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Tanya was laughing, and Adam craned his head to see why. They were in the Youth Center, and she had agreed to help one of their classmates with their social studies assignment. His was long done; he'd learned very fast that a Ranger might be called into duty at any time, and at the most inconvenient moments, especially when the latest villain thought it would ruin their lives. So, getting work done was a priority, not only because it made sense, but because there was no explaining to Miss Applebee why his assignment was late. "The latest monster ate my homework" was not an acceptable excuse, not even in Angel Grove.
He sipped at his shake, watching her, as Rocky sat down beside him. "Tanya's tutoring, huh?" Rocky asked, and Adam could only nod. He wished someday that he'd have the courage to ask Tanya to be his girlfriend, but he hadn't brought it up yet, as Rocky was well aware.
"Hey, Penny and I are going on a date; you and Tanya want to come along?" Rocky asked. Adam thought about the blind martial artist and how she and Rocky had started dating, and wished he could talk to a girl like Rocky had... even if Rocky had fumbled things at first, it had come out so well in the end.
"I... don't know." He thought about asking her, and then the fact that she was tutoring someone else kept him away. If he was going to ask her out, he wasn't going to interrupt her.
"You're never gonna know until you ask," Rocky chided him. He quietly agreed, still watching Tanya. Watched as she laughed again, as she smiled, as she made things so easy for everyone, including him.
As the guy she was tutoring got up and thanked her, Rocky gave him a nudge. "Go on, go over there."
He wasn't sure if he could do it, but he bravely got up and walked over to the table where Tanya was sitting. "Hi, there," he said, and she looked up, smiling radiantly.
"Hi, Adam! Sit down," she said. So amazing, this girl who had grown up in two different places, depending on which timeline you remembered. He remembered both, and knew she was even more amazing for all that. "I just got finished helping Michael with his social studies."
"I saw," he said, and tried not to sound jealous. He'd almost lost her to Shawn; if he kept being afraid, he'd lose her again. And if he acted like Shawn did, he'd also lose her. "Um... Rocky and Penny are dating, and they wanted to know if we wanted to come along." He wished his last sentence had sounded a little more certain.
"I'd be glad to come," Tanya said, and she took his hand. "I'm always happy to spend time with you, Adam."
He smiled back. "I'm happy to spend time with you." Because he was. "Maybe I should tell Rocky...."
But his friend was already grinning and waving at him, and he didn't really want to get up and go over there anyway. Not when he was with Tanya. Not when Rocky understood.
He squeezed her hand, content to be with her.