Love Me Like You Do (Ash Ketchum x Reader x Calem)

- 22 -

How did I end up in this situation? I wondered as Calem's head laid on my shoulder. He was sleeping soundly on my shoulder and not a care in the world. Soft snores escaped his lips, his chest moving up and down. 

A sigh escapes my lips and I leaned my head against the wall of the cave. I look outside to notice the trees being blown harshly by the wind. The dark clouds loomed outside, pouring rain down below. A flash of lightning momentarily lit up the forest. 

I dug through my backpack in search of something familiar. Feeling the metal piece in my hand, I pulled it out and looked at it. The necklace that Ash gave me when we were nine swayed lightly. The other half of the Pokeball was missing, leaving it by itself. It was somewhere in the forest, lost and possibly gone. A heavy sigh emerged from my lips.

"Where did it all go wrong? What did I do to anger Ash...?" I sadly mumbled, staring at the necklace on my palm. 

::: Earlier That Day :::

"Lunch time!" I called out to everyone. Calem sat up from his lying position and stood up, walking over to me. Our Pokemon stopped running around and walked towards my direction. I finished placing the utensils on the blanket and sat down on my spot. 

It was a nice peaceful and sunny day. The forecast said it was going to be sunny all day. The wind lightly blew, the grass waving with the wind. It was the perfect weather for a picnic. Calem and I happily chatted about the upcoming Gym match. It was only a matter of time before we arrive at Anistar City and right now we were relaxing by having a picnic.

A bit of sauce spilled on my hand and as I went to grab a napkin, I realized I had forgotten to take them out of my backpack. I mentally scolded my actions.

"Hey, Calem. Do you mind getting the napkins from my backpack? I seemed to have forgotten them," I politely asked Calem as he placed his plate on the blanket.

"Will do," Calem stood up and walked over to my backpack that was leaning against a tree. He shortly came back and rather than sitting back down, he stood beside the blanket. He reached out behind him and took out a necklace. "Uh, I found this laying next to your backpack. It was on the grass."

My eyes extended as I immediately snatch the necklace from him. This action surprises him as he has a look of surprise. I hold the necklace close to my chest, feeling a sense of worry and relief. Calem sat back down and without saying anything, placed the napkins on the blanket. He then continued eating. 

After a moment of silence, Calem asks, "That necklace, is it important to you?"

"What? No, not at all," I deny, glancing over to the side. "It's just a normal necklace."

"Then why did you snatch it from my hand with such a panic?" he pressed.

I stayed silent. I grip the necklace and looked down at it. My eyes slightly squint as I continued looking at it. "...I got this necklace from Ash when I was nine years old. It was a simple gift, but I treasured it with all my heart. I got one half and he got the other. We promised each other we would never take it off. And we didn't...until now. One day, he took it off and never once wore it after. Knowing he no longer care, I took mine off. Yet, a small part in my head told me he was just keeping it safe that is when I saw it abandoned back at the Oasis. It's silly. Despite it being years since I got this necklace, it's still important to me. I can't let it go."

"If it's not important to him anymore, why should it be to you?" Calem suddenly said. I looked up at him in surprise as he continued, "He didn't care about it if he just left it somewhere, so why should it keep being important to you?" My eyes lowered to my lap. Our Pokemon were no longer talking but were all looking at us. I guess Calem must have felt guilty because he then said, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said something so inconsiderate. I'm sure that necklace is special to him."