Chapter 3: Misty's Secret
Ash, Misty, Brock and Tracey, along with Pikachu, made it through security with relative ease and were now on their way toward the gate where their flight was set to take off in thirty minutes. Suddenly Ash's stomach started growling to remind him that he hadn't had any breakfast yet. He was about to suggest that they eat something but then he remembered the sedatives that Professor Oak had given to him and Tracey and he thought that he had better discuss it with Tracey.
"Hey, Trace. Can I ask you a quick question?" Ash whispered, pulling Tracey aside.
"Sure. What's on your mind, Ash?" Tracey was also trying to keep his voice low.
"It just occurred to me that Misty and I didn't have any breakfast this morning and I am starving. I'm sure you're pretty hungry too so I was wondering, since the Professor gave us those sedatives would it hurt us any to eat anything?"
"Hmm. I don't know, Ash. If you have your cell on you I can call and ask."
"Okay. Here you go, Trace." Ash handed his cell phone to Tracey who walked to a quieter area to call Professor Oak.
A few moments later Tracey got off the phone and came back to once again confer with Ash.
"I asked Professor Oak about eating and he said that it was fine and shouldn't have any negative interactions." Tracey smiled.
"GREAT!" Ash shouted, getting Misty and Brock's attention.
"What's so great?"
"Tracey and I were thinking that since none of us have eaten yet, and we still have a good fifteen minutes before we are set to board, it would maybe be a good idea if we got some breakfast. There is a little restaurant right over there." Ash pointed to the café in the distance.
"Cool. Food sounds good to me."
Soon, the four were sitting around a small table with Pikachu on Ash's shoulder and they had just gotten finished with breakfast. Just then a thought occurred to Misty and she leaned in close to Ash.
"Hey, Ash. I was just thinking that maybe eating breakfast wasn't such a smart idea for you two." Misty nodded toward Tracey.
"I know why you thought that, hon, and I love you for it." Ash kissed her on the cheek. "But Tracey called Professor Oak and he said it was no problem for us to eat."
"Okay. As long as it won't hurt." Misty sounded relieved.
Ash then noticed Tracey purchasing a bottle of water and excused himself from the others momentarily before getting one for himself. Then they walked back to the gate. Once they had sat back down, Ash looked at his watch and noticed that they had just under ten minutes until the plane boarded. Deciding that it was time to face the inevitable, Ash slipped one of the sedatives out of the tube and into his hand before slipping it into his mouth and quickly took a gulp of water to wash it down before anyone else saw. He laughed a little to himself when he saw Tracey do the same.
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When the boarding call was made and everyone started to board the plane, a storm of emotion was raging in Misty's eyes. None of her companions noticed though because Brock was deep in thought about something. Pikachu was for obvious reasons riding on her shoulder now, still licking at the ketchup and, due to the fact that the sedatives were really starting to kick in now, Tracey and Ash were both just too sleepy to pay attention to anything other than trying to stay awake for a few more feet.
By the time they actually found their seats, Ash was starting to lean on Misty so he could stay upright and Tracey looked like he was about to fall asleep standing up. Luckily, Professor Oak had planned for such a thing and had arranged for the four of them to have a whole row of seats to themselves so that Ash and Tracey could stretch out and sleep comfortably.
"I hope we find our seats soon. Ash is still reasonably coherent but it looks as if we could lose Tracey at any second. I'm glad this flight isn't very crowded so that we aren't displacing anyone because when we get settled these two aren't going to last very long." Misty thought as they found their seats and sat down so that Ash and Tracey were on either end of the arrangement.
Before they sat down Misty had asked Pikachu to, using her as a step stool, get a pillow and two blankets out of the compartment. He immediately did so and placed the pillow on the seat next to Brock and handed the blankets to Misty. This was perfectly planned around Tracey, who stretched his legs out in the seats and, as soon as his head hit the pillow, instantly fell into a very deep sleep as Ash flopped down next to Misty and sighed as he stretched out. He then looked just beyond Brock.
"Looks like Tracey conked out before he even sat down." Ash murmured, eyes drooping. It seemed to him that he was floating as he began to feel an overwhelming need to close his eyes.
Misty smiled down at Ash and responded to his comment by placing her pillow under his head and covering him with one of the blankets. She then rubbed Ash's shoulders to relax him. At this point, the sedative that he had taken kicked in full force with Misty's help. Ash couldn't stay awake another second so he gave in to it and closed his eyes. The last thing he remembered was hearing Misty whisper something that he couldn't quite make out as his mind drifted into darkness and he followed Tracey into a deep and oblivious slumber.
"Sleep well, Ash. I love you." That is what Misty had whispered to Ash as he drifted off. She knew that he hadn't heard but she said it anyway. Then she kissed his head softly. At that moment, the plane engines roared to life and Misty handed the other blanket to Brock and said that he might want to put it over Tracey. Brock covered Tracey and then Misty put an arm around Ash while the plane sped down the runway and took to the air with Tracey and Ash mercifully unaware of any of it as they both slept so deeply.
After placing the blanket over his sleeping companion, Brock decided that he was going to ask Misty what the heck was going on with their friends.
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"What's going on, Misty? Did Jigglypuff get hold of Tracey and Ash when we weren't around. I mean, look, they're both out cold." Brock asked, sounding extremely confused.
"No, not Jigglypuff. Professor Oak." Misty said quietly.
"What?" Brock was now completely lost.
"Professor Oak talked to a doctor he knows when he heard that they were afraid to fly and gave both of them some sedatives that they took before we boarded to make them sleep. They'll be out for at least a good two hours. That's why I wanted to wait to talk to you about that thing that's been bothering me."
"Oh. That explains a lot." A light went on in Brock's head. "But I don't understand why you wanted to wait until Ash was knocked out before you could speak up. Doesn't he know?" Brock whispered.
"No. I haven't said anything until I got an unbiased opinion because I don't want him to overreact." Up until now, Pikachu had been keeping a vigil over his sleeping trainer but sensing the tone of the conversation, he crawled down onto the blanket and curled up for a nap at Ash's side. "It's just that being here makes me feel an overwhelming relief because I almost didn't get to come with you."
"Why not. Was it your sisters?"
"Yeah. But the fact that I almost missed out isn't what scares me. It's a dream I had about my missing and watching the people I love most be taken away from me forever." She was silent then as tears streamed from her eyes and Brock put a comforting arm around her.
"So this is why you were so upset earlier. Don't worry, Misty. Ash, Tracey and I are here now and we don't plan on going anywhere anytime in the near future. Besides, you overcame your sisters and everything will be fine now. But I do understand why you haven't told Ash. I think you should though because, being your boyfriend, he can reassure you better than I can. When he comes to, that is." Brock tried to sound reassuring and humorous at the same time.
Misty stopped crying and then smiled at Brock. As she did, she happened to catch a glimpse of Tracey. Then she turned from Brock and watched Ash as he slept. His face was beautiful and blank. He didn't seem to have a care in the world. She bent down to kiss his head and then turned back to Brock and smiled.
"They look so peaceful, don't they?"
In response to Misty's question, Brock glanced quickly from Ash, who had his head resting in her lap and Pikachu at his side, to Tracey, who slept sprawled out in the seats to his left and was snoring softly in his sleep.
"Yeah. They are pretty peaceful. It'll probably do both of these guys a world of good to get a nice, restful sleep as well."
"You said it. Ash has been working himself crazy lately with his training and he has been running on very little sleep. He'll probably be surprised at how rested he feels when he wakes up." Misty whispered.
"Why are we whispering though. Those two are completely out. So much so that I'll bet you could bang drums right above their heads and they wouldn't even stir."
Misty couldn't help but laugh at Brock's ridiculous comment. What was funnier was the mental picture she got in her head of her banging a snare drum over her friends. At this point, Brock broke into laughter as well.
"Come on, Misty. I didn't think it was THAT funny."
After a few moments of hysterical laughter, a flight attendant came over and approached the group.
"Excuse me. The flight movie is starting in about five minutes and I can bring you some headphones if you want to watch."
"What? I'm sorry I couldn't hear you. You can speak up, you know. Believe me, I don't think there's anything that could wake these guys for a while." Brock smiled indicating his two sleeping friends as Misty elbowed him.
"I just asked if you wanted to have some headphones to watch the movie."
"Yeah, sure. What do you think, Misty?" Brock asked.
"Okay. Sure."
"And while I'm at it can I get you something to drink?" the attendant asked.
"I'll have some hot tea if you have that."
"Okay, I can do that. What about you, miss?" she indicated Misty.
"Water for me. Thanks."
"Sure, I'll be back in a minute." the attendant smiled and walked toward the back of the plane. A short time later she returned with two pairs of headphones and a cup of hot tea for Brock and some water for Misty.
"Thank you, miss." Brock said with a wink.
Misty just sat there sipping at her water for a minute until something struck her as strange. She turned to Brock.
"Hey, Brock." Misty asked.
"Yeah."
"If you don't think I'm being nosy, why are you drinking hot tea? Are you cold or something."
Brock smiled at this and shook his head. "It's okay, Misty. To answer your question no, I'm not cold. I ordered this because it has been a hectic and confusing morning with things moving a mile a minute and I was hoping that a hot drink would help to relax me. Hey, check this out!"
"What?" Misty asked, becoming very intrigued.
"If you press one of these buttons here a footrest comes out from under the seat." Brock propped his feet up. "Luckily there is a movie to watch or else you might end up losing me too."
"What do you mean, Brock?" Misty asked simply for confirmation.
"I'm just beat after all this activity, and with this tea starting to make me relax, if I didn't have something like a movie to distract myself a comfortable seat like this would be enough to put me right to sleep as well." Brock answered as he finished his drink and plugged up the headphones and put them on. Then he hid a small yawn with the back of his hand. "But I don't know, I'm so exhausted that the movie may make me sleepy instead of keeping me alert. I hope not though because if I doze off then you won't have anyone to talk to."
"Don't worry about me, Brock. We've all had a very long morning. In fact, I have a feeling that, even if they hadn't been sedated, that Ash and Tracey would have eventually nodded off anyway because Ash was so nervous he was climbing the walls and Tracey worked this morning before we left. I don't want you to exhaust yourself on my account. You already said that a hot drink relaxed you and that you were tired. If you're sleepy then you should let yourself rest. Don't try to fight it just because you feel an obligation to keep me company." Misty smiled at her dear friend.
"Thanks, Misty. But another part of the reason that I want to try to stay awake if I can is because if I sleep now then I'm afraid that I'll be up all night." Brock said as Misty patted him on the shoulder and put her own headphones on when the movie started. He wouldn't admit it to himself yet but Brock was beginning to get a little drowsy and he could feel his eyes become slightly heavy.
A few minutes later, Misty felt Ash move a little and thought that he may be starting to come around. But really he had just put his arm around Pikachu as he nuzzled closer to Ash's chest. Misty smiled when she saw this because she knew that behind all of the fussing and the thundershocks, Pikachu really loved Ash. Then she patted Pikachu softly on the back and smoothed Ash's hair before turning her attention back to the movie.
Meanwhile, Brock was fighting an internal struggle to stay alert. He felt himself starting to doze a few times and he drug himself awake thinking that if he could just not think about how tired he was and stay awake then he would really crash out tonight. Then Brock turned his full focus to the screen in front of him so he could get his mind off of his increasing exhaustion. He also pulled the seat back upright thinking that may keep him from trying to doze again. At that point, a quiet, beautiful song began in the background of the movie that they were watching. Its purpose was supposed to be a love song, but in Brock's drowsy state, it served as a perfect lullaby. He knew that he was losing the battle and he fought even harder but in the end he just didn't have the strength to stay awake any longer so he reclined the seat again after assuring nobody was behind him. Brock's eyes slid closed and his vision went black as sleep came for him and he drifted off to dream.
An hour later the movie ended and Misty removed her headphones to complete silence around her. She listened very carefully but the only thing that she heard was the sound of deep breathing accented by Tracey's quiet snoring.
"Brock?" Misty whispered.
"…." She got no response so she tried one more time.
"Hey, Brock."
When she once again got no answer she glanced at Brock and discovered why he had not answered her. He was sound asleep and probably lost in dreams.
"I kinda suspected that he might nod off. He was so exhausted that the music from the film probably lulled him to sleep without him even knowing it. Oh well. He'll feel better after he rests for awhile." Misty said to herself as she removed the headphones from Brock's ears, being extremely careful not to disturb him. Then she rang for the flight attendant. Misty returned the headphones and got another blanket that she placed over Brock. Then Misty turned to Ash and pulled his sleeping form closer to her. Ash snuggled into her chest and smiled in his sleep. A single tear slid down Misty's cheek as she thought about what Brock had told her when he heard her secret.
"Don't worry, Misty. Ash, Tracey and I are here now and we don't plan on going anywhere anytime in the near future. Besides, you overcame your sisters and everything will be fine now. But I do understand why you haven't told Ash. I think you should though because, being your boyfriend, he can reassure you better than I can."
As those words echoed in Misty's head she took Ash's hand and kissed his peaceful face. "I know Brock's right, Ash. I need to tell you what has had me so upset recently but I'm not sure how to do it without upsetting you even more so. I love you, Ash, and I will find a way to tell you the truth. Even if it takes everything I have." Misty whispered, being careful not to wake Brock. But Misty's words were in vain as Ash was still sleeping soundly and had heard nothing that she said.
Misty then pulled out her laptop computer and started playing some card games against it. As she did this she wondered how she was ever going to tell Ash that she had been keeping a secret.
Ash, Misty, Brock and Tracey, along with Pikachu, made it through security with relative ease and were now on their way toward the gate where their flight was set to take off in thirty minutes. Suddenly Ash's stomach started growling to remind him that he hadn't had any breakfast yet. He was about to suggest that they eat something but then he remembered the sedatives that Professor Oak had given to him and Tracey and he thought that he had better discuss it with Tracey.
"Hey, Trace. Can I ask you a quick question?" Ash whispered, pulling Tracey aside.
"Sure. What's on your mind, Ash?" Tracey was also trying to keep his voice low.
"It just occurred to me that Misty and I didn't have any breakfast this morning and I am starving. I'm sure you're pretty hungry too so I was wondering, since the Professor gave us those sedatives would it hurt us any to eat anything?"
"Hmm. I don't know, Ash. If you have your cell on you I can call and ask."
"Okay. Here you go, Trace." Ash handed his cell phone to Tracey who walked to a quieter area to call Professor Oak.
A few moments later Tracey got off the phone and came back to once again confer with Ash.
"I asked Professor Oak about eating and he said that it was fine and shouldn't have any negative interactions." Tracey smiled.
"GREAT!" Ash shouted, getting Misty and Brock's attention.
"What's so great?"
"Tracey and I were thinking that since none of us have eaten yet, and we still have a good fifteen minutes before we are set to board, it would maybe be a good idea if we got some breakfast. There is a little restaurant right over there." Ash pointed to the café in the distance.
"Cool. Food sounds good to me."
Soon, the four were sitting around a small table with Pikachu on Ash's shoulder and they had just gotten finished with breakfast. Just then a thought occurred to Misty and she leaned in close to Ash.
"Hey, Ash. I was just thinking that maybe eating breakfast wasn't such a smart idea for you two." Misty nodded toward Tracey.
"I know why you thought that, hon, and I love you for it." Ash kissed her on the cheek. "But Tracey called Professor Oak and he said it was no problem for us to eat."
"Okay. As long as it won't hurt." Misty sounded relieved.
Ash then noticed Tracey purchasing a bottle of water and excused himself from the others momentarily before getting one for himself. Then they walked back to the gate. Once they had sat back down, Ash looked at his watch and noticed that they had just under ten minutes until the plane boarded. Deciding that it was time to face the inevitable, Ash slipped one of the sedatives out of the tube and into his hand before slipping it into his mouth and quickly took a gulp of water to wash it down before anyone else saw. He laughed a little to himself when he saw Tracey do the same.
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When the boarding call was made and everyone started to board the plane, a storm of emotion was raging in Misty's eyes. None of her companions noticed though because Brock was deep in thought about something. Pikachu was for obvious reasons riding on her shoulder now, still licking at the ketchup and, due to the fact that the sedatives were really starting to kick in now, Tracey and Ash were both just too sleepy to pay attention to anything other than trying to stay awake for a few more feet.
By the time they actually found their seats, Ash was starting to lean on Misty so he could stay upright and Tracey looked like he was about to fall asleep standing up. Luckily, Professor Oak had planned for such a thing and had arranged for the four of them to have a whole row of seats to themselves so that Ash and Tracey could stretch out and sleep comfortably.
"I hope we find our seats soon. Ash is still reasonably coherent but it looks as if we could lose Tracey at any second. I'm glad this flight isn't very crowded so that we aren't displacing anyone because when we get settled these two aren't going to last very long." Misty thought as they found their seats and sat down so that Ash and Tracey were on either end of the arrangement.
Before they sat down Misty had asked Pikachu to, using her as a step stool, get a pillow and two blankets out of the compartment. He immediately did so and placed the pillow on the seat next to Brock and handed the blankets to Misty. This was perfectly planned around Tracey, who stretched his legs out in the seats and, as soon as his head hit the pillow, instantly fell into a very deep sleep as Ash flopped down next to Misty and sighed as he stretched out. He then looked just beyond Brock.
"Looks like Tracey conked out before he even sat down." Ash murmured, eyes drooping. It seemed to him that he was floating as he began to feel an overwhelming need to close his eyes.
Misty smiled down at Ash and responded to his comment by placing her pillow under his head and covering him with one of the blankets. She then rubbed Ash's shoulders to relax him. At this point, the sedative that he had taken kicked in full force with Misty's help. Ash couldn't stay awake another second so he gave in to it and closed his eyes. The last thing he remembered was hearing Misty whisper something that he couldn't quite make out as his mind drifted into darkness and he followed Tracey into a deep and oblivious slumber.
"Sleep well, Ash. I love you." That is what Misty had whispered to Ash as he drifted off. She knew that he hadn't heard but she said it anyway. Then she kissed his head softly. At that moment, the plane engines roared to life and Misty handed the other blanket to Brock and said that he might want to put it over Tracey. Brock covered Tracey and then Misty put an arm around Ash while the plane sped down the runway and took to the air with Tracey and Ash mercifully unaware of any of it as they both slept so deeply.
After placing the blanket over his sleeping companion, Brock decided that he was going to ask Misty what the heck was going on with their friends.
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"What's going on, Misty? Did Jigglypuff get hold of Tracey and Ash when we weren't around. I mean, look, they're both out cold." Brock asked, sounding extremely confused.
"No, not Jigglypuff. Professor Oak." Misty said quietly.
"What?" Brock was now completely lost.
"Professor Oak talked to a doctor he knows when he heard that they were afraid to fly and gave both of them some sedatives that they took before we boarded to make them sleep. They'll be out for at least a good two hours. That's why I wanted to wait to talk to you about that thing that's been bothering me."
"Oh. That explains a lot." A light went on in Brock's head. "But I don't understand why you wanted to wait until Ash was knocked out before you could speak up. Doesn't he know?" Brock whispered.
"No. I haven't said anything until I got an unbiased opinion because I don't want him to overreact." Up until now, Pikachu had been keeping a vigil over his sleeping trainer but sensing the tone of the conversation, he crawled down onto the blanket and curled up for a nap at Ash's side. "It's just that being here makes me feel an overwhelming relief because I almost didn't get to come with you."
"Why not. Was it your sisters?"
"Yeah. But the fact that I almost missed out isn't what scares me. It's a dream I had about my missing and watching the people I love most be taken away from me forever." She was silent then as tears streamed from her eyes and Brock put a comforting arm around her.
"So this is why you were so upset earlier. Don't worry, Misty. Ash, Tracey and I are here now and we don't plan on going anywhere anytime in the near future. Besides, you overcame your sisters and everything will be fine now. But I do understand why you haven't told Ash. I think you should though because, being your boyfriend, he can reassure you better than I can. When he comes to, that is." Brock tried to sound reassuring and humorous at the same time.
Misty stopped crying and then smiled at Brock. As she did, she happened to catch a glimpse of Tracey. Then she turned from Brock and watched Ash as he slept. His face was beautiful and blank. He didn't seem to have a care in the world. She bent down to kiss his head and then turned back to Brock and smiled.
"They look so peaceful, don't they?"
In response to Misty's question, Brock glanced quickly from Ash, who had his head resting in her lap and Pikachu at his side, to Tracey, who slept sprawled out in the seats to his left and was snoring softly in his sleep.
"Yeah. They are pretty peaceful. It'll probably do both of these guys a world of good to get a nice, restful sleep as well."
"You said it. Ash has been working himself crazy lately with his training and he has been running on very little sleep. He'll probably be surprised at how rested he feels when he wakes up." Misty whispered.
"Why are we whispering though. Those two are completely out. So much so that I'll bet you could bang drums right above their heads and they wouldn't even stir."
Misty couldn't help but laugh at Brock's ridiculous comment. What was funnier was the mental picture she got in her head of her banging a snare drum over her friends. At this point, Brock broke into laughter as well.
"Come on, Misty. I didn't think it was THAT funny."
After a few moments of hysterical laughter, a flight attendant came over and approached the group.
"Excuse me. The flight movie is starting in about five minutes and I can bring you some headphones if you want to watch."
"What? I'm sorry I couldn't hear you. You can speak up, you know. Believe me, I don't think there's anything that could wake these guys for a while." Brock smiled indicating his two sleeping friends as Misty elbowed him.
"I just asked if you wanted to have some headphones to watch the movie."
"Yeah, sure. What do you think, Misty?" Brock asked.
"Okay. Sure."
"And while I'm at it can I get you something to drink?" the attendant asked.
"I'll have some hot tea if you have that."
"Okay, I can do that. What about you, miss?" she indicated Misty.
"Water for me. Thanks."
"Sure, I'll be back in a minute." the attendant smiled and walked toward the back of the plane. A short time later she returned with two pairs of headphones and a cup of hot tea for Brock and some water for Misty.
"Thank you, miss." Brock said with a wink.
Misty just sat there sipping at her water for a minute until something struck her as strange. She turned to Brock.
"Hey, Brock." Misty asked.
"Yeah."
"If you don't think I'm being nosy, why are you drinking hot tea? Are you cold or something."
Brock smiled at this and shook his head. "It's okay, Misty. To answer your question no, I'm not cold. I ordered this because it has been a hectic and confusing morning with things moving a mile a minute and I was hoping that a hot drink would help to relax me. Hey, check this out!"
"What?" Misty asked, becoming very intrigued.
"If you press one of these buttons here a footrest comes out from under the seat." Brock propped his feet up. "Luckily there is a movie to watch or else you might end up losing me too."
"What do you mean, Brock?" Misty asked simply for confirmation.
"I'm just beat after all this activity, and with this tea starting to make me relax, if I didn't have something like a movie to distract myself a comfortable seat like this would be enough to put me right to sleep as well." Brock answered as he finished his drink and plugged up the headphones and put them on. Then he hid a small yawn with the back of his hand. "But I don't know, I'm so exhausted that the movie may make me sleepy instead of keeping me alert. I hope not though because if I doze off then you won't have anyone to talk to."
"Don't worry about me, Brock. We've all had a very long morning. In fact, I have a feeling that, even if they hadn't been sedated, that Ash and Tracey would have eventually nodded off anyway because Ash was so nervous he was climbing the walls and Tracey worked this morning before we left. I don't want you to exhaust yourself on my account. You already said that a hot drink relaxed you and that you were tired. If you're sleepy then you should let yourself rest. Don't try to fight it just because you feel an obligation to keep me company." Misty smiled at her dear friend.
"Thanks, Misty. But another part of the reason that I want to try to stay awake if I can is because if I sleep now then I'm afraid that I'll be up all night." Brock said as Misty patted him on the shoulder and put her own headphones on when the movie started. He wouldn't admit it to himself yet but Brock was beginning to get a little drowsy and he could feel his eyes become slightly heavy.
A few minutes later, Misty felt Ash move a little and thought that he may be starting to come around. But really he had just put his arm around Pikachu as he nuzzled closer to Ash's chest. Misty smiled when she saw this because she knew that behind all of the fussing and the thundershocks, Pikachu really loved Ash. Then she patted Pikachu softly on the back and smoothed Ash's hair before turning her attention back to the movie.
Meanwhile, Brock was fighting an internal struggle to stay alert. He felt himself starting to doze a few times and he drug himself awake thinking that if he could just not think about how tired he was and stay awake then he would really crash out tonight. Then Brock turned his full focus to the screen in front of him so he could get his mind off of his increasing exhaustion. He also pulled the seat back upright thinking that may keep him from trying to doze again. At that point, a quiet, beautiful song began in the background of the movie that they were watching. Its purpose was supposed to be a love song, but in Brock's drowsy state, it served as a perfect lullaby. He knew that he was losing the battle and he fought even harder but in the end he just didn't have the strength to stay awake any longer so he reclined the seat again after assuring nobody was behind him. Brock's eyes slid closed and his vision went black as sleep came for him and he drifted off to dream.
An hour later the movie ended and Misty removed her headphones to complete silence around her. She listened very carefully but the only thing that she heard was the sound of deep breathing accented by Tracey's quiet snoring.
"Brock?" Misty whispered.
"…." She got no response so she tried one more time.
"Hey, Brock."
When she once again got no answer she glanced at Brock and discovered why he had not answered her. He was sound asleep and probably lost in dreams.
"I kinda suspected that he might nod off. He was so exhausted that the music from the film probably lulled him to sleep without him even knowing it. Oh well. He'll feel better after he rests for awhile." Misty said to herself as she removed the headphones from Brock's ears, being extremely careful not to disturb him. Then she rang for the flight attendant. Misty returned the headphones and got another blanket that she placed over Brock. Then Misty turned to Ash and pulled his sleeping form closer to her. Ash snuggled into her chest and smiled in his sleep. A single tear slid down Misty's cheek as she thought about what Brock had told her when he heard her secret.
"Don't worry, Misty. Ash, Tracey and I are here now and we don't plan on going anywhere anytime in the near future. Besides, you overcame your sisters and everything will be fine now. But I do understand why you haven't told Ash. I think you should though because, being your boyfriend, he can reassure you better than I can."
As those words echoed in Misty's head she took Ash's hand and kissed his peaceful face. "I know Brock's right, Ash. I need to tell you what has had me so upset recently but I'm not sure how to do it without upsetting you even more so. I love you, Ash, and I will find a way to tell you the truth. Even if it takes everything I have." Misty whispered, being careful not to wake Brock. But Misty's words were in vain as Ash was still sleeping soundly and had heard nothing that she said.
Misty then pulled out her laptop computer and started playing some card games against it. As she did this she wondered how she was ever going to tell Ash that she had been keeping a secret.