The walk to Caesars Palace was as awkward as could be. Tommy couldn't even count the amount of stares the 6 guys got from those around them as they walked Kimberly back to their hotel room. It sure as hell looked like they were bringing her back to a gang bang. Why else would 6 guys be walking around with a half naked woman?

He didn't care, though. All that mattered was that Kimberly was as far away from The Hidden Jewel as possible. He'd gladly take the stares and assumptions if it meant that she was safe and away from that hell hole.

Leave it to Katherine to insist on Tommy getting the penthouse suite at Caesars Palace, where the price can set you back a measly 7,000 a night. Pocket change for the Hillard's. And of course, leave it to Tommy to bring his ex-girlfriend back to his room the night before his wedding.

He wouldn't tell Katherine. It was for the best.

Kimberly cautiously went inside the suite, taking small glances around the place from the corner of her eyes. The 4,500 square foot marble room was as luxurious as she'd imagined from the outside. Every single thing inside sparkled or was lined with gold, making her feel just that much trashier. The kitchen off to the side had her nearly laughing. A kitchen in a hotel room? Who paid for this?

Jason led her to one of the seats in the living room, allowing her to process her thoughts. It was the softest thing she had felt in a while.

"Kim," Jason started, gently.

"I don't want to talk," Kimberly waved him off, groaning, "You guys shouldn't have done that."

"What?" Tommy scoffed, "Saved you from that hell?"

"Save me?" She raised her voice at him, rolling her eyes, "I don't need you to save me from anything. I know what I'm doing!"

The tone of her voice pissed off the former green ranger. After everything she was still being as stubborn as always.

"Do you?" He threw back at her, his voice laced with rage, "Does that make you happy? Does it provide you with the thrill that I could never give you?"

"You're all a bunch of idiots!" She hissed, wiping the smeared mascara from her eyes, "You think you know me but news flash, you don't!" She stood up, removing the coat Jason had given her to prove her point, "The Kimberly Hart you met all of those years ago is dead and buried. I am who I am and that's something you all will never know."

The guys turned away, unable to look at their friend in this way.

"I don't believe this." Jason ran a hand through his face, getting more pissed and heartbroken by the second. Trini would be crushed to know that Kimberly chose to leave her behind for this new life. He gave her back the coat, unable to stomach seeing her like that for one more second.

"What the hell are you doing in there?" He asked her, trying with all of his might to tame the beast that was dying to come out and break something, "Is this where you've been all of this time?"

She didn't answer him, her eyes focused on a spot on the wall. Kimberly could feel the stares of the silent former rangers on her, undoubtedly having millions of questions of their own.

"Answer me," Jason bellowed.

"I don't owe you anything!" She bit back at him, trying to remember a time when she fought like this with him.

She couldn't recall one. They had always been loving and supportive of one another, being each others rock since they were in preschool.

All Zack, Rocky, Billy, and Adam could do was quietly excuse themselves, leaving them with a little bit of privacy.

Every piece of Tommy hurt, but it was quickly overtaken by an anger that was building up. He knew Kimberly, no matter how many times she said he didn't. No one changed that much. Their years couldn't be erased, they happened.

"Is this where your gymnastic career brought you, huh?" Tommy started, feeling the rage within him burst, "All of that hard work so that you can twirl on a pole?"

Tommy didn't even see Kimberly furiously bring her hand to his cheek, rather he just felt the burn of the aftermath on his face. He couldn't speak, finding himself speechless by her once again.

"You have no right to pick apart what I do," She trembled with fury. Her eyes glazed over, suddenly realizing what she had just done.

Jason stepped around Tommy, facing Kimberly this time, "We're worried about you, Kim. You just disappeared."

He took her by the shoulders, his emotions ready to spill, "No matter what, we still love you. You're family… family doesn't turn their back on each other."

Tommy let out a heavy breath as a way to control himself. They weren't going to get anywhere. Maybe if he was alone with her he could get her to open up more.

"Can you give us a minute, Jason?" Tommy asked, his hand on his cheek. He needed to try it— something, at least.

Jason hesitated for moment, unsure if that was the right thing to do. He could picture them tearing each other apart if they weren't careful, but nodded, although a part of him still screamed that this was a bad idea.

Tommy immediately regretted this decision as he found himself alone with her. The silence between them hung thick, each second ticking on the clock sounding like a horn.

He pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to calm himself before he said something else that might get him slapped. He had to approach her differently. Going all green with evil definitely didn't work for her or his conscience. "I'm sorry about what I said… that wasn't fair."

She turned away from him, still unable to look at him in the eye. The dance was still fresh in her mind, stabbing at her every time she got close enough to smell him… to touch him.

"Talk to me, Kim," He whispered, "You still matter to me."

How could he after all of this time?

She shook her head, "I can't tell you."

"Why?"

The sound of her cell phone vibrating in her bag grabbed her attention. She took one look at the Caller ID and wished she could disappear. Damn it.

"Hi, Grace," Kimberly said, putting her phone to her ear. She winced from the words on the other end of the phone, hating her life more and more.

Tommy stared at her, his heart shattering by the second. How had life treated her so cruel? What could she have possibly done to have life hand her this set of cards? She'd saved the world just like everyone else. Shouldn't that make her immune to this type of life?

His relationship with Kimberly had always been picture perfect, maybe a little too perfect at times. He loved her and she loved him. They were strong as individuals, but together they were invincible, nothing could stand in their way. Kimberly had always encouraged him to pursue his dreams, to never settle for anything less than he was worth, and he did the same for her. When she wanted to leave to chase after her gymnastics career, he was the first person to stand behind her. The thought of his Kimberly finally reaching her dreams was all that he wanted for her.

"Yeah, I'm okay," Kimberly continued.

He never once thought their relationship would end the way it did. There was never a hint that something could be wrong when they talked on the phone or wrote to each other. Everything seemed to be the same as it always had been. Her letter came out of the blue, crushing him during a transition in his life as he met his long lost brother. He needed her then more than ever, to hear her say that everything was going to be okay, even if the world around them was changing.

Katherine eagerly tried to become that for him, but it just never really felt right. She wanted more than he was willing to give and he hated that he couldn't do that for her. They dated for a while, but he never once stopped picturing Kimberly at his side when she would wear her suit, a color that didn't look as great on Katherine if he was being honest. That was the partner he wanted, not whatever Katherine tried to become.

God, Kat! What the hell was he doing? He was getting married in less than 24 hours to her and she had no idea what was going on. She was probably still out with the other girls at her bachelorette party with no clue as to what was going on. Seeing Kimberly again brought him back to his younger years when he just wanted to be the man by her side. Things were a lot easier a few hours ago when he had foolishly thought he had gotten over her. She was part of his past and Katherine was his future. That was his promise to her when he put that ring on her finger. He had to tell her. He couldn't start a marriage with a huge secret. There was no doubt her migraine would cause her head to blow. And add to the fact that Kimberly didn't know he was about to get married. This sucks.

Kimberly lowered her voice, "I'm with a client."

The former green ranger caught her from the corner of his eye, his gaze trailing along the toned image of her legs. He gulped at the memory of them wrapped around him, the velvet touch of her skin on his, her sweet breath on his face, fanning his cheek. It was pure torture to have her on him while he did nothing but fight the cuffs around his wrists. The thought of chewing his own hands off was a terrifying idea that ran through his mind a few times. How the hell was that even fair? He had seen more of her than he ever imagined he would and all he could picture was seeing more.

No. No. No. What the hell was he thinking? These weren't thoughts he should have the day before his wedding? Shouldn't he be picturing his bride to be instead? God, this was so wrong.

"I see," Kimberly spoke into her phone, stealing a quick glance at Tommy.

She was more beautiful than he remembered, even after everything that he knew. Seeing her again in that situation tore his heart out. At least when she dropped off the radar he thought she had left to do bigger and better things. Knowing nothing was better than knowing this. Even if she was with someone else like she said in her letter, he never imagined it would have led her into her current path. If he had known, he would have tried harder to find her.

One thing he knew for sure, he wasn't letting her out of his life again, no matter what Kat said. Jason was right, family doesn't turn their back on family.

"Got it," Kimberly nodded, "Bye."

She closed her phone and tucked it back into her bag, trying to fight the heat from Tommy's gaze on her.

"Kim you have to talk to me," He told her, coming to sit beside her on the couch.

Everything she had fought to protect was unraveling, causing her to lose focus. Thank God for the call that reeled her back in.

"Okay," She nodded, releasing a sharp breath, "but I need a drink."

Finally. It was a little too easy.

He stood from his spot on the couch, his mind journeying to the mini bar, "Let me see if I can find something—"

"—no, let me," She told him, pulling him back down next to her. "It's the least I could do."

While she left to make the drinks, Tommy went into his bedroom to fetch her something that covered her a little bit more. It wasn't that he minded, but he couldn't exactly concentrate when she was his fantasy come to life.

He greeted her with a small smile as she returned with two amber colored drinks in hand.

Tommy took the cold drink and handed her one of his white shirts to put over her scraps, quickly regretting that decision.

"Where have you been all this time?" He asked, pretending that he wasn't affected by watching her change.

Kimberly thought about it for a moment, unsure of what to say. "Different places," she sighed.

"And Florida?" He took a sip of his scotch, feeling the burning liquid go down his throat, "What happened there?"

She paused, feeling herself unable to escape his questions, "It wasn't what I thought it was."

She was lying through her teeth and he could see right through it. But 'why was she' was the question he wanted to know more than anything.

"I went to see you, you know that?"

Her widened expression told him that he caught her by surprise.

"You did?" She stuttered, feeling her hands tremble.

"After your letter…" He nodded, unable to take his eyes off of her. "I went there looking for you and I couldn't find you." He took another sip, the memories of teleporting to Miami still fresh in his mind. "Do you know how stupid I looked going from school to school? Nobody had heard of you."

She remained silent, the beat of her heart pounding away in her ear terrifying her.

"Where the hell were you? Because I sure as hell know it wasn't in Florida."

Getting chewed out by Zordon would have been worth it if he had been able to find her, but he wasn't able to. He was late to battle because he wouldn't give up looking for her. It took Alpha overriding his teleportation abilities to get the Red Zeo Ranger back to Angel Grove.

"I was the new kid, Tommy…" She told him, intently watching him take another sip, "you can't expect everyone to know who all of the gymnasts are."

"You're lying to me!" He stood up, feeling his legs wobble. The alcohol was overtaking him and he didn't want to be responsible for his actions under the influence. He wanted to throw something— anything! To make him believe that this was actually happening and she wasn't just going to be some dream he had.

"No, I'm not!" She yelled back, chasing after him. She blinked back tears, a roller coaster emotions she had held deep within her all of this time.

He spun around, coming face to face with her, "You don't think I can look in your eyes and see you're not being honest with me? You can lie to Jason, to Trini, to your mom, but you can't lie to me."

The room was suddenly winding in circles and he couldn't quite figure out which way was up or down. Damn Rocky and the 3 shots of vodka he already had. Kimberly came to his side, gently placing her hands on his chest to steady him.

She was going to disappear, he knew it. All he could think to make this real was to lean in and firmly place his lips on hers… then came the darkness.

The pounding on the door was only amplified by the pounding in his head.

5 more minutes.

The pounding didn't lessen and now he wasn't sure if he was actually hearing it.

"Tommy!" Could be heard through the muffling of the door.

Ugh!

Just like anyone that would be woken up at 6 am when he wasn't due for another few hours, Tommy grabbed the nearest pillow and plopped it on his head, burying himself deeper in the mattress.

Maybe they would go away.

The ringing of his cell came next, annoying him more than anything else in the world.

"Fine, I'm up," he mumbled, feeling the effects of a mean hangover. The head throbbing wasn't as bad as the need to vomit. God, he had never had this happen to him before. He was normally able to handle himself pretty well.

Tommy made his ungraceful walk across the 4,500 square foot suite, finding each step to be absolutely exhausting. It felt like he had run a marathon. When he opened the door, he found his 5 friends still wearing the same clothes they had been wearing the night before, their clothes reeking of cigarette smoke. Gotta love Vegas!

"Where the hell were you last night?" Jason asked, pushing past him and into the room.

"Sleeping.. I think," Tommy rubbed his eyes as he closed the door behind them.

"You think?" Zack shook his head, "We were knocking on your door all night and got nothing!"

"Did you black out?" Rocky spoke up next, giving him the same lost look everyone else had been giving their former leader.

Tommy was a mess. His hair was everywhere, his shirt was half hanging off, and even though they knew he had just been sleeping, it looked like he hadn't slept a wink. That man did not look ready to walk down the aisle today.

"Maybe.." Tommy tried to replay his final moments in his head, "I don't remember."

Billy looked him over quickly, unsure if he possibly needed some medical attention.

"Where's Kim?"

Oh, shit. Kimberly.

That's what he had been forgetting.. She wasn't just some dream, it was all real. The memory was fuzzy, but the feeling wasn't. He kissed her last night and there was a part of him that recalled that she kissed him back… but what happened after that? It was all a blur.

A noise came from the Kitchen, gathering the attention of the 6 men trying to piece the events of the night before.

There she was. His Christmas morning swimming in his oversized shirt, looking sexier than anything he had ever seen. No human had a right to be that damn attractive.

She smiled at him, bringing a glass of mimosa to her lips. Her eyes sparkled in the day light, giving him a warm feeling in his belly.

However, his eyes landed on something even brighter in the room, the diamond sitting on her ring finger.

His heart pick up as he looked down at the gold wedding band on his left ring finger.

"Hi, sweetheart," She told him, a huge grin on her face, "Sleep okay?"

Author note: Hey guys! I'm so glad you're all enjoying this! I'm seriously having a blast getting to explore this little universe. It's something a bit different from my usual stuff! Let me know what you guys think in a review or PM! It always makes my day! See you guys next time!