The Reluctant Ranger Chapter 32 - Performance

Nicole had been given a few days off from school for her injuries, not that she needed them.  She’d ended up back in the gymnastics room while Grace attended classes, running through her old routines again.  This time, Nicole had set up her phone to record things, mostly to show off for Grace. 

She wasn’t used to someone who appreciated how she looked, and some parts of Nicole still shied away from the attention, even if she did enjoy it.  The experience was novel, in a way.  Nicole wanted to show off completely, maybe even shoot some as the Black Ranger, but she had to be careful, because she had an audience. 

The instructor, Tanya,  had shown up again and was watching from the sidelines with silent appraisal.  It made Nicole nervous, but less so than it had before the revelation that the government knew who the Rangers were.  Less risk, but there were still concerns.  She didn’t want to be an open Ranger, it would be too much of a headache dealing with the press following her everywhere. 

Nicole completed another routine, moving back to the camera to start a new video when Tanya walked over, her face scrunched in concentration. 

“You sure I can’t talk you into competing?” 

Nicole shook her head, knowing that the requests would never end, not as long as she appeared so compelling.  She could just out herself, which would put the questioning to a conclusive end, but that also meant another potential end to her already limited anonymity. 

Starting another video, she fell back into another comfortable routine.  She’d opted to wear nothing more than a sports bra and athletic shorts, purely for Grace’s own entertainment.  The moment some leering guy showed up, she would probably leave.  Once again, there was no difficulty in doing even the most difficult of her old sets, which took a lot of the enjoyment out of doing so. 

Maybe she should try to come up with some new routines that took her new strength and speed into account?  That could provide the challenge that was now lacking.  Finishing yet another routine, she couldn’t help but avoid the calculating gaze of the gymnastics instructor and former Olympian. 

“I have my reasons,” Nicole said, taking the opportunity to rotate into a handstand, and when that proved too easy, she shifted to one arm and started doing push ups.  “Think about it.  I’m on medical leave, yet nothing is wrong with me, and I insist I can’t compete.  Why is that?” 

“I’d say it’s fairly obvious,” Tanya said with a shrug, taking a seat against the wall.  “I mostly want you on the team to push my other idiots into trying harder, even if you can’t compete.”  Then, Tanya smirked.  “As an aside, the doors are all locked if you want to truly cut loose.” 

It really shouldn’t have surprised Nicole that the woman figured things out.  Competing at the level she had, there were likely other Rangers that tried to worm their way into events they shouldn’t, and leave it to a master to pick those out when they cropped up. 

Another new video was started, and Nicole walked out to the middle of the mat.  It was the first time since she’d almost died that she would be transforming, and she was feeling just a touch nervous.  Carlos insisted she would be fine, so long as she didn’t try it again anytime soon, but that nagging fear was still there. 

Taking a breath, Nicole held up her watch and hit the two buttons.

“Roll the Dice.” 

That familiar flash of black light, a contradiction in the truest of terms, settled over her along with that comfortable surge of power that came with her transformation.  There stood the Black Ranger, hale and healthy, and ready to fight if necessary.  She hadn’t planned on fighting, but she would be putting herself through some paces. 

“Shit,” Tanya said, drawing Nicole’s gaze.  “Sorry, I just had money on you being the Red Ranger.” 

Nicole couldn’t help but chuckle.  “Sorry to disappoint.  It would be a bit on the nose for the ginger to be the Red Ranger though.” 

Tanya tapped her chin, seemingly deep in thought.  “Think there have been Rangers that fell into racial stereotypes before?” 

“Probably,” Nicole said, lining up for a routine.  

She’d need to be careful, because she already knew she could jump higher than the ceilings.  Actually, were there any routines that would benefit from being a Ranger beyond the aerial stuff?  So, she did exactly that, rolling into a floor routine with as many flips as she could, only she added impossible heights to them. 

There was a thrill to that, even if it was easier than ever to pull off.  Watching the world twist around her at speeds that should have blacked her out, stalling out twenty plus feet off the ground only to come tumbling back to the earth in a controlled fall.  It was thrilling, even if there was no real danger. 

Just for giggles, on one such jump, she touched the ceiling, then let herself fall back to the mat with a heavy thump.  She was laughing even as Tanya came running over, Nicole’s phone in hand. 

“Damn girl,” she said, offering her a hand that wasn’t really needed.  “That was cool as shit.” 

“Fun too,” Nicole admitted, getting back to her feet with a quick kip up.  She dismissed the transformation and felt a bit heavier, closer to earth.  It was a comforting reminder most times, but she flinched reflexively, as if anticipating crippling pain once more.  Seeing Tanya’s concerned visage, she smiled softly.  “Hopefully that passes in time.” 

“I saw the footage, and it really should have clicked that it was you in hindsight,” Tanya said, handing Nicole’s phone back.  “It’s just like getting back into things after an injury.  You’ll get there.” 

It was true.  Anyone that competed had injuries from what they did that had to be overcome, and the pain stayed fresh in the mind despite everything being all healed up.  Nicole knew it was all in her mind, but that didn’t make it any less traumatic for her.  Another fight would come, and she would feel that hesitation, and she would move beyond it. 

Because that’s what heroes do. 

“Maybe I will pop in to help motivate your slackers,” Nicole said, gathering her things.  She would probably go for a run after, that way she didn’t waste a shower before meeting up with Grace for a double date with Colin and Becca.

With her phone back in hand, Nicole snapped another selfie, sending it off to Grace as she did.  She was a lot less self conscious than she was when they first met, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t blushing up a storm at the thought of her girlfriend getting excited over pictures of her.  That voice that whispered insults once said in the open wasn’t as loud as it once was, but that didn’t mean it had fallen completely silent. 

It was just that certain compliments whispered in heated moments were much harder to ignore.  That thought alone brought heat to her cheeks and a smile to her lips, even as the blushing emoji reply came in. 

“So, when do I get to meet this girlfriend you’re showing off so much for?” Tanya asked with a knowing smirk.  “She’s got to be something special.” 

“You have no idea,” Nicole said, grabbing her bag.  “I’m sure you’ll meet her someday.”

Tanya snorted, waving goodbye as Nicole took off at a jog.  She had an hour until Grace’s last class let out, which gave her plenty of time to cut loose on the jogging trails.  She would need to rein herself in enough that people didn’t look too closely, but she also knew that a lot of people just weren’t that observant. 

Sure, some of the people she ran past probably looked at her a little funny, but most would shrug and forget about it other than an idle curiosity.  That held true for what felt like her entire route, sometimes she would spot a funny look on those she passed, and she didn’t even bother to look back at those she left in the dust. 

Confidence was key in getting people to just roll with something. 

If only she had learned that lesson in high school, she might have been able to shrug off the comments from those that bullied her and Becca more.  Shaking her head, she made her way back into the dorm and got showered and changed.  She once again picked something that showed off her figure, having bought a few outfits that deviated from her old high school baggy normal. 

She was wearing it for Grace, after all, even if she couldn’t quite see it herself.  Yes, that was a bit hypocritical of her, Nicole would drool over muscle girls all the time, but being one of those girls wasn’t quite the same. 

Her shirt fell a few inches shy of covering her stomach, and had strings for straps to keep it on.  It barely qualified as a shirt, and it was a summer yellow.  She’d also picked out a pair of cloth shorts to go with it that definitely showed off her assets.  Looking in the mirror and trying to imagine her body on anyone else, Nicole could almost see it. 

Shaking her head, she went out into the living room and found Becca, dressed to the nines in an absolutely amazing deep blue dress that tied off around her neck and swept all the way down to her ankles with a split that ran all the way up to her thighs.  To say that Nicole was a bit jealous of Colin at the moment was an understatement. 

“In my humble, lesbian opinion, damn,” Nicole said. 

Becca looked up from her phone, and snorted.  “Talk about pandering to our dates.” 

“You got that right,” Nicole said, striking a bit of a pose.  “Think Grace will like it?” 

“Well, as a straight girl, I can’t comment too much,” Becca said wryly, “but I do believe this is a ‘doy’ moment if I ever saw one.” 

Now that was an idea for a Halloween costume, if she had ever thought of one, the only problem would be convincing Grace to dress up as little Miss Go…  Eh, they still had another month to go, she could make it happen. 

“Don’t make me get a spray bottle,” Becca said, smacking Nicole’s shoulder.  “I can see the gears turning already.  Now, are we going to keep our dates waiting?” 

Nicole shook her head.  “I just wish we could get someone to take pictures of the looks on their faces.” 

“Way ahead of you,” Becca said with a smirk.  “I got in touch with Kayla, she agreed to snap a few pictures.” 

Nicole was impressed at the forethought, and a bit disappointed in herself for not thinking of it first.  Then again, she wasn’t thinking of much beyond Grace at the moment.  The date had been an idea to spend some time together after Nicole’s extended hospital stay, and well, she wanted to tell Colin so that Becca wouldn’t have to keep a major secret from him if something happened again. 

She hadn’t outright said it, but Nicole knew her friend well enough.  Keeping that secret was eating at her, especially during Nicole’s time in a coma when she couldn’t explain anything.  Well, that was going to end, and hopefully remove a burden that her friend was carrying.  She had enough worries in life as it was without adding some of Nicole’s own on top. 

They left together, drawing more than a few eyes as they did.  Nicole was grateful that almost nobody from their old school ended up in their college, most opting for the larger universities closer to downtown.  That was half the reason they decided to go to Anoka instead, getting away from the assholes. 

Getting out onto the grounds, Nicole was stopped in her tracks as she took in the vision of pure lesbian thirst before her.  Grace had opted to wear a sleeveless black tank top with a fucking red flannel bandanna around her neck.  She’d paired that with loose jeans that still managed to hug her thighs in all the right places, and a beanie on top of it. 

She had actually… 

“Lesbian lumberjack much?” Becca muttered, not that Nicole really heard her, transfixed as she was.  “Colin, you look dashing.” 

Nicole snapped out of her reverie as Becca closed the distance and kissed her suit clad boyfriend.  The pair started to coo over one another in hushed whispers much to Nicole’s own amusement.  Then Nicole found herself staring again at her own date for the evening.  Grace was biting her lip and looking Nicole up and down in a way that was very much inappropriate.  Not that she was any better, of course.

“Hey,” Nicole said, finding only the one word. 

Grace’s mouth worked for a few seconds, her eyes kept wanting to drift down and that alone sent a thrill through Nicole, because she knew that her girlfriend was only looking because she liked what she saw. 

“Damn,” Grace finally got out.  “Are you trying to give me an anime gusher of a nose bleed?” 

Smirking, Nicole reached up, running a finger under Grace’s nose and inspected it.  “Hmm, clearly I need to try harder.” 

“You can try-hard her all night after we get back,” Becca shouted.  “Come on, we have reservations and I don’t want to lose out.” 

“Oh, let them be useless,” Kayla chimed in from right behind Nicole, getting a startled ‘eep’ out of her.  “I think it’s cute.” 

“You would,” Grace muttered.  “I swear, if you send that to—” 

A gentle chime from Nicole’s phone was all she needed, because the damage was done. 

“Too late,” Kayla said.  “Now go have fun, you both need it.” 

Being pushed towards the car, Nicole and Grace were both laughing as Kayla grinned wide.  Colin was driving, and Becca claimed shotgun as was her right, which left the back seat to the pair as they both got buckled in.  The engine fired up, but they didn’t immediately pull away.

“Are you sure that you’re up to this?” Colin asked, turning in his seat.  “You only got out of the hospital yesterday.”  

“I’m fine, Colin,” Nicole said.  “I heal pretty fast these days.” 

He raised an eyebrow.  “Nicole, I remember you crying with an ice pack on a sprained ankle that took two weeks before you could walk again.” 

“I got better,” Nicole said, pulling up a video of her afternoon acrobatics.  “Literally.” 

He watched, and she caught the moment when she transformed flash across his face.  His eyes ever so slowly widened, pupils dilating as they trailed up from her phone to look back at her smirking face. 

“Holy shit,” he said after a moment.  “You saved my life…  Oh god, that was you screaming on the news!  Becca did you—  No, of course you knew, that’s why you were, fuck I was such an ass I’m—” 

Becca cut him off with a quick kiss, chaste but enough to accomplish what was needed.  

“Yes yes, all is forgiven,” Becca said.  “Now get driving before we miss our reservation and they give the table away.” 

His eyes flicked back to Nicole again, then to Grace before he let out an explosive sigh.

“As you wish.”