Born To Make You Happy
"Pallet Town hasn't changed." Ash told Pikachu as he looked out at the same view his window had given him for years. The tree in the backyard was a little bigger but that was about all that had changed about it.
'It's not the towns that change.' Ash thought to himself. 'It's the people.
His gaze was drawn to the picture that had inhabited his bedside table for as long as he could remember. It was a picture of both him and Gary when they were about seven. They had just come back from a particularly violent game of soccer and Ash's mother had laughed as she took the picture of the flushed, filthy boys. The picture, ironically enough, turned out beautifully; freezing the boys with their arms draped companionably on each other's shoulders and happy smiles on their faces.
'Those were good times...'
( I'm sitting here alone up in my room, Thinking of the times that we'd been through... I'm looking at a picture in my hand, Trying my best to understand, I really wanna know what we did wrong, With a love that felt so strong... )
"Pikapi?" Pikachu's sudden question pulled Ash out of his memories long enough to realise that she had left Misty and Togepi to find out where he had gone. Her gaze went from him to the picture. She almost seemed to smile at the picture than looked back at him questioningly. "Pika?"
"Nothing's wrong, Pikachu. It's just..." He wracked his brain trying to come up with an understandable explanation for his Pokemon. "I wonder sometimes what would have happened if we had continued that way, y'know, friends to the end and all that." Pikachu looked like she was going to say something but stopped and nodded for Ash to carry on. "But most of all I wonder why he did it. And even if I found out could we mend out friendship?"
"Pika pika chuu." Pikachuu said reassuringly. (It's not too late.)
"I'm not so sure about that Pikachu." Ash sighed. "But if he wanted to I'd definitely be willing to try."
( If only you were here tonight I know that we could make it right... )
Ash sat heavily on his bed and picked up the photograph of the two boys. He briefly wondered whether Gary had gotten a copy then put it back on the table - this time facing him instead of straight ahead.
"It's so weird. It's like he's got some kind of hold over me."
"Pika?"
"I don't know. It's like the thing that hurts the most about this is the fact that I don't make Gary smile anymore. Let alone laugh."
"Pika..."
"It's like..." Ash tried to clarify his meaning for Pikachu. "Like I'm only happy when he's happy."
( I don't know how to live without your love, I was born to make you happy, Cos you're the only one within my heart, I was born to make you happy... )
Ash turned the photograph away from him and let more memories of the times he and Gary spent together come back to him. It seemed as though not a single one of them lacked the presence of an auburn-haired, gray-eyed young boy with the loveliest smile. And not one of them showed any evidence of any kind of rift between the two or provided any reason for... for what happened between them.
It was like, Ash thought sadly. It was never meant to happen.
( Always and forever you and me, That's the way our lives should be, I don't know how to live without your love, I was born to make you happy... )
It seemed to be a turning point in Ash's life. They, whomever 'They' are, always say that people - even though they lead the most boring lives and have the most uneventful upbringing can be changed for the rest of their lives into a completely different person. And they can never go back to what they had before; for better or for worse.
The sudden enmity that had sprung out of the blue between him and Gary Oak, his best friend, was like that for Ash. All they could have had together was cruelly ripped from him by Gary's strange and unexpected decision. Even meeting for a few seconds they would find away to hurt each other. It was as if Gary planned it all.
"I should have cornered him and made him explain 'why' to me, Pikachu."
"Pikachu..." (It's not your fault.)
"I should get over it."
( I know I've been a fool since you've been gone, I'd better give it up and carry on, 'Cause living in a dream of you and me, That's not the way my life should be, I don't wanna cry a tear for you, So forgive me if I do... )
Ash was alerted by Pikachu's quietly uttered 'Pikapi!' to the rivulet of water that had run down one cheek. He hastily wiped it away and smiled reassuringly at her. She gave him a strange look and made her way from her post near the door to the foot of Ash's bed.
"It's nothing, Pikachu." He sniffed and used his hand to wipe away the twin of the first tear that was sliding down his other cheek. "I'm fine."
"Pikachuu."
( If only you were here tonight, I know that we could make it right...)
Pikachu looked as though she did not believe him even a bit. Ash was sure if he had caught himself crying pitifully on his bed he wouldn't believe him either.
"Well, I am too fine." He said in mock indignation. "And don't think I was crying because of Gary!"
"Pika..." Pikachu purred slyly. 'I wasn't even thinking of that.'
( I don't know how to live without your love, I was born to make you happy, 'Cause you're the only one that's in my heart, I was born to make you happy, Always and forever you and me, That's the way our lives should be, I don't know how to live without your love, I was born to make you happy... )
Ash and Pikachu stared at eachother. Ash was about to ask her what exactly 'that' meant when they suddenly both heard Misty bellow 'Oy! Ash, Pikachu! Dinner's ready!'
Pikachu immediately bounded towards the door and turned around to hurry Ash along.
"Pikapi pika!"
"I'll be down in a minute, Pikachu. You go on ahead." Pikachu gave him a skeptical look before bounding down the stairs.
Ash stared out the window and smiled as he spotted a lanky figure with reddish hair walking along the road in the direction of Professor Oak's house.
"You may not be ready to talk about it, Gary, but I am and I want a good answer." And with that statement Ash turned the picture of the two boys facing forwards before running down the stairs after Pikachu. The minute Gary and he were together he was going to confront him and he would not let him escape.
( Just call out my name, And I will be there, To show you how much I care... )
(TAMAT) (THE END)