I say sorry every time, and I really do mean it even though it just sounds like more excuses.
Disclaimer: I titled this 'AU'. If you think I own Pokemon, byeeee.
Teacups.
It's an innocent enough word, and it's not like Gary's ever had any particularly outstanding memories of it- aside from his older sister's constant use of the dishware.
At least, not until his date with Leaf.
After riding on a variety of rather thrilling carnival rides- the swinging pirate ship and the Caterpie for instance- Gary had suggested something milder: the ever-classic spinning Teacup ride.
The two had barely crammed into the tiny ride- their knees stuffed under the center table and their hands on said table touching- when it had started moving. But the slow pace had not been enough for his date, who, from looking at the people around them, had quickly realized that she could spin their individual teacup at any speed that she desired…specifically, something fast.
Leaf's apparent need for speed is currently the reason for why Gary is hurtling around in circles at such a dizzying speed.
"Don't you think we should slow down a little?" Gary grips the center table tightly, willing for the world to stop spinning so quickly around him. Even though their teal teacup is going too fast for him to properly look around them, he knows that they're pretty much the only ones whirring about in such a manner.
Leaf doesn't respond to his query, though the glint of glee in her hazel eyes tell him that she wouldn't be letting up at all.
He'd just have to tough it out for the rest of the ride. Gary supposes that it's not actually that bad. If he just closes his eyes, it's not as dizzying. It could even be pleasant to a small extent.
In order to get them to their current speed- that, like the Caterpie ride, had caused the two to fall into one another now and then- Leaf has to pretty much lunge counter-clockwise at the center table. Gary adamantly refuses to assist his date in making the world whirl even faster around them, so Leaf's hands periodically land on top of his as she rotates the table.
Right before he can close his eyes, though, Leaf shuts her own, smiling widely and openly as her hair whips about her. The view before him- of the vibrant brunette gleefully laughing as the rest of the world blurs around them- is too mesmerizing for Gary to look anywhere else.
"Aww…" In another cup, a brunette sighs. "Look, they're having a whirlwind romance!"
Her boyfriend raises his eyebrow. "You do realize that that's not exactly a good thing, right, June?"
Drew winces when he watches the teacup housing his friend and his date. He's actually surprised that the ride hasn't either broken down or ejected the two.
"Well, I meant literally, so it's not the same thing." May sticks her tongue out at her boyfriend. She knows she's being slightly immature, but he just manages to bring out that side of her.
"It's like they're in a world of their own," the pokémon coordinator adds, watching the teal blur with practically hearts in her sapphire eyes.
The green-haired coordinator knows his girlfriend well enough to know what's coming next. He opens his mouth.
"We're not doing that."
"We're not doing that."
For the most part, Gary's been very agreeable with Leaf's decisions-after all, it's the company that makes the date. But this would have to be the one thing that Gary absolutely will not do, regardless of the pleading look on Leaf's face.
Zorbing.
'Why not?' She asks. 'It looks fun!'
No. No way is he going to enter a human dedenne ball, just so he could run around like said pokémon. He has more dignity than that, for Arceus's sake!
"I'm just not into that kind of thing," Gary answers, rather than saying how ridiculous he thinks it is. No need to be a douche on the second date.
She bites her lips in response but writes nothing else on the board. Slight disappointment enters her hazel eyes.
'Alright,' Leaf agrees after a moment, 'we can always do something else. You choose.'
After looking and analyzing the rides around them, Gary reaches a practical conclusion: the Ferris Wheel. Not only is it at a set [and mild] speed, but it is also one of the theme park date classics.
Leaf seems almost visibly disappointed when she sees how slowly the cars move, but, by the time Gary and Leaf make it towards the front of its long line, Leaf is bouncing in slight excitement once more.
The couple waiting behind them notices the brunette's excitement.
"Ferris wheels can be pretty great," the brunette girl says rather cheerfully. "N and I make a point to ride on them every chance we get."
Her green-haired boyfriend merely gives them an awkward smile.
"We've had a lot of crucial moments together on ferris wheels," she continues. "I think it's all because of that legend..."
Gary and Leaf blink owlishly.
"Touko," her boyfriend coughs. "I believe you're making them uncomfortable."
Touko pauses for a brief second. She laughs sheepishly. "Am I? Sorry about that."
Her words have sparked Leaf's curiosity however. 'What legend?'
The slightly older brunette grins. "The legend goes that a couple who rides on the ferris wheel will break up-"
Leaf blinks and looks questioningly at Gary.
Shit, no. He wasn't trying to send ANY message by suggesting the ferris wheel.
"Unless," Touko continues, "the two share a kiss at the highest point. Then instead, they're blessed to be together forever."
…together forever…
…forever…
Gary's eye twitches.
He likes Leaf, he really does. Just not enough to basically propose.
Would she read his suggestion to ride on a ferris wheel as a proposal? Wait…would she be expecting a kiss at the top? Was he even ready for a kiss?
Gary's by no means a kiss virgin, but just thinking of kissing Leaf threatens to unleash something he's not sure should be let out.
Without a word, Gary grabs Leaf's hand and pulls her out of the line and away from the ferris wheel.
Leaf blinks in confusion but allows Gary to drag her back towards the direction they had come from.
Dawn sighs in disappointment and leaves her spot in line with Kenny once the couple has safely passed them.
N and Touko share a confused look but ultimately think nothing of their exit, instead stepping forward to take their place.
"I can't believe I'm doing this," Gary mutters under his breath as the employees inform them of how the attraction works. Leaf listens attentively, smiling enthusiastically throughout the whole ordeal.
At least someone was happy.
After being prompted, Gary steps into the plastic covering and watches as the employees blow up the plastic bubble around him. It's not until they start rolling him up the edge of the dock that he looks at Leaf.
His date has her face pressed up closely to the bubble, peering curiously at the large pond. As if sensing his gaze, Leaf turns her attention to him. She beams brightly and gives him a little wave.
He's about to give a small wave of his own when he's suddenly aware of flashes of light from behind him.
Slyly smiling and blatantly taking pictures of him are none other than Ash Ketchum and Drew Hayden.
Guess they gave up on being subtle.
He wants to give his friends a certain hand gesture to show his appreciation, but a sudden 'splash!' lets him know that Leaf has already left and he should get his butt in gear if he wants to catch up.
Gary turns just in time to see Leaf's first cautious steps within the ball. Her steps are small, but she manages to keep herself upright.
He could do this without making a fool of himself, right?
With one last warning scowl tossed over his shoulder at Ash and Drew, Gary pushes forward on the ball, allowing it to drop from the dock and onto the waters below.
Sound from outside the ball had been slightly muffled prior to the drop but now all Gary could hear was the sound of the water lapping around him.
His tall frame makes it harder for Gary to balance himself within the bubble, and he finds himself knocked down after his first few steps. He struggles to move forward without crawling on his hands and knees like a freaking dedenne.
The experience as a whole could make anyone claustrophobic, Gary muses.
Or hydrophobic since the pond water looks deep and ominous as it sways the zorb ball back and forth.
At least Leaf is most likely having fun.
To assure himself of this fact, Gary looks up from the water to look at her. He finds her several meters away, almost out of his line of view.
How was she able to move that fast, all without falling down? The speed at which she moves is almost inhuman.
Deciding to Arceus with his pride and sense of human dignity, Gary proceeds to crawl forward. He feels slightly stupid, but it'll be worth it to catch up to Leaf. And to stop hearing only the sound of water around him.
It's not scary in the least, but it makes Gary feel like he's in a world all on his own.
When he finally manages to get closer to Leaf's orb, he finds her kneeling, staring intently at the water. She's so distracted that she doesn't hear Gary shouting her name- though perhaps the different layers of plastic between them has reduced his voice to something so minuscule that the water drowns him out.
Gary eventually gives up on calling out to her and attempts to move his ball closer to hers. He crawls, moving too slowly for his taste.
He desperately wants to leave his bubble and enter hers. He wants to be a part of her world.
Her world, where anything and everything is a reason to smile. Her world, where everything is interesting. Her world, where anything could happen if you just let it.
It's only when his plastic orb bumps slightly into hers that she looks up from the water. Her blank facial expression doesn't change at first. There's a long moment before she blinks and gives him a small smile.
He finds himself extending his palm, touching the plastic of the ball, just as she does the same. A thrill runs through him. In that moment, she feels so close but yet… so far away.
They finish off the night by walking around the carnival. Every now and then, they stop to take a look at a stall that Leaf's interested in, but, other than that, they do not do much else. It seems that after zorbing, Gary's date is no longer as energetic and inquisitive.
He knows that it could just be that she's tired, but Gary can't help but feel like something's off.
"Hey," Gary says when they've stopped at a stand selling fancy masks. Leaf's examining a glittery teal mask but stops to look up at him. "is everything okay?"
She smiles differently at him, he notices. Her lips are pressed tightly together rather than revealing a bit of her teeth.
'Everything's fine.' Her usual loopy handwriting is messy, as if in some places the pen just slipped from her fingers.
He's about to say more when he's interrupted by the sound of a body hitting the ground.
Gary whirls to see the cause of the commotion.
Rubbing the back of her head sheepishly is none other than Dawn Berlitz. Evidently, she had been leaning too much of her hiding space behind the racks and had fallen over.
"Whoops?" Dawn weakly offers. "No need to worry…I'm not spying too much."
Kenny slaps a hand to his forehead before deciding that there's no point in continuing to hide.
"It's okay, Deedee." Kenny helps his childhood friend up off the ground. "I think Ash and Drew gave us away anyway when they watched Gary zorbing."
Dawn groans before narrowing her eyes at Gary.
"You, mister-" She points to a nearby stall with a bunch of pokémon plushies. "-need to go win her a prize! It's a carnival date classic!"
Kenny rolls his eyes. He tips his head instead towards an all-familiar red-head at the Test of Strength. "Or you could just ask for one off of Misty. She's wiping that carnie out clean."
Gary snorts. Misty's surprisingly girly side would not tolerate separation from any of her stuffed cuties.
Nonetheless, Gary rolls up his sleeves and heads over to the bottle ring toss. He returns a few minutes later with an eevee plushie. He recalls seeing Leaf watch the toy versions back at the toy shop, so he figures that she'd like eevee-themed merchandise.
His conclusion is right on the nose, as Leaf finally brightens up and grabs the stuffed animal from his hands. She squeezes it close to her chest, beaming at him.
Dawn takes several pictures of them and the plushie (and is probably posting it to her ever-popular social media page), but Gary decides it's worth it to see Leaf smile again.
When they exit the carnival, the rest of the group is already waiting for them. Evidently, they had figured that they were caught and had decided to give up.
Still, Leaf thought, they could not be blamed for trying.
It is sweet and heart-warming really, to have all of these individuals thinking and caring so much about their night. She's not truly a part of their close-knit group, as she had been reminded earlier, but that didn't mean that she couldn't occasionally feel like one of them.
Leaf once more squeezes the miniature Eevee stuffed with cotton, thinking about how Gary had won it for her. It hadn't been as dramatic and romantic as Dawn had hoped, but Leaf still adored the gesture.
She just wishes she could do more to thank him than smile.
From afar, she quietly watches the laughing group. Glee is evident in the expressions of all its members. Though she notes the seven of them and files away her observations in the back of her mind, her primary focus is on the quiet brunette in the back.
She narrows her eyes, a grim yet vaguely amused expression overtaking her face. "Astraea."
I purposefully left the ending cryptic just as a reminder that this isn't a random fluffy filler story. There is an actual plot, I promise. I'll be trying my best to speed things along since, oh my god, I am taking FOREVER with everything.
There was a cameo in there lol but it was a crappy shout out to one of my friend's various OTPs.
Please give me your comments, opinions, and suggestions as always!