It was the annual "Ash-Came-Very-Close-to-Winning-a-League" party in Pallet Town. This was a time that all of Ash's friends and family would get together to celebrate Ash's almost victory. The event had become something that everyone looked forward to over the years as many of Ash's former traveling companions had become quite good friends. As usual, this year, everyone caught up with each other as well as Professor Oak and Ash's mom as they anxiously waited for the guest of honor to arrive from the Kalos region along with his newest traveling companions, Clemont, Bonnie, and Serena.
As they finally arrived, everyone excitedly greeted Ash as he tried to make his way around the crowd to talk to all of his friends. Ash's friends were very welcoming and they all usually got along with his new friends right away. For the most part, today was no different. Clemont and Bonnie quickly warmed up to Ash's other friends as they realized quickly that they had a great deal in common. Particularly, Bonnie and Max, who were able to share stories of traveling with their older siblings and how they could not wait to start their own journey. Serena pleasantly introduced herself to everyone, but stayed a bit closer to Ash rather than mingling with the people she just met. When Ash was not with her, she seemed to prefer helping his mother with the party over getting to know some of the other guests. Most of the party guests did not notice, as they were enjoying reconnecting with one another and Ash, but one guest in particular found this to be quite distracting.
Misty could not figure out why, but something about Serena and this entire situation bothered her; really bothered her. She knew it was silly, Serena was very polite when they were introduced, and she was not even doing anything wrong. Ash was not acting any differently than usual. But something inside of Misty felt quite unsettled watching Serena's efforts to stay close to Ash. Misty wanted to talk to Brock about it, since he usually had a good insight, or at least a better one for other people than himself, but he was deep in conversation with Cilan, as they had kept in touch after they met in Johto some time ago.
With Brock preoccupied, Misty walked around the party getting more frustrated as it went on. Eager to vent out her frustrations, she landed on some other friends that she thought might be the next best thing. May and Dawn could usually be found together at this party, as they had become very good friends over the years and often intentionally ran into each other through the Contest circuit. Unsurprisingly, Misty found them together comparing ribbons and talking about training for the next round of contests. They both warmly welcomed Misty as she walked up only the be surprised and amused by the turn the conversation was about to take.
"Can you believe Serena?" Misty asked them.
"What about her?" May asked.
"She hasn't left Ash alone this whole time," Misty said.
"So?" Dawn asked very confused.
"So," Misty continued, "other people might want to talk to him, too, without her hanging on him. I mean they literally just left Kalos where they were together the entire time. Maybe he wants to tell the rest of us about it or talk to other people that he hasn't seen in a while. The rest of us don't get to see him very often."
May and Dawn exchanged knowing glances with each other. Even though Misty refused to admit her feelings deep down, everyone else could read her like a book. This was not a side of Misty that came out often, but when it did it was always fascinating to watch her reaction.
"Oh I see," Dawn teased, "you were hoping to spend some extra time with Ash, weren't you?"
"Uh, no no I wasn't referring to myself," Misty fumbled for her words, "I just think as the guest of honor he should talk to everyone, that's all.
"It seems like he's doing that," May said matter-of-factly, "He's always really good at making time for everyone. I guess she just happens to be going with this time."
"She could talk to other people, too," Misty argued, "I mean we all did at one point."
"She could just be shy," Dawn suggested, "After all, she is meeting most of us for the first time. So what's wrong with her exactly?"
"It's just -" Misty began, still stumbling and now blushing immensely.
"You're not jealous, are you, Misty?" May taunted.
"Of course not!" Misty answered quickly, now getting more agitated, "I just think -"
"Wait, isn't it true that you didn't really like some other girls because they were getting too close to Ash," Dawn laughed, "wasn't that something similar?"
Misty grumbled quietly. She really wished Brock and Tracey had refrained from telling the rest of their friends about that part of their journeys.
"This has nothing to do with that," Misty said quickly, "it just seems like she -"
"Like what?" May teased.
"Oh you know what I mean," Misty cried now getting quite frustrated.
May and Dawn could help but laugh. Misty was not amused. Noticing the commotion, Brock then came over to see what it was all about.
"What's going on here?" Brock asked already with a pretty good idea based on Misty's demeanor.
"Misty's just mad that Serena has been following Ash around all day," Dawn told him.
Brock looked at Misty, her face was now beat-red and she was clearly perturbed that this conversation was being had, as usual. Then he turned to look at Serena. He did not know her as well but there were some things that were still pretty apparent. She was awkwardly trying to stay close by Ash and definitely vying for his attention. Brock had caught her trying to hold his hand a few times, too. Although in typical Ash manner, he seemed completely oblivious to any of this. Brock then turned back to Misty who still looked mortified.
"Hm," Brock laughed, "well I know love when I see it," he said ambiguously.
"What do you guys know?" Misty said as she walked away in a huff, "And no, Brock, you don't!"
"Do you think we took it too far?" Dawn asked, now feeling a little bit bad.
"At this point they really bring it upon themselves," Brock justified.
"They?" May questioned sarcastically.
Misty needed a break for a minute. Was she crazy to feel this way? A rush of emotions were going through her head. Of course she wanted to talk to Ash, but not if he was preoccupied. She was not about to fight over him. It was true that Misty had been very skeptical of certain trainers like Melody and Macy when she encountered them. They were just so forward and obnoxious! They did not even know Ash, and frankly they were really just trying to get a rise out of her. She never really dwelled on those girls, so she was not sure why everyone else decided to make such a big deal about them. It's not like they would ever see any of them again.
Something about Serena was different from them. She was much more reserved and subtle. So much so that Ash did not even seem to notice. She was not just trying to get his attention, she actually liked him and was not focusing on anyone else. That bothered Misty more than anything else.
She snapped out of her thoughts when Iris eventually came to get her when dinner was ready.
"Mrs. Ketchum wants everyone to come back to the yard," Iris said, "Where have you been?"
"I needed some air," She told her.
"We're outside..." Iris said giving her a puzzled look. "What's going on with you?" She asked, "it's not like you to sit and pout. The Misty I know has a fiery personality always fights for what she wants. Besides, Ash has been asking about you all night."
"I'm surprised he noticed with Serena hanging all over him," Misty sighed.
"I don't know anything about that," Iris told her, "but I do know that the two of you are getting a little old for this. You're acting like kids. No one ever got anywhere by staying in the same spot feeling sorry for themselves. Now get up and come to dinner."
Misty thought about what Iris was saying, although she didn't love the delivery. What did she mean "the two of you"? She gave Iris a rather dirty look.
"How come you're the one that came to get me?" she asked.
"Something tells me you needed me to," Iris said with a wink knowing that she would be the only one to actually be direct with her and tell her what she did not want to hear.
Dinner at the gathering was always a great time. It gave everyone a chance to come together at the same table. Conversation usually involved the highs and particularly the lows of Ash's training. This year, however, the conversation took a slightly different turn.
"This dinner is so good, Mrs. Ketchum," Brock complimented, "I can't believe that we've been having this party for six years now!"
"Oh of course, Brock!" Delia replied, "I love bringing all of Ash's friends together to celebrate his hard work training. It also gives me a chance to get to know all of you a little bit better. I love how much the table has grown over the years."
"Do you remember back at the first party when Ash let Charizard out even though it wasn't trained and it ended up destroying a bunch of stuff?" Misty teased.
"I remember that," Brock laughed, "we told him not to do that. Charizard was all over the place back then."
Ash laughed timidly, "Ha yeah, maybe that wasn't the best idea, but I just wanted all of my Pokemon to be included."
"I think it's nice that you wanted to include all of your Pokemon," Serena said in his defense.
"Is that the same Charizard that made you lose the Indigo League when it wouldn't obey you?" Max questioned.
Ash winced at this memory, "Yeah, Charizard and I kind of got off to a rocky start." Ash timidly said quietly while rubbing the back of his neck.
"Kind of," Misty said sarcastically and laughed.
"Well like Ash is always saying, all Pokemon are unique and you have to adapt to their needs," Serena interjected, "and it was his first league, you have to start somewhere, right?"
Misty's ears perked up. For the first time that day, she finally felt like she was not crazy about her uneasiness toward Serena.
"Let's not even get started on how he 'earned' most of his Kanto badges," Gary laughed.
"Hey, a badge earned is a badge earned," Serena said. Misty, Brock, Gary, and even Professor Oak gave her very puzzled looks at this comment.
"Yeah," Ash continued obliviously, "and I still beat you in the Johto League, Gary," he told him.
"Took you long enough to finally win," Gary joked.
"There's no shame in losing to a strong trainer with really strong Pokemon," Serena said, "it teaches you how to be better for next time."
At this point other people are around the table were even starting to see what Misty meant and shared understanding expressions with one another.
"Like Trip and his Snivy?" Iris snickered.
"Uh, that was my first battle in Unova," Ash hesitated, "and Pikachu was tired."
"What about Cameron?" Iris added.
Cilan laughed at this. "To be fair, Cameron was better at actually battling Pokemon than he was at knowing the Pokemon league rules, dates, locations, or just general knowledge of anything," he said.
"We learn from our losses and mistakes," Serena defended again.
"Like that time you thought you could use seismic toss against Brandon's Dusclops during the Battle Pyramid?" Max asked sarcastically.
"Hey, I still won didn't I?" Ash said.
"It almost cost you the Battle Frontier," May reminded him dryly, "but yes, yes you did."
"The victory is ultimately what matters," Serena replied quickly.
"True," Tracey agreed hesitantly, "but type advantages are kind of important to remember. I would have thought you remembered that by now."
"I remember," Ash chuckled, "I just forget sometimes."
Serena was now starting to get visibly upset. "Why are you all being so mean?" She cried, "You're supposed to be Ash's friends. Ash is a great trainer and a great person! Everyone makes mistakes sometimes, there's no need to pick on him like this. Especially at his own party."
Everyone looked at her with confusion.
"There's no need to get upset, Serena," Dawn said calmly, "We're only joking around. We do this all the time."
"Yeah, it's alright, Serena," Ash said, "I know they're only teasing. Everyone here today is part of the reason I am the trainer that I am. I learned a lot from all of my friends who I traveled with. Especially at the beginning there where I really didn't know what I was doing. Brock and Misty practically saved my life a bunch of times."
"You're welcome," Brock and Misty both said grinning.
"But I've learned something from everyone," Ash continued, "like how Dawn taught me Ice Aqua Jet. That ended up being one of My most powerful moves in Sinnoh." he said giving Dawn a high five.
"Well it's still not very nice to make fun of you like that," Serena said timidly.
With this the conversation rather awkwardly changed direction, but ended up picking right back up as everyone was still excited to share their own journeys and recent accomplishments with one another.
As the evening got later and the party began to die down, the guests started leaving to go back to their respective hometowns before beginning their next adventures. The ones who had to return home to other regions usually left first. Iris and Cilan were the first to leave to head back to Unova. Dawn left next to go back to Sinnoh and Gary went with her to continue his research with Professor Rowan. May and Max followed close behind to return to Hoenn. Despite Serena's protests, Clemont insisted that it was time to go back to Kalos. Serena wanted to stay longer but knew that she had to go back with them.
It was almost a tradition that Brock and Misty were the last ones at the party. The three of them looked forward to this time that it was just them, just like it was at the beginning. Something about this time was special. But this year, given the events of the party, Brock had another idea. After they had been situated, he told Ash and Misty that he and Tracey needed to help Professor Oak out with something at the lab, leaving the two of them alone. Pikachu instinctively went with him.
For a few moments, neither of them said anything. Misty though a lot about what Iris said to her earlier in the evening, and was the first to break the silence.
"Great party," she finally told him.
"Yeah, it was great to see everyone," Ash said quietly, "Where were you for that beginning part?" he asked.
Misty chose not to answer with the truth. "I'm surprised you noticed," she said.
"Of course I noticed," Ash replied, "I miss talking to you."
Misty changed the subject to the one thing that had been on her mind all night. "So, Serena seems nice," She said.
"Yeah, she is," Ash said, not making eye contact with her. He was not exactly sure why it made him so uncomfortable that Misty brought this up.
"Call me crazy," Misty began nervously, "but I think she likes you." This was it. She finally said it and now she could never unsay it. She immediately regretted it after she heard the words come out of her mouth. But the response she got was the last one she expected.
"Yeah, I know," he said.
"You know?" Misty asked, very surprised.
"Yeah," Ash sighed, "I kind of figured it out."
Misty gulped, "How?" she asked.
"How did you?" Ash countered.
Neither of them said anything for a few moments. Ash was the one to break the silence. "She wasn't exactly subtle," he finally said.
"I see," Misty said hesitantly, not quite sure what to say, "and what about you?"
"What about me?" Ash asked defensively.
"Do you like her back?" Misty asked.
"I mostly pretended not to notice," he admitted.
"Ash!" Misty scolded, "why would you do that?"
"Serena's a great girl," he told her, "I don't want to hurt her feelings."
Misty let out a breath that she did not realize she was holding. "Hurt her feelings how?" She asked trying not to sound too hopeful. Was Ash really not as dumb about romance as everyone always assumed?
Ash shrugged and then silence fell between them once again. Finally, he spoke, "I guess I just don't like her that same way. It's awesome how encouraging she is, but as you guys all pointed out, I make some mistakes when I'm training."
Misty scoffed at that and Ash, in turn, gave her a dirty look.
"Anyway," he continued, "As much as I hate to admit it, I kind of need someone to put me in my place and point that out. I never would have won half of the battles that I did otherwise. I need someone to help me grow as a trainer, not put me on a pedestal."
"I get that," Misty said, "but you need to say something to her. Otherwise you'll hurt her more than if you don't."
"I know, he said reluctantly, "I will soon." He paused for a while, "Why are you asking about this?"
"No reason," Misty answered nervously, "just making conversation. But for what it's worth that's probably the most self-aware thing I've ever heard you say.""
"Alright, then," Ash said shifting the subject back to her, "Why didn't you want to go out with Georgio?"
Misty's eyes widened, "Who told you about that?" She never wanted that piece of information to get back to Ash. He didn't say anything but just smirked at her. "
"Ugh, Tracey." she grumbled, "Georgio was nice, but I don't even know him. I don't want to go out with someone that I don't even know."
Neither of them could actually believe the conversation they were having was actually happening. After years of fighting, bickering, denying it, and trying to hide it, it was finally coming to the surface. But both were still afraid of saying something they could not take back, so there was still a great deal of hesitation from both of them.
Ash gulped. "What about someone that you do know?" He asked nervously.
"Like who?" she asked slowly.
"Anyone," Ash answered.
Misty thought for a moment what the right answer to that question would be without sharing too much. "It would depend on who it is," Misty explained, "If I felt the same way, I would be excited. If I didn't then I would probably turn them down," She paused, "Like Rudy."
"Oh yeah," Ash grumbled, "that guy."
"Ash, Why does Rudy still bother you?" She asked sensing his change in tone, "That was years ago."
Ash didn't have an answer to that. Since he was not saying anything, Misty turned the conversation back to him again. "What if a different one of your friends liked you, other than Serena?"
"Like who?" Ash finally mustered up the courage to ask, tearing down that last wall that she he had up, "like, you?"
"Would that be a bad thing?" She asked unable to make eye contact with him.
"No," Ash whispered with his heart pounding, "that wouldn't be a bad thing."
"I mean, you know I will always point out when you're being an idiot," she said trying to lighten the mood a little bit.
"I know," he said with less amusement than she had, "What if someone you knew liked you other than Rudy?"
"Like you?" Misty echoed.
They both looked at each other for a few moments unsure of what to do or say next. Finally, without anything left to say, Ash leaned in and did something that he never thought he would actually do and kissed her. Slightly startled in the best possible way, she kissed him back. It was brief, but to them it felt as though time stopped. They did not say anything else for a while; instead they just held each other close, finally feeling content.
Back in the lab near the large open window with a clear view of Ash and Misty, Tracey handed Brock $20.