Where You Hang Your Hat Chapter 22: Part XXII, a kim possible fanfic

Where You Hang Your Hat: Part XXII

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Ron fluffed out the sheet over the bed, letting it settle perfectly in place before tucking the end of it under the mattress. With a practiced hand he finished it off with hospital corners, just like Kim's Mom did at her house. Neither of them actually made the bed very often, but since this was the first time in their new apartment, he was going to do it right.

Next he got the thick pink comforter out of the cardboard box. Kim had been sleeping under that particular cover for many years, as he had for most of the last few months. It was only a little longer they would have to sleep under it.

The room looked pretty sparse. Unlike the previous place, it was a proper bedroom. It had a large, triple paned window, but there were already blinds up there. It afforded them a view of the picturesque boulevard leading to the campus, with the old buildings visible when the blinds were drawn. The walls were still bare, painted a sort of eggshell color, making the room look a little larger than it was. In reality is was just a touch smaller than their room at Kim's house, but at least it was home.

Their home.

Part of the reason the room looked so spartan was their furniture, or more accurately, their lack of it. Later in the week they would be able to go down to a warehouse and claim the bulk of their belongings that had been removed from the loft was Middleton Mills. Kim had been in a pretty good snit for a while over that, but at least her parents had allowed them to borrow enough furniture to get by for the time being. Even so, the room looked pretty empty with just the small bed, a student desk, two round nightstands and a chest-of-drawers.

Kim walked out of the closet. If there was one good thing about moving into a relatively new building, it was the fact they didn't scrimp on storage space. It was wide and deep, with built in drawers and hanging spaces for more clothes than the two of them owned together.

Wade followed her out, packing away his laser measuring device. "I'll get with the maintenance people first thing tomorrow morning. I think I can have a proper vault installed in there in just a couple days."

"Spankin." If there had been one problem they couldn't overcome at their old place (save for the fact the building was now going to be torn down) it was there was no good way to install a storage vault for their battle-suits. Kim had learned the hard way that they had to keep them under lock and key, having dealt with one being stolen in the past.

"Do you want me to install the satellite feed tomorrow?" He asked. Wade worked part-time for the Space Center and had taken several days off to help them settle in.

"Please and thank you."

Ron finished fluffing the pillows and pulled the box full of bed linens into the corner. It would only be a few days before he had to do it all over again, but at least they would be able to sleep in a comfortably familiar bed.

Kim came back into the room after seeing their friend out. The rest of the apartment was even emptier looking, with a pair of plastic chairs and a folding card table serving as their dining set. The home center was supposed to be by later to deliver their new refrigerator. The last one had come with the apartment and the only furnishings this one had was a cook-top and over built in. Until it was up and running, they couldn't even go by the store to stock up on food. It wasn't like they would want the old fridge anyway, especially after sitting for two weeks with the power turned off. Ron turned green even thinking about the meat that had been in that freezer.

Kim sat down in the middle of the carpeted floor, leaning back on her arms while looking out the window. They hadn't looked at the particular building they had moved into before, mainly because it was so close to the campus they assumed it would be another one of the tiny 'kiddie condos' that peppered the properties surrounding Middleton College. In fact, the unit they were in wasn't even listed, having only become available recently.

She felt a little guilty about calling in a favor like that so quickly, but considering the way their luck had been running, Ron insisted they were due. The apartment was kind of small, being only about two-thirds of the floor space of the loft, but what it lacked in space, it made up for with spectacular views from just about every window. They might be bumping into each other often once all their furniture was there, but for the moment she thought it was pleasantly cozy. It would certainly do until their townhouse was ready late the next summer.

The owner kept insisting they take the space gratis, but Kim wouldn't hear of any such thing. She called the dept paid in full simply because he pointed them to the place. In the end, however, he did cut them a good deal on the lease, which was a little pricey to begin with, but not out of Ron's reach. He also made a concession that the lease would be for one year, instead of three like the property normally called for. That was in place to create a sense of stability, since it was supposed to be nicer than the other apartments in the neighborhood.

It had everything they needed and wanted. There were two bedrooms, each opening into the single large bathroom. There was only one sink, but the tub was a more comfortable, modern oval design they both could comfortably sit in, if not completely submerge. When they claimed the rest of their furniture, they would move her old bed into the other room…ostensibly 'her' room since they were technically referring to each other as 'roommates' in certain circles. There was a little wink-and-nod involved with that, but it satisfied certain old-fashioned types like Kim's Nana.

Their actions in Durango had another lucky effect. Once again Kim was being hailed on the news as the hero, instead of them focusing on her living arrangements. There was also plenty of coverage of Ron, and perhaps for the first time, her cousin was mentioned by name.

Joss was a happier young woman of late. The weekend after the Durango trip she decided to go out with Bobby again, with the understanding that she was the one calling the shots when it came to the romantic parts of the date. It was rather ironic that she came home, reporting to Kim that they once again drove out to the bluff at the end of Logging Camp Road. This time she bragged about just how good they guy could kiss. Actually, it was more like gushing. Kim was able to get a couple more details from her cousin than her Mom could (Kim's Dad was not party to any of those discussions) and smiled gently as she offered a little warning to her. The younger woman was already referring to the boy as her 'boyfriend' and was going on and on about how great it was going to be having most of her classes with him.

James Possible's attitude about the boy improved greatly once he came in and introduced himself before the date. He never knew about Joss' blowup that night, and considering how things were going, didn't need to. He even went so far as to extend her curfew until midnight, though once school started, it would be back to ten when she had to get up for classes the next morning.

Putting the last of the squabble behind them, Kim invited Joss to spend the night at their apartment once everything was squared away. It looked like they would just have time to do that, right before the High School went back into session. Her younger cousin mentioned something about bringing Bobby along to see the place, but she was only playing Kim.

Ron sat down cross-legged behind Kim, kneading her shoulders. "I'm a little upset we don't have a fireplace, you know. I was looking forward to building up a nice one in that other place come winter."

"Yeah. Kinda funny having a home without one. Especially here in Colorado."

"Eh, maybe it's for the better. You never know when some goof will forget to close the screen, and next thing you know, poof, no building."

"No kidding." She tossed her hair a couple times, still getting used to it being back like she wore it as a teen. Ron had the goofiest smile on her face when she came out of the salon later that day. To him it was like having the old Kim back, the one he fell in love with. Still, she told him that she was starting over, so she would have plenty of hair to put up in a complicated bun for their wedding.

The remainder of Ron's birthday had been interesting. For it to be his special day, the greater part of the afternoon was spent doing stuff for Kim. Just before they got on the highway, Joss spotted a small shopping center. It was roughly half the size of the Middleton Mall, but still boasted the most important thing; a Club Banana. Kim emerged from the changing room in a brand new pair of periwinkle capris and a snug, lime green crop top. It was like fifteen year old Kim had stepped out of a time machine, though Ron couldn't hustle her to the shoe store quick enough to get her out of those detestable purple shoes.

They had what must have been the first family dinner ever where Jim and Tim weren't behaving like a couple of monkeys. Gene and Jean came along, as well as the twin's girlfriends, so they ended up crowding around a single large table in the center of the Italian eatery. There was lots of laughter, especially when both Kim and Ron were carded when all the adults ordered pitchers of Italian style sangria. Gene made the statement that Kim was likely going to have to prove her age right up into her thirties. That didn't bother her one bit.

Not everything went off quite as she had planned that evening. By her third glass of the wine-based punch, she had slipped out of her dressy sandals and was running her toes up the leg of Ron's new slacks. He almost tried to wear his old gray cargo pants which used to serve as his mission gear, but Kim insisted everyone dress up a little bit. For probably the first time in his life he was wearing Club Banana from head to toe, excepting his shoes.

The problem was she lost track of exactly how much of the delicious concoction she drank. Even though it was with a rather large meal, she was quite wobbly on her feet as they climbed up to their room about midnight. He intention was to be a little out of control with Ron, who had nursed a single glass himself throughout the entire meal, drinking lots of water instead. She ducked behind her old changing screen, putting on a nighty that was most def only to be seen by Ron.

She slipped across the room, trying to be seductive, but only managed to trip on her own feet, stumbling most of the way to the bed, laughing her head off in the process. Pulling back the covers, she snuggled up to him, kissing and licking his neck.

Kim woke up the next morning in the very same position, having fallen into a deep sleep right there. Plus, as had happened before when she had a little too much to drink, she was in no condition for any kind of romance that following morning. Her 'little wake-up call' consisted of four ibuprofens, a glass of water and a nice long hot bath alone. She came to the inescapable conclusion that alcohol was not her friend, and what good was losing control, even at the right time if she wasn't likely to remember it?

"That feels so ferociously good." Kim moaned as Ron worked her shoulders.

"You always said it's a good thing I've got such big hands."

She sat up and turned around, leaning over him. Their lips met and for a long time they sat like that on the floor, just simply kissing. Finally, she pulled back and nuzzled her cheek against his.

"Please tell me I'm not going to wake up and find out this is just a dream. Tell me we finally have a place to call our home."

"This is it, KP. Though, like Dad always says, home is just where you hang your hat."

"You don't exactly wear hats, Ronnie." She touched the tip of his nose. "Though you did look so cute in that folk dancing hat that Norwegian couple made you put on."

He shuddered slightly. He knew something had happened to them in the past, something that had been erased from time. Some months ago, all those memories were restored when he touched the Tempus Simia idol, right before it was stolen from the Tri-City museum. Only, like a dream, those memories faded once more, until they were more feeling than actual recollections of actual events. Maybe it was since, in a way, none of it had ever really happened. All he could recall by then was that something major, something bad had been averted…

…that, and he really, really hated meat cakes.

Kim got up in her knees, reaching for Ron's hands. "We're about to forget something."

"Huh?" He cocked his head as she pulled him to his feet.

Instead of answering right away, she wrapped her arms around his shoulders, pressing her entire body up against his. The kiss she gave him literally made his toes curl. Slowly, she started steering him toward the bed.

"Hey! I just made that." He protested as she sat down, pulling him along with her. She lay back, letting him rest partially on top of her.

"We'll make it again…later." She breathed, pulling his shirt tail up. "We're home." She said at last, slipping under the fresh sheets as she pulled his top up over his head.