Chapter 18: A Toast to Getting Laid
I got several calls from a few friends the second the magazine was released, and the fight footage followed on TV. Blue of course was the first to call. I hadn't even gotten my lazy ass out of bed yet—for the second time at least. I'd already gone for a run and taken a hot shower. I'd just crawled back into bed afterwards.
"Are you feeling okay?" she asked immediately, the second I answered.
"What do you mean?"
"That magazine cover."
"Oh. Uh. Yes," I stated nervously. I'd forgotten about it. It was last week's news!
"Also, there's the whole Gold and Lance beating the shit out of each other thing…"
I sighed weakly. Actually, it was more Lance just beating the shit out of Gold. The league had managed to convince the media to hold the footage of Gold and Lance just until the magazine article and cover could release (the agreement had been something about splitting the sales profits). "It's been a week," I offered.
"I'll go back to the original question, are you okay?"
I sighed and nodded, then realized Blue couldn't exactly see me on the phone. "Probably. How bad was the clip?"
"You might want to just watch it for yourself," she offered.
I got up and headed to my laptop, having an easy enough time bringing up the video despite it apparently just airing. I had hoped they might have removed Gold's… choice of words for me. I'd hoped they would have thought it was in bad taste… they had not. Ii hurt hearing it a second time, too.
"Maybe I'm not totally okay," I admitted after a moment. "Blue… am I trashy for dating Lance after I was with Gold for so long? Be honest." I mean, I wasn't going to breakup with Lance, but I at least wanted to be self-aware if I was an asshole.
She sighed gently. "No. That's not how relationships work. You could have broken up with Gold because you didn't like one of his shirts. He didn't own you. The fact that it has been eight months since you broke up with him, he doesn't get to be mad. The fact that you really started to date Lance a month after you broke up is… maybe not smiled upon, but again, it's not like there's a rule book, Silver. Plenty of people get out of a long relationship and immediately sleep around."
I just sighed. "We did have sex… like, almost immediately…" Within the hour for sure, but it was likely within the 15-minute mark.
"It's just called rebound, Silver. Although obviously with how long you've stayed with Lance, you can't really call it rebound at this point. Rebound relationships aren't smiled upon, because they don't give you the proper room to heal and accept the loss of the prior relationship. Think of it like drinking more to keep a hangover at bay. They're usually very short and physical."
"It's like he expected me to wait for him," I stated softly.
"That's clearly exactly what he expected. Silver, be completely totally selfish for an imaginary second, okay? Gold and Lance are both available, no bad consequences, clean slate, yadda, yadda. Which one do you pick?"
"I pick Lance. I've thought of that scenario a few times… after Gold yelling at me, I just want to pick Lance even more."
"There you go then. Don't sweat anything else. Just be with Lance."
I did feel better, but still scathed by Gold's harsh words. I hadn't been bitter at this point about him not coming to see me when I'd been hurt. I'd just wanted to move on with life. It was like he'd had to make sure I was a bit bitter about something.
"On a side note, that cover! Dear me! I can't see my little brother like that! I can't say I minded, though."
I flushed. "It was spur of the moment. You should see the photos that didn't publish."
"Oh my," Blue giggled happily. "Goodness, you weren't a bad looking teenage, but as an adult Silver you're something. You and Lance actually posed, didn't you?" Any other magazine covers I'd been on had been candid and photoshopped. I'd also been fully clothed. I had officially lost my shirtless gym leader photo virginity!
"Yeah," I admitted. "A photo with Lance sounded nice… That and she added something about it being a shirtless photo and I sort of wanted to give it a try."
"Well, your country thanks you for your service. I know the league wanted to preserve their gym leader's popularity by getting your fans on the Lance Silver train and goodness did it work. I suggest you don't read any comments on any online articles. They're pretty depraved."
"Thanks for the warning."
I ended my call with Blue, just to have Crystal call immediately.
The conversation started the exact same way! "You okay, Silver?"
I just sighed weakly. "I just ended a conversation with Blue about exactly that," I admitted.
"That would explain the line being busy," she noted. "Well, the answer? Sorry, my mom sent me the link."
"Well enough. A bit hurt. Happy I'm with Lance," I summarized.
"Gold was ridiculous. I already chewed him out. He's still pissed off about everything, so I basically told him to leave you alone. I think he'll cool off eventually, though. He said Lance hit on you the whole relationship with you. I remember he got you Twister, but he's your master. It makes sense."
"Lance kissed me once before Gold even had feelings for me. Lance never hinted at romance after that, not even in the hospital. If fact, he defended Gold and made excuses for him the whole time. I fell for Lance… and it was after I broke up with Gold," I explained, trying to set the record straight.
"Wow. He's a good guy."
"I know," I stated, feeling a touch warm. Lance was a good guy. Even when he'd been trying to destroy the world, he'd done it for pokemon. I knew it didn't truly absolve his sins, but I was just as stained. He'd been the spearhead in cleaning up so much pollution in Kanto and Johto, too. The past sixteen years, the environment had been improving. Rare pokemon were even slowly bouncing back, like chansey and kangaskhan. More evolutions were naturally occurring, too. Lance had helped lead that change… he was amazing.
The last to call was Yellow. She only needed a brief summery of my other conversations to be satisfied.
I believed all my female friends were satisfied, and it was time I get my butt to my gym. I phoned Mike to let him know I was heading that way.
He and I arrived at the same time… to a crowd outside. We both traded nervous looks. "So, that footage released this morning," I admitted.
Mike nodded in understanding. "You're right. My girlfriend was gushing over your abs this morning. Clearly I need to hit the gym with you some days…"
I flushed. I was a bit embarrassed that total strangers were getting pleasure from seeing my body. I wanted to hide. Oops. "So, you do have a girlfriend. I've wanted to ask, but it seemed rude."
"Some of us don't have our relationship status broadcasted on live TV," he offered teasingly. "And she won't be my girlfriend for long."
Well shit. Maybe I shouldn't have asked.
"I got a ring last weekend. I was going to ask if we could take this weekend off so I can pop the question, or if you wanted me to just find you a fill in. I figured it'd be nice to show off to the family with Christmas coming up."
Oh wow. "No, absolutely, go for it. I can take a weekend off. Let me know if you need longer. Do you think she'll say yes?"
He just smirked at me with a "are you serious?" look. "You shouldn't pop the question if you don't know it's a certain yes. Also, I paid enough for the ring, she better," he teased lightheartedly.
Marriage… wow. "Is she a trainer, too?" I asked curiously.
"Not really. She has a cute butterfree and a ninetails, but they don't battle. She works at the flower shop across town, she's pretty cute, too."
"I'd hope so," I replied dryly. "She better be the cutest thing ever, to you at least."
He just grinned, "Of course!" And we went to face the onslaught of trainers together.
xxxxxxx
"Rough day?" Lance asked casually.
I was face down in his lap. "A bit," I mumbled into his thigh.
I groaned weakly as he gently scratched the back of my head and my back. It felt so good… I felt flush crawling across my face, and I weakly gripped his thigh in pleasure.
"Mike is going to propose to his girlfriend this weekend, so I'm off the whole weekend," I remembered aloud, rolling over so I could look up at Lance and not talk so muffled. He switched to gently scratching behind my ear and I could completely understand why the growlith liked it so much now.
Lance raised his eyebrows, looking thoughtful. "You want to go on a trip this weekend together then? We probably can't go to another region in just a weekend, but maybe to Olivine or somewhere?"
A vacation? Gold and I had almost never done that, minus some group trips with our seniors.
"Yeah, that actually sounds really fun," I admitted.
"Anywhere in particular you want to go?"
I shook my head, honestly not sure what there might be to do for… fun. I'd always wandered the region when I'd been younger, but it'd been to train my pokemon, find places to stay, and find food. I'd had to wander, or it would have been easier for police to apprehend me, too. Striking in one area too much had them expecting me.
"I don't know what fun is," I replied, gazing up at Lance expectantly.
"Well… there's the beaches at Olivine or Cinnabar, there's the amusement park in Goldenrod, there's the caves in Cerulean we could go explore… It's too cold for most of that. We could always try skiing…"
"Are those places you've taken dates?" I asked curiously, honestly just wanting to be nosey.
He sighed and grabbed a couch cushion, smothering me. I flailed helplessly to the onslaught, obviously not in real danger… I hoped. "Maybe, maybe not," he huffed, peering down at me after he decided I'd had enough suffocating.
I reached up and gently pulled him down for a kiss. "It doesn't really matter; the new memories can just be about me. Since it's so cold… could we maybe get a cabin in the snowy mountains and um… watch some movies and sit by the fire?"
Lance smiled tenderly. "Sure. That sounds great."
We managed to find a nice little cabin for the weekend, near the Indigo Plateau. It sounded nice to just get snowed in together for a weekend. Chilling out together was something Gold and I had always done, but I didn't see Lance nearly as much as I had Gold.
We packed a few clothes, movies, and various things that Friday night, and left early the next day, stopping for groceries before we settled in.
It ended up being an incredibly romantic weekend, curled up together watching movies. We even got drunk and took a steaming hot bath together. "So did Mike ever send you the results?"
"Nah, he's probably either getting laid or broken hearted. I toast to him getting laid," I stated happily, raising my glass of cider.
"To Mike getting laid," Lance laughed along with me, raising his glass of bourbon.
"The water feels so good," I groaned happily, reclined against Lance, in between his legs. The lavender and basil oil in the water was so calming, too. I couldn't make up my mind if it smelled beautiful or delicious… It was soothing, though.
"How do you feel about marriage?" Lance asked softly, and then he tipped back the rest of his drink. He gave a sad little sigh and placed the empty glass on the edge of the bath.
"It seems nice," I admitted, flushing from more than just the liquor. "I kind of like the idea of a sappy ceremony where you promise to stay together forever on record and all…"
"I'm surprised Gold and you never… well…"
"I didn't really want kids, and I guess after so many years it turned to what's the point? Gold never brought it up… We had necklaces with each other's names on them, too, which I guess was like a ring if you squint…"
I was loosened up and honestly completely relaxed between the hot bath, the scent of lavender, Lance's proximity, and the alcohol. It might have been the most relaxed I'd ever been in my life.
"Are you happy Silver? In general, I mean," Lance asked gently, laying his hands on my shoulders and lovingly rubbing them.
I changed my mind, now I was the most relaxed I'd ever been in my life. "Of course, Lance. Can't you tell?"
"Sometimes. Honestly, sometimes I'm nervous I'm reading you wrong. I'm nervous I might be smothering you, or usually, not spending enough time with you. Or maybe too much sex, and not enough other intimacy, or not enough sex… I'm sure you get the idea. It was so easy being outside looking in, being able to judge Gold and knowing exactly what he was doing wrong… Being the one loving you, though, I constantly worry if I'm messing up."
"Lance, of course I'm happy. If I wasn't, I'd tell you."
"You weren't able to tell Gold what you needed," he pointed out gently.
I paused. He did have a point. "I mean, I did sort of. No, I didn't demand anything, but I'd express if something sounded nice. He'd ignore it or tease me in certain instances. I wasn't unhappy with Gold. You understand that, right? I broke up with him because I felt what he'd done couldn't simply be fixed. Plus, I was kind of not able to face him at the time to even try to fix things…"
"Yes, but," Lance sighed. "You know I've never obviously had much luck with any relationships in the past. I'm going to admit, most of them broke up with me. It scares me to think I could lose you as suddenly as Gold might have. I mean, I know if it's meant to be, it will, but, obviously, I'd like to try and avoid losing you. I've really enjoyed these months with you…"
Wow. Lance usually wasn't so frank and open. He must have been more drunk than I thought. I loved him…
"Lance, I'm happy. If I could have one thing, I wouldn't mind if you moved in permanently," I offered softly. Lance usually stayed five of the seven nights a week, but I still missed him those nights he was gone.
"Okay, done," he stated easily.
I smiled faintly, and I got up a bit so I could turn around, laying belly to belly with the dragon champion. The hot water sloshed around us, and I felt so happy. His hair was wet like mine, falling just below his ears. I could never decide if it made him look older or younger when it wasn't spiked. He'd probably have some wicked bedhead tomorrow morning. I brushed aside that strand that loved to fall in the middle of his face and shared a long kiss with him. We'd already had sex before we'd got in the bath, so things were calmer and more loving versus spicy.
I'd cut my hair towards the middle of summer, but it was already getting long again, about three inches past my shoulders.
"I know it's too soon to ask you to marry me yet, but do you think you'd like to in the future, Silver?"
My eyes widened and my breath caught in surprised. I… "Yeah," I uttered easily, my face feeling so hot. I wanted to slip under the water and hide.
"I'm glad. Look forward to it, okay?"
I… I would. Lance as my… husband…? It sounded perfect. He'd been patiently waiting for me for 8 years, probably closer to 9 now, always there for me, always silently loving me. He'd even been there the night my father had passed… He'd carried he home and held me until I'd cried myself to sleep in his arms.
"Why later?" I asked softly. "What will change in the next month, year, five years that makes it a better time than now?"
He was the one to flush this time. "Something. I'm glad you're eager, though…"
I nodded in understanding. I guess I'd just have to trust him on this…
We finally got out of the bath when the water started to cool off and we were getting pruney. I got myself another glass of cider since I'd already finished the entire bottle of Moscato myself, and Lance grabbed another glass of bourbon. I stole a sip to remind myself I still didn't enjoy it. I could tolerate it, but I didn't enjoy it. I preferred wine, usually sweet kinds. I'd always had a thing for fruit…
Lance kissed me, and I decided I liked bourbon and bit more mixed with him.
Oh.
I flushed at the familiar ache as my body clearly wanted to make my arousal evident. "Already?" Lance teased. I'd been expecting that one. I'd only gotten off a few hours ago.
"Already," I offered, trying to shrug it off. Yeah… no, I wanted him. I wasn't that drunk clearly. Granted, getting it up was one thing, finishing would be another. I gently coaxed Lance to the bed, and he smirked at my forwardness.
It was amazing tangling together with him. We'd never really gotten dressed after our bath, and we were just in our underwear.
"Can we do anal?" I asked innocently, happily grabbing Lance's ass to make it clear I wanted to top.
He flushed and sighed in dismay. "Do whatever you want to me…"
Permission received! I couldn't really ask for much more than that considering we'd just gotten each other off a few hours ago. Lance typically wasn't as frisky as my 20-something-year-old self, but that usually never gave us any issues.
It didn't take too long for him to get into it at least after a bit of half-assed prep. It'd taken a decent amount of foreplay and gentleness to get Lance used to anal again at first, but he admitted he'd never really minded it even if he preferred to top.
He was just so tight and hot around my cock, though! I practically had to bite my tongue to behave myself. "How do you resist tearing me in two when we do this?" I choked out.
He pushed back against me in encouragement, letting me know it was okay to try moving now. "Let's just say I'm above average in size and used to it. I have to careful with either sex to be fair," he chuckled breathily. "Come on, you can go a little faster than that," he teased me.
Fuck. I set a gentle tempo, honestly for my own sake so I didn't come. I preferred doggy style when we did this, the movements were easier for me, but missionary was fine with me, too. I didn't like Lance on top at all, amusingly enough, probably because I liked to control the tempo.
"Harder," Lance encouraged me, and I complied, getting into the movements and pleasure. I felt him shift his hips, letting me know I was hitting the right spots inside him. It felt so good. It was still a bit difficult to stroke Lance in rhythm, but he was clearly enjoying it too much to complain. Honestly, I usually lost my erection in the middle of anal anyway unless Lance was stroking me.
I felt him climax, and the extra tightness easily finished me off. I loved being able to thrust just a little bit to the waves of pleasure.
I was a total mess, sweaty and spent, and Lance wasn't much better off. We carefully separated and cleaned up a bit, unanimously grabbing more liquor and collapsing on the couch. This weekend had been amazing. We ended up falling asleep together on the couch, the TV droning in the background.
AN: I hate bourbon, but I love kissing my partner after he's been drinking it. It's like drinking mouthwash vs kissing someone that just swished. Yes, I just compared bourbon to mouthwash when I cut my everclear with vodka (in moderation of course, drink responsibly, try to avoid binge drinking!).
