"You're a loner?" Kuroda asked.

Miki shrugged. "I guess that's what he thinks."

"How come?" Aoyama wanted to know.

Miki shrugged again. "Coz I have no friends?"

"How come you don't have friends?" It was Kijima's turn to ask.

"I don't know, people!" she pretended to be annoyed. Being a sentai at such a young age wasn't exactly what you would call a normal childhood. While other girls her age were busy painting their nails and having sleepovers, she fought bad guys at daily basis to maintain the peace of human kind. When her sentai days were over, she became a gymnast but somehow she found it hard to mix with the girls her age because she was way too matured for them. The girls admired her skill and determination and although Miki was always kind and willing to lend a hand, they found her withdrawn and boring.

"My car's parked that way," Aoyama said.

"Hey, chief, why don't you take my motorbike for the sake of old times?" Kuroda asked Akama. "Here's the key. Give Miki to me. We'll all go with Aoyama."

"You would exchange me for a motorbike?" Miki protested.

"You want to ride a motorbike with your ankle like that?" Kuroda asked.

Miki quickly shook her head. "Just kidding, partner! Don't scold me."

"Nah, I don't have the heart," Kuroda said sarcastically.

"Here, pinku, get in," Kuroda pushed Miki into the front passenger seat.

"Ouch, gentle, please!" Miki complained.

"Wow, Aoyama, nice car you have here," Miki commented.

"Do you know he's a successful engineer now?" Kijima said.

"No, I don't! That's so cool!" Miki exclaimed.

"Yeah, remembering the, quote, state of the art, unquote, rocket the last time," Kijima added.

Everyone laughed remembering the time when Aoyama insisted on building a rocket for Goggle V. Unfortunately it wasn't very successful. Kijima was the 'lucky' guinea pig at that time.

"I don't know why I agreed to try it on that time! I got bruises all over the place!" The rocket worked for a bit then it brought Kijima down with it. Head first.

Again, everyone laughed. Aoyama blushed. He was a little embarrassed being teased like that. Especially in front of Miki.

Aoyama had his eyes on Miki ever since they first met. Having to always sit next to her in Goggle Cougar and stand next to her in every formation, he couldn't help but notice how beautiful she was.

Love between members wasn't something which was encouraged at that time. Plus Miki was only sixteen. So Aoyama suppressed his feelings ever since.

Kijima, being his closest friend noticed his interest on Miki but Aoyama made him swear not to tell anyone.

Yesterday, when Kijima rang him to ask if he wanted to come and watch Miki compete, Aoyama jumped to the chance. He always wanted to see her but was too shy to go alone.

"Ouuchhh!" Miki suddenly cried.

"What's wrong?" the rest asked.

"It hurts," she complained. She wasn't a whiner, but her ankle hurt really badly.

"We're almost there," Aoyama said. "You'll be okay soon," Aoyama used his free hand to stroke Miki's head hoping it would calm her down.

At the back seat, Kuroda and Kijima exchanged glance at Aoyama's gesture.

- oOo -

"How bad is it, doc?" Miki asked when he saw her doctor frowning at the X-ray picture of her ankle.

The doctor replied with a sigh. "This isn't a sprain anymore I'm afraid. There's a bad fracture right over here," he pointed to a spot on the picture.

"Ouch," Kuroda squinted at the broken bones the doctor pointed. "It doesn't look good, Miki."

"What's the verdict, doc?" Miki asked again.

"Even after it heals completely, I'm afraid your ankle will be even weaker than before...," he paused.

"Does that mean…she won't be able to…" Akama spoke what was in everyone's mind.

The doctor nodded. The room suddenly became very quiet and everyone was solemn. For a few second no one spoke.

Miki knew that this would be the case because her ankle hurt a lot more than ever before. She thought she would be okay to hear this verdict but to think that gymnastic was all she had; she couldn't help but felt upset.

She felt tears forming in her eyes. She quickly looked away and wiped it with her hands. She wasn't going to cry. She knew this day would eventually come when she was told that a gymnast can't have a weak ankle.

She injured her ankle during her sentai days but she thought it had completely healed. When she kept spraining the same ankle, her doctor told her that if she continued to make her legs work hard, the result would be fatal. Miki was stubborn and ambitious. She didn't want to stop. She was determined to compete until the end. And it seemed like the end had finally come.

"Cheer up, you guys! It's just a broken ankle. I'm not dead!" Miki tried to be cheerful. "I'm too old for this gymnast business anyway. Didn't you know that I had decided to retire if I don't qualify this time?"

"I'll leave you alone for a moment." The doctor left the room to give the group some privacy. Akama followed him out. He wanted to ask him some questions about Miki's condition.

Inside, Kijima tried to crack some jokes which Aoyama thought were really lame but it made Miki and Kuroda laugh. Aoyama felt helpless. He knew although Miki put on a strong face, inside she was crushed. He wished Miki would just cry and let it out so he could comfort her and tell her it was going to be okay.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Aoyama who had been very quiet suddenly asked. Everyone turned their attention to him.

"Are you sure YOU are okay?" Miki replied playfully. "You look as if I'm about to die."

Aoyama took a step closer to her. "It's okay to cry, Miki. We're here for you."

Miki felt the warmth in her friend's familiar voice. She had missed them. All these years she had been really lonely. She wished this didn't happen when she finally got reunited with her old friends. Her family. Her eyes started to get wet again. She let out a little sob followed by a weak "thank you." After that she couldn't hold it anymore, tears flowed down her cheeks.

Aoyama reached for her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. "It's going to be alright, Miki. It's going to be alright."

Once again Kijima and Kuroda exchanged glance. As if they can read each other minds, they made a move and quietly left the room.