Hi everyone,

Sorry for the long hiatus. Personal stuff going on, blah blah blah, but I've finally found the time to write the next chapter, if there are any of you left who care. Enjoy!

May

The game had been going on for a while now. I'd only had a few glasses of wine, but I'd skipped the drunk stage and gone directly to the tired stage. Dawn had drank quite a bit again- enough to let it slip that she and Paul had kissed once, to his annoyance. Serena had mostly been quiet but had drank more than me and Dawn combined. She'd started to slur badly, and her loud laughter at everything remotely comical pierced my ears. I'd started to wonder if I should take her to be,d but remembered that she was old enough to make those decisions herself, even if she was intoxicated.

"I'm going to look for some snacks," Ash announced, standing with a wobble. He had drank too much and was still thinking about food. Typical Ash. He walked to the kitchen in the worst attempt at a straight line I'd ever seen. He even bumped into the door frame on his way out. Through the open doors I could see him lean against the kitchen counter for support as he recovered from his small, but seemingly strenuous, walk.

A moment later, Serena stood from beside me. "I'll help," she said, but she didn't seem sure of herself. She stumbled off after Ash, holding onto the wall as she went. She hovered in the kitchen doorway for a moment, until Ash looked up at her. He stopped rummaging through the fridge and shut the door, leaning back against the counter again. Serena stood before him and began to talk. Then I realised I hadn't seen them speak yet.

Misty had begun to say something, but I couldn't help but watch as Serena wobbled a little and began to fall. Ash leaned forward and held her elbows to support her. They laughed together. This was the first time they'd spoken, yet Ash was looking at her in a way I couldn't understand. Ash had never looked at anyone that way around me.

I looked away quickly, afraid someone would notice the jealousy in my eyes.

Serena

Talking to Ash was a great idea. Yeah. It had to be. Even though I had wanted to slap him as I stood in the doorway. It would be so easy- I could slap him now, but I didn't want to. The spark I felt as his hands brushed my elbow had been so absent in my life, it was like a new sensation to me. He hadn't even said anything, and I wanted to laugh. Maybe that was the alcohol. I didn't even care what I said, or what he said.

"What food?" I asked, pointing to the fridge. The shorter I kept my sentences, the less likely I was to fuck them up and embarrass myself. He pulled a face.

"Can't remember." He rubbed the back of his head and laughed sheepishly. I chuckled too. "I've got an idea." He turned and reached up to the highest cupboards, pulling them all open clumsily. At last, he opened one and whooped as he pulled out a box of cereal. I twisted my face. He reached into the box, pulling out some dry cereal, and began to eat it. Genius.

"Amazing." I watched in awe. Why was I mad at him again? I honestly couldn't remember.

"Have some," he said, holding out the box to me. I reached in to take the cereal. I was fully aware that if I were sober, I'd hate this idea, but it seemed so clever right now. Quick and easy. I shoved a handful in my mouth and smiled. Ash laughed.

"Come here," he said quietly, setting the cereal down on the counter. I swallowed my cereal, not afraid in the slightest, and moved a little closer to him. He reached out and placed his hands on my hips.

The touch was sobering. A shudder ran down my body, both from excitement and fear. Suddenly aware of everything around me, my heart began to pound in my chest. The others would be able to see from the living room. This was Ash. Was this really happening? I really was here, talking to Ash. I wished I was sober, because my head was beginning to hurt, and I had no idea what was going on. From here, it would be so easy to lean up to him…

I pulled away suddenly. His hands had been on me for less than a couple seconds, but I felt dirty. I felt wrong, even if it did give me butterflies. This was wrong. It had been too long, and this couldn't happen now. Ash was drunk. Ash didn't deserve my forgiveness this easily. He looked confused, as though he couldn't remember what he'd done wrong. I was so stupid.

Dawn

Ash had touched a girl, and we'd all seen it. Was this the first interest he'd ever shown towards a female? Of course it would be her. She was classically beautiful: long blonde hair, magically bright blue eyes and a great body. I was maybe a little jealous of her.

She'd ran off, and Ash had stood there like an idiot for a few moments before leaving too. Neither of them came back into the living room. I didn't want to hate her, but I did right then. That wasn't fair. I'd known Ash for years, and he'd never shown any interest in me. Maybe she'd flirted with him, and because he was drunk she seemed appealing… Yeah, that was probably it.

"What the hell was that?" Gary spat. "Ash finally getting the tiniest bit of female action and he makes her run away!"

May sighed and leaned back against the sofa. "I think Serena has had trouble with guys in the past. She probably flirted with him, realised what she was doing, and scared herself."

She acted unbothered, but I knew she would be. I could read her like a book. She was my best friend, but I didn't know if she would cross me to get to Ash. Would I do it to her? I wasn't sure anymore. Ash and I had met up a few days early, and every day had made me surer that I was in love with him. I had suspected it since we'd parted ways in Sinnoh. A pathetically long time.

"Does that mean she's off limits?" Brock joked, nudging Gary for support, but May was glaring in such a way I didn't think either of them would be smiling for long if they laughed. I'd rather Brock tried. I didn't know if I could handle watching Serena flirt with Ash anymore. That would make three of us. I kind of felt sorry for Ash.

May decided this was a good time to excuse herself. Paul was still angry at me, since he hadn't looked my way in the past hour, so I wasn't about to sit down here with him and people I barely knew. As I followed her out the room and up the stairs, I was aware we'd both be thinking about Ash, and hoped the awkwardness would go away with time, regardless of who Ash chose.

Serena

The headache was the first thing I thought about when I woke up, but it was quickly forgotten about. I'd thought the first morning was bad.

This was a thousand times worse.

Today, I wasn't leaving my room. I'd pretend the alcohol had made me sick and I needed a day to rest. After that… Well, I'd figure that out later. Maybe I'd go home.

I'd ruined everything. After all this time, I'd let Ash back into my life without any consequences, even if it was just for a few minutes. All this time I'd spent planning what I'd say to him, how I'd never forgive him, was wasted now. He'd touched me… and the feeling that came with it terrified me. It wasn't right for me to feel that way after all this time. It had just been the alcohol, of course, but it scared me nonetheless.

I pulled the covers over my head until it was hard to breathe under them, then flung myself around in bed. I couldn't get comfortable. I couldn't stop feeling Ash's hands on my waist. I thought about showering, but then the thought of Ash being in there crept into my head, and I felt even more vile.

Soon May would come looking for me, and- Oh God, May. May was going to ask so many questions. There was no way she hadn't seen. How would I explain why I'd gone from not saying a word to him, to acting like his best friend, to him having his hands on me? I knew there was only one solution, but the thought of it made my stomach flip. She'd hate me.

A knock on my door left my throat dry and my heart in my stomach. I considered pretending to be asleep still in the hopes that whoever it was would leave, but I'd just been making so much noise flinging myself around.

"Serena?" It was Misty. I relaxed a little; I could handle her.

"Come in," I called, my voice hoarse and croaky. I reached up and grabbed my throat. I'd never sounded like that before. Had I really drunk that much?

Misty breezed in as calm as ever. Her hair was down and just brushed her shoulders as she swayed. She reached behind her and pushed the door shut. Strange. Maybe she was here to grill me after all. I groaned and threw my head back against my pillow. She perched herself on the edge of my bed, running her hands across the sheets. I could tell she wanted to say something. Her eyes flicked up and met mine suddenly. There was a tinge of anger there.

"I think there's more to the story than you told me, isn't there? About you and Ash."

And then it was out there. I'd been stupid to think I could avoid it, even with Misty. At least, I supposed, it would be good to let it out. Even after almost two years, I'd never confided in anyone. I wasn't sure why Misty seemed so trustworthy to me, but she did. I sighed heavily.

"We kissed."

She didn't seem shocked, and kept her lips pursed tightly. I began to worry she would be angry. Maybe she had feelings for him.

"It was our last day together. Right before I left, I kissed him. He didn't break it. It was only brief, but I really put my heart out there for him. Wore it on my sleeve, I guess. We didn't have time to say anything after that. That was my last interaction with him, before last night. I figured the kiss had put him off me. Why else would he ignore me?" I'd broken the seal, and now the words were spilling out like vomit. I wanted to stop, but tears were gathering now, and if I stopped I'd cry. "I didn't understand. He didn't pull away. I wanted my feelings to be reciprocated at first, but then all I wanted was his friendship back. I'm so embarrassed by it, I can't stand to look at him. I hate him for it. I don't understand. I want to understand."

Misty scooted over towards me, wrapping her arms around me. I fell into her, finally cracking, sobbing into her shoulder. We stayed like that for a minute before she pushed me away gently. The anger in her eyes had grown into something else. I couldn't stop crying.

"I knew there was something really wrong. Serena, this isn't you. I only just met you, and I can tell. You have to stop crying over him." She shook her head. "You're letting him win. I know it's hard, but that's life. You fall in love, then you fall apart. Rinse and repeat. You're better than this. None of this is your fault. It's all on him. You need to show him that you're strong without him, that you don't care anymore, even if it's not true. Then you can think about moving on. Make yourself look good, act like yourself again, and he will see what he's missing out on. Then the ball's in his court."

Misty's words struck me like lightning. She was right- I had fallen apart. I'd spent two years moping over this boy when he deserved none of it. I'd lost myself because of him, and for what? What did this even gain? In that time, I could have found someone else. There could even be someone else here. The tears stopped completely, but I still had no words. Where did I even start?

Misty stood. "No more blue," she said, shaking her head. "You must have something else."

I pointed silently to the wardrobe. She didn't have to think twice before she threw it open and began filing through my clothes. She picked out a floral shirt and high-waisted denim shorts. "It's warm today, you can wear these. Shower, you stink of drink, and put some effort into your hair. I have some makeup, if you want to borrow it."

I nodded. It was the only thing I could manage. I was so overwhelmed.

"It's in my room, on the desk. I'll see you downstairs in like, half an hour?" She asked but didn't wait for a response.

"Misty," I called out quietly before she reached the door. She turned back to me, a hint of a smile playing on her lips. "Thank you."

The smile spread, and she simply nodded before leaving me to fix the mess I'd become.

May

Being the soberest of my friends last night, it was relatively easy to get up in the morning. I'd been wide awake since six, and now coffee was calling to me.

Despite not being hungover, I felt groggy. I usually slept easily, but last night… Well, there were some things on my mind that I couldn't shake. Namely, Serena. She and Ash had spoken for the first time since we arrived, yet something wasn't right. Ash would never behave that way after just meeting someone, even after a few drinks.

I knew it was stupid to worry. I trusted Serena with my life, and I knew that once I told her about my feelings for Ash, she'd be respectful. She wouldn't be interested anyway, she never was, but what about him? What if he was into her?

The click of the kettle jolted me back to reality. I poured two mugs, remembering that I'd heard Misty wandering around upstairs earlier. She was always an early bird like me. The steam billowed out and I sucked in a deep breath, closing my eyes. Maybe I'd tell her today. She was my best friend, after all.

I heard footsteps on the stairs and picked up both mugs. Before I even turned, Misty strode into the kitchen, a smug smile plastered on her face. I twisted my own. "What's that face for?" I asked, handing her the mug. She wrapped both hands around it and clutched it to her chest. It was kinda cold this morning.

"Nothing. Is a girl not allowed to just be happy for no reason?"

I smile. "Sure, just not you. Not that smile. That smile always means something."

I know something's up, because despite me pointing it out, the smile hadn't gone away. In fact, it turned into a grin. She grinned from ear to ear and it was contagious. I decided it didn't matter and shook my head, leaving for the living room. She followed me wordlessly, still clutching her mug tight, even as mine began to burn my hands.

"You feeling rough at all this morning?" I asked her as I sunk into the sofa. She shook her head as she sipped her coffee. "Me neither, surprisingly."

"I'll bet Dawn is." Misty rolled her eyes. Dawn had been a little annoying last night, I had to admit.

"What about Serena? Do you think she will be?" I asked, trying not to seem too interested. I didn't even look her in the eye, but I could see her raise an eyebrow.

"Probably."

She wasn't biting. "Ash?"

"You're bothered about them because of last night." A statement. Was I that easy to read? I sighed dramatically, sinking further backwards.

"A little. Is that stupid?"

She shrugged. Well, at least she was always honest. "I don't think you have anything to worry about."

"Should I tell him?" I felt awkward opening up like this, but it seemed as though she'd already figured it out. I supposed it was likely that everyone had. Everyone but clueless Ash. Misty furrowed her brows.

"Depends. Tell him what?"

Was she really going to make me spell it out? Surely she wasn't this dumb. I grumbled at her, and she laughed, waving a hand. "I know. It's up to you, May. All I'll say is…you know what he's like. He's smart, but he's clueless when it comes to women. I don't think he'd know you liked him even if you, I don't know, kissed him. He'd just think you were being polite or something."

She laughed, but I smiled, staring off out the window. It had started raining. "I don't know. I think he's smarter than we give him credit for."

I could hear another set of footsteps on the stairs, so our conversation was over. At least I felt a little more at ease now. Still, the sickly smile she was giving me was making me want to slap her. I grimaced back over to her and turned to see who was awake.

It was Serena, and she was wearing colour.

"Morning." She beamed. She was actually smiling. To my dismay, she was smiling at Misty, and hadn't acknowledged me at all.

Dawn

I could hear that people were awake downstairs, but my head was too fuzzy for me to think about moving yet. My throat felt like a desert but going for water was beyond my capability. I groaned, placing a hand over my face to block out the light, even with my eyes closed. Everyone must have thought me an idiot. I drank too much again. They shouldn't let me around it. I was just glad they didn't know I did it in an attempt to raise my confidence enough to say something to Ash. Yet, even after I plastered myself with drink, I couldn't bring myself to bring it up.

I had almost drifted back to sleep when a loud knock at my door sent my heart racing. I tried to sit up, feeling the room spin wildly around me, and put my head back to fight the nausea. The night before was so not worth this.

"Come in." I didn't even open my eyes, in fear I'd puke on my bed covers.

"Rough?" It was Paul. He had closed the door behind him but didn't move towards the bed. Strange. I opened an eye.

"A little."

"Do you even remember last night?" Okay. There was something wrong. The venom in his tone felt almost violent. I scrunched my face.

"Yes, I remember it, I'm not an alcoholic." I tried to sit up more and hide the fact that it almost made me vomit. "Are you trying to say something?"

Paul shrugged, but it seemed sarcastic. "No. Just wondering."

I rolled my eyes. He was just being an asshole then? Nothing new. "What is it then? Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Why did you tell everyone?"

Huh? I had no idea what he was talking about. Truth be told, some of last night was a blur to me now, but I wasn't about to tell him that. "Why not?"

"Because it's fucking embarrassing, Dawn. Makes it seem like I'm into you."

Then it clicked. He was talking about our kiss. I must have confessed to it during a game we played. Was he really angry about that? And what did he mean by that?

"What would be so bad about being into me?" I snarled, sitting forward now. I felt my temper brewing and tried to push it aside. Arguing with Paul was never pretty. Even after a year of travelling together, I couldn't stand any sort of tiff with him. He always won.

"Well I'm just not, that's all."

"I never said you were. But you need to chill. It's not a big deal."

At that, he seemed to crack. "Maybe not to you," he shouted, throwing his arm up in the air. "You don't care what you tell people, just spill it all out for a bit of drama, maybe to make Ash jealous or some shit. It'd be nice to have some fucking privacy."

I felt the tears filling my eyes, and suddenly I couldn't see for them. "Don't you speak to me like that Paul, you hear me?" I screamed, but he'd already closed the door.

Serena

Misty was right, I had to fix myself, but it wouldn't be a sudden transformation. For now, I had to just act like my old self, even if it was a lie. Eventually, I would be my old self again, and I wouldn't care about Ash or anything that had happened. I had to start by making more friends. The fact that I only had Clemont and May was sad. Even Bonnie, who'd grown up and become popular, didn't really speak to me anymore.

Besides, Misty seemed like possibly the coolest person I'd ever met. Maybe one of the guys would be cool too.

I'd sat beside May, who offered me coffee, and had run off to make it for me happily. I could tell she was ecstatic that I seemed cheery and was probably praying it wasn't just a brief phase. Misty held her coffee in both hands with her legs crossed and stared out the window.

"It's a sign," she said, nodding to the window. I raised an eyebrow.

"What?"

"The rain. It's gonna be a shit day."

"Do you even want me to feel better?" I asked sarcastically, and she laughed. "So, tell me about Paul."

"Paul?" Misty sipped her coffee, taking her time to answer my question. It seemed like she was going to say something deep. "I don't really know him."

I sighed, throwing my head back. "Fat load of help you are."

"He's a bit of an ass," May said as she walked in the room, handing my coffee over. She fell back into the seat beside me again, almost making me spill it. "He acts like he's hard as nails, but I think deep down he's sensitive, and that's why he puts on the mask." She shrugged. "He could just be an ass after all though."

Paul seemed like a fun mystery to solve. Perhaps that was something to pursue. I liked to think I could crack him.

"You should try Drew," Misty suggested. "He seems interested in you."

"Yeah!" May beamed at me. "Besides, it'd get him off my back."

"Hmm, maybe." I got the feeling that, despite everything, Drew was secretly more into May than he'd admit. It was a shame that she never gave him a chance. Maybe if he stopped acting like a sleaze sometimes.

"Anyone but Brock, okay? That man would go after any female. Literally. I've had to stop him countless times," Misty scoffed. The image of her physically preventing Brock from hitting on women made me giggle. Misty joined in, and then we were all laughing, and it felt so good.

Then May was looking over her shoulder and was jumping up to put her coffee down on the table. "Oh my god, Dawn, are you okay?"

I turned. Dawn was rubbing her eyes, which were red and puffy from crying, and still breathing like she couldn't get enough air. Ash had his arm around her as they walked, leaning in to whisper things to calm her down. Just like that, the joy was ripped from me again.

May

Dawn cried a lot. Part of her dramatic personality, I guess. Still, whenever she did, I had to check she was okay. I rushed to her, putting my arms around her. She stayed limp in them, and made no attempt to return the hug, but I didn't hold it against her.

"What's wrong?" I asked, holding her at arm's length from me. She sniffed and rubbed her nose on her arm, not caring if she was being gross.

"Paul." Her voice wobbled. "He shouted at me. For telling everyone that we kissed. He said… He said that I'm dramatic and made it seem like I tell everyone everything he does."

I mean, she was kind of proving his point, but I wouldn't say that. I had to take her side- she was my friend. "No one even cares that he kissed you once, Dawn. He's just making a big deal out of nothing."

"I know." She was calming down a little. "He said it was a big deal to him."

"Come on," I said, taking her arm and leading her to the sofa. Misty shifted to sit beside Serena. I kept my arm around Dawn, even when she sat down. Even if there had been some tension between us, I still wanted to care for my friend. She took deep breaths. I looked up at my two other friends. Serena's mood had decreased dramatically. So much for that, then.

"Um, I'm gonna go make breakfast," Ash announced, already backing off to the kitchen. None of us bothered to answer him. I wondered if he remembered he'd touched Serena's hips, and shown interest in her. My stomach turned.

"We should have a girl's night tonight," Misty broke the silence. "Just us. Bring our blankets and pillows down to the living room and sit by the fire, then sleep there."

Dawn smiled again. "That sounds fun!"

Serena didn't say anything. I forced a smile and agreed in fake excitement. I wasn't sure why, but I had a sick feeling it wouldn't end well.