Caught Between Steel and a Hard Place
A/N: Hello all, welcome back to this series. It feels so good to be back writing for this and yes Beast Morphers is on the way. Until next time, ENJOY! R&R PLZ!
It was strange feeling for the rangers. Having no fights. They wished they could talk to the legendary rangers just to ask what did they do when their battles were won. As it was, some things stuck around. Like hanging out at the base, the random training session here and there. Every once in a while Mick would get an itch and build something for them to test out. It wasn't terrible having no actual fights, just strange.
"Where do you think it is?" Hayley mused. She was sitting on one of the rotating chair in the base. Her foot idly twisting her left and right while she watched Redbot and Sarah work on Sarah's project for Chemistry.
"Where do I think what is?" Sarah replied while taking notes on the chemicals in front of her.
"The ninja nexus prism," Hayley clarified and the former pink ranger paused to look up. "Where did it go? Another planet? Into hiding? Is it safe?"
"No one knows," Mick answered entering the room. "And let's hope it stays that way. But the prism isn't helpless, it's incredibly powerful. And if worse comes to worse, it can summon the ninja steel rangers again."
"That's just eerie, someone else being a ninja ranger," Sarah commented. "Bizarre."
"That's the way it goes," Mick patted her back. "Anyway I have to make a run to the hardware store," the shop teacher did nothing to hide his glee, "I'll need Redbot to come with me to help carry. The boys are supposed to picking up a really important delivery for me. Can you both stay here and help them out when they arrive?"
"Of course Mick," Hayley assured him. "Take your time."
"Thanks." And then they were gone.
"Calvin was telling me about this mysterious delivery run," Hayley said. "Apparently all of them are going to get it."
"ALL of them," Sarah raised an eyebrow. "What could have Mick ordered to need four people?"
"No clue. But…" the pair heard distinctly familiar grunts and footsteps approaching. "Seems like we're going to find out."
"Wait," Sarah grabbed her hand. "Wanna mess with them a little?"
"Always."
"You hide there, I'll be over here. On my signal, we jump out." Childish grins blooming, they ducked under the workstations and waited. A few moments later, Levi and Brody appearing carrying a large metal case together.
"HAYLEY! SARAH! WHERE ARE YOU GUYS?!" They dropped case gently on the ground and look around. "Hayley? Sarah?" The girls snuck a peek at each other and pressed fingers to their lips, both to signal silence and contain their giggles.
Just the Calvin and Preston arrived with their own case swinging between them. "Hey where are the girls?" Preston asked. "Mick said they were going to help us."
"Probably stepped out for something," Levi said wearily, wiping his brow. "Hope they get back soon, these things are stupid heavy."
"You said it bro," Brody agreed. "Listen, let's take a break for a second, maybe the girls will come back and we can get the rest down here."
"Fine by me," Calvin retrieved some bottles of water from the side room and handed them out. The guy took a seat on various surfaces and the girls were frantically gesturing back and forth what to do. Sarah firmly held up hand, pushing against the air and Hayley sat back with a stern look.
"I hope Mick shows us what's in these," Calvin knocked on the metal. "They'd better be worth all this effort."
"Yeah no kidding." Brody nodded. "I had to cancel Emma's lesson for today. She was really disappointed."
"Oh sure she was the one who was disappointed," Preston smirked into his water.
"I keep telling you -"
"And I keep ignoring you."
"There's nothing going on between me and Emma." All four chanted in unison and Brody made a face. The girls laughed into their hands.
"We're all ignoring you little brother," Levi informed him. "Ask the girl on date already."
"Oh okay," Brody scoffed then reached deep into his sibling pettiness, "I will as soon as you ask Sarah out big brother."
Calvin and Preston choked while Sarah and Hayley exchanged wide-eyed looks. Calvin wiped his mouth, "Sorry, excuse me, what?"
"He's just being a jerk," Levi rolled his eyes.
"So you don't want to date her?" Preston checked.
"I…never said that."
"Dude!" Calvin half-laughed. "Why haven't you talked to her about it?" Sarah tentatively leaned in closer.
"My relationships tend to be difficult," Levi tried to explain. "Look if I was just Aiden Romero, normal high school student ordinaire, it's be whole other story. But as Levi Weston, my life is full of touring and fans and press and it's a lot for someone to handle. I had a girlfriend before I came here and we broke up because she couldn't take the stress. I couldn't do that to Sarah, I'd never forgive myself." Sarah smiled, touched and glanced at Hayley who gave her a supportive thumbs up.
"Don't waste time," Preston advised. "I did that with Sandy and even though it wasn't long, I do regret it. And everything I was worried about, turned out to be nothing."
"Besides people handle situations differently. Sarah is as tough as nails," Brody added. "I've rarely seen her shook up about anything."
"True. And if she is the one, it'll be worth it anyway," Calvin smiled.
"Oh and there goes the Hayley face," Preston teased.
"Whatever man," Calvin shoved him playfully. "I love her. I truly believe she's it for me."
"Okay cowboy, slow down," Levi chuckled. "Let's wait until we're actually out of high school before you go ring shopping."
"Obviously," Calvin said. "We've got a long way to go before any of that. Honestly though, I don't need a ring. There's version of tomorrow for me that doesn't have Hayley in it." The girls quietly sighed, holding their hearts.
However, their warm fuzzy feelings dissipated instantly when Brody, "Yeah but there's a version of today without either Sarah or Hayley. Where are they? Let's call them." They frantically scrambled for their phone just a second before the ringers went off.
"Eavesdropping ladies?"
