Annnd...I'm back with a brand new chapter. Now, as I mentioned before, Jason and Aisha didn't have any interaction whatsoever in season 2 of MMPR, but, as you know, I happen to be a huge Jaisha shipper, so I've taken some creative liberty concerning them. Let's just say that even meeting someone briefly won't guarantee you a chance of happiness. And that's why my story has gotten a big response from you.

Furthermore, since I've started re-watching MMPR, I also noticed that Aisha didn't have a canon or non-canon love interest of her own and the way she was written out of the show was pretty much in poor taste. I felt that she was an underappreciated character who had a lot of potential and could've been utilized more effectively if she had stuck around. So, in this one shot, she does have someone in her life, leaving Jason out in the cold yet again.

Enjoy and happy reading!

Lots of love, hugs and kisses from your resident writer and friend, Nina!

X

Chapter three: Aisha

There's a saying that goes like this: you don't know what you got until it's gone.

Well, in Jason's case, he never even had the opportunity to experienced something like that. At least, in the romance department.

He didn't understand why he couldn't get a girlfriend. I mean, come on, he was everything you could possibly want in a guy: sweet, handsome, powerful, strong-willed, smart and outgoing. He was considered one the hottest guys to ever walk the hallways of Angel Grove high, however, for some reason, donning the spandex suit and taking on the responsibility of saving the world while trying to live a normal life as a teenager made it virtually impossible for him to have a steady girlfriend.

Well, after he was chosen to go to the peace conference with his two best friends, Trini and Zack, Jason thought he finally had the opportunity to find someone he could spend some time with.

As he would find out later on, the odds were definitely stacked against him in finding a girlfriend.

Truthfully, he didn't have a whole lot of interaction with the Stone Canyon trio: Adam Park, Rocky DeSantos and Aisha Campbell, but, when he laid his brown eyes on the spunky, sassy African American beauty, well, he was blown away at her outgoing personality, her beautiful smile and her kind and caring nature. One look at her and he immediately waved the white flag.

He had fallen in love with her.

Up until he finally left for Geneva, Switzerland, Jason did everything he could to get a chance to talk to her, to get to know her better, however, Aisha was hard to get. For one, if she's not hanging out with her two male best friends, not to mention spending a lot of her time with the rangers and even helping them out by fighting the putties. It was those qualities that the sassy girl would be chosen to become the new yellow ranger.

After weeks of trying to her attention, which was something the original red ranger would never do, given his circumstances, Jason thought he finally had the opportunity to get her alone so they could get to know each other much better by going to the park. However, to his surprise, she ended up letting him down gently; letting him know that whatever feelings he may have harbored for her won't be reciprocated because they were in two different paths.

"I think you're an amazing guy and I'm sure any girl would fight to the death trying to land a date with you, but I'm not one of them. For one, long distance relationships never work out and two, it wouldn't be fair to either one of us if we wasted so much precious time waiting for you or me to come home for good. I just don't think it'd work out the way you and I wanted it to be," Aisha told him as she leaned over and kissed him on his cheek lightly.

"Oh, I see," Jason said, looking dejected.

A small smile formed on her face. "Don't be sad, Jason. As I mentioned before, you're an amazing guy with a pure heart of gold and if looks could kill, well you'll be found guilty. I just think that it wouldn't be right if you waited for me and vice versa because it'll create more problems between us in the future."

"I get where you're coming from, but it still hurt," he sighed deeply.

"Yeah, I know. However, things will work out for you in the long run. I have complete faith in you, Jason. I'm just sorry it had to come to this, but you understand where I'm coming from, right?" she asked as she placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Yeah, I do. I'm sorry for wasting your time," he replied as he was getting ready to leave.

"No, you aren't wasting my time. Like I said before, you're an amazing person and I wish you nothing but the best. I do wish that things could've worked out differently between us," Aisha said, giving him a small smile.

Yeah, me, too. But who am I kidding? I never even got the chance to see where this would lead. However, she's right; long distance relationships never work out and it wouldn't be fair for me to ask her to wait for me when I do come back home. So much for that.

Though the next two years were spent exploring new opportunities in a new country, Jason still thought about Aisha occasionally. He wondered what she was doing, how she handled being a power ranger and if she was doing okay. Well, thanks to some letter correspondence with his childhood best friend, Kimberly, the sassy mama bear was doing great and was thriving big time as the yellow ranger.

However, fate once again intervened. Jason learned that Aisha was sent to Africa to retrieve the yellow Zeo crystal, but after she got her hands on it (and learning about the horrible conditions with endangered animals and the failing health of the villagers), she made a fateful decision.

Aisha decided to stay in Africa to help the villagers and save the endangered animals, thus, she passed the yellow Zeo crystal onto a fellow young villager, a young girl named Tanya Sloan, who would ultimately become the new yellow ranger herself.

He was floored with the news. Maybe there was a chance for him to fly over to Africa and finally tell her how he felt. Given that he was still in Geneva, it was the perfect opportunity for him to take that chance and finally snag that sassy, beautiful girl from Stone Canyon.

However, it wasn't meant to be, as he would find out.

Jason ended up returning home to Angel Grove; not only to finish out his senior year in high school, but to assume the gold ranger's powers temporarily. So his chance of flying to Africa and finding Aisha was once again dashed, with seemingly no way for him to get in touch with her. Furthermore, he was also crushed to learn that he wasn't the only one who was heartbroken over Aisha's departure.

Turns out, it was Aisha's best friend (and former boyfriend) Rocky DeSantos, that was also heartbroken over her decision to stay in Africa.

However, over time, the blue Zeo ranger has gotten over it and even found love again with a beautiful, smart and blind woman named Penny Johnson.

But, for Jason, he mentally kicked himself for letting yet another girl slip right through his fingertips.

After his second stint as a power ranger came to an end, he decided to just simply move on with his life. After graduating high school, he went on to college, started his career in real estate, moved to Malibu and simply kept living his life as a single, successful man living in southern California. Though he has dated, none of his suitors kept him interested and, over time, his dating life just continued to diminish by the second.

Once again, his thoughts turned to Aisha. It's been almost ten years since he's heard from her and he was getting a little bit concerned; even though they never embarked on a romantic relationship, he still cared for her as a friend and all he wanted was to see if she was okay.

He would get that answer when he received an unexpected phone call from the sassy girl herself.

"Aisha, how have you been doing? It's been what, ten years since we've last spoken?" Jason asked, his heart leaping out of his chest.

She laughed heartedly on the other line. "I've been doing great. I'm so glad I decided to stay in Africa and help out the villagers and the endangered animals. Furthermore, I found love here as well."

"Wait, what?" he asked, his jaw dropped in shock.

"Oh, yeah. I found love here as well. His name is Damian and he's a fellow animal rights activist and pediatrician. He does a lot of missionary work in Africa, so that's how we met. Needless to say, we're getting married in about three months," she explained, the tone of her voice sounding cheerful and giddy.

"Well, uh, I guess congratulations are in order for you, Ish. I take it he's treating you right?" he asked, his heart dropping right to his stomach.

"Oh, yes. Damian treats me like a queen. I'm so happy with him, I can't stand it sometimes. I really do love him."

"Well, then, I'm happy for you, girl. So, I take it revealing your big news isn't the only reason why you decided to call little ole me, huh?"

"Well, you're right. There's another reason why I'm calling. Damian and I decided to get married back home."

Jason's heart sunk even further. Now he has to bear witness in seeing another girl who got away from him marry someone else. Things couldn't possibly get any worse, right?

"You mean, you're coming back home?" he asked, the tone of his voice cracking with emotion.

"Yeah, I am. Damian and I are getting married in Angel Grove and I'd would like it very much if you, um, attend the wedding," Aisha said in a soft, unsure voice.

"You want me to attend the wedding? Um, I don't know if that's a good idea, Ish," he replied, trying not to sound bitter.

"Oh, come on, Jase. There's no hard feelings between us, right. Besides, I'm sure that you have someone special in your life."

"Actually, no, I don't. I'm still single; even after I went to the peace conference and then coming back home, I stayed single. Don't me wrong, I've dated several women, but I could never find the one."

"What? Are you serious?"

"Dead serious. And there's something else you should know, Aisha. Even after you told me that we would never work, I never stopped thinking about you. When I found out that you went to Africa, I thought I had the perfect opportunity to fly from Geneva in order to track you down. However, I ended up coming back to Angel Grove and missed out on an opportunity to tell you how I felt...again."

"Oh, Jason..."

"No, no, I understand that you still don't see me as anymore than a friend and I can accept that. I'm happy that you were able to find someone who loves and respects you. I just don't thank that it's a good idea for me to attend your wedding, that's all," Jason confessed, a single tear streaming down his face.

Aisha sighed deeply and clutched the phone in her hands tightly. She could clearly hear his heart breaking on the other line and that made her feel guilty. For so long, she thought that she couldn't find someone to love because of her independent, sassy nature and she started to wonder what would've happened if she had given the original red ranger a chance? Would things turn out differently? Would she end up marrying him instead of Damian, the man she met and fell in love with while staying in Africa?

More importantly, had she not decided to go to Africa, would she remain a power ranger?

Well, there was nothing she could do to change it. Those questions will probably never be answered and, as much as she wished to go back in time and change things around, she can't and a part of her will always feel guilty about that.

However, she was happy. Damian treats her right and she can't wait to marry him. She just wished that Jason will put his hurt feelings aside long enough to show his support and attend the wedding.

"Jason, I'm so sorry. I didn't know how much this was affecting you," she said sincerely.

A tainted smile form on his face. "It's okay, Ish. I'll, uh, come to the wedding. It'll be good to see some of my friends again...including you."

"You really would? Thank you very much, Jase. I really appreciate it."

"It's no problem. So, when are you coming back?"

"Within the next week or so. Damian and I have some unfinished business to take care of in Sierra Leone, but once that's taken care of, we'll be home and the wedding preparations will commence. It'll be good to see you again."

"Yeah, same here. Listen, I'm gonna let you go. Call me later when you have the chance."

"Okay, I will. It was good talking to you again, Jason."

"Same here, Aisha. Goodbye," he said before ending the call. He leaned back against the sofa and sighed deeply, wondering how the in the hell will he able to conduct himself when Aisha's wedding finally arrives.

So, another one bites the dust. I don't know if I'll ever find someone, but, at least, Aisha has found someone and for that, I'm happy for her. But, all I want is for a girl to come into my life and make me happy. Is that too much to ask?

Apparently, as he was sitting alone in his darkened living room, maybe it was too much for him.

Maybe he'd be better off alone and miserable for the rest of his life.

Coming up in the next chapter: When it comes to Katherine, will Jason violate 'guy code' by dating his best friend's ex? Or has he realized that he never even stood a chance with the Australian beauty in the first place? Stay tuned!

Just three chapters left and this story is finished. I really appreciate you guys taking the time out and reading it.

Please review!