"So you are dating him? Again?" Lyra asked and Dawn could feel the slight disappointment behind her words.

"Yeah."

"I am not going to tell you what to do, if that's what you are worried about," Lyra let out a sigh,"But do you really think that it is a good idea?"

Dawn closed her eyes as she pulled the blanket over her, feeling Olivia snuggle beside her stomach. "I don't know okay? But I knew that not being with him would hurt even more. I do want to give us another chance so that later I would not regret it."

"And what if this heartbreak is worse than the previous one?"

Dawn's heart clenched at that. Her heart had already gone through all the scenarios and god, none of them were pretty. What if he never actually falls for her again? What if he decides that she's not the one he wants? What if they don't regain their old spark?

"Dawn? You there?''

"Oh, yea, I am," Dawn could feel her eyes getting heavy. "Lyra, but I just love him so much."

"I know, and I am just worried, okay. I don't want you to go through that heartbreak again. You disconnected from everyone, would ignore my texts and I am pretty sure you know how bad that phase was." Lyra sighed,"This time Ash is gonna see red if he fucks up."

Dawn let out a laugh at that,"Aye Aye captain."

"Well, in a way, your cats got both a mom and a dad," Lyra joked,"They must be thrilled."

"I sometimes think that Oli is more attached to Ash than me," She said, ignoring Lyra's hint,"Always goes to him first when we are together and all."

"That might be because of Loki's smell."

"Yeah. Maybe," Dawn yawned,"I am a little afraid to tell Mom about me and Ash. I don't want her to know about us yet but I am scared the paparazzi would get a wind of my relationship and she will know from that source. I don't want her to know that from outside resources."

"Johanna isn't the type of Mom who would stop you from dating someone you like. She might be disappointed, yes, but I think that's better than making her even more disappointed after she learns about you hiding your relationship."

"I might be making a mistake, Lyra," Dawn could feel a heavy, sinking feeling in her heart,"I mean, he definitely wasn't taking me as a dating material these past few months. A part of me thinks he is just being generous and said yes because he felt bad for me."

"If you're asking me for advice or reassurance, I'm sorry. All I can advice you is: talk to him. I definitely don't know what he is thinking Dane."

"I know," Dawn could feel the phone vibrating against her ears,"It just feels like I can't express myself clearly even if I talk to him at the moment."

After chatting with Lyra for a while, Dawn disconnected the call and put her phone down. She knew she had a text which was most probably from Ash but decided to reply after a while.

During her time together with Ray, she thought saying I love you to him again and again would make her heart actually start loving the person. He was a good guy, and a great boyfriend too but having those qualities doesn't always ensure a nice, happy relationship. And she wasn't even half as good a person as Ray was.

She was loud, emotional and oh god damn she had such a bossy attitude. Why would Ash even want to stay with a person who turned everything into a competition? Why would he fall for someone who had to be correct all the time? Why would he start loving a woman who kept presenting herself as the victim most of the times? The more she thought about it, the more she kept believing how much she didn't deserve him.


"Hey," Dawn said as she slowly entered his apartment. He pressed a kiss on her cheeks and she flushed red at his touch. Her wide-eyed expression made him chuckle as he wrapped his fingers around hers and they walked inside.

"With all the stuff we have done in the past, I didn't think this would make you blush."

Dawn just stared at him speechless. The nerve of this man to suggest something so lewd so nonchalantly. "Haha, very funny."

"What?" He wiggled his eyebrows,"Do I need to remind you of how you used to-"

"I will dropkick you if you don't stop," The tip of her ears were probably red from embarrassment,"I am not kidding."

"Cool, cool," He raised his hands in surrender,"I was about to make some tea, want some?"

She wasn't going to turn down that offer. This man knew how to make the best tea.

"Sure," She said as she let Oli free who immediately went to Ash to bump her nose against his ankles. "Why is Olivia so attached to you? She keeps headbutting you for pets whenever you're there."

"She can sense I'm a good person," Ash said as he picked the little kitten up, kissing her forehead.

"Then why does Loki keep running away?"

"Ah he doesn't like PDA," Ash rubbed his fingers over the kitten's stomach, making the little thing purr like a motorboat,"Hannah said she will be happy to babysit the cats while we are out."

Her sister Hannah? "What?" Dawn felt her panicking voice slipping out,"You told Hannah about us? Oh my god! I didn't tell her about us yet!"

"I was just talking to her last night and casually mentioned that we are trying again."

Dawn wondered how the fuck was he even so close to her stepsister. "Was she the one who suggested taking me out on a date?"

"No?" He pouted and it made her want to poke his puffed up lips. The sight was just too adorable.

Keeping the brown feline down, he went up to the sink to wash his hands. Dawn propped herself up on the counter and watched as the cat ran away on seeing Loki. Ash said,"I was just catching up on Hannah, and she asked if the rumours were true. I then told her how the part about old love getting back together wss true, so yeah."

It was her turn to pout now. "If she was interested, she could have just asked me."

He gave her a grin,"Ever crossed your mind that you are intimidating at times."

"Yeah, I have been told that a lot."

Watching him work around the kitchen was a sight that she missed a lot. She noticed how the dirty Tupperwares were now gone and his place looked a lot cleaner. Oh damn. He must have cleaned up because she was coming over.

"Hannah is a good kid. She reminds me of the young you at times."

That was a compliment she wasn't expecting. "Why?" She asked curiously,"Pretty sure she is a lot better than me when I was her age."

"She is cute, so that's a similarity. She demands respect and attention wherever she goes, so that's another," Ash said as he pulled out a cup from the cupboard and kept it beside the sink to clean it,"And she isn't afraid of speaking her mind, so there's another."

"Holy damn, she has a big mouth, doesn't she?"

"I also said cute but your mind focused on the negative one. Another similarity right there."

"I-" She looked away from his captivating eyes,"Aah, did you clean up your kitchen because I was coming over?"

"Kinda."

"Hawww!" She cooed,"Does that mean your bed finally has a bedsheet?"

"Someone is excited to jump into my bed," He winked at her,"All in due time baby. All in due time."

Feeling her face warming up at the comment, she crossed her arms over her chest, staring at him with a pretty surprised expression,"I didn't even hint at us having sex and you-"

"When did I ever mention sex?" He gave her a innocent smile,"But I like the way you think."

The audacity of this idiot to look so innocent while saying the craziest of things. "I am seriously gonna dropkick you."

"Sorry sorry," He walked over and pressed a kiss on her forehead, surprising her. "Its just so fun to tease you."

"I will forgive you because you make great tea." He was still standing infront of her and she wrapped her arms around his torso, resting her head on his chest. Oh, the feeling was familiar.

He felt like home.

"So," She began,"Where are you taking me out on a date?"

He wrapped his arms around her while his chin rested on the top of her head,"Remember where our first date was?"

"Pallet Town fireworks festival?" She replied and could feel him squirming a little.

He broke the hug, giving her a look which screamed,'how could you forget?'. Dawn eyed him as if he had grown two heads. "Ash, where was our first date?"

"The amusement park!" His eyes were wide and mouth wide open,"How could you forget?"

"No?" She shook her head slowly,"We went therr with Leaf and Gary before we started dating. That wasn't our first date."

"That was a double date!"

Dawn was about to say something but something caught her eye and she pointed at the kettle,"I think the tea is ready." Ash was pouring it out and she continued,"I always took the amusement park outing as Leaf and Gary date and us going as friends. Didn't know you thought it was a date."

His lips pressed into a thin line as he passed her the cup. She took the yellow cup with outline of a mouse drawn on it.

"Dawnie, I am sure everyone else, well except you, thought of it as a double date," Ash let out a small laugh,"I always thought that was a date where I got turned down."

"Why are we talking about that now?" She asked,"Oh my goodness! You were planning on taking me to the amusement park?"

He nodded and watched her expression turning to surprised and then to horror.

"Dawn?"

"Oh god!" She bit her lower lips,"The paparazzi... They would ruin the place which has such a special meaning to us."

"Hush," He pressed a kiss on her temples,"No one, I mean no one can destroy the memories we made okay. Yes, being monitored would be annoying and we would like our privacy but I know what I was getting into when I said I wanted to date you. The thoughts of others don't matter. Don't worry."

How could she not worry? Would he be able to say the same if this keeps going on and on and on everytime they went out?

"I am just-" She was interrupted by the doorbell and Ash went to get the person at the door.

She followed him out, tea cup in her hands and found Hannah entering the house, a big smile plastered on her face. Seeing her, Dawn couldn't help but smile too.

"I knew you still liked him when you got that dress he picked out for you!" Hannah said as she hugged her big sister, and Dawn could literally feel a new wave of teasing she was going to get from Ash.

"What dress?" Ash raised his eyebrows and Dawn quickly answered to shut Hannah up.

"Oh, nothing. I will tell you later."

"Well, I will go get my jacket and then we can leave after having our tea?" Ash said, still eyeing the two sisters curiously,"Hannah, there's money on the top of the refrigerator if you need to order something. The cats might avoid you and please don't take it personally if they act hostile. If something happens, don't hesitate to give me a call."

"Sure!"

Once Ash disappeared out from their sights, Dawn gave her a side eyed glance,"Had no idea you were this close to him that you agreed to babysit."

"Its a good way to earn money, I do babysitting from time to time. Pet sitting is better because they don't throw tantrums like a kid," Hannah made herself comfortable on the couch.

"If you need some money, could have asked me you know," Dawn sat down beside her,"I would love to help you out if you need something."

"I know," Hannah beamed as bright as the sun,"I also know that you keep sending Dad some money for me every month. I am saving that up for college."

"Then why do you do odd jobs like this?"

The little sister shrugged,"Who else is gonna pay me for playing with kids and cats? And it is a good way to meet a lot of people and learn something. Moreover, I get so bored and Mom just won't let me work part-time as a waitress because people are so rude to staff sometimes. She thinks that stress would trigger my cancer or cause harm."

"She is right about people being rude to service staff," Dawn nodded in understanding,"Well, if you're enjoying it, then why not."

"Exactly." Hannah stuck out her tongue playfully at Loki and the cat looked away from her and began walking as if owned the place. "King of this condo," Hannah hissed under her breath,"Have fun!"

"Yeah."

Ash emerged from the room in his jacket and asked Dawn,"Lets go?"

She just nodded and got up while Olivia ran across the room, followed by Loki. They slowly made their way out of the house and closed the door behind them.

When he interlocked their fingers while walking side by side, Dawn realised how much she missed this feeling of being beside him.

Her heart felt like it was going to explode out of happiness. Maybe, maybe they won't work out but being with him, at this moment, was worth all the risks.

He was worth fighting for afterall.


Happy new year folks!

Some fluff to brighten up your new year! It is a short chapter because I wanted to update so much! Promise you guys that the next one would be a long one.! Its midnight here and I am way too tired to proofread it, so, if you see any mistake, I apologise in advance.!

Hopefully this year treats us well!

~ darkestlightofhope