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As a child, Volkner loved to watch the night sky. Captivated by the beautiful darkness engulfed in bright lights that spread endlessly above him, he would make as many wishes as there were shooting stars. The wishes he made came true the majority of the time when he was a small child, because they had been simple things like "I wish to play with so and so tomorrow", or "I want this or that for my birthday". The more grew up however, the more complex his wishes became. Soon, he'd be wishing things like "I wish summer would last longer," or "Please let me do well on tomorrow's test."
Volkner used to tell many people that watching the stars was one of his favorite things to do. At first, the other kids thought it was cool, but the more times he graduated, the more the kids started to tease him.
"That's something girls do", they'd say. "So? Girls are cool." Volkner would reply, a little angrily. But the teasing just got worse from there. Soon it was things like "Let me guess, you believe in Santa and the Tooth Fairy too?" And went on to be "Aren't you too old for stuff like that?" So Volkner simply stopped telling people. Nobody would make fun of him for the things they didn't know about him.
Eventually, Volkner began questioning the things the other children said about him. It got to a point where he started to believe them, and at that point Volkner all but stopped believing that the wishes he'd make on shooting stars would come true. There was still a small part of him that wanted to keep believing. That was, until he was in ninth grade. His mother fell ill before he took his entrance exam to get into high school. Volkner was very intelligent, and his mother told him if it were her dying wish, she had no qualms about it being that Volkner got into the school of her choosing. So he studied, and studied some more. He studied in his free time and skimmed over flash cards when he was busy. He wanted to cause his mother as little stress as possible, or at least fulfill her wish if she were to die. So he worked hard every day for her.
He distinctly remembered the night followed by his exam. Volkner was sitting on his balcony, looking at the night sky. He hadn't done so in a very long time, it had been ever since he'd begun studying every second of every day. The only reason he wasn't staying up all night studying some more was because his father had made sure he had no supplies in his room to do so.
"You must sleep so you can have the energy to even take the test son." His father had advised. Even then, he wasn't convinced Volkner would just sleep like a good child, so he proceeded to confiscate anything Volkner could use to study. He wasn't wrong of course, Volkner was even still far from falling asleep right away. He was too nervous to. So instead he did the thing he'd longed to do since he graduated Junior High.
Volkner walked across his room and shut off the lights, then made his way back out onto the balcony and laid on the cold wood slats that adorned the small stretch of space outside his room. He stared up into the sky silently, almost falling asleep as the warm twinkling starlight spun in his half closed eyes.
Before he was fully out of it, a small light had cut a path through all of its companions and fallen among the trees that outlined the park behind Volkner's house.
Volkner remembered sitting up so fast he nearly hit his head on the doorway. He had grabbed onto the rails and pulled himself to his feet. That night he had wished that for his mother's sake, he'd pass his entrance exam.
After that, he also remembered falling asleep on his balcony after all. He woke up stiff and sore, but despite all his physical displeasures, Volkner passed. It had renewed his faith in his childhood belief. From then on, he'd continued wishing on shooting stars once more. Because of that, he put extra work into everything he had wished to come true, and because of his hard work things did come true. Just like they had when he was a kid.
Half way through his freshman year, Volkner was doing outstanding in all his classes. His mother was more proud of him than he'd ever seen her, and he was glad to see he'd done something to put her poor heart at ease.
Everything was going perfectly for that one moment. That moment that seemed to be straight out of a story book. Sadly, all moments have an end.
Well into the year, Volkner received news that his mother entered into a state of critical condition. She had been doing so well before, in fact she was nearly healthy enough that the doctors had predicted she'd be able to come home in a matter of weeks. In a sickly fragile state however, it isn't uncommon for just a little bit too much cold, one small factor, to push someone over the tipping point.
On a cold winter's night, the window in Volkner's mother's hospital room had been cracked open a very small amount and had gotten neglected. The room became cold, and his mother's health ended up being strained too greatly during her recovery period for her to be permitted to leave any longer.
One small thing, one stupid mistake someone forgetful had made and it could potentially cost a life. Those thoughts spun through Volkner's head the night they'd received the news. It made him sick to think about. He sat in his warm living room, he and his dad were watching TV in an attempt not to think about what might happen to Volkner's mother. But the thoughts just kept rushing back and circling through Volkner's head regardless of what he did. It was everything he could do to stop himself from crying. Eventually the anxious nausea became too much, and Volkner had decided he needed fresh air.
"I'm going to bed." He told his father.
"Alright. Volkner..." He almost whispered.
"Yeah?" He asked.
"She'll," his father let out a tearful breath of air. "She'll be just fine." And then Volkner witnessed his father truly cry for the first time. He walked over and gave his father a hug, and his father sobbed into Volkner's shoulder. Volkner began to cry as well.
An hour later Volkner was on his balcony. He looked up at the night sky, staring intently and hoping that a star would fall, making a path across the visible stretch of sky presenting itself to him. He remembered waiting for hours and hours to no avail. Several times he'd began crying and yelling into the wind how unfair it all was. Then, it suddenly happened. A single star shot through the night sky, and Volkner hastily made the wish he'd planned for the whole night.
"Please, let my mother get better. She never did anything wrong, she doesn't deserve this."
Volkner visited the hospital the next day. His mother was terminal. They told him and his father they were afraid any day would be the last they'd be able to see her. Her condition was so bad they couldn't even predict a date, the only answer was "Any day now." That really scared Volkner.
"If she dies, I'll never believe in wishing on shooting stars again." He promised himself.
The next week his mother died. Volkner never wished on a shooting star again.
Volkner awoke from his dream due to cold, rough fingers caressing his cheeks.
"Roark?" He let out groggily.
"Why are you crying?" His boyfriend asked, distressed worry pulled over his illegally adorable face.
"Was I? I'm sorry, I was just dreaming. You don't need to worry." Volkner coaxed.
"Was it a sad dream?" Roark asked.
"More like a memory." Volkner replied. "But I don't want to talk about it." He'd never told the people he met about his mother. It happened a long time ago and it didn't matter in their relationship so there was no reason to bring it up.
"Whatever you say. I just want you to know I'm here for you okay?" Roark soothed.
"Thank you." Volkner kissed Roark's forehead tenderly, one of the few places on Roark's body that was still soft. Despite his innocent demeanor, Roark was quite tough. As in, his skin was heavily calloused due to the fact he was always digging and mining if he wasn't caught up in a gym battle. He was also very strong for his size. Though he was easily more than a head shorter than Volkner, that didn't stop him from being capable of lifting Volkner over his head. In comparison, Volkner was frail. He was skinny and didn't have much muscle, and even though he was the taller of the two he couldn't even lift Roark off the ground.
Volkner turned around so his back faced his smaller companion. When he did, he felt thin but firm arms slide under his own bony ones, into a gentle hold across Volkner's chest. Roark's embrace made Volkner feel so calm. So safe and at ease. And with that, he slipped back into a warm sleep.
Later that morning, the two sat at the kitchen table of Roark's small but cosy apartment eating breakfast.
"Volkner?" Roark questioned with a soft voice, he and Volkner's feet resting gently atop one another's under the table.
"Hm?" Volkner hummed.
"I heard there's going to be a meteor shower tomorrow night and..." heat rose into the younger gym leader's cheeks. "I was wondering...if you'd come and watch it with me?" He asked quietly, gazing towards the table, cheeks a light red hue.
Volkner wanted to respond, but his voice wouldn't emerge from his throat. He opened his mouth to speak, but upon failure he closed it again, joining Roark in looking flustered down at the table.
Roark's request was so innocently cute. A normal person would have accepted it without hesitation, but Volkner had already stayed quiet a number of minutes which in turn probably made Roark insecure. That thought combined with the worry of the meteor shower bringing back memories of his childhood being the reason for his hesitation made tears well up in Volkner's eyes, catching him off guard. He hurriedly pulled them astray with the tips of his fingers in an attempt not to let Roark see them. After all, what was the harm? His small significant other had no idea of Volkner's worry so the request had purely been out of longing to have a sweetly romantic date with his boyfriend. Volkner didn't really have the right to refuse. He grasped at the wisps of courage he mustered up, because Roark meant the world to him and if watching a meteor shower with Volkner was what he wanted to do, Volkner wanted to be sure to grant that wish.
"Of course, I'd do anything with you Roark." Volkner answered in a voice so confident it masked any distress he had been feeling prior. It was as if he'd never hesitated at all. Roark's face rose from where it had been glued to the table, red this time from excited anticipation.
"R-really?" He stuttered, undoubtedly left over from concerns that Volkner would reject his offer.
"I don't even see why you'd even have to ask, it seems like it'd be a given that I'd go." Volkner smiled. Roark looked back down at the table, a little smile creeping over his face that was filled with an attempt at concealed anticipation.
"Thank you... I love you." Roark nearly whispered as he got up from the table, wearing the the most adorable expression, too embarrassed to face Volkner at the moment. His sweet gesture made the heat rise into Volkner's cheeks this time. As mentioned prior, Roark's face should be illegal. "A-anyway," Roark straightened himself up, and continued in a more confident tone. "I've got a gym to run, I'll see you tonight. Also, the meteor shower doesn't start until eleven tomorrow." Roark said as he rinsed his dishes and dried his hands. He walked over the creaking wood flooring, his bare feet meeting the noises gently as he made his way over to Volkner.
"Alright, that sounds good. Though, we are both quite punctual and our sleep schedules fall on eight at night. We're going to have to figure out something to do until eleven." Volkner shrugged, various ideas running through his head as he considered his options. Maybe he should take Roark on a date that ended in the meteor shower?
"We should have dinner here at home followed by a warm bath. It'd be nice to be clean and warm before sitting out in the cold." Roark suggested. He always had the most comfortable sounding ideas. Volkner nodded his head and hummed in agreement.
"That sounds perfect." He responded. Roark's mouth melted into a smitten smile, his whole face seeming to join the the endeavor. That expression was among Volkner's favorites. He spread his arms out and Roark acceptingly leaned into the hug, and kissed Volkner upon pulling away. Then he excitedly almost skipped out of the small kitchen in order to start getting ready for his day.
Volkner clasped his face in his hands, his poor heart not able to handle the extent of his happy embarrassment. He couldn't keep the smile from his face and his stomach was full of a warm fuzzy fluttering feeling that brought him close to giddy laughter. How could he feel sad on a night spent with someone so cute, whome Volkner loved so much?
The day came and went, and Volkner spent the seemingly long hours full of excitement. He rushed home after a full dose of doing pretty much nothing in his gym all day. That definitely contributed to his lack of patience. If he'd been Roark who manned the first gym and battled basically all day, he would've had something to keep his mind off the thoughts of, well, Roark all day. However, as the designated last gym in the region, trainers had gotten so weeded out, they dwindled down to only the toughest ones which were few and far in between. That meant not many ever visited his gym. Sometimes days, and even up to a week would pass before he'd see the heat of battle again. It made his job excruciatingly boring, and the only solace to keep the aching and longing for human interaction away was the thought that he was only a mid-length flight away from his favorite person. He was glad he and Roark lived relatively close, he didn't think he'd ever be able to handle living in separate regions.
Volkner got inside his house and finally picked up the pokeball he'd longed to use all day off of his bedside table. As an electric specializing gym leader, he was only permitted to use electric type pokemon, so his only use for the Skarmory Roark had so graciously caught for him was to fly on it over to Oreburgh City. Which Volkner did nearly every night. Since he honestly got nearly no challengers during the day as is, he and his trainers had no qualms about closing up shop early in the day. So Volkner always flew over to Roark's apartment in Oreburgh each night at about 7:00, arriving usually no later than 7:30, which was exactly the time Roark closed his gym for the night.
"The kids who come to my gym are so young, they should be headed to bed instead of challenging me." Roark would joke, as there were people sceptical about his early closing hour. "Besides, I need sleep too." He'd finish. Volkner liked to believe Roark kept such punctual hours because he wanted to spend as much time with him as humanly possible of someone in his position. That may just be self flattery from his standing, but Volkner saw no reason why that wasn't the case.
He waited on the steps to Roark's apartment like he always did, eagerly awaiting the red head's arrival. He tried to occupy his mind, but he couldn't stop from averting his gaze to his watch our down either end of the hall.
When Roark finally did emerge (no longer than a mere 10 minutes later, though to the impatient Volkner those short minutes seemed like hours.) Volkner sprung up from where he sat, but attempted to redeem the embarrassing act by brushing himself off. He did everything in his power to stop himself from running up and jumping on Roark, to save from knocking him over.
"Welcome back, love." Volkner cooed as Roark walked up to him. The two nuzzled their noses into one another's, and Volkner attempted to push in further for a kiss but Roark dodged around him to unlock and open the door. He pushed Volkner, who was acting like an impatient puppy, inside the apartment doorway. Volkner walked backwards only until they were safely inside enough for Roark to close the door before he placed both hand on either of Roark's cheeks, raising his small face up and leaning in to kiss him. Roark gracefully accepted, placing both of his own hands into the small of Volkner's back, and pushing further into the kiss.
They released one another only when they were out of air.
"How was your day?" Volkner gasped, trying to catch his breath.
"Amazing as always, you never do know what to expect from those young ambitious kids. They always bring a surprise." Roark beamed. Volkner pouted, purposely trying to make it obvious. "Of course, the best parts of the day are the sweet moments like this that I spend with you. Why else would I close my gym so early?" Roark finished. Volkner had been right this whole time, and he couldn't keep the accomplished looking smirk from appearing on his tired face.
That cracked Roark up, and he snorted out a bout of breathy laughter.
That night the two lay in their bed, too excited for sleep. Roark was gently playing with Volkner's hair which immobilized him and made an almost tingling sensation surge through him. The gentle massage against Volkner's scalp made him grow weary and made his eyes become heavy. After Roark had his fill, he moved his hands down to Volkner's neck and began to massage him there instead. The rough and firm yet all in all such gentle hands that basically described who Roark was continued on into the knotted muscles of Volkner's shoulders. Then they moved down along his back before gliding around Volkner's waist to where they rest, Roark engaging in a tender hug in which he nuzzled his face in between Volkner's now fully relaxed shoulder blades. Volkner groggily moved his hands down to place them over Roark's, driven almost fully unconscious by the well experienced massage. He wished he could return the favor, but he was just too sleepy. He would most definitely return it the night of the meteor shower.
That night came faster than either of them could even realize it.
Volkner was once again waiting on the steps to Roark's apartment, but this time he waited for more than 10 minutes. He began to worry, Roark was extremely punctual. He decided he'd pay the gym a visit, but when he asked one of the gym trainers who was sparring outside, the young combatant told him Roark had already left. Had Volkner simply just missed him on the way? So he went back and waited a few minutes more on the steps to Roark's apartment.
Suddenly, Volkner fell backwards as the door he was leaning on opened from behind him, causing him to tumble in.
"Silly boy, I was wondering when you'd knock but you never did. Honestly, where's your brain?" Roark chuckled as he looked down at the startled face of his young lover in question.
"Obviously not in here." Volkner gestured to his head before sitting up and rubbing it. "That really hurt. Could you not have warned me before simply ousting me from where I sat?" That awarded him with the husky laughter Roark always emitted from the depths of his throat when he thought something was truly and undeniably hilarious. It was a charming disposition of his, one of those things that one simply couldn't live without when it came to their partner. Volkner became flustered by it every time, and now wasn't an exception.
Volkner came inside the apartment and leaned in above Roark.
"You owe me." He scoffed.
"I'm sorry." Roark apologize genuinely.
"Not that." Volkner pouted, earning him another chuckle from Roark who began contemplating, but before he could think of what to do Volkner already had him caught up in a welcome home kiss. Roark placed his hands on Volkner's neck which in turn awarded himself with a worried partner. "Your hands!" Volkner's eyebrow turned up in concern.
"Even the most calloused of miners can get their hands cut by a cooking knife." Roark laughed in embarrassment as he rubbed one bandaged and bleeding hand with the other.
"You were cooking?" Volkner questioned. Roark never cooked, out of the two, even Volkner did more cooking and those were still just burnt lasagna nights.
"Well... Sort of. I wanted to try to make a good dinner for us tonight. All we ever do is eat convenience store food, and both of us are too broke to go to a fancy restaurant, or at least I am and I didn't want you to pay since... Well, actually," Roark hesitated mid rant, blood rushing to his face. "I've been planning this date for a few weeks now, and I've even got Gardenia teaching me how to cook. So," he hesitated again, looking Volkner straight in the eyes with skewed determination. "I know it's not gourmet level, but I feel that I've gotten pretty good over the past week so I think... or at least hope that you'll like it!" Roark then faced the ground in defeated embarrassment.
"Oh Roark," Volkner placed a hand over his mouth. He too felt a little embarrassed at how he'd been even in the slightest dreading to see the meteor shower after the amount of effort the small one had put forth for him. It was enough to make him want to cry tears of joy. "Thank you." Volkner leaned down and hugged Roark, naturally resting his chin atop the smaller leader's head. Roark lifted his face, and Volkner obliged to removing his chin from the top of Roark's head in order to face him.
"You're welcome. Would you like to eat now? I have everything set up already. Admittedly I was nervous about you knocking at the door before I finished because if you knocked I'd have no choice but to answer so... I actually only barely checked to see if you were out there." Roark gave Volkner a guilty expression, tilting his eyebrows and looking up which almost gave him a puppy eyed look. Volkner just looked down at Roark and pouted again. Roark tried really hard, it was obvious by the now amused version of his previous expression becoming strained, but he burst into laughter anyway. Volkner just pulled Roark into a tighter hug, wrestling him to the floor and tickling him, to which Roark responded, "Wait, Volkner no! Volkner st-" before laughing twice as hard. Roark could easily have overpowered Volkner if it hadn't been for the fact that when he got tickled it immobilized him. Eventually, Roark reached up and patted Volkner's back a couple times to signal that he was seriously done now. Volkner released his grip on Roark, but didn't remove his hands from where they were tucked cosily beneath Roark's armpits over his rib cage. Roark gasped for air until he had finally caught his breath and regained control of his body. He breathed deeply for a few minutes looking intently into Volkner's eyes, which peered seriously back down into Roark's.
Roark shut his eyes, and placed his hands over Volkner's shoulder blades. Volkner decided now was his chance for payback, so he left Roark waiting.
"Hey, aren't you going to kiss me? The food is getting cold, so if you don't want to, then I'll just go eat~" Roark said playfully.
"Harsh. Am I not even allowed payback at all?" Volkner moped.
"In my opinion, you already got your payback. Now make up your mind." Roark scolded. 'The little stinker' Volkner thought, but went for it anyway. He rubbed their noses together and then brushed his lips across Roark's in a teasing manner before becoming fully engaged, as a way to tell the redhead he hadn't fully given up. Roark gripped onto Volkner's shirt collar and pulled himself into it. Volkner in turn placed one of his arms on the ground along Roark's side, resting his hand by Roark's head and tangling his fingers in the messy red hair.
When the two parted, Volkner wanted nothing more than to snuggle, but Roark suddenly leapt up off the ground.
"Ah! The food!" He looked at Volkner apologetically, who was making a pathetically disappointed face.
The two ate and talked and laughed. The evening was warm and romantic, and Roark's cooking wasn't bad in the least bit. After they finished eating the two got into the bath.
"Your hair is soft." Volkner mused as he washed Roark's hair.
"So is yours." That made Volkner flustered for some reason, even though he'd said it first.
"Cover your eyes." The smaller leader obeyed and Volkner sprayed his head, freeing it of its mess of shampoo.
After they were both thoroughly cleaned, Roark checked the time.
"It's only 10:30..." His voice had traces of annoyed disappointment.
"They did say approximately." Volkner shrugged. "Hey, but before that..." Volkner pushed Roark, who had been leaning against him and pretty much sitting in his lap, forward. It was the spot he'd assumed to prevent his tall companion from leaving the tub yet.
"What are you doing..?" Roark interrogated.
"I just remembered something." Was Volkner's only answer. Roark soon understood when Volkner began massaging Roark's back.
"You know you don't have to return massages every time..."
"I know... but you work so much harder than me so you deserve them and yet you give them to me more than I give them to you." Volkner responded guiltily.
"You don't have to feel guilty. I love doing stuff for you so don't feel that way. I do it because I care about you." With that, Volkner said no more.
The two sat outside huddled together in a blanket, enjoying each other's warmth. It was about 10:50, but the two were almost more preoccupied with each other's company than waiting for the shower to start.
They sat on the cool lawn, both very clean and refreshed. The blanket they were under was too short so their feet poked out from under it. They were grabbing at each other's toes with their own in a sad attempt at keeping their feet warm.
It caught them completely off guard when the shower actually started. The stars seemed so fixed, it was surprising to see the bright incandescent streams of light suddenly appear in their peripheral vision.
Volkner looked up into the sky in amazement. He'd never seen shooting stars like this. Roark held even tighter onto Volkner's arm, which drew his attention away from the sky and towards his small boyfriend.
Roark's face was aglow with the light of the meteors reflecting off him. His eyes shined bright where they were fixed, nearly unblinking, on the sky above them. A wide half open smile stretched across his face as he marvelled at the vast stretch of falling lights.
A warm feeling struck Volkner in the gut, and a tear unknowingly fell down his cheek. He peeled his eyes off of Roark, turning away to avoid making eye contact. Though he longed to stare at the face that made him more emotional than the phenomenon occurring at that moment, he didn't want Roark to think he was sad. That was because he was the exact opposite. He was so happy he couldn't contain it. Suddenly something that fueled his nightmares had morphed in front of his very eyes, and it was all because of this incredible human. He couldn't believe he was allowed to call Roark his own, because he didn't feel like he deserved him.
He stared at the sky, almost not taking in any of it as his head spun with nothing but thoughts of Roark.
"You know, as a kid I always used to wish on shooting stars. What younger me wouldn't give to see this." Roark laughed, Volkner looked towards him again, and almost as if he'd anticipated it, Roark did the same.
"Really?" Volkner asked in disbelief.
"I know, it sounds really stupid..." Roark looked at the ground.
"No, it's not. Keep telling me about it. Please?" Volkner pleaded.
"Well... I would wish for so many things, and a lot of the time they came true. When they didn't, I was a little upset, but to you know what?" Roark lifted his face and beamed up at Volkner.
"What?" Volkner asked with genuine curiosity.
"I decided that when my wishes didn't come true, somebody else's did. Somebody who needed it more than me." Roark's face glowed spectacularly as he said such delicate, sweet, and selfless words.
"Do you still make wishes on shooting stars?" Volkner asked. Roark simply shook his head. "Why's that?"
"Because..." Roark started slowly. "My ultimate wish was granted by a shooting star so it'd be selfish of me to keep asking them for things." He finished.
"What was that wish?" Volkner questioned. Roark's face flushed a radiant pink.
"Right before we met, literally only days before, I had gotten extremely lonely. I was having a stressful time at the gym so I was kind of desperate. This might sound cheesy..." Roark spoke softly. "But I wished that night that I'd meet the love of my life." Roark looked up at Volkner once more. "And I did." His face was still lit up, and the expression he had on was painfully sweet. The impact of the moment rushed straight to Volkner's eyes. He began to cry.
Roark said nothing. He just held Volkner gently in his arms as he sobbed into Roark's shoulder. He stroked Volkner's hair until Volkner eventually fell into a deep, bittersweet sleep.
Volkner and Roark could've stayed that way for the rest of their lives and it wouldn't have mattered.