Here's chappie five. If it's not as enjoyable as the previous chaps, forgive me, y'all. It's kinda late right now, ya know? Brain's a little fuzzy. ;-)
Anyway, on with the tale...
(Five weeks later- July. Duh, Diva. People knows what follow June). ;-)
(Zack and Trini's house- Saturday afternoon)
Jason's mother and friends- Kimberly, especially- had been spending a lotta time with him and Jade for the past month. Jade had began feeling a little better. Jason was constantly reminded of how lucky was to have his friends. Anyway, he and Zack were playing pool in the Taylor's basement. Trini and Kim were upstairs with Jade, Zack Jr. and Kristin. Zack Jr. and Kristin were Trini and Zack's two-year-old twins. Zack and Trini'd been married four years.
"Whoo! I'm kicking your butt, Jay," Zack said happily after sinking four balls.
"Sure. I'm in such a great mood I decided to go easy on you," Jason said. His tone was casual, but, his eyes were amused. Zack smiled.
"Don't ever go into law, bro. 'Cause you're a crappy liar," he said- causing Jason to laugh.
Zack's smile faded and he took a turn for the serious. "How've you been, though, man? You know, really?" he asked his best friend.
Jason perched on the edge of the pool table. "Well, the shock and anger is still pretty strong, but, I haven't really had much time to really think about it. I'm basically all right, bro. Thanks to you guys," he said.
Zack nodded. "You know we'll always be here for ya, man. You're family," he said.
"Right back at cha, man," Jason said seriously.
Zack flashed his famous, "nothing-can-bring-me-down" grin and clapped Jason on the shoulder. "You know what would make you feel fantastic, Scott?" he asked.
"What's that?" Jason asked, grinning. Both Zack and Kim had infectious smiles.
"A good, hard putty battle," Zack said, his eyes dancing. Jason laughed.
"Hell, that's actually good idea," he said.
"Damn straight it is. I thought of it," Zack said with mock pride. Jason smirked and shook his head. "Hey, how 'bout you guys stay over for dinner?" the original black ranger suggested.
"That's cool with me. I'm sure Kim'd be fine with it. Trini's probably already asked her," Jason said.
"True," Zack agreed. "You know what Trini, Billy and I were talking to Kat about a few days ago?" Kat and Billy- an unexpected couple- had married two years earlier and Katherine was three months pregnant with their first child.
"What?" Jason asked the energetic dance instructor.
"We were talking about when we first met you and Kim," Zack said with a laugh. He, Trini, Billy, Kim and Jason had all been in the same second grade class. Kim and Jason'd been the only ones outta the group who already knew each other.
Jason shook his head and laughed at the memory. People assumed that the five of them had hit it off instantly. Not exactly. Trini had been more than put off by Zack and Kim's hyperactiveness. Jason, Kim and Zack had been weirded out by Billy because of his vast intelligence. Billy'd been uncertain about them all because he was sure they'd never like him. But Kim- forever the people person- had thrown caution the wind and introduced herself and Jason to the other three. To Zack first- since Kim had shared similarities with him. A dress Trini'd been wearing had impressed Kim, so Kim'd struck up a conversation with her. Then, they'd gotten into their likes and dislikes and whatever came to mind. As for Billy, Kim'd felt he was probably a really nice kid, just shy. So, she'd turned on her bubbly charm and reeled him in. It hadn't taken long for the five of them to form a great friendship.
"I had no idea I'd end up with four of the greatest friends a guy could ask for," Zack said.
"Yeah. I wasn't expecting to get three more great friends," Jason said.
"You and Kim were like two peas in a pod. I saw how close you were when ya first walked in. It was plain as the nose on my face," Zack said. They were all connected for life. But the bond between Jason and Kimberly had always been stronger. It was no shock to anyone to find out he'd been the first person she'd talked to after sending Tommy the letter.
Jason nodded. Yep. He and Kim'd be tight as peanut butter and jelly til the day they died. Simple as that.
Just then, the two men heard a door open and they looked up to see Trini coming down. She was holding Kristin. When she saw her friend and husband looking at her, she stopped and turned to face them. "Kim and I are gonna take the kids to the park. Do you guys wanna come along?" the composed ex- yellow ranger asked.
Jason and Zack looked at each other and shrugged. Then, Zack grinned up at Trini and their daughter. "Sure, baby," he said.
(Hours later)
(Kimberly's Apt)
"I have chocolate and strawberry," Kim said, looking over her shoulder at Jason. They were in her kitchen.
"Bring on the chocolate, Hart," Jason said.
Kim grinned and pulled a carton of chocolate ice cream out. They'd left Trini and Zack's two hours ago and dropped Jade off at Jason's mom's house- where the little girl would be staying overnight. Anyway, Kim and Jason'd decided to come back here, kick back, pop in a DVD, eat a little ice cream.
"You know, popcorn with a movie is what normal people usually go for," Kim said as she took two bowls out of the cupboard.
Jason leaned against the counter and nodded. "Kim, we were superheroes. We were under an evil spell. We fought actual aliens and monsters. I think 'normal' flew outta the window a long time ago," he said.
Kim laughed and nodded. "Great point," she said. She still had trouble- to this day- believing she'd once possessed the ability to teleport. But it'd been the most totally amazing experience of her life. No doubt about it.
A short while later, the two former rangers were on the couch, laughing at the action/comedy playing out onscreen. Kim'd chosen that combo 'cause she knew it was one of Jason's favorites. For the past month, her chief goal'd been to keep him and Jade smiling as much as possible. Kim's eyes slid from the TV and over to her friend. He looked so relaxed and happy... also really cute. No, it was more than that. He'd surpassed cute a long time ago. Jason was just plain gorgeous. Aside from being loyal, honorable, caring, protective. Wow. Just how the hell could Gina not be happy with him? Was she seriously loony tunes? Had to be. In his own way, Jason Lee Scott was every woman's dream. Only a flaming idiot would not be happy to wake up next to him every day for the rest of their life.
Jason soon became aware of Kim's eyes on him and looked over at her. "Is everything okay, Firebird?" he asked.
"Yeah. Yeah. It's just that..." her voice trailed. She continued to look at him- unable to stop for some reason. She began feeling the weirdest, most unfamiliar sensations.
"Just that what?" he asked, a hint of concern in his deep voice.
Kim shook her head slowly. She couldn't quite explain it. Just sitting here with him right now was... "She's just so stupid," she whispered.
"Who?" Jason asked with a frown.
"Gina," Kim said. Jason snorted lightly.
"I second that emotion," he said dryly.
Kim reached out and placed her hand on his before she could stop herself. "You are way too good for her," she said seriously.
Jason half-smiled. "I could get used to hearing that," he said.
"Then, do. 'Cause I mean it, Jase. Really. She totally didn't deserve an amazing guy like you," Kim said.
Jason looked into her eyes. "You know what I haven't figured out yet? How the hell I got an amazing friend like you," he said.
"You chose what was behind door number two," Kim said teasingly. He laughed lightly. Then, they grinned at each other and clasped hands. They squeezed simultaneously.
Jason suddenly thought of how beautiful she was. She'd always been beautiful- inside and out. But, right now, she looked more beautiful than usual. The sensations Kim was currently experiencing began slowly washing over him.
Kim's breath caught in her throat. The atmosphere had quickly changed. Things were starting to feel a little intense and heavy for some reason. Maybe it was the way Jason was staring at her. It was making her feel kinda like he was thirsty and she was the only thing that could quench that thirst. Whew! He seemed to be looking right into her soul. Her hold on his hand tightened.
Then, they both slowly leaned in at the same time and their lips met in a soft, tentative kiss. Kim deepened it, freed her hand from his and entangled her fingers in his hair. He pulled her closer and began caressing her back. They both felt this just seemed like the sensible thing to do right now.
The kiss had rapidly intensified and they'd both quickly heated up. After what seemed like freaking centuries, they pulled away to catch their breath. Kim's head was spinning and her heart had gone into overdrive. Wow! She couldn't remember the last time a kiss had affected her so wildly. The desire to kiss her friend and... do so much more was incredibly strong.
Jason's eyes were a little glossy. He felt weak. Like Kim, his heart was going crazy. Damn! Where the hell had that come from? He and Kim had just kissed. And it'd brought insane desire to life. He looked at her again. Her lips were a little puffy, eyes a little wild, face flushed. Scratch what he'd thought earlier. Now, she looked more beautiful than usual. Truth was, she looked like the most beautiful woman he'd ever laid eyes on. And he wanted her. Now.
Kim shook her head slightly. All she wanted right now was to move this to her bedroom.
"Kimberly," he said huskily. His tone caused a rush of sheer excitement. Their was only one thing on both their minds at the moment.
Kim stood and looked down at him. "What are we waiting for?" she asked softly.
He stood slowly and looked down into her eyes. "Are you sure?" he asked.
In reply, she took his hand and led him to her bedroom.
Stay tuned if you want more! Oh, and zeopurple, I know how much ya love T/Kat. Sorry I didn't pair 'em together. I just really like the idea of her and Billy. They really fit, IMO. Anyway, hope I made y'all proud with this. Catch ya on the flipside!