Thanks for reading! Here's the next chapter!
Trini Kwan stretched her arms over her head. She leaned down and rubbed the cool, coarse sand over her arms. She smiled and waved to the camera that Madison Rocca held in her hands. The sun was just coming up over the horizon and Trini was intently watching to catch a glimpse of the fleeting green flash.
"Hey Trini, could you help, please?" her beach volleyball partner asked.
Trini turned away from the horizon and saw her partner, Lily Chilman, dragging two bags of volleyballs behind her. "Sorry!" She ran over and picked up one of the bags. Trini turned her attention back to the horizon. "Aw, you made me miss the green flash!"
"You always look for it. And you never see it!"
"Because I always miss it!" Trini dropped the bag next to the court and started doing agility drills through the sand.
"What's the green flash?" asked Madison. She held up the video camera and focused in on Trini, moving through the sand.
"The green flash happens right at the crack of sunrise or sunset," answered Trini. "It's a quick flash of green and you could usually see it over the ocean." She pointed to the sun. "If you could see the sun, that means that you've missed it like I always do!"
"Have you ever seen it before?"
Trini nodded. "A few times before. Never here, at home, though." She gestured to Lily. "Once, in China. Another time in...Sydney, Australia."
"And in Hawaii," added Lily.
"Wow, big travelers. Where else have you guys been to?"
"We've been lucky enough to travel all over the world because of volleyball," said Trini. "All over the United States, we've been to South America. It's beautiful down there."
Lily nodded. "Chile, Brasil, Argentina. We've also been all over Europe."
"Gstaad, Switzerland. Prague. Prague's beautiful! Rome, Milan. It's been a lot of fun. But there are so many other places that we haven't been to, yet."
Maddie nodded. "Thanks. I'll let you guys get back to training. I'll just film you from over here."
Lily nodded. "Okay. Just let us know if you have any questions or anything."
Maddie nodded. "Will do."
An hour or so later, Trini felt as if her body was finally warmed up, so she and Lily started peppering with one another until they finally began their drills. The sun slowly continued to rise and they noticed that the beach started to crowd up with other volleyball players, surfers, and people who just wanted to get an early start to the beach.
Maddie continued to film them, taking different shots and angles and even asked some people who were watching Lily and Trini practice for interviews. Most of them happily obliged while a few were too nervous to be on camera.
After another couple of hours of drilling and scrimmaging, Trini noticed that a crowd had begun to form around them. She was growing an little tired and knew that she would soon need a break. Trini gestured to Lily that she was going to take a break and grabbed a Gatorade for herself and another for Lily. She grabbed a bottle of water for Madison and sat down next to her.
"What do you think, so far?" Trini asked, taking a long sip of her Gatorade.
"I love it!" exclaimed Maddie. "It's so exciting! Thanks for the water." She held it up before uncapping to drink it. "I've always watched some games, and especially during the Olympics and all, but I never realized how much hard work you guys put in. And it's hard enough walking in the sand, I can't imagine trying to run, jump, and play volleyball.
Trini laughed. "Thanks. I'm always glad to introduce more people to this sport."
Maddie nodded and glanced at her watch. She nearly choked on another sip of water. "Oh gosh! I'm late!". She jumped up, gathering her things. "My sister's a DJ on the radio and she's interviewing the singer, Tanya Sloan, and they both said that I could come in and film them."
"Oh wow, that's good!" exclaimed Trini. "Tanya Sloan? She's great!"
Maddie nodded, putting her camera bag over her shoulder. She shook Trini's hand. "Thanks again, Trini!". She ran onto the court to shake Lily's hand. "And thank you, Lily."
Lily smiled. "No problem. Come back anytime."
Maddie nodded. "I will! See ya!"
Trini picked up a towel and wiped her sweat. A crowd of fans had gathered around the court. This wasn't anything new to Trini or Lily. Ever since she and Lily won the gold medal at the Olympic games in beach volleyball, people have recognized the two of them more and more. But Trini also enjoyed how she and Lily still had relative anonymity, so they were able to go out in public without being mobbed by fans.
But, being in their most recognizable environment, fans surrounded the court where Trini and Lily had spent the morning practicing.
Trini graciously smiled at a young girl standing near her. "Hi there," she said.
"Hi." The girl smiled a toothy grin. "I watched you win on TV."
Trini laughed. "Well, thank you!" She signed a volleyball for the young girl and took a picture with her. She and Lily spent the next few hours signing autographs, at an impromptu signing. Trini looked up at one man who asked for an autograph and was taken aback by his outfit-jeans and a long-sleeved black shirt. She hid her surprise at his outfit and wondered if he was hot. His friend asked for a picture and she happily obliged.
They continued to sign autographs until late in the afternoon when the crowd finally starts to disperse. The sun was shining high in the sky and it grew even hotter.
"I'm gonna take a swim," Trini said, after helping Lily put the balls away.
"Ooh, me too."
Since they were already in bikinis, Trini and Lily raced each other to the water. They each took a long swim and after about an hour, Trini swam back to shore. "I'm gonna head home now," she called out to Lily, who was eyeing the surfboard stand.
"Okay, see you tomorrow!"
Trini headed to her car, a blue Acura. She unlocked it and pulled out a towel to dry herself off and wiped the sand from her body. She grabbed a bag of extra clothes and threw the towel over shoulder as she headed to the restroom area.
After Trini showered and changed, she went back to her car and headed off. She was singing along to the radio and stopped at a red light. When the light turned green, Trini took her time stepping on the gas and the car behind her lightly hit her from behind.
Annoyed, Trini flashed an angry look into her rearview mirror and put her turn signal on to turn into the nearest parking lot area. She looked back in the mirror to make sure the other car was still following her. She put the car in park and hopped out of her car to inspect the damage done.
"I'm so sorry!" the woman said, slamming her car door shut. "My fault. I am so sorry! My head's...it's just going crazy right now."
Trini angrily swept her long, black hair over her shoulder. She inspected the back of her car and saw that there wasn't any damage. Trini stood up straight and saw that the woman was holding out a business card. "Everything seems to be all right," she said. "My car doesn't look like anything's wrong and your car doesn't seem to have any damage." Trini reached for the woman's business card. "Thanks." Trini turned to head back to her car.
"Wait," said the woman. "Trini."
Trini turned around and smiled. "Yes?" She also took a step toward Kim. "Are you a fan of beach volleyball?"
The woman grinned. "I am...but...you...and I..." Trini opened her car and grabbed a permanent marker and a mini volleyball to sign. She usually carried a bunch in her car for when she's recognized out and about. "No, I'm sorry," continued Kim. "It's just...you and I grew up together and..." pleaded Kim.
Trini looked confused. "Oh, you must be mistaken."
The woman shook her head. "I'm not." She held out her hand. "Trini..." Trini froze in the middle of signing the volleyball and the woman laid her hand on Trini's bare arm. "Trini..." she said again.
Trini tensed up, seeing images flow through her mind. She saw herself becoming a Power Ranger, the yellow one. She saw herself overcoming her fear of heights and her and Kim trying to lead Angel Grove High into signing a petition to help the environment. She saw herself and Kim baby-sitting a young girl together and remembered when she brought her favorite doll to school, before it was turned into a monster by Rita. She remembered when her cousin visited her and was turned into cardboard cutout. She remembered teaching Jason and Tommy about the importance of working together. She saw herself trying to recruit more people to join the volleyball club that she put together at school. Lastly, she saw herself standing next to her best friend on her wedding day and grinned at the memory.
"Trini?" Kim said again, unsure.
Trini's eyes filled with tears. She dropped the marker and the ball and put her arms around her friend. "How could I forget?"
Kim smiled through her own tears. "It doesn't matter. We're here now." They looked at each other, wiping their faces. "I'll see you tonight," Kim said with a knowing smile.
Trini grinned at her, still wiping her face, and nodded. "Yeah. I'll see you tonight." She watched Kim head back into her car and drive out of the parking lot. She followed Kim's lead and slowly went into her own car. Trini headed off, tears streaming down her face. She stopped at another stoplight and grabbed a towel to wipe her face. She took a couple of deep breaths and uncapped her water bottle to take a quick sip. She put it back in the cupholder and sped off when the light turned green.
Trini drove and drove, not really knowing where she was headed to. For some reason, she drove into the parking lot of the local hospital. Trini looked up at the large building and just decided to walk in.
She walked into the lobby and didn't want to look like she was wandering around, so she looked for signs to go to the cafeteria. Trini headed for the elevator and pressed the button to go up. She walked onto the elevator with only three other people. Forgetting which floor the cafeteria was on, Trini pressed a random button.
Not knowing where she was going, Trini got off the floor that she had pressed. She mentally kicked herself for not pressing a button to go to a higher floor. Trini decided to walk around the floor, figure out where the cafeteria is, and then head back to the elevator.
As Trini walked the halls, she noticed that she was on the surgical floor. Trini wandered around, briefly glancing through each room that had an open door. She liked that these rooms had big windows so she was able to be nosy and look through the rooms.
Trini grinned when she saw people smiling and felt her heart break when she saw families crying in the rooms. She was lucky enough to have never had any serious injuries, so she never had to stay in the hospital for an extended period of time. The only time she'd been in the hospital for a long period of time was when Lily needed surgery to repair a couple of tendons in her shoulder.
"Excuse me, can I help you find someone?" a pretty, short-haired lady asked. She was wearing a white scrubs with a long-sleeved pink shirt underneath.
Trini turned at the sound of the voice. She smiled, looking around and seeing a recognizable face. "Uh no, actually I just found who I'm looking for." She gestured to the nearby room.
"Oh, you're here for Mr. Taylor?" she said. "I'm one of the doctors on his case. I could take you in to see him right now."
"Thank you, Dr..." Trini looked down at the doctor's name badge.
"Enrile." The doctor grinned and extended her hand. "I'm Dr. Alyssa Enrile."
"Trini Kwan." She shook the doctor's hand. "So, you're the Zack's doctor?"
Alyssa nodded. "Actually, I'm one of the interns. I'm a first-year intern. Would you like me to get Dr. Scott? He was actually he one who performed the surgery."
"Oh, that's not necessary," Trini said, waving a hand.
Alyssa put a hand on the doorknob. "Would you like to come in? I'm actually going to check his vitals."
Trini shook her head. "Actually, I think I'll be on my way. It looks like he's sleeping and Zack should probably just get some more rest."
"Have you checked Mr. Taylor's vitals yet, Alyssa?" asked a new, male voice. Trini smiled at the new doctor that had approached them. He wore a long white coat, gray scrubs pants and a red t-shirt.
Alyssa shook her head. "No, I haven't yet, Nick." She gestured to Trini. "This is Trini, she's here with Mr. Taylor. Trini, this is Dr. Nick Russell, one of the
other interns."
"Nice to meet you," said Trini. She and Nick shook hands. He smiled at her.
"Dr. Scott and Dr. Myers want all the interns to help out on this new patient that just came in. Bad motocross accident.". He smiled at Trini again. "Nice to meet you, Miss. Mr. Taylor's in good hands and we will continue to do everything we can to help him."
"Thank you," Trini smiled. She looked back at Zack and wondered why Zack was even in the hospital. She wanted to go in the room with Alyssa, who was currently taking his vitals, but was afraid that he would wake up and not recognize her. Not wanting to cause any trouble for him, she settled for turning around and going back to the elevator.
Instead of searching for the cafeteria again, Trini just decided to head back to her car. She walked through the lobby of the hotel and felt like grabbing a bag of chips from the vending machine. Trini dug through her pockets, trying to find some change or even a dollar. She pulled out a crisp dollar and noticed another guy at the vending machine, who was having trouble with his own dollar. Trini watched as he used the side of the machine to smooth out his dollar.
"Here do you just want a new bill?" Trini asked, pulling out another dollar from her pocket.
The guy didn't look back as he tried his own dollar again. It went in and the machine spit it back out. He groaned and turned around to face Trini. "I actually might take you up on that." He held out his dollar to Trini.
Trini gasped, recognizing the familiar face. "Billy?" she said. He was in those familiar overalls that he liked to wear, with a striped blue shirt underneath. His glasses slipped down his nose and he used his finger to push it back up.
"Yes, I'm sorry, have we met before?" Billy looked at Trini with curiousity in his eyes. He still held out his dollar.
Trini looked at Billy in wonder before she rifled through her money. She pulled out another crisp dollar bill and held it out for Billy. "Yeah," she said, almost in a whisper. "We've met before."
Billy cocked his head to one side. "Oh, I do apologize, I must have forgotten. Where have we met?"
Trini didn't say anything; she just held out her dollar. "Here," she said. "Dollar for a dollar, right?"
Billy nodded and took Trini's dollar. All of a sudden, a strange flash of memories rushed through their minds. "Trini," Billy said, breathlessly.
Trini nodded, biting her lip. She took a step closer to Billy as tears filled her eyes for the second time of the day. "Billy," she said, grinning through her tears.
Billy nodded, taking a step closer to Trini. He brushed his hand down her cheek. "I love you so, so much." He grinned and wrapped her in his arms. He looked at her for a long time before giving her a long kiss.
There's that chapter! I hope you all enjoyed this.
Next: Billy.