May woke early in the morning, screaming. She'd dreamt she was in the arena again, and they were dragging her away from everyone alone, and Ash and all her friends were disappearing into the distance. She bolted upright, breathing heavily. Her door quickly swung open, and Ash rushed in. Forgetting where she was, May looked around in a panic. Pushing the door almost shut, Ash quickly came to her side and sat on the edge of her bed.
"It's okay, we're at your house May."
May took a deep breath, and exhaled in relief. Then, the awkwardness of the situation hit her. She hadn't spoke to Ash since Gary had revealed himself the day before, and now he was sat by her side. She desperately wanted to put her arms around him, but instead she sat, the covers pulled up past her chest, looking at him.
"How are you?" she asked, gesturing at his arm, which she knew the guards had twisted badly.
"Better. It'll be fine. What about you? How… How are you, after everything?"
"I…" May started, wanting to tell him the truth. She was crushed. She wanted to be with him instead. "I'm fine… I guess. It's just… it's weird, if nothing else, I don't really know what to think about it all… by the way, I think Gary might have changed quite a bi-"
"Don't talk to me about Gary, May. I know him better than you do," he snapped suddenly. Hurt, May flinched slightly at his sour tone.
"Well don't you think you could give it a chance? Just talk to him and see what happens and-"
"No." Ash stood, suddenly stiff and angry. "It won't work. Trust me. It won't work. Now stop."
"Why are you being like this?" May asked, sounding a little angry herself. She pushed herself up and out of bed to stand up to him, even in her silk sleep shorts and shirt. "What is wrong with you?"
"No May, what's wrong with you?" Ash hissed. May flinched again, visibly this time, but Ash seemed enraged by something she'd said. She fell silent. "You're defending him over me when you've known him for less than a day?"
"I'm not defending him, Ash, don't be stupid. I'm trying to make this easier for me. Come on, how am I supposed to deal with this if you won't talk to him?"
"You are defending him, May. I'm telling you I can't talk to him. I won't do it... Especially not now."
"What does that even mean?!" May cried, throwing an arm up. Ash's attitude angered her. "You can't even try for me?"
"You don't understand the situation. You're not being fair, May."
"And you're being an asshole!" she snapped. Ash winced. Instantly, her anger dissipated. He sighed. "Ash…" she spoke again. "Sorry…"
"It's okay. I get it. You just want to be able to talk to me still even when he's around, which he's going to be… a lot. I just don't know if I can."
"Why, Ash?" she spoke softly now, and took a step towards him. "People change."
"It's not that," he spoke again, looking down at her. He took a step towards her too, so that he was right in front of her, and lifted his hand to her face, pushing her hair gently behind her ear, his fingers brushing her cheek ever so slightly. May froze in place, stunned, but her heart raced. Ash? "I don't care about that anymore."
May stayed frozen in place as his hand hovered by her ear, feeling sick with nerves as her heart almost beat out of her chest. She didn't know what to say, and Ash seemed to want to say something more, but stopped. He dropped his hand suddenly, looking down. May quickly snatched his hand up in both of hers and held it up.
"I want to help. Please tell me."
Ash smiled sadly. "I couldn't possibly tell you, May. Don't worry yourself about it."
"I am worried," May insisted, her voice shaking slightly from nerves. This was the most serious Ash had ever seemed, and it wasn't like him at all. Her hands had begun to shake, and she knew Ash would have noticed. "Come on."
He pulled his hand away gently, and a wide-eyed May stared up at him as he continued his sad smile. His hand was suddenly placed on her cheek, and he seemed to stop for a second, frozen in place with her. Stunned, May could only stare. Then he moved again, leaning down towards her slowly. Her heart quickened again and the lump in her throat caught. Nerves froze her on the spot as he leaned closer to her, gently pulling her head towards his. As he got closer she suddenly leaned up slightly, meeting him in the middle, and a wave of heat spread through her as his warm lips met her own. Feeling him respond, her mouth parted slightly to welcome his kiss, and he continued to kiss her gently. May felt as if she'd melted. This was unlike any kiss she'd had before. This felt real. This felt as if it completed her. This was what she'd waited for. The butterflies in her stomach didn't stop, and her whole body felt warm and light. The desire to kiss him didn't stop, even when he moved away from her after a second that seemed to last for hours to her. She froze, her mouth still open slightly.
Backing away, Ash looking terrified. "I'm sorry." May's heart stopped.
"Wait!" May called, but Ash had turned to hurry away. She ran after him, but he quickly turned the corner and passed Gary, who was headed towards her. If she were to call now, it would draw too much attention to her. Still breathing heavily, May could still feel his lips on her own, and the feeling that spread throughout her whole body, warming her up, making her want more.
"Are you okay?" Gary asked, noticing her expression.
May shook off the look, and tried her best to focus her attention of Gary when her lips were still tingling from Ash's kiss. "Yeah." She smiled. "I'm fine."
"Your mom wants to talk to us," Gary started, shoving his hands into his pockets. "It's probably about… you know."
"Yeah." May sighed. "Where is she?"
"She's waiting for us in the garden. I'll walk with you once you're dressed."
Blushing, May remembered the fact that she still wore her silk shorts and shirt that her mother had laid out for her on her bed. "Right, uh… wait here." She slipped back into her room and pushed the door shut. Feeling embarrassed enough already, she made sure to pick her clothes quickly, and went for a floral playsuit that she could just pull on. She brushed her hair quickly and looked at herself in the long mirror by her window. She felt she looked strange without anything in her hair, but didn't dare take the time to change it. She rushed back out to where Gary waited for her, and the two walked together to the gardens. The whole time they walked, May searched every room they passed for any sign of Ash. There was none.
How am I supposed to focus on this conversation with mother when that's just happened to me? Does this mean Ash feels the same way about me?
The very idea sent a shiver down her, and butterflies began to flutter in her stomach. She forced back the smile that almost showed itself, and struggled with her blush. In the garden, her mom sat by the first fountain. Feeling suddenly awkward, May kept her head down as they approached and sat by her. Her mother had her hands clasped together in her lap, and May copied her pose, scared of doing something wrong.
"Good morning, May."
"Good morning."
Her mother's smile was almost sickly sweet, and obviously fake. "I'm sorry, May," she said, the smile faltering slightly. "I obviously didn't mean for you to find out about Gary this way, but now that you have I figured it was better that we talked about it."
She didn't know what to say, so May only nodded in response, looking to Gary for reassurance. He gave her a smile, and she trusted it somehow. She smiled back, and turned back to her mother.
"It's tradition for the sons and daughters of royal families to marry one another, and we picked Gary for you. Now that you're here, the wedding preparations will begin pretty soon. I know it's a lot for you to take in, but I trust that you've grown up a lot in that place…"
May nodded again, wringing her hands together in her lap, waiting for her mother to tell her the rest of the information so she could leave to find Ash, to figure out what was going on.
"Of course, we'll be expecting children too."
May choked and coughed slightly, clearing her throat awkwardly. After that comment she didn't dare look in Gary's direction, but he made no move or sound. "Soon?"
Her mother shrugged and sighed. "Me, I don't mind. It's your father that will be expecting it… He really believes in the tradition, he'll most likely expect that to be soon, yes."
The reality of the situation hit May hard in the chest. She had to figure out a way out of this, and soon, or else she'd be tied down with Gary, and there would be no way of her ever being with Ash. May wasn't willing to give up yet, not now that Ash had suggested the feeling might be mutual. The three sat in silence for a moment.
"That's all I really needed to say. The rest can be said another day. For now, I hope the two of you spend some time together since you're here already, Gary."
Gary nodded and stood, and offered May his hand. May wouldn't have taken it, if it hadn't been for her mother watching them. She took his hand and he helped her up, then let go, much to her relief. May smiled towards her mother and gave her an acknowledging nod. She would have to walk back to the house with Gary at least, while she watched. Once inside, she'd rush to find Ash.
As she'd been planning, once she step foot inside the house, she made a rushed apology to Gary and ran off in the direction of the living room. Dawn sat reading something she'd picked up from the shelf while muttering to Paul, who sat next to her stiffly. There was no sign of Ash. She ran on to the dining room, which was completely empty, along with the kitchens. She headed for the winding stairs and sprinted up them, rushing straight to Ash's room. She pushed at the door once she reached it, but it wouldn't budge. May's heart leaped in her chest.
"Ash? It's me, I want to talk to you," she called and waited. She got no reply. Her lip began to tremble. "Ash, please. Not this again."
May prayed for any kind of response or noise from the other side, but she got nothing. Feeling her heart crumble, she put her back to the door and collapsed against it until she was sat on the floor. "I'm not moving until you answer me, Ash."
He still didn't respond. May drew up her knees and rested her head against them, preparing to wait patiently for him to crack. She waited, and waited more, but he still didn't respond. It felt as if time had stopped still as she stared forward down the stairs to the hallway. Then, time really did stand still for her.
She woke to Dawn shaking her shoulder hours later. Dazed, May blinked quickly, rubbing her eyes. "Huh? Dawn?"
"Serena told me she saw you sat up here and she was concerned. Are you okay?"
May pushed herself up from the floor to stand by her friend, and rubbed her hand roughly against her head, feeling more miserable than she ever had. "I… I think he's ignoring me again…" she muttered as low as she could. Dawn sighed, her eyebrows furrowed in concern, and stretched her arms, taking her friend up into them. May melted into Dawn's hug, a tear slipping down her cheek.
"Come on, May. Your mother made dinner." Keeping her arm around May, Dawn led her away from his door, looking back at it with a sigh. Her friend was in more trouble than she thought.
Ash continued to avoid her for three days. She finally caught sight of him when he appeared for breakfast the day after, but he wouldn't answer her, and always stuck around someone else so she couldn't say anything without drawing attention to herself. Each night, May returned to her room after spending the day hanging around with Dawn, and talking to Gary for a few hours, trying to get to know him, and cried. With each passing day, her hope that Ash had feelings for her too faded more and more. If he truly had feelings for her, she thought, he wouldn't be able to do this to her. No, he regrets it, doesn't he? That's why he's doing this.
On the fourth day, May woke to a knock on her door early in the morning. She'd barely slept the night before, as she'd been trying to come to terms with the facts she was going to have to live with now. She and Gary were to be married. As soon as the whole thing was sorted out, Ash would leave, and she'd likely never see him again. Then, when she thought of those facts, all the memories she'd made with him would flood back into her mind. She'd picture them laughing together at the lake, splashing water at one another, or running around the corridors causing trouble, and her jumping on his back playfully, tackling him to the ground. Most prominent though was one of their first memories, when they showed each other their powers, and the night May sat by him with fire in her hands to keep him warm, and she first learned about him. She couldn't help but remember every time he'd touched her skin, whether by accident or just because they had become comfortable with one another. Then she couldn't help crying. Her eyes still felt puffy.
"Come in," she called groggily. The door slid carefully open, and Gary peered around the corner, almost shyly. Over the past few days, she'd grown more comfortable with Gary, and she could call him her friend now. He was okay, she'd found, aside from loving himself a little too much at times. He looked after her well, and didn't overstep boundaries. They had barely talked about the fact that they were to be married, and more often talked about themselves and their interests He'd never seemed shy, but here he was, looking shy.
"Good morning, May." He stepped inside, forgetting to close the door behind him. He approached her and sat on the edge of her bed.
"Good morning. What's up?"
"Oh, nothing." He shrugged. "I was just thinking."
May sat up, rubbing her eyes sleepily. "Thinking about what?"
"Uh, about us." He paused, May took a deep breath. "I've been trying to get myself to accept the fact, you know, to realise it's what's got to happen."
"Yeah." May sighed. "I get that. I've been trying to do that too."
"I just wanted to let you know that if you need to talk about it you can actually talk to me. We're both going through this, so talk to me, okay? You've seemed kind of sad… and your eyes are really red this morning."
May looked down, hiding her face in embarrassment. "Thanks Gary. I'll be sure to talk to you if I need anything. And... same to you."
"Alright, good."
"May?"
Jumping at the new voice, both jumped and turned to May's mother, who'd appeared by the door, fully dressed. She glanced at the two, raised an eyebrow and smiled. May blushed. "I know it's sudden, but I have to go meet your father in Kanto to finalise some things with Gary's parents. I'll only be gone for a couple of days, and then I'll return with your father, who's eager to meet you again. Don't do anything silly, and I know you would never think about leaving, but just in case, do remember we have men stationed there."
"Alright, mom. See you soon." May smiled.
"Yes, look after her please Gary. See you both very soon."
Her mother pulled the door slightly closed as she left, dragging a suitcase behind her. Gary decided to stand as soon as she'd left, to go find something for breakfast.
"I'll see you downstairs," he muttered, and May nodded in reply. Gary hesitated, hovering there for a second, before bending unexpectedly and planting a light kiss on her forehead. May blushed, but didn't attempt to hide it, and simply smiled at him, though he seemed flustered as he rushed out of her room.
May expected Dawn to come next. She came to her room almost every morning to talk, and always asked why Ash was avoiding her. May always shrugged it off, saying she didn't know or that perhaps they were just growing apart due to her having to spend time with Gary. Just as expected, Dawn glided around the corner, throwing herself down in the bed beside May and pulling the covers over her bare legs.
"Good morning," May greeted her, her exhaustion apparent in her voice.
"Morning, what was Gary in here for?"
"Oh, nothing, just chatting to me. Did my mom tell you she was going away already?"
"No? She's leaving?"
"Yeah. She's left already I think, just for a couple of days."
"Well, this is perfect." Dawn clapped her hands together. Before May could begin to ask what she meant, Dawn spoke again. "I have the perfect idea. We're going to act like normal teenagers for once."
May scoffed. "And how would you know what normal teenagers do?"
Ignoring her comment, Dawn seemed deep in thought. Suddenly, a smirk appeared on her face, the same smirk May had grown used to. She'd had an idea. "We're going to play a game. Get dressed. I have a way to get Ash to talk to you."
May was suddenly terrified. Ash hadn't spoken to her in days, and with what happened before he did, the idea of talking to him made her stomach tighten. What would I even say to him?
"What kind of game?"
"You'll see. Get dressed and meet me in my room." Dawn jumped out of the bed and smiled widely at her friend before rushing out. Feeling slightly nauseous from nerves, May lifted herself out of bed and headed for her wardrobe, where she pulled out a comfy-looking jumper and black jeans. It looked cold outside today, and May was even slightly cold in her room. She brushed her hair quickly, and clipped in the bow that Serena had given her. She stared at herself for a few more moments before she could force herself to leave them room. She could hear Serena laughing in Dawn's room before she even left her own. As she stood in her doorway she took a deep breath before quickly striding towards Dawn's room, and uncomfortable look on her face, and pushed the door open abruptly. Everyone looked up at her as she did, and she noticed him first, sat under the window, against the wall, his knees drawn up. He seemed confused at the sight of her, and quickly turned to glare at Dawn, who shrugged sheepishly at him. May stood awkwardly in confusion until Dawn hurried over.
"I told him you weren't gonna come," she whispered into May's ear, "I didn't know if he'd come if I didn't."
May sighed and entered, sitting on the floor by Dawn's bed so she could lean back against it. She noticed the others had been positioned in a circle. In the middle, an empty bottle sat on its side. May's face twisted.
"What is this, Dawn?" she asked, looking to her friend, who was sitting down beside her. "What have you dragged me here for?" Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Ash was watching her and blushed slightly.
"We're going to play a game," Dawn answered, a grin spread right across her face. "It's called seven minutes, or something like that."
May grimaced. "How do you even know what this is?"
"I watched a lot of teen dramas on TV growing up, you know that." Dawn winked towards her, and May stole another glance across at Ash, who still would not look up, or smile, or even look remotely interested in anything around him. May lowered her own head.
"So I'm gonna start by spinning the bottle," Dawn started again, pointing at the empty bottle in the centre of the circle, "and the person it lands on spins it a second time, then the two people that it lands on go into the closet for seven minutes. I mean, you don't have to do anything but you can if you want."
When did Dawn get like this? Or is all of this to get Ash and I in there together? He doesn't seem to want to be here though…
Dawn spun the bottle quickly and sat back in her position. The bottle span, and May found herself praying it wouldn't land on her. It began to slow as it passed Dawn, and eventually stopped in front of Drew. May sighed with relief. After some laughing and teasing, Drew span the bottle himself, and it stopped in front of Dawn. Dawn laughed, and the two stood, disappearing into the awkward silence descended on the group for a moment, until Gary spoke up to May.
"Little bit strange of her to call this so suddenly, right? I mean, I don't mind it. You know I'm not gonna do anything in there with anyone."
May forced an awkward half-smile. "Right."
"I think it's pretty fun," Serena spoke up, her usual giddy smile on her face. "We can, like, share secrets in there right?"
Gary chuckled. "I think you miss the point of this game. Though, you don't seem like the kind of friends that'd go in there any actually do anything."
"Nah," Paul muttered. "Nobody will actually do anything in there. Dawn is probably just getting restless being in here all day long."
"I don't blame her." Serena sighed. "I wish we could go outside too. We've finally gotten out, but we're still stuck in one place. I really want to be able to go out and explore."
"Eventually." Gary shrugged. "You'll get out of here soon, and then you can go wherever you like, I've been to Kanto. My parents live there in a house almost as big as this one. I had to get a ferry to Hoenn to come here, and the sea is so much better in real life than on TV."
Serena and Gary made the majority of the conversation in those long seven minutes. Neither Ash nor May spoke a word, and Ash didn't seem to look up the entire time. Eventually, Drew and Dawn emerged again, laughing.
"What did you do in there then, huh?" Serena asked. Dawn shrugged.
"Nothing. Drew told me stories about May that I hadn't known before."
May rolled her eyes in Drew's direction, and he smiled sheepishly in apology, rubbing the back of his head.
"Anyway, May, you spin it now." Dawn gestured to the bottle. With a lump in her throat, May leaned forward, hesitating with her hand on the bottle for a moment, before spinning it. She barely looked as she leaned back and the bottle began to slow, and edged closer to her. Her heart dropped. It landed on herself. She swallowed hard.
"Does that mean I have to spin it again?"
"Well, you're the first person in there. We'll see where it goes next. Spin it."
Nerves rising in her stomach, May leaned forward once again to spin the bottle. This time, she stared intently as it moved around, twice, and again, until it began to slow as it passed her, eventually coming to a stop. She looked up. It was Gary. Her nerves subsided slightly, but some lingered. Gary shrugged, standing, and held his hand out to help her up. She took it, letting him pull her up. As she rose, she looked to Ash, and he looked up at her for the first time, their eyes meeting for the first time since their kiss. Their contact seemed to last for minutes, but was over in a second, as he looked away again. Dawn failed to hide her sigh as Gary led May towards the closet, and closed the door behind them, shutting her friends out. She sighed, flattening out her shirt, and smiled awkwardly.
"Sooooo…" Gary awkwardly began, chuckling. He scratched the back of his head. "I've no idea what people usually do in here."
"Trust me, me neither, but I'm kind of glad to get out of the room for a second. There's something not quite right about the atmosphere in there for me."
"Oh, it's alright for me, but at least you get seven minutes rest, yeah. Is something wrong?"
"Wrong?" May snapped her head up. "What makes you think that?"
"You've seemed kind of sad the past few days. I mean, unless that's what you're usually like?"
"No, I've been… I don't know." May smiled sadly and offered only a shrug. "It's just weird to be home, and have all this happening at once."
"I know how you feel. It was like that for me too, especially when they told me about you. I couldn't stop thinking about how you'd come out, and they'd tell you about me, and I could never stop thinking about what you'd think, and how weird it'd be when we met."
"At least it hasn't been so weird for you, huh?" May shrugged again. "It hasn't been for me, at least. Did it bother you, when they told you?"
"No, not really… Honestly, I've never loved anybody before, but maybe if I had it would have bothered me. If I wanted to be with someone else then couldn't, that'd bother me, but that's not the case. I never minded all that much, I mean… you're very smart, and very beautiful too, and you won that contest two years in a row."
May's cheeks turned a shade of pink. "Thank you," she stuttered awkwardly. The complement had been nice, but now she was back to thinking of Ash, and how hard this whole situation was for her. She wished with all her heart that she could find a way out, that there was an easy answer, but she knew deep down that there wasn't. Something had to give, and it wasn't going to be easy either way. Their conversation continued, shifting from themselves to others in the group frequently.
"Seven minutes is up!" Dawn called from the other side of the door. May smiled sheepishly up at Gary, who shrugged and pushed open the door. Immediately, May noticed the devilish look plastered on Dawn's face.
"What?"
"We already spun while you were in there. It was you and Ash."
May's heart sank to the floor. As much as she wanted to talk to Ash, and have the chance to explain herself, she hadn't had time to prepare what she would say. Besides, she didn't even know what she wanted to do yet. She'd enjoyed the kiss, but it wasn't right when she was engaged to Gary. And yet I want it so bad… What do I do…
"Sorry," May shook her head, striding quickly towards the exit. "I have to go. I don't feel well. Catch you guys later."
She shut the door behind her before Dawn had time to speak. She knew Dawn couldn't come chasing after her, or it'd draw attention to the situation going on behind the scenes. Instead, May had time to cry, and she'd spend the next few hours in her room doing just that.