1.31.2016 Disclaimer; and partial warning: This is the mandatory cheese chapter; or fan service chapter; what ever you want to call it; lots of fluffy fluffiness. All you pokeshippers out there, enjoy.
Also, I am really sorry for those that have been confused about the updating; for some reason, Ffnet hasn't been showing that I've updated. Like last time, if you haven't read 1.30.2016 (chapter 33) update, do that first!
P.S. Long chapter is long.
Spitfire, Chapter 34: First date
The last thing he wanted to do was fight with her.
Having been pressured by Brock shortly after asking Misty on a date, Ash was now standing in front of his house with his hands tucked away in his jean pockets. He wore a nice black t-shirt underneath a casual blue and white light jacket, similar to the ones he normally wore, only this one had black long sleeves and a popped collar. He was forced out of his hat, Brock even so much had to take the damn thing and hide it to prevent Ash from putting the item back on continuously, but Ash couldn't help it. His hat was his shield when he got nervous. Ash grimaced slightly while rubbing his fingers together.
May was helping Misty get 'ready' as the brunette called to him from his bedroom before slamming the door in his face. He didn't understand the concept of getting 'dolled' up for a date; it wasn't like he was going to propose or anything; and he certainly was not. Even still, Brock sprayed him with a woodsy-stench, and he was forced to smell himself over the dusty breeze of the wind.
Pikachu, though Ash swore that after the incident with Team Rocket they wouldn't be separated again, insisted on staying home. Telling Ash that he and Misty needed their privacy. Yeah, but who needed privacy when Pikachu was a normal, everyday part of his life. It wasn't like he could lock the mouse into a closet whenever he wanted to hug Misty. As long time companions, Pikachu should have been on this date with Ash. But no, the pokemon insisted on staying with Cilan and Iris, and refused to leave.
He grumbled to him self, feeling a blush form over his lips while he crossed his arms and leaned his back against the fence; of course, Ash might have just been compensating for the fact that he was scared out of his mind. According to Brock, Ash was about to spend a minimum of two hours with Misty alone, away from peering eyes; and he hadn't exactly left Ash with no ground to walk on, either. No, the pokemon doctor-in-training left Ash with a lot of helpful advice; Ash coughed; some of which wasn't exactly appropriate, and Ash couldn't imagine doing half the things Brock mentioned. But, as he pointed out to the oblivious trainer: "Stranger things have happened." So, Ash reluctantly listened to his words, wore the 'cologne' and waited outside for Misty.
Lost in his own thoughts, he almost missed Drew coming out of the front door, with May and Brock in tow.
"Hey, she'll be out in a minute; we just said our goodbyes though. We're heading out." May said while patting Ash's shoulders free of dust, she added matter-of-fact, "You smell nice."
"Thanks" Ash grumbled, glancing at Brock who gave him a thumbs up, and then a fleeting amount of panic ran through Ash's eyes, "What if I mess up and you guys aren't here to bail me out?" He hissed in a short, stupor. Drew glared as May shook her head and raised her index finger;
"Then don't mess up!" The three of them spoke in unison, but Ash thought that was easier said than done.
"Anyways, the boat to Johto leaves in about thirty minutes; so I'll call you when I get there to see how everything went." Brock flashed Ash a 'knowing' smile, one that Ash didn't have the nerves yet to reply to. He fidgeted instead.
"And I guess we're heading to Hoenn..." May said smoothly, lacing her fingers around Drew's hand. Ash watched the action obsessively; taking notes.
"Then this is goodbye?" Ash said and the trio nodded with May and Brock giving him a warm hug, and Drew shaking Ash's hand before they went on their way to their respectful journeys.
Watching them leave, Ash felt jealous while he tugged on his ever tightening collar. He wanted to be on a journey right now; that would be so much simpler than a date with Misty. What was he thinking when he asked? That's right, he wasn't thinking! He just asked out of panic because she was leaving. He scratched his head veraciously. His mother wasn't even back yet, what would she think if she saw him out with Misty?! He hadn't told her about Serena yet! He slammed his palm against his face, what in the world was he to do?
"Don't panic!" He echoed Brock's words in his head, taking a deep breath and then exhaling calmly. Just stay calm Ash; it's just Misty. He turned back, leaning against the fence post again. It's just Misty.
A few seconds had passed, his arms crossed and mouth twitching as he opened his eyes and looked at the front door; wondering as he approached it: Where in the world was she?!
Little did he know, Misty was suffering the same panic attack, and nearly had a complete mental breakdown with May left her alone. If Misty was one to cry about everything, she just might have; she might have even let out a scream if she knew it wouldn't have startled Cilan and Iris. Instead, she trekked nervously down the stairs in her four-inch heels borrowed from May. They were sandy brown, matching perfectly with the color of the light blue sun-dress she bought at the store earlier that day. The dress ended above her knees, revealing her creamy, toned legs in a new light. The top was strapless with a sandy-brown belt lapped around her waist, right before the dress puffed out rather than fitting skin tight, it allowed for a casual, yet sweet look that completely took away the normal edge that Misty had. To finish off the look, May gave Misty a white short-jacket that went down just a little past her breast, and had sleeves that ended at her elbows. Aside from that; May curled Misty's newly shortened hair even after Misty warned her all the curls would fall out of her dominantly straight hair. Misty applied her own make up, and by that, she just covered the yellow bruise around her lip, and applied mascara; she didn't want to scare Ash. It was bad enough that she was in a dress.
In fact, she couldn't think of a time when Ash had ever seen her in a dress before. A thought crossed her mind when she reached the front door; maybe it wasn't too late to go change back into something less girly? She briefly turned to look up stairs, standing in front of the door, trying to regain her wits when it was swung open by the impatient Ash.
She whipped her head back to meet his gaze automatically; though his was wrought with surprise as well. Simultaneously, they both blushed. So much for changing into something more casual.
"Oh, I think they're ready!" Iris yelled, hoping up from her seat on the couch where she had been watching the pokemon discovery channel. With Pikachu in tow, she grabbed a camera off the shelf beside he entrance and peeked her head into the corner, catching the awestruck gaze both trainers shared and snapped a picture.
The flash woke them from their stupor, looking back at Iris with stars in their eyes.
"What was that, Iris?" Ash winced, rubbing his eyes.
"May and Brock said to get a picture. I almost forgot." Iris then pointed at the two of them, "Stand together, it's not like we don't already know you're dating."
"Well-""err" They both started nervously, but Iris's glare stumped them both; and they acted by her command. Misty stood next to Ash awkwardly, and nudged him to smile; though they were both sure that it was a forced smile, and probably one of the most awkward pictures they had ever taken in their life.
"...Good enough." Iris grumbled and then tossed the camera back into the shelf. Pikachu hopped onto her head.
"Pika!" It yelled, and Iris echoed the pokemon, "Good luck!"
With that, Ash and Misty returned their gaze to one another, and then looked away, embarrassed.
XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX
What was there to really be embarrassed about? Neither could say. Nerves mostly played a coincidental part in their first few minutes together; taking about five minutes to leave the front lawn and get around the white picket fence. Brock told Ash to open all the doors for Misty on his date, but what was he supposed to do when she got to said gate first, and opened it for him? Simply put, he stood like a leaf; he had way too much going through his mind at the start of this date. As they walked the street that would take them into the market, Ash struggled just holding her hand.
She was way too distracting. He couldn't remember the last time he saw her in a dress, if he ever had; and he would be lying if he said she didn't look gorgeous in the attire she was in. Ash blew the air out of his chest, feeling as if he would suffocate from simply being in radius of the red-head. Her normal tomboyish edge was swallowed by rose scents and those legs. He could barely form sentences around her in the morning if they weren't pertaining to poking fun at the gym leader, now he just felt like a magikarp; a fish out of water, struggling to breath.
Misty had moderately calmed down as they exited the area of his house; so much that she was able to breath normally, and even hold his hand without tingles running down her spine. Of course, she was the more experienced out of the two of them, and spent more time in her childhood thinking of this moment than she cared to admit, so she was prepared; albeit only a little.
She looked at him, pursing her lips lightly, only to chuckle at his robotic movements. He kicked his legs out like a dolt, and looked straight forward with his shoulders back all the way. He was like a soldier marching; and she thought it was adorable. She leaned in slowly, wrapping her arm around his, and then laced her other fingers around his elbow.
"Relax, Ash." She told him, alleviating a sigh of relief from him. He closed his eyes slowly, as his shoulders lowered. He turned at her, finally looking at her for the first time since he stepped out of the house; and noticed that she looked beautiful, stunning even. Not just her clothes, everything about her; but he thought, perhaps, she always looked like that.
"You look nice." He suggested happily, getting a blush from Misty. She grinned, and it was at that moment he could see that the split in her lip wasn't quite as swollen as it had been yesterday. He assumed holding that ice pack against her face last night paid off after all.
"Thank you." She muttered sheepishly, swaying her hips slightly to bump into him, "You know, I haven't dressed this nice and worn this much make up since that time when Team Rocket decorated my face like a clown's." Misty admit with a childish grin.
Ash had to stifle a laugh, squeezing her hand as she turned to nudge him again for laughing.
"Sorry." He motioned nervously.
"For what?" Misty asked slowly, looking up at him with her green eyes. He chuckled.
"For being so weird. I'm not used to all of this." he admit while scratching his cheek embarrassingly. Misty smiled sweetly in retort.
"I'm not either. It's okay to be nervous, but..." She hesitated while they stopped right outside of the market center. The nice thing about Pallet Town was that everything was relatively close to each other. "It's just us; so it shouldn't be too weird, right?"
While looking down at the lights of the city, he looked up to the sky. Evening would be in about six hours; so he had at the very least that amount of time to spend with her before she went to Cerulean City Gym.
"So, what do people usually do on dates?" Ash asked skeptically, catching a look of persuasion from Misty. She smacked her lips together.
"Well, thanks to May and this dress; I'm not dressed for active wear, or I would suggest something like that." She grumbled, pulling on her dress slightly, upset over the fact that May adamantly refused to let her put tights on underneath it. Misty hated it, she felt like the whole world could see everything; unless she was in a bathing suit, the wind was not supposed to blow down there. Ash scrunched up his face and looked down at her.
"So what does that leave us?" he laughed nervously and Misty shrugged.
"Everything else." She eyed him up and he snickered.
"Great, I love watching paint dry." he adds, getting a smack on the back of his head from her.
"Well, there's the traditional dinner and a movie; but since it's only early afternoon, it would technically be lunch and a movie. Or a walk in the park; maybe walk around the mall for awhile, but honestly, I want to do as little traveling in these shoes as possible." She lifted her foot up for emphasis while Ash looked down and gulped.
"A movie?" He squeaked nervously, and she rolled her shoulders, not understanding his fear of theaters.
"Yeah, I heard Epic Journey is playing. But we could always see some cheap romantic comedy like Journey Stories..." She touched her lip thoughtfully as a sparkle formed her her eye. Ash's face fell and he shook his head.
"Misty, I am not going to watch those cheap romance movies with you. I didn't when we were kids. I'm not doing it now." he groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose and earning a glare from Misty.
"Well maybe if you saw a few you wouldn't be so brainless about dates." She offered matter-of-fact, getting a scowl from Ash.
"I think I'm doing okay!" he defended himself, raising her hand for proof. "See, I'm holding your hand, and I said you looked nice; that's two points for me." He chanted confidently, and she smirked, licking her lips.
"Is that a challenge?" She mused, to which a blush crept over his face.
"...A...a challenge?" he stammered suddenly, and she tilted her head to one side.
"A challenge. Who the better dater is." She said confidently, humming and wiggling her fingers, while looking over her shoulder at him.
"How would a challenge like that even work?" He asked curiously, following her.
"Simple, every time you get a rise from your significant other you get a point."
Ash narrowed his eyes, "That sounds like a silly game." He grumbled
She shrugged, "Well, if you don't want to play..." she muttered, but she knew that Ash couldn't back down from a challenge, so after a frustrated groan, he consented.
"Alright, but how do we know when you 'get a rise'?" He asked as his face scrunched up. She smiled knowingly at him.
"You'll just know." She winked, and his face turned bright red, and his mind turned off for a single moment as she then leaned close to him, pressing her lips against his jaw; near his ear, and ten exhaled. He shuddered, standing frozen as he watched a few people stare, but then walk away. His heart pounded in his head and he turned his gaze slowly to her as she pressed her lips against his jawline.
"M-Misty?" He murmured quietly, surprised.
"That's one point for me." She reeled back, giggling at his dopey expression; she also released his hand, and his face rang scarlet.
Ash's gaze fell and he raised his shoulders, "This game is rigged!" He shouted, only causing her laughs to grow louder as she snatched his hand again and led him on the path to the theater, he grumbled even still.
"That was totally cheating. I wasn't even ready yet." He whined, though he wouldn't lie that her smile was well worth a bit of his own embarrassment.
XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOXOX
When they arrived at the movie theater, Ash decided he would take his turn to 'get a rise' out of Misty, he had successfully done so with compliments and holding her hand, so at the moment he was a point a head of her; but he needed to up his game if he was going to win. Did they even talk about a prize? Maybe it was winner gets to pick the prize—and he knew what he was going to ask for.
He approached her from behind, slowly tracing his hands around her hips. An action he had seen a few couples do on his travels, and then propped his chin on her shoulder; only to see that she hadn't reacted at all. In fact, she seemed comfortable as she leaned back into him, causing her hair to brush up against his face. She inhaled deeply, confidently as she leaned into him, causing her chest to rise—so it was only natural that he looked down. Her shirt was cut a lot lower than her normal turtle necks, and the view was...well... His face turned red and he rocketed away from her, much to her giggles and laughter as she grabbed her stomach and hunched forward.
"I think we should count that as two points, since you looked down my shirt." She whistled, fanning herself while Ash crossed his arms, mortified.
"I did not!" he hissed, but mentally he corrected himself; he so did. But it was an accident! Damn it; she was good at this stuff. When he turned back at her to confront her about it; she had already hooked her arm around his, and pointed at a movie.
"Do you want to go see that one?" She asked skeptically, and the answer was no, he did not want to see that movie. It was a romance thriller; he didn't like those, in fact, he didn't like movies very much at all. Where did his resolve go that he would not see a romantic movie?! But, reiterating the second form of advice that Brock had given him, he sighed. Always let the lady pick the movie.
He licked his lips and leaned on her gently, "What ever you want to see, babe." He hissed the last word as a whisper, getting a shudder from Misty that made him pump his fist. A point for him!
Blushing, she turned on him with her hands on her hip; "If you gloat every time, it kills the romance." She growled, but Ash stuck his tongue out at her.
"You were gloating like three seconds ago!" He laughed, and she looked away skeptically, having been called out on her hypocrisy.
"Whatever, let's just get our tickets." She mused while they walked hand in hand into the theater. The entire placed smelled like popcorn of the super buttery variation, and it reminded Ash how hungry he was; he wished he had suggested food first, rather than walking to the theater. Misty didn't seem affected by the scent, but she did kick lose popcorn on the ground as they approached the ticket salesman.
"What can I get for you two?" She smiled sweetly up at the young couple; where Misty pointed at Ash.
"Two tickets to see 'The Dance', please." Misty echoed with a twisted grin, Ash's face fell. A romance movie after all—but not just any romance; a sad romance. He rubbed his cheek and looked at Misty with dopey eyes.
"Aww, how sweet to go see this movie with your girlfriend." Ash's mouth fell open at the cashier's words, and he panicked, breaking Brock's first rule-he was about to deny that Misty was his girlfriend. Not yet, anyways, he added as an after thought, but thankfully, the cashier was only making small talk while Misty paid without his knowing. The cashier handed Misty the tickets.
"Enjoy your movie." She said happily while Misty looked at him with a sadistic gaze. She watched him carefully, as if reading his mind, and he knew it. Though, he didn't want to say that they were boyfriend and girlfriend, that made everything so surreal; instead, she coughed.
"No snacks?" he whimpered, and then reality kicked him in the stomach, "Did you pay?"
Misty rolled her eyes as they walked towards the concession stand, "Yes, unlike you, I actually have a job and steady flow of income." She mumbled, Ash glared.
"I do have a steady flow of income now." He grunted, but Misty shrugged and shined him a smile.
"Should I count paying for our tickets as a point?"
"No!" He shouted, but then covered his mouth, she giggled once again. She was doing that a lot lately, giggling. It was so foreign to hear her laughing beside him after a four year absence. It nearly repaired all the damage that the last week had on his insides. He found himself chuckling as they ordered their popcorn, and drinks; which Ash paid for, damn it.
When they got into the movie, Misty raced quickly to the top of the room; though Ash had no idea why, they were the only people in the theater. He followed after her anyways, and took a seat beside her in the uncomfortable, cheap fabricated chairs. He shifted oddly, having not sat in these chairs since he was a child. Actually, the last time he was in here was when he and Gary stuck in-before they started fighting-to watch the original Battle trilogy. Misty set their popcorn between them after lifting up the middle arm rest.
"What are y-" Ash grumbled, feeling as if his comfort was being stolen away from him as Misty cuddled into his side, he shuddered. "oh." he offered while she kicked her feet up onto the seat in front of her. She licked her lips.
"So, I'm at three and you're at three?" She offered, to which Ash scoffed.
"I still think it's a silly game." he grumbled, but Misty shrugged and looked up at him confidently.
"It worked thought, didn't it?" She questioned with her eyebrows raised.
Ash frowned, "What do you mean?"
"You stopped acting so fidgety." she said knowingly, and Ash blushed.
"I was not fidgety!" he denied loudly; though the theater was void of people aside from them, so it was fine.
"Oh please, you didn't even look at me for the first five minutes!" She laughed.
"That's because..." she looked amazing. He stopped himself, and then cleared his throat; "Why don't we talk about something else?" he tried, feeling his face turned several shades darker. Misty snickered.
"Because of what?" She teased, pressing her finger into his side, he looked away and folded his arms expectantly.
"Because of nothing! Don't worry about it!" he scoffed loudly, though Misty could only imagine what it was, she let it go, and shook her head. A comfortable silence fell between the two of them as they fell back into the rhythm of being friends; forgetting for a moment that they were supposed to be on date. The previews hadn't started yet; arriving nearly twenty minutes early, so Ash pursed his lips.
"Misty, when did you first realize you liked me?" he asked, interrupting her while she tossed popcorn up into the air and was catching it in her mouth. She licked her teeth.
"Does it matter?" She asked coarsely, a little embarrassed for having liked Ash for twice the time that he did.
"Well, no..." he started, "but I've been thinking about it a lot lately." he murmured, over the last two days, he had wondered when his special feelings had started to develop for the older girl, but he hadn't mentioned it before. Misty shrugged.
"How come?" She asked while looking up at him.
"I don't know," he laughed honestly, "I sort of feel like an air-head for having never noticed, I guess. So I just wondered when it all started?" He struggled, looking at her skeptically. She gnawed on the inside of her cheek; a bit embarrassed of her own answer; she sighed.
"Are we talking about when I realized I like you as a friend or as something else?"
Ash grinned, knowing that at first, they really didn't get along very well; "Both." he cheered and she sat up, letting her feet hit the ground with a sharp thud while turning at him.
"If I tell you, you have to tell me." She swore, and Ash smiled and nodded his agreement; though that didn't ease her blush. She looked away, focusing on the screen which popped different logos.
"Well, I realized we were friends the first time we were in Vermillion City." She admit with a smile, "Right before that boat sank." She added nervously at the memory; they really shared quite the adventures, namely ones that most people wouldn't have walked away from unscathed like they had. Ash puckered his lips thoughtfully.
"And I realized I liked you more than that right around the start of Johto." She grumbled with a slight blush, and crossing of her arms.
Ash wiggled his toes in his shoes and slowly wrapped his fingers around hers at her adoring confession; "Why didn't you ever say anything?"
"Me? Tell you? Back then?" She snickered, lacing their fingers together, "You're joking right?"
"I wasn't that bad..." he said defensively, to which Misty could only roll her eyes. He courted his agreement however; he was that bad, he couldn't deny it. If Misty had told him that she liked him back then, he wouldn't have just stopped talking to her, he might have actually tried to hide, or even more drastically; faked his own death. He hesitated, "Okay...maybe a little."
"That's what I thought," She said sternly before eying him. Another couple walked in, sitting at the front of the theater, so Misty dropped her voice. "What about you?" She whispered; the breathless tone of her voice sending shivers down his spine.
"Well, I didn't realize I liked you until yesterday," He chuckled quietly, "but I sort-of knew way sooner than that, I think." He murmured, blinking forward.
"When?" She asked while her heart raced, wanting to have known the answer to this question since she was a child. Now that he was actually talking about, that it was something other than just a fantasy, she held her breath in anticipation.
"Rudy." He said venomously.
Misty raised her eyebrows, "Jealousy always gets you, doesn't it?"
Ash scoffed, "It was only for a split second; I was really naive back then." he grumbled.
Misty made a 'tsk' noise and tilted her head, "What's changed?" She joked, getting a glare from Ash as the previews started to play and they stopped talking to watch them.
Another group stumbled into the theater, a group of girls, and Ash inwardly rolled his eyes and groaned while Misty sat up properly, tugging her dress back down. When she sat, it rose well past her knees, and he had to tear his eyes away to keep his hands from touching. After waiting through the previews, they realized that the three groups would be the only ones present in the theater this afternoon; Pallet town wasn't known for its theater, so he wasn't surprised to see how dead it was.
Misty eased into his shoulder, having decided to cross one knee over the other and let her leg dangle prettily over her other and Ash sort of just sat there, like a zombie. He wasn't sure what he was supposed to do. Brock had told him earlier that "Movies are for making out. If she wants to see a movie, you have to initiate" But she didn't seem slightly interested in anything he had to offer; but he also might not have been putting himself out there enough—but he also wasn't entirely disappointed. The idea of 'making-out' still petrified him.
They were about half way through the movie, with Ash dozing off during many scenes, and was leaning against his arm rest, cradling his face while he groaned and screamed internally. At least Misty was enjoying herself though; he had long since lost the feeling in his hand due to her persistent squeezing any time one of the main cast nearly died, or Sally, Sarah, whatever her name was, told 'Bob', whatever their real names were, Ash had no idea, that she didn't love him, but she really did; she was just trying to protect her family. It was agonizingly slow, and Ash was ready to start pounding his head into the wall behind him. The only reason he hadn't was because Misty, who sat forward with that wide-eyed sparkle, made the whole ordeal worth it. He would never understand fully her love of romance, but if it brought that look to her eye, he would endure it.
On screen, 'Selma' kissed 'Bob', eliciting a group of squeals from the females present, including Misty, and Ash rolled his eyes. He would try to endure it, he corrected himself. While watching Misty's flavorful reactions, his attention slowly drifted to the couple a few rows down. The boy she was with took the opportunity presented by the kissing scene to drape his around the woman's shoulders, and snuggle in close.
Not a bad idea, Ash thought as he sat forward and attempted the same routine, only, Misty wasn't a normal girl, so she tried to shrug his arm off her shoulders, allowing it to fall to her waist. She didn't even notice; and she said that he was unromantic. He was literally throwing himself at her, so he tried again; this time leaning in close and taking her to the back of the chair with him as he maneuvered his arm around her shoulders, and then brought her in close. Even in the darkened theater, he could see her lips form a slight "o" in realization and her cheeks turned red as her head leaned against his chest.
Ash relaxed and exhaled; this was much better. And so they stayed like that for awhile, Ash's fingers playing with a few strands of her hair while she twisted her fingers into his coat and glanced around the theater. While Ash was now content, watching the movie with a little more interest than before, Misty was suddenly very disinterested in the story as her own eyes moved to the couple a few rows down from them. They were making-out already, but at like a super degree, they were borderline taking each others clothes off, and Misty panicked and forced her eyes back on the screen. She didn't want to be that couple, but she also was no longer comfortable just watching the movie. She froze in his arms, slowly working her way up so that her face was near his, and then leaned forward to kiss the nip of his neck.
He shuddered at the feeling; the darkness sending a bound of confidence into his bones that he hadn't needed before, and craned his neck as she planted quiet, yet vigorous kisses up to his jaw. Contact made his hairs stand on end and take his breath away, so when he finally turned at her and captured her lips hungrily, she let out a very soft moan that melded perfectly into the sound of the movie.
Thankful for the booming soundtrack, little noises were covered exceptionally by the darkened room's stereo system. However, the movie, whatever it was, didn't matter now; only her lips, and the way her arms slithered around his waist. Unsure about where to put his, he squeezed her tighter while his other hand smoothed over the flesh on her exposed thigh, sending tingles down her back. For a moment they sat there, moving their lips quietly against one another, adopting the feeling, owning it. Misty had pleasantly soft lips, aside from the spot that had been injured, but Ash didn't really care; her lips touching his made his body do weird things; like how his toes curled in his shoes and his fingers stroked circles along her thigh. Her mouth would open slightly, every so often, teasing Ash about what more was to come, but she never acted on it, so Ash wouldn't push it. If there was anything that he retained from "Brock's lessons 101", it was to let Misty lead in any physical contact; especially kissing. He told him that it would have been very easy to invade her privacy if he wasn't careful, and suddenly Ash stiffened like a board. What if already did invade her privacy?
Very briefly, Misty felt the boy go limp beneath her, shrieking his hand away from her thigh and retracting it to his side awkwardly, Misty released him, letting her arms droop into his lap while she looked about the theater, assuming that he had stopped because of something around him. Nothing was out of order, so she turned her gaze back to him in the dark and tilted her head slightly, bringing her mouth in close to his ear as to not disturb the people who were actually watching the movie.
"You don't need to be so nervous, Ash." She finally told him bluntly, to which Ash's body responded by blushing and going tingly when her hot breath brushed against his flesh.
He inhaled before replying quietly, "I'm not nervous." He denied, but his sweaty palms would have discerned otherwise. Misty grinned, nearing his lips again.
"Relax." She whispered, tucking her hands behind him again as she kissed him passionately. Her lips were so skilled in the way they moved against his that he melted into her as she shifted to the point where she was nearly in his lap. He took the opportunity to tilt her head back, opening her mouth just enough so he was able to slide his tongue against hers briefly. Girls were supposed to like that, right? Thank heavens, she did. Arousing a quiet moan, Ash took full advantage of her mouth-whether Brock insisted that he shouldn't or not—and cupped her cheek so that when he did, her fingers dug into his back beneath his shirt, and he smiled into the kiss. Unlike her lips, which had a very cherry aftertaste, her mouth was sharp like mint toothpaste, and it made his tongue tingly. Ash didn't mind, however, with his eyes closed, he titled his head to the side to fight with her for dominance, ultimately winning out when her nails raked against his back positively, and he pulled away from her. Misty's face was tinted pink as she swallowed hard, a dopy gaze in her eye while her head bobbed to one side.
He grinned at her expression; it was a nice, special look that the headstrong female almost never made, and it did things to him physically. He leaned forward again, this time dipping his head to her neck, and waking her from her stupor. She shuddered beneath his lips, and Ash could feel the goose flesh rise over her neck. Grinning confidently as he planted one there, and then another beneath her earlobe, as she had done to him. Sitting in the darkness of a loud room gave him so much confidence it was practically oozing out of him. He wouldn't know how long it would last, so he took advantage of it by kissing her neck, and then gently sucking on each spot.
She shuddered once again, her entire body twitching happily as the loud movie behind her long since dulled her ability to feel, touch, and hear anything else but Ash. She gasped lightly, sinking her head into the crook of his neck; "Ash..." she sighed breathlessly, garnering a grin from the dark haired boy who sat up to show her his teeth.
He leaned in close, and then said very tenaciously; "I think that should count as two points, since you moaned, and you called my name."
Her face fell automatically, the dopy gaze in her eye lost; replaced with one of horror as she leaned forward and pressed her forehead against his; though she wasn't in the correct frame of mind to refute his words; she did, instead recapture his lips.
They spent the majority of the remaining forty-five minutes of the movie like that; with Ash constantly believing they would be classically interrupted as they so typically were, but in the end no one really disturbed them, which gave them optimal time to delve deeper into one another; much to their equal joy and nervousness.
When the movie was over, the couple stumbled out of the theater after the other two groups had already left, spending as much time wrapped up in one another before they had to return to the real world, as possible. The credits were nearly over by the time they made their way out. They discarded the half eaten popcorn and watered down drinks and decided not to make awkward conversation with angry, teenage girls who had 'shushed' the couple a few times. All things considered, the two of them were very well behaved, on a PG-13 level, they spent most of their time with their faces stuck together; making up for lost time or something, because Ash's jaw hurt.
As they marched out of the theater, walking towards the side exit rather than going through the main lobby, they walked hand in hand and giggled as they pushed the doors open. The bright sun was the harsh reminder that it was still day time after spending so long in the dark theater, so Ash covered his eyes with his hand and winced.
"Man, it's really bright." he grumbled, tucking his arm around Misty's slender waist to bring her in close as they walked. She nudged him gently, covering her exposed collar with her white jacket, thankful that she had brought the jacket along after all. She didn't have a mirror to check, but there was no doubt in her mind that Ash had left marks; luckily he did so where they wouldn't be at public display for everyone.
"So do you want to go get something to eat now?" She asked, still feeling light headed as she pursed her lips. He grimaced slightly. No, he wasn't hungry anymore, but he did want something else. Like a longer movie, or a second movie, because if movies consisted of that he would have taken several extra rounds. The things she could do with her mouth stunned him. He shuddered, dropping his hand from her waist, and back to her fingers happily.
"Where do you want to go?" he asked skeptically, and she shrugged.
"You pick." With his eyes, transfixed on her pink, swollen lips as she spoke, he had to tug on his collar to regain his senses.
"There's a restaurant downtown." he coughed nervously.
She eyed him, "A restaurant, huh?" She questioned with a quirk of her eyebrow. He nodded.
"Yeah, what about it?" She licked her lips at his response and rolled her shoulders.
"Oh, nothing," She hummed, "Just seems so unlike you." She added and he tried not to glare.
"What does that mean?"
She smiled up at him with a keen look in her eye, "Just made me curious if you asked Brock for help?" She muttered quietly.
Ash stiffened and kept his eyes forward as a blush crept over his cheeks, "No way, why would I do that?" He denied carefully, thinking twice about her comment regarding Brock's preference of advice. Misty giggled.
"Whatever you say." She said knowingly, though Ash didn't ease up at all.
When they arrived at the restaurant, dinning in around 3:00pm, they were bussed to their seats right away. Much to his dislike of having gotten used to her touch, she sat across from him in the booth, rather than beside him. She probably wanted to eat while they were here, and he figured that was fair enough. Upon opening the menu, Ash's soul left his body. He tried not to choke on the price of one meal, nearing thirty dollars without tax.
Misty, having the same reaction as him, whistled; "This place is fucking expensive." She grumbled, setting the menu down and staring wide-eye at Ash. He hissed,
"Misty, don't swear here!" he whined, to which she only stuck her gifted, amazingly talented, tongue out at him. He swallowed hard; what kind of thoughts were those.
"Well, whatever, we'll split the cost, alright?" She said while flipping the page, alarms sounded off in Ash's head and he shook it vehemently.
"No. I'll pay, it's fine." He grit his teeth, though grateful for the offer, he was told to never let his date pay, and she had already taken care of the movie.
She quirked an eyebrow and licked her lips seductively, whether she realized she had or not, he shivered, evoking the truth right out of his lips; "Brock told me not to let you pay."
Grinning at his squeaky confession she tapped her fingers on the table; "So you are a pervert after all. Tell me, what other advice did he give you?"
Ash glared at her, turning several shades of red while he cracked open his menu and tried to swallow his embarrassment down. Damn her and her lips; they betrayed him.
"I am not a pervert." he whispered though Misty, unable to resist poking fun at him twisted her foot up, and around his calf. Ash shivered from contact, and nearly bolted out of his seat; forcing Misty into a giggling fit.
"Admitting it is the first step to recovery, Ash." she grinned, though she didn't have long to tease him before the waiter who bussed them in came back to get their drink orders. Misty eyed the menu thoughtfully and then winced.
"Can I get a water, please?" She asked, and Ash nodded his agreement.
"Two, actually." He grumbled, looking at the extensive price of the other options and choking, whereas water was free. The waiter nodded, and then took off to gather their drinks. Misty turned her attention back at Ash, and curled her fingers into the leather seat she sat on.
"Are you having fun?" She asked thoughtfully, catching his brown eyes across the table.
He looked at her with a short skip in his chest, and then blew out the excess air. Having fun or not hadn't even occurred to him; he was enjoying himself, certainly; which was weird because thinking about it their date thus far only consisted of leaving his house and awkwardly making-out during a movie and playing a silly game. He decided against mentioning all of that, and instead looked at her with a smile. He was honestly having fun, even though it was an entirely different kind of fun; it was one that he thought he could get used to.
With a blush on his cheeks at the thought, he smiled; "Yeah, are you?"
"Yes." She admit sheepishly while looking at her menu as if it would take away the heat from her cheeks. Ash watched as she placed her hand against the table gently, having not realized that her right wrist, which had been bandaged since yesterday, was covered with a simple blue glove, instinctively, he reached out and touched it, watching her face scrunch up with surprise. He wondered how much it hurt, but decided against asking; instead, he questioned another part of their date that he wondered about.
"How did you get so good at...well, you know?" he asked, stroking the glove, feeling the twist and ties of the bandage beneath it. She didn't seem to mind, however and glanced up at him.
"Kissing?" She echoed with raised eyebrows. "Ash, if you're doing it, you should be able to say it." She grunted casually, returning her eyes to the menu where she couldn't find anything cheaper than twenty six dollars. He felt a little disillusioned, like the time she mentioned that if he was kissing Serena, he should be able to say that—and back then, his defense was that he never kissed her; but now, he was most definitely kissing Misty.
He cleared his throat awkwardly, "Kissing." He stammered much to her pleasure.
"There you go," She winked at him, "Well, to put it simply, you're not the first boy that I've kissed." She murmured unpleasantly, knocking the wind out of Ash's chest. He knew this was a fact already, with Gary and everything, but it didn't soften the blow at all. He scrunched his face and habitually intertwined his fingers with hers, wondering for a fleeting moment when that became a comforting habit.
"Care to share? Since you sort of know all of mine..." he coughed nervously, shifting his eyes around the old-fashioned restaurant. Misty blushed.
"You sure it's not 'cause you're jealous?" She grinned surprisingly at Ash, testing the waters.
"...I am a little?" he offered quietly as he pouted, and looked away from her; his honest reply coming as a short shock before she chuckled.
"The first boy I kissed was named Gerogio." Misty muttered, a look of disgust visualizing over her features, Ash raised an eyebrow.
"Like a normal k-kiss, or like what we just did...?" He grimaced, though fidgeted in his seat. Misty shuddered.
"You're the first boy I've ever kissed like that." She tossed while covering her red face with her menu. Fumes blew out of Ash's ears in a short, unjustified tantrum.
"But you said...!" he started but her embarrassed grin shut his anger down quickly.
"Maybe I just like to see you squirm a little?" She cooed, holding up her index finger and thumb to indicate a small amount and Ash's face fell. So she was just naturally a good kisser. That was comforting; though she could have just said that instead.
"You're cruel, you know that?"
She grinned happily and then let her face fall as she narrowed her eyes; "The other one was Gary, as pathetic as that sounds." she gagged, though Ash's visible dislike and uncomfortable shudder at the mention of his rival kissing Misty didn't go unnoticed by the gym leader.
"That's it?" Ash squeaked, honestly, and very slightly relieved.
"That's it." she confirmed,
"But I thought that you had boyfriends before?"
"No, I had dates before; boyfriends? Hardly." Misty grumbled, appearing uncomfortable at the remembrance of her time spent 'attempting to move on' from Ash Ketchum.
Sighing he couldn't stop himself from grinning; "So I'm the third boy you've kissed?" He asked, looking up at her with murky eyes. She nodded skeptically and turned her frown upward at the adoring look in his eyes.
"Then that doesn't answer the question on how you..."
"I have three older sisters; please don't make me recount their stories." Misty muttered quickly, ending the conversation while Ash looked at his menu effortlessly. What ever the 'sensational' sisters had told Misty over the years worked in his benefit, so he wouldn't complain. After a few moments of silence, Misty glanced up around the restaurant, and then back at Ash; who took a few moments to stare back at her. She looked visibly distressed.
"Can I be honest?" She asked suddenly, and Ash could feel his stomach drop as he looked up at her nervously. She sounded pain stricken, had he done something? He looked at her hands, and then properly removed his from hers, in case he had hurt her already injured wrist.
"Sure..." He responded worriedly, wondering where such a feeling had come from; what was he afraid that Misty would do?
"Can we leave?" She asked awkwardly, catching Ash off guard as his head spun.
"..w...what?" He asked while blinking at her. She shrugged.
"This place is really expensive, and the only food they offer that sounds appetizing is a sandwich that costs thirty dollars." She groaned, but her confession was like music to his years as he stood up abruptly, took her by the hand and practically carried her out of the restaurant in several seconds. Her heels pounded the ground beneath her as she followed him, and he exhaled upon feeling the fresh air crawl over his skin. He stopped to look back at the flabbergasted girl with a twinkle in his eye.
"I've never wanted to kiss you so much before." he exhaled, and Misty froze expectantly as it took him a moment to realize that he was allowed to kiss her now. He leaned forward, and did just that, in the middle of the sidewalk, garnering a few disapproving looks from older travelers.
XOXOXOXXOXOXOXOXXOXO
The second place they decided on was much more affordable, and practical, because now that they were outside; they become accustomed to the warm rays of the sun, and decided to take a stroll through central park with their selection of sandwich. A simple inexpensive lunch; but one that was perfect for the two of them. Misty kicked out her aching feet, and directed Ash to a bench near the forest line where she collapsed with a sigh.
"I don't know how girls can do it." She whined, "You know some girls travel in shoes like this all the time? Their feet must be made of steel." Misty groaned while wiggling her toes in the tan heels she borrowed from May. Ash whistled gently beside her as he watched a couple of kids throwing a ball in the distance.
Discarding her comment about shoes, he thought to address another issue; "So on a scale from one to me, who was the best kisser?"
"Oh please." Misty groaned while rolling her eyes and looking upward at the clouds above.
"What?" He grimaced earnestly while she tucked her shoulders under his left arm and rested her head against his shoulder.
"You are, of course." She admit lovingly while closing her eyes. His face turned red at the realization and he scoffed.
"You don't need to lie to me," He pouted with his bottom lip stuck out. She chuckled in response, but didn't look up.
"I'm not lying. I love you, so I'm simply bias." She curled her lips into a grin and he found himself jittery once again; hearing the "L" word escape her. He looked down at her, though she didn't seem to notice that she had technically confessed; which meant that as soon as she did realize, she was going to expect him to say it back. And yes, Ash knew he loved her, but somehow as the words tried to funnel out of his mouth, he found he wasn't physically capable of forming the words without his chest exploding. Instead, he rolled his shoulder to cause her to look up at him, and he grinned before kissing her again. Shivers ran down his spine while she kissed him back, taking extra care to hold his chin in position as she exhaled and pulled away. Her eyes were narrowed, and Ash thought for a moment he might get in trouble.
"Jeeze, Ash, yesterday I couldn't get you to look at me without freaking out; now you can't keep your hands off of me," She smirked at him, "Whatever May did must have worked wonders."
Ash rolled his eyes at her words and then simply glared playfully, "Pretty Misty is very wonderful," He pressed while taking her by the hand and guiding them to their feet to continue walking, "But my favorite is 'just' Misty." he joked, and she could have sworn that her heart melted. Whether he realized it or not, that was one of the most romantic things that she had heard ever. Her face flushed over as she squeezed his hand gleefully, but he couldn't just let it end with that.
"Besides; Brock says that it's normal because it's just my 'repressed sexual frustrations over the last four years' coming out; apparently, I'm not liable for my spontaneous kissing fits."
Misty cocked her jaw, exhaling while she pinched the bridge of her nose; of course Brock would tell Ash that. But she shook her head, she wasn't complaining. Whatever made Ash more comfortable with the situation.
"So," he said, switching gears as they wondered into a path near a small stream. "I think it's five against three, no?"
"Excuse me?" She asked, automatically believing that he was referencing pokemon, and so she looked up at him with innocent eyes; only to be met with his zealous smirk.
"The game. I'm leading by two."
"I thought we weren't playing that anymore?" She groaned with an eye roll, he snickered.
"You only don't want to play because you're losing now." He taunted, pulling her down to the small bridge at the crook of the stream. Misty exhaled sharply and twisted her fingers into her dress.
"That's not true; technically I got a point at the restaurant when you jumped at the table." She barked and he reeled at her and grinned.
"Then technically," he paused for emphasis, "I kissed you outside of the restaurant and you shoved me because people were staring. I think that's a point."
Misty puffed her red cheeks and fought the urge to kick him in the shin as she stumbled about the path, growing closer to the rocks, she stopped on top of one of them while Ash kicked his shoes and socks off. For a moment, she wasn't sure why he had done that, until he bent over to roll up his pants and she grimaced.
"Really, Ash? I'm in a dress."
"It's just walking in the stream. Besides, you have all that leg room to get wet," He gestured to her bare legs, getting a frustrated blush from her in return, "Just don't slip." he winked while stepping into the water and extending his hand out to her.
Exhaling, Misty kicked off the strapless heeled shoes, carefully tossing them beside Ash's. She had to admit, it was nice to take them off; and have a good reason to do so. She couldn't exactly ditch them where ever. That wasn't very lady like, plus she was borrowing them from May. So when she looked at Ash, seeing his innocent, dutiful gaze, she only blushed darker. He knew that her feet were killing her, and he was just giving her an excuse to remove them. She swore under he breath at him while lacing her fingers around his.
"Why the stream?" She asked while lowering her feet into the brisk, cold water. She shuddered while he dropped their hands to his side and balanced along the rocks beneath their toes.
"I just thought it sounded like fun?"
"...that's the only reason?" She pegged, and he shrugged,
"...Yeah... why? Was it bad idea." His voice grew more panicked as he talked, looking at her like he had done something wrong; and Misty chuckled and shook her head. Of course it wasn't on purpose; but at least his sweetness intertwined into his sub conscious as well.
"No it's fine. I love the water." She added while sort of splashing into the deeper end where Ash, in his only slightly rolled up pants, could not go. Instead, he guided her back up into the more shallow parts as they made their way into route one's forest.
"I know you do." he thought to himself, though didn't speak as to not break the natural hum of the forest and the gentle sound of their feet moving along the water. He had to stop himself from exhaling.
This was fun, being in nature, walking through the forest with Misty beside him; so much that his heart expanded, and he dared to looked at Misty, who had been looking at the ground; the pain in her feet having lessened. He could see around her collar when her jacket hung off her shoulders where his 'love-bites'-as Misty so carefully named them—decorated her neck. He grinned slightly, the idea of him kissing a girl and enjoying it was still so unusual for him. Said girl being Misty, no less, made his entire body squeal in undetermined excitement as he stopped abruptly, causing her to nearly lose her footing.
But he was there catch her, and pull her close. So often they kissed and cuddled on this date, but not once did Ash actually stop to embrace her. He did so now, wrapping his arms tightly around her back, listening to the sound of her breathing as she gently tucked her own arms around him. He rested his cheek against the top of her hair, not quite tall enough to prop his chin on top, and rocked her gently. She was so warm in his arms, so perfect. The way her body relaxed forced his to; the normal, headstrong Misty, who he admired deeply for many reasons, was like putty in his hands. She didn't flinch when he touched her, in fact, she always goaded him forward without breaking his comfort zone. She didn't edge him into anything uncomfortable, and while she usually let her opinions fly wildly, she was so patient with him; so kind. He brushed his lips against her forehead, feeling her burn up beneath his lips. She was blushing, and had her eyes squeezed shut against his chest, listening to his heart beat soundly.
He couldn't imagine how much self-control it took for her to stay at his pace instead of her own. There were a few times he worried he was moving too fast, though he questioned what 'too fast' was, he didn't want to take it with Misty. He didn't want to pressure her, the same way that she didn't pressure him. He exhaled, blowing her hair gently while he separated very slowly. She looked a bit confused, as the embrace didn't amount to a conversation, to action; he simply hugged her in the middle of their walk, without any indication.
So he smiled, "What does the winner of our game get?" He asked, knowing that the day was drawing to an end, the sun was ducking below the forest horizon.
She licked her lips, "I don't know, what do you want?" she asked with her eyes narrowed. His breath caught in his chest as he exhaled.
"A request." he muttered, unable to look away from her eyes.
"...A request?" She echoed and nodded slowly, "Okay, what is it?"
His heart skipped a beat and stopped all at the same time as he inhaled and looked into her eyes; without thinking, he blurted: "Travel with me again."
It wasn't a question, it came off as more of a plea; the way his voice twinged at the end Misty wondered if it wasn't borderline begging. The pounding in her chest nearly crippled her while she stared into his earnest, chocolate eyes. They screamed at her, nearly convincing her to agree with the crazy allegation; but she stiffened her lip and curled them inward.
"...I can't." She muttered, breaking eye contact right as Ash closed his eyes, feeling the sting of rejection.
He tried again, "What about after you go back and fix things?"
She shook her head however, remaining firm in her decision; "I can't leave the gym Ash, I'm sorry."
His heart fell at the sound; he already knew that would be her answer, but he couldn't get past the hope, the want, the lies he told himself that she would bend and agree to the decision. So, a repressed heat since this morning fueled into his chest, and he swallowed. She didn't even understand why he was asking; he knew that she couldn't.
"Why?"
"Ash, please don't do this." Misty mumbled, hearing the desperation in his voice, which was quickly covered in frustration at her desperate attempt to return the conversation to the happy subject it was only a few minutes ago.
"Why not? I mean, where does that leave us?!" He half shouted, suddenly overheated and needing his own space to breath. He pushed away from her, letting her hands drop to her sides before she slowly wrapped them around herself.
"...I don't know." She admit carefully, though he shook his head. Misty thought right away that might not have been the best answer for this situation.
So his fear wrapped into his anger, and he glowered; "So after all of this, I'm just supposed to go back to whatever it was I was doing?" He grumbled, his voice rising. Misty stuck out her arms, grabbing his.
"Ash, just calm down..." She tried, but he swat her hands away and stormed off. His head spun around while he sloshed through the water back to where they entered, Misty followed skillfully through the stream, a step behind him.
"That's all I've been is calm!" Ash finally answered, aggressively jumping from the water and snatching his shoes, "I'm sick of being calm!" He flailed and the repressed anger of the last week vomiting up in turmoil against Misty.
"I was calm through the whole ordeal with Serena, I was calm with May, and Dawn, I was calm when Team Rocket took Pikachu and you, and I was calm when you said you had to leave-!"
"Then why is it such a problem? You already knew!" She cut him off, but he didn't seem to care.
"Because how can you still want to leave after all of this!?" He yelled at her, throwing up his arms in defeat; his reply flooring the young gym leader. In her mind, Misty had all the right answers to that question: because it was her job, because she had responsibilities, because her life was in Cerulean City, because her sisters were counting on her. She had a long list, but none of them seemed to match that look of devastation penetrating his eyes; the utter look of betrayal that stared back at her. She hesitated, thus allowing time for Ash to break down.
"I think there was a reason my feelings were repressed for so many years; because I knew you would leave again. You always leave." The way his voice strained on the word, Misty had to recoil her feelings and her mouth opened and closed again.
"I'm not leaving you, Ash, I just have a job to do. I don't want to go." She tried once again, but he was shaking, tears pulled at the corners of his eyes and she struggled to reach out again. Hearing himself, he knew how selfish it sounded, but he couldn't stop himself.
"Then don't go!" He demanded but she didn't back down; in stead she stepped out of the stream as he took another step up the path.
"I don't have that option; there's where my home is, I have responsibilities, Ash." She tried, picking her shoes up as she tried to reason with him.
"So the gym is more important to you than me?" he concluded, and she mentally slapped herself on the forehead.
"That's not what I'm saying, Ash; please just calm down!" she yelped, throwing her hands down for emphasis, she didn't want to fight with him. Not today, not right now. But he shook his head confused.
"Stop treating me like I'm a child, Misty!" He snarled at her sincere tone, and Misty could feel a part of her snap as she looked at him, a wild fury in her eyes. She cut the space off between them in one bound, and matched his dark eyes with her own.
"Would you stop traveling to be with me?" She challenged angrily, stopping Ash's accusations in their tracks.
He hesitated, "That's not the same..."
"IT IS, ASH!" She blew up, screaming, red-faced while she darted past him.
He paused and then shook his head, surprised; "Where are you going?" He questioned suddenly, but she didn't stop to wave at him.
"I can't talk to you when you're like this!" She yelled in repertoire, storming away in a fit of glorious anger.
"Well I can't talk to you!" he yelled back at her. He watched her go, ripping at her curled hair, as well as removing her white blouse and rubbing her make up off with the top. She was out of sight in under a few moments, and as soon as she was; his heart started beating again, very, very slowly. She wasn't mad at him, not the typical anger; she was disappointed in him. But he couldn't help himself. He shook his head. She was leaving again, which was fine; but she didn't even plan on coming back. She had no intention to follow him, she was going to be the Cerulean Gym leader. That was her job.
Apparently, it was more important than him. He grumbled tugging on his shoes and storming away, the opposite direction of Misty. He felt a lot colder than normal though, his hands were tingly, and his entire body ached; it hadn't even been ten minutes since she stormed off; and he already missed her like crazy. How did she expect him to go months without seeing her? He stumbled and let his eyes drift to the ground, full of guilt as he turned around to look in the direction that she had gone. It wasn't that he didn't understand that she had to go; it's that he didn't know how he was going to manage with out her. Yet, here was, fighting with her.
What in the hell did he just do?
Author's Note:
Next chapter is the last.
...I don't know how I feel about this.