The sun was shining through my bedroom window as I laid curled up in my bed. I knew it was warm outside, the buzzing of the air conditioner in the living room telling me so. I still had my blanket tossed over me though. It felt better this way. I could wallow in my own pity without having to look at the one thing in my life I hated more than me right now; the wheelchair in the corner of my bedroom.
It had now been a full two weeks since my accident and my surgery. The doctor told me I should feel lucky and that depression was normal after something like this. He didn't understand though that it meant the end of my career, my dreams and everything I had worked towards since I was a little girl. It was the one thing I gave up being a Power Ranger for and it was suddenly gone. I had wasted a good chunk of my life following this dream to just have it shatter into a million pieces in front of me. How the hell was I supposed to feel lucky after all of that?
"Kimberly!" Aunt Grace called, her voice carrying up the hallway. "Phone!"
"Tell them I'm not here." I called back. "Or that I'm dead." I muttered under my breath. I buried my head under the covers again, hoping to just disappear. A few seconds later, I heard my bedroom door open. I didn't move. I knew it was Grace. It was about lunch time and she probably had my medicine for me.
"Well, aren't you a little ray of sunshine." Jason's voice said above me. I popped my head out from under the blanket and found him and Trini standing just inside my room. The two of them looked good, their time abroad obvious doing well for them. Trini's hair was cut shorter now, stopping at about her shoulders. Jason grinned down at me, shaking his head. "What are you doing? It's noon and you're still in bed."
"It's a free country." I said, shrugging. "What are you guys doing here?"
"Well, rumor has it that no one has heard from you in weeks. We figured it would be a good idea to pop in and see what was going on. Get dressed. We can go and get some ice cream." He replied.
"I can't." I answered, glaring at him. Why were they even here? I told Aunt Grace I didn't want to see anyone. It was still too soon.
"Why not? It'll be fun. We can get ice cream and to the beach or something." He argued. Trini glanced over her shoulder and rested a hand on his arm.
"Jase…" She whispered. He glanced at her, confused. His eyes followed hers and his expression faded to one of panic.
"Kimberly, are you okay?" Trini asked. I felt tears fill my eyes as I shook my head.
"No. My life is over." I whispered, burying my face into my hands. Trini sat on the edge of the bed and pulled me into her arms. I cried into her shoulder, feeling my body shudder from the sobs.
"What happened?" Jason asked, kneeling on the floor next to the bed.
"I tripped down the stairs at the dorms. I injured my spine to the point where I was almost paralyzed. I'm not but the doctor said that any kind of fall or twist could land me in that stupid chair for the rest of my life." I glared at the wheelchair like it was my worst enemy.
"But, you're not paralyzed?" Jase asked. I shook my head.
"No."
"So, then what's the big deal?" Trini gaped at his comment.
"Jason!" She exclaimed.
"What?" He turned back to me. "You aren't dead, Kimmy. You can still walk and do plenty of other stuff. Gymnastics isn't what defined you. It was just something you liked to do. You can't let this end everything you've worked hard for. You still have your music and other stuff you can do. Sitting in bed all day and feeling sorry for yourself isn't going to change things. What did Tommy say when you told him? I'm surprised he isn't here right now." I shifted so I wasn't facing him. "Kim?"
"You didn't tell him, did you?" Trini asked softly.
"No." I whispered. "And you guys can't tell him either. Once he finds out, he'll be here first thing and I can't let him do that."
"Kimberly!" Jason exclaimed. "He's your boyfriend! He has every right to know! What do you think will happen when he finds out you didn't tell him?"
"I can't risk him just dropping everything to be here. He has responsibilities at home that matter more than me. Like the fate of the world, for example." I argued back. "That comes first and he won't remember that as he's running here to try and save me."
"You have to give the guy some credit, Kim. He knows what his job means. He has every right in the would to know that you are hurt! How long did you think you could go on without telling him? What is he going to say when you go home?"
"I'm not going home, okay? I sent him a letter and broke up with him." Tears welled in my eyes again. "I lied and said I met someone else so he wouldn't try to fix things between us. And it obviously worked because he hasn't called me since I sent it." A tense quiet fell over the room as my words ebbed away between us.
"He hasn't call at all?" Trini asked in a soft voice. I nodded.
"Not once."
"Maybe there's been a lot of fighting. Or he hasn't received it yet." Jason offered.
"Aisha told me he got it at the Youth Center. He spent the weekend skiing with Kat." I wiped the tears from my face. "This is a good thing. He doesn't need to be tied to my worthless ass now."
"Hey." Jason rested his arms on my knee. "You aren't worthless. Everything will work out. You just have to have some faith, that's all. You've been up against a lot worse. This is nothing compared to that. Besides, you've still got us."