Note: Sorry for the late update; in the process of trying to move, so life delayed me. So sorry. Enjoy!

Follow Me

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Twenty-Five

Rain Dance

All warmth vanished in an instant. Heavy rain whipped past her in slanted sheets, battering against the building in heavy concentrations. It was dark, especially for mid-day, and it was bitter cold. Crystal's Raichu sat huddled at her feet beneath the overhang, no longer enjoying the thunderstorm as he normally would. Soul leaned down and gave the Pokémon a pat. "Crystal was worried about you, so she asked me to come tell you to go inside," she said gently. Rai-Rai gave her a curious look, then looked out in what Soul assumed was Silver's direction. "Don't worry about him; I'll handle it," she said with a reassuring smile. Digging in her bag, she removed a red umbrella and then handed her bag to Rai-Rai. "Will you take this inside for me?" The Pokémon nodded and then happily disappeared into the warmth of the building; Soul felt the comforting rush of heat on her face from inside and the sudden chill as the doors closed once more. Taking a deep breath, she turned.

He was sitting there, alone across from the Center, on one of the benches on the pier. The multi-colored parasol attached to the seat saved him from downpours from above, and he'd set up the pink umbrella Crystal had loaned him to protect his right side, but even through the haze of the storm, Soul could tell he was soaked straight through. He was staring directly at her, she could make out, but as to what his expression was, she couldn't guess. Inhaling deeply, she erected her umbrella and ventured out into the gale.

The umbrella was useless. Inside of the minute it took her to get to Silver's bench, she was drenched to the skin, and she shivered despite herself. If it was this cold in just a short minute, then poor Silver, who'd been out in the midst of it for an hour...She approached him and stood before him, clenching the handle on her umbrella.

His face was much easier to read up close, but he wasn't looking at her; he was staring ahead, not flinching, hardly blinking. He didn't react at all when she sat down on the wet bench beside him and propped her umbrella on the opposite side, creating a small bubble around them protecting them from the rain and the wind. They sat there together, neither saying a word, Soul's chest growing tighter and tighter with each passing moment. Unable to bear it any longer, she opened her mouth to speak, but was cut off by Silver instead.

"You know, I figured you'd make me wait outside for a little while until Crystal cooled off, but I never imagined you'd leave me out here to catch my death in this fucking storm, Soul. After all, weren't you the one who said we were friends?"

The words cut sharply through her, like he'd physically stabbed her in the same instant, and she struggled to find her breath for a moment. She was such an inconsiderate fool. No, worse than inconsiderate; in that instant, she felt down-right cold-hearted. She shut her eyes and thanked whatever divine existence was out there for the rain that masked her tears.

"And the funny thing is, if I hadn't kind of figured it out for myself, I would've been sitting out here with no idea as to why. Since you've been so straight with me over the past few hours."

"I'm sorry...!" Soul blurted, but she regretted it, because it was indeed a mistake.

"Because sorry makes it all better!" Silver shouted. "Sorry makes the numbing sensation in my fucking hands go away! Yeah, all is forgiven now that you've come down from on high and divined that to me!"

She deserved this. It hurt so much, but she deserved every word. She bit her lip and held back tears.

"All I wanted was a straight answer from you! But no, you gave me the fucking run-around like it was some kind of game, a big joke! I bet you and Crystal had a good laugh about it inside!"

She couldn't hold back any longer; she erupted. "You want the truth? Is that what you want?"

He threw his head back and laughed. "That's what I just. Fucking. Said. Repeating me isn't an answer!"

"Yeah, well, you know what, the truth is...! The truth...The truth is..." She hunched forward, deflated, and cried into her hands. "The truth is...I really like you, Silver." Tears dripped between her fingers, unnoticed by the rain-soaked ground upon which they landed. "I like you so much...and I was so scared...Scared of what you would say now that you know. But that's not an excuse for the way I've acted, and I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry..."

Silver exhaled, defeated. Leaning forward, he laced his fingers and rested his mouth against them. "...It's not your fault," he sighed, "so please...stop crying...I understand Crystal's the one who forced me to stay out here, so...knock it off, all right?" He heard her sniffle, and he sighed again. "What a mess..." he muttered. Glancing sidelong at her, he twitched his foot on the ground, contemplating his next sentence. "So...I've got to ask...Why the hell would you like me of all people? I mean," he said, rubbing his neck and turning back toward the Center, "I'm not exactly the nicest, most charming guy around or anything..."

Soul mopped her eyes and sniffed. "I dunno...I guess...Whenever I saw you, it always felt like you needed someone or something, and I realized that I wanted to be that someone. I wanted to be what you needed."

He wasn't expecting such an astute answer; he was quite shocked. "...You've thought about this a lot, haven't you?"

Soul chuckled. "More than you'll probably ever know."

He faced forward again, weighing his thoughts. Selecting his words very carefully, he drew in a breath. "...If you had to get an answer from me right now...as to whether or not I feel that way about you too...the answer would be no."

She felt as if the world had dropped out beneath her. Her chest grew tight as her heart crumbled within, and she felt the tears start to form at the corners of her eyes. She knew it. She knew this would happen. Somewhere in her heart, she knew this would be the answer she would receive, and she felt a weight press down on her like she had never felt before.

"But..."

He emphasized this very heavily, rescuing Soul from her downward spiral, and she held her breath for the next word.

"I...I don't think it would be fair for me to tell you no," Silver continued. "After all, you've thought about your feelings a lot, so it's only fair that I give you the same courtesy." He stared at his feet. "That's what I tried to do while I was out here, but an hour of brooding in frigid conditions, soaked clothes, and a bad mood isn't enough. You see," he sighed, scratching his head, "you'll have to forgive me, but prior to all this...I just never thought about you in that way. I mean," he said, looking up at her, "you were my rival. I hated you for a while, until I realized it was my fault I kept losing. And hell, I just got adjusted to us being friends, and now I have a whole new set of feelings to consider?" He exhaled deeply. "But...I'm willing to give you the amount of consideration you deserve, if you'll give me the time."

"Of course!" Soul gasped, heart leaping. "Take as much time as you need!"

He sat quietly for a moment, thinking. The wind had died down, and the rain was falling at a much normal pace, although still in high volumes. He watched the waterfalls cascade off the umbrella's edge, pondering. "...You realize you might not get the answer you want..."

"I know," Soul said, gripping the bench. "But at least I'll know then that you gave me an honest shot."

Nodding, he glanced at the ground. "If...you don't want to come with me on this journey any more, I'll understa—"

"Are you crazy?" Soul said with a laugh. "Leave you so you can ignore your promise to consider my feelings?" She scoffed. "You're not getting rid of me that easily." Straightening, she gave him a solemn stare. "I'll follow you forever if I have to...I'll never stop waiting for an answer."

Why were his cheeks growing so warm all of a sudden? He shrugged it off and closed his eyes, grinning. "You may never get an answer, you know."

"Then I guess you'll never be rid of me."

He chuckled. "Then I guess you really will have to follow me forever."

"Well, duh. That's what I just. Effing. Said," she teased.

A stunned Silver laughed in spite of himself. "You really are strange, you know? Not many people would be interested in a guy like me. Not in that way, at least."

"Well, maybe that just means I'm meant for you," she said with a sly grin.

"Ha, maybe so, but you won't get a yes out of me that easily."

"We'll see," Soul said, standing. Turning to him, she extended a hand. "Come on. Let's go see if the showers are open. It's time we got you in out of this weather."

Debating it for a moment, he took her hand and stood, shouldering his bag. "Yeah. It's about damn time."

Later, as she stood in the stream of the shower, Soul reflected on the conversation. Despite her earlier emotions, she couldn't help but feel...disheartened. True, she hadn't been rejected (not technically, at least), but she was pretty much right back where she started: she had no idea how Silver felt about her. The only difference was Silver knew how she felt. Well, she thought, that was a pretty big difference. Holding her heart, she tensed with renewed resolve. No more moping around feeling sorry for herself! She was going to do everything in her power to influence Silver's opinion of her. She would make him fall in love with her if it was the last thing she ever did!

The following morning brought clear skies, a stark contrast to the temperamental weather of the day prior. It had taken every ounce of Soul's influence for Silver to forgive Crystal, although part of Soul suspected he only said so to appease her. The three shared a pleasant breakfast together and then prepared to part ways.

"So you're sure you don't want to come with us?" Soul asked as she packed the rest of her belongings in the room. "I mean, we're headed the same way, so you could travel with us part of the way, at least."

"Nah, I'm going to wait one more day for that storm to pass by Goldenrod, then I'll head that way on Chari," Crystal said. "Besides," she grinned, "I get the feeling I'd just be in the way."

Soul smiled weakly. "All right...Oh, before I forget, I wanted you to have this..." Digging in her pocket, she retrieved a slip of paper, which she handed to Crystal.

"What's this?" Crystal asked, unfolding the torn page.

"My PokéGear number," Soul said with a smile. "I figured we should exchange them so we can stay in touch."

"Ah, good thinking, let me give you mi...Wait..." She examined the page more carefully: printed beneath Soul's number in neat handwriting was a second number. "What's this other one, Sil-Sil's?"

"Oh, no, Silver doesn't have a PokéGear," Soul corrected with a devilish grin. "That's Gold's number."

Crystals face lit up a rosy pink. "Wh...Wha...?"

"You were going to ask me if I had it, weren't you?" Soul said mischievously. "I saw you eying my PokéGear yesterday when I came back from my shower. Did you look for it?"

"Of course not!" Crystal protested. "What kind of person invades someone's privacy like that?"

"But you wanted to, didn't you?"

Crystal huffed and glanced at Soul, who gave her a look that said she understood completely. She sighed. "Thank-you, Soul," she said quietly.

"No problem!" she replied. "Just promise me you'll call him. You never know, he might be missing you, too."

"Yeah..." Crystal said in a way that expressed she clearly doubted it.

"Well, Silver is waiting for me, so just call my number later so I can get yours, okay?"

"Nn, sure. Bye, Soul. Tell Sil-Sil I said good-bye, too." The door to the room closed, and, sighing, Crystal flopped onto the bed. Holding the piece of paper above her head, she stared at the second phone number. She...She had to be insane to consider calling him...right?

"So, where to next?" Soul asked as she and Silver reached the Olivine northern exit.

"Well, Route 39 is pretty much countryside, with lots of farms and the like," Silver said, studying Soul's PokéGear map. "It's possible he could be hiding in the woods on Route 38 somewhere, but it's a long-shot. With winter approaching and the weather getting colder, I'd say he's probably in a cave somewhere, planning to ride it out until it warms up again. At least that's what I'd do."

"There are quite a few caves in Johto," Soul said, taking her PokéGear and poking at it. "Slowpoke Well and Union Cave in the south, Mt. Mortar in the north, Dark Cave in the east...It's a lot of ground to cover."

"What's the nearest one to here?" Silver asked, grabbing her arm to get a better look as he leaned over the map with her. He quickly noticed how awkward this was, though, and he let go to let her tinker with the map some more.

"Mt. Mortar, past Ecruteak," Soul replied, showing him the map.

"Then I guess that's where we're headed."

As they walked past the Olivine gate and into the rural Route 39, one thought tickled Soul's brain, and she couldn't help but let it escape her mouth.

"So, since both Crystal and Gold are already doing it, does that mean I should start calling you Sil-Sil too?"

"...Shut up..."

Selected quote from the next chapter:

"That's it. I'm done."