A/N: Hello! I hope you enjoy this Wishfulshipping fic! Iris is seventeen, and Cilan is twenty-two.

A flirty Cilan will be a-waiting you ~

. . . . . . . .

Waiter

. . . . .

Things weren't supposed to be like this! Iris was supposed to have arrived back home in Opelucid City quickly and safely after her year long adventure in Sinnoh with Dawn, but now her plan to arrive home was now demolished as she was now stuck in Castelia City.

The delay at the airport near Dawn's house earlier in the morning was what caused her irritation. Not only did her flight depart later than expected, but the plane also arrived in Castelia City, and not Opelucid City!

Iris had caught the attention of a passing flight attendant a few minutes before landing. She had showed her the boarding ticket in confusion. "Excuse me, but isn't this flight supposed to be a non-stop flight to Opelucid City from Sinnoh?"

The flight attendant nodded. "Ah, yes, you are correct. It is a one-way flight. However, due to severe weather from the northwest direction of the Unova region during this time, I am afraid to say that it has been deemed unsafe for incoming and outgoing flights from Unova, and all flights have been put on hold for the time being."

Iris groaned inwardly with this news. What was she going to do now? She would have to come up with a Plan B soon, but suppressed it and forced a smile to the attendant for the moment. "Thank you."

Now, it had been a few hours after stepping out of the Castelia City airport. At least the weather was good here. She didn't know what to do now, and although she remembered Castelia City from her travels with Ash and Cilan, she really couldn't think of how to navigate the city. That journey with her friends had been about 6 years ago when she was eleven years old, but she was seventeen years old now, and the past years of being constantly surrounded by Sinnoh scenery and landmarks certainly didn't help the recovery of her memories of navigation around the Unova region today.

If only Axew had been with her on the plane ride, she would have at least had a companion to keep her company and to help her navigate the city…

However, he was back home with her grandfather Drayden.

"Well, I'll just have to wander around then." Iris adjusted her pink backpack straps and began to walk around.

After an hour of trying to get accommodated with Castelia City, her feet began to hurt and she became hungry. When she heard her stomach growl, she realized that it was about to become evening. She would need food, and decided to make her way to the nearest restaurant to eat.

She kept walking along the brightly lit street against the crowd of people, until she came to the nearest okay-looking restaurant. Shady restaurants did exist in Castelia, and she wasn't about to get mugged tonight, even if it meant going into a freaking Michelin Star restaurant. She would rather risk her wallet than her safety on a strange night like this.

Iris wasted no time in entering through the double doors.

Once inside, Iris immediately got in the queue of elegantly dressed people. Most of them were nice-looking couples on their romantic dates. There weren't many singles like her in line, which gave her relief. Looking around, this seemed like a fine dining restaurant, and an expensive one at that, judging from the gigantic crystal chandeliers…

"Reservation name, miss?"

Iris snapped her head back down to the fancily dressed male host in front of her. Oh, now she was next in line.

She smiled nervously before asking hesitantly, "Are walk-ins welcome?" She anxiously fumbled with her necklace as she waited for his reply.

The host looked at her quizzically and eyed the appearance of the girl in front of him. Iris stuck out like a sore thumb, as she wasn't wearing an evening gown or a dress, and he noticed her unflatteringly beat-up suitcase. He soon quickly recovered into his professional posture and roughly cleared his throat.

"Of course." He replied coolly. "Right this way."

Iris sighed with relief and quickly followed the host.

. . . . .

After the host had graciously taken her suitcase into a storage room, he had shown her to a table in a secluded corner of the restaurant. She had an inkling that it was probably because he had taken note of her casual travel attire and did not want to embarrass her in the middle of the room amongst the jewel-clad, evening gown ladies and their suit-and-tie men. Which was polite in a way, she thought.

Iris took a brief skim through the menu and gaped at the expensive prices. 500 Pokédollars for just an entrée and a dessert? Thankfully she had 600 with her backpack.

It had only been a few minutes when her waiter came to take her order.

"Good evening, and welcome to Elemental Concoctions, our magnificent restaurant! My name is - "

Hmm, should I get the soup or the stew? Iris wondered to herself, totally drowning out the waiter's introduction. Should I just get both? I'm starving!

"- and I am pleased to be your waiter for tonight. Can I get you interested in our special wine of the week? Otherwise, if you are ready now, I will be taking your… "

The waiter had stopped upon looking at his customer, and his jaw was hanging open slightly.

"Hello," mumbled Iris, who hadn't taken her eyes off of the menu. She was intensely focused on deciding between the two entrees of a meaty stew and a warm, creamy soup. When she finally noticed the silence, she snapped her head up to meet the familiar emerald eyes of a boy she knew. She immediately recognized the owner of those clear eyes and mint green hair.

"Eh, Cilan?!" Iris said, shocked, and her eyes - well, irises, for a better term, - grew large. It was a coincidence that he was here, working in this restaurant that she had randomly chosen to enter!

"Iris?" Cilan replied. A bright smile lit up his face. "I see you've dropped by our new restaurant. I'm so glad you're here. It's been a while, hasn't it?" His now deep voice resonated in the air between them.

Cilan felt happy; no, elated. After nearly half a decade apart of no contact, it was so amazing to see her again. How he had missed her so! She would never know. For the longest time, he had only been able to express his feelings through gentle gestures and comforting words throughout their past journey with Ash Ketchum. All was good until the end, when he realized his mistake too late after they parted- it was his dire mistake that he didn't get her phone number to further their friendship.

But sitting in front of him now was a blossoming lady. Iris's hair had grown out uniformly straighter, and it was now tied up in a high ponytail that flowed like an uninterrupted waterfall down her slender back. He figured that she must have gone out of the Unova region to get such a high-end, sleek, straight perm. But her eyes! They had lightened into a mesmerizing shade of amber, and he couldn't help but fall deep into her sweet, caramel gaze.

She had grown so beautiful; he couldn't help but stare at her in disbelief.

Iris noticed his open gaze after noticing a brief moment of silence between them. "Yes, it has, I guess…" How awkward! Iris didn't know what to say. It had been such a long time, and for him to see her in disheveled casual clothing all of a sudden was unexpected and embarrassing! She quickly motioned to her menu to remove his heavy gaze from her.

"I'd be honored." He then proceeded to point out the options he believed Iris would enjoy, and didn't forget to suggest a berry tart for dessert. But his mind began to wonder about the duration of her stay, and why she was in Castelia City.

He didn't know how long she would be staying in the restaurant, and he wanted to ask, but caught himself short in order to keep intact his image of a seasoned, professional waiter. He was determined to find out, though, and possibly make her stay, at least until the restaurant closed. Now that he was an adult of twenty two years, he was going to resort to using his subtle charm… just for a little bit, while wearing his heart upon his sleeve for the night.

Turning his back to Iris, Cilan smirked contentedly and headed for the kitchen to let his brothers start making the orders.

. . . . .

"OH MY GAWD, IS SHE WHO I THINK SHE IS?"

"Shh… keep it down, Chili, Cilan's headed here!"

"QUICK! Back to work!"

Chili and Cress scrambled across the kitchen to get to their respective positions from the glass they had peered through. Chili dashed back to boiling the water on one of the many stoves in the massive kitchen, and Cress began mopping the floor.

Cilan pushed through the doors that led into the warm kitchen and didn't notice that his brothers were aware of the situation that occurred in the dining hall. His eyes were unfocused as if he was in a daydream, and he seemed to be in a good mood, humming his way to his brothers' area.

"One cream soup as the entrée, and a berry tart for dessert." Cilan handed his blue-haired brother the order from his waiter's pad.

Cress spoke without skipping a beat. "Alright. And this is for guest number…?"

"Iris." Cilan confirmed blankly, nonchalantly, as if she were a regular guest in their restaurant. "If you'll excuse me, I'll be taking these meals here," Cilan picked up two elegant plates with food, and exited the swinging doors.

Chili and Cress briefly looked at each other with knowing smiles quickly after their brother left. They were well aware of Cilan's gentlemanly façade and knew of his hidden seductive personality that had been developing lately, the side only they found out about through sneaking through his journal a few months ago. Combined with the raging testosterone every adult man harbored, they were thrilled to see what would unfold in the dining room where Iris was. This particular night was their chance, and while they had the power over the delivery of the food, they weren't about to give this chance up.

"Just a cream soup and a plain berry tart?" Cress wondered aloud, smirking mischeviously at his red-haired to-be partner in crime.

"Heh… won't this be interesting?" Chili responded. They were going to have some fun of their own tonight by taking their sweet, sweet time.

. . . . .

Back in the secluded corner, Iris looked around for other guests nearby. Seeing that there were none within a five-foot vicinity, she proceeded to tug at her clothes to smooth out any wrinkles that she had created on the sleepy plane trip, albeit self-consciously. She then checked the time on her phone. It was about 7 p.m.

Iris began thinking about her plans of settling down for the night. She wouldn't be able to check into a Pokémon Center, as it would be too late to snag a free room after she finished eating. Wasn't anyone near here? Well, she could sleep in Bianca's home in Nuvema Town, but that journey would take at least four hours by foot. She could find a tree along one of the routes to sleep in, but she wouldn't be able to get away with it, now that the recent law of sleeping in a building was strictly enforced these days, as she had seen in the news in Sinnoh.

Iris sighed. She'd have to think of something soon. The purple-haired female took a sip of her water that had been provided to her, and took out her phone to text Dawn that she had arrived safely in Castelia given her unfortunate situation.

After a while, Iris looked around the room to spot Cilan in his waiter's attire while he served a faraway couple their meal, and began to study him. She took note of how tall he had gotten. He still had the lanky, skinny connoisseur feel to him, but it wasn't obvious anymore. She didn't remember his jawline being so prominent and finely angled during her adventure back then. Instead, his black satin blouse molded to his reveal sturdy biceps as well as a muscular upper and lower body. She squinted. Wait, was that a six-pack? No, it couldn't be! He hadn't been following those crazy fitness trends lately, had he?

She found those fads disgusting, but she silently admitted that it suited him now, and that the past years had been doing him well for his physique. He was finishing puberty as a young man, after all.

His body was slightly angled towards the side of their table as he spoke to the formally dressed lady and gentleman, and this position accentuated his manly features in the romantic light. She moved her attention to the guests he was serving. Iris instantly recognized the lady and gentleman that he had just served. They had been a few people behind her in the line! How had they been able to get their meal faster than she? She peered at the clock on a wall across the restaurant. Its hands read 7:40 p.m.

Iris's stomach grumbled as she watched the handsome waiter excuse himself to wait other tables. Cilan met her gaze, and smiled a smile only cute boys could pull off. Iris blinked twice. Was it just her, or did he just wink at her from afar?

Iris snapped her head back to her table and shook her head rapidly. She could feel her face growing hotter. Her romantic feelings from years ago were being awakened inside her, much to her dismay. She sat rigid in her seat as she could hear the soft yet familiar footsteps nearing her table. Iris tried to keep her cool by staring straight ahead until he was close enough. She hoped her face didn't show signs of redness!

"Ah, Miss Iris," Cilan started respectfully. Cilan's voice had deepened with age, and it was a gentle rumbling tenor-bass sound that was comforting to hear. Iris looked up to see him smiling gently, like that connoisseur fool always did when he had his nerdy moments. She looked up in response and gave a small smile.

"I apologize, as I'm sure you've noticed that the tables before you have been served."

Iris made a huge effort to stop her eye from twitching in impatience. "It's no problem, Cilan. I can wait a little longer." However, she didn't really think she would make it for another minute. If she wasn't fed, she was going to die.

Cilan had been wondering why his brothers speedily created the dishes for the other guests and not for Iris. When he asked, Cress had responded that they had run out of potatoes, which was a main ingredient in Iris's entrée, a creamy soup. Cilan was confused, as he was sure he just restocked the potatoes yesterday.

But he wasn't complaining. The longer he could hold Iris in the restaurant, the more time he would be able to have with Iris. He internally grimaced, seeing Iris's subtle annoyance on her face. He would have to act fast.

"Perhaps I can refill your glass?" The green-haired man gestured towards her nearly empty water glass.

"S-sure," Iris answered. Cilan smiled at her stuttering, which made Iris's face heat up.

. . . . .

It had been an eternity for Iris, seeing a dozen men and women who had arrived after her enjoy their meals. Iris fumed. Where was her meal, and why was it taking so long?!

The clock read 8 p.m., an hour after Iris had finished her second glass of water, and an hour before the closing time of 9 p.m. Looking around, she observed many guests beginning to leave after finishing their meals. Lucky them. Iris was the only one seated in the restaurant, and Cilan wasn't in sight. She was just about done with this restaurant's poor service, but before she did that, she decided to get up and use the restroom before she left this place for good.

After she had refreshed herself in the bathroom, Iris stomped her way back to her table, grumbling. "I swear, if my food doesn't arrive by the time I sit back down- "

Iris stopped when she saw Cilan sitting contentedly across from her seat, where her food had been served. Finally! But why was he sitting so leisurely at her table?

She sat down. Iris didn't mind having company, but she found his action a little bold. Wasn't he supposed to be cleaning up tables, or something? Maybe he wanted to talk, but she wanted to satisfy her hunger before they struck up a conversation.

Iris was so ready to eat. "Did you bring this? Thanks!" Iris dug in immediately without waiting for his reply. She started with her main soup. Unfortunately, it must have been served straight off the stove, because it was hot.

"Oww!" The temperature of the soup surprised her and she scalded her tongue simultaneously. Reflexively, she dropped her spoon, which fell to the floor.

"Here is another spoon, Miss Iris. Please be careful." Cilan kindly advised her, and bent down to pick up her spoon from the carpeted floor.

"It's hot!" Iris exclaimed to Cilan as he rose off the ground beside her. This was a perfect time to use his charm! He leaned into her, close enough that they nearly touched.

"Like you, if I may say so myself," Cilan dropped his voice down an octave and purred into her ear.

Iris froze. She whipped her head around to look at him, and her cheeks began blushing scarlet. She could smell his cologne from being so close this way… but she was just imagining it, right?

"Y-you're being silly, Cilan. Ah haha!" Iris laughed uncomfortably, but his only response was a sly smile. Iris gulped, and quickly changed the subject. Cilan was being too weird for her right now.

The two friends caught up with each other's lives. Iris learned that Cilan had settled down to become a full-time manager of Elemental Concoctions with his triplet brothers. He was developing his business very well, and from the looks of it, Iris could tell that it had been growing successfully despite the competition from the neighboring restaurants in the area. The cooking was very good too, and the brothers would definitely go places with these skills.

Iris was relieved, as Cilan had gone back to being the gentlemanly and polite person as she had always known him to be. But she couldn't forget the odd yet sensual feeling she was receiving from her former travel partner. Throughout their conversation, Iris had been sheepishly faltering under the intense stare of her former crush as she spoke. To her, his gaze felt burning hot, spicy, hungry… maybe even impatient.

What was this passionate feeling that was growing in her chest? She couldn't put a finger on it.

"So it's good that you've been able to take a break in Sinnoh," Cilan replied, after Iris had finished sharing about how she'd been doing in the past year. "Will you be here… I mean, in Unova, to stay? How did you arrive here, tonight?"

Iris smiled. "Yeah, I'll be staying in Unova now. I'm not going to go anywhere for a long time, Cilan!" She laughed, a sweet sound that felt like music to Cilan's ears. It was relieving, both the sound of her laughter and the fact that she would be in the region from now on.

She continued to answer his second question. "About my ending up here, well, there were weather problems and my flight was canceled. I'll be stuck here for now." Iris grinned an adorable smile that melted Cilan's heart. Cilan smiled back and gave a small chuckle.

The restaurant was now empty, and even the employees had signed out and left for the night. The only sounds were coming from the kitchen, where dishes were being cleaned, and the soothing bossa nova music that floated through the air. Iris glanced at the clock. It was nearing nine o'clock, and they hadn't noticed time flowing by like this. Iris was beginning to get worried that she was overstaying her welcome as a customer in the restaurant.

Cilan noticed her fidgeting and nervousness. Perhaps it would be good to bring out the last course. "I'll bring out your dessert. May I take your empty dishes, Miss Iris?" Cilan cheekily grinned while standing up from his seat slowly.

"Sure. Cilan, there's no need for formalities. Call me by my name, please." Iris giggled.

Cilan gave a mock bow as he carried the empty dishes towards the direction of the kitchen. "Your wish is my command."

Thankfully, they had some privacy to themselves now. Cilan quickly but gracefully brought out the berry tart and set it in front of his beautiful lady.

Iris took one glance at the beautiful assortment of berries on the pastry. That's funny. I don't remember ordering chocolate drizzle on my tart, she thought. She didn't want to cause trouble with a misunderstanding with the cooks because of her order, now that it was so late at night. She decided to pick up her fork and start on the dessert.

Iris beamed at Cilan after finishing her first bite. "Wow, this is so good! The berries are perfectly ripe, and the chocolate compliments it so very well!" She exclaimed, sounding not too different from the green-haired boy from younger days.

Cilan doubled with laughter at the sudden old habit that appeared between them. In an instant, Iris quickly realized how she had unknowingly imitated a sixteen-year-old Cilan. A sanguine shade had transferred onto her face from embarrassment, but she cracked a smile and laughed along with him anyway.

"Oh, Iris," he breathed after his laughter subsided. "I've missed these moments so much."

"Those were some good times, weren't they? Hahaha! It's funny. You've become more perverted lately, too!"

Iris didn't mean to let that last sentence come out of her mouth. Oh my gosh. She could not believe what she had just said. She didn't mean for it to come out like that! She looked at Cilan in shock, her mouth forming a small "o" shape.

But, to her surprise, instead of becoming embarrassed and awkward, Cilan smirked that smirk again, and his emerald eyes glinted with a light she didn't like. "Why, dear Iris," he coyly began. "Does it bother you that much?"

"N-no, I mean," She gulped. "Yes, it kind of d-does. I mean, I never expected that kind of behavior from you."

Cilan was slightly hurt with those words, but he brushed it off. At least she was being honest.

Another mistake! Iris could see the hurt in his face that had appeared for a split-second, and wish she could have taken her words back again. Stupid me!

"I mean, I know people change, but this is a surprise, seeing you after so many years to be so… open in a manner that intimate couples discuss. Ah… my main point is… um, I just want to say… you've never been this brand of 'expressive' before." She cautiously moved to pick up her fork, not meeting Cilan's intense gaze once more.

However, Iris noted, this gaze felt different from the previously lusty one. It was just one of her sixth sense hunches, but she noted that she felt more at ease with this kind of warm, gentler, tender stare.

"It's kind of funny. And cute." Iris giggled quietly to herself as she finished the remainder of her decadent dessert.

They stayed silent. Well, Cilan was silent, and he now looked as if he were thinking. Iris didn't want to interrupt his train of thought and decided to focus on finishing her dessert so that the kitchen workers wouldn't have to wait long to wash this last plate. She felt sort of bad for them. They were still stuck in there past closing hours because of her.

So, she didn't waste any time licking the last of the chocolate and berry juices from her fork and set it down. Now, Cilan would be able to take it back there and then those workers could finally go home after a long night.

She looked at Cilan and smiled brightly in order to get his attention quietly. "I'm finished with this. It was lovely!"

But Cilan didn't move. He was fixated on her still, and Iris waited a little more. He didn't move for another while, and Iris began to become a little confused as to why he hadn't decided to promptly remove her empty plate, like he had done with her entrée dishes a few moments earlier.

He finally spoke in his mesmerizing deep voice and continued to look into her caramel eyes. "You've got some chocolate on your lip."

Her left hand flew to the handkerchief cloth that was settled on her lap. She blushed sheepishly. "Thanks." She brought the napkin to her face, and was about to wipe it off, when…

"Wait." He stopped her hand with her napkin by holding it away from her face, and went over to her side of the cushioned booth seat.

"Speaking of expressive, it's about time that I expressed my feelings for you."

He briskly yet gracefully leaned forward to catch her lips before she could say anything else. Overcome with surprise, Iris lost her balance and fell backwards into a position where she was lying on her back, and accidentally tugged the white tablecloth down with her. Cilan, however, didn't remove his mouth from hers even as her head fell onto the couch-like seat. He was now in a position where he was leaning on top of her, but with support from his arms so that they were not making any bodily contact. He could taste the chocolate ganache drizzle on her lips and licked any traces of it off her bottom lip using his tongue as softly as he could. Her breath was like a fruity concoction from the berries she had eaten, and it tempted him immediately. With a taste of her enticing breath, Cilan could not contain himself, and deepened the kiss.

Iris didn't reject him once he did so. In fact, she relented under his curious tongue, and gave him permission into her mouth, relaxing her tense body. She felt the familiar aching in her chest that had appeared before, and carefully demonstrated her long-restrained feelings through the kiss.

This was it. She finally recognized this feeling, this feeling of attraction, this feeling of love for this grown man she was reunited with now.

There were no words to describe their passion just then. The both of them had no words to say when their lips parted, and they just smiled, this time lovingly, at each other, for a very long time.

Iris was the first to snap out of the romantic trance. She sat up and quickly looked at the disheveled table beside her. All of the contents of the table were now strewn upon the carpeted floor.

"Oh, I've made such a mess. I'm sorry, Cilan! I'll clean it up!" Iris cried, and sprang up to fix her mess. However, Cilan stopped her by using his strong arms to draw her into an embrace.

"Don't worry, Iris. I'll get my brothers in the kitchen to clean it up. But for now…" He leaned close and whispered into her ear. His every word tickled Iris's earlobe with each burst of cool air, but made her face hotter than a Darumaka.

"I certainly wouldn't mind if you made a mess… in my bedroom tonight."

. . . . . . . .

A/N: Thank you for reading! I hope you thoroughly enjoyed this Wishfulshipping fic. I have been wanting to write one since 2011, and I feel so accomplished now!

Please, don't be afraid to post a review and share with me your thoughts, feelings, and hopes about this story!

I look forward to interacting with you in the future!