AN1: Hello all you wonderful readers! This is your monthly reminder to check that your email opt-in is still turned on (if you want it to be). Since this bugger gets auto reset every six months to go away- you may want to double check it if you've noticed email notifications have gone buh bye. Now on with the story!
"No extra training today?" Jason asked as Thomas shook his head no and he stared at him. Thomas had had extra training every day since he had arrived and sometimes he was lucky enough to get an extra early wake up call when things had gone 'wrong' the day before. There was absolutely no way he was going to suddenly have a free afternoon. "Okay…what's going on?"
"Nothing- I just need a break," Thomas hedged as Jason gave him a look that clearly showed that he did not believe him. Who would blame him? He had needed a break for weeks, but that had changed nothing with his father. This assignment was the only thing that had changed and he still needed to keep what it was really about under wraps. However, he desperately wanted someone that he could share this with. He wanted someone that knew what was going on in his life that wasn't an instructor or mentor. "Look…I have an assignment and I've got to get started on it."
"Like extra homework?" Jason asked as Thomas gave him a look and Jason slowly nodded as the realization hit him. Of course. Of course Thomas would get a real assignment when he had only been here for eight weeks. If this had happened on the first day, he would have been jealous of him, but that was not the case anymore. He had seen enough to know that it was potentially setting Thomas up to fail. "Holy shit- really? They trust you to actually do something ranger related?"
"Someone does, but my dad isn't lightening any of my load- so he doesn't," Thomas stated as Jason just shook his head. Over the last several months, his classmates had gotten to see a side of Mentor Trueheart that none of them had realized existed. He had always been kind and cordial to them, pushing them where necessary, but not overly so. With Thomas, he rode him into the ground and he still wasn't satisfied. "So, yeah. No extra training today."
"Good luck," Jason said as Thomas let out a laugh. If only Jason knew what the assignment was, he'd know just how bad he was going to need some luck.
Thomas walked into the Juice Bar and glanced around. Theo was right- there were teenagers everywhere and he blended in with them. Well, sort of- he was the same age as them. It would be too much to say that he actually fit in, he knew that he still stood out because of how he carried himself. The years of training and the responsibility placed on him had changed him. He walked over to the Juice Bar and was surprised when the man on the other side walked up to him and he immediately recognized him.
"Ernie?" Thomas asked as Ernie paused and then they both broke into smiles and hugs. Ernie had visited often when he was younger, but had had some sort of falling out with his parents over the years. "This is your place?"
"How did you ever convince your old man to let you do something normal?" Ernie asked as Thomas grimaced and Ernie then stared at him. He knew how much trouble Thomas would be in if he did something against his father's wishes. If he had to guess, there was another reason that Thomas was here and he hoped that she stopped by this afternoon. "You know what…even if he doesn't want you here- I'm glad you can finally just be a kid."
"Ugh…is there any way I can get some of that?" a girl said as she plopped down in the chair next to Thomas and he glanced over at her before doing a double take. The girl in the picture, although he had to admit that the picture didn't really do her justice.
Her eyes caught his attention first as he saw the warmth and joy in them, things that were missing far too much in his own life. He quickly scanned her body and struggled to keep his breath even as her pink t-shirt and jeans clung to her body in just the right ways. He may regularly spar with some of the strongest women in the world, but they held nothing on her. He brought his eyes back up to her face and watched a relaxed smile pass between her and Ernie and a spark as her eyes glanced back at him that he couldn't quite place. She was beautiful and he knew that he would do anything to make sure that the transition to being a prophet was smooth from here on out.
"Thomas Trueheart- this is Kimberly Hart. She's one of the elite gymnasts that trains in the next building over," Ernie said as Thomas tried to force his face to neutral as he extended his hand towards her, hoping that she wouldn't recognize the last name Trueheart and freak the way his uncle thought she would. It was well known who the Truehearts were and she'd have to live under a rock to not know what family he was from.
"And I'm guessing you're one of the Trueheart boys that gets to have no life until your Power Ranger legacy is decided," Kimberly said as she shook his hand and he felt a jolt pass through him. They locked eyes for a moment and he knew that she had felt it too, but as she dropped his hand he realized she wasn't going to press it. He found himself wanting to lean into it, but could feel the wall she was putting up between them. "If it helps- same."
"Don't be melodramatic," Ernie said as Kimberly crossed her arms and stared up at him. What could she possibly have in her life that was even close the expectations that had been on him since birth? "Your dad just wants you to maximize your potential. I didn't expect you until much later though."
"Grade 2 ankle sprain- I'm out for the rest of the week," Kimberly said as she motioned to the crutches on her other side. She leaned closer to Thomas and glanced at his drink as she smiled up at him. "What is that?"
"No idea. Ernie has made it for me since I was about five," Thomas said as she continued smiling at him and he found himself smiling back at her. He had the, somewhat insane, thought that he would do just about anything to keep her smiling at him like that. He'd never have anyone meet him and look at him the way that she was- either they were immediately terrified or they immediately wanted to use him for something.
"I can get you one, Kimmie," Ernie said as he glanced back and forth between them, knowing that she had barely heard him. He doubted Mitchell would ever let Thomas date someone aside from a Power Ranger, but that didn't mean he was going to stop them. He would encourage it to keep Thomas from becoming his father.
"You don't look serious enough to be called Thomas," Kimberly remarked as he stared at her. Him? Not serious? "Ahh…yeah…I see it with that face. You're cuter the other way."
Thomas immediately choked on his milkshake, his face turning beet red. He watched the amusement in her eyes as he struggled to breathe, but she then passed him a bottle of water and he took a swig. He gasped for a bit of air and then heard her laugh for the first time. This was going to be the hardest ranger assignment ever. How was he supposed to stay just a friend with her?
"Here you go," Ernie said as he slid a shake in front of Kimberly and he gave the both of them a knowing smile.
"You trying to get rid of me?" Kimberly asked as she motioned to the to go cup and Ernie shook his head before pouring Thomas' drink into a to go cup as well. She glanced over at Thomas and saw the confusion spreading on his face.
"Neither of you get to be kids enough, get out of here before your parents come searching for you," Ernie said as they both smiled at him and Thomas grabbed both of their drinks while Kimberly grabbed her crutches. He watched as they walked out of the building together and he could not help but smile. Maybe, just maybe, Thomas Trueheart was going to have a real chance at a normal life.
"Where are we going?" Kimberly asked as she hobbled along next to Thomas and he rolled through the ideas in his mind. Ernie hadn't been joking when he suggested how much his father kept him away from being a normal teenager.
"You want to hang out…with me?" Thomas asked as she nodded and he let that sink in. He hadn't thought that it would be this easy to start this assignment. He also felt a jolt in his stomach as he realized that there was so much he was going to have to lie to her about. This wasn't happenstance, even if he pretended like it was. He had been sent here to meet her and watch her and he didn't like the idea of lying to her about that.
"You've got the magic milkshake, I'm following wherever that thing is going," Kimberly said as he laughed and glanced at the crutches. "Yeah…we don't need to go that far."
"Isn't there a park over there…ish…" Thomas said as he motioned in a general direction and she glanced at him, realizing he was serious. "You weren't wrong about the Trueheart bit."
"I'm sorry, Tommy," Kimberly whispered as he barely nodded. He had always hated the nickname Tommy, but it didn't sound so bad coming from her lips.
AN2: Thank you for reading and I'd love to hear what you're thinking about this story! Just as a heads up- I will be taking some time off from publishing from 7 to 21 October 2023 and plan to take a little break from (in general during that timeframe). I'll get back to any reviews or DMs after the break- promise!