Chapter 3

Thanks for everyone who has been reading up to this point. So, this chapter is actually part of the day that started with the previous one. Yup, a VERY eventful day. But really, don't we just love that?

Haha, enjoy.

Oh, don't know if you noticed, but the first paragraphs of the chapters follow directly onto one another, kinda like a monologue that will tell you how Ash's feelings are progressing.

It's funny when it hurts so badly, but it actually feels good. Like a pain you are addicted to, a drug. And to make things worse, you aren't really allowed to take that drug. No, just a small teaser, and the way it really tastes like is left for the imagination. So, I'm addicted to him. It hurts. And I still want more.

Am I greedy? I suppose. I guess that this is all just a lesson for me; to teach me to be satisfied with what I got, but I swear to God, that has never worked for me before. The desire to want more has always been what drove me. But there is one problem however.

Am I insatiable? Yes, I actually know what that means… But really, is my hunger too much? Will I be satisfied once I get what I want – him? I guess I'll never know until I get there. But with Gary it's different. It's not just about me. He also has feelings, and I'd never want to hurt him if I could have stopped it.

"We're here," Gary announced, his voice a bit lazy.

The afternoon was in full swing and the mild heat was just bearable. Gary got out of the car, and I noticed we were at the Pokémon Center in Viridian City. It was an old, familiar sight, and it drove me nostalgic for a moment.

"You coming?" Gary asked as he opened the back seat and retrieved a small box.

"Sure," I said.

The remainder of the drive had been silent, comfortably. I figured it would only provoke Gary if I asked him about his crying saga; after all, he was never one to really open up. Especially not to me.

I got out of the car and followed Gary into the building. Nurse Joy was stationed where you'd expect her, and a few Chancey shuffled about. It was quiet, with only two or three other trainers scattered about.

Gary walked up to Nurse Joy, and she smiled her usual friendly smile at us.

"What can I help you with today, gentlemen?" she asked.

"I'm just here to deliver these vaccines. Professor Oak from Pallet asked if they could be prepared here since our machine broke down and we haven't had the time to fix it," Gary said.

"Oh, I was wondering when you would come," she said and moved out from behind the counter. "Follow me."

Nurse Joy led us to a room where various medicines and drugs were located, and she pointed to a large machine that looked like it belonged to a chemistry lab. Gary put the box down on the table next to it and turned to Nurse Joy.

"The instructions are inside. I'll come back in two days to collect them," Gary said in a very businesslike tone.

I found it really cute how he composed himself to look all professional like, and in all honesty, the look suited him. No matter how good a trainer Gary was back in the day, I always thought that he'd end up walking in his grandfather's tracks.

"It's our pleasure. I do hope these vaccines help those Dratini," Nurse Joy said and took us back to the main lobby. "Why don't you two grab something to eat? It'll be dark by the time you get back to Pallet."

"Sure," Gary and I said in unison.

Nurse Joy smiled at us and we went to a little booth. Gary was staring out of the window, and I pretended to look around the place, but I was really stealing glances at Gary. I couldn't quite place his expression, but it seemed as he was far off into thought. Even when the food arrived, it took Gary a few seconds to realize it.

"You ok?" I asked, hoping he doesn't freak.

"Just a little tired. The whole thing with those Dratini is getting to me," he said as he pushed his food around. "It's been almost two weeks since they arrived and it's all I've been doing."

I eyed him carefully as he finally started eating. I knew he wasn't telling the whole truth, but that was just Gary. I had no idea how to comfort him. Gary was too smart to fall for the 'it will get better with time' crap.

"Is there any reason you have to stay in Pallet?" I asked. Gary looked at me with a little shock on his face. "I mean, I think Professor Oak can cope by himself. Then you can go somewhere and do what you like."

Gary gave a weak laugh. "I can't leave Pallet."

I frowned. "Why not?"

"You see, Ash, gramps is old. He needs someone there that can help him. Not some random person, but someone with a passion for research," Gary said and his eyes dropped to his plate of food.

I nodded. "Is that the only reason?"

Gary gave me a quick glance, his eyes filled with something that looked suspiciously like sadness, before he looked out of the window. The sun had finally started its descent.

"No," Gary said, just above a whisper.

I didn't push the question any further; it looked like Gary was thinking about how he wanted to explain his answer. He was quiet for a minute before he looked at me, before opening his mouth and closing it again.

"Hey! That's Ash Ketchum!" I heard a voice coming from the side.

Gary and I both yanked our heads into the direction and saw two young boys looking at me. They hurried over to our table, looking very excited. Gary giggled a bit as he saw my face. I hate this.

"We are such huge fans of you!" one of the boys said.

"Yeah, we watched all of your battles on TV," the other one drawled.

I gave Gary a quick glance, and he had an amused smile on his face.

"Ash, why don't you give them your autograph?" Gary suggested, and the two boy's face lit up.

I gaped at the traitorous friend, squinting my eyes. My fans didn't notice me, and instead they produced a piece of paper and a pen. I reluctantly took it.

"Who should I make this out to?" I asked, a hint of my old robotic voice returning.

"Jeremy and Kyle. You can just sign one, we're brothers," the one said.

I scribbled some note on the paper and made my signature. The two boys lit up in laughter.

"Oh man, mom will never believe this!" one said as I gave him the paper.

"She better. Thanks anyway," the other said and they ran off.

I looked out of the window, and I saw Gary out of the corner of my eye still looking the two boys. His mouth was curled into a smile and he finally looked at me.

I turned to him, and he seemed as if he couldn't contain his laughter.

"What?" I snapped.

"Come on, Ashy-boy. Is it really so bad to put smiles on those boys' faces?" he asked.

I gave a sigh. "Gary, after a thousand times it becomes annoying."

"I know, I know," he said, still amused.

I smiled at Gary, and we had eye contact for a moment. The smile slipped from Gary's face and then he started getting up. He said something about that we should probably go, and I followed him out of the Pokémon Center. We walked in silence to where he parked the car, and I kept looking at the ground. Don't know why.

"Er," came Gary's voice. "Where's the car?"

My head snapped up to scan the area, but Gary's car was nowhere to be found. Gary let out a sound of frustration as he stepped into the street and looked round.

"Fuck. Not this, not now," he muttered.

He dropped to his knees, looking utterly beaten. I walked over to him and saw that he started sobbing again. I kneeled down below him and put my arm around his shoulders. At first he flinched away, but I didn't let go and he just relaxed a bit.

"It's ok, Gary. We'll go to Officer Jenny, and she will sort everything out," I comforted him.

I helped him up, and he wiped the tears from his face. He gave a shaky laugh. "You must think I'm such a girl."

I wrapped my arms around him, trying to comfort him, but secretly loving the feeling of him pressing against my chest, with his soft and lavender scented hair just below my nose. "No, I don't. You're just a bit stressed out. Come, let's go to Officer Jenny."

He pulled away and wiped his tears away. I walked to the police station, and Gary followed me, quiet all the way.

"Afternoon, how can I help you?" Officer Jenny asked.

Gary walked out in front of me, "My car got stolen."

We relayed all the important information to Officer Jenny and she informed us that she would start investigating immediately. She gave us the address of a hotel we could go to, and said that we could check back in the morning to hear about the progress.

"I can't believe this," Gary said as he sat cross-legged on his bed, his head in his hands.

I thought about moving over and comforting him, but then, I have already hugged him and stuff, and I don't want to freak him out. It's just a car after all, not like somebody died. No, keep your distance and just talk to him.

"Officer Jenny said she'll do her best," I said sheepishly.

"Somehow that doesn't really make me feel better. They could be long gone by now," Gary whined, his voice sounding like it's being pulled over a grater.

I figured Gary had cried even more during the time I took to phone Mom and Professor Oak to tell them about what happened and that we are staying the night. My mom had offered to come fetch us, but I'd rather stay here and let us speak to Officer Jenny personally.

"Come on, let's go do something to get your mind off this," I suggested.

Gary looked up, his eyes wide. "I can't believe you. Ash, my car is gone. I can't pretend like nothing happened!"

Okay. Not the reaction I hoped for.

"But Gary, there's nothing you can do. And in the mean time you're beating yourself up over it," I said, and his expression softened a bit.

He looked down to his lap and sighed. "You're probably right, as much as I hate to admit it."

I smiled.

"Who knew Viridian City had such an active night live?" Gary asked, more rhetorical.

Yes, it was quite a shock. We were standing in the middle of a plaza, all outlined with various pubs and clubs. Throngs on people walked, danced and ran about. It was still early, but the place was definitely more vibrant than Pallet Town ever could be.

"Well, it's good to know for future reference," I commented and Gary gave a laugh.

Ever since we left the hotel room, he seemed outright determined not to stress over his car, and I thought it was a good sign. In my opinion, Gary spent too much time thinking, and that is always a bad thing.

"So, where to first?" Gary asked.

Two girls walked past us, looked at us, and then winked. Oh, god. Gary followed them with his head and laughed. Ugh, this is the last thing I need. If he met a girl, I think I'm the one who would fall into a depression.

Oh yes, Gary's question. I looked around the place, and one club, decorated with bright green and blue lights, caught my attention. "Let's try there," I said and pointed to the place. Gary nodded, and followed me as we made our way through all of the people.

The club was relatively busy, and the bar was swamped with people. Gary and I went to the counter, and waited.

"You know, I'd never have thought I'd be with you in and place like this," Gary said to me.

I chuckled, "Well, I don't have that much experience on the party scene, but I like to let go now and then."

The guy in front of us moved and it provided us with a gap to get to the counter. Gary and I stepped closer and waited to be served. The barman closest to us didn't seem to notice us standing there, and I just waited patiently.

The time went on, and some girls came up to the counter next to us. As soon as they reached the counter, the barman helped them. He talked to them and flirted a bit, and Gary shifted at my side, obviously irritated.

"Oh, for the love of God," he scoffed. "Excuse me, do I need to dress like a girl to be helped?" The barman heard him then and laughed.

"Sorry, sorry. I didn't notice you standing here," the guy said.

"Bullshit, we've been here for quite a while now," Gary said, his voice flushed with irritation.

"Sorry dude," the barman apologized, but it didn't really sound that convincing.

"Just get me a vodka and lime," Gary said. He glanced at me. "What'll be, Ash?"

"Same," I said. Thing is, I'm not clued up at all on alcoholic drinks and stuff. I just hoped whatever vodka and lime is, it won't kill me or something.

As we waited for our drinks, a girl came up to us. "Hey you two! Haven't seen you around before," she said, smiling broadly.

"You wouldn't have. This isn't our scene, really," Gary said flatly.

The girl's eyes widened and she looked from Gary to me, then back to Gary. She nodded knowingly and then said, "That's so cute! I never knew you type of guys came over here. Usually the gays hang out on their own side of town."

I think my mouth fell open.

Oh my god.

Gary snorted. "I didn't mean that," he said, he was blushing furiously. "I meant we aren't from around here. We live in Pallet. Ash here is just a friend."

The girl's face was reduced to shock, and she started apologizing profusely. "Oh, shit, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to offend you."

"Here's your drinks," the barman announced. Gary and I grabbed our drinks.

"Relax, I'm not offended," Gary said. Then turned to me, "Ash, are you?"

I couldn't form any type of words, so I just shook my head.

"You see. Now if you would excuse us," Gary said, sounding slightly annoyed.

"Sure, sure. Again, sorry. But honestly, you two would make a sexy couple," she chirped.

Gary was busy taking a sip, and upon hearing what the girl said, he sprayed the contents of his mouth. The girl laughed, and I felt myself blush. After Gary pulled himself together, he said, "Okay, goodbye now."

He grabbed me by the arm and dragged me off to somewhere outside the club. He looked around, still holding my arm. He spotted something, and pulled me in that direction. Only once we reached a bench did he let go of my arm, and he sat down. I took the seat opposite of him.

"Please tell me I don't have to experience that ever again," Gary said as he took a sip of his drink. He looked to the side, eyeing the people dancing and walking by.

"You don't have to experience that ever again, Gary," I said.

Gary rotated his head slowly towards me, and I just gave him a smile. We shared eye contact for a second, before he looked down to the table. I don't know what expression was on his face, but I would pay to see it.

I took my glass, and took my first taste of it. Erm… It was really bad. Maybe it would've have tasted batter, but there was this burning taste that really sent the chills down my spine. Shit.

"Gary, this stuff is shit," I said.

He looked up and glanced at my glass. "Well, you wanted it."

"But I've never actually drank this before."

Gary arched his one eyebrow and then burst out in laughter. "Are you serious? I thought you said you partied from time to time."

I felt a blush growing. "Well, you see, I don't really know anything about drinking at all. Just drink what people get me."

"And you've never remembered what you like?" Gary continued laughing.

"Not really. I've never really paid that much attention after the first drink or so," I mumbled, but Gary heard me.

"Oh, Ashy-boy," Gary said between the laughter, "Then I'll teach you tonight. After all, after a day like this, it seems logical to get drunk."

"And then, then he said that he never knew that his, his, Gastly wasn't a m-m-m-male," Gary said, giggling like mad.

I tried to support him as he half-hung around my shoulders, but I was laughing too hard at his joke, which I can't actually remember. I lost my balance and we ended up sitting on the side-walk, laughing our asses off.

Being drunk was a totally new experience: the lights seemed brighter, certain sounds seemed louder, things made more sense in a weird way, and I just didn't care about the world.

Gary had me thoroughly intoxicated, but the good news was that he was on the same level. We had been to every bar and he forced random shots of stuff down my throat, as if I needed some punishment.

"I think we need to get up," I said as some people walked by us, eyeing us wearily.

Gary snickered some more before he said, "Sure, sure. Help me up."

I looked at him and blinked. I also was still on the ground, but Gary didn't seem to notice. I struggled to get up as Gary started singing some song that seemed vaguely familiar, but my brain told me it was pointless to try and remember now. Maybe later.

Once I finally found myself standing, I reached my hand out to Gary. At first he didn't seem to notice, and sang the chorus with so much vigor, I could easily mistake him for being at a pop concert. I swung my hand before his face and he finally noticed. He grabbed my hand, and I pulled. Obviously, Gary didn't do his part of it, and I found myself almost falling over. Gary suddenly decided to jump forward, and he landed squarely against my chest.

I looked down, and my face was buried in his hair. Even while drunk, the scent of Gary was invigorating, and I felt myself shuddering slightly. Gary's hands were on my chest, and he pushed himself away.

"Sorry, about that, Ashyyyyy-boy," Gary giggled and stumbled in the direction of our hotel.

I rushed to walk at his side: he was swinging wildly about. Okay, he was way more sloshed than I was. Through it all Gary couldn't stop giggling and he occasionally let out a shout or something.

Mercy. That's the song Gary was singing. Yeah, I'm sure of it. Mercy, by Duffy.

We reached the hotel after a while, and we actually made our way into our room. Gary said he needed to use the bathroom, and I went to sit on my bed. My head spun like crazy as I waited for Gary to finish up: I needed to go to the bathroom myself.

I heard a crash, and some hysterical laughter coming from the bathroom. I got up and pushed the door open, slowly. Gary was sitting on the floor, looking delirious.

"Please," he said through his laughing fit, "Help."

I shuffled over and helped him up. "You know, after all the times I've helped you up tonight, you owe me big time."

"Whatever, Ash," Gary said with a huge sigh.

I led him to his bed and helped him inside. It was quite a struggle, because at the time my brain couldn't really work that well with Gary practically draped around me. But I got him in.

As I walked over to my bed, I could hear Gary sing, "I don't know what you do, but you do it well, I'm under your spell."

A/N: I lurv this chapter! Maybe because I love to party so much. Haha. I actually went on a date last night. What a DISASTER! Oh my word, the guy was practically a mute. Should teach me not to meet people off the internet. Haha. Anyhows, we went to a squarey type place like the one I described in the chapter, and I thought it would be good to out my frustrations. But just so you know, Ash and Gary had a waaaaay better night than I did.

I'm beginning to see a pattern in the chapters, by that being that the first part is all serious and stuff, and the more it goes on, the lighter it gets. Not gonna happen in chapter 4. Nope. Not at all. DA-RAMA coming up!