(A/N: sorry you guys, after that flame I got, I sorta lost hope, but here's what I have so far, it's a chapter, I have to write some more so the next time might take longer, sorry.)

"MISTY!" Ash yelled as he sat up, he found himself resting beside his bed on his knees. Misty woke up with a start after hearing Ash yell her name.

"Ash what is it?" Ash didn't answer her, he stared straight ahead like she wasn't there, he covered his face with his hands and let out a sigh, it was broken and it seemed like he was on the verge of tears. "Ash what's wrong?" Misty said again, trying to get a reaction out of him. He didn't answer her, he put his head down on the bed and his shoulders shuddered slightly, he sniffed back tears. Misty quickly got out of bed and knelt down next to him, wrapping her arms around him and forcing him to rest his head on her shoulder. He instinctively wrapped his arms around her waist, letting out another shaky sigh, "Ash…tell me what's wrong, what is it? You can tell me…" Misty said soothingly as she rubbed his back. Ash desperately wanted to tell her, but he didn't feel that he should worry her about a dream.

"It's…I just thought yesterday was some wonderful dream. I just…I don't know what Gary's up to now, he could try to hurt you during the tournament…I don't want him to do anything to you…" Misty held onto him tighter,

"It's alright, I can protect myself, Gary's not one of my problems, it's whoever kidnapped me." Ash felt tears roll down his face, as much as he tried to sniff them back, it felt good to finally let them go.

"I just…I don't know how I survived without you. It seemed like years…I felt so lost and alone without you. I felt…tortured for something, I don't ever want to go through that again…" Misty heard him try to hold back tears, she felt helpless. She rubbed his back and squeezed him tightly,

"Ash, you shouldn't be tortured for anything, there's nothing you've done wrong, and that'll always be the truth." She stroked his head, she heard him start to calm down, his breathing returned to around normal and he sighed contently as he hugged her. She stood up and helped him to his feet, they both sat down on the bed. It was still night outside, and they still had a few good hours of sleep left. "Lie down and rest for the rest of the night, you need it." Ash quickly snapped awake,

"No!" He realized he sounded very desperate, he calmed himself down, "No…I'm watching over you remember, I have to make sure nothing happens to you, and if I go to sleep I can't do that." Misty kissed him gently, then looked into his eyes,

"You need sleep just as much as I do, we'll sleep next to each other for the night, just like old times. You know as well as I do that you can't seem to let me go during the night." Misty said, trying to make him happier, or at least smile, which she got her wish. He smiled slightly, nodding his head in agreement. Misty laid down and patted the spot next to her, "C'mon Ash, don't be scared, it's not like this hadn't happened before." Ash quietly nodded his head and laid down next to her, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her into him. She rubbed his back and sighed happily, "Now go to sleep Ash, you'll feel better in the morning."

"But…" Ash tried to protest, but Misty wouldn't hear any of it, she rested her head on his shoulder,

"Hush, don't argue with me, I'm older than you remember, you have to listen to what I say." Ash chuckled quietly,

"Says who?"

"Says me, now to go bed." Ash smiled at her and laughed. He snuggled closely to her and nuzzled his head into her shoulder. He sighed heavily and was asleep in a matter of minutes. Misty watched him sleep for several moments; she smiled happily and pulled him closer as she fell asleep.

Misty slowly awoke in the morning with a quiet yawn. Ash was quietly sleeping in her arms, mumbling quietly in his sleep. Misty felt a smile come across her face, Ash had grown so handsome over the years, but he still retained some of his childish charm from back in their youth days. He snuggled into her, letting out a small sigh. She smiled and kissed his forehead, she ran her hands through his black silky hair, traced her fingers along the lines of his face. She gently ran her fingers along the curves of his eyes, his eyelashes, and his nose and down to his lips. He chuckled quietly in his sleep, he shook his head as she tickled his face and snuggled closer to her. While in his sleep, he kissed her fingers as they rested on his lips. His brow soon became more serious as he fell deeper into sleep. The sun slowly started to peak up behind the horizon, the beginning of a new day. The sun's rays slowly peeked into the room, washing everything in a brightly light. Misty looked to Ash's sleeping form and smiled, she usually was the one who was up first.

"Ash…hey…wake up." She whispered to him. Ash groaned 'no' and buried his head into her shoulder, snuggling closer to her and tightening his hold on her. She smiled and kissed his forehead, "Sweetie, wake up…" She whispered again, Ash didn't respond this time and slept quietly. She sighed and kissed his lips gently as not to wake him. She reluctantly got up and pried herself from Ash's warm grip. Ash groaned in his sleep and instead snuggled with a pillow to try to gain the same warmth as he had done when Misty was lying in bed with him. Misty smiled as she walked from the room. She walked down the stairs and looked over the couch to see Brock asleep, Pikachu resting on his stomach, rising and falling with Brock's breathing. She didn't bother to wake him up; it would be a while before he did. She walked into the kitchen and saw Mrs. K (Ash's mother) sitting at the kitchen table, a cup of coffee in her hand. Misty smiled at her and she smiled back, everything seemed to be going good with her since her operation and therapy, she seemed almost back to normal. "Good morning Mrs. K, how are you doing this morning?" She looked up at Misty and smiled warmly as the young woman sat down,

"I'm fine dear, how are you? Feeling any better from yesterday?" She got up and brought Misty come coffee.

"I'm doing so much better, I'm just happy that I got to make Ash better…I heard that his life hadn't been very good or eventful since I was gone." Mrs. K nodded her head,

"Yes, that boy certainly is happy now that you've come back." She looked at Misty's hand and noticed the ring on her finger. She took her hand and looked at the ring on her finger, smiling, "Well, it looks like you two ended up making a rock solid commitment." Misty blushed,

"Yeah, well…he never really asked me out right, I just…put it on myself. He seemed happy about it though…" She trailed off, looking at the ground. Honestly, she at first couldn't even imagine Ash every loving her again. She still believed that he was just being nice to her.

"So…" Mrs. K said, changing the subject, "Is Ash going to take you to see your sisters today? I'm sure they'll be positively happy to see you." Misty smiled,

"Yeah, it's been so long since I've seen them, it seemed like years…" She trailed off again.

"Misty, dear what's wrong?" Mrs. K asked

"I just…I want Ash and Brock to be safe…they're going through so much trouble for me…putting their lives and reputations at stake, all for me." Mrs. K was about to reply, but Ash came in, scratching his head and yawning. Instead she looked up and greeted her son,

"Good morning honey, how did you sleep?" She asked him, Ash nodded his head and yawned,

"I slept alright, is breakfast ready yet?" Mrs. K smiled and stood up,

"I'm going to get started on it right away, wake Brock up so he won't miss out."

"Okay." Ash said to his mother as she turned around, as she did, he leaned down and kissed Misty passionately. She blushed as he pulled away and walked toward the living room, greeting her on the way out, "Good morning Misty, did you sleep well?" He asked from the other room,

"Uh…err…yes, I did. Of course, with you next to me I couldn't sleep bad." Soon Brock stumbled into the kitchen and into one of the chairs, Ash came in and sat down beside Misty,

"Glad I could help. Well, after breakfast we can go see your sisters, would you like that?" He asked her, Brock scratched his head and listened silently to them talking,

"Yeah, but you know Ash, all I want to do is be here with you." She took his hand and squeezed it, Ash smiled gently. Brock squinted and noticed the ring on her finger, he whistled out loud,

"Hoo boy, that is one EXPENSIVE looking ring! When did this happen?" Misty was about to respond that she had taken the liberty of putting the ring on herself, but Ash put a finger over her lips, smiling at her and glancing at Brock,

"Well you know how these things are Brock, I was just filled with so much love that I slipped the ring on her finger and asked her to marry me, like I always had dreamt." His smile widened and he turned to Brock, "Why? Is that a problem?"

"Of course not, I just didn't imagine for it to be so soon." Ash turned to Misty, making funny kissy faces at her. Misty laughed and pushed him away,

"Ash stop it!" Ash laughed and gave her a kiss on the forehead as Mrs. K put breakfast on the table and everyone started eating, and hours later they were all immersed in stories of their youth, talking and laughing. Soon Ash looked at the clock, standing up,

"Oh wow…hey we gotta get goin'! Your sisters are waiting for us." Everyone got up and went off to get dressed, they met out of the house and all jumped into the car, driving off towards Misty's hometown.

(A/N: please review, thank you very much)