Power Rangers: Whole (8/?), Billy/Tommy, R.
Took a week off for the Thanksgiving holiday and various real life drama, but now I'm back. XD
Title: Whole, chapter seven
Author: vandonovan
Pairing: eventually Billy/Tommy, with background Skull/Kim, Adam/Rocky, Jason/Zack and Aisha/OMC
Word count: 4,708 (this chapter)
Rating: R (this chapter)
Era: MMPR AU after "The Green Candle" where Tommy never becomes the White Ranger. (Picks up in 1999.)
Warnings: drug/alcohol use, mentioned dub-con, prostitution, adult language, sexual situations/innuendo, Alternate Universe, potential spoilers through Zeo.
Summary: Six years after losing his Green Ranger powers, Tommy has been consumed by inner darkness and a destructive lifestyle. Can Billy bring Tommy back or will his attempts strain the Rangers too much as they face the return of an old enemy?
Notes: Super special thanks to azelmaroark for both playing beta and helping me create and cultivate this monster. ♥
Chapters: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19.
Chapter eight:
It takes hours for Billy to calm Tommy down, and he manages only by giving him sleeping pills and sitting up in bed with him until he finally falls asleep. By then, Billy’s own evening is shot. His mind replays the scene over and over, but he doesn’t know how to confront Adam about any of it. Weary, Billy forgoes a shower and barely manages to crawl into his own bed before passing out.
He wakes with his alarm, sore and groggy and already in a foul mood. He can hear the television on in the living room, which means that despite the sleeping pills, Tommy’s awake before him. He washes his face and brushes his teeth before pulling on clean clothes and giving his day over to Tommy again.
Although he’s awake, Billy can tell Tommy’s not all there.
His eyes are on the TV, but he’s not watching it. There are wet spots on his cheeks, and it’s not hard to tell that Tommy only stopped crying when he heard Billy’s alarm. He’s still wearing the gi pants from the night before and is shirtless, save for the fleece blanket which he’s pulled around his shoulders. His hair is a wreck.
Billy remembers it was pulled into a ponytail last night, but he didn’t realize that Tommy’d done so with a common household rubber band. During the night, it tangled itself more and more into Tommy’s locks, coiling around curls and pulling.
Taking a deep breath, Billy ignores Tommy for the moment. He’s no use to anyone before he’s had his coffee, and he stands in the kitchen watching the machine percolate for five full minutes. He drinks his first cup down black and nearly scalding hot, but feels almost instantly better.
Fetching scissors, he returns to the living room. “That’s got to be hurting your scalp.”
Tommy turns big, watery brown eyes at him. “I’m sorry.”
Billy gently kneels on the couch, trying to figure out how to tackle the tangle of hair and rubber. “What for?”
“Screwed up. Ruined last night.”
“That was hardly your fault. Adam overreacted.”
“He’s right, though.”
“No, he’s not. Adam doesn’t know anything. Believe me, I will make him apologize.”
Tommy closes his eyes. “No. No more trouble.”
“Shh. Try not to worry.” Billy very gently lifts some of Tommy’s hair, hoping he can slip the scissors in to snip the rubber.
It’s fine for approximately two seconds, and then Tommy hisses and violently jerks away.
He doesn’t complain, but Billy knows it hurt him. He knows Tommy’s extremely sensitive about his scalp. “I’m sorry. I’ve got to cut it out. It’s just going to continue to hurt if I don’t.”
Tommy pulls the blanket tighter around him and rocks very gently in place.
Billy puts a hand to his brow. He’s got to be at work in less than an hour and he’s kneeling here trying to coax Tommy into letting him cut a rubber band out of his hair. “What am I even thinking? Adam’s never going to let Rocky come over today. Just sit tight.” Leaving Tommy there, he goes back into the kitchen and picks up the phone.
“Hello, June? Yeah. It’s Billy. I really hate to do this on such short notice, but, uh, I don’t think I’m going to be able to make it into work this morning. Yes. I’m . . . yes, I’m well aware of that. It’s a bit of an emergency or else I wouldn’t. I will try to make it in later. Thank you.” He hangs up, pours himself another cup of coffee and leans against the arch leading from the kitchen to the living room. “Maybe a shower would help?”
Tommy doesn’t answer him. His attention has finally been drawn by the television. Eager to know what Tommy might enjoy watching, Billy crosses into the room again so he can see. The Breaking News bulletin cutting through the early morning cartoons makes his blood go cold. On the screen is shaky handheld video of a monster terrorizing some joggers in Angel Grove Park. “Shit.”
Tommy turns his eyes, wide and imploring, toward him.
Almost as soon as Billy sets his mug of coffee down his wrist communicator goes off. “Billy here. I’m aware of the situation. This could not come at a more inopportune time.”
Zordon is the one who replies to him. “The timing is unfortunate, but I am afraid this cannot wait. None of the other Rangers have responded to my summons.”
“I’ve got to find someone to sit with Tommy.”
“I’m afraid there is no time! Master Vile’s newest creation is targeting innocent people in Angel Grove Park. He must be stopped immediately.”
Gritting his teeth, Billy meets Tommy’s eyes. Determination and steel flood his system. “There’s no other choice.”
Tommy’s eyes suddenly widen. “No. No, Billy! Please!”
“I’m sorry.” He snaps himself entirely into Ranger mode. Without giving himself a chance to reconsider or for Tommy to try and get away, Billy grips Tommy’s shoulder and teleports them both to the Command Center.
Terrified, Tommy collapses to the ground instantly.
Billy resolutely doesn’t look at him. “Alpha, I need you to take Tommy to the auxiliary turbo chamber and keep an eye on him. Whatever you do, don’t let him leave the Command Center.”
“Ai-yi-yi-yi-yi! Tommy!”
“Alpha! Do you understand me?”
“Oh, yes, Billy! Ohh, hurry!”
Zordon’s voice booms, “I have good news! Kimberly and Aisha have just engaged the monster. I will send the others to help you as soon as possible.”
“Right.” He grabs his morpher, then winces and stops. Even after steeling himself for battle, Billy can’t just leave. Turning around, he drops to one knee in front of Tommy. “I’ll be back as soon as possible, I promise. Be strong.”
Tommy opens his mouth, terror in his eyes, but nothing comes out.
Swallowing down his uncertainty, Billy stands back up. He can’t stay any longer. “It’s morphing time!”
Kimberly and Aisha are both taking heavy hits by the time Billy arrives.
“Am I glad to see you!” Aisha calls.
Kimberly makes her way to him. “Where’re the others?”
“I’m sure they’ll be here soon.” After what happened last night, he can only hope that’s true.
“Oh, look!” the monster calls. “Another little Ranger for me to play with!”
Before Billy can do anything, the monster shoots out electrical charges that hit all three of them, sending them to the ground.
Billy clutches his chest. “I can tell we’re going to need some heavier artillery to defeat this guy.”
“Let me at him!” Aisha leaps into the air, the Power Daggers in her hand. She makes contact in a shower of sparks, but the monster bats her away as if unfazed.
“Let’s try a concentrated beam with the blade blasters!” Billy pulls his off his belt and snaps it into firing position. “Concentrate the beam on the upper torso!”
“Right!”
The monster laughs. “Three against one is hardly fair!” Dodging to one side, the monster escapes the blaster beams and charges right toward Kimberly, grabbing her in a choke hold around her neck.
“Kimberly!” Billy reaches out toward her, ineffectively.
“Hiyaa!”
The monster goes flailing to the ground as Rocky and Adam appear, each planting a kick to the monster’s gut at the same time.
“Am I glad to see you two!” Kimberly says, rubbing her throat. “What took so long?”
“Just a little miscommunication.” Rocky kneels beside her. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I think so.” She stands back up with his help.
Together, the five of them regroup to face the monster.
Adam takes a bold step forward before Billy can say anything. “You couldn’t have picked a worse time to attack Angel Grove! I’m gonna make you sorry!”
“Oh, I’m so scared!”
“I’m gonna take you down!”
“Adam, wait!” Billy starts toward him, but is too late to stop Adam from hurling himself at the monster.
It deflects him as easily as it deflected all of their earlier attacks, then follows up by sending electrical charges at him.
“Hey! Get off him!” Rocky leaps at the monster, his Power Sword drawn. The force of the impact is enough to get the monster to fall back, breaking off the attack on Adam.
Seeing an opening, Billy calls, “Let’s bring them together, guys!”
Rocky doesn’t stop his attack. His blows aren’t particularly destructive, but they’re fast and strong and he soon has the monster down on one knee while he wails away.
“Rocky!” Aisha shouts.
Cackling, the monster shouts, “Enough!” It explodes with a huge electrical force field, sending not only Rocky, but all of them, flying.
Adam recovers first, making his way to Rocky. “Do you want to get yourself killed!”
“I was trying to protect you!”
“By getting yourself killed? Oh yeah, that’s helpful! Why don’t you ever think before you act?”
“But it’s okay for you to do it? I can’t believe I’m risking my life to save you and you say that!”
“Guys!” Aisha calls, stepping between them. “Stop fighting!”
Adam pushes her aside. “Stay out of this!”
Laughing, the monster says, “Looks like I hardly need to do anything at all to speed up this self-destruction.”
Billy puts his hand out, hoping to distract all of them; there will be time to sort out their problems later. “Quick, guys, focus! We need the Power Blaster!”
“You’re too late for that!” The monster cackles again, and suddenly it’s growing in size, the force of the enlargement knocking them all back.
“Oh man!”
Adam finally focuses on something other than Rocky and stares at Billy. “I hope you haven’t spent all your time fucking that crack whore and got our zords reconfigured!”
Billy’s never actually been so angry that he’s seen red before, but in that moment, he does, and the fragment of rational Billy still functioning beneath that fury is quite certain he could kill Adam before any of the rest could stop him.
“Adam!” Aisha cries, shocked.
The monster takes a massive step forward, aiming to crush them.
Seeing that no one else is going to, Kimberly calls, “We need Ninjazord power, now!”
The motions come to Billy without thinking and he logs onto the Blue Wolf on autopilot. He doesn’t notice the other’s logging in around him, save for Kimberly overhead, powering up the Pink Crane.
“What’s going on, Billy? Why’s Adam so mad?”
“He met Tommy last night, in one of the least optimal manners possible.”
“Who’s Tommy?” Aisha’s suddenly to Billy’s left, Yellow Bear rising to its hind legs to roar at the monster.
Billy clears his head. “I’ll explain everything later. Right now, we’ve got business to take care of!”
“The Bear is ready to rock!”
“And the Crane is ready to roll!”
With the Crane distracting the monster from above, and the Bear attacking straight on, Billy swiftly guides the Wolf around behind the monster for a sneak attack. He leaps forward, sinking his zord’s teeth into the monster’s thick tail. Crying out in surprise, the monster rears back, trying to swat the Wolf, which gives the Bear a perfect opening for a devastating double claw attack.
As soon as Aisha finishes her attack, the Bear pounds the ground hard, causing a tremor big enough to knock the monster on its back. Kimberly swoops in seconds later, unloading a volley of shots from the Crane’s artillery into the monster.
Billy’s about to swing the Wolf around to do a slash attack with his tail when the Red Ape is suddenly there, swords in hand. “I got this!” Rocky calls, and as the monster starts to stand up, he does a spin, hitting the monster several times with both swords.
Checking to see that Adam’s arrived in his Black Frog, Billy wastes no time in pulling the control for the Ninja Megazord. They still might not be able to form the Ninja Mega Eaglezord, but Billy’s hoping it won’t matter.
Whatever kept Adam and Rocky from immediately powering up their zords seems to have passed, as they quickly fall into place to combine into the Ninja Megazord.
“All right!” Rocky says, taking control. “Let’s finish this guy off and get back to our day!”
It takes almost no time at all from that moment. The monster has barely gotten back to its feet before Billy engages the Power Punch, and soon the Wolf and Ape are pummeling the monster into submission. It explodes into a stream of sparks and when the dust clears, the Ninja Megazord stands alone in the park.
Back in the Command Center, everyone starts talking at once.
“C’mon, Adam, what was with you back there?” Aisha starts. “I have never hear you like that before!”
“We can’t keep bringing our personal problems into monster battles,” Kimberly says.
“I don’t need you all breathing down my neck like a bunch of babysitters!” Adam shouts.
Rocky’s keeping his distance. “It’s just a private matter we can take care of later.”
Billy doesn’t care about any of them. He manhandles Alpha out of the door way and lets himself into the auxiliary turbo chamber. “Tommy!”
It’s been less than an hour, but Tommy’s an utter wreck, sobbing on the floor of the room. His blanket is still pulled around him, but he’s shivering and rocking back and forth, muttering to himself. His hair is even more tangled and unkempt. His eyes widen and he jerks away as Billy, still morphed, approaches him.
“Shh, it’s all right.” Billy quickly unmorphs. “I’m back. Everything’s fine.”
Kimberly’s shadow falls over him in the doorway. “You brought him to the Command Center?”
“I didn’t know what else to do.” Billy’s voice breaks slightly as he tries to touch Tommy and he jerks away miserably.
Noticing the others, Kimberly turns around, blocking the doorway. “Back up, back up. Nothing to see here.”
“Like hell there isn’t! Billy’s let that crack whore into the Command Center and just left him here while we were fighting that monster. He’s probably sabotaged the place.”
Aisha puts her hand on her hip. “Adam, what’re you even talking about?”
“I’m talking about that guy in there.” Adam points, and Kimberly’s not quite big enough to block the view from the others. “That’s Tommy. He used to be the evil Green Ranger, at least until he decided he liked sucking cock for blow better.”
“Shut up, Adam!”
All eyes turn to Rocky, wide with disbelief, including Adam’s.
After recovering for a moment, Adam squares his shoulders. “But that’s what he was doing, isn’t it? You don’t deny it, do you?”
“C’mon you guys,” Kimberly says. “It’s not like that. Tommy’s an old friend of ours. He’s fallen on hard times, but he’s one of us. Billy’s just helping him out. It wasn’t safe to leave him home, and he couldn’t get someone in to watch him on such short notice.”
“He’s not like me,” Adam protests.
Billy’s managed to get Tommy to look at him, and is attempting to calm Tommy’s breathing by just looking at each other and ignoring everything else. He doesn’t think it’s working. He’s still furious with Adam, after all.
Aisha shakes her head. “Why do you keep insulting him? That’s not like you.”
“’Cause he’s a crack whore! Why don’t you people get this? He was the evil Green Ranger and when he gave up his powers, he turned to drugs and prostitution! Not exactly the Prodigal Son returning here!”
Kimberly narrows her eyes. “He didn’t give up his powers. They were taken from him. Anyway, if Billy trusts him, shouldn’t that be enough for you?”
“Yeah,” Rocky says. “Not even you can call Billy an idiot.”
Adam narrows his eyes. “There’s a first time for everything.”
Disgusted, Rocky starts toward the turbo chamber.
“I swear to God, Rocky, if you go in there . . .”
He spins around. “You’ll what?”
“This is not helping anyone,” Kimberly says. “If you two want to fight, you’ve got to go do it somewhere else. Go. Now! I’m not joking here.”
“You two better cool your heels before you start saying things you regret.” Aisha steps between them, grabbing one arm each. “I’ll take care of these two, Kim. Keep me posted on what’s happening.” Before Rocky and Adam can protest, all three teleport out.
Letting out a deep breath, Kimberly finally returns to the turbo chamber. “Tommy?”
“We need to get him out of the Command Center. He doesn’t want to teleport again, but I don’t see how we really have any choice.”
Tommy’s pleading eyes turn to Kimberly. “No, please.”
“You want to be out of this place, don’t you, Tommy?” She kneels before him. “Just close your eyes. It’ll all go away in a second and you’ll be safe and sound, back in Billy’s house.”
“Kim.” His eyes close and his hands blindly grope for hers.
“I’ve gotcha.” She squeezes his hands tightly in hers, and then nods at Billy.
Taking a deep, silent breath, Billy reaches out and teleports all three of them back to his place.
--
To his relief, Tommy doesn’t react. They’re all three on the floor of his living room, Kimberly finally unmorphed.
“You can open your eyes now,” she whispers.
Tommy does and cringes at the location change, but visually relaxes slightly anyway.
Exhausted, Billy gets to his feet. He’s so grateful to Kimberly, but it feels impossible to explain just how much in front of Tommy.
“What’ve you done to your hair?” she gently says, still holding Tommy’s hands. “I spent all that time untangling it, and you went and put a rubber band in there?”
Tommy opens his mouth to reply, but all that comes out is a weak little gasp.
“Oh, Tommy.” Melting, Kimberly just pulls him close and squeezes her eyes shut as Tommy clings to her, burying his face against her neck.
Billy isn’t sure if he ought to leave them alone or not. He picks up the scissors he’d been using earlier-it feels like days ago-in an attempt to cut the rubber band out. If anyone can get to it, it’s Kimberly. “Should I . . . ?”
“It’s all right. I can handle him for now.” She rubs Tommy’s back. “You should go to work; I know you can’t miss anymore time. I’ll call you if I need anything.”
“Are you sure?” He knows in his heart she’s right. Tommy’s rejecting him right now. He suspects it’s a mixture of everything that happened last night, hurting him while trying to cut out the rubber band and the sheer fact that Billy’s a guy. He only hopes the rejection doesn’t last long.
“I’m sure. I know you can’t miss any more work.”
“What about you?”
“I’ll be fine.”
“All right.” Part of Billy wants to just collapse and shake and sob himself, but he holds it together. “Thank you. Thank you so much.”
Kimberly just pulls Tommy closer and sadly smiles at him.
--
Everyone at work is surprised when Billy actually shows up, but he pays them no mind. He has a lot to catch up on and no energy to be social. The gossip at lunch centers almost completely on the monster attack and the way the Power Rangers handled it, but Billy works through lunch, not partaking in the conversation.
He calls Kimberly around one to find that Tommy’s down for a nap. It’s hard to tell her what to expect when Tommy wakes up-nightmares and screaming are common-with nosy co-workers eavesdropping, but he’s confident he gets the idea across. He’s less confident when Kimberly mentions that Aisha is stopping by later in the afternoon to help settle Tommy. As much as he trusts Kimberly, he’s not sure how introducing Tommy to another stranger is going to help.
Although he’s officially off at five, Billy works until eight to make up for taking the morning off and appease his boss. He needs this job and is cutting it far too close for comfort. It isn’t until he’s finally heading for home that he realizes Adam never showed up at all.
Aisha’s car is still in the driveway when he gets home, which surprises him. She lives up in the mountains and it seems a considerable distance to drive-especially when she’d teleported to Angel Grove that morning to fight the monster.
When he opens the front door, he discovers the living room has been rearranged in his absence. The couch, formerly against the wall, now juts into the living room, but faces the entertainment system properly. All three are seated there, watching an old Disney cartoon.
“Took you long enough!” Kimberly says, getting to her feet.
Aisha pauses the video. “I wanted to stay and see your reaction.”
“My . . . reaction?”
Kimberly can hardly contain herself. “We gave Tommy a makeover!”
Blinking a few times, Billy moves around the couch to look at Tommy. He’s calm, even smiling. The gi pants are gone, replaced with a form fitting black turtleneck sweater and designer jeans. The biggest change is his hair. Not only has the rubber band been removed, but the ends of his hair have been trimmed and the waves and curls meticulously flat-ironed out.
It almost doesn’t look like Tommy.
“Wow,” Billy says, actually rather speechless. It’s hard to imagine Tommy willingly submitting to so much sartorial and tonsorial work.
Tommy’s smile wavers. “It’s a bit much, yeah?”
“Nonsense.” Kimberly gives Tommy’s shoulder a squeeze. “I think he looks dashing.”
“Like a prince,” Aisha agrees.
“It’s certainly eye-catching.” Billy sets his briefcase down. “How long did all that take?”
“We went shopping for a few hours,” Kimberly cheerfully says. “Don’t worry, it’s all on us.”
“Tommy’s wardrobe needed some serious updating.”
“We put all his new clothes in his closet and his new shampoo and hair care products in the bathroom.”
“They spent over an hour flat-ironing it.” Tommy rubs his palms on his thighs. “Looked like a lot of work.”
“We let Tommy nap for a while after we finished shopping.”
Aisha leans against the couch. “That’s when Kim and I decided to rearrange your living room. It flows much better this way, don’t you think?”
“And all three of us can face the TV when watch it now,” Kimberly says.
Billy’s too weary to protest, and to care. “Have you three eaten dinner?”
Kimberly nods. “Oh, yes. A couple of hours ago.”
“Then you won’t mind if I go make myself something to eat?”
“Oh, no. Go ahead.”
After stepping out of his shoes, Billy pads into the kitchen. The video in the other room resumes, but a few minutes later Kimberly joins in him in the kitchen.
For a bit, she fidgets with her fingers. “Have you heard anything from Adam or Rocky?”
Billy stares at the microwave as it cooks. “No.”
“I tried to get Tommy to explain what happened last night, but he wasn’t always clear.”
Billy wants nothing more than a hot shower, a neck massage and some dinner. He really doesn’t want to discuss this, especially not to the crooning of Disney show tunes in the background. “Can this wait until tomorrow?”
“It’s serious, Billy. We’re a team; we can’t act like that the next time Master Vile attacks.”
“I know.” Billy’s shoulders slump. “I’ll take care of it. Just, tomorrow.”
Kimberly’s hands slide up and begin massaging his shoulders. “You’re taking care of everything, Billy. Who’s taking care of you?”
Once Aisha and Kimberly leave, the comfort level of the house plummets. The dancing cartoons switch off, and the air echoes with silence. Tommy remains seated on the couch like some forgotten prince and Billy’s no longer sure if he’s the best person to be watching him; despite how hard he tries, Tommy’s much more comfortable around Kimberly.
“I’m glad you had a good time with Kim and Aisha.”
Tommy stares at the floor. “Not sure it was good, exactly.”
“It’s certainly an improvement to how I left you.”
“I’m sorry about that . . . everything just . . . was too much at once.”
“There’s nothing to apologize over.” Billy sits on the couch beside him. The television is still on, displaying one of those banal game shows, but the volume has been turned down. “You did really well given the circumstances.” Billy runs his hand over the fabric of the couch. “And Kim did a remarkable job cleaning you up and calming you down.”
“Yeah. She’s great.”
A strange thread of sadness flickers through Billy. “We can ask if she’ll watch you for a while, if you’d like.”
Tommy is silent for a very long time. “If you think that’s best.”
Curious at the delay, Billy glances over and notices how tense Tommy’s gotten. It also gives him another view of just how strange his hair looks so flattened. “It’s not about what I think. It’s about what’s best for you. I just . . . thought you might be more comfortable around her than me for a while.”
“Oh.” Tommy’s face lightens. “I like Kim a lot, don’t get me wrong, but more so in small doses. I don’t know if I could handle that full time.” He glances to Billy. “I like to stay here. If . . . if that’s all right with you.”
As tired as Billy is, he can’t help but smile. “Of course it is.” Something compels him to reach out and touch Tommy’s hair. “Though you may want to reconsider if you plan to have someone help you flat-iron this every day.”
Tommy actually lets out a soft chuckle. “You don’t like it either, huh?”
“It looks very nice,” Billy says, giving Tommy a once over. He really is quite attractive, and the fine clothes and neat hair help to exemplify that. “I’m just not sure it’s really . . . you.”
“Yeah.”
Tommy’s eyes are on him, and Billy’s suddenly acutely aware of how close they’re sitting on the couch. He can smell all the different products in Tommy’s hair and on his body. He can even see the glossy shine of chapstick on Tommy’s lips.
Billy’s not sure how, but he can tell Tommy’s aware of it all too and that his eyes have flickered off Billy’s to focus on Billy’s mouth. The realization that Tommy wants to kiss dawns on Billy slowly and indistinctly, like being unable to focus a telescope properly on the moon. He knows it’s there and recognizes it for what it is, but something remains terribly off about it.
Tommy starts to lean toward him and the world feels like it’s going in slow motion. All Billy can think about is how nice it’d be to kiss someone and how long it’s been since he’s been on a date, let alone had intimate thoughts or feelings for anyone.
It’s immediately followed up with thoughts of how very wrong this is and could be. It’s not exactly easy, but Billy pulls back before Tommy gets anywhere with his advance. Sitting on the couch is still too close, so Billy surges to his feet. “It’s getting late. I, uh, I had better get started on the dishes.” He turns his thoughts to contemplating the biological mechanics of how his heart rate skyrocketed so quickly.
Tommy’s shocked and crestfallen. “Yeah.” He swallows thickly. “I want to wash all this crap out of my hair anyway.”
Billy lets out his breath as Tommy disappears into the bathroom and distracts himself with loading the dishwasher. It isn’t enough to keep the thoughts out of his head.
Did Adam’s words make Tommy think he needed to act that way or is Tommy actually interested? Worse, is Billy actually interested? He can’t deny that the attraction is there, which is odd enough in itself, given Billy’s own romantic track record. There are a whole host of reasons he shouldn’t want to pursue something with Tommy; it’s not a position to assume lightly or without fully thinking things through.
Shoving the thoughts away, Billy returns to the dishes; there’s already too much on his plate to deal with without adding this to it right now.
Title: Whole, chapter seven
Author: vandonovan
Pairing: eventually Billy/Tommy, with background Skull/Kim, Adam/Rocky, Jason/Zack and Aisha/OMC
Word count: 4,708 (this chapter)
Rating: R (this chapter)
Era: MMPR AU after "The Green Candle" where Tommy never becomes the White Ranger. (Picks up in 1999.)
Warnings: drug/alcohol use, mentioned dub-con, prostitution, adult language, sexual situations/innuendo, Alternate Universe, potential spoilers through Zeo.
Summary: Six years after losing his Green Ranger powers, Tommy has been consumed by inner darkness and a destructive lifestyle. Can Billy bring Tommy back or will his attempts strain the Rangers too much as they face the return of an old enemy?
Notes: Super special thanks to azelmaroark for both playing beta and helping me create and cultivate this monster. ♥
Chapters: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19.
Chapter eight:
It takes hours for Billy to calm Tommy down, and he manages only by giving him sleeping pills and sitting up in bed with him until he finally falls asleep. By then, Billy’s own evening is shot. His mind replays the scene over and over, but he doesn’t know how to confront Adam about any of it. Weary, Billy forgoes a shower and barely manages to crawl into his own bed before passing out.
He wakes with his alarm, sore and groggy and already in a foul mood. He can hear the television on in the living room, which means that despite the sleeping pills, Tommy’s awake before him. He washes his face and brushes his teeth before pulling on clean clothes and giving his day over to Tommy again.
Although he’s awake, Billy can tell Tommy’s not all there.
His eyes are on the TV, but he’s not watching it. There are wet spots on his cheeks, and it’s not hard to tell that Tommy only stopped crying when he heard Billy’s alarm. He’s still wearing the gi pants from the night before and is shirtless, save for the fleece blanket which he’s pulled around his shoulders. His hair is a wreck.
Billy remembers it was pulled into a ponytail last night, but he didn’t realize that Tommy’d done so with a common household rubber band. During the night, it tangled itself more and more into Tommy’s locks, coiling around curls and pulling.
Taking a deep breath, Billy ignores Tommy for the moment. He’s no use to anyone before he’s had his coffee, and he stands in the kitchen watching the machine percolate for five full minutes. He drinks his first cup down black and nearly scalding hot, but feels almost instantly better.
Fetching scissors, he returns to the living room. “That’s got to be hurting your scalp.”
Tommy turns big, watery brown eyes at him. “I’m sorry.”
Billy gently kneels on the couch, trying to figure out how to tackle the tangle of hair and rubber. “What for?”
“Screwed up. Ruined last night.”
“That was hardly your fault. Adam overreacted.”
“He’s right, though.”
“No, he’s not. Adam doesn’t know anything. Believe me, I will make him apologize.”
Tommy closes his eyes. “No. No more trouble.”
“Shh. Try not to worry.” Billy very gently lifts some of Tommy’s hair, hoping he can slip the scissors in to snip the rubber.
It’s fine for approximately two seconds, and then Tommy hisses and violently jerks away.
He doesn’t complain, but Billy knows it hurt him. He knows Tommy’s extremely sensitive about his scalp. “I’m sorry. I’ve got to cut it out. It’s just going to continue to hurt if I don’t.”
Tommy pulls the blanket tighter around him and rocks very gently in place.
Billy puts a hand to his brow. He’s got to be at work in less than an hour and he’s kneeling here trying to coax Tommy into letting him cut a rubber band out of his hair. “What am I even thinking? Adam’s never going to let Rocky come over today. Just sit tight.” Leaving Tommy there, he goes back into the kitchen and picks up the phone.
“Hello, June? Yeah. It’s Billy. I really hate to do this on such short notice, but, uh, I don’t think I’m going to be able to make it into work this morning. Yes. I’m . . . yes, I’m well aware of that. It’s a bit of an emergency or else I wouldn’t. I will try to make it in later. Thank you.” He hangs up, pours himself another cup of coffee and leans against the arch leading from the kitchen to the living room. “Maybe a shower would help?”
Tommy doesn’t answer him. His attention has finally been drawn by the television. Eager to know what Tommy might enjoy watching, Billy crosses into the room again so he can see. The Breaking News bulletin cutting through the early morning cartoons makes his blood go cold. On the screen is shaky handheld video of a monster terrorizing some joggers in Angel Grove Park. “Shit.”
Tommy turns his eyes, wide and imploring, toward him.
Almost as soon as Billy sets his mug of coffee down his wrist communicator goes off. “Billy here. I’m aware of the situation. This could not come at a more inopportune time.”
Zordon is the one who replies to him. “The timing is unfortunate, but I am afraid this cannot wait. None of the other Rangers have responded to my summons.”
“I’ve got to find someone to sit with Tommy.”
“I’m afraid there is no time! Master Vile’s newest creation is targeting innocent people in Angel Grove Park. He must be stopped immediately.”
Gritting his teeth, Billy meets Tommy’s eyes. Determination and steel flood his system. “There’s no other choice.”
Tommy’s eyes suddenly widen. “No. No, Billy! Please!”
“I’m sorry.” He snaps himself entirely into Ranger mode. Without giving himself a chance to reconsider or for Tommy to try and get away, Billy grips Tommy’s shoulder and teleports them both to the Command Center.
Terrified, Tommy collapses to the ground instantly.
Billy resolutely doesn’t look at him. “Alpha, I need you to take Tommy to the auxiliary turbo chamber and keep an eye on him. Whatever you do, don’t let him leave the Command Center.”
“Ai-yi-yi-yi-yi! Tommy!”
“Alpha! Do you understand me?”
“Oh, yes, Billy! Ohh, hurry!”
Zordon’s voice booms, “I have good news! Kimberly and Aisha have just engaged the monster. I will send the others to help you as soon as possible.”
“Right.” He grabs his morpher, then winces and stops. Even after steeling himself for battle, Billy can’t just leave. Turning around, he drops to one knee in front of Tommy. “I’ll be back as soon as possible, I promise. Be strong.”
Tommy opens his mouth, terror in his eyes, but nothing comes out.
Swallowing down his uncertainty, Billy stands back up. He can’t stay any longer. “It’s morphing time!”
Kimberly and Aisha are both taking heavy hits by the time Billy arrives.
“Am I glad to see you!” Aisha calls.
Kimberly makes her way to him. “Where’re the others?”
“I’m sure they’ll be here soon.” After what happened last night, he can only hope that’s true.
“Oh, look!” the monster calls. “Another little Ranger for me to play with!”
Before Billy can do anything, the monster shoots out electrical charges that hit all three of them, sending them to the ground.
Billy clutches his chest. “I can tell we’re going to need some heavier artillery to defeat this guy.”
“Let me at him!” Aisha leaps into the air, the Power Daggers in her hand. She makes contact in a shower of sparks, but the monster bats her away as if unfazed.
“Let’s try a concentrated beam with the blade blasters!” Billy pulls his off his belt and snaps it into firing position. “Concentrate the beam on the upper torso!”
“Right!”
The monster laughs. “Three against one is hardly fair!” Dodging to one side, the monster escapes the blaster beams and charges right toward Kimberly, grabbing her in a choke hold around her neck.
“Kimberly!” Billy reaches out toward her, ineffectively.
“Hiyaa!”
The monster goes flailing to the ground as Rocky and Adam appear, each planting a kick to the monster’s gut at the same time.
“Am I glad to see you two!” Kimberly says, rubbing her throat. “What took so long?”
“Just a little miscommunication.” Rocky kneels beside her. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I think so.” She stands back up with his help.
Together, the five of them regroup to face the monster.
Adam takes a bold step forward before Billy can say anything. “You couldn’t have picked a worse time to attack Angel Grove! I’m gonna make you sorry!”
“Oh, I’m so scared!”
“I’m gonna take you down!”
“Adam, wait!” Billy starts toward him, but is too late to stop Adam from hurling himself at the monster.
It deflects him as easily as it deflected all of their earlier attacks, then follows up by sending electrical charges at him.
“Hey! Get off him!” Rocky leaps at the monster, his Power Sword drawn. The force of the impact is enough to get the monster to fall back, breaking off the attack on Adam.
Seeing an opening, Billy calls, “Let’s bring them together, guys!”
Rocky doesn’t stop his attack. His blows aren’t particularly destructive, but they’re fast and strong and he soon has the monster down on one knee while he wails away.
“Rocky!” Aisha shouts.
Cackling, the monster shouts, “Enough!” It explodes with a huge electrical force field, sending not only Rocky, but all of them, flying.
Adam recovers first, making his way to Rocky. “Do you want to get yourself killed!”
“I was trying to protect you!”
“By getting yourself killed? Oh yeah, that’s helpful! Why don’t you ever think before you act?”
“But it’s okay for you to do it? I can’t believe I’m risking my life to save you and you say that!”
“Guys!” Aisha calls, stepping between them. “Stop fighting!”
Adam pushes her aside. “Stay out of this!”
Laughing, the monster says, “Looks like I hardly need to do anything at all to speed up this self-destruction.”
Billy puts his hand out, hoping to distract all of them; there will be time to sort out their problems later. “Quick, guys, focus! We need the Power Blaster!”
“You’re too late for that!” The monster cackles again, and suddenly it’s growing in size, the force of the enlargement knocking them all back.
“Oh man!”
Adam finally focuses on something other than Rocky and stares at Billy. “I hope you haven’t spent all your time fucking that crack whore and got our zords reconfigured!”
Billy’s never actually been so angry that he’s seen red before, but in that moment, he does, and the fragment of rational Billy still functioning beneath that fury is quite certain he could kill Adam before any of the rest could stop him.
“Adam!” Aisha cries, shocked.
The monster takes a massive step forward, aiming to crush them.
Seeing that no one else is going to, Kimberly calls, “We need Ninjazord power, now!”
The motions come to Billy without thinking and he logs onto the Blue Wolf on autopilot. He doesn’t notice the other’s logging in around him, save for Kimberly overhead, powering up the Pink Crane.
“What’s going on, Billy? Why’s Adam so mad?”
“He met Tommy last night, in one of the least optimal manners possible.”
“Who’s Tommy?” Aisha’s suddenly to Billy’s left, Yellow Bear rising to its hind legs to roar at the monster.
Billy clears his head. “I’ll explain everything later. Right now, we’ve got business to take care of!”
“The Bear is ready to rock!”
“And the Crane is ready to roll!”
With the Crane distracting the monster from above, and the Bear attacking straight on, Billy swiftly guides the Wolf around behind the monster for a sneak attack. He leaps forward, sinking his zord’s teeth into the monster’s thick tail. Crying out in surprise, the monster rears back, trying to swat the Wolf, which gives the Bear a perfect opening for a devastating double claw attack.
As soon as Aisha finishes her attack, the Bear pounds the ground hard, causing a tremor big enough to knock the monster on its back. Kimberly swoops in seconds later, unloading a volley of shots from the Crane’s artillery into the monster.
Billy’s about to swing the Wolf around to do a slash attack with his tail when the Red Ape is suddenly there, swords in hand. “I got this!” Rocky calls, and as the monster starts to stand up, he does a spin, hitting the monster several times with both swords.
Checking to see that Adam’s arrived in his Black Frog, Billy wastes no time in pulling the control for the Ninja Megazord. They still might not be able to form the Ninja Mega Eaglezord, but Billy’s hoping it won’t matter.
Whatever kept Adam and Rocky from immediately powering up their zords seems to have passed, as they quickly fall into place to combine into the Ninja Megazord.
“All right!” Rocky says, taking control. “Let’s finish this guy off and get back to our day!”
It takes almost no time at all from that moment. The monster has barely gotten back to its feet before Billy engages the Power Punch, and soon the Wolf and Ape are pummeling the monster into submission. It explodes into a stream of sparks and when the dust clears, the Ninja Megazord stands alone in the park.
Back in the Command Center, everyone starts talking at once.
“C’mon, Adam, what was with you back there?” Aisha starts. “I have never hear you like that before!”
“We can’t keep bringing our personal problems into monster battles,” Kimberly says.
“I don’t need you all breathing down my neck like a bunch of babysitters!” Adam shouts.
Rocky’s keeping his distance. “It’s just a private matter we can take care of later.”
Billy doesn’t care about any of them. He manhandles Alpha out of the door way and lets himself into the auxiliary turbo chamber. “Tommy!”
It’s been less than an hour, but Tommy’s an utter wreck, sobbing on the floor of the room. His blanket is still pulled around him, but he’s shivering and rocking back and forth, muttering to himself. His hair is even more tangled and unkempt. His eyes widen and he jerks away as Billy, still morphed, approaches him.
“Shh, it’s all right.” Billy quickly unmorphs. “I’m back. Everything’s fine.”
Kimberly’s shadow falls over him in the doorway. “You brought him to the Command Center?”
“I didn’t know what else to do.” Billy’s voice breaks slightly as he tries to touch Tommy and he jerks away miserably.
Noticing the others, Kimberly turns around, blocking the doorway. “Back up, back up. Nothing to see here.”
“Like hell there isn’t! Billy’s let that crack whore into the Command Center and just left him here while we were fighting that monster. He’s probably sabotaged the place.”
Aisha puts her hand on her hip. “Adam, what’re you even talking about?”
“I’m talking about that guy in there.” Adam points, and Kimberly’s not quite big enough to block the view from the others. “That’s Tommy. He used to be the evil Green Ranger, at least until he decided he liked sucking cock for blow better.”
“Shut up, Adam!”
All eyes turn to Rocky, wide with disbelief, including Adam’s.
After recovering for a moment, Adam squares his shoulders. “But that’s what he was doing, isn’t it? You don’t deny it, do you?”
“C’mon you guys,” Kimberly says. “It’s not like that. Tommy’s an old friend of ours. He’s fallen on hard times, but he’s one of us. Billy’s just helping him out. It wasn’t safe to leave him home, and he couldn’t get someone in to watch him on such short notice.”
“He’s not like me,” Adam protests.
Billy’s managed to get Tommy to look at him, and is attempting to calm Tommy’s breathing by just looking at each other and ignoring everything else. He doesn’t think it’s working. He’s still furious with Adam, after all.
Aisha shakes her head. “Why do you keep insulting him? That’s not like you.”
“’Cause he’s a crack whore! Why don’t you people get this? He was the evil Green Ranger and when he gave up his powers, he turned to drugs and prostitution! Not exactly the Prodigal Son returning here!”
Kimberly narrows her eyes. “He didn’t give up his powers. They were taken from him. Anyway, if Billy trusts him, shouldn’t that be enough for you?”
“Yeah,” Rocky says. “Not even you can call Billy an idiot.”
Adam narrows his eyes. “There’s a first time for everything.”
Disgusted, Rocky starts toward the turbo chamber.
“I swear to God, Rocky, if you go in there . . .”
He spins around. “You’ll what?”
“This is not helping anyone,” Kimberly says. “If you two want to fight, you’ve got to go do it somewhere else. Go. Now! I’m not joking here.”
“You two better cool your heels before you start saying things you regret.” Aisha steps between them, grabbing one arm each. “I’ll take care of these two, Kim. Keep me posted on what’s happening.” Before Rocky and Adam can protest, all three teleport out.
Letting out a deep breath, Kimberly finally returns to the turbo chamber. “Tommy?”
“We need to get him out of the Command Center. He doesn’t want to teleport again, but I don’t see how we really have any choice.”
Tommy’s pleading eyes turn to Kimberly. “No, please.”
“You want to be out of this place, don’t you, Tommy?” She kneels before him. “Just close your eyes. It’ll all go away in a second and you’ll be safe and sound, back in Billy’s house.”
“Kim.” His eyes close and his hands blindly grope for hers.
“I’ve gotcha.” She squeezes his hands tightly in hers, and then nods at Billy.
Taking a deep, silent breath, Billy reaches out and teleports all three of them back to his place.
--
To his relief, Tommy doesn’t react. They’re all three on the floor of his living room, Kimberly finally unmorphed.
“You can open your eyes now,” she whispers.
Tommy does and cringes at the location change, but visually relaxes slightly anyway.
Exhausted, Billy gets to his feet. He’s so grateful to Kimberly, but it feels impossible to explain just how much in front of Tommy.
“What’ve you done to your hair?” she gently says, still holding Tommy’s hands. “I spent all that time untangling it, and you went and put a rubber band in there?”
Tommy opens his mouth to reply, but all that comes out is a weak little gasp.
“Oh, Tommy.” Melting, Kimberly just pulls him close and squeezes her eyes shut as Tommy clings to her, burying his face against her neck.
Billy isn’t sure if he ought to leave them alone or not. He picks up the scissors he’d been using earlier-it feels like days ago-in an attempt to cut the rubber band out. If anyone can get to it, it’s Kimberly. “Should I . . . ?”
“It’s all right. I can handle him for now.” She rubs Tommy’s back. “You should go to work; I know you can’t miss anymore time. I’ll call you if I need anything.”
“Are you sure?” He knows in his heart she’s right. Tommy’s rejecting him right now. He suspects it’s a mixture of everything that happened last night, hurting him while trying to cut out the rubber band and the sheer fact that Billy’s a guy. He only hopes the rejection doesn’t last long.
“I’m sure. I know you can’t miss any more work.”
“What about you?”
“I’ll be fine.”
“All right.” Part of Billy wants to just collapse and shake and sob himself, but he holds it together. “Thank you. Thank you so much.”
Kimberly just pulls Tommy closer and sadly smiles at him.
--
Everyone at work is surprised when Billy actually shows up, but he pays them no mind. He has a lot to catch up on and no energy to be social. The gossip at lunch centers almost completely on the monster attack and the way the Power Rangers handled it, but Billy works through lunch, not partaking in the conversation.
He calls Kimberly around one to find that Tommy’s down for a nap. It’s hard to tell her what to expect when Tommy wakes up-nightmares and screaming are common-with nosy co-workers eavesdropping, but he’s confident he gets the idea across. He’s less confident when Kimberly mentions that Aisha is stopping by later in the afternoon to help settle Tommy. As much as he trusts Kimberly, he’s not sure how introducing Tommy to another stranger is going to help.
Although he’s officially off at five, Billy works until eight to make up for taking the morning off and appease his boss. He needs this job and is cutting it far too close for comfort. It isn’t until he’s finally heading for home that he realizes Adam never showed up at all.
Aisha’s car is still in the driveway when he gets home, which surprises him. She lives up in the mountains and it seems a considerable distance to drive-especially when she’d teleported to Angel Grove that morning to fight the monster.
When he opens the front door, he discovers the living room has been rearranged in his absence. The couch, formerly against the wall, now juts into the living room, but faces the entertainment system properly. All three are seated there, watching an old Disney cartoon.
“Took you long enough!” Kimberly says, getting to her feet.
Aisha pauses the video. “I wanted to stay and see your reaction.”
“My . . . reaction?”
Kimberly can hardly contain herself. “We gave Tommy a makeover!”
Blinking a few times, Billy moves around the couch to look at Tommy. He’s calm, even smiling. The gi pants are gone, replaced with a form fitting black turtleneck sweater and designer jeans. The biggest change is his hair. Not only has the rubber band been removed, but the ends of his hair have been trimmed and the waves and curls meticulously flat-ironed out.
It almost doesn’t look like Tommy.
“Wow,” Billy says, actually rather speechless. It’s hard to imagine Tommy willingly submitting to so much sartorial and tonsorial work.
Tommy’s smile wavers. “It’s a bit much, yeah?”
“Nonsense.” Kimberly gives Tommy’s shoulder a squeeze. “I think he looks dashing.”
“Like a prince,” Aisha agrees.
“It’s certainly eye-catching.” Billy sets his briefcase down. “How long did all that take?”
“We went shopping for a few hours,” Kimberly cheerfully says. “Don’t worry, it’s all on us.”
“Tommy’s wardrobe needed some serious updating.”
“We put all his new clothes in his closet and his new shampoo and hair care products in the bathroom.”
“They spent over an hour flat-ironing it.” Tommy rubs his palms on his thighs. “Looked like a lot of work.”
“We let Tommy nap for a while after we finished shopping.”
Aisha leans against the couch. “That’s when Kim and I decided to rearrange your living room. It flows much better this way, don’t you think?”
“And all three of us can face the TV when watch it now,” Kimberly says.
Billy’s too weary to protest, and to care. “Have you three eaten dinner?”
Kimberly nods. “Oh, yes. A couple of hours ago.”
“Then you won’t mind if I go make myself something to eat?”
“Oh, no. Go ahead.”
After stepping out of his shoes, Billy pads into the kitchen. The video in the other room resumes, but a few minutes later Kimberly joins in him in the kitchen.
For a bit, she fidgets with her fingers. “Have you heard anything from Adam or Rocky?”
Billy stares at the microwave as it cooks. “No.”
“I tried to get Tommy to explain what happened last night, but he wasn’t always clear.”
Billy wants nothing more than a hot shower, a neck massage and some dinner. He really doesn’t want to discuss this, especially not to the crooning of Disney show tunes in the background. “Can this wait until tomorrow?”
“It’s serious, Billy. We’re a team; we can’t act like that the next time Master Vile attacks.”
“I know.” Billy’s shoulders slump. “I’ll take care of it. Just, tomorrow.”
Kimberly’s hands slide up and begin massaging his shoulders. “You’re taking care of everything, Billy. Who’s taking care of you?”
Once Aisha and Kimberly leave, the comfort level of the house plummets. The dancing cartoons switch off, and the air echoes with silence. Tommy remains seated on the couch like some forgotten prince and Billy’s no longer sure if he’s the best person to be watching him; despite how hard he tries, Tommy’s much more comfortable around Kimberly.
“I’m glad you had a good time with Kim and Aisha.”
Tommy stares at the floor. “Not sure it was good, exactly.”
“It’s certainly an improvement to how I left you.”
“I’m sorry about that . . . everything just . . . was too much at once.”
“There’s nothing to apologize over.” Billy sits on the couch beside him. The television is still on, displaying one of those banal game shows, but the volume has been turned down. “You did really well given the circumstances.” Billy runs his hand over the fabric of the couch. “And Kim did a remarkable job cleaning you up and calming you down.”
“Yeah. She’s great.”
A strange thread of sadness flickers through Billy. “We can ask if she’ll watch you for a while, if you’d like.”
Tommy is silent for a very long time. “If you think that’s best.”
Curious at the delay, Billy glances over and notices how tense Tommy’s gotten. It also gives him another view of just how strange his hair looks so flattened. “It’s not about what I think. It’s about what’s best for you. I just . . . thought you might be more comfortable around her than me for a while.”
“Oh.” Tommy’s face lightens. “I like Kim a lot, don’t get me wrong, but more so in small doses. I don’t know if I could handle that full time.” He glances to Billy. “I like to stay here. If . . . if that’s all right with you.”
As tired as Billy is, he can’t help but smile. “Of course it is.” Something compels him to reach out and touch Tommy’s hair. “Though you may want to reconsider if you plan to have someone help you flat-iron this every day.”
Tommy actually lets out a soft chuckle. “You don’t like it either, huh?”
“It looks very nice,” Billy says, giving Tommy a once over. He really is quite attractive, and the fine clothes and neat hair help to exemplify that. “I’m just not sure it’s really . . . you.”
“Yeah.”
Tommy’s eyes are on him, and Billy’s suddenly acutely aware of how close they’re sitting on the couch. He can smell all the different products in Tommy’s hair and on his body. He can even see the glossy shine of chapstick on Tommy’s lips.
Billy’s not sure how, but he can tell Tommy’s aware of it all too and that his eyes have flickered off Billy’s to focus on Billy’s mouth. The realization that Tommy wants to kiss dawns on Billy slowly and indistinctly, like being unable to focus a telescope properly on the moon. He knows it’s there and recognizes it for what it is, but something remains terribly off about it.
Tommy starts to lean toward him and the world feels like it’s going in slow motion. All Billy can think about is how nice it’d be to kiss someone and how long it’s been since he’s been on a date, let alone had intimate thoughts or feelings for anyone.
It’s immediately followed up with thoughts of how very wrong this is and could be. It’s not exactly easy, but Billy pulls back before Tommy gets anywhere with his advance. Sitting on the couch is still too close, so Billy surges to his feet. “It’s getting late. I, uh, I had better get started on the dishes.” He turns his thoughts to contemplating the biological mechanics of how his heart rate skyrocketed so quickly.
Tommy’s shocked and crestfallen. “Yeah.” He swallows thickly. “I want to wash all this crap out of my hair anyway.”
Billy lets out his breath as Tommy disappears into the bathroom and distracts himself with loading the dishwasher. It isn’t enough to keep the thoughts out of his head.
Did Adam’s words make Tommy think he needed to act that way or is Tommy actually interested? Worse, is Billy actually interested? He can’t deny that the attraction is there, which is odd enough in itself, given Billy’s own romantic track record. There are a whole host of reasons he shouldn’t want to pursue something with Tommy; it’s not a position to assume lightly or without fully thinking things through.
Shoving the thoughts away, Billy returns to the dishes; there’s already too much on his plate to deal with without adding this to it right now.