A/N: So here's another years old fic that I thought looked good enough to publish! It started life as a long oneshot but through the editing process it's become a twoshot, whoops :p Anyway, hope you like love triangles dear readers~

Someone was running towards him.

Red glanced up from the book he had been reading, an encyclopedia about electric type Pokemon that Professor Oak had let him borrow the other day, but the familiar rapid-fire footsteps gave away the girl's identity long before her voice did.

"Hey Red!" Leaf called, charging up his porch steps until she was standing right in front of him. She was breathing heavily, hands braced on her knees as she gulped down air like she'd been running for a while. Red stood up, his book forgotten at his feet, and reached a hand out towards her, worried that she'd overexerted herself. But when she straightened up, her honey brown eyes were sparkling, and a bright grin stretched across her face.

"Red, you'll never guess what I just heard!" She said after a few seconds, her chest no longer heaving from exertion, but from excitement. "So I was walking over to Green's place to see if he wanted to play, right? But before I could knock on the door, I overheard Professor Oak talking on the phone to one of his assistants. I know, I know, I shouldn't eavesdrop on a grown-up's conversation, don't give me that look." She pointed at Red accusingly, though his expression hadn't changed. "The important thing is, I heard him say that he's going to give us all Pokemon next year! Isn't that great, Red?"

Red felt his eyes widen at her words. Although a tiny part of him had been jealous that she'd gone to see Green first this morning, the larger part of him was happy that her first thought had been to rush over and tell him the news right away. His mouth quirked up into a tiny smile as his cheeks turned pink.

"See, I knew you'd be excited!" Leaf said, reading his face like a book. She bounced up and down on her feet, unable to conceal her joy. "Can you imagine, Red? In just a year, we're going to be Pokemon Trainers!"

Red nodded, his mind spinning as he tried to imagine it. Traveling all over Kanto with his new Pokemon at his side, battling gym leaders and meeting new people... He'd dreamed about being a trainer his whole life, and now, thanks to Leaf's eavesdropping, he knew that dream was only a year away now.

"It's like a dream." Leaf said, echoing his thoughts. She grabbed his hand and tangled their fingers together, turning his face a darker shade of pink. Before he could ask her what she was doing, she started to swing their hands from side to side with a giddy smile on her face. "It's going to be the just three of us on the road together, right?"

He felt himself nod. For as long as he could remember, it had always been the three of them, him and Leaf and Green, exploring the confines of Pallet Town and having adventures. Always in that order too. Red followed Leaf wherever she wanted to go, and she followed Green, who considered himself their 'leader' and planned the day's activities for them. Red didn't mind though, he was just happy to have his friends by his side. Of course they were going to stick to that routine, even after they became trainers and were out there exploring more than just their backyards.

"Hey, Red?" Leaf asked, snapping him out of his thoughts. He noticed that even though she'd stopped swinging their hands together, she still hadn't let go. She continued now that she was sure she had his attention. "Don't you think that we should do something to celebrate? I mean becoming Pokemon trainers is a big deal! We should do something just as big, like... um..."

She paused and let her gaze wander around their surroundings. There wasn't much to see from Red's porch, so Leaf tugged him forward, and together they walked down the steps and away from the house. Leaf's eyes fell on a large hill in the distance, and her face lit up. "Like climb up that hill! What do you say Red, do you think that's big enough?"

She could have asked him to climb to the top of Mt. Silver and he would have gladly tried it. He nodded and Leaf smiled at him so wide he felt his heart skip a beat.

"Great, let's go!" She said, hurrying towards the hill. Red practically had to run to keep up with her but he didn't mind, because she was still holding his hand.

He didn't get to hold her hand too often these days. When they were younger, Leaf would reach out and grab his hand whenever she was feeling excited, or if she was afraid and needed someone to comfort her. Green usually teased her about it when she tried with him, so she would always turn to Red instead. But Leaf didn't scare easily these days, so Red made sure to treasure this moment as the two of them climbed up the hill.

"Look!" Leaf exclaimed when they reached the top, letting go of his hand and throwing her arms out at the view in front of them. He tried not to let his disappointment show. They could see all of Pallet Town from up here, and Route 1 beyond it. The tall grass that they weren't allowed to explore beckoned to him, and Leaf turned around to face him with a radiant smile. "Pallet Town looks so beautiful from up here, doesn't it? But someday we're going to see so many new towns and cities on our travels together. We'll see the whole region, and then maybe leave Kanto and explore the whole world! Isn't it amazing to think about Red?"

"I doubt you'll make it past Viridian City." A voice called from behind them. They glanced over their shoulders and saw Green, looking like he didn't have a care in the world, sauntering up the hill towards them.

"Hey, Green!" Leaf said, a pink blush dusting her cheeks as she smiled shyly at him. Her smile quickly soured when she realized what he had said to her, and crossed her arms over her chest in a huff. "Wait, what do you mean by that? I'm definitely going to make it past Viridian. I'm going to travel everywhere!"

"Oh, sure you will." Green said, raising an eyebrow playfully. "And next you'll be telling me that Red's the Champion of Kanto." He sneered, then started laughing as if he'd just told the funniest joke in existence.

"Why are you being so mean today?" Leaf said, her lower lip jutting out into a pout as she glared at him. "You're usually nicer than this, Green."

"I'm not trying to be mean." He said, holding his hands up innocently. His smug expression didn't match his posture though. "It's just that you said something weird Leaf, and I had to call you out on it. You can't just say you're going to travel everywhere, that's impossible."

"It's not and I can so." Leaf said, sticking her tongue out at him. "In fact, I betcha that I'll travel every region there is, and that Red will be the Champion, and then you'll have to apologize to us for being so mean."

Red blinked in amazement at how certain she sounded. Did she really think that he could be the Champion of Kanto, like Lance? He felt a swell of pride in his chest at the thought. All he really wanted from going on a journey was having fun with his friends and maybe winning enough badges to challenge the Pokemon League, but Leaf just said that he could be Champion, and if she really thought so then maybe...

"No way!" Green said, frowning and shaking his head vigorously. "Red's not going to be the Champion, because I'm going to win the title!"

Leaf blinked, her frustration momentarily forgotten as confusion took its place. "Aren't you planning on being a Pokemon Professor like your grandpa?"

"Ew, no." Green said, wrinkling his nose in disdain. "Red can work in some stuffy old office with Gramps if he wants to, but not me. I'm going to be the coolest Champion that anyone's ever known, just wait and see."

"That's definitely more realistic than traveling around the world." Leaf said cheekily, looking over at Red and giving him an obvious eye roll. Red bit his lip and held back a smile.

"Keep talking like that, and I won't let you guys be my cheerleaders when I'm Champion." Green said, glaring at the two of them. "I was thinking about giving you two first dibs, since i'm going to be so popular, but now..."

Leaf scoffed and placed her hands on her hips. "Who says I want to be your cheerleader? Maybe I'll win the Championship title and make you my cheerleader instead."

Green started laughing again, more incredulous than before. "You? There's no way you're going to be a better trainer than me!"

"Says who?"

"Says me."

"Just wait until next year then, Red and I are gonna battle you with our new Pokemon and prove that we're twice as good as you'll ever be!" Leaf said, stomping her foot on the ground in frustration. "Won't we Red?"

Red nodded, feeling her frustration rubbing off on him as the argument escalated. Green had no idea which one of them was going to be the better trainer, especially since they didn't even have Pokémon yet. Red was already forming battle strategies that he was sure would give him an advantage in their first battle, when Green's confused voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Wait, you two already know about next year?" He asked, his eyes going back and forth between them suspiciously. There was also a hint of disappointment in his expression. "How did you find out?"

Though she was still annoyed at him, Leaf managed to look sheepish when she explained, "Well, I overheard your grandpa talking about it when I was walking over to your house to see if you wanted to play today. I'm sorry if I spoiled the surprise."

"Geez, you're still as nosy as ever." Green rolled his eyes, but Red could see he had really wanted to be the one to break the news to them. Green shrugged to cover it up though, and said in a casual tone, "Well whatever. I guess it doesn't matter if you two already know about the Pokemon we're getting next year."

"Of course it matters." Leaf said, her mood brighter now that the conversation had shifted. "We're going to be Pokemon trainers soon, and just thinking about it gets my heart racing... I can't wait for the three of us to start our journey together."

Red felt his eyes drift to his shoes. He would never admit it out loud, but even though he was just as excited as she was to start their journey, there was a small part of him that would have liked for it to be just the two of them. It wasn't that he wanted to leave Green behind or anything, definitely not. It was just... he didn't want all of her attention to be on Green when they were traveling, like it was here at home. He was actually relieved to hear the next words come out of Green's mouth.

"Who said I'm traveling with you two?" He said, his tone shifting back to his usual arrogance. "Maybe I wanted to be on my own next year, ever think of that?"

"On your own?" Leaf asked, her voice small as she looked at Green with wide eyes. She looked like at him like he'd just slapped her, and Red regretted his earlier thought immediately. "You mean, you don't want to travel together anymore?"

Green, obnoxious as he was, could tell that his words had actually upset her this time, and quickly tried to backtrack. "I... I don't know. I mean, it's not like we were planning to travel together, you just assumed we'd all want to."

"Yeah, but..." Leaf looked over at Red, her wide brown eyes no longer sparkling with joy, and asked him, "You wanted to travel together, right Red?"

He quickly nodded. He couldn't stand it when Leaf was upset. He wanted to bring the brightness back into her eyes more than anything right now.

She looked relieved to see him agree, but her eyes were still dull when she turned back to Green. "I don't understand. It's always been the three of us, together. So why do you want to go alone now? Is it something I did?"

"Of course not, I just..." He ran a hand through his messy hair and sighed in frustration. "I was just wondering what it would be like on my own okay? I didn't say I'd actually go through with it, Leaf."

She didn't seem at all comforted by his words. "But you've been thinking about it. And you didn't tell us."

"Geez." Green couldn't look her in the eye as he started kicking at the grass beneath his feet. "You're taking it too personally. I don't have to tell you everything I'm thinking, do I?"

"Guess not." Leaf mumbled, turning her eyes towards the horizon.

Red could tell that Leaf was trying not to show how upset she was, but she was blinking rapidly and her teeth were worrying her lower lip. Now, instead of being happy about going on a journey with their Pokemon in a year, she was upset that they might be splitting up when they got them. Red hated to see her so sad, hated it more than anything. So he took a deep breath and summoned all the courage he had in him to reach over and take her hand in his, squeezing reassuringly.

Leaf blinked at him, surprised. But after a moment of hesitation, she smiled. Though her eyes weren't nearly as bright as they had been before, she seemed to appreciate the gesture and squeezed back. Red felt his heart lurch in his chest.

"You're right, Red." She agreed, though he hadn't said a word. "If Green wants to be a jerk and go off on his own, that just means you and I get to spend more quality time together!" She looked over at Green and stuck her tongue out at him. "Red and I'll train really hard together and be the best trainers ever, I promise you that!"

Green rolled his eyes again, but he looked relieved that the tension had finally passed. "Please, you could train for a million years and never even get close to my level."

"That shows how much you know." Leaf retorted, raising her chin up in defiance. "I think you're way too confident for someone who's never battled before."

"You've never battled before either." Green pointed out, grinning smugly when Leaf grimaced. "So don't make promises you can't keep, Leaf."

Leaf's lower lip jutted out for a second, but then a thought came to her and she grinned. "No, I think I am going to make a promise, actually." She turned to face the town, letting go of Red's hand to cup both of hers around her mouth, and bellowed out, "Can you hear me, Pallet Town? I'm making a promise to you! I promise that I'll travel around the world and become the best trainer ever!"

There was a moment of silence as Leaf let her message ring through the air. Red blinked, and in that moment he could see exactly where that promise would lead her. He could see her traveling through Kanto, battling trainers and winning badges. He could see her moving on to Johto and meeting new Pokemon that she would capture and train. He could see her getting on a plane to visit places they hadn't even heard of yet. When he opened his eyes the image was gone, replaced by the sight of her brushing her hair away from her face as a gentle breeze blew past them. She turned to look at them expectantly, but he was too captivated by her to respond.

Green, however, was not.

"Oh yeah? I can make a promise like that too!" He said, grinning as he mirrored her earlier stance and shouted out towards the town below, "I promise that I'll be the Champion of Kanto next year! The whole world's going to know the name Green Oak!"

Leaf giggled at his boastful declaration, the earlier argument all but forgotten now, and gestured for Red to join them. "Come on Red, you go next. What do you promise?"

Red blinked at her question and quickly shook his head. He wasn't about to shout a promise for the whole town to hear. It was... embarrassing.

"Really Leaf?" Green asked, laughter in his voice. "You're not actually trying to get Red, the guy who says maybe three words a week, to shout something to the town are you?"

"Don't be mean." Leaf snapped at Green, who held up his hands again and shrugged. She sighed before taking a step towards Red and giving him a sweet smile. "You don't have to shout it like me and Green if you don't want to. But maybe you could whisper it instead?"

That sounded a lot better, actually. Red considered for a moment before he nodded and gave her the barest hint of a smile. Leaf grinned so brilliantly that Red swore he felt the air leave his lungs. He swallowed hard and moved to where Green was standing, Leaf joining him on his other side.

He looked out over Pallet Town, the place he'd lived in his whole life. What did he want to promise? What did he want more than anything in the world? He wanted to be a good trainer, that was for sure, and he wanted to travel all over the region too. He glanced over at Leaf, who was nodding for him to go on. What he wanted most of all...

"I promise I'll stick with my friends, no matter what." He whispered, his voice so quiet he barely heard over the passing breeze.

Green started laughing so hard he actually had to clutch his stomach. In between his laughter, he managed to get out, "That... is the lamest thing... I've ever heard!"

Red frowned, embarrassment coloring his cheeks as he started to second guess the promise he'd made, but then Leaf rolled her eyes in Green's direction and gave Red a reassuring smile. "Don't listen to him Red, he's just jealous that he didn't come up with something nice like you. I think that's a wonderful promise."

And just like that, the doubts that had been forming in his head were gone. He didn't know how a few simple words from her could give him so much confidence in himself, but he only had to see her smile and feel like he could do anything. Like he could do everything.

"Okay," Leaf said, shifting so that she could address both of them. She placed her hands on her hips for more authority. "Now that we've all made these promises, we have to swear that we're going to keep them. No excuses, alright?"

Green nodded as he wiped away a tear from the corner of his eye, his laughter only just starting to subside. "Heh, don't worry, Leaf. There's no way that I'm not reaching my goal."

Leaf smiled at him, then locked eyes with Red. "I'm definitely gonna reach my goal too. And so are you Red. Even if we're split up for a little while," She gave Green a pleading look, and he lifted a shoulder, though the smile on his face turned softer. Leaf shook her head and continued, "We're always going be together in our hearts, and no amount of distance can change that, right?"

Red looked at his two friends and felt his mouth curve up into a little smile. Leaf was so sure that nothing could keep the three of them apart that even Green was starting to look more open to the sentiment. And in that moment, with his precious friends at his side, he truly believed that they would always find a way to stick together. He nodded, and Leaf grinned at him.

"So it's settled!" She said, opening her arms wide and drapping them over Red and Green's shoulders. Before either of them knew it, she had the boys pulled in for group hug. "We're going to be the very best, like no one ever was!"

"Enough with the mushy stuff, Leaf." Green said, wriggling out of her grasp. There was a dark red blush on his cheeks.

"You're no fun." Leaf said, frowning at him. She moved her free hand to Red's shoulder and hugged him full on. "At least I have you, Red. You'll always stick around for the mushy stuff, right?"

"Y-Yeah." He mumbled, bringing his arms up to hug her back. He could feel the heat rising to his face, and kept his gaze on the ground when Leaf pulled away a few seconds later. Her eyes were sparkling again.

"What do you guys say to a game of tag?" She asked, a sly grin forming on her face as she looked back and forth between them. She didn't wait for a reply, reaching over to shove Green on the shoulder and giggling. "You're it!"

"Hey that's not fair!" Green shouted, growling as Leaf took off down the hill laughing her head off. His gaze shifted over to Red.

Red didn't need further prompting and started running down the hill after Leaf, Green hot on his heels. A gentle breeze caressed his face as the three of them raced down the hill, one after the other.