Chapter Text
“Gary, you didn’t add a plus one with your RSVP,” Goh says from the couch, turning toward the kitchen to hold up the card in question.
Gary shrugs from his spot at the stove, tossing the vegetables in the wok with ease. Ash is perched on the counter next to him, watching the process with fascination even though Gary comes over to make dinner for them at least once a week, citing the fact that they’d probably live on frozen pizza and takeout if he didn’t save them from themselves. The dark-haired trainer frowns at Gary, leaning into his space a little as he asks, “You’re not bringing a date, Gar?”
“Nope,” Gary says, tone light even as he gives his childhood friend a warning look.
“I just don’t get it.” Ash sighs. “You have people falling all over you wherever you go and you don’t pay them any attention.”
Gary laughs. “I’m too busy to date, Ashy Boy. You know that.”
“You’re going to have to settle down sometime, mister,” Goh tells him, coming in to join them. He leans against Ash when the latter wraps an arm around his shoulders and presses a kiss to his cheek. “All you do is work, sleep, and hang out with us. Don’t you want to find someone?”
“Eventually, I guess,” Gary says with a roll of his eyes. “But I have other things on my mind at the moment. I wish you two wouldn’t obsess about my love life.”
“We just want you to be happy,” Ash says, giving Gary his best Earnest Face™.
“I appreciate the concern, but I am happy,” Gary assures him as he switches off the flames. “And I’d be even happier if you stopped worrying.”
“Well, I’ll save a place setting at the reception,” Goh says, reaching into the cabinet above Ash for plates. “In case you bump into the love of your life between now and the wedding.”
Gary shrugs. “Doubtful, but you do you.”
Goh sighs, sharing a loaded look with Ash before they sit down at the table.
Clearly, it’s going to be harder to convince Gary than they thought.
—
“The waitress seems nice,” Goh comments, nudging Gary under the table with his foot. “She also seems really interested in you.”
Gary shrugs. “Okay.”
“You should ask for her number,” Goh suggests, giving Gary an encouraging smile.
Gary rolls his eyes. “Goh, I’m not interested in her.”
Goh deflates, stirring the ice in his drink with the straw. “You don’t seem to be interested in anyone.”
“Oh, well, I wouldn’t say that,” Gary says, tone light.
“What about that Jared guy? From the bar on—”
“For the last time, I’m not looking to date anyone right now, okay?”
“Gary, you’re twenty-eight and you’ve never had a serious relationship,” Goh says. “You can see why we’re concerned.”
“Goh, please. I have like a million things to do when we get back to the lab. Can we not do this right now?” He gives Goh a teasing look as he plucks the invoice Goh is perusing from his hands. “And anyway, you should be more worried about what the florist is doing with your color scheme. Who coordinated these? My grandpa?”
Goh scowls. “I picked out those flowers, which you already know because you were there.”
Gary hums. “Whatever, old man. Next time I need someone to decorate for a retirement party, I know who to call.”
“Ass,” Goh mutters.
Gary just laughs.
—
“To these two idiots,” Tracey yells, raising his beer in the air in a sloppy toast. “Who are so grossly in love it makes the rest of us want to vomit.”
“Hear, hear!” Several of the table’s other occupants raise their drinks in agreement.
“Oh, fuck off,” Ash says, but he’s laughing.
“Don’t worry, Tracey,” Goh says, giving the watcher a pat on the hand. “It’s like we keep telling Gary: you’ll find someone to put up with your annoying ass someday too.”
Tracey chokes on his beer, staring at the couple with wide eyes. “What the fuck, guys?!”
Ash takes a long pull from his beer. “What’s wrong, Trace? You can dish it out but you can’t take it, huh?”
Tracey pulls a face. “I’m not talking about me, dumbass. Do you really say that to Gar—”
“Sorry I’m late!” Gary calls, dropping into an empty chair next to Dawn. He yawns, stretching his arms above his head. “A few of the Totodile eggs we’ve been studying at the lab hatched today, and of course, no one else wanted to give them their checkups.”
“Really?” Dawn asks. “Why not?”
Gary holds up his hands. They’re littered with little scabs. “Totodiles bite. A lot.”
Chloe winces from her spot on Dawn’s other side. “Yeah, they’re cute little things, but they investigate their surroundings with their mouth, so…”
“Gary, ya finally made it!” Ash calls from the other end of the table.
Gary tosses him an easy salute. “Better late than never. Right, Ashy?”
Ash leans over Tracey to get closer to Gary as he says, urgent, “I guess, but you gotta hurry!”
“With what?”
Ash points to a man sitting near the end of the bar. “He’s about to leave!”
Gary frowns. “So? Do I know him or something? He doesn’t look familiar.”
“No, but we’ve been scoping him out since we got here,” Goh says. “Definitely the cutest single guy here, and he’s gay. You should ask him out before he leaves.”
The entire table goes silent as all the occupants look between Gary, Ash, and Goh like they can’t decide which end of the table is more likely to erupt into violence.
Gary shifts uncomfortably in his chair, aware that everyone’s attention is now on him. “Pretty sure I asked you guys to stop trying to set me up with people.”
“Yeah, but come on, Gar, look at that guy!” Ash exclaims. “What’s not to like?”
“Right? He’s hot!” Goh adds, enthusiastic.
“I’m not interested,” Gary snaps, ignoring Ash and Goh’s indignant spluttering as he turns back to his conversation with Dawn and Chloe, red staining his cheeks.
Goh huffs, frustrated. “Whatever, Gary. If you want to turn down every available person on the planet, who are we to stop you?”
Gary opens his mouth to reply, a furious glint in his eye. After a moment, he seems to think better of it and pushes his chair out. “I—sorry, guys. I had a really long day and I’m more tired than I thought. I should probably—” Gary stands, shoving his hands in his pockets and studiously avoiding eye contact with Ash and Goh. “I think I need to hit the hay early tonight. See you later.”
He practically flees the bar.
Goh frowns. “He… left?”
“Of course he did,” Chloe snaps, glaring at the couple. “You just humiliated him in front of everyone.”
“Humil—Chloe, what are you talking about?” Goh rolls his eyes. “We’re just trying to get him to put more effort into his love life.”
“Wow,” Brock says, eyebrows lifting. “I—just, wow. Are you sure you two should be the ones doing that? It just—seems a little callous, all things considered.”
“What do you mean?” Ash asks, looking around the table at his friends’ shocked faces. “Seriously, what? Why are you looking at us like that?”
“I get that maybe it’s uncomfortable for you guys, to be on the receiving end of Gary’s—” Horace breaks off, awkward. “But he’s clearly trying to minimize how much it affects you. I—I don’t think you should try to rush his feelings, is all.”
“Yeah, if you're really that bothered by it, you should spend some time apart,” Dawn suggests. “Take a break. Y’know, before one of you says or does something you’ll regret later.”
“If you say so,” Ash says dubiously. He shares a baffled look with Goh.
Their friends are clearly losing it.
—
“No, if we move Diantha there, then your dad and Professor Oak can’t sit together,” Goh argues, pointing to the seating chart.
Chloe rolls her eyes and stabs a spot on the paper with her finger. “Right, but you have May and Drew over here with Korrina, and Misty over here with Brock and Olivia. They need to sit together.”
“Why?” Ash asks, dropping onto the loveseat next to Gary.
“Because they’re dating, Ashy,” Gary says, giving the other man’s legs a shove when he tries to put them in Gary’s lap. “Do you pay attention to anyone when they talk to you?”
Ash frowns at Gary’s frosty attitude, tucking his feet under himself. He wonders if Gary is still mad about the other night at the bar. The researcher has been a little terse since then, but he seemed mostly back to normal today. “Gary, I know May and Drew are dating. They’ve been together for like six years. What’s that got to do with Misty?”
“May, Drew, and Misty are dating,” Gary corrects.
“Wait, what?” Goh looks up. “Since when?”
“Almost a year now,” Dawn says with a laugh. “Wow, you guys really are oblivious.”
“I—don’t understand.” Ash furrows his brow. “There’s three of them. How are they dating?”
“They’re in a poly relationship,” Chloe explains when no one else offers a response, with the weary patience of a parent forced to explain adult concepts to a child. “Basically, it's when more than two people are dating or married to each other.”
“Why would anyone want to do that?” Ash asks, letting out a high-pitched giggle that sounds strained even to his own ears. Something about the idea makes his insides squirm with nervous energy, but he can’t quite put his finger on why. “Keeping track of one person is hard enough.”
Goh gives him a sharp look. “First of all, you don’t keep track of anyone. I keep track of you, which is a full-time job, I’ll have you know. Drew’s probably crying tears of joy that he’s not solely responsible for keeping May out of trouble anymore.”
“Are you saying you want help keeping me out of trouble?” Ash teases.
Goh snorts. “Nah, I already have Gary to help keep you in line when I can’t. Right, Gary?”
Gary chokes on his sip of tea.
Ash laughs. “That’s true. You’re a real pal, Gar."
Gary gives him a thin smile. “Yep, that’s me. Such a pal.”
“Anyway,” Dawn interjects, loud. “How about this weather we’ve been having lately? Crazy, right?” Her laugh has a touch of mania to it.
Goh looks out the window, raising an eyebrow at the sunny climate outside. “Uh, sure?”
“Need to warm up my tea,” Gary mumbles, quickly leaving the room.
“What is wrong with you two?!” Chloe hisses, looking furious. “Did you just wake up one morning and decide to be total assholes?!”
“What do you mean?!” Goh demands. “We aren’t doing anything!”
“Whatever,” Chloe mutters, turning back to the seating chart even though she’s clearly still seething. “Why don’t we move Serena and Diantha to Korrina’s table, and then we can move May and Drew to Brock’s table.”
“Yeah, that should work,” Goh agrees, jotting down the changes on the paper.
The door to the apartment opens. Goh looks up just in time to see Gary disappear through it before it slams closed behind him. “Gary? Where are you going?!”
The door remains closed, offering no answers to Goh’s inquiry.
“He didn’t even say he was leaving,” Ash says. “I wonder why.”
“Gee, I wonder,” Dawn says, voice thick with sarcasm.
“I hope he’s okay,” Goh mutters. “We can text him later.”
Chloe scoffs. “For his sake, maybe you should leave him alone for a while.”
“This is hard for him to begin with,” Dawn agrees. “You aren’t helping, if that’s what you think you’re doing.”
“What’s hard on him?” Ash asks.
Chloe looks ready to throttle someone. “Seriously?! Your wedding, Ash.”
Ash frowns, but he doesn’t bring it up again until later in the evening, when it’s just him and Goh in their apartment. “What do you think Chloe and Dawn meant? About our wedding being hard on Gary?”
Goh shrugs. “Exactly what we thought—he’s lonely. Seeing us getting married probably reminds him that he doesn’t have someone.”
“But he gets angry when we try to help him!”
“I know, I know.” Goh gives Ash a sad little smile. “He’ll come around eventually.”
“I hope so.”
—
A week passes and they don’t see Gary. He doesn’t come over to make dinner, and he very obviously avoids Goh at work. It’s frustrating because Gary’s a slippery bastard when he wants to be, and after days of chasing him around, Goh is exhausted.
Ash finally goes to his apartment on the weekend, hoping to talk some sense into his lifelong friend. Or at least get Gary to talk to him.
He sort of doesn’t expect Gary to even open the door, but after a few moments, the deadbolt clicks and a very worn-looking Gary Oak greets him. “What.”
“Gary,” Ash breathes, stepping forward to envelop the auburn-haired man in a fierce hug. Gary stiffens at the contact, but just before Ash resolves to pull away, Gary sighs and melts against him, bringing his hands up to grab two handfuls of Ash’s shirt. “Missed you.”
“Missed you too,” Gary mutters, sour, like the words hurt him to admit. He finally pulls back to glance behind Ash. “Where’s Goh?”
“Home.” Ash shrugs. “He had some wedding things to finish up.”
“Oh, right.” Gary looks a little disappointed, but he steps aside to let Ash into the apartment.
“You left really suddenly when you were over last week,” Ash comments, trying to keep his tone light. “We were worried.”
“I forgot I had some work stuff I had to finish.” Gary drops onto the couch, raising his eyebrow like he dares Ash to call him on the obvious lie.
Ash just nods. Now that he’s here, he really doesn’t want to argue with Gary again. It's only been a week, but after years of having the other man close by, these past few days felt like an eternity. He just…
Wants to take the obvious hurt away from his friend.
He wishes Gary would let him.
“I’m sorry,” Ash says, coming to sit next to him. “For not listening when you asked me to stop meddling in your love life. I really do just want you to be happy.”
“I know it’s hard to understand from your perfect little bubble, Ash, but sometimes people don’t get to be happy,” Gary says, but there’s no real bite to the words. He just looks tired.
“Hey, that’s not true.” Ash grabs one of Gary’s hands, holding it in both of his own. “I know you’re feeling lonely, especially with Goh and I being so busy with the wedding, but you’ll find someone who makes you happy, Gary. You will.”
Gary wrenches his hand from Ash’s, face twisting into a grimace. “Stop acting like I haven’t already!”
Ash frowns. “What—”
“I know who will make me happy, okay? And we both know I can’t have them.”
“You’re Gary Oak, you can have anyone you want,” Ash assures him, helpless. He doesn’t know why, but the thought that there is someone Gary cares about—someone Gary does want to be with—isn't as reassuring as he hoped it would be. This is what he wanted—what he's been pushing Gary towards for years. So why does the idea make his stomach spoil with a sudden wave of nausea?
Gary laughs and it’s a bitter, ugly sound. “No, I can’t. They don’t want me. They make sure I know it every time I see them, and I’ve tried—” He swallows hard, eyes wet and shining as he stares at Ash.
“Then, maybe—it’s time to let them go.” Ash feels completely out of his depth. He doesn’t think he’s ever seen Gary look this raw—honestly can’t remember the last time he saw Gary cry, thinks it might have been at his parents' funeral. “What you’re doing—this isn’t healthy, Gar. You can’t keep chasing someone who doesn’t feel the same way. Not when it’s making you miserable.”
Gary looks down at his lap, a tear finally escaping to roll down his cheek. “You’re right. I do need to—” He flinches back when Ash tries to wipe the wetness from his cheek. “I—I think that means you should go.”
“Gary—”
“Leave.” Gary looks away.
Ash sighs, standing. “Okay. Just—text me if you need anything, okay?” At Gary’s nod, he adds, “I guess I’ll see you next weekend, at least.”
Gary turns to shoot him an incredulous look. “Are you—Ash, do you really think that I want to come to the wedding after this?”
Ash rears back like he’s been slapped. “But—”
“Do you really think watching you and Goh walk down the aisle and have everything I can’t is going to help me ‘let it go’?!”
“I—well, I guess if you think it’s going to be too hard for you,” Ash says, struggling to speak around the sudden lump in his throat. “You should do what you think is best.”
Gary just nods again.
When it’s clear the other man has nothing left to say, Ash leaves, wondering why it feels like his heart is breaking.