Power Rangers: CPU

Ep. 24: CPU Blue

Episode 24: CPU Blue

Amelia "Milly" Deno hummed along to the Kira Ford song on the radio as her car sauntered along undulating back roads. Her fingertips drummed on the steering wheel, her lips curled into a grin, her sapphire eyes sparkling behind her opaque sunglasses. Her boyfriend, Kenshin "Kenny" Okabe, sat in the passenger seat, his gaze set on the horizon and his features etched into a frown.

"Freak you out, freak you out, freak you out! Freak you out, freak you out, freak you out...!~" Milly glanced at Kenny as the song fizzled out. "Man, that is such a good song. I can't wait to see her live; can you, babe?... Babe?"

Her words drifted past him like distant echoes; he could tell she was talking, but his mind was elsewhere, far removed from the car's interior...

"Hello?" Kenny picked up the phone, pulling himself from his Programming paper long enough to answer the incoming call. "Who's this?"

"Kenshin? Is that you?" Kenny suppressed a groan as he immediately recognized the woman on the other end of the call. "...So the phone number on your Facebook is current. Good."

"Heyyy, Ka-san..." Kenny squirmed in his seat, his voice strained as he continued, "Anything I can help you with today...?"

"I'm your mother, not a telemarketer. Don't be so formal," She chided. "I'm calling to ask about this 'StarJam' you posted about last week. It's this coming Saturday, yes?"

"*StellarFest* is on Saturday, yes," Kenny corrected her before he could stop himself. He scratched his nose and added a confused, "Why...?"

"Well, your father and I were talking, and it's been too long since we've seen you. We thought we'd clear our schedules and accompany you to the festival that day. Y'know, make it a family outing of sorts." Kenny recoiled at the suggestion, but before he could protest, she continued, "Maybe we can even meet this girlfriend of yours? Anyway, we'll see you on Saturday."

She ended the call, and Kenny threw back his head and sighed.

"Babe!" Milly's hand on his shoulder plucked him from the past and pulled him back to the present as she repeated, "Babe, are you okay? You seem...out of it."

"Huh?... Yeah, no, I'm fine," Kenny took a moment to reorient himself and realized they'd arrived at the festival. Milly's car sat amongst rows of parked cars in a large open field. Numerous tents, booths, and stages had been erected adjacent to this makeshift parking lot, and a massive billboard stood above it all, adorned with neon letters that spelled 'StellarFest 20XX'. His eyes swept over the landscape as he said, "So this is it, huh? Rad."

"Yeah, it's cool," Milly absently replied, her eyes fixed on Kenny. "Hey, are you sure you're alright? You seem kinda off today; something on your mind?"

"Nah. just a little tired," He lied, though Milly wasn't convinced.

"Y'know you can tell me anything, right?" She reached for his hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze. "Whatever's on your mind, no matter what you're going through. I'm here for you."

"I know," Kenny smiled, but it didn't quite reach his eyes. He opened his door and motioned towards the festival grounds, saying, "Ready to go?"

Milly swallowed a sigh but chose to drop the issue for the time being. She popped the trunk, killed the engine, and exited the car. She collected her camera bag and some stationary from the back, then shut the hatch and locked her vehicle. She followed Kenny as he headed for the nearest tent, and her lips creased into a slight frown.