Part 2

Bright warm sunlight lit up the green park as Chad and Alyssa sat down to a picnic lunch that Saturday afternoon. They had spent a fun morning sightseeing and as they relaxed underneath the shade of a large tree, the two admired the view of people walking their pets while a group of children played soccer across the way. Turning his attention back toward the picnic, Chad gave a surprised look as Alyssa opened the basket she brought and produced an impressive lunch spread on the blanket.

"Wow, you really went all out," he exclaimed examining the homemade food. Among the items were pesto chicken wraps, hummus and guacamole dips, as well as fruit salad.

"Oh, maybe a little," she admitted with a laugh, "I've always been so used to cooking for a large group back home. You should have seen the way some of my friends could eat." As they began to eat, Alyssa turned to Chad curiously, "So, I've already told you a little bit about myself, what about you? How long have you lived in Mariner Bay?"

"All my life," Chad replied enjoying a chicken wrap, "I guess I love working and being around the ocean so much, I can't imagine living anywhere else."

"You're talking about the dolphin training, or working with Lightspeed?" Alyssa asked. Chad nearly choked on his sandwich and spun around in surprise.

"Wait! How did you know?"

Alyssa laughed and put a gentle hand on his shoulder, "I may be new to the city, but it's not like Lightspeed or their Rangers a huge secret around here. I know you're a Power Ranger and kind of a local hero too."

"I hope that's not the only reason you agreed to go out with me today," he sighed.

To his surprise, Alyssa pulled out her own morpher and quickly showed it to him, "You're in good company. It just so happens we've got Power Rangers where I'm from too. Ever hear of the Wild Force Rangers?"

Chad stared at her for a minute before they both broke out into relieved laughter. After a long pause, Chad began to answer her original question, "The dolphin training is volunteer work now but I still love it. It's what I did before I joined Lightspeed. But ever since I became a Ranger, I found I enjoyed helping people a lot more."

"Seems like it keeps you pretty busy," Alyssa noted gesturing to their picnic food, "Not a whole lot of time for this sort of thing, huh?"

Chad grimaced, "Maybe a little. But to be really honest, I've always been kinda unlucky when it comes to dating a romance stuff."

"Well, I'm here with you today. Is that such a bad thing?" she grinned playfully as Chad rolled his eyes.

"Come on," she said poking his arm, "I'm sure there must be tons of other women chasing after you."

"The last girl I fell for was a mermaid, and that didn't really work out too well." the Blue Ranger sighed matter of factly.

To any other normal person, that statement would have sounded completely preposterous, but between two Power Rangers, it almost sounded quite reasonable and commonplace.

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, I'm not really great at the whole romance game either," Alyssa admitted wistfully as she nibbled at her sandwich. Her thoughts drifted back to Cole for a moment and she spoke out loud, "Back home, I used to have a pretty big crush on a guy I worked with, and who was also a friend of mine. He never really seemed to notice, so when I left for Mariner Bay, part me decided it was best to just give up on that and move on. And now here we are."

Chad turned and put a gentle hand on her shoulder, "You know, I think that sort of thing is always a little tougher for us Rangers. Most people just don't understand us, or the things we have to deal with sometimes."

"Wise words," Alyssa shrugged, "Then again, you've been at this Ranger business a little longer than I have."

"Geez, you're making me feel like a geezer here." Chad replied nudging her, "It's not like I'm that much older than you anyway."

The two laughed and continued to eat in a companionable silence for a while as Chad snuck another glance at his fellow Ranger. To his surprise, he followed her gaze and saw her watching a small group of people practicing Tai Chi in the gardens.

"Graceful isn't it?" Chad smiled in admiration, "It kinda reminds me of when I'd watch my old sensei practicing sometimes. The way he moved almost looked so fluid and effortless… almost like flowing water."

Alyssa turned in surprise, "You practice martial arts? That's awesome! So do I!"

"Really?" Chad asked with a hint of excitement in his voice.

"I've been doing it since I was a little girl," Alyssa nodded, "Do you know any Tai Chi?"

Chad sheepishly shrugged, "Well, yeah. I've been doing it for a long time, but I've still got a lot to learn."

"Do you think you could teach me some? I've always wanted to try it," Alyssa asked hopefully with an excited smile.

The Blue Ranger paused for a moment before he gave a playful wink, "Well that depends, Miss Enrile. Do you really want to learn, or are you asking me on a second date now?"

Alyssa laughed, realizing he was echoing her own words at the zoo. "I suppose the answer to both is a yes."

"Then in that case, I'd love to practice with you, and I think I know just the perfect spot." Chad responded with a nod.

"Great!" Alyssa said rising to her feet and taking a stance, "I can't wait to show you some new moves too. There's this one that my dad taught me where…"

She was cut off as a small spigot rose from the ground underneath her feet. The White Ranger looked down in surprise and gave a yelp as the park sprinklers went off, spraying her again with repeated streams of water.

Chad immediately jumped up and pulled the picnic blanket out to shield her from getting any wetter.

"I can't believe this happened again!" the White Ranger exclaimed in dismay wrapping herself in the blanket as the two hurried away from the sprinklers. "Please tell me the next place you pick for us to meet isn't one where I'll get completely drenched."

Chad gave a nervous cough, "Umm, well…"