Chapter 14: Together…and Apart

Violet walked slowly to where Bryce was sitting. She placed a paw on his shoulder, sitting down beside him.

"Are you okay?" she asked softly.

Bryce made no response. He couldn't even look at her.

"Bryce…" Violet said, leaning towards him.

There was still no response.

"What's wrong?" She asked. Violet knew very well what was wrong, but Bryce needed to tell her himself, in his own words.

"…Nothing's wrong." He said flatly.

"That's not true." Violet said softly. "You've been different ever since I said I was leaving. My aura might not be at full power, but I can still tell something's wrong. I've known you too long not to know how you act."

"Don't worry, I'm fine. You should get some sleep." Bryce replied. He even gave a small smile, but it was clearly a fake one.

Violet was beginning to get upset. "Stop pretending, Bryce. I'm not a fool."

"I'm okay, I promise." He said, still with a bland voice.

"Stop it Bryce! You're scaring me. You never act like this. Why can't you just admit you'll miss me? Acting like I'm not leaving won't solve your problem with this, so stop acting like you don't care!" Violet shouted.

While he was surprised to hear Violet shout, he wasn't going to break. He couldn't. That wasn't his plan. His response was silence.

"Fine! I guess that's just it! You don't care! Not about me, not about yourself!" She yelled at him.

You don't care…that was like being impaled with ice. That cold feeling struck him over and over again in his head, "You don't care. You don't care". It felt like he was crashing into brick walls, over and over. It felt so horrible to do this to her.

"Violet, I…" he started.

"Don't even bother; I know you just want me to leave, even if you will miss me."

"Lucario, please…"

"See? You won't even call me by the name you gave me! The name I want to hear! Stop hiding from the reality." She grabbed Bryce by his shoulders and shook him. "I am leaving and you will miss me!"

How? How was it possible? To act like he didn't care… at all? It was too hard.

"Violet, STOP!" he finally yelled. "Stop thinking I don't care! Stop thinking I won't miss you! I will…more than anything. You mean everything to me."

That was all it took; saying that he did care. He gave up, crying with his face in his hands. Violet was too shocked to do anything. Backing up, she couldn't reply or move to comfort him…she was frozen in place.

"Why?" she finally asked. "Why couldn't you just say it?"

"I didn't want you to feel bad…about leaving. I didn't want you to think you were horrible for leaving me. I don't want you to be sad, and if you did feel bad about leaving, I didn't want my emotion to get in the way. As long as you're happy, I'll be okay." He finished, tears still falling into the cold grass.

Violet was in tears now. "You did that… for me?" Bryce nodded. "That's the most selfless thing anyone has ever done for me." She sat down by Bryce and put a paw on his shoulder.

"You have no idea how much I care about you, Violet. You've done things for me that I could only dream of." Bryce said. He knew he couldn't stop. "You're always there for me. I couldn't be happier when you're around, and when I'm away at school or somewhere else, I feel miserable. Every time you hug me, I just feel like everything melts away. I've never sad when you're with me. These last seven months have been the best time of my life…because of you. It may have taken a while, but I finally realized that I..."

"…you'll miss me?" Violet asked.

"Yes, but mostly that all I ever wanted was someone like you and that I…I love you."

Finally, he had said it. There was nothing left to hide. That was his deepest secret…but now she knew. She had to, though. Violet didn't deserve not to know after all she had done for him.

Violet was staring at the back of his head. Was that what she felt every time they were together? Love? That warm feeling of his presence and comfort? Maybe. She never felt like this before; Pokémon don't really choose mates based on how attracted they are to them; their parents choose the best potential partner for them. However, Bryce was kind, caring, protective…and he did mean a lot to her as well.

Bryce got up to go into the house. Even if Violet didn't love him, she still did need to know.

"Bryce…" Violet started.

"Look, I know you…" he began.

However, he couldn't finish because she put a paw on his shoulder, turning him towards her. She leaned forward and kissed him. At first, he was too shocked to do anything, but once he realized what was happening, he kissed back passionately. It was nothing like the kiss at Christmas. This one was full of passion and emotion. He placed a hand on her waist and the other on her back. At the same time, she put one of her paws on his back and the other on the back of his head, letting his hair course over it. Bryce held her close, avoiding her spike, but feeling the warmth radiating from her. They finally broke apart, looking into each other's eyes. Then Violet said the words Bryce longed to hear.

"…I love you too."

"Really?" Bryce asked.

She nodded, smiling at his happiness. He started tearing up again, hugging her tightly. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you earlier. I didn't because…"

"…I'm a Pokémon and you're a human?" Violet asked.

"No, because I would rather have a great friend than someone who would feel awkward around me because I said I love them. I didn't want to risk it, but this is the last night you will be here, and I knew I could tell you." He responded. "I don't care if you're a Pokémon, I love you for who you are, not who you could be."

She nodded. "… and that's just how it should be. I wouldn't change you, no matter what."

Leading her back into the house, Violet walked into Bryce's room.

"I'm sleeping here tonight and you aren't changing my mind."

Bryce didn't argue. It didn't matter and he didn't want to fight.

The two slept peacefully in each other's arms.

"…I'll never forget you…ever." Bryce said softly in his sleep.

The next morning…

"When do you have to leave?" Bryce asked sadly.

"In about thirty minutes." Violet responded.

The two spent the last few minutes together. Bryce gave her a purple MP3 player with all the songs she loved and the silk blanket he got for her so long ago.

"Something to remember me by." He said. "Promise me you'll never change for someone. The reason most of the things I gave you were purple was from your eyes. You said that you were teased; I'm telling you that you have the most beautiful eyes and differences like that are what gives character. If everyone was the same, we would still be in the Dark Ages."

"I promise." She said. "I know you're right, differences make us distinct, not better or worse."

Bryce smiled. "You know I'll never forget you. You'll always be an important part of me."

"I know I won't forget you either. If there is any way I can come back, I will." She looked him straight in the eye. "Close your eyes."

Bryce did as told and felt a warm tickling sensation on his right eye. When he opened his eyes, he saw one of Violet's eyes was blue.

"Whenever I think of you and you think of me, one of your eyes will turn purple like mine and one of mine will turn blue." She smiled. "Remember, we'll never be truly apart."

"Never." Bryce agreed.

The light to take Violet back appeared. She turned to face him one more time. They kissed one last time, prolonging the inevitable.

"I'll see you again…I promise." Violet said, stepping into the light. The glow radiated her face, showing a smile and tears in the corner of her eyes. She faded away along with the light, leaving Bryce alone.

"Violet..." he whispered softly. He sat down, mourning the loss of his only friend. Bryce finished crying and softly spoke:

"Thank you…for everything…"