Hey guys! Here's the second chapter :) I'm hoping to update this story fairly often. And I'm going to try to keep posting chapters for Nevermore as well, so if you read that story too you can expect an update sometime soon.
One thing I do want to talk about. This will not be a "high school fic." I want to write about what happens to them at school as little as possible, and focus more on the relationships between everyone. Yeah, there will be scenes that take place in their schools, but I want to keep it to a minimum because let's face it: classroom/lunchroom scenes suck. And one more thing! Yes, the main pairing for this story is going to be Leaf and Gary. I'm sorry if any Ikarishippers feel like I blind-sided them, but I really want to focus on Oldrivalshipping this time around. But don't worry, you'll still get PLENTY of the other three ships just like in the last story! Okay. Now that that's out of the way, we'll get to the story!
Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon.
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Paul was driving around the block over and over again. He always had to do this when he went home at the end of the school day. If his father wasn't there, he only circled the block a couple times, but if his father's car was sitting in the driveway, he continued to go for a few extra laps to calm himself. It was part of his transition. He needed a few minutes to switch from the safety of school to the anxiety of his house. Most of the time his father left him alone, but he was completely unpredictable, and Paul never knew when he would snap.
Today, his father's car was in the driveway. Their house looked sad and gray instead of the bright white that it really was. Time for a few more laps. One of his neighbors was sitting on her porch. It was a woman in her late adulthood with her hair braided to the side and wrinkles around her eyes and forehead. She kept watching him drive by, and he was sure that she thought he was mentally challenged or something. In fact, his father had probably told her that at some point. When he was little, adults would ask why Paul didn't talk. His father, desperate to hide any evidence of an unhappy home, would tell them that he was shy and that he had a learning disability. It was a terrible lie that didn't even make much sense, but usually nobody questioned him. His mother would always play along so as to avoid the consequences of challenging his father in public. Nobody asked about Paul anymore. One look at him and they assumed he was going through an emo phase.
After driving around the block five times, Paul finally parked his car in the driveway. As he collected his bag and opened the car door, he tried his best to control his heart beat. Had he remembered to take out the trash this morning? Yes, he definitely had. No need to worry about that, then.
He walked up the driveway as slowly as possible, and each porch step seemed to take ten seconds to climb. Once he was in the house, he walked calmly towards the stairway, hoping to avoid any and all contact with his father.
"Wait."
He halted. His father came into the room and stared at him. He hated his father's eyes. When he looked into them, he could see the complexity of every horrid emotion his father had to live with. His anger, bitterness, loneliness, coldness, and denial all churned in two stormy circles of grey. But worst of all was the fear that held it all together. His father was afraid of Paul just as much as Paul was afraid of him. And Paul could see it in those eyes. What scared him was that he knew his eyes were a reflection of those stormy globes.
"I'm having guests over for dinner. Business stuff. So stay in your room tonight or go out somewhere."
"Okay." The conversation ended on that note. No other words were exchanged. Paul went up the stairs and exhaled heavily behind his shut door. Within the blue walls and locked door of his room, no one could touch him. No one except Dawn. He wanted to text her, but he knew that she was at cheerleading practice right now, and he knew better than to get in the way. Dawn had her heart set on being head cheerleader.
Paul muttered to himself. He didn't want to be holed up alone in his room. But he didn't want to go hang out with Drew or Ash either. What he really wanted to do was go buy some pot, but he'd made a promise to himself and a promise to Dawn that he was done with that shi*t.
Paul's Pokegear rang, and he looked down at it in anticipation. He thought it was Dawn. But when he looked down, he saw that it was his brother, Reggie.
"What?" he asked coolly as he answered.
"I was wondering how your first day of school went," Reggie answered.
"It was fine," Paul grunted. He hated Reggie. Reggie was way too nice and way to ignorant for his own good. His twenty-three year old brother had never been beaten and abused by their father. He didn't even know what their father had done. So he got to live his perfect fairytale life while Paul endured the h*ell of his upbringing. While Reggie had brought home academic awards and trophies from battle competitions, Paul had spent a great deal of time hiding his scars and bruises from his teachers and friends. Then he started doing drugs and Reggie became the pot police. He claimed he was trying to help him, but Paul felt like he was trying to take away the one escape he still had just so that he could feel superior and authoritative. Reggie was a happy-go-lucky kind of guy - the complete opposite of Paul.
"That's good to hear, Paul. I'll come over and visit you and Dad tomorrow. How is Dad?"
"I wouldn't know."
"Maybe if you didn't push him away he'd talk to you more."
It took everything in Paul to keep from screaming. Reggie was oblivious. Reggie sided with their father. It was almost too much for Paul to handle.
"I have to go," he said shortly.
"Okay, Paul. See you tomorrow."
He hung up without saying good-bye to Reggie. He needed to take out his frustrations. Recklessly, he slammed his fist into the nearby wall and grunted in pain. He repeated the process again and again until he couldn't feel his hand anymore. His knuckles would be bruised tomorrow.
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"It's great that you didn't have volleyball practice after school today," Misty said to May. The two of them were on their way to the local fitness center, which housed a large indoor pool. May didn't have a membership, but Misty went there so often that they frequently let her bring the other girls in for free. They'd both driven to May's house so that she could pick up her swimsuit and gym bag, and then Misty was driving the both of them to the gym.
"Too bad Dawn had cheerleading practice and couldn't join us," May said as she tied her hair back.
"Something tells me she doesn't mind," Misty said.
"Heh. You're right. Dawn's been talking about the possibility of being cheer captain since we were in middle school. Do you think she'll get it?"
"Of course. Her only competition is Ursula, and I hear that the cheerleading coach hates her guts."
"I heard about that too. I heard that last year she caught her topless with Lucas behind the bleachers."
"Seriously!? Ugh..."
"Yeah. So, did Rudy give you any trouble today, Misty?"
"No. He's dating Melody again. But he did make sure that they passed me in the hallway as many times as possible. I flipped him off for it, but he seemed to enjoy that."
"So he's using Melody to annoy you and try to get you interested in him again."
"Seems that way. He's such a tool."
"Well at least you only have one more year of high school with him. And then you'll be off to college to complete the gym leader training program so you can take over the family gym, right?"
"Right..." Misty's chest tightened. She didn't want to be a gym leader. She didn't want to go to college for two years of training. She wanted to swim. She wanted to spend a few years as a professional swimmer while she was at her physical peak and then she'd be fine with settling into the gym leader role. But her sisters wouldn't hear of it. And then there was Ash. He was planning on traveling after high school. He'd always be on the road, and she'd never get to see him.
"Do you think I could convince my sisters to let me be a professional swimmer after high school?" Misty asked. May turned to look at her.
"Are you thinking about doing that?" she asked.
"Yeah. I am," Misty answered honestly. Don't worry though. I promise not to pull a Leaf and Gary."
"Good." May knew that Misty struggled with the feeling of being controlled. She'd been dreading the day that she would become the gym leader of Cerulean City, and May knew that more than anything Misty wanted to live in the water and be a swimmer. It was different for herself. May knew what she wanted to do with her life, and her parents fully supported her. After high school, she would be attending college to get more training as a coordinator, while competing in as many local contests as she could. She also knew that Drew was planning on attending the same college, so their relationship would still remain strong. She couldn't imagine how Misty felt knowing that Ash would be traveling around a lot.
When the two girls arrived at the fitness center, they went to the locker room to change into their swimsuits and then they went straight to the pool. Misty dived in and furiously began swimming, while May slowly slid herself into the cold water and began swimming lazy laps. There was no point in trying to keep up with Misty, or even try to talk to the girl, while she was in a pool. She was as close to a mermaid as someone could get.
In Misty's imagination, she was racing against an imaginary opponent. They were good. Really good. The two of them were neck and neck, swimming in equal strokes at equal speeds. No way was Misty going to let her win. It was the final lap. Misty put every ounce of energy she had into the final length of the swimming pool. She imagined her opponent being left behind in the spray of her madly kicking legs, and she reached out with her hands to press against the wall of the pool. She'd won! She'd left that b*itch behind and attained the ultimate victory! The gold medal! The fame and fortune!
Suddenly remembering May, Misty turned to look for her friend. What she found was a brunette sitting on the side of the pool covering her nose with one hand while blood trailed down her fingers.
"Oh my god, May! What happened?"
"You kicked me in the face when you passed by me a couple laps ago," May said.
"Oh my god!" Misty shouted again, pulling herself up out of the pool and running over to her friend. She stood in a panic for a few seconds, and then she ran over to the side of the room and grabbed May's towel out of her bag. She ran it back to the girl and watched as she wiped the blood off of her face.
"Is it broken?" Misty asked.
"I don't think so," May said. "But I don't know..."
"Let me see now that you've wiped most of the blood away." Misty examined May's nose. It looked like it was still the correct shape. There was no weird bumps or angles on the skin. "Touch it and see if it hurts worse when you do that," she suggested. May gently poked the side of her nose.
"It feels okay," she reported. "The bleeding seems to have lessened too. I think it's okay."
"Thank god," Misty sighed. "You should get it checked out to be sure though. I'll drive you to the hospital. I'm really sorry, May. I was in the zone, you know?"
"Yeah. The zone of my personal space."
"I'm sorry."
"It's okay. But Misty..."
"What is it?"
"You'd better be in the Olympics someday."
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When Leaf and Gary got off of the bus in Vermillion City, they eagerly walked into the corporate building where they were to meet Anita. She wasn't hard to find. Her bright red hair gave her away. The woman was sitting on a comfy sofa in the lobby, wearing a white dress shirt with a tight, black mini skirt. She eagerly rushed over to them when she saw them walking her way.
"I'm so glad that you decided to do this!" she said, giving them each a kiss on the cheek. It made them both feel awkward, but the woman just went on talking normally. "I love the look you guys have today. Perfect. Of course, they may decide to completely change it, but for now, you look gorgeous!
Gary was wearing faded skinny jeans and a black t-shirt with a dark blue vest. Leaf was wearing tight black jeans and a green tank top with a short, gray leather jacket.
"Let's talk about how this is going to work," Anita said, motioning for them to sit down on the sofa with them. "Today you're going to perform a couple songs for some of the company's big dogs. There will be a keyboard for you, Leaf. If they like you, then we'll get you a contract to sign today. If not, then... well, I don't think you'll have to worry about it. Now, it's important to remember to act natural. They know you guys don't have a lot of experience performing. That will all get taken care of later if they decide to sign you on today. Right now, you just need to focus on your singing and playing. If you guys still sound as good as you did in the bar where I found you, then you'll be fine. You're playing that song today, right?"
"Yep," Gary answered. "We have that song and two others to perform just like you asked. And we've written nine other songs as well just like you advised us to."
"Good. I'm glad to see you're prepared." Anita looked down at her watch. "It's show time. You guys ready?"
"I think so," Leaf answered.
"Okay then. I'll go in first, then I'll come back and get you in just a moment." The woman left them, her red hair swinging behind her.
"Nervous?" Leaf asked Gary.
"Very." The two of them held hands as they waited for Anita to return. Gary stroked Leaf's hand with his thumb, and she leaned her head onto his shoulder.
Anita came back through the door she'd disappeared into and motioned for them to come in. This was it. If things fell apart now, they'd be on their way back to their old lives, where many angry people were sure to greet them.
The room was the perfect size for performing. The acoustics would sound great. Two men and one woman sat at a table, lined up like a panel of judges. Leaf felt like she was auditioning for "Kanto's Got Talent" or "Pokemon Idol." Except there was no real audience to cheer them on. It was cold and silent, and her spine tingles with nerves.
"You may perform whenever you're ready," one of the men said. Anita took a seat in line with the judges and gave Leaf and Gary a wink.
Gary positioned himself in front of one of the microphones, while Leaf stood behind the keyboard and adjusted her microphone for her height. It was now or never. Gary counted them off and then they began to play the song that they had performed at the bar in Castelia City, "Little Talks."
Leaf tried not to look at the judges as she performed, but it was hard not to steal glances. They looked passive, their expressions unreadable. Did they like them? She had no clue, which made her even more nervous. She tried her best to relax.
None of the judges said anything when the song was over. Leaf and Gary stared at each other for a moment, and then they went on to their next song.
The second song went even better than the first. Leaf began gaining confidence, and she could really feel herself engaging in the music, becoming one with the notes. She could feel that Gary was experiencing the same sensation. They were performing even better than they had while they practiced.
As they started their final song, Leaf knew that they were going to kill it. Her fingers were powered by the lightning of desire and raw talent. Her voice was in perfect pitch. Gary sang in harmony with her, his sweet voice blending with her own perfectly. The song was almost over, and the final climatic note was approaching. Just a few more measures...
Everything screeched to a halt on the final note. Leaf froze. She'd hit the wrong keys, ruining the final chord. She could feel Gary staring at her, but she could only stare at the judges. What would they say? Had she ruined their chances with her mistake? She felt as though time must have frozen, because nobody said anything. Anita was biting her lower lip nervously. Finally, one of the male judges spoke.
"You two are going to be the next big thing."
Leaf sighed, feeling the pressure lift off of her. Anita was bouncing excitedly in her chair, proud that she had discovered the hot new talent that would take the music billboards by storm.
"But the last note..." Leaf said hesitantly.
"F*uck the last note," the female judge said. "Everything else leading up to it was spectacular. So you're not perfect. Big deal. You're about as close to perfect as you could be."
Gary ran over to Leaf and hugged her, lifting her into the air and spinning her around and around.
"Hold on, kids. Don't get too excited yet," the third judge said. "You've made it past level one, but there's a lot to be done now. We'll have to hire you a fashion consultant, performance instructor, back up performers... you'll need a bass guitar and drummer permanently, and then we'll be able to get other people as you need them for performances. And then there's the matter of travel. We'll provide you with an RV and a driver. You'll be spending a lot of time in it. And we also need to get all of your information today."
"Information?" Gary asked.
"Yeah. Just minor things for now. Things like your band name, song titles, and we'll be needing your address and contact information so that we can correspond with you. So, what is your band name going to be?"
Leaf and Gary looked at each other. They'd already discussed the subject, and after a lot of brainstorming and arguing, they'd settled on a name that they both really liked.
"Running Red," Gary said. They'd chosen the name for several reasons. Red was the name of Leaf's fiancé. Ex-fiancé. And they were running away from the life they were supposed to live and doing what they felt was right for them. What was in their blood. What was running red throughout themselves.
"It's short. Catchy. Could be better," the woman said. "But the name is up to you. It's definitely what you want?"
"Definitely," they both answered.
They spent the rest of the day filling out contracts, and making arrangements with the company. They would start out opening shows for other bands who were already famous, and eventually they would have their own concerts if they could gain enough popularity. The next step was to create an album. That's what they would spend their next meeting working on.
Leaf and Gary both smiled with the insanity that comes from intense excitement and rewarding success. They'd done it. Running away had paid off. With hard work, their dreams were really going to come true.
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That's chapter two! I hope you guys liked it! Thanks to everyone who reviewed, followed, or favorited this story so far. It means a lot to me. Hopefully more people will show up after I put up more chapters. There was a pretty big surge in views for "Miles Away" after I put the first chapter up, so I think I might be seeing some new readers soon. That makes me really happy.
I love getting to know you guys, so feel free to leave a review and tell me what you think, or whatever else you have to say! I'm glad that I've been seeing a lot of my old readers on the follow and favorite lists, and the enthusiasm in the reviews has been awesome. Thanks so much guys!