Chapter 3: I'll Stay

Ash heard the scream and immediately came out with Pikachu. He saw Anabel and the intruder but the intruder didn't see him. "HEY! You keep your hands off of her!" the man still didn't notice him. The knife on his hand was more than enough proof that this man was a threat. "Alright then, Pikachu, Thunder Shock!" Pikachu charged up a current of more than 3000 volts of electricity and launched it at the intruder which sent him flying out the window. Ash quickly reach for Anabel who was still paralyzed. "Anabel, are you ok?" he never received a reply. Anabel quivered heavily as the light in her eyes slowly vanishes.

Ash really got angry and immediately gave chase, "Pikachu, stay here and keep an eye on Anabel. I'll go after him! Aipom, I choose you! (Pom pom!) Come on Aipom, we got a criminal to catch (Pom!)" Ash jumped through the window where the intruder was tossed out. The suspect didn't noticed Ash coming out so immediately took the opportunity for an attack, "You're not getting away that easily!" Ash saw the man jumping onto a car and slowly driving away. "Aipom, use thunder punch!" the monkey like Pokemon used its hand like tail and whacked the door of the car. Once the crook noticed the attack, he stepped on the gas and drove off. "Hey come back h-!" the sudden movement gave Ash a great pain on the ribs. He bones weren't fully healed yet and a jump from the window opened up several of his old wounds. "Argggghhh!" he moaned out before clutching his stomach. Aipom went to his master's side with its smile turned upside down. You could tell from its face that it was deeply worried about him, "It's ok Aipom, I'll be fine" Ash gazed at the crook's car as it vanishes in the distance then he turned back to Aipom, "Come on, let's go check on Anabel"

The moment he entered the house he saw Anabel still scared to death and paralyzed. "Anabel? Anabel! Speak to me" Ash shook her but she didn't reply. At first he was afraid that she might have gone crazy but that really wasn't the case. She was a telekinesis after all. The moment she looked at Ash everything seemed to calm down. Her breathing rate returned to normal and Ash was relieved. Suddenly, everyone in the room was surprised on what the girl did. Anabel cried and hugged Ash. The two of them fell to the ground with a loud thud. Ash's bones felt the impact and were on the verge of breaking again. The poor girl was so frightened that she fell asleep.

Ash took up the last ounce of his strength and pulled himself together. He carried Anabel bridal style and took her back into her room. He sighed with relief after putting her in bed however… before he left Anabel's hands refused to remove itself from his arms. Ash tried to pull away but soon he realized that he'll need a crowbar to pry himself off of her. Just before he knew it, the sudden pain in his bones returned. He covered his mouth as he coughed heavily. By the time he revealed his hands it was already covered with blood but he was too sleepy to notice it.

After giving up any hope of Anabel releasing him he decided that it was best to just sleep along. Besides… it was a king size bed anyway.

Ash looked at her charming face as it slept comfortably on the pillow. He maybe still in his mid teens but no man could ever disapprove that Anabel had a great bodily shape. She had curves that could rival all of the Cerulean sensational sisters and the beauty that would make the lotus blush. Ash admired Anabel quietly in her mind over and over again but suddenly… his visions began to blur as the pain in his stomach slowly crept by. It felt like his bones were being crushed and repairing itself at the same time. A never ending cycle of pain would be the right words for it. With all the pain going around his body, Ash's brain did the only logical thing at a time like this. It shuts down.

(The next morning)

Anabel was slowly cuddling a soft fluffy pillow beside her. She felt so comfortable that she'd whack anyone (or anything) that disturbed her peace. Just as she was having the time of her life on that bed, the image of the man burst into her mind like wild fire. She got out of her bed and looked around. She grabbed the nearest object she could find (a vase) and prepared to use it as a mace. She scanned around the room she was in. She was in her bed room, "Where… am I?" several questions ran through her head like a marathon. She scanned her mind and slowly remembered everything, "I was about to sleep when… someone… came into the…" She shivered when the thought man touching her PJs. She looked at herself in the mirror and was relieved that nothing had happened. She believed it to be some sort of nightmare.

Brrrrrrrrrr… an annoying sound quivered in from the living room. It sounded like a vacuum cleaner.

Anabel quickly got out of bed and put on her fluffy sandals. The sound echoed through the house like a hive of Beedrills except this one was mechanical. By the time she got to the living room she was surprised to see Ash vacuuming the house and listening to HER music player. Wait a minute. Both those things he was using needed power but it was still black out. She then caught Pikachu sitting on the sofa with a smile on its face. By the time Ash saw Anabel starring at her he stumbled back a little shock with surprise, "Anabel, you're awake!" she smiled back but did not reply. In a reaction that surprised everyone, the Pokemon Master dropped the vacuum cleaner and hugged Anabel tightly in his arms. The Pokemon that were out giggled and smiled at the sweet reaction of the two humans.

After breaking off Anabel could see that the boy has been constantly worrying about her. "Hey, why don't you sit down? I made some toast while you asleep"

'toasts?' Ok now this was awkward. Ash, the greatest and youngest Pokemon Master in the world, the boy who was referred as the indomitable pillar of strength, the unbreakable shield of will power, the raging sun of determination and the clear crystal of kindness was now making toast for her. This really was an unusual sight for anyone. Anabel couldn't believe it as well. She was practically living the dreams of thousands of women out there in the world. She blushed at his face but after looking around the messy room she realized that the event that happened last night wasn't a dream after all.

The window that the intruder came through was shattered just as she remembered it.

By the time she collected herself, she began to ask if any of them really happened. Ash reassured her that it wasn't a dream and that a man really broke into the house. The strange thing was that the damage seemed to be lighter than both of them expected. They thought that there would be some valuables or money stolen but the only things unusual was some empty soda cans and a half eaten roast beef which Anabel had been saving up for movie night this coming Sunday.

"Here ya go" Anabel's train of thought were disrupted when a small plate of tasty looking toast came by. Ash poured down a cup of tea which he learned from Brock a long time ago. He said that it was an old family secret recipe and was only given to those he truly trusted. Anabel took a bite out of the toast and a sip of the tea. Her eyes widened as only one word popped up in her head, 'delicious' she then resumed.

Ash sat on the opposite side of the table having the same thing she was having and giving off his usual smile. Thought his cooking was acceptable, the boy's table manners was still something to be desired. Anabel didn't mind thought. She liked people who act just the way they are around her. Pikachu sat on the center of the table with a bottle of ketchup and a bowl of Pokechow. The little yellow mouse desperately tried to open the bottle but his paws denied entry. Ash noticed his little companions demise, "Here buddy, let me open that for you" Little did Ash know that Pikachu had been shaking the bottle for over ten minutes now, and by the time he opened it, all the ketchup flung right onto his face.

Anabel and Pikachu giggled at the funny scenery. Ash had ketchup all over his face and nose which made him look like a clown. "(giggle) Here, let me help you" she took one of her toasts and smudged some ketchup off of Ash's face. Then she ate it. Ash blushed a little but it was hard to see since with all the ketchup was blocking his cheeks. The two of them stared at each other for a good long time until…

Ding dong…

Someone was at the door, "Hello, dry cleaning service!" a man in a blue uniform with a Squirtle logo on the back shouted. He was carrying a basket full of folded clothes. Anabel rushed up to the front door but Ash stopped her, "Umm… why don't you go and change. I'll handle it" Anabel then realized that she was still in her PJs (again) and so she reluctantly agreed and let Ash take care of it.

Ash opened the door and smiled. The man in uniform was a bit surprised since he never saw anyone but Anabel in the house, "Oh, excuse me is Anabel here?" he asked.

"She's in the bathroom right now but I can take her dry cleanings for you"

The man hesitated at first but then he remembered that he had a lot of deliveries today, "Oh ok. Please tell her that the bill has already been paid through the Battle Tower" and with that the man left on his truck with a full load of clothes waiting to be delivered.

By the time Anabel finished changing into her regular clothes she decided that it was time to do her morning chores. First thing was to let the Pokemon out and feed them. She went to the back of the house and took out her Pokeballs but then… something wasn't right. Her Pokemon were already out and they were already eating. "That's weird, I didn't bring them out yesterday" she decided to skip her first chore and went on to the next one. Second, take out the trash. She walked into the kitchen and searched the waste basket but then to her surprise they were already gone. She looked up and noticed that the kitchen was all dusted up too. "Who…" and then it hit her, "Ash…"

Anabel immediately walked out to find the boy hanging towels and wet clothes onto the hanger to make them dry. "Ash!" the boy stopped what he was doing and turned around to find a really embarrassed Anabel, "Oh hey Anabel. I moved all your dry cleans into the basement and I gave all your Pokemon a bath. Oh yeah, that reminds me, I need to make lunch soon" he didn't even give time for her to speak before walking back into the house.

"Hold it!" Ash stopped, "Ash, have you been doing my chores?" the boy nodded in reply. "Yup! It's the least I could do since you save my life back then" Ash didn't know that the girl she saved back then during the mud slide was actually her. "I mean… I would've died if you didn't patch me up"

"You don't need to do that silly and…" she didn't finish her sentence

"And I thought you would still be shock of… of what happened last night" he lowered his head but kept his smile up. To tell the truth, Anabel still couldn't get over of what happened last night either. It all seemed just like a nightmare… a horrible nightmare. She shook the thought off and smiled. She didn't want to keep Ash worried about her, "Oh don't worry about it. I'm fine really. Here, let me hang those up" she took the last remaining towels off Ash's arms and hung them over the pole.

Ash: "Oh ok. Well I guess I'll start lunch"

Anabel: "Yeah, I'll finish off the rest of the chores"

Ash: "Actually, that was the last thing left"

The Frontier Brain member was surprised on what she just heard. "Not really. I still have to water the flowers"

"Done already I had Totodile to help"

"Ok then I guess I'll just clean the bird house"

"All clean. I even had Noctowl and Swellow to help out"

"Then how the dishes? (nod) The kennels? (nod) the litter box? (nod)… The dragon lair?"

"Yup, all cleaned and… huh? Hey, you tricked me!"

Anabel just giggled, "Teeheehee, gotcha!"

After a morning without chores, Anabel decided to help Ash with lunch. It felt good to have nothing to worry about although it was a little embarrassing to have a guest doing your chores for you. "Hey, can you pass me the carrot?" Anabel asked. Ash handed her a bunch of carrots and then she skillfully sliced them into tiny pieces in a few seconds. Although her cooking techniques were impressive, Ash seemed to be more skilled than she had anticipated. She sliced the vegetables with one clean sweep, the hard to crush part of the meat was done in an instant and nearly everything was ready before Anabel could even realize it. She looked at Ash as he whistled his favorite Pokemon themes out loud. It was like having a radio but with only one frequency.

After they got lunch ready, the two of them sat down and dig in on what they made. Anabel believed that it was the tastiest meal she ever had. She couldn't quite put it but it seemed like a standard meal just like she had every day. Did she put extra salt or pepper? Did she mix up the sauce again? No. What kind of seasoning did she put that made this meal so perfect?

"Anabel?" Ash brought the girl out of thought, "Is something wrong? You were spaced out for a minute there"

"Huh? Oh nothing… nothing at all" a bright red blush sneaked off her cheeks.

As the meal went on without much event, Pikachu and Espeon decided to play a game of tag to burn off some weight they gained. In the midst of their game, Espeon caught Ash's cap by its tail, "Hey wait! Espeon, give me back my hat!" Ash and Anabel gave chase to those two Pokemon but speed wasn't exactly in the human genes. The two of them laughed as they raced around the house like two kids with no adult supervision. In fact… it was exactly like that.

By the time Ash got his hat he came to a complete stop. Anabel turned from a corner but wasn't able to stop in time. She bumped onto the boy and they both landed on the ground with a loud thud.

A streak of blush came through their cheeks as their faces were mere inches away. Ash's hat fell on top of her head blocking out one eye. At first the two of them didn't know what to think but it seemed like Anabel couldn't control herself. Her face got closer and closer. Their nose touched and their lips slowly made contact. A few more millimeters and they would've gone into a kiss but sadly…

Knock knock knock

Someone was at the door. "Anabel, are you there? It's me Scott!" the two of them broke apart almost immediately. Anabel was the first who got up and she was panicking. "Oh no, it's Scott! If he finds out you're here I'll be in big trouble!" without even thinking, she immediately dragged Ash to the guest room, "Please, stay here for a while ok? And don't make any noise!" she immediately shuts the door and ran towards the door.

"Good morning Scott" she composed herself as she answered the door. "Hello Anabel. I hoped you slept well last night"

"I did. So what brings you here so early in the morning?"

"I just came by to tell you that the challenger wants to battle you again" Scott flicked his glasses up a little bit, "He wants to battle by sun set"

"WHAT? But I haven't even sent my Pokemon to the Pokemon center yet!"

"That's what I told him but he's just too energetic. Why don't you give me your Pokeballs and I'll bring them to the Pokemon center for you"

"Ok, I guess. But please take good care of them. Espeon, come here girl" she sucked up Espeon into her Pokeball and handed the rest of it to Scott, "Alright then. I'll be back in an hour or two. Oh… where did you get that hat?" Anabel reached for her head and quickly realized that she was still wearing Ash's hat. "Oh! I uh… got it from… uh… a friend of mine and uh…" it was then she realized that she was out of excuses, "Uhh… ummm I uh… Good bye!" she slammed the door and locked it.

Scott's eyes sharpened once more with suspicions, "Very suspicious" he muttered out.

(Back in the guest room)

Ash was standing at the same spot when Anabel dragged him in the room. He could still feel the taste of her lips on his lips. It was sweet, minty and… relaxing. "Whoa wait a minute! What am I thinking?" he burst out in his head. He rubbed his head in embarrassment as the images flowed back through his mind. "Ahehehe… I need to get those pictures out of my head" he muttered.

Just when he could hear a car driving off, a sudden pain pierced through his stomach like a sword cutting through organs. "Pikapi!" Pikachu rushed towards his master's side but Ash just shrugged him away. "Arggghhhh!" he silently yelled out in the room. He coughed and coughed over and over again until her he saw blood staining the wooden floor. The last thing he saw… was Pikachu's bright dark eyes staring at him.

(Back with Anabel)

Anabel just saw Scott's car driving off towards the nearest town. She sighed and slowly took off the cap from her head. She touched her lips as the taste remained of that near kiss. There was a hint of chicken, and soda combined which made such an awful combination but she didn't mind. Even though it tasted a little strange at first she became quite fond of it in just a few minutes.

She made her way to the guest room and knocked, "Ash, are you in there?" there was no reply, "Ash? Ash, I'm coming in"

She slowly opened the door hoping that she wouldn't catch him undressing himself or doing something humiliating but somewhere deep inside, she actually wanted to see him like that.

By the time she opened the door fully. Ash was already on the floor and unconscious. "Ash!" she rushed up to him and noticed that some of the wounds on his chest were reopened. "It must've happened last night!" she recalled the event that took place on that stormy day. She quickly picked up her cell phone only to remember again that it was out of battery. So with no communication and no aid, she carried Ash to bed and began redoing all the wounds on his stomach and chest.

"Oh… An…na…bel…" the poor boy was barely conscious.

Anabel nearly had tears coming out of her eyes, "Ash, hold on! Everything will be ok!" without another word, Ash went completely blacked out.

"Ash… hold on… please…"