Happy Valentine's from your friendly neighbor, Kanmuri! C: Not really a Valentine-themed fic., but it is made for Valentine's~! Enjoy!
"I wanted it," he said in the slightest voice, almost sounding like a whisper. "And yet I didn't want it. I was doing it half-assed."
It was a foggy evening at Viridian City. The clouds covered the crescent moon, and only darkness remained. Lights were almost out too, and the people were getting ready to sleep. The daylight Pokemon hid in places where they can peacefully wait for a new sunrise. The boy with the jet black hair squeezed his knees together as he sighed—a sigh of either relief, or regret.
"Don't worry about it. I'm sure Ataro will understand." The girl with long yellow hair sat beside him in a comfortable distance. It can barely be seen, but she was looking at him intently. Only when the clouds was shifted by the wind was the time when the moon shone. The girl appeared to be smiling, but her eyes showed compassion.
"My childhood friend asked if she could borrow Ataro for an occasion." The boy seemed upset, but before he showed how his eyebrows met, everything became completely dark as the clouds once again blocked the moonlight. It was the perfect time—he didn't want her to see how upset he was at his own choice. He felt really helpless.
"My mom likes that girl and it would be fine to do anything." Gold buried his face on his palms and tried to squeeze his face on them. "I couldn't refuse either. I want Ataro to rest after the long and hard journeys we had but I want him to come with me here as well. I don't know why I decided to lend him. I don't even know when he'll return." He looked up again, and this time tried to distract himself by pulling off some grass beside him. He was anxious; he felt guilty that he just sent his best buddy off to somewhere without his full-consent. "And you never know, Ataro may not return."
"Gold, don't say that." The girl inched herself closer to him. She wants him to feel that they are really together—that he's not alone and he could share what he was feeling. "Ataro may be having fun and resting at the same time. I'm sure your mom won't let you lend him to someone she doesn't know too well. After all, isn't he a part of your family?"
Gold just looked at her without showing any expression. She was right: his mom knows who to and not to trust. Maybe he was just thinking too much. It was all in his head. He decided to just hug his knees to his chest and wait until he feels a little better. Yellow just looked at him with her usual refreshing and kind face. She was just the kind of person who can cheer you up with just a single smile.
"Hey," he said, still not moving. "Have you ever done it before...? Doing something you didn't want, but you also wanted to."
The girl's eyes widened and it could be seen that she became nervous. She turned away to cover her eyes, but her body was still towards the boy. "Um... that." She laughed uneasily. The way she answered raised Gold's curiosity. He raised an eyebrow at her and listened carefully. For a second, though, the only thing he could hear was the swaying of the branches of the trees and the fluttering of the wind along with the cricket's noise. They were totally alone.
"When we first met, and you told me to remove my hat," she answered hesitantly. "I didn't want Red to find out I was a girl. I didn't want to risk destroying our friendship because I pretended to be someone... and yet," she paused, and looked at the boy beside him. His eyes seemed as if they were glowing in the darkness. The mischievous look that cannot be removed from him made him even more attractive as a boy. She liked those eyes—it seems sincere and trustworthy and it made her feel safe.
"I wanted to help and save you." she continued.
Gold was jolted from his relaxed stance and sat up straight. He looked at her for a moment before he slouched again and scratched the back of his head. "Well, that." He rolled his eyes and laughed nervously. "Yeah, I forced you into it. I never really had the chance to apologize after quite the time."
"It's okay; at least we were able to save the whole of Johto! All is well! That's all that matters, right?" Yellow smiled widely and raised her clenched fist in front of her, wanting to show assurance and forgiveness. Gold was very amused by what she said and gave off a noise that sounded like a chuckle.
He raised one of his eyebrows before he replied to her. "You're really understanding, huh? And you make fun of the decisions you make that are half-assed." The girl listened to him and opened her mouth, as she was about to speak out her mind. "Fascinating." Gold added before she could say anything.
"Perhaps you will do that in the future, too?"
"I... I try not to be reckless," she swallowed, before continuing. She seemed very entertained at what they were talking about. "Unlike you, Gold." Her huge smile made her seem like she was giggling without a sound. The boy's mouth opened widely, as if about to react, but his lips only moved up and down, without him uttering anything.
"You!" He grabbed her playfully on the hand, making her shift nearer to him. He messed up her hair with his hands, and she tried to resist his 'assault' but to no avail. She pushed his chest gently, so just that he would stop for a second but Gold continued to rummage her hair and started pinching her cheeks and pulling her ears. They were laughing at each other's childish effort to mess each other up. This time, Yellow reached for his hair, too, wanting that revenge the boy deserved for playing with her face.
"Not the hair!" he yelled, with emphasis on the word hair. He grabbed both her wrists and they stopped for an awkward silence. They were breathing heavily as they did not notice all the exhausting action they did. Yellow's hair was very untidy, and her ponytail was almost untied. Most of her bangs covered her left eye and her cheeks were pink from all the pinching Gold did. Her eyes showed surprise, but still innocent and affectionate. They just looked into each other's eyes.
It was just the two of them—nobody else. Gold's hand slipped up to Yellow's small ones, and he weaved his fingers where it would perfectly fit. The girl trembled a little but did not look away. She was mesmerized by his eyes, and just wanted to look at it without saying anything. He leaned closer to her, to a distance where he could hear her breathe. She smelled just like the Goldenrod, and he was falling to what seemed like a deep sleep—he wasn't sure what he was doing.
She closed her eyes and held his hand tightly. The boy pressed himself toward her and closed the gap between them. They both felt each other's warmth through their lips. This warmth calmed both hearts that were beating faster by the second.
After what seemed like forever, Gold released her hands and leaned back, pulling himself together for an awkward conversation. Yellow opened her eyes and turned away too. She removed her ponytail and combed her hair with her small hands. They just sat there without saying anything to each other. Again, all they could hear was the swaying of the branches and fluttering of the wind.
"Was..." The boy started, his voice was weak from what happened. "Was that done whole-heartedly... or did I force you into it...?"
Yellow stopped brushing her hair and looked at him with a gentle smile. "I wanted it. And it wasn't done forcefully."
The answer painted a smile on the boy's face, and he knew that they were both happy. At that moment, nothing could take that away from them.