both been through. You guys know each other more than anyone else. That's love. It's that big. We all make mistakes. So, stop yelling. Stop fighting. And for all the other couples, make sure you know what you're getting into and make the right choice. Think about what you do and could do. Destroy or achieve. And really listen to the lyrics of this song. It'll be worth it."

Karson couldn't help but smile at his shout-out. "To hit off your Prom, Reefside High, this tune will be huge. You watch. This is the new one from Mariah Carey, off her new album, The Emancipation of Mimi, 'We Belong Together.' Enjoy! I'll see you guys on Saturday."

Then the song began to play. And it almost seemed as if time had stopped and everyone just tuned into the song, listened to the lyrics. Got into the mix of its words.

Conner couldn't believe his ears the moment he had heard his friend's voice on the radio. And when they had gone through a good 15 minutes talking about Prom, Conner found himself getting into his car and driving over to the animal shelter.

Krista had been just getting out of the shelter, to catch her breath, nearly in tears, as Conner was pulling up, the chorus of the song running in his mind. And when he had raced out, she had collapsed into his arms, the tears more evident.

Each began to apologize again for the long month of torment, asking forgiveness, and as the song had ended, had exchanged a kiss. And several more, turning into more passion as it went.

In the darkness of the alleyway, a certain red ninja and yellow ninja had been hanging out, waiting and watching to see as if they knew that was gonna happen. A smile fell over both of their faces as Rocky pulled up his cell phone to his mouth.

"ApeMan and BearGirl would like to report that RedLeader and NatureGirl have locked up their past, over," Rocky reported to a certain blue dino ranger.

On the other side of town, at the cyber café, several teens had heard the show. It had caught all attention from those present in the room, especially the last segment with Ethan leaving that shout out. Some teens had even passed looks over to Kira or Trent, wondering if they were gonna do anything. They knew that was who he was talking to. Many seemed to wait for the move, hoping that they would do something.

Trent had looked away for a moment, listening closely to the song as it seem to hit him like knives in the chest. But despite, the audience, he didn't seem to notice anyone else in the room, but Kira. And she herself, had looked away, grasping the lyrics of the song. And when she had looked around the room, it seemed like nothing else seemed to register but the teen in the white flannel.

And as if in a trance, or mindlessly, the two had looked at the other, eyes finally locking and found themselves make it to the center of the room. In one gesture, Trent held out his hand as an offer to dance and Kira could only smile as she took it, laying a head on his shoulder. And the two had engaged in a short dance, re-living the moments alone they seemed to share on their teachers' wedding day. And as the song had ended, Trent had found his lips brush lightly against Kira's. An uproar fell over the café, but the two didn't seem to notice as Kira had pulled him into a hug, pushing away the painful event that had pushed them apart of the past month.

Hayley let out a breath of relief as a smile passed her lips, looking over at the blue wolf, who had kept her company more and more at the café in his stay. And he in return winked and smiled to see that amends had been made, sensing the news that a certain red dino ranger had made amends with his own love.

Billy turned away pulling out his cell phone to inform the blue dino ranger the news. "BlueCom, TechAce and WolfMan would like to report WhiteArt and DinoWing have stepped back into the light, over."

Only one to go. And no one was sure what was gonna happen there.

Over at the Oliver homestead, Tommy had been sitting in the study, listening somewhat absently to the radio.

"...a ballot who should be Prom King and Queen for the staff..."

Tommy stopped his work, nearly chocking on the pen cap as it slipped into his mouth. He coughed it up as he turned up the radio, listening intently to what was going on. But his mind was swarming with a lot of questions.

"..So do you guys have any idea who was nominated?" the radio DJ asked.

"We got the winners, and we want it to be a surprise. But I'll say this, these two are real lovebirds, and I think they might know what I mean. Or at least they should," Ethan James had spoken up.

Tommy felt his knees weaken, even if he was sitting down. He could not believe it. How could he not notice that during lunch? And was it even authorized? He was freaking out because he did know what that mean. Ethan was talking about him and his wife. Was it coincidental? Was it on purpose? Or a sick joke played by the dance team?

The next he knew, he found himself racing up the stairs, knocking on the door to the bathroom, not wanting to intrude, hoping his wife would permit him in. But the door had creaked open as if by a light wind, and Tommy peaked inside. Kim had zoned out, speechless as it was evident she had heard it, too. Tommy wasn't sure what to do, but caught ear of the next set of words.

"...Innocent and pure. To Tommy and Kim, yes I'm talking to the two of you. ..."

Tommy's knees locked again as his gaze fell on his wife. Kim had finally turned to look at him. But she was still speechless. She could not believe that was going on. That she had heard this. That Ethan would go as low -- or sweet -- as make a shout out to his friends and driving them to fix their mistakes.

"...So, stop yelling. Stop fighting. ...make sure you know what you're getting into and make the right choice. Think about what you do and could do. Destroy or achieve. And really listen to the lyrics of this song. It'll be worth it..."

The two adults fell silent unsure what to believe at that moment. Each had zoned off, listening to the lyrics as it called to them. As if it was only meant for them, for their ears alone, despite the dedication made from it.

When the song had ended, a silence fell over the room. Neither of them had any idea what to say, but it was the truth. The song held such meaning that hit them both.

"Did you expect this?" Kim finally asked.

"No idea. Did you?" Tommy asked as he took a seat beside his wife, still looking at the radio. But the end of the song had came, and despite what was being played, neither of them could really notice what it was.

Another silence fell over them as they sunk into their own thoughts trying to make sense of what was going on. But those words, the song, had hit them long and hard that nothing else could really be said. And when Kim had reached over to grab Tommy's hand, the sparks had returned. Tommy turned to look at the figure emerged in the bubble bath, the woman he swore his life and protection to for eternity. And in the following seconds, it was hard to tell who exactly had made the move, but lips had locked and compassion and warmth filled them both.

And as the kiss deepened with more passion, they knew that they really belonged together, and the distance between them was far behind them. They had returned to the light of their pure love, hoping never to fall into a trap of betrayal, hatred, lies or other negative thoughts that could break them apart again.

Within their compassionate exchange, Tommy had vowed not to make anymore big mistakes like that, hoping never to hurt her heart again. She, herself, had told him that in order to be human is to make mistakes and be locked in confusing feelings. She had said that no one was perfect, and after a stunt like that, only made them realize more that their love was forever.

Kim had pulled her husband closer for a kiss, wetting his shirt, as she pulled the hand he was leaning on into the water to lay on her bare stomach. He nearly collapsed, under the kiss, but knew what it had meant when the kiss had continued on.

XXXXXXXXX

Over at Adam's apartment, the rest of ranger team had secretly met up to hear in on the news of what the blue dino ranger was gonna do. He had informed them all he was gonna do something on the radio, and they were eager to see what he had in mind.

Each were circled around the stereo, questioning each other quietly about the blue ranger's move, knowing it had to do with bringing the couples back to good grounds. And had required a little research to do it. If this didn't work, than he would have to move onto Plan B, which he really didn't want to do, but still had it ready if need be.

Quietly, Ethan had managed to access some surveillance tapes from the night at the cyber café and energy readings from the Oliver homestead. And had found the results that both Trent and Tommy had been a victim to the seduction by a certain yellow psycho ranger. And he had promised to let Krista see that diary regarding the rangers, with a special greeting from Mr. Legendary himself to her, if it came down to it. But, he didn't want

to push it into the couples, unless he knew he really had to use them, knowing there was a lot of ground to make up for.

"...we decided to open up at lunch a ballot toward who should be Prom King and Queen for the staff..."

"Are you serious?" Wes choked up a laugh as he shook his head, but Ashley had shut him up with a smack to the shoulder.

"You've got to be kidding me. Is that legal?" Jason shook his head, Kat nudging him as she nodded.

"It's possible. There was never anything against it," she replied, hushing him form saying another comment.

Carlos and TJ leaned closer, listening closely to what was being said.

" ...these two are real lovebirds, and I think they might know what I mean. Or at least they should..."

"They'd better," the room erupted as everyone agreed with their blue friend's comment.

But it was clear they were already in shock for his hints, and the work it seemed to do to all of them. All wanting to re-live the moments of sharing a love with someone they cared about. Or just re-living high school for the sake of running through such drama, despite saving the world.

"Actually, can I make a shout out?" Ethan had asked over the radio.

Carlos and TJ hushed their friends as they turned up the radio, waiting for the shout out request. And as Ethan made the shout out, talking to the three struggling couples, they couldn't believe that he had actually gone through the trouble of doing it. But all had to agreed with those words.

The radio DJ began to speak, introducing the song, speaking forth that it was the Prom anthem of the year.

And then the song began and a silence fell over the room. Everyone listened to the song despite the fact it wasn't quite sent out to them, but it was there for their listening pleasure.

And when the song ended minutes later, the team all exchanged looks wondering if it really worked. No words were said, but the look in each of their eyes knew that if this didn't work, than nothing would ever will. And they would pretty much give up, before really beginning, to fix their relationships.

Moments passed. Silence rang. Then finally Jason's cell rang broke the silence.

He answered it with no hesitation. "Lay it on me, BlueCom. What do we got? ...RedLeader and NatureGirl are cleared. ...WhiteArt and DinoWing are cleared. ...You haven't heard from the FrogMan over at.. huh, hold on?" Jason held his breath for a moment as he looked over at the anticipated rangers wondering the news on the final couple, the big one. Then it clicked and Ethan came back on. "..we got it? It's cleared! WhiteFalcon and PinkCrane have engaged in their courtship... no, that's great. Whatever you did, it worked... Yeah. No, you did it man. No more drama. ...All right. Talk to you later. Bye."

And when Jason had ended the call, the room erupted into a line of cheers and relief. That the drama of their friends was no longer an issue. And they were back on schedule, gearing up for their time out with Mindshatter. They could only hope that it would be another week or two before he decided to strike, despite the worry it would very well be the final battle for the dino rangers. But they would be ready.

XXXXXXXXXX

The next day at school had been considered more recognition to Ethan and his two dance team members for their work on the radio the last night.

And as he rounded the corner, he had ran into the very picture he said he had missed from his friend in red. An exchange of kisses with his girlfriend. He tried to greet the two, but they were too zoned off in the make-out session. And as he turned away, he only felt a tug on his collar as he was yanked back, nearly losing his footing.

Conner had stopped to catch his breath, looking over at his friend in blue. And for a moment, the serious look that spread over the red dino ranger and his girlfriend sorta scared Ethan. But soon a light smile had passed over Conner's face, thanking his friend, and even questioning how Ethan had done it.

"I have my ways, Conner," Ethan brushed off his jacket as he smiled. "But, I am glad to see you guys back together. I really do mean that. I mean, this huge fight shouldn't have taken this long to fix."

"Yeah, well, what you said last night really hit home," Krista had to admit as she locked hands with Conner, leaning into him. "But, thank you. And good luck on the vote tomorrow."

"May the best man win, right?" Conner said as he held out his hand for Ethan to shake. A wink fell over his eye, which meant only one thing. Either he was saying that Ethan should vote for his best friend in red, or the white dino ranger with his girl. Each had their own thoughts on it, but would have found it more interesting to have Trent and Kira on the floor, since they were the only real 'couple' nominee and weren't what they considered Prom material, would have been cool to end their senior year.

And for a moment longer Ethan had been glad to see those two were locked back in a world known as love, and left. He had to check out the status on Trent and Kira. And sure enough as he made it outside, he found the two hand in hand coming from the senior lot. They weren't still on the grounds of the whole PDA, but had exchanged words when one or the other would say something into the other's ear.

"There are my two other favorite people in the world," Ethan raced over, arms extended out in a hug to encase them both in a hug. "Back together and talking again."

It was a brief hug, until Kira pushed him back, slightly irritated and still shocked over his handiwork on the air the previous night. She was complaining that she had no idea how he did it, but he had done it. Ethan had worked his magic and brought them back together just like he had said. And they weren't convinced.

"You had help, didn't you?" Trent asked him with a raised eyebrow. "What trick do you consider that? Jedi or Ninja?"

"Shhh!" Ethan hushed his friend. "You want my secret out?"

"We just wanna know how," Kira asked.

"I have my ways, that's all that matters. And it is good to finally see you two back together. I would bet that tomorrow would be hell, let alone Saturday if you two actually do win and you weren't on good grounds. People would be freaking out."

"Good Luck. I mean that. I just never thought we'd all be on the ballot," Trent shook his head, still trying to get over the nominee he got. "I still got the limo open. You still in?"

"Of course. And it's cool I bring someone?" Ethan asked. He had forgotten in his fight to bring back the couples in the last few days, he had not told his friends he had locked arms with Kim's cousin, Kelly. They were talking, but had not shared as much as holding hands and a few hugs. If Ethan played his cards right, he was hoping to finally share his first kiss with her. He had to admit, he was getting to like her, especially since she was very open-minded about what he would do or say.

"Ethan's not going stag? Since when?" Kira looked at him, but it was clear both Trent and her were surprised to hear this.

"Since last Saturday. You'll meet her on prom night. She's cool..." he nodded but ws cut short when the bell rang. "You gotta be kidding me. Either time has been cut short, or it really is going fast."

"Doubt it. I feel like these passed few weeks have been years to pass," Trent groaned, as Kira nudged him forward. "Plus, we were running late..."

"And I still need to go hit my locker," Kira said as she pulled Trent along.

Ethan had followed behind them as they slowly strode into the building. They raced passed the science wing, but Ethan had not gotten far when he felt another tug on the back of his collar, getting yanked into one of the rooms. A room he had hoped not to quite face until the end of the day. And when

he turned around he had met the stern face of his science teacher. Ethan could never tell when he was playing a joke or when he wasn't, but never liked Dr. Oliver in serious mode.

"So tell me, Ethan. Was this entire thing planned until this very week, or did this just come at the spur of the moment?" the science teacher questioned with an upraised eyebrow.

"Don't tell me the two of you got into another fight?" Ethan took a step back as his heart raced. "I really thought you kissed and made up."

"No actually, it's all good. Past is past. And we had a nice love-making session... but that is not the point," he shook his head, trying not to get off subject. "Stop with the mind tricks, Ethan." But the serious mode had dropped and a smile fell over his face. "But it was a good mind trick. It worked. Thanks. ..But what is this about a Prom King and Queen for the staff?"

"Come Saturday, you'll find out, Dr. O. G2G, or I'll be late for class. I'll see you 7th hour," Ethan flashed a peace.

And the blue dino ranger raced out of the room catching his breath, relieved and glad that it had work. And now, all they really came was the actual night of Prom.

XXXXXXXXXX

Saturday had finally come.

And girls ran across town getting their hair ready, nails pressed to impress their men, or trying not to freak out about the instant tan that made them more look more orange than natural colored. Beauty salons were packed with freaking out teenage girls, hoping to find a way to calm their nervous tension of the night's festivities. Many girls wanting to make it an extravagant evening, feeling like a Queen or Princess, even if they were not one of the nominees.

The men, who had gone through the trouble of getting a tuxedo, at the expensive cost, strode around the house early morning in them to just pay off the expense for wearing it. Others kept it simple enough in a nice dress shirt, tie and vest. But many had even come up with either booking limos for their date and friends, or finding a good place to crash for the night as a late midnight snack or after party. Even a few had secretly booked hotel reservations hoping that this was the night they could get a little something from a girl they were admiring.

Trent had strode out of his room, decked out in an all white tux. He fixed his collar before looking at the time, knowing he had to go get Kira and Ethan before hitting up Conner's by 4:30, which would give them a good hour or so to pass driving around in the limo. Not that he was used to the fancy clothes, with his father's formal invites, he was just not one to really enjoy it when he knew the multiple layers could be killer to him. When it came to dancing he could really get into it.

But, in some cases, he was a nervous wreck. Not only for the feeling of the nominees, but also the feeling of how Prom night would turn out. He was scared it would end in disaster, but hoped that it would not. He had to keep telling himself that he was there to enjoy himself in the company of his girlfriend and friends. The feeling of hearing that word 'girlfriend' brought a smile to his face. He was glad that they had moved on and gotten back together. He didn't know what he would do if that didn't happen.

Over at the James homestead, Ethan had been badgered with pictures by his mother. She had kept saying that she was so proud that he was going to prom his senior year, let alone, a nominee as a Prom King. And when he had mentioned that he wasn't going alone, it was an even bigger deal. Dr. Oliver had dropped Kelly off, early, ready and set to be bombarded by pictures and questions the moment she stepped through the door.

He had refused to go along with the entire tux thing, but was blinged out in a nice blue shirt with a matching blue tie. He wore diamond-clad stud earrings in each of his ears and topped off with one of his father's nice black jacket. The one he had worn to his prom back in his day. Kelly, whom Ethan's parents were actually shocked to see go with him to prom, had been decked out in a dark ocean-like color strapless dress. She wore a designer silver necklace with big looped earrings.

Ethan shook his head as another line of flashes came their way. He shooed away his mother's gesture, but she couldn't help but take more pictures. She had kept questioning the two, asking them how they met, what Kelly did, etc. Being a typical nosy mother, which made Ethan slightly embarrassed since it was her calling card to anyone he brought over.

"I expect to see plenty of pictures taken tonight, you stubborn boy," his mother stated as more of a demand than request. "And if you decide to do anything tonight, which you'd better not, you treat this girl with the utmost respect. If you do, make sure you use protection..."

Ethan held up a hand shaking his head. "Mom! Please! You're embarrassing me. Don't worry. I'll make sure to take lots of pictures, and be back by a reasonable time. And trust me, I don't plan to do any of that stuff, okay? Besides, Kelly gots a flight to catch tomorrow afternoon."

"That's still plenty of time to do something," his father said as he seem to signal something to his son by rubbing his eye. but his wife had smacked him, pulling him from the room. She was finally getting the picture to leave the two alone.

Ethan breathed a little as he finally had some time to talk to his date without his parents breathing down his neck.

Over at the McKnight household, despite the setbacks between Conner and Krista, their parents had become great friends. Krista's parents had dropped off the young teen, as well as tag along taking picture of the two once they had strode to the door. Conner had complained with the number of pictures they would go blind before Prom really started, but the parents couldn't help but reflect the young teens during their own time in high school.

Conner was decked out in a black suit, complete with a red vest and white dress shirt with a red bow tie and matching red handkerchief in his jacket pocket. His hair was slick back, wet. He had made sure that he had hid his nervous sweat under some Adidas cologne. Krista was decked out in a matching red dress, strapless with the very theme of Prom night embossed on her dress. It had flared out and puffed out on the bottom, making it somewhat of a challenge to sit or move around without the fear of falling over. Her hair had been strung up in a French braid with a glittery finish.

The parents had commented on how cute the couple looked, still not understanding how Conner had gotten a nominee for King, but Krista had not for Queen. Numerous amounts of pictures kept going on, the two swore their smiling faces were gonna fall off. And when they had some time to catch their breath, they were hoping that Trent would be over there soon to pick them up.

Over at the Ford household, Kira didn't have it any easier. Her kid brother, being his annoying self, kept busting into her room as her mother had helped her finish her hair and dress. She was decked out in a golden yellow dress, with mesh-like sleeves. Despite the fact of being in a dress, which she had not liked too much, she figured it was one night that wouldn't hurt. She wasn't much for formal events at all, but if she had to, she would. If she could do it for her teachers' wedding, she could do it here and now. Her mom had finished putting the final curls to her hair, hair up, aside from the stream of curls escaping from each side of her face. And for awhile, she was almost in tears fearing that something could go wrong in the night.

But her mother had encouraged her to not worry. After making the final touch-ups, the two had sat in silence, relaxing a little. Down below, Trent had strode up to the door, the limo parked right outside, holding a box with a hand corsage under his arm. He let out a breath as he rang the doorbell, waiting for an answer.

Sure enough, it was Kira's father, whom, Trent could very much fear with his status as a military guy. He was a tough, stern guy though had a lighter side, if you got to know him, which Trent did, but didn't like how her father can be at times. He had let the teen in the nice white tux into the house, commenting on the suit. Trent had thanked the man, looking away as some nervousness fell over him. Kira's father had spoken quietly, his 'only baby girl' lecture had been repeated to the teen in white. And Trent didn't argue, and respected his words.

And when Kira's mother had come down to greet the teen in white, she had a wide smile on her face, also commenting on his suit. But with cameras ready, all had turned to the staircase as Kira finally moved out of the room and down the stairs. Trent was stunned by her appearance, knowing he could never get used to her hidden beauty. By the time she had made it to the bottom, he wrapped the corsage around her wrist, commenting on her beauty. Kira's mother had urged them to kiss, but both were sorta embarrassed, though Kira's father had pushed on the young man. And they exchanged a kiss, took several pictures, both inside the house and by the limo, before heading on their way.

Over at the Oliver homestead, things weren't easy-peasy. Kim had been melted to the mirror, looking over herself constantly. She was discouraged a little by her appearance, that she wasn't quite in a state to really enjoy dancing in. Her appearance was in a simple black dress-suit to fit her appearance. She sighed as she collapsed on the chair, just as her husband had come from the closet, fixing his black vest, despite the entire black attire.

He walked over to her, laying a kiss on her head, noticing her discouraged face. "You okay, Beautiful?"

"Am I okay! Look at me, Tommy. I look like a balloon," she cried. "How did I ever agree to do this again?"

He reached over and wrapped the pearl necklace around her neck, before laying another kiss on the back of her neck. "You look fine. Besides, it's hardly noticeable. You know how black can be. It makes you slimmer. And I did promise I would make up for our own senior prom."

"I don't want people to make anything of it..."

"I think it's a little late for that, when the entire school knows you're pregnant, and have been for the last five months now. Besides, don't you want to hear the results of that Prom King and Queen for the staff? You know we got that in the bag."

Kim sighed as she looked at herself in the mirror again, rubbing her tummy. Tommy knelt down in front of her, peering over at the mirror, before reaching over to lay a kiss on her belly. She had pulled him up to lay a kiss on his lips, as a smile passed over hers. She was glad to have him there from time to time, to cheer her up and vice-versa.

"Aren't you gonna be hot in all those layers?" Kim raised an eyebrow as she ran her hands over his vest.

"It's this or no shirt at all," he joked as she back-slapped him on the shoulder. "I'm kidding. I'll be fine. I don't intend on doing a whole lot of dancing. I mean, we are still there to monitor the students, too. And probably talk to the other teachers who decided to slave away on this night."

After another line of kisses, Tommy had escorted his wife downstairs and out front, where a limo had been waiting. Kim had not expected that little surprise, and he had merely said it was a gift from Trent. Their daughter would be over at theScott household retreat in Reefside for the night. And they had went off into the night.

XXXXXXXXXX

After what seemed like an eternity of pictures at the McKnight household, the three couples finally got the chance to head off on their night. They had all relaxed a little once they were in the limo. Kira and Trent had taken the front of the limo by the driver. Ethan and Kelly were locked on the side seat, while Conner and Krista had been sitting in the back.

And it was clear, it was the first time any of them had been in a limo, besides Trent. On one side of the limo was a small drink display of glasses, sodas, water and ice to quench their thirsts. In the corner beside Kira was a small TV with a VCR/DVD player. At the back of the limo, Conner could man the lights in the limo along with the heating and cooling units, the CD player/XM radio and a moonroof to top it off.

And they had all got to talking as if they had been friends for years, some had filed questions toward the newcomer in the group, Kelly. But it was not out of trying to make her feel like an outcast, but to make her apart of the group. She had to comment that it was strange to see three out of the five Prom King nominees in the same limo, but they didn't mind it. Or at least not show it right away.

Ethan turned to Conner, requesting they should get the CD player going and joke about a karaoke competition to pass the hour. "Let's go, RedMan! Drop the tunes. Get the radio going. It's time to karaoke."

"No. That's not fair! We got Kira who doesn't have a problem singing. And Mr. I-Can-Do-Anything Mercer over there who could rival her in it," Krista shook her head as the two across the way could only shrug saying it wasn't their fault they had skills in that area.

"Well, at least get it going. It will kill the silence when we've lost something to talk about," Kelly said.

Conner pushed a few buttons, but nothing seemed to go on. There were far too many buttons for him to comprehend. He shook his head in frustration, as he played with the buttons, getting a feel for each one. He figured out how to work the lights, moonroof, and the cooling/heating unit, but not the radio. "I think it's broken."

"No. I think you broke it," Ethan shook his head. But as he looked over at Krista for assistance, she had simply held up her hands, revealing the nice French manicure and the concept she didn't want to fiddle with it. He slipped between the two, looking at the complex array of buttons on the ceiling of the limo.

"How many boneheads does it take to operate a radio?" Kelly laughed as Kira and Krista joined in a laugh.

And according to the frustration, even for a guy who knew electronics, Ethan couldn't figure it out. Trent had kept his mouth shut, until Kira had pushed him toward the back. Since he had been in a limo, he should know how it would work. Soon, the three guys sat at the back, fiddling with the stereo. The three girls looking on, commenting quietly, capturing the moment and laughing at their effortless attempt to get it working. Time passing slow as the limo continued its drive through the city, but still no music to make the drive more convenient.

"I thought you've been in a limo before?" Conner nudged Trent as he took off the face plate again, looking over the buttons.

"Not one like this. This is one of the nicer ones. My dad never liked these ones just because it was implying more to it, as he put it."

"So, we don't have a radio?" Kira asked as she shook her head. "And there's no good trying to watch a movie when no one brought a movie to watch."

"Pit stop. We could head over to Hollywood video and get something," Ethan shrugged with a suggestion.

"That's too much of an effort. Besides, it's not like we'd finish it anyway," Krista shook her head.

"What kinda limo has a stereo in it, but doesn't work?" Kelly asked.

Trent hushed them up, calling up the service phone to the driver in front. It was a driver he had grown to enjoy. Gary, was a well-built black guy in his late 20s. And always loved to joke around. If he had to be formal, he would, but preferred the attire of a hip-hop person. He began to explain the situation, and Gary said he'd take a look at it, if they would make a stop. And the driver also added that he wasn't used to the limo, it wasn't his. But a loan from the company since his own was being used in LA that weekend.

"Hey, anyone got any gum?" Ethan asked as he checked his pockets.

"Expecting a kiss from me tonight?" Kelly laughed.

Ethan shook his head, but blushed as the two other boys noticed it. "Well, if it happens, it happens. But you can't go wrong with gum. I mean, you don't wanna have bad breath all night."

The others had said they had none. And it gave them a reason to stop. Trent had given them a solution, making a pit stop at a 7-11. Ethan had questioned anyone if they needed anything from the corner store, but no one did as he raced off inside.

"Who makes a pit stop at the corner store in a limo on Prom night?" Krista asked exchanging a look with the two other girls.

"We do." Kira replied with a chuckle.

The driver had moved to the back, fiddling with the buttons, still not getting anywhere with it. Even he had problems with it, for a driver of a limo. None of them could believe it as the face plate was tossed about to see exactly what button could power it up. Even for a nice XM radio/CD player, it was complex to run.

"I'll have to look at it later. You guys are gonna need to find other ways to entertain yourselves," Gary stated as a final determination to his attempt at getting the stereo working.

The teens looked over at the independent singer, who could only make up an excuse she would prefer to have her guitar with her. So, they turned to Trent as he shrugged, taking up requests, if they wanted him to. They had questioned the Prom Queen nominee about if she was performing but had told them most of her band was out of town over the weekend, so it was a no go.

Some time later, Ethan had returned with a pack of gum to pass onto each of them. "Free gum. I only had a twenty and the guy told me to just take the gum. So, I kinda took a pack for each of us. Plus, I think he noticed the suit and the limo outside, thinking we were in a rush."

"No way. That's not possible," Conner stuck his pack of gum in his inner jacket pocket. "With the number of us in the limo, we all couldn't get one."

"Hey, free gum. And he didn't say nothing about me grabbing six packs." Ethan slipped into place beside Kelly shaking his head. He had repeated the situation again, as it seemed to be more evident int their minds. He was telling them the truth.

Trent had found his place back beside Kira as their hands interlocked, while Krista made her way back over to Conner. But without tunes, they were stuck talking. But that didn't seem to stop them, when they began to file out rumors about other people in the senior class.

XXXXXXXXXX

The Senior-Junior Prom of 2005 for Reefside High took place at the Antlers-Hilton Hotel. The theme was "Once Upon A Starry Night", which gave way to a sorta ocean-like, calm night display upon entry into the hotel. A sign outside had greeted the students as they came in.

Slowly, cars and limos pulled into the front while friends, couples and others strode into the lobby. Cameras began to flash upon entry as friends and couples took pictures at the arch display upon entrance into the ballroom where the dinner/dance was gonna take place.

Tables lined the back of the huge room, seating ten to a table. The table set for dining with wine glasses full of water. A centerpiece, a fishbowl lined with blue flat rocks, and a big star candle. Smaller fishbowls lined the bigger one with clear flat rocks and a tealight candle. Confetti stars and moons were scattered on the tables. The room itself, displayed a line of stars of various sizes dangling from the ceiling. Star-shape lights lined the sides with displays of greenery columns, trees and shrubs all over the room. The dance floor was located at the front of the room, where the stage sorta acting like the outcast of the sea into a moonlit night. The DJ's spot was off to a corner. And at every other corner of the room was a small bar offering soda.

The first hour was finding places in the room to sit, either closer to the dance floor, in the middle, or sorta segregated and hit the back, which many swore the teachers would be sitting. It also consisted of pictures and commenting on the dress apparel of others, good or bad.

The six teens had found it feasible to find a place somewhere in the front, close to the dance floor. And after a several line of pictures, they had settled down pondering when the food was gonna get served. Trent had warned them that it wouldn't be the best even if it was fancy. The salad, in itself, wasn't the normal stock one would find at the local grocery store. And the actual meal always had a weird mix of steamed vegetable with nuts or a blend of flavor and spices that one not brought up in rich-style food would get used to. And dessert was either too dry or never had enough flavor.

"Well, either way, food is food. And I'm hungry," Ethan groaned as he rubbed his stomach.

"I'm telling you, Ethan. It's not the greatest," Trent warned him.

Conner had been looking around the room, noticing some of the gazes on them. The talk that others were saying regarding how three nominees for King were stuck at one table. He shook his head as he took a drink from his glass. "Why must people make such a big deal about this entire Prom nominee thing? I mean, it is a friendly competition, right?"

Trent and Ethan exchanged a look before looking over at the jock. They complained that a person like him didn't have to worry about it too much since his status as a jock gave him an advantage. But were merely joking over the seriousness of the competition. It was gonna go to who the school thought deserved it. And as nominees they couldn't vote at all, so whoever won had won because of their peers.

"Don't you guys look cute?" a voice called out from behind.

"Actually, strikes me as a little odd to see three guys who are up for Prom King at one table," another voice said.

The group turned to see the science teacher and P.E. teacher standing behind them. Kim had been locked to Tommy's side arms wrapped around one another. The group greeted the two until Ethan pulled out his camera.

"Smile big, guys. Gotta getta picture," Ethan said.

Tommy groaned as he began to walk away, but Kim pulled him back smacking him on the arm. She had told them that he was stubborn about pictures, let alone hearing the same thing. Commenting on how cute they looked together, and they could still pass as a senior couple, looking young enough to still be in high school, rather than teach it. The teacher couple had already been bombarded with enough pictures by the time they arrived, and it wasn't any easier when their teenage friends wanted to capture this moment, too.

"It makes up for missing out on your senior prom, guys," Kelly said after snapping another picture.

"Let's just say it wasn't the best time of the year for either of us," the science teacher replied.

"So, I gotta know. Which out of you guys deserves Prom King? Who do you think got it?" the P.E. teacher couldn't help but ask.

The trio of guys looked at each other than shrugged. It was clear that most of the school had talked about the three especially, despite the two other guys from the dance team. It seemed to stand as a big deal for those three. Among the Queen nominees, it stood at all of them. No one had a real idea. Those who could care less, or thought about the not-so popular people had talked about Kira getting it. But then, since there was a number of popular people on the list, it was hard to determine out of them.

The two teachers were about to head on to the back to find a seat, but the group had offered them a place at their table. Tommy had complained saying he felt rather old to be around a table full of teens, but his wife had insisted on it, feeling more comfort in their company, rather than the other staff members. So, they joined them nearly passing as another couple at school, until others realized it was actually their teachers.

Dinner had finally been served closer to 7:30 rather than thirty minutes earlier. And like Trent had warned them, it wasn't the best thing they had had. Tommy had complained he was never used to fancy outings, despite his own invites by his former colleague, Dr. Anton Mercer.

Another hour later, and people were finally on the dance floor getting their groove on. Friends and couples had moved out into the hall to get their professional Prom pictures taken. The Prom King nominees had even agreed to take a picture of their own, which many girls wanted. But it wasn't easy for the Prom Queens, but only went through with it since the guy nominees did one.

With it being Prom, and not exactly on school grounds, teachers couldn't do much to their students about their freaky dancing, they were just shocked people could do that without thinking otherwise. It was sorta a scary scene. Some were literally on the floor grinding on one another, and probably getting a whole lot more out of it, too. There were a few shy ones here and there, not wanting to dance at all. And there were a few conservative ones, or not extremely freaky. For many guy teachers, they were spotted in the lobby chatting. The woman teachers were more in the ballroom, seeing what was going on in there and talking among their students.

But the night was nearly coming to an end, and the moment of truth was awaiting the nominees. Who was gonna be the court for the graduating class of 2005 for Reefside High?

Several members of the Prom Committee moved to the stage, calling forth the nominees. First, the Queens, each receiving a single red rose. Then the Kings, where people captured more pictures to blind them all. Cheers and jeers came toward them as the music was turned down, waiting to hear the results of the winners.

"Reefside High School, are you ready to hear the results?" Karson asked as the crowd was getting restless over the wait. "I would like to present to you your Prom Queen of 2005..." His eyes fell on the eager faces of the young women who lined the stage.

Quieting the crowd, silence fell over the entire room.

"Your Prom Queen for the 2004-2005 school year is..." he continued on, but changed subjects making the crowd groan with anticipation. "Are you sure you don't want to know the results of the staff one first? ... all right. All right. I'm sorry, guys. I would like to present to you your senior class of 2005 Prom Queen, Ms. Kira Ford."

An uproar of shock and cheer fell over many people, but the other nominees had congratulated her warmly with hugs as she was crowned and sashed by two committee members. Kira was speechless, had no idea how to react, as she felt tears welt in her eyes of happiness and shock.

Karson had to quiet the crowd again as the nominees for King took a step forward. Each had already congratulated the other for the nominee, making it clear that no matter what it was all out of a friendly competition. "All right, settle down. You guys want to see who got Prom King, right? So, pipe down and listen up. Now, this is a majority vote by your peers. So, I would like to present to you your senior class of 2005 Prom King..." he opened up the envelope as his eyebrows rose with shock and confusion. "Well, this is interesting. ...no, it's too hard to say." He shook his head and put the card back in the envelope, leaving the stand, creating more anticipation that the crowd did not need. "I'm just kidding guys. Reefside High, I would like to present to you your Prom King, Mr. Trent Mercer."

At that point, Ethan and Conner had to catch Trent before he lost his footing, shocked to hear the news. The other guys congratulated him on the win, as he was crowned and sashed. His eyes fell on the Prom Queen, who had turned out to be his girlfriend. Moments like this was usually spotted in the movies, but never in real life. Or as far as Trent could tell, if not both of them. They were too speechless to say anything to one another.

Still getting over the truth of the news, Trent slowly walked over to Kira, took her hand and turned to face the crowd as millions of flashed fell on them like superstars.

But before they could share that momentous dance as Prom King and Queen, Karson had to call forth the other question of the evening. The court for the staff at Reefside High.

"Now, hold on. I'm not done. The dance team would like to get our court from your teachers. And as told by my buddy, Ethan James, these two are real lovebirds. So, where is Dr. Thomas Oliver and his wife, Coach Kimberly Hart-Oliver?" Karson called out.

The science teacher had only entered the room for brief moment to see what was going on, but left as soon as he heard his name. But he didn't get very far when his fellow male teachers dragged him back in. His wife locked arms with him, pulling him toward the stage, who was obviously more excited by the news than he was. And it was evident, he was sorta blushing over it. Though, both of them still found it a little weird to be called forth as Prom King and Queen for the staff. It isn't every day that comes out.

"Now, now. Don't be shy," Karson called out as the two slowly made their way to the dance floor and onto the stage. Each had been given their own crown and sash, joining the young couple on the edge of the stage. Karson walked over to the stage looking over at the two couples, thinking for a second before turning to look at the crowd. "Now, this is very interesting. Very interesting. Capture the moment, folks. This is one moment you'll never see again."

And another line of flashes fell over the two couples. Each couldn't find the words to say except to congratulate the other. Then the crowd began to cheer on, hoping to see the couples lock lips before them. But it was clear that both guys were more embarrassed about the other, that the Queens had pulled their Kings into a warm kiss as more pictures were taken.

And to begin their dance as the court of Reefside High for 2005, Mariah Carey's "We Belong Together" started to play. The two couples engaged in a slow dance as more pictures captured the moment.

"I think this song is gonna haunt me now," Tommy whispered into his wife's ear.

"It's a sweet song, Tommy," Kim blushed.

The rest of their dance was left in silence as they enjoyed the company of the other.

Kira and Trent were still getting over the fact of being announced as the court.

"So, this is what it feels like to be a Queen? Getting all this attention?" Kira joked.

Trent shrugged. "I didn't have a clue this would happen."

"You and me, both. But I guess this makes up for all the bad things that's happened to us. How do you think your father would react if he found out we got court?"

"He wouldn't believe it," Trent chuckled as he shook his head.

A silence fell over the two of them as Kira wrapped her arms around Trent's neck, pulling them closer. Each quietly sung the song, but not enough for the other to really quite hear.

"I love you, Kira," Trent barely said above a whisper as if it was hard to say. But relieved to finally get it off his chest. He never quite had the guts to tell her in person, but over the phone, or even the net, wasn't that hard to do. But in the physical appearance of her in his arms, saying those words, it really was a moment he didn't want to forget.

Kira looked at him and he wasn't quite sure what she had made of his gesture. The words seemed to catch her by surprise as much as being announced as Prom Queen. But a smile fell over her face and she pulled him into a kiss. Her own way of saying the words, before their lips parted. She was glad to hear those words escape his lips to her in person. "Love you, too, Trent."

The two teachers couldn't help but look on, noticing the gesture, their own relief and shock that the words had finally been said. They knew how much the two had wanted to actually say how much they loved the other, but had never quite got it out how they wanted to. Or at least in person. But now it was as the duo shared their own 'I love you's' and left the stage. And finally, Trent and Kira followed as the rest of the night had been devoted to more dancing.

And by the end of the night, on the limo ride home, Ethan had gotten his kiss. The first of his kind, but not the last as he hoped. The three couples had literally fallen asleep in the limo as it drove around for another hour following prom. But they still had to hit the after party at Mr. Biggs Fun Center, full of laser tag, go-karts, an bowling alley and arcade games. So, with a quick power nap and a change of clothes, the three couples had met up with others at the Fun Center to close off the after party.

But it had been a night of many memories. The limo ride, the pictures, the dinner, the couples, hanging out with friends, etc. Nothing else could have made that night that much more perfect.

to be continued...

A/N: Okay. You guys just don't realize how hard it is to put such chapters like these in. I know, this was just as long as Chapter 40, but longer. I had not expected it, but I hope you liked it. It gives me more time to compile my thoughts for the final battle, which will be coming up soon enough. So, enjoy and hope you give me a break for the long wait on posting. See you when I do. And May the Powers Always Protect You.