The Terran Ranger Saga Volume 5 by Heather Ray (novel24 .txt) 📖

At the kitchen table of the Darling residence, Alexis and Denise converse over a mug of coffee.

"Nise," Alexis said, "I've come to a realization. I'm not in love with Jason."

"And you're sure?" asked Denise. "This isn't just anger because he left abruptly the other night?

"No, it's not that. It goes much deeper than that."

"So, what're you going to do about it, Lex?"

Alexis sighed. "I don't know! I've never even been in a relationship before! Not that this really is

a romantic relationship, but that doesn't make it any easier. Actually, I think it makes it much harder! I have absolutely no idea what Jason is feeling. What should I do?"

"Isn't that a question you should ask yourself?"

Before Alexis could reply, a car horn sounds.

"Well, I guess you'd better get going," said Denise. "Listen, Kiddo, I really can't tell you what to do about the situation --"

"Yeah, I know," Alexis sighed, buttoning her coat. "It's my problem. I'll have to figure it out."

Denise stood up, and gave her sister a reassuring hug. "Alexis, here's my advice. Follow your heart. You can't lie to yourself, and you can't lie to your friends. If you don't love Jason, you have to let him know. The longer you wait, the more painful it'll be. There's no easy way out of a relationship."

Alexis nodded, and walked out the door. In the driveway, Rocky was holding open the passenger door to his sedan. When he saw her coming, he smiled warmly at her, and bowed.

"Your chariot has arrived, M'lady," he said as she got into the car. She began giggling as he walked around the front of the car, and sat in the driver's seat.

"Rocky, you're ridiculous," she laughed. Rocky feigned insult.

"Who me?"

"So, how are you feeling today?"

"I'm still a little sore from falling on the ice so much yesterday," Rocky answered, backing the car onto the street, "but other than that, I'm peachy. We really must do that again some time. It was fun."

"Yeah, it was," said Alexis, looking out her window. Rocky glanced at her from the corner of his eye. He took a deep breath, and let it out slowly.

"So, Lex, do you mind if I ask you a question?"

"You just did," she answered with a playful smile.

"Okay then, how 'bout another one, after this one?"

"Shoot."

"Do you know where Drexel University is?"

Alexis turned to Rocky and looked at him quizzically. "Why do you ask?"

"Because you're from Philly. I'm going to Drexel in the fall, and I wanted to know if you're familiar with it."

"Rocky, its like three blocks from Denise's old apartment!" she said, shaking her head in disbelief, "Drexel starts right where UPenn ends. They border on each other! This is amazing!"

"Why?" asked Rocky.

"Because, I'm going to UPenn in the fall! We'll be right next to each other."

"Wow, that's a funny coincidence," Rocky said, laughing slightly. "At least I'll have one friend in the area."

"Oh please, Rocky," Alexis said dramatically. "You can probably make friends in your sleep."

"Ah, M'lady doth shower me with flattery!" Rocky joked. Alexis rolled her eyes.

"I just don't believe it," she said, "you're going to Drexel..."

"Yep. My dad's an alumnus, so I guess it's tradition."

The two remained quiet for awhile, both immersed in thought. Finally, at a red light, Rocky turned in his seat, and glanced at Alexis.

"I...uh," he stammered, "I'm really glad you came back to Angel Grove, Lex."

Alexis turned to him, surprised. "Really?"

"Yeah," he said honestly, "we all missed you while you were in Philly. You're a great person to hang out with, and at least you have a sense of humor, unlike most of the team."

Alexis laughed. "Well, I'm glad to be back."

The two looked into each others' eyes, and shared a meaningful glance. Both were actually surprised by the strength of the urge to just look at the other. The moment was lost when the cars behind them began sounding their horns. Rocky turned back to the street, and noticed the light turned green. The rest of the car ride was in silence.

"Kat," said Kimberly, glancing up at her tall friend, "you've been quiet all morning. Are you okay?"

Kim frowned, and let out a sigh the two girls walked towards the building of Angel Grove High. Katherine was once again off in her own world, completely oblivious to Kimberly's words.

"KAT!!"

Kim yelled. Katherine jumped slightly, and looked down at Kim, eyes wide.

"Did you say something, Kim?" she asked.

"Sheesh, Kat, I think your hold on reality is getting weaker by the minute! The way you keep zoning out, its almost as if..."

Kimberly stopped in mid-sentence, and once again glanced up at her preoccupied friend. A mischievous grin crossed her face as she quickly stepped in front of Kat to look her directly in the eye.

"Who is he?" Kim said. Kat looked at the Gold Ranger, bewildered.

"Who's who?" Kat questioned. Kim's grin widened.

"You're in love," Kim responded, "but the question is...with who?"

Kat frowned, and walked around Kimberly in an attempt to reach the school.

Kimberly raced to the tall blonde's side, and tried her best to keep in step with her. "Kat, don't try to hide it. I know you're in love, so fess up!"

"Kimberly, please --"

"Okay, okay," Kim said, rolling her eyes, "you don't have to talk about it. But you should really do something about it. Kat?"

Once again, Katherine had stopped paying attention to Kimberly. But this time, she wasn't daydreaming. Instead, something had caught her eye. She was peering out to the parking lot. More specifically, at the red sedan that just pulled in.

"Kim," she said, not taking her eyes off the car, "isn't that Rocky's car?"

"You got that right," Kim said, looking in the same direction. They both witnessed Rocky get out of the car, and jog to the passenger side, where he bowed and opened the door. He held his hand out, and helped his passenger out of the car. She was giggling at his antics, and saying something, which neither girl could hear.

"That's Alexis," Katherine mentioned.

"I guess Jason couldn't pick her up this morning," Kim said with a shrug.

After Rocky closed the door, he lifted Alexis' hand to his mouth, and kissed it. Both Kim and Kat were visibly surprised by this. But what surprised them more was when Alexis smiled, and leaned towards Rocky. Although they were rather far away, it was quite obvious what she had done. She had kissed Rocky.

"I can't believe she did that!" Kat yelled, her blue eyes narrowing. Kimberly glanced up at Kat, even more shocked by the Blue Ranger's furious reaction than what they had just witnessed.

"She only kissed him on the cheek," Kimberly offered. Although this was true, that didn't make the kiss completely friendly.

Katherine folded her arms, and continued walking briskly towards the school. Kimberly ran to catch up with the tall Australian.

"Kat," she breathed, "we really shouldn't read into this."

"Kim, friends don't just go around kissing each other. That's just not how it's done. How do you think Alexis would feel if I had kissed Jason? Or how would you feel if someone kissed Tommy? Especially a friend!"

"Do you think we should talk to her about it?"

"You do what you want," Kat replied, as the two girls ascended the stairs to the main entrance of Angel Grove High, "I want nothing to do with this entire matter."

Kimberly sighed and watched as Katherine continued quickly down the hallway. It was obvious the Blue Ranger was extremely upset about the situation. The emotions and thoughts running through Kat's head were so intense, Kimberly didn't need to put any effort into her telepathic skills to pick up on them. She didn't want to pry, but she didn't seem to have the choice.

"Kat's in love with Jason," she muttered to herself, turning down the hallway to her locker. As she approached her locker, she was surprised to see Tommy leaning up against it, his arms crossed and a serious expression on his face.

"What's wrong?" she asked her boyfriend. He sighed in reply.

"I probably shouldn't be telling you this," he said in a low voice, "but you know more about relationships than I do."

Kimberly raised her eyebrow. "What happened?"

Tommy sighed again, and ran his hand through his loose chestnut mane. "I drove Jason to school today, because his truck is still in the shop and all, and he was kinda down, so I asked him what was the matter. He...he's having problems with his relationship with Alexis."

"You're kidding," Kim said.

"No, I'm not. He's not in love with her anymore. He's in love with Kat."

Kim's doe-brown eyes widened, and her jaw dropped slightly. Tommy nodded, as though answering her unspoken question.

"He's sure about it. He said he's been giving the whole matter a lot of thought, and he's sure about his feelings. He doesn't love Alexis, and he doesn't know what to do about it."

"The plot thickens..." Kim said, shaking her head in disbelief. Tommy looked at her questioningly, so she elaborated. "This morning, just as Kat and I were coming to the building, we saw Rocky with Alexis."

"So?" asked Tommy, "Alexis told Jason she'd catch a ride with Rocky."

"She did more than just ride to school with him. She kissed him."

Now it was Tommy's turn to display utter shock. "So Jason loves Kat, and Alexis loves Rocky?"

"I'm not sure what Alexis is feeling, but I think it's a rather safe conclusion to draw."

"But what about Kat and Rocky? How do they feel about all this?"

"Well, Katherine practically went ballistic when she saw Alexis and Rocky together. I'm pretty sure she's in love with Jason, and