Chapter 10: When Things Turn Around

A warm light was shining and music was sounding out of a hollowed-out stump somewhere in the park. Outside, the Rangerwing was standing, and inside, a chipmunk in a black tuxedo was dancing with a mouse in a white evening gown.

Chip appreciated how things had changed since his and Gadget's first date. She had stayed focused on the date itself and on him instead of running away and repairing whatever was there to be repaired, to give only one example of her former quirks. But maybe it was simply because of how she felt for him. 16 years ago, he could not predict how Gadget would behave once she would seriously fall in love with someone. He wasn't even sure if she could fall in love at all beyond that little crush she had certainly developed on Sparky. Now he knew it. All he still had to do was make her confess her feelings to him to make it "official." And of course tell her how he felt.

The dinner itself was still fresh in his memory. He remembered looking into her eyes way too often. He remembered her looking into his eyes way too often. He remembered the little stain on her cheek which he carefully wiped away with his napkin in an almost caressing way. He remembered how she blushed as he did that, and how his own cheeks went hot. He remembered how he asked her to dance after dinner. He had done so countless times, but this time he was more nervous than ever before in similar situations.

And now he was dancing with the mouse of his dreams on the dance floor of a little restaurant named The Morning Sun. He had no clue what excited him the most—the girl in his arms, the dress she was wearing, what he had found out about her earlier that day, or the fact that her uncle and aunt were running the restaurant. Maybe it was a mixture of it all, anyway, it was hard for him to stay calm enough for that slow dance.

It was almost impossible for Gadget not to notice that Chip was partly lost in thoughts. They were still dancing, and he was still leading, but his look told something different. There wasn't much more she was interested in looking at than this beautiful pair of chipmunk eyes.

"Chip, is anything wrong?"

If there was something Chip would always react upon, it was Gadget's voice. "Uh, no, everything's just fine." 'So far, that is. As long as the date is not over, there will be a lot of chances for doing why I've taken you on this date.'

"Is it okay that we've been dancing for so long?"

"Gadget, I love the way you're dancing. Remind me that I wanna thank your father for the dancing lessons he gave you." Years ago, Gadget had told him that it was Geegaw who taught her to dance. He believed that sooner or later, there will be a boy who'd want to dance with the beautiful girl she'd be then.

The owners of the restaurant, Franklin van Zant and Suzanne Wheatfield van Zant, had little to do as Chip and Gadget were the only guests. So they stood and watched their niece and the guy with whom she had come. Gadget had spent a lot of time in that year's spring and summer with them after she had found out about her uncle and aunt. Unlike the Rescue Rangers, they were real relatives to her, closer to a family than her friends and even Monty would ever be. Her visits got fewer when her real family was reunited after being ripped apart for decades, but The Infinity was always a good place to go for a date.

"What a beautiful couple," Frank said quietly so that Chip and Gadget wouldn't hear him.

"Yes," Suzanne approved his words. "One can clearly see the love between them." She remembered how she met Frank. They were much younger than Chip and Gadget, but the age of two lovebirds didn't matter much to her. She went on watching them dance and took Frank's hand.

Another song came to an end, and the Ranger couple stopped dancing. They felt both at the same time that they had danced enough for that evening. As their senses opened up for other things than the music and themselves, they recognized three mice, the van Zant family, standing at the side of the dance floor and smiling at them.

"No more dancing?" Frank asked.

"No, Mr. van Zant," Chip replied, "as nice as it was, but even nice things have to end sooner or later." So did that evening, but Chip didn't want to think about it too much.

"Has anyone ever told you that you're two great dancers?" Suzanne praised them.

"Golly, thanks, Aunt Suzanne." Gadget had stopped counting the times she had blushed on that date.

Chip led her back to their table. "I can say the same about you, Gadget. I've rarely enjoyed dancing as much as with you, and I've danced with a lot of women." He referred to past cases in the course of which he had to dance and to his pre-Ranger time. "Would you still like something? A drink, maybe?"

"Thanks for the offer, Chip, but no."

This meant that their presence at the Morning Sun had just run out of its last reason, and the rest of their date would consist of nothing more than the flight home. "Shall we... go then?"

"Um... yes... I think it's time now..." Gadget still hoped for some more chances, as did Chip. And they set their hopes on the flight.

"You're already leaving?" Dawn asked. She was Frank's and Suzanne's only daughter. Although she was in her mid-twenties, she was still living with her parents and helping at the restaurant from time to time. Besides, she was the first member of the family Gadget had met, and so the ties between them were very close.

"Yes, Dawn," Gadget answered. "We can't stay here forever." Her words and her expression showed quite a bit of disappointment. "See you." She walked towards the door with Chip, but a part of her wanted to stop, hold him close and tell him what she longed for to tell him.

"See you, and good luck, you two." Dawn waved after the two Rangers and hoped that they understood that her good luck wishes not only meant their Ranger work. Although Gadget had never talked about love with her, she knew too well what was going on between these two.

On his way to the Rangerwing, Chip felt how every step got harder and harder to take. He kept on moving forward, though, as if driven by his own fate, whatever this fate had in mind for him. But whatever it was, he didn't want it to have it the easy way.

"Gadget, would you mind me fly the way back?"

"Why should I? I know you can fly the Rangerwing."

Chip was about to say that it meant a lot to him, but he wasn't so sure about it yet. He led her to the passenger's side of the aircraft and helped her on board once more before he climbed up himself.

As they were sitting there side by side, he gathered all his courage and spoke to her, hoping that it was enough courage. "Gadget..."

"Yes, Chip?" She turned to him, her face showing a strong hint of expectation. It would be much easier for her if he said it first. If he wanted to say it at all.

"I... I just wanted to say that..."

"Yes?"

It was not enough courage. "...this was a wonderful evening. I've enjoyed every minute of being with you."

"I've enjoyed it, too." But now she was sure that if they didn't reach that ultimate goal before they got home, she would spend half the night crying with a freshly broken heart. She hadn't soaked her pillow with tears since her father was back.

She was still staring at him when she felt the Rangerwing lose ground contact. All she could build her hope upon was the remaining time until they were back at the Headquarters. Unknown to her, Chip thought just the same.

Above a place much busier than the Morning Sun, namely his very own casino, Fat Cat sat behind his desk. One hand established the connection between his head and the forearm by which it was supported, the other one scratched the surface of the desk. The immediate aftermath of his knockout was over, and he had fully come back to senses.

"What a stupid idea was that? Go find the Rescue Rangers somewhere in Central Park? How should I know that they are in Central Park at all? I mean, we've got so many parks here in New York City. They could as well be based in... Battery Park or wherever. Next time I give these imbeciles an order, I'm gonna wait until I can think properly again. They're gonna spend the whole night out there. Or even the rest of the month."

Fat Cat was just considering getting himself another team of henchmen when those who were currently working for him surprised him by entering his office unexpectedly. Snout was going ahead and carrying a net over his shoulder while the others walked behind him and took care that the content of the net didn't dare misbehave. "Sssurprissse, bosss!" Wart hissed.

Fat Cat's eyes widened in disbelief. "Have you got them?"

"Yes... well, not all of them, only half a dozen" Snout admitted. "The leader and the mechanic mouse weren't there, and the fly was able to escape."

Despite having more Rangers than he would have expected the day before, the broad tabby was not wholly satisfied with the work of his goons. "Not all of them?! I would send you out to get the others, too, but I doubt you'd have that much luck a second time."

"We don't need to go," Snout explained, "the fly will get his friends, and when they come here to rescue the others, we'll have them all."

"Not bad... that idea's not bad. Why can't you all be that clever?"

The rat placed the net onto the floor, and the other goons watched. "Here, I'll let them out."

Before Fat Cat could react and tell him not to do that, he heard Monty's voice say, "Awright, mates, at three." Snout opened the net. "Three!"

Up above in the air over Central Park and shone on by the full moon, Chip and Gadget still didn't know what happened and what was happening to their friends. Their minds were occupied by entirely different things. They had both put so high hopes on that date, and now it was almost over.

Chip steered the Rangerwing over more familiar parts of the park when memories of special times together with Gadget began to haunt him. His mind replayed their very first meeting 18 years ago. The time when Dale started dating Foxglove and ending his hunt for Gadget 16 years ago. His own very first date with Gadget shortly after that.

The tree was visible in the distance.

Some other special moments from past cases and dates came back.

The lights next to the front door and on the platforms could be seen.

Chip remembered the night when the Rangers liberated Gadget's mother. How he and Gadget stood in the dark and were about to end as a giant guard dog's midnight snack.

He had to switch to hover mode to slow the Rangerwing down now.

But in his mind, he was on board of Geegaw's plane, yet still together with Gadget. His memory of nearly kissing Gadget was almost as intense as reality.

The plane was in the crown now, and it was time to lower the landing gears.

Chip saw himself standing at the end of the very same landing platform. Gadget was next to him. They held each other tightly. And again, they were moving closer and closer...

"No!" The landing gears flapped up, the motors tilted back, and the Rangerwing shot out of the oak tree's crown again, piloted by a chipmunk who firmly wrapped his hands around the bottle cap yoke.

Gadget was totally taken by surprise, albeit not a bad one. "Chip, what are you doing?"

"This night's not over yet, Gadget. Nor is this date."