Hey! I didn't exactly post this on my user page, so, if none of you knew, I was on a brief (okay not really) hiatus because my flashdrive holding this chapter broke. I had to re-write much of it, but to make up for the large amount of time I took in between, I'm giving you ANOTHER long chapter. I hope you enjoy it, and feel free to point out any mistakes I made, because I barely put this thing through editing. I wanted to give you guys this before it got to be the end of the year.

Anyway, HAPPY LATE THANKSGIVING!

Thanks to Cutiepiepo2, Spacebar, and StrawberriiSuzu for reviewing!

Warning: Really long chapter; Characters may be OOC; Bad sense of humor

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon. Is this statement really necessary?


Leaf

Somebody keeps staring at me, scrutinizing me with their gaze. I have no idea who it is, but I can just feel the person's eyes on me.

It's probably a pervert.

Unable to fight the temptation to ignore the creeper gazing at me so intently, I briefly look over my shoulder. My own hazel eyes meet dark viridian green.

I shift my head back, facing forward.

Yep. Definitely a pervert.

I try my best to ignore the weird look he's giving me. He's probably focusing on cursing me or something. I used to do that to him as a child whenever he angered me.

Why do clocks always move so slowly in the summer time?! No, scratch that, they always do. A minute is freakin' sixty seconds, so why does it take so long for the tiny second hand to go around one circle?!

"Gary," the elderly Mrs. Dirithsuir suddenly says amidst her lecture, "Gary Oak."

"Yes?" the boy in question responds, straightening at his desk. Everyone in the classroom turns around to look at him.

"What color was Pallet Kantogata's white ponyta after crossing the Wayanuat River?" Mrs. Dirithsuir demands suddenly, pointing a finger at him.

A couple of students stifle a laugh or attempt to hide their smiles.

"White?" Gary scrunches his eyebrows in slight confusion, "But, Mrs. Dirithsuir…this is Algebra II class."

"Wrong!" Mrs. Dirithsuir yells loudly, "His ponyta was brown from the mud, and Mr. Oak, I'd like to remind you that this is my class… which means that I will ask you any question I please when I think you aren't paying attention."

The classroom falls into slight silence before the elderly teacher bursts into laughter herself, "Oh! I'm just messing with you! I know that pretty much all of you haven't been paying attention the whole day."

Students begin to murmur amongst themselves. Mrs. Dirithsuir is an odd, yet strangely lovable teacher. At least, I like her.

Mrs. Dirithsuir gestures to the board, where her neat handwriting is scrawled in notes that look like a madman's musings, "I even wrote english and science on the board that no one's bothered to correct!"

Hmm….I didn't even notice it, but Mrs. Dirithsuir had written 'The girl said that she wasn't felling two good.' and 'The newest pokémon type is rainbow'.

"Rainbow?" Holly Eisenburgh from my old homeroom giggles.

"How colorful," Terrence Valliant deadpans. "It makes me 'fell good'."

Before Mrs. Dirithsuir can respond in any way, the bell rings as the minute hand finally moves to the twelve.

I almost jump up, half-startled and half-excited. But yours truly forgot to pack up her things.

So while I scramble to jam my calculator and textbooks (I didn't even need it…why did I take it out?) back into my backpack, everyone else in the class practically shoves their way out of the classroom. I'm still trying to zip up my bag when Mrs. Dirithsuir speaks again.

"Gary Oak," Mrs. Dirithsuir says, just before Gary makes his way out the doorway.

"Yes?" Gary raises an eyebrow as he pauses and leans on the wooden lintel.

"A few words if you please, Mr. Oak," Mrs. Dirithsuir gracefully plops herself down into her chair and neatly folds her hands on the desk.

My ears burn as I feel the whole awkwardness of the situation. C'mon, zipper! Just go up!

"What do you want to talk to me about?" Gary asks.

Great Mew! The cloth of my backpack's stuck in the zipper!

"You're not in trouble," Mrs. Dirithsuir starts.

Uh oh. That's usually where the teacher starts to "gently" chide you for something.

This. Is. So. Awkward.

"…but I'd appreciate it in the future if you pay attention in class and not stare so much at Miss Green," Mrs. Dirithsuir finishes.

Why is she picking on Gary, though? She said it herself, it wasn't like anyone else in the class was paying attention either. Maybe she expected more out of Gary?

Forget the stupid zipper that refuses to perform its sole function. As quietly as I can, I attempt to leave without making things even more awkward.

Life hates me, however, and I clumsily knock over a chair with my backpack.

"Sorry," I mutter, red-faced as I speedily pick up the chair and practically zip out the door.

The way Mrs. Dirithsuir made it sound, it seemed like she thought Gary liked me or something.

'What if he did?' My inner self asks me, for once lacking the sarcasm.

"Don't be stupid," I mutter to myself as my fingers turn the dial on my locker.

My locker is bare from any decorations. Though, to be honest, it was pretty much the same before I emptied it out for the summer too. I had put up pictures of me and Marina at Sevii Island, as well as pictures with me, Mom, and Dad…but I didn't have any pictures of me with any of my (former) Pallet Town friends. Those precious photos remain in my room: on my nightstand, in photo albums, and on my walls.

The hallway is still bustling with activity despite the school year being over. Students still clean out their lockers and exchange yearbooks, and the PTSA's committee hangs decorations for the Prestige Contest.

Damien Cross passes through the hallway, stopping by my locker. At first, I pay no attention to this, thinking that he is only waiting for someone to pass by and make room for him to go through the hallway.

Damien is one of the popular boys. Granted, there's a whole group of boys extremely popular (Gary Oak, Ash Ketchum, Seth Sharperson, etc.), but there's something about Damien Cross that always demands respect and admiration. To be honest, I'm surprised he didn't run for Student Council. He'd be good at that sort of thing and he wouldn't have to do anything to get the respect of the student body.

He clears his throat, gathering my attention away from my locker.

I close my locker door gently, turning to him in slight surprise.

He and I were chemistry partners last semester, and he and I were always able to work together perfectly fine.

"Yes?" I raise my eyebrow, trying to not look into his hypnotizing gold eyes.

"Want to trade year books?" He holds up his own questioningly, sending me a small smile all the while. He runs a hand through his dark hair, pushing some of his hair from in front of his eyes.

Oh yeah, did I forget to mention? He has an accent that's to die for. He says one word, and everyone listening will be clinging to that one word in his accent.

"Sure," I shrug nonchalantly as I reach for my year book in my shoulder bag, but on the inside, I'm smiling with complete happiness at getting another signature in my year book.

But then I'm embarrassed. I only have six or seven signatures, and most of that is from my teachers.

How. Lame.

As I scratch out the standard "I had a lot of fun with you this year in the classes we shared. Have a great summer!" message, I notice a green sticky note stuck on the top of the signature page.

"I need your help, Leaf. It's about Della. Please?

-Damien"

Well, leave it to Damien to be straight to the point. But I suppose that's the only way one can be in matters with Della Evengale. Fierce and rebellious, Della's certainly a handful. She never keeps her sharp tongue in check and doesn't hesitate to express her feelings on a matter.

Out of my peripheral vision, I see Della standing on her tiptoes as she staples her latest propaganda posters- concerning the devolution of pokémon from free beings to "pets" forced to battle and participate in contests- to the bulletin board. She glances behind her shoulder at us, but then quickly goes back to her task.

An idea pops into my head. One that could possibly work…

…or fall short and explode back in my face.

Before I can change my mind, on the green sticky note, I write:

"Ask me out on a 'date' with a grand gesture. In reality, it's for us hanging out and discussing your Della issue.

-Leaf"

'Don't do it!' my inner self screams. 'Don't do something so stupid!'

I don't even know if he's having a romantic problem with her. But if it is, I hope the whole jealousy thing works.

Damien's golden eyes skim over my words once he receives his year book back. With an almost imperceptible nod, Damien gives me affirmation.

"So, Leaf," Damien smiles at me while he subtly side-glances at Della, "what are you going to be up to over the summer?"

"I'll be here," I shrug, answering nonchalantly, "I'm not going to Sevii until later in the summer."

"Well then," Damien shifts his attention solely to me, "do you mind checking your calendar for a date?"

"Me?" I say, putting a hand to my chest in surprise. "Well… it would be something new…"

Della, narrowing her eyes, puts down her stapler and turns to look at us. I can tell she's way too curious to give up eavesdropping like she had been attempting to earlier.

He shoots me a lopsided-grin, "Don't tell me Little Miss Leaf has never gone out on a date before?"

"Because I haven't," I giggle, sending him a flirty wink (or at least, what was intended to be. It probably looked like my eye blinking malfunctioned), "believe it or not, you're the first to ask."

"Your first, huh?" Damien asks, standing in silence after a few moments. Then he bends down on one knee in a grand gesture. "Would you do me the honor of letting me be your first date, Leaf Green?"

This attracts pretty much everyone else's attention in the hallway. Which would include Della, one or two other people, and…Gary…

Somebody shoot me in the head and put me out of my misery.

"Damien," I giggle again, pretending to be extremely flattered to hide what I really feel right now. Embarrassed that Gary's seeing this. Oh yeah, and utterly screwed.

"Get up," I put my hands to my cheeks in a maidenly manner of blushing, "People are going to think you're proposing or something."

"You deserve a grand gesture," Damien says, smirking, but he gets off of his one knee anyway.

His grand gesture has its intended effect, Della angrily crumples the purple sheet in her hand, and for a few minutes, I'm afraid she's going to try to kill me with the stapler.

Good for Damien. Glad to know that my death would at least bring him to Della. And Gary will get to fulfill his life-long dream of seeing me brutally murdered by a stapler.

"Well," I blink coyly at him, as I tilt my head to consider. "I suppose so, Mr. Cross. After all, there's no one I could possibly like more."

"I thank you kindly for the compliment, Miss Green," Damien bows in a gentlemanly manner to keep up the flirty banter, before locking eyes with me. "We'll work out the details later?"

"Yes, of course," I say softly, putting a hand over my mouth to make it look like I'm secretly hiding a giddy smile. In actuality, it's an oh-my-Arceus-I'm-screwed smile.

By this point, Della leaves, fists clenched at her sides while she tries her best to not look slightly peeved by the latest developments.

From what Damien hinted during our chemistry labs, Della tried to make their relationship strictly platonic. I felt a little bad for doing the jealousy thing, but obviously Della doesn't hold "strictly platonic" feelings for Damien either.

Damien bids me farewell, giving me a soulfully grateful look with his eyes.

Good. He better be grateful for the things I'm doing for him.

3…

2…

1…

"What were you getting at by telling Cross he'd be your first date?!" Gary questions me, dark viridian eyes narrowing.

"Because he is," I answer, not bothering to look at him. I could keep my cool better if I didn't look at him.

'Thanks to you' my inner self says, expressing what I could only wish I had the courage to say out loud.

But I'm too afraid of inadvertently offending Gary or inciting his anger. I don't want him to hate me any more than he already does.

"What about your boyfriend in Sevii?" Gary persists, "You're willing to cheat on him for a Pallet Town guy?"

"I don't have a boyfriend," I say coolly. "I don't even have friends who are male."

Once again, thanks to this guy.

Gary chases out pretty much every male figure in my life. He probably wants me to be that lady living all by herself with the exception of her fifteen hundred puruglies (those ugly things I saw in a documentary last night on Sinnoh pokémon). Then he'll send his hell-fire children to ding-dong ditch my door all of the time.

I once had a good childhood friend that I couldn't help but feel close to. But Gary chased him away, being mean to him and constantly entreating me to not hang around him anymore.

Like an idiot, I chose Gary. I guess it was only karma that Gary ditched me.

The foreign tone in Gary reminds me of the jealousy that Gary displayed back then…

"Gary, give it back!" my tiny arms flail in the air as I desperately jump to reach my round red ball that he now holds in his hands.

"No," Gary says petulantly, holding it higher above his head. He is taller than me, towering over me like, well, pardon the pun, but like an Oak.

"You're being mean and stupid!" I tell him, putting my hands on my hips. "You're being a-a…boy!"

"Glad you know my gender," Gary says snidely before switching the subject. "But you won't get your ball back until you agree to stop hanging out with…"

Gary swallows, as if even thinking of his name puts a bad taste in his mouth.

"He's nice!" I stubbornly put my hands on my hips, "He's waaaay nicer than you! He actually plays house with me and stuff!"

"I can play house with you," Gary grits his teeth.

"But you won't!" I point out. "You always tell me that it's stupid and 'juvenile'!"

"You don't even know what that word means," Gary says in amusement, smirking at me.

"See? You're always so mean to me!" I yell, trying to steer away from the fact that Gary was right. I suddenly jump up again, trying to reach my ball. "Now gimme!"

Gary, though startled, backs away and continues to dangle the red ball just out of my reach, "Nope. Not until you promise~."

My lips begin to wobble, and I plop myself down on the ground despondently.

"Then I'm never going to play with my ball ever again," I whisper sadly.

"Just promise you'll never hang out with that jerk again," Gary snaps, lowering the ball to his side as he bends down to look at me. He gives me a look that says, 'how hard can this be?'

"He plays house with me! He's so nice, he's even the daddy!"

Gary looks jealous at this. Hehe, this is going to be way too much fun.

"I'll be the daddy," Gary says, "I'll play house with you whenever you want."

"…promise?" I look up at him hopefully through teary eyes.

"Promise," Gary responds firmly, without hesitation.

"Okay!" I suddenly and gleefully jump up and snatch my shiny red ball from his hands. "Now let's go play!"

"Wha-?" Gary blinks in shock before he slowly realizes what I've tricked him in to.

His angry voice follows me as I dash away, though I know he's not truly mad in the slightest.

"Pesky girl!"

"Leaf?" fingers snap literally two centimeters away from my face. "Leaf?!"

I blink rapidly, returning back from my memory. I must've dazed out.

"Sorry, you were saying?" I mutter, my ears heating up in embarrassment. Even though it had been Gary I was speaking to, I still felt rude.

Gary looks at me carefully, examining me.

"I wasn't saying anything," Gary says after a pause. "But it seemed like you were about to say something before you zoned out."

Had I been about to say something else? I didn't think I was.

But Gary's giving me that same look he gave me at Chilly Cherubi the other day, right before I had said something wrong and set him off. And for some reason, I want him to keep looking at me like that. To keep looking at me as a person of interest, rather than the person who he's held in disdain for the past seven years.

I open my mouth to speak before clamping it shut. What if I said something wrong again?

"…Nothing," I say quietly, "I wasn't going to say anything."

The last real male friend I had was you. Even if I managed to make a new one….he wouldn't compare to you.

Gary looks at me in disbelief. He's about to push more for what I meant to say (curse, his curiosity!), but a frantic Ash interrupts.

"Leaf!" Ash sounds relieved at finding me. He rests his hand on my shoulder, "I've been looking all over for you."

"Hello, Ashy Boy," Gary says, familiar smirk on his face but a surprisingly flat tone towards his best friend.

"Gary," Ash nods at him before turning his attention back to me. "Leaf, I need to talk to you."

I'm not the only one surprised by Ash's rather lukewarm attitude towards Gary.

Gary's face forms one of shock before he drops it. He leaves, walking down the hallway with his hands jammed into the front pockets of his jeans.

I almost want to walk after him and redo my last conversation with him.

I turn to Ash, tightly holding to my chest the books I had yet to tuck into my shoulder bag. Resisting the urge to watch Gary, I sigh, "Okay, Asher, what's up?"

"It's about Misty," Ash says immediately, "and that...that thing that happened last Monday."

Way to not beat around the bush, Ash.

"What about it?" I ask, a little confused. So he slipped a little and kissed the corner of her lips. Not a real kiss, right?

Besides, he did talk to her about it afterwards, right?

Oh, who am I kidding? This is Ash Ketchum, we're talking about here.

"What am I supposed to do about it?!" Ash hisses, putting his hand up around his mouth as if telling a secret.

I suppose he is, but he seriously needs to realize that his "whispering" tone is probably louder than his normal tone.

"Did you talk to her about it?" I shift my weight from my left foot to my right.

"No," Ash says, both sullenly and quietly.

"You should," I suggest as I turn to my side to tuck my books into my bag. "These kinds of things shouldn't be left unsaid."

"But what would I say to her?" Ash asks, looking frustrated, "It's easier to pretend that it never happened."

When Ash says that, I realize that Ash has never really changed. He always met any verbal or physical challenge head-on, but when it came to emotional matters…

…he always pretended they weren't there.

When Gary began to hate me, rather than face the difficulty of two friends not talking to one another, Ash pretended that our friendship never happened.

As much as I want to yell at Ash for this upon realization, I can't. Because he's still here, talking to me. And…to be honest, it was easier for me to pretend that my friendship with Gary and Ash never happened rather than confront them. I was a coward too. And, judging by my last conversation with Gary, still am.

"It's not easier," I swallow, my throat aching. "Trust me."

"I….can't," Ash bows his head, "I can't ruin my friendship with her."

"Wait…so you're afraid to talk to Misty because you don't want it to ruin your friendship?" I ask him incredulously, "I hate to break it to you, Asher, but you avoiding her is ruining your friendship too."

In my words is also the question over whether my thoughts are true. That Ash may have some semblance of more than platonic feelings for Misty.

"I…know," Ash bites his lips, "but I don't want to change our friendship."

"Okay," I say sarcastically, putting my hand to my hips, "so you'll never talk to Misty again because of that kiss you shared."

"I told you," Ash insists, "It was nothing."

"Was it?" I look into Ash's brown eyes in all seriousness.

"Yes," Ash replies firmly.

"Okay," I sigh, giving up. "Whatever you say, Asher."

"Thanks, Leafy," Ash hugs me suddenly, "Thanks for understanding."

As he walks away, clearly in a better mood, I can't help but wonder why Ash bothered to talk to me about it. Was it just so he could reiterate to himself that what happened Monday was nothing?


Misty

I sigh despondently once more, causing Pikachu to look up at me worriedly.

His ears twitch as the cute mouse pokémon gives me what totally looks like sympathy, "Pi-ka?"

"I'm fine, Pikachu," I attempt to smile, just for him. "But thanks for your concern."

Ash apparently left him behind or something, because Pikachu just came bounding straight up to me right after school ended. Speaking of his trainer, he is still avoiding me.

Pikachu, seeing through my pitiful attempt to seem happy, bounds up my arm and around my neck to nuzzle my cheek affectionately, "Pika."

My hand reaches up to stroke his head.

"Thank you, Pikachu," I say softly.

"Hey, Misty!" Leaf's friend, Marina, cheerfully makes her way over to me.

I wish I could be that happy.

"Have you seen Leaf?" she asks as she plops herself down across from me.

"No," I say immediately. I want to forget how Ash's been spending more and more time with her.

Marina gives a slightly exasperated sigh as she drums her fingers on the table, "That girl…she was supposed to bring me to her pool after school let out."

Leaf didn't invite me to go with her. But I think I probably know why.

"So, is there anything else you're going to do with Leaf other than going to her pool?" I ask as I rest my head against my hand.

"Who's going to the pool later?" Gary cuts in as he joins us by sitting next to me. He casts a glance to Marina before looking away from her, appearing to be peeved she's here.

"Leaf and I are," Marina claps her hands together excitedly. "You should join us!"

"Maybe," Gary says flatly, shooting me a side glance.

"I'll go," I say firmly. I want to talk to Leaf and clear a few things up with her.


And so, all five of us find ourselves hanging out at the small neighborhood pool near Ash, Gary, and Leaf's house.

I sport my usual navy blue one-piece, while Marina and Leaf wear a yellow tankini and green one-piece respectively.

"Haven't been here in a while," Gary casts a curious look around the small pool as he steps out from the men's locker room and onto the pool deck.

"It looks smaller," Ash says as he looks around too. He has a wailord floatie tucked in his arm and still wears that same red swimming trunks.

"Probably because you haven't been here in a while, Asher," Leaf laughs, her hazel eyes smiling at him.

She likes him. She likes HIM.

"Oh, hey!" Marina suddenly claps her hands together, "You're matching!"

Leaf and Ash both give her confused looks, while Gary merely rolls his eyes. Clearly Gary doesn't like Leaf or her friend Marina.

"You and Gary, silly," Marina giggles to Leaf, pointing to Gary's own dark green swim shorts.

"So we are," Leaf shoots Marina a somewhat pained look, causing the bluenette to giggle some more.

Gary merely examines the swim records board on the wall beside him, avoiding looking at the two girls.

Marina stretches her arms, "Hey, Leaf, I'm up for a race. How about you?"

"Nah," Leaf declines quietly, instead depositing her stuff in a nearby pool chair. "I think I'll just dip my feet in the pool instead."

I speak up, "I'm up for a few laps in the pool if you're up for it, Marina."

"Awesome!" Marina claps her hands together. "I should warn you, as a Sevii native, I practically grew up in the water!"

"Well," I grin, feeling adrenaline pump through my veins, "I'm from Cerulean, so I was pretty much born in the water."

"I can be the starter," Leaf offers as she pulls off her fedora and plops it onto the chair too. She shakes her hair out, sending her chestnut locks flying a little.

I can't help but stare at Leaf when she does that. I've never seen her without her hat, and she looks…really pretty.

…It's always the pretty ones that like him.

"Cannonball!" Ash yells loudly, cutting into the silence as the sound of his feet against the pool pavement lead into his big splash into the pool.

Out of my peripheral vision, I see Gary joltingly look away from Leaf too. Note to self: badger Gary later about it.

"Asher!" Leaf yelps as she jumps away from the pool edge to avoid the splash.

"Water's great!" Ash laughs as he sends some pool water at Leaf once he surfaces.

Leaf hides behind the wailord floatie Ash left on the pool deck, shielding herself from the water.

"You'll pay for that!" Leaf yelps, but she is smiling so widely that it looked like her smile would just burst from her face.

"I guess I'll be the starter judge now," Gary steps, looking rather annoyed at Ash and Leaf's behavior at the pool.

His look urges me to ignore them too. So what if they were a little too cozy? I could…ignore that, right?

As Marina and I line up at the starter block, I can't help but wish I was racing Leaf instead. In the pool, I would win.


Marina, as it turns out, is a pretty fast and graceful swimmer. In the end, we tied, no matter how many rematches either of us declared. She'd win a race, I'd win a race. It went back and forth. Gary keeps track of it all, citing that it would help him with his memory (in reality, I think he was bored since Ash was preoccupied with Leaf).

The sun is still burning brightly half an hour later when we go back to the pool chairs.

"That was so much fun!" Marina giggles as she lays back on her the pink beach towel she laid over her chair.

"Yeah," I agree, still feeling calmer from the nice dip in the pool.

"I'll get you back, Asher," Leaf laughs, nudging Ash they approach the three of us.

"What's your favorite stroke?" I try to continue the conversation with Marina while effectively ignoring the newcomers. "Mine's breaststroke."

Gary, who had been sitting rather idlely in another nearby chair, suddenly straightens and makes his way right next to a still dripping wet Ash.

"What's your favorite stroke?" Gary mimics me in a higher pitch while his arm rests across Ash's shoulder. He strokes Ash's chest, "Mine's breast stroke."

Ash, whose facial emotions ranged from confusion to WTF to comprehension, begins to laugh loudly.

Leaf attempts to stifle her own amusement by hiding the lower portion of her face behind her hand. However, she gives in and giggles at a volume louder than usual.

Gary, who made the awful perverted joke, watches all of our reactions smugly, though he seems to be taking the most pleasure out of usually quiet and reserved Leaf's.

Marina, in stark contrast to us all, is completely confused.

"What?" Marina asks through slightly narrowed eyes as she looks around at all of us, "I don't get it."

"It's okay, Mari," Leaf waves her off reassuringly, "You don't have to get it."

"Leaf," Gary says completely out of the blue, surprising both me and her.

Leaf looks at Gary expectantly, blinking away her shock.

He grins suddenly, "Why don't you explain to your friend, since you came up with it?"

Leaf's face turns slightly pink, "Um…"

"Why don't you tell her how and why you made up such a juvenile joke?" Gary drawls, looking at her expectantly.

It doesn't take me long to make the connection. Gary's hoping to embarrass Leaf in front of Marina by showing Marina Leaf's "Pallet Town-ness"…which in itself is ridiculous since he's basically implying that Pallet Town is less sophisticated than Sevii Islands (at least to Leaf and Marina).

Leaf plays with her fingers, looking down in embarrassment as her chestnut hair falls over her shoulders and hides her face.

"Gary," Ash says seriously, amusement gone when he realizes the tension underneath the seemingly innocent question.

"No," Leaf says quietly, not looking up. Though whether she's saying this to Ash or Gary is ambiguous.

"Leaf," Marina says kindly, giving her a sympathetic look, "You don't have to-"

"No," Leaf says a little bit louder, finally looking up, "I want to."

Taking a breath first to steel herself, Leaf looks determinedly at Gary, "I was proud of myself when I made it at the age of eight. I didn't really think about its meaning, just freaking a certain person out like I normally did. And to be honest, I'm still proud."

Gary, rather than backing down, merely raises an eyebrow at her.

"Well," I say awkwardly into the silence, "Who's up for ice cream from the snack bar?"

Marina and Ash are both glad for the topic change, and Ash, being himself, races off towards the snack bar with Marina dragging along Leaf in tow. Leaf looks over her shoulder at us, biting her lip before turning forward once more and walking with Marina.

"Are you happy now?" I sarcastically ask Gary as we begin to walk too.

Gary shrugs, his viridian eyes still locked onto Leaf's retreating figure. He's examining her like a person would when they get new data. Was that all some test or something? I had no idea if Leaf passed or not, and Gary certainly gives no indication with his reaction. I almost think that Leaf totally failed Gary's mini-test.

But out of my peripheral vision, I see Gary smile.


After we eat our ice cream from the snack bar, Marina, Leaf, and I all lounge about on the beach chairs, talking about…well, pretty much anything. It felt really nice, to be honest.

Gary and Ash fooled around in the water, though you could probably guess who did most of the fooling around.

"So, Leaf," Marina nudges Leaf, who had been staring at the two boys. "How's it going with that promise you gave me? See anything you like?"

Leaf flushes at being caught, "Geez, Mari!"

"So," I cut in, not wanting to hear about Leaf and Ash, lest my jealousy get the best of me. I really liked Marina and Leaf, and I'd prefer not to let a guy (Ash) get in between. "Marina, do you have a boyfriend back home?"

Leaf rolls her eyes at my question, clearly not enjoying what Marina's about to say.

"Yes!" Marina squeals, "His name's Jimmy, and he's soooooo charming!"

"Charming?" Leaf snorts, "Funny, because last summer at the arcade, that would've been the last word on my mind."

"Leaf," Marina pushes her playfully, "You're always so cynical!"

"You both gave me the awkward married couple vibe," Leaf grins, egging Marina on.

"Leeaaaaaaffff!" Marina launches herself at Leaf, tickling her.

"Misty, help!" Leaf giggles, as she tries her best to turn away from Marina.

I move forward to interfere.

"Misty, don't," Marina shoots me a look.

I shrug at Leaf in a 'what can you do?' way.

Leaf and Marina's loudness attracts the attention of several other pool-goers, including Ash and Gary, who stop amidst a swimming race to look at us.

"Ooooh," Marina smiles a little too brightly at Leaf, "just for that comment, I think I'll have a conversation with a certain someone about a certain something."

Leaf's face becomes one of panic, "You better not, Mari!"

"Too late!" Marina sing-songs as she jumps off of Leaf and skips over to where the boys are.

Leaf attempts to run after her, but I grab her wrist.

"If you run after her, you'll only make it look weirder," I tell her.

Leaf nods her head and sits back down, looking slightly put out.

To my surprise, rather than talk to Ash, Marina is chatting with…Gary.


Gary

Even when you're underwater, you can still hear sounds. Like high-pitched squeals and giggles.

I ignore it at first, but soon it becomes too much for me to handle. My head breaks the surface to see what was going on, and I see that Ashy-Boy gave up on racing too.

Marina, Leaf's blue-haired friend from Sevii, is tickling Leaf. So much for sophisticated Sevii Islanders.

Eventually, Marina gets off of her, causing Leaf to panic and try to run after her. Misty pulls Leaf back, and the pesky girl sits down with a small frown on her face.

I'm too busy trying to understand what just happened when Marina plops herself right on the edge of the pool, dipping her feet in the water.

"Yoo-hoo," Marina calls, waving a hand at us while wiggling her fingers, "Gary!"

Ashy-Boy gives me a weird look, to which I shrug and head over to see what Leaf's ditzy friend could possibly want.

"Yes?" I raise an eyebrow at her, resisting the urge to snap at her. "What do you want?"

She looks slightly crestfallen at my attitude before instantly perking up again.

Reminds me of someone

"I thought we'd just exchange stories we have on one of our common points," Marina says cheerily.

"Research?" My eyebrows furrow in confusion. Is that what she wanted to talk about?

It's surprising, but she's actually a research lab aide to Professor Green, Leaf's father.

"No," she giggles, "about Leaf, silly."

I feel my blood turn cold at the subject.

"We have nothing to discuss," I abruptly turn away from her, to her shock.

No, I didn't want to talk about Leaf with the person most responsible for changing her.

It turns out that Leaf had been watching us, because, before we leave, the pool, Leaf corners me by the vending machines.

"Look, Gary," she says through clenched teeth. Her fists are clenched at her side too. "I know you don't like me."

"Oh?" I raise an eyebrow at her, half-surprised by her bluntness. Leaf had always been a blunt person, but I always thought that had changed after second grade.

"But whatever problem you have with me," Leaf continues, ignoring my words, "you shouldn't take out on my friend either."

I look at her with the same facial expression as I punch the button for coke.

"It's not fair to her," she finishes, looking at me with slightly hopeful eyes that I'll be compliant.

"And what if it's not fair for me to have to deal with her?" I shoot back as I retrieve my drink.

"You didn't even give her a chance!" Leaf protests, her volume rising.

"I gave her the same chance you gave me," I brush her off. Wanting to leave the conversation at that, I push past her and begin to walk away.

"What are you talking about?!" Leaf demands, yelling after me. Except she sounds genuinely confused.

I stop but don't turn around, "When you came back, who did you hang out with?"

"No one," Leaf says, her voice hoarse. "I didn't hang out wi-"

Her voice catches, and she swallows, "…with anyone."

"That's what I thought," I say, cracking open the can before walking away.


Leaf

I am beyond confusion at this point. I had hoped to talk some sense into Gary, and I ended up walking away with my whole point of view shattered.

So many 'what if's' are running through my mind.

What if this whole problem between Gary and me is just a whole big misunderstanding?

What if Gary missed me over the eight years like I miss him?

What if Gary and I were to make up and mend our friendship?

…but that's the thing. They're all 'what if's'.

It doesn't help that five minutes after my "conversation" with Gary, I saw him chatting casually with Marina like they were old friends.

I'll be honest, I felt jealousy when I saw them talking. If Gary could get over his illogical disdain for Marina, why couldn't he get over his dislike for me? I envy Marina for topping me in being able to actually talk to Gary.

"Leaf, honey," Mom asks me in concern as I spear my salad disinterestedly, "are you okay?"

Marina shoots me a look of concern as well.

Apparently, Mom had been expecting Marina over; because she already had the guest room prepped up and wasn't surprised in the least to see Marina.

"I'm fine," I sigh as I push my salad around. "I'm just not really hungry."

"But you always at least make it past the salad," Mom points out, gesturing to her and Marina's pork chops.

"I'm just not hungry," I say quietly.

Mom, worried about me, allows me to leave the table. I silently walk up the stairs to my room and throw myself onto my bed.

Eevee, who had been napping on my bed, jumps at the sudden weight change.

"Sorry, Eve," I murmur, stroking her head in an apologetic way.

A few minutes later, I hear light steps coming up the stairs, and a knock sounds lightly on my door.

"Come in," I call half-heartedly, knowing it's Marina. Mom would never knock.

"Hey," Marina says quietly as she sits down on the bed next to me. The bed squeaks again, and Eevee jumps away, slightly startled by the sound.

"So," I give her a small smile as I pull myself up to rest on my elbow, "what did you want to talk to me about?"

"Gary," Marina says bluntly.

My heart stops at the mere mention of him before starting back up.

With narrowed eyes, I shake my head, "Topic change, please."

"You can't avoid it forever," Marina tells me.

"I can try," I grab my pillow and tuck it under my neck as I hold onto it tightly. I refuse to look at Marina because I know she'll get me to cave.

"You know," Marina says after a long pause, "for someone who you claim hates you, Gary seems to be awfully fond of talking about you."

"What?!" I immediately straighten, sitting upright on my bed. "What do you mean?"

Marina rolls her eyes in a playfully exasperated manner, "I mean, silly, that he talks about you. A lot."

'Probably bad things,' my inner self scoffs.

"Probably bad things," I echo her as I begin to settle back onto my bed in a calmer manner. I let the thought settle into my mind too.

"Nope," Marina shakes her head, "Actually, they were all flattering towards you. I'll admit that some stories-"

"Stories?" I raise an eyebrow. "He told you stories about me?"

"Don't worry," Marina giggles, waving me off, "They weren't that bad."

"That bad?!" I bolt upwards, but Marina pushes me back down.

Marina continues, shooting me a firm look, "He told me stories about you in your childhood. While some weren't exactly flattering, they weren't unflattering either. In fact, I think you would've been touched by how much detail he had put into the stories."

"And what exactly brought on the stroll down memory lane for Gary?" I ask sarcastically. But my heart flutters at the thought that Gary still remembered just as vividly as I did.

"I asked him," Marina shrugs nonchalantly.

"Why?" my mouth falls open in shock as I stare at my best friend incredulously.

"It was common point between the two of us!" Marina says defensively, "That's how you talk to people: you find things you have in common!"

"You had being research aides as a common point!" I point out.

"Oh yeah," Marina says a little sheepishly. "Well, that conversation wouldn't have lasted long anyway."

Gary would've made that conversation last until eternity if he wanted to, knowing him.

I open my mouth to tell her so when Marina shoots me a look that tells me to shut up. I close my mouth reluctantly.

"Anyway," Marina continues brightly, "there was also this little smile that he had the whole time. It was soooo cute!"

"Gary?" I snort, "cute?"

Those two were not compatible in my mind.

'Gary is HOT ,though' my inner self sniggers at me.

Marina punches me playfully, "Oh, you know you were thinking the same thing too. You should totally ask him out!"

"Marina," I say firmly, "I am not going to ask him out."

"You're right," Marina says after a moment, "He should ask you out!"

"Marina," I groan, burying my face under my pillow.

But the fact that Gary did listen to me and gave Marina a chance lightened my heart. Maybe someday he'd give me a chance again, and we could go back to how things were.


Okay, first thing's first: ENDINGS STILL SUCK. If anyone could give me better suggestions (kindly) through PM, I'd appreciate it. If you're at the end of he chapter and reading this, hopefully you aren't a flamer. So no flaming, people.

Anyway, I tried to bring Marina in more, but one of my problems with writing is handling multiple characters without making it seem like one character hardly was interacting with the others. I know I made Ash seem very minor in this chapter, but I guess that's because he's getting his stuff together and...I still have no idea how to properly portray him...

Gary/Leaf's perverted joke? My brother and his friends were telling me this one day at the pool, and I found it pretty funny/ something Gary would totally do.

While tension between Misty and Ash seems to be growing, the conflict between Gary and Leaf appear to be dying down. Or is this the calm before the storm?

Please give me your comments, opinions, and suggestions!