I certainly hope you enjoy this chap. I must say, the foursome are certainly in for the time of their lives – whether or not that's a good thing, well, let's just say that some things are better left read instead of me telling you (hint, hint). So hurry up and read!
~Pika
~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~
May's eyes flicked over the gold room numbers scrawled across the chipped wooden doors as she passed them. There's 377…378…379…There! It's 379. Stopping abruptly, May stared at the three numbers, and they stared back at her. For a moment, she lost her resolve and was sorely tempted to flee back to the comfort of her own room, especially when she glanced down and realized that she was still wearing her pajamas. But something more than that – she couldn't put a finger on it, or perhaps didn't really want to – kept her staring at the door, and staring. Finally she lifted a trembling hand and knocked sharply, three times.
"Coming!" came a muffled voice. The click of a latch and the creak of the door preceded Drew's appearance. His face strangely devoid of expression, he beckoned her in, and May shuffled through the door.
May's eyes scanned the room out of habit. Several books and magazines strewn about, a half-empty bag of potato chips on the nightstand, and a bed that looked as if it had undergone some sort of explosion testified to Drew's neatness – or rather, his lack of it. But what else did I expect, honestly? Her mouth twitched amusedly as she plopped down on the bed that wasn't a shambles, courteously leaving her rival the unkempt one. He glared at her as he sat down amongst the piles of sheets, but she could tell from years of experience that he wasn't mad at her – not really.
Several moments passed in silence, but May made herself appear oblivious to the awkwardness – making small talk was one of her specialties. "So," she began conversationally, "what did you want to know about Misty? I got everything wrapped up neatly – she's going on the date with you-know-who!" she giggled.
Drew flicked his hair, a smirk apparent on his composed features. "I knew it would work."
Feeling a little off-center and just plain indignant at his words and smug look, May shook her head emphatically. "If you'll recall, it was my idea in the first place!"
"Well, excuse me, Miss Matchmaker."
May leaned forward, her eyes narrowing. "You think you're so suave…" she huffed. "Is that a challenge?"
Thus far, Drew had been struggling to find a gap in the argument, trying to steer the banter toward "matchmaking." But with these latest words of hers, a hole had appeared; if she wanted a challenge, then he, Drew Hayden, had a challenge for her. His brain screamed at him: Ask her out already! He gathered all his nerve, forcing his jaw open. "It can be," he responded quietly to her angry question. "If you want it to be."
"URGH! Drew Hayden, sometimes you make me so…so…" Suddenly May's blue eyes widened, and she unclenched her fists as the meaning of her rival's words sank in. "Y-You…what?" she stammered.
"You heard what I said," Drew continued calmly. "I need to talk to you about a slight – hitch – in our plan."
Her heart thumping and leaping (though she didn't know exactly why), May forced her voice to remain steady. "Oh?"
"Y'see, Ash was really freaked out at first at the idea of going out with any girl, let alone Misty. It took some careful negotiation on my part," he smirked, "to get him to go through with it."
The brunette merely rolled her eyes at his puffed-up ego. "Continue."
But to May's bewilderment, Drew would no longer meet her eyes. "Anyway," he continued, as confidence drained from his voice, "he begged me to" – he was barely audible – "to go double-dating with him and Misty."
He looked up, expecting shock and horror from May, but getting only silence. Dead silence. And May was not a dead-silence-sort of person. Uh-oh, Drew thought. "So," he continued swiftly after a few seconds' silence, "After much begging and shameless pleading on Ash's part, I caved in, mainly for the success of the plan." And it was true, he thought, it was mainly for the good of the plan…or at least, it had been, when he'd first considered the idea…
May, unaware of Drew's near-nervous breakdown, could hardly believe that she was hearing right. Her heart threatened to burst out of her chest, but she forced it back down like one would an overexcited puppy, keeping it in check, telling it to stay calm until she heard who he was going with. It might not be me, she told herself. It might not be me. Drew has lots of so-called "female fans," tons of them. It might not be me. But the "puppy" was winning. Soon, her heart thumped, it's probably me, it's probably me, it's probably me, it's probably…
"S-So," her rival said, scratching the back of his neck nervously, "I was wondering if I could…"
It's probably me, it's probably me, it's probably me…"…if you would…"
It HAS to be me, it HAS to be me, it HAS to be me…"…go with me on the double date? Just because Ash begged me to," he added self-consciously.
The world waited in silence. Slowly, in a tightly controlled voice (and with a similar smile), she answered him. "Okay, sure."
Forgetting that he was supposed to be the stand-offish rival for a moment, Drew searched May's face, her eyes, trying to read the emotions hiding behind them; but they were like mirrors, very serene and fragile, hiding something beneath the surface. He wasn't about to risk breaking the delicate glass.
"So…see you around?" May said lamely, cutting Drew off from his thoughts as she stood up. "Tomorrow?"
"Yeah, sure," her rival said, his voice smooth once again. "Ash and I set the dinner date to three days from now, at the Premiere Restaurant." Getting up himself, he opened the door for May. "How're you liking my songs?" he added as May walked past the threshold.
"They're pretty good. Viva la Vida is a nice touch – pun intended," she added as Drew rolled his eyes. "You've got nice albums. Pretty good stuff. But -" she added as an afterthought, "There's this group you have that I was a little curious about – The Police. I've never listened to them before…"
"Well, they're good, you should take a listen sometime," advised Drew, beginning to close the door when an idea sprang to life in his head. "Listen," he hastily added, "if you train tomorrow, listen to some songs off the album called The Singles by The Police. It's good…er…exercise music," he finished lamely.
"Okay," May replied, shooting him a look that said, plain as day, Boys are weird – and you're not the exception.
"Just do it, okay?" he said, and without knowing quite how it had got there, May found herself clutching the stem of a gorgeous ruby-red rose.
"Bye," the brunette squeaked as the door shut with a decisive ca-clunk.
Then and only then did she allow her thoughts to come crashing in on her like a storm of choppy, disjointed waves. I'm going on a date with Drew Hayden! I really am! And I didn't even have to ask! But that doesn't even matter, because I'M GOING ON A DATE WITH DREW HAYDEN! Barely managing to keep from screaming aloud (so as not to disturb the elderly), May danced an exuberant, hyperactive jig all the way back to Room 184. Her heart swelled with happy disbelief as yet another thought hit her: although she'd anticipated having to ask Drew, he'd asked her instead! It all seemed like a fairy tale. She stopped to remind herself, however, that Drew had asked her out because Ash had supposedly "made" him…but whatever, she told herself blissfully, that didn't really matter much, did it?
Upon reaching hers and Misty's room, the Coordinator was reluctant to break the spell that this recent bit of information had cast upon her; but finally, she knocked quietly on the cool oak surface.
Nobody answered. She knocked louder.
Still nobody. Throwing consideration for the elderly to the winds, May pounded her gloved fist against the door multiple times.
"For Pete's sake, I'm…" The door was thrown open, and a rather frizzy red head appeared, and under it was Misty's tired face. The look vanished after a moment, however, to be replaced by shining expectation. "Did you, y'know…ask him?" she queried, grabbing May's shoulders.
"No," said her friend, relishing the moment. Misty's face drooped, then turned sullen.
"Well, then, why – but how – YOU SAID WE WOULD BE EVEN!"
"We are," May said smilingly. She extended the rose toward Misty, hoping to get her point across.
Misty cocked her red head, studying the brunette. "But then, what…" her voice trailed off as the answer clicked. "But that means…he asked you out!"
May had never felt more elation in her entire life than when she gazed at that rose, watching the hall lights set each petal aflame. "Bingo."
~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~
The next morning found May practicing in one of the many training arenas set up exclusively for the Hoenn Premier.
"Take the stage, guys! Beautifly, use your Psychic! Skitty, Assist!"
The risky combination resulted in a psychically-controlled Razor Leaf, which soared into the sky and then drifted down as tiny flecks of bright green foliage, each piece imbued with a purplish tinge.
"Yes!" cried the Coordinator, pumping a fist. "Amazing work, guys! Now, if only Skitty knew Razor Leaf…because I don't think Venusaur would be too great of a choice for this particular Contest…" she trailed off, tapping her chin. "I want something sleek and beautiful…fast-paced…"
"- Like a Roselia? Or a Flygon?"
Without batting an eyelash, May retorted, "Not necessarily, wise guy."
"Fine. Be that way." Drew retreated to his own corner of the arena, sending out the two Pokemon he'd mentioned without a word of greeting – to them or to May. From across the arena, May heard him say coolly, "Petal Dance, Dragonbreath."
The two Pokemon complied, and a burst of blue and purple flame erupted from Flygon's mouth, while a shimmer of pink leaves swirled around Roselia. The leaves were engulfed in fire, sending rainbow-colored ashes drifting down from the high ceiling. As Flygon flapped its polygonal wings, the ashes drifted this way and that, catching the light even more and enrapturing the watching Coordinators.
"Not bad," May muttered, grabbing her energy bar and biting off a chunk savagely. "But I can do better."
"- Anything you can do, I can do better, I can do anything better than you," sang another familiar voice, this one female.
May glowered. "Misty. Shut it."
" – Anything you can do, I can -"
"Misty."
"Okay, okay," said Misty in a singsong voice, holding her hands up good-naturedly (a devilish twinkle could be seen in her wide blue eyes, however). Ever since last night, May had observed, Misty had been walking on air. She supposed it was because of the date, although when she'd asked that of the redheaded girl, it had been quite a different story…
"So…" May said slyly as the two brushed their teeth in front of the single bathroom mirror, "are you happy that Ash accepted?"
Misty cast her friend a dark, skeptical glance. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing."
"Well…yeah, I guess," the Cerulean Sister replied quickly, turning her head so that her fiery hair hid her face. "If you count that fact that you made me ask him."
May spit her toothpaste into the sink with gusto. "Well, you've been awfully happy since last night…" she observed, trying to keep the teasing tone out of her voice.
"Nonsense," said Misty, pausing to spit her toothpaste out with equal force. "I'm just doing this so poor Ash won't have to be embarrassed by Drew. You know Drew would make fun of Ash if I didn't accept."
"But you were the one to ask," the brunette couldn't help but adding quietly.
Misty had sharp hearing. Pivoting toward May, she brandished her toothbrush at the girl like a mallet. "How dare you!" she yelled, bits of minty-fresh concoction flying off the bristles. "I only asked because YOU made me!"
"That I will admit," said May irritably, wiping a speck of toothpaste out of her eye. "But you would have asked him, anyway," she added laughingly, dodging a furious toothbrush-swipe from Misty, who was growling like an angry Poochyena.
Ah, good times… May thought. True or not (though she suspected the latter), the brunette had expected Misty to be worrying over what she was going to wear, how she should act, and things like that – not that May had much advice to offer, she admitted to herself with a grimace. Instead, she seemed to be taking it pretty well.
"Hey, come in, earth to May!" said the subject of May's musings, waving her arms impatiently.
The Coordinator started. "Um…what?" She was tired, and ready to take a break. She had suffered from insomnia the previous night, catching little snatches of slumber here and there. The little sleep she had gotten had been riddled with strange dreams that caused her to awaken again, over and over.
"Listen, why don't you just relax and check out the competition while I look around a bit?" As she was about to walk through the EXIT door, Misty turned around and mouthed devilishly, I'll leave you and Drew alone now.
"Whatever," May muttered, plopping down on a nearby bench as she glanced at her rival. As she settled herself with a creak on its slatted seat, she took out Drew's iPod and flicked mindlessly through the songs, feeling as if she was supposed to be doing something…
Oh, yeah…The Singles! May found the album and opened the page, her eyes skimming over the names for the first time. Only one jumped out at her from the beginning.
Shocked into dumb silence, May's brain scanned the title over and over again: Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic.
She pressed the Play button.
Though I've tried before to tell herOf the feelings I have for her in my heart,
Every time that I come near her
I just lose my nerve as I've done from the start…
Every little thing she does is magic,
Every thing she do just turns me on
Even though my life before was tragic,
Now I know my love for her goes on…
Do I have to tell the story
Of a thousand rainy days since we first met,
It's a big enough umbrella,
But it's always me that ends up getting wet…
As the chorus repeated
itself, May sighed and drifted into a slouch on the bench while the
music washed over her, the piano melody sweeping her far away. Even
so, as she listened, she thought. Why would Drew keep this stuff on
his iPod? He wasn't a romantic - well, in a way, he actually was,
she reminded herself. But still… Oh, well, I'll just enjoy
the song for now…
I resolve to call her up
A thousand times a day,
To ask her if she'll marry me,
Some old-fashioned way
But my silent fears have gripped me,
Long before I reach the phone
Long before my tongue has tripped me,
Must I always be alone?
Every little thing she does is magic,
Every thing she do just turns me on
Even though my life before was tragic,
Now I know my love for her goes on…
Her romantic side fully captivated, May sighed dreamily as she listened to the closing notes. If only those words were being sung to her…but that would be just too much to ask for, even from Drew…
Wait – what did I just think? She shook her auburn hair vigorously as if to clear her head. Silly, romantically-inclined me.
All the same, she thought as she leaned back to listen again, it was a rather nice thought – actually, it was a very wonderful idea…that someone should think that…of her.
~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~
"C-Can I have your autograph, sir?"
"Oh, me too, p-please, Mr. Hayden?"
Barely concealing an inner sigh, Drew scribbled D. Hayden on a Pokeblock cookbook and last year's Grand Festival promotional poster.
"Oh, thank you, thanks!" The two ten-year-olds squealed, shrieking like the infatuated girls they were as they scampered off to find more famous (and most probably male) Coordinators lurking around.
The green-haired boy scratched his head as he turned away. Weird girls. Hey, is that Ash?
Sure enough, a familiar black-haired Pokemon Trainer was darting and dodging through the pre-lunch crowd toward him. "Wait up, Drew!" he shouted. His Pikachu was balancing precariously on his shoulder.
"Hey, Ash. What's up?"
"Let's grab some lunch. And then…" his voice grew low.
"What is it, Ash?"
"I kinda need some help picking out what to wear on our date," he mumbled. "I don't know what to -"
"Our date?" interrupted Drew, one eyebrow raised.
"Yeah," said Ash, his patience already wearing thin. "It is our date, right?"
"I guess," smirked Drew, "but you're the only one who actually -" he broke off, biting his lip. I can't say that I'm the only one wanting to go on this date, because that would be a lie. But Ash can't know that. "- You're the one who needs assistance in picking out what to wear," he finished rather lamely.
As he'd suspected, Ash was not impressed. "Okay, so…will ya help me?" the Trainer asked, looking as if he had more to add. But surprisingly, he said no more, and for an unknown reason Drew was grateful.
"All right. I will," sighed the emerald-haired Coordinator, shoving one hand in a pocket and petting Pikachu with the other. "For now, let's go eat." A little voice inside told him, I've got a feeling that this isn't going to be as easy as I thought. And as his mind wandered, the lines of a song came to him, and he hummed a few bars as they made their way to the restaurant:
I resolve to call her up
A thousand times a day,
To ask her if she'll marry me,
Some old-fashioned way
But my silent fears have gripped me,
Long before I reach the phone
Long before my tongue has tripped me,
Must I always be alone?
~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~
Hope you enjoyed it this chapter! I know there wasn't much action in it (except for the beginning, of course), but it was more to reflect on the character's feelings, or at least that's how it turned out. Next chap, the action will start – preparations for the date and the Contest. Gasp! They're on the SAME DAY, if you were paying attention. O__o This could be interesting…but I'll let you decide on that. (REVIEW!)
I'd like to give total credit to Coldplay and The Police for their songs Viva la Vida and Every Little Thing She Does is Magic, respectively. (You NEED to go listen to both songs…my personal fav of the two is "Every Little Thing," but perhaps you would think differently. Both are clean songs.) Pokemon is owned by Satoshi Tajiri. And the grass is green, the sky is blue, etc. etc., you get the picture. Thanks for reading! Next chap up before too incredibly long (I hope)!
Force be with you,
-Pika