All I Have Left After staying in Cherrygrove for two nights, the six finally decide to head off to Violet City. Everyone is in good spirits, except Misty. She had been sulking ever since the night she found the signatures. She wasn’t sure why, but she had a good feeling it was because she missed Ash so much, and she really didn’t realize it until that moment. Ash had noticed a change in her attitude as well, she wasn’t eating a lot and she was also staring at the ground. Surprisingly, he was the only one who noticed this.
Part 5
By Finaille Nailo
"Ok guys, ready to head off?" Josie asks, in her usual tough-girl talk. This morning she was wearing a short green tee that was showing off her pierced belly button, and a short khaki skirt. Brock was going nuts with the way she looked, and Josie’s noticed Brock’s had the gaga look for the entire two days. She was starting to be amused by it. Misty also was looking nice; wearing a navy blue tanktop that showed her bare belly button and white capri’s that showed off her tan legs. Ash was having a hard time not staring at Misty.
"I can’t be getting feelings for her now, can I?" Ash wonders as she walks past him. Misty walks over to Mike, who takes her hand and squeezes it gently.
"You sure you’re ok?" Mike asks Misty, with an innocent smile on his face. Misty forces a small smile.
"Yeah, I’m sure." She says, in her most cheerful tone she could pull up from her throat. Ash still knew she was lying to herself. He wasn’t sure why she was acting so strange…
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After a day’s hike, they finally stop to set up camp in a forested area, about a quarter-mile away from the main trail, and about a half-mile from Violet Lake. After Misty sets up her tent, she quietly picks up her bag, and walks to the lake. Neither Mike nor Ash decide to go after her, but Ash had a feeling he should follow her. After about 15 minutes battling with whether he should go or not, he decides to go. He had to know what was bugging her. He stands up from the log he was sitting on.
"You guys, I think I’m gonna take a walk." He says, putting his hat on and picking up his backpack.
"Ok, hon, can I come with you?" Josie asks, a begging smile rising on her lips.
"No, Josie, I want to go alone. I’m sorry, I promise I’ll be back soon." Ash says, giving her a smile.
"Ok, fine tough guy, see ya in a little while then." Josie says. Ash goes over to her and kisses her on the cheek. Then, he sets off to Violet Lake, which was about a 7-minute walk. It didn’t take him too long to find Misty, who was sitting on a tree log, once he was there. She notices him almost immediately and smiles at him.
"Hey Ash, whatcha doin here?" She asks as he sits down next to her. He smiles.
"Looking for you." He replies. "What’s up?"
"The sky…" She says, grinning. He cocks an eyebrow. "Not much."
"I know that’s not true. Something’s on your mind and I’m determined to figure it out." He says.
"You… determined? I know that road." Misty says, grinning. Ash playfully pushes her off the log.
"You’re cute, you know that?"
"No, I’m not aware…" She says, climbing back up on the log.
"So, then, what is on your mind?" Ash asks her, giving her puppy-dog eyes.
"I’m thinking." She says.
"About what?"
"That I’ve been lying to myself the last few days." She replies.
"How?"
"I don’t feel the same way about Mike anymore… or the way I used to feel about him."
"Do you like somebody else?"
"Well, yes." She mutters. Ash blinks.
"Who?"
"That’s for me to know and you to find out." She says in a-matter-of-fact tone. Ash looks at the ground for a few moments, then looks back at her.
"You’ve gotten so beautiful lately…" He says, gazing into her aqua eyes. Misty blushes crimson.
"Thanks, you’ve gotten pretty cute yourself, tough guy." She says timidly. Ash thinks for a moment.
"That’s Josie’s nickname for me." He says with a laugh.
"She took mine for you."
"What one?"
"Ashy-boy…" She says with a smile. He smiles back at her.
"I remember that one quite well, runt." He says. For the first time after being called that, Misty doesn’t hurt him.
"I remember that nickname too."
"I really think I was wrong about what I told you a few days ago… I think I still do like you…" He says, his eyes wandering around, like they were lost. Everything goes quiet, and Ash pulls Misty closer to him, and they share their first kiss. Although Misty thought this was it, she was quite wrong. As his lips touched hers, new emotions flooded through her body, and not just good ones. What would Mike think? What would Josie think? She quickly pushes him away.
"I can’t." She says quickly. Ash tilts her chin up with a finger. "Ash, I still care about you, honestly, but I don’t want to hurt…" She says, interrupted as Ash leans in to kiss her.
"Nobody will know… I want to be with you right now." He says right before he kisses her again. This time, she gives in. They break the kiss when they here a rustle in one of the bushes.
"What was that?" Misty asks curiously, while standing up and looking around.
"Might just have been a Pokemon or something." Ash says. They look at each other.
"Come on, we should get back to camp." Misty says. Ash nods in agreement. They walk back to camp in silence. They were both too embarrassed to say anything. When they get back to camp, surprisingly, Josie is sobbing on Andy’s shoulder. Ash goes to her immediately.
"Josie, honey, what’s wrong?" Ash asks, leaning over to hug her. Josie slaps Ash right in the face.
"You two-timer! I saw the entire thing!" She yells in Ash’s face. "I never want to see you again!" Josie yells, picks up her bag, and runs off. Ash sighs.
"I knew this might have happened Ash. You should have listened to me." Misty says. She chases after Josie. She would be able to explain the situation to Josie better than Ash could. And although she still loves Ash, she didn’t want to hurt their relationship. She didn’t know that Ash was also chasing after her as well.
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Hours later Misty drops on her knees, dripping in sweat. She figures that Josie must be much faster than she is. She hears footsteps. She looks around, when somebody taps her shoulder. She jumps about ten feet in the air. She looks around, and Josie is looking right at her.
"How dare you steal my Ash…" Josie begins.
"I’m really sorry!" Misty pleads.
"Don’t interrupt. I guess I never wanted to realize this, but Ash is in love with you." She says and smiles. "Go and get him. But first, clean off and put on your prettiest outfit."
"But… how did you know I loved him?" Misty asks.
"Let’s just say it was a bit of a plan. Ash was afraid you didn’t love him. So we had to do a bit of plotting. Andy knew some, but we needed to convince Brock that I’m single." She says, grinning.
"You like… Brock!?" Misty asks in surprise.
"Of course, he’s cute. Who wouldn’t like a guy like him?" Josie says, smiling more.
"I could name a lot of…" Misty starts, being interrupted.
"Come on, I’ve got the perfect dress for you… let’s go wash off in the lake." Josie says, grabbing her arm. Misty hesitates.
"But… what about Mike?" Misty asks. Josie frowns.
"He was never meant to be with you. Forget about him."
"But I…"
"I SAID FORGET ABOUT HIM!"
"Ok…" That was the last thing said. They went to the river to do what they needed to do. Misty washed up in the lake, and put on the slinky, navy blue dress that Josie had brought for her. Josie does her make-up and her hair as well. When she was finished, her hair was curling down her back.
"Can I see?" Misty asks. Josie shakes her head.
"Go find Ash." She demands. Misty nods, and runs off in the other direction. She has no idea where Ash might be, until she gets to a small patch of flowers that is non-forested. She sees Ash in the middle of the patch. She walks to Ash, who is looking in the opposite direction. Ash hears a rustle, and turns around to see Misty coming up to him.
"What are you doing here?" Ash asks.
"Looking for you." Misty says.
"I was looking for you too." Ash says, going up to her and giving her a loving embrace. He kisses her once, gently on the lips.
"I… felt so stupid for forgetting about you… I loved you for years before that… and I go and forget about you." Ash says, putting his hand on his head. They sit down on the flowers.
"Don’t feel bad, I did the same thing."
"But… I was going out with Josie for a while… then I broke up with her. I guess she told you the plan now, huh?"
"Yeah, she did. I was going out with Mike for a while too." Misty adds.
"Did you break up with him?"
"Not yet. Josie told me to forget about him." Misty says. She grabs his arms, and kisses him right on the lips. This kiss lasts much longer than before. Ash puts his tongue close to Misty’s lips, hoping for an invitation. She allows, and their tongues dance around for a while when Ash, tugs on one of the straps on Misty’s dress. The kiss breaks, and Misty looks at Ash seriously.
"May I?" Ash asks, smiling.
"Yes Ash…" She says, also smiling. He removes the strap…
A/N- Yay! Part 5 done! Now the Epilogue and we are all done on this story! I really hoped you liked this!!!