What the fuck do I do?!

The second the words slipped out of my mouth, I regretted it. The look on the shorter girl's face was pure shock and fear. She hasn't met my eyes since I've said it. It's been about five minutes of us sitting here in silence and I feel as if I'll become insane if I stay here any longer.

The latina kept her gaze on Angel Grove, occasionally glancing down at her shirt. My eyes never leaving the side of her face. In fear of missing an important moment, or missing any sign of discomfort. More than there already was of course.

Trini finally looked up. Her chocolate brown orbs met mine, making my heart skip a beat. Her left hand raised to cup the side of my face, causing my breath to catch in my throat and my eyes to shut. I felt her thumb caress my cheek as I opened my eyes. She raised her right hand and cupped the other side of my face, pulling my closer so that our fore-heads rested on the other's. Everything was silent except for the pounding of my heart. There was no doubt the other girl could hear it.

As I kept her gaze, I tried to remember the last time she was this touchy feely. I was usually the one to initiate these kind of things. I've seen all sides to her but this one I enjoy in particular. She's gentle and kind and I love that side.

But this wasn't the reaction I expected. I assumed she would run away or never speak to me again. A pleasant surprise, at least we're making progress. Her eyes stared straight into mine until I couldn't take the silence any longer.

"Please say something," I pleaded desperately.

"I don't know if I can," She whispered.

"You just did," I softly chuckled. "Talk to me."

She removed her hands from my face and pulled away slightly. I felt a hint of sadness at the loss of contact but quickly brushed it off.

"I don't know what to do," The yellow Ranger confessed.

"You don't have to do anything."

"I feel like I do. I feel like I need to say something but I can't," She mumbled.

"It's alright if you don't say it," I replied placing a hand on her shoulder.

"No, I mean I can't physically say it. I tried and I want to but I can't."

Her words took my by surprise. She wanted to say it back to me? Hearing that, I almost laughed out loud in relief. Instead, I gave her a soft smile and lowered my hand down to hers, lacing our fingers together.

"It's ok."

"I'm sorry. I truly want to."

"No, it's really ok," I reassured her. "Can I ask you something?"

"Go ahead."

"Just tell me if I'm hitting a nerve." She looked up at me and nodded.

"What... Why do you dislike the nickname 'Trin' so much?" I asked softly.

She opened and closed her mouth a couple of times before responding. "My dad called me that," She whispered never breaking eye contact.

"Your dad?" I asked slightly confused.

"Yes. My real dad. Before... all of this-"

"Foster care..."

"Yep."

"Do you mind telling me about it?" I wondered. "You don't have to if you don't want to."

"No, I want to. I trust you." She took a deep breath. "So... Before the foster care, before the drinking, I had a wonderful family. They took care of me, loved me, protected me like any family should. My mother started drinking when I was four. It was crazy at first, but I got used to it. She'd drink practically everyday. It was just the usual."

I nodded for her to continue.

"She's my mother. Not my mom, but my mother. Mom is a title a mother earns from her kids. And my mother lost that title the second her lips touched the bottle. So I hung out with my dad most of the time. We we're incredibly close. He was always happy around me but I knew somehow he was hurt. It was difficult for him to take care of my mother and me. Trin was his nickname for me... He would never call me Trini unless I was in trouble," She chuckled at the thought. "I don't know where he is now. I never said goodbye to him. The people took me away all too fast. Now I'm here."

"I'm so sorry, Trini," I gave her hand a gentle squeeze.

"It's fine. If that never happened, I wouldn't have been here now. With Billy, Jason, Zack... Or you. Especially you."

I smiled and looked at our hands. "Your dad sounds like a good man. I'd like to meet him one day."

"And hopefully you will. She paused for a moment. "Kimberly?"

"Yeah?"

"I think I always knew somehow."

"Knew what?"

"I always knew I looked at you differently. Not only as a friend, but more. And I've said it before. It was in a different way but it meant the same thing."

"You are amazing."

"I know," She laughed and a smile made its way to my lips. I missed her laugh.

"If you need it... My hand is always held out for you. My shoulders are small, but you can cry on them too," I spoke softly. "I'm not going anywhere."

"I believe you. And I'm not either."

"I just realized something," My eyebrows shot up.

"What?" She smirked.

"Zack's gonna absolutely kill me."

Right on cue, behind us, the voice that definitely belonged to the Black Ranger yelled; "Damn right, Kimberly Hart!"