- *sigh*... Yep! Next chapter's finally here. I apologize for the cheesiness and whatnot, remember it was my first fic ever. I'm much better now ;) I'm guessing there must be like two chapters left, so stay tuned! Remember the review button :)

Still lost in thoughts about Ash. So vivid, he could almost hear his voice calling his name. "Gary! Gary!" he heard Ash cry out in desperation. He didn't even know if he was dead or not. Was his mind playing a cruel joke on him? Were the angels deceiving him? He didn't know. But Ash's voice became clearer by the second and he felt himself regaining his consciousness.

"Gary, are you okay? Wake up, Gary, come on!" he heard Ash screaming. He finally opened his eyes, finding himself in a room he quickly identified as a Pokémon Center. He found Ash in tears, cradling him in his arms, and he vaguely recalled a similar scene on his mind, two years ago in the Viridian City Gym. Except this time Ash was crying. Concerned about his safety. He couldn't believe this. Ash Ketchum? Concerned over Gary Oak's safety? Impossible, he had to be dreaming. But it felt so real...

"Ash...," Gary said weakly. What exactly had happened that brought him to this state? He couldn't remember... That's right, the fire! "Ash, the fire! It's gonna spread out and people are gonna be hurt!" he said, concerned.

"Don't worry about the fire, Gary, the firefighters sent out a team of Blastoise to put it out," Ash calmly said. This made Gary feel relieved, and a lot safer. Yet, he had other thoughts on his mind. Questions that needed to be answered. How did he end up in here? Who saved him from the fire? Were his Pokémon okay? And how did Ash wind up with him? He felt a strong pang of pain on his head, and he flinched at the outburst.

"Gary!" Ash screamed. "I'm okay, Ash, I just have a really strong headache. Are my Pokémon okay?"

"They're okay, Nurse Joy's taking care of them." Perfect, his Pokémon were okay. Now, for the other questions...

"Ash, what exactly happened over there at the fire? I need to know...," Gary asked. "Well, Brock, Misty and I were walking over to Silver Town, when all of a sudden we smell the smoke and ran over to the fire. We found you lying unconscious on the ground, so I picked you up and brought you here," Ash explained. So Ash had also picked him up... Gary cursed himself for not being awake to live the moment.

"Where exactly are we anyway, Ash?"

"This is the Pokémon Center in Viridian City. We're really close to Silver Town from here, we just need to cross the Indigo Plateau gate," Ash answered him. Suddenly, the sound of a stretcher's wheels became louder and louder, until Nurse Joy appeared with Ash's Pikachu on a stretcher. The small electric mouse was lying down, and burns were visible on its tiny body.

"Pikachu!" Ash cried out before running towards the Pokémon. "Is he gonna be okay, Nurse Joy?"

Nurse Joy answered, "Your Pikachu's out of danger, but his burns were pretty serious. I'd suggest you try not to pressure him too much, otherwise he could get hurt." To this, Ash inquired, "Will he be able to battle at the Silver Conference?" and Nurse Joy said, "He shouldn't battle for a few weeks until he's completely healed. Now I'll send Pikachu into the recovery room, so wait here."

"So Ash, where are Misty and Brock?" Gary asked. "They're helping the Blastoise put out the fire. I hope they're okay..." Gary noticed Ash's sudden change of mood, and he felt somewhat sad, because he was expressing his concern towards Misty and Brock. Jealousy? Perhaps.

"Ash, I gotta ask you something... Why did you save me from the fire? I mean, you hate me, don't you? You could have let me die..."

To this, Ash answered, "I wasn't gonna let you die, Gary. Come on, I wouldn't let my best friend die caramelized in a forest fire! You saved me from Team Rocket at the Viridian Gym, so I felt like I had a debt to repay you...". Gary couldn't believe his ears. All this time he thought Ash hated him, when he really considered him to be his best friend? But how? After all those years Gary put him down and made fun of him... At the time, all Gary could do was stare surprised at Ash, until he told him, "You should rest, Gary, you've been through a lot and your burns might get worse."

So Gary lied down and fell asleep, finally at peace, knowing Ash didn't hate him or held any grudges against him.