Chapter 9-Flashback to the Beginning

Delia had come home that day to find Will, her husband, making out with his high school sweetheart. Ash was crying from the other room and Delia left the bedroom doorway to find that Will had left their eight-month old baby unattended. Silently crying, Delia packed a few things and left with a wailing Ash wiggling in her arms. She rode down the elevator from her apartment and caught a cab across town to a good friend of hers. A young blond with large crimson eyes stuck her head out.

"Delia?"

"Hey, Fiona."

Fiona immediately drew her friend in when she saw her tear-strewn face and Ash's whimpering form. Fiona took Ash from the shell-shocked Delia and cuddled the colicky baby to her. "Go sit down, Delia."

Delia immediately did what she was told and Fiona took Ash to the bathroom to change and wash him. A tall man with spiky black hair came out of the kitchen, his brown eyes flashing concern.

"Honey, what's going on?"

"Van, I need some help."

"Anything."

"Take care of Ash, Dee's out there bawling and I'm going to find out why. I have a bad feeling about it."

"Sure, hand over the munchkin."

Van eagerly took the baby and Ash took to him right away. "How about if your Uncle Van takes care of you, little dude, while Aunt Fay looks after your mom."

Ash squealed and clutched at Van's nose.

"I'b got da mun'kin. You go and helb Dee."

Fiona kissed him on the cheek and rushed to Delia's side while Van carted the giggling Ash to the kitchen for something to eat.

"Delia, honey, what's wrong?"

"Will…" She drew in a deep breath and tried to keep her tears at bay.

Fiona wrapped a comforting arm around Delia's shoulders. "It's alright, you can tell me."

"I saw Will…s-s-sleeping with…with that…that…"

"What?"

"He was making out with Jane!"

"Janey, his ex-girlfriend?"

"From the looks of it she isn't his ex any more."

"Oh God, Dee. That bastard! Listen, Van's got some rope in the garage. We'll go to your apartment and string him up by his privates and hang him from the balcony so everyone can see what a jackass he is."

Delia busted up laughing at the image. Her laughter slowly died down and she hugged Fiona. "Thanks, I needed that."

"Any time. That's what friends are for."

"What am I gonna do?"

Fiona hauled Delia off the couch and shoved her in the general direction of the bathroom. "First, you're gonna take a shower. You look horrible. Your mascara's running and your make-up's smeared."

She heard the videophone ring in the living room. "I'm going to get that and when I get back I expect you to be in the shower."

"Yes, mom."

"I don't want any lip!"

Delia chuckled as she locked the door. Fiona picked up the phone and found herself face to face with a very worried looking Will.

"Fiona! Thank God you're home."

Fiona's temper rose for a second and then she decided to play it safe and act dumb. "What's wrong Will?"

"It's Delia. She, uh…hasn't come home yet and I'm, ah…getting worried. She hasn't stopped by there has she?"

"No. I haven't seen her since last weekend. Should I send her your way if I see her around?"

"Yeah, I'd appreciate it." A female voice came from Will's right and he became panicky. "I gotta go. Thanks, Fiona."

Fiona hung up the phone and stared out the window for a minute or two. "Yeah, same to you, you freaking jackass."

Fiona wandered into the kitchen and found Van feeding spoonfuls of pudding into Ash's eager mouth.

"Who was that?"

"Will."

"What happened?"

"Dee walked in to find him making out with Janey."

Van shook his head and fed Ash more pudding. "That bastard!"

"And the worst part is I knew they weren't meant for each other right from the get-go. The only reason Will hooked up with Dee was to get back at Janey."

"Why didn't you tell her?"

"At first I thought Will was sincere. But after a couple months she kept telling me that he was working late and I was starting to fear the worst. The only reason I didn't tell her was that she seemed so happy and she was already pregnant. To think I could have spared her all this grief."

"No, I doubt that. Even if you had told her, she probably would have said you were crazy or jealous."

"Yeah, I'd better go check on her."

!ELDERSHIPPING!

Fiona and Delia had binged on ice cream and cried their eyes out for a while. And then Van suggested that they go to the park. When they got there, Fiona noticed Delia had finally relaxed as she started to play with Ash. That baby was the only good thing left in her life. That evening Fiona and Van accompanied Delia back to her apartment. Surprisingly enough, they found it empty. Fiona wandered into the kitchen area and found a note taped to the fridge. She peeled it off and stared at it for a few seconds until Delia walked in.

"What's that?"

She wordlessly handed it over to Delia and shifted Ash to one side and she slowly read it. Her breath began to hitch and tears rolled down her face. The paper fluttered from her hand and landed gently from the floor. Fiona grabbed Ash as Delia's knees buckled. Van walked in as Fiona swooped Ash into her arms and he wrapped his arms around Delia and tried to shush her wailing. Fiona squatted down and picked the crumpled note.

"That bastard!"

"Shh…shh. It's gonna be okay, Dee. What's wrong?"

"He left her. Says here he picked up the magnet train in Saffron City over to Goldenrod in Johto."

Delia pulled back from Van and shakily sat in a nearby chair. "What am I going to do? I don't know what I'm going to do. I can't stay here. Not after HE was here."

Fiona reached over and gently rubbed Delia's shoulder. "Dee, go pack. You can stay with us."

"No, I don't want to impose."

Van left for a second and then came back carrying a suitcase. "Impose, schmimpose. You can stay until you find another place."

Fiona handed the baby back to Delia. "If you won't do it for any other reason, Dee, do it for Ash."

!ELDERSHIPPING!

One month later Delia was wandering Pallet Town behind the realtor of that area. She was an elderly woman who didn't act the part. Effervescent and friendly, Ash had immediately liked Abby, the realtor and so had Delia because of that fact. They had been looking at houses for a good portion of the morning. They had shared a lunch in Viridian City and Delia had learned about Abby's grandkids. Now she was showing Delia around a small, white house with a large backyard.

"And there's a lovely park not but a few blocks from here. It's actually Professor Oak's pokémon preserve but he lets the town use it as a park as long as they don't harm any of the pokémon or litter."

"Professor Oak, THE Professor Samuel Oak!"

"Well, yes. Who else would it be?"

"That's amazing!"

"How's that dear?"

"He was my Basic Pokémon teacher at Celadon University. Do you know if he's still teaching there?"

"No, he doesn't. My daughter lives around here. She tells me all the latest gossip. Says he doesn't leave his lab much."

"No, he never was much of a socialite. Could I see the preserve?"

"Sure, we can talk on the way." They wandered the preserve, enjoying the sights and sounds around them.

"So what's the good Professor up to now?"

"He trains college students sent from all over Kanto and Johto. They eventually go on to be some of the most highly demanded assistants, researchers, or Professors."

They walked in silence for a few seconds until a voice from behind them caused Delia to turn around.

"Delia? Delia Peabody?"

"It's Ketchum now. Spencer Hale! What are you doing here?"

"I'm studying under Professor Oak. And what are you, a married woman doing out here?"

"Looking for a house."

Spencer caught sight of Ash. "And who's this fine young man?"

"My little guy, Ash."

He squatted down and began playing with the baby. "What are you doing out here by yourself? Where's your husband? I'd like to meet him."

"Will's gone."

"I'm so sorry for your loss."

"It's alright."

"So are you going to live out here?"

"I'm thinking about it. There's a nice house down the road I can run my flower shop out of and Ash really seems to like the preserve."

"I think you'd like it here. My fiancée lives in town here. We'll take you out to dinner sometime."

!ELDERSHIPPING!

Delia bought the small, white house within a week and had her floral shop open not long after. She became immediate friends with the town and even got the Professor to come out of his lab once in a while with the help of the rest of the town.