Blue Heaven

By Spruceton Spook

Part 22

Welcome Home Surprises

The green countryside of Pallet Town whizzed by as Jay drove speedily—twenty miles over the speed-limit, as usual of him—down the road, drumming his fingers on the steering wheel to a classic rock song blaring from the radio. Meanwhile, Delia, her feet propped up on the dashboard, tuned the music out rather easily, allowing herself to become hypnotized by the scenery and whirls of thoughts in her head. It had been an enjoyable drive from Cerulean City, but they were tired and hungry, eager to get home. Delia especially, and Jay knew this well. Though they had had a spectacular time on their trip, the children were on her mind a lot, as she missed them terribly and wondered how they were coping with the new responsibilities. It was not an incessant fret, but nevertheless Delia was looking forward to getting back to normal life.

Now, as they were barely ten minutes from home, Delia was eminently preoccupied. Jay threw glances at her every now and then, which she returned immediately with a warm smile, but this time she was totally immersed in thought and didn't feel his eyes on her at all.

Jay grinned, and gave her a smack on the leg. She started, wrenched from her reverie.

"Ow. What?" she laughed.

"You're in lala land, dearest," he winked. "What are you thinking about?"

"Oh." She settled back into her seat, sighing contentedly. "Nothing."

"You worried about them kiddies?" Jay asked.

Delia smirked. "No. I'm worried about the condition of my house." Rubbing her tired eyes, she leaned towards the window and allowed the breezes to blow her loose hair about wildly.

"Oh, stop," her husband replied softly. "Your house's fine. Kids know what they're doing."

"I hope so. I'm just dreading what I'm going to see when I open that door."

"Yeah, I bet it's a certified pigsty," Jay said sarcastically, laughing at himself.

Delia shook her head, then groaned. "The hamper's going be filled to the brim. I'm going to be doing wash for days."

"Well, you told them they didn't have to do laundry."

"Yeah, I know. It's all right, though. I'd rather do it than have them play around with the washing machine."

Jay wrinkled his nose, turning down the radio. "I'm sure Brock did some laundry."

"I can't wait to see what they ate in my living room," Delia went on.

"The crumbs in the cushions will tell all," Jay smiled.

"Or what's been spilled on my kitchen floor."

Chuckling quietly, Jay reached over and massaged her knee. "Stop worrying about it, babe. The house is still there. The kids are still alive. Sounds like everything went fine to me."

A grateful smile lifting Delia's face, she took hold of her husband's hand and brought it to her face. She loved the way he immediately began to stroke her chin, his warm hands making her body numb pleasantly. She couldn't have asked for a more amazing time with him. And now the thought of finally returning home to see her boy made everything all the more wonderful in her world.

"You're right," she whispered. And he was—she didn't care if her house was in shambles. All she cared about was seeing Ash's face light up when she walked through the door.

Despite Jay's speeding, the last few miles seemed like an eternity. When the house finally did come into view, he started laughing.

"There you go. It didn't burn down in the last two hours," he joked.

"Thank goodness," Delia proclaimed. Her hand was on the door handle before Jay even pulled up in front of the house, and as soon as he shifted into park, she immediately leapt out of the car and sprang toward the house.

"Delia, holy crap, wait up!" Jay cried, scuffling his way out of the car. Delia halted before the stoop. "Don't you wanna bring the bags in?"

"No, I want to see Ash! We can get those in a minute!" she yelled back with an immense smile, then spun around and dashed for the front door. Her husband was beside her with the key before she knew it. Delia danced around on her feet like a restless child as she waited for the lock to open, causing Jay to snicker.

"Calm down, honey, I'm opening it, I'm opening it," he said, pushing the door open. Delia broke through at the first crack.

"Ash, we're home!" she cried. In an instant, the two were greeted with the smell of dinner in the oven and the sound of rock music, which surprisingly was not deafening. At once, the pounding of feet rang out, and Ash came flying from the kitchen, a smile of sheer happiness spread ear to ear.

"Mama!" he squealed, crashing into her embrace. "You're home!"

Delia chuckled. "Yes, I'm home, I'm home," she replied, rocking him in her arms and pressing a kiss into his hair. "How's my boy been? Oh, I missed you!"

"Great, Mom, I'm great!" he replied happily. Sliding past her, his smile soared as he vaulted into Jay's arms.

"Dad!"

"Hey, boy! Come 'ere." Jay stooped down and collected Ash, then hoisted him up with a groan. His son grasped his neck in a tight hug.

Before long, Misty and Brock sprang from the aromatic kitchen, smiling tremendously.

"It's the rest of the kiddies!" Jay acknowledged perkily.

"Hi, kids!" Delia greeted.

"Welcome home!" Brock said, while Misty waved accordingly.

Ash, still roosted in his dad's arms, quickly grappled for more attention. "Did you bring me home somethin'?" he asked Jay friskily.

"Did I bring you home something!" chortled Jay. "Who said you get a present? Huh? Oh man, you're heavy. I can't do this anymore—down you go!"

Ash frowned sadly and pretended to sniffle as he slipped to the ground. His mischievous stint induced Jay to cuff him gently and lovingly upside the head. "Ah, don't worry, kiddo. We got presents in the car. They're for later, though."

"Awesome!" Ash chirped. His parents laughed, squashing him in another hug together.

"Hey, we can't leave the other two out!" Jay said, motioning for Misty and Brock to join. "Get over here! Group hug!"

The kids grinned as they bounded over and fastened themselves to the pack of cheerful Ketchums, making the embrace an unwieldy fivesome.

"Ohhh, I missed you guys so much, too," Delia whimpered emotionally, giving each of them a kiss, including another prolonged one for Ash. "I'm so happy to see all of you."

They all began to laugh heartily, the bliss of a fine week and the reunion stirring them giddily. For the moment, the luscious smell of food was ignored, Delia forgot all about giving the house the initial once-over to see how orderly (or disorderly) it may be, and none of them were conscious to a sixth person presently standing on the kitchen's threshold, watching the joyous occasion with a smug but delighted smile.

"Eh, I think I'll pass on the hug for now," he said, waving it away with flicks of his fingers. "Too mushy for me."

Instantly, five attentive heads shot up and turned toward the source of the unforeseen mystery voice. Only, of course, it was no mystery to Ash, Misty, and Brock, who had seemed to forget Gary's company in the sudden affair but were abruptly reminded. Ash beamed immediately as he saw Gary smirking at the whimsical group, then turned to see his parents' faces.

Which, naturally, were of no surprise to him.

"Gary?" Jay and Delia concurrently gasped, gawking wide-eyed at the sight of their son's former rival in the living room.

"In the flesh," he returned, cocking his head proudly at the sound of his name. His expression then softened, and his smile became affable and almost modest. "Hi, Mr. and Mrs. Ketchum. How ya doing?"

Neither of the adults could speak. All they could do was gape at Gary, their jaws dropped in awe. Ash, Misty, and Brock did all they could to hold back their giggling. The looks on Jay and Delia's faces were priceless. Ash was especially amused. It was his idea for Gary to hide in the kitchen and show himself at the moment he felt was just perfect, and his old friend pulled it off flawlessly.

Finally, Delia let out a short laugh, almost like a pant. She looked at Gary, then at her son, who gave her a fabulously cheeky grin, then back at Gary again. "Um, Gary dear, I don't mean for this to sound rude..." she began carefully, "but what are you doing here?"

Still smiling, Gary shrugged. "Ashy here invited me. But he's doing a lousy job of entertaining, so I'm probably going to be leaving soon."

"You jerk, you've only been here for half an hour!" Ash exclaimed at that remark.

Gary huffed. "Half an hour of pure boredom," he said. "I have more fun watching my mom darn socks."

Their jeers, of course, were all in good fun. On the contrary, the short time Gary had been there was nothing short of riotously engaging. Then again, what else was to be expected in a house filled with four rambunctious kids, music, and Ash attempting to cook a roast beef?

Ash gave him a bizarre look. "Your mom darns socks?"

Gary's face, along with the other kids', fell wearily.

Jay held up an intermitting hand. "Wait a second, let me get this straight," he said, pointing at Ash as he gave Gary a lop-sided grin. "This kid invited you?"

"Heh, I wish it coulda been someone else," he replied.

"But—but," Delia struggled, still with a baffled smile. She arched an eyebrow at Ash. "Explain, please."

Ash shrugged easily. "Gary and I are friends again."

"Wha—? How?"

"Well, right after you left I went to Gary's, thinking I was going to break everything off with him..." Ash recalled.

"Then he comes home saying they're gonna work things out," Misty finished, rolling her eyes. "We still don't really know how it happened."

"Neither do I," Gary shook his head. "I still can't believe I'm here."

Jay and Delia exchanged a benumbed glance, then looked down at their son, who happily nodded to reaffirm it all. His smile was one of a kind—this was exactly the way he wanted the surprise to unfold.

"Well," his mother said, letting out another dazed laugh, "I don't know what you did, but I can't say I'm not happy with it! It's so nice to see you here again, Gary, and you and Ash...not fighting."

"Yeah, we made it four days like this so far!" Ash said proudly.

"It's like they're going through a ten-step program," joked Brock.

Jay shook his head in amazement. "Unbelievable," he uttered. He then gave Ash a shove, and fixed a stern look on him. "But hey! Didn't I say I didn't want you seeing Gary?"

Ash smiled nervously, though he knew his father was kidding around. "Yeah, I kinda took a chance," he admitted.

"How long after we left?" Jay wanted to know.

"Ten minutes!" Misty answered outrageously.

"Ten min—! Ashton!" shrieked Jay incredulously.

"What?" Ash cowered playfully. "We're friends again! Aren't ya happy?"

Jay sighed. "Suppose so. But you're a little stinker, ya know that? I can't trust a thing you do anymore," he chuckled.

Ash shrugged gently. "I wasn't going there to fight. But then again I didn't think I was going there to invite him for dinner tonight, either."

Delia's face lit up. "You're staying for dinner?" she asked Gary excitedly, who nodded. "That's wonderful!" she said, giving him a hug. "I haven't fed you in years!"

"Well, you aren't feeding him tonight, either," Jay pointed out. He sniffed the air zestfully. "Smells like they already got something cookin'."

Delia sniffed the air, too. "Mmm," she gushed. "Oh, Brock, that smells delicious! What are you making?"

She didn't wait for his reply, however, as she strode into the kitchen eagerly. The others followed, Misty giving Ash a secretive nudge. The heat of the kitchen engulfed them as Delia opened the oven, and, taking in the delectable sight and scent of the meat within, she flashed the older boy a broad beam.

"Roast beef!"

"Oohoohoo, that looks really good," Jay's eyes widened hungrily.

"Oh, Brock, you are too good to be true!" Delia babbled. "This is exactly what I've been craving!"

Brock blushed. "As much as I'd like to say thank you, Mrs. K.," he giggled humbly, "Ash was the one who cooked dinner tonight."

It was then that Ash's smile considerably grew, especially with the onslaught of eyes suddenly directed his way. He straightened his shoulders complacently as his mom's shocked gape soaked into him, and did all he could to keep from chortling as she toiled to find what to say.

"You cooked the dinner?" she silently marveled.

"Yup," he nodded.

"Get out of here!" Jay mumbled.

"And we didn't help him one bit," Misty told his pleasantly stunned parents.

"He wouldn't let us," Brock added with a laugh.

Delia was indulged in silence as she threw a glimpse at the stove, then fixed a curved, little smile back on her exuberant boy.

"You cooked that roast beef all on your own?"

Ash nodded again. "I also made mash' potatoes—I mashed them just a minute ago—and I cut up carrots and broccoli which are in that pot right now," he boasted, pointing to the steamy pot that sat on the back burner.

Delia let out a laugh. "All by yourself?"

"Well, everything but vacuuming up the flour he spilt earlier," Misty snickered, causing her boyfriend to turn crimson.

"Flour?" Jay asked.

"Yeah," Ash cringed frivolously. "I kinda dropped a cup of flour on the floor."

"Which I wasn't here for!" Gary complained. "Two minutes earlier I would've had to come."

"What did you need flour for, sweetheart?" Delia asked.

"For the gravy," Ash replied. "I didn't make it yet, though. I forgot you have to wait for the meat to be done and take it out of the oven to make it."

"Gravy!?" Delia exclaimed. "You're making your own gravy?" She honestly could not believe what she was hearing. Ash barely knew how to make a grilled-cheese sandwich for himself without burning it.

"Yeah, and I'm going to make it," Ash exhorted. With his mother now home, he had no idea if she would insist on finishing his almost-completed meal, his current pride and joy. "After doing all this, I'm gonna do the whole job!"

Delia and Jay erupted in laughter.

"Okay, okay, little man, calm down," Delia said, taking him in a loose hug. "I'm not looking to make any gravy. Mommy's looking to take a nap."

"As if she didn't practically sleep the whole way home," Jay quipped.

"I'm exhausted," she moaned outright.

It was then that she turned to the stove and adjoining counters to observe her son's first culinary experience, that which she still couldn't grasp. The fact that, for one thing, the area wasn't a complete disaster stunned her to no end. There were a few tiny spills here and there, along with leftover pieces of carrot and potato skin atop a cutting board. A cookbook was propped open against the wall, detailing the procedure for a tasty roast meal.

Overwhelmed with wonder, she gazed at Ash. "I can't believe you did this. Ash, you've never shown any interest in cooking before. What happened?"

"I don't know," Ash replied. "Guess I just wanted to try it. And I think I made it good, too! At least—I hope I did. I followed the recipe and everything. Wasn't hard."

"It looks like he did a pretty good job," Brock affirmed confidently. "I was watching him the whole time. He seemed to really know what he was doing. He measured out everything well, and he's been checking on it every few minutes. Everything I would've done."

"Except you might want to check those potatoes," Misty warned, pointing critically at the pot. "They might be a little lumpy."

Ash turned on her quickly, balling his fists. "Hey, I mashed those real good! There won't be any lumps!"

Misty derisively narrowed her eyes back at him. She loved the way she could get him worked up with one remark. "We'll see about that."

"Yeah, you know how much I hate lumpy mashed potatahs," Jay cautioned jokingly, whacking Ash's shoulder. "I'll send 'em right back."

Even though he knew they were badgering him, Ash slumped. "Fine. You want me to mash them some more?" he said, taking the lid off the pot and grabbing the potato-masher.

"No, no, honey, no," Delia laughed, taking the masher from him. "You don't have to. I'm sure they'll be the best mashed potatoes I've ever had."

"Mom, give me a break," Ash smiled wearily, not buying that whatsoever.

"Well, I'm sure for your first batch, they'll be delicious," she revised. "But Ash, this—this is great. It smells great, it looks great... You wanna help out at the restaurant Friday nights? We could use you," she grinned.

Considering this for a moment, Ash smiled up at her smugly. "How much?"

Delia's jaw dropped. "Well, excuse me, mister! How much! Oooh, you're just like your father! Here, this is your child," she said, snatching Ash and shoving him in Jay's direction. Ash laughed, then yelped in sudden agony as his dad startled tickling him.

"And you'll get it again if I find one lump in my potatoes, buster," Jay threatened teasingly.

Ash, red in the face, escaped by letting his legs slide out from underneath him, slipping out of his dad's clutches and torturing fingers. He plopped to the floor on his backside, then lay down with his arms outstretched.

"Ash, come on, get up from the floor," Delia scolded. "It's dirty."

Ash sat up briskly with a smile. "No, it's not! We washed it last night."

"You what?" Delia faltered.

"We washed it," repeated Ash. "Actually, me and Misty washed it while Brock vacuumed the dining room and the stairs. We did it right after he finished cleaning the oven, so that way the whole kitchen got clean at one time."

Once again, Jay and Delia were thunderstruck. They simultaneously looked down at the floor, which was without a doubt recently scoured. In fact, it gleamed. It was the latter disclosure, however, that grabbed Delia's attention.

"You cleaned the oven?" she gasped at Brock. "Where'd you learn how to clean an oven?"

He shrugged. "Home. I had to learn—I cooked dinner for ten people for a year and a half. But yours is spic-and-span now," he said, giving a thumbs-up.

"Oh my," Delia shook her head. "Brock, you are something, you know that?"

"And not only that, Ma," Ash continued, "he washed the inside of the refrigerator and the microwave, too! And me and Misty scrubbed the bathroom."

"We cleaned the whole house," Misty summed it up.

"I did most of the work," Gary sneaked in.

"What!? You didn't do any work!" Ash cried.

"Well, you didn't ask me."

"You mean...you woulda helped us?" Ash blinked.

"For your parents," Gary smirked, "yes. For you...no."

Ash sighed. Some things never changed. "Gee, thanks a lot, Gary."

"Any time, Ashy boy."

"Well, I have to say I can't believe you kids did all this work," Delia said commendably, giving them each a smile to denote her appreciation. "Thank you so much...it really means a lot to me. Especially since I was afraid I was going to come home to see the place a mess."

"Heh, not while I'm around," Brock declared with a chuckle.

"But doing all the extra cleaning was Ash's idea," Misty reminded. It was so gratifying to see Ash's face shine at the praise, all of which he deserved for his hard work and sacrifice during the last four days. When he could have been lounging around or putting the time toward extra training, he made sure that every nook and cranny of the house was spotless. Seeing how desperate he was to make good with his parents through this, she wanted to make sure he earned just that.

"I wanted to make sure everything was perfect so that you wouldn't have to come home and worry about cleaning or doing laundry or whatever," Ash said softly as he looked up at his mother and her fond smile.

"Oh, Ash," she whispered, her benevolent tone making Ash beam.

"You're all right there," Jay laughed as he reached down to ruffle his son's hair. "Come on now, buddy boy, up." He extended his hand to help hoist Ash to his feet.

"Ash, the dinner's going to be done in a few minutes," Brock said. The stove timer read that seven minutes remained before the roast was to be taken out.

Right away, the room began to disperse.

"I'm gonna go get the bags out of the car," Jay said, and headed out the front door.

"Yeah, I need to get a little freshened up before I eat your dinner," Delia told Ash, kissing his forehead. Then, her eyes widening, she turned to Gary. "Gary, your parents can come to dinner, too, if they like. Why don't you go call them?"

Ash's face suddenly fell. "B-but Mom, do we have enough?" he asked, looking at the stove doubtfully. "I—I just made a few potatoes—"

"Oh yeah, you're probably right," Delia quickly took it back upon further thought, cringing. "We might not have enough..."

"Don't worry about it, it's okay," Gary said, waving it away. "It's six-thirty. They're probably eating dinner right now, anyway."

Delia smiled. "Well then, why don't you tell them to come for coffee and dessert later? May can come, too. It'll be nice to have you all here again."

"Nah, forget about May. She's at her boyfriend's tonight," he scowled, as if it were a dirty word.

"May has a boyfriend?" Delia was thrilled. "That's great! What's his name?"

"I dunno," Gary shrugged.

Ash laughed. "You show a lot of interest in her."

"Hey, I gotta look out for her, ya know?" Gary replied with pretend seriousness.

Shaking her head, Delia ushered Gary towards the phone. "Why don't you call them right now. Tell them to come around seven-thirty. That way I have enough time to send my husband out to get some kind of cake," she giggled devilishly.

"You got it, Mrs. K."

While Gary was busy dialing his house and Delia dashed to the bathroom, Ash, Misty, and Brock stood in contented silence in the kitchen. Ash couldn't seem to wipe the almost senseless smile off his face, resulting from a combination of the satisfying feeling of bringing such favorable surprises to his parents, the mouth-watering smell of the roast, and just the overall aftereffect of the past four days, which not only had provided laborious work and inspection, but also some of the most fun hours he'd ever spent with Misty and Brock.

Suddenly, Misty tugged Ash's sleeve, and leaned in to whisper in his ear, "Come outside."

Ash gave her a look. "Huh? Why?"

"Just—come on," she bubbled, proceeding to drag him to the backdoor.

"Hey, where are you going?" Brock asked. "Ash, you can't leave your dinner now!"

"Yeah!" Ash agreed, wondering why Misty was so intent on taking him outside five minutes before his famed meal was done.

"Oh shut up, I'll have him back in here with two minutes to spare," replied Misty. With that, she opened the screen door and led Ash out into the shady but still muggy backyard.

Ash didn't know at all what this was about, but because of his good mood, he was far from worried. He felt a bit mischievous. As Misty walked him deeper into the yard, he started swinging her hand around, skipping on his toes.

"Misty, what's up? My dinner's gonna burnnnn," he grumbled giddily.

"Your dinner's not gonna burn, Ash," Misty said, stopping him and taking both his hands in her own. "I wouldn't let that happen."

For a moment, not another word passed between them. With the sun glistening through Misty's stray hair, creating a brilliant orange-red hue, Ash simply gazed at her, which she returned ever so fervidly. That frivolous smile of his was far from gone, and lured Misty helplessly into laughter.

"I'm so happy to see you like this," she told him.

"I'm happy to see me like this, too," he grinned.

"Your parents—they're happy, too." Misty laughed.

"Do you think Brock and Gary are happy?"

"Sure. Lots of happy people."

"And happy pokémon, too. Especially Pikachu when I give him a piece of roast beef."

"I wonder if Togepi will like mashed potatoes?"

"He might," Ash replied, letting his hyper smile soften a bit to one more obliging.

The calming sounds of the idle country evening filled their ears again as another blissful stillness fell among them. The dinner was temporarily pushed to the back of Ash's mind as he looked up and watched pidgey and other birds dart across the pale blue sky, squeezing his girlfriend's soft hands tightly.

"So..." Misty sang harmlessly, drawing Ash's attention. "Are you gonna give me a kiss before we go back in?"

Ash frowned playfully. "Is that what you wanted to bring me out here for?"

Misty feigned an exasperated sigh. "Well, if you weren't so afraid of kissing in front of others, Mr. Big Shot, I wouldn't have to."

"Hey, come on. I'm finally comfortable with kissing in front of Brock," he rejoined.

"Yeah, and Brock is quite comfortable with watching us kiss, too," Misty narrowed her eyes.

"Come on! Gary's in there! And now my parents are, too."

"Are you ever going to admit that we kiss to your parents, Ash?"

"Sure," he replied. "When I'm twenty."

Misty rolled her eyes. "Well, no one's looking now. So you don't have to worry, okay?"

"Why do you wanna kiss me now?"

"Because you're cute."

It sounded too good to pass up. Then again, Ash was hardly the fidgety kid he had been weeks ago, when just the word "kiss" made him want to run away screaming. He threw a quick glance at the backdoor to see that, indeed, the coast was clear. Surely there was time for a nice short kiss, and he delivered just that. Or he began to. After just a few seconds of the kiss, he suddenly disregarded that it was to be short, and Misty seemed to fall into the same trance as well.

The wail of the screen door flying open, sadly, was not enough time for them to break apart and pretend they were doing nothing. Both their hearts leaped to their throats as their heads spun in its direction.

"Now I have seen everything," Gary exclaimed, a smile shooting across his face.

"Hey!" Ash turned crimson as Misty stifled a giggle. "Mind your own business, Gary!"

"Ash, shhh," Misty said, trying to pacify him with her chipper tone. Ash, out of pure mortification, just shot daggers at Gary with his eyes.

"Mind my own business?" returned Gary airily, shrugging. "You're in the backyard! I'm sorry if I didn't see a 'do not disturb' sign hanging on the doorknob! Since when do I have to knock to come outside?"

Ash just snarled, but Misty, who went on to pat his shoulders buoyantly, laughed at Gary's humor. "Well," she said, resigned, "guess he knows now too, doesn't he, Ash?"

"Mmm," Ash had no other choice but to consent, though a bit begrudgingly.

"Just be glad it wasn't your mom," she snickered.

Ash nodded, but truth of the matter, he would have rather it been her than Gary. At least she would have found it (he hoped) cute and sweet, but Gary—Ash didn't even want to know how he was taking this new revealing. He was almost afraid to look at Gary when he spoke again.

"I just came out to tell your Ashy boy-toy here his dinner's going to be done in a minute," Gary told Misty.

"Ashy boy-toy!?" Ash shrieked, but his outcry was instantly outmatched by Brock's.

"Ash!" his voice suddenly bellowed from inside the house. "The timer's going off! Get in here before your mom starts making the gravy!"

"Or now," Gary chuckled. "But, you know, I don't want to be disturbing anything..."

Ash shook his head, but quickly decided that Gary's discovery, just like Brock's, was inevitable from the start. It wasn't worth getting flustered over. "Just—be quiet about it, would ya?" he begged of his grinning friend.

And just in the nick of time, too. Delia came to the door at that moment. "Honey, what are you doing out here? Come on, you have to make your gravy. And don't listen to what Brock says, I promise I won't touch it. If you come in."

His blush fading, Ash smiled. "I know. I'm coming, Mom."

His mother disappeared back into the house, and Gary followed. He was sure to flash them a wink before doing so, sealing, to Ash's relief, the promise to keep his mouth shut. Gary understood Ash's concern precisely, that coming from a long history of the small but never serious secrets the two shared.

Ash smiled as he took hold of Misty's hand and started back to the house. There was something about being next to her and the fact that his childhood friendship was rekindling that made him undeniably dizzy.

"I kinda like that, actually," Misty said. Ash opened the door, but both paused in the doorway. Immediately the smell of his soon-to-be-proven savory dinner floated to their noses.

"Like what?"

Misty smirked impishly. "Ashy boy-toy. It has a nice ring to it."

Ash's face fell. "You're kidding, right?"

"Maybe," she teased. "It is cute."

"No it's not!" Ash argued.

"Well, then I'll think of another nickname for you."

"How 'bout no nickname, thank you?"

"Well, now that I'm thinking of nicknames, plain Ash sounds so boring."

"My name is boring!?"

"Ooh, I'll call you Ashton," she raised her eyebrows fiendishly.

Ash scowled. "Don't you dare! Then I'll call you Mis—ty."

"Haha!" Misty reveled, sticking her pointed finger in his face. "You can't call me anything more! Ashton."

He growled at her, but considering that she was about to adopt a nickname Gary coined, the latter didn't sound that bad. "Fine, you can call me that," he conceded. "Not all the time, though. And not in that tone, okay?"

"Okay, my little Ashy boy-toy!" She gave him a clutching hug.

Ash slapped his forehead. It was a shame he was too easy to tease.

"Ash!" This was Delia. "Why are you standing there with the door open? You're letting bugs in!"

"It was Misty," Ash pointed at her accusingly.

Misty's jaw dropped, but her lips curved with a grin. "Me!?"

"Yes, you," Ash retorted as the two scampered in and the door slammed shut behind them.

"Why would I want to let bugs in?"

"Don't worry, Misty. You think I believe him for one second?" Delia snorted. She handed Ash the oven mitt. "Come on, mister, get your roast out."

"Yeah, I'm starving here, where's this so-called dinner you made?" Jay asked, wandering back into the kitchen.

"Shut up!" Ash stamped his foot playfully. "It's coming, it's coming."

He opened the oven and was greeted with a mighty blast of heat. Pikachu, hearing the oven open, rushed in from the living room to get a glimpse of the dinner. Ash nearly tripped over his scrambling pokémon and laughed, setting the roast on the top of the stove.

"You want me to cut that, bud?" Jay offered. "You can make the gravy, and that way none of it will get cold."

Ash looked up and smiled. "Sure!"

While Jay set to work in slicing the meat and Ash carefully drained the pan of the juices, Brock set to the task of establishing the place settings and pouring drinks. Gary, under no one's influence, rushed to the living room to change the still-thumping rock to music more appropriate for dinner. The stove became the source of a crowd, though one very well-organized by Delia: she, with the help of Misty, emptied the potatoes and vegetables into corresponding dishes whilst not getting in either of the guys' way. The delightful sights and smells of the meal made their mouths water, their stomachs grumble. Ash, who had purposely not eaten much beforehand, could especially not wait to eat.

But, moments later, his appetite became the last thing on his mind as he carried his roast beef to the table where his family and friends were just getting seated. He paused, the steam from the meat warming his face, and his eyes roamed indulgently over the camaraderie in his midst.

His parents, fatigued but cheerful, enjoyed the comfort of being home but still were not done enjoying the comfort of each other's presence. His mom sipped her wine as his dad stood at the opposite end of the table, surveying the passing-around of food. And in all that time, their eyes never stopped traveling to meet one other's.

Gary, the person he scorned only days before, the person he never thought or cared he'd see again, sat pleasantly at the table as he did many a time years before; a welcomed scene from the past. Only this time with a Pikachu at his feet, basking in the sudden attention from his trainer's ex-rival.

Across the table sat Brock, whom he had grown to appreciate more for his ability to do the toilsome job of cooking for him and Misty, and after long, hard days no less. (Ash found that even at home after a moderately lazy day, cooking was very much a chore of dedication.) He was spooning out a huge pile of mashed potatoes for himself with eyes glistening of hunger. It was much the same look Ash attained when eating Brock's food.

And Misty. Looking at her at that moment, with Togepi on her lap, her pretty white teeth shining from behind a coquettish smile as Brock dished her out potatoes, he couldn't describe the upwelling of happiness in his body. The seat next to her called out to him, beckoning, luring. Just to have her near him, lean against him; just to hear her voice, watch her eat. He used to think pokémon training gave him the most rewarding sense of fulfillment in his life. But he found another way that month. He was in love.

"Come on, Ash! We want meat!"

Ash didn't know when he would return to the road to complete the journey that, he discovered, was only a part of what he yearned for in life. Everything he desired, everything he craved, everything he aspired to, everything he cherished, was here before him. And as he set the meat down, watching his family and friends light up and give him the most gratifying, approving beams, there was no denying it. He was in heaven.

STAY TUNED FOR THE EPILOGUE!

Wow, updating again after only a week. Brings back memories. ;_;

Author's notes, author's notes…hmmmm. Would you believe I really don't know what to say right now? ^^;; Other than the fact that…I'm looking up at the beginning of this chapter, and…it's chapter 22. Twenty. Two. I thought this story was going to be 15 chapters when I first planned it out. And the real crazy thing is…BH could've been longer. If I had made the chapters shorter, who knows what chapter number this would be right now. I don't know how my writing went so out of control for this, but…I'm glad it did. ^_^ I'm happy I could share it with all of you for a year. And although, out of all my stories, this one proved the most difficult, the most stressful, and, at one point, a huge source of emotional pain…I'm proud of it more than anything else I've written.

And lookie at that, I still have the epilogue to post. ^_^ I want to have it up on Thanksgiving, but…I can't promise anything. I wish I could, but the only thing I can promise is that it will be written and it will be posted. And that I think you're gonna like it. ~_^

Thanks for reading!