Power Rangers Fan Fiction ❯ Coming Home ❯ Chapter Four ( Chapter 4 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
Evening came far sooner than Trini would have liked; the hotel alarm clock blared annoyingly for several minutes before she managed to drag herself out of bed and shut it off. She sighed deeply, trying to summon the ambition to get ready for dinner.

Leave it to Kimberly to get the old team back together again like this.

Trini wasn't quite sure she was ready to face them. At least, not all at once. She was excited to see them again, it was true, but reunions were draining. It had been tiring enough just dealing with Jason and Kim. Tonight she would have to face Tommy and Zack, too, and whoever else Kim might have invited without telling her.

She pushed herself resolutely out of the nice, warm bed, and set off for the bathroom. She knew she was being silly. She loved Tommy and Zack, and it had been ages since she had seen them. She should be excited. And she was. Very excited. But there was a niggling worry in the back of her mind that they would be angry with her for not keeping in touch.

She tried to picture Jason, Zack, Tommy, and Kim being angry with her and had to laugh. “Now you're really being silly,” she muttered to herself as she ran a brush through her hair. It only took her a moment to touch up her makeup, and then she was interrupted by her phone ringing.

Stumbling out of the bathroom, she grabbed for the phone. It was Kim. “Hey!”

“I know I'm early...”

“You're never early, Kim.”

“I know, but I was so excited about dinner... Anyway, I'm here whenever you're ready.”

Trini glanced down; her clothes were well and truly wrinkled from her nap. “Let me just change my clothes quick, and I'll be right out.”

After making the quickest change of her life, Trini emerged into the hotel lobby. Kim was easy to spot, waiting on a plush couch to one side of the main entrance, her dress a bright, vibrant pink. She waved enthusiastically as soon as she caught sight of Trini, and practically bounced over to give her friend a hug.

“Ready?”

Trini nodded. “Of course.”

They walked outside together; Kim's car was as easy to spot as its owner.

“When you said pink,” Trini murmured appreciatively, “I didn't realize you meant that pink.”

Kim laughed. “Yeah, it might be a little much... but when I saw a convertible in that color, I knew I had to have it.”

Might . Leave it to Kimberly. Trini hadn't thought it was possible, but the car – which she had been warned about during an earlier phone conversation – was an even brighter shade of pink than her friend's dress.

But she knew better than to question Kim's sense of luxury, and simply accepted the indulgence. It wasn't often that she got the chance to ride in such an extravagant vehicle, after all. And Kim wouldn't be Kim without expensive things or copious amounts of pink. It was part of her charm.

“So, ready to see everyone again?” Kim asked once they were on their way.

Trini laughed a little, feeling a bit nervous. “I think so. I hope so. They don't hate me, do they?”

“Like they could!” She paused thoughtfully. “Well, Zack and Tommy might be a little bit annoyed with you...”

“What? Why?”

“You wounded their manly pride by calling Jason first.”

“What?” Trini sputtered.

Kimberly giggled. “You really should have just called me, you know. Then you could have avoided this mess,” she teased.

“Yeah, yeah, I'm sorry. Next time I promise I'll call you first.”

“Good. I'm glad we worked that out. But you'll have to make it up to Zack and Tommy somehow.”

Trini had to laugh. “And keep Jason's ego in check, I suppose.”

“Of course. You should have seen the man preen when he realized that you had called him and not one of the others.”

“Uh oh...”

“Yes. Fair warning: he may have looked well-behaved earlier, but you've created a monster.”

“Oh, goodie.”

The conversation lapsed as Kimberly pulled into the restaurant's parking lot. It was a family restaurant, nothing fancy, and fairly close to Trini's hotel. They had agreed on that restaurant because of the casual atmosphere and convenience. Trini had protested to driving such a short distance – it would have been perfectly feasible to walk – but, frankly, one did not say “no” to Kimberly.

Well, unless one wanted one's opinion to be completely ignored.

When she had parked the car, she turned and gave Trini a long, hard look. “Are you ready?”

“Yeah,” she said, trying not to let her ridiculous trepidation show. “It's just the guys. Nothing to be afraid of. Let's go.”