Quantum Red Blues

By: PernDragonrider

Disclaimer: I don't own Power Rangers. Not making any money off of this; don't sue.

A/N: Warning: This story will eventually contain a slash relationship. If you don't like reading about a relationship between two men; then hit the back button on your browser right now. If you enjoy slash then read on and enjoy! The plot for this tale almost literally jumped into my brain while just relaxing and playing some music on my media player. The inspiration for this tale comes from an old tune by the Bay City Rollers, entitled "I Only Wanna Be With You". When the song started playing I got a quick flash of an unorthodox Ranger couple in my brain that just wouldn't leave. This is the result. Written for the Live Journal AWDT 2nd Birthday fic exchange. This one is for you XRachX. Enjoy!

Chapter Two – Best Laid Plans

Six months later, Jason was roaring down the interstate headed toward Silver Hills. He'd managed to arrange a three-day weekend into his schedule at work and he wanted to see Eric for more than eight hours and then jump back on his Harley and fly back to Angel Grove so he could go to work. Eric's schedule had been even more hectic than his and the two had worked long and hard to get this much need break for them see if there was a relationship to pursue growing between them.

Arriving in Silver Hills, Jason quickly made his way to one of the more upscale hotels in the town. He checked in, showered, and was getting dressed when his cell phone rang. He grabbed the phone from the nightstand with a muttered, "damn it", and answered with a calmer tone than he'd just cussed with. "Jason here."

"Jase, it's Rocky, HELP!" Rocky cried into the phone and Jason could hear both Aisha and the new baby crying at, nearly, the top of their lungs.

"Calm down, Rocky. What's going on?" Jason asked in a very annoyed tone that was totally lost on the slightly panicked second Red Ranger and Blue Zeo Ranger.

"Trini Anne has colic. Aisha walked the floor with her all night and now she's exhausted, needs sleep, and I've got to work in an hour. Can you come over and stay with them while I go earn our bacon, Jase, please I'm begging here." Rocky replied with a very harried, tired, and exasperated tone.

Jason could see Rocky running his hands through his hair in desperation he sighed deeply and then said the only thing he could. "Rocky, I'm in Silver Hills and it will take me six hours to get back home. Get out the vacuum cleaner and run it while holding the baby. My mom swore that was the only thing that would get me to calm down when I had colic. If that doesn't work then call my mom, Trini, or Kat. They should know what to do after that. I'd help if I could, buddy, but I'm so far away that I can't. I'd be there in two seconds if we still had teleporting capabilities and you know it. I'm sorry, man, but I'm just not available to get there, bro."

"Sorry, Jase." Rocky said with a bit of chagrin as he heard the annoyance in Jason's voice. "I didn't know that you were going out of town this weekend, guy. I'll try the vacuum cleaner trick, again, and see if it will work for her. We're both going a little crazy over here. Catch ya on Tuesday at the dojo for your class. Bye Jase."

Jason sighed tiredly, closed his cell phone, and dropped it onto the bed as he returned to getting dressed when his phone went off again. "FUCK!" He said as he snatched up the phone, opened it, and then snapped angrily; "This had better be life or death or you're going to get cussed out!"

"Well that's a fine greeting, Jason." Eric's dry and slightly taken aback tone came from the earpiece. "What's got you so pissed off and ready to kill someone?"

Jason calmed down immediately and his tone was only exasperated when he replied, "Rocky just called wanting me to do babysitting duty for a colicky baby and a former yellow ranger that's sleep deprived because the baby has the colic. I thought it was him calling back, Eric; I'm sorry."

Eric smiled and then sobered immediately as he asked, "You're not still down in Angel Grove are you?"

"Nope, I'm at the Silver Hills Lodge, Eric; room 120. I just got out of the shower and was trying to get dressed when Rocky called wanting bailed out of a house full of crying women." Jason smiled as he answered the Time Force Quantum Ranger and the co-leader of the Silver Guardians. "Was going to buzz you after I'd gotten dressed to see what time you were cutting yourself loose for the weekend."

"Well, that's why I called." Eric sighed into the phone. "It seems my esteemed partner and former friend, right now I'd kill him if I could get my hands on him, just upped and took off for Angel Grove for the next three days. I'm stuck here until at least ten tonight and then I've got an early training session for the new recruits at seven the next morning. It's not going to be much of a weekend together, Jason. Maybe you should just head back home and we'll try again soon."

"Not a chance, Eric Myers." Jason said with a frown on his face and it reflected in his voice. "Dinner, with me, at eleven o'clock. I'll come by and get the keys and directions to your place in about half an hour. After dinner, I'll come back to hotel and then we can get together and do something tomorrow night, if you want. I didn't come six hours, one way, to turn around and go home after only being here less than an hour. Eric, I really want to get to know you and see if there's a chance in hell that we can be more than friends. I'm tired, cranky, and I've put in a twelve-hour day on the docks and then jumped on the bike to head here. I would just like one full day in your company for a chance instead of a measly hour or two then one or the other of us has to leave to get back home for the next day. Come on, don't back out on this now. All I want is dinner tonight and we'll see from there. Please?"

"Come by and I'll have the keys and directions to my house at the gate for you Jason," Eric said with a tired yet somewhat happy tone. "I can't guarantee that I won't come in the door, hit the couch, and not move until the alarm goes off at five, but cook dinner for us if you want."

"Half and hour, Eric." Jason said with a surprised and pleased tone of voice. "I can get what I need from the store on the way to your place after I get the keys and the directions. If you come in and crash on the couch then you'll at least have a great lunch to take with you for tomorrow. I'll see you when you get home from work."

"All right, Jason." Eric said with a slight smile in his voice. "The keys and directions will be at the gate in ten minutes. Just show them your ID and they'll give you the envelope. I've gotta go and take care of everything Wes left behind when he snuck off. God, if I could put my hands on him right now; I'd tear him apart."

"I know the feeling, Eric." Jason replied with a frown. "Part of the half hour time frame is because I'm calling a certain friend of mine and giving her a piece of my mind about her talking him into cutting out on you. Then I'm going to chew his butt out after I get back to the hotel tonight."

"Leave it, Jase, please?" Eric almost begged, which surprised Jason because he'd never heard that from Eric. "If my suspicions are correct, neither of them will appreciate you calling and chewing them out in the middle of a marriage proposal. I think Wes is going to pop the question to her and I wish him all the luck in the world. I want a relationship with you, Jason Scott. Make no mistake about that. We're just going to have to work on it a little harder than some others because of the distance between us. We'll get there, Jase. I don't know how, but we will get there."

"That's the best thing I've heard in a long time, Eric Myers." Jason replied with a huge smile on his face that conveyed over the phone to Eric. "I want a relationship with you too; we'll find someway to make this work. Even if it means I quit my job and move closer to you. I'm tired of looking for companionship and having to hide a huge part of my life from anyone I find to date. With you I don't have to hide anything because you've been there and done it too. Hell, you looking for any new recruits? I could always join the Silver Guardians and work for you and Wes. Would solve most of our commuting problems right there."

"Recruiting, always." Eric replied seriously. "Sometimes I think most of the recruits we get are just joining up to get the uniform to attract the women. I'll bring home the folder we give out to all of those that come in looking to sign up. You look it over and see if being a Silver Guardian is what you want. I would be your boss and I won't show favorites just cause we're dating, Jason. It doesn't work that way with me or with Wes when it comes to the Guardians."

"Wouldn't want favoritism, Eric." Jason answered truthfully. "I'd expect to do the grunt work just like any other new recruit has to do. I've been on the bottom of heap before, Eric, and I can do it again. I worked my way up when I started on the docks and would expect to do the same if I pass muster for the Guardians."

"Just think long and hard on this, Jason." Eric said with a small grin on his face. "I'll send the packet to the gate with the directions and the spare house key. Just stop by and pick it all up at the front gate to Collins Industries."

"I remember how to get to where you work, Eric." Jason said with a smile and a little teasing in his voice. "Unlike Wes, I do have a good sense of direction. I still can't believe he got you guys lost on the way back from NASADA that day." Jason chuckled and then looked at his watch. "Shit, okay going to finish tossing on my clothes then I'm outta here, Eric. See you when you get out of there tonight."

Jason hung up the cell without giving Eric a chance to say goodbye and he quickly pulled his red t-shirt over his head and tucked it into his black jeans. He put on his belt, clipped the cell phone into its holder, and tucked his wallet into his right hip pocket. Grabbing the key to his hotel room, his jacket, and his helmet, Jason made his way down to the parking lot and quickly got onto his soft-tail black Harley. He started the cycle and then after securing his helmet he rode from the parking lot and arrived at the gate to Collins Industries with two minutes to spare before the half an hour he'd told Eric expired.

Jason dismounted from the motorcycle, leaving it running, and removed his helmet. He set the helmet on the seat and then pulled his wallet from his pocket and walked over to the small guard shack that was by the front gate. "I'm Jason Scott." Jason said to the very bored young man in the booth. "Commander Myers was going to leave a packet here for me to pick up."

The bored guard looked at Jason, smiled and then handed over a large manila envelope with his name written on it in Eric's very distinctive handwriting. "I don't need to see your ID, Mr. Scott. I've seen you here before with Commanders Collins and Myers." The guard said with a smile. "Commander Myers asked me to tell you that he said he might be able to make your meeting earlier than you'd discussed on the phone."

"Thanks," Jason said replacing his wallet in his pocket and taking the directions to Eric's house from the envelope. "Please tell Commander Myers that an earlier meeting would be great."

"I will pass that along, sir." The young guard told him and then smiled as Jason quickly slammed his helmet onto his head and roared off on the bike. The guard picked up the phone and touched the button that would connect him with the Commander's office. "Your message and the package was just delivered and picked up, Commander Myers, sir."

"Thank you, Corporal Anders." Eric replied with a business like tone that belied the smile that filled his face. "And thank you for offering to take half of the workload too, Corporal. I'm sure that you can handle the beginning training class tomorrow morning, but if you have any problems call me. It's what I'm here for."

"I appreciate the chance you're giving me, Commander." Corporal Anders replied with a serious expression on his face. "I'll do my best not to have to disturb you on your day off, sir. Have fun and enjoy your time off. I'm sure that Commander Collins just forgot that it was your weekend off, sir."

"That's all Corporal." Eric said breaking the connection and smiling slightly as he returned to filling out all the paperwork he could before he left for the night.

While Eric was conversing with Corporal Anders and finishing up his paperwork, Jason had found the nearest grocery store and was filling his shopping cart with everything he needed to prepare his and Eric's dinner that night. "Hmm, lets see here. Romaine hearts, arugula, and leaf lettuce topped with some hothouse tomatoes, cucumber, radishes, soy nuts, sunflower seeds, and some shaved almonds for the salads. Grab a package of boneless chicken breasts, some fresh green beans, a couple of cloves of garlic, some fresh thyme, basil, sage, and rosemary. Some olive oil, just in case Eric doesn't have any, breadcrumbs, and half-dozen eggs. A box of organic chicken broth, and some baby potatoes should round out the meal. Oops, almost forgot the butter and parsley for the potatoes. Hmm, also need a couple of lemons for the sauce for the chicken. There, that should do it." Jason shopped the whole store and then made his way to the check out. He grabbed, on impulse, two bottles of Turning Leaf Chardonnay as he passed the beer and wine section.

Jason paid for the groceries and then spent a few moments repacking the bags so they'd fit into his saddlebags without crushing anything. He took out the directions and double-checked to be sure he had them memorized correctly before he again put his helmet on and started his bike up. He eased into the light early evening traffic of a Silver Hills Friday night and made it to Eric's home with time to spare on his deadline for having a nice dinner ready for both of them.

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