I never had anxiety when going to call someone. I would sit down nonchalantly, drop a call to my mom every once in a while to let her know how I was doing, and that was it. Or even Professor Oak. We'd talk about my Pokemon I left with him there, or even how my Pokedex was coming along. I was never anxious once when I made a phone call. This time it was different. I had called Misty plenty of times before, but I had never felt so nervous. Was it because she could be angry at me for leaving? Or possibly because we had...er, did...It? Then I thought the impossible...but it couldn't be. It was a fleeting thought, I promised myself. Nothing more. I swallowed as I sat on the rusted and deteriorated seat. Once again, I was facing the monitor, which would soon show the image of my girlfriend. The cold metal against my skin made me shiver. I felt as if I was facing death. But it was only a fleeting thought.
I lifted the lump of plastic - referred to as a 'telephone' - to my ear. I almost dialed the number. I was so close, but I froze. I swallowed, knowing that no matter what was about to happen, I had to stay with her. I'm not going to ditch her. My father did that to me, and I'm not doing it to her. No matter what happens, Misty will always be family, and I wouldn't be able to live without having her by my side. I can do this. She can do this. We'll do this. I breathed deeply, slowly dialing the number. Thankfully, there was no rush. Brock and Dawn were exploring the new town, grabbing a bite to eat, and were going to catch up with me later. Then all too quickly, the phone came alive, ringing. It rang once...twice...
"Ash?"
Misty choked, her face appearing on screen. Her eyes were slightly puffy. She must've been crying. I stared at the screen, looking into her eyes. The tragedy was written all over them. I realized immediately it wasn't just a fleeting thought. This was for real. I was speechless, choking on air. I wanted to be there for her...the pain was so relevant in her eyes. I couldn't understand fully at the time, but I couldn't just ignore it either. She was hurt, and it was my fault. There was a long silence. Misty sobbed once. I wanted to hug her. Jesus, how I would've loved to hold her in my arms, her soft flesh against mine. I could feel tears coming, but I clenched my teeth to hold them back. Misty had tears streaking her face.
"I love you," I promised her, getting close to the screen. Her eyes were shaky. No matter how hard she tried to keep eye contact with me, she couldn't keep them in one place. I couldn't fight back the tears any longer. They fell down my face and dropped onto the desk. Misty huffed. "Tell me, Mist...are you...pregnant...?" I struggled to get the words out. There was another silence. Besides Misty's sobs, my heart's thumping was the only other sound.
I counted the seconds. It took eighty-three seconds. One minute and twenty-three seconds. That was too many seconds. I took a deep breath every ten. My heart couldn't calm down. It was preparing for the worst, and the worst was about to come. I knew she was pregnant, but I had to hear it from her mouth, with her words. Suddenly, after nearly an eternity, the sobbing from the other end seized. I lifted my head to see Misty shaking helplessly and unable to stop.
"...Ash...Ash, I'm pregnant...I'm pregnant..." she cried. "I'm pregnant..." She continually repeated, as if she still couldn't believe it herself, or even as if she thought it was her fault. I felt my heart sink. I just destroyed her life, and she was taking it to herself. Tears trickled down my face faster now, in streams. Suddenly, everything seemed to fade away. The room around seemed to just disappear. I was oblivious to all sound but Misty's quiet, trembling voice. "I love you, Ash...I love you..." Someone could have came over to me and knocked me over the head with a book, and I wouldn't have noticed. I began to stop crying, when, before I knew it, I felt like I was reduced to a ten year old again. Both Misty and I were seemingly shorter, and I could just imagine her in my arms...crying. We needed each other so badly then, but I wasn't there. I realized my third and final mistake. I wanted her. I wanted the baby. I wanted a family. But I wasn't there.
I wasn't there.
THE END
Guys! You said you wanted more, right? Well that's what you're going to get! Just not here. ^.^; Starting really soon, there's going to be a continuation. While Ash is in Sinnoh, Misty is pregnant. So Misty is going to have a journal sort of thing. So about once or twice a week I'll post a little something in Misty's perspective. BUT! that is only the middle ground! The REAL sequel to this story is Degradation. Eleven years later, when Ash's kid is eleven. Read it, love it, review it. Degradation is ALREADY UP, guys! Check out my profile, which has all the dates I'm going to update, and click on Degradation. There's already four chapters! Alrighty then, this is Kelsey-Mae Copeland, signing out!
/kelsey-mae