This two-shot came to me in a weird dream last night haha. It's not too realistic, but I found it funny. Enjoy!
"Why does your backpack look like Misty?" asks the raven haired teen walking beside his childhood friend and rival.
The auburn haired teen looks over with a huge smirk on his face. "Red?"
"Yeah." Ash was on his way home since the Alola League just ended. Pikachu is currently dozing in Ash's backpack. The raven haired teen ran into Gary on the way back to Pallet Town, and the two have spent some time catching up. Now that they're out of things to talk about, Ash can finally ask Gary about his backpack. Did Misty and Gary get close while Ash was gone?
Gary stops in his tracks to take his backpack off. "This, Ashy Boy, is not just any backpack."
"Yeah. It looks like Misty."
Gary shakes his head. "To you, yes!" He then points at himself. "But to me, this backpack looks like me."
Ash raises an eyebrow at Gary. "No, Gary. This is clearly Misty." Ash recognizes that spiky side ponytail anywhere.
"Oh, Ashy Boy." Gary puts his backpack back on as they resume walking. "I made this backpack."
This just irks Ash more for some reason. Why did Gary make a backpack that looks like Misty? Does Gary like her? Since when did they get close? Are they dating? No. They can't be! "Why?"
Gary shrugs. "It just kind of happened." He then shoots Ash a grin. "But this backpack looks like the person you love."
Ash rolls his eyes. "I'm not a stupid kid anymore, Gary."
Chuckling, the auburn haired boy is getting a kick out of teasing his old friend. "I'm pretty sure you are."
Ignoring the comment, Ash mutters, "I still don't get why you made a backpack that looks like Misty. Do you love her or something?" Gary's insults can wait. Right now, the Alolan Champion is more concerned about his best friend's relationship with this boy.
"Nah. But you love her."
"She's my friend. I love all my friends." Ash remarks.
Gary faces his back to Ash. "Who does my backpack look like?"
"Misty." grumbles Ash. He's already said this to Gary plenty of times.
"This backpack takes the shape of the person you love, Ashy Boy." Gary knowingly tells him. "So the fact that you see Red means that you love Red romantically."
"She's my friend." Ash blushes slightly. Just what is Gary saying? Ash doesn't have romantic feelings for anyone. He's just trying to be a Pokemon Master.
Rolling his eyes, Gary adds, "I see myself when I look at the backpack." He winks playfully at Ash. "Ya know. Cuz I love myself the most."
Makes sense. Ash can't see this narcissistic boy with anyone. Gary loves himself too much. It's why he's such a playboy. "I don't believe you."
"Wake up Pikachu. I bet he won't be seeing Red."
"Fine." Ash takes off his backpack to wake up the sleeping mouse inside. Pikachu is not amused, so he shocks Ash with a thundershock attack. As Gary is laughing hysterically, Ash manages to pull out his tired starter Pokemon. "C'mon, Pikachu! I have a question!" Mew, if Gary is lying and just playing a prank on Ash again, Ash will be so pissed. Ash will feel like such an idiot, which Gary is good at making him feel.
Once Pikachu is finally out of Ash's backpack, he glares at his trainer. "Pika!"
Ash points to Gary's backpack, which makes Pikachu in an instantly better mood. Pikachu clings onto Gary's backpack and starts licking around the top of it. "Ah! What does Pikachu like?" Gary panics, especially when Pikachu's tongue tickles the back of his neck.
Ash shrugs. "I don't know. Dawn says he has a crush on her Buneary."
"That's gross, Ashy Boy! Get your Pikachu off of me before he mates with my backpack!"
Sheepishly rubbing the back of his head, Ash pulls Pikachu off of Gary, much to Pikachu's dismay. "Pikachu doesn't normally lick Buneary like that though."
Gary wipes at the back of his neck and ears. "That's how Pokemon mate. Don't you know about the Pidgeys and the Beedrills?"
"The what?"
Facepalming, Gary chooses to ignore the dense boy he grew up with. How is Ash a champion before Gary? Gary looks at the annoyed Pikachu. "Pikachu, does my backpack look like Red?"
"Pi?" Pikachu cocks his head to the side in confusion.
"Yeah, Pikachu! Tell Gary his backpack looks like Misty!" Ash is tired of Gary's teasing.
Pikachu shakes his head. "Kachupi!"
"What'd he say?" Gary curiously looks at Ash's frown.
"He said 'ketchup'."
Gary now recalls the times he'd see Pikachu very happy to eat. Slamming his fist in his hand, the auburn haired boy exclaims, "That's it! Pikachu loves ketchup!" It explains why Pikachu was licking the top of Gary's backpack.
Pikachu just wants a taste of that giant ketchup bottle Gary is wearing. Why did Ash wake him up if not for the ketchup? "Pi!"
Ash's amazed eyes now meet Gary's knowing viridian ones. "So you're saying, this backpack looks like who we love?"
Gary nods victoriously. "Yup. You see who you love."
"That's so cool!" Pikachu is unamused. So the ketchup isn't real? It's just a backpack? No fair. He sits on the ground pouting as his trainer is talking to Gary.
"I did invent it." Gary boasts with his hands on his hips and his nose in the air.
Ash now puts a hand on his chin in deep thought. "So you're saying, Pikachu sees ketchup because he loves ketchup, you see yourself because you love yourself, and I see Misty because…"
Pikachu giggles from the ground, making Ash's face heat up. "Yup, Ashy Boy! You love Red!"
"I don't love anyone romantically, Gary!" whines the raven haired boy.
"You're in denial. My backpack never lies!"
Ash awkwardly rubs the back of his neck. There was a time he had a crush on Misty years ago when they traveled together; however, he assumed that was gone. He's traveled with many other people, and even Serena kissed him! Ash just saw Misty a few months ago in Alola too. He would've felt something if he still had that crush on her, right? That crush years ago was minor too. He assumed it was because she's the first girl he was closest to, but he's made many more girl friends afterwards, so that crush was gone.
"Here." Gary takes off his backpack and takes out all its contents. Grabbing Ash's backpack, Gary absentmindedly dumps his stuff. "Try the backpack out on Red. I'm telling you, she's been head over heels for you since before I ever met her." Gary tosses his empty backpack at Ash.
"Wait. I'm supposed to see my mom and everyone at the lab." It's why Ash is headed home anyway.
Gary puts Ash's backpack on his back now that his stuff is in it. "I'm sure your mom will understand. She's been waiting for you to realize your feelings for Red for a long time now."
"I don't like Misty like that!" Ash shouts.
"The backpack never lies." Gary repeats with a smirk on his face. "I'm pretty sure when you realize she likes you too, you'll admit your feelings."
"Gary, I only care about Pokemon and my friends. I don't care for romance."
"You don't know what romance is! You're not the brightest tool in the shed, Ashy Boy." Gary snickers, earning him an unamused glare from Ash. Patting Ash on the back, Gary says, "Look. Just go to Cerulean City and ask her what your backpack looks like? Then you can come back to Pallet. It won't take too long."
"I don't care what she thinks the backpack looks like!"
"I do." Gary laughs. "And aren't you a little bit curious? I heard she's declined many dates since she's been the gym leader. Why is that?"
"Because she's like me! We're focused on being the best trainers we can be! We don't have time for love!"
"Pikapi pikachu pika ka pikachu." Pikachu knowingly remarks.
"I'm not in denial about my feelings!"
"Pi pikachu pika pi kachu pichu pika."
"I'm not dense!"
Gary wipes hysteric tears from his eyes. "See! Even Pikachu knows!" Walking away as his laughter dies down, Gary yells, "Just go! I know she's been waiting for you to visit anyway!"
Ash groans as he puts his stuff in Gary's stupid backpack that looks like the redhead Ash is going to visit. "This is stupid." the boy mutters to his giggling Pokemon.
"Pikachupi?"
"She's just a friend!"
Before Gary rounds the corner, he looks back at Ash to see the boy finally walking back the way they came. Yes. Ash is headed towards Cerulean City! Or he should be. Pikachu will make sure of it. Gary sighs as he watches the backpack getting further away. He likes wearing it because it looks like that brown haired thief he hasn't seen in a while. At least Ash will be putting it to good use. Gary will have to remind Red to thank him later once she and Ash start dating.
This is just a two-shot, so the next chapter is the last one. I was gonna make it a one-shot, but I'm too lazy to type up the second part, so might as well make it a two-shot. Stay tuned! Who will Misty see the backpack as?