Chapter 2: Where's Rocky?
At the shelter…
"Where's Rocky?" Adam Park, the present Black Ranger, asked no one in particular. He wiped his forehead with a clean towel, worried.
"I think he went to get some fresh air," Tanya Sloan replied from a nearby corner. She hauled away another stone and threw it into another pile. The remaining Rangers were busy trying to fix up the shelter where many of the evacuees were currently residing in. The shelters were mainly the old caves Angel Grove was famous for, but they were unsuitable living conditions and highly dangerous, so the Rangers had volunteered to fix up the shelters so that the evacuees could live there until Angel Grove was ready to be rebuilt.
"I didn't see him outside," Katherine Hillard remarked, standing up straight. Her pink tank top clung to her lean frame, beads of sweat rolling down her forehead. Her boyfriend, Tommy Oliver, handed her his towel and looked over at the other Rangers.
"Don't worry guys, I'm sure Rocky's alright. He probably went to town, if he's not here." Tommy said rationally.
"But why would he go to town?" Tanya asked quizzically. "There's not much in town to go to, if you know what I mean."
Tommy shrugged, "Maybe he went to visit Jen."
The other Rangers exchanged nervous glances. It was always a bad sign when Rocky went to visit Jennifer, his girlfriend of two years, who had died at the hands of Apocalypse just a few days after the monster started attacked Angel Grove. Rocky loved Jennifer more than he loved himself; he had almost committed suicide after discovering she was dead. He had stayed in bed for a week, trying to cope with Jen's death and the thought of spending the rest of his life without her. The only person who could reach through to Rocky during this difficult time had ironically been Elizabeth, who had suffered the loss of her parents during the same week Jen died. The two Rangers spent a generous amount of time with each other since then, trying to help each other deal with their losses. But every time that Rocky really needed to be alone, he would go visit Jen's grave at Angel Grove Cemetery. The last time Adam tried to visit Rocky at Jen's grave; he woke up the next day in the hospital with a headache. Since that incident, no one bothered Rocky again when he was at Jen's grave. The wound was still fresh, but they knew that in time, Rocky would unravel from his loss and be his friendly self again. Or so they hoped.
Adam sighed when he thought of his best friend grieving. He had known Rocky since they were kids. They had grown up together, along with Elizabeth and Aisha; the four of them were proclaimed the "Golden Quartet" in school. They were an inseparable group of friends, and were always there for one another. And after Aisha left the States for Africa, Rocky and Elizabeth were the only ones who could really understand the pain and distress of one of their best friends leaving. He remembered spending days grieving Aisha's departure with his remaining two childhood friends, and he vividly recalled the promise they made- that the three of them would stay together forever, no matter what.
However, lately, Adam felt that the three of them were drifting. Rocky and Elizabeth had both lost someone important in their lives, but Adam still had Tanya. He felt that his lack of loss was affecting his friendship with Rocky and Elizabeth. The two of them were bonding even more tightly than before, coping with deaths, while Adam was spending time cuddling with Tanya.
Instinctively, Adam watched Tanya from the corner of his eye. She was so beautiful and so sweet; he often wondered why she chose him. Then, he would chastise himself for thinking that way because he loved her, more than anyone could love her. But then, he would think about Elizabeth and he would wonder whether he loved Tanya more than Elizabeth.
He and Elizabeth had established a relationship since the third grade. Granted, they were in elementary school back then, so the concept of a relationship wasn't exactly any different from the concept of a friendship. But she had been his first stolen kiss near the beach, and many more afterwards. Their relationship grew stronger when they reached middle school, and during high school, it seemed that all Adam could think about was gentle, sweet Elizabeth. She was one of the best people he knew. Since they were young, she had blossomed elegantly and easily into a graceful, kind person. She was smart and breathlessly attractive, with an easygoing charm and a delightful personality. Anyone who met Elizabeth was at once captivated by her beauty and her exquisite charisma. Adam had always thought that he was the luckiest person in the world whenever he held her hand or hugged her or kissed her.
When Tanya came to Angel Grove though, he felt enraptured by her exotic beauty. Maybe it was because she was new, or maybe it was because of fate, but whatever it was, he found himself in Tanya's company more and more as days passed. Finally, he admitted that he was falling for her, and the two started a relationship that would eventually kindle into something truly amazing. However, telling Elizabeth had proved the most difficult task he encountered up-to-date, because he had been with Elizabeth since they were little, and the bond between them was something that could never be replaced, even by Tanya. Luckily, Elizabeth understood what Adam was trying to tell her. All she did was wish them both good luck, said Adam was lucky to have found Tanya, told Adam that she would always cherish what they had and that she loved him, and kissed him on the cheek before she left. It made leaving her even harder than he imagined.
"Do you guys know where Elizabeth is?" Tanya's voice broke his thoughts. Adam looked up sharply, and watched as the other Rangers exchanged worried looks. Kat inhaled a sharp breath of apprehension.
"You don't think something's happened to them, do you?"
Tommy was the first to deny Kat's theory. "I doubt it. Elizabeth's sensible and careful, and Rocky understands how dangerous it's become. Besides, they're both highly capable martial artists. They can take care of themselves if they run into trouble, and they'd call in backup if they need it."
Adam felt an uncomfortable lump in his throat. He tried to swallow past it, hoping that nothing had happened to his best friends.
As if on cue, he heard footsteps approaching. He quickly sat up from the wall he was leaning against and watched cautiously as Elizabeth and Rocky sauntered into the shelter, both sooty with dust.
Elizabeth pushed back a strand of hair and smiled when she saw Adam. He weakly smiled back, iniquitous thoughts of her lips on his crossing his mind.
"Hi," she said as she made her way deeper into the caves. Kat sighed with a breath of relief and embraced her friend tightly and gladly.
"We thought something happened to you two," Kat cried out.
Elizabeth smiled slightly, "Nothing happened. I just met up with Rocky at the Youth Center."
"What were you guys doing there?" Kat asked.
"Reminiscing," Rocky replied, sliding down to the floor of the caves. "We were thinking about everything's that happened and how fortunate we are to have one another. Even if Elizabeth's parents are dead, and Jen's gone, and a hundred other people have been killed or injured, we still have one another and I think that's incredibly lucky of us." The other Rangers stared at Rocky in incredulity. It was the first time he had publicly mentioned Jen since her death, and the way he referred to her was an indication that he was recovering, slowly but surely. It was a single ray of hope behind a dark cloud of despair.
"Glad that you think of us like that," Tommy clapped a hand on Rocky's shoulder. The others grinned in agreement.
Rocky smiled, "Of course."
Tommy nodded, "Good. Hey Kat, Tanya, can you two give me a hand with these boulders here? I just want to take them outside."
The two girls reacted immediately to Tommy's request, hurrying over to help lift one end of the boulder, while Tommy hauled up the other. The three of them exited the shelter, stumbling uneasily against the rock.
Rocky glanced at Elizabeth and Adam and smiled. Adam grinned back, "You worried me a lot, you know." He slid down the wall next to Rocky.
Rocky smiled back, "You were always such a worry wart."
Elizabeth walked over to where the two boys were sitting, and kneeled down, looking at both of them with a profound expression on her face.
"What?" Adam asked, curiously.
"I was just thinking about what Rocky said, about how lucky we are to have one another. And it just made me realize that I never do tell you two how much I love you both. So I'm saying it now. I love you guys." She said without hesitation. Rocky and Adam looked at each other once, bemused.
"Is this your carpe diem of the day?" Rocky smirked.
Elizabeth rolled her eyes, "Come on guys, I'm serious. If someone asked me what I learned from these monster attacks, the most I can say is that I learned to appreciate life, and to always say 'I love you' to my best friends whenever I have the chance, because who knows when the next chance is going to be."
Adam sighed and reached out for her hand. Squeezing it tightly, he replied, "I promise you, there'll be a tomorrow for the three of us."
Rocky smiled and placed his hand on top of Adam's. "Prometo también. I promise too, for tomorrow and the day after tomorrow."