A/N: As usual, thank you for wanting to read yet another chapter!

For those who are wondering why Dawn entered the Sewing Club and not the Cheerleading Club, it's because in the Anime she was shown to be a good clothes designer but in most cases she lets her mother and Brock sew for her. With her in the sewing club, she'll be able not only to design but also sew her contest outfits in the future, making her days in Vermilion City Pokemon School worth it.

About the pairings, let's hope Ash will notice your suggestions!

Chapter 4: No Need to Worry

"Mom, why didn't you wake me up?!" Dawn's voice was frantic as she tore a comb through her hair, the motion so feverish it seemed her head might ignite like an Infernape's flames. Her dark blue eyes, wide with worry, darted to her reflection in one of the many mirrors scattered around their apartment.

"Don't raise your voice at me, young lady," Johanna replied coolly, placing a bowl of food in front of a sleek, gray feline Pokémon with a long, elegant tail. The Glameow mewed softly in appreciation as Johanna added, "I did wake you up—after your alarm snoozed for the fifth time. I even turned it off for you. But I guess you decided to go back to sleep."

"Okay, okay, okay. I'm heading out now!" Dawn blurted, cutting off her mother's lecture. She snatched her bag and waved hastily at them. "Bye, Glameow! Bye, Mom!"

"Be quick, but don't rush! And be careful!" Johanna called after her.

"No need to worry, Mom!" Dawn reassured with a trademark grin, already halfway out the door. But as she shut it behind her, the door banged closed with more force than she intended.

Johanna sighed, shaking her head. "Every time she tells me not to worry is when I worry the most," she muttered to her Glameow, who purred in response, too preoccupied with its meal to offer more than lazy agreement.

Stretching her arms with a yawn, Johanna began her mental checklist for the day ahead.

:･ﾟ(ꈍᴗꈍ)･ﾟ:

Dawn darted into the alley beside her apartment building, taking the shortcut to Elekid Street. She leapt over a puddle near the exit, landing precariously on a small rock that made her stumble. Her arms flailed for balance, but she managed to steady herself and kept running.

As she emerged from the alley, the street seemed eerily quiet. The only vehicle in sight was a parked truck to her left. Without slowing, she dashed across the street, unaware of something moving toward her from the truck's blind spot.

"Watch out!" a voice yelled, sharp with alarm.

Dawn froze mid-step, her head whipping toward the shout. Her breath hitched as she glimpsed something speeding toward her. Instinctively, she shut her eyes and raised her arms to shield her head.

The screech of tires skidding across asphalt shattered the morning quiet, drawing gasps from the few passersby. A sickening crash followed, echoing down the street as the tense scene reached its climax.

For a moment, silence returned, except for the faint ringing in Dawn's ears. Slowly, she opened her eyes, surprised to find herself still standing—and unhurt. Her gaze darted around, confused but relieved, until it landed on a boy struggling to his feet nearby.

"Ash?" she blurted, recognizing the boy in the blue cyclist helmet and the same uniform as hers. He winced slightly as he stood, abandoning his bike for now to hurry toward her.

"Are you hurt? Dawn, are you okay?" His voice was filled with concern as his dark eyes scanned her for any injuries.

"No, I'm fine. I'm so sorry, Ash! I wasn't looking…" she stammered, her words stumbling over her guilt.

"You're sure you're okay?" Ash's eyes narrowed as he double-checked her, looking for any signs of injury. When she nodded firmly, he let out a sigh of relief. Only then did he turn his attention to himself, brushing dirt off his pants before dragging his bike upright. He crouched beside it to inspect it for damage, steadying it with one hand.

Onlookers in the area had witnessed how he skillfully maneuvered to avoid hitting the girl. However, the boy lost his balance and fell onto the road with his bicycle. Once it was clear that neither of the two students appeared to be seriously injured, the onlookers quickly returned to their routines.

Dawn approached Ash, bending slightly to get a closer look at his bike. Her gaze shifted to his left arm, where a fresh scrape on his elbow stood out, crimson against his skin. A small wound in the center of the scratch oozed blood, and smaller abrasions dotted his arm.

"Ash, your elbow!" she exclaimed, her voice regaining its steadiness. Her school training clicked into place as she pulled a water bottle and a small spray bottle of rubbing alcohol from her bag. "Let me take care of it."

Ash hesitated for a moment before lifting his arm. Dawn poured water over the wound and surrounding area, using the last of her bottle to wash away dirt and blood. He winced slightly as she sprayed the alcohol, but stayed still as she worked. With quick hands, she tied her handkerchief over the deeper wound to protect it.

"This should do for now," she said, stepping back to inspect her handiwork.

"Thanks, Dawn," Ash said, his voice softer. He stood, removing his helmet and plopping it onto her head without warning.

"What—?"

"Come on," he said, hopping back onto his bike. "We'll be late if we don't leave now. I'll give you a ride."

"Are you sure?" Dawn asked, her brows knitting in concern.

"Yes. The bike's fine—just a few scratches."

"I mean you," she clarified, eyeing his injured arm. "And what about your helmet?"

"I'm fine," he said firmly, motioning for her to hop on.

Dawn hesitated but ultimately climbed onto the pillion seat, settling sideways with her legs together. She wrapped her arms around his waist, gripping him a little tighter than necessary to keep herself steady.

Ash waited for the light to turn green before pedaling toward Magnemite Street.

Dawn wanted to apologize again but held back, not wanting to distract him. Her grip around his waist loosened slightly as the rhythmic motion of the ride calmed her. The guilt in her eyes began to fade, replaced by a quiet appreciation of the passing streets, which seemed to blur together in this new perspective.

"Almost there," Ash announced as they turned onto Magnezone Street, where their school was located.

The last stretch of the road inclined upward, forcing Ash to pedal harder. The gates of their school came into view, along with groups of students hurrying along the sidewalks. A few others on bicycles rode ahead of them, disappearing into the campus.

"Yes!" Ash exclaimed triumphantly, skidding to a stop just outside the gates. He leaned forward to get his ID scanned by the device near the gate guard.

The two dismounted, knowing bicycles weren't allowed to be ridden inside school grounds. Dawn walked beside him as he wheeled his bike, quickly blending into the flow of students entering the campus.

:･ﾟ(ꈍᴗꈍ)･ﾟ*

Kenny had arrived at the classroom earlier than usual, his heart set on finally talking to Dawn. He had spent the night rehearsing how he'd bring up their shared memories from elementary school to break the ice. It wasn't much to go on, considering those "good memories" mostly involved him teasing her mercilessly about minor mishaps she'd had as a kid. But still, it was better than nothing.

The plan was simple: start the conversation light and nostalgic, then casually ask her to eat lunch with him. Easy, right? Except it wasn't—especially since an hour had passed, and he was still waiting.

He stood by the window, his black eyes fixed on the school gates in the distance.

His homeroom teacher arrived, "Good morning class. Please take your seats."

"Good morning, Miss Chrysa," the class echoed as they complied. But Kenny barely registered their voice; his focus was elsewhere. Just as he was about to give up and turn away, his eyes caught a familiar figure entering through the gates.

Dawn.

A relieved smile tugged at his lips, but it faltered almost instantly. Walking beside her, pushing a bicycle, was Ash. The sight hit Kenny like a Bullet Punch to the gut. His gaze zeroed in on the bright blue helmet perched snugly on Dawn's head—Ash's helmet. The realization struck like a Thunderbolt.

The smile on Kenny's face was swiftly replaced by a scowl. His black eyes darkened, and his jaw clenched so tightly it looked like it might snap. His anger flared so visibly it could have made a Primeape envious. Hands curling into fists at his sides, he glared at the pair from afar, frustration and jealousy boiling in his chest.

Why him? The question looped in his mind like a broken record. It didn't matter that he didn't know the context or that maybe—just maybe—it wasn't what it looked like. All Kenny saw was Ash, walking next to Dawn, close enough to stir up every insecurity he'd tried to suppress.

:･ﾟ(ꈍᴗꈍ)･ﾟ*

"Go on ahead, I'll park this at the bike rack over there," Ash said, nodding toward the bike racks lined up along the school's perimeter.

Dawn cradled the blue cyclist helmet in her arms, shaking her head with a soft smile. "No, I'll go with you." She didn't feel right heading to class without him—not after everything. If it weren't for Ash giving her a ride, she'd still be walking along the streets, running late and replaying her careless mistake in her mind.

Ash hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "Alright," he said, deciding not to press the matter.

As they reached the racks, Dawn turned to him, her gaze warm but still tinged with guilt. "Sorry—and thank you again, Ash," she said earnestly.

"It's okay," Ash replied with a small grin, leaning his bike into one of the slots. "And thank you for treating my wound, Dawn. Just… be careful next time, alright?" His voice carried a gentle but firm note of concern.

"Yes, no need to worry," Dawn chirped, her signature smile returning as she adjusted her hair with one hand.

Ash watched her for a beat longer, his dark eyes faintly skeptical of her response. Something about her carefree tone didn't fully convince him—but he chose to let it go, offering her a small smile in return. Somewhere across the city, a certain woman instinctively felt the need to scold her daughter, as though she could sense this very moment.

:･ﾟ(ꈍᴗꈍ)･ﾟ*

"What a dangerous way to start your day," Chloe commented, shaking her head after hearing the story of why Ash and Dawn had been late earlier. Her concerned eyes examined Ash's arm with Dawn's handkerchief tied over the wound he got from that incident.

"Just curious—why haven't you been riding your bike to school before today?" Goh leaned back in his chair casually. Lunch was already over, and they were simply chatting to pass the time.

Ash shrugged, wiping his mouth with a napkin. "I ride it whenever I need to grab something from the store, but I like walking in the morning. It's good exercise before sitting in class all day." He paused, then added, "Besides, my mom just got me this bike as a gift for graduating elementary school. I don't want it to get too much sun or end up soaked in rain. The school's bike racks don't even have roofs, you know." His tone had a slight protective edge, like a parent talking about their child.

Dawn blinked, surprised by how much care he showed for his bike. Her thoughts drifted to the moment earlier when Ash had prioritized checking on her injuries over his bike or himself. Feeling a pang of guilt, she looked at him and offered, "If it needs any repairs because of this morning, just let me know. I'll pay for it." She mentally counted the pokédollars in her Mamoswine piggy bank, wondering if she had enough saved up.

Ash waved his hand dismissively, flashing her a reassuring grin. "I told you, it's fine. Not a single thing is broken—just a couple of scratches."

Dawn hesitated but nodded. "If you say so." She thought for a moment, then brightened. "Oh! Wait, here—take this!" She reached into her bag and pulled out a small, brown crochet wallet. "I made it last night! I stayed up so late working on it that I overslept this morning. You can have it as a thank you gift!" She stuck her tongue out playfully, giving a sheepish laugh.

"Wow, thanks! No takebacks!" Ash beamed, clearly thrilled as he admired the wallet. Without wasting a second, he opened his bag, pulling out a crumpled wad of money and stuffing it into the new wallet with childlike excitement. "Ta-dah!" he announced, holding it up like a trophy.

Chloe raised an eyebrow, folding her arms. "Wait a second—you don't own a wallet? You've just been keeping all that money crumpled in your bag? Like trash?"

"Yeah, why?" Ash tilted his head innocently, clearly missing the point.

Chloe sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Here I was thinking you were more responsible than Goh. Guess I was wrong… Well, you're still better than him, but not by much."

"Hey!" Goh cut in, rolling his eyes at her jab. Then, before Chloe could go further, he turned to Ash. "So, if you ran into Dawn earlier, that means you were just as late as her. Overslept too?"

Ash chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck. "Yeah, I guess I was so tired from cleaning yesterday that I overslept this morning."

Before his friends could press him about what exactly he was cleaning, a dark auburn-haired boy approached their table, holding a record book and a plastic envelope. "Excuse me, Ash and Goh. I'm here for your weekly contributions to the class funds. If you don't mind." His tone was polite, but his eyes lingered a little too long on Ash. Then, turning to the girl next to Goh, his voice softened. "Hi, Dawn."

"Uh, hello, Kenny," Dawn replied awkwardly, forcing a smile. She immediately pulled out her school tablet and pretended to study something, avoiding further eye contact. Chloe noticed this reaction, her green eyes narrowing slightly in curiosity.

Goh handed Kenny a hundred-pokédollar bill, smirking. "Wow, I didn't even realize it's Friday again."

Kenny marked down the payment in his book, muttering, "Goh—100." He paused briefly, then looked up at Ash. "How much do you want to contribute this week?"

Ash glanced at Kenny, then at the record book. "How much does each person need to contribute in total?"

Kenny straightened up slightly, eager to explain. "We encourage each student to contribute 2000 pokédollars by the end of the first half of the school year. This helps fund our class trip. Any leftover money gets divided and returned. Then, for the second half of the year, we'll collect another 2000 pokédollars for remaining activities. We do weekly collections to make it easier for everyone to save up."

"Got it." Ash nodded, pulling out his wallet. "I'd like to pay for the whole year."

"What?" Goh and Chloe exclaimed in unison, their jaws practically dropping. Dawn looked just as stunned but kept quiet, watching Ash count out the hefty sum.

Kenny, too, hesitated, glancing between Ash and the money in his hand. "Are you sure? You've already contributed 200 pokédollars, so that leaves 3800…"

"Yep, the whole thing," Ash confirmed cheerfully, handing over the cash without a second thought.

Kenny swallowed, his pen hovering above the record book. After a moment's hesitation, he wrote down only 100 for that week's contribution, just as he'd done for Goh. "Okay then. Thanks, Ash. I'll take my leave now." He gave a stiff smile and hurried off, clutching the envelope tightly.

The group watched him go, then turned back to each other.

"Maybe he's selling illegal drugs near his place," Chloe joked, referencing Ash's seemingly endless cash.

Dawn and Goh burst into laughter.

"Come on, guys," Ash protested, lowering his voice. "I just saved up some extra, okay? Don't spread weird rumors like that—people might actually believe you!"

"YAH DUN WANNA LET OTHERS KNOW?" Dawn teased loudly, cupping her hands around her mouth as if shouting to the whole room.

Several classmates turned to look at their table, curious.

Ash's face turned bright red as he shrank in his seat. Meanwhile, Dawn, Chloe, and Goh erupted into uncontrollable laughter at his expense.

:･ﾟ(ꈍᴗꈍ)･ﾟ*

"It wasn't like this when I parked it this morning. Dawn and I even rode it perfectly before that," Ash muttered, kneeling beside his bicycle. He applied pressure to the front tire with his right hand, feeling for any irregularities. "This one's flat too." He squeezed it again, hoping he was just imagining things, but the tire remained lifeless.

"What kind of person would do this?" Chloe asked, her voice laced with disbelief as she stood beside him, surveying the scene like it was some horrifying scene. "It must've been punctured on purpose by some delinquent student," she added, scanning the area for any clues. There were none, but then her eyes caught a glimpse of something—something that gave her a small sense of hope. "Look, Ash." She pointed to a small CCTV camera tucked under the building's gutter near the bike racks.

Ash's face darkened as he followed her finger to the camera. "Alright, let's try to get a copy of the footage from this morning till now," he said, frustration clear in his tone. He couldn't help but feel responsible. If he hadn't ridden his bike this morning, maybe none of this would've happened.

The two made their way to the gate guard to explain the situation. Ash provided his full name and contact details as the guard assisted him in writing a formal request. "I'll submit it for you," the guard assured him, though his expression was sympathetic. However, they were told to wait until Monday, as the person in charge of the cameras had already left for the day. Ash's shoulders slumped in disappointment as he stared at the damaged wheels.

"At least it's just the tires," Ash tried to console himself, pushing his bike by the handlebars as he and Chloe left the school grounds. Dawn and Goh had already gone off to their respective clubs.

"I hope we hear something by Monday, and the culprit gets identified," Chloe said, her tone still a little heavy with concern. "Do you have anyone in mind who might've done this?"

Ash thought for a moment. The only person he didn't get along with was Gary, but this wasn't some petty prank—it felt like an actual crime. Sure, Gary was a jerk, but even he had lines he wouldn't cross. Ash shook his head, trying to push away the frustration. "Maybe it was just random," he said, trying to reason with himself. "Doesn't mean I was necessarily targeted." He took a deep breath, accepting the situation for now and hoping for the best.

A/N: Thanks for finishing this chapter, I hope you liked it and make you want to read more.

- Areyem Meyera