It Finally Happened: Part XXVI

Kim was floating on a cloud, having just had the most magnificent day with her Nana. She had been nervous in the morning about how her usually over-protective grandmother would be about her new relationship, especially after the shock of her mother figuring out what the teens had been up to. Instead, Nana joined the growing list of people who knew what the two of them felt about each other long before either of them knew themselves.

"Dear, what that boy did for you at Christmas, that wasn't just a friend. I saw how he looked at you and the way you looked at him before he left, and then the look in your eyes when you thought he went home without saying goodbye?

"I'll tell you another thing, Kimberly. When the two of you came down here that spring I saw something I thought very odd at first. Every time he talked about meeting one of those college girls you got angry. Then after we chased off that Drakken fellow you never again let him out of your sight at that party."

"Nana, Ron was just the only person I knew there. I wasn't jelling over him then."

"If you say so, dear, but when the party was over, who did he leave with?"

"He left with me, but that's because he was staying with us, where else would he go?"

"Maybe with one of those girls he was dancing with before you chased them off…"

"Did I really chase them off?"

"Kimberly, put yourself in their shoes. Along comes a girl more his age with a look in her eyes that says 'mine.' It's a wonder they didn't run away faster."

"I just wanted to dance with him, that's all."

It went on for some time. Shouldn't she be used to this by now? Was every single person in her life so certain the two of them were already a couple even if they weren't enjoying the nicer benefits like kissing?

Did I really look like that she thought as the shuttle took them back to the suite. All she wanted to do, at least in her mind, was finally have some fun with Ron. After all, he had been striking out pretty soundly with the spring-breakers, he was due for a little fun and so was she, even if it meant partying in her mission gear.

Come to think of it, he actually had been dancing with some of those same 'artificially enhanced' girls when she finally found him. Why didn't she think of that until now that her grandmother had mentioned it? What did it matter anyway? It wasn't like he was making out with them, he was dancing with a whole group. That didn't mean anything, did it?

Christmas had been something else all-together. There had even been moments there where she really did consider what she felt for Ron. Only then she had still 'officially-well sorta' been with Josh, even though the two had absolutely no plans together over the holiday. They were still in that sort of limbo between the beginning of the 'drifting apart' and his moving on to dating Tara. Kim had so wanted to kiss Ron full on the lips then, but chickened out and just kissed him on the cheek.

In hindsight it was probably better that way. She still had some lessons to learn about love and they might not have become so close if they had recognized it then.

It was just so…spankin'…that she actually could spend the day dishing with Nana about Ron. The elder Possible was actually quite pleased with Kim's beau, a very strong endorsement considering all the tales of how she had disapproved of her mother at first. Then again, that had been her son, now this was about her granddaughter. Maybe she had mellowed over the years.

Or maybe she saw clearly just how in love the two of them were, and she hadn't even seen Ron this trip, the first time they had seen Nana since they were together.

Kim hoped Ron would agree to go see Nana with her in the morning, just the three of them for breakfast. Of course he would, Ron liked her grandmother and maybe, just maybe she would take him under her wing and start heaping her 'standard grandmothering procedures' on him. None of that had stopped. The first thing she had done this morning was to chide her about wearing tight white shorts like that. After all, what would happen if they got wet with the beach and all these pools around here? Why don't you wear a nice sun-dress?

At least she avoided any fuzzy green sweaters or frilly green dresses about a foot too short.

It was already getting dark when they got back, the sun sinking quickly into the west but Kim wasn't anywhere near ready for the day to end. Ron would be there waiting for her and they would walk, hand in hand, all the way back to the main resort for ice-cream and either a movie at the small theater or more boardwalk park bench time. She wasn't picky, either way would mean plenty of opportunity for kissing and snuggling, especially since the theater was one of the new ones with the folding armrests.

She felt a light touch on her shoulder as they crossed the lobby of the sprawling complex. She turned to see a very worried looking Jean Stoppable.

"Kim, can I talk to you in private please?"

"Sure thing Mrs. Stoppable. Is something wrong?"

They sat down at one of the couches places all around the lobby as the rest of the family went back to the suite.

"Kim, how do you love my son?"

"I'm not sure what you're asking."

"Do you see him as being a long-term boyfriend or is this something that's just for fun right now? Just how strong are your feelings for him?"

"I…I love him with my whole heart. I know it sounds kind of silly coming from somebody my age, but it's not puppy-love or just good times. I'm in it for the long-haul with him."

"So you see the two of you getting married years down the road?"

Kim found she couldn't read Mrs. Stoppable's expression, giving her no clue where any of this was headed. "It's too soon for us to say anything like that, but I really don't see why not eventually."

"Do your parents have any concerns about Ron being Jewish?"

"Why would they? It's never mattered the least little bit. It's really no different than if I were Presbyterian and he was Methodist. Mrs. Stoppable, what is going on? Is something wrong with Ron? Is there something wrong with me being Christian?"

"Kim, I think I may have said some really terrible things to Ron just a little while ago. He walked out angry and it's got me worried."

"If you don't mind me asking, what did you say?"

Jean closed her eyes for a moment, mentally trying to compose her thoughts. As best she could, she recounted the whole conversation she had with him. When she was done, Kim just sat there, stunned.

"I…I had no idea that meant so much to you."

"It didn't think it would either, until I started noticing the two of you getting closer and closer. I just never imagined that he would have a real chance with you."

Anger was welling up deep inside Kim, making it hard for her to keep her voice low in the public setting. "Listen. What I have for Ron is real. I'm not just playing him, I'm not using him. I love him and I love him for what and who he is. I'm not interested in looking for a newer, better model down the road. I've made my choice and I've given him my heart and as far as the pretty boys go, Ron is everything I want or need in a man. Maybe you just can't see that in him, but I can. He has a beautiful soul and that's what I fell for. On top of that, he's very handsome and cute and he's starting to grow into his man's body.

"I don't know if you were aware of it, but it took Ron pushing me past all that shallow crap I was mired in before to realized just how much he means to me. As far as I'm concerned we're going to spend the rest of our lives together, and if that means I have to do it without your blessing simply because I go pray to God on Sunday morning instead of Saturday, then so be it. I've learned a lot about Ron and about myself lately and it means more than that."

"Kim, please, sit down." Jean said.

Kim realized that she had risen from her seat, her fists balled up, her whole body shaking with rage. She did manage to keep her voice down but at the expense of the rest of her being coiled up like she was ready to strike the older woman down. Fighting to calm herself, she sat back down.

"Kim, you have to understand, I want what's best for my Ronnie. He's put so much of himself into this romance of yours, I just didn't want to see him hurt if you didn't feel the same way."

"Mrs. Stoppable…"

"Kim, please, call me Jean."

"Jean…" she was still fighting to slow her heart. "…everything Ron is putting into this relationship, I am too. We're serious and even if something changes in the future, in the right here and now this is the be-all and end-all of us. Believe me, I know there are going to be hard decisions to be made. Just the other night when GJ pulled us into that Miami mission I went in worried that he was going to get hurt. I mean, I always worry, but now there's a much bigger dimension to it. Now I have to worry whether concern for him is going to take my head out of the game, getting one or both of us hurt in the process, but regardless, I couldn't go on without him by my side.

"Now, I would dearly love to have you and his father's blessing, but I don't have to have that. I will respect you and I won't come to your home any more, I'll just see him when we're out or at my place, but I'd hate for it to come to that. What matters most is how I love him."

Jean nodded, a couple tears rolling down her cheek. "Kim, that's all I wanted to hear. I know I haven't been the best mother to him over the years. I guess I relied too much on your parents or something. If you say you're in this for the big picture, I'll trust you and you do have my blessing…to go steady with my Ronnie. Come to me in a few years and we'll discuss anything beyond that."

"That's a deal, Mrs.…Jean. Now, where is Ron?"

"He left a couple hours ago. He didn't take his Mole Rat or his cell phone with him, so I have no idea where he might have gotten to."

"It's okay, I think I might know where to find him." Kim said as she got up, headed for her room.

She didn't want to tell his mother about the chip, not knowing if he had ever discussed that with his family. There was also the issue of a chip secretly being implanted in her own neck. That explained how Wade was able to find her on the Prom night even though she had completely deactivated the Kimmunicator.

The blue-green device was still sitting on its charger in her room. She grabbed it up and hit the main call button. It took all of a second for Wade to appear.

"Hi Kim. You're not still tweaked about the call the other night, are you?" He asked, making an assumption about the look in her eyes.

She could feel a small weight grab the bottom of her T-shirt and scamper up onto her shoulder. Rufus was worried too, his chittering making less sense than usual.

"No, Wade. I'll…tell you about it when you get older. Right now I just need to know where Ron is."

"Are you sure? He seemed pretty upset when he told me he knew it was there."

"Wade, we both know they're there. Just find him for me, please and thank you."

"It looks like he's on the beach, about two miles north of your position. That should be about where the developed beaches end."

"Thanks, Wade. We're all going to have to sit down together and have a quiet talk about a few things."

"Uh, sure Kim. Enjoy the rest of your trip…I'll kind of keep GJ off your back as much as I can."

"You rock Wade. Bye"

She paused for a moment, looking at herself in the mirror. She had some idea what might be going through Ron's mind. The things his mother had said were so wrong, even if unintentionally. He was prone to self-doubt anyway and this might have pushed him off in a bad direction.

Kim knew she needed to make an impression on him. She wanted to let him know the moment he laid eyes on her that she was his and his alone. The yellow T-shirt wouldn't do that. In fact, she knew he didn't really like it all that much, something about the color just not suiting her. Maybe it was the fact the outfit was just a tad too modest. After all, she spent the vast majority of the year wearing a belly baring tank top, even deep into the fall when by all rights she should have been wearing sweaters under her jacket.

The temperatures were still in the high 80s even as night fell. A breeze had been blowing off the ocean as she came in, making the night rather pleasant, if warm. Full-length, tucked in t-shirts were not needed. She quickly stripped out of her clothes, changing into a much shorter, much tighter pair of shorts and slipping on one of the black jog bras she wore under her mission shirt. She ran a brush through her hair and checked her makeup, applying a little brighter red shade of lipstick than she normally wore.

Grabbing a small backpack, she stuffed a beach blanket and a flashlight in, along with her Kimmunicator. She reached into another bag, extracting a plastic cylinder about three inches across and fifteen inches long. It looked like an oversized package of tennis balls. She jammed it into the bag and headed out.

Jean had returned to the room and was talking quietly with the other three adults.

"Mom, Dad, I'm going to go meet Ron." She said as cheerily as she could.

"Okay, Kimmie-cub. Be careful and don't be too late."

Jean met her eyes. Silently she communicated with her that she might not only be late, she might not return to her room that night.

"We'll be okay, Dad." She said, closing the double door behind her, breaking out into a jog toward the beach.