Disclaimer: I do not own any part of the Pokémon franchise and never will. This is a story I wrote just because I am a fan of Pokémon.

This was also inspired by this prompt on the "Imagine Your OTP" Tumblr blog: Imagine your OTP stargazing and then falling asleep under the stars.

A/N: Hi, I've returned once again to post a oneshot for a ship that's no longer relevant to anyone else in the fandom aside from me but I just can't let go of the emotional attachment that I have to these two characters :'D ahahaha help me

I've been working on this fo s, man. I was starting to feel like I just can't write anymore but then I finished this and now... I'm actually pretty satisfied with it. It's simple and a bit generic and cliché, but I like it that way.

This story also features a small mention of Jimmy/Marina, and also Fifth-Wheel!Vincent, since it's my headcanon that they grew up with Khoury and Lyra in New Bark Town, haha.

Anyway, enjoy~


Beneath the Stars

"See those three bright stars in a row, right there?" Khoury inquired. He pulled Lyra a bit closer to him as his index finger traced the stars he spoke of in the night sky above. "That's Orion's belt!"

Lyra sighed as her disinterested brown eyes followed his finger. Though she couldn't pinpoint the three stars among the sea of twinkling diamonds that hung over their heads, she played along and uttered, "Oh. Cool…"

Khoury chuckled gleefully. "Isn't it?! And… let's see…" His dark brown eyes roamed across the sky in search of a particular constellation.

She huffed again, hoping he'd take note of her irritationbut he was still fixated on the sky.

Her eyes wandered to the patch of grass beside her in the open field, where Jimmy and Marina laid, snuggled close together with a thin blanket draped over their bodies. Vincent—the fifth wheel on this double date—was sprawled out behind Jimmy, snoring, his arm lazily hanging over the other boy's shoulder. While still fast asleep, Jimmy's leg flicked back at Vincent, forcing him to roll away.

I only suggested we go stargazing so that would happen, Lyra thought, pouting as she watched Jimmy and Marina snuggle closer on the grass.

"Ooh! There!" Khoury's sudden shout brought her attention back to him. Enthusiastically, he brought her closer to him again and pointed up at one star in particular. "You see that star, right there? You know what that is?"

She couldn't find the star he was referring to, but she stared at the twinkling specs on the navy expanse and muttered absently, "...Pretty."

His face fell for a moment. "W-well, yeah, I guess it is. But no, it's actually Polaris, the north star. And to the left of it, right there"—his finger circled around a cluster of stars that seemed to form the shape of a soup ladle—"that's the Big Dipper! It's part of the Ursa Major constellation, but it's usually the only part you can actually see in the night sky, due to light pollution from cities."

"Hmm," Lyra hummed, feigning interest. Doesn't look like anything romantic is gonna happen between me and Khoury tonight, though. He's too busy being a nerd and talking about stars... "You really know a lot about astrology, don't you?" she added, a bitter edge accidentally slipping into her words.

"It's astronomy, not astrology," Khoury corrected in a firm voice. "Astrology focuses on the movements and positions of celestial bodies in relation to—"

The complicated and fast-spoken words that spilled from his mouth didn't process in her mind at all, sounding like the buzzing of a swarm of Beedrill in her ears. She merely gazed at him as he rambled and instead, took note of the way he talked about the differences between astronomy and astrology.

As he spoke, his expression shifted often between various emotions—from subtle grimaces to a roll of his eyes to wide eyes and a matching grin, all reflecting his own feelings about the subject he spoke of. His arms flailed about during his tangent: indicating the sky, adjusting his glasses, emphasizing whatever point he was trying to make. It felt as if he had been talking for an eternity.

I don't think I've ever seen Khoury talk so much… Lyra thought. I've known him for twelve years now, and he was always so shy and quiet. He does seem to get really talkative when he's passionate about something, though…

A smile played on the edges of her lips. He didn't even notice her watching him so intently; his focus was instead on the star-speckled expanse above, its magnificence reflected in the lenses of his glasses and his deep, dark brown eyes. With a wide grin displayed on his face, he appeared so wistful in that moment.

Finally, Khoury turned and looked at her; Lyra realized his tangent must've been coming to its end, so she pretended to seem like she had paid attention to every word. "There's just so much out there in space, and most of it is still left unexplored! Isn't that just amazing?"

Within his eyes, she saw a glint of what looked like a fire burning, swirling in his dark brown irises. Her heart stopped, abruptly and momentarily. It was as if his eyes held the universe, and all of its infinite possibilities.

Khoury's passion was beautiful, and no constellation in the entire galaxy could ever compete with it.

A small smile stretched across Lyra's face.

"Yeah. It really is amazing."

The End