"Do you love me?"
"No."
While the answer had been obvious, it came quicker than Red had expected. Fire hadn't hesitated at all. He didn't stop to think about it. He didn't mull over a way to phrase his answer so he wouldn't sound harsh and blunt. He didn't even blink. Instead he rolled on his towel so that he was laying on his stomach and continued to sun himself as if Red hadn't spoken at all.
"Oh."
Red turned his attention down to his Pokedex. A light touch of his finger against the screen caused it to ripple and a sad pixelated face stared back at him. It was frustrating. Even the glitch that had made his life a living hell for years felt sorry for Red and his pathetic attempt at romance.
Almost a year had passed since Bill removed MissingNO. from Red's body. At first, it had been incredibly difficult. Red went through what Bill likened to withdrawal. His body had become so bonded and dependent on the glitch that it had to learn how to operate on its own again. It had felt like a particularly nasty case of the flu that just wouldn't go away. For months he was constantly sick and confined to bed, sleeping for days at a time while he was too weak to do anything else. The worst part had been learning to recognize and react properly to emotions again. Bill had been particularly supportive when all Red could do was scream and sob. Fire avoided him.
Red's Pokedex beeped. The screen had changed. The emoticon Red had come to know as MissingNO.'s face was gone, replaced by a short question.
TRY AGAIN?
Red frowned. Try again? Why? Fire's answer would only be the same. Just like every other time Red asked, or tried to ask, Fire would say no and ignore him for an hour as punishment.
"Do you hate me?" Red asked.
MissingNO. beeped disapprovingly, the screen changing to flash WRONG QUESTION in Red's face.
Fire didn't answer as quickly. Red watched him carefully from beneath the towel he had draped over his head and shoulders. Being outside and in public didn't bother him as much anymore, but he didn't particularly like the sun and had taken shelter under a large beach umbrella. Fire had laughed at him before settling down to tan.
"I don't hate you, Red." He sounded annoyed.
Another beep.
ASK!
This time, the glitch offered a smile along with its advice as if it was trying to encourage Red along with some positive support.
Fire would just be angry if Red kept repeating himself. But, despite knowing that, he wanted to ask again anyway.
"Do you like me?" Not the same question, but similar.
Too similar. Fire pushed himself up on his elbows with a frustrated groan, irritation sketched across his face behind his dark shades. "Don't ask stupid questions. We're dating, right?" Fire flopped down onto his back, his arms folded over his face. "You're so stupid."
Red frowned silently. He wasn't sure if he could actually consider their relationship dating or not. They certainly hadn't been the couple of the year while MissingNO. was still corrupting Red. He really didn't want to think about any of the horrible things they had done to each on Mt. Silver. But, they had improved since moving to New Bark. Fire was willing to kiss and cuddle. They lived together, and went out on dates. Like today's visit to the beach.
But it had been difficult to get Fire to agree. While in public Fire refused to touch him. He had absolutely no interest in swimming, no matter how hard he tried to pull him into the water, and spent the first two hours flirting with whoever happened to be wearing a bikini. It wasn't unexpected. Red didn't even mind! He knew Fire was like that. Fire wasn't one for public affection that didn't involve breasts. But it didn't make out for good date. Or much of a date at all.
MissingNO. beeped. Red ignored its message and snapped the Pokedex closed, but the glitch continued to make noise through the small device's speaker. Red didn't particularly mind the noise. He was used to it trying to get his attention. It was a rather needy little program.
"Would you shut that thing up?" Fire snapped, his patience for MissingNO. no where near as high as Red's.
"Sorry," he mumbled and tried to smother the speaker with his hands. Muting the Pokedex wouldn't work. MissingNO. would simply override it.
Fire grunted as he sat up, one hand reaching for his water bottle. "I told you to leave that thing at home."
"... sorry," Red said again, absentmindedly stroking the well worn and battered casing while it whined away in his palms. The idea had been tempting. Red had planned on leaving it at home so that he could concentrate on saving his relationship with Fire. However, he still felt an odd connection to it and he had grabbed it from his bed stand at the last minute.
"Fuck, that thing is a pain. I think I'm gonna hit the snack bar," Fire announced while he stood up. "Do you want anything?"
"Do you love me?"
"No. I'll be back in ten minutes or something."
Red watched as the brunet patted sand off his shorts and started to walk away. A heavy knot sat in the bottom of his stomach, twisting and turning until the former Champion felt like vomiting. MissingNO. was still beeping.
"Fire?"
He stopped and looked back over his shoulder. "What?"
"Do you want to break up?"
The Pokedex quieted down. Fire turned his face away, but Red could see the tension in his shoulders and the way that his fingers curled into tight fists. The seconds dragged on into minutes. The knot in Red's stomach unfurled itself and started to crawl it's way into his chest, squeezing his lungs and heart until they ached.
"... yes." He walked away, leaving Red alone under his oversized umbrella.
After an eternity, a soft tone broke the silence. Red sighed before he flipped the Pokedex open and answered MissingNO.'s unusually polite call.
EMOTIONS HURT DON'T THEY?
I LIKE YOU RED.
I CAN HELP.
MAKE THEM GO AWAY AGAIN.
RED.
CAN I HAVE YOUR BODY?