Archive of Our Own

Ash was in love with Gary.

He still remembered that night he realized his feelings pretty clearly, despite the fact it had been almost a decade since then.

It had been right after their battle at the Silver Conference. They were outside together, quietly staring into the night sky. Ash had never felt as content before as he had in that moment, and from one second to the other, when he had turned to see the soft smile on Garys face, he finally got why that was.

He almost saw it as a rule of the universe, these days. Water was wet, the sky was blue, and Ash Ketchum was in love with Gary Oak.

Ash was also in love with Goh.

His realization about those feelings had been wildly different, more gradual. Less like a quick flick of a switch and more like a slow turn of a dial.

He wasn't able to pinpoint when it had happened, it could have been anywhere between the ride on Lugia to any of the adventures they went on after they met, but slowly Ash had pieced his crush together.

Though, he supposed that in the grand scheme of things, in relation to how long he had known each of the boys, it had been quicker than when he noticed his feelings for Gary after all.

It was odd, sometimes. To be in love with two people at once. He had thought that when he started to have feelings for Goh that he would forget about Gary, but he never did. The love he felt was different, sure, but no less intense.

He knew other people would think it was weird, but he didn't care. Ash wouldn't change it for anything in the world, they were both too important to him.

Not that he had ever acted on those feelings.

He had never confessed to Gary, because him and Ash both were travelers. They didn't run into each other often, and when they did they didn't stay for long. It felt like every time, Ash had already missed his chance before he had it.

He had never confessed to Goh, because he didn't know what that would mean for his feelings for Gary. He didn't want to have to get over him.

That whole internal dilemma seemingly solved itself on its own.

When Goh and Ash had first ran into Gary, searching for Infernape in the outskirts of Pallet, Gary immediately managed to get on Gohs nerves. Enough so to get him to join a research group he had been avidly against only a few hours prior.

Ash had to bite his lip to not burst out laughing.

Gary was acting exactly like he had when they were 10, when he and Ash had been competing against each other. And seemingly his strategy to motivate his rivals had never changed.

If Misty had been here, she would've called it a lovers quarrel.

Goh was smart, he would figure out Garys intentions sooner rather than later.

And that, he did.

After a horribly awkward raid battle that almost went wrong, Goh announced that he was starting to understand Gary, using the others name for the first time, which earned him an amused glimmer in Garys eyes.

They stared at each other for a moment longer, smiling. The setting sun dusting them in a warm orange colour, before Gary turned around and left.

Ash felt something in his heart squeeze painfully.

He didn't understand why. The two most important people in his life were finally starting to get along. Wasn't he supposed to be happy about that?

Ashs third realization was almost like a mix between the first two. Subconsciously, he'd had a hunch. But when he finally put the pieces together, it still managed to give him whiplash.

After the sunset talk Gary and Goh had went on more Project Mew missions together.

Ash knew this not because he had been there, but because Goh couldn't stop talking about the other researcher.

He noticed how slowly Gohs complaining turned into admiration, from yelling about how much of a jerk he was to gushing about his intelligence. And Ash agreed, Gary was amazing, but something about the way Goh talked about him felt... off. Different, compared to how he talked about anyone else he looked up to.

And it wasn't like he had seen Gary in person in a good while, or seen him interact with Goh for that matter, but from the stories he heard it seemed like he had mostly stopped with the mean teasing and only did it sparingly, similarly to how he talked to Ash.

It was when Goh dreamily sighed, that Ash finally understood.

"I just... hope we both make it, y'know? Not just for Mew. I, um, I kinda really wanna continue working with him? And..."

He didn't catch the rest of Gohs sentence, too caught up in his own thoughts.

Ash was in love with Goh and Gary.

Goh and Gary were in love with each other.

Ash wasn't sure whether he wanted to laugh or cry.

He did neither. Because Goh was still talking, and Ash didn't want him to know anything was up, so he did his best impression of someone who was listening, even if his brain couldn't make sense of the noises that were falling out of Gohs lips.

It felt like a cruel joke, but the more he thought about it, the more sense it made.

The way they seemingly flew perfectly together? The staring in the sunset?

Fuck, Ash had compared their first meeting to the lovers quarrel jokes Misty always made about him and Gary, and she hadn't been wrong about them back then, at least as far as Ashs perspective was concerned.

Gary and Goh were both researchers, and two of the smartest people Ash knew. And while he loved working with Professor Cerise, there was no way he would be able to keep up with them.

They were perfect for each other, Ash felt blind for not noticing sooner, but that's hindsight for you.

When the two of them were accepted into Project Mew as full fledged Chasers, Ash let them go without ever telling them about his feelings.

That didn't mean their goodbye wasn't filled with other feelings, notably Goh clinging to him, crying into his shoulder.

Gary was standing at the other end of the room. Ash caught a roll of his eyes, but it was filled with fondness rather than annoyance.

"Goh, we have to leave soon.", he gently nudged. "Or else we'll be late, and I do not feel up to getting a lecture from Quillon today."

Goh sighed. "I know...", he admitted, but made no move to separate himself from Ash.

"Come on, it's not like we'll never see him again. He always manages to run into me somehow." Gary said.

Ash nodded. "He's right, it takes waayy more effort than this to get me out of your lifes. You'd have to try harder."

With a chuckle, Goh finally let go of Ash and rubbed his eyes dry to look at him. "Is that a promise?"

Ashs mouth felt dry and his tongue heavy when he breathed: "Yeah. Yeah, it is." And if his voice had cracked slightly, well, nobody but the three of them was around to hear.

The way Goh was looking at Ash made him want to do nothing more than pull the other man in for a kiss, then proceed to do the same with Gary.

He didn't, of course.

They exchanged a couple more "Goodbye"s and "See you soon"s and a "Smell ya later, Ashy-boy" by Gary - that did not manage to get Ash even more choked up than he already was - then the two of them were gone.

Missing Goh was an odd feeling. Ash had been around him every day for so long that sometimes he still found himself turning to his left to ask for his friends opinion on something, only to remember Goh wasn't there.

Missing Gary was a feeling he was more used to, because when did he not miss Gary? It was normal. But that didn't mean it was any less somber, especially after he had been back in Ashs life for a while.

Ash was apparently bad at hiding it too, if the look Pikachu gave him every time he ended one of the unfortunately rare calls with either or both of them was anything to go by.

To his relief, Ash didn't have a lot of spare time to think about how much he missed the two.

He was the number one strongest trainer in the world, at least as far as the Pokemon World Championships were concerned.

He had beaten Leon, he had achieved one of his dreams, and it was great. It was everything Ash had dreamt it would be and more.

He got to meet and befriend so many strong trainers defending his title.

He still got to travel the world as much as he wanted to, even if it wasn't for research purposes anymore, and saw so many interesting places.

He got to see the other people in the Masters 8 a bunch, which translated to hanging out with Iris as much as they possibly could.

Ash didn't care about the fame that came with his position, not really. But he did care about the excited sparkle he saw in little kids' eyes when he told them that of course they could become as good a trainer as he is, anyone can if they put their heart into it.

Sometimes, even the headscratching paperwork he had to do wasn't the worst thing in the world, though that and awkward interviews were aspects of this that he could live without.

Overall though, Ashs life was going great. He loved what he was doing, and he was still going strong with working on being a Pokemon Master.

But sometimes, in the middle of the night, he couldn't help but wonder how much greater it would be if Goh and Gary were with him. He always felt bad immediately after, selfish even. They were out there, chasing their own dreams. Together, as they were supposed to be. It was fine the way it was, or at least that's what he told himself.

The next time Ash saw Goh in person was a few months after their goodbye, and a huge surprise because he hadn't been expecting it.

He had been staying in Alola for a week, first because it had been time for the Manalo Conference and Ash was there to defend his title, then because he'd decided to stay with the Professors a little while longer. Professor Burnet had been very insistent on it, and he had trouble saying no to her. He'd missed his Alolan family as well, anyways.

Ash was currently walking along the beach on Melemele, looking down to watch the water rise and fall next to his bare feet, holding his sneakers in his left hand.

Pikachu was next to him, running away from and then back towards the tide as it moved.

He paused when he heard someone breathlessly yell his name up ahead.

"Ash!"

Even before he looked up, he knew who it was. Ash would recognise that voice anywhere.

"Goh!"

Ashs content smile grew wider.

He picked up his pace, almost dropping his sneakers and stumbling over his own two feet, but he couldn't bring himself to care in the slightest.

They closed the distance between them in the middle, and Ash simply let himself fall against Goh, who caught him in a hug. This time, Ash did drop his shoes to be able to hug back more comfortably.

Grookey jumped from Gohs shoulder onto Ashs head, earning the Pokemon two laughs. Pikachu eventually caught up to his trainer, mirroring Grookey by jumping onto Goh.

When he finally caught his breath and found his voice again, Ash asked gleefully: "What are you doing here? I hadn't expected to see you again in person anytime soon."

"If it had been up to me I would've seen you sooner and watched your league battle, but..." Goh drifted off into a shrug. "Congrats on beating Kiawe, though. I saw a video of it online, at least."

Ash grinned. "Thanks!"

"And I'm here with Danika and Horace because we heard some rumours about a Mew sighting near Hau'oli, but..." Goh drifted off yet again, this time opting to sigh.

"Nothing?", Ash asked sympathetically.

Goh shook his head, his smile faltering. "We spent a few days longer than we were supposed to investigating, but either whoever claimed to see it was wrong or it's already gone again."

"Hey, come on, cheer up. You'll find it soon.", Ash encouraged.

"Yeah, you're right.", Goh replied, already more cheerful again.

A part of Ash desperately wanted to ask if Gary was with them, but he also knew that if he was Goh would've already mentioned it, or Gary would've even come along to see him.

They continue walking down the beach, catching up with one another. Ash had really missed talking to Goh like this, phone calls were nice, but they weren't the same.

Eventually, they sat down on a rock that was elevated off the ground near the end of the beach, letting their feet hang into the water, quietly enjoying each others company.

The sun was almost done setting, yet neither of them made any move to leave. Neither of them wanted this day to end.

It almost reminded Ash of that moment after a certain Silver Conference battle.

Pikachu and Grookey had both opted to take a nap on their respective trainers laps, and Ash was softly stroking his buddy between his ears.

"Hey, uhm, Ash?", Goh broke the silence.

Ash hummed to let his friend know he was listening.

"I was just... wondering. I'm still in Alola for another day. Do you wan- I mean... would you like to, well... go... out? With me?"

Ash snorted at Gohs odd and nervous phrasing. "You're almost making it sound like you're asking me out on a date."

"Oh. Oh that's because... I am? If you want it to be, at least."

Ashs hand froze.

Pikachus ear twitched in return, and Ash really hoped that didn't mean he was awake, because he could not deal with one of his sympathetic looks on top of this right now.

He looked over at Goh, mostly confused, but Goh was pointedly looking everywhere but at Ash.

It would be easy. It would be so so easy to say yes, to go on that date with Goh.

But something in the back of his mind was yelling at Ash, the whole reason he had never asked out Goh himself to begin with.

What about Gary?

What about Ashs feelings for Gary?

What about Gohs feelings for Gary?

It would be so easy to say yes, but he didn't.

"I'm... sorry.", Ash apologized, pointedly ignoring his heart in his throat. And even though he couldn't see Gohs expression, he immediately knew he'd hurt the other.

"It's not because I don't like you, I do.", Ash quickly clarified. "It's just... we're both already really busy, and..." He wasn't sure how to continue. The excuse felt weak to his own ears.

Nevertheless, Goh turned to look at him. His expression still clearly hurt, but understanding.

"That's fine", he said, a little choked up but surprisingly steady. "I'm willing to wait."

He wouldn't, not with Gary around, but Ash didn't tell him that.

The following morning, Goh still showed up at Kukuis doorstep. They spent some time with the Professors and Lei, then went to check on some of Ashs friends, they were Gohs as well after all.

It wasn't awkward, because Goh and Ash didn't do awkward, but something about it still didn't feel the same. When they had to say goodbye again, it hurt even more.

The next time Ash saw Gary in person wasn't too long after that, and this time it wasn't surprising, because he had been expecting the man to be there.

Professor Oak was celebrating his birthday, and Ashs mom had extended her invitation to him.

Invitation, in this case, being a codeword for the party was being held in the Ketchum Restaurant and she needed an extra waiter, not that he minded helping her out, of course.

The party was filled with a bunch of unfamiliar faces and only a few that he recognised, a couple because they were from Pallet and the rest because he'd met them some other way before.

He spotted Professor Rowan and Professor Ivy sitting together and chatting with each other, and Ash made the firm resolve to avoid that table at all costs.

He also saw Agatha of the Kanto Elite Four, for some reason. His entire body was itching to challenge her to a battle, but even Ash knew this wasn't the time and place.

As he'd expected him to be, Gary was here as well. The man acted like he couldn't stand Professor Oak sometimes, Ash wasn't sure who he was trying to hide the affection he had for his grandpa from.

Gary spent most of his time at the party a little away from the other guests, Tracey keeping him company. Ash couldn't blame them.

It felt very weird to see a bunch of people he looked up to in a setting like this. And he was aware they technically counted as adults, but sometimes it still felt weird to think about himself as one. He would've stuck with the only other person his age as well.

For a moment Ash considered chatting with them, but decided against it. Mimey would kill him if he left all the work to the Pokemon. So he only stopped by their table for orders.

Eventually though, the party had calmed down and not that many people were left, so Ash figured it would be fine to take a break.

He went to Garys table, Tracey apparently already having left at some point, and slipped into the seat next to him with a "Hey."

"Flirting on the job? That's not very professional.", Gary snorted. "I'm surprised Auntie Delia chose you of all people to help her out with waitering, anyway. If I were her, I'd be too afraid half the food wouldn't make it to the table."

Ash huffed, unimpressed. "I've missed you, too, asshole."

They caught up with each other for a while, Gary telling him stories that Ash had already heard from Goh, but listening intently anyways.

Gary was surprisingly well put together. Ash knew he had been drinking, but the only way he could tell was because Ash had been the one to serve the drinks, because otherwise Gary was doing an amazing impression of a sober person.

Or maybe the alcohol did influence him a little, because Gary for sure wouldn't have said what he did next otherwise.

"Y'know, Ash. If this wasn't my gramps' birthday party and we weren't in your moms restaurant, this would feel like a date."

Usually, Ash would assume Gary was joking. And he probably was, but something in his tone let Ash know the joke was the first half, not the latter.

"I don't get it.", Ash admitted quietly. "First Goh and now you? I thought you liked him."

Gary frowned at him, Ash didn't know which statement confused him, so he decided on clarifying both.

"Goh asked me on a date when I ran into him in Alola. And, like, I'm flattered. It's not as if I don't like either of you. But, god. It's so fucking obvious you two are made for each other, I have no clue what you would want from me."

Ash regretted his words immediately, he'd said way too much. He hadn't meant to tell Gary half of that, but once he had started it all just slipped out. He didn't even have the excuse of alcohol in his system like Gary did, but maybe the feelings he had been bottling up for so long had been bound to eventually spill over from the beginning.

With wide eyes Gary opened his mouth, Ash would never figure out what he was going to say.

With the luckiest timing, Professor Ivy decided to climb on top of her table at that exact moment, obviously drunk, hit her wine glass with a knife so strongly that for a moment Ash thought it would shatter to get peoples attention and said she wanted to hold some sort of speech.

Ash didn't stick around long enough to hear what the woman had to say, either.

He took the chance to quietly sneak off, and didn't run into Gary again for the rest of their stays in Pallet.

Gary had been acting weird ever since he had went to visit his grandpa for his birthday. He had been more distant, quicker to snap. Not that Gary was usually friendliness incarnate, but he wasn't this bad.

He almost acted like he used to before he and Goh had started to become friends, the only difference now being that Goh knew it was odd.

Gary hadn't even said a word about the birthday party. Goh wasn't expecting a detailed retelling, but he knew Professor Rowan had been there, and Gary hadn't mentioned him once. Goh only knew because Tracey had told him. And Gary running into Professor Rowan and not taking the chance to rub the fact he had worked with the man before under Gohs nose? Yeah, something was up. It was as if Gary was avoiding the topic completely.

Goh gave Gary a while to think things through on his own, but when a few days passed and nothing changed, he decided to bring it up.

They had just finished setting up their tent for the night and lain down in it, and Goh took the opportunity of them being alone to ask: "So, um, have you been... okay?"

Goh cringed at how the question had come out, Gary raised an eyebrow at him. "I just mean... you've been acting... off.", Goh clarified. "Did anything happen at Professor Oaks birthday?"

"If it did, it's nothing I'd want to tell you of all people.", Gary mumbled.

"Jeez, thanks.", Goh grumbled back.

Gary sighed. "Sorry, that's not what I meant. It's just-"

"Okay, Gary, seriously?", Goh interrupted whatever poor excuse the other man wanted to say, sitting up. "You're apologizing? For a slight jab like that? What the fuck happened? You-", he paused for a moment to take a breath and continue calmer. "You can trust me. I'm just... worried about you."

Gary didn't reply, his only response being guiltily avoiding eye contact.

"Is it about Ash?" Goh whispered.

That managed to get Garys attention, and he shot up into a sitting position as well. "I never mentioned Ash was there!"

Goh shrugged. "Tracey did. And I would have assumed he was, anyways."

Gary mumbled a string of insults and curse words that Goh hoped Tracey would never have to hear in person, then asked: "Am I really acting that weird?"

Goh gave him a look.

"Fucking fine, okay. I guess we're doing this." Gary groaned, rubbed his face, then took a deep breath.

"I made a date joke, then Ash told me you asked him out when you apparently ran into each other in Alola, which you never fucking told me about either, by the way. But that doesn't matter, because Ash thinks we're the ones who should be dating. You and I." He paused to humorlessly chuckle. "I've been trying to hit on him since we were, like, fourteen, and the first time he gets it that's his reply? Fucking ridiculous."

Goh was still looking at Gary, but now with wide eyes. He opened his mouth, then closed it again, unsure what to say. After another moment, he settled on: "Fourteen?", hating the way his voice cracked.

Gary nodded. "I realized sometime after he beat me in the Johto League, when he wasn't around and I had spare time to reflect. So after that, whenever I ran into him I left hints, but Ash is an oblivious idiot that doesn't notice peoples feelings. Or, well, apparently only peoples feelings for him, specifically."

"Is he... is he wrong, though? About us.", Goh nervously bit his lip, scared of the reaction he would get.

This time, it was Garys turn to look at Goh with a shocked expression.

Goh gathered all the courage he had in himself. If someone as emotionally constipated as Gary Oak could manage to open up to him, he could do the same.

"I... fell in love with Ash pretty quickly after we first met.", he hesitantly started. "He threw himself in front of Team Rocket to protect a group of Ivysaur and I was gone."

"That does sound a lot like something he'd do.", Gary threw in with a chuckle.

Goh stifled his own chuckle at the comment, before continuing more seriously. "When we first ran into you, I was pretty jealous. You and Ash were so familiar with each other. Plus, you weren't exactly polite to me, but for some reason he still liked you. I didn't get it. Until... until I did."

"When?", Gary asked quietly, so quietly that Goh wouldn't have heard it if he hadn't been waiting for it. He couldn't read the others expression, and he hated that he couldn't, but he replied anyways.

"When we went on that mission to catch Regieleki and Regidrago. You were being so cool, and we actually managed to work really well together, and I realized that... I realized that I liked you as well, Gary."

Liked wasn't the word he wanted to use, but openly declaring his love was easier when the person in question wasn't the one listening.

It went eerily quiet inside the tent, the only noises Goh could make out were their breathing and his heartbeat going crazy. Gary was still looking at Goh, with that same expression he couldn't read.

It was nerve wracking. "Please say something.", Goh begged, and that seemed to snap Gary out of his thoughts.

"I never really thought about being with anyone besides Ash.", he admitted. "Not before Ash brought it up, at least. I did think about it since then, and I figured I wouldn't mind, if it's you. We do make a pretty awesome team."

Gary gave Goh a surprisingly soft smile, and Goh found himself return it.

He could feel the tension in the air slowly sipping away, his shoulders became a lot lighter.

Gary leaned forward, and for a moment Goh thought he was going to kiss him, before in the last moment he slightly changed his direction, leaning his head on Gohs shoulder with a sigh instead.

"I want to.", Gary insisted. "It's just..."

"Ash should be here.", Goh finished, understanding the feeling.

Gary nodded, Goh felt his head move more than he saw it.

"Is it really just... this easy? Everyone reciprocates?", Goh asked in disbelief.

"It would be that easy if Ash wasn't an idiot.", Gary huffed.

Goh hummed. "Yeah, I guess we still need to find a way to convince him."

Somehow, Goh was able to tell that Gary was smirking.

"I already have a plan."

"You are fucking insane, Oak.", Goh hissed as Gary grabbed his arm to sneak both of them past the security guard.

"You've already said that, thrice, yet you're still here.", Gary pointed out.

"Well, yeah, I can't leave now. I might get caught on my way out."

Gary turned his head to slowly roll his eyes and show Goh just how much he didn't believe him.

When they managed to reach their destination, Gary swung open the door, ignoring the 'staff only' sign, shoved Goh into the room, then closed the door behind both of them.

They were in a small break room in Wyndon Stadium, which was always reserved for competitors trying to escape the press. Gary knew this because Ash had dragged him and Goh in here once. They'd had permission before, so it technically didn't count as breaking in. And, as it so happened, Ash was currently having a title defense match against the number two trainer.

"I really don't like this idea. What if we get caught in here?"

Gary snorted. "By who? Iris? What, you think she'd call security on us? Seriously, Goh, relax. Nobody else is gonna walk in here, which makes it perfect because it means no interruptions either."

Goh continued to mumble about how much he hated it here, but yet again made no effort of leaving.

Not too long after, the door opened. Gary steeled himself, but it was Iris' and her Emolgas faces that gave them baffled looks.

The woman looked like shit, which gave away the winner of their battle without Gary having to ask, not that he had expected a different outcome. She wasn't bad, but Ash was Ash. He valued his life too much to point any of that out, but he was beaten to it anyways.

"What are you two doing in here?" Iris asked surprised as she walked into the room and closed the door.

"Ash let us in.", Gary bluffed, at the same time as Goh begged: "Please don't call security!"

Gary shot a glare at Goh. Iris laughed. "Okay, okay. Got it. Stealth mission. I won't give you away."

Goh visibly relaxed. "Thanks, Iris."

"I do hope you're here to ask him out though, or at least one of you is.", the woman continued.

Goh tensed up again. "W- what?", he squeaked.

Iris nodded. "If I have to hear him dreamily sigh either one of your names ever again I will personally drag you three to a date by the ear, it's been unbearable ever since you split up. And you so obviously like him back, but whenever I point that out he doesn't believe me because he thinks you two are made solely for each other or something like that. Your life is a damn soap opera! Number one strongest trainer in the world and when it comes to romance he still acts like such a-"

"Little kid?", Gary guessed.

"Yes! Thank you!", Iris said while throwing up her arms. "Finally someone with common sense! Anyways...", she opened the door again. "He went to leave his Pokemon with Joy earlier, but should get here soon so I'll give you the privacy. I'd rather deal with the press than fourth wheel this. Good luck, and do not fucking call me unless it's for your wedding. Bye." And with that, the Unova Champion was gone.

"See, that went pretty well.", Gary said to a cheri red Goh.

The other shook his head. "No, no it really didn't."

Gary shrugged. "She didn't call security."

"She talked about our wedding.", Goh deadpanned.

Gary smirked. Goh had just handed him the perfect teasing opportunity.

"You don't want to invite her?", he asked, pretending to be nonchalant.

Goh spluttered, then made some cute noises of embarrassment, before settling on: "Remind me why I like you?"

Ignoring the way his heart skipped a beat, Garys grin widened. "My irresistible charm? My good looks? My sense of humor? My intellect? Or is it my-"

"Well it's not your modesty." Goh kept up the facade of being annoyed for all of three seconds, before both of them laughed.

Their laughter got cut off by a third person gasping.

Garys head snapped towards the door. He'd been too distracted to even notice someone had walked in.

Ash was staring at them with wide eyes, flicking from Gary to Goh and back. He bit his bottom lip, then took a step backwards.

Before he could really think about it, before Ash could leave, Gary grabbed his wrist to stop him. A moment later, he noticed Goh had done the same and was holding Ashs other wrist.

Ash, for his part, looked even more uncomfortable. "Uh, hey.", he greeted awkwardly.

"Hey.", Goh and Gary both returned.

Gary had a whole speech structured out in his head. He'd had the perfect plan to confess. But looking at Ash, all of it vanished. He couldn't remember a single word of it. Maybe he should have written it down, even if Goh would have called him ridiculous. It hadn't even been that long since they last saw each other, but considering how their last meeting had went, seeing Ash again felt like a weight had been lifted off his shoulder.

"Congrats on winning.", Gary offered.

Ash blinked. "Um. Yeah. Thanks."

He sighed, then gently pried his arms out of Garys and Gohs hold to shut the door. Apparently, he had decided that if they had to talk, he'd rather not risk anyone overhearing.

"I... know I can't avoid you forever.", Ash said. "I just was not prepared to have this conversation right now. How'd you even get in here?"

"That's okay, I'm not sure I'm prepared for this conversation, either." Goh admitted, ignoring the question. "But if we continue avoiding and not talking to each other for longer, I think that would be sadder."

Ash nodded slowly and whispered: "Okay."

"Two things then.", Gary announced. "Firstly", he held up his index finger, "Even though I hate how many of our feelings you were assuming, I admit that you were right about Goh and I."

Ash gave him a sad smile, and Gary absolutely despised the resignation on his expression. Luckily, he knew better than to interrupt Gary, so he didn't say whatever stupidly wrong thought was on his mind.

"Secondly", Gary continued, spreading his middle finger off as well, "that doesn't mean you have to be excluded."

Ashs expression morphed into one of confusion. "I... huh?"

"He means we like you, too.", Goh elaborated.

Ash only frowned harder. "I... I don't...", he stammered.

And Gary felt frustrated, because he knew exactly what he felt, he just didn't know how to say it. He prefered actions over words, but this wasn't something he could explain with actions.

Except...

Gary already knew how Ash felt about him, so surely he wouldn't mind if...

Without another word, Gary grabbed Ash by the collar of his shirt, and drew him into a kiss.

Ash let out a muffled and surprised squeak, being completely stiff for a moment, before easing into it and returning the kiss. Sloppily, yet full of emotion.

Gary pulled away, only to immediately tilt his head in the other direction to kiss Goh.

Unlike Ash, he wasn't stunned, and reciprocated without hesitation. It felt different, but no less amazing.

Unfortunately, Gary still needed oxygen, so he cut the make out short to take a sharp breath, watching as this time Goh dragged Ash into a kiss.

"Does it make more sense like this?", Gary asked eventually, snapping Ash out of a dazed expression.

"Yeah, I get it now.", he giggled. "This- this was an option?"

"It still is.", Gary corrected.

"If you want it to be.", Goh added.

"Yes!", Ash almost yelled. "God, yes, please!"

This wasn't the end of it, Gary knew that.

They still had a lot to talk about, and the duty to bring those topics up would probably fall onto Gary, going off the previous track record of his two idiots.

He knew it wouldn't be easy, and they still had to consider the fact that he and Goh didn't actually see Ash in person often.

But as Ash pressed his lips against his own again, Gary figured that conversation could still wait a little longer.