White Wedding

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon.

The Aftermath

Ash pumped his legs as hard as he could, desperate to get away from Misty. What in the world had just happened? One minute he and Misty were talking and the next...oh, God, he had kissed a girl. Or had she kissed him? Did it really matter?

The young groomsman found himself back at the reception, far away from the stream where he and Misty had sat. Still, he continued to wiz by people (who couldn't help but shake their heads in amusement) in an attempt to get as far away from the scene as possible. In fact, Ash had every intention of running back home and locking himself in his room for the rest of his life. The plan would have worked if someone hadn't have stopped him.

"Whoa, Ash, just where are you going in such a hurry?" A bemused Professor Oak grabbed Ash by the arm as the teenage boy attempted to dash home.

"Can't talk...Gotta get home...Misty...Gotta go...Sorry," Ash panted, the words he spoke barely coherent.

"Settle down! Wait a minute, Ash; you can't go home already. Why would you want to go home? And why is your suite stained pink?"

"Misty...Oh, God...She's going to kill me...Gotta get home!"

Ash had hoped that the Pokemon professor would somehow understand his plight and leave him to run home, but the groom's grip only tightened on his arm. Ash attempted to break free of the vice grip, wincing painfully when Professor Oak simply held on tighter.

"Ash, what happened with Misty?" the professor inquired.

"Huh? Oh, um, nothing." Ash had finally regained his breath and could now speak more easily.

"Come over here, Ash. I think you and I should have a little talk." Professor Oak led the bewildered boy over to a more private area where they could not be overheard.

"Sit down, Ash. Make yourself comfortable."

Ash did not like the direction this conversation was going in. Didn't Professor Oak understand that he absolutely, positively had to get home right at that instant? He didn't have time to talk to the newly married man. Still, much to Ash's chagrin, the professor pressed on.

"Ash, what do you think about girls?"

Ash thought this was a funny question indeed. Where was Professor Oak going with this?

"Um, not much to be honest with you," Ash answered truthfully. "I mean, May and Dawn are girls and they're OK. Oh, and I suppose Misty's a girl, too," he hastily added.

"How come you think of May and Dawn as girls but not Misty?" the Pokemon professor asked.

"I don't know. I mean, May and Dawn are all into girly stuff like hair and clothes and makeup, and Misty, well, Misty's more like me. I mean, she's just Misty."

"What do mean when you say that Misty's just Misty, Ash?"

"Um, I don't know. When I think of Misty I just think of her as my friend. When I think of May and Dawn I think of them as girls; they're different from me, you know? Misty, though, Misty is the same as me. She's not like other girls. She's just...different," Ash finished.

"Do you think you feel differently about Misty than you do about other girls?"

"Well, sure. I can be myself when I'm around her. I don't have to worry about whether or not I smell badly or how my hair looks or what I'm wearing. That's how it was when I traveled with her. When I traveled with May and Dawn, though, I was always self-conscious because, well, they're girls, and guys are supposed to be self-conscious around girls. It's just different with Misty somehow."

"Ash, do you think you love Misty?"

Whoa! Where had that one come from? Ash and the professor had been talking about Misty and girls and all of the sudden Professor Oak asks that? Ash was left dumbfounded. He and Misty had kissed. Misty had said she loved him. That's why Ash was running away in the first place, to escape the feelings he was experiencing because of those two events. Confusion, shock, fear: all of those feelings together made for a very jumbled up Ash.

Surely Professor Oak couldn't have known about what had happened by the water Pokemon stream, right? Was he spying on them or something?

After a long pause, the professor spoke up again.

"Ash, did you hear what I said?"

"Yeah, Professor, I heard what you said. I just don't know why you would ask that," Ash responded honestly.

"Well, you said that you feel differently about Misty than you feel about other girls," the professor reasoned.

"That's because Misty's different from other girls! It doesn't mean I love her! Love is for sissies!" Ash was becoming very defensive.

"Oh, I don't think love is just for sissies, Ash. I love your mother. Do you think I'm a sissy?" Professor Oak questioned.

"No, you're just old," Ash replied.

The professor couldn't help but chuckle at this.

"So love is only for sissies and old people?" Professor Oak asked Ash.

"Pretty much," Ash replied truthfully.

"Well, you love your mother, don't you?"

Ash had to admit that Professor Oak was good. He had him there.

"Well, yeah, but she's my mom. That's different," Ash responded after a long pause.

"Ash, the only reason I bring this up is because you're getting older and you may start to develop feelings for girls. I want you to be ready when you do."

Realizing that perhaps this was his chance to get some answers, Ash decided to speak up.

"Professor, what is it like to, err, have feelings for girls? What does it feel like to be in love?"

"Well, Ash, it's a feeling like no other. It makes you feel happy and excited but also nervous at the same time. It's a funny feeling, really, one you can't quite describe, and one that seemingly comes out of no where; it hits you when you least expect it. It makes you feel like you're on top of the world...but it can also make you feel sick to your stomach," the professor finished.

Funny thing, love, Ash mused. Wasn't that exactly how he felt about Misty? Did that mean he was in love with Misty? Falling in love certainly had not been a part of Ash's life plan; he would become a Pokemon Master and live side by side with his Pokemon until he became old and died. Love was never part of the picture. Could he make room for it, though?

"Professor, I...I think that's how I feel about Misty...but I'm not sure," Ash stated sheepishly.

"Well, Ash, it's very common to feel confused about love the first time you experience it. Love can be a very scary thing, and it's not unusual for people to feel uneasy about it at first," the professor replied knowingly.

"I just don't know, Professor. I mean, I think I feel that way, but when I think about love I feel scared and, well, funny. When Misty and I kissed, though, well, it felt good...really good," Ash confessed.

"Misty kissed you?"

"Well, I'm not really sure if she kissed me or I kissed her. It just sort of happened."

The professor nodded in understanding, so Ash decided it was safe to press on.

"After we kissed she told me she loved me. That's why I ran away. I didn't know what to say to her. I was just so scared and confused; I didn't know what to do. Now I'm never going to be able to face her again. I mean, things are going to be so awkward between us now. It's like our friendship is ruined," Ash stated sadly, a frown making its way across his face.

"Ash, sometime love can be very difficult and, yes, awkward at first. It doesn't mean it will always be like that; things do get better. I don't think your friendship is ruined, either."

"You don't?"

"Ash, you and Misty have been great friends for a long time. I'm sure things will work themselves out in the end."

"But what do I say to her? How do I face her after running away?"

"Well, I think you should say to her exactly what you just said to me," the professor replied.

"I just don't know if I can ever talk to her or see her again," Ash admitted.

"You don't really have a choice, Ash. You can't avoid her forever. It's not like you can stay locked up in your room for the rest of your life."

Funny, because that's exactly what Ash had planned on doing.

"I guess you're right, Professor. I suppose I should go look for her."

"That a boy, Ash. Good luck! It'll be fine!"

Ash wasn't so sure about that. He had a feeling that what he was about to do next was going to be more difficult than any Pokemon battle he had ever participated in.

Misty couldn't believe how stupid she had been. What on Earth had compelled her to say that to Ash? Surely she hadn't been thinking, because if she had been she would have known better. The kiss must have messed up her head or something. The kiss...oh, what a wonderful kiss it had been! Misty wished it could have lasted forever. Hadn't she dreamed about it for years? It had gone so perfectly, just the way she had always imagined it would. Then she had to go and ruin everything.

Of course Ash had run away. He simply was too kind and didn't want to hurt her; instead of telling her that he didn't love her, he just ran off, leaving the words unsaid in hope of sparing Misty's feelings. Somehow what he had done made her feel even worse, though.

Misty trudged back to the reception, carrying her heels in her hand because her feet were so sore from walking in them. She didn't care if the soles of her feet became dirty at that point; the only person she wanted to look pretty for had just rejected her.

As she made her way over to one of the tables to get some punch (for she was quite thirsty), Misty caught sight of Mrs. Ketchum. Hastily turning around, she decided she would rather not talk to the woman if at all possible; she really wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone at that point. Too late.

"Hello, Misty!" Mrs. Ketchum exclaimed cheerfully.

"Oh, hi, Mrs. Ketchum. The wedding was really beautiful. Thanks so much for inviting me," Misty responded.

Misty certainly didn't want to be rude, but she had to get away from the party, so she turned to head back to the Ketchum residence, where she hoped she could be alone with her difficult feelings.

"Wait, Misty! Where are you going?" Mrs. Ketchum called after her.

Damn. Just when she thought she could get away.

"Oh, um, I was going to head back to the house. My feet are really sore and I'm really tired. I hope you don't mind," Misty explained hastily.

"What, dear? You want to leave already? Are you sure?"

Misty sighed, though she hadn't really meant to. She knew she was probably hurting Mrs. Ketchum's feelings, but she couldn't help wanting to be alone and as far away from Ash as possible. Of course, she knew she would have to face him eventually, but she wanted to put off the inevitable for as long as she could possibly could.

"Misty, is something wrong?" Mrs. Ketchum asked after hearing the teenager sigh.

"Huh? Oh, um, I just think I made a big mistake; that's all," Misty replied, hoping against hope that she would be able to escape. No such luck.

"What happened?" A look of genuine concern crossed Mrs. Ketchum's face, and for a moment Misty gave in and decided that maybe confiding in someone wouldn't be such a bad idea. She toyed with the idea for a while, eventually deciding she would tell Mrs. Ketchum. After all, the woman seemed sincerely interested in what was going on and concerned for Misty, and maybe she could give her some advice.

"Mrs. Ketchum, do you think that I could talk to you in private somewhere?" Misty asked.

"Sure, Misty. How about we go over there?" Mrs. Ketchum pointed at a spot near some trees and the two females made their way towards it and sat down.

"What is it, Misty?"

What was she going to say? How could she tell this woman that she had told her son that she loved him and that her son had proceeded to reject her? Surely Mrs. Ketchum would defend Ash; in fact, she would probably be angry with Misty for saying such a thing. Maybe talking to her about this hadn't been such a great idea after all.

"Well, I, um, don't really know how to say this, but I think I ruined my friendship with Ash." Misty decided to stay vague and avoid giving details if at all possible.

"What do you mean, Misty? How so? I saw you and Ash dancing earlier; you looked like you were having such a nice time," Mrs. Ketchum replied.

Yes, they had been having a nice time until Misty had to go and ruin it all.

"Ash and I were having a great time. That's the thing, Mrs. Ketchum—perhaps we were having too good of a time."

"Misty, I can't possibly help you if you don't give me any details," Mrs. Ketchum explained. Her expression then softened. "It's OK, Misty. You can tell me what happened. I promise I won't be angry with you."

How did Mrs. Ketchum know that Misty was afraid that she would be angry with her? It was like this woman had some kind of sixth sense. Well, Misty decided, she might as well just say what had happened and get it over with.

"Um, well, I found out that Ash only asked me to dance with him because Tracey told him to and I got really upset but then Ash came over and made me feel better and before I knew it we were kissing and then I told Ash I loved him and then he ran away," Misty explained, only stopping to catch her breath when she was through.

"I see," Mrs. Ketchum stated simply.

"Mrs. Ketchum, I don't know what to do! Why was I so stupid? Ash probably hates me now!"

"Come now, Misty; I don't think Ash hates you," Mrs. Ketchum said softly.

"Of course he does! Why else would he run away?" Misty questioned. "I've ruined our friendship forever!"

"Misty, calm down! I don't think Ash ran away because he hates you and I don't think you've ruined your friendship with him, either."

"Why else would he run away?"

"Maybe he was just scared and confused," Mrs. Ketchum stated wisely.

"Scared and confused about what?" Misty wasn't sure that she understood where this conversation was going.

"About being in love, of course. Something you have to understand, Misty, is that this is all very new to Ash; he doesn't understand it yet."

"It's new to me, too, though, and I understand it!" Misty shot back.

"Misty, girls get these things much more quickly than boys do. They're much more in tune with their feelings than boys are."

"I'm still not sure that I understand what you're saying," Misty admitted.

"What I'm trying to say, Misty, is that Ash probably didn't know what to say in response to what you said."

"He's supposed to say 'I love you, too'!"

"I know, Misty, but Ash doesn't know that," Mrs. Ketchum explained.

"How can he not know?"

"Misty, Ash is probably very scared right now. I'm sure that no girl has ever said that to him before. He probably doesn't know how to react."

"Well, he could have just said he didn't love me instead of running off like that and leaving me not knowing what to think."

"That's the thing, Misty. It's not that Ash doesn't love you; it's just that he's probably scared to love you and confused about his feelings," Mrs. Ketchum stated.

"You mean that you think Ash loves me?" Misty asked softly. Could she really hope for that, or would believing it just result in her being crushed again?

"Yes, Misty, I do. I'm just not sure that Ash knows it."

"What do you think I should do?" Misty questioned.

"Well, Misty, I think you should just keep being his friend. Friendship is the first step to love, and the stronger the friendship the more likely it is that love will occur; your friendship with Ash is very strong. Just give him some time, Misty. Are you willing to wait for him?"

"Yes," Misty answered softly.

"Then I promise that you won't be disappointed," Mrs. Ketchum stated with a smile on her face. "Come on now; let's get back to the reception. Everyone's going to be wondering where I am."

"Mrs. Ketchum?"

"Yes, Misty?"

"Um, well, thank you...I mean, for everything."

"You're welcome, Misty."

Mrs. Ketchum then embraced Misty, a hug that the teen gratefully returned.

There she was. Ash had spotted Misty over by the punch table talking with Brock. He knew that he had to approach her now. Butterfrees danced in his stomach, but Ash pressed on. As difficult as this was going to be, he knew that he had to do it. Before he knew it he had reached the punch table.

"Oh, hey, Ash. Great punch, huh?" Brock greeted him. Misty, he noticed, blushed slightly and looked at the ground. Yup, this was definitely going to be awkward and difficult.

"What? Oh, yeah, sure, Brock. Listen, do you think that I could talk with Misty alone?"

"Oh, sure. I'll see you two later." Brock then left to go chase another girl.

It was only then that Misty looked at him. Ash couldn't help but notice that she looked as frightened as he did.

"Hi, Misty," Ash began nervously.

"Hi, Ash," the gym leader replied.

"Listen, Misty, I just wanted to, well, I just wanted to tell you that I'm sorry."

"Huh? Oh, no, Ash. I'm the one who should be sorry. I shouldn't have said that to you," Misty stated sadly.

"No, I'm the one who should be sorry," Ash responded.

"No, I'm the one who should be sorry." Misty's voice was rising now.

"No, me." Ash's voice rose to meet Misty's.

"Me!"

"No, me!"

"Me!"

"No, me!"

Ash and Misty paused for a moment, looking at one another intently. Then they burst out laughing.

"I'm sorry, Ash. I didn't mean to turn this into a fight," Misty stated.

"I'm sorry, too, Misty.

An awkward silence made its presence known at that moment. All Misty and Ash could do was look at one another.

"Misty, I shouldn't have run off like that. It's not that I don't love you, Misty. I was just scared and confused when we kissed and when you said that to me; you see, I've never been in love before, and, honestly, I'm not quite sure how it's supposed to work. I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings."

"It's OK, Ash; I understand. This is new to me, too," Misty confessed.

"But you seem like such an expert about these things, Misty. You always seem to know what you're doing when it comes to love. Me, I know nothing."

Misty couldn't help but laugh at this. "I'm not an expert, Ash! I know just as little as you do. I'm still learning, too. You and me...we can learn together," Misty stated softly.

"You mean that, Misty? You're willing to stick by me even if I'm not ready to do all of that boyfriend and girlfriend stuff yet?"

"Of course, Ash. Above everything else, you're my friend, and you'll always be my friend. That's what's most important. Everything else can wait until you're ready."

"Thank you, Misty!" Ash flung his arms around the surprised girl, who gleefully hugged him back

"I'm so glad you're my friend," Ash confessed.

"I'm glad you're my friend, too, Ash," Misty replied.

"Can I just ask you for one favor, Misty?"

"Of course, Ash," Misty responded.

"Can I have another kiss?"

Author's Note: It's finally done. I'm not too pleased with this fanfic (it's too dialogue intensive and rushed at the end, I know), but at least it's done. I promised everyone I would finish it, and I wouldn't want to break my promise. I do feel semi-accomplished; this is my longest fic yet (which is kind of sad considering it's only six chapters and about twenty thousand words, but I guess I'm just meant for shorter stories), and I'm glad that I finished it even though I didn't really like it.

I have lots of ideas for future fics. Look for two one shots, one of which will be Ash centered and another of which will be humorous (or at least I'm going to attempt to be humorous). I also have two chapter fics in my mind, a sequel to my first fic (Hard Water) as well as a May-centric fic (which is very different for me, since I usually focus on Misty). Don't worry, though; even though it's based around May, it will still have plenty of AAML.

Thanks to everyone who's stuck with the story and who's reviewed, especially to those who've reviewed consistently (you know who you are). Don't forget to review this chapter.

Take care, everyone:)