Rules are stupid. (Part 2)
After arriving in Slateport City, May went straight to the beach. She has been trying to think of what to say to Drew once he comes. Well, she's been trying to think of what to say to him for weeks now. She's been feeling really guilty since separating from him. The moment she competed in her first contest after he left, she couldn't do it. May walked out before it even started. Competing just didn't feel the same anymore.
Sitting by the shore as the sun sets, May sighs. Drew said he was going to be here today, so she will wait until he tells her otherwise. She at least owes him that much for the way she's been treating him. At least he's agreeing to meet with her. And he didn't sound too upset over the voice call. May really has been selfish to the man who puts up with her. Drew has every right to be furious, though he still forgives her. He always forgives her. It took him coming back into her life for her to remember how to have fun. That pokemon journeys and contests are more than just winning.
Groaning, May mutters, "I'm so stupid."
"You said it. Not me."
The woman quickly turns her head to see the very person she hasn't been able to get out of her mind for weeks. With his usual smirk and green hair, he plops down beside her to watch the waves in front of them. The sun's setting rays make the sight very beautiful and warm. May decides to return to watching the miraculous sight too. They've watched plenty of sunsets when they were younger. It makes her nostalgic remembering all of their fun times.
Eventually, May whispers, "I'm sorry, Drew."
He curiously glances at her and then smiles warmly. "You don't need to apologize."
"I do." May shakes her head as her gaze is back on him. "I shouldn't have been so mean and rude to you."
Drew sheepishly runs the back of his head. "I was annoying."
"No, you weren't." May sighs. "You were a lot of fun. You're always fun, Drew." The woman glances away from him. "I always have fun with you."
He blushes from her words as his heart beats quicker. "You're fun too, May. I only have fun with you." It's true. He'd rather spend time with no one else but her because Drew can always enjoy himself with her. They have lots of adventures and fun together. Her company is his favorite company. So much that he dealt with her tyraids while they traveled this year.
Her face heats up from his words. "Are you mad at me?"
"Never." Drew breathes out. He's upset that she still won't meet his eyes. She has nothing to hide. He isn't upset, and he won't reprimand her. "May, look at me."
"No."
"Why?"
"Cuz you're mad."
"I said I'm not!" Groudon, she's so childish.
"You're lying."
Inwardly groaning, Drew reaches out a hand to softly lift her chin up, making her finally lock eyes with him. He's missed those stunning sapphire orbs of hers. They're a little glossy, indicating that she really must be scared of him being mad. All he sees is sincerity in her apologetic eyes. "I'm not mad." He reassures her.
"You can be." May tells him. While she prefers him to not be mad, May feels better if he is. She deserves it. Also, if their friendship is over due to him being mad, then she won't feel as bad about it ending.
Drew shakes his head. "Not mad. Never was." He smiles. "I can't be mad at you, May."
"You were when we were younger." She reminds him.
He rolls his eyes. "That's different. And I wouldn't be mad. Just annoyed."
May breaks eye contact, and Drew sighs. The woman nervously takes in a deep breath. "I'm sor-"
"Is that all you're gonna say?" Drew asks. "You could've just apologized over the call." When she doesn't respond, Drew shoots her his signature smirk. "June."
"That's not my name."
"Oh, my bad. April." the man struggles to sustain his chuckles as her face heats up in front of him.
"What, grasshead?" May's sapphire orbs are lit with anger now.
Giving her a huge grin, he tells her, "I can never be mad at you, so don't worry about it. You can push me away all you want, but I'll always come back whenever you want."
"That's not a good friendship." she notes, even though that is how she's been treating her friends.
He shrugs. "I don't wanna be your friend, so it's okay." As soon as the words leave his mouth, Drew's face turns a dark shade of red, and he quickly hides it by hanging his head low.
"So you are mad." May disappointedly says. She knew it. He was just trying to be nice, but these are Drew's true feelings.
"No!" Drew exclaims. "I'm not mad!"
"But you just said you don't wanna be my friend."
He facepalms. Groudon, he forgot how dense she is. He just had to fall for this woman. Nevertheless, he's glad he did. Despite how much her denseness causes him to embarrass himself, he is happy to have feelings for this selfless caring woman. "I don't want to be your friend."
"Why?" May's sad eyes curiously gaze into Drew's soft emerald ones.
Taking in a deep breath as his heart pounds in his chest, Drew hopes he isn't making a mistake with this. He is just getting her back into his life after he thought he lost her for good. However, he already told himself that if he ever got another chance with her, then he'd let her know everything. His full honest feelings. He'll take a leap of faith because he can't keep these feelings to himself anymore.
"Because I like you, May."
Her face turns a bright shade of red that rivals her bandana. "What?"
With his own dark blush, Drew repeats in a more confident voice, "I like you, May."
She blinks in confusion as the words register in her mind. He likes her? She likes him too. They are friends. "I like your friendship too, Drew."
He shakes his head. "No, May. I like you, like you. I'm pretty sure I love you."
She's all he can ever think about. When he was the Top Coordinator, he was unsatisfied because he missed her. He missed seeing her and traveling with her. He only wanted to be with her, which is why he searched for her as soon as he returned to Hoenn. It's the reason he can never get mad at her, and why he can always forgive her. He loves her.
"But I understand you're on a strict schedule. You need to train to be the Top Coordinator. You need time to yourself, and I'm distracting you from that. You need-"
"I like you too, Drew."
Now it's his turn to give her the blank stare. "Huh?"
May fidgets with her hands, though her gaze stays on his. "I like you too." She had a crush on him when they were younger. However, years apart as they grew up made her think it was just a silly childhood crush. The two's friendship and rivalry was already satisfactory enough for her. Despite forgetting these feelings, May has never felt the same way about anyone else. There must be a reason why she always misses Drew when he leaves. Or why she looks forward to seeing him at every contest. Or why she put everything aside for him.
For the past couple of years, she's been stuck on a strict schedule to help her reach her Top Coordinator goal. She's had specific deadlines and restrictions she's imposed on herself. That's why when Drew came around to disrupt her flow, she'd get so upset and irritated. Nonetheless, after she finally got rid of him, she didn't want to return to that strict lifestyle. May doesn't even care about the title anymore. Rather than being a Top Coordinator, she'd rather be Drew's friend. Actually, she'd rather be more than a friend.
"Am I dreaming?" Drew's words break May out of her thoughts.
Giggling slightly at seeing a flustered Drew Hayden, May playfully shoves his shoulder. "Am I dreaming?"
He now chuckles. They are adults acting like teenagers. This is a silly situation. "Guess we're both not."
"That's good." May breathes out and then instantly blushes.
Drew raises an eyebrow at her. "Why's that?" Despite his own blush, he loves teasing her.
May shakes her head. She'll flip this on him. "Why did you think this was a dream?"
His smirk falls as his face heats up more. Instead of shying away from the question like May, Drew genuinely tells her, "Because I've always dreamed of this day. I thought only I had these feelings."
The woman's large blue eyes see the sincerity in his green ones. Drew can be a playful flirt, though he is serious a lot of the time. He's a great person. It's the reason many tabloids say he's the top bachelor. He's charming, caring, understanding, and very romantic. The Drew Hayden May knows is a sweet fun friend who pushes her to do her best.
"I don't wanna stop traveling with you, Drew." She likes him too much for it. She loves their adventures. He's the one who reminded her why she loves to travel in the first place. He makes contests fun. He makes her complete. She felt so lost when he was the Sinnoh top Coordinator since she thought it meant he would stop traveling. Thus, May was surprised to see him in Hoenn traveling at the start of the tournament season.
"Yeah. I miss traveling with you!" the enthusiastic man grins.
"It'll be different this time."
He nods. "You can't push me away anymore. And no more schedule. I like it when we just go with the flow. It's all about adventure."
May agrees. "I won't follow my schedule anymore. I promise Drew." She nervously takes in a deep breath as she eyes his face. She can't look at his enticing emerald orbs, so she chooses to focus on his lips. Well, that was a bad decision because now all she can focus on are those soft plump pink lips of his. "But it'll also be different because we're not just friends anymore." They already confessed their feelings. It's not like they can just continue acting like they're friends.
Drew's blush intensifies. "Uh, yeah…" He sheepishly scratches the back of his head. "I love you, May. Will you be my girlfriend?"
"Will you kiss me?" Groudon, May Maple! This is exactly why she shouldn't be looking at his lips. Teenage May's fantasies just came out of adult May's mouth to the very person she was always thinking about. "Uh, what I meant wa-"
Before May can finish stuttering her excuse, those same soft warm lips are on hers as Drew's arms wrap around her waist. She melts in his embrace while her own arms move to pull him closer. Drew's hugs have always been her favorite, but kissing and hugging him at the same time beats it by a long shot. Due to her being blinded by her goal, May forgot about everything that currently makes her happy. She neglected her friends and family. It got so bad that she almost lost this man who she knows she cannot live without.
Once the two pull away for air, May smiles shyly at him. "Yes, I'll be your girlfriend, Drew."
Sinnoh
After leaving Conway's apartment, Dawn made her way to Eterna City. Her heart aches slightly for Conway due to the guilt she feels for breaking his. However, her heart aches intensely more for someone else. It has always ached more for someone else, though Dawn never thought much of it. Conway is right. Dawn doesn't love him. She could never fall in love with him since she already loved someone else.
Gardenia smiles proudly as the parade comes to a close. "Thank you for your help, Ms. Dawn."
The bluenette shyly waves her hand. "It's no problem at all, Gardenia! Thank you for inviting me. I love the spring festival!"
The gym leader nods. "It's good knowing we can rely on the Top Coordinator to help us out. The champion never comes to events." Gardenia was surprised to hear Paul went to the Jubilife school's career day a couple of months ago.
Dawn fights the frown threatening to form on her lips. She's been thinking even more about Paul since leaving Conway's. However, she's trying to focus on the festival to avoid thinking about him. "I'll help whenever I can!"
Before Gardenia can thank Dawn again, someone from afar shouts, "It's the champion!"
Dawn and Gardenia look over in confusion at the shout where they see a little girl pointing nearby. Dawn's jaw drops slightly and her heart beats rapidly. There he is. It's not a lie or a mistake. She recognizes that purple hair and scowl anywhere. His all black attire and the way he walks as he makes his way over to her. It's easy spotting Dawn and Gardenia since they're on the last float in the parade.
Due to the slow moving parade and floats, Paul easily grabs onto the ladder to climb up while the float is in motion. Security doesn't stop him because he is supposed to be on this float despite being extremely late to the event. Nevertheless, everyone would rather he be late than not show up at all. Only a handful of the region has been able to see the champion at a public event, so it means a lot to see him here right now.
Once Paul is on top of the float, he nods at Gardenia. "Hello, Champion Paul." The older woman smiles. She would prefer him to be on time, but she isn't one to confront him. "We're glad you could make it."
"Pleasure to be here." He dryly replies.
Paul's eyes then shift to the very quiet bluenette behind Gardenia. There was a time where she'd talk his ear off regardless of how much he expressed his distaste for it. It's funny. He wants that back right now. He wants her to bombard him with questions and to annoy him with her constant chatter. Nonetheless, all he's greeted with from her is the side of her face as she continues waving to the citizens of Eterna City.
Standing with Gardenia between them, the three finish the parade listening to Gardenia talk about how complete the parade is. The overly positive gym leader goes on about the beautiful night since now the festivities will begin. She leads Dawn and Paul off the float while fireworks go off in the sky above. The parade ended at the large town square where there are many foodbooths and people. Soon, Gardenia gets caught up in the shuffle of people.
When Dawn peeks around to find Gardenia, someone accidentally pushes her. To prevent her from falling, Paul quickly grabs her, though now she's in his chest. He doesn't want to let her go. He finally has her where he wants her, and he's since accepted his feelings. These past couple of months, Paul has been running from his feelings. Feelings have held him back in the past, so he deemed them unnecessary. It's what caused him to be in denial whenever his heart would pound for this woman. His cheeks are hot in this cool night, and he knows she can hear his rapid heartbeat with her head on his chest.
"Uh. You can let me go." She quietly mutters while her own face is flushed brightly. She'd rather stay in his embrace, but they shouldn't. Dawn knows Paul wants nothing to do with her. However, she has been confused on why he came to this event. He must've known she'd be here, right?
To Dawn's surprise, Paul gruffs out, "No."
She slowly lifts her head to meet his serious grey orbs. Seeing that red face and his intense eyes make her breath hitch. It's pretty cold tonight. Is that why his cheeks are red? "Why?"
He lets out a breath as his gaze doesn't waver from hers. They're lost in each other's eyes while the rest of the city is celebrating around them. No one has seen to notice the two famous people inside the center of the dense crowd with the music blaring. It really feels like one magical night in a movie, and Paul hates it. Nevertheless, he knows she loves cliche romantic things like this. He didn't plan for this, but he'll take it.
"Sorry." He finally manages to say. That hurts his pride, though his aching heart hurts more.
She curiously raises an eyebrow at him. Had she heard that correctly? Paul Shinji apologized? "What?"
Sighing, Paul repeats, "I'm sorry." He should've never pushed her away. He could've been her friend, but he pushed her away under the guise of a rule. A stupid rule he made up. It is too painful seeing her with Conway, so he pushed her away for his selfish reasons. Dawn being Dawn, however, wouldn't take it for an answer; thus, she constantly tried to stay in his life. He lost her, and he doesn't want to lose her again.
Dawn smiles warmly before resting her head back on his chest and wrapping her own arms around him. She lightly hugs him. "I forgive you, Paul." It used to hurt hearing his name. She quit saying it despite always thinking about him. Saying his name now, though, makes her heart pound more as her body relaxes in his hold.
Conway is definitely right. She loves Paul. Else, why would she feel so complete and content right here? While she was happily with Conway, Dawn never felt like this. It's as if nothing else matters when she's with Paul. That's the reason she loves spending time with him. He makes her feel like a normal person rather than the celebrity she is. Moreover, Paul has always looked out for her in his own way.
The more Dawn thinks about it, the more she's starting to realize she's always had the perfect man for her. She met him a long time ago, and he was helping her find a different man when he is the one for her all along. It's ironic. Paul makes an effort for her. He was committed to her when she was single, though this is mostly because they had to work together. He wants her to succeed since he actually supports her career. He's never played with her feelings. Despite never asking her questions, he listens when she talks about herself. He would want to spend time with her, like when he left Ursula mid-date. He included Dawn in his family life. He thought he was putting her happiness before his. She can tell he missed her while they were apart. Else he wouldn't be hugging her like this. And finally, like always, Dawn knows Paul can only see her.
When she first heard the last rule, she used to laugh at Paul. Like what does it mean to "only see one person"? It didn't make sense, but as Dawn fell for Paul, she noticed she could only see him. At the wedding, she wanted nothing more than to talk to him. He was always on her mind, and she could always spot him instantly. Just like how she saw him as soon as he arrived at the Jubilife City school.
Paul has always only seen Dawn. Why else would he stick around at the League party all those months ago? He stayed long after the required time for him. He would answer her calls, go to events she would be at, and fulfill her requests regardless of what he was doing. Paul could be in an important mandatory meeting, training to get stronger, or on a dumb date. It didn't matter. He would and has dropped everything for Dawn. Despite them both not realizing it, Paul has followed all the rules, indicating to Dawn that he must be interested, right?
Before she knows it, Dawn whispers, "I love you, Paul."
The man freezes. He was enjoying their hug until he heard that faint voice. Being a quiet observant guy, he can hear even the faintest whisper. With his heart practically pounding out of his chest, Paul slowly pulls away a bit to lock eyes with her. He sees her flushed cheeks and her hopeful gaze. This whole time, he's been trying to think of how to confess without looking like an idiot. He was thinking on the flight here and on the parade, but Paul isn't good with words. Therefore, the man opts to slowly close the space between them.
Instead of pulling away, like he partly expected, Dawn inches closer until their lips are about to brush. "Troublesome."
With a smile, Dawn plants her mouth on his in a light kiss. It's not Paul-like to ever speak about feelings, especially his own. Dawn doesn't mind because she loves this Paul. She knows he loves her too. He doesn't ever need to say it because that's the bond they have. Dawn can especially tell from this kiss as he deepens it.
She's surprised by his effort in the kiss. It only confirms his feelings for her. His kiss seems like months of pent up emotions are coming out from him. Paul is better with actions than words. Dawn likes a challenge, so she manages to slip her tongue in his mouth while pressing her body closer to his. The two are entangled in a very passionate kiss, and people around them have started to notice. Pictures are taken, but the lovers can only see each other.
Even when they pull apart for air, they still do not notice the gleeful and curious crowd watching them. "Why?" Paul asks between breaths.
"Why what?" Dawn also pants slightly through her hot cheeks.
"Why'd you confess? I thought you're with Conway." Paul is mentally cursing himself for kissing a taken woman. For hugging her. Arceus, the media will have such a field day with this news. He should've controlled himself better! He should've never hugged her!
Dawn frowns slightly thinking about the heart she just broke earlier. "We broke up." Resting her head back on Paul's chest as she hugs him closely again, she adds, "Conway helped me realize I love you, Paul. And you love me. I'm lucky to have that."
"You don't know that." the embarrassed champion mutters.
She giggles. "Don't know what?"
"My feelings."
"You follow all the rules, Paul. You're into me." They are his rules. He can't deny that they're right.
"Rules are stupid." comes the gruff response.
This causes Dawn to pull away curiously so that she can search his eyes. He's not serious, is he? These are his rules. However, everyone knows Paul only speaks the truth, and nothing in his demeanor shows he's kidding. "They're your rules."
"And they're stupid." Paul repeats. Cynthia is right. All the rules or no rules. He'd rather choose to follow none of the rules.
Dawn is conflicted. For almost a year, she's been living by Paul's rules. They got her to a successful relationship, but she didn't love Conway. They somehow brought her to Paul despite her not thinking of him following the rules. "I don't know what to do." She giggles. "So am I just supposed to forget all your rules?"
He nods. "The only rule you need to know is: Rules are stupid." If she's so bent on the rules, he'll give her one to live by. He's always lived by this one, and Cynthia helped him see how much of a hypocrite he was.
The bluenette thinks for a bit before understanding what Paul is saying. No one needs rules to find love or to date. There are no rules in life. Just honest raw emotions as people move through it. While there might be a plan that is pretty accurate, not all plans and rules work for everyone. Rather than sticking by a strict regiment, people should just enjoy life for the time being. They never know when the love of their lives will find them, like when Paul happened to sit beside her at the League bar that night.
Smiling up at Paul, Dawn tiptoes as her face hovers closely in front of his. "Okay, Paul. Rules are stupid."
He can't help but smirk. She's definitely the one he loves. Kissing her, Paul doesn't care about the many photos that have been taken of them. He doesn't care about his vibrating pokenav in his pocket, which he figures is the League already catching wind of the kiss and hug. News travels fast when celebrities are involved. Paul doesn't mind. He wants the world to know this woman is off the market. She's his, and all it took was him getting rid of his rules of dating he gave her.
Next chapter is the epilogue!