8Ash called out his Latios as he stood underneath the door frame.
"I enjoyed your company tonight Ash," Misty said softly as she cupped his cheeks in her hands.
"I enjoyed being here with you, Misty," Ash whispered back.
Misty leaned towards him and gave him a passionate kiss before hearing a rather annoying voice.
"Aw, did I break the romantic kiss?" a girl's voice asked with a fake sweetness.
Misty broke away from the kiss and glared furiously at her sister.
"What do you know?" Misty hissed angrily.
A pink haired girl with her hair curled at the bottom had her hands on her hips, a smirk plastered on her face.
"Lily… I swear to God I'm going to kill you someday," Misty muttered under her breath as Lily sauntered away singing, "Oopsies, I broke a romantic 'moment'!"
"She's such a bitch!" Misty screamed once Lily was gone.
"It's okay Misty," Ash said, attempting to calm her down once more.
"No Ash, it's not okay! You're too good-natured to realize she's acting like a piece of shit!" Misty replied harshly. "It's always okay in your world! Snap into the real world where it's not so easy as you think!"
Ash recoiled, obviously hurt.
"I'm sorry Ash . . . I couldn't help it," Misty murmured.
"It's okay Misty, I understand."
He embraced her before climbing onto his Latios and flying off into the distance.
Once he got home, it was 10 o'clock and he decided he would call the house owner the next day.
~The next day~
"Hi, this is Ash Ketchum calling to-"
"The Ash Ketchum?" a lady's voice shrieked.
"Yes."
"I'll do anything, you name it! Anything, sir!"
"Uh, you promised me a sold house."
"Oh, right! I remember! Well, I'll give you a little deal. I'll give the house to you for $190,000 instead of $200,000 on one condition."
"What condition is that, ma'am?"
"Please call me Alice."
"Alright, what is that condition Alice?"
"Have a one on one battle with me."
"Why?"
"I haven't had a good pokemon battle in ages! Oh, the youthful days," she said mournfully.
"Alright, you've got yourself a deal," confirmed Ash.
"Wonderful! Could you come over now?" Alice asked.
"Um, sure. Could I bring a friend?"
"Yeah, no problem!" Alice trilled.
Ash grabbed a cup of coffee before heading out with his Latios and the rest of his pokemon. He stopped by the Cerulean Gym, where Misty was frantically trying to get ready.
"What should I wear? Something casual? Or something fancy to impress?" she exclaimed.
"Misty, just wear something." Ash facepalmed.
Finally, after what seemed like forever, Misty came out wearing a baby yellow hooded shirt with blue jean shorts.
"Took you long enough," Ash muttered as he leaned against the wall.
"I heard that!" Misty growled, holding up a fist.
"Dude, chill Misty, I was just teasing."
Misty turned bright red, tossed her now long and silky orange hair, and frowned.
"Look Ash, if you're not going to take buying a house and having a Pokemon battle seriously, you'll ruin everything!" Misty exclaimed, annoyed.
"Misty, it's probably a sixty year old woman who forgot how to battle anyway!" Ash snorted in disbelief.
"I've heard you say it yourself, you can never underestimate a challenger."
(I have to agree with Misty on this one, you said it on the way here yesterday,) Pikachu said, taking Misty's side.
"You know what, I don't care anymore. Are we going?" Ash dismissed the argument with a wave of his hand.
"Sure."
They climbed onto Latios, who was happily waiting outside.
"Woo!" Misty squealed as Latios rose above the ground and flew a bit fast for her liking. It wasn't like it was her first time riding Latios, but it always gave her the shivers.
A few minutes later, they arrived in Viridian City. A nice looking house, the perfect size, was smack in the middle of the neighborhood. It was just a two minute walk to the Viridian Gym.
Ash knocked on the door. "Hello? It's me, Ash…"
The door flew open. "The Ash Ketchum? Oh my goodness, it really is you!" the woman screamed.
"Not this again," Ash mumbled as he was ushered through the door.
"So why are you here?" Alice asked.
"Um, Alice, I'm here to buy the house."
"Oh, right! How do you know my name?"
"Um, you told me your name on the phone just like, thirty minutes ago."
"Oh yeah! Silly me. Well, let's get to the battle, shall we?" Alice cooed.
"At least she remembered something," Ash muttered under his breath as he followed her outside.
"I choose you, Raichu!" Alice commanded.
(Alright, I get to pwn the Pokemon Master!) cried Raichu with a little bit too much confidence.
"Okay, Dragonite, come on out!" Ash countered.
(Hmph. No sweat, it's just a Raichu,) smirked Dragonite with the same over-confidence.
"Alright, I'll go first. Dragonite, Seismic Toss!"
Dragonite gripped Raichu in its claws and began to circle in the air.
"Thunder, Raichu!"
It was too late. Raichu was already crashing to the ground. It got up weakly.
"Dragonite, use Aerial Ace."
(Yay, this is a fun move!) Dragonite exclaimed while slamming into Raichu.
"Raichu, Hyper Beam!"
"You wanna play it that way? Counter with Hyper Beam!"
The two Hyper Beams collided in mid-air, but it was soon revealed Dragonite's had been a tad bit stronger.
"The victory goes to Ash Ketchum!" Misty announced.
"Return, Raichu. Just what I would expect from a Pokemon Master," Alice said softly.
"So?" Ash pressed.
"You get the house for $190,000."
"Alright!"
Alice chuckled. "I enjoyed living in this house, now it's yours. I hope it provides coziness for you and your wife for the years to come."
Wait. Wife? Ash's mind was swirling with thoughts, and when he glanced over at Misty, he also noticed she was pale looking.
Alice also seemed to notice. "What's wrong?"
"Uh . . . how do I put this? She's not my wife." Ash furrowed his brow.
"She isn't? Well, are you planning to marry her?" Alice said, a little bit too enthusiastically.
Ash blushed and looked at his feet. "I don't know yet," he mumbled and then looked up.
"Um, thanks for everything! We'll be going now!" Misty said, rushed.
They hurried out and climbed onto Latios in a hurry.
"Awkward galore!" Misty exclaimed, still slightly pale.
"I know."
"Hey, what do you say we go visit Gary?" Misty suggested.
"Uh, where'd you get that from?"
"We haven't seen him in a while."
"True."
"So, yes or no?"
"Sure, why not?"
They arrived at the lab where Gary was busy sitting at a desk and studying a pokeball. A strange determination was in his eyes.
"Uh, hi Gary." Ash looked slightly uncomfortable.
"Oh hi Ashy boy! Oh, and you brought your girlfriend with you. Nice to see you, Misty."
"How did you know I was dating Ash?" Misty asked, embarrassed.
"Uh, excuse me, but everyone knows. It's on Ash's weekly website and phone App."
"Huh?" Misty was clearly confused.
"Ash has a website and a mobile App that tells all the gossip about him and stuff. He wrote, 'Got the best girlfriend ever. Misty Waterflower, Cerulean City Gym Leader. Can't ask for any better.'"
Misty turned bright red. "Ash, did you . . ."
"Yep."
"Urgh."
Gary smirked. "So how are you all doing?" he asked, turning from his studying.
"Fine, what's that you're studying?" Ash asked. He was curious.
"GS Ball."
"You mean the pokeball that I brought to Kurt?" Ash exclaimed, his eyes glittering with memories.
"Yeah."
"Awesome!"
"Well, he's long gone now, so I'm studying it. Gramps retired, so I am now the official Professor Oak."
"Wow, and at only at age 21!" Misty observed respectfully.
Gary smiled and got up. He opened the mini fridge and took out three cans of beer. "You guys want some?"
"Sure, why not?" was Ash's response.
"I guess . . ." Misty had replied unsurely.
"Misty, you're 22. You're supposed to drink," Gary pointed out.
"True," Misty giggled and popped open the can. She took a sip and cringed. "Uhh . . ."
"You get used to it," Gary said simply before taking a gulp of his.
They sat on the couch, their cans of beer on the glass table in front of them. They chatted for thirty minutes.
"Excuse me, but I've got some catching up to do, I believe," Ash stated as he opened the door leading to the stored Pokemon outside.
Thank you for your reviews! Especially momo-x-11 and Spiral Breeze. You guys helped improve my story, which I appreciate. Thank you! You also motivated me to keep writing, the reviews keep me going. Thanks again, and stay tuned! Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, I do happen to own the writing and the storyline, though.