“K.P.? Why are we here, again?”
Kim rolled her eyes. After the 10th time, that question kinda got annoying. Could nothing penetrate through a blonde’s scull?
“Ron, I’ve told you a million times! We’re here to investigate the break in that happened last night. Now shut up so we can get out of here.” No sooner had the redhead finished her sentence than a siren began to sound through the night air. “Oh! Ron!!!”
“What?” The blonde boy just couldn’t figure out why Kim was mad at him. She’d been like this since her Kimmunicator went off at Bueno Nacho. This mood definitely wasn’t normal for his best friend. He couldn’t help but feel a little concerned.
He was jerked back into reality, literally, by a hand belonging to the aforementioned teenager.
“Remind me again why the alarms are on when we’re trying to help these guys,” said Ron, trying to regain balance while being pulled along by Kim.
Kim tightened her grip in an attempt to control her anger, which really didn’t help much, and said slowly and acidly, “How should I know? Who do I look like? Wade?” She leaped over a bush, dragging Ron through it, causing them both to loose their balance and fall.
“Thanks a lot, Ron!” Kim pounded the ground and pushed herself to her feet.
Ron was getting scared now; this wasn’t like Kim at all. He received a quick pull to his feet and continued on. Kim only acted nasty with Bonnie, and even then she kept her cool and came off as only annoyed. She was now in a full out rage that no one had ever experienced before. I’d be in awe if it weren’t directed at me.
They’d made it over a hill and how had the chopper in sight. Ron almost sighed in relief, but he caught a glimpse of something out of the corner of his eye. He turned his head towards the source just as he heard a shot fired off.
His first instinct was to duck and cover, but then he realized that it was most likely headed for Kim. Why doesn’t anyone ever aim for the sidekick? He lunged for Kim, knocking her out of the way…
And putting him in it.
He felt a sharp pain in his upper arm as he fell. He winced against the pain that now flooded his entire left side.
Apparently, Kim hadn’t noticed.
“Ron, get off of me!” she yelled crawling out from under him.
Ron opened his eyes and rose as well. The pain had subsided and, other than a little nausea from the event, found he was fine. He ran on beside Kim and helped her into the chopper.
“Let’s go Charlie!” Kim shouted above the chopper blades. Giving Ron a hand up into the cockpit, Kim shut the hatch and gave the pilot the “thumbs-up”.
She fell into one of the passenger seats and gave a heavy sigh of relief. Ron sat down in the seat next to her, equally relieved at their narrow escape.
A few minutes passed by before Ron had the courage to speak. “So, K.P…you gonna ask Wade why we were attacked?” Ron asked timidly. After his partner’s responses to his earlier questions, he was a little leery asking more.
Kim was really too exhausted to care and yet something in her mind was still alert and fierce. Why does he always have to bother me? Why can’t he contact Wade? Why do I always have to do everything!?
“Yes, Ron, I’ll ask him when I’m ready. Oh, and why did you tackle me to the ground? We were in the middle of a chase, Ron and we weren’t the ones chasing! I would’ve thought you’d have some sense as not to-”
This was starting to get to Ron. It had crossed over the line now. He had been trying to protect her and this was the thanks he got?
“For your information, Kim, I pushed you out of the way of a bullet, see?” He stood and turned, showing the wound, which he hadn’t even had the time to examine yet.
It turned out to be, not a bullet, but a dart, still sticking out of his arm. Kim plucked it out, earning a small yelp from Ron, and examined it sarcastically.
“You saved me from this? Wow, Ron, that was pretty heroic.” She started giggling, making Ron, who was rubbing his arm, blush and come back with:
“Hey, all I heard was a gun being fired. How was I supposed to know it was just a dart?”
“First of all, it wasn’t all that loud, which was why I ignored it.” This was a lie and Kim knew it. She hadn’t heard the shot and was now getting a little stressed because she’d lied, which was triggering that little switch that had been engaged the entire mission. “Secondly, if it had been a bullet, you wouldn’t have been able to recover that quickly. Third and lastly, are you saying that you had to protect me!? You think I can’t take care of myself!?”
“Wait a minute, Kim, that’s not what I said at all. I-”
“No, but you think it don’t you!” She was in an even stronger rage than before. Ron could see it. Man, I sure don’t want to get into a full-fledged fight with her in this mood!
“Kim, maybe you’d better calm down for a sec or-”
“CALM DOWN!!!??? How DARE you!!” She stood up and gave him a full swing B-slap. “I’m never speaking to you again, Ronald Stoppable!”
With that she flung herself back into her seat and sat facing the window for the entire way home. When Charlie dropped Ron off, he said a goodbye to Kim but got not response. Ron’s heart sank. Maybe this really was the end of their friendship.
Charlie took off again, leaving Ron at his doorstep, wondering what would happen the next day.