Chapter Three: Getting Worse
Jason Scott unlocked his door to find an empty apartment. He knew Kimberly wouldn't be here, he just wished that she was. It was seven in the evening, and she was most likely still at the gym. He wished that there was something more he could do for her. He knew she wasn't eating right. He just didn't know what to do.
He was getting some chicken out to fix for dinner when the phone rang. He answered it as he popped it in the microwave to thaw. ''Hello, Scott residence.'' He said.
It was Kimberly's best friend Aisha Campbell. ''Hey, Jase! How are you?'' She was in Africa, staying with a tribe that Tanya Sloan, the current Yellow Ranger, had lived with.
Jason grinned. Aisha had a happiness that was always catching. ''Hey, Ish! What's going on? How's Africa?''
Aisha's voice was crackly. ''It's great. Zack finally came down to visit me. I was happy to see him. It's not every day you get to see your boyfriend. Not when you do what we do.'' She commented. Zack was Zack Taylor, a former Ranger and Jason and Kimberly's best friend since they could crawl. Jason's especially. He and Zack had been there for each other since forever. They had done everything together.
Jason grinned at the mention of his BFF. ''I'm so glad that you and Zack were able to see each other. How's it going with you two?'' Aisha and Zack had just started to date a couple of months ago.
His wife's BFF (besides himself, of course) sighed. ''I couldn't be happier. Zack's the best boyfriend ever. We can't talk a lot on the phone, mind you, but he emails me everyday. I check my email as often as I can, and there's always a million messages from him. I think I might be falling in love with him, Jase.''
Jason checked on the chicken. Aisha's happiness was great. He remembered the beginnings of his and Kimberly's relationship. It had been just as romantic and special as his friends'. He said, ''That's great, Isha. I'm really happy for you.''
Aisha asked, ''So how's things with you and Kimmie? How's the training going? How's married life treating you?'' He and Kimberly had told their friends of their marriage not long after they'd gone to make sure Kat was OK. Besides, Kimberly hadn't been able to keep her excitement from everyone.
Jason paced the kitchen floor. ''In all honesty, Ish, I'm worried about her. She's never been this focused before. That's not entirely a good thing. She's always at the gym, and she barely eats. She thinks that I haven't noticed it, but I have. I don't know what to do. If I tell her that she's working too hard, she'll just tell me that she's not working hard enough. And there's no way that I can get her to eat anything. I think the only thing she's eating are ice chips.''
Before Aisha could say anything, his wife entered the house. She came in, muttering about something. All Jason could make out was, ''stupid, insipid, wants me, Stephanie...''
Jason told Aisha to hang on a minute and asked, ''Kim, honey, what's wrong? Did something happen at the gym today?''
Kimberly scowled and snapped, ''David wants me to be more like Stephanie. She's just so perfect. She's skinny enough, she works harder, blah blah blah. I am ten times the gymnast that she is. I don't deserve this, Jason. If this wasn't my only shot, I'd just quit.'' She walked upstairs to shower, still muttering under her breath.
Jason put the phone back up to his ear. ''Ish, I'm gonna have to talk to you later. Do you think that you could be on the 'net tonight so I can IM you, maybe?''
Aisha's voice was hesitant, but she replied, ''Sure, Jase. Tell Kim that sometimes what we have to suffer makes us stronger.''
Jason told her that he would, and said good-bye. He sighed. Kim was sinking, and she didn't know it. At least with this Stephanie thing, she had had some of the old fire back into her eyes. He went to get the chicken to fry it.
Kimberly was doing situps as fast as she could, and grabbing ice chips occasionally as she came back down. She was so p-o-ed that she had barely noticed that she was hungry. The only thing she'd eaten besides ice chips was a chocolate eclair that she'd barfed up. She and another gymnast, (an Olympic gold medalist to be exact) had taken a break and left to go window shopping. Leslie (the medalist) had suggested that they get the eclairs, because of course, you could just puke it back up. Kimberly was finding it harder and harder to do that. She'd tried to eat some baked chicken and rice at lunch, but it had just made her stomach sick.
She heard her husband downstairs, making dinner. She really didn't want to eat anything. She felt she'd puke at the mere thought. Was this how it was going to be now? As long as she was competing, she wasn't going to eat? Kim knew that she had to be skinny to win, but this was ridiculous. She was just so confused, though. What should she do?
She was saved any more thinking about it because Jason called her to dinner. She got up, grabbing her ice chips, and went down the stairs slowly. She was very sore. She'd gone through ten routines twenty times. Leslie had been working beside her, and she had gone through eight routines thirty times. Kimberly knew that Leslie had to be feeling it even more than she herself was.
Jason was finishing putting the fried chicken and macroni and cheese on the table. He'd almost fixed rice instead, but he'd wondered if Kimberly would eat it. He was just hoping she'd eat any of it, to be honest. ''Hey, I fixed some of your favorite. Fried chicken.'' In the old days, Kimberly had loved fried chicken.
Kimberly felt bile rising in her throat, and her vision was blurry. Everything was spinning. She felt herself losing consciousness as she fell to the floor, hitting her head on one of the chairs, and that was the last thing she knew.
Jason Scott unlocked his door to find an empty apartment. He knew Kimberly wouldn't be here, he just wished that she was. It was seven in the evening, and she was most likely still at the gym. He wished that there was something more he could do for her. He knew she wasn't eating right. He just didn't know what to do.
He was getting some chicken out to fix for dinner when the phone rang. He answered it as he popped it in the microwave to thaw. ''Hello, Scott residence.'' He said.
It was Kimberly's best friend Aisha Campbell. ''Hey, Jase! How are you?'' She was in Africa, staying with a tribe that Tanya Sloan, the current Yellow Ranger, had lived with.
Jason grinned. Aisha had a happiness that was always catching. ''Hey, Ish! What's going on? How's Africa?''
Aisha's voice was crackly. ''It's great. Zack finally came down to visit me. I was happy to see him. It's not every day you get to see your boyfriend. Not when you do what we do.'' She commented. Zack was Zack Taylor, a former Ranger and Jason and Kimberly's best friend since they could crawl. Jason's especially. He and Zack had been there for each other since forever. They had done everything together.
Jason grinned at the mention of his BFF. ''I'm so glad that you and Zack were able to see each other. How's it going with you two?'' Aisha and Zack had just started to date a couple of months ago.
His wife's BFF (besides himself, of course) sighed. ''I couldn't be happier. Zack's the best boyfriend ever. We can't talk a lot on the phone, mind you, but he emails me everyday. I check my email as often as I can, and there's always a million messages from him. I think I might be falling in love with him, Jase.''
Jason checked on the chicken. Aisha's happiness was great. He remembered the beginnings of his and Kimberly's relationship. It had been just as romantic and special as his friends'. He said, ''That's great, Isha. I'm really happy for you.''
Aisha asked, ''So how's things with you and Kimmie? How's the training going? How's married life treating you?'' He and Kimberly had told their friends of their marriage not long after they'd gone to make sure Kat was OK. Besides, Kimberly hadn't been able to keep her excitement from everyone.
Jason paced the kitchen floor. ''In all honesty, Ish, I'm worried about her. She's never been this focused before. That's not entirely a good thing. She's always at the gym, and she barely eats. She thinks that I haven't noticed it, but I have. I don't know what to do. If I tell her that she's working too hard, she'll just tell me that she's not working hard enough. And there's no way that I can get her to eat anything. I think the only thing she's eating are ice chips.''
Before Aisha could say anything, his wife entered the house. She came in, muttering about something. All Jason could make out was, ''stupid, insipid, wants me, Stephanie...''
Jason told Aisha to hang on a minute and asked, ''Kim, honey, what's wrong? Did something happen at the gym today?''
Kimberly scowled and snapped, ''David wants me to be more like Stephanie. She's just so perfect. She's skinny enough, she works harder, blah blah blah. I am ten times the gymnast that she is. I don't deserve this, Jason. If this wasn't my only shot, I'd just quit.'' She walked upstairs to shower, still muttering under her breath.
Jason put the phone back up to his ear. ''Ish, I'm gonna have to talk to you later. Do you think that you could be on the 'net tonight so I can IM you, maybe?''
Aisha's voice was hesitant, but she replied, ''Sure, Jase. Tell Kim that sometimes what we have to suffer makes us stronger.''
Jason told her that he would, and said good-bye. He sighed. Kim was sinking, and she didn't know it. At least with this Stephanie thing, she had had some of the old fire back into her eyes. He went to get the chicken to fry it.
Kimberly was doing situps as fast as she could, and grabbing ice chips occasionally as she came back down. She was so p-o-ed that she had barely noticed that she was hungry. The only thing she'd eaten besides ice chips was a chocolate eclair that she'd barfed up. She and another gymnast, (an Olympic gold medalist to be exact) had taken a break and left to go window shopping. Leslie (the medalist) had suggested that they get the eclairs, because of course, you could just puke it back up. Kimberly was finding it harder and harder to do that. She'd tried to eat some baked chicken and rice at lunch, but it had just made her stomach sick.
She heard her husband downstairs, making dinner. She really didn't want to eat anything. She felt she'd puke at the mere thought. Was this how it was going to be now? As long as she was competing, she wasn't going to eat? Kim knew that she had to be skinny to win, but this was ridiculous. She was just so confused, though. What should she do?
She was saved any more thinking about it because Jason called her to dinner. She got up, grabbing her ice chips, and went down the stairs slowly. She was very sore. She'd gone through ten routines twenty times. Leslie had been working beside her, and she had gone through eight routines thirty times. Kimberly knew that Leslie had to be feeling it even more than she herself was.
Jason was finishing putting the fried chicken and macroni and cheese on the table. He'd almost fixed rice instead, but he'd wondered if Kimberly would eat it. He was just hoping she'd eat any of it, to be honest. ''Hey, I fixed some of your favorite. Fried chicken.'' In the old days, Kimberly had loved fried chicken.
Kimberly felt bile rising in her throat, and her vision was blurry. Everything was spinning. She felt herself losing consciousness as she fell to the floor, hitting her head on one of the chairs, and that was the last thing she knew.