The Way I Was

Chapter 2

The alarm went off earlier this morning, as I was still tired and bored as last night. "That didn't help at all," I told myself. I quickly got dressed, got my backpack from the closet and walked out into a cold fall morning. Ash was still in bed by the time I left, so he could me out here. We established this before the night we left to meet out by benches near the snack bar. We had a map beforehand, so we knew where to go. I relaxed and decided to check my backpack for my books and entry cards. I kept doing so until I heard a voice say, "Hi." I turned to my left and it was the blue-haired girl, Dawn. "Hello," I replied. She smiled. "I know we didn't get along so well in Sinnoh, so I guess I better re-introduce myself. I'm Dawn," She said, holding out her hand to me to shake.

I shook her hand and replied, "I'm Gary Oak, a trainer aiming to be the best- I mean great. I'm aiming to be great someday." I gave a weird look or something because that was awkward.

She chuckled. "What? Was that awkward or something?" I asked. She laughed more. "Stop it! You're killing me!" She said, while laughing. I sighed. She stopped. "Oh, don't be mad! I've been way more awkward before. Who am I kidding? I'm a coordinator. Most of the time they were in competitions!" She explained.

"Whatever," I said, becoming extremely bored. "What is up with you?" Dawn asked. "Nothing, just wanting to be out of this stupid school, because everyone here either doesn't want me here or plain hates my guts, and I can do without everything here," I replied. "You've got it all wrong, Gary," Dawn cooed. "What do you mean by that?" I asked.

"Well, I don't know anyone else at this school, so I only have you, Ash, and the others. I'm sure Ash wants you here. Drew seems to like you. Misty just needs to adjust to you and lastly, I want you here," She explained, blushing (which I hoped was embarrassment) at the last part. I felt better, but felt uneasy as she blushed at that and thank god Drew walked behind the bench. "Well, crap. I can tell something happened over here," he said. I began to turn red.

"Oh, I don't care, too tired to," he told us, laughing. We sighed in relief. "Hey Drew, we gotta go in ten minutes to Battle Logic, where's Ash?" I asked. "He should be out in a couple minutes, he's a little late because he has to put Pikachu in a Poke ball," He answered, yawning. "And here he is now," Drew pointed out.

"Hey guys," Ash greeted. "Where's Misty?" Dawn asked. "She's been hurrying. I checked in on her, but she was looking for something," Ash responded. Then I heard heavy steps coming this way. "Hi guys!" She said in a happy tone. I'm guessing she hadn't seen me yet so I sat up. Nope. She was fine.Whatever, I thought. "Told you she would get over it," Dawn whispered in my ear. We began to walk away from the benches, "Something's fishy. It couldn't be this fast," I whispered back. "Just accept it for now, though," she said, "I have to leave for my first coordination class, bye!" "See you later," I said. I caught up to Misty and Ash, as Drew and Dawn left. We walked all the way to Battle Logic without saying a word. Ash opened the door for us, and it seemed we were a bit early, because only four out of the other sixteen students were already there. We waited a bit in the back of the room, sitting in random desks. They finally arrived and most took their seats. There was an empty seat up front, and I knew why as a guy wearing a black hoodie with brown hair swept across his head approached me. He was about my size, and he looked threatening, but not in my eyes. The teacher was to enter any minute, and I knew this kid was up to something.

"Hey, that's my seat," He said. "What's it to ya?" I asked, giving an evil smile. "It's my seat, scram," He replied. "I'd rather not," I spoke, with a smirk. He held a fist. "I said scram, kid," He threatened. "I'm soscared. Now leave before you get yourself hurt," I replied. He was about to throw a fist, but the teacher came in. "Ray! Don't you dare punch him! Sit, now!" he yelled. "Bye, bye," I said, quietly. Ash stared at me in shock. "How in the heck did you tell HIM to go away?" He asked. "I don't know him and he's a numbskull," I spat out. "That's Ray West. He's a tough guy, even without Pokemon," he added. "A West kid? Oh, so what? There's nothing to worry about. He's an idiot, and with or without Pokemon," I retorted. "You may regret it, but I guess you're right," Ash responded.

Class began, but it was a breeze to get through. There was a multiple choice test on how to battle, to determine how well you know logic and how well you use your Pokemon. I was in the upper class, along with Ash, Misty, (to my surprise) Ray West, and two others. The other 14 were medium and a couple really needed to catch up. We left the classroom in an "orderly" fashion to get used to behavior on campus. "That was a snooze fest," I complained. "Why was it so easy? Isn't this college?" Ash asked. "I know," Misty added, with a small groan. "Thankfully we have a break after this next class," I said. "Well, we got minor classes, I have to go," Misty pointed out. "Bye!" Ash said, as she walked away. "See ya," I said, after Ash elbowed me to say something. She waved as she began to run off. "Ah! My class is in 5 minutes! Gotta run, Gary! Check on Pikachu if you have time, bye!" Ash yelled, running the other direction. "See you later!" I yelled back. I walked toward the dorm complex, and the lounge was actually quite filled. I questioned it, but it didn't matter. I had to walk a little faster because I had Pokemon History in about 15 minutes.

I opened the door to the dorm, and there Pikachu sat. He was on the couch watching some show starring Pikachus as detective and other stuff. "You okay, Pikachu? Ash told me to check in on you," I asked. "Pika," He said, nodding his head. "Ash will come back and get you for Battle Strategy if he gets the chance," I said. Pikachu seemed happy with the response, and went back to his show. I shut the door to the dorm and Dawn was there. "AH! What are you doing here!?" I asked loudly. "I have a minor class with you, so I came over to go with you," she explained. "That's fine, I guess," I responded, stuttering. We began to walk out of the dorm complex and made our way into the courtyard. I attempted to make conversation with Dawn, without embarrassing myself. "How was your coordination class?" I asked. "It was great! I met some great people and I was toward the top of the class, too. How was yours?" She responded. "Boring, I was at the top too. I hope it's not like this all year," I responded, being cynical and real about it. "Hey. It will all work out in the end. Trust me," Dawn responded. "It's only been a day. Why have you become so nice to me lately?" I asked. "I realized you could be a good person. You seemed left out and everything. You just need to adjust to everything and everybody," Dawn replied.

I guessed she was right and we reached Pokemon History. No one I knew but Dawn was there. It was interesting at first, but again it was a letdown. I sat through an hour of boredom. All i really caught was the beginning of evolution, the first competitions, and my head smashing against the desk. It was okay though. I began to walk back to the dorm after I told Dawn I would see her when Ash got back. I arrived at the dorm and I saw that the door was unlocked. I heard lots of banging noises, and rushed in. I saw Pikachu tied up against the wall, and a hooded man in the room throwing stuff around. I knew it was Ray immediately after seeing him. "Hey, Ray. I was just wondering, is this my dorm, because I don't think you live here," I sarcastically asked. He turned around. "Oh I am going to-" He was interrupted by me kicking him onto the ground. "Get out. Now," I threatened. "Fine, but I'm warning you. I'll be coming for you. That's what you get for pissing off a West," he threatened back. "Oh, I'm so scared," I retorted. I slammed the door on him, and untied Pikachu. He didn't throw much or even break anything but an empty picture frame that came with the room. I threw it away and sat down, waiting for Ash to get back so he could see what Ray did. I wasn't so concerned but I wanted to see his reaction.

Ash came in and saw the mess. "What happened here?" He asked. "Ray got in here with the spare key," I told him. "Did you fight him?" Ash asked, as he sat down next to Pikachu. "I kicked him. He tied up Pikachu and broke a picture frame," I responded. Ash began to look nervous. "Was there a picture in there?" He asked. "No, why?" I asked back. "There was an old and personal picture in there," he answered. "Look for it, then," I advised. He rushed to his dresser. I then heard a knock on the door and heard Drew say, "It's Drew!" I looked at the messy room and grew a little nervous. "Are the girls with you?" I asked. "No," he responded. "Come in!" I yelled. He came in and sat down. "Dude, what happened?" Drew asked. "An idiot named Ray West happened," I responded. "You got on his bad side, didn't you?" Drew asked. "Oh yeah," I answered. "Ash is flipping out over a picture he lost," I said. Drew laughed. "Hey! It's personal!" Ash yelled. "You mean that picture of Misty and you on the beach?" Drew asked. I bursted into laughter. "C'mon Ash, you know that won't ever work out," I pointed out, laughing in between words. "You said that four years ago!" He responded, embarrassed. "I remember Ash and Melody hooked up when we were thirteen," Drew joked, also laughing hysterically. "Oh, that didn't work at all!" I said, still laughing. I heard another knock on the door and stopped laughing. "Who is it?" I asked. "Misty and Dawn!" Misty responded. "Clean the room fast," I whispered. "Give us a minute! We're playing a dumb game!" I said, running to pick up the clothes on the floor. We had finished right when they were done waiting and opened the door. I was standing at the door, about to open it before they did.

"Hi guys, what are we doing here?" Dawn asked. "Nothing really," I responded, before Ash could open his mouth. "So, what are we doing before class starts?" Drew asked. "I'm thinking lunch, I'm starving!" Ash suggested. "I guess we could go to the restaurant down the street," Misty pointed out. "If we can get a table at least," I added. There was a moment of silence until Ash started to walk and opened the door. We saw a ton of kids walking to the restaurant, so we had to run pretty fast. As soon as we hit the restaurant, I noticed only one open table and ran toward. It was a lucky shot considering someone else almost got it. Everyone else sat down as Ash immediately picked up his menu. The waiter soon came to the table. "Would you guys like some drinks?" she asked. "I'll have a cola," I responded. "Water for us please," Dawn said, also pointing at Misty. 'I'll take at water too please," Drew ordered. "I want an orange soda," Ash commanded, in a somewhat rude way. The waiter walked off with our order.

"So, how are your classes so far, guys?" I asked. "It's okay," Drew responded. "They're good if you ask me," Dawn replied. "Pretty boring at first," Ash complained. "I'd have to agree with Ash on this one," Misty claimed. "Are you guys already sick of this school?" I asked. They either shook their heads or said no. "Good, because you'll be here another year or two, depending on grades," I added. The waiter came back with our drinks, and said, "I'll be back to have you guys order."

We eventually ordered, ate until full, and we left for our next classes. "Battle Strategy" was just introducing all our Pokemon. "Healing" was a class we were all in, which was a lot more fun, because it was basically chemistry and we mixed a ton of chemicals for different reactions. It was okay, but freedom felt so sweet after that last class. We headed back to the dorm lobby where there were plenty of students lounging around. Dawn and Drew were talking about coordinating while Misty and Ash watched the giant TV.

I was bored, so I pulled out earbuds and listened to some Brand New (remember that band?) until I heard arguing from Ash and Misty. I didn't know what it was about, but It ended up with Misty stomping away and standing the corner. I smirked and snuck behind an angry Ash. Dawn and Drew caught sight of me and I put my finger over my mouth to make sure they didn't speak. Ash was facing her as she looked away. I know this was a jerk move but I pushed him hard enough for him to stop right in front of the corner, where he stood really close to Misty. I could see Misty blush as they just stood there. Drew laughed quiet enough for only me and Dawn to hear, as I did the same.

They didn't argue any further, nor did they speak. They looked at and away from each other a lot, I smirked every time I saw it. After a while of laying around, it grew late, and Ash decided to call it a night and dragged me back to the dorm. "What the hell dude?!" He yelled, after closing the door. "What?" I asked. "You! You pushed me into her!" Ash answered. "At least I stopped an argument!" I yelled back. He sighed. "It doesn't matter. Whatever, goodnight," He said, jumping into bed, as Pikachu followed. "Hey. I'm sorry. I just-" I was interrupted. "It's fine, Gary. You kind of had a point. I think me and Mist just need to get over arguing like kids," He explained. It was silent, as a soon went to bed.

A/N: Hey, FanFiction! This story had been on hold along with my Wattpad story, but it's back. Another chapter of Kanto League is coming, and two new chapters of my other story on Wattpad is up too. Check them out! My Wattpad is the same as my FanFiction name.

Stay cool,

bakercomics