Paul and Dawn: First Light

Chapter 46: Dozing

Hm? I thought to myself. I'd woken up. Why, I didn't know. I was so comfortable. My left side was very warm and pressed against something soft. I sighed contently. What I was resting on moved. 

Confused, I opened my eyes. The room was dark. I must have fallen asleep hours ago. 

And then my eyes rested on what I'd been using at a pillow- Dawn. My head had been resting on hers, my body fitting comfortable into her side. Even now, I could feel her breathing, her body's movement to the air leaving and entering her lungs. 

We'd both fallen asleep watching that awful movie. Still, how could I hate it if it resulted in this? 

But really- should I wake her up? I was comfortable. Her splint was in a good position that wasn't hurting her. She seemed happy. A smile rested peacefully on her face. 

For maybe the first time I freely admitted that she was beautiful. Her skin was flawless, her hair was dark and shiny, her smile was perfect. So sincere and innocent. Her neck was slender and graceful, as was the rest of her body. I'd never really thought of beauty as something that meant anything- brute power was everything to me. But now, as I stared at her, I realized that I finally appreciated it and wondered how I'd ever taken Dawn for granted. 

I promised myself right then, as I stared at her slumbering form, that I wouldn't take her for granted anymore. And with that, I leaned forward and gently kissed her forehead, my lips brushing her smooth skin. 

She sighed pleasantly and sunk into a deeper sleep. I smiled and rested my head atop hers, sinking back into dreams. 

The next morning I woke up first. I'd dreamed of Dawn again. This time we had been sitting by a fire in the woods at night, talking. She'd been so close... and then it'd ended. 

Frustrated, I sat very still, eyes open in the morning darkness, Dawn's body pressing against mine and moving as she breathed. As the sun rose slowly from the horizon, I began to accept the fact that Dawn meant more to me than I'd ever let on and began devising ways of telling her how I felt. The phrase "What do you have to lose?" entered my plans and I thought glumly, Everything. This girl had somehow become my whole world and to lose one's whole world seemed like something that would kill a man. 

"Mmm." Dawn nudged me as she twisted her body into a more comfortable position. Her head slid onto my chest. I moved my arm around her back, stunned by her using me as a pillow, curled up against me. It felt nice having her body against mine.  

About ten minutes later I came to the conclusion that she needed to be woken up eventually and I wasn't going to be happy about it no matter what time it was, so now was as good a time as any. 

"Dawn?" I whispered.  

She cuddled her head against my chest. Arceus, she was killing me. 

"Dawn," I murmured into her ear. 

"Five more minutes. I was having a nice dream." She sighed happily. 

A dream? "About what?" 

"You." 

"Me?" 

"Mhmm." She sounded half asleep as if she wouldn't remember this later. "We were at the beach. You made a sandcastle with me. Piplup made one too."  

I chuckled quietly. "What else?" 

It fascinated me- this dream of us. I admired her vision, this world that she'd made and was happy to share with me. 

"We watched the sunset together. It was nice." She smiled. Her eyes hadn't opened once and I felt her drift back to sleep. 

Her dream sounded so wonderful. And she wanted it to happen. She wanted to spend time with me, to enjoy life with me. It hadn't been about Ash or Kenny. It'd been about me. Well, and Piplup, but I didn't count him. 

Maybe that's what I'll do, I thought as Dawn's head pressed against my heart. I'll take her to the beach. Mauville City was the closest waterfront city. Maybe that would suffice.

Hello Pokemon Trainers and Coordinators :)

I hope you liked the chapter. I find the idea of Piplup, Dawn, and Paul building sand castles together absolutely adorable. Especially Paul's "What's the purpose of this activity if the sand is just going to get knocked over, probably by Piplup?" expression. :P

Anyway, let's see.. that will be my Pokemon Question of the Day! Which activity would you be participating in right now in the Pokemon world? And I mean besides battling and training and all that normal Trainer stuff. Would there be a certain city you'd be in, or maybe checking out the shops at Slateport in Hoenn or a department store in Celadon? Competing in a surfing contest with Pokemon? A Ryhorn race? What just sounds like a lot of fun in the Pokemon world that you just don't get to do here, or would just be so much more awesome with Pokemon? 

Thanks for reading and make sure you comment, vote, and/or follow if you aren't already! Have a great day :)

-Flips