Chapter Text
The Peninsula Vermillion Hotel was not crowded on Monday morning, as most guests have checked out yesterday evening. Serena was stealing glances at Gary as they watched the porter put her luggage in the trunk of his car. He put on a straight face like he never did or said anything out-of-ordinary at all. This whole scene feels nostalgic, like the first time they met. Only she remembered she wasn’t this pissed.
She sat in the passenger seat with a slight wrath, unable to believe that she was feeling upset over the fact that there was another woman in the passenger seat of his car. And there would be others after her if they remained in this state of uncertainty. She didn’t care if it was a different car that he owned, it was the same.
When Gary finally turned to her, she couldn’t help staring at his lips.
"Have you ensured not to leave anything behind?”
“Yeah.” She replied.
“Great.” He turned back to the road again and started driving.
Just that? Serena couldn’t help feeling disappointed. After his attempt to kiss her last night, how could he act like nothing happened between them?
She really wished she could put this past them, but she couldn’t. Every time she thought about it, she just got even more annoyed and couldn’t help herself giving him a nasty look.
Gary looked at her briefly before carefully thinking of a way to start a conversation. Was she upset he tried to kiss her last night? In his defense, he had never waited that long to kiss a girl he was interested in. It took him a day and a half. And to be fair, he still hadn’t really kissed her yet.
“Why are you staring at me like that?” he asked with a light tone,” Don’t try to seduce me, I’m driving.”
Serena raised her brow while curling the corner of her mouth. How nice is it to still be in the mood for a joke? If she immediately demanded his confession, she would sound desperate and it was the last thing she wanted. The most logical choice was to resume their last conversation last night.
“I was just wondering.” She paused,” If one month is a long time for you.”
“One month?” he responded,” It sure is. Time is money, many things can be achieved in a day.”
Serena parted her lips to speak, how is she going to confront him?
“Is that why you said you haven’t had a human passenger for a long time when you just went with Professor Dora one month ago?” Serena couldn’t believe what just came out of her mouth. Why is she bringing up this topic again? It was the only topic left from their last conversation.
She didn’t mean to start an argument with him again or sound jealous, even when she was. Yet, it’s really hard to be straightforward when he has the guts to pretend like nothing happened. Her profession trained her to entertain and please people, not engage in complex conversation or dissect people’s thesis like his.
Gary contemplated hard. He did say that, and he was not going to revise his words. On normal occasions, he would’ve brushed the question off or ghosted any girl who interrogated him with difficult questions. He’s Gary Oak, of course, time works differently for him.
But, he’s willing to make the exception for this one girl. He didn’t expect his exclusive reunion with Dora combined with his occasional encounters with the other girls would paint him in a bad light. Even if her reaction was illogical, she sounded unimpressed last night and he really didn’t want her interest in him to diminish.
“You must’ve thought I lied.” He replied honestly “But, I stand by my opinion, one month is a long time.“
“Besides, it’s in the past. I only have my eyes on one person now.” He continued while hoping his reply would convey his genuine intention in her. He was perfectly aware that the way he responded was going to either make or break this chase.
Gary’s response was exactly what Serena was expecting, but it didn’t satisfy her at all. He still referred to his interest in her indirectly instead of confessing it. Most importantly, when he comforted her like that, she felt like she just made a fool out of herself and wanted him to feel the same.
“I was just asking.” She responded, “I once kissed Ash too, and I’ve moved on.”
Serena was shocked when Gary immediately reclined on his chair and gave himself a facepalm. He covered his face with both of his hands while moving them towards his hair in exasperation, leaving the steering wheel unattended for several seconds.
He steered towards the shoulder of the road and raised the brake to park temporarily. If he forced himself to continue driving, he might hit something.
"You're really making me jealous." He said in a low voice. If the unconventional position of their seats weren't being an obstacle, he could’ve lost control and continue doing what he was about to do last night, not caring whether she indirectly rejected him again or not. The thought of her kissing another guy just absolutely killed him, even if it was in the past.
"What is it that you're trying to achieve?" He smirked, looking at the bright side of the situation- he still had her interest captivated.
“Why are we stopping? I could be late.” She looked around nervously, ignoring his question. This wasn’t part of her plan.
“I’m giving you a perfect opportunity to seduce me here, or answer my question if you want to.”
Serena flinched her eyes. She might be at fault for starting the argument instead of being straightforward with what she wanted to ask. But, if Gary could ask her out or tell her he loves her like a normal person instead of playing mind games with her last night, they wouldn’t be here.
"I should be the one asking. Why did you try to kiss me last night?” She couldn't stand it anymore. She kissed Ash when they were 10, and he never said anything about it. But, it was fine because Ash never led her on.
“Because you asked what I consider a date? So, I showed you?”
“Were you actually going to do it?”
“There are two answers: the fake and real ones. Which one do you choose?”
“Both?” She curtly replied. What a ridiculous reply.
“The fake one is, no, I wasn’t gonna do that, it's my job to look after you. The real one is yes, I was gonna do it, but you looked scared, so I refrained.”
There was no reply. It was a confession, but not the kind that she was trying to get from him.
“You don’t look satisfied with the answer.” He commented.
“I don’t.”
“What else? Ask away.”
Serena didn’t feel like herself if she insisted on asking. But, Gary had shown his clear interest in her, and if she didn’t make him do something about it, the memory of him would make her life a living hell when she went back to Kalos.
“You’ve been saying weird things.” She looked at him,” What do you want from me?”
“What weird things?”
“You said you’d change for me. And you told Chloe you were interested in me.”
“Self-explanatory. That’s not weird.” He shrugged with a smile before patiently waiting for her to continue her speech.
She crossed her arms, this was more difficult that she thought. Given that he has given her a chance to speak, might as well confront his bad, double-meaning jokes.
”You said that my outfit looked best on the first day we met. Why were you being specific about it? And you made a really bad joke on the fairy tale analogy.”
Gary glanced up. So this is what it was all about. From the moment he met her at the restaurant, he should’ve seriously considered that this girl couldn’t take a joke. He admitted he was partly at fault here, but her reactions were just too amusing that he was unable to stop.
He looked at the watch on his wrist and carefully observed the outer rear-view mirror to get back on the road again, they’d been talking long enough. As bad as the situation looks, he didn’t mean to make her late for her flight.
“Listen, I’m not that kind of guy.” He started talking,” I wouldn’t do anything to you.”
He looked at her before tilting his head and spoke in a sarcastic tone ,” Unless you ask nicely.”
Serena blushed. This wasn’t the direction of the conversation she planned.
“I was just kidding about the fairytale. Even a demented grandma knows that’s not true.” He continued ,”Sorry if that scared you.”
“And your outfit on the first day. Because they were good? You dressed to impress Ash, didn't you?”
“Is that so?” she doubted.
“Didn't I tell you that you look pretty that day?”
He smirked again while keeping his eyes set on the road, connecting the dots of her reactions.
“Or did you just wish that I was a pervert who was desperate to see you naked?” he added.
“That's not what I meant.”
The conversation was going nowhere Serena expected. She knew he was not that bad of a guy. It wasn't like he forcefully took her clothes off at the parking lot yesterday night. That was nothing but her own paranoid projection due to his excessive bad joke. He did look after her.
“What if I was? Would you tell Ash and Clemont then?”
“Obviously."
“Then I change my answer. I want to see you naked like a damn pervert I am.”
She was taken aback by the shocking statement. What did he just say? It was the first time Serena ever heard someone said something so rude to her. Not even Tierno, whose crush is clear as crystal for her, ever said something like this.
“What are you waiting for? Go call them, the guys you trusted so much.“ he provoked.
“Why would I do it? What you just said was not true.”
“Actually, it’s true. I am a credible source.”
“Do you want to get beaten up so badly?” She tried to respond calmly. There seemed to be no limit on how insane this guy could be. If he were jealous of Ash and Clemont, it was a very ugly way to express it.
“Sure I do.”
“You’ve gone mad.”
”Yeah. You’re leaving and I’m losing my mind.”
Serena blinked slowly. Now, that was close to what she wanted to hear.
"Do you like me?"
"Just guess.”
"That's not specific." She shook her head. He has done it again, denying her what she wanted even when they both yearned for the same thing.
"If you really want to hear a specific answer, why don't you say it first?” Gary smiled. He finally got what was it that she was trying to make him do. Unfortunately for her, he is not a fool to deliberately throw a careless confession when she had been refraining from expressing her affections for him the whole day.
”Play fair, will you? Unlike you, I’ve made myself clear.”
Serena sighed in frustration. Of course, she liked him back, she just didn’t plan on saying it first since he was the one who started everything. Isn’t that how love confession was supposed to work? She knew because she did it long time ago. This is totally unfair, even at their final meeting, he still tied her on a short leash. What an evil schemer he is.
They were halfway from their destination and instead of letting the rest of the journey filled with awkward silence, Gary did the favor of turning up the radio volume.
Gary had reserved a premium parking space where it was located in front of the International Departure Terminal. He helped Serena unloading the luggage from the trunk of his car while she waited for him while making up her mind. They only have less than an hour now. Yet, confessing her feelings was the last thing in her mind.
When he wanted to grab Serena’s suitcase to help her carry it, she stopped him by pulling the handle to the opposite direction. And before he managed to guess what she was about to do, she slapped him hard.
“There’s no need to call Ash and Clemont now.” She said.
The pain lingered on his cheek, It didn’t hurt him physically but it still ached. The slap wasn’t what he expected, but he knew he deserved it. After all rude things said and done, it’s only right that he was punished. It was also his idea first to call Ash and Clemont so they could beat some sense back to him.
"You're right. I deser-" before Gary finished his sentence, Serena raised her heels to reach his height and grabbed his shoulders to plant a chaste kiss on his lips. Ultimately, freezing the time around them.
Only her upper lip could touch his lower lip, but that was enough. This is what she was going to give him instead of words of love, or whatever was it that they were feeling.
The kiss lasted longer than she planned. And if it weren’t because of the strain on her legs, she wasn’t sure if she could let his lips go. The sudden distance between their bodies just created a big void begging to be filled. When she lowered her heels, she could see her own reflection in his pupils and she knew he felt the same.
When Serena returned to her original position, Gary was still paralyzed by her action. He only needed one second to decide to corner her against the car to kiss her back.
She had allowed him when he pried her lips open with his tongue. With the way he kissed her, she could tell he's been dying to be inside her, and she couldn’t pretend she didn’t need him anymore as their bodies collided, leaving no spaces between them. Each sensation felt so right and so wrong in the same time. He tasted her slowly and the gratification she felt was starting to corrupt her, like a predator luring their prey tactfully into its trap.
Due to the lack of air, they broke the kiss and decided not to continue it. It was the only appropriate and acceptable aftermath considering where they are now, in a parking lot in a broad daylight. Serena was glad she hasn’t made a name in Kanto. However, they have ignored several passersby’s disgusted looks, and if they continue with whatever they were doing, someone would call the cops on them.
“Can I tell Ash and Clemont that you did something weird to me?” Gary took his breath and asked.
“Go tell them. I’ll tell them you did it to me first.” Serena puckered her lips in annoyance.
“Do you have something else to say?” He smiled.
Serena looked at him and clicked her tongue. Even after that kiss, she still has to be the one that confess first?
"That was a much more fitting punishment for you." She said, refusing to yield to the situation.
"Some punishment you gave me!" Gary replied in fake gloomy tone.
“And-” she brushed the scratch on his car with her fingers, it was once again scratched by the sharp decorations on her handbag ,”-Sorry about your car.”
“You might want to check the front door.” She added.
“I noticed. You like to play rough.” He said while grabbing her luggage. It was time they head to the airport terminal.
“It’s your doing!” She furrowed while following him.
“I’ll go now. Thank you for the help and hospitality, Gary.” Serena said before entering the gate to depart.
She stepped forward before looking back at him poignantly, wondering if she should just give up and confess her feeling right now before she left. She may lose their game, but what is the point of winning if she has to let him slip away?
“Isn’t this the part where you’re supposed to invite me to Kalos to return my kindness?” Gary asked as she turned around.
“You’re right, I-“ Serena shook her head in disbelief, where was her manners? She was so distracted that she missed the basic etiquette.
“You should call me when you visit Kalos. I’ll show you around.”
“I’ll call you very soon.” He said ,”Safe flight, Serena.”
Serena wanted to kiss him again but her guts were telling her to be patient. His promise was so comforting, unlike the riddles he played for days. It was the first time she felt peace after a weekend full or turmoil. With his words, she could be back to her routine without conflicting feelings.
“I’ll see you later, then.” She said as she bid her farewell. After she deleted Gary's number out of rage last night, she finally decided to ask Chloe for his number again. And he didn't have to know about it.
Ash was shivering in his blanket with Pikachu who was sitting next to his bed with sympathetic look. Thanks to his brilliant stunt yesterday, he had to spent half a day in drenched clothes until he arrived back in Pallet, raising questions from his mother that he refused to answer.
“Pika pika.” Pikachu said.
“Please, Pikachu, if I didn’t do it, how am I going to make Misty believe me?”
“Pika.”
“Yeah I know it’s kinda unnecessary. But you know how stubborn Misty is. Her head is made of iron. I still wonder how she doesn’t drown when she swims.” He said, not regretting his actions, only the consequences that followed.
When he said that, his bedroom door opened and a familiar figure approached.
“Excuse me, Ash. You were saying?”
“Misty!?”
“Pika!” Pikachu jumped to Misty’s arms.
“How did you get in here?”
“I’m your girlfriend, your mom let me in.”
“Wait, my mom already knew about us?” Ash widened his eyes. He didn’t mean to hide it from his mother, he was just still too shy to tell her the good news.
“Oh, Ash, you don't want to know how she knew.” Misty placed her head in her palm. One of her sisters have leaked their dramatic love confession to the world wide web and it has become the talk of the whole Kanto region since the dawn broke.
Not that she wasn’t happy to announce to the world that she finally got the world champion wrapped around her fingers, it was just kind of too dramatically embarrassing. She was glad the world has one more juicy news to share the spotlight with.
“Forget it. How are you feeling now?” she added while sitting next to his bed.
“I’m good.” He lied. He did text her that he felt unwell this morning, but he didn’t expect her to visit him when Monday is her busiest day of the week.
“Don’t pretend, Ash. You caught a cold because you jumped to the water and insisted going home with drenched clothes.”
“Okay, yeah, I caught a cold because of you, Misty. You happy now?”
“How is that because of me?”
“You’ve been acting too cool since we grew up.” He replied ,”I don’t want to check my phones again when I miss you, just to find out you are not posting anything deep, because Cerulean Gym Leader is cool like that.”
Misty wanted roll her eyes. Ash really had the audacity to call her acting too cool when he acted the same. She wondered when should she tell him he was the only guy who made her lose sleep at night.
“But you knew I like you.” She placed her palm on his temple to check his temperature ,”And I’m here now.”
“You’re taking a day off from the Gym for me?” he asked.
“I’m showing my commitment that you are more important that the Cerulean Gym.”
“I feel sorry for those trainers that had to wait for you, or battle your sisters instead.” Ash said. He saw fellow trainers as his brothers and sisters, and now he kind of felt sorry for them for not being able to felt the majestic Cerulean arena at its finest. All because he stole the leader’s attention all for himself. It was a different kind of proud feeling.
“Me too.” Misty laughed crisply before Ash put his hand on her cheek, causing her laugh to stop abruptly.
“Can I really touch you like this now?” he caressed her cheek gently. Her presence was like a long-held dream came true.
“You can.” She clutched his hand on her palms before they stared into each other's eyes.
They both leaned in for a kiss. It was an awkward but rather passionate. Something they didn’t expect would do that fast, and they quickly broke it when they suddenly realized they were moving too fast. Not to mention Ash was still sick and Misty would usually be more careful about things like this.
“Your room has changed so much.” She said while blushing, still feeling awkward from their kiss earlier.
“Ummm.. yeah it has.” He replied. His flustered face and shaky tone implied the same sentiment.
“I used to sleep there when I visited.” She pointed to where Ash’s old bed used to locate ,”Now it’s my gone.”
“You can still sleep in my bed, Misty. But, I’m not sleeping on the floor anymore since I’m your boyfriend now.” He said innocently.
Misty held the urge to smack him like they used to do when they were kids. She didn’t know he has this naughty side of him that only she knew now!
On the corner of a small Vermillion City café, Chloe was giggling on the phone while accompanying Goh who was working on his field report. She was just using her boyfriend’s phone to browse while checking his inboxes.
“What’s so funny, Chloe?”
“Look at your two friends.”
She handed over the phone where Ash’s confession and Gary’s blur candid shot made the news. Fortunately, Serena’s face wasn’t in the picture.
“Ash and Gary haven’t been on the news for a year. And these are their latest achievements? Embarassing.” He returned the phone to Chloe.
“But these were so sweet.” She exclaimed.
“Sweet, sure. Ash doing a stunt in his crush’s house to prove his feeling is not overly dramatic. And Gary making out in public with a friend he just met for three days is not completely shameless.”
“Be a little romantic, Goh.” She pouted.
“I want to, but we’ve been dating for a year, yet you still don’t even let me kiss you on the lips until today.”
“You should excuse me. My grandma told me to be careful of boys who only want girls for their body. You know her.”
“Wha-!?” Goh’s face reddened ,”Chloe, we’ve been friends since forever. Almost twice longer than Ash and Misty, and certainly a thousand times longer than Gary and Serena. How could I want you for your body?”
“I’ll let you kiss me on the lips just today, then. While love is in the air.” She leaned closer to his direction and closed her eyes.
“Seriously!?”
“Quick. Before I change my mind.” Chloe reminded.
Goh nervously looked to the left and right before quickly placing his lips on hers. He had to thank his two friends for their services.