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This is as close to the coast as he's been in awhile.
It's really cute, watching the way he splashes through the puddles that have gathered as the tides carve out shallow hills and pools in the sand. It's not as picturesque as the shores of Alola that he sees on everyone's honeymoon posts, or the ephemeral tranquility of Undella Bay, hell even the coast of Cinnabar is prettier than the rugged shores underneath the Driftveil Drawbridge, but this is where the two have decided to spend their evening, because it's quiet and they can be alone and truly, that's what they need right now.
It's the second time they've attended the Pokémon World Tournament. This year, Rosa came back for her gold medal.
Green is thoroughly convinced that either Iris or Lance or someone arranged for him and Red to be on the same side of the bracket this year, because while last year was a hell of a spectacle and brought a lot of well-deserved spotlight to the event, it was… definitely not Red's scene, with cameras and microphones and paparazzi swarming the place. Green ended up winning against Red this year by just a hair's breadth (before being promptly dethroned by Rosa, alas), and while Red considers that Green's own victory, he can't help but feel that Red just got a little unlucky with his critical hits, and that's how it turned out this way. It's a habit he's trying to work himself out of, this constant underlying fear of inferiority, but it's much easier said than done.
You'll always be enough for me, Green.
Red has said that on a few occasions since he's returned home from that damn mountain, and they're words that Green holds close to heart, for both their sakes.
Red lets out a little yelp, abruptly dragging Green out of his thoughts. He stumbles a bit toward Green, and it's now that Green realizes it's because the waves came up a little far for themselves, and now both of them are soaked up to their ankles.
"Oh, come on," Green rolls his eyes, smiles nonetheless. "It's not that cold."
"Still…"
"Still?"
"I just… didn't expect it."
"Mmhm. You gotta learn to expect that when you're walkin' on the beach."
"Mhm." Pause. "Not used to it yet."
"'s alright," and Green's voice lowers a bit, and the waves creep back out. "You'll get used to it."
Red just shrugs. "Dunno. Dunno if I'll ever be on the beach much, anyway."
"Aw, really? What about our Alola honeymoon, hm?"
Red laughs, a low and tender sound. His voice is still hoarse from the years of abusive winds on Mount Silver, and while a part of Green still feels a tint of bitterness when he knows the mountain has irreparably changed his rival, it also feels like a triumph of sorts. It's the fact that Red can speak, that he can laugh; damaged vocal cords be damned, Red is still Red and Green is eternally grateful that he never truly lost himself.
"We're not even married yet, Green."
"Well, are you considering not marrying me?"
Red rolls his eyes. "You can't get rid of me now. That's still awhile away, though."
"Mm… how far away?"
Green stops just beside one of the huge concrete pillars holding the bridge above them, and Red stops too, and they look at each other and refuse to exchange any further words because they're not really sure what to say on the matter. The pragmatics of a relationship are still… dicey, to say the least. You're stuck with me is mutual and it is understood and it is wanted and it is cherished, but things like labels and legal papers and rings and homes and families and retirement plans… They're still in their twenties, for crying out loud. These kinds of things just feel so far away.
Granted, Green knows that Agatha used to tell him about how she married his gramps before either of them even hit nineteen, but shit's different nowadays. They've also got this spotlight on them, too. For now, at least, they've decided to forego the attention any formal labels will bring.
"When do you… want to?" Red asks, doesn't ask the full question, because while commitment feels fine and good, putting it in stone feels so formal in a way that neither of them know how to handle.
"I dunno," and Green starts to walk again, finds comfort in how his footsteps harmonize with Red's own. "What're you thinkin'?"
"I'unno," Red answers just as indecisively. "I'm happy as long as I'm with you."
"I'm happy with that too," and Green gives him a lopsided smile, "but, y'know, if nothing else, the tax benefits from getting married don't sound half back either."
And Red laughs fully this time, loud and rough and clipping out as his ruined voice reminds them of the years lost to that damn mountain, but it is more a sign of Red's victory against all odds, and the arctic breeze in his laughter gets warmer every day.
"No, I'm serious, man!"
"I know, I know! That's just a funny way to put it."
"Mm…"
The ocean creeps up toward them again, and though it doesn't quite reach them this time, its winds scatter sea salt and sand in their hair and on their cheeks, and it makes Green remember the times he and Red used to go to Cinnabar before the rest of the world woke up. Red wanted to watch the sunrise, and Green would get bored, and so he would draw in the sand and he would talk and Red would listen and even when Red refused to speak, they'd consider it a conversation, because thoughts were shared and words were said.
The shadow of Driftveil Drawbridge stretches over them as the moon lights their evening from behind. The air is cool but the silence is comfortable.
"How long do you wanna be a gym leader?" Red asks a few minutes after their conversation lulled, and honestly, Green hadn't really thought of that before.
"I mean… hm. Half've it depends on how long Lance'll keep me around," Green notes. "I could take a note outta Pryce's book and just kick it in the gym 'til I die - and I guess that was always kinda the plan, but… y'know."
"What do I know?"
"That was the plan before you came home."
"Mm." Pause. "Sorry if I messed that up."
"Don't be sorry, Red. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me."
He - he kinda meant to say something a bit sillier, you're the best way I could've had my plans interrupted, but the mouthful of something light and half-baked in his head stumbled and rolled and turned far more earnest than he meant it to be.
"...you too."
It's nice to know Red feels the same, though.
"Sometimes… "
Red starts the thought quietly, and Green is sure to keep his mouth shut while Red speaks, because that tone means I have a lot of things I want to say and it's going to take awhile for me to get it all out, so please be patient with me.
Green can be patient. He waited years for Red to come home, after all.
"Sometimes I worry I wasn't really a good rival." And that's all he says at first, and Green is not one to wait around, but he knows how to be patient. He only gives Red a look of please, go on, but Red's eyes are fixed on the sand. "Too much spotlight. I think you deserved more. You know more about it, too," it being battles, training, whatever, "so it felt weird whenever I won… And I know what you said about that," that being the fact that Red's intuition is just as valuable as Green's strategy, "but people don't talk about it when they talk about battles. So it feels weird."
A moment of silence, as Green waits to see if he's been patient enough to offer up any consolation.
"Is this… the right way to battle?"
Green's expression softens, and he slows his pace to hold Red's hand, match his pace, look him in the eyes. "Where'd all that come from? Was it that last PWT battle we had?"
Red looks around absently, hesitates for a beat. "Kinda. Not mainly, though. More the intermission talk."
"What, when we were chatting with some've the other contestants?"
"Mhm. Strategy stuff." Pause. "Still confusing."
His words start to clip, sentences crumbling from sonnets into half-written haikus. Green hates to hear Red sound so melancholic because it reminds him of the years they honestly both want to forget, but the mountain lives in Red's voice, and it's not an era that any amount of apologies or forgiveness can truly wipe clean.
"I mean…" and Green is careful to pick the right words, the right battle to help Red fight. "If you wanna learn more strategic things, I can give you some pointers, but I really do think you know more than you give yourself credit for, y'know? And I mean," and Red is still looking down, so Green looks down too, stares at the damp cuffs of his pants, "I guess that's kinda my fault for always saying you only win 'cause you've got a bit of luck and a lotta intuition, but… y'know, you do a lotta stuff right without thinking too hard about it."
"Mm."
"But like - if you're bothered by, like… you're not doubting yourself, are you?"
A beat of silence passes before Red answers slowly, sounding out the words carefully, as if he's proofreading them as he speaks. "Not really that. I just don't really know what I'm doing, and I don't know if that makes me a good rival or not."
"Y'know, Red," and Red has stopped walking, and so too does Green, to keep their hands clasped, fingers interlaced, "you're a good rival because you make me wanna keep going. That's the real hallmark of being rivals. Sometimes you see these friends who call each other rival and one of 'em is always a good mile ahead of the other, but as long as they keep each other motivated, they're totally fulfilled with what they've got, y'know? And you, Red," and Green takes his free hand, tilts Red's face up, leans in as if to kiss him but honestly he just wants to look at him and he wants to be close, "are what's kept me goin' all these years."
"...oh."
"Make sense?"
"Mhm."
"Besides," he adds, "I dunno if Silver's ever won a battle against Ethan, but they still call each other rivals, yeah? Hell, I'd say if Silver's team had more years of healthy training, he really would be the stronger one in the pair, but he spent a lotta time doing some pretty ugly training 'cause someone taught him that Pokémon are tools."
"Mm." Another pause. "I hope we never see him again."
Him being Giovanni. "If we do, we'll kick his ass - if Silver doesn't beat us to the punch, that is."
Red grins. "Honestly, as much as I don't like him either, I think Silver needs the catharsis more than I do."
"Yeah? Maybe you two can team up, if it ever comes down to it. I bet Sil could learn a lot from you."
Red rolls his eyes. "I don't know strategy, Green. Don't rub it in."
"He already knows that, y'know. What he needs to learn is intuition. Sil's more of a visual learner anyway."
"Hm… we'll see."
"I really do mean that," Green murmurs, leans a little closer, and Red's eyes flutter shut. "He could stand to learn something from you. I'll teach Ethan to think, you teach Silver to feel, and they'll be well on their way. Who knows? Maybe you'll learn something along the way, eh?"
"Maybe."
"Also - "
"Shut up."
For just a split second Green isn't sure how he's annoyed Red, but it's a little clearer when Red tangles his free hand in Green's hair, pushes him into a greedy kiss, and Green allows it, because he's never been one to turn Red down. He's a little sad to feel Red's hand slip away from his, but Red arms wrap around him and pull him close, and Green feels that's a suitable replacement.
Red's lips are hot against his own, his body a welcome warmth in the face of the night's breeze. There was a time Red would feel cool to the touch, when he'd stay out on the peak of Mount Silver challenging trainers and training his team and letting the frostbite come close enough to bite at the tips of his ears and nose and fingers, and Green would always think you feel like a damn corpse, and he'd place his fingers against Red's neck to make sure his heart was still beating right. Neither of them ever made any mention of the gesture after the first incident, to make sure you don't have hypothermia, you dumbass, and Red nodded, and from then on it was a silent routine.
Much of their time together has been defined by silence, both the bitter bouts of noiseless nights on Mount Silver and comfortable lulls in conversation in bed as the sun threatens to rise when they'd spent too much time awake that night. Green is one to talk and Red is one to listen, but sometimes they slip into something more like -
"Ah - Red - "
- more like this, where all thoughts and all words are abandoned, and it becomes about feeling, touch and sentiment bundled up in the same gestures in a way that can't be explained or contemplated. Sometimes their silence becomes impossibly present, in the absence of words where words are unnecessary comes simply the feeling of each other's company, bodies pressed together and lips drawn in magnetically, sometimes that's plenty more than enough, sometimes it's all they want and it's all they need.
So Green doesn't focus on how he got pinned against the rough pillar of the bridge, or how Red got into his lap, or how they'll have to wash the sand out of their clothes when they get back to their hotel room in Undella Town. He just feels the way they sink into the sand and the calluses of Red's hands against his cheeks.
"Hahah! When'd you get so bold?"
Red just looks at him for a moment, blushes, looks away. "Well, you ruined it now."
Green can't help but laugh, and he pulls Red into him, and Red nestles into the crook of his neck, and his breath warms Green's skin. Green can feel Red's heart racing against his chest, and Green's pretty sure Red can feel the reciprocity.
"...you're warm, Green."
"So are you." Pause. "I like that you're not constantly an ice cube anymore."
"Mm… hasn't been like that for awhile."
"I know, I know. Still, it makes me happy."
"...me too."
It's not exactly the most comfortable position in the world, and Green has a feeling his back is gonna hurt when he goes to stand back up, and with the way Red is tangled around him something is bound to be numb on his end, but they are close and they are together and Green can't bother to think about the future.
Maybe that's part of why when are we gonna get married is such an odd concept, he thinks. Green has always been one to look toward his next destination, the next adventure, yes, he's someone who looks toward some kind of future, but he's also still someone who's… present, nonetheless, he's not sure how else to explain it. Green's idea of present is here and now and three hours from now, while Red's idea of present tends to be here and now and three hours ago, and between the two of them they can paint their slice of here with you and they can cherish every second of it.
The two of them are very much beings of the present nowadays. Looking toward the future, though… maybe -
"I think," Green hums, leaning against Red, squeezing him just a little closer, just because he can, "we'll figure it out when it's time."
"Hm?"
"Getting married."
"Mhm." Pause. "Green?"
"Hm?"
"Will you marry me?"
"Oh, shut up! You can't try to beat me to the punch like that!"
"Oh, can't I?"
"I'm gonna say no if you keep that attitude up, you brat."
Red pulls back and leans into Green's face until they're nose to nose, and he speaks in that low hum of a voice that makes Green lose his place in space. "If I really did get down on one knee right now, would you really be able to resist me out of spite?"
Green tries, utterly fails to keep from blushing. "I mean…"
"Hm?"
"...man, it's not fair when you get this flirty."
The persona shatters with Red's giggle, and Green takes the moment to get a bit of an advantage, pulls Red into a kiss and sits up until they're sitting in a position that's decidedly less awkward. He places his hand on Red's cheek and Red leans into the touch, sighs contentedly, eyes shut and smilingly peacefully.
"You gotta at least let me win this, since you beat me at everything else."
"I don't think you can win a proposal, Green."
"Well, y'know what I mean. B'sides, I've already got ideas on what kind of rings I think would be nice."
"I already have a ring."
Green stares dumbfoundedly at Red. "Are you fucking serious?"
"Mhm."
"What?"
"Yeah. It's one of those little spider rings we used to get at arcades."
Green fucking cackles, and he's been told from time to time that it's annoying when he laughs that shrilly, but Red laughs too and makes no mention of the tone, and they pay the sand no mind as they flop back down onto the ground.
"Yeah, our damn engagement rings will be glow-in-the-dark spiders, and our wedding rings will be Ring Pops."
"I like Ring Pops."
"They get sticky real fast, though."
"Not if you bite them."
"You're a menace, Red."
Red just hums, tilts his head toward Green, and Green mimics the motion, and they stay silent while the waves crash some yards away, and the sand blows over their heads, and the smell of brine sweeps all around them.
"...what were you thinking, Green?"
"Hm?"
"About the rings."
"It's supposed to be a surprise, dummy."
"Ngh…"
"No whining, Red. Besides," he adds, because he can already guess what Red's worry is, based on how damn hard it is to buy him new clothes, "I wouldn't get you anything that'd feel that bad on your hand. You could put it on a necklace chain too, if you really wanted a day without too much texture."
Red peers up at him sweetly, in a way that's just undeniably Red. "You wouldn't be mad?"
"Of course not. As long as I'm with you, I'm happy with anything."
"Except for spider rings."
"Okay, to be fair - "
"I know, I know." Red kisses Green's cheek, and he accepts that to be the end of that. "You taste salty."
"Yeah, that happens when you spend a lotta time by the coast."
"Mm." Pause. "How often do you go to the beach?"
"Eh, every so often here 'n here." His answer is a bit noncommittal, but the night feels easy with Red, and the words come more readily. "I used to go down to Cinnabar more often while you were gone. Especially after the volcano blew, it was just a nice quiet place to get outta the way of, like… everything, I guess."
"Mhm."
"...I really missed you."
"I missed you too."
And he lets Red take his hand, or maybe they both reached for each other, he's not even sure, but his fingers feel warmer against Red's skin than they do against the sand.
"...we're gonna need to do some laundry when we get back."
"Eh."
"No, not eh, we're like, covered in sand and saltwater at this point."
"It's fine."
"It is not fine," Green laughs. "I don't care if you think you can spend weeks wearing the same thing, we have access to a washing machine and we're gonna use the damn thing!"
"Fine, fine," Red sighs. "Chores are boring."
"I don't mind 'em," Green comments. "It's somethin' to do."
"You really don't like sitting still for too long, huh?"
"Oh, you think? What gave it away?"
"I dunno. Everything?"
Green rolls his eyes. "Astute observation, Red."
Red starts to say something, but another rogue wave crawls up the shore and splashes them, and Red pretty much shrieks and clambers away, and while Green feels bad because he can't quite tell if Red was just startled by the cold water of if he's actually scared, he's honestly adorable.
"Oh, fuck off!" Red half-shouts, and he's smiling, shaking the water off his hat, and Green knows everything is alright.
"Oh, come on! You know you'd be lost without me."
The low light grows dimmer as the moon ducks behind the clouds, and in the darkest shade of night, Green straddles Red and leans in for another kiss. Neither of the rivals pay any mind to the water pooling around them as they kneel in the sand, or the sound of people passing by overhead, or the thunder that rolls loud and long as the summer sky suddenly threatens to break into a storm.
"Mm…" Red pulls away from Green just enough to speak, but no further. "Should go home. 's gonna rain."
"Yeah?" Green asks. Red just hums affirmatively, stays poised against Green for another kiss. "I guess that's a good idea. Wouldn't want you getting sick or anything."
But for a moment they remain still, not quite kissing but certainly giving no more space to one another. Sometimes it is enough to be close, sometimes it's all they want and it's all they need.
Their only other need tonight is the need to dry off when they make it back to their hotel room, dripping with ocean waves and summer rain that hit them sooner than they anticipated. Red claims he's still cold after they've changed, and Green knows he's lying, but he accepts it as an excuse to pull Red under the blankets, an excuse to hold him close. It's not like they need excuses anymore, but those old habits die hard; they are as much lovers as they are rivals, and even these tender moments become a bit of a game, and the victory is always mutual.
(Red is gracious enough to let Green properly propose first, a few years down the line, and Green continues to flaunt that fact for years after.)
(Red doesn't mind. It's cute, he says, and Green curses him for still making him feel like he's just noticed he has a crush on Red all over again.)