Secrets Kept

*Updated June 2014 – originally chapter 16, just tweaked a bit, not much of a difference.*

Chapter Fifteen

Ten minutes following Tracey's unexpected kiss, Gary found himself still in the pool, even as May, Amanda, and Darren filled the refrigerator with beer and lined the counter with various alcohols. He had no idea what to think about what Tracey had done and found himself in a strange sort of mental state where he was vaguely numb with surprise, but simultaneously inexplicably happy. If he had more guts when it came to his sexuality, he would go upstairs and kiss Tracey on the lips. Maybe, if he were really bold, he would ask the other boy out… Or at least make out with him.

A bit embarrassed by that particular train of thought, Gary took a deep breath and slipped under the water. He pushed off from the wall and swam to the other side, turning and returning to his original place before surfacing for another breath. In the brief moment he was above the water, he heard another car pull into the driveway, likely Wyatt's junky pickup truck, judging by the clanking noises the vehicle made. Taking another breath, Gary slipped under the water again and savored the way the cool liquid felt against his skin after the long day of working with Tracey. This time he was able to stay under a bit longer before surfacing and repeating the motion in an attempt to get Tracey off of his mind.

Sooner or later, he would have to suck it up and talk to Tracey about the feelings that had been gradually growing stronger, but today was not the day for that. At the very least, he would have to wait until his grandfather was back so that they wouldn't have to work alone together if talking to Tracey turned their friendship awkward. Then again, if that did happen with his grandfather around, the older man would certainly notice the difference in their friendship and would likely ask about the reasoning behind it. That would be even more awkward. Gary groaned in frustration, pushing off of the pool wall with more effort than was really necessary.

Maybe he would have to wait until he was about to go away for a week or so; that way, if things went awkwardly, the two boys would have time away from each other to let it pass.

He groaned again, feeling a bit helpless as he surfaced for another breath. All of this swimming was doing little to calm him down. If anything, it was keeping his mind on the issue, rather than distracting him, and he was growing more frustrated by the second. Part of him wished he could just forget about how flirtatious their friendship had become. Another part of him wished the friendship could grow into something more.

A third part of him wished there was another person he could talk to about the dilemma he was facing and perhaps give him new insight. Of course, doing that would involve coming out of the closet to at least one other person and, despite the numerous times he had nearly told Darren in the last month alone, he knew he simply was not ready for that step yet.

If he wasn't ready to do that, then how could he even consider taking his relationship with Tracey further?

He finally surfaced for the last time and swam over to the steps, sitting there quietly. His arcanine, who had taken to lying in the grass sometime over the last few minutes, came over and sat on the deck close enough for Gary to reach out and pet him. The large fire dog stepped a bit closer and rubbed his nose against Gary's shoulder, despite the water that was dripping off of him. The back door opened behind him after a few minutes and he heard footsteps on the deck but ignored whoever it was.

The next thing Gary knew something soft and fluffy had been dropped on his head, leaving him blinking in the sudden darkness. He rolled his eyes and pulled the towel off his head to glare up at Wyatt, who grinned and held out a bottle of beer.

"I'm not getting trashed tonight," Gary said flatly.

"You can't get drunk off one beer," Wyatt sighed, sitting down at the edge of the pool with his bare feet in the water. "How's work in the lab going?"

"Fine," Gary replied quietly, giving in and taking the beer from his friend. "I need to clean the lake tomorrow. Are you going to help or are you planning on being too hung over for that?"

Wyatt took a long drink from his beer. "I'll help you," he agreed, "but you have to go surfing with me in the morning."

Gary groaned, drinking his own drink. "How early?"

Wyatt shrugged, drinking again. "Not early."

"Real specific," Gary muttered sarcastically. Wyatt chuckled in response, enjoying the fact that he was annoying the other teen.

The boys fell quiet, sipping their drinks for a few minutes and lost in their own thoughts. After contemplating the whole Tracey situation for quite some time, Gary drained the rest of his drink and glanced over at Wyatt. At that moment, May came outside with two more bottles in her hands. Gary hesitated for a moment but took a second beer from her anyway. The sun hadn't even begun to set yet; if a second beer somehow managed to get him drunk, he would be able to sober up in time to go to bed. No harm, no foul. With that thought in mind, Gary quickly drained over half of his second drink in a series of quick gulps.

Next to him, Wyatt laughed. "Thirsty?" Gary held up his middle finger to him and drained the rest of the drink. "You know, they say dehydration is the number one cause of heat stroke," Wyatt replied before titling his head back and draining his own bottle in one go.

"Oh, fuck off," Gary said, rolling his eyes and reaching over to hit the other boy in the back of the head.

Wyatt laughed again, shoving Gary's shoulder before lying down on the deck, keeping his feet in the water. He saw May in the kitchen behind them and waved to get her attention, holding up his and Gary's empty bottles. She rolled her eyes but retrieved two more bottles from the fridge and brought them out to the boys with a warning to slow down on the booze.

A few minutes later, Gary was starting to feel the alcohol affecting him just a bit. He had been too busy throughout the day to eat much and it was making it far easier for him to feel even the relatively small amount of alcohol in two and a half beers. Despite feeling the alcohol, Tracey was still on his mind and he groaned in frustration again.

"Can I ask you a question?" he asked Wyatt suddenly.

The other boy sighed. "As long as it's not about my parents," he muttered darkly.

Gary frowned slightly, turning to face him. "The divorce is going that badly, huh?"

"That counts as a question."

"What would you do if there was someone you really liked but couldn't date?"

Wyatt snorted and shook his head. "You're asking the guy who got his ass beat for sleeping with one of his best friends' sisters and then started dating said sister. Are you drunk?" He asked incredulously.

Gary rolled his eyes and stood up, draping his towel around his shoulders. "Good point," he replied, gathering his clothing from the table. "I shouldn't have asked you."

Wyatt laughed, picking up their drinks and following Gary. "If you like this chick that badly, ask her out, you pussy."

"And if there's a legitimate reason not to ask them?" Gary asked as they headed into the kitchen.

Wyatt's grin faded suddenly and his eyes narrowed at Gary. "You're not talking about Amanda, are you?"

"Oh yeah, I really want your sloppy seconds," Gary shot back, rolling his eyes again.

"Not Amanda then?"

"No," Gary sighed. "Trust me, she's not my type."

"Good."

... ... ...

For the second day in a row, Gary woke up to the obnoxious beeping of his alarm clock far earlier than he would have liked. Granted it was six in the morning, as opposed to five, but he had been up late with his friends again. Though he hadn't drank enough to get drunk, he was still tired and he had to drag himself out of bed. Wyatt had agreed to help him with his work in the lake only if he went surfing with him. Though the other boy had said they wouldn't go out early, there really wasn't much choice in the matter. He couldn't go in the afternoon because he had work in the lab and he couldn't go that evening because he would likely be too tired.

He slipped out of his room quietly, grabbing the board shorts and rash guard that he had left on top of his dresser as he went. After dressing, he headed downstairs to where he knew Wyatt was still fast asleep on the couch. He reached over the back of the couch, yanked Wyatt's pillow out from under his head, and pushed the other boy off of the couch.

"Get up, asshole," he said, walking past the couch and towards the kitchen.

"Dude... You're such a dick. I said not early!" Wyatt complained but still climbed off the floor and staggered towards the kitchen after Gary.

"Hung over?" Gary asked, pouring himself a glass of orange juice.

"No. You said you would beat the shit out me if I got trashed," Wyatt groaned, rubbing his face tiredly.

Gary nodded, smirking slightly at his friend, happy that he had listened. "That's because you have to help me later. You wanted to go surfing," he reminded his friend.

"Yeah, yeah, I remember. You're driving, I'm fucking tired."

"Whatever," Gary rolled his eyes and headed into the garage to grab his surfboard.

By the time they reached the beach, it was after six-thirty and the sun was just rising. They had been delayed by how long it took Wyatt to change into his board shorts and attach his board to the roof of Gary's car. Gary had been annoyed with him before they had even left the house but, upon seeing the favorable conditions, he decided it wasn't really worth being annoyed. The water was clear, fairly warm, and relatively calm with the waves breaking evenly, on the small side but just big enough to have fun. It was going to be a beautiful day.

Wyatt, typical to his rash nature, whooped and ran into the water, suddenly far more awake than he had been only a moment earlier. Gary shook his head, amused, as he entered the water much calmer than his friend.

"Is it just me, or doesn't the water seem warmer than normal?" Gary called, paddling out to meet Wyatt in the deeper water. He had only been out to the beach once or twice since coming home from the Orange Islands, but hadn't been out in nearly two weeks now.

"Oh, sorry 'bout that," Wyatt called back, grinning. Gary rolled his eyes at the joke. "It's a few degrees warmer than usual for this time of year," he confirmed, abandoning his failed joke.

"That means more fish."

Wyatt nodded, still grinning. "And more sharks. There was a sand tiger yesterday, big as my board!"

Gary smiled at his excitement. "I dove with a few sand tigers down by Valencia."

"Eh, they're common… I heard some of the fishermen talking about a hammerhead out by the reef a few days ago."

"Dove with one of those too." Gary grinned at the other boy's loud curse and jealous expression.

"Arceus!" Wyatt viciously splashed Gary, who merely laughed and ducked his head to avoid getting saltwater in his eyes. "You're such an ass!"

"The privileges of being a researcher," Gary replied smugly.

Wyatt opened his mouth to reply but caught sight of an approaching wave out of the corner of his eye. "Race you!" he yelled, starting to paddle toward the shore, purposely splashing Gary in the process.

"Oh yeah, and I'm the ass?" Gary shot back, paddling to catch up.

"You look like one," Wyatt called, popping up on his board just before the wave broke, shooting another grin over his shoulder at Gary as he followed suit.

"That's not what your girlfriend thinks!"

Wyatt's laugh echoed across the water as he carved into the wave with a series of small turns. Gary only rode the wave about halfway to shore before turning and paddling back out to their original spot while Wyatt kept going.

"I win," he said cheerfully when Wyatt reached him again,

"Cheater," Wyatt splashed him again, earning an eye roll in response. "So, privileges of a researcher, eh?"

Gary closed his eyes and shook his head, knowing exactly where this was going. He purposely hadn't spent much time hanging out alone with Wyatt to avoid the conversation, in hopes that the boy would forget about it. "No, I didn't sleep with anyone," he interjected shortly.

"Aw, but-"

"When are you going to get it through your head that I'm not in this just to get laid?"

"You know, if you don't start getting somewhere with girls, people are gonna start thinking you're gay," Wyatt retorted with his usual impish grin.

Gary wasn't sure whether to laugh or roll his eyes, or react in some different way entirely. "What if I was?" he instead asked curiously, somehow managing to keep his voice light, almost joking.

Wyatt laughed loudly in response, clearly thinking it was a joke. "Get real, Gary! This is you we're talking about!" He glanced over his shoulder, caught sight of another approaching wave, and grinned again. "No cheating this time," he said, starting to paddle in to catch the wave.

For some reason, the words stung and Gary stayed put, letting the wave pass under his board without even attempting to paddle in. He had suddenly lost the desire to surf for the day. Closing his eyes, his tried to remind himself that his friend had just been joking but it didn't make the words sting any less.

Sighing softly, he slid off of his board and into the water, opening his eyes once he was under. The visibility was remarkably clear and he could easily see fish swimming all around the small rocks on the bottom of the ocean. Off to one direction, he could see the familiar outline of a staryu in the distance. In another direction was the silhouette of a sea turtle. There was a soft crunching sound nearby and Gary turned to see a decent sized nurse shark eating a small shellder a few meters away. Unfazed by the placid shark species' presence, he surfaced for a breath. He could see Wyatt paddling back out to him but slipped back under the water before the other boy could say anything. This time he swam down to the rocks, peering into the crevices to find various crabs and fish hiding here and there.

A slapping sound echoed from above him and Gary looked up to see Wyatt's board next to his own. He had clearly slapped either the board or the water to get Gary's attention.

"We're here to surf, not to look at the fish," Wyatt whined as soon as Gary surfaced.

"I like looking at the fish," Gary defended, knowing he sounded at least a little bit childish. "There's a nurse shark on the bottom."

"I can see it from here; nothing special. Let me know when you spot a hammerhead down there."

"Yeah, yeah; go back to surfing, you pain in the ass," Gary shot back at him, diving back under the water.

He swam around the back of Wyatt's board in order to avoid the fin of the board should the boy decide to catch a wave while he was under. Struck by an idea, he swam under Wyatt's board and pressed his hands against the bottom, shoving upwards and flipping it over with his friend still on it.

Wyatt, unsurprisingly, surfaced amid sputtering and cursing. "You son of a bitch!" he exclaimed, heaving an armful of water towards Gary, who was laughing at what he considered his revenge for Wyatt's earlier comment.

"You could see the shark on the bottom, but you couldn't see me right under you?" Gary asked, climbing back on his board.

Their brotherly bickering was interrupted by an approaching wave, which they both paddled in to catch, only to be resumed as they paddled back out to their spot. They continued like this for nearly an hour until Gary saw a silhouette in the water that made his breath catch in his throat for a second. Only a few feet away, Wyatt froze on his board, having seen the same exact thing.

"Oi, scientist, is that a – "

"Tiger shark," Gary confirmed, watching as the large shark's dorsal fin broke the surface only a short distance away from them. He had felt nervous the first time he had dove into the water with Professor Birch near the sharks in the Orange Islands, but that was only a fraction of the nerves he felt now. "We should go in," he suggested, glancing at Wyatt, who, for once, was silent.

The blonde boy nodded and they both started paddling back in, careful not to splash too much, lest they attract the attention of a shark that was easily twice as long as either teenager was tall. Once they were in the shallows, they stood and trudged through the water, suddenly laughing at the sense of danger they had felt in the water.

Having come so close to such a large and potentially dangerous predator, they both felt a reckless sense of teenage invincibility and laughed all the harder for it, both excitedly talking about the shark between laughs. They carelessly attached their boards on the roof with bungee cords, not at all caring about the sand and water that dripped into the interior of the roof-less Jeep as they headed back into town, heading first towards the bakery downtown for breakfast before returning to the lab. They both picked out breakfast sandwiches and sodas for themselves and a dozen bagels for anyone else who was at the house, then, on a complete whim, Gary ordered a third sandwich and an iced coffee for Tracey.

Wyatt shot him a strange look at the sudden addition to their order but Gary shrugged it off.

"Trace always covers for me when I screw up around the lab," Gary said, taking a sip of his Mountain Dew. "The least I can do is get him breakfast." He also loved seeing the grateful smile that always spread across Tracey's face whenever he picked him up something while he was out. Usually it was just something small like a sandwich or a few slices of pizza, but he occasionally noticed when Tracey's current sketchbook was low on blank pages and would pick one up on his way home from school.

With how much the pokemon watcher did for him on a daily basis – the patient listening, the constant advice, and indeed, the occasional covering for a missed chore in the lab because Gary had been drunk at a friend's house the night before – Gary could certainly spare a few dollars here and there to make it up to him. Wyatt could shoot him all the questioning glances he wanted, but at the end of the day, Tracey deserved it. And seeing that smile could make Gary's entire day. Quite simply, it was well worth it.

Gary headed straight to the lab when they returned to the house, managing to balance his and Tracey's breakfast and drinks in his arms despite Umbreon, Arcanine, Marill, Venonat, and May's annoying little meowth, Pookie, all flocking to him the instant he walked in with food. Somehow he made it into the lab without either dropping food or losing a sandwich to a hungry pokemon. Tracey was standing at the window, gazing out at the ranch, body posture tense, when Gary entered the lab but he smiled when he saw the five pokemon surrounding him and begging for food. Wordlessly, Gary handed over the sandwich and coffee before plopping down at his desk nearby with his own breakfast.

Marill, Venonat, and Pookie instantly surrounded Tracey while the two canines sat before Gary, Umbreon raising her paw and whimpering softly with enormous scarlet eyes and Arcanine nudging Gary's leg with his snout and giving a soft, expectant growl. Gary rolled his eyes at the two high-level pokemon and turned his attention to Tracey, who smiled faintly and thanked him. He couldn't help but notice that Tracey's smile didn't reach his eyes.

"What's wrong?" Gary asked, washing down a bite of bacon-egg-and-cheese-on-a-bagel with his soda.

Tracey sipped his coffee quietly, clearly deep in thought as he swallowed his most recent bite. "Scyther's not doing well," he said softly.

Gary frowned; glancing down at his own pokemon, he couldn't help but feel bad for his friend. Scyther was incredibly old for a pokemon and had constant problems that were always trying for Tracey and Gary couldn't imagine how he would feel in the same situation with one of his own pokemon.

"Diabetes again?" he asked. At least half of the large arthropod's issues over the last year were due to what the professor had diagnosed as pokemon diabetes.

"That and he's not eating… I think he might have another kidney infection," Tracey sighed. He suddenly seemed to have little appetite and broke off three pieces from his sandwich and handed one to each of the pokemon surrounding him.

"I'm sorry," Gary mumbled.

Seeing the other pokemon being given food, Arcanine and Umbreon gave him reproachful looks. Umbreon whined even louder and Arcanine gave him a particularly hard nudge with his nose.

"You two are pathetic!" Gary exclaimed in frustration, finally giving in and giving each of them a piece of his sandwich. "No more," he snapped at the two canines, holding up his empty hands to show them that he had no more food. "I guess we'll have to give him the usual treatment," he suggested, returning his gaze to Tracey, who nodded in response.

"He'll be okay with some insulin and antibiotics; he's still got some fight left in him," Tracey said quietly.

"That's good to hear," Gary murmured. At that moment, Wyatt entered the lab loudly, leaving the door to slam shut behind him while Gary and Tracey both rolled their eyes at his entrance.

"So, full SCUBA gear, or mask and snorkel?" he asked, oblivious to the serious feel in the air.

"Mask and snorkel; it's just some hair algae," Gary replied, not looking away from Tracey. "You want to go get the gear for me? I'll meet you at the lake when I'm done in here," he said, finally glancing over at his friend, who scowled in response but headed outside anyway. Once he was gone, Gary stood and walked over to Tracey, placing his hands on the other boy's shoulders and rubbing at the tension in Tracey's muscles. "You okay?"

Tracey nodded his head, closing his eyes for a moment and relaxing under Gary's touch. "I'm fine," he sighed. "It's just kind of hard, you know… With your grandfather being gone, and May trying to throw parties all the time, and being away from my family. I know it's not like Scyther can help it, I just kind of wish he could've gotten sick while your grandfather was here and I didn't have so much to do." He turned slightly to peer up at Gary, who met his eyes with a sympathetic smile.

"I'll take care of your stuff today," Gary replied easily, reaching out to brush some stray strands of hair from Tracey's face.

"You don't have to do that, Gary."

"I want to. It's not a big deal," Gary insisted. "Just let me take care of the lake and then you can spend as much time as you want with Scyther. Darren and Wyatt are already here, they can help me with the rest. Take the rest of the day off."

Tracey opened his mouth to decline the offer but Gary shot him a stern look that he couldn't help but smile at. "Thanks, Gary," he finally conceded softly.

"No problem," Gary replied. He hesitated slightly, biting his lip, before leaning in suddenly and pressing a small kiss against Tracey's cheek. He pulled away quickly, blushing furiously as he headed towards the door, leaving with one quick glance at Tracey to see a faint but silly grin on his face, which was almost as red as Gary's. Clearing his throat and running a hand through his hair, Gary bit his lip again, trying to keep his own stupid grin from forming as he strolled across the grass towards the large man-made lake.

… … …