A/N: Sorry about the short chapter! It's just I really wanted to do the confession in Iris's POV, so here it is! Hope you enjoy! :D

Arceus High School

Iris's POV:

My heart begins to race as I approach Ash, who is sitting casually against a tree, with his blazer underneath him, talking to May, Gary, Tracey and Zoey. He hardly ever hangs out with other people, even though so many people would give up so much just to be with him for twenty minutes. I have my usual populace consisting of Misty, Paul and Barry around me, as well as Dawn, who I invited in to the group because she has the potential to be as popular as us. Not everyone is special enough to receive an invitation like that from me.

I bite my lip nervously to stop myself from looking the way I feel. I mentally slap myself and tell myself there's nothing to worry about. I breath in and out silently from my nose. My mind is whirring and I feel sick. Suddenly, I feel a hand on my shoulder.

"No need to worry!" Dawn smiles, a cheery tone in her voice. I'm guessing she must have sensed my discomfort. I nod and start playing with my hands as Ash turns to us.

"Oh, hi, Iris, Misty, Paul, Barry," Ash looks at all of us as he says our names. He pauses. "A-and h-hi, D-Dawn!" I narrow my eyes as he fixes his gaze on Dawn. Why did he suddenly become so... infatuated and nervous? Does he love... Dawn? He can't! He doesn't even know her that well! "Uh, so, th-these a-are your f-friends?" he asks. Dawn nods.

"Yeah, I guess," Ash is standing up now and scratching the back of his head, a gesture I've often seen when he doesn't know an answer in class. He's definitely nervous and shy around Dawn.

"So, Ash... I came to tell you something..." I pipe up, trying to hide my jealousy and envy. Ash tears his attention away from Dawn and looks at me.

"Yeah?" he prompts. I feel like I've just taken a drug because my heart seems to be overworking, I'm confused and dizzy and I feel really hot.

"I-I..." I let out a little cough. My mouth is so dry. It's like a desert in there. Who knew that longing for someone could make you so... hazy?

"You?" Ash presses. His eyes are showing how eager he is to find out what I want to say. I can't believe he hasn't realised yet. How can someone be this dense? I catch sight of Zoey rolling her eyes behind him. I shoot her a look at then turn back to Ash.

"D-don't freak out... or... a-anything..." I close my eyes and let out a breath. I can do this if I just pull myself together. I just need to calm down. "But, I... l-love..." I pause as I watch a few, tiny, white flakes of snow drift from the light grey clouds above. They calm me down immensely. "Ash, I love you," I finally say. My chest feels like it's loosening up and my shoulders feel like they don't have a two hundred kilogram weight on them. I clench my fists in anticipation and look up at the branches of the bare tree as I wait for a reply. If he says no, it doesn't matter, I continuously tell myself. I look down and see the expression on Ash's face. Shock, confusion and disbelief all merged into one. His eyes are wide in abash.

"Seriously?!" he proclaims. I nod, sheepishly. "Wow... I-I don't know what to say, Iris..." Ash looks over at Dawn, as if he's looking for an answer, but Dawn is watching the snowflakes fall to the ground and melt.

"Well?" I ask.

"S-sorry, Iris... but I don't... like you in that way," Ash's words echo in my head as I try to take it all in. "I still like you as a friend, though!" I don't take any notice of his last sentence. All that I can think about is the fact that he doesn't love me back. I can basically feel my heart stop and hear it shatter. So, this is what heart break feels like. Tears well up in my eyes, threatening to let loose, but this time, I let them. They trickle slowly down my tanned face as I comprehend what happened. I was so stupid for telling him!

"Iris," I hear Dawn say in a soft voice. She puts a hand on my shoulder to comfort me, but I shrug it off and run across the damp, green grass to the bathroom.

Luckily, it's nearly the end of lunch, so it's practically deserted in here apart from one girl, doing her hair. She doesn't take any notice of me. I wait until she leaves before I lock myself in a cubicle and start sobbing. I repeatedly wipe my eyes and every time I think I'm okay, I remember Ash's words and the tears flow down my cheeks again.

"S-sorry, Iris... but I don't... like you in that way,"

I hear the bell ring, indicating that it's time for lessons, but I'm not going anywhere. I don't want anyone to see me in this state. I'll never be able to face Ash again - not after he broke my heart.

"Iris? Iris, come on out!" I hear Misty call in an unusual, soothing voice. I've never heard her sound so... caring.

"No," I whisper defiantly, my voice shaking.

"Come on, it's time for class and it's English!" Misty's voice seems closer now.

"Ash will be there..." I wail.

"No, he won't! Remember, he's one set above us!"

"I don't want anyone to see me,"

"Iris, you can't run from the truth forever. You're going to have to face it some day, so why not today? Who cares about what Ash says, he should mean nothing to you. If he doesn't love you, he isn't worth your tears or sadness," I hear another voice say. It has to be Dawn's, no one else could be so persuasive yet so nice.

I slide the handle to unlock the cubicle door and step out, dabbing my eyes.

"Wow, Dawn," Misty looks amazed. "You're really good with words!" Dawn just nods and smiles at me.

"Thanks, Dawn," I beam as I pick up my hand bag and stride out.

"So, Iris, Misty, what excuse do the two of you have for being late this time?" Professor Rowan asks as I look around the room, bored as hell. As you can imagine, we got a detention for being late to class.

"Well, we had a bit of an... emotional time at lunch," Misty explains. Professor Roan cocks a brow.

"And, what exactly happened?"

"Well, I don't think it would be appropriate if I filled you in on all the details," Misty takes a moment to smirk as I try to stifle a giggle. She makes it seem... dirty. "But, let's just say, it ended with Iris in tears, so I had to comfort her,"

"I see," Professor Rowan walks back up to the front of the class. "Well, I want you to write the following," Professor Rowan picks up a white board marker and writes 'I must not be late under any circumstances'. "You must write this one hundred and fifty times," I groan inwardly. I open my pencil case, take out a blue pen and start writing.

The rest of the hour drags on with Misty and I writing lines and quickly mouthing things to each other while Professor Rowan's back is turned.