okay so I was trying to think of what I imagine Ash looking like older and I think if I had to pick another anime character to compare him to it'd be guren ichinose from seraph of the end, but with Ash's eye colour and a bit more of his character in the face,
but really handsome like him basically lmao
song: you get me so high- the neighbourhood
"You two are so cute," Chloe says for the third time, making a strange squealing noise. We're in Spikemuth, but we're not staying for long. The plan is to travel Route 9 to Hammerlocke and stay in a hotel there for the night.
Chloe and Dawn were standing at the end of the truck when my eyes fluttered open this morning. They were watching us- Dawn in glee and Chloe in awe, because we were still in the same position we fell asleep in. Luckily, I woke up first, and had time to move away before he noticed I'd slept with my head on his. They hadn't said anything, my glare likely stopping them, but both of them have been glancing my way all day, looking like they're trying their damnedest to hold back giggles, much to my annoyance.
Now that Chloe and I have split up from them to buy supplies while they find food, she's relentless, constantly chirping about it. Apparently, Dawn had kept my secret, and she had no idea about my feelings for him. I'd just assumed she'd know.
Now that we're alone, I finally have a chance to ask her about Tokio. "Do you believe him when he says he never loved Tokio?" I ask casually, scanning the aisle of the run-down store we're in. Dawn's idea of 'supplies' was mostly candy and chocolate, and so I head for that aisle.
"Hmm," Chloe hums behind me, thinking. "Yeah. I kind of always got that impression anyway."
I pick up a bunch of random things I think that Dawn will like. "It's weird, right? That I have feelings for him?"
She tilts her head. "Weird how?"
She follows me as I carry everything to the counter to pay. "I mean, it's been eight years, and we've only just met again."
"I don't think it's weird," she says. The lady behind the counter passes a bag back over to me, and I thank her, starting to walk out. Chloe is frowning up at me. "I think... I think you may have had these feelings for longer than you've known."
I pause outside the shop. The streets are almost entirely empty, the overhead lights flickering incessantly. Chloe pauses too, and I bite my cheek, wondering how much I can tell her.
"I'm scared," I admit, nails digging slightly into my palms. "I think I like him a lot."
Chloe's lips twitch up at the corners. "I don't think you have anything to worry about."
But I do. There's only a few more nights of this trip, and then we'll all go our separate ways again. I'll go back to Unova and carry on studying. Goh will be in Kanto mostly, and wherever else Project Mew or his other projects take him. I don't even have his phone number yet. We'll lose contact again. We'll never go back to how we were. A horrible realisation is settling in, that I either have to make a move before the end of the trip, or potentially lose him forever. Because there's no way we can build ourselves back up when we're literally oceans apart. We won't have reasons to call each other or visit each other all the time, even if we're both smiling and calling each other 'friends' by the end of the trip. We'll fade back into strangers.
"You two have been speaking again for less than a week and you're already cuddling each other to sleep," she jokes, laughing. "You just can't stay away from each other."
"We weren't cuddling," I cut back. "And it was all me, anyway."
"He got in there with you, didn't he?" She raises an eyebrow.
I don't argue, because I can see Dawn and Goh heading in our direction from down the street, holding bags of what I assume is food. I make eye contact with Goh, and that strange blooming feeling erupts in my chest again, like a flower opening up and spreading its roots further into my soul. He has no right being that attractive.
"Hmm," Chloe hums beside me again, quietly. "You're blushing."
"Shut up," I hiss down at her, irked when she laughs.
Dawn and Goh bought an assortment of things from a bakery they found. I was surprised to hear Spikemuth even has a bakery, but they were pretty good. When we finish eating, I say I'm going to visit Piers, and ask for a battle. That earns a groan from Chloe, but I remind her that battling is pretty much my life, and I haven't had a chance to in over a week.
Despite years and years of battling in front of a crowd, and living in the limelight for just as long, I'm nervous about Goh watching me battle. I almost feel like I need to impress him. Piers is indeed at his gym, and seems pretty thrilled when I ask for a battle. The first half is shakier than any battle I've had in a long while. His Toxtricity manages to knock out Gengar, but Lucario wipes it out easily, and takes out Skuntank almost as easily. Then it's Obstagoon, and Lucario is tired, and slower, but manages to keep up for much longer than I expect before being knocked out too.
The battle is pretty intense, but nothing too special. It's hard to top some of the battles I've had over the years, like my rematch with Alain, or the time I participated in a double battle with Diantha against Leon and Cynthia. It still doesn't feel real when I remember I'm up there in the ranks with them. Winning a match against anyone so strong still gives me an exhilarating high- one that I'll probably chase my entire life.
When Pikachu knocks out Obstagoon, Malamar and Scrafty all by himself, it still feels good, but not as good as it used to.
We talk a little afterwards, but it's mostly me dodging questions he asks me about his sister and if she's behaving. I can't answer him honestly, but I also don't want to lie, so I artfully sidestep all of his quizzing. When I turn back to the others, Goh's eyebrows are raised, and he seems... impressed.
"That was incredible," he says candidly. "I knew you'd be good, but I didn't expect you to be that good."
I hadn't expected those words from him, and they give me that exhilarating feeling that the battle didn't; a rush of warm emotions making my adrenaline spike. I rub the back of my neck sheepishly, smiling. "It was nothing."
"We should battle sometime," he suggests. "Though I'm pretty sure you'll just stomp me."
We should battle sometime.
It's an invitation to meet sometime after the road trip, unless he means while we're on it, which I doubt. It's a reason to meet again. It also means he really does consider us friends again. I smile, hiding the way my heart is pounding in my chest, and say "sure."
"We should head off to Hammerlocke," Dawn suggests, prodding me gently. "Or we won't make it there before dark."
I nod, and turn back to Piers to say goodbye before heading out. We have to walk the entire length of Spikemuth to get back to the truck, and when we get there, I realise I also need gas. Dawn's stressing, saying we're never going to get to Hammerlocke before dark, but I gently remind her that cars have headlights, so we're not going to be stuck. She just rolls her eyes at me and crosses her arms, going in a huff. I know her well enough to figure out that she has something secret planned at a certain time, and that's why she wants us to get there quickly.
Once the tank is filled I take off. The roads are mostly empty and the drive is peaceful since Dawn somehow manages to nap for a whole hour despite her stress. Pikachu actually lies in Goh's lap and falls asleep as Goh scratches him gently behind the ears. It's hard to tear my eyes away from them, and the warmth that it spreads in my chest.
We're approaching the last hour of the journey. The sun is starting to set, but we'll still make it there before it gets dark, I think to myself, because the rest of the drive is on the highway, which I'm just about to merge onto, when the rest of the road comes into vision, and I see the traffic at a standstill, piled up for as far as my eye can see.
"Oh," I say out loud, already starting to slow down. Goh's eyes open in the passenger seat, and I realise he must have been sleeping, and I probably just woke him up.
"What is it?" Chloe asks, leaning between the seats for a better look, waking Dawn up in the process. I don't have to answer, because she sees the traffic and sighs. As I reach the end of the slip road, I come to a stop beside another truck, a middle aged man sitting at the steering wheel.
I park the car and roll down the window. He sees me and does the same, and I call out "what's going on?"
"Bad accident somewhere on the road, I think. Been here half an hour now. You're probably better off turning around."
I sigh, because Dawn's starting to fidget in the back, asking a series of questions too quickly for me to actually register any of them. "Thanks," I call back, rolling the window back up, considering our options. I know that if I turn around I can find another way to Hammerlocke, but that 'll add at least two hours onto our journey, and I'm not entirely sure which roads I'll need to take. We're probably better off waiting here for the traffic to start moving.
"It'll be longer if we turn around I think," I say to no one in particular. "Guess we're stuck here for a while."
"We should just go back to Spikemuth," Chloe suggests. "We can stay there tonight instead?"
"No." Dawn's shaking her head. "Anything but that."
Spikemuth's not so bad. Sure, it's kind of run-down, but it has its charm. Or maybe that's just me trying to see good where there isn't any again. "She has a point," I sigh. "If it's a bad accident, the road could be closed for a while, and look at the queue of traffic. It'll take forever for it to get moving again."
"There's no way we'll find a place to stay in Spikemuth," she argues stubbornly.
"Then we camp out again," I counter. Going back to Spikemuth isn't really something I want to do either, considering I just drove an hour to get here, but the sun is going down, and the exhaustion from last night is starting to hit me. Besides, grey clouds are starting to gather on the horizon. Knowing Galar, they'll probably bring torrential downpours. If we don't make it somewhere, we'll end up having to sleep in the truck.
"We can head to Hammerlocke first thing in the morning," I carry on, already putting the truck back into gear.
Dawn looks miserable, and I realise whatever she has planned has been ruined either way, so of course she's going to be upset. She stares down into her lap, and I realise with horror that she's crying, the tears streaming down her cheeks.
"Oh," I say, my heart clenching painfully, "please don't cry, Dawn."
"It's just-" She sniffs, wiping her eyes. "That I wanted us to make it in time for a contest there tonight."
I blink, watching her in the rearview mirror. "You wanted to compete?" I ask.
"I signed us all up," she admits sheepishly.
"When is it?" I ask, glancing at the clock on the dashboard's screen. It's 7pm.
"Nine," she answers solemnly. "But we'd have to be there for half eight."
There's no chance we're making it regardless, then. I frown at her in the mirror. "We can compete in another one," I say, a lame attempt at making her feel better. "I'm sure there's another one somewhere this week, right?"
"Probably not," she mutters, defeated. "Ah, well. Never mind. Let's just go back to Spikemuth."
I feel guilty, like there should be some way for me to get us there, even though it's out of my control. I tell her we'll wait a little longer, and we sit there for another twenty minutes, mostly in silence, watching the line of traffic, but it still doesn't move. Cars are driving onto the grass on the side of the highway to turn around and drive back the way they came.
Eventually, I turn around too, and head back up despite travelling the wrong way, back onto the quieter road back to Spikemuth. The grey clouds are looming right over us now, and soon after they open up. I have the wipers on full-tilt, the rain pelting the truck hard. I steal glances at Goh, but he's just staring out his own window, chin resting in his palm. Everyone seems downcast, and the weather isn't helping. I pass Dawn the aux to cheer her up, and she puts on synthwave music that I actually kind of like. It makes me feel nostalgic, and matches the weather perfectly as I race through the rain.
When we're on the last stretch of road before Spikemuth, Dawn's phone pings in her pocket. She pulls it out and holds it out, and I watch in the mirror as a big grin stretches across her face. "Half the contestants didn't make it because of the traffic, so they're delaying it until tomorrow."
"Nice!" Chloe shouts, fist in the air. I'm kind of glad, too. Contests are fun, and even more fun when people you know are competing against you.
"I honestly think they delayed it because you couldn't make it," Dawn says, and I realise she's talking to me.
"What?"
"Well, you're definitely gonna be the most famous contestant. They wouldn't want to miss out on you competing."
I choose not to reply to that, instead driving into Spikemuth. At least the rain can't reach us here. Dawn grimaces, crossing her arms and shivering. "I hate this place."
"It's not so bad," I reason. "It used to be a lot worse. There were hardly any buildings with windows and everything was in bits."
There's only one hotel that I know of, so I park beside the pavement right outside. Stepping out, I stretch, stiff from the driving and tired. We grab our cases and drag them inside the small hotel. The lobby is barely bigger than my bedroom back in Pallet, and it's absolutely crammed full of people. I have no idea why, because every time I've ever been to Spikemuth, including earlier today, it's been dead.
We wait in a queue to get to the desk, and the lady looks around the four of us, her smile pained. She looks like she might be a former member of Team Yell, her fuschia hair just starting to grow out.
"Hi," Dawn chirps. "Could we book one double and two single rooms?"
She looks between us again, likely trying to figure out who's a couple. With Dawn and I standing at the front, she probably thinks it's us, and I take a subconscious step away from her.
"I'm so sorry, we've been so busy with people stuck trying to travel to Hammerlocke, and with us being one of the only hotels in town, we only have two double rooms left."
I close my eyes and pinch the bridge of my nose. It's not her fault, of course, but obviously something like this would happen. If we'd just turned around earlier, like I suggested, we might have gotten the rooms.
Dawn looks up at me, frowning. "Alright. I'll share with you, then."
I shake my head. "I'm not sharing a bed with you."
"Why not?" She asks, genuinely offended, hands on her hips.
"You're, well, you," I say, gesturing to her, not understanding why she doesn't find the idea weird, too. I suppose it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world, but I know for a fact she'll complain all night about how much space I take up, or how warm I am, or any number of other dumb things.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Dawn hisses. "It's me compromising here, not you-"
"Guys," Goh says sheepishly, nodding his head at the hotel clerk, who's watching us argue, her eyebrows raised. Well, she knows Dawn and I aren't together now. I roll my eyes at Dawn, needing to have the last word, even if it's a silent one. She scrunches her nose up and sticks her tongue out, just as childish as me.
"Okay, well it's that, or we sleep in the truck, or camp again," Chloe reasons with us. I know she won't mind if Dawn and I share a room, because there's clearly nothing between us, at all. I would agree, but Dawn is giving me a triumphant smirk, thinking she's winning the argument, and I'm stubborn, so I stare her down, arms crossed over my chest.
"It's fine," Goh says, and looks at me, making me break my stare with Dawn to look back at him. "I'll share with Ash."
Oh. Well, now I wish I'd said yes to Dawn.
"Alright," Chloe sings. "Well, we're sorted then. We'll take the two rooms, please."
I open my mouth, wanting to argue, but Chloe's taken over, leaning over the desk to block me from speaking to the clerk. I clamp it shut again, surrendering to my fate. Another night of sleeping beside Goh. This is happening far too often. I want to be pleased that he's comfortable enough with me already that he'd offer to share a room with me, but all I feel is irritation, because being close to him makes me feel things I don't want to.
"They're on different floors," Chloe says, turning back to us, holding out the key card for me. "Yours is on the first floor."
I glance left at the clock on the wall. Assuming it's right, it's only nine, but there's really nothing to do to pass time in Spikemuth, so I can't even suggest we go out. Dawn and Chloe are already dragging their things towards the elevator, saying something I don't catch because I'm caught up in my own thoughts.
"Ash?" Goh says beside me, jolting me out of my trance. I shake my head a little.
"Sorry," I sigh. "Let's go."
I ignore his concerned frown and move towards the doors, following the signs for our room, 103. It's nothing like the one we stayed in in Wyndon. It's pretty cramped- just the bed and two tables on one wall and a vanity on the other, a small TV mounted on the wall over it, and then the attached bathroom, which doesn't even have a shower, just a bath.
"Well," I say, stepping in. "At least it's clean, I guess."
"I'm sorry," Goh says behind me. I turn, and realise he hasn't come in. He's standing in the hallway, like he can't cross the line. "I didn't check if you were okay with us sharing. I don't want you to think..."
I blink, hoping he can't tell my heart just somersaulted around my body. "Think what?"
He looks flustered, his eyes darting around like he doesn't know where to put them. "Well, you know, because I'm... I didn't want you to think I was being weird."
I realise what he means, and my face twists. "I didn't even think about that," I say. I never considered he was suggesting anything by it. "Are you gonna come in or what?"
He sighs, visibly relieved, and finally comes in. I cross over to the window and pull my hoodie over my head. My shirt rides up, and I try to pull it back down quickly, but when I look, Goh's watching me. My face heats up as I turn quickly away, pretending to look out onto the street, even though there's literally nothing interesting out there.
My phone starts to ring in my pocket. Thinking it's going to be my mom, I pull it out quickly, but the name on the screen both surprises and concerns me: Nate. Nate has never called me. I answer apprehensively, watching as Goh sits on the edge of the bed.
"Hello?" I say.
"Yo, Ash," Nate says on the other side. It's a little strange to hear his voice. "What's going on?"
There's no way he called just for a casual conversation, but I play along for now, leaning back against the windowsill. "I'm in Galar, on a road trip with Dawn." I leave out Goh, because Nate knows the story. It was one of the first things he asked me when we moved in together, because he'd seen Goh on TV with me. "What's going on?"
"Uh, I'm just in Castelia still. So, uh, suuuuuper awkward, but someone showed up here looking for you earlier. Said they wanted to surprise you, but you weren't here, sooo..."
I furrow my brows. Goh's watching me too, now, but I don't break eye contact. There's something intense about it, and it's lighting my whole body on fire. "Alright. Who was it?"
"A blonde girl. I think her name was Selena?" He says, uncertain. I know instantly that he means Serena. But why would Serena just show up out of the blue? I haven't seen her in years. Not since she confessed to me, though I barely remember that conversation now, because we'd both been a little drunk...
"Shit," I say, biting the inside of my cheek. "Alright. What did you say to her?"
"I told her I wasn't sure where you were but that I'd call you and check. I'm pretty sure she's staying in a hotel."
"I'll call her," I say. I don't even know if the number I have for her is still right, but it's better than nothing. "But I won't be back for a few days, at least."
"Oh, yeah, and while I got you here, Maria stopped by a couple days ago. She banged on the door so hard I thought it was gonna come off. Anyway, she threw a bunch of your stuff in when I opened the door and started calling you all sorts of names. I'm not even gonna repeat them, man. They were real creative."
A shiver runs down my spine. "I probably deserve it. Just, uh... Shove it somewhere and I'll sort it when I'm back."
"Okay. Catch you soon."
"See you soon," I say, and hang up. Goh's still watching me, obviously curious to know who I was talking to. I stare down at my phone, considering my options, and feeling a little sick to my stomach.
"You okay?" He asks. I sigh again, and shove my phone back into my pocket, figuring I'll call her soon.
"Yeah. It was just my roommate from Castelia," I say, unsure whether I want to explain about Serena or not.
"I didn't even know you had a roommate." He frowns.
"His name is Nate. He's alright," I say. "I gotta make another call. It's probably gonna be pretty awkward." I grimace. It's not that I don't want to speak to Serena. I have missed her. I just don't remember what was said. I only know that she didn't really want anything to do with me afterwards.
"Alright," he says, kicking off his shoes and lying on the bed, looking at his own phone. "I won't listen. Promise."
I don't believe him, but I also don't want to stand out in the hotel hallway and call her, and I definitely can't be bothered to leave the hotel altogether, so I pull my phone out again, even though I just put it back. Better to get it out of the way, I suppose, otherwise the not-knowing will make me anxious.
I scroll through my contacts and find her, a little photo of us together still there beside her name, and my heart twists painfully. I suck in a breath through my nose and dial her.
The phone barely rings twice before she picks up, and I hear her sharp intake of breath before she speaks. "Ash?" she says, her voice the same.
I smile, turning to look out the window. "Hey, Serena."
I know some of y'all will be thinking 'but we already did the one bed trope'-
yes, yes we did. but it is just too fun not to do again, and i'm not sorry lol