A Piece of You, a power rangers fanfic

AN: So, I've had this idea for a very long time, and I finally got around to writting it and I love it.I really hope you guys do to! please please, it would mean so much to me if you would leave a review. There are parts of a song in here that happens to belong to Joni Mitchell, though they arent in order and i've moved them around a bit. the song is called A Case of You. I hope you guys enjoy and please reviews! there might be a continuation chapter here somewhere...

A Piece of You

She sighed, finally having reached her home. She keyed open the door of her little apartment carelessly, fumbling for the lights once inside. She hung up her coat set her bag on the floor, and noticed several letters sitting next to it. Her neighbor must have shoved them underneath her door when the post came by. There were times when she was glad she lived in such a nice little place. Nice, yes, and quiet and small and cramped and old and to far away from the gym. Still nice, though.

She slipped off her loafers and socks and pulled on her slippers, walking across the tile floor to the kitchen. She clicked on the overhead light and laid the mail on the table, opting to turn on the kettle and boil some water for her favorite strawberry hot chocolate. Lord knows, today she needed it.

She sat down at the table and picked up the pile of mail. Junk mail, she thought as she tossed three of them aside. Bills, she grumpily set them in a pile next to the microwave for when the time of month for those came.

And then… what was this? Something worth reading? Kim smiled to herself as she instantly recognized his manly scrawl of ink across the envelope. She didn't even have to look at the address to know it was Jason.

She tore open the letter, a bigger smile on her face than she'd worn for weeks. It had been a while since she'd heard from any of her friends. The last time she'd talked to Trini had been when they'd gotten together for Zach's wedding. And ironically, that had been the last time she'd seen Zach, too. Billy called every now and then, but now with him being on Aquitar their communication was limited. Jason was the only constant contact she had, and he barely ever wrote or called back. She was excited to hear from him, that was for sure.

Dearest Kimmy-Cups,

I know that put a smile on your face, whether you'll admit it or not. I bet you're doing wonderful! Can't you almost hear the sarcasm drip from this ink? As a matter of fact, I bet your doing better than I am at the moment.

That worried her. Kim was usually the one to complain, not Jason. As a matter of fact, she couldn't remember the last time Jason had something to tell her about that wasn't pleasant. Kim furrowed her brow and read farther.

Oh, don't worry, it isn't anything drastic. It's not like I've been brutally dumped, evicted from my house and lost my powers a second time or anything. Well… okay, actually it is. I'd detail everything, but then this letter would be at least 10 pages long. However, I guess I can give you a brief summary.

See, I was just minding my own business, when Rita, Zed, and Mondo all decided to pay me a visit. And frankly, I don't know what happened, but somehow I ended up on a sick bed in the power chamber with Trey, you know the original gold ranger, coming for a visit. So I did the only logical thing. I gave the powers back. I hate logic, Kim.

And Emily… yeah I know, you saw it coming. I just wish I had.

As for the house, I'm back at my parents for now. Rocky and I have been working really hard at the dojo, but it isn't going as well as we'd hoped. At least the kids are enjoying it. The 8 or 9 we have anyways…

But enough about me. I want to hear about you. How is training going? Are you ready to take on the next year? I heard that…

Kim sighed and looked up. Her kettle was whistling. Setting the letter down, she stood and poured some hot water into her cocoa mix. Kim took a cautious sip of her cocoa and took her seat again.

Jason didn't sound happy. He seemed generally interested in hearing about her life, she noticed, but not to keen to detail his. And she suspected there was something deeper going on than he let on. What could she say? She knew her best friend like a book, cover to cover, and there was something he wasn't telling her in this letter.

She sat there for a while longer, sipping her hot chocolate and staring blankly at Jason's letter. She looked at the clock. It was nearly 11. The time difference in phone calls from Florida to Angel Grove was what, four hours? Maybe more. A plane took at good 3 hours, and she could only imagine what a drive would be. Kim sat there for several minutes, contemplating. Then turning her head with a slow smile she caught sight of a little silver box she had mounted on the wall.

The contents of said box were one silver wrist band and an autographed picture of the rangers. Kim smirked. Technically, it was only for emergencies. But Kim reasoned a friend in need was enough of an emergency for her.

Mind made up, Kim went to her room and packed a bag of necessity before opening the little box.

Oh you are in my blood like holy wine
Oh and you taste so bitter but you taste so sweet
Oh I could drink a piece of you
I could drink a piece of you darling
And I would still be on my feet
Oh I'd still be on my feet

Jason turned over in his bed, twisting himself further into the covers. He had heard the sound the moment it had started, and he wondered slightly if he could be imagining it. But when he heard his window open he knew he was not. He stayed where he was, in an exhausted sort of sleep he wasn't quiet ready to be roused from yet and waited. She was mostly silent accept for the closing of the window a second later, and he heard the thump of what must have been a bag. He felt her petite figure next to him the moment she laid down, though she weighed so little it was hard to feel the shift.

He heard a small sigh, and then a hand reached out to his face, tracing the outline of his features, and his eyes blinked open.

There before him, with sweat pants and a leather jacket on, with caramel colored, shoulder length, highlighted hair and deep caring brown eyes, was his best friend and most trusted companion for as long as he could remember. Lying next to him was Kimberly Hart.

"Hey," She whispered quietly, dropping her hand on the pillow.

"Hey," He echoed, his lips curling into a small smile. Kim showed him her hand, and in the darkness he could make out a few small scratches.

"You need to cut those vines. Getting in here was a lot harder than it should have been." She whispered, a serious look on her face. She was of course referring to the overgrown vines that she had forever used to climb into his window with. Jason smirked.

"Or maybe you're just out of practice." He teased, pushing her hand away from her face. Kim's serious face melted into the heart warming smile he knew by heart, but it was sure good to see it again.

"I missed you, J-man." She stated simply. Jason smirked.

"I missed you too, Pretty Woman. I missed you too."

"She was really into herbal remedies and natural stuff. She always smelled really good because of it." Jason mumbled.

He was hanging upside down off the bed, watching as Kim went through a box of photos of him and Emily.

"She wanted to open up a botanical shop. You should try some of her mint-coconut shaving cream." Jason told her calmly and Kim gave him a look. Jason smiled. "It tastes great." He assured. Kim laughed and shuffled through the pictures. Jason watched, partly sideways and upside down.

"Oh, this is cute." She told him, holding up a picture they're taken at the beach. Jason had Emily hoisted up in his arms and the picture had been snapped just before they had fallen over. Kim put down the picture.

"Yeah, adorable." Jason muttered. He could feel the blood rushing to his head and he figured he should probably sit up, but he couldn't find the motivation.

Kim leaned her head back, looking at him with raised eyebrows.

"Uh oh." Jason stated, trying to look scared despite his lack of energy.

"What's that mean?" Kim replied, feigning hurt.

"I know that look." Jason assured her.

"What look?" Kim asked innocently. Jason rolled his eyes, and he imagined that must have looked rather odd upside down.

"That's the 'I'm about to tell you something that will make your head hurt like you've been hit with a brick named reality' look." He told her, smiling despite himself. Kim's jaw dropped in mock hurt, but her face quickly turned contemplative.

"You know, I've never heard it called that before. Trini always used to call it the Kimtuition look. But I think I like you're name better." She stated. Once more Jason rolled his eyes. He realized a second too late that he shouldn't have looked away as Kim's fingers shot towards his stomach. Her quick fingers sent him tumbling off the bed in giggles with a rather loud thump as he hit the floor. Her goal accomplished, Kim relented with her tickling.

"Ow." The lack of conviction for faking an injury was obvious in his voice and they both knew it, but Kim humored him.

"All the blood was rushing to your head." She rationalized. She was right too, and instead of sitting up immediately he decided it was best to stay lying on the floor. "If you don't want me to say anything, I won't."

Kim had turned back to their previous topic of conversation without missing a beat. "You might as well." He attempted a shrug but from the floor it looked rather awkward and Kim smiled at him.

"Well, if you don't want to hear it then there's no point in adding to your problems." Kim stated, putting the lid back on the shoebox full of Emily.

"Oh just tell me. If you don't I'll be so curious that I'll make my own assumptions and they'll all be wrong." Jason said, rolling over so that he was lying on his stomach.

"Ah, the voice of experience." Kim smirked at him. Jason gave her a look. Kim sighed. They repeated this before she spoke again. "You want to know who Emily reminds me of?" Kim asked, chewing on her lip a little.

Jason shut his eyes tightly. "Not really, but I have a feeling your going to say it anyways."

Kim hesitated, and drew her legs up to her chest protectively, resting her chin on her knees. "Kat." She said quietly.

Jason wished she hadn't said it. Because when he thought it, it didn't mean anything. But when Emily said it, it had most definitely meant something. And now that Kim had said it, it meant everything.

Kim watched him carefully as he tried for about ten seconds to show no emotion. Then with a large frustrated sigh, he rolled over onto his back again and ran his hands over his face tiredly. "Yeah, Kat." He muttered.

"How long have you liked her?" Kim wanted to know suddenly. She sprawled out on the floor mirroring his position, her head next to his.

"I don't know. Since I became the gold ranger is a little too early, but since she got together with Tommy is a little too late." He let his arms rest at his side, and Kim rolled onto her side and propped her hand up on her elbow.

"That's why Emily dum- broke up with you isn't it?" Kim's tiny falter didn't matter in her entirely truthful statement.

"She said that I was just trying to replace someone else with her. She said that she couldn't be what I wanted. She also said I was a selfish prick for doing that, but I chose to ignore that part of the conversation." He muttered. Kim gave him a consoling smile and squeeze of the shoulder.

"So what are you going to do about it?" Kim asked in a tone that said she expected him to have this figured out by now.

"There's nothing I can do. Emily's right- it's not like I can play pretend with her any longer. And now Kat and Tommy are together…" Jason trailed off, seeing the wince on Kim's face at the mention of the new couple.

"Ah yes," Kim started. "Tommy. Now there's a fun topic of conversation." Kim stood up and walked over to the dresser, opening the second drawer which she knew to be Jason's secret stash of marshmallows.

She pulled the bag from the drawer and opened it, resuming her spot on the floor next to him. Amused, Jason rolled back over and held out his hand.

"Do you know he called me a couple of weeks ago?" Kim asked quietly, her voice sounding weak in the darkness for the first time.

"Really?" Jason asked, popping a marshmallow into his mouth and looking at her. Tommy hadn't said anything.

"First time since the letter." Kim nodded and stuffed a marshmallow into her mouth.

"Did he ask about it?" Jason sat up, suddenly interested. Finally, a situation he could actually work out a solution to.

"No. We just talked. We didn't actually say anything really important, but we did talk. It was… interesting." She paused, and then she got this look of confusion on her face as her voice regained its usual strength. "I mean, it's like he was giving me one last chance to take him back before he moved onto Kat. How lame is that? Who does that!" She wanted to know. Jason tossed a marshmallow at her.

"Someone who loves you." He stated simply. Kim sighed and rubbed her arm.

"Yeah well, not anymore, because I didn't take him back and I'm not planning on it." She stood again and went over to the window, where Tommy's house could easily be seen from. Jason lamely remembered the days when Kim used to sit at his house and look through that window as they talked about Tommy in a different fashion, but those days were gone.

Sighing, he joined her by the window. "Why, Kim?" He had heard her give a thousand different answers to this question, all of them having a little grain of truth but not all of it. Sure, rangering had been crazy and Tommy had probably missed a few calls, and he wasn't much of a writer so letters weren't all that common from him, and the long distance thing was hard, but certainly not for two people as in love as they were.

"I don't know Jas. I mean, there is a part of me that wants to let him in, but then I feel myself put this wall up and I don't know why. That's what was always so amazing about him… his ability to love, no matter what happened to him." Kim let out a shaky sigh and sat on the bed again, and Jason leaned against the window.

"I think you hurt yourself more that you hurt him when you wrote that letter." He said quietly. Yes, he'd said that before too, but Kim had never believed him.

"Maybe I did. Maybe, in some sick and twisted way, I enjoy pain." She laid back on the bed and Jason pitied her. He sat down next to her and poked her stomach. When she didn't laugh, he knew she was serious and he laid back beside her. "I am angry at my father, Jason. I am mad at my dad." She paused, turning to him. "Why is that so hard for me to say, Jas, I have no problem being mad at you."

Jason smirked. "I've noticed." He teased, recalling their numerous arguments. Kim smiled a little bit at that and shoved his shoulder.

"I have no problem being angry with you, or Trini, or even Tommy, but it's like I can't bring myself to be angry with the one person who's caused me the most pain." Kim stated, frustratedly ramming her hand down on the bed.

Jason sighed, grabbing her hand and giving it a squeeze. "Maybe it's easier to be angry with the people you trust." He stated, realizing the irony of that statement. "Because you know they love you, no matter what."

Kim gave him a look, but it wasn't an angry one. It was an understanding one. "Maybe." She admitted.

"Hells, that's why I'm not mad at Emily. That's why I'm terribly frustrated with you, and Tommy and Kat and generally the whole lot of rangers I know." He teased, sitting and grabbing the marshmallow bag. He stuffed some into his mouth and offered the bag to Kim.

Taking a few marshmallows from it, she continued. "You think I'm still in love with Tommy?" She asked, her voice sounding weak once again. It was amazing how she did that.

"I think you love him. I don't know about being in love with him, but you still love him." Jason clarified gently.

"Maybe." She sat as well, nibbling on the marshmallow in her hand. "It just… wouldn't have worked out with the way we were. I mean, I saw my life flashing before my eyes, Jas." Kim stood, pacing to the window once more. "I saw me and him and a big house, and me turning into my mother…" Her voice trailed off for a moment, and Jason knew she was fighting tears at this point. "And I saw a little girl, sitting by her window, waiting for her daddy to come home." She turned back to him, wiping at her eyes. "But he never did, Jas. He never did." She broke into tears again, and Jason stood, wrapping his arms around her.

"Alright, shh." He coaxed her onto the bed again and sat with her propped up against his chest, rocking slightly. Her tears faded away slowly, and Jason held her the whole time. "Kim, you are not your mother. And Tommy is most certainly not your father. Kim, your mom had problems. So did your dad. No matter how much they wanted it to work, they couldn't make it. But you have a strength in you that your parents never had. And I have no idea how two such frail people raised such a brave, courageous, strong daughter. But they did. That strength Kim," He paused waiting until she looked at him. "That makes you different."

Kim smiled a little at him and rested her head against his chest again, giving his protective arm a squeeze. "Maybe you're right Jas… but it's too late now, isn't it?" She asked rhetorically, nodding towards the window.

Jason scoffed. "If you were to show up at his door tonight, or 2 years from now, Tommy would take you back." Jason muttered and that made Kim laugh.

They were silent for several minutes, Jason continuing to rock Kim in a soothing way, and Kim staring out the window. Jason wondered what it must have been like in Florida for Kim. He'd never lived in a place where he hadn't had someone with him. It must have been scary being so alone. No wonder she had thought what she had and done what she had. He didn't blame her one bit.

"Jas?" Kim asked after several moments. Jason made a grunting sound, and Kim's voice had a smile in it when she continued. "We've got some issues, you know."

And she whacked him with a pillow.

I remember that time that you told me, you said
Love is touching souls
Surely you touched mine
Cause part of you pours out of me
In these lines from time to time

They lay on the bed, two bags of marshmallows devoured, pillows thrown askew and both in their pajamas. Kim had grabbed the teddy bear Jason kept in his closet and was holding it close to her face. We must look like toddlers, she mused, and giggled a little bit.

"Do you forgive your mother?" Jason asked out of the blue. Kim studied him, wanting to say yes but not really believing it.

So instead she settled for, "Sometimes." Her answer was quiet, probably quieter than his question had been. But Jason heard her, and he rolled onto his side to face her.

"Well, you are never going to forgive yourself unless you make all of this right with Tommy. Even if it means you don't get back together, he deserves to know that there wasn't another man. You owe him that much." Jason stated simply. Kim sighed, shutting her eyes and holding the teddy bear up to her face.

"I don't think I can." She mumbled through it. Jason's hand pulled the bear down from her face easily and he gave her a pointed look.

"Kim, this is one of those things that you regret for the rest of your life. Trust me, I know. You're going to have to tell him." Jason smirked at her a little and Kim sighed. She was doing that a lot these days.

"I'll cross that bridge when I figure out how to secure my life jacket." She mumbled, and this made Jason smile.

"How do you come up with those?" He wanted to know.

"Just lucky I guess." She shrugged happily and then propped herself up to mirror his position. "But now, onto something else. How much money do you need to keep the dojo going?" She asked, fully intending to find a way to get it.

Jason rolled his eyes. "Oh no you don't. I won't have you meddling in my business affairs. The dojo is doing fine- we're making the payments on it alright. It's just that we may have to turn the back room into something livable, as it may become our house as well." He teased. Kim gave him a frustrated look.

"Jason, do you really even want to think about the possibility of sharing a room with Rocky?" She said seriously, and Jason grinned.

"Well, it's not on my top 100 things to do before I die list, but I may not have much of a choice." He stated. "It's not like I can go on living with my parents here. I mean yeah, home is nice, but I'm 19, and living at home is not what I planned on." He said impishly. Kim giggled at him, shoving his shoulder and effectively knocking him over.

She affectionately ruffled his hair and ran her fingers though it. "There was a time," She began slowly, knowing she was treading on this water. "When you wanted to go to college instead of starting a business right out of high school. What happened there?"

"Everything happened. Ranger's happened. Time went by to quick and I… I just couldn't make it in time." He clasped his hands over his stomach, happy with that answer, but Kim was not.

"There's still time you know. If you wanted to go to college you could enroll next semester at AGU. Maybe work part time at the dojo." She suggested, but Jason was quick to shoot her down.

"With what money? I used most of my college fund to start the dojo, and you remember how that's going. Besides, I couldn't do that to Rocky." It was true, he and Rocky were equal partners, and to ask that of him would be not so good. However something was telling her that Jason wanted more than just the dojo.

"If you could do one thing that didn't involve karate, what would it be?" She asked.

"Oh, twenty questions game." He teased. Kim smacked his head lightly and he continued. "Oh I don't know. Architecture always interested me. That'd be fun. But I can't see myself showing up to work every day in a suit and tie." He grinned.

"That's because you work at a karate dojo!" Kim said back, rolling her eyes. Jason laughed, and Kim smiled at him fondly.

"Maybe. For now, I think we just need to concentrate on trying to get this place really going. And hey, if it tanks, I'll pay you a visit." He teased, and Kim gave him another look. She pursed her lips in thought.

"Is there anything I could do to help?" She asked, but from the look on Jason's face he'd heard that before.

"When Kat and Tanya said that, Rocky replied that they could stand outside the store in bikinis and attract customers." He teased, giving her a once over. Kim smirked.

"And I'm sure the view wouldn't have been too bad for you guys either!" She smacked his shoulder again and Jason flinched.

"Hey, he said it, not me." He defended himself playfully, swatting at her hand. Jason sobered and let out a long breath of air. "The dojo will be okay. I have a good feeling about it. Sure, we may have to go through some hard times before it gets going, but that's just how it is these days. And really, has my good feeling ever failed me?" He asked innocently, and Kim thought back.

She gave him a thoughtful look. "Hmm… well, there was that time when we were five and you had a good feeling about that muddy dog. Or there was your baseball card collection that you spent so much money on because you had a good feeling about it, and some rumor about them being worth millions some day. And then there was that one time at the carnival when you had a good feeling about the rollercoaster. Or-" Kim was about to list the time when he'd had a good feeling about going boating in the spring, and the water had been freezing. Jason's hand was now covering her mouth and he was giving her an irate look.

"The meaning of rhetorical questions is foreign to you, isn't it?" He asked sarcastically, and Kim laughed.

"Little bit." She held up two fingers about an inch apart and Jason smiled.

"What about the gymnastics team? How's that going? Are you going to keep competing or try something else? Did you even read that section of the letter?" He asked suspiciously, and Kim grinned impishly.

"Not totally. I was a bit more worried about you." She said truthfully. "Everything's going fine with the team. I mean, the girls are great, the coaches are great, the hours are great, I'm in great shape, and it pays great." She finished, wishing she felt as great as she made it seem.

"Then what's the problem?" There was one thing for certain. If she thought she knew her friends like the back of her hand then they certainly knew her that well, if not better.

"There really isn't one. It just gets harder and harder to pull myself out of bed every morning." She laid back down next to him, crossing her arms the same way his were. "I think I'm just a little tired of it. I mean, I've been doing gymnastics longer than you've been doing karate. I still love it, but I want to do something else." She stated, and Jason nodded placidly.

"Like what?" He asked, and Kim smiled.

"No idea." They gave each other a look and then both burst out laughing. Their problems were not so far apart at all.

"Wait! I've got it!" Jason said loudly. He grabbed Kim's arm in excitement and she couldn't help laughing. "You and me, Kim! We'll go into business together!" He said happily.

"Oh great! And do what, per say? Open a store of marshmallows?" She teased, tossing one at him. Jason let out something close to a giggle.

"1000 ways to roast a marshmallow." Jason started.

"An instructional video by Kim and Jason!" Kim finished, and they both continued to laugh.

"You mean Jason and Kim." He corrected, and Kim gave him a look.

"Oh please!" Kim gave him a look that read very clearly that her name would be first. Jason grinned.

"Something tells me we're doing better in our current career choices." He said, unable to wipe the smile off his face. Kim giggled back.

"Are you happy?" She asked, her tone just as happy, but calmer. Jason seemed to give that some thought before answering.

"Yeah, I'm pretty happy. I may not have everything I want, but I'm only 19. There's plenty of time." He shrugged, and Kim laid her head down on his chest. He gave her shoulder a squeeze. "Are you happy?"

"Me? As a clam." She said quietly. "I've got just about everything I need. Great job, roof over my head, best friends I could ask for. I'm just thanking my lucky star. And your right, we're still young for the rest of it."

"But are you happy? Really?" He wanted to know, scrutinizing her more closely.

"Yeah, I'm pretty happy." She replied, giving him a small smile.

He smiled back at her. "Me too."

Oh I am a lonely painter
I live in a box of paints
I'm frightened by the devil
And I'm drawn to those ones that ain't afraid

After they were all out of marshmallows and had snuck down stairs to get drinks and back up again, they lay on the bed. It was only 3 in the morning here, but back in Florida it was nearly 7, and Kim was going to be late for the gym today. She didn't really care though, not today. She'd come up with an excuse.

Jason was resting with his head on her stomach, and they made a sort of Y shape on the floor.

"I'm exhausted." Jason mumbled, his eyes closed. Kim ran her fingers through his hair affectionately.

"Sorry." She mumbled in reply. Jason smiled.

"Not your fault. I'm just out of it. It's so hard to get up in the morning ever since I lost my powers again." He heaved a sigh and Kim nodded.

"It hard, going from being too addicted to adrenaline to all of a sudden having nothing to balance you out." She remembered going to Florida after having given up her powers to Kat. What had once been a simple matter of memory became a trying game of what she could force her body to do without hurting it. The power had always acted as a cushion, and without it everything seemed to burn. Those first few weeks had been the hardest.

"Oh, I remember. It gets better, but it doesn't get a whole lot easier. Guess this is what I signed on for when I accepted Tommy's offer." Jason smirked a little. Kim knew that after they'd all lost their powers they had finally understood why Tommy had been the way he had. The power was certainly addicting.

"Do you think you're going to miss it?" She asked quietly. Jason scoffed.

"What? Miss the monsters, and the constant danger to everyone around you, and the calls to battle at the most inconvenient times, and the injuries-" Kim placed her hand over his mouth before he could continue and interrupted him.

"And the rush of fighting, and the joy of defeating the monsters, and the pride of being some impressionable little five year olds hero, and the companionship and comradely of your team, and never getting sick because of the amplifier the power provides, and everything that goes along with being a ranger?" Kim finished for him. Jason was silent when she removed her hand from his mouth, and she waited until he scoffed again.

"Yeah, I'll miss it. Like hell." He muttered, and Kim gave him a squeeze.

"See, told you so." She replied gently, and Jason shook his fist at her, the only movement he seemed to be capable of. Kim smiled.

"And you? Do you miss it?" He asked back. Kim shrugged, or at least tried too.

"We all miss it. It's just a natural part of losing your powers. I think that being a ranger was the best thing I ever did, or will ever do. I miss that it's gone, but I'm proud that it was there at all." She answered. It was something she had thought about many times since she'd been living in Florida, and there were certainly days when she wished more than anything to go back to those days. "We all find our own way in the end. We just have to trust that the power chose us for a reason."

Jason nodded, listening and thinking. He turned his head and smirked in her direction. "You know what Kim?"

"What?" She replied.

Jason grabbed her hand and squeezed it tightly. "We're going to be okay."

Kim lay in the bed, the sun beaming through the window and Jason finally asleep. She wanted to join him, but she was already beyond late for practice, and she didn't know how she was going to get through that. She had already put on her leather jacket and placed everything she needed inside her bag.

She watched him sleep for a few minutes, thinking back through the night. She was certainly glad to have Jason in her life. Only he could talk with her like that and make everything all right, when it felt like everything was falling apart. If there was one person she had truly been blessed with, he was laying beside her now.

No one had stood by her longer, and no one, not even Kim's husband one day could take the place he held in her heart. He knew that, and so did she, and for them, that was enough.

Kim reached out with one finger to trace the lines of her best friends face. She ran her finger down his nose and dropped her hand, not wanting to wake him.

"Love you." She whispered to the silent sleeping form of her friend. He stirred slightly, and in a groggy voice that was still very much asleep came his reply.

"Love you too, Kimmy-cups." He muttered in his sleep, and Kim smiled. She was glad she had taken this trip. It had been worth it. Jason was worth it.

Sighing she rose to her feet. Jason didn't wake, being exhausted from a night without sleep in the first place, and the drain of the power on his body. She picked up her bag and let herself glance once more out the window at Angel Grove, coming to life in the first light of day.

She lifted the small communicator on her wrist up, programming in the coordinates and ready to hit the button. It was time to get back to her life now that she'd had her mini vacation. And it was time for Jason to do the same.

But they knew that no matter what, they'd always have something to fall back on when it got to hard, and that was enough. That would always be more than enough.

It was 3 in the afternoon by the time Jason's mother decided it was time to wake him up. As she left the room, Jason looked around. He wasn't really surprised that Kim wasn't there. She had a life to get back to. But the traces of the previous night were there; marshmallow bags scattered on the floor, pillows all over the place, his old teddy bear laying next to him, and two empty coke cans on the floor. Jason sat up and smiled.

Cleaning it all up, he looked out his window at the bustling Angel Grove before him. There was so much to do, and to see and to be here. So much he had to get back to.

He sighed and walked over to his dresser, fully planning on doing something today. He had some motivation, after all.

Glancing up at his wall, he caught sight of a bright smile in pink and grinned.

"Thanks Kim. I owe you one."

You said,
I am as constant as a northern star.
And I said, constant in the darkness
Where's that at?
If you want me I'll be in your heart…