Our Alternate Ending | | A Pokemon Adventure

Chapter 5- The Love Whisperer

"Anyways, can we forget about this for now? It makes me kind of uncomfortable." Elaina laced her fingers together and Aron held a similar frown.

"That's alright!" Ash said cheerfully. "We can talk about battling instead." He turned to Aron and Leon before they carried on their conversation. I looked at Elaina with a smile and we both laughed. Without a second thought, everyone resumed what they were doing and we were headed towards the Pokemon center again.

"So, how long have you and Ash known each other?" My new friend asked.

"Umm...we have been traveling together for about a year now but I met Ash long before he came to Kalos. We first met at Professor Oak's summer camp a long time ago..." I explained the story of how Ash saved me in the middle of the woods. The memory always made me smile. I noticed myself getting carried away with the story as I beamed contently. "...and that's how I met Ash."

The grin plastered across Elaina's face could not have gotten any bigger in that moment. It practically stretched ear to ear and was ever so slightly menacing.

"Sounds like the perfect beginning of a love story to me. And speaking of love, how long have you had a crush on Ash?" She teased me as if it was nothing. I jumped out of my skin at the question. A string of disbelieving sentences ran through my brain at top speed. How could she know? She must be joking. She can't know. But how can she possibly know?

"Excuse me?!" I yelped, my voice jumping an octave.

"You heard me." She hushed her voice then leaned closer to me. "How long have you had a crush on Ash?" I gulped. She knew. A girl I just met knew my biggest secret. Was I really that obvious?

"It is true that Ash is a person I admire but that doesn't mean-" I was cut off by an all knowing Elaina.

"Oh come on Serena! No need to deny it, I can see it as clear as day." After her statement I remembered something, Elaina said she was good at being aware of the people around her and their actions. She must have picked up on me. It made me upset that I was still that obvious. In my opinion, I was doing a pretty good job at hiding my feelings.

"What makes you think that?" I asked more shyly, knowing that she had figured me out.

"The way you shuffle closer to him when you're shy or feel threatened. Or the way you stiffen when I look at him for more than three seconds, even if it's just a fraction. And the blushing! Serena, you really need to work on keeping your blushing under control. In the hour I have known you, you have blushed twice and both times from something Ash said."

I bit my lip. She was right. I never even knew I did some of these things but now it seemed plainly obvious.

"You shouldn't worry though. The only reason I found out was because I was specially looking for it. No one would ever know otherwise. Unless they know you really well of course." She reassured me. I felt my shoulders relax. "Just everything about you screams 'I'm in love with Ash'" She commented just to tease me. I began laughing but stopped myself short.

"I'm not in love with Ash." I can't be, right? The word love sounded so serious. Like, the love of my life. I couldn't be in love with Ash. I just had a crush on him.

"That depends, how long have you liked him?"

"Ever since we started traveling together I guess."