A/N: I was on a roll today, considering I wrote this whole chapter just today! I hope that you all enjoy it and that it makes up for the long time without an update.

On a side-note, I am looking for beta readers for another project (original work). If you are interested or want more information, send me a PM, and I'll get back to you.

-Sarah

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon or any of it's characters.


Chapter Four: Ash Forgot the Move 'Kiss'

The next morning, Ash felt like he had been hit by a truck. Every muscle in his body ached. The pounding in his head would not cease, and to make matters worse, the urge to vomit was strong every waking minute. He had bad hangovers before, but nothing like this. He had really overdone it with Brock. Speaking of his friend, Brock had never even made it to a bed, passing out on the floor near the door.

Everything about the night before was a blur to Ash. He could barely remember anything. Bits and pieces came to him, but the last clear memory he had was of Brock trying to pick up some girl. He was not even sure how he managed to get up to his room. Pikachu was nowhere to be found as well. Ash hoped that his oldest buddy was somewhere with Misty, and not stolen by Team Rocket. He tried sitting up, but as it made the room start spinning, then thought better of it. Thankfully, the drapes were still drawn, blocking out the majority of light coming in from outside, which would have only made things worse.

There was a slight, hesitant knock on the door. Ash groaned, not wishing to respond. Brock stirred, but did not leave his spot on the floor. Ash knew that he probably felt just as awful as he did. Whoever was on the other side of the door should leave and never come back. Ash was disappointed to see the door open slowly. Misty poked her head through the opening, peering inside to see if they were still asleep. Ash yanked the covers over his head to block out the light coming in from the hall. He had never felt so horrible in his life. All he wanted in this moment was for the pain to be gone.

Misty opened the door further and tiptoed into the room. Pikachu was with her, following at her heels. The electric Pokémon looked content with a plastic bottle of ketchup in its hands. Misty was happy to supply Pikachu's addiction even though Ash hated that. Pikachu sat near the door, licking the condiment contently as Misty went further into the room. She nearly tripped over Brock on the floor, cursing under her breath. Brock did not wake from the commotion, having the ability to sleep through anything. Misty shook her head at him before moving to the window. With a swift move of her hands, she yanked the curtains open, the bright light crashing into the room like a blinding tsunami. The two men were immediately woken by this, much to their displeasure.

"I didn't do it!" yelled Brock, bolting upright from his spot on the floor.

"Misty, do you mind?" groaned Ash from under the covers. "I'm trying to die here in peace."

"It's not my fault that you decided to drink yourselves into a stupor. No one said that you had to have that much last night. I thought that it was time you got up, considering it is already three in the afternoon."

Misty stood in front of the bed, her hands resting on her hips. Brock rocked back and forth, feeling sick. He held his hand against his mouth, and bolted to the adjoining bathroom, slamming the door behind him. The sounds of him vomiting could be heard throughout the room. Misty wrinkled her nose in disgust, thankful that she had no decided to drink the previous night. She sat on the bed next to Ash. He moaned as he sat up to face her. His hair was a mess, sticking up at all ends.

"G-good morning," she said stuttering as their faces were in close proximity. "I mean afternoon I guess."

Her face felt hot as she thought of when he kissed her. Her mind could not stop perseverating on the feel of his lips against hers. She remembered every single detail with such clarity that it was distracting from her present situation. To make it more difficult, he was shirtless. Her eyes lingered on his bare chest, silently wishing that he would take the rest of his clothes off as well.

Their eyes met, and a shiver ran down Misty's spine. In her opinion, he looked rough; there were bags underneath his eyes as if he had not slept in days. She pitied him, for she knew that it was not entirely his fault. It had been Brock's idea to get trashed in the way that they did. She would also admit to herself that she could be a bit biased toward him at the same time.

Misty was gorgeous, Ash concluded. Her hair was in a ponytail, a look much more familiar to him, with a few wisps clinging to her face. Her cheeks were tinged pink, and her light skin glowed against the sunlight. His stomach did a somersault at the sight of her. They sat looking at each other, and Ash knew that he was missing something. There was some broken memory about her that he could not captured. He put a vast amount of effort into recalling it, but it proved to be fruitless.

"Mist, what happened last night?" he asked, fearful that he had gone and done something stupid.

"Do you remember anything that happened?"

"No. I'm trying to recall, but nothing is coming to me."

"Oh." Misty hesitated to say anything to him. He did not remember calling her beautiful. He did not remember kissing her. Disappointment rained on her as a monsoon in her heart raged. She fought with herself to relay the events of the party. Should she tell him? What if he only kissed her because he was drunk? What if he never wanted her in that way? She did not know if she could handle that sort of rejection. After years of being without him, she finally had him back. She could not risk their friendship. Losing him again in that way would be devastating.

"Are you going to tell me anything?"

"There's not much to tell," she said, knowing her resolve. "I didn't see you much after you left with Brock."

"Oh did I not find you later like I told you I would?" he asked, rubbing his eyes. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be an ass and leave you the whole night. I'll make it up to you, I promise."

"Ash, relax. You did come and find me like you said you would."

"I did?"

"Yes, you did. We didn't spend long with each other though. I ended up going to bed, and you went to rejoin Brock. I have no idea about what happened after that point because I wasn't there."

"Oh," he said. "Yeah I don't even remember seeing you in the middle of the party. I didn't say anything stupid to you, did I?"

"Don't worry about it," she said. She saw his alarmed expression and quickly backtracked. "I mean you didn't say anything stupid."

"Oh good," he breathed, relieved. The last thing he wanted was to do something stupid in front of her.

"I'll make you something to help with that hangover," she said, getting off the bed. "Meet me in the kitchen when you're ready. Tell Brock to come down when he's done vomiting. I'll see you then."

"Yeah, sure," he replied as she exited the room with Pikachu at her heels.

Ash and Brock staggered into the kitchen after taking much needed showers. Brock seemed a lot better as the self-purging his body did worked wonders. Ash was a little better, but his head was still pounding. The two walked over to the table to discover a special spread for them. There were two table settings, each complete with eggs and plain toast. Their glasses were filled with water, with a large corresponding pitcher in the middle of the table. Next to each glass were two ibuprofen tablets. Ash experienced a rush of gratitude towards Misty. The two of them were sitting down when she entered the room.

"Oh there you two are," she said, taking a seat next to Ash. "I was beginning to wonder if you were coming down at all."

"Thank you," Ash said, leaning against her shoulder. "This is wonderful."

"Yeah," said Brock in agreement before taking a bite of toast. "We owe you."

"Uh sure," she said, her pulse quickening at Ash's touch. "No problem."

Ash lifted up from off her, causing Misty to exhale in relief. He picked the medicine off the table and popped it into his mouth before taking a big swig of water. Misty sat there, silent, as she watched her friends eat the meal she had prepared. Brock rambled on about this one girl who had given him her number. Misty thought that she must have been wasted because there was no way she would have done that sober. She smiled as she watched them. It was great to have them back together again, as if no time had gone and nothing had changed. Yet, a lot had changed. Since when had Ash grown into this mature adult? In the past couple of months, from Misty's perspective, he seemed to concern himself with her way more than he ever did when they travelled together as kids. She thought that she would have argued with him more, but that is not what happened.

"Thanks again, Mist," Ash said as he ruffled her hair affectionately. He got out of his seat, plate in hand. "I'm going to go up and lie down until my head stops hurting."

"Okay," she said. "I hope you feel better."

Ash put his dishes in the sink, and walked out into the hall. He came back through the door almost immediately after, inciting the strange looks from Misty and Brock. He stared at Misty intently.

"If I feel better later, do you want to take a walk around town? I've been here for a couple of weeks, and I've barely been out. I need to go and stretch my legs, I think. I'm sure you could use a break from the gym, considering how busy you've been since getting back. What do you say?"

"Sure…"

"Great," he said, grinning. "I'll see you later tonight."

He left again without another word. Misty stared at the empty doorway, chewing on the meaning of what he had just said. It was not like him to ask her to walk with him like that. He did not even invite Brock, who was right there with them. Maybe he did remember after all? The thought of that alarmed her. She turned back around to see Brock giving her a look.

"What?" she said.

"I know," he said, smiling.

"Know what?"

"That you and Ash made out last night."

"What?!" she yelped, shooting out of her seat.

"I saw you two. I mean I didn't want to interrupt, so I went back to the party, but I know what I saw. He kissed you."

"You remember that?"

"Yeah of course I do. I'm not Ash, you know. So what's been going on between you two, anyway?"

"Nothing," Misty said quickly. "That was the only thing that ever happened."

"Are you going to talk to him about it?"

"No of course not. It was a drunken kiss. I'm sure you would even kiss someone you weren't attracted to with enough alcohol in you."

"But—"

"I'm not going to say something, and that's final," she snapped. "And neither are you. You understand?"

"All right, fine," he said, getting out of his seat. "I won't say anything to him. I wish that you two would cut the bullshit and get together already. I'm going to go see if your sisters need any help with anything. I'll catch up with you later, Misty."

She watched as he tossed the plate in the sink and sauntered out of the room, much like Ash had done minutes previously. She sighed, picking up the remaining items on the table. She placed the ketchup, butter, and water back inside the refrigerator. After wiping down the table, she moved onto the dishes. Part of her wanted to rush up to Ash's room and divulge everything to him. However, she knew better. Instead, she exhausted her pent-up sexual frustration by scrubbing the pans.

Later that night, Ash walked to Misty's room, alone. Pikachu did not want to come, choosing to sleep on Ash's bed instead. His Pokémon was getting pretty lazy these days, he had decided. However, that was his fault for giving up on training over the past couple of months. He could not truly blame Pikachu for becoming complacent. As he approached her door, butterflies became present in his stomach. He cursed his nerves, knowing that they should not be doing this to him. It was only Misty after all. They were friends, nothing more. Then why did he have this strange desire to kiss her?

He swallowed the lump in his throat before knocking on the door. He heard footsteps rush to the door before it opened to reveal Misty in front of him. She gestured for him to come inside as she walked back to her dresser. She was putting on a pair of earrings to go with the aqua dress she was now wearing. She caught him staring at him and blushed.

"So um are you ready to go?" Ash said feeling a little underdressed.

"Yeah," she said. "Just let me grab my handbag."

"Why are you so dressed up?" he asked as she snatched it from under the covers of her bed, which were strewn in all different directions.

"Oh well, you haven't been around with me in town lately. I forgot. The paparazzi has a tendency of finding me when I go out, so I've gotten into the habit of dressing up, so I at least know the pictures that go out will go look decent. Sorry I forgot to tell you."

"Ah."

"Where's Pikachu?"

"Sleeping."

"He's getting lazy these days, huh?"

"Yeah, I guess so."

"Come on," said Misty, grabbing Ash's hand and pulling him out of her room. "Let's go."

It was a cool autumn night, a gentle breeze greeting them as they walked past various shops and restaurants. Ash and Misty walked together, a bit awkwardly, silent except when she would occasionally point out something new in town. They stopped by the Pokemon Center, spending some time talking with Nurse Joy. Misty would occasionally check in to see if there were any injured or abandoned water Pokemon that she could take in at the gym. She looked a little disappointed when she found out that there weren't any. Ash offered to catch her a new Pokemon, but she said it was okay.

They continued on their way, passing by couples holding hands and stealing kisses. Ash wondered if she thought that this was a date. He did not think it was a date because if it were, he would have taken her to the best restaurant—put out all of the stops. Besides, they were friends. Friends do not go out on dates. He was lost in thought when a young man approached the two of them.

"Misty Waterflower," the man said.

"Uh yes?" she responded, confused. She had never met this man before in her life.

"I think that you're beautiful," he said. "Would you go out on a date with me?"

"Uhhh," she said, caught off guard, even though this was something to which she had been accustomed. She peaked at Ash from the corner of her eye. Confusing Misty, his eyes were sending daggers at the man.

"Please say yes!"

"I'm flattered, but I'll have to decline," Misty said politely.

"Why? Are you seeing someone already? Is it him?" he said, pointing to Ash.

"Who? Ash?" said Misty. "No, we're just friends. I'm not seeing anyone though."

"Then why won't you go on a date with me?" the man asked forcefully.

"Look I don't even really know you."

"You could get to know me."

"Are you not listening?" snapped Ash, coming in the middle of the two. "She's not interested in going out with you. So take a hike!"

"Whatever," the guy grumbled. "You're not that pretty anyway."

He sulked off, his hands stuffed into his pocket. Fists clenched, Ash walked him leave, determined to keep an eye on him until he disappeared from view. Misty sighed, sitting on a nearby bench. She rested her feet on the edge of the aging wood and tucked her body. She hated when those situations happened, though it could have been worse. Sometimes guys tried to grab her, and she would have to practice her self-defense moves.

"Thanks Ash," she said.

"It's no trouble," he said, joining her on the bench. "Does that happen to you often?"

"Once in a while," she shrugged. "I've gotten used to it."

"I don't know how you can stand it."

"Now you see why I don't go out often."

"Do you want me to go back and punch him?" he said standing up. "Because I'd be happy to!"

"Ash, sit down," she said, pulling on his arm. "That won't be necessary."

"Well it would make me feel better," Ash grumbled.

"Look," Misty said, grabbing his hand. "Let's go back, and we can watch a movie with Brock and my sisters. That'll cheer you up."

"I guess. What if that guy comes back?"

"Well you can punch him out then if you want."

"All right."

They stood and headed back in the direction of the gym. Ash gave suspicious glares to any men who passed them, including ones on dates with other girls. Misty, although she firmly believed that she was her own person and did not belong to anyone, had to admit that it was rather sweet that he wanted to protect her from the perverts out there. The stars twinkling and dancing above them in the midnight blue sky, they strolled back to the gym, hand in hand.