Chapter Text
Privacy sign on the door
And on my page and on the whole world
Romance is not dead if you keep it just yours
Levitate above all the messes made
Sit quiet by my side in the shade
And not the kind that's thrown
I mean, the kind under where a tree has grown
🌸
— still 3 days without Goh —
“You got so big, and you’re as gorgeous as ever. You even got new friends!”, Ash says, excited as he takes a look at Goh’s, well, Florges now.
Ash knows Goh will be absolutely thrilled about it. But Ash takes a look at the other two Florges and his expression saddens.
“Florges?”
“Oh, I’m sorry. I just– the thing is, Goh’s birthday is coming soon, and also our anniversary and I– I’m sorry, this is selfish. I thought if I could find you, you would like to come with us again. It’s supposed to be a present for Goh – your reunion with him. But I didn’t know you made new friends”, Ash shyly confesses, but Florges happily nods.
She excitedly says something to the other Florges before turning her attention again to Ash.
“Are you sure you want to leave your friends behind?”, Ash makes sure, surprised. “I know you wanted to take care of the white flowers. Will your friends be okay on their own?”
“Florges Flo!”
Ash breathes out in relief.
“Um, I do have your old Pokeball with me, but I’m pretty sure I need to catch you with a new one, but once we’re back in Vermillion, Goh will catch you officially again”, Ash holds the new Pokeball, and Florges says goodbye to her friends, before she nods her head to Ash and hits the button.
“Welcome back. Goh is gonna be so happy”, Ash whispers and Pikachu squeals happily as well.
It went better than Ash thought it would. He will go to Shalour City anyway.
🌸
— still 3 days without Goh, but only because Ash created this whole mess –
“Well, well, well, who are my eyes seeing?”, Bea teases Ash when he enters Korrina’s Gym. He waves them both hello when he notices Sawyer and Alain sitting nearby as well.
“Well, well, well, and who are my eyes seeing?”, Ash quickly fist bumps Alain, and Pikachu jumps from his shoulder to greet Alain’s Charizard and Sawyer’s Sceptile.
“What brings you to Shalour?”, Korrina asks, and Ash nervously laughs. His own mess. But he doesn’t need to admit it.
His eyes focus on Sawyer, and Ash smirks to himself when he casually says, “I was visiting Clemont, so I thought I would see you as well while I’m in Kalos”.
Sawyer suddenly chokes on the air surrounding him, as he furiously starts to blush.
“Y-you, um, saw Clemont? Is he doing okay?”, Sawyer stutters, pretending his heart didn’t skip a beat by just hearing Clemont’s name.
“Yeah, he is. He’s sooo looking forward to seeing you”, Ash winks, and Sawyer already knows he’s screwed. Ash definitely knows something, and he wants to disappear under his piercing look.
The rest of the gang must be oblivious, because they don’t notice Ash’s teasing, and Alain brushes the whole thing off by asking Ash for a battle. Ash kindly declines by saying that he would want to watch him and Bea battle instead this time around, and that he can hang out with Korrina and Sawyer on the bleachers.
“Good luck, Bea-Bea”, Korrina yells, and Ash chuckles at her antics.
Sawyer nervously sits next to Ash, and the boy suddenly feels guilt washing over him for the earlier teasing.
“Hey, Sawyer? I’m sorry for teasing you”, Ash apologizes, but Sawyer brushes it off.
“It’s okay, I’m not upset with you”.
There’s a few minutes of silence when Sawyer focuses on the battle for a second. He turns his attention to Korrina after a moment – she’s focused on watching Bea with heart eyes, so he takes a deep breath and braces himself to ask Ash. “What exactly do you know?”
His voice is choked and stressed. His face is covered in the most delicate shade of pink and Ash swears he has never seen Sawyer act like this before.
“Well, um, that you kissed Clemont out of the blue and then ran away?”, Ash says quietly, and Sawyer hides his face into his hands in embarrassment.
“Hey, it’s nothing to be ashamed of”, Ash reassures but it doesn’t help Sawyer in the slightest.
“I think it is. I ran away from my feelings instead of meeting them head on, and I hurt Clemont with that too, and I’m afraid to face him. I’m so pathetic”.
Ash focuses on the battle for a little bit to think his advice through, and then he turns his attention to Sawyer again.
“You’re just confused. So is Clemont. I just think that…think of the whole situation like a battle. Meet the challenge, battle for it hard and win this”, Ash winks, and Sawyer blushes at the implication.
He takes a moment to process Ash’s words before he smiles to himself and says. “Thanks Ash, you’re the best”.
Ash kindly smiles as a reply before they both re-focus on the battle again.
Bea won the match, and Ash takes a selfie with them all and sends it to Goh. He knows the boy probably is asleep by now, but somehow, he feels that Goh is just ignoring him instead, and his heart aches at the lack of the reply.
Goh always craves being in touch with him – so Ash starts to feel uneasy when he doesn’t get a reply for most of the next day.
Ash tries to contact Goh when he’s in one of Korrina’s rooms to take some rest before his plane back to Kanto in three hours. He wanted to let Goh know yesterday that he’s coming back – but the boy still didn’t pick up the calls from him, and that made Ash even more concerned.
Ash knows he got in that mess all by himself. He didn’t want to lie to Goh, but he couldn’t tell him the real reason for going to Shalour City. How would he be supposed to surprise Goh with his present if he would tell him the truth?
Ash sighs to himself as he decides he’s not gonna try to call Goh again. Instead, he sends a message.
I’m not gonna call you again, but we can text instead. I can tell you’re upset and that’s why you’re avoiding me. What’s wrong?
🌸
— 3 days without Ash, but closer to 4 days —
It’s around 11 p.m and Goh can’t fall asleep, even if he’s tired after a long day. He’s just staring at the ceiling above him. He knows he should try to get some rest, because Jacq already discussed working on Unova and Kalos Pokemon for tomorrow with him, and if he’s not gonna be well rested – he’s not gonna perform well. But Goh, even if he wants to, he just can’t fall asleep. He’s…anxious, upset, and his high expectations betrayed him again.
Goh has ignored every single one of Ash’s calls and messages since yesterday. He didn’t dare to pick up any of them – and he feels so bad about it.
He got upset, and that made Ash upset, and now they’re both upset, and why wasn’t Ash so eager to come back to him? Doesn’t he miss him as well? Goh genuinely thought that Ash would rather come back to Kanto earlier and see him than stay in Kalos. But he shouldn't get upset about that, right? Ash doesn’t need to rush to see him. He can spend some time with his friends and–
Goh wants to scream when the overthinking takes over him, then he hears another notification. He pets Grookey with slow moves as he sighs and finally takes a look at his phone.
He blinks a few times at the message as he bites his lips. So considerate.
Goh takes a deep breath as he finally types.
I’m sorry 😔
It doesn’t take much time for Ash to reply, which means the boy must’ve anticipated the message, and Goh feels even more guilty now for ignoring his boyfriend this way.
What for?
Goh casts his gaze away for a second before he looks at his phone again and types back.
I know I overreacted 😔
It’s okay. I know you miss me 😘
Goh chuckles to himself as he feels the anxiety leaving his body with each sent message.
I sure do 🥺
On the other side, Ash tilts his head as he looks softly at the messages sent by Goh. He chuckles as he types.
You’ll see me sooner than you think 😊
And that’s true.
Goh doesn’t know that Ash’s flight is today. And that’s okay, he doesn’t need to know it yet. Ash can surprise him with his arrival.
🌸
— 4 days without Ash, but not for much longer (but Goh doesn’t know about it)—
Goh stretches his arms as he’s finishing recording for today. They started recording really early today, and Goh’s glad about it – he can take it easy for the rest of the day.
Jacq, as always, has praised Goh’s work and said he’s gonna revisit today's recorded entries later, and that he’s looking forward to continuing recording on the next day. If everything will go alright, Goh should be able finish the Kalos Pokemon entries tomorrow and move onto recording Alola and Galar Pokemon soon.
Goh goes to the park to get some fresh air, and Gary, without even looking at him, immediately hands him his favorite tea.
Goh sips the tea carefully as he watches his Pokemon playing with each other, and smiles at the sight of Tracey sitting under the nearby tree and drawing Raichu.
Goh closes his eyes for a second as he basks in the nice weather and the wind moving his hair softly from left to right. It’s around 10 a.m now, and everything feels so peaceful right now to Goh…except for the fact that Ash is still not here with him. He misses Ash. He misses his touch. He misses little kisses all over his face. It’s just four days so far, but for Goh, it feels like it would be four weeks instead.
He opens his eyes only to stare into his cup wordlessly. Gary doesn’t say a word either, enjoying the surroundings and feeling the change in his friend’s mood.
But Gary wants to say something, even a dumb joke to lift the mood up. He takes a glance at Goh, and he’s in the middle of opening his mouth when he gets a notification on his Rotom Phone. He looks at the message, then he glances at Goh again, then he turns his attention back to the message, types something, and puts his phone down.
“Something wrong?”, Goh asks absentmindedly. Gary can only smirk at that.
“No, not at all”, is all Gary replies, before he turns his attention to something – or rather, someone behind them.
Gary smirks again before he moves aside and leaves Goh alone. Goh, confused with his friend’s behavior, wants to repeat his question, but before he can ask anything, two hands cover his vision. Goh gets startled by the action. He abruptly turns around only to be met with his favorite brown eyes staring at him.
Pikachu long ago jumped off from Ash’s shoulder to reunite with Grookey and join the rest of Goh’s Pokemon in their fun as well.
Goh blinks a few times, still stunned, as Ash breathes out a quiet Surprise. Goh doesn’t say anything for a few seconds as everything sinks in – that Ash is already here. With him. As he should be.
But Goh doesn’t plan to say anything. Instead, he clashes their mouths together in a breathless kiss for the first time in all those annoying 4 and a half days. Ash kisses him back as he pushes Goh towards the railing to make sure he won’t fall from the lack of air.
“Ew, guys, take it inside”, Tracey jokes, but neither of them seem to care.
Gary only smiles, but still delivers his own teasing. “Actually, no, keep it outside, in the doorway of the Laboratory instead. I can already picture all those headlines about the World Champion sharing PDA with his boyfriend”.
They do stop kissing for a second, and Ash blinks a few times at Gary’s words, but Goh doesn’t seem to care about it at all.
“I don’t care”, Goh says as much between kisses, and Ash just pulls him closer.
Gary just laughs. “Good for you, guys. Let’s go, Tracey. Let them be”.
Even if their friends leave to give them some needed privacy, they do take their little make-out session inside after all.
🌸
After a brief catch up and an I’m really sorry about how I acted– It’s okay, really. I wasn’t upset with you. And how is Sawyer and Clemont doing? Oh, you won’t believe it– But I’m sure they’ll figure it out. – Goh urged Ash to go and take a nap after the trip, and even if Ash wasn’t feeling as tired, he still agreed to it. Mostly so he can get some peace of mind, and maybe in hopes that Goh could squeeze in under the blanket with him and take some rest as well.
But Goh doesn’t take a nap with him. Jacq called the Professors for the revision of earlier entries, and Goh was needed for that. So Ash is left alone with his racing thoughts, and with May’s and Leon’s words still sinking in.
Ash sighs to himself as he pets his sleeping Pikachu. He stares at the ceiling above him. His eyes are tired, but he really isn’t as sleepy as Goh thought he would be. The anxiety is still washing over him like a tidal wave, and that makes it more difficult for Ash to relax and take much needed rest.
Ash closes his eyes – in an attempt that maybe it will make it easier to fall asleep – but whenever it happens, he sees the outline of the bad comments buried in his mind. Ash doesn’t open his eyes though. Instead, he takes a deep breath to calm himself down. He doesn’t know for how long he lays – tired and yet sleepless, but at some point, he must’ve dozed off, because the next time he does open his eyes in panic, Goh is already sleeping next to him.
Ash abruptly sits up, sweaty and full of familiar anxiety washing over him. He tries to breathe, and yet no air fills his lungs. He makes an attempt to move, but his body seems to be paralyzed, and all he can do is to stare into the distance like he would be in a trance.
He doesn’t know which hour it is or how much time has passed. All he knows is that he feels so pathetic right now. He can’t breathe, he can’t scream or utter any words – and yet he can’t do anything about it.
Goh drapes his arm in an attempt to hug Ash closer to him, when he realizes he can’t. He slowly opens his sleepy eyes to notice that Ash is not lying anymore – he’s sitting up and doesn’t move an inch, even when Goh is already sitting up next to him as well. He rubs the sleep from his eyes as he asks. “Ash, what’s wrong?”.
But Ash doesn’t respond. He still tries to breathe, still stares into the darkness of the room. He’s somehow able to move his hand a little bit, but instead of intertwining it with Goh’s hand, with the last bit of energy he has left – he puts it on his own chest to put some pressure on it in an attempt to ground himself.
Goh worriedly asks Cinderace – who has just woken up from his slumber as well – to turn on the lights.
Ash doesn’t even squint his eyes at the bright lights. He still sits unmoving, and that’s just when Goh notices what kind of state his boyfriend is in. He can recognize it anywhere. He’s been there many times before. A panic attack. And Goh needs to help Ash to ride it out, just like he did for Goh many times. Goh exhales a shaky breath. He’s got this.
“Ash?”, Goh repeats firmly, giving Ash’s hand on the blanket a squeeze. The boy doesn’t react to that. He still tries desperately to breathe, which is unsuccessful with each gasp for air.
Pikachu and Grookey woke up from their sleep as well, coming closer to offer some comfort.
“No, don’t surround him”, Goh pleads, and both Pokemon stop in their tracks. They worriedly sit not too close, but still close enough for Ash to feel their comforting presence.
Goh takes a deep breath himself as he wishes he could give Ash some needed air to him.
“Ash, please, can you look at me?”, Goh asks again as he traces one of his hands on the sweaty skin of Ash’s cheekbone.
Ash wants to reply. He wants to stop worrying Goh, he wants to tell him that everything’s alright. He wants to move, he wants it all to be over. But he can’t utter any words. His mouth feels so dry, and he still can’t breathe. All he can do is to feel his fast heartbeat under his own hand on his chest and stare into the distance.
“It’s okay”, Goh says softly, putting his free hand on Ash’s chest as well. “Try to breathe with me”.
The extra pressure helps to ground Ash a little, and he is able to take a few shallow breaths, but it’s still not enough to fill his lungs completely.
“You’re doing so great. Step by step”, Goh reassures as he squeezes Ash’s hand again.
He finally can feel Ash’s hand move under his grip a little bit. Good.
“Ash, please, can you try to look at me?”, Goh tries again, concerned. Ash hasn’t moved from his spot in over two minutes, and Goh starts to wonder if the boy can in fact still blink. It’s all so terrifying for Goh. It’s really rare to see Ash in a state like this.
He really doesn’t know what to do. He’s totally clueless. Ash still can’t breathe. He still tries so hard to inhale the air, and Goh doesn’t know how to help. He doesn’t know what to do. He just sits there just like Ash does, but totally clueless and helpless when his boyfriend is suffering.
He’s really worried about how different their panic attacks are. It’s always easier for Ash to snap Goh from his episodes than it is now for Goh to help his boyfriend in return.
“Ash, please, I know it’s hard, but you’ve got to try to look at me. I need to get you out of it. I need to know you’re still with me”, Goh tries again, totally helpless. He’s really close to crumbling, but he knows it’s not what Ash needs right now. Goh needs to get his shit together and do anything he has in him to help.
Ash still can't meet Goh's eyes, but he once again moves his hand under Goh’s grip a little. It’s all he can do right now.
“Okay, good”, Goh whispers as he tries to take another deep breath himself. It helps to soothe his worries a little, as he feels like he would get a panic attack on his own as well.
“Let’s try to breathe slowly with me again, Ash, ‘kay?”, Goh says as he takes a few breaths to instruct the scared and anxious boy next to him.
Ash is in fact able to take those few breaths now – it’s not enough, but it’s better than it was before. It’s a little easier to breathe for Ash when Goh’s next to him.
“Keep going”, another squeeze to Ash’s hand. “I’m here with you”.
Ash copies – clumsily, but with his own pacing – Goh’s breathing movements, and Goh encouragingly nods his head for Ash to continue. He takes his hand away from Ash’s one, only to put it on his shaking knee instead.
“It’s okay. I’ve got you. It will be okay, moonlight”, Goh whispers to Ash’s ear quietly, still keeping a firm grip on Ash’s knee, when the boy seems to finally relax under Goh’s hold. He searches blindly with his hand for Goh’s one, and Goh right away intertwines them together again.
Ash’s body is still shaking from the stress, but he’s much calmer now, and his breathing seems to slowly even out with each passing second.
Few minutes pass when Ash finally is able to close and open his eyes. He meets Goh’s gaze – blue eyes still worried, but filled with more relief as Goh whispers a soft you’re back.
Ash doesn’t reply with anything. Instead, he clings to Goh and his comfort.
🌸
“You called me moonlight”, Ash says quietly, lying in Goh’s comforting embrace. Goh plays with Ash’s hair as he chuckles. He moves some of the hair from his forehead to place a soft kiss there. Yeah, he did.
Goh isn’t the person to use pet names or any nicknames as much. He loves when Ash calls him baby, and he was the one to call Goh moonlight back in Alola last year.
But the last days were so hard for Goh, so to comfort himself, he stargazed a lot. When he was looking at the stars and moon, he could feel Ash next to him. So even when it’s hard, even if they’re far away, Goh could easily see Ash’s face in the night sky. He’s like Goh’s little moonlight.
“Yeah, maybe I did”, Goh teases, and Ash quietly laughs.
Ash still feels anxious. The anxiety doesn’t seem to fade from his body, but Goh’s comforting presence eases the tightness in his chest and soothes his worries a little.
Ash wants to talk to Goh about his talk with May and Leon. He wants to talk about how he’s really feeling, about everything that's been bothering him since he posted the photo. He knows they need to finish this talk.
But Goh knows how Ash feels. He saw this episode last year back in Alola, but he would listen to Ash ow anyway if he would share his pain with him. But Goh doesn’t pressure Ash to talk. He knows he will eventually open up about it when he thinks it’s the right timing, at his own pace.
But Ash wants to talk about it now. He feels at peace right now in Goh’s soothing hold. He opens his mouth to start the conversation, but nothing leaves his lips. He holds his breath instead, and asks. “Would you run away with me?”
Goh still plays with Ash’s hair as he smiles to himself. He doesn’t ask where. He doesn’t ask why. He doesn’t ask any questions. Instead, he says. “Yes”.
🌸
They are able to fall asleep for at least a few hours. Goh knows he should be getting up soon to feed his Pokemon and to start working on the next bunch of entries, but for now, he still lays in bed to offer as much comfort to Ash as the boy needs.
Ash is definitely much calmer now, and the few hours of sleep helped to lift his mood slightly. The silence around them is comfortable as they bask in the early morning hours before they have to get up and fully start the day.
Goh slowly moves his hand through Ash’s hair when Ash eventually breaks the silence. “I’m sorry”.
Goh hums to that, but states loud and clear. “No, don’t be. There’s nothing to apologize for”.
“Now you know how it is when you keep apologizing all the time for something you shouldn’t be sorry for”, Ash jokes, and Goh rolls his eyes.
“Oh, shut up. You get the point”, Goh murmurs under his breath, and Ash laughs.
“Yeah, I do”.
Grookey stirred in his sleep at the loudness of their voices, and Goh knows it’s a matter of time before he will wake up and demand his breakfast. He wants to leave the bed when Ash keeps him in his place. “Stay? I want to talk to you”.
“We don’t need to talk about it if you don’t want to”, Goh reassures, but Ash shakes his head.
“I want to”.
Goh offers him a soft smile. “Okay, let’s talk”.
So Ash does talk about how he sometimes feels. About what May and Leon told him, about the advice they both gave him until the tiredness overcomes him once more and he falls asleep again.
Goh chuckles at the sight of his sleeping boyfriend again. He places a soft kiss on his forehead before he quietly leaves the bed. Already woken up, Grookey jumps onto Goh’s shoulder, and Goh playfully pets him a few times.
Pikachu whines something, and Goh whispers a soft you can stay if you’d like to which Pikachu exclaims a quiet Pika! and he curls next to his trainer.
Goh’s eyes soften at the sight, and he quietly closes the door as he leaves the room so nothing will disturb Ash’s needed rest. It’s okay. They can finish the talk later.
🌸
As Goh is taking a break between takes, Ash joins them downstairs. He envelops his arms around Goh as he whispers a quiet you left me alone. Goh laughs at that and he says I’m sorry. I had to before they both share a soft kiss. Gary takes another photo of them, and Tracey has another drawing inspiration thanks to that.
They moved to the park for a little bit to get some fresh air. Ash looks happily at Goh’s Dragonair playing with his Dragonite, when Goh intertwines their hands together and his head drops to Ash’s shoulder.
“Ash?”, Goh softly asks, and the aforementioned boy only hums to that while still looking at the playing Pokemon.
But Goh doesn’t say anything else for a while. He gets deep in thought before he carefully chooses his next words.
“There's always someone who disapproves”, Goh finally voices out, and Ash turns to face him.
“They'll judge it like they know about me and you, and the verdict comes from those with nothing else to do, but…my choice is you”, Goh says as he squeezes their still intertwined hands.
“So, don't you worry your pretty little mind. People throw rocks at things that shine, and life makes love look hard. The stakes are high, the water's rough, but…”, Goh says as he locks his blue eyes with Ash’s brown ones.
“This love is ours?”, Ash whispers, smiling, and Goh smiles as well. “Yeah, this love is ours”.
Ash leans forward to place a sweet kiss on Goh’s lips. The boy giggles at the affection, and something tells Ash that Goh is not done talking.
“And it's not theirs to speculate if it's wrong and–"
“Okay, I get it”, Ash softly laughs, but Goh shakes his head.
“No, Ash, I really need you to know that…”, Goh gets deep in thought again and Ash laughs again at Goh’s serious expression. He looks adorable like that.
“That?”
“I'll fight their doubt and give you faith ‘cause my heart is yours”, Goh breathes out, and Ash tilts his head, smiling.
He hugs Goh close to his chest as he whispers a soft thank you into Goh’s ear. And if he feels some tears gathering in his eyes at Goh’s words, he tries to blink them away.
They stay like that for a while, just enjoying each other’s embrace, when Tracey shouts that Goh’s break is over, and he should come back because Jacq is on the line and he has some questions for Goh.
“You coming with me?”, Goh asks before he leans back from the hug, and Ash pouts at the distance, so he catches Goh’s hand into his own instead to still somehow feel Goh close to him.
“‘Course. Someone needs to bring you your cookies and tea”, Ash laughs, and Goh smiles to himself before teasingly saying. “Well, Gary can. He was doing a great job with that”.
“Nah, his job is over”, Ash smirks and Goh laughs.
“Yeah?”
“Yeah”, Ash says before laughing as well.
They are bickering even when they enter the Laboratory.
🌸
“Goh, the Kalos Pokemon entries turned out so amazing”, Jacq praises, and Goh bows politely at the kind words. Ash feels the pride taking over his heart as he watches Goh being praised for his hard work.
“I’m thinking that we could start on the Alola Pokemon now. But if you’re feeling tired, I’m sure we could start to work on it tomorrow. We would finish both Alola and Galar Pokemon in the next two days. That would leave Paldea Pokemon for another day”, Jacq says, and Goh casts his gaze away.
He is tired, but he would rather finish all of Alola, Galar and Paldea today than having to work on it on his birthday – the day he’d rather spend with Ash and some of their friends. Goh’s sure if he would just talk about it with Jacq, they could figure it out, but–
“I think I could start on recording the Alola Pokemon now”, Goh reassures, but Ash intervenes.
“Hey baby, wait, your voice–”, Ash says, but Goh cuts him off.
“My voice is fine”, Goh almost yells, and Ash raises his brow like he would try to make a point.
“Don’t raise it, you’re making it worse”, Ash quips back, and Goh bites his lips.
“I just wanted–”, Goh says quietly, but he doesn’t finish his sentence because he’s not sure what he even wants to say. He locks his gaze with Ash’s, and the boy just smiles at him sympathetically. “Is something wrong?”, Jacq asks, confused, but Goh doesn’t have the courage to reply, so Ash speaks up instead.
“It’s Goh’s birthday in two days and–”
“Ah, I see”, Jacq cuts him off. “We can resume recording the next day, or we can make it work. If you would be up for it, we can spend earlier hours of the day recording the entries so it wouldn’t interfere with your plans at all. But that’s not a problem at all if you want to take a full day off for the occasion”, Jacq kindly smiles, and Goh looks at him surprised.
“Are you sure?”, Goh makes sure, and Jacq nods his head.
“Of course. I’m not in any rush. Not many people know about the project, so it gives us more time to work on it”, Jacq reassures, and Goh thanks him with a smile.
“But if you’re still eager to start working on the Alola entries today–”
Goh looks up at Ash, like he would try to ask for his permission and to see if he’s not making him more upset, but Ash just smiles sympathetically again. He brushes their fingers together in an attempt to apologize, before saying. “I’ll bring you your cookies and the tea”.
🌸
Goh wakes up to the feeling of trailing kisses down his neck. He hums appreciatively at the affection before turning to face Ash.
Goh made a lot of progress yesterday and the day before with Alola and Galar Pokemon entries, so Jacq insisted that Goh should take a full day off because he deserves it.
“Happy birthday, baby”, Ash whispers before he pulls Goh into a sweet kiss. Still sleepy, Goh clumsily kisses Ash back, and Ash giggles when they pull away.
They don’t have any plans for today, but spending this day with Ash and their Pokemon and video calling their friends is enough of a plan for Goh.
“We need to go to the park”, Ash announces, kissing Goh’s cheek playfully, and the boy hums again.
“What for?”
Goh knows he needs to feed his Pokemon, but it can wait for a little bit longer, he feels so comfy right now in the warmth of the bed and–
“I have a present for you”, Ash winks, and it’s enough for Goh to sober from the rest of the sleep he’s been feeling.
“What is it, what is it?, Goh excitedly asks before Ash drags him from the bed towards the park.
“Here, take this”, Ash hands Goh one of the Pokeballs, and the boy eyes it curiously. “I caught one during the research”.
“Aww, it’s a Skiddo!”, Goh joyfully exclaims, and Ash grins happily when Skiddo immediately jumps on Goh, and the boy hugs the Pokemon.
“We’re gonna be good friends!”, Goh says, petting Skiddo, and Ash’s eyes soften at the sight.
Ash traces the other Pokeball in his pocket when Goh notices the movement and raises his brow curiously. “Do you have something else?”
Ash stiffens at the question, but his behavior tells the truth, and Goh practically jumps on him.
“Let me see, let me see!”, Goh pleads, but Ash shakes his head.
“Baby, I can’t, it’s for um, our anniversary”, Ash says to calm the boy down, but Goh pouts at him.
Ash giggles a little, because sometimes he forgets that Goh technically is a human version of the pleading emoji.
“Please? It still will count as the anniversary present, I promise!”, Goh pleads again, and Ash feels defeated. He sighs as he nods his head. He never can say no to Goh.
“But before I will hand it to you, I need to confess something”, Ash says, and Goh holds onto the railing.
“So um, you remember when I told you I’m going to Shalour City to visit Korrina?”, Ash asks, and Goh nods his head, listening to Ash’s every word.
“I actually wanted to go there for a different reason”, Ash confesses, holding the Pokeball, and he finally locks his gaze with Goh’s.
“I didn’t have to in the end, because I found her on the outskirts of Lumiose, but still, it felt like I would be lying to you, so I went to Shalour after all too”, Ash quietly says, putting the Pokeball in Goh’s hand.
Goh tries to search his memory for why Ash would choose Shalour City out of all cities in Kalos to go and catch a Pokemon, but he can’t find anything that would ring the bell.
Why would Ash choose Shalour City specifically? Goh hasn’t been in Shalour since he…since he…oh. Since he has released Floette.
With a shaky hand, he opens the Pokeball to reveal Florges. He stares at the Pokemon with big, widened eyes, when everything finally sinks in – his Floette isn’t small anymore. She has evolved into beautiful Florges.
“You…evolved”, Goh states, before he hugs the Pokemon tightly with tears in his blue eyes.
Ash chuckles to himself, because Goh had the same exact reaction to it that he had a few days ago. He watches the whole exchange with soft eyes.
When Goh leans back from the hug after a few minutes, Grookey runs and jumps to greet Florges as well.
“Of course, you would be happy too”, Goh softly says, petting Grookey a few times, before he leaves the Pokemon in their little reunion bubble.
“You went for all of that trouble for me?”, Goh quietly asks as he intertwines his and Ash’s hands together. He rubs the tears from his eyes with his free hand.
Trouble means Ash’s mess that he created, starting with lying to Goh, which led to the misunderstanding and overthinking, but Goh doesn’t seem to be upset about being lied to. At least now that he knows the truth behind Ash’s mysterious behavior and why he wasn't eager to come back. Ash just didn’t want to come back empty-handed.
Ash wanted to search Shalour City just to find his Floette, which could have led to searching other cities if Ash wouldn’t be able to find her there. All of it for Goh. So he could reunite with his friend. And it all makes Goh so loved.
“‘Course”, is all Ash replies, tightening the hold on Goh’s hand.
“Thank you”, Goh whispers as his head drops to Ash’s shoulder while they both watch Skiddo joining Grookey and Florges to play together.
A few minutes pass when Goh speaks again. “You know, I um, may have an anniversary gift for you too”.
“Yeah?”
“Yeah”, Goh whispers as he locks his gaze again with Ash’s brown eyes.
Ash just widely smiles as he says. “Then, I’m looking forward to finding out what it is”.
🌸
Goh and Ash hang out with Tracey and Gary in the park. When Tokio finally joins them, he winks to Goh mysteriously before he places a soft kiss on Gary’s lips, and Ash jokes something about and who is now sharing PDA with his partner?
Gary shot him a killing look, but Tokio just laughed and kissed Gary’s lips once more.
Chloe video calls Goh out of the blue, wishing him a Happy birthday, and proudly showing her five ribbons alongside Dawn’s.
“When is the Grand Festival? We’ll make sure to be there to cheer you on”, Goh says, excited, but Chloe just laughs. “Ah, we’re not sure yet, but we’ll let you know as quickly as possible”.
“I hope it won’t interfere with the Hoenn and Kalos League though”, Goh murmurs worriedly. He really wants to cheer on all of his friends to see them giving it their all. Ash squeezes his hand comfortingly when this time Ash gets a video call from Clemont. He’s not surprised to see him with Alain and Sawyer.
“The Hoenn League is next month”, Sawyer happily announces, and Goh promises that they will make sure they all will be there to support him.
“And um…”, Sawyer says shyly, blushing furiously from head to toe and Clemont speaks instead.
“I won’t be in Kalos for a while”, he says, and both boys widen their eyes in shock. “Clembot will take over the gym while I’ll be gone because…”
Because?, Goh thinks as he wishes his friend would already spill the beans. He feels what it is about when Clemont gently takes a hold of Sawyer's hand. Goh gives him an encouraging nod.
“...I don’t have a reason to stay in Lumiose for a while. I’ll be…traveling with Sawyer and Alain for some time”, Clemont finally announces as a pink blush covers his face.
Ash smirks to himself before he says. “I see that Sawyer won the battle. I’m so happy for you both”.
Goh smiles to himself as he sees both boys laugh happily, then Alain jokes about how he’s gonna be a third wheel, and Ash and Goh burst out laughing as well.
Goh’s parents call him as well, which isn’t that surprising, but still, Goh is surprised a little. He thanks them with a smile for the call, and Camille invites both Ash and Goh for a dinner somewhere next week, to which both boys immediately agree.
Then Jacq calls Goh later to wish the boy happy birthday as well, and saying that if they will be able to record the rest of the entries during the next three days, he would be able to launch the update of the app somewhere during the next week, and Goh’s eyes sparked at the idea.
“Just in time for our anniversary, huh?”, Ash whispers, hugging Goh from behind, and the boy leans comfortably into the embrace.
“Yeah, just in time for our anniversary”, Goh repeats, smiling widely, before he turns and places a soft kiss on Ash’s lips.
🌸
“Ash? Wake up”, Goh not-so-softly shakes Ash to wake him up from his slumber.
The boy groans something, but slowly opens his eyes. He looks sleepily at Goh, who just smiles at him kindly – he’s already wide awake like he would be up for a few hours already.
“Baby, is something wrong?”, Ash asks, rubbing the rest of the sleep from his eyes.
“Nothing’s wrong. Happy anniversary”, Goh whispers, and Ash takes a look at the nearest clock. It’s 5 a.m, which is past midnight, which means it is their anniversary already.
Ash blinks a few times to fully wake up, before he takes a hold of one of Goh’s hands and says a soft Happy anniversary, baby.
There’s a few minutes of silence in which they both just get lost into each other’s eyes. Goh gives a quick peck to Ash’s lips before he asks. “Could we– could we go to the park for a bit? I…want to give you your gift”.
“You sure are eager to start the day early today”, Ash teases, but leaves the bed anyway.
As they go to the park, Ash can tell that Goh is nervous for some reason, so he squeezes his hand to offer some comfort. Goh squeezes back, but lets go a few seconds earlier to hold onto the railing instead.
There’s a comfortable silence around them. Most of Goh’s Pokemon are still asleep, but that’s only a matter of time before they will all wake up and start their day. The nice and chilly breeze moves the trees left and right, and Ash takes a deep breath to fill his lungs with the fresh morning air. The sun starts to rise slowly, and the view is absolutely beautiful. Ash looks at it in awe, and he doesn’t blame Goh for waking him up that early to see it.
Goh takes a deep breath himself, but for a different reason, when he finally turns to face Ash and hands him a mysterious Pokeball.
“Don’t open it yet, please. First, I just need to– I planned what I want to say but– I think I already forgot and I’m gonna mess it up–”, Goh stutters nervously, and Ash puts his free hand gently on Goh’s heart.
“Shh, it’s fine. Tell me what you feel here”.
Goh closes his eyes for a second as he takes another deep breath. He opens his eyes to see encouraging brown eyes staring straight into his soul. He knows Ash won’t judge anything he will share.
“So um, inside is a Pokemon from the region where everything started for us last year. And I know that your first thought is Alola, but for me, it’s a little bit deeper than that. And yeah, of course we got together in Alola, but for me…it all started in the moment when the confetti was falling from the sky and I ran to you to kiss you in the middle of the Galar region’s arena. From that moment, I knew my life won’t ever be the same, and I was right. This year was the most magical year for me. We had a lot of up and down moments too, but even with that – you were always there for me, and I…wanted to thank you for that. I wanted to thank you for always being there for me, from every panic attack I had to every single Pokedex entry I recorded these past weeks. Even if you were away, I could feel your presence and support. That past week made me feel a lot…but what I felt the most is that I…don’t wanna ever let go. I wanna be forever with you, no matter what people think of us. I love you, Ash, and if I could…I would shout it from the rooftops. And I um, hope the Pokemon inside will help you to see that what I say it’s genuine”, Goh shares when he realizes tears are falling down his face.
Ash comes closer to wipe the tears from Goh’s eyes, before he kisses both of his cheeks. Goh whispers a soft thank you as he presses the button of the Pokeball that Ash is holding in his hand.
“An Applin, huh?”, Ash whispers, stunned, and Goh nods his head.
“So um, remember that time when we were exploring the Wild Area in Galar and I found an Applin, but Grookey scared it off and I never caught it?”, Goh asks, and Ash wordlessly nods his head.
“The truth is, I wanted to confess to you back then, so I thought that giving you an Applin would do the trick, because you know, it’s–”
“It’s a romantic gesture?”, Ash cuts him off, and Goh looks at him with widened eyes.
“Y-you know about it?”
“‘Course I do”, Ash laughs. “But I’m sorry, continue”.
Goh takes another deep breath before continuing. “But I didn’t catch an Applin back then, and I didn’t gain any more courage to confess. Then we separated to follow our dreams, and later we separated because I was fixated on my own journey, and later…the whole year happened where y-you weren’t messaging me, you were in Alola, and I was just– but then we reunited, and I never was happier, so um, I thought that since I couldn’t give you an Applin back when I really wanted to – now it’s a good time to do it. To thank you for a wonderful year. To thank you for taking care of me, and for being the most wonderful boyfriend I could ever ask for. Thank you, Ash. I’m so grateful to have you”.
Ash doesn’t say anything for a moment. He lets every single word sink in. Goh exhales a shaky breath when the silence lasts longer than he expected it would. He almost starts to overthink that he has said something wrong.
“I-I’m sorry. It sounded better in my head”, Goh apologizes, but Ash softly laughs as he finally says hello to the Applin he just got.
“Actually…I think you beat me to everything I wanted to say”, Ash chuckles, and Goh tilts his head.
“Goh, I could say a lot of words right now, but…I would have to repeat what you just told me, because I feel the same way, so let me just…”, Ash lifts Goh’s chin with his fingers before he leans forward and connects their lips together in a soft kiss.
“You’re the love of my life”, Ash whispers when he pulls away, and Goh intertwines their hands again.
Goh wants to reply when Gary shouts from the doorway that Jacq is calling about the app update, and Ash puts the Applin on his shoulder before they make their way towards the Laboratory.
“Did everyone wake up that early today?”, Ash jokes, and Goh laughs, but shakes his head. “No, Gary just knew that I’m planning to have that talk with you”.
“He knew?!”
“Yeah, he also knew about the Applin”, Goh explains, and Ash blinks a few times in confusion.
“How?”, is all Ash asks, and it’s Goh’s turn to be confused. “I mean, how exactly did you catch it? You were tied to Vermillion for the past weeks”, Ash repeats his question, and Goh nervously chuckles.
“Well, you see…”
🌸
Jacq and both Professors congratulate Goh for his hard work again when the update of the app launches. Now every single person in the world will hear his voice while checking out Pokemon’s entries. It still feels unreal for Goh, but he also feels a wave of pride for himself that he was able to be a part of such a big project.
Goh plans to call their families and friends to tell them the news, when Ash smirks as he says he has a better idea than calling everyone separately.
Goh looks at him confused, as Ash fishes his Rotom Phone from his pocket. He opens the familiar app, and he chooses the photo that Gary took of them last week – Ash hugging Goh from behind as they’re kissing while Goh was taking a break from recording some of the Kalos entries.
Goh frowns when he sees what Ash is about to do. He gently puts a hand on his own, not to stop him, but in an attempt to tell him to think this through.
“You don’t need to do it if you don’t want to”, Goh reassures comfortingly. “I know you’re still so unsure about this whole situation and a lot is still sinking in…”
“I was never more sure of anything in my life than this”, Ash smiles, pointing at the screen, and Goh nods his head to show that he understands. He puts his head on Ash’s shoulder as the boy types the caption.
Goh smirks when he sees what Ash has written. “You’re so sassy and I love it”.
Ash posts the photo with the caption My one and only, my lifeline. Happy anniversary, baby ❤️
P.S. Now you’re gonna hear my baby everyday with the newest Pokedex app update. He recites every single Pokemon entry. He was working so hard on it for the past two weeks. Enjoy 😜
🌸
Lights flash and we'll run for the fences
Let them say what they want, we won't hear it
Loose lips sink ships all the damn time
Not this time
Just grab my hand and don't ever drop it, my love
They are the hunters, we are the foxes and we run