(Ash Oliver POV)
I should've realized I was jinxing myself the moment I opened my mouth.
Ryan and I were walking down Maple Street, kicking a rock back and forth like we were eight again instead of actual high schoolers. We'd been arguing about Power Rangers for at least ten minutes — nothing new — but this particular argument had claws.
"Bro, I'm telling you," I said, hands slicing the air, "Dino Fury Red is gone. Dead. That's it. No mystic revival, no time travel, no surprise new form. He's not coming back."
Ryan gave me that look. The "Ash, you idiot, you've activated my trap card" look.
"You really wanna say that with your chest?" he asked.
"I mean it." I shrugged. "Some characters stay dead. Even in Power Rangers."
Ryan smirked. "He came back, dude."
"No, he didn't."
"Yes. He. Did." He dragged out each word like a taunt. "He was revealed as a Morphin Master. They literally brought him back."
I scoffed. "Fake news."
Ryan laughed. "Bet on it?"
"Yeah," I said immediately — without thinking. "Bet."
"What are the stakes?" he asked, even though we both knew he already had something in mind.
Then he pointed at my backpack.
My stomach dropped.
"No. Don't even—"
"The custom Super Megaforce morpher," he said, grinning. "Gold, silver, little bit of red. The one you spent six months building. Loser gives it to the winner."
I clutched the strap of my bag like it was a lifeline. "Ryan, come on—"
"You scared?"
Two words. My kryptonite.
And because my brain hates me, I said:
"I'm not scared. Fine. Deal."
We shook on it.
Five minutes later, Ryan's phone buzzed. He checked it, blinked, then barked out a laugh so loud it echoed down the street.
"ASH. He DID come back. It's confirmed. He's a Morphin Master now. YOU LOST."
I swear my soul actually evaporated.
And that's how I ended up walking toward Ryan's house with my most prized possession in my backpack, trying to think of excuses.
Maybe I can say I left it at home.
Maybe I can claim it broke.
Maybe I can fall into a sewer and run away to Mexico—
A truck horn burst through the air like a scream.
I turned just enough to see the bumper.
White flash.
Silence.