Work Text:
The Conversation
It was raining again.
This entire trip to the Orange Islands had been filled with rain. Ash tried not to be too disappointed but it was difficult. They had planned this trip to be a fun training getaway — Gary didn't even have any research tasks to accomplish this time around — but it had rained almost every day. Even more frustrating, it was the first trip where they'd had a vehicle, so they had brought extra supplies to make things more fun. Unfortunately much of it remained untouched, except for the portable gaming system — that they had played in the tent almost every night. It felt almost as though they were kids again, laughing and bickering over games they hadn't played in ages.
Tonight, however, was quiet. Gary was quiet. That was the odd part. He had gotten quieter in general over the years, but this was an unusual quiet. It seemed very much as though Gary as deep in thought, which was, again, strange — especially for a night in the field where there wasn't an obvious problem in need of solving.
Ash tried not to worry about it, but his eyes kept raising from his pokedex, seeking out Gary's gaze over and over again, no matter how hard he tried to focus.
The tent was a bit cramped, but they made do and relaxed, the solar-powered lantern between them giving off just enough light to clearly see each other. Enough light to see the frown on Gary's face and the conflict in his eyes.
Maybe he was bored or frustrated with the weather all but ruining their trip. Maybe there was some problem that Ash wasn't aware of. He couldn't think of what it might be, but that frown suggested that there was definitely a problem.
Finally he had enough of wondering.
"What's up?" Ash asked, setting the pokedex down.
Gary hesitated long enough that Ash was certain he wouldn't be getting an answer. But then, he answered quietly enough to worry Ash all over again. "Something I'm not sure I want to talk to you about."
"That sounds bad," Ash replied, trying to keep as neutral as possible.
After all these years, after all the traveling they had done together over the months, why could Gary still never give him a straight answer? In all fairness, he had gotten better, but that didn't mean Ash couldn't be frustrated.
"It's not as bad as it sounds," Gary returned quickly enough to make Ash wonder just what it was. If it wasn't as bad as it sounded, then why didn't he want to talk about it? What could be such a big deal? Didn't he know that he could talk to Ash about anything, just like when they were little kids?
Ash decided he wasn't going to let it go the way he normally did. "Then why don't you want to talk about it?" he pressed.
Gary hesitated a long while once again but Ash waited until… "Because I don't want to screw things up between us again," he finally admitted.
What did that mean? It would take a lot to screw things up between them, especially after this last year. Ever since that time Gary had saved his and Goh's asses from that onix, their friendship had been going strong. A chance meeting a few months after winning his championship had led to a brief stint traveling together and things had been fantastic since then. Fantastic enough for certain feelings to emerge.
Only one thing could ruin it.
"Are you planning on being an asshole again?" Ash asked bluntly.
Gary flinched slightly at that but shook his head. "I'm not that person anymore," he pointed out quietly.
Ash already knew that. "Well, that's about the only way you could screw things up between us so… No need to worry, yeah?"
"If you say so."
He still sounded doubtful.
"I mean it, Gary," Ash pressed. "I like what we have going. I like traveling with you and camping and training with you. I like spending time with you — I miss you when we're not traveling together. You would have to work hard to screw things up between us."
"I miss you too."
It was said so quietly that Ash almost missed it. Gary's gaze, which had been determinedly steady on the lantern, had dropped down to his lap, where Pikachu was currently sleeping. Ash couldn't help the smile that curved his lips. The sight was adorable and knowing that Gary also missed him when they were apart sent a warm feeling all throughout him.
"You do?"
Gary nodded, eyes still on his lap for a moment longer. If Ash had to guess, it looked as though he was gathering his nerves, which seemed odd for someone as confident as Gary.
It was a long moment before Gary raised his eyes and met Ash's gaze over the lantern. "I'm tired of missing you all the time," he admitted.
"What d'you mean?"
"Every time we're apart," Gary clarified, though it really didn’t clarify anything.
Why couldn't he just be straightforward? Did missing him actually mean that Ash's feelings were reciprocated? He didn't dare get his hopes up.
"I don't follow."
Gary sighed and dropped his gaze down to the sleeping bags beneath them. It was a moment before he spoke again, carefully and quietly as he always did when the conversation was serious.
"I miss you every time we're apart, and when we're together, I still miss you because…" He broke off with another sigh before raising his gaze back to Ash's. "I want more than this."
Ash could swear he felt his heart stop. "You mean… More than friends?"
Gary nodded, his expression neutral, though his eyes betrayed his nerves. Ash's breath caught in his throat but then Gary spoke again.
"Unless I'm wrong… You feel the same way, don't you?"
How did he always manage to read people like that?
"Yeah," Ash returned quietly. "I do."
He couldn't pinpoint when that had become the case, but sometime since reuniting those feelings had developed. It might have been when Gary had asked that question…
How much closer are you to being a pokemon master?
No one else had even mentioned his original overarching goal, and even if they had, it meant something different coming from Gary. It was an echo of a childhood spent around pokemon, of a once-shared goal. The acknowledgment of his true goal touched a special part in Ash's heart.
Realization sparked and Ash's heart was quite suddenly pounding within his chest.
This was real and there was a chance here, but this was serious. Gary wouldn't have been thinking about it so hard all night if it wasn't. They had known each other their entire lives, they had a long history together — Ash couldn't blame Gary for being worried. He didn't want anything to mess things up between them either.
At the same time… They both wanted the same thing, so why not try? But there was something that had always lingered in the very back of Ash's mind. Something that had to be done if Gary wanted to move forward and go further than this.
"I have for a while," he admitted. He hesitated briefly, reigning in his impulsive nature to decide how to best approach this part. After a moment, he settled on just being blunt. "But there's something you haven't done yet," he finally said.
Gary's gaze was equally curious and wary. "What's that?"
"A proper apology."
There had been unspoken apologies over the years, gestures that held an apology to them, and Ash had never held a grudge against his old friend. But this was where the line was.
Nothing more than friendship until a true apology was given.
A flicker of a different emotion appeared in Gary's eyes — something akin to realization, perhaps a touch of shame.
"I'm sorry," he murmured. "And I'm sorry that it took this long to say it."
Ash held his gaze, searching the emerald depths and finding nothing but honesty. For someone who was always so hesitant to express his feelings, he sure wasn't hesitating now. Ash was actually impressed with how quickly and earnestly he had said it.
He hadn't realized how badly he'd needed this moment to happen.
Without an ounce of thought or hesitation, Ash reached out to thread his fingers through Gary's hair, pulling him in gently to press their lips together in a soft kiss. It didn't occur to him that this might be Gary's first kiss and a tiny bit of nerves fluttered through him at the realization when their lips connected, but the tiny squeak of surprise that escaped Gary made it worth it.
Still he pulled back, grinning as their lips parted. He couldn't help the excited laugh that bubbled up. "You squeaked," he spoke through his laugh before pressing another quick kiss to Gary's lips. It was a quick little thing, a brief brush of the lips, once more entirely on impulse.
"Shut up," Gary retorted, cheeks far pinker than they had been just a moment earlier.
"It was cute."
"Shut up," Gary repeated, drawing another laugh from Ash.
He sobered after a moment but the smile remained. "I knew you were, by the way but… I needed you to say it before…"
"I should've said it sooner."
"But you still said it, and you made it pretty clear a long time ago."
"For how much of an asshole I was—"
"Gary, stop," Ash interrupted. "You went through a jerk phase when we were kids, but I've known you forever and I forgave you years ago."
"Really?"
"You gave me your half of the pokeball," Ash returned.
Wasn't it obvious that Gary had changed back then? Even back when they had battled with Eevee and Pikachu, he could tell that Gary was no longer that same arrogant jerk of a rival. His friend was still there, just… dealing with something, apparently. At least, that's what his mother and the professor had always said and they had always been right about Gary when they were little.
Ash shrugged his shoulders. He gave Gary his half of the ball after he had forgiven him. It was hard to stay mad at him when he wasn't intentionally trying to get under Ash's skin.
"You outgrew it. Beating yourself up every time someone mentions being ten isn't gonna undo it," Ash continued with a reassuring smile. "I let it go when I gave you back the ball; you should too."
Gary was quiet for a moment before nodding. "Okay," he agreed quietly.
Pleased with this, Ash's smile morphed into a grin and he fought the urge to lean in and kiss him once again. There was another matter they needed to address before a real kiss could happen.
"What's next?" he asked curiously. "If we both want to be more than friends?"
"If we both want to be more than friends, then we should try that, don't you think?"
Some of the confidence had returned to Gary's voice, though it still wasn't quite back to normal. He was still nervous, and that only made Ash want to kiss him more. The only thing he wanted more than that was to say yes. He nodded seriously, despite his wide grin.
"I'd like that," he returned, "but only if that's what you want too."
Gary nodded in turn, his lips quirking into a soft smile that Ash wasn't sure he had ever seen before. "I've wanted it since we started traveling together," he admitted, some more of his usual confidence creeping back into his voice.
He sounded certain enough for Ash to lean in and press one more gentle kiss to his lips, but this time Gary reached out and twined his fingers in Ash's hair, pulling him in closer as he returned the kiss. It was tame and still a bit timid, but Ash didn't mind in the slightest. He drew back slightly when it ended, grinning goofily all the while.
That just left one last question to ask. "Will you be my boyfriend?"
Gary's smile was still far softer than Ash was used to seeing, but excitement shown in his eyes, only further fueling Ash's own excitement over the way the evening had progressed. "Only if you'll be mine," he replied.
Ash couldn't help the laugh that bubbled up at that. "Sounds good to me."
The worry he had felt earlier in the evening was far from mind as he met his new boyfriend's eyes over the lantern between them. What could possibly be a better end to this rainy day than a conversation with such a good ending?
Nothing could be better.