Hello!
A quick note before you read ahead, my name was previously squirtle3 before I changed it to fleurusagi.
Here's another Palletshipping one-shot!
Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon.
The list
He walked in with confidence and determination. But if anyone knew and understood Gary Oak, they would see small traces of panic and embarrassment in his green eyes.
It was a strange sight for many of the workers to see him come in. They recognized him, as he came shopping in their market once every two week, but it was their first time seeing him after one week of shopping for food. It became stranger when they saw him with a shopping cart instead of a basket and a list in his right hand.
Gary slowly made his way up and down the aisles, crossing off items on his list as he placed them in his cart. Some workers occasionally passed by him to see what he was buying, the brunette's cart quickly filling up. In the end, they concluded that he might be shopping for a party and continued with their work.
If someone was to pass by him at the moment, they would wonder if there was something wrong with him. The look that Gary had on his face made it seem that he was making the most important decision of his life. He held one green bag of chips on his left hand and one red bag on his right hand.
"Hi, Gary."
The brunette quickly turned around and saw Brock smiling at him.
"Hey, Brock."
"That's a long list. Are you throwing a party?" Brock asked.
"Not really," Gary said hesitantly."Just grocery shopping."
"I see. Well, it was nice seeing you, Gary." Brock smiled and took a few steps before turning around and saying, "Oh, Ash prefers the yellow bag. But if there's not any, he would also like the red one. He hates the green and blue ones."
Gary turned away from him and mumbled, "Thanks."
The Pokémon doctor walked away with a satisfied look. It surprised him when Ash unexpectedly announced he was moving in with someone. Brock had a vague idea who it might be, but he didn't pressure him to say who it was. As long as Ash was happy, that's all that mattered to him.
'Of course, the red ones,' Gary sighed, placing the bag of chips in his cart. He went around the store once more to get the items he wanted. He then made his way to the cashier and placed his groceries on the conveyor belt. The cashier smiled at him and scanned his items, carefully placing them in plastic bags. He then felt his phone vibrate and quickly answered it.
"Is everything okay?"
The cashier looked at him curiously as she scanned his items. She noticed how his eyes changed from panic to relief. She tried to keep herself from giggling outloud when Gary's expression suddenly turned to one of pure astonishment.
"Anything else?" He then rolled his eyes but smiled. "Alright, I'll see you in a bit." Gary sighed and quietly muttered, "I love you too."
He cleared his throat and looked at the cashier, a slight blush on his cheeks. As he placed his phone back into his pocket, he asked, "Is it alright if I go and get a couple of more things?"
"Take your time," the cashier reassured him.
Gary nodded in thanks and quickly left to get the requested items. Three minutes later, he came back with ice cream, baking supplies, and a loaf of garlic bread. He paid for his groceries and placed them in his car, checking he had everything from the list before driving home.
"I'm home," Gary announced.
"Do you need any help?" Ash asked as the brunette entered the kitchen.
"No, that's alright," he responded, placing the bags on the table. "Pikachu and Umbreon helped."
Ash nodded and turned on the oven. He placed the garlic bread in the oven and, along with Gary, put away the groceries.
"I thought I was going to come back to a burning house," Gary teased.
Ash glared at Gary before turning away from him. He took out the bread and turned off the oven. As he placed it over the counter, he felt arms wrap around his waist.
"I was kidding. It smells good," Gary mumbled.
The raven-haired young man stuttered but leaned back against Gary's chest. They stayed in that position for a few minutes, enjoying the peaceful atmosphere. The hungry chirps of their Pokémon and Ash's growling stomach broke their moment. Ash sheepishly smiled and gently removed himself from Gary's embrace, the latter letting out a chuckle.
"Do you want more or is this fine?" Ash asked as he showed Gary the plate of lasagna.
"That's fine."
"Gary, can you-"
"I got it," he replied, taking the loaf of garlic bread and the jug of iced tea to the dining room. "Umbreon, Pikachu. Your food is ready."
The two Pokémon ran into the dining room and began eating. The two young adults smiled and began eating their dinner as well. They talked about their day and Ash teased Gary when the brunette told him that he had a run in with Brock at the market.
"Are you going to tell him?" Gary asked.
"Why? He already figured it out," Ash said obliviously. "Do you want some ice cream?"
The researcher shook his head as he took a sip of his drink. Although he was already use to Ash's denseness, he couldn't suppress the surprise of Ash missing such a straight-forward question. It wasn't like he wanted to tell the whole world about their current relationship, but he did want the people they knew personally to hear it from them than figure it out by themselves or hear it from others.
'I just hope she doesn't give him a hard time.'
"What's wrong?"
Gary was brought out of his thoughts and looked at Ash's worried face. "Nothing. I just meant he hasn't heard it from you."
"Yeah, I know. I'm just a little nervous."
"Invite him for dinner. You aren't as nervous whenever food is around."
"That's probably the smartest idea you had in a long time," Ash replied innocently, a twinkle in his chocolate-brown eyes. "I'll make you another list."
"Oh, no. You're coming with me next time. You don't make your lists specific enough."
Ash smiled and nodded. The young men stood up and placed their plates in the sink. As Gary washed the dishes, Ash served himself some ice cream and made coffee for Gary. Once they were done, they made themselves comfortable on the living's room couch.
"Are you sure you don't want some ice cream? It's really good," Ash said.
Gary smirked and kissed Ash, shocking the Pokémon trainer. He kissed back after his shock quickly wore off, the kiss becoming deeper and passionate.
"You were right," Gary breathed out. "The ice cream is good."
Ash blushed and took another spoonful of ice cream. Gary chuckled and tightened his grip on him. There was a comfortable silence, only broken by the spoon clanking against the bowl.
"I'll invite Brock for dinner next week. We can go to the store a day before."
Gary nodded and turned on the television. He had the tiniest of smiles, for he would rather have Ash's hand intertwined with his than a list.. a thought that was shared with the young man wrapped around his arms.
Another one-shot done ^-^.
I hoped you like it!
Review, favorite, review (;
Until next time~
