CIP CHAPTER 2

"Hold that thought, sis, I'm going to answer the phone," Max said with excitement. He loved it when he was right, and the fact that he was right about May having feelings for Ash just made it all the sweeter. But Max could not help but feel a pang of worry for his sister, as he thought to himself, 'I sure hope that Ash can return even halfof these feelings. May would be crushed if he flat out rejects her.'

Realizing that the phone was still ringing, Max picked up the phone and answered it, saying, "Hello, this is Max speaking."

"Max!" The voice said on the other end of the line. "Long time, no speak buddy!" The voice was familiar, and definitely belonged to a male, but something was off, and Max could not quite figure out who he was talking to.

"Hey, I don't want to sound rude or anything, but who is this?" Max questioned.

A chuckle resonated through the phone, as the man on the phone said, "Max, you mean to tell me that even after all that traveling we did together, you can't even remember my voice over the phone?"

Another laugh could be heard through the phone, but this one Max easily identified, as there was no way he could mix up a Pikachu's laugh. Putting two and two together, Max came to the conclusion that there was only one man with a Pikachu that would call him buddy, and that was none other than…

"Ash! I'm so sorry, I can't believe I didn't recognize your voice sooner," Max apologized sheepishly.

Max could almost feel Ash smile as he said, "Don't worry about it, buddy. But hey, do you think that you could put your sister on?"

Although faint, Max could sense some nervousness in Ash's voice, but deciding to make nothing off it, he responded by saying, "Sure, just a sec."

Max put down the phone and ran down the hall towards May's room, thinking to himself, 'Man, May is totally going to freak when I tell her that Ash called.' Reaching her room, he slammed the door open and yelled, "May, phone call for you from your true love!"

Before May could murder him, Max ran back into the hallway and into his room, further yelling, "The phone is on the table in the other room, and don't worry, I put the phone on mute!"

Anger still lingering for Max, May figured that even though he yelled, if no real harm was done then there was no foul. Comprehending that Max must have been referring to Ash, May hurried into the other room, picked up the phone, and with her voice filled with joy, said, "Ash, is that really you?"

"No, it's Gary. Of course it's me! How are ya?"

"I'm great, Ash, but cut the small talk, I want to know why you called!" Ash was surprised that he was put on the spot, and he was hoping that he could have used the small talk to calm his nerves. Regardless, he cleared his throat, and responded to May, saying, "well, May, I just wanted to call and see if you happened to be free this Christmas, I mean I know your family probably is doing something, but if you were able or even wanted, er, not to say that you would want to leave your family or anything…"

May giggled inwardly, Ash was on a nervous ramble. Deciding to help the trainer out, she stopped the train wreck, interrupting Ash in the process while playfully saying, "Ash Ketchum, are you trying to ask me if I would be interested in spending Christmas with you over in Kanto?"

Ash tried his best to not blush, but failed miserably, and could only lower his head down in embarrassment. Catching the playfulness in May's tone, Ash realized that May was taking it easy on him, plus, she did not seem to be against the suggestion, so he raised his head with a smile on his face.

"Yes, May, would you like to spend Christmas with me?"

Without missing a beat, May answered yes, much to Ash's delight. Now that the main purpose of the conversation had been taken care of, Ash and May talked about the logistics of May coming to Kanto, and quickly fell into small talk, with both catching up with the other, as the they conversed about recent journeys and accomplishments. Though with May's Christmas plans now having been drastically changed, she was not able to talk as long as she wished, for there was still a lot that had to be done before she could leave.

"I hate to cut this short, Ash, but I really should start packing for my trip," May said. "But we can always talk and catch up more when I get to Kanto, so I'll talk to you later, Ash!"

Ash returned the departing words with a "talk to you later" of his own, but before he hung up, he heard May yell into the phone, "and you better make sure I have a suitable place to sleep at night!"

A loud smack resonated throughout the Ketchum residence, as Ash had smacked his forehead with the palm of his hand. He had totally forgotten about getting the house ready for a quest, and not just any guest, this was May! He began to race throughout the house, cleaning and sweeping with a furious intensity that would even put Mr. Mime to shame. Pikachu sat curled in a ball in a corner of the house, but was situated where he could see the tragic comedy that was Ash cleaning the house.

'These next couple of days should be really interesting,' Pikachu thought to himself.

Back in Hoenn, May was in a complete state of disbelief. While she had played it cool on the phone, she was a total mess on the instead. She had just been asked by the man of her dreams, Ash Ketchum, if she could spend an entire Christmas with him. Not her asking him, he asked her. May's face flushed a bright shade of crimson, the thought of Ash even thinking about her during a time like this made her heart skip a beat.

'Be careful, May,' she inwardly warned herself, 'just because he asked for a visit, even on Christmas, does not mean that he feels the same way about me as I feel about him.

But even with the cautious thoughts, May was still happy and giddy that Ash had invited her over.

"OMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMG, I'M GOING TO ASH'S HOUSE FOR CHRISTMAS!" squealed a very excited May. "Max get in here quick!"

"What's all the yelling for May, what's wrong?" questioned a startled Max.

"Nothing silly, it's just that I'm in the best mood right now and I need your help."

"What do you need help with sis? I'll do anything but go shopping with you."

May just laughed at the comment as she remember the last time she dragged her brother to go shopping with her. "Don't worry Max, I won't do that to you again." Max gave a sigh of relief. Hearing this she quickly said, "But don't think you're off the hook, this is something that might just be as bad."

"What could possibly be worse that going shopping with you?" Max question was a mix of curiosity and fear.

May slowly leaned in towards Max and whispered into his ear, "You're going to help me pack!"

"NOOOOOOOOOOOO!"