Misty woke
up with a dizzy feeling and slowly rose from her bed, after a gaze at her alarm
clock convinced her it was now time.
And the
countdown started.
Just about
10 more hours to go…
***
Ash hit his
alarm clock as hard as he could and, with a grunt, turned around once more.
“Pika? Pi Pi
Kachuuu?”
“Oh shoot!”
Ash was up with a jerk, already trying to get into his jeans.
Why, of all
mornings, did he have to sleep through this one?
***
“Hey, Misty!” Hitomi ran toward her friend, wearing the same traditional blue gown
that all graduates had to wear that day.
Misty waved
back at her friend, half-smiling, her face showing even more nervousness and
apprehensions than her friend’s.
***
“Hey Ash,
hurry up! Get your ass out here!” Brock shouted up the stairs impatiently.
“Coming coming”, Ash replied as he jumped down the stairs, still
tugging on his jeans.
Brock
frowned as he saw the accident happen: Ash slipped on his trousers, skipped
three steps and with a thud, landed right in front of his older friend, closely
followed by Pikachu.
“Man, this
is gonna be a long day…” Brock groaned.
Ash just
grinned sheepishly.
***
Sitting
among her classmates, Misty sighed once again and gazed at her watch.
Rolling her
eyes, she looked up to the stage where one of her fellow graduates just
received his certificate. But soon, her gaze turned blank.
“Hey”,
Hitomi said, softly shoving her friend’s ribs with her elbow. “Just wait till
tonight, ok?”
Misty
smiled back sheepishly, yet she still found it very hard to pay attention.
***
“Man, this
was close”, Ash said as he exhaled profoundly.
Brock was
standing next to him, his hands at his knees, still exhaling like he had just
finished 20 minutes of jogging. Which was frighteningly close
to reality.
“Kachuuu…” Pikachu simply said approvingly.
***
Smiling
brightly, Misty took her certificate of graduation and shook the headmaster’s
hand. Standing right behind her was Hitomi, rubbing her knuckles nervously. As
Misty took a step forward to make space for her friend, she took a look at the
audience.
***
The ferry
was getting closer and closer to its final destination, and with each inch, Ash
was getting more and more nervous.
How am I supposed to survive this, he thought, sighing.
***
All the
graduates were chatting happily while they made their way to the great hall.
Misty was
just walking silently next to her friend, now even more nervous than before,
lost in her thoughts, unconsciously rubbing her knuckles.
She knew
that everybody was about to see their relatives or best friends in less than
one hour, and that everybody surely was nervous, but this was something Misty
had never felt before. This was so much more than just simple apprehension.
***
The ferry
finally landed in the port and people began to get off, eager to see their
loved ones again.
Even though Ash was surely more eager than any of the other passengers,
and maybe even because of that, his legs were about to refuse service to him.
He was
shaking like a little child that was suffering from a serious fever.
“Take it
easy, pal. You’re gonna make it, I’m sure”, Brock said as he reassuringly put
his hands on his young friend’s shoulders.
Ash simply
nodded and closed his eyes as he carefully set one foot onto the island, taking
one step toward what destiny had chosen for him.
***
Misty took
one last look at her reflection in the mirror and ran her slender fingers
through her hair, which she had let down for this occasion.
With a
sigh, she looked down on the royal blue gown she was still wearing and put her
hands on her hips.
Well,
this is not really what I wanted to wear when I finally see him again, she thought with a frown.
After a
last smile at her reflection in the mirror, she turned around to face Hitomi.
As the time when she was going to meet her relatives came closer, even her
friend had turned out to be less the cool and calm type, but more the totally
nervous one.
With her
lips shaking, she looked at Misty, trying to smile.
“I guess
here we go now, huh?” she said, motioning toward the door.
Misty
nodded and opened her mouth, but the only thing that came out of it was a
simple: “Yup.”
With a deep
sigh from each girl, they stepped through the door, making their way to the
entrance hall, their blue gowns flowing behind them.
The hall was
already flooded by hundreds of students. Not only the graduates were there to
welcome their relatives or friends, but they were accompanied by all the other
students who wanted to know what was going on that evening, as they were not
allowed to attend the graduation ball.
A few
minutes later, the loudspeaker announced the arrival of the guest and a sudden
silence fell over the crowd.
Yet it only
lasted until the first guests entered the room.
Misty tried
to see something, tried to make out Ash in the crowd, but she did not succeed.
Suddenly, she heard somebody cry: “Look, there’s a Pikachu! Oh, it’s so cute!”
Misty
grinned and looked in the direction the student was pointing. But before she
could really see Pikachu, she noticed a yellow blur dash toward her and bump into her arms.
Misty’s
grin seemed to explode as she petted the small mouse Pokémon that snuggled to
her chest.
“Pika pika
piiiiiiii!” Pikachu
exclaimed, tears glimmering in its small dark brown eyes.
“Ya,
Pikachu, I missed you, too!” Misty replied, hugging Pikachu even tighter.
“There’s
someone else who missed you…” a male voice sounded in her ears.
Before she
even looked up, she frowned, trying to figure out whose voice is was, as it sounded so familiar and yet so unknown.
Click.
Realization
struck her like a thunderbolt.
Ash, who else could it be?
Slightly
hesitant, she looked up to meet her friend’s gaze.
She gasped
as she first looked at him. He looked so much different from the way he had
looked years ago, yet it was still most obviously Ash. His black hair was still
standing off his head in spikes and his eyes were still the same heart melting
hazelnut brown eyes that were shining with enthusiasm and love.
Yet there
was something else shining in them, Misty could only define as maturity and
experience. And this was reflected in the rest of his figure as well: he had
grown a lot, being now about 6 feet tall. Even though one could see he
had a lot of practice, he was not that muscular, just a little more than
averageJ
“Ash…” was
the only thing she could force herself to mouth, before he brought her closer
to him in a tight embrace.
They stayed
in each other’s arms, Misty contentedly resting her head against his shoulder,
completely forgetting about the world around them, not even noticing the other
students rush by.
***
He was
completely lost in the embrace, never before had he felt so content.
Yet after a
few moments that seemed like an eternity, they broke the embrace and looked at
each other.
Ash was
still astonished by the way she looked. She surely had matured a lot, the child
of former days now living in the body of a young woman. Even though she wore a
big gown, he could make out the form of her body. Her eyes had stayed the same
aquatic greenish blue they had always been, yet they shone brighter than ever
before. But what had amazed him quite a lot was the change of her hair: it was
now going down past her shoulder blades, being shorter in the front. It fell
down her back in soft, slight waves, caressing the sides of her face.
She was
more than far away from scrawny now.
Even though
they had broken the embrace, he still held her hand in his, not wanting to let
her go any time as he had just gotten her back after about five years of
separation.
“Hi…”, was all that emerged his mouth, as he simply stared at
her, blushing furiously.
From
behind, Brock was grinning, shaking his head.
“I figured
it would be this way…” he stated, now drawing Misty’s attention.
Misty
hugged her older friend, finally coming back to her sense, just like Ash.
“Well, I
guess I should show you your room now, so you can get ready.” Misty said, her
gaze already locking on Ash again.
Totally
unaware of all the trouble around them, they made their way up the stairs, Ash
unconsciously holding onto his love’s hand.
***
Brock
looked into the mirror, adjusting his tie.
There is
no way a girl could resist me tonight, he told himself, putting on a devilish grin,
totally assured of himself.
There was
no way he was gonna let this night pass without getting a girl, or at least trying
to.
Taking one
last look at the clock on the wall of their room, Brock looked out for his
young friend, hoping he did not plan to be late tonight.
“Ash! Hey
Ash! You done? Hurry up, man!”
As response
to his question, the bathroom door slowly opened and the spiky headed youth
stepped out, walking so staggery one might think he
was walking on eggs.
Brock
grinned.
“You’re
still nervous? But may I remind you that you already saw her?!”
Ash sighed,
gazing at his friend, his look distant.
“But this
is something else”, he started with another profound sigh, considering the
words to go on, yet still speaking hesitantly. “Tonight is special… it really
is…”
Brock
frowned confusedly, until realization lit his face.
“You’re
gonna tell her…” he mouthed, kind of unbelievingly.
Ash half
smiled and slowly nodded his head.
“I’m not
sure if I can do it. When I was around her today, I felt like I couldn’t
control myself anymore. Sensations started to pour over me, and there were so
many things I wanted to say, and to do, but I just couldn’t. It was like some
sort of paralysis… even though a pleasant one” he added the last words with a
sweet smile.
Once more
these days Brock was totally surprised by his young friend. How come he had
known him for so long and never really noticed that part to him?
Yet then,
he realized all his friend needed now was some support
and encouragement. So he stepped over to him and gently put a hand on his
shoulder.
“Don’t
worry about it, Ash. You really love her, I know that, and I’m sure she loves
you, too. Alas, it does not matter how you tell her, just that you do, and,
believe me, when the moment is right, the words will just pour out of your
mouth, without you even noticing it.”
Ash smiled
weakly, though he actually was encouraged by Brock’s words.
Slowly, he
stepped towards the mirror and looked at himself, not used to seeing himself in
a tux. Carefully, he straightened his jacket and ran his fingers through his
hair.
“And, Ash?”
Ash turned
around, facing his friend.
“Ya?”
“Please
stop that, ok? You do look ok.”
Ash mouthed
a “thanks” without really saying it, took the flowers in one hand and made his
way to the door.
When he was
about to open it, he was once again stopped by the intervention of his friend.
“Hey Ash”,
Brock said grinning, giving him the thumbs up sign.
“Way to
go!”
***
Misty stood
in front of the full length mirror they had placed in her room to make the
whole dress thing some easier.
Impatient
and discontent, she tugged on her dress, sighing with every single movement.
Hitomi,
obviously ready to go, watched her friend with amusement.
“Hey Misty,
stop it, you look great!” she tried to calm Misty, but still it was just the
truth.
Misty threw
her hands up in the air all desperate like and started pacing the room, her
high heels producing clicking sounds on the floor.
“Oh Hitomi,
I’m just so nervous. What if I screw it up? If I don’t know
how to tell him? What if he does not feel the same way?”
“Misty”,
Hitomi answered, shaking her head. “You know I could slap you for this, don’t
you? You know as well as I do that Ash loves you. I could see that today, and I
bet you did the same. So don’t even dare to think about irrational stuff like
that”, she paused for a second, only to draw in some breath and continue
tutoring her friend.
“And you
are not going to screw it up. You really do love him, he loves you, so I don’t see the problem. When the time is right, you will
say it, and you won’t think about it at that moment, so there is no use to plan
anything. Just enjoy the night and see what happens, ok?”
Misty
sighed, having stopped pacing around the room, smiling gratefully at her
friend.
“Thanks, I
think that’s what I needed”, and with a smirk she added. “Ok, I guess we’re
ready to go now, so let’s try not to be late!”
***
Ash stood at
the top of the broad stairs descending to the entrance hall and ballroom where
he and Misty had agreed to meet.
Absent-mindedly,
he was fidgeting the bouquet of lovely aquamarine flowers he had brought for
Misty, Brock watching him from the back.
No matter
what Brock had told Ash, he was still most nervous. And the fact that his date
– namely Misty – was slightly late, did not really improve his state.
“Ash,
please stop it! You’re driving me nuts!” Brock finally let out desperately,
throwing his hands out in front of him. “I’m sure she’s just…”
He never
got to finish his sentence, as when he directed another desperate gaze at the
direction from where he expected their dates, he finally spotted them, and his
mind went blank.
Never
leaving the girls with his gaze, he poked his friend softly in the ribs.
Ash’s
reaction was similar to Brock’s: as he spotted Misty, he forgot about
everything around them. All he could see was her and her marvelous beauty.
Slowly,
gracefully, so unlike the young Misty he had once known, the young woman walked
toward him, their gazes locked onto each other.
As she
walked toward him, Ash slowly stood up to full height, straightening his tux,
giving her a soft smile.
Still he
could not believe how beautiful she was: her long, shiny hair was let down in
its soft, natural waves, woven into it were several strands of white and
aquamarine silk, that fell down onto her bare back. Her dress was tight around
her hips and breast, the front collar falling in soft waves reminding of her hair.
It floated down, just long enough to allow her to walk in high heels without
stepping onto the seem. The color of the dress matched
totally with the color of her eyes: the soft, floating silk was deep aquamarine
blue, harmonic to her reddish hair.
As Misty
looked down onto the flowers and smiled, Ash noticed he had made the right
choice: the flowers were of aquamarine color as well.
Ash looked
up at the beauty in front of him and grinned sheepishly.
“So…” Misty
finally started, trying to move on, still staring into his eyes.
“Oh”, Ash
said, as he watched Brock and Hitomi walking down the stairs, their arms
linked.
He gave her
another sweet smile and held out his arm for her to link in.
Misty
gladly accepted the offer and the reunited couple slowly went down the stairs,
arm in arm.
***
The
ballroom, formerly known as the assembly hall of the university, had undergone
quite a change: it was generously decorated with flowers of all types, and long
pastel colored draperies came down the high walls. Groups of tables had been
planted in the room, leaving the middle of the hall unfurnished to provide
space for the dances.
Slowly but
steadily, couples were strolling in, in search for their table, yet always
pausing for a small chat with their acquaintances.
After Brock
and Hitomi had arrived, quietly talking to each other, Ash and Misty walked in.
However
they did not speak a word to each other. All they did was look around. As a
matter of fact, their gazes met several times, to stay locked for a couple of
seconds, just to be separated with a serious blush on both faces.
Hitomi, who
had finally found their table, watched the scenery, smirking. The two of them
surely did make a great couple, no doubt. Even though she did
not need to see them together to know that. She had already had that
feeling when Misty had told her about Ash and what she had experienced with
him, though she’d had to pry the details out of her, and was not sure if she
knew everything yet.
Well, no
matter what, by the end of the night, the two would finally officially be a
couple, that was for sure.
***
“Oh, look,
there they are!” Misty said and pointed over to Brock and
Hitomi, who had stopped chatting to wave at them, both grinning broadly.
The couple
slowly walked over to their friends and took place, sitting next to each other.
After all
the other graduates had arrived, the official part of the evening started,
beginning with a speech of the school’s headmaster, who praised that years’ students for their achievements. The occasional
jokes here and there softened the atmosphere and made everybody forget about
the time and what they were actually waiting for.
Yet
finally, the speeches ended and dinner was brought in on large trays of silver.
Like all
the other students, Brock and Hitomi were chatting quietly. It
kind of amazed Misty how well the two were getting along. She had not
expected that her friend would be able to endure her older friend, even though
he had surely changed in the other years. He was now less drooling and the
sensitive and wise part of him took control now most of the time.
Still the
conversation Ash and Misty were leading was quiet, mainly treating with their
past adventures, seldom resulting in a little teasing which soon ended with
laughter and a short silence of both blushing.
After about
an hour of dining, everybody had finished and the band started to play a
variety of songs, some fast rhythms, some slow ballads.
As one of
the slower ballads started, Ash took a chance and got up from his seat.
“Would you
care to dance?” he asked, trying to conceal the quiver in his voice.
Misty
smiled up at him and gladly accepted.
Linking
arms, the two walked onto the dancing space and started dancing.
Slowly,
they gave in to the soft tune and simply held each other, Misty resting her
head on his shoulder, Ash embedding his chin in her soft reddish hair, inhaling
its sweet scent.
Time passed
by, songs ended, new ones began, couples left the dance floor, others entered,
yet Ash and Misty simple held onto each other.
This is
perfect, almost perfect, Ash thought, But something is
missing. The scenery… Probably…
Ash woke
himself from his daydream and took a step backward, separating himself from
Misty.
Yet he
regretted it in the same instance as he recognized Misty’s irritated and surprised
expression. Questioningly, she looked at him, demanding an answer why he had
broken the contact that had felt so perfect for both of them.
Ash just
smiled down at her, softly shaking his head.
“No, Misty,
don’t look at me like that. There’s nothing to worry about.”
He took a
slight pause to consider his next words.
“Misty,
would you like to take a walk with me? Just outside on the beach, I mean. It’s
not that busy there, and tonight is quite beautiful.”
He could
hardly believe he had said those words. Some years ago he would have thought
them to be crappy romantic, and would never have dare
to use them himself.
Yet they
had just the effect he wanted them to have.
Misty
smiled at him, relieved, and nodded.
After telling Hitomi and Brock that they were going to take a short
walk, the made their way outside and to the beach.
***
The late
summer’s night was lukewarm and brightly illuminated by a full moon that was
accompanied by billions of glimmering stars, witnesses of thousands of love
stories in thousands of decades.
The water
was crashing onto the shore in small waves, creating a relaxing background
sound.
The young
couple just stood there for several minutes, simply savoring the beauty of the
night of their final reunion.
Until Ash’s
gaze left the sky and fell upon another heavenly thing within his reach: his
Misty.
All he had
to do now was find the right words, as this was absolutely the most perfect
time for his confession.
Seemingly,
Misty had had a similar idea, because in the instance he started to talk to
her, she turned around to him and spoke as well.
Surprise
was followed by amusement and the two teenagers softly laughed at this
coincidence.
“Ladies
first”, Ash tried, but Misty only shook her head and smirked back at him.
“Nope, you
first, you were the one that started.”
Ash let out
a deep sigh. She had always been a little thickhead, and anyways, it was just
going the way he wanted it to.
Slowly,
carefully, he took her small, fragile hands in his and looked deep into her
eyes.
This was
it, this was the final moment.
“Misty”, he
started, quivering inside, yet surprised at how sturdy he sounded.
“I… I have
actually thought about this moment so many times before, have thought about the
words to say, yet now, when it is about time to say what I want, I just don’t
know how to start…”
Misty
smiled at him heartily.
“That’s
okay. Just take your time.”
Ash in- and
exhaled once more and looked down to plug up the courage he desperately needed
now.
“Misty,
from the very first day that I met you, when you fished me out of that river
and commanded me to take Pikachu to a doctor – that was when I borrowed your
bike”,
Misty
commented this sentence with a smirk, yet stayed calm to not interrupt him,
“I felt
that certain liking for you. You were always so sensible,
and clever for your age. You gave me lots of good pieces of advice, without
which I surely would never have become what I now am. And as our journey went
on, my feelings for you became even stronger. You always supported me. You
helped me through the hardest times in my life. And you never actually expected
anything in return. You were always there, and I took that for granted. I took
you for granted. Yet I was taught the opposite when you got the offer to study here and you actually took. I still regret the hard
time I gave you back then. I’ve been really stupid and insensitive. It was not
then for our years of separation that I noticed how much I missed you, and
needed you. My feelings for you grew stronger every day, and I felt nearly torn
apart not having you around. I would have done everything to be with you then.
I missed you, your sweet smiles, your cheering laughter that always made me
laugh in return, your encouraging words when I needed them most, you telling me
what was right when I was on the wrong way, I even
missed your teasing. I just plainly missed all about you,
I missed you and could not do anything about it.
That was
when I finally realized that I love you. That I loved you when we first met and
that I still love you now, that we meet again after
five years of separation. I love you more than even my own life. And now that I
have you back, there is no way I’m ever gonna let you go again.”
At the last
part, Ash had closed his eyes, half fearing her reaction.
Misty
plainly stared at him, her eyes filled with tears of joy.
This was by
far the best moment in her entire life.
So he did
feel the same way she did. And it had taken them five years of separation to
realize it.
“Oh Ash”,
she said, touching his cheek with her delicate fingertips.
Ash slowly
opened his eyes, still fearing her reaction. Yet as he saw the tears rushing
down her cheek to meet the smile on her lips, tears broke lose from his own
eyes, flooding his whole face.
Yet another
of those romantic crappy things, but he did not care about that anymore. He
would never more.
“I love
you, too, Ash. I love you from the very beginning. Why did it just take us that
long to realize?”
Ash
shrugged his shoulders, bringing her closer to him.
“Maybe we
just needed that separation to realize it. Maybe we never would have when we’d
stayed together.”
“I don’t
even wanna think about that. And I don’t have to. Everything has worked out
just perfect.”
She ended
with a smile and brought her lips up to his.
Their tears
created one single stream of joy as the two teenagers finally united and became
one being.
Never
before had so many sensations poured upon the two of them, so overwhelming, yet
no one dared to break this seal of love. Of the love they had been sharing for
years now, secretly hidden deep within each others heart, and now exposed to be
the very meaning of their lives. Their lives with each other,
never to be separated.
And so they
stayed locked to each other under the brightly shining moonlight.
After all,
they had always been more than just childhood friends.
The End (?)
Finished: