Over the years Dr. Ann Possible had come to expect the unexpected. How could she not? After all her daughter was the world famous teen hero Kim Possible. So when her daughter had arrived at the hospital seven months ago with someone who was one of her biggest enemies, she was surprised but quickly recovered. Then when she found out the woman was pregnant with her daughter’s child after a fluke of genetic manipulation and bad aim she was shocked, but again she was able to recover much quicker than a “normal” mother would have. Though the idea of actually living with the former villainess had taken much longer to get use to. Still, in time Ann had gotten to know Shego quite well and saw her as part of the Possible family. From what Kim had just told her of the woman’s real family, it was definitely a step up.
What took the most getting use to though was the idea of just how close Kim and Shego had become. They started off as one would have expected by fighting almost constantly and Shego resisting Kim’s help at every turn. But as Shego’s stomach grew so did her patience and her willingness to accept help. Her relationship with Kim grew as well slowly going from rivals to friends to co-mothers to perhaps…something more. Ann wasn’t completely surprised by that fact given how her relationship with James changed during her first pregancy, but it was still something that would take longer than usual to get use to. Still she had suspected it for awhile and with the picture the twins took it seemed that the two women’s relationship could turn that corner at any minute. So now that she had come to expect it, she thought she was prepared for it.
She thought wrong.
It seemed seeing something in your mind and seeing it in reality were two completely different things. So when Ann stumbled upon her daughter locked in a tight embrace with Shego and kissing her full on the mouth, she let out a surprised gasp and dropped the laundry basket she had been holding. The muffled “thud” it produced from hitting the carpeted floor caused the two women to jump slightly and break their kiss. Kim turned her head while still holding Shego received the shock of her life when she saw who was standing there.
“Mom!” she shouted in a mix of surprise and embarrassment.
Ann wanted to tell her daughter it was okay. That she had been expecting this kind of thing so she wasn’t mad or hurt, just surprised. Above all she wanted to tell her that she still loved her. She wanted to do all this, but she couldn’t. All she could do at the moment was in the doorway with her eyes and mouth open wide in shock. Even after she recovered, she still couldn’t find her voice and instead quickly picked up the laundry basket before slipping out of the room, slamming the door behind her.
Kim stared at the door in silence for a few second before she leg go of Shego and walked towards it as if in a daze.
“Mom?” she whispered, sounding like a lost child.
She continued to stand there in a daze for a moment longer before something finally seemed to snap.
“Oh God!” she cried out in a horrified voice as she placed her hands on her forehead and began to pace. “Oh God, oh God, oh God! She saw us! My mother saw us! She saw us…kissing! Oh God, w-what am I gonna do?”
As Kim continued to pace and ramble, Shego blinked as she tried to process all what had just happened. She had been kissing Kim which actually felt good -great even- when her mother came into the room for some reason, spotted them kissing, stared for a bit then left. Then Kim broke off the kiss, also stared for a bit then started to completely freak out. It was almost as if she were ashamed to have been caught kissing her. In fact, that was probably exactly what it was. The thought made Shego’s blood boil and before she knew it she was scowling and both her hands were clenched into fists.
“Oh that’s real nice Kim!” she shouted, drawing the redhead’s attention.
“What?” Kim asked, seemingly confused.
“Don’t ‘what’ me you know exactly what I’m talking about!” Shego accused, jabbing a finger in her direction. “Seems like it’s okay for you to kiss me behind closed doors but the second someone finds out it all, ‘Oh God what have I done! What is everyone going to think of me! This is wrong and I never should have done it’!”
“I never said that!” Kim protested.
“No but you were thinking it. I could tell by the way you’re freaking out.”
“Because my mother just spotted us kissing!” the girl shouted, throwing her hands wildly into the air. “I think that’s cause enough to freak out.”
“Because you’re ashamed of me,” Shego reasserted.
“I am not ashamed of you.”
“Could’ve fooled me. I mean I seriously thought we’re having a moment there. We were finally connecting. I poured my heart out to you!”
“That was in the song!” Kim pointed out.
“But that’s exactly how I felt! And I thought that’s how you felt too!”
“That is how I felt! How a feel right now! I do care about you!”
“Then why are we yelling!” Shego asked.
“I don’t know!”
They stopped and took a moment to catch their breathes as well as calm down. When they were sure they could carry on a more civil conversation, Kim walked back over to Shego and took woman’s hands into her own.
“Look, I’m sorry,” she said softly. “You’re right, I shouldn’t have freaked out like that. But this is a lot to take in all at once and I guess I just couldn’t handle it.”
“Thought you could do anything?” Shego quipped with a light smirk.
“That includes flying off the handle every once in awhile.”
“Well if you don’t make a habit of that I guess I can forgive you,” the pale woman replied, her smirk widening a bit. “And I guess I did overact a bit too. It’s just that with everything that happened with my family over the years, I just have a knee jerk reaction when it seems like someone’s ashamed to be with me.”
“But I’m not,” Kim said, again placing her hand on Shego’s cheek. “I was just caught off guard is all.”
“And I read too much into it,” Shego admitted with a sigh. “Great start to a relationship, huh?”
“Yeah,” Kim huffed.
A light knock at the door caught their attention and this time they prepared themselves. Kim pulled back from Shego but still held her hand as she faced the door. She took a few deep breaths to calm herself before addressing the person knocking.
“You can come in now mom,” she called.
The door opened only enough to allow Ann to poke her head through. She looked at the two and smiled brightly when she saw they were no longer fighting. She pulled the door open fully but remained in the doorway.
“Girls, I think we need to have a talk,” she said in a very parental way that made Kim shudder a bit.
“Um…yeah I think we do too,” Kim replied, her earlier anxiety returning.
Just as the nervousness started to overcome her and her body began to shake, she felt a slight pressure on her left hand. She looked down to find Shego giving it reassuring squeeze and the same feeling reflected in her emerald eyes when she looked up at them. A small smile played across Kim’s face at the action and when she turned to face her mother again she felt much more confident. With a nod of acknowledgment, Kim let her mother lead her and Shego out of the room and into the living room where they sat on the couch for a moment in an uncomfortable silence.
“Mom, let me explain,” Kim spoke up.
“No Kimmie, it’s alright I know what happened,” Ann replied a bit uneasily. “Actually I’ve been expecting this to happen but I guess I wasn’t as ready as I thought I was.”
“Oh, OK well then-” Kim stopped when she realized what her mother had said. “Wait, you expected this to happen?”
“Of course. Someone would have to be completely blind not to see how close you two have gotten over the past few months?”
“We have?” Kim and Shego asked in unison as they looked at each other.
Ann couldn’t help but smile at that. “Yes you have. And as much as I know you two hate it, I think the picture the boys took proves it.”
“Oh yeah…that,” Shego growled. “We never did get done ‘thanking’ them for taking that thing.”
“And you won’t if you know what’s good for you,” Ann said sternly. “I’ve told you already Shego I don’t like anyone threatening my children. Especially from someone who’s going to be dating one of them.”
“So then, you’re OK with this?” Kim asked before Shego could make any kind of retort.
“Well I won’t lie Kimmie, this is going to be a huge adjustment,” the older redhead sighed. “But what I’m more concerned about right now is if you’re happy or not.”
“Huh?”
“Do you think this new relationship will make you happy?”
Kim blinked as she took in the question. Really all of this was happening so fast that she really hadn’t had anytime to sit down and think about it. She looked over at Shego and saw the tiny glint of worry in her eyes. She recongized it as the same look she had during their fight a few minutes ago and Kim was surprised at how bad she, herself felt. She had certainly grown closer to Shego over the past few months and didn’t want to do anything to needlessly hurt her. Then of course there was Shin. When this first started Kim resolved to be at least be civil towards Shego for the sake of their child, but now that there was an opportunity for Shin’s parents to not just like each other, but love each other she wasn’t about to let it go. She smiled at the thought of Shin having a loving family and when she found Shego returning that smile she was again surprised, this time by how her heart was beating faster and the feeling of contentment washing over her.
“Yes,” she answered as the turned back to her mother. “I think it will make me happy.”
“Then that’s all that matters,” Ann replied with her own smile as she placed her hands over Kim’s. “Every parent wants to see their child be happy. I’m sure that’s something you two will learn soon enough.”
“Not every parent,” Shego scoffed and effectively ruining the moment.
“Most normal parents anyway,” Ann replied as she looked at Shego.
“Do you think dad fits into that category?” Kim asked, her uncertainty returning again.
“He will if he knows what’s good for him,” Ann quipped. “We have discussed it though and I’m sure he’ll fine with it at as well. It will just take some time to get use to is all.”
“Yeah, I can already tell that,” Kim remarked.
“I’ll you what Kimmie. Why don’t I break the news to your father and then you two can sit down and discuss as much as you need to?” Ann suggested.
“That would be great mom,” the younger Possible said as she leaned forward and gave her mother a hug.
Ann returned the hug and held it for a long moment. She knew her baby’s life was going to go through some changes that many people might not understand or even tolerate but that only strengthened her resolve to be there for her daughter no matter what. When she pulled back from the hug she looked at Kim then Shego one last time before standing up.
“Well this has certainly been a…revealing evening and I’m sure you two have a lot you want to talk about in private. Just try not to stay up too late now Kim, you do still have school tomorrow,” she reminded.
“Right, I know,” Kim replied dejectedly.
Ann nodded then looked at the woman next to her daughter. “And Shego, I guess the only thing I can say right now is welcome to the family.”
“Thanks. Definitely feel like I’ve traded up,” Shego replied.
Ann smiled before she picked up the laundry basket and walked out of the room, leaving the new couple alone to sit and talk. Unfortunately, neither of them really knew what they were suppose to say. They each fidgeted around a bit as they tried to think of something while also keeping their eyes open. It was Shego that finally broke the silence.
“This long talk we’re suppose to have? How about we do that sometime tomorrow?” she suggested.
“Agreed,” Kim nodded just before a yawn overcame her. “Wow I didn’t realize I was so tired. I guess I better go to bed. School and all that. And I need to think of how to break the news to the rest of my family and my friends.”
“Oh?” Shego remarked. “Just gonna come out and tell them? Not even gonna try to hide it, huh?”
“No, because I shouldn’t have to. Besides with everything that’s gone on lately and things that are probably going to happen, I just don’t have the strength to keep up a lie.”
“Plus you’re no good at it.”
Kim blushed a bit. “Yeah that too.”
She pulled herself off the couch under Shego’s smile at her small victory and started off for her room then paused to look back at the pregnant woman still on the couch.
“Do you need help getting to your room?” Kim asked.
Shego snarled. “Look Princess, I already told you this. I may be pregnant but I’m not completely helpless.”
With that, Shego placed her hands on the couch as she rolled around a bit as she tried to stand up. Kim placed a hand over her mouth to hide her smile and snicker at seeing the once nimble thief rolling around like a beach ball.
“Having trouble?” the redhead mocked.
“Shut up!” Shego snapped as she still tried to stand.
After another unsuccessful attempt she finally give in with a sigh and held out her right hand. Kim walked over, took the hand and carefully helped Shego to her feet. She guided her back to the guest room where they stood in front of the door a minute. After several seconds of silence Kim finally leaned inward and gave Shego another kiss. It was a much more subdued one and could be considered a “goodnight kiss” but it was still a big step for both of them.
When she pulled back, Kim smiled at the pale woman before she turned and started towards her room again. As she did, she couldn’t help but wonder what tomorrow might bring.
As it turned out, tomorrow brought with it the same thing every school day did; a bunch of boring classes and mounds of homework that probably wouldn’t even be looked at until late at night. Kim felt her eyelids drooped as she tried to listen to Mr. Barkin drone on about…something. It was hard enough to stay awake under normal circumstances, but the fact that she got very little sleep last night made it even worse. As tired as she was last night, she couldn’t quite fall asleep because every time she did she had a nightmare about Ron, Monique and Wade abandoning her because of her new lifestyle. Some even involved people refusing her help because of it and turning to the likes of Global Justice, Team Impossible, and even Jen Credible to save them over her.
But the worst dreams were the ones where Ron screamed at her for betraying the trust and love he placed in her. Those were the most frequent and terrifying the real reason she didn’t get much sleep. She kept turning over how was going to break the news to him and how he was going to react. She expected him to freak out, because…well that was just how Ron first reacted to shocking news. After it settled in though it could go any number of different ways and she just wasn’t sure what to expect. For the most part she was sure he would eventually come around and still be her friend, but there was this tiny voice of doubt that just kept calling her name.
“Possible!” Mr. Barkin barked.
“Wha!” Kim shouted in surprise, snapping her out of her half asleep daze.
“Care to tell me what I was just talking about?”
“Uh…well…you…” she stammered, trying to remember the lecture. “You…were talking about how the over use of metaphors can hurt the author’s intention and create an incoherent mess.”
Mr. Barkin narrowed his eyes and stared at her for a second, seemingly unfazed by her cheerful smile.
“You got lucky,” he muttered then continued on with his lecture.
Kim let out a small sigh and placed her head on the desk.
This is going to be a looong day, she thought in dismay.
Unfortunately, Kim’s prediction came true as every class seemed to drag on until the end of the day. By the time she reached her locker she felt like she had gone a few rounds with all her villains and just wanted to get home and rest. Unfortunately, she knew that wasn’t an option at the moment as she had to make a side trip before she could relax. She let out a groan at the thought and rested her head against the locker door.
“You okay KP?” Ron’s concerned voice asked her. “You looked pretty out of it in Barkin’s class. I mean, you know, more than everyone else.”
She looked over at him and forced the best smile she could.
“I’m fine just a little tired is all. It’s been kinda crazy lately,” she replied.
“No kidding,” he scoffed. “So how’s the baby doing?”
“She’s doing fine. As is the momma.”
“Well that’s good. I guess. ”
Kim couldn’t help but cringe at Ron’s disapproving tone. Despite having defending her from her overbearing parents, Kim knew that Ron didn’t get along with Shego. Whether it was because of her time as one of their deadliest enemies or if he thought she “stole Kim away from him”, she wasn’t sure. What she was sure about was that it made the task of telling him about the change in their relationship that much more difficult. She didn’t want to break his heart any more than she already had, but lying to him would hurt as well. She had to tell him if any of them were going to move forward with their lives. And it had to be soon while she still had the nerve.
“Ron,” she forced out. “I…I need to talk to you about something.”
“OK,” he replied, confused by her tone. “What’s up?”
“Not here. Tonight. At my home. Say about…eight?”
“Uh…alright. You sure you’re alright?”
“Fine. Fine. I just need to talk to you and it’s best to do it in private,” Kim explained then looked down Rufus who was sticking his head out of his customary pocket. “And when I say ‘private’ I mean with you Rufus. Sorry.”
Now Ron and Rufus were throughly confused.
“Um…sure. I’ll see you at eight then,” Ron said.
Kim only nodded before she walked away, leaving the boy and his naked mole rat to watch her leave in silence. Rufus looked up at Ron in expectation to be filled in on a conversation he obviously missed but his human friend merely shrugged in returned.
“I don’t know what’s going on little buddy, but I do have a sneaking suspicion,” the blonde boy said in a suspicious tone.
“An’?” Rufus asked expectantly.
“I think ‘it’ may finally have happened.”
“‘It’?”
“Something to dark and horrible I dare not think about it. I just hope I’m wrong, because I honestly have know idea what I’d do if ‘it’ did happen.”
Usually for Kim walking into Club Banana was as comforting as walking into her own room. She considered it one of her few safe havens where she could go and just be herself. Or at the very least a normal high school girl. It was a place where she could go to check out the latest fashion trends, indulge in a little gossiping and check out some cute guys. Of course, that last one didn’t really apply anymore. That was part of why she was nervous about walking into the clothing store.
The other reason was standing next to one of the window displays and putting a new shipment of dresses out on the racks. Kim felt it was appropriate that she tell Monique here since this was where they first met and almost instantly became friends. Since then, she has counted Monique as one of her best friends. So what better place to potentially end that friendship than the place it started?
She took a deep breath and let out slowly before she walked over to the other girl.
“Hey Monique, think you can spare some time to talk?” Kim asked gently.
“Sure. If you don’t mind me hanging up these dresses while we do,” Monique replied, not missing a beat in her work.
“That’s fine.”
“So what’s on your mind girl?”
“Well…it’s kind of…hard to talk about,” Kim said unsurely.
“Guy trouble?” Monique ventured.
“I…guess you could call it that. Really though it’s…well…you know how Shego is having my child?”
“Well between Shego’s bulging belly and your fussing over her all the time it’s not hard to miss.”
“I do not fuss-” Kim started, but then stopped with a wave of her arms. That was getting off track and she needed to stay focused. “Anyway, since that happened we’ve obviously stopped fighting and grown…closer and recently, very recently, we…kinda…”
“Finally gave in and admitted you two have feelings for each other?” Monique asked nonchalantly.
Upon hearing the casual confirmation of what she was about to say, Kim stood completely still from shock with an expression matching that of her mother’s from last night. When she noticed that Monique was giving her a concerned look while holding a dress in one hand and a hanger in the other, she realized she must not have said anything for a few seconds too long. She tried to respond but what came out was a series of half formed words.
“Kim, are you OK?” Monique asked, taking a step forward.
“H-how did you know?” Kim finally managed to spit out.
Monique gave her an “Are you serious?” look before smiling and shaking her head in amusement.
“Well aside from the fussing,” she started to explain, “there’s also the way you two look at each other. There’s something there that’s more than just being together for the sake of the baby. Besides, you two already bicker like an old married couple anyway. I figured you two would come around sooner or later but I didn’t want to say anything because I didn’t want to freak you out.”
Again Kim stared blankly at her.
“You didn’t want to freak me out?” she asked, though it sounded more rhetorical an actual question.
A smile then crept over her confused face quickly followed by a low chuckle. It soon turned into a full blown riotous laughter that had Kim leaning forward and slapping her left knee while Monique questioned her friend’s sanity. It didn’t help matters that the outburst was drawing the attention of the other customers who also wondered if the girl was crazy.
“Uh, Kim,” Monique said, placing her hands on the girl’s shoulders. “You really need to calm down. People are starting to stare and I think someone’s calling the cops.”
“Sorry, sorry,” Kim replied through deep breaths as she wiped a tear from her eye.
One more breath calmed her down completely and stood upright again, seemingly completely composed.
“Sorry,” she repeated. “I guess this whole thing blind sided me and I didn’t know how else deal. I really thought you’re going to freak out on me and stop being my friend.”
Monique pulled back and placed the back of her hands on her hips in an indignant pose.
“Girl look at me. Do I look like I’d be that small minded?” she asked.
“Well…no,” Kim replied, suddenly feeling ashamed for having doubted her friend. “I just…I don’t know this whole thing is confusing.”
The other girl’s face softened as she relaxed her pose and placed a comforting hand on her friend’s shoulder.
“No doubt,” she began. “But I’m your friend Kim and I’ll be here for you. I mean it is going to take some getting use to, but it’s not nearly as freaky as half the stuff you told me.”
“You really think so?” the redhead asked in a hopeful tone.
“Of course! I mean after all the stories of monkey ninjas and killer robots and doomsday devices, something like this seems pretty normal. Besides it’s ‘06 anyone who thinks this is gross and wrong needs to get the with the times.”
Kim smiled broadly and before she knew what she was doing, she pulled her friend into a comforting hug. Monique was a bit surprised by the action but quickly recovered and returned the embrace, know that the girl who could do anything really needed gesture right now.
“Thanks,” Kim whispered.
“Like you say, ‘no big’,” Monique replied with a light pat before she pulled back. “OK, hug’s over now.”
The redhead stared at her in horror that she might had done something wrong. When the dark skinned girl saw this she rolled her eyes and dismissively waved her hand.
“Don’t get the wrong idea,” she said. “I’m not grossed out, I just don’t want to take any chance of making Shego jealous. I’ve seen what she can do with the baby so I definitively don’t want to make her made for after she has it.”
Kim chuckled. “You have a point. Anyway I’m just glad this worked out so well. You have no idea how nervous I was about this.”
“Like I said, it’s not a problem. Just promise me I’ll be able to visit the rugrat once she’s born.”
“Trust me you’re one of the firsts on the list.”
“Good. Now there anything else I can help you with while you’re here? We got some new cargos in stock.”
“As tempting as that sounds I need to get home and get ready to tell Ron about all this.”
At that Monique did wince. “Oooh, he doesn’t know yet, huh?”
“No,” Kim sighed and slumped her shoulders. “And I’m kind of afraid to tell him cause I just think he’ll…”
“Have a major freak out?”
“Yes!”
“Well it does sound like something he’d do,” Monique mused, then turned serious again. “But seriously, no matter what’s happen between you two in the past he’s still your boy Kim. I’m sure he’ll be weirded out for awhile but if there’s one thing I’ve learned from watching you two no matter what the sitch is, Ron’s always got your back. Just give him time to adjust.”
“‘Time to adjust’,” Kim muttered. “That seems to be the theme for today.”
“Hey this is a big change. For all of us.”
“You’re telling me. Anyway, thanks for being so understanding Monique. And for all the advice. I’ll talk to you later, OK?”
“Yep,” Monique replied. “And if you need to talk again I’ve always got an ear open.”
Kim flashed her another grateful smile before she turned and walked out of the store.
Well that went better than I would have imagined, she thought cheerfully. Now all I have to go is think of how to break the news to Ron. And hope that after it’s over we’ll still be friends.
Kim’s mind raced with the possible outcomes of her talk with Ron, and unfortunately only a few of them were good. She tried to give him the benefit of the doubt that she hadn’t given to Monique, but she knew he probably wouldn’t act as calm as her. The major difference is that she had never dated Monique before. That was going to play a big factor in how things turned out, for better or worse. Of course with the way she was thinking there was no “better” and she could only hope it wouldn’t get “worse”. “Mildly strained” was what she was shooting for.
By the time she got home she was even more tired than she was earlier in the day and just wanted to get a quick nap before Ron came over. Unfortunately, as she crossed through the living room to get to her room, her father spotted her from his easy chair and cleared his throat to get her attention.
“Kimmie-cub, I think we need to have a talk,” he said.
She froze and turned around slowly on the balls of her feet. There was a stern expression on her father’s face that told her this “talk” he wanted to have was much more of a lecture and she had a pretty good idea what it was about. Kim steeled herself then walked over to the couch and sat down, trying to keep eye contact with her father but finding it surprisingly difficult.
“Your mother told me what happened between you and Shego,” he explained in an even tone.
Despite her father’s apparent state of ease, she still found a nervous pit was forming in her stomach.
“Dad, I-” she tried to start but he cut her off by holding up a hand.
“Please let me say my piece first,” he requested. After she nodded in confirmation he began to speak again. “I have some concerns about your new…relationship. Beyond the obvious ones, I’m afraid this might be another rebound relationship.”
“‘Rebound’!” Kim asked incredulously. “If you’re talking about Ron, we broke up months ago. Several months ago actually! Usually a rebound is right after one break up. Besides, this situation is a little different.”
“Isn’t that what you said when you started your relationship with Ronald?”
Kim faltered for an answer. She couldn’t offer a comeback but she knew he was right. They had an almost identical conversation by then, with both her parents concerned that her relationship with Ron was just rebound from having her heart broken by Erik. Then she explained it was different because Erik had turned out to be a Syntho-drone that had tricked her and when Ron poured his heart out to her it awoke feelings she didn’t know she had. But she knew they were true and that their love would last the rest of their days.
At least, that’s what she thought at the time. Eventually though she came to the realization that it was just a rebound relationship and as much as she loved Ron she couldn’t bring herself to love him the way a girlfriend should. Breaking up with him was one of the hardest thing she had to do, but thankfully he was on the same page as her and they were able to remain friends afterwards. Though not without some complications.
And here she was again, defending a new relationship to her father in almost the same fashion was before. Was she really this fickle? Was she really the kind of person to just jump from one relationship to the other? No, no there was something different about this one. It wasn’t just Shin or the gender issue, it was something she couldn’t quite place but it was there. Something…special.
“This isn’t a rebound dad,” she spoke softly. “I really don’t know what it is, but I’m sure it’s not just me trying to find someone else besides Ron. It is different in…a lot of way, but number one is Shin. It’s important for her to have loving parents.”
“I understand that Kim,” James Possible replied in a serious tone. “And I respect that you’re thinking of what’s best for your baby. In fact, I’m very proud of it. But one of the trickiest things about being a parent is knowing not only what’s best for your child but also yourself. Do you think this relationship is what’s best for you?”
“Yes,” Kim answered, almost reflexively. “If you want to know what our relationship is going to be…I really can’t say, we just barely started it. But I know it’s what I want. You can be mad at me or disown me or whatever but it’s not going to change how I feel.”
Dr. Possible quirked an eyebrow at his daughter’s statement before a soft, reassuring smile cover his face.
“I’m not mad at you and I’m certainly not going to disown you,” he told her. “I just want to make sure you’ll be happy. There are a lot of people out there who won’t be understanding about this relationship. In fact some of them might not want to be saved by ‘those types’.”
“Well then those people are just going to have to learn to get over their narrow minded thinking,” Kim countered. “I’m determined to help people no matter what. Of course I’m also determined to raise Shin the right way too, so people are really going to have to get over that stuff.”
“Now there’s the Kimmie-cub I know and love.”
“Thanks dad,” she smiled, but soon frowned when another thought occurred. “This isn’t going to hurt you at work, is it? To have a daughter that’s ‘that way’.”
“Oh don’t be silly,” he remarked, waving it off. “The people I work with are too smart to be hung up on something like that. Besides most of them are too caught up in there research to worry about their own family lives, let alone a colleague’s. And if someone did have a problem with it, well then I’d simply shoot them into the nearest black hole.”
Kim couldn’t help by chuckle at the last remark. “That’s your solution for everything.”
“Well it works.”
Kim laughed again as she stood up then leaned over to give her father a hug.
“Thanks for understanding,” she whispered to him before pulling back and starting to head out of the room.
“It was nothing Kimmie-cub. I can be hip when I want to be,” Dr. Possible replied jovially. “Although I will have to have a talk with Shego now. Baby or not she’s going to have to follow the same rules as any of your other dates.”
The comment stopped Kim in her tracks as she tried to imagine what the conversation would be like. The thought of her father giving his usual speech to an irritated and bewildered Shego made her feel relaxed for the first time that day. She laughed about it as she climbed the stairs to her room and fell down onto the bed. Once she calmed down her laughter was replaced by a steady breathing as she fell into a deep sleep, the thought of what would happen tonight far from her mind.
Kim fidgeted nervously as she stood in front of Ron. She tried to practice just what she was going to tell him, but every time she did the words just failed to form. Soon, here she was, standing before her best friend and former boyfriend trying to find a way to tell him that her former rival had become her new girlfriend. That fact that she had a girlfriend would be a big enough shock let alone who that girlfriend was. She knew it would get some kind of reaction out of him, but she still wasn’t sure what kind exactly. That uncertainty kept her from just telling him about it and instead caused her to make many false starts.
“Kim, are you OK?” Ron asked, giving her a concerned look.
“Not so much,” Kim muttered.
“What?”
“Uh…nothing,” she lied then took a deep breath for courage. “Ron…there’s something I need to tell you. Something important.”
“Alright, shoot,” he replied, making the customary finger gun motions.
“It’s about Shego and I. See we’ve grown…close. Like…really close.”
“Like good friends close or relationship close?”
“The…second…one,” Kim answered as she drooped her head and looked at him out of the corner of her eyes.
He stood there for a moment in stunned silence as he tried to take in the news.
“Wow,” he finally muttered after a minute or so. He looked like he was going to say more but failed and simply repeated, “Wow.”
He looked at the still slightly cowering Kim and tried to picture her with Shego on a date. Again this seemed to blow all the fuses in his brain and left him with just one thing to say.
“Wow,” he muttered as he walked over to Kim’s bed and sat down. “This is…”
“Major drama?” Kim offered, sitting down next to him.
“Yeah,” he whispered. “When did…”
“It ‘officially’ happened last night after we got back from Go City, but I think it’s been building up over time.”
“I…guess I could see that. This is…this is going to take some getting use to. Like a lot of getting us to.”
“I know Ron, I know,” she said as she wrung her hands together nervously and slumped her head again. “And I know it’s going to be really awkweird between us for awhile considering all that’s happened, but I just…I just hope you’ll still be my friend.”
Ron again stared at her in surprise, but his shocked expression was quickly replaced by a gentle smile as he reached down and took one of her hands into his own.
“Kim I’m not going to lie, this is going to be a huge change, bigger than when we started dated, but I promise you I’ll be here for you,” he said softly as he stared into her eyes. “I’ll always be here for you KP.”
“KP.”
“KP.”
“KP!”
Kim muttered something incomprehensible to the annoying voice that kept calling out her initials. It was so persistent and yet so familiar. She slowly forced open her eyes but all she could see around her was a series of colored splotches, mostly peach and blonde. As her sight slowly began to refocus she discovered those splotches was actually the face of Ron Stoppable, only a few inches away from her own face. When she realized this her still mostly asleep mind came up with the only appropriate respond it could.
“GAAAAAHHH!” she screamed, scooting away from him as fast as she could.
“DWAAAAAAHHH!” Ron screamed in replied, jumping back and covering his face with his arms.
They both took a moment to catch their breathes as they recovered from the unexpected shock. When she finally got her heart rate back under control, Kim glared at Ron from her spot on the bed.
“Ron, what do you think you’re doing!” she snapped.
“Me! I’m not the one that scream bloody murder as soon as I woke up!” Ron retorted. “Besides, you said you wanted to see me at eight tonight so here I am. I’ve been trying to wake you up for the past two minutes.”
“Wha?” Kim mumbled before looking over at her clock. Sure enough it read 8:02. “Oh. Right. Sorry I guess I was a little more tired than I thought.”
“I’ll say,” he replied then his featured soften. “Kim you sure you’re alright? You’ve been acting weird all day and you just look so out of it.”
“Well helping Shego out can get pretty exhausting,” she admitted as she got off the bed. “But that’s not why I was tired all day. Truth is I didn’t get my sleep last night. I kept thinking about…something.”
“Oh? Like what?”
“Something important,” she said as she started to walk over to him. She stopped half away and felt her shoulders being to slump as her earlier anxiety returned. “It’s about me and Shego.”
“What about you and Shego?” Ron asked, sounding much more suspicious than he wanted to.
Kim noticed the tone, but shrugged it off. “Well…we’ve grown a lot…closer over the last couple of months. And last night something…happened.”
Uh oh, Ron thought and tried desperately to ignore this overwhelming sense of dread. Out loud he asked, “What happened?”
“We…um…kinda…kissed,” she finally admitted.
Much like in her dream, Kim hung her head in almost shame and stared at Ron out of the corners of her eyes. And again, like the dream, Ron stood completely still and silent for a moment with a look of complete shock on his face. She was beginning to wonder if this was going to turn out exactly like her dream. In fact, a small part of her hoped it would as he seemed to take the news rather well there. Unfortunately, she quickly learned why they are called dreams as Ron’s expression changed from one of shock to one of incredulous indignation.
“I knew it!” he shouted, throwing his arms into the air. “Aw man, why is it the one of the few times I’m actually right about something it has to be this! This is just so…so…sick and wrong! Wrongsick even!”
If this were a Japanese cartoon, Kim had no doubt she would have fallen onto the floor face first in surprise of Ron’s outburst. Instead, the sudden weakness in her legs was overpowered by a rage bubbling up from her stomach. Any thoughts of worry or uncertainty were replaced by this new emotion as she glared at the boy who she now thought of as: the enemy.
“What do you mean it’s sick and wrong!” she countered with a shout of her own. “What exactly is so sick and wrong about it!”
“How about the fact that it’s SHEGO!” Ron said, the tune and volume of his voice not changing. “You know, glowing hands of death, tried to take over the world with Drakken, tried to kill us many, many, MANY times Shego! Any of that ringing about bell?”
“You’re STILL worrying about that! Haven’t you learned anything over the past seven months? She’s changed! She’s really changed Ron.”
“Oh really? And what if she’s just pretending to be reformed so she can run out on you after the baby’s born.”
“She wouldn’t do that!”
“And how do you know?”
“Because she loves me!”
That last statement brought the shouting match to a screeching halt. Something about the certainty and conviction in Kim’s voice surprised them both enough for them to stop and rethink the way the were going about this. They each took a moment to breath and calm down and when she was sure she could speak more civilized, Kim started the conversation again.
“She loves me,” she repeated softly. “And I love her.”
“But how do you know?” Ron asked, fear beginning to overcome his anger. “You’ve been down this road before Kim. We’ve been down that road and it didn’t exactly turn out well for us.”
“I know, I know. But something’s different with her. I can’t explain it, but it’s there. It’s…different somehow.”
“Yeah, no kidding,” he scoffed. “You’re not only with one of your archenemies now but a woman one too. God, you’re dating a woman now,” he sighed as he turned away and tried to take that in. He faced her again when a horrible thought entered his mind. “Is this because of me? Did I do that?”
“No, God no,” Kim replied, taking another step towards him. “It wasn’t because of you. In fact you’re the best boyfriend I ever had.”
“Then why didn’t it work between us?” Ron asked, his face full of sorrow and regret.
“I don’t know. Maybe it’s because you were too good to me,” she tried to explain. “Maybe I was afraid I couldn’t live up to this image you had of me. Or maybe I was afraid I couldn’t return all the love you’re giving to me. And maybe I’m with Shego now because you’re such a great boyfriend that no other man could do so I decided to go out with a woman.”
“Oh how I wish I could believe or understand that!” he shouted throwing his hands up into the air again.
When he recovered he slumped his shoulders and walked over to her bed, suddenly feeling very weak and needing to sit down. Kim followed suit and sat down near him, but gave him the space she knew he needed right now. Again an similar image from her dream flashed through her mind, but the fact that they were both sitting on her bed was the only similarity the current situation had to the dream. She slouched forward and cast him a few sparing glances as she tried to figure out what to say next.
“Ron,” she said softly. “I’m…I’m sorry.”
The confession caught them both off guard.
“I never meant to hurt you,” she continued, tears beginning to well up in her eyes. “God that’s the last thing I ever wanted to do. You’ve been such a good friend, sometimes better than I deserve. I know sometimes I was petty and cruel and thought I knew what was best for you when I really didn’t and yet somehow you always stuck by me. I don’t know why, but you did. And I’ve been so grateful for that.”
By now she was crying freely, unsure if they were tears of sadness or joy or some mixture of the two. She just knew she couldn’t stop them no matter how hard she tried. She continued on though, she had to get this all of her chest since might be the last conversation they ever had.
“I tried to make our relationship work, I really, really did,” she continued in between sniffles. “I wanted it to last because I saw how happy you were and that mad me happy, it really did. But I couldn’t lie to myself any longer. It was wrong for both of us and I tried to break it off as gently as I could. I do love you Ron, but just as a friend. The best friend I ever had. And…and if you don’t want to talk to me anymore I can understand that. But please, please think it over first.” She forced herself to look into his eyes. “I couldn’t imagine my life without you.”
Ron looked back into her eyes. Those bright green orbs that usually held so much courage and confidence now held fear and uncertainty as they began to redden from her crying. He could have kicked himself for being so stupid as making a scene and upsetting her. Sure he was a bit confused and angry himself, but here she was worried he’d never want to talk to her again and he was doing nothing but making it seem true. He offered her a soft, apologetic smile as he reached up and wiped one of the tear streaks away. Then, before even he knew what he was doing, he put his arms around her shoulders and pulled her into a tight, loving embrace.
Kim was a little surprised at first but let it go. She really shouldn’t have been as this was about the fourth or fifth hug she got today, but it was the one she needed the most. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and held onto him tightly, as if letting go would cause him to fly away forever.
“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry,” she continued to muttered into his collar.
“Sssshh. It’s alright,” he said softly. “I’m sorry too. I acted like a jerk and that was wrong. Heck I even kind of suspected this after awhile, but I still wasn’t ready for it.”
“Can you accept it? Can you accept…me?” she asked, fear still evident in her voice.
“Of course KP,” he assured. “You’re still my best friend. It’s going to take some time, naturally, but I think I can get use to it. Like you said, I couldn’t imagine my life with you.”
“Thank you.”
“No big.”
They sat in each others arms for quite a while. How long exactly they couldn’t say, but it was long enough for Kim to finally regain her composure and stop crying. When she was sure he wouldn’t disappear after she let go, she pulled back and began to wipe away the dried tears with the backs of her hands. Afterwards she looked at Ron again and tried to think of something else to say, but she couldn’t. Fortunately, he spoke up before she could really make a fool of herself.
“Feeling better?” he asked.
“Yeah,” she replied, taking one last swipe at her face. “Wish I could say something more than ‘thanks’ but…”
“Don’t thank me too much I did kinda act like a jerk.”
“You had a reason to though.”
“Still no excuse,” he sighed. “Look if you’re feeling better then I really need to get home and take awhile by myself to take this all in.”
“Uh…yeah, right. I’ll see you at school tomorrow, right?”
“Course. Wouldn’t pass half my classes without ya.”
She chuckled a bit as he caught up off the bed and after another quick hug walked down the steps that lead from her room to the rest of the house. He felt bad about lying a bit to Kim, but the truth was he still wasn’t OK with her new relationship. He doubt he would ever really be OK with it. It wasn’t the fact that she was dating another woman, or even the fact that that woman was Shego that bothered him. It was the fact that she had someone else. As much as he tried to play it cool and pretend things were back to normal between them, the sad truth was that it would never be the same again. Not as long as he still felt…
Ron stopped dead in his tracks when he entered the living room and saw the last person he wanted to see right now. It was the person, the woman, who took his KP away from him. Even with a bulging belly that looked ready to burst she still somehow found away to look like she was just sitting there on the couch without a care in the world. He let out a soft growl before he spoke her name.
“Shego,” he said softly.
Unfortunately, it seemed he seemed he said her name a little to loudly as she turned her attention away from the TV and towards him. She made a disgusted face when she saw who said her name.
“Stoppable,” she said back in her own growl. Her face then lit up with amusement. “So I take it from all the yelling that went on upstairs, Kimmie told you about us.”
“Yeah, she did,” he replied, making his way over to the couch. “I really don’t know what to make of it, but I’ll tell you one thing, I’m gonna be watching you like a hawk lady.”
“So you like to watch, huh?” Shego replied with a devious grin. “Well that’s fine, you can see how much better I get along with her than you.”
“Yeah cause the woman who placed her in deathtraps for all those years really has room to talk.”
“At least I don’t take her to some crappy fast food Mexican place all the time.”
“Don’t diss Bueno Nacho! That was our place!” he argued as he leaned forward.
“Then I guess Kimmie and I will have to find a new place. A place where you’re not invited,” Shego countered, forcing herself to sit upright so she could get in his face.
“Yeah well-” he sudden stopped then stood up straight and began to wave his hands dismissively. “You know what? I’m not getting into this with you. You can think it’s because you won or whatever, I don’t care. I just care about Kim’s happiness and I know this isn’t going to help that.”
“So what do you suggest?” she asked as she crossed her arms over her chest and turned her nose up.
“That we at least try to act like we can get along. It’s not going to be easy cause I don’t really like you and I know you don’t like me but this isn’t for either of us, it’s for Kim. So how about we call a mutual, uneasy, skin crawling truce? At least for a little while,” he suggested, then held out a hand towards her.
Shego stared at the outstretched hand out of the corner of her eye for a moment before slowing turning her head to look directly at him. He was right that any kind of truce that had would be uneasy and very skin crawling, but she also knew he was right about Kim wanting them to get along. And she supposed that constantly berating one of her long time friends and former boyfriend really wouldn’t be the best way to start their relationship. Plus, as fun as it was to tease Stoppable, she just didn’t have the energy for it. Slowly she uncrossed her arms and outstretched one of her own hands towards his. Their heads met and grasped in an awkward shake that lasted all of two seconds. When she withdrew her hand, Ron let out a sigh of relief.
“You know for a second there I thought you’d try to ignite your hand and burn mine off,” he admitted.
“So did I,” Shego remarked.
There was an awkward silence between them then. Ron knew he should continue on with his plan to head him, but for some reason his feet didn’t seem to want to move. So he simply stood there scratching the back of his neck nervously while Shego tried to ignore him and focus on the TV again. When she couldn’t do that she desperately wanted to fire a plasma ball at him to get him to move, but again in the spirit of the truce, but mostly for her baby’s well being, she held back.
“So,” she finally said, trying to alleviate the tension. “Since you’ve known her the longest and use to date her for awhile got any useful tips I should know about Possible?”
“Well first I wouldn’t call her by her last name,” Ron advised. “Secondly you gotta kinda take her bossiness with a grain of salt. It doesn’t happen that often, but there are just times when she gets into this area where she has to be right and…it can get pretty ugly.”
“Yeah I’ve seen that a bit. Lucky I’m use to dealing with that kind of thing so I think I can handle it,” Shego mused. “Anything else.”
He sighed as his face took on a rather wistful expression. “Make her happy. You do whatever you can to make her happy and keep her. Definitely want to keep her. Because if you don’t you’ll find your heart practically breaking every time you look at her. You won’t be able to just see Kim anymore but one of the most beautiful, intelligent, caring human beings on the planet and realize that you had that for awhile, that all those wonderful traits were aimed almost solely at you…and somehow you let her go. You’ll try but you won’t ever really get over it.”
Shego stared dumbfounded at the obviously unintended confession. She was really just trying to get him to say something when she asked the question and figured he give out some lame advise about her favorite flower or dress or something. She certainly didn’t expect that. She also never suspected that the buffoon could be so…deep.
“Ron,” she said softly, surprising herself by using his first name.
“I need to go,” he muttered, either ignoring or not hearing her.
As he started to walk towards the door, Shego turned as best she could to see him from the couch.
“Wait,” she called out.
He stopped and titled his head towards her.
“Thanks. For this and for sticking up for me at my parents,” she said.
He smiled a bit at that.
“Nah, I didn’t really do anything. It was Kim mostly,” he replied.
“Still…thought that counts, right?”
“I guess.”
And with that he finally made it out of the Possible home, leaving Shego alone to think about how little she really knew about him and all of Kim’s friends really. She didn’t even know if the girl had anymore outside of Ron, Monique and that computer dork of hers. But there was time to learn now. Time to try and fit in if she could. At least until Shin arrived, then it would all be about her. Shego rubbed her belly at that thought, a habit she had picked up lately, before she settled back in to watch some more TV.
Her quiet time was soon disturbed again, but this time by a much more welcomed guest. She smiled as Kim walked into the living room and tried to get up to greet her, only to have Kim motion for her to stay put before she sat down next to the pale green woman. Acting on an impulse Kim leaned over and gave her a quick peck on the cheek before settling in next to her.
“Did you happen to see Ron come by this way?” she asked, not really sure why.
“Yeah we talked for a bit,” Shego replied off handedly. At the small gasped she heard she looked at Kim to find a panicked expression on her face. “Don’t worry Princess we didn’t yell at each other…too much. Actually we came to an agreement that we’ll try to get along for your sake. No promises though.”
Kim relaxed and smiled again. “That’s all I really ask. Thanks for the effort though.”
“Welcome. Don’t forget to thank Ron though, it was his idea.”
The redhead nodded before something struck her. “Wait. Did you just call him Ron?”
Shego looked over at her with her usual cat like grin. “Well that is his name isn’t it?”
“Yeah but I usually call him Ron. You usually call him ‘Stoppable’ or ‘buffoon’.”
“Things change Kimmie. I think we learned that lesson fairly well last night.”
“No kidding.”
They lapsed into a rather comfortable quiet as they bathed in the glow of the television. After a few minutes, Shego leaned over to lay her head on Kim’s shoulder and on instinct Kim wrapped her arm around Shego and positioned it so she could rest it on the woman’s enlarged stomach. Shego placed her own hand on top of Kim’s and they both let out a content sigh.
“This is going to take some getting use to, huh?” Shego asked.
“Oh yeah,” Kim replied.
Ron had never been so thankful that his parents were almost chronic over time workers. It meant that when he came home he wouldn’t have to explain to them why he looked so downtrodden. He knew he probably have to try an explain the situation to them in time, but right now he really didn’t want to talk about it. At least not to them. When he made it into his room he closed the door with his body and leaned on it as he let out a pathetic sigh. The small chittering noise coming from his computer desk, force him to walk over to it and look down at his pet/buddy.
“So?” Rufus squeaked expectantly.
“I was right, ‘it’ happened,” he said as he fell down into the chair.
“Oooh, sorry,” the mole rat said softly, patting Ron’s hand gently.
“It’s…OK buddy, I’ll…get use to it I guess. Right now I just…I need to sort things out.”
With that, he moved the mouse to his computer around to take it out of sleep mode and access the Internet. Again he found himself thankful, this time for the fact that his parents caved in and bought a high speed connection.
At least it didn’t take him as long to come around to this as it did cable, he thought.
He did a quick scan of his favorites and brought up a site that had quickly become one of his most frequently used ones: his Live Journal account. He had set it up shortly after he and Kim started dating so he could get out all the emotions he was feeling and not run the risk of exploding. Of course their break up caused many entries to be filled out as well, mostly depressing, self deprecating things with only a few bad words towards Kim. He found he couldn’t stay mad at her very long no matter what happened. So he was sure he would come to accept and maybe even like her new relationship with Shego, it would just take more time. At the very least he had a place to put down his thoughts so it wouldn’t drive him crazy. It was with that in mind that he called up the “Update Journal” screen and with a quick crack of his fingers began typing away furiously.
The Stoppable Adventures
It finally happened…
Current mood: confused
Current Song: Aerosmith’s “What It Takes”
Definitely going to Friend Lock this post and probably will delete it later. I just gotta get this out right now before my head explodes. Yeah, I know I’ve said that before but this time it really feels like it.
For those of you who have been keeping up with this journal, you know about how Kim has been taking care of her former arch enemy Shego since Shego was implanted with a virus containing both their DNA and thus making Shego pregnant. Naturally, right? Well Kim has been…well pretty much Kim-like during the whole thing; taking charge, looking after Shego, making sure her baby will come out healthy all that good stuff.
Thing is through this whole ordeal I kept seeing signs that they where getting…closer to each other. First I tried to write it off as me just thinking too much. Yes, that does happen every once in awhile. But I just couldn’t shake the feeling that something more was going on. I really didn’t want it to cause it just seemed so sick and wrong but it was there. At least in my mind.
Then I got a bombshell dropped on my just now.
I was right. They’re a couple. Kim Possible and Shego are a couple.
I really don’t know how to feel right now. Well…that’s not entirely true when Kim told me I acted like a complete jackass and ended up upsetting her. I’m still kicking myself for that one. The last thing I ever wanted to do was hurt KP again.
That’s where the confusion sets in. I realized something tonight. I’m not upset cause Kim’s going out with another woman, granted that’s going to be weird for while, it’s the fact that she’s going out with someone. More importantly, or accurately, or whatever, I realized that…I’m still in love with her.
I mean I would love her no matter what as just a friend and I thought I got back to that place, but I thought wrong. She could have told me she was going out with anyone else and I’d still feel this way. I wanted to tell her so badly that I love her in the boyfriend way. Tell her that I could be the one there for her to help raise her daughter. I could do the dad thing. Especially if it meant spending the rest of my life with someone as great as KP.
I wanted to tell her all this and I even had the chance while we’re hugging, but I just…couldn’t. She was already going through so much pain and confession then that I didn’t want to add to it by telling her how I really felt. So I did the loyal friend thing and told her I’d be there for her and all that, and I will, but I know it’s going to tear my up inside every time I see her and Shego together.
God I wish I could tell her. But she’s gotten over me and is ready to have a family. She’s dead set on having Shego help raise the baby so if I did tell her I wouldn’t just be ruining our lives but probably little Shin’s as well. I can’t do that. I’m not going to be that kind of guy. But again I don’t know how I can keep going along with these feelings inside and not have it tear me up.
This whole thing reminds me of a line from some Stephen King mini series thing I saw on TV awhile back; “When every decision hurts, how do you know which is the right one”?
I don’t think I’ll tell Kim.
To Be Continued…
Authors Notes: Well here we are, another chapter done and we’re rocketing towards the finish. Well…maybe not rocketing more like a slow crawl on a broken leg, but still the fic will be done soon enough. There’s one more chapter left, maybe two if I think it starts to stretch on too long and then an epilogue and then that’s it. At least for this story. If you’ve checked out my profile you’ll see I have some stories planned that take place after this fic, so all of you who are enjoying this universe you’ll see plenty more of it.
I’ve also gotten some positive feedback on the story I did for the GWA “Guess The Author” contest “Laundry Room Encounter” and base on some of it and my own ideas I’ll also be adding at least one more story to that universe well. Not sure beyond that and I don’t know when I’ll get to it, but something will be added sometime. That’s all I’m saying.
Oh and since this was pointed out in a review of the last chapter, yes Aviarius’ “Avery of Doom” was inspired by the Penguin’s story from the Batman: The Animated Series ep “Almost Got ‘Em”. I was wondering if anyone would catch on to that. So for the person who did, give yourself a pat on the back.
So I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and you might have noticed I gave the three main chars a bit of a emotional beating in this one. Well it’ll all even out in the next one as I plan to give them a physical beating as well. And it’ll be from what I suspect will be a most surprising villain for most of you. It is a returning KP villain just one I kinda…reimagined. That’s all I say beyond the fact that a hint was dropped as to who that villain will be earlier in the story. See if you can find it.