Perfect Match
Part Three: The Reunion
By: Chris Devlin
E-Mail: chris_devlin@hotmail.com
Haven't read parts One or Two? Then search fanfiction.net for Authors under the name "Chris Devlin" to find them.
I must say the response to the first two parts has been overwhelmingly good so I hope you like this part.
"Celadon City." Misty said the words over and over, hoping she was hearing him wrong. "It's so far away." she said. Why did this have to happen now, when she and Ash were finally together. Why did something have to come along and break it up. "I know." Ash replied. "Misty." he said and turned to her. "I love you more than anything in the world, I always have. But..." she stared at him fearing what he was about to say. "But this is a great opportunity for me. I'd be a fool to turn it down. I'm going to accept the job Misty." he told her. She looked at him. "What. Bbbbut you ccan'tt." she started to stutter. Then she hit upon an Idea. "I could come with you." she said. Ash looked at her and shook his head. "Misty, you have a great job here as well as a great future. I don't want to make you start from scratch. Besides you remember how difficult it was to get the job as Gym Trainer here. They don't need a Gym Trainer in Celadon. You'd be forced to do something totally different." Misty sniffled. Ash hadn't noticed before but she'd began to cry. "I don't care, Ash." she blubbed. "I just want to be with you." she told him between teary sobs. "Misty, you'd just end up hating me for taking you there." he stood up. "I've got to go phone the Station and tell them I've accepted the job." he said obviously depressed. "No." Misty wailed and threw herself at the cushions on the couch, and began to weep freely, lowering the barriers that had so far kept her tears relatively in check.
The next few weeks were the worst for Misty. The inevitability of the approaching day when Ash would finally walk out of her life, perhaps for good, just got to her. Each and every day she new that it was one less day she could spend with him. The few days they had, they spent together, making the most of the remaining time. Occasionally they would go out and Misty would forget for just a few hours that he was going to leave her, going to break her heart. It was with great pain that the day finally arrived when he had to leave. They had their teary farewell. Both of them breaking into tears as they parted. "I'll wait for you." were the last words Misty said to Ash as he boarded a coach with a big hold-all and Pikachu in tow. As he reached his seat he sat down and blew her a kiss. "I'll return to her ." he promised himself as the coach pulled off. Looking out the window he could see Brock comforting the distraught Misty as Ash drove off into the distance.
With Ash gone Misty threw herself into her work. She ruthlessly trained her Pokémon till Trainers stopped coming to the Gym, she was that hard to beat. No-one came to battle her. Those that did come were either cocky Ash-Ketchum wannabe's or the die-hard trainers who would stop at nothing to win. Everyone else came to learn from her. They all wanted to know what drove her, why she was such a demanding trainer and how they could be just like her. Everytime she would turn them away telling them that her power came from her anger, her pain. It was almost a year after Ash left when the Pokémon Gym Association asked her to leave her job. People couldn't win against her and the local Pewter City economy was suffering due to the lack of Trainers stopping in town to challenge the Gym Leader. So she left. With no job and nothing else to do she resolved herself to getting the one thing that meant something to her anymore. Ash.
"What d'you mean you're going to live in Celadon City?" Brock asked her in disbelief as he watched her pack her bag. "I mean there is nothing to keep me here now. The only reason I didn't go with Ash when he left was because of my Job. Now that I don't have it any more I'm going to be with him." She told him. "Well how am I supposed to pay the rent then?" he said. "Brock, get another room mate or something." she said. "Oh not another one." he said thinking of crazy Steve who'd taken Ash's room. "Now where did I put my Pokéballs?" she asked looking around her room. "Ah, there they are." she said as she reached for the small felt pouch containing her Pokémon. Placing them in her pocket she picked up her back and walked out of her room. "Where did we keep those letters from Ash? I need the address he gave us." she said. Ash had of course sent her private letters but she didn't want Brock to see them. "Here." Brock said as he handed her one of the letters from a small pile on the hall table. "Thanks." she replied and headed towards the front door. Turning round she gave Brock a kiss on the cheek. "Goodbye Brock. It's been nice living with you." she hugged him. "You too Misty. I hope you do alright in Celadon." he told her. "Goodbye." he finished as she smiled at him before walking out the door and his life. Brock stood in the hall. "Ok, so it's just me then." he said to himself.
She stepped out of the coach into the hustle and bustle of Celadon City. The sun was really hot and bright today so she shielded her eyes and ran towards the bus station she could see across the road. Just as she had figured there were vending machines selling maps of the city. Putting a couple of quarters in the slot she pulled the handle and picked up the map as it fell into the receptacle below. She unfolded it and took a seat on a nearby bench trying to locate where she was and where Ash's apartment was. It took her several minutes to locate herself and several more to work out a route to Ash's building. Folding the map away she stood up and started to walk.
"Wow." Misty gaped as she looked up at the Apartment Complex Ash lived in. It was in a skyscraper at least thirty floors high and very classy. Looking back at ground level she crossed over the busy street and entered the building through the revolving doors. She walked over to the information desk and asked what floor his Apartment was on. Her jaw almost dropped when she found out he lived in the penthouse near the top of the building. "He must be doing really well if this is where he lives." she thought as she crossed the lobby towards the express elevator. Stepping in she pressed the button for the Twenty Seventh floor and sat down in one of the leather chairs provided. "I wonder why he never mentioned this in any of his letters?" she wondered out loud. The lift soon came to a smooth stop and the doors slid open revealing a thin hallway with only one door. The door had a number on it. Misty pulled out one of Ash's letters and checked the Address. This was it alright. Taking a deep breath she pushed the doorbell and stepped back. She waited a few seconds before pressing it again. There was no answer. "Ooh, that's so like him." Misty fumed. Here she was, having traveled all the way from Pewter City to be with him, and he wasn't even home. "Oh well, I'd better just wait for him then." she told herself. Looking around the small hallway she decided it would be better if she waited in the lobby.
Two hours later she was still waiting. "Where is he?" she asked herself. Looking at her watch she'd seen that it was almost nine in the evening. "Oh, stuff this." she said and gathered her things together, deciding to get a hotel room for the night. As she stood up she looked over to the information desk, and there he was. He was standing there staring right at her, a huge smile on his face. When he noticed that she'd seen him he walked over to her. She tried to move towards him but found herself rooted to the spot with fear. After all this time, would he still love her, would he have a girlfriend, what if things were different between them? All the questions swirled around in her head making her feel dizzy. But all the questions, all the fear soon evaporated into insignificant nothingness, when, after what seemed like an eternity, he finally reached her and kissed her. She returned the kiss with vigor and before she could do anything to stop it, began to cry. Ash pulled back slightly and looked at her. "Misty, what is it with you and crying every time we kiss?" he joked as he wiped away some of the tears with his thumb. She giggled and looked straight into his eyes. "I don't know. I'm just so happy and sad at the same time" she told him. He put his arm around her waist and they began walking towards the lift. "Come on. You can tell me all about it upstairs."
Ash's apartment was huge as well as extremely well furnished. Misty couldn't believe that Ash had such good taste, and she admired him even more for it. Ash closed the door behind him. "Pikachu! I'm home." he called and from around a corner the little Yellow Pokémon scampered into sight. "Pikachu!!" it cried in joy and surprise as it saw Misty standing next to Ash, before running into her arms. "Hey Pikachu. I'm glad to see you too." she replied with enthusiasm. Pikachu turned to Ash." Pika? Pika Pikachu?" it asked. "I don't know Pikachu, that's what I was about to ask her." Ash said to the Pokémon. "Ask me what?" Misty wondered. "Oh, just why you decided to come." he said. "Pikachu!" Pikachu confirmed as it nodded its little yellow head. "Oh right." she said, slightly nervous. "Uh Pikachu, could you give me and Ash a few minutes?" she asked. "Pika." it replied and scurried away. Misty took Ash's hand and walked over to a nearby couch and sat down next to each other. "What is it Mist?" Ash asked, concern in his voice. "Ok. Here it is. After you left, I became really depressed for a while. I trained my Pokémon so hard that no-one who came to the Gym could beat me. The other week there I received a letter from the Pokémon Gym Association, asking me to leave my job. So I did. After that I had nothing to keep me there. No job, no family." she hesitated. "No boyfriend. So I decided to come here, to come to you." she told him. Ash took all this in, a look of deadly seriousness on his face. "Ok." he said. "I'm not going to lie Misty, I'm glad you came her to me. But are you sure this is the best thing for you?" he asked her. She looked into his eyes. She'd always been able to tell when he was lying but this wasn't one of those times. "You know Misty, if you decide to stay with me, I'll have no complaints. Heck I even welcome it. But I don't want you to stay unless you think it's the best thing for you. I still love you more than anything, and that is why I am saying this to you. Are you sure?" he said to her. She closed her eyelids and took a deep breath. Eventually she opened them again and looked deep into his. "Yes I am sure." she told him. "Good." he said and grinned. They both squeezed the others hand and leant in as they began to kiss.
Will Things go smoothly? Will this all work out? Is Misty really so sure? Will I ever write another Part? Who knows? Who Cares?