Chapter Text
A lot had changed since Trini and Kimberly got together, but a lot had also stayed the same. They still slept over in each other's rooms fairly often to ward off nightmares, only now there was kissing involved. They still had study dates for Biology, but now they were more date than study. They also still sat close to each other when the whole group hung out, but there was usually a lot more cuddling or Trini sitting in front of Kim and letting her play with her hair.
Right now was an instance of the latter. After a long week and a brutal training session that afternoon, the group was unwinding at one of their signature campfires, Trini was snuggled up under a blanket next to Kimberly, head resting on her shoulder while they listened to Billy recount his most recent accidental explosion at school. He’d actually been working on something with Alpha 5 and had brought it to school that day to tinker with at lunch. It didn’t make it that long, exploding in his locker during second period and causing the fire alarm to go off. Trini had been grateful because it meant she got out of a quiz. Luckily he didn’t get any additional detention during the week or Jason would have had a fit about him having to miss training.
As they all laughed at Billy’s impression of Principal Feig, Trini was struck by how at ease she felt with these four - probably more so than she’d felt since she was a little kid. And even then, she was an anxious child. She still dealt with a lot of anxieties, and some of those were much bigger than when she was young - like the fate of the world often resting on their shoulders. But in moments like these, all her worries faded away. She never felt like she was second-guessing herself around her friends. Around Kim. At least, not anymore.
Trini leaned up and pressed a brief kiss to her girlfriend’s cheek.
“What was that for?” Kimberly asked with a smile.
“Nothing.” Everything. “Just felt like it.”
Kimberly responded by leaning down and capturing Trini’s lips with her own. Trini couldn’t stop herself from smiling into the kiss. She would have gladly stayed like that for at least another minute had she not felt her shoulder get pelted with a marshmallow and heard Zack yell, “Get a room!”
“You’re just jealous” Trini stuck her tongue out at him, not caring how silly or childish she looked. Zack just stuck his tongue out right back at her
*****
When the two were about halfway down the trail back to Kimberly’s house, Trini stopped suddenly, tugging on Kim’s hand to turn her around.
“Something wrong?” Kim’s eyebrows furrowed in confusion and concern.
“Nope. I just-” She took a deep breath. Though the three little words held a lot of significance, she actually had no qualms about saying them. In fact, Trini had never been more sure of anything in her life. She just wanted to take a moment to make sure she said it right .
She squeezed Kim’s hand. “I love you.”
Surprise appeared on Kim’s face for just a split second before being replaced with a huge smile. She tucked a stray lock of hair behind Trini’s ear, using that hand to cup her cheek as she pressed a kiss to her lips - short and sweet and still tasting the tiniest bit of chocolate and marshmallows. Kimberly pulled back, leaning her forehead against Trini’s.
“I love you too,” she answered, giving Trini one more quick kiss for good measure.
Stepping back, Kimberly tugged Trini along by the hand, relacing their fingers together as they continued their descent. Neither girl could keep a smile off their face the rest of the way down.