Chapter Text
GOH’S OFFISHUL FRIEND-DEX by Goh
(OFFICIAL corrected by Chloe)
PER PERPOS PURPOSE: To keep all the data about my best friend(s) so I never forget anything important.
RULES:
1. Only Goh can write in it
2. Chloe can look but not boss (she is allowed to write sometimes)
3. Dad cannot read it
4. If lost, please return to Goh IMMEDIATELY
5. This book is SUPER SECRET but also not really
WARNING: If you are not Chloe, STOP. If you ARE Chloe, hi.
NAME: Chloe Cerise
NICKNAME: Chlo-Chlo
AGE: 7 and a half (VERY important)
FAVORITE COLOR: Pink
FAVORITE FOOD: Marshmallow cookies, rainbow gummies
FAVORITE POKÉMON: Yamper (changes every day)
FAVORITE CELEBRITY: None because celebrities are dumb and full of themselves
FAVORITE ACTIVITY: Looking for pretty flowers but getting mad when I pick the wrong ones
LIKES DOING: Telling me to stop running / Making me carry her stuff / Being right (she is good at this)
DOESN’T LIKE: Boys (BUT she likes me) / When her dad works too much
BEST FRIEND: Goh ❤️
NOTE FROM FRIEND: Goh, you are my best friend. Even when I’m annoyed. Even when I grow up. Even if I change. You always see me better than other people do and that’s why I like you. If you read this again when we’re big… don’t laugh.
SIGNATURE: Chloe C
Delia Ketchum set two tall glasses of chocolate milk down with a soft clink, followed by a plate of warm cookies. The aroma of sugar and cocoa drifted up like a peace offering. She smiled, settling across from the two very tense boys at the kitchen table.
“All right, boys,” she said gently, folding her hands. “What’re the symptoms?”
Ash shifted in his seat. “Okay, here’s the thing—”
But before he could say another word, Goh’s hand shot out beneath the table and landed squarely on Ash’s thigh.
Ash blinked.
Goh froze.
A split second of stunned silence passed before Goh yanked his hand back like he’d just touched a live Magnemite. His entire face flushed deep red, eyes wide in mortified horror. “I—I didn’t mean to—I just—shut up,” he mumbled, refusing to look anywhere near Ash or Delia.
Ash opened his mouth to say something, but thought better of it and swallowed hard. He stole a glance at his mother, praying she hadn’t noticed. Delia was sipping her own tea, absolutely unreadable.
He cleared his throat, desperate for a distraction. “L-listen. If I can’t help you,” he said, nudging Goh’s shin under the table, “and Cinderace can’t help you—”
“I didn’t ask Cinderace for help!” Goh hissed.
“—and Chloe is the main problem here,” Ash pushed on, louder this time, “and you don’t want to talk about this to your own mom, which, like, fair—”
“I really don’t—”
“Then we have one choice.” Ash turned dramatically toward the head of the table. “My mom.”
Delia tilted her head, smiling like a Butterfree that had seen everything and chosen kindness anyway.
Ash pointed at her. “And believe me. She can help us.”
Goh slumped forward, burying his face in his arms with a muffled groan. “I want to die.”
“You’re being dramatic,” Ash said, patting his back.
“You don’t know what it’s like!”
Delia took a sip of her tea again and gently placed the cup down. “Start from the top, dear. What happened to Chloe?”
Goh inhaled shakily, eyes wide. “Her lips were… wet. And… color.”
Ash burst out, “You should’ve seen her eyes!”
Goh snapped toward him, scandalized. “There’s nothing wrong with her eyes!”
“I didn’t mean her eyes eyes,” Ash said quickly, waving his hands around. “I meant her eyelids! She had that… that sparkle dust stuff. I think it was silver. Or purple. Or… something.”
“Also heels,” Goh added grimly, like he was listing a symptom of a terminal illness. “She wore heels.”
Ash nodded seriously, as if they were compiling solid research. “And she said Robert’s coat was shiny,” he went on, tapping the table. “Not even his Pokémon. His coat.”
Delia tilted her head and asked, “Who’s Robert?”
But none of the teen seemed to hear.
Goh leaned in and whispered, as if confessing a crime. “And she said he looked ‘confident… in a mysterious way.’” He shuddered. “What does that even mean?”
Delia blinked, now looking slightly more amused than confused. “Hmm…”
But Ash suddenly sat up straighter, snapping his fingers. “Oh! She talked to Lila.”
“Not just talked!” Goh said, throwing his hands in the air. “She laughed. Like, giggled.”
“Giggled,” Ash echoed gravely.
Delia raised one brow, trying to follow.
“And when Lila left?” Ash leaned in dramatically. “I swear. I swear she rolled her eyes.”
Goh gasped. “I saw it too. And also… Regina. And Natalie. And Cindy.”
Delia’s brow furrowed. “Aren’t those just… your classmates?”
Mr. Mime, standing silently in the corner with a tea towel draped over one arm like a maître d’, nodded sagely in agreement. Ash slapped both palms on the table. “Yes! But who’s next?! Huh? Holly?!”
Goh turned green. “I feel like I’m about to throw up.”
Without missing a beat, Mr. Mime sprang into action, producing an invisible bucket and holding it in front of Goh, followed by miming the offer of a towel with great solemnity.
“Thanks,” Goh mumbled to the air as he leaned over it.
Delia pressed a hand to her lips, trying not to laugh. “Boys,” she said, when she’d regained her composure, “I love you both dearly… but you’re acting like Chloe’s gone feral.”
“She has,” Goh whispered into the invisible bucket.
Ash leaned back in his chair with a sigh and ran a hand through his hair. “Oh, there’s more. You didn’t even see when she snapped at Goh.”
Delia paused, her cup halfway to her lips. “Chloe? Snapped?”
Ash pointed. “Snapped. Chloe never snaps at Goh.”
Goh shifted awkwardly in his seat. “Actually…”
Ash waved him off, eyes rolling. “Yeah, yeah, I know she teases you or glares at you sometimes, but not like that. This was different.” He turned back to Delia, more animated now. “And then after she snapped, she realized what she’d done and, get this, she cried!”
Delia blinked. “Cried?”
He nodded emphatically. “And not like cute tear sparkle stuff. I mean real crying. Like upset crying.”
“I think it was my fault,” Goh muttered.
Ash snapped his head around. “What?! It wasn’t your fault!”
“I didn’t do anything…”
“Exactly!” Ash said, throwing his hands up. “You didn’t even do anything and she cried!”
Delia held up both hands like she was refereeing a battle match. “Whoa, whoa, whoa! Boys. Please. Slow down. I’m starting to get confused.” She reached across the table and gently nudged the untouched glass of chocolate milk toward Goh. “Sweetheart, drink a bit. Ash, sit. And let’s try this again, but this time, one of you speaks at a time.”
Ash looked at Goh, and Goh looked back.
Ash gave him a subtle nod, like he was passing the baton. Goh sighed, picked up the glass, took a long sip of chocolate milk, and set it down with a tiny clink. He rested his hands in his lap. His shoulders tensed, then slouched.
“It started after the Deerling research,” he said quietly.