Disclaimer: Don't own pokemon! A/N: OKAY!!! Here's chapter 2! Enjoy! School Days Part 2 Its been several months since Ash first met Misty. In this short amount of time, they have become the best of friends. Its about three weeks until the big dance and Jared has his sights set on Misty...but he's not the only one. Ash sleepily stretched out his arms out before speaking. "So, are you coming over today?" He asked. "Nope, sorry. I have to get home. My sisters are gonna have a fit if I'm late, but how about coming over to my place for a change?" She suddenly asked, as they reached the fork in the road. The left road led to Pallet, while the right one led to Cerulean. "Sure, why not? I don't think I've ever been there before." He exclaimed happily. Misty suddenly ran off in a blur of dust, leaving Ash behind. "Come on slowpoke! Move it!" She yelled back at him. Ash just sighed. 'That girl is so weird.' 'Sure Ketchum...that's why your madly in love with her.' He inwardly fought with himself as he noticed that Misty was getting farther and farther away. "Well, I guess it doesn't help if I lose her." He exclaimed as he started to chase after his friend. Once there, Ash awed at the site of the many buildings and department stores. It was nothing like Pallet Town. He walked around Cerulean in search of Misty. "Its like finding a needle in a hay stack." He muttered to himself. Stopping for a rest, he plopped himself down on a nearby bench, which was situated in front of a large building. He closed his eyes for a while until he heard a familiar voice. "I swear, I can't take you anywhere." Ash opened his eyes and looked up to see Misty smiling down at him. "Where have you been? I've been looking everywhere for you." Misty exclaimed, folding her arms. "Me?! What about you? I'm the one who has no idea where they're going." He explained. "Well, that's not my fault. I looked back to see if you were following and you looked like you were in a daze." She started. "What were you thinking about anyway?" "Well, I, uh..." He stammered. "MISTY!!!" Someone had screamed. Ash watched as Misty rolled her eyes at the sound of her own name. Just then, three girls approached, all with very annoyed looks on their faces. "And just where have you been, lil' sis?" Asked Daisy, the oldest sister. "Yeah, we were waiting for, like, ever!" Yelled Violet, the second sister. "We have lives too ya know!" Screamed Lily, the third sister. Misty reluctantly turned to face her three angry sisters. "Look, I'm sorry I'm late. I got caught up." Misty explained. "Caught up? By who?" Asked Daisy. "Never mind. I'm sorry, okay?" Stated Misty, a little irritated. "Hey! Don't give us attitude!" Yelled Violet, pointing a finger at Misty. 'Poor Misty. Its not her fault we're late. She was out looking for me.' Ash thought to himself. "Its not her fault. I got lost and she went out to look for me." Interrupted Ash. The three sisters looked in Ash's direction, noticing him for the first time. "And just who are you?" Asked Lily, raising an eyebrow. "Oh, this is my friend Ash. Ash, these are my sisters, Daisy, Violet, and Lily." Introduced Misty. "Its nice to meet you." Greeted Ash, holding out his hand. Daisy shook his hand and smiled. "Like wise." "Look guys, I really am sorry for being late again. I'll try to be less careless next time. To make up for it, I'm willing to clean the gym for a whole month." Misty exclaimed. 'Did she just say gym?' Ash wondered. "That won't be necessary. We understand the kind of pressures your going through right now, with school and preparing for the big dance. We'll let it slip." Announced Daisy as she hugged Misty. "Thanks guys." Misty thanked, returning the hug. "I owe ya one." "Just make sure you reel this one in before he gets away." Whispered Daisy as she motioned towards Ash. Misty turned a slight shade of red and laughed nervously. "Okay girls. Let's go." Announced Daisy. "But I wanna watch!" Complained Lily, referring to Ash and Misty. "Oh, come on! Let's give them some privacy." Whispered Violet to her sister while they walked away. Hearing this, Misty let out a nervous laugh. "What did she say?" Asked Ash, completely clueless as to what had just happened. "Uh, nothing. Come on Ash. I'll show you around." Replied Misty as she ushered him inside the gym. Ash looked up in amazement at the size of the gym. He had never been inside of a gym before, and here his best friend actually lived in one. "So, why didn't you ever tell me?" Asked Ash, looking around at his surroundings. "That my sisters are complete lunatics?" She laughed. "No, that you lived in a gym." "There are a lot of things you don't know about me." Smiled Misty as she turned the corner into the next room. It was Misty's genuine smile that made Ash's heart beat a hundred times per minute. She had a certain something about her that he'd never seen in anyone before. They entered a large hallway, in which was filled with rows and rows of pictures, mostly of Misty's sisters. One picture caught Ash's eye. It was a picture of a young couple, along with younger versions of Misty, Daisy, Lily, and Violet. "Hey Mist, are these your parents?" He asked pointing at the picture. She took one peak at it and her smile instantly faded. "Yeah..." She whispered, sadly. Ash, too absorbed in the picture, didn't notice Misty's change in tone. "When do I get to meet them?" He asked. "You won't..." She replied, tears filling her eyes. Ash finally turned to look at Misty, and noticed that her eyes were beginning to fill with tears. "Misty...what's wrong?" He asked, concerned. "I-Its nothing Ash. Don't worry about it." She replied, giving him a weak smile. "No...something's definitely wrong. Come on, you can tell me." He reassured. "Is it about your parents?" Misty nodded slowly. "Yeah...it happened five years ago...they-they..." She couldn't continue. Tears started their descent down Misty's face as Ash just stood there, feeling helpless. Misty abruptly wiped them away and tried to continue with her story. "They went out for a drive...it was raining...and there was a rock slide..." Ash let out a small gasp. "Oh, Misty..." Misty couldn't take it anymore. She burst into tears and fell into Ash's open arms. "Shh...I'm right here Mist." Reassured Ash as he hugged Misty tightly. "Ash..." Misty whispered. "Its okay...let it all out." He whispered back. All of a sudden, Ash's emotions took over, and he gently kissed Misty on the cheek. He blushed at what he had just done, but Misty didn't seem to care. In fact, she was smiling. Misty then pulled away from Ash and began wiping away her tears. "I'm sorry...I just..." She sniffed. "Hey, its okay. I know how you feel." He replied. "You do?" Asked Misty, curious. "Kind of." He started. "My father abandoned my mother when I was first born. He said that he didn't want children...he didn't even want to look at me." "Ash, I'm so sorry." Misty said sympathetically. "Its okay. We're much better off without him." Ash said, smiling. "That's good, but I kinda feel sorry for him." She started as Ash gave her a look of confusion. "He won't know what a wonderful son he has." At this, Ash and Misty smiled at each other. In that brief moment, something seemed to spark between them...but Misty slowly broke the eye contact. Her thoughts then backtracked to the kiss that Ash had implanted on her cheek. Was it real, or was it her imagination? He was just trying to comfort her, right? Friends kiss friends all the time, don't they? Ash's voice interrupted Misty's train of thought as he pointed to yet another picture. "Oh, that's the gym when it was first being built. Its one of the first gyms to become an official gym. Back then, you didn't need to battle gym leaders for badges. You battled whoever you wanted, wherever you wanted." She explained. "Times sure have changed, haven't they?" He asked Misty. "They sure have, but I think not battling for gym badges takes all the fun out of training." Misty shrugged as she walked into the main part of the gym, followed by Ash. "Well, here we are." Ash looked around in shock. He had never even been close to a gym arena, let alone, inside of one. "So, now what?" He asked, getting comfortable on one of the bleachers. "You get to see me do my duties." She replied, walking over to the podium. "Duties?" Ash asked in confusion. "Yeah, I thought I told you. Its my turn to be gym leader." She explained. "Gym leader?!" Ash almost screamed. "Uh...yeah." Replied Misty, a little frightened at Ash's response. "You never told me you were a gym leader either." He said, sitting up. "Well, now you know." She shrugged. "And now you can watch the master in action." "Oh please..." Ash muttered, rolling his eyes. "Excuse me?" She asked, raising an eyebrow. "N-Nothing." He stammered. Just then, the doors of the gym burst open and a young boy stepped up to the podium. "I challenge the gym leader here to a battle!" The trainer requested in a snotty attitude. "Where is he?" "Your looking at her, kid." Misty answered, folding her arms. "What?! Your a girl!" The trainer exclaimed in pure shock. "Ya think?" Misty said, a bit of sarcasm in her voice. 'This is getting good.' Thought Ash as he sat on the sidelines. "Well, you wanna battle me or not?" Misty asked, a bit impatient. "You bet! This'll be a piece of cake." The boy said confidently. "That's what you think kid." Misty smirked. "Well, let's get started. This is a three on three battle, no time limit. Staryu, I choose you!" Misty released the pokeball from her hands and out came Staryu, poised for battle. "Go Seadra!" Yelled the trainer, as his pokemon materialized. "Start it off with an agility!" The Seadra started to swim towards Staryu with incredible speed. "Staryu, stop that Seadra in its tracks!" Misty ordered calmly. Taking aim, Staryu shot a powerful blast of water at the oncoming Seadra, knocking it back into the boy's podium. "No, Seadra! Try to get up!" The boy pleaded. The Seadra slowly rose and glared at Staryu. "Seadra, water gun attack!" The boy commanded. Obeying its trainer, the Seadra shot a blast of water at Staryu. "Staryu, rapid spin!" Misty called. Staryu obeyed and began to spin faster and faster, deflecting the water. "Nice work, Staryu." Misty congratulated. "Now, hit it with your strongest tackle attack!" Staryu started to spin towards the unsuspecting Seadra, knocking it back into the podium once again, this time for good. "No, Seadra! Return!" The trainer growled. The trainer looked at Misty angrily as she just smiled in satisfaction. 'Misty's not too bad.' Ash thought, interested in what pokemon the trainer would choose next. "You think your real good, don't you?" The trainer scowled. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but you're the one who believed that they were unbeatable." Misty stated. "Your gonna pay! Go Seaking!" The boy yelled as he released the pokeball into the water. "You up for another one Staryu?" Asked Misty. "Hiya!" The pokemon replied, nodding. "That's the spirit!" Misty smiled. "Alright Seaking, start the battle off with your horn attack!" The trainer commanded. The Seaking obeyed and began its attack on Staryu. "Staryu, agility!" Misty yelled. Dodging the attack, Staryu started to close in on Seaking. "Swift attack!" Misty called. The attack hit its mark, leaving Seaking dazed, but still able to fight. 'I have to get Seaking out of the water.' Misty thought to herself. "I know! Staryu, get in the water and use whirlpool!" It nodded and sank into the water. A second later, a huge whirlpool was starting to form in the middle of the pool, with Seaking in the middle of it. "Seaking, you have to get out of there!" The trainer yelled out frantically. "Tackle it!" Misty ordered. Seaking, still in the midst of the attack, flew out of the water, unconscious. "Seaking, return!" The trainer called angrily. "Nice job Staryu." Misty smiled. Staryu did a few flips in the air, showing its trainer that it was ready for another one. "This isn't over yet." The trainer declared, smirking. Misty raised an eyebrow, wondering what the trainer had in store for her. "Go Elekid!" The trainer threw the pokeball and out popped Elekid onto one of the platforms on the water. "Take that!" The trainer looked over at Misty, expecting her to show some kind of worry, but what he saw was the exact opposite. She was smiling. 'She's got something up her sleeve.' Ash thought to himself, studying Misty's smile. "Fine, then let's begin." Misty said smoothly. "You don't stand a chance against an electric type." The trainer announced. "We'll just see about that." Misty smiled confidently "What are you talkin' about!? There's no way...oh, I get it. Your just trying to get me nervous in hopes that I mess up. Well, that won't work on me." The trainer said coolly. "Think whatever you want." Misty replied. "I don't know about you, but I'm ready to start." "Fine! Elekid, start it off with a thunderbolt!" The trainer cried. "Dodge it Staryu!" Misty commanded. The long range attack missed Staryu by only inches. "You can't run forever!" The trainer smiled. "Elekid, use thunder! Annihilate it!" As Elekid readied its attack, Misty called out to Staryu. "Staryu, rapid spin!" Elekid put all of its electricity into its attack and let it lose on Staryu, but to everyone's amazement, it bounced off of the rapid spin. "What?!" The trainer screamed in shock. 'How did it do that?!' Ash thought, sitting up in his seat. "Finish it off Staryu!" Misty said, smiling at the trainer's reaction. Obeying Misty, Staryu sent the surprised Elekid flying off of its platform and into the podium. "No...I lost...how could I lose...?" The trainer whispered, falling to his knees and returning his Elekid. "I'll tell you why." Misty started. "Its seems that all you care about is winning...not about the well-being of your pokemon." "But, isn't winning important?" Asked the trainer. "It is, but who's really winning the battles? You or your pokemon?" Misty questioned. "My-My pokemon..." He answered, a bit shaky. "Exactly. Ya know what? A friend once told me that our pokemon should be a part of our family, not just creatures used for our own reasons." Misty said, smiling at Ash, who had once told her the same exact thing. 'She actually takes my advice?' Ash thought, smiling back. "A family...I guess that's true. I never thought of it that way before. Thank you." The trainer said, stepping off the podium and heading for the door. "You welcome to a rematch here anytime." Misty called after him. The trainer nodded and then left. Misty congratulated Staryu, returned it, and then stepped off of the podium. "Well, I'm done for the day." Misty sighed. "I just have to clean the pool. Shouldn't take me too long." Ash ran up to her with a big smile on his face. "That was incredible! How did you beat that Elekid so easily?" Ash asked, excited. "Staryu was my first pokemon, so we've been through a lot together. I taught it to be resistant to electricity." She explained. "I'd love to have a battle with you sometime." Ash said, still amazed. "I'd love to, but not now. I'm so tired." She said yawning. "If you know practically everything about pokemon, then why are you going to pokemon tech?" Ash asked suddenly. "I don't know everything about pokemon. My sisters enrolled me two years ago because they wanted me to learn more about them, but I'd say that they're the ones that should be going. They wouldn't know the difference between your Pikachu and my Staryu." Misty laughed as Ash joined her. "Well, I gotta clean up first, then we'll go up to my room and relax." Misty sighed as she grabbed a long handled brush. Misty inserted the brush in the pool and started to clean the bottom of the pool. "Ya know, I was really impressed with your battling skills." Ash stated. "Thanks." Misty said, her back to Ash. "I bet your tired, huh?" Asked Ash, creeping closer to Misty. "Yup. Battles really wipe me out." She responded, nodding. "I think you need to cool off." Ash stated, getting closer and closer. "Oh really? And how do you propose I do that?" Misty asked. It was then that Misty caught onto Ash's plan and snapped her head up, but it was too late. Ash picked her up and jumped into the pool. They both resurfaced at the same time, Ash laughing hysterically. "Oh man! You should have seen the look on your face!" Ash laughed as he slapped the water. "Ash! I can't believe you!" Misty screamed. She then turned her back on him angrily and folded her arms. Ash, thinking that he had done something wrong, approached her. "Mist...come on. I'm sorry." He apologized as he was about to put a hand on her shoulder. At the last second, Misty swung her leg behind her and tripped Ash, causing him to go under. It was now Misty's turn to go into hysterics. A second later, Ash resurfaced with a fake/angry look on his face. "Now we're even." Misty stated. "But I have to admit, it does feel good in here." "See, it was a good thing that I brought you in here." Ash smiled. "Yeah, but the least you could've done was wait until I took off my clothes." Misty said while taking off her top to reveal a light blue bikini. Ash stared at her in complete awe. Misty then threw her wet clothes in a pile on the floor and looked up to see Ash in a daze. "Ash, what's wrong?" Misty asked, waving a hand in front of his face. "Uh...n-nothing." He smiled, while also attempting to take off his wet shirt. Misty gave a similar reaction to Ash's and also looked on at her friend's tan, smooth body. Misty shook her head, smiling to herself as Ash threw his clothes to the side. "What's so funny?" He asked. "Nothing." She answered. "Hey, how about challenging me to a swimming race?" Asked Ash as he stood up next to Misty. "Sure, I'm up for that." Misty replied. "We'll go to the end of the pool, touch the end, and then swim back here. First one here, wins." "Sounds good to me." Ash stated, getting ready. "Ready...set..." Before Misty had said 'go,' she was already heading to the other side of the pool. "Hey!" Ash yelled, trying to catch up. Misty was in first place and was just about to touch the end of the pool when Ash pulled her foot back and held onto her. "You are such a cheater." Ash commented, keeping his grip on her. "Oh please..." Misty mumbled, rolling her eyes. "What was that?" Ash smirked. "Ash, let me go!" Misty laughed. "Ask nicely." Ash taunted. Misty sighed, giving in. "Ash, will you please let me go?" "Maybe." Ash replied, smiling at her. Truthfully, he was loving every moment of this. He loved the feel of her smooth skin on his. It made his heart melt on the spot. Fed up, Misty started to struggle, but her attempts her futile. "Hey, your pretty strong, but not strong enough." Ash commented before throwing her into the deep end of the pool. She resurfaced and a water fight soon took place. About an hour later, Ash and Misty were finally getting out of the pool. They dried themselves off, grabbed their wet clothes, and started upstairs to Misty's room. "Well, this is my room. Make yourself at home. I'll be right back. I'm gonna go change." Misty said as she walked off. Ash looked around at all the pictures in her room. Most of them were of her friends, many of which he knew from school. Several minutes later, Ash's vision was obscured as a shirt landed on top of his head. Ash looked up to see Misty combing her hair. She had it down and Ash thought she looked absolutely beautiful. "Y-You look really pretty with your hair like that." Ash commented nervously. 'But then again, you always look beautiful to me.' Ash thought. "Thank you Ash." Misty said softly, surprised by his comment. There was a moment of silence as the two teens stared into each other's eyes, getting lost in the moment. Misty then shook her head and smiled, temporarily forgetting what she was doing in the first place. "Um...that shirt's for you. I took your other one down to the dryer. It won't be done for another hour." She explained. "Okay, thanks." Ash said as he put the shirt on, trying to shake off that brief moment of silence. Just then, the phone rang. Misty picked it up and rested it on her shoulder as she continued to comb her hair. "Hello?" She asked politely. "Hey Mist! Its me." Said a familiar voice on the other end. "Oh, hey Mel. What's up?" She asked her best friend. "Well, is Ash there by any chance?" Melissa asked politely. "Uh, yeah. He's right here." Misty responded, looking at Ash. "Can I talk to him for a second?" She asked. "Yeah, sure. Hold on." Misty said, giving the phone to Ash. "Here, Melissa wants to talk to you." Ash took the phone and gulped. 'Uh-oh.' He knew exactly why she had called. She'd been calling him all week concerning the big dance that was coming up. Its not that she wanted to go with him. She just kept bugging him about when he was gonna ask Misty. "H-Hello?" He said shakily. "Hey Ash. How are you?" She asked. "I-I'm good, you?" He asked back. "I'm okay, but do you know what would make me even more happy?" Melissa asked calmly. "Um, I'm kinda afraid to ask." Replied Ash. "Well, have you done it yet?" She asked in a mischievous tone. "Done what?" Asked Ash, avoiding the question. "Don't play dumb with me, Ash! You know exactly what I'm talking about!" Melissa screamed on the other side of the phone. "Uh...I do?" Asked Ash, wanting to end the call as quickly as possible. "Ash! Come on!" Melissa pleaded. "I know you wanna ask her." "So, what if I do?" He asked calmly. "Well then, what are you waiting for?! Next year's dance?!" Yelled Melissa as Ash pulled the receiver away from his ear. "Okay, okay. Calm down." Ash said, sighing. "Is she still there?" Melissa asked suddenly. "Uh, yeah. Why?" Ash asked as he looked up to see Misty drying her hair with her back to him. "No reason." Replied Melissa sighing. "Your so close, but yet so far." "Huh?" Asked a very confused Ash. "What I mean is that she's right next to you, in the exact same room, but your too afraid to ask her." Melissa said, sighing again. Ash took a few minutes to let Melissa's words sink in. She was right. Misty was standing right in front of him, but what kept him from asking her was his own fear of rejection. Misty was one of the most popular girls in school, so why would she waste her time on someone like Ash? "Hello? Ash, are you still there?" Melissa's voice suddenly brought Ash back to reality. "Did you hear me?" "No, sorry." Could you repeat that?" Ash asked politely, knowing that Melissa was probably going to say the same thing as before, but what she said next was the complete opposite. "Ash...how much do you really care about Misty?" Melissa asked in a serious tone. "A lot. You know that." Ash replied, wondering where this was going. "I-I just found out from Sarah that Jared is gonna ask her. I've known Misty my whole life and I know how she is. She'll probably say yes because of..." Melissa trailed off. "Because of what?" Ash asked, growing more worried by the second. Ash was greeted with silence. "Melissa?" Asked Ash, not sure if she was still there. Upon hearing no reply, he started to get even more worried. What was wrong? Was there something that he needed to know? And most importantly, what was Melissa so afraid of? Her next few words sent Ash into a whirlwind of thoughts and questions, but the most important one of all was...what would happen next? A/N: There. Hope ya liked it. Sorry its kinda long, but I wasn't quite sure how to end it. Also sorry for the long delay. Don't expect the next chapter out anytime soon. I haven't written it yet, so it might take a while. Thanks again! AAML forever!