SH - Becoming A Pokemon Master!

S2 ~ CH-23 - A Clumsy Encounter!

"Hmm." Serena nodded. "Can you tell me about Eterna City? I've never been there." She asked, sounding interested of learning about the place.

"Let's see..." Ash said. "There's of course the gym owned by Gardenia. She's a grass type gym leader-"

"I figured as much." Serena snickered, interrupting Ash. "Someone who's named after a garden must love grass types."

Ash let out a laugh. "I've never thought about thar but you're right!" He admitted. "Anyway, apart from the gym, there's a museum that holds a great amount of history of the region."

"Hmm." Serena listened to him, speaking with a hint of excitement in his voice as he recalled his memories.

"Oh and there are some really cool statues of Dialga and Palkia!" He added, his eyes lighting up with excitement. "Sinnoh is definetly one of the best regions I've been to." He sat back in his seat.

"Which one is the best?" Serena asked curiously, raising her eyebrow as she did so.

"Hmmm..." Ash thought for a second. "I'd say Kalos." He answered.

"Why?" Serena raised the question, leaning forward slightly as she was intrigued to hear his answer.

"Because I reconnected with you there after a long time." He smirked in a flirtatious way. "Twice actually!" He added.

Serena giggled at his answer before leaning her head against his shoulder in affection. He was right. They had reconnected with each other twice now in Kalos.

"You know what I like most about Kalos?" Serena asked Ash, who hummed in reply as he was interested to hear her answer.

"That we finally found love." She spoke up with a warm, half-hearted smile.

"Me too!" Ash answered, bringing his face closer to hers. He nuzzled his nose against hers, which earned him a playful laugh from Serena. "I also think that in Kalos, I was the best version of myself." He admitted.

"What do you mean?" Serena asked, pulling her face back a bit while forming a frown.

"I mean that I think I've battled the best I have ever done in Kalos." He said. "And I think you played a key part in that." He looked at her with a serious expression.

"Really?" Serena couldn't believe what she was hearing.

Ash nodded. "Yeah. During our journey, I didn't know it at the time really but the support you showed me was different than Clemont and Bonnie gave. Ofcourse, they had also affected me but yours was so much more... You helped me up when I needed it the most. Remember when I lost my battle against Wulfric?"

"All to well." Serena let out a sigh while looking down. "Your Ash-Greninja form didn't work out well and things went from bad to worse."

"I was terrible to you back then." Ash said. "I should've never taken it out on you." He spoke wit regret.

"Hey..." Serena put her hand on his shoulder. "It's okay. It all turned out right in the end."

Ash nodded. "Thanks to you." He formed a smile on his face. "You do know how much I appreciate it right?"

Serena formed a mischievous grin on her lips. "I'd like to see some more of that." She answered.

Ash smirked and leaned a bit closer. He gently kissed her on the lips for a good amount of seconds before retreating back in his seat. "How about that?" He asked.

"Better." Serena sounded satisfied with her boyfriend.

(---)

Some hours later after they had touched down in Jubilife City, they were on the road again. They were just on their way but Ash made sure to show Serena as much of Sinnoh as he could.