Deja Vu

Serena eyed the forest worriedly, eyes flickering back and forth of the spooky atmosphere. She gulps nervously as a sweat drop forms on her forehead. Her face is paler than it normally is, despite the atmosphere and her nervousness of it. She clings to Ash much to her embarrassment. Because of this, she doesn't know if she's scared of the forest or she's simply nervous because of what she's doing right now.

Well, it wasn't Serena's fault. Sure, she was scared easily in these situations, but since it was only her and Ash, her traveling companion, the air seemed thicker for some reason. Team Rocket had done it again. They had managed to defeat them as always but they had ended up being swept away with them in the blast off. So now she's here, clinging to Ash as they walk through the forest trying to locate their friends Clemont and Bonnie.

If Serena were in a different occasion, she would not be doing this. But, Ash makes her feel safe and she only jumped to do this because of the situation. Surprisingly, Ash didn't seem to mind. Well, he might be dense but he's a gentlemen and that only worsens the poor girl to lead her to be a blushing mess. She is momentarily distracted from her fears and stares at Ash's face from the side and feels her face get hotter. Her hands are clasped around his arm, and she only barely realizes that her grip is deathening when she notices Ash grimacing slightly on occasion when Serena would flinch at a sudden noise in the forest. So, she loosens her grip and Ash seems to visibly relax and Serena only dead pans at her own stupidity.

"Sorry about that…I-I guess I'm really scared…Especially since neither Braixen, Pancham, nor Sylveon are here. I sure hope they're okay…"

She says, her eyes filling with concern. Upon the blast off, all of her Pokémon and Pikachu too, had been with the others. Somehow they had ended up with Chespin and Squishy. Ash also had all of his Pokémon and Talonflame had already tried searching for them once, but the forest was too thick for it to fly around so it was to no avail. "It's okay, I understand. Besides, that's why I'm here, to protect you. I'd certainly be upset if you happened to be by yourself, because I know how you get around these things…" He finishes and he scratches his cheek albeit shyly.

Serena thought of him to be her precious knight in shining armor and giggles lightly. Ash only turns to her his brow quirking and their noses brushing. Serena gasps, blushing crimson and scoots away out of embarrassment. She fails to notices the tips of Ash's ears are the same color as her cheeks.

"W-Why were you laughing?" He speaks up, clearing his throat after the statement, his voice having cracked before. "Uh…I just–thought of something that's all. Don't worry, it's nothing offending…" Ash hums lightly in response, Chespin cackling in the background in which Serena only sends him a light hearted glare and sticks out her tongue and mocks him.

So far, nothing scary has happened like in the Espurr house and for that Serena is only grateful. It is then, that she decides to separate herself from Ash, and she does it a bit reluctantly. She whistles a light tune to try and distract herself. Then–It happens. Serena trips on a fallen branch and topples down into the mud. She winces in pain as she looks at her now, hurt knee. Her eyes water slightly at the sight of her clothes and the pain in her knee. She tries to get up, but she falls back down. It is then that both her and Ash get a sense of déja vu, their eyes locking on instant upon the realization. It's a while before one of them speaks, and to her surprise, it's Ash.

"Hey…isn't this…?"

Serena only nods, flushing. She watches with a fixated gaze, blue orbs glimmering brightly even in the dim lighting of the forest. He kneels down, reaching into his pack as he pulls out the handkerchief. By now, his cheeks are slightly tinted pink in embarrassment. He has a soft smile on his lips as he looks at the rag and back at Serena. "It's like…when…we first met…" He finally says, sucking in what was a nervous breath. Why was his heart beating so fast? Why did he all of a sudden feel so shy? Ash Ketchum was never one to get shy, so why now?

Chespin and Squishy climb a tree nearby, giving them the privacy they needed. Serena silently thanks them for that. Then, Ash does what Serena expected him to do. She follows his movements as he wraps the rag around her knee. "Get better!" He does similar hand motions as before, Serena giggling all the while. He gives her his signature toothy close-eyed grin and Serena swears her heart skips a couple of beats. She tries to get up but the rag is a bit constraining…Or she might've hurt her ankle too.

"Uh…I don't think we need just one rag, I think I might've sprained my ankle too." She laughs nervously but then sighs and a frown etches on her face. Ash ponders for a bit as he kneels down before her. Then, he reaches his hand out to her. To Serena, it all happens in slow motion. She takes his hand and he props her up, and they bump into each other almost falling back over with the force. Well, at least she got up. Serena feels an odd sense of warmth as she hides her face in his chest so she could avoid further embarrassment. Her face by now is bead red and she hears her heart thrumming in her ears. She almost fails to notice how his heartbeat is beating slightly faster than normal too. She looks up at him curiously and he smiles nervously at her. His hand caresses her head for a bit, his fingers threading to her hair and they stay like that for a little while. Serena wished this could last forever, but of course, all things must come to an end. Ash pulls away first, but to her surprise it pulled back in only for him to jump into the nearest bushes. He presses a finger to her lips signaling her to be quiet. She has a look of confusion in her eyes and she looks over to see a Lilligant and a Dusknoir playing together. Ash didn't want to disturb them knowing they would attack if they were startled. She smiles softly. "They look so happy together…" To be honest, that was a strange combination but Serena wasn't one to judge someone she didn't know, now was she? She wouldn't like it if someone judged her and Ash, well, not that they were together anyways…She thought about that and smiled sadly. Ash seemed to notice put his hand on her shoulder, eyes full of concern once she looked up.

"What's wrong?" He asks and he swallows thickly, hating seeing Serena looking so sad. She gives him a strained smile. "I-It's nothing, really…" She says, the sad smile returning. But Ash doesn't seem to buy it. "C'mon Serena, we've travelled throughout the whole Kalos region, you can trust me." He says comfortingly as he squeezes her shoulder lightly in reassurance and he gives her a slight nod.

She gives in, letting go of a breath she didn't know she was holding. "Okay…well, the truth is. There's someone I've been wanting to tell them how I feel about them for a while now, but I just don't have the nerve or the confidence to do it. Plus…there's always the idea of rejection too, you know?" She begins, her hands clenched together as she looks down to the floor. He seems surprised or disappointed (Serena could only hope he was jealous and thought she liked someone else) because he takes a while to respond and he brings down the hand on her shoulder much to her disappointment.

Ash sighs. In all his life, he'd never think he'd be in this situation. He feels conflicted. Of course he wants Serena to be happy with whoever she chooses, but he also was hoping it was him she was talking about. Clemont had told him he suspected Serena having feelings for him but at the moment Ash didn't understand and just simply brushed it off. Now, however, he deeply regrets it. He regrets not getting closer with Serena, closer than being just really good friends. Time was running out, soon he would have to travel back to Pallet. With the League over and the evil Team Flare crisis finished, Ash wasn't sure what he had left to do here in Kalos. He had also completed the Pokedex. He takes a while to respond to Serena, and he thinks that he should probably say something. He nods, knowing she probably didn't see it anyways. "Well…I think you should at least give them hints…Or, why not just go and tell them? Just do it, that's what I say. And who cares about rejection, maybe they…weren't the one for you." He shrugs.

Serena notices how he looks solemnly at the ground and feels guilty. "Okay then…I'll do it." She says nervously, breath shaking as her heart beats faster. Pale face gets hot once again and she licks her lips nervously as she turns to her side to face Ash.

"Wait, can you at least tell me who it is? I am technically your best friend."

Serena's eyes widen. She had called him her best friend. Right now, that would all be enough for her. She smiles brightly and nods, getting the confidence she needed. "Why, it's you of course." Now it is time for Ash to be surprised. His cheeks are a bright red, though thankfully it isn't too noticeable because of his tan complexion. He points an index finger to his chest to show his surprise.

"M-Me?!" He almost yells and Serena nods.

"Yeah…actually for quite a while now actually. I just…really like you. I like everything about you, Ash. From the way you love your Pokemon, to your personality, to your looks. You're an amazing person, Ash." She giggles lightly as she looks at Ash struggling to find the words. But then she frowns, with a soft sigh. "But…It's–its okay if you don't feel the same. I'm glad just being good friends if you want. Whatever makes you happy?" Serena finishes, and hesitantly she looks up at Ash, her eyes bluer because of the glistening and pricking tears at the corners of her eyes.

Ash finally calm down and he slaps his cheeks, breathing in and out deeply. "Serena…I…I love you. I-I mean, I have liked you for a while, ever since we began our journey there was just something that attracted me to you. And…I got shy around you, I never get shy, as you've seen. That's why…That's why I'm struggling to tell you this now because I was scared. Scared of rejection. You might think it's funny that me, Ash Ketchum, is afraid as something as simple as rejection, but–" He shields his eyes with his cap for a bit. "I've never really had anyone because I grew up a lone. So I figured if I told you and you didn't like me back, that you would leave me and wouldn't want to continue our journey together. That's why I decided that I was going to tell you last minute no matter if I got rejected, because I never give up until the end." He finishes and slumps over, clearly taking it emotionally on him.

Serena is there, staring at him with eyes wide and a really red face. She's surprised, honestly. In all her world…Serena had merely expected him to like her back, but she just thought that it was only her imagination. But…She was glad he did like her back. The surprise for her is still there because it takes her a while to react. She gets his hand after snapping out of it and brings him into a tight embrace. "Oh Ash…I love you too…" She whimpers, finally letting out the tears she was holding back. She felt so light, this wasn't a dream, right? And even if it was, she didn't want to be awoken. The warmth of their bodies both together was comforting for her and she inhaled his scent, instantly calming her once she placed her head on his chest.

Ash helped Serena up after a while of embracing each other. They stepped out of their little hide out now that the Pokemon were gone. Ash called out to Chespin and Squishy and jumped off of their tree and they walked further into the forest. After a couple of minutes, they reached the exit and landed in a clearing. Ash squeezes her hand comfortingly, hiding them behind their back and standing close to her in case they saw Clemont and Bonnie. He wanted it to be a surprise. Surprisingly, they found them waiting at the end of the forest. Chespin and Squishy run to their respective trainers shouting shouts of joy and happiness as they cuddle against them in glee.

Clemont is the first to look up and quirks a brow at how close Ash and Serena seem to be. Ash scratches his cheek bashfully as he looks over to Serena, taking in her looks. "Say…Did you guys get stuck together or something?" He questions, and Bonnie, who already got it, only sighs and deadpans at her dense older brother.

"No, silly. Can't you see they finally confessed? They're boyfriend and girlfriend now, right Ash?"

Bonnie says, and Ash nods, lifting their entwined hands in the air to show them the proof. "Yup. Serena's my girlfriend." He nods, almost proudly this time. Serena giggles and rolls his eyes.

"And Ash is my boyfriend." She smiles softly, cheeks blushing. Braixen runs up to her hugging her and congratulates her. Pikachu jumps on Ash's shoulder and nuzzles his cheek. Then, he jumps on Serena's shoulder and does the same.

With that, all four decide to keep travelling for a little longer until Ash is somehow forced to leave the Kalos region.

"Stay with me?"

Ash questions, and Serena looks at him confusingly. "We're already together…"

He chuckles and sighs. "No…I want you to stay with me in Kanto. With my mom, I'm sure she'd let you stay. If that's okay with you and your mom of course–and you guys can come too if you want!" Ash exclaims. But Clemont shakes his head.

"I'm a gym leader, remember?" Bonnie whines protesting, but seems to understand after a while.

"Fine…But, yeah Serena, think about it? I kind of want to take a break from traveling after we get back home, so I won't have to wake you up for early morning training anymore. Well–Maybe only on occasion of course."

He scratches his head sheepishly. A little break couldn't hurt, would it? He watches her ponder, and watches as her eyes lit up.

"Of course, I'm sure my mom would let if…she met your mom."

He nods.

"It's settled then."

He squeezes her hand comfortingly and he thinks about the future and many more adventures to come. He is sad that Clemont and Bonnie wouldn't be able to make it, but there isn't really much he can do about that. For now, Serena is okay. She's all he needs.