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“Would you stop that?” Goh complained, feeling Ash’s arms wrapped around his torso
“But I’m really comfortable here!” the trainer replied, putting his head above the researcher’s shoulder
Goh made an effort to hide his blush and commented
“Me too, but I came all the way to Johto to keep capturing Pokemon, remember?”
“I do, but I’m not here to capture any Pokemon” his boyfriend replied quickly, leaving a swift kiss on his cheek
“Oh, cut it off!”
“Nope” Ash insisted “Besides, who says you can’t capture Pokemon and be with me at the same time?”
“You’re insufferable, Ash Ketchum”
“I love you too, Goh” the trainer replied with a huge grin
Behind them, Goh could hear Pikachu, Cinderace and Sobble snickering at his expense.
“Is in these moments where I wonder why did I confess to you”
“I’m glad you did, but I’d really wanted for you to not take so long”
“So long?” the researcher complained “I met you less than six months ago!”
Ash started to play with his boyfriend’s hair and replied:
“I think I remembered it had something to do with my bravery and kind heart”
“Stop it”
“You mentioned my cute cheek marks, too”
“And I also said you’re the sweetest guy I’ve ever knew” Goh added, looking at the boy of his dreams “Now, can I go back to catching?”
Ash made a fake pout, so Goh gave him a quick peck on the lips
“Please”
Before the trainer could retort, Cinderace and Pikachu started to shout at their trainers.
“What’s wrong guys?”
Both Pokemon pointed above them and the boys stared at the intruder floating in front of them.
“Biii!”
“That’s a…” Goh muttered
“Celebi” Ash completed
“And it’s a shiny one!”
Without losing a single second, Goh threw a Pokeball at the pink creature, which avoided the item easily and laughed at the humans in front of it. He repeated the action, but Celebi dissapeared quickly.
Only to show up out of nowhere a second later and float directly towards Ash, before Goh could reach to him, the trainer dissapeared in a cloud of smoke.
And when he was about to ask his Pokemon for assistance, Celebi repeated the action with all of them.
“Why?” Goh shouted, realizing he was alone
Or at least, that’s what he thought. A shadow appeared behind him, and the researcher reacted quickly, confronting the presence.
Goh raised an eyebrow, intrigued; it was only a little kid, silently kneeled down.
“Hey…”
The kid didn’t reply, and Goh realized he was crying. Then, he noticed his clothes. He was wearing a red and white cap and a blue vest, it reminded him of…
Another sob interrupted his thoughts and he put a hand on the boy’s shoulder, trying to calm him down. The boy looked at him, crawled back in fear, and Goh froze.
That was Ash, a younger version of him, but it still was Ash…
“Who are you?” the little Ash demanded
Goh’s brain quickly calculated this was one of Celebi’s jokes, he once met the future version of Ash when he was a kid, so this time he supposed everything worked the other way around.
As if on cue, the time traveler Pokemon appeared in front of him and smiled.
“Take him back” Goh ordered
“What’s that?” Ash questioned
Celebi took advantage of the situation and disappeared once more.
“That was Celebi…” Goh normally explained
“What’s a Celebi?”
“You don’t know?” Goh retorted “You are suppose to know everything about Pokemon”
“But… I’m only ten, I don’t know anything yet… I was on my way to Professor’s Oak lab to get my…”
“To get your first Pokemon?” Goh completed
“I want to go back… I don’t know what I’m doing here, but…”
“Don’t worry, kid” Goh reassured, kneeling in front of the boy “I promise you will go back in no time, and be ready, because today you’re gonna get the best Pokemon in the whole world!”
“Really?” Ash questioned “Is it gonna be Charmander, or a Bulbasaur, or maybe a Squirtle?”
“Is a surprise” Goh commented, seeing how Celebi appeared in front of him, he looked at the little boy, ordering the psychic creature to get him back to his own time.
Ash saw Celebi approached him and reached for Goh’s waist, hugging him tightly. The researcher smiled at the action.
“Is okay… You’re gonna be fine…” he whispered
“I… believe you” Ash muttered, before disappearing
Goh got up and smiled, happy to have helped his (future) boyfriend, and immediately got knocked down by another version of Ash. This one was wearing a red and black hat, and a blue shirt with a grey hoodie.
And also, much to Goh’s surprise, was completely soaked.
“Where’s Pikachu?” the trainer shouted, grabbing Goh by the shoulders
“What?”
“I said, where’s Pikachu?” the trainer repeated, exasperated “We were just riding Kyogre’s back after saving him and Groudon, I was in the middle of the ocean with my buddy, and…”
“You were riding Kyogre’s back?” Goh asked, shocked
“Yeah! Now, where did you…”
“I don’t have your friend, but I know how you can find him again!”
“How…”
“You just have to…” Goh looked around and finally spotted Celebi, he frowned at the Pokemon, and the time traveler gave him an apologetic look “wait for a second, yeah?”
“I don’t like waiting” the trainer complained
“I know” Goh replied, chuckling “You just do that for a few seconds, and you’ll be with Pikachu in no time”
“O-kay…” Ash said, and then added “I’m cold…”
“You did mention being in the middle of the ocean” Goh commented, hugging the boy’s back
“I was…” Ash said, closing his eyes and putting his cheek on Goh’s left hand
“This feels nice…” he muttered, before disappearing
“No more Ash’s” Goh ordered to Celebi
However, the time traveler wasn’t ready to obey that command, not yet… A few seconds later, another Ash appeared in front of Goh, turning his back against him.
After realizing he looked a little more mature in his black and white shirt, and that his cap was very similar to the one he was wearing before, the researcher noticed the boy’s clenched fists.
“Everything okay?” he questioned
Ash turned around quickly, and Goh detected a strange mixture of feelings in his eyes.
“Fuck Paul” the trainer stated
“I’m sorry… What?” Goh questioned, unable to believe his sweet boy just said such a nasty word
“I hate that guy” the trainer further explained, crossing his arms “He thinks he’s better than everyone, but he’s just a jerk!”
“I see…” Goh said, realizing Ash had been dealing with one of his past opponents “Don’t worry, you’ll beat him and teach him a lesson”
“But that’s the thing!” the trainer shouted “I can’t beat him! We’ve battled so many times already, and to top it off, he released his Chimchar! Who does that?”
“And that Chimchar…” Goh questioned, knowing the full story
“He’s with me now, but…”
“Don’t worry about Paul” Goh interrupted “You’re gonna beat him in the moment that matters the most, you’ll see”
“Really?” Ash questioned, and Goh saw his eyes were shining with hope now, so he simply nodded
“This is not the first time I met you, is it?” the trainer added, and Goh blushed realizing he remembered him, so he denied with his head
“What’s your name?” the trainer asked
Goh considered that he could change the timeline if he revealed his identity to Ash right now, but, Ash was Ash, and he would never lie to him.
“I’m Goh” he finally confessed
“Thank you Goh” the boy said, taking the researcher’s hand and placing a kiss on it
“What was that for?” Goh wondered, completely blushed
Ash simply shrugged
“A thing I saw Drew did with May when he thanked her for something a while ago, I thought I could try it with you, since you helped me so much…”
Before he could add something else, that version of Ash Ketchum vanished
Only to be immediately replaced by another version of him, this one sporting a blue and white jacket, however his cap was slightly different, white and red, with a bigger pokeball symbol.
“Hey…” he simply said
“What happened this time?” Goh asked
“Nothing happened”
Goh denied with his head
“I can see right through you Ash, you can’t lie to me”
“I don’t remember telling you my name”
“Don’t change the topic” Goh ordered, realizing the trainer was right “And tell me… What happened?”
“I lost my Gym Battle against Lenora”
Goh remained silent, so the trainer continued
“It was my first battle in the Unova Region!”
“Oh…”
“I was so ready! I tried to…”
He closed his mouth, looking away
“Tell me more, please”
“It’s just… She defeated me in such a stupid way, she destroyed my strategy since the very first minute and I… felt useless”
“But you’re not”
“Maybe Iris is right…”
Goh frowned, knowing exactly what Ash was referring to
“You’re not a little kid, Ash Ketchum!”
The future Champion looked at the other boy, intrigued
“You have your own way to battle, you always had, you know how to surprise your opponents, and even if some people believe that makes you childish or immature, that’s a part of you…”
He doubted for a second, but confirmed:
“It’s a part you should never let go”
“You think so?”
“I’m sure of it” the researcher confirmed, smiling widely
Ash launched to his arm and kissed his cheek, causing him to blush hard
“Thanks Goh!”
Before returning to his time, he added
“You always know how to cheer me up…”
As soon as he was gone, Goh touched his own cheek, murmuring to himself:
“I guess he’s always been a romantic in some way…”
A second later, another Ash appeared in front of him, he looked more serious, and even his outfit (a blue and white shirt with a red and white cap) made him look a little more adult.
However, that appearance faded as soon as the trainer smiled warmly at him, his cheeks acquired a deep shade of pink, and his eyes were glistening with anticipation.
“Ash?”
The trainer took a step towards the other boy
“Ash?” the researcher repeated
The other boy simply tip-toed in front of him, placing a quick, soft kiss on his lips, Goh considered that he technically wasn’t cheating on his boyfriend, so he enjoyed the sensation for a few seconds, finally separating from him.
“W-why?” Goh stuttered
“A friend of mine, Serena, just kissed me before leaving”
Goh made a jealous pout and Ash chuckled at his attitude
“And I was wondering how would it feel to kiss you” he emphasized
“So, how does it feel?”
“Better” the trainer confirmed, touching Goh’s face and fading away
“Goh!” a new Ash shouted next, tackling the researcher into the ground and wrapping his arms around his waist
“Ash…” the other boy replied, looking at the Alolan outfit of his partner and believing all this time-jumping was about to end “What’s up?”
“I just came back from the Ultra Space! We rescued Lillie’s Mother!”
“Congratulations…” the researched said, patting the boy’s back
“I thought I’d never see my friends again… It was really dangerous…”
“You’re safe now, though”
“I am, but I really want to…”
He didn’t say another word, so Goh pinched his cheek, forcing him to continue
“What do you want?”
“I wanted to see you again… I’m so glad that you’re here, that I get to spend more time with you…”
“You barely know me”
Ash put his head on Goh’s chest, feeling his accelerated heartbeat, and smiled
“That’s the other thing I want…”
“Huh?”
“To know you better, longer, to feel you closer…”
“That time is coming up, believe me”
“How do you know?” the trainer asked, looking at the other boy
“I just know…” Goh whispered, ruffling his partner’s hair
Wrapping his arms around Goh’s waist, the trainer muttered
“This feels… so nice”
Goh didn’t say another word, watching his boyfriend vanishing from his sight…
After that, Celebi floated gently towards Goh, and the boy got up, pointing his finger at the creature.
“Now bring my boyfriend and all of my friends back” he commanded
“Biii” the time travelling Pokemon replied, smiling
“Bring all of them back!”
“Goh!” a multitude of voices shouted at the same time, and the boy’s face lost all of its color
The “original” version of Ash kneeled in front of Goh and hugged his waist, smiling at the warm emanating from his body.
“I missed this sensation” he whispered
“I missed this too” the Ash travelling through Hoenn said, putting Goh’s palm on his own cheek
“I’m so happy to see you again!” the Ash from Sinnoh shouted, kissing Goh’s hand over and over again
“Me too!” the Ash from Unova agreed, caressing Goh’s chin and obtaining a deep blush in return
“Can I get another kiss?” the Kalosian Ash questioned, looking directly at Goh’s sweaty face
“If all of you are going to get a kiss, at least I want a hug!” Alolan Ash shouted, laughing and wrapping his arms around his boyfriend, along with his Kanto counterpart
“THAT’S ENOUGH!” Another Ash shouted, and Goh’s heart leaped as soon as he realized it was his Ash, looking at his doppelgangers with the most jealous face the researcher ever saw.
The other versions took a step back and Ash launched towards his boyfriend, hugging him and pouting
“I… can explain” Goh said, his face red as a tomato
“We can explain!” the other six Ashes said at the same time
“You’ll get to meet Goh in the future, and share many happy moments with him” the trainer considered “But for now, he’s mine”
And before anyone could retort something, Celebi appeared once more, returning the other humans to their respective times, switching their places with Cinderace, Sobble and Pikachu.
“By the way, you don’t have to explain anything” Ash whispered into Goh’s ear, making him shiver “I remember everything that happened here”
“You… remember?”
“All of it” Ash confirmed
Goh’s face turned into an angry frown
“You mean you took SIX months to reciprocate my feelings? After knowing me for YEARS?”
“I…” Ash doubted
“FOR YEARS?” Goh repeated, louder this time
“In my defense, I…”
Goh crossed his arms
“I love you?” Ash said, rubbing his arm
“I love you too, you time-travelling idiot” Goh said, kissing his own, real boyfriend for the first time that day…