24A/N: Hello! This is a Contestshipping story, explaining the meaning of a rose colour in each chapter. Thanks to Katz Monster for the idea from the Contestshipping Day Party forum.
Have a happy Contestshipping Day! :D The first colour will be the red rose, so enjoy.
Red - Love, Beauty, Respect, Courage, Congratulations and Sincerity.
"Now, Beautifly, use Silver Wind!" May cried out, pointing at the opposing Pokémon. Her butterfly Pokémon hit her opponent's Ivysaur with a powerful, grey, shimmering gust, knocking it out. The buzzers went off, showing red crosses on the judges' panels.
"And with that beautiful finish, May from Petalburg wins the Sootopolis Contest!" Vivian's voice rang through the arena, the audience was silent in awe. After a couple of seconds, the audience erupted with cheers. It was the last contest before the Grand Festival, and May had just won it and earned her fifth ribbon.
May returned her Pokémon after thanking it and shook her opponent's hand and beamed. She couldn't contain her happiness. Since she had just earned her fifth ribbon, she was eligible to participate in the upcoming Grand Festival. She collected her ribbon, glowing with pride. Then, she headed out of the arena to try and find her friends.
"Hey May, that was awesome!"
She turned around to see Ash, Brock, Max and Drew. She grinned. "Thanks guys, I really-" Then she was cut off after realising something. Drew. Why was Drew there? She had figured he would be somewhere else, training, since he already had all five ribbons. "Drew? Why are you here?"
Drew flicked his chartreuse hair, raising a perfect eyebrow. "What, am I not allowed to be here?"
"I didn't say that," May replied. "I just thought you'd be training for the Grand Festival."
He shrugged. "I figured I'd come here to watch for appeal inspiration, and I needed a break from training anyway," he replied nonchalantly. The truth was, he'd only come to watch May. He had come to make sure she'd win. The Grand Festival wouldn't be the same without his long-time rival, would it? But, it was more than just being there for his rival.
"Oh, right..." May trailed off, not knowing what to say. "So, how did I do?"
"It was impressive, but lucky," he replied, flicking his hair.
May seemed disappointed that it wasn't detailed but, she took what she got.
There was an awkward silence, until Ash finally broke it. "Well, this calls for some celebration! I say we have a feast tonight!"
May grinned. "Yeah!"
Brock sighed, smiling. "Well, I guess that means I'm not cooking today?"
"Right!" Ash exclaimed. "We're gonna eat at an all-you-can-eat, right May?"
May narrowed her eyes, crossing her arms. "I want to go to a noodle restaurant!"
Drew watched on as the food-loving pair argued about which restaurant to eat at. He was relieved that his rival would be able to attend the Grand Festival. But why did he care so much? Not having May there would make it easier for him to win, as she was an extremely talented coordinator. He wouldn't admit that to her, of course-
"You wanna come, Drew?" Ash asked, cutting him off his thoughts.
He blinked, zoning back in. "Nah, I'll pass. Some other time," he replied, waving his hand dismissively. Another awkward silence hung in the air, and this time, Drew broke it. "Well, I'll be leaving now. Later."
"See you, Drew!" May called out, waving.
Drew walked out of the doors and sat down on a bench in a garden outside the arena. He was thinking about what he was thinking when Ash interrupted him. Why did he want May to attend the Grand Festival so badly? Was it because it wouldn't be entertaining without his favourite rival, or was there more behind it? He had even bothered to take time off his training to watch her deciding contest.
There was only one person to talk to about it- Solidad.
"What's up, Drew?" Solidad said, a hand in her hip. She was passing by Sootopolis on her way to Ever Grande, to train by the waterfalls. After Drew gave her a call, she stopped at the water-based city. She took a seat on a table in a cafe, Drew doing the same.
"Well," he began, "you know May?" He had told Solidad all about her, and how she has helped him become a better coordinator. But this time, his discussion about her was different.
Solidad nodded. "Of course. Will I be seeing her at the Grand Festival?"
"Yeah, you will," he replied. "I took a break from training and watched her contest today, I had to make sure she won. I don't know why I was so worried though, she's just a rival."
The beautiful woman smiled at him, her and Drew always had a sibling-like relationship. He was the little brother she never had. "Just a rival?" She looked into the distance, her smile growing. "I think you have much more respect for her than just a rival, Drew."
"More respect than a rival," he muttered to himself, contemplating the words.
She nodded, taking a sip from her drink. "I think you're gaining feelings for her, more than her just being your average rival."
Drew looked away, his face gaining a red hue. Did he think of her more than a rival, or a friend? Solidad gave a small laugh. "My little Drew is finally growing up."
Drew sighed, standing up. "Thanks for the help, Solidad. I better get going now," he said as he looked at the darkening sky.
She smiled again. "Remember, Drew," she said, stopping him. "Just because you may have more feelings for her than just a rival, doesn't mean you shouldn't beat her in the contest." She stood up, beginning to walk away. "I hope I meet her soon, my future sister-in-law."
Drew rolled his eyes and carried on walking away. He was headed towards the Pokémon Centre, but not before stopping at the flower shop.
May slurped up her noodles at an inhuman speed, even faster than Ash. "Another bowl!" she called out to the waitress.
Max sighed, shaking his head. "You know, that's your third bowl..."
"So?" his sister replied, tapping impatiently for her noodles. She beamed as they placed another bowlful in front of her and started eating at an inhuman pace, once again.
"At this rate, she'll finish all the noodles in this restaurant," Brock commented to himself.
After Ash and May ate another bowlful, they decided it was enough. Full of happiness and laughter, they planned where they would be heading next as they headed towards the Pokémon Centre.
"A room with two bunk beds, my beautiful," Brock asked Nurse Joy flirtatiously.
Ignoring the compliment, she smiled cheerfully. "Of course," she replied, bringing out a room key. Then, she spotted May and looked at her curiously. "Are you May, by any chance?"
"That's me," she replied. "Why?"
Nurse Joy smiled at her, taking out a small note. "Here, someone left this for you," she said, handing May a small note.
"Oh?" May looked at it surprise, opening it up.
May,
Meet me at the gardens in front of the arena.
-Drew
"What is it?" Ash asked, trying to peek at the note.
She scanned over the neat handwriting, wondering if it was safe to go this late at night. Then, she thought of Drew and felt bad to keep him waiting. "Oh, it's nothing. You guys go, I'll be back soon!"
The others watched on helplessly as the brunette exited the building into the dark of the night.
May approached the arena's gardens, peering around for her green-haired rival. "Drew?" she called out. She was shivering, mentally face-palming for not bringing a jacket.
"Took you long enough." She jumped, hearing him behind her. Drew smirked as she turned around. "You actually came," he said. "What if that note was from a stalker?"
Then she considered the thought. "That's a good point..."
"Of course an airhead like you would've fell for it," he said with a flick of his hair.
May glared at him, crossing her arms. "What, did you just call me here in this freezing weather to insult me?" she huffed, turning around. "If so, I'll just be leaving-"
"Wait," Drew said, stopping her. He noticed she wasn't wearing a jacket in the cold weather, and took of his own. "Here, take this." He handed her his jacket, to her surprise.
Smiling, May took pulled it on. "Thanks." She noticed how it had a lovely fragrance, like roses.
"The reason why I called you here..." He trailed off, suddenly not having the courage to tell her what he was planning to. In a haste, he told her something else instead. "I wanted to- uh- congratulate you for getting five ribbons, and wish you luck for the grand festival," he said hastily.
May blinked. "Thanks, Drew..." Then, she smiled. "Same to you!"
Mentally, Drew face-palmed. He was lucky that May was oblivious and didn't notice anything strange. He held out a blood-red rose to May, smirking.
"For me?" May squealed, breathing in it's fragrance. "You're nicer than I thought, Dr-"
"No, it's for your Beautifly." He flicked his hair, smirking. "Why would I give it to you?"
It took May a few seconds to process what he said, and then her face began to go red. Drew smirked and started walking away, chuckling at May's yells.
"I take that back! You better watch out, you arrogant palm-tree! I'm going to beat you in the Grand Festival!"
He held up a hand, signalling goodbye. Her yells quietened as he headed away, his smirk disappearing. The rose wasn't for Beautifly, but for May. He just didn't have the courage to tell her.
May huffed as he slowly disappeared from sight and turned to walk back to the Pokemon Centre. Then, she realised the still had Drew's jacket. Shrugging, she walked back, making a mental note to return the jacket next time she saw him.
A/N: Sorry, that was a really short and boring chapter. But it gets better, and fluffier! Thanks for reading. I'm not sure what rose colour the next chapter will be based off just yet, but there'll be ten more in total which makes this story. I'll try to update every week, and the chapters should be longer than this one.
Please leave a review! It'll make my day! :D