Post by Kim on Dec 8, 2008 21:22:26 GMT -5
This is slightly strange, as I'm only posting Chapter 8 in this section, but that's only cause the entire story is actually a series of one shots, and this particular one is TK. Enjoy!
------
Where Are You Christmas
Chapter 8: A Pink Is Dreaming Of Her White
By: Pink-Green-White-4ever
Last Revised: January 2, 2008
Summary: If you can’t tell by the title, then you obviously don’t know me too well….
Rating: T
Ship: White/Pink
AN: HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY SHAWN!!! (this was my bday pressie for my brother last year)
AN2: Set Christmas 2007!
--
It’s snowing. I look out the windows near the gate I’m supposed to be departing from to head home and I see nothing but white fluffy stuff all over the place – the tarmac, the planes, all the vehicles. I’m in southern California and its SNOWING. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say this was Zedd’s handy work, but since he’s dead and buried, I know it’s not him. I can’t help but sit here in wonder. In all my years, and with all the crazy ass experiences I’ve had, this tops it all. Not even meeting Zordon the first time gave me this much of a surprise. It’s freaking SNOWING in SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA! For God’s sake, maybe Al Gore is right about this Global Warming stuff. Note to self, call Billy and get the 411 on it.
The shrill ringing of my phone brings me back to the land of reality. Looking down at the caller id screen, my eyebrows shoot up. Speak of the devil. “Hello Brother Wolf,” I tease as I answer, hearing a familiar chuckle on the other end.
“Salutations Sister Crane. May I infer you are stuck at that airport due to the weather since you answered this?”
“That would be an affirmative. Billy, it’s actually SNOWING. Not just flurries either, it’s a freaking blizzard out there. Evil plot?”
More chuckling. “I’m afraid not. It’s actually snowing in Reefside. Global warming will do that.”
I scowl as I hear his comment. Damn it. “We should make a note to round up all the world’s leaders and make some serious demands that they do something or the Power Rangers are going on strike. I mean, how many times have we saved this planet? And we’re just going to sit here and let people destroy it with global warming?” I can joke like this since NO ONE is sitting even remotely close to me. Reefside airport isn’t exactly the most popular tourist destination ever since Mesogog and his goons decided to try and turn us all prehistoric again. Thank you Tommy.
“Jason wanted me to tell you to stop blaming Tommy in your head,” Billy chuckles as I hiss.
“Yeah, and who’s fault is it Reefside is desolate? He’s the one who was mentoring them,” I mutter back. “Speaking of oh fearless leader, did he manage to get out of Reefside before this lovely blizzard hit?”
“Negative. According to Jason, he got caught on the expressway and had to turn back.”
At least I’m not the only one missing the very first all Ranger reunion. The initial reunion was supposed to be everyone from Mighty Morphin to Space, with everyone else coming in the day or so after Christmas, all the way up through Overdrive – the newbies Adam had to go bail out a few months ago. “Wonderful. I get to spend my first trip home in over ten years in an airport three hours away. This sucks.”
“My apologies Kimberly,” Billy murmurs, trying to sooth. “Jason would like to speak to you.”
“That’s fine, put the dufus on the phone so I can yell at him for not booking me an earlier flight,” I grumbled.
“Hey Sis….”
“Don’t you Hey Sis me!” I snap. “Why couldn’t you have booked me a flight out YESTERDAY? I’m stuck in an airport, with no hope of getting home for Christmas and I’m going to miss getting to see everyone!”
“Tommy’s in the same boat…”
I want to scream. I want to swear. And his comment makes me want to cry. I was actually looking forward to hanging out with Tommy. We’ve been friends again for a long time now, since Trini’s funeral. All issues having to do with the accursed Letter was gotten out of our systems not long after Trini’s funeral. We talk on a pretty regular basis, and the few times I’ve flown into L.A. for functions, for either gymnastics or my singing career, Tommy’s driven up to meet me, have lunch with me, party for a bit. I was seriously looking to hanging out with the only other single member of our entire team for more than a few hours. Now I’m stuck in a stupid airport and he’s stuck at his house.
“That is not a reassuring thought, Jase. This isn’t fair!” I whine in my best little sister voice, hoping to make him feel guiltier than I know he already is. When I hear the groan at the other end, I smile, having succeeded. Of course, I know it’s not nice, and Jason didn’t order the blizzard from hell, but still, it’s fun to mess with him.
“I know, I’m sorry,” he tells me, trying to sooth me just the same way Billy tried. It’s not working. I don’t like being stuck anywhere, because usually when that happens, bad things follow. Call it paranoia, but after being a Ranger for as long as I was, I can’t sit still for too long when freaky things are happening around me. “Look, I’m going to call you back in a little bit, Kat and I are working on something that might cheer you up.”
“Uh huh, right. You do that Jason, because I swear, if I’m stuck here for Christmas, I’m never going to forgive you.” That said, I close my phone and lean my head back against the seat. I wanted to go back to Angel Grove, back to my home, far more than I think any of us realized. I’ve done my best to avoid going back the last few years, because I felt I had so much growing to do, because I felt like I needed to get comfortable in my skin and with who I am. This past year, I’ve finally felt ready. And now I’m stuck three hours away, in a freak snowstorm, in an AIRPORT! Fate bites Kimberly Hart in the ass yet again.
--
Three hours later has found me curled in a ball, staring listlessly out the window as the snow’s getting deeper by the second. The very nice lady at the booth for the airline offered to give me a lift to a hotel, but I honestly don’t want to go trekking outside in this kind of weather. Might as well be stuck in the airport, lonely and resigned to missing the reunion, than stuck in a hotel watching holiday movies that are only going to make me cry. I’m drawn from my depression as I hear a familiar ringing coming from my phone. Thanks to Billy, I have specialized ring tones for each of my friends, and this particular ring tone makes me smile; it’s the song Tommy played to call the Dragon Zord so long ago. Reaching over, I pull my phone from my bag and see Tommy’s name flashing on the front. “Hello?” I sigh, hearing a chuckle on the other end.
“I take it Jason wasn’t joking when he said you were stuck at the airport in Reefside,” the familiar and much loved tenor asks.
“That would be correct. You know, Fate couldn’t have been nice enough to even give me time to get to your house before it decided to level Southern California with a blizzard,” I tell him. “Are you warm at home?”
“Eh, not quite,” he laughs. “Which gate are you at?”
“C13, why?” I ask, sitting up as I hear him chuckle.
“Because, I’m going to brave this nasty ass weather and come get you,” he tells me, making me brighten considerably.
“What? Are you serious? Tommy Oliver, it’s a blizzard out there! Don’t kill yourself on my account!” I argue. “I was just messing with Jason earlier, don’t think you need to come and get me.”
“Kimberly, you know I’d do anything for you, including die for you,” he utters quietly, so much so I barely hear him. I gasp in surprise, perhaps realizing for the first time that even though we’ve been apart for years, he still has some feelings for me that run deeper than even I could have guessed. “Just sit tight, I’ll call you when I get there.”
“Tommy,” I whisper, then smile when I hear him chuckle. We both put aside his mini confession, but know we’ll have to deal with it later. “Be careful.”
“I will be. Talk to you in a bit.” I’m left staring at my phone once the line goes dead. Oh wow, this day is actually looking up now.
--
I’m dozing slightly, waiting for Tommy to call me. It’s been nearly an hour since he called and the snow has only gotten worse. Even half asleep though, I can sense that even though I’m alone, there’s a presence not far from me. The air almost seems to pulse with a familiar energy that I know is just wishful thinking. None of us have had that kind of power since Zordon died. Shaking my head, I sit up and start rounding up my belongings, including the bag that one of the very nice airline guys went and got for me.
Just as I reach for my coat, which has fallen to the floor, I feel a hand on my shoulder. When I look up, no one is even remotely close to me. I cock an eyebrow when I feel the hand tighten and then I hear a familiar chuckle. Hissing, I reach out and slap the person who is next to me. “Tommy! That’s not funny!”
He suddenly appears next to me. No one probably saw him, but that’s not why I just smacked him. “You hit harder than I remember,” he grumbled, rubbing the back of his head.
“You just broke a cardinal rule!” I utter, dumbfounded. “You used your powers…”
“To get my lovely former Pink Ranger out of the stupid airport,” he finishes, and I wonder if he realizes he just called me HIS. “Besides, how was I supposed to get to your gate? I couldn’t get passed security without a boarding pass.”
I’m staring at him trying to recover from the shock of him breaking one of our cardinal rules and of course from the very pleasant fuzzy feeling I’m getting in the pit of my tummy from the affectionate way he’s looking at me. “I swear, some days I don’t know whether I want to throttle you or kiss you,” I mumbled, watching him grin.
“So, Beautiful, what say we take your bags, brave the weather outside and head to my house? It’s warmer and a hell of a lot more comfortable than staying here.”
“Lead the way, oh fearless leader,” I tease. He bends down and takes my bag before reaching out a hand to me. Grinning, I reach out and take his hand before boldly standing on my tip toes to brush a soft kiss over the corner of his mouth.
--
This is the first time I’ve been to Tommy’s Reefside retreat. If I didn’t know any better, I’d be asking some serious questions about how he can afford this house and the land surrounding it on a teacher’s salary, but since I’m in the know, I know he pays for it all out of the nice, fat bank account he has thanks to his doctorate and because of the job he had with Anton Mercer all those years ago. Hey, being a Power Ranger never paid enough to take care of the bills. In fact, it paid ZERO money toward college, rent, groceries, etc. Not that any of us would change having been Rangers. Looking over at my companion, I have to struggle not to giggle outright. Tommy’s on hands and knees, in front of his never-been-used-before fireplace, trying his damnedest to light a fire to keep us warm. It shouldn’t amuse me so much, because any normal woman would be worried about hurting his pride, but I know this man; I know him better than almost anyone. He’s driven alien constructed robots, held powers beyond the average human’s imagining, and he’s been to other planets and dimensions while leading a band of rag tag teenage superheroes for more years than he probably cares to count. And despite all that, he can’t seem to light a simple fire.
“Damn,” he mutters, sitting back on his legs, glaring at the fireplace.
“Aww, come on, bend back over and give it another shot,” I giggle, watching him turn to look at me, a dark look in those beloved chocolate eyes. “Besides, I was enjoying the show. Those khakis make your ass look really nice.”
He’s glaring at me now, muttering under his breath again even as he bends back over to start fiddling with the fire. I let him attempt to light it some more before I take pity on him and crawl toward him. “Kim, I’ve got it,” he assures me.
“Move over, you Boy Scout wannabe,” I tease, reaching out to take the matches and newspaper from him. “Did you forget, Angelette for several years? One of our badges was lighting a fire.” Quickly and efficiently, I get the fire started and sit back, grinning.
“You’d think, after all the things I’ve done, lighting a fire would be easy…” he mutters as we get up and move to the couch.
“Don’t feel bad, Handsome,” I reassure him as we sit on the couch and instinctively cuddle together. Tommy’s arm is around my shoulders and I’m snuggled into his side, my head on his shoulder. Our legs are sort of resting together. “You do a lot of things I can’t do.”
His arm just tightens around my shoulders, holding me closer than before. I don’t know where things changed for us, but it’s probably been happening for a while, I was just too much in denial to notice it. Tommy and I haven’t hung out all that much, only every couple of months, but we talk constantly, and until this very moment, I don’t think I’ve ever realized how many of…well, I don’t want to say old tendencies, since it’s been over ten years since we were dating, but you could kind of call them that. We’ve recently broken out the old nicknames, we share longer hugs, tease each other a little more sexually than ever before, but until just now, I’ve never considered that as anything other than our grown-up selves trying to get to know each other.
It’s probably nothing, in fact I’m sure I’m making more of a big deal out of this than it actually is, but the part of me that’s never grown up, still believes in that happily ever after with my White Knight, even if he’s not been my White Knight in ten years. I’m startled out of my thoughts when I feel Tommy’s lips pressing a gentle kiss to my temple. We’re both drowsy from our adventure in the snow and the attempts to get the fire going, neither of us has eaten yet, and we’re snuggled together. Personally, I just want to go to sleep, but apparently Tommy has other plans. “What?” I mumble as I turn and burrow closer to him. I hate to admit it to anyone, especially myself because I like to think I’ve grown up enough to know I don’t need a man for my life to be complete, but I’ve missed this; I’ve missed being in his arms like this and feeling safe and secure. No one has ever made me feel the way Tommy can, not even my own father, and he was supposed to be my ultimate protector. No man’s arms have ever felt as safe, warm, and calming as Tommy’s; few have ever come close.
“Question for you,” he whispers into my hair.
“Shoot.”
“What did you wish for, for Christmas?” he asks, and I can tell he’s grinning from the tone of his voice.
I have so many good retorts on the tip of my tongue. “To not need battery operated assistance anymore,” I smirk, feeling him crack up laughing.
“I’m serious, Kim.”
“I’m serious too. Do you know how long it’s been since I’ve had a man who’s known how to please a woman? Talk about droughts…” I utter, causing him to chuckle.
“Kimberly…”
Angling my head up, I see he actually wants me to seriously answer the question. “You want a serious answer?”
“Yeah.”
“My biggest wish this year was to come home,” I tell him, not once breaking eye contact with him. I can’t be more honest than that, because it is what I wanted most. I wanted to be home with my friends, the ones who know me better than even my family does. I wanted to be in the only home I’ve ever really known, reliving cherished memories with people who’ve shared my same experiences. I wanted to feel normal instead of feeling like I’ve lived and seen more than any human should have to.
He doesn’t answer; he just reaches up and brushes my bangs from my face. I can tell he understands what I’ve told him with my eyes and refused to tell him with my words. I know he understands, because he’s felt the same way. I’ve always thought being a Ranger was akin to being in a secret society, and only those who’ve been Rangers understand the need to feel normal and to be around those who’ve been through what they’ve been through.
I’m the last of us to come home, and not completely by choice. Life has kept me far from the place that is my heart, but there was just something about this Christmas that beckoned me to come back, and until that moment in the airport this afternoon, I hadn’t even realized my dire need to be in Angel Grove. Now that I’m sitting here, I can’t help but think that maybe I needed to be back here with Tommy too. “What about you, what was your Christmas wish this year?” I ask, breaking the comfortable silence that’s settled between us.
The look in his eyes tugs at my heart in ways I haven’t felt it tugged at in forever. “Honestly?” he asks, and I can only nod. “I think I’m finally ready to fall in love again.”
I am absolutely speechless. I’ve known Tommy for over half my life now, just as I’ve known most of my male friends for over half my life, but I’d have never expected him, or any guy I know, to say something like that. Yeah, yeah, I know, guys have feelings too, but honestly, how many girls know a guy who would admit that?
“Wow, I don’t know what to say to that,” I whisper, reaching out to take his hand in mine. “What brought that on? I always assumed you were comfortable where you were?”
The sadness that seeps onto his face has my heart breaking. “I am, or was,” he starts, and then pauses to compose himself or choose his words carefully, neither of which I can decide on. “I guess, I’ve just been so busy the last few years, I never realized that I’ve accomplished everything I wanted to but the most important.”
I know that tone of voice, I’ve heard it before. Long, hot summer nights spent laying on a blanket in the park talking is where I’ve heard that tone before; nights spent dreaming about a family, kids, someone to love. “You’ve never mentioned this to anyone, have you?”
He shakes his head. “Kim, all our guys friends are finding their other halves, are starting families, and I’m the only one still doing the Ranger thing, or was until recently. When I was doing said Ranger thing, I was able to put everything out of my mind, but I’m twenty-nine years old now, and I’ve only come close to asking one woman to marry me, let alone getting anywhere near having a family of my own.”
I’m sure the look I’m giving him isn’t helping. A small, childish part of me burns with anger at the thought of him proposing to anyone, despite what happened between us. “I’m sure if you’d asked Katherine, she’d have said yes.”
He’s smiling sadly at me. “I never said it was Katherine.”
And my heart has just stopped. We’ve talked about past relationships before. Kat was his last serious relationship; that isn’t to say it was his last sexual one, just his last serious one. The only other serious relationship he had before that was with…. “Kim, what are you thinking?”
“That I need some fresh air,” I gasp, bolting out of his arms and heading for the door.
“Kimberly.”
He’s right behind me on the porch. He’s so close I can feel the heat of his body despite the distance between us. Oddly enough, I can hear the stereo that seems to have turned on all by itself, playing in the background through the open door. Ironic isn’t it, that the song is one of my favorite holiday songs – Faith Hill’s Where Are You Christmas.
“You can’t tell me there wasn’t ever anyone else you truly felt like proposing to,” I tell him, wrapping my arms around myself.
“I thought about it on several occasions with Katherine,” he admits. “I never said I didn’t think about it with her, nor did I ever say it hadn’t crossed my mind with any of my other girlfriends. What I said was, there was only one person I ever came close to asking.”
I turn sharply and face him. “Tommy, what’s happening between us?”
“I don’t know,” he whispers. There’s honesty in his eyes along with a bunch of other emotions I simply don’t have the energy to try and decode right now. I know whatever is between us right now is changing before my very eyes, but I can’t make sense of it.
Or maybe it’s more that I’m scared to acknowledge that he’s on to something. My mind shifts back to the present when I feel his arms slide around me, bringing me to lean against his chest. It’s absolutely freezing outside, but his warmth is shielding me from the better part of it.
“Kimberly, I have things I want to say to you, but I don’t want you to interrupt,” he starts, leaning his head against the top of mine. “Will you listen to me? Give me a chance to get it all out before you say anything?”
I only nod, moving my arms so that they wrap around his waist. I can feel and hear the steady beat of his heart under my ear. I can sense the tension in his muscles, like he’s preparing for battle, and perhaps he is; he’s preparing for the most important battle of his life.
“I stopped believing in fairytales a long time ago,” he softly starts. “And then I moved to Angel Grove, and my life got turned upside down. I don’t mean because I became a Power Ranger, though hey, that was definitely enough to turn it upside down. What I mean is, I met this amazingly beautiful and incredibly generous girl in the hallway of my new school and for the first time in my very short sixteen years, I felt like someone had knocked the breath right out of me.” I know this story; I know it intimately because it’s our story. I know the happiness we had, and the heartbreak I caused. “That girl turned into a woman, one who I thought I was going to spend the rest of my life with, who I felt I could love for the rest of my life, and because of her, I started believing in those fairytales again. Then it all came crashing down.”
Pulling back, I stare up at him. Part of me doesn’t want to hear what comes next, simply because even though it’s an old hurt, it’s still deeply rooted in the story of our lives. Nobody can say that what happens to them doesn’t affect their lives to some extent later on. “I learned to live without that young woman, learned to get along without her friendship, her love, the light she brought to my life, and then when I lost another friend, I found her again, only this time, both of us had grown up.”
My eyes play tricks on me, shifting images of the boy I knew to the man I’m standing in front of and back. It’s taken me a long time to reconcile the man I know now with the boy who I loved with all my heart then, but I’m not alone. Tommy’s had to do the same with me. I’m not the girl he fell in love with, I’m a woman now, one who isn’t so naïve to the world, one who’s seen and done things that no one would have expected me to. I’ve made my share of mistakes, just like I know Tommy has.
“I’ve loved others, deeply loved others,” he whispers, pulling me from my trance. “I’ve made peace with my past, with the people I’ve loved and the things I’ve done that I can’t change. In the last ten years, I’ve never once thought that you and I would be standing here in a near blizzard, and I never even gave a thought to how I’d be feeling standing here with you.”
He’s building up to something neither of us can really deny anymore. In the last few years, our friendship had slowly changed, despite the distance between us. We’ve both been so scared of upsetting the delicate balance between us that we never saw that it changed. Or maybe it’s I never wanted to acknowledge that it changed. Obviously Tommy has, or he wouldn’t be standing here telling me what I think he’s about to.
“When we broke up, I never thought I’d love you again the way I’d loved you once, and I was right, because I don’t love you the way I did when I was sixteen. I don’t think anyone can ever love anyone the way they did when they were a kid, because love changes, it evolves and grows into something stronger, different.”
“Tommy…”
His finger comes up to touch my lips. “You promised,” he gently teases, pulling his finger away only to let it caress my jaw. “When we started talking again after Trini’s funeral, I had so many mixed emotions where you were involved. I couldn’t be sure if I was ready to accept your apology or if I was ready to let you back in where you’d once been so deeply rooted. If it hadn’t been for a conversation with Jason not long after the funeral, I probably wouldn’t have. We’ve been best friends for the last six years, Kim, and in that time, I’ve come to cherish you in ways I never had before. I love your quirky and sarcastic sense of humor, I love how brave you try to be for everyone, I even love that stubborn streak that you’ve seemed to pass down to every Pink Ranger in history.” I could so kick him for that last one, and he knows it. “Most of all, I have no idea when it happened, what made it happen, or why it happened, but until this afternoon, I hadn’t realized that I was falling in love with you again.”
Talk about taking a girl’s breath away. This is one of those moments, the ones that define your life. Not even my infamous stubborn streak or the fear running rampant through me can deny that tiny fact. I can see the truth of his words in his eyes. Tommy has never lied to me before, and I know he wouldn’t lie to me about this. He’s in love with me. Again. The question is what do I feel for him?
He’s always known me better than anyone, including the girls. This thing, whatever it is, between us, it’s not like before. I’m old enough, wise enough, and maybe just a tad cynical, but I know it’s not like before. What we had before, that was pure, plain and simple. Once you’ve had something that pure, you never get it again, and I know that with certainty. I’ve never had a relationship with anyone else the way I first did with Tommy, but then, it could also be because of the circumstances surrounding mine and Tommy’s first relationship with each other. That relationship was love at first sight strengthened by time, built in teamwork and tempered by friendship. I know with absolute certainty that I will never have a relationship like that again, and as I’ve grown into a woman, I’ve learned to accept that. First loves rarely last, but once in a while, first loves tend to be the greatest you ever have. I’ve loved others, just like Tommy has, but none have ever touched me so deeply that I wanted to make it permanent.
Which brings me to my problem right now; I’m not sure how I feel about what’s going on between us. I love Tommy, I don’t think there’s been a day in my life since he walked into it that I haven’t loved him, but I don’t know if I’m in love with him again. I won’t lie to him, but I also don’t want to hurt him. Looking up at him, I try to convey with my eyes what I know I’ll never be able to put into words. “Tommy…”
He smiles sadly at me, reaching up to wipe away the tears I didn’t know were there. “I didn’t expect you to feel the same way, Kimberly,” he softly replies. “It would be too perfect if you were suddenly feeling the same way, and life isn’t perfect. I told you, not because I need to know you love me back or because I wanted to put you in a hard spot, I told you because I had to. I can’t keep denying it; I denied for years how I felt about you because I hurt, I’ll be damned if I continue to do so.”
“I have no idea what to say to you,” I whisper, leaning my forehead against his chest. “I…”
“Kim, I just want you to promise me one thing,” he tells me softly, one hand rubbing my back while the other cradles my head.
“If I can,” I respond, pulling back in his arms to look at him. My eyebrows shoot up in surprise when I see him looking nervous, a little tentative, and suddenly very awkward. For a minute, I feel like I’m standing back on the shore of Angel Grove Lake, spilling what’s in my heart to an equally as scared young man wearing all green. But I’m not that scared teenage girl, and he’s not that young teenage boy who’d just had his world ripped out from under him; we’re adults now, with adult responsibilities, desires, and problems.
“Can we take a chance on this, on us, again?” he asks, licking his lips as he stares down at me. “I’m not expecting to recapture what we had, because I don’t think we can, but I want to see what’s between us now.”
“Tommy, I don’t know…”
He brings his finger up and lays it over my lips. “Just hear me out, give me a chance. We aren’t who we were then, and I refuse to lose you if I can help it. I have a feeling we can make a go of it, provided you’re willing to give it a chance.”
I shake my head. “Why? Why now?”
“Simple answer? I love you. Not so simple answer, I miss my best friend, I miss the person who knew me better than I ever knew myself, the one who I knew could look at me and without a word know exactly what I’m feeling, what I’m thinking. Deep down, I still want that family I always saw us having. I want the little boy with your nose and my eyes, and the little girl who is the spitting image of her mother. I want to be able to go to my grave knowing I finally did something for me.”
What woman in her right mind could say no to that? The cynical part of me says this is just going to fall apart, that I’m going to screw everything up again, but the larger part of me, the part that once was the fearless and graceful Pink Ranger knows better. That part of me knows, deep down, that we had to grow up, had to go through everything we’ve gone through as individuals in the last ten years, because it was all leading to this moment, to this truth – we’re meant to be together. As scared as I am of what this means, as unsure of my feelings as I am, deep down, I know where this is going, I know what the ending will be this time.
“Tommy?’
“Yes?”
Smiling up at him, I reach up to cup his cheek. “We take this SLOW. I don’t want to rush into anything, I don’t want to screw any of this up, because I’m still not a hundred percent sure of how I feel, but something inside of me is telling me you may be onto something. Are you going to be comfortable with another long distance relationship?”
The absolute joy on his face warms my heart in ways I never thought were possible. “I don’t care how far apart we are, Beautiful, as long as you’re mine.”
I nod, knowing he’s speaking the truth. “Then I guess the only thing left is to make it official.”
The words barely leave my mouth when my lips are suddenly smothered by a pair of warm, soft lips that I haven’t kissed in over a decade. His arms are tight around me, pressing me close to his body. “Beautiful,” he gasps softly, our foreheads touching as we try to catch our breaths.
“Yeah?”
“I love you.”
I grin. “I know.”
“Welcome home.”
------
Where Are You Christmas
Chapter 8: A Pink Is Dreaming Of Her White
By: Pink-Green-White-4ever
Last Revised: January 2, 2008
Summary: If you can’t tell by the title, then you obviously don’t know me too well….
Rating: T
Ship: White/Pink
AN: HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY SHAWN!!! (this was my bday pressie for my brother last year)
AN2: Set Christmas 2007!
--
It’s snowing. I look out the windows near the gate I’m supposed to be departing from to head home and I see nothing but white fluffy stuff all over the place – the tarmac, the planes, all the vehicles. I’m in southern California and its SNOWING. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say this was Zedd’s handy work, but since he’s dead and buried, I know it’s not him. I can’t help but sit here in wonder. In all my years, and with all the crazy ass experiences I’ve had, this tops it all. Not even meeting Zordon the first time gave me this much of a surprise. It’s freaking SNOWING in SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA! For God’s sake, maybe Al Gore is right about this Global Warming stuff. Note to self, call Billy and get the 411 on it.
The shrill ringing of my phone brings me back to the land of reality. Looking down at the caller id screen, my eyebrows shoot up. Speak of the devil. “Hello Brother Wolf,” I tease as I answer, hearing a familiar chuckle on the other end.
“Salutations Sister Crane. May I infer you are stuck at that airport due to the weather since you answered this?”
“That would be an affirmative. Billy, it’s actually SNOWING. Not just flurries either, it’s a freaking blizzard out there. Evil plot?”
More chuckling. “I’m afraid not. It’s actually snowing in Reefside. Global warming will do that.”
I scowl as I hear his comment. Damn it. “We should make a note to round up all the world’s leaders and make some serious demands that they do something or the Power Rangers are going on strike. I mean, how many times have we saved this planet? And we’re just going to sit here and let people destroy it with global warming?” I can joke like this since NO ONE is sitting even remotely close to me. Reefside airport isn’t exactly the most popular tourist destination ever since Mesogog and his goons decided to try and turn us all prehistoric again. Thank you Tommy.
“Jason wanted me to tell you to stop blaming Tommy in your head,” Billy chuckles as I hiss.
“Yeah, and who’s fault is it Reefside is desolate? He’s the one who was mentoring them,” I mutter back. “Speaking of oh fearless leader, did he manage to get out of Reefside before this lovely blizzard hit?”
“Negative. According to Jason, he got caught on the expressway and had to turn back.”
At least I’m not the only one missing the very first all Ranger reunion. The initial reunion was supposed to be everyone from Mighty Morphin to Space, with everyone else coming in the day or so after Christmas, all the way up through Overdrive – the newbies Adam had to go bail out a few months ago. “Wonderful. I get to spend my first trip home in over ten years in an airport three hours away. This sucks.”
“My apologies Kimberly,” Billy murmurs, trying to sooth. “Jason would like to speak to you.”
“That’s fine, put the dufus on the phone so I can yell at him for not booking me an earlier flight,” I grumbled.
“Hey Sis….”
“Don’t you Hey Sis me!” I snap. “Why couldn’t you have booked me a flight out YESTERDAY? I’m stuck in an airport, with no hope of getting home for Christmas and I’m going to miss getting to see everyone!”
“Tommy’s in the same boat…”
I want to scream. I want to swear. And his comment makes me want to cry. I was actually looking forward to hanging out with Tommy. We’ve been friends again for a long time now, since Trini’s funeral. All issues having to do with the accursed Letter was gotten out of our systems not long after Trini’s funeral. We talk on a pretty regular basis, and the few times I’ve flown into L.A. for functions, for either gymnastics or my singing career, Tommy’s driven up to meet me, have lunch with me, party for a bit. I was seriously looking to hanging out with the only other single member of our entire team for more than a few hours. Now I’m stuck in a stupid airport and he’s stuck at his house.
“That is not a reassuring thought, Jase. This isn’t fair!” I whine in my best little sister voice, hoping to make him feel guiltier than I know he already is. When I hear the groan at the other end, I smile, having succeeded. Of course, I know it’s not nice, and Jason didn’t order the blizzard from hell, but still, it’s fun to mess with him.
“I know, I’m sorry,” he tells me, trying to sooth me just the same way Billy tried. It’s not working. I don’t like being stuck anywhere, because usually when that happens, bad things follow. Call it paranoia, but after being a Ranger for as long as I was, I can’t sit still for too long when freaky things are happening around me. “Look, I’m going to call you back in a little bit, Kat and I are working on something that might cheer you up.”
“Uh huh, right. You do that Jason, because I swear, if I’m stuck here for Christmas, I’m never going to forgive you.” That said, I close my phone and lean my head back against the seat. I wanted to go back to Angel Grove, back to my home, far more than I think any of us realized. I’ve done my best to avoid going back the last few years, because I felt I had so much growing to do, because I felt like I needed to get comfortable in my skin and with who I am. This past year, I’ve finally felt ready. And now I’m stuck three hours away, in a freak snowstorm, in an AIRPORT! Fate bites Kimberly Hart in the ass yet again.
--
Three hours later has found me curled in a ball, staring listlessly out the window as the snow’s getting deeper by the second. The very nice lady at the booth for the airline offered to give me a lift to a hotel, but I honestly don’t want to go trekking outside in this kind of weather. Might as well be stuck in the airport, lonely and resigned to missing the reunion, than stuck in a hotel watching holiday movies that are only going to make me cry. I’m drawn from my depression as I hear a familiar ringing coming from my phone. Thanks to Billy, I have specialized ring tones for each of my friends, and this particular ring tone makes me smile; it’s the song Tommy played to call the Dragon Zord so long ago. Reaching over, I pull my phone from my bag and see Tommy’s name flashing on the front. “Hello?” I sigh, hearing a chuckle on the other end.
“I take it Jason wasn’t joking when he said you were stuck at the airport in Reefside,” the familiar and much loved tenor asks.
“That would be correct. You know, Fate couldn’t have been nice enough to even give me time to get to your house before it decided to level Southern California with a blizzard,” I tell him. “Are you warm at home?”
“Eh, not quite,” he laughs. “Which gate are you at?”
“C13, why?” I ask, sitting up as I hear him chuckle.
“Because, I’m going to brave this nasty ass weather and come get you,” he tells me, making me brighten considerably.
“What? Are you serious? Tommy Oliver, it’s a blizzard out there! Don’t kill yourself on my account!” I argue. “I was just messing with Jason earlier, don’t think you need to come and get me.”
“Kimberly, you know I’d do anything for you, including die for you,” he utters quietly, so much so I barely hear him. I gasp in surprise, perhaps realizing for the first time that even though we’ve been apart for years, he still has some feelings for me that run deeper than even I could have guessed. “Just sit tight, I’ll call you when I get there.”
“Tommy,” I whisper, then smile when I hear him chuckle. We both put aside his mini confession, but know we’ll have to deal with it later. “Be careful.”
“I will be. Talk to you in a bit.” I’m left staring at my phone once the line goes dead. Oh wow, this day is actually looking up now.
--
I’m dozing slightly, waiting for Tommy to call me. It’s been nearly an hour since he called and the snow has only gotten worse. Even half asleep though, I can sense that even though I’m alone, there’s a presence not far from me. The air almost seems to pulse with a familiar energy that I know is just wishful thinking. None of us have had that kind of power since Zordon died. Shaking my head, I sit up and start rounding up my belongings, including the bag that one of the very nice airline guys went and got for me.
Just as I reach for my coat, which has fallen to the floor, I feel a hand on my shoulder. When I look up, no one is even remotely close to me. I cock an eyebrow when I feel the hand tighten and then I hear a familiar chuckle. Hissing, I reach out and slap the person who is next to me. “Tommy! That’s not funny!”
He suddenly appears next to me. No one probably saw him, but that’s not why I just smacked him. “You hit harder than I remember,” he grumbled, rubbing the back of his head.
“You just broke a cardinal rule!” I utter, dumbfounded. “You used your powers…”
“To get my lovely former Pink Ranger out of the stupid airport,” he finishes, and I wonder if he realizes he just called me HIS. “Besides, how was I supposed to get to your gate? I couldn’t get passed security without a boarding pass.”
I’m staring at him trying to recover from the shock of him breaking one of our cardinal rules and of course from the very pleasant fuzzy feeling I’m getting in the pit of my tummy from the affectionate way he’s looking at me. “I swear, some days I don’t know whether I want to throttle you or kiss you,” I mumbled, watching him grin.
“So, Beautiful, what say we take your bags, brave the weather outside and head to my house? It’s warmer and a hell of a lot more comfortable than staying here.”
“Lead the way, oh fearless leader,” I tease. He bends down and takes my bag before reaching out a hand to me. Grinning, I reach out and take his hand before boldly standing on my tip toes to brush a soft kiss over the corner of his mouth.
--
This is the first time I’ve been to Tommy’s Reefside retreat. If I didn’t know any better, I’d be asking some serious questions about how he can afford this house and the land surrounding it on a teacher’s salary, but since I’m in the know, I know he pays for it all out of the nice, fat bank account he has thanks to his doctorate and because of the job he had with Anton Mercer all those years ago. Hey, being a Power Ranger never paid enough to take care of the bills. In fact, it paid ZERO money toward college, rent, groceries, etc. Not that any of us would change having been Rangers. Looking over at my companion, I have to struggle not to giggle outright. Tommy’s on hands and knees, in front of his never-been-used-before fireplace, trying his damnedest to light a fire to keep us warm. It shouldn’t amuse me so much, because any normal woman would be worried about hurting his pride, but I know this man; I know him better than almost anyone. He’s driven alien constructed robots, held powers beyond the average human’s imagining, and he’s been to other planets and dimensions while leading a band of rag tag teenage superheroes for more years than he probably cares to count. And despite all that, he can’t seem to light a simple fire.
“Damn,” he mutters, sitting back on his legs, glaring at the fireplace.
“Aww, come on, bend back over and give it another shot,” I giggle, watching him turn to look at me, a dark look in those beloved chocolate eyes. “Besides, I was enjoying the show. Those khakis make your ass look really nice.”
He’s glaring at me now, muttering under his breath again even as he bends back over to start fiddling with the fire. I let him attempt to light it some more before I take pity on him and crawl toward him. “Kim, I’ve got it,” he assures me.
“Move over, you Boy Scout wannabe,” I tease, reaching out to take the matches and newspaper from him. “Did you forget, Angelette for several years? One of our badges was lighting a fire.” Quickly and efficiently, I get the fire started and sit back, grinning.
“You’d think, after all the things I’ve done, lighting a fire would be easy…” he mutters as we get up and move to the couch.
“Don’t feel bad, Handsome,” I reassure him as we sit on the couch and instinctively cuddle together. Tommy’s arm is around my shoulders and I’m snuggled into his side, my head on his shoulder. Our legs are sort of resting together. “You do a lot of things I can’t do.”
His arm just tightens around my shoulders, holding me closer than before. I don’t know where things changed for us, but it’s probably been happening for a while, I was just too much in denial to notice it. Tommy and I haven’t hung out all that much, only every couple of months, but we talk constantly, and until this very moment, I don’t think I’ve ever realized how many of…well, I don’t want to say old tendencies, since it’s been over ten years since we were dating, but you could kind of call them that. We’ve recently broken out the old nicknames, we share longer hugs, tease each other a little more sexually than ever before, but until just now, I’ve never considered that as anything other than our grown-up selves trying to get to know each other.
It’s probably nothing, in fact I’m sure I’m making more of a big deal out of this than it actually is, but the part of me that’s never grown up, still believes in that happily ever after with my White Knight, even if he’s not been my White Knight in ten years. I’m startled out of my thoughts when I feel Tommy’s lips pressing a gentle kiss to my temple. We’re both drowsy from our adventure in the snow and the attempts to get the fire going, neither of us has eaten yet, and we’re snuggled together. Personally, I just want to go to sleep, but apparently Tommy has other plans. “What?” I mumble as I turn and burrow closer to him. I hate to admit it to anyone, especially myself because I like to think I’ve grown up enough to know I don’t need a man for my life to be complete, but I’ve missed this; I’ve missed being in his arms like this and feeling safe and secure. No one has ever made me feel the way Tommy can, not even my own father, and he was supposed to be my ultimate protector. No man’s arms have ever felt as safe, warm, and calming as Tommy’s; few have ever come close.
“Question for you,” he whispers into my hair.
“Shoot.”
“What did you wish for, for Christmas?” he asks, and I can tell he’s grinning from the tone of his voice.
I have so many good retorts on the tip of my tongue. “To not need battery operated assistance anymore,” I smirk, feeling him crack up laughing.
“I’m serious, Kim.”
“I’m serious too. Do you know how long it’s been since I’ve had a man who’s known how to please a woman? Talk about droughts…” I utter, causing him to chuckle.
“Kimberly…”
Angling my head up, I see he actually wants me to seriously answer the question. “You want a serious answer?”
“Yeah.”
“My biggest wish this year was to come home,” I tell him, not once breaking eye contact with him. I can’t be more honest than that, because it is what I wanted most. I wanted to be home with my friends, the ones who know me better than even my family does. I wanted to be in the only home I’ve ever really known, reliving cherished memories with people who’ve shared my same experiences. I wanted to feel normal instead of feeling like I’ve lived and seen more than any human should have to.
He doesn’t answer; he just reaches up and brushes my bangs from my face. I can tell he understands what I’ve told him with my eyes and refused to tell him with my words. I know he understands, because he’s felt the same way. I’ve always thought being a Ranger was akin to being in a secret society, and only those who’ve been Rangers understand the need to feel normal and to be around those who’ve been through what they’ve been through.
I’m the last of us to come home, and not completely by choice. Life has kept me far from the place that is my heart, but there was just something about this Christmas that beckoned me to come back, and until that moment in the airport this afternoon, I hadn’t even realized my dire need to be in Angel Grove. Now that I’m sitting here, I can’t help but think that maybe I needed to be back here with Tommy too. “What about you, what was your Christmas wish this year?” I ask, breaking the comfortable silence that’s settled between us.
The look in his eyes tugs at my heart in ways I haven’t felt it tugged at in forever. “Honestly?” he asks, and I can only nod. “I think I’m finally ready to fall in love again.”
I am absolutely speechless. I’ve known Tommy for over half my life now, just as I’ve known most of my male friends for over half my life, but I’d have never expected him, or any guy I know, to say something like that. Yeah, yeah, I know, guys have feelings too, but honestly, how many girls know a guy who would admit that?
“Wow, I don’t know what to say to that,” I whisper, reaching out to take his hand in mine. “What brought that on? I always assumed you were comfortable where you were?”
The sadness that seeps onto his face has my heart breaking. “I am, or was,” he starts, and then pauses to compose himself or choose his words carefully, neither of which I can decide on. “I guess, I’ve just been so busy the last few years, I never realized that I’ve accomplished everything I wanted to but the most important.”
I know that tone of voice, I’ve heard it before. Long, hot summer nights spent laying on a blanket in the park talking is where I’ve heard that tone before; nights spent dreaming about a family, kids, someone to love. “You’ve never mentioned this to anyone, have you?”
He shakes his head. “Kim, all our guys friends are finding their other halves, are starting families, and I’m the only one still doing the Ranger thing, or was until recently. When I was doing said Ranger thing, I was able to put everything out of my mind, but I’m twenty-nine years old now, and I’ve only come close to asking one woman to marry me, let alone getting anywhere near having a family of my own.”
I’m sure the look I’m giving him isn’t helping. A small, childish part of me burns with anger at the thought of him proposing to anyone, despite what happened between us. “I’m sure if you’d asked Katherine, she’d have said yes.”
He’s smiling sadly at me. “I never said it was Katherine.”
And my heart has just stopped. We’ve talked about past relationships before. Kat was his last serious relationship; that isn’t to say it was his last sexual one, just his last serious one. The only other serious relationship he had before that was with…. “Kim, what are you thinking?”
“That I need some fresh air,” I gasp, bolting out of his arms and heading for the door.
“Kimberly.”
He’s right behind me on the porch. He’s so close I can feel the heat of his body despite the distance between us. Oddly enough, I can hear the stereo that seems to have turned on all by itself, playing in the background through the open door. Ironic isn’t it, that the song is one of my favorite holiday songs – Faith Hill’s Where Are You Christmas.
“You can’t tell me there wasn’t ever anyone else you truly felt like proposing to,” I tell him, wrapping my arms around myself.
“I thought about it on several occasions with Katherine,” he admits. “I never said I didn’t think about it with her, nor did I ever say it hadn’t crossed my mind with any of my other girlfriends. What I said was, there was only one person I ever came close to asking.”
I turn sharply and face him. “Tommy, what’s happening between us?”
“I don’t know,” he whispers. There’s honesty in his eyes along with a bunch of other emotions I simply don’t have the energy to try and decode right now. I know whatever is between us right now is changing before my very eyes, but I can’t make sense of it.
Or maybe it’s more that I’m scared to acknowledge that he’s on to something. My mind shifts back to the present when I feel his arms slide around me, bringing me to lean against his chest. It’s absolutely freezing outside, but his warmth is shielding me from the better part of it.
“Kimberly, I have things I want to say to you, but I don’t want you to interrupt,” he starts, leaning his head against the top of mine. “Will you listen to me? Give me a chance to get it all out before you say anything?”
I only nod, moving my arms so that they wrap around his waist. I can feel and hear the steady beat of his heart under my ear. I can sense the tension in his muscles, like he’s preparing for battle, and perhaps he is; he’s preparing for the most important battle of his life.
“I stopped believing in fairytales a long time ago,” he softly starts. “And then I moved to Angel Grove, and my life got turned upside down. I don’t mean because I became a Power Ranger, though hey, that was definitely enough to turn it upside down. What I mean is, I met this amazingly beautiful and incredibly generous girl in the hallway of my new school and for the first time in my very short sixteen years, I felt like someone had knocked the breath right out of me.” I know this story; I know it intimately because it’s our story. I know the happiness we had, and the heartbreak I caused. “That girl turned into a woman, one who I thought I was going to spend the rest of my life with, who I felt I could love for the rest of my life, and because of her, I started believing in those fairytales again. Then it all came crashing down.”
Pulling back, I stare up at him. Part of me doesn’t want to hear what comes next, simply because even though it’s an old hurt, it’s still deeply rooted in the story of our lives. Nobody can say that what happens to them doesn’t affect their lives to some extent later on. “I learned to live without that young woman, learned to get along without her friendship, her love, the light she brought to my life, and then when I lost another friend, I found her again, only this time, both of us had grown up.”
My eyes play tricks on me, shifting images of the boy I knew to the man I’m standing in front of and back. It’s taken me a long time to reconcile the man I know now with the boy who I loved with all my heart then, but I’m not alone. Tommy’s had to do the same with me. I’m not the girl he fell in love with, I’m a woman now, one who isn’t so naïve to the world, one who’s seen and done things that no one would have expected me to. I’ve made my share of mistakes, just like I know Tommy has.
“I’ve loved others, deeply loved others,” he whispers, pulling me from my trance. “I’ve made peace with my past, with the people I’ve loved and the things I’ve done that I can’t change. In the last ten years, I’ve never once thought that you and I would be standing here in a near blizzard, and I never even gave a thought to how I’d be feeling standing here with you.”
He’s building up to something neither of us can really deny anymore. In the last few years, our friendship had slowly changed, despite the distance between us. We’ve both been so scared of upsetting the delicate balance between us that we never saw that it changed. Or maybe it’s I never wanted to acknowledge that it changed. Obviously Tommy has, or he wouldn’t be standing here telling me what I think he’s about to.
“When we broke up, I never thought I’d love you again the way I’d loved you once, and I was right, because I don’t love you the way I did when I was sixteen. I don’t think anyone can ever love anyone the way they did when they were a kid, because love changes, it evolves and grows into something stronger, different.”
“Tommy…”
His finger comes up to touch my lips. “You promised,” he gently teases, pulling his finger away only to let it caress my jaw. “When we started talking again after Trini’s funeral, I had so many mixed emotions where you were involved. I couldn’t be sure if I was ready to accept your apology or if I was ready to let you back in where you’d once been so deeply rooted. If it hadn’t been for a conversation with Jason not long after the funeral, I probably wouldn’t have. We’ve been best friends for the last six years, Kim, and in that time, I’ve come to cherish you in ways I never had before. I love your quirky and sarcastic sense of humor, I love how brave you try to be for everyone, I even love that stubborn streak that you’ve seemed to pass down to every Pink Ranger in history.” I could so kick him for that last one, and he knows it. “Most of all, I have no idea when it happened, what made it happen, or why it happened, but until this afternoon, I hadn’t realized that I was falling in love with you again.”
Talk about taking a girl’s breath away. This is one of those moments, the ones that define your life. Not even my infamous stubborn streak or the fear running rampant through me can deny that tiny fact. I can see the truth of his words in his eyes. Tommy has never lied to me before, and I know he wouldn’t lie to me about this. He’s in love with me. Again. The question is what do I feel for him?
He’s always known me better than anyone, including the girls. This thing, whatever it is, between us, it’s not like before. I’m old enough, wise enough, and maybe just a tad cynical, but I know it’s not like before. What we had before, that was pure, plain and simple. Once you’ve had something that pure, you never get it again, and I know that with certainty. I’ve never had a relationship with anyone else the way I first did with Tommy, but then, it could also be because of the circumstances surrounding mine and Tommy’s first relationship with each other. That relationship was love at first sight strengthened by time, built in teamwork and tempered by friendship. I know with absolute certainty that I will never have a relationship like that again, and as I’ve grown into a woman, I’ve learned to accept that. First loves rarely last, but once in a while, first loves tend to be the greatest you ever have. I’ve loved others, just like Tommy has, but none have ever touched me so deeply that I wanted to make it permanent.
Which brings me to my problem right now; I’m not sure how I feel about what’s going on between us. I love Tommy, I don’t think there’s been a day in my life since he walked into it that I haven’t loved him, but I don’t know if I’m in love with him again. I won’t lie to him, but I also don’t want to hurt him. Looking up at him, I try to convey with my eyes what I know I’ll never be able to put into words. “Tommy…”
He smiles sadly at me, reaching up to wipe away the tears I didn’t know were there. “I didn’t expect you to feel the same way, Kimberly,” he softly replies. “It would be too perfect if you were suddenly feeling the same way, and life isn’t perfect. I told you, not because I need to know you love me back or because I wanted to put you in a hard spot, I told you because I had to. I can’t keep denying it; I denied for years how I felt about you because I hurt, I’ll be damned if I continue to do so.”
“I have no idea what to say to you,” I whisper, leaning my forehead against his chest. “I…”
“Kim, I just want you to promise me one thing,” he tells me softly, one hand rubbing my back while the other cradles my head.
“If I can,” I respond, pulling back in his arms to look at him. My eyebrows shoot up in surprise when I see him looking nervous, a little tentative, and suddenly very awkward. For a minute, I feel like I’m standing back on the shore of Angel Grove Lake, spilling what’s in my heart to an equally as scared young man wearing all green. But I’m not that scared teenage girl, and he’s not that young teenage boy who’d just had his world ripped out from under him; we’re adults now, with adult responsibilities, desires, and problems.
“Can we take a chance on this, on us, again?” he asks, licking his lips as he stares down at me. “I’m not expecting to recapture what we had, because I don’t think we can, but I want to see what’s between us now.”
“Tommy, I don’t know…”
He brings his finger up and lays it over my lips. “Just hear me out, give me a chance. We aren’t who we were then, and I refuse to lose you if I can help it. I have a feeling we can make a go of it, provided you’re willing to give it a chance.”
I shake my head. “Why? Why now?”
“Simple answer? I love you. Not so simple answer, I miss my best friend, I miss the person who knew me better than I ever knew myself, the one who I knew could look at me and without a word know exactly what I’m feeling, what I’m thinking. Deep down, I still want that family I always saw us having. I want the little boy with your nose and my eyes, and the little girl who is the spitting image of her mother. I want to be able to go to my grave knowing I finally did something for me.”
What woman in her right mind could say no to that? The cynical part of me says this is just going to fall apart, that I’m going to screw everything up again, but the larger part of me, the part that once was the fearless and graceful Pink Ranger knows better. That part of me knows, deep down, that we had to grow up, had to go through everything we’ve gone through as individuals in the last ten years, because it was all leading to this moment, to this truth – we’re meant to be together. As scared as I am of what this means, as unsure of my feelings as I am, deep down, I know where this is going, I know what the ending will be this time.
“Tommy?’
“Yes?”
Smiling up at him, I reach up to cup his cheek. “We take this SLOW. I don’t want to rush into anything, I don’t want to screw any of this up, because I’m still not a hundred percent sure of how I feel, but something inside of me is telling me you may be onto something. Are you going to be comfortable with another long distance relationship?”
The absolute joy on his face warms my heart in ways I never thought were possible. “I don’t care how far apart we are, Beautiful, as long as you’re mine.”
I nod, knowing he’s speaking the truth. “Then I guess the only thing left is to make it official.”
The words barely leave my mouth when my lips are suddenly smothered by a pair of warm, soft lips that I haven’t kissed in over a decade. His arms are tight around me, pressing me close to his body. “Beautiful,” he gasps softly, our foreheads touching as we try to catch our breaths.
“Yeah?”
“I love you.”
I grin. “I know.”
“Welcome home.”
