Hello again everyone! :) Has anyone noticed all the titles of the chapters are titles of songs? Perhaps not. Anyway, thank you all for reviewing once again, I don't know what I would do without you guys.

As for the plot, Gary and Ash go to the hospital and things are pretty awkward between them, awww cute. And also, this chapter will be in Gary's POV as the last one received so much positive feedback. I thought I would do another! :) Thank me later.

I can't wait to write the carnival part :3 i'll be so excited. And now I'll leave you to enjoy your fluffy goodness, au revior!

Chapter Eight: Oh my stomach is tied in knots.

I don't get Ash, like seriously.

One minute he is back to his old stupid loser self, insulting me and stuff, and then the next he goes all girly on my ass. Is it because of me? Is it something I am putting out there? Urghhh... get a grip on yourself Gary.

The long and tedious walk towards Viridian City seemed to be taking longer than I ever anticipated, perhaps that was because both myself and Ash were acting like idiots and not talking to each other.

Well, I wasn't going to make the first move here, he was the one who was acting weird.

I just held Eevee tightly to my chest as the warm sun shone down on both of us. At least the weather was good.

"Ummmm Gary?" Ash spoke quietly, finally destroying this horrible silence between us. I turned to face the shorter boy, I knew that I would be giving him that look of mine, that 'what the hell is it now' look.

"Yeah?"

"I... I'm sorry," He mumbled, his eyes looking downwards as we continued walking towards the hospital.

Now not even I could understand why he constantly kept apologising and acting totally out of character. For goodness sake it was Ash here, stupid loser Ash who used to get riled about anything! It seemed that side of him was no longer around.

I missed that.

Sighing a little I responded to his apology.

"Why are you apologising?"

It seemed ever since I had returned to his house and he had demanded where I had been because he was worried had altered our relationship. I also noticed that he blushed a lot around me.

"I just feel bad..."

Rolling my eyes at him I could not help but feel kind of sorry for him, if only I knew what was going on through that stupid head of his then maybe understanding this dilemma would be easier. We continued walking, the sun beating down on our backs as this awkward conversation lingered in the air.

"Well don't, stupid, it is okay. I just wish that you would just talk to me, you know?" I confessed.

It did annoy me, I was not an ogre after all and I would just listen to him if he needed me too. Luckily for me I hid a sensitive side in my body somewhere, it was just finding it that was the issue.

I watched as he looked up at me, those hazel eyes sparkling in the sunshine.

"Sometimes I just... can't," He murmured, turning his gaze away from me again. I sighed again.

Was it really that difficult to just talk to me? Jeez, I never realised that I was so difficult to be able to talk to and sort things out. Wow Gary, turns out your an even bigger loser than Ash used to be... okay, maybe not THAT much.

I knew my patience was slipping so I just remained mute as I walked onwards, Eevee in my arms. Trying to ignore the bubbling feeling in the pits of my stomach was incredibly difficult, especially when the person who was causing this feeling was walking right beside me.

Ash thought he was the only one having problems right now, well he thought wrong. Trying to discover what I actually felt deep inside was my ongoing battle.

"Gary, I wanna ask you something," Ash's voice entered my ears again, alerting me to him. Even though I did want to ignore him and sulk like a child, I just couldn't. I could hear the plea in his voice and I knew I had to be there.

"Yeah, what is it," I said, my voice sounding monotonous. Turning my gaze to him he looked at the ground again.

I wished he would not do that.

"Have you ever... loved anyone?"

Now this caught me off guard, did I even know the meaning of the word?

Love, it was a hard emotion for someone as bitter as myself to even begin to understand, but that being said I was sure I was aware of what it felt like.

"Ummm... I suppose I have," I answered, not entirely sure if I was being honest. I watched as Ash's body seemed to tense up at my answer.

Was he upset by what I said?

The feelings that raged through my mind and soul for Ash... I was not sure if it was love as of yet, but there was definitely a spark there.

"Oh..." He mumbled.

"Why do you ask? Are you... in love?" I blurted out, not managing to stop my big mouth.

Instinctively I walked quicker onwards, wanting to get to the safety of this damn hospital so all these stupid questions could be avoided.

I had no friggin' clue what I felt, and he was not helping things right now.

"Well... I don't know," Ash confessed. My eyes turned to his face, watching as it started to redden considerably.

It was now when the gears of my mind continued to turn, wondering why asking that would cause him to blush.

Suddenly it clicked, and I had to stop myself from dropping Eevee out of my arms.

Oh my God! Was that it? Was that why he was behaving like this around me? Was I...?

"Ash..." I tried, suddenly feeling extremely weak at the thought of my old childhood companion actually liking me more than a friend, perhaps we were more alike than I first thought. Those big brown eyes accompanied by a beet red face looked up at me.

"Yeah?"

"Who is the person you think you.. love?"

We stopped walking, our destination was getting closer but right now I knew my legs would not be able to steady my body weight.

What would I do if he actually said he did like me? Would I be able to understand it, and accept him into my life properly? That was something I needed to be sure of before getting in too deep.

He leaned against a nearby fence, looking up at the sky, his face full of worry and confusion. It kind of made me sad.

"The person... is..." He started, his hands balled into fists. I watched as his whole body trembled and I could feel that same sensation begin to consume me too. Heart in my throat I waited with bated breath, wondering how I would deal with the news, if I were to hear it.

Please... just say it! Just come out with it Ash! I wont hit you, or go mad... I promise.

"T...the... person... is... ummm..."

I swallowed hard as time seemed to drag on forever, just wishing it away and to hear him say that it was me. I knew I was just staring at him right now, wanting to know the answer, but he did not look at me.

Shaking his head quickly he started to chuckle and bashfully scratch the back of his head.

"Its... no-one you know,"

For that moment I felt a mixture of emotions fill my being, anger, annoyance and sadness all mixing into a vile sensation that made me just want to hit him right now.

HOW COULD HE SAY THAT? URGHHH... FUCK'S SAKE!

Biting into my lip I nodded and turned away, holding Eevee tightly in my arms. At least holding her stopped me from lashing out in rage at him.

Was it that hard to admit it! It was so friggin' obvious! I seriously wanted to shout and scream at him but, I knew it would get me nowhere. Ash was stubborn, I was supposedly used to it by now.

"Oh... right," I muttered.

I needed to get out of here, like now!

Without giving a moment's thought about whether Ash would be following I walked off, half in rage and half in sadness.

It really pissed me off! God, he could be such a loser sometimes!

My apparent rage had woken Eevee up, she yawned loudly and looked up at me with large brown eyes. Looking at her angelic face made me want to curl up into a ball somewhere and just stay there.

And that is totally not like you Gary.

Sighing I continued walking, faster and faster, not caring if Ash was behind me or not. I didn't even want to see him, or hear his voice, it would be too horrible right now.

"Veee... veeee..." Eevee cooed sadly, gently pawing at my arm. It was as if she knew what was wrong. Watching her actions made me think a little.

Yes I know I was acting like a massive jerk but I needed to, I couldn't just stand there and watch him lie to me. I was not stupid, and it did not take a genius to figure this out.

Why was he so against confessing? Was it because I was a guy and thought of being gay terrified him? Okay, yeah, that thought has crossed my mind too. But then again, I have only ever had feelings for one guy and that is Ash. So what does that mean exactly?

"Gary wait!"

I heard that voice, the voice I loved yet hated at the same time.

God he pissed me off, but I could not bring myself to keep walking away.

Standing still Eevee seemed pleased. She nuzzled against my chest.

"Eeeveeee!"

"I guess you want us to sort this out, huh?" I said quietly to the small brown fluff ball, who nodded against me.

Well if she had faith in me then why couldn't I have faith in myself?

Breathing in deeply I turned around on my heels, turning to face the brown eyed boy that I could not help but adore. His face was even redder than before only it was not a blush red, it was a crying red. His eyes looked so sad, so broken and now I felt like an even bigger jerk.

I even made him cry, man you are such a great guy.

I remained still as he ran up to me, being a foot shorter than myself.

"Why... why did you walk away!" He bellowed, anger now taking over his small form. Now it was my turn to look downwards.

At that moment I had to walk away, if I did not then I would've lashed out, but when I looked at those hazel eyes I just could not do it any more.

"I was annoyed okay?" I confessed, keeping an eye on the Eevee in my arms who crinkled her nose at our conversation. It was odd how she was aware of how I felt towards Ash even though she had only been with me for a short time.

"Annoyed?" Ash repeated.

Don't you think I am going to be the one to confess to you, Ashy-boy. It's not happening.

Grunting in response I turned away, obviously showing that arrogant side that Ash hated.

I liked to call it self preservation.

By the look on his face it seemed he was not going to push this subject, thankfully. I had half expected a punch or something, you know, something to show how annoyed he was with me. I received the opposite.

He smiled at me. SMILED! What the hell is going on? Is he friggin' bi-polar?

"You're so silly sometimes Gary," He said, chuckling after his words. Sighing I wondered.

Would it be okay to just hug him? Perhaps if I did I would find out if he was actually lying back then about loving another. I would easily be able to tell so it would not hurt to try, would it?

Slowly I allowed Eevee out of my arms and watched as she leapt onto the floor, her large eyes staring right at me. It was like she knew exactly what my plan was.

I acted on my instinct and pulled the shorter boy close to me and just hugged him as tightly as I could.

Breathing in deeply I could not help but smile, having Ash in my arms like this actually felt right.

I wonder if he felt the same.

"G-Gary?" He said in a quiet voice, before allowing his own arms to wrap around me too. It was strangely comforting knowing I could just hug him whenever I wanted and he would not go all weird on my ass again.

I must confess, it did stir weird emotions in my stomach, like it was being tied in knots.

"Don't say a word," I said to him, continuing to embrace the brown eyed boy.

His body was now a lot more relaxed in my grip which made me feel more comfortable. I did not care if anyone saw us hugging like this right now, I just wished he would tell me.

Won't you say anything to me Ash? Are you that afraid?

Finally I allowed the shorter boy free from my embrace and just stared at his face. As predicted it was as red as a tomato.

That was it, I had to do it.

As our eyes locked for what seemed like an eternity I hardly noticed the distance between us closing and the space between our mouths getting shorter and shorter. Soon enough our mouths were inches apart and I could feel his warm breath on my face. Eyes half lidded I knew he would not push me away.

Slowly and gently I moved forward, pressing my lips onto his for the first time.

He yelped quietly and I swear to God I was not surprised, I mean the thought of kissing him only popped into my head for a brief second and bingo! I acted on it.

His lips were soft on mine and were the perfect fit. It seemed like I had waited forever to do this and now the moment was here it was actually better than I ever thought. I knew he was nervous, I bet he had never kissed anyone before me.

I must admit, it felt good to think that.

His face was hot to the touch as my hands gently placed on his cheeks. Ash jolted suddenly at the contact but did not seem to make any objection. Inside I was smiling, at least I had finally figured out what he felt.

As our lips parted we just looked at each other, I was probably blushing just as much as he was, after all, it's not everyday you kiss another guy. Weirdly enough it did not feel wrong, it felt right, like it was natural.

"G-Gary... why?" Ash stuttered, trying to regain his composure. I smiled and winked at him.

"I wanted to make sure," I answered.

His eyes were wide in shock, it was like he had no idea what I was talking about. Of course I knew, I now knew that Ash had feelings for me too.

"Make sure?" He repeated. I nodded.

"Yes, and now I know,"

It had been some time since the kissing incident had happened and we had continued on our journey towards Viridian City. Ash was on edge all the time, walking obediently at my side like a dog, and even though it boosted my ego to no end I did feel kind of bad.

I did not even give a proper reason to why I kissed him, and I didn't plan on it.

Eevee scampered around my heels playfully, happy about the whole situation. At least she supported us.

"Hey Ash," I said, alerting the brown eyed boy immediately. He tensed up.

"Y-yes?"

"You still up for going to the carnival later tonight?"

I watched as it did not take long for him to come to a decision. Obviously the thought of going to somewhere full of noisy idiots pleased him, me on the other hand would gladly miss it, but I wasn't doing this for my benefit.

"Ummm... yeah sure," He answered, giving me a small smile.

Well that was settled then, at least he had something to look forward to if the hospital dished out some bad news about his Mom.

I wished she would be okay, Ash deserved that at least.

Finally we had reached the large white building of the hospital after what seemed like hours of walking. My legs were aching terribly and it was at that point I grumbled to myself.

Why didn't we just order a taxi? It would've made the journey a lot easier. But, if we hadn't of walked then I probably would not have kissed Ash. I knew that he would be thinking about it, after all, I did not give an explanation to why I did it.

As Eevee scampered around my heels I decided it would be better if I carried her in the hospital, the last thing I wanted was the hospital staff having a go at me for her hyper behaviour.

Bending down I allowed her to leap into my arms so I could easily carry her into the large building. Ash followed me, oddly enough being extremely quiet.

It was so unlike him, usually he would just waffle on about anything, but not this time.

The lady at the reception gave us the nod as we walked in, it was like she recognised us from yesterday.

Then again, it is hard to forget this face, isn't it?

Eevee snuggled in my arms as Ash and I made our way down the narrow corridor once again to where his Mom was situated.

As we walked I kind of felt guilty, not just for Ash going through all this with his Mom but the fact I had not helped matters either. Perhaps me kissing him was the wrong thing to do, but he obviously did not have any objections to push me away.

Did that mean that he liked it?

"Hey Gary, look!" Ash said enthusiastically.

I watched as he pointed to two figures at the end of the corridor. At first I had no idea who they were but soon enough it hit me like a rock.

It was Brock and Misty, Ash's friends, seems like they actually managed to get here before us.

What a turn out!

Ash bounded on ahead of me to greet his companions while I just stayed in the background, hoping not to draw too much attention to myself.

Usually I would love attention, but not off them, especially Misty. Me and her did not see eye to eye after all, and I did not really want a row to start in the hospital.

"Ash!" I heard her voice call out of him and I cringed. Just the tone of her voice annoyed me. Brock on the other hand I could deal with, he was not as annoying as she was.

"Brock! Misty! You managed to get here!" Ash squealed back in delight. Seeing him so happy actually made me want to smile, of course I wouldn't, not in front of them.

Out of the corner of my eyes I noticed Pikachu too, he leapt onto Ash's shoulder and started nuzzling him to death. It seemed that he missed his best friend.

Eevee had noticed the other Pokemon too, she curiously sniffed the air and cooed softly;

"Veee..."

I petted her head gently. just watching how Ash interacted with his friends. By this time I had zoned out of the conversation they were having and just concentrated on him. Right now he was the Ash I used to know, loud, annoying and getting riled up about anything.

Why did he change around me? Was it something I had said or done?

"Gary's here too,"

I heard my name being mentioned and then I mentally flinched. Now they would be aware of my presence and I would have to be involved in their conversations. I didn't really want any part of it, I was only here for him.

"Why the hell is he here!" Misty cursed, hands on her hips glaring at me.

I sighed.

Some things just never change.

Ash's face said it all, he was wearing that faint blush which I was so used to by now as he tried to think of something to say, obviously he would not tell them the ideal truth.

"He is here to see Mom," He answered.

Okay, he was not lying exactly, just kind of twisting the truth a little to fit in.

I hated the way she glared at me, like I was not wanted in their presence. I think her apparent hatred for me was the fact Ash never admitted he liked her at all or even suggested them making a go at things.

How the hell this was my fault I have no idea.

"Well, it is odd for Gary to be so considerate, don't you think?" Brock piped up, chuckling a little.

I scowled.

Of course I was considerate! I just didn't show it enough...

It was now that Pikachu had noticed Eevee and was just staring at her.

"Pika Pi?" He called out, jumping off Ash's shoulder and bounding over to me. Before I could stop her Eevee leapt out of my arms and walked over to Pikachu.

Everyone just watched the two Pokemon as they curiously looked at each other, sniffing curiously.

"Awwww isn't it cute!" Misty squealed, making me sigh once again.

Now I wanted to know why everyone was just hanging around outside and not actually inside with Ash's Mom. I wished they would all go away, and pretty soon.

"Veeee..." Eevee purred softly, gently nuzzling against Pikachu.

Both Ash and I watched as the two Pokemon seemed to be getting along already, the irony to this scene was overwhelming to some degree.

"Anyway why are you guys hanging around outside?" I asked, now deciding to make some conversation, much to Misty's annoyance.

Ash was once again quiet and just watched the two Pokemon play on the floor.

"The doctor is tending to her right now and checking test results, he said we could all go in once he knows the results," Brock answered defiantly. I could tell from the tone of his voice that it did not look favourable, having tests done and then finding out the results were always the hard part.

If it was bad news I wondered how Ash would be able to cope with it.

"I see," I mused.

"The staff here are renowned for their medical knowledge, Delia should be in very capable hands," Brock assured both myself and Ash.

He weakly nodded, obviously trying to be strong but I knew it was all a facade. If they said to him that she had taken a turn for the worst it would probably take a hundred kisses to make him feel better.

Of course I probably would not object to that right now, but even so, it kind of hurt to think of him upset and sad. I liked it when he was his old stupid self, insulting me to no end. Right now, it seemed like he had lost that.

"So how long do you plan on staying around?" Misty spat, the venom obviously heard in her voice.

I glared at her and wondered to myself why I should even begin to talk to her, she had obviously made it quite clear she had irrational hatred for me.

"For as long as Ash wants me around," I returned coyly, knowing that it would really rile her up.

And rile her up it did.

I could almost see the steam bellowing out of her ears.

Brock placed a steady hand her shoulder and she seemed to calm down almost instantly. I think even she knew better than to start a war in the hospital.

Ash once again had not said much, he just leaned against a wall sighing occasionally. His thoughts were obviously somewhere else right now.

"I had no idea you were back in Kanto," Brock tried starting up a pleasant conversation. I just merely nodded, not actually wanting to talk, I just wanted to make sure that everything was okay here and that Ash would not be feeling down in the dumps.

Why did everyone have to be here? Urghhh... they were totally ruining the moment, and there was no way I would get a chance to be around Ash with them sniffing around. I just hoped they went after the hospital, I sure as hell do not want them trailing around with us at the carnival.

As Eevee and Pikachu continued playing together on the floor it was then I noticed the door to Ash's Moms room open and a tall man in his late Thirties walked out. He adjusted his glasses on his nose before speaking to us;

"You may all go in and see her now, but do not tire her out, she is still very weak,"

We all nodded.

We was not that insensitive to make this situation worse, what did he take us for?

Ash was the first one to go inside, closely followed by Misty and then Brock. I hung back for a minute, wondering about some things.

I was suddenly getting really defensive since I knew she was here, that obnoxious red head.

Maybe it was because at some point I had convinced myself that Ash and Misty would eventually get together. Of course, I knew that now it would not happen. He never spoke about her in that kind of way, or blush around her like he did with me. I had nothing to worry about, right?

Taking a deep breath I alerted Pikachu and Eevee to stop playing and follow me into the room. They obliged and scampered ahead of me.

As I neared the door I could feel my chest feeling heavy, like there was a great weight pressing down on it.

Was it because of Ash, and the fact he did not actually admit anything to me? Maybe the reason he did not push me away was the fact he could've been scared to do so. No, I can't think like that. I need to get a grip and just try to get through the day, even though at this precise moment in time my stomach is tied in knots and I am afraid of what I will find if Ash wants to talk about it tonight.

ALAS! They have kissed, and I sure as hell did not plan this . It kinda ran away with itself... the plot I mean. Oh well... nevermind.

I hope you guys liked it anyway, and I actually am enjoying writing from Gary's POV, its fun to whine and complain. There will be some lemons later on so look out for them, and of course... more fluff! The carnival awaits in the next chapter, arrrgghhhh I am so excited!

Please keep reviewing and faving, it makes my day that much better. There will be other chapters from Gary's POV, I am just not sure which ones yet. Oh well, I shall leave you guys to your devices as I run along to write the next chapter. Bon Voyage!