16

Zack had never been so scared.

Getting in front of monsters thousands of feet tall was exhilarating. Performing in front of other people was fun. Having attention, public speaking, was never hard for him. It was the unknown that made his knees shake. It was the unfamiliar that had his stomach rolling.

It was the feeling of the handcuffs slapped on his wrists that scared him out of his mind and sobered him quicker than anything in life ever could. It was the sounds of the doors of the jail opening and slamming shut, the screaming of inmates that made him want to turn tail and run, unsure of what was going to happen.

But he went through the paces. Had his handcuffs removed, had his fingerprints taken. Had been strip searched. Had to squat down and cough. Did everything that he thought was only in the movies. That he thought was only in the warning stories that his parents reminded him of because, as unfair as it was, his skin color would make some things more susceptible to him. He never thought he'd end up in jail.

He did everything right. Worked hard. Studied. Got good grades. Played sports. Did everything to keep himself out of trouble. And when he finally found someone he liked…he got in trouble. In the worst kind of trouble. The others didn't get it. It was easy for them to date. Easy for them to date in their circle. Kim and Tommy had been love at first sight. Jason and Trini had been head over heels since they first saw each other. Billy and Avalon was something Zack thought was possible, but knew it was a toss up—two lone wolves finding their way together. And he had…no one.

Jason was his best friend, his friends were his teammates, his family. But he was still lonely. The others went home at night to people they continued to connect with, further their relationships with. He went home to do homework, to dance, didn't have anyone to spend time with. Had nothing but himself and time.

"Zachary Taylor?" Zack looked up, realizing he was being spoken to. The officer in front of him waited until she had Zack's attention. He hadn't realized he'd zoned out in front of her. How long had she been calling him? "You been here before?"

"No." His voice was barely above a whisper, but enough that she could hear him and nodded in response. She motioned him aside so that he could get his picture taken. "Face forward, face the U." His eyebrows furrowed, he looked around for the 'U' she was speaking of, found it just as she napped the picture. She turned to the side and asked, "Do you have any facial tattoos?"

Wouldn't she know that just by looking at me? Zack thought. Nevertheless, he still managed to say another quiet, "No." She motioned him back to the front of the counter and started to pass over a sheet of paper. The inflection in her tone never changed as she spoke. Explained everything. "Here's your ID until you get a wristband. When they do a count, pull this paper out."

Zack nodded.

Then she motioned him closer. "You do have a bond set. It is $50,000. In order to bond out, you can pay cash. That'll be the total amount. You also have the option of going through a bonding company, they charge 12 to 15 percent of the set bond. Any other questions?"

Zack shook his head.

He didn't even want to think about what'd happened if his parents couldn't make the money. Didn't know if they had it in the first place. Couldn't focus too much on it when he knew where he was. Where he probably wasn't going to get out.

Zack was placed in a cell. A holding cell. CC114 Holding. It was empty, for the time being. But the puke in the corner and the urine stains on the wall showed how many people had been there before him, and would be there after him.

He dropped his face in his hands.

Death investigation.

Lt. Stone said it was a death investigation.

Someone died.

And, while they still didn't know what was going on, for sure. There was only one logical explanation. Billy had come away from the crash with a bump on the head. Zack was hardly hurt. They'd gone through more than enough battles that should've outright killed them, and they walked away from it.

The truth was staring them in the face.

Angela was dead.

Zack was going to have to deal with, not only losing his girlfriend, but his resulting DUI ending in death. They had to deal with it, too. Had to talk about their involvement of the night. Had to talk about what it was that had lead up to that moment. The arguments, the pleading not to go, the want to…to have fun. The want to be normal teens that got out of control. That ended in a way no one had seen coming.

Billy was questioned the least. It was obvious from the get-go what his stance on drinking was. How upset he had been when he found that the cabin he had graciously allowed his best friends to use as a place to hang out and unwind after a difficult amount of tests they'd had to endure. He was very straight forward and to the point. He spoke clearly and intelligently and it was clear he had no part in what happened that night…other than having been in an accident himself.

Avalon was questioned a fair amount. It didn't help that the only thing she focused on was Bailey and how she was doing and what'd happened to her. She spoke harshly, demanded to know before she would answer any more questions. When she was finally placated, she spoke angrily about the drinking around her. How she used to be part of that scene, how she'd, essentially, been forced into it due to her ex-boyfriend, Chase. How there were other things she used to do that she wouldn't do again. She didn't drink that night, would talk people out of it if asked, but felt anyone could do what they want. She hated what happened to her sister, that was all she cared about.

Tommy was questioned the longest. He'd been drinking that night. But he was a good guy. Good grades. Volunteered. Was quarterback on the football team. Was part of almost every club, sport, and organization in Angel Grove High. What made it so that he was able to allow himself the drink as much as the others? Did he realize how quickly it was affecting him if he hadn't drank before? That he was a lightweight? What really made it so that he drank that night? Why didn't he try to stop anyone else from drinking if they had been part of the 'Say NO to drugs campaign' along school? Maybe he was trying to impress someone? Maybe he was trying to impress his girlfriend? How long had they been together? Did he pressure her into things? Was he controlling?

And on and on.

All the while they still didn't get any response of what was going on with their friends.

And that wasn't the worst part of it. The worst part was having to sit in front Lt. Stone and field questions left and right about how they managed to survive, alluding comments to him know they were the power rangers, what they were thinking about drinking that night. What they were thinking about drinking at all.

And, most importantly, what their lives were going to be like, moving forward.

They'd never be the same.

A/N: We're almost done with the story now. Thank you so much for being so patient as I work through this one, guys.

~Av