The next morning had a far different tone to it than the previous ones. Ash was almost on complete auto piolet as he gathered his things from his locker. He couldn't get the kiss from the previous night off his mind. And he was going to have to do it again in just a few minutes. He was so distracted that he didn't even notice when Leaf walked over to him, prompting her to actually need to tap his shoulder to get his attention.

"Huh?" he wondered, turning around and finally noticing her. "Oh…hey Leaf…"

"Hey." she replied as she kissed his cheek. "Just wanted to wish you luck on your project this morning."

"Thanks…" he replied, though clearly, his heart wasn't in it. But Leaf choose to ignore that and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"And I'll even help you celebrate afterwards." she whispered with a wink. For whatever reason, that offer made Ash sick to his stomach. Part of him loved the offer, but another part, the one that was still thinking about May, felt horrible. Trying to bury his internal conflict as deeply as he could, Ash forced himself to smile at her to avoid making her suspicious.

"Right…" he replied simply. Seemingly satisfied with that answer, Leaf kissed him and Ash kissed her back. She moaned happily and deepened the kiss. Ash moaned back and held her close, but he was stunned at just how…lackluster the kiss felt. There was definitely something missing…he wasn't feeling anything as intense as the spark he had with May the night before. Eventually, he couldn't fake it anymore and he pulled away. Assuming he pulled away for air, Leaf simply smiled at him and he forced a return smile.

"Love you." she whispered. Ash bit his lower lip but still responded as he knew she expected him to.

"Love you too…"

"See you later." she finished as she headed off to her own class. Ash frowned a little as he watched her go.

"Why did kissing Leaf felt so different from kissing May...?" he asked himself. He didn't have an answer and that really scared him. As the hallway began to clear, he saw his English classmates heading for the auditorium for the projects, and, knowing he had to do this for the grade if nothing else, he followed them. As he walked in, he checked the presentation order posted on the door. Of course, he and May were first…sighing to himself, he headed backstage and found May already there and getting ready. She had already moved their set onto the stage and was just doing a solo run-through of her lines. Once she heard his footsteps, she turned around and Ash forced himself to speak first. "Hey…"

"...Hi…" she said in a very quiet voice, reminiscent of their first day working together.

"Look I...I'm sorry about yesterday…" he apologized, knowing that no matter what, he shouldn't have ditched her and just run off like that. She listened to him for a moment, but then turned her gaze away from him, directing it down to the floor.

"...Forget it...I got the message...let's just get this done…" she said quietly and quickly.

"Message…?" Ash wondered, before remembering what she had written to Paper Princess. About how her greatest fear was making him uncomfortable with the kiss. He then realized how his hasty exit last night must've looked to her. "Oh…! No no May that's not…"

"I get it...you didn't like kissing someone else...I understand...let's just do this and be done…" she insisted. Ash bit his lower lip as he tried to figure out how to tell her about a feeling he didn't even understand himself.

"May no it's...it's not like that…I didn't really dislike it...it's just I…" he studdered.

"Ash please don't try and spare my feelings…" she said quietly.

"I'm not...I'm really telling you the truth...I just...don't understand it all yet…" he admitted, nervously scratching the back of his head.

"I thought we were friends...a friend wouldn't lie to me like this…" she responded, a bit more firmly.

"I'm not lying May…" he tried desperately to get her to understand.

"Ash-"

"Alright. First group let's go." Roxanne announced from the audience with the other students. May sighed to herself and proceeded out onto the stage without another word. Ash frowned to himself, but followed her and put on the best acting expression he could muster. May took her position on top of the platform they'd built and Ash took his a few feet away, pretending to hide within the hedges of Juliet's garden. After one final deep breath, May began acting out her lines, near perfectly to everyone else, but Ash could tell that she was struggling. Nevertheless, he recited his lines in response to hers. May clasped her hands over her heart as she spoke and Ash moved in with his, miming climbing up the tower as he then stood on the platform next to her and grasped her shoulders. They both spoke their final lines as they looked into each others' eyes. There was a pause for only a moment before they both leaned in and shared their second kiss. May leaned into his arms as sparks flew between them again, just as intense as before. Ash moaned as he held her close, soaking in every moment of the kiss until the class suddenly started applauding their performance and Roxanne cleared her throat, drawing their attention. Ash pulled away as he blushed hard in embarrassment as May did the same.

"Well done you two. Can we have our next group?" Roxanne called, prompting the next pair of students to get their things set up. Ash and May quickly scurried off the stage with their props and moved them backstage where they were once again left alone. Ash turned towards May with a worried expression, knowing that she was hurting and his confusion wasn't helping the situation. But still, he had to try and help. He just had to.

"May...:"

"The project's over now...goodbye Ash…" she responded, turning towards the stairs to leave. Ash's eyes widened as he quickly grabbed her arm to stop him from leaving.

"May don't go...please…tell me what did you felt in that kiss...?" he asked. He had to know if she was feeling the same thing he was each time they kissed. She was quiet for a few moments before she responded to his question.

"...It doesn't matter…" she whispered.

"It does to me...May please…" he begged.

"No it can't...you know that…" she pointed out, hitting Ash in the heart as he knew she was right.

"May…"

"You're with her...I won't do that to someone else...I won't be the other woman…whatever that was back there...it's nothing…" she insisted. Ash looked at her with a hurt and broken expression. He knew she was trying to help, but the thought of never seeing her again, that was hurting him too. May, however, had made up her mind. "...Goodbye Ash…" she whispered as she walked away, leaving Ash standing alone in the dark space backstage with only his confused thoughts to comfort him.


Later on in the day, Ash's mind was still racing as his conflicted feelings fly all over the place. He felt completely lost, unable to think straight about his emotions toward the two girls in his life. It was getting to the point that he wasn't even eating his lunch, which was completely unusual. His teammates at the table could tell something was wrong, but it was clear that he didn't want to talk about it right now, so they didn't even try.

"What am I going to do...?" he mumbled to himself.

"Ash!" Leaf called as he joined him at the table, finally drawing him from his thoughts.

"Oh…hey Leaf." he greeted half-heartedly.

"I've been calling your name for like a full minute. What's going on?"

"Uh, nothing?" he tried to lie. However this time, Leaf took notice of his mood. She raised an eyebrow as she searched Ash's face for a real answer. As she looked at him Ash felt a desperate need to just not think for a little while. He really needed a break where he could just do something that felt really good so that the pounding headache he had been nursing since the night before would stop. And fortunately for him, he had access to such a thing. He wrapped his arms around Leaf's waist and put his hands on her butt. "Hey, how bout we celebrate now?"

"Oh?" she wondered, surprised by his sudden tone shift. "Do we have time?"

"For you, I'll make the time." he promised. His response made her smile as she then wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Alright then." she agreed. Ash smiled as he headed off with her somewhere private, eventually finding a conveniently placed janitor's closet with an unlocked door.


Meanwhile in another part of the school entirely, May was sitting alone in the library, staring at a book she was unable to read through the tears running down her face. After a few moments, Dawn walked in after spending the last few minutes looking around for May when she didn't show up to lunch. She spotted her best friend crying quietly at a table and quickly rushed to her side.

"May...? What's wrong…?" she asked, wrapping May up in a hug. May hid her face in Dawn's shoulder and just continued crying.

"I don't want to talk about it…" she sniffled. "I had to do it…"

"Had to do what...?" Dawn asked, trying to be as gentle as she could with her pushing.

"He might've felt something when we kissed…so I had to send him back to Leaf...I had to…" she mumbled in between her sobs, causing Dawn's eyes to widen in shock.

"Wait what?!" she gasped, lifting May's head from her shoulder. "How could you send him back...?! Especially if you think he felt something?!"

"I had to...he's dating her…" May answered as she tried to dry her eyes.

"So what? He could just end things with her so he could be with you instead…" Dawn pointed out, but May frantically shook her head.

"I won't be that girl...I won't be selfish and just try and take him away from another woman...that's not fair to either of them…and for what? For something that we don't even really know if it could work…?" she said, lowering her head so that her bangs shielded her eyes from view. "I just...I need to give up…"

"May you can't...you're so close…"

"I have to...I can't keep living in a fantasy...he's the basketball captain and she's the cheer captain…I'm just a girl in his English class…"

"May…"

"Dawn, please...It's over…"


After what felt like an extremely long day and practice with his team, Ash found himself picking Luna up after her practice once again. It had felt good when he and Leaf were alone, but as soon as it was over he went right back to feeling as mixed up and confused as he was before. Not to mention adding a layer of guilt to boot. Nevertheless, he pulled into her parking lot and the younger girl ran over, jumping into the passenger's seat.

"Hi Ashy…how are you feeling?" she asked as she buckled her seatbelt and noticed his upset attitude that he left that morning with hadn't changed.

"I'm fine…" he lied as he drove off.

"You're not fine Ashy...you're still sullen. And you're never sullen." she insisted. "Please talk to me…"

"I can't…" he said with a small shake of the head.

"Did something happen with May and Leaf…?" she wondered, catching Ash's attention and making him quickly shake his head.

"No! I told you there's nothing to worry about! So please drop it!" he answered, raising his voice more than he intended to and making Luna flinch.

"Ashy…" she whispered, making Ash realize what he'd done. Scared of what else he might say in his current state, Ash turned his attention back to the road and silently drove the rest of the way home.


Once they had pulled into the garage, Ash immediately left the car and retreated to his room without another word as Luna watched him go with a worried expression. She knew he didn't mean to yell at her and she didn't take it personally, she just wished she could help. And with her game coming up tomorrow, she really wanted him to be ok. But for once, she doubted she could be of much help.

"Oh Ashy…" she whispered as she headed to the living room, choosing to let him be by himself for a bit. Meanwhile, Ash was left pacing his room, feeling like his head was splitting open. How could he feel something so strongly for May after just a kiss? And why did it feel so much better and more intense than anything he'd ever felt before with Leaf? What was wrong with him? He couldn't take much more of this. He needed help. And he needed it badly.

"I have to talk to Paper Princess…" he realized. He didn't even care if it was published in the paper or not at this point. He just needed help from someone he trusted. So he grabbed his laptop from his backpack and immediately started typing into the Paper Princess email.


Meanwhile at her house, May just happened to be answering questions from her inbox as her mother cooked dinner a few feet away. However, just as she was about to close the inbox, a new message popped up, surprising her enough to stop.

"Huh?" she wondered as she opened it. When she did, her eyes widened in surprise, recognizing Ash's screen name on it. "A-Ash…?" she whispered as she began reading his email.

"Hey, Paper Princess. It's me again. I have a major problem that is driving me crazy. You see, yesterday when I and my partner for a school project kissed during practice, I felt something from it that was…very intense. Even more, than anything I've ever felt when I kiss my girlfriend. It surprised me so much that I pushed her away and ran because it freaked me out so much. And then, when we had to kiss again for the presentation today, it felt just as intense as before. And I think she felt the same thing, but she told me that it doesn't mean anything because I have a girlfriend. But the thought of never seeing her again hurts me so much. Now I'm just feeling all mixed up about the two of them and it's driving me crazy...I really don't know what to do...I don't feel like I can trust anyone else enough to tell them and I don't want to hurt anyone...please I really need your help...you're the only person I can turn to…" he explained, stunning May so much that her cheeks become covered in a heavy blush, which her mother noticed.

"May honey what's wrong?" she asked. May simply turned her screen towards Caroline and she did a quick read-through of Ash's question. "Oh my…"

"I-I…" May stuttered, trying to find any words for what she just read. Sensing this, Caroline sat down next to her and rubbed her shoulder.

"It's ok honey…just be honest with him." she said gently.

"Mom I can't…how can I answer this without manipulating him…? I can't do that to him...I'd be the worse person in the world…" May muttered.

"Honey I don't think you'd be manipulating him unless you outright tell him to break things off with his girlfriend...you're just trying to help him realize his true feelings...no matter which way they really go…no one could fault you for that…" Caroline countered, making a surprising amount of sense to May.

"But it's not my place to get involved in their relationship…" May tried again to wiggle out.

"He's asked you for help directly. I think that makes it your place." her mother answered with a gentle smile. "So what are going to do Paper Princess...?"

"I...I can at least not publicly help him I guess…" she answered as she then proceeded to open up a direct message chat and then sent him a message. Caroline smiled softly and got back to her cooking, leaving May alone to work.


Meanwhile, Ash's laptop suddenly lit up with a direct message request, surprising him.

"Huh?" he wondered as he opened the request. His eyes widened in surprise when he saw the screen name of the request and the message itself.

"Hi, Ketchum. Mind if we talk for a minute?" Paper Princess asked. He blinked a few times just to make sure he was seeing things right before he accepted the request and wrote her back.

"Uh…sure thing."

"Sorry for the abrupt message. I just figured you didn't want this published. So I thought maybe it was better that we talk about your question privately." she explained.

"Oh wow...that would actually help out a lot. Thank you so much." he answered, giving a small smile. Paper Princess was just incredible. She was even kind enough to keep his more troubling secrets out of the public eye and still help him. What a woman.

"All I ask is that you not mention this to anyone at school. I don't want people getting the idea that I'll do this for any question." she added, making Ash chuckle a little.

"I promise I won't tell anyone." he swore.

"Alright then. I read your message through, but is there any more detail you can give me about the situation?"

"Well...the two kisses I had with my partner were…just incredible. Something I never felt ever before...not even from the times I have kissed my girlfriend…" he explained.

"Can you describe that feeling?"

"It felt like sparks were flying...I never wanted to stop and…and my heart was beating faster than it ever has before...it was incredible. And when I look at her now it's like…like everything has changed…" he elaborated.

"And how does it differ from when you first kissed your girlfriend?" she wondered.

"Well...when I kiss my girlfriend now it's like…like there's no passion in it at all...it just feels…empty when we kiss now." he admitted, taking a deep breath to do so.

"I see...well what about the first time you ever kissed your girlfriend? How does it differ from the first time you kissed your partner?"

"Well...the first kiss with my girlfriend was years ago...but I remember it was exciting and new and just…really really felt good. But this kiss with my partner it was…different. I was very aware of…her. Her personality, her feelings, her passion…and all I wanted was to be a part of that. To never let her go…does that even make sense?" he wondered.

"It does to me." Paper Princess admitted. "Well, I can certainly understand why this is frustrating for you."

"I can't take much more of this...I don't want to hurt my girlfriend...but I also don't want to just forget what I've developed with my partner like she told me to…I don't know what to do…" he sighed.

"You don't agree with your partner that it was a mistake?" she questioned him.

"I don't know what I think...they both have come to mean so much to me…and I don't want to hurt either of them…"

"Then I think what you have to do is think about what you really want. If your kiss with another girl is causing these feelings in you, it might mean something. And if that something turns out to be real love, then I think you owe it to yourself to explore it. After all, sometimes a relationship just isn't meant to be. But by the same token, make sure you don't just rush ahead with a breakup without giving yourself time to consider if things with your girlfriend still have merit. Both of these girls deserve your honest thought and consideration before you do anything. And so do you." Paper Princess explained. Ash considered her words and slowly began to nod, realizing that she was right.

"That really makes sense. Thanks, Paper Princess. I'll make sure I think about both of them and what'll make me really happy." he responded, giving a small smile.

"You're very welcome. Oh, and before you go, maybe think about giving both of them some space while you think about it. It's more fair to both of them if they can't influence your decision by taking your attention. And it's also fairer to you to make sure your decision is yours and yours alone." she added.

"I certainly will. Thank you so much, Paper Princess. You're the best." he replied.

"Heh. I don't know about that. But I'm glad I was able to help." she chuckled.

"Well, I do know. The way you help so many people with advice and ask for nothing in return, it's just incredible."

"I'm just trying to help people. It's really no big deal."

"It really is for me. And I know it is for lots of other students. Someday I hope you'll let us all know who you are. I'm sure there are lots of people that would want to thank you. Myself included." he smiled.

"Well…I guess we'll see. For now, I'm afraid I have to go. I certainly hope this chat helps you." she answered.

"I'm sure it will. Have a good night Paper Princess."

"Thank you. Good luck."

"Thanks." With that, May ended the chat and took a deep breath, closing her computer as her mother looked over.

"I'm very proud of you sweetie." she assured her daughter.

"Thanks…guess it's out of my hands now...I hope he finds happiness…"

To be Continued...