Chapter 7- Delay in the cave

May's POV

A few days later I was better. We started to travel to the next town that had a contest. We'd skipped one already because of my sickness. Brock walked up front, being the map reader and leader. Ash was walking next to him, talking with him about Pokémon and things like that. I walked behind them and Max by my side. He had taken my hand in his own smaller one. I think Drew was right about Max being really worried and I felt bad for scaring my younger brother. He was talking about something but I wasn't quite listening. Something about Pokémon and contests or something. My attention was wandering to Drew. He was hanging at the back of the group by a fair way. His head was dropped low, occasionally looking up to make sure he's not lost. He looked deep in thought and almost sad. Roselia had been let out of her Pokéball and was walking beside him. I took my hand from Max's and ruffled his hair, telling him that I needed a break and he should talk to Ash for a bit; to give Brock a break so he can actually guide us in the right direction. Max laughed and nodded, leaving me by myself. I hung back a bit and let myself fall behind with Drew.

"Hey are you ok?" I asked. He looked up, surprised.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he replied, "why do you ask?"

"You just look sad," I said.

"I'm just thinking," he sighed. His eyes had dark circles underneath them and his face was paler than usual.

"You look tired," I told him.

"I actually haven't been sleeping well," he admitted, "I just can't get to sleep." I stopped and he turned to look at me, frowning.

"What are you stopping for?" he asked, "We'll lose them."

"Just thinking," I replied, "hold on. I'll be back." I ran ahead and tugged at Brock's arm.

"What is it May?" he asked, his eyes not leaving the map.

"I think we should set up early tonight," I suggested.

"Why do you say that?" He questioned, looking at me.

"I think Drew needs a really good sleep," I explained, bringing my voice down, "he looks really tired."

"That might not be such a bad idea," he pondered thoughtfully.

"Just don't say it's for Drew," I whispered, "You'll just embarrass him." Brock nodded and winked. I looked back at the green-haired boy. He was looking at the ground again.

"I think this is a good place to set up camp," announced Brock. I'd hung back with Drew again, but we hadn't said much at all.

"Why?" asked Ash, "It's so early."

"I think after May's illness we shouldn't push her too far on her first day," he explained. Drew didn't say anything, but he looked relieved.

"Looks like it's going to rain," pondered Drew, pointing up at the dark clouds that had rolled in.

"You're right," I said.

"Look there's a cave," exclaimed Max.

"Perfect," sighed Brock in relief, "we'll go in there." We all headed inside. It was cosy and slightly small, but big enough for all of us. Ash collected some sticks and started a fire. Max laid out his sleeping bag and sat on it. Brock started cooking dinner. I headed to the fire and set up a small pot above it. I felt Drew watching me as I heated some milk and added honey and some other spices. It was a special recipe that Max and I used to always drink before going to sleep on cold nights. I took it away and stirred it before putting it into three cups.

"Max!" I called. He wandered over. I handed him a cup and he licked his lips.

"Thank you," he said, "I think I'll need this tonight." He pointed outside and I saw it was raining. I nodded and he headed back. I knelt down by Drew, who was wrapped in his sleeping bag and siting as close to the fire as he dared.

"What's that?" he asked, eyeing that cup I handed him.

"Just some warm sweetened milk," I explained, "it makes you feel better on cold nights like this." I took a mouthful of mine and swallowed. Drew was cautiously holding his to his lips, before he took a tender sip. He licked his lips approvingly and drank the rest without saying anything.

"Wow, that's good," he sighed, handing me his empty cup.

"Yeah, I used to always make it for Max and myself on cold nights when mum wasn't home," I said, "it helps you sleep better too I think." He smiled gratefully.

"Dinner's done!" Brock called. I took two plates and filled them with food. I then wandered back to Drew, who was trying to stay awake. I handed him a plate and a fork. He smiled and took it from me. We ate in silence, watching the flames flicker and dance in front of us. After he finished, I took both our plates and handed them back to Brock. I took my sleeping bag and unrolled it next to Drew as he lay back.

"What are you doing?" he asked as I wriggled into the soft material.

"You're too far away from the fire to be warm enough by yourself," I answered, "I thought you might like company." His lips curved up into a smile as he closed his eyes.

"May?" I heard his voice call.

"Mm" I mumbled, sleepily closing my eyes too.

"Thanks." I smiled, even though I knew he couldn't see it.

Brock's POV

They were so cute. I'd seen it again last night when May was looking after Drew. I'd seen it before when Drew was frantically trying to help May get better. They cared about each other. A lot. If only they could see it. Right now I had woken up to start the new day. Max was just getting up as well, rubbing his eyes and feeling around for his glasses. Ash was still sleeping; Pikachu curled up on his head. May and Drew were together away from the ashes of the fire. They were facing each other, their foreheads touching and smiling slightly. Obviously they had moved closer in their sleep. I woke Ash and motioned for him to be quiet. I pointed to the two remaining sleeping members. Ash snorted down a laugh and I heard Max chuckling lowly on the other side. They looked so peaceful, unaware of what was going on around them. They were gently breathing on each other, strands of hair fluttering slightly with each exhale. I sighed. I almost didn't want to wake them, but it had to be done.

"May," I called softly, "Drew, wake up." I nudged them gently. They both groaned in protest.

"It's time to go," I told them, bumping them again with a bit more force. They slowly peeled their eyes open.

"Wha!" exclaimed May, jumping back. Drew jumped back quickly as well. Both of them looked around, blushes coating their cheeks.

"C'mon lovebirds," I teased, "we gotta get going."

"We're not lovebirds!" squealed May.

"I don't think we're going anywhere," Drew said. May turned her head to him faster than I thought was humanly possible.

"W-What?" she spluttered.

"There's just this tiny detail you've forgotten," he explained, pointing outside, "It's still raining." I turned and noticed that, in fact, he was right.

"I see," I mumbled, "looks like we are spending another day here."

Drew's POV

It was boring, sitting in a cave on a cold day with nothing to do. The rain poured down. Max and May were lazily flicking a stone between them. Ash was digging a stick into the ground and Brock was pacing; agitated. I sat by the mouth of the cave and stayed as the water just kept pouring down.

"We need more wood," sighed Brock, "we don't have enough to last us, but it looks like we won't be able to get it." I jumped up.

"I'll get some," I said. I released Flygon from his Pokéball and ran out, him followed closely. The rain was cold and I gritted my teeth. I ducked under a tree and looked around. There were some dry branches under the shelter of the trees. I stacked them in my arms. I instructed Flygon to hover about me as I walked back to the cave. I dumped the wood and headed out to get some more. I shivered as I came back in for the last time. There was a decent pile now, but I was soaked through. Brock had already stacked some of the bigger pieces on the fire.

"You're an idiot," screamed May as I shook my head, sending water droplets everywhere. She ran to me and pulled me close to the fire. It was warm and I welcomed the heat. May sat next to me.

"You're an idiot," she mumbled again.

"Tell me why I'm such an idiot?" I asked.

"You could have gotten sick, pulling a stunt like that," she answered, glaring at me. She wasn't able to hold it though and soon sighed and gave up.

"But how else were we supposed to get wood?" I reasoned, "Someone had to go out there and collect it for the rest of us. I figured that I could since Flygon was able to protect the dry wood from getting wet." She wrapped a blanket around my shoulders.

"I was worried," she mumbled, her voice cracking slightly. I turned to her and found her eyes were glossy with tears. I softened. She was so caring, for everyone; including me. I reached out and put an arm around her, pulling her head to my chest.

"It's ok," I whispered, "I'm fine." I wrapped the blanket around both of us. She sighed, snuggling up to me and getting more comfortable; not seeming to care that my wet t-shirt was making her hair damp.

We stayed like that. I had dried off a long time ago, but she still didn't moved. I hadn't really realized just how sensitive she was. I mean, I knew she was somewhat sensitive, but I didn't know that her emotions were that delicate. She usually did a good job hiding it, but she had broken today. Maybe it was the weather, maybe it was because she was recovering, I didn't know. It didn't matter. Brock handed us a sandwich each for lunch. We ate in silence. I whispered what we should do for our next performance into her ear. I felt her nod her head slightly in agreement. I watched the flames dance in front of my face. It was giving me another idea for the Grand Festival. Now I had two ideas for the Grand Festival appeals. Both ideas would be stunning if we could pull them off right.

"We can head out tomorrow," Brock was saying to Ash, "I've checked the weather report and it says that the rain should clear out tonight."

"That won't be soon enough to get May and Drew to the next contest in time," Ash replied, "May will be so disappointed." He had a point. May would be upset about missing another contest, but I was worried about the time schedule. We needed a lot of time to practice for the Grand Festival or we wouldn't be able to get good enough in time. I guess we'd have to take Flygon tomorrow morning. Soon Ash decided we should play a game to pass the time.

"What game?" asked Max.

"Three legged race!" yelled Ash, looking excited, "Drew and May vs. Max and me!"

"What about Brock?" I asked.

"He can judge," Ash shrugged. I sighed and we reluctantly agreed. I helped May up after tying our ankles together. We attempted to walk where Ash had drawn a start line. May squealed and stumbled when we tried to take a step.

"Hold my hand, it'll help you balance," I told her. I offered my hand and she nodded, placing her smaller more delicate hand in mine. I closed my fingers around hers, feeling her soft skin. I whispered in her ear which foot to move when and we got to the line with no other troubles.

"I'll tell you what to do," I told her. She nodded.

"Ready…Set…Go!" yelled Brock, waving his hand like a flag. We started, me whispering instructions into her ear. I knew we were going to win. We had an advantage. Max's steps were too small to keep up with Ash's and they kept falling. My steps matched May's perfectly. We crossed the other line.

"May and Drew win," called Brock. Ash and Max were on the floor halfway through.

"No fair, you had an advantage of steps," complained Ash, pouting like a kid.

"You paired us," I shrugged, untying my ankle again. May jumped up and down.

"We won, we won, we won!" she yelled. I watched her, laughing with amusement at the excited girl. She grabbed both of my hand and spun around in circles, spinning me with her.

"Whoa!" I tried to keep me balance, "settle down May." She stopped but didn't let go of my hands.

"We won!" she exclaimed again, "we make such a good team Drew!"

"Yes, I guess we do," I laughed.

"Let's play cards," said Max, "I found some in Ash's bag."

"I forgot I had those," mumbled Ash.

May's POV

"Drew, do you have a 5," I asked.

"How did you know?" he questioned, handing it over.

"Maybe because you just asked Max," I answered.

"Seems I keep asking the wrong person," he teased. We were playing go fish and Drew wasn't doing well at all. I was winning, getting all my matches from the cards Drew was asking for from other people. Brock had left the game a while ago, planning to start dinner.

"Max, do you have a 3?" asked Ash. Max sighed and handed it over reluctantly.

"May do you have a 4?" Max asked.

"Go fish," I told him.

"May do you have a queen?" Drew asked me, winking.

"Go fish," I giggled.

"Of course when I finally ask you, you don't have it," he moaned, grinning at me while picking up a card.

"Ash, do you have a 7?" I asked. Ash mumbled something and handed me the card. The game continued until there were no cards left. I counted my matches. 13. Ash had 7, Max had 4 and Drew only had 2.

"I win again!" I cried.

"You're really good at this game," said Drew, collecting the cards and shuffling.

"Well, it's time for dinner," called Brock.

"Thank goodness, I don't like losing," said Drew, winking at me again. He put the cards down and we collected our dinner. I sat down to eat it. Drew sat down next to me.

"Hey May, do you mind making that special milk again?" he asked.

"Do you want some?" I asked. He nodded.

"Well ok then, after dinner," I told him.

Drew's POV

I watched her as she prepared the milk, mixing in all her ingredients. She had made a larger pot this time. She handed a cup to Brock, Ash and then Max before finally coming to me. She handed a cup to me and I took it, my fingers brushing against hers for the briefest of moments. I gulped it down hungrily. It was good. I didn't know how she could make honey and milk taste so nice. It was soothing.

"More?" I asked, grinning as I held out my cup to her. She took her cup away from her lips.

"That's it," she said. I pouted for a moment before I smirked at her. I had an idea.

"What?" she asked, sounding suspicious. I wrapped my hands around her cup and brought it to my mouth, taking a huge gulp of her drink.

"Drew!" she squealed, trying to take it back.

"What?" I asked, knowing that I had a line of milk coating my upper lip, "I told you I wanted more." I grinned at her.

"Fine, take it then," she said, slipping her fingers out from underneath mine. I took one last sip before I put it back into her hands, making sure her fingers curled around it before removing my hands.

"There you are," I said, "you can have the rest." She blushed and looked down at her cup while I licked my lips. I wriggled down into my sleeping bag. I watched her quickly finish her milk, carefully avoiding the spot where my mouth had touched. She washed the cups and put them away before she curled up into her sleeping bag. She was further away from me than yesterday. I reached out and dragged her closer, throwing the blanket over both of our sleeping bags.

"What are you doing?" she hissed, rolling over to face me.

"It's cold," I shrugged. She sighed, but didn't move away so I let her go, withdrawing my hands back into my sleeping bag.

"Goodnight Drew," she said sleepily, closing her eyes.

"Night May," I whispered.

A/N: Just in case you're wondering, Drew doesn't actually suck at go fish. He just wants May to win because he knows how happy it makes her. That's why he was winking at her.