Disclaimer: I do not own Power Rangers, or any of the characters in this story. Not even the ones I made up. Go ahead and use them, I don't really mind.

Blooming

Chapter 9 / Triangle of Love

Katherine still didn't know the way quite well, and let Tommy pass her once more to lead her to his house. It seems as if they would never arrive driving that long road towards his house, but finally they were there. It was still the afternoon when Tommy and Kat arrived at Tommy's house.

Katherine, as soon as turning off the ignition, got out of the car quick. Again, her butt was feeling numb and just wanted to walk around again. "Man, is it just me, or do I not have any cushion on my back side" she said, while rubbing her numbness back to life as Tommy was getting out of his truck.

"Believe me; you have plenty of cushion, not to mention well appreciated by yours truly."

"Oh, great, now I have a bubble butt!" Kat said, joking around.

"No, no, I didn't mean it like that." Tommy said, trying to make her feel better, not knowing that Kat was just joking.

Kat decided to take that opportunity to say, "Well, I might feel better if you were to take my things inside" she said with innocence.

Tommy gave her a look that he was tired and Kat just dropped the subject going over to wrap her arms around Tommy. "You know, I'm really tired, how 'bout we both go inside, and sit on the couch." She compromised.

"Alright" Tommy said, before Kat added, "right after you take my things inside."

Tommy gave her another look of punishment and tickled Kat, "what?" he said.

Katherine squirmed out of his hold and ran towards the house, "alright, you win, you win" she yelled while going towards the door.

Tommy laughed along with Katherine, but both their laughter stopped when Tommy saw the door swing open before he could put the key in to unlock it.

"Holy shit," he whispered under his breath.

It was Kimberly Hart. Tommy had a one-night stand with Kimberly while he and Kat were broken up.

Kat just stood there after seeing the sight, with her mouth open, eyes wide open, and speechless.

"What…what are you doing here?" Tommy asked her.

"Well, I wanted to give you a surprise when you came back. But it only seems that I was the one who got surprised." Kim said, while looking Kat over.

Tommy looked at Kat, while Kat looked at Tommy at the same time. "Am I missing something here?" she said, trying to get what was going on.

"Um, you see, Kat, Kim and I…" Tommy began, but was cut off by Kimberly.

"We're back together!" Kimberly retorted.

Kat's heart felt like it was broken in a million pieces. She no longer felt it palpating. Her rhythm had stopped, and so had her brain. She felt as her knees got weak, a strong sense of just running away from that spot, but her feet wouldn't permit it. It was as if she was bolted to the floor, her feet covered in cement. She couldn't say anything at all and just felt her eyes sting with the fluid filling inside of them.

"No, no we're not, Kat" Tommy said to her. "We're not back together, trust me."

"Oh…" is all that Kat could get out at that time.

Kimberly shook her head and stated, "what about that night we shared Tommy? I told you I'd be back around these days, and you said okay. It wasn't that long ago."

"Kim…" Tommy didn't know what to say to her. He didn't want Kat to know what he had done, especially with whom he had done it with.

Kat just couldn't take it anymore and turned around. "Um, I think I should leave" she said while walking away.

"I think that's best…" Kim started to say before getting cut off by Tommy.

"No, Kat, don't go. Let me just sort things out. The last thing I want you to do is leave me." He said, going after her and stopping her before getting into her car.

"Look, Tommy, I think this was a mistake…"

"No Kat. The only thing I ever did with you that was a mistake is letting you slip through my fingers. Please Kat, don't go. Don't leave me again."

Katherine saw the sincerity in his eyes and couldn't do anything but look down. She wanted to stay, but part of her told her to go. Not because she was sad at the fact that Tommy had sex with another girl, but the simple fact that he had sex with Kimberly. She didn't know what to think at that point. Part of her was feeling sad at the thought that she felt he didn't want her anymore; and the other part felt angry because she felt he was just using her for any reason.

Tommy then turned to Kimberly and said, "You know Kim, I think we should talk, but not now… later."

Kimberly smiled slyly and walked out of the doorway to meet Tommy who was now almost at the door.

"Alright, I guess we can figure it out. I heard she doesn't have a home any ways," she said, while caressing his face softly.

Tommy jerked his head back and said, "Kim, I literally begged her to stay with me, if you really wanna know."

"Well, I don't know Tommy, I just think you and that charity case should figure things out. Then I'll be waiting for your call. Okay baby?" She said.

Tommy didn't know what to think at this point. Kimberly had never acted so evil before. Well, on account of sexually evil that is. He didn't know what to make out of it, but decided to drop it there, not wanting to add anything to the pain he knew Kat was going through right now. He too had experienced that pain, finding out that she was with Jessie. He turned to meet Kat's eyes and motioning her to go inside the house with him.

"Kat?" he said.

Katherine stood there, speechless at the driver side of her car with the door swung open. She was going to get inside and drive off, but decided to go on inside and talk to Tommy about what was going on.


Tommy and Kat both went to the couch to sit down and sort this out.

"Before you say anything, please keep in mind Kat, that I love you. I'm in love with you so…"

"Tommy," Kat cut in, "stop, okay? I think we should just get down to what I'm here for."

"What's that?" he asked.

"I want to leave. I'll send someone for my things, but, I really have to leave." She said, tears forming in her eyes.

"Kat, please, we can work this out."

"Tommy, to tell you the truth, I don't think I could trust you. Well, with her any ways."

"Kat, you don't have to worry about that, I don't want her, you gotta belie…"

"Yeah, like you didn't want her that night?" She asked rudely, without letting him finish his sentence.

Tommy just looked down with shame. If he had known then what he knows now, he would have never even looked Kimberly's way in the first place.

"Katherine, please, just give me a chance to explain" he pleaded.

Kat nodded her head, and decided that even Tommy needed a chance once in while. She never thought she would be having this type of argument with him. She always thought of him as her White Knight; nothing more, and nothing less.

"Kat…" Tommy began, before pausing; he needed to find the perfect words to say to her, without having it come out the wrong way. He knew that if he blew it somehow, he might never be able to call her his anymore.

Kat crossed her arms and pressed herself back on the couch in frustration.

Tommy, noticing this, began. "I never meant for this to happen. Kim showed up at a fireworks display that I attended with my students. I saw her, and naturally, I greeted her with a smile. She then came over to us and met my alumni."

Kat was now giving him a look that she wanted him to speed up the story.

"Well, the night got late, and everyone had to head home. Kim and I decided to go to a bar to drink a bit, but mostly to talk about past ranger days."

At this, she nodded her head, showing she understood what he was saying. She too would get together with a past ranger to talk about their ranger days.

"Well, the alcohol started getting to me, yet, I still kept on drinking. I decided to go home, and she told me that if she could take me. I was way drunker than she was, and she at least could walk okay. So, I told her 'yes', and she brought me home."

Kat now understood well what he was trying to say. The alcohol got inside of him. She too had been drunk a couple of times in her life, but it never got that far. Yet, she knew Tommy. He always tended to overdue things; like drinking, karate, thank God for condoms. She really needed to just tell herself that Tommy was just human; and as so, he would have tendencies, like everyone has.

"Once she helped me to the couch, she started kissing me, and caressing me, and…"

"Okay, that's enough; I don't have to hear what happened after that." Kat said, not wanting to continue the picture in her head of Tommy and Kim having sex with one another.

She understood why Tommy had sex with her, they were both drunk. She understood the laws of life.

1. If a couple is on a 'break' it gives the couple freedom to do what they want.

2. Two drunken adults who are somehow attracted to each other should not be in the same room at the same time, alone.

3. The most important one of all, she felt that he still loved her, and Kimberly was not going to change that.

Kat nodded her head in comprehension, and said, "Tommy, I love you, but…"

Tommy didn't want to hear a 'but' in that sentence so; he cut her off and added, "Kat, will you marry me?" It was the only thing he could think of to keep her by his side.

Kat's eyes widened at the question, and a smile crossed her face. Tommy felt his heart beat again at the smile he saw on Kat's face and he too couldn't help but smile.

"Tommy, are you sure? I mean, this is so sudden." Kat said, with hope in her voice.

"Kat, I love you. You're the person I want to spend the rest of my life with. Please Kat, please say 'yes'." Tommy pleaded.

Kat felt numb at her head and hands. She couldn't get anything out of her mouth at that time for several seconds.

Tommy was feeling a little disappointed at the thought that Katherine would say no, when all of a sudden, he heard "yes Tommy, I will marry you."

Kat flung her arms around Tommy's neck and kissed him over and over on the cheek. Tommy took in the kisses as well as his girlfriend. He wrapped his arms around her lower back, as he too kissed her.


Kimberly went to her apartment and sat down on her couch.

"Man, long day" she thought out loud.

She then heard a rumbling in her kitchen. She turned around but saw nothing. Getting up off of the couch, she hit her knee on the coffee table. "Ouch!" she yelled loud.

The rumbling then got a lot louder, and all of a sudden, Kimberly turned around and saw a huge mouse run across her kitchen tile. The mouse ran from the bottom of the table, to the back of the refrigerator.

"AHHH!" she shrieked.

After having enough of her weak situation with money, she decided to try to make Tommy fall in love with her to move in with him and have him take care of her.

She couldn't say what was to happen in the future, but one thing was for sure, she was not going to let anyone get in between her and Tommy.

Kimberly had gone to the Pan Global in Florida while she was attending High School by a private tutor.

Her tutor was about 35 years old. He was a stocky, balding, unattractive male. He was someone she wouldn't have dated, but Kimberly saw potential in him.

One night, after training her gymnastics, she went ahead and called her tutor to apologize for missing her studies that day. She really needed the training and was not about to let studying get in the way of her dream. He told her it was never too late to study, so Kimberly went ahead and drove to his office. He met her there and they began on their task.

As he was speaking, his huge words went through one of her ears and out the other. She couldn't help having such a short attention span. History was just not interesting to her, as well as all the other subjects he was trying to teach her. She instead took in his large vocabulary as a sign of intelligence.

She didn't know why, but her body at that time was getting very attracted to intellectual males. She had wondered if it was just a phase, but then again, she really needed to know.

They ended up making out the rest of the night, getting started by her of course. She was 17 at the time, but didn't care what consequences could arise. She started being young and in love with this man, who would treat her like a queen.

Kimberly decided it was time that she sent Tommy a letter telling him that she had met someone else. She couldn't bare to lie to her man's face anymore, telling him that she was single. She hated the fact of having a boyfriend far away; she just couldn't handle the pressure. Besides, she had stalled the letter a couple of times because Aisha would call her to tell her that Tommy couldn't get his eyes off of Katherine.

If it wasn't for her jealousy of Tommy being with another, she would've sent it a lot sooner than she did.

She won the Silver Medal at the Pan Global that year and continued her gymnastics for two more years. She was still with her tutor at that time, her lover, but he left her when she quit the games to be with him. She couldn't take the depression and gained thirty pounds on that. She was so depressed she didn't want to go back to gymnastics and just lay around doing nothing.

She had earned enough money to live work-free for a couple more years, but now, it was coming to an end. She didn't have that much money anymore. The only rational thing to do for her now, she thought, was take Tommy, the only guy that really loved her, as well as his money.


The next morning, Tommy awoke with Katherine in his arms. They had shared more than passion and lust last night; they shared their true feelings towards each other. By some reason, there was just something inside him that told him it was so right to be with her. Within himself he felt a sense of security. Not physical security, but emotional security. He knew he could tell her anything and not get judged in any way.

Katherine awoke at that time and looked up at Tommy. She smiled at him knowing that he loved her. He had in so many ways showed her the night before. It wasn't only the fact that he completely satisfied her every womanly need; it was simply because he didn't try to be her White Knight. That's what she loved about him. The times that so many guys wanted to be her Knight, she had just thrown them away. Yet Tommy was different. He didn't even have to try to be the Knight, but succeeded at the title any ways. It was as if she knew he would always be there for her whenever she needed him. In every sense of the word, and just couldn't help wanting to be there for him as well.

They both got up and got ready for work. Tommy was tired because of the events that happened the night before, yet still didn't know what to think as to Kimberly's words. He definitely didn't want to be back with her. It was just a one night thing, he thought she had known that, but in the back of his mind, completely understood what she was going through. He had felt the exact same way with Katherine after making love. He felt a sense to be with her and to shouting to the world that he had his one true love back in his life.

As they both got ready, they would give each other small glances from the corner of their eyes once they would pass by one another. A grin would crack here and there accompanied by a smile. Tommy wanted nothing more than to pick Katherine up in his arms and hug her so tightly while kissing every inch of her body. Katherine also was having the same thought of kissing every inch of his body, but in her mind, she and Tommy were on the bed.


They both headed to the school, arriving early this time. Katherine didn't know what to think when principle Randall called her into her office before her first class started.

"Ms. Hillard…" Elsa began.

"Oh, you can call me Kat." Katherine then stated.

Principle Randall continued, "Ms. Hillard, it has come to my attention that you went to the Royal Academy in London, is that correct?"

"Well, yes, but I only spent about two years there."

"Well, the Board of Education states that an 'Electives Teacher' must have their associate's degree in their field to assist. Ms. Hillard, what I'm getting at here is, we don't have a head teacher for our Dance Team here in Reefside. They have informed me that their looking for a teacher, seeing as you don't have the right element for that position, they have tried to make you the next best offer. Ms. Hillard, this school feels that you should be the assistant teacher her next year for the Lady Reefside Dance Squad."

Katherine was about to speak, when Randall cut in. "Well,…"

"Now, you don't have to make your decision now. Just know that the offer is on the table." At the end of her sentence the bell rang. "Well, better get moving to your class. Oh, and remember, 'a happy student is not paying attention.' Keep that in mind."

She dismissed Katherine out of her office. Kat left with a look of puzzlement on her face. She wanted the position, but it was just so long since she had danced, especially taught a class; she really didn't want to take the job. She loved dance more than anything in the world, but didn't know if she was quite there yet for the assignment given to her.