Knock Knock Knock.
“Wh-Who is it?” a voice nervously muffled through the door.
“Um… me, Ash.”
“A-Ash?! UM! I’m busyyy!”
“I just came to check on Misty’s stuff.”
…
Click.
The door slowly creaked open.
Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.
“C-Come in!”
Ash slipped into the room.
He felt around, physically and with his Empathy.
The room had remained the same since his last visit there, other than for the additional things
stacked against one side of the wall, which more than likely was Misty’s items. As for May’s
whereabouts, he wasn’t fully sure. Until he noticed a strange energy coming from…
“Are… Are you in the closet, May??”
“N-no…” Gah, I’m so stupid! Why’d I say that?!
“Um… I think Misty kinda’ wants you out. I think she wants some private time with her things.”
Ash had no idea if he was lying or just guessing what Misty had wanted.
…
Thud.
…
…
“…Ash?”
“…yeah?”
…
“… I’m stuck.”
Ash couldn’t help but laugh.
“S-Stop laughing! I’m serious!”
Ash held his laughing with a few remaining snickers. “Okay, okay, let me see if I could –”
“NO!” May interrupted. “I- I mean, no. Call someone else to do it.”
“What’s wrong??” Ash grabbed onto one side of the sliding vanity closet. As he started yanking,
he started feeling a burst of shame and fear coming from inside it.
“NO ASH!” May yelled again. “You can’t see me like this!”
Ash yanked harder. “May, I can’t see!” he said in an irritated manner. More irritated at the door
than her forgetfulness.
“I-I KNOW! B-BUT-!”
The sliding door un-jammed and slid open faster than he expected it to.
May had come crashing out of the closet. Falling hard on top of Ash.
Ash would have blushed, Ash would’ve gotten mute, Ash would’ve done his best to remove this
memory from ever happening… if it weren’t for the fact that something was seriously wrong.
“…you’re not May...”
“What do you mean I’m not May? Of course I’m May!”
Ash pushed the girl off his body and stood.
“No… May doesn’t smell like that.”
In truth, Ash’s sense of smell hadn’t gotten any better since he first went blind – and in truth, he
was somewhat ashamed that he knew what May smelled like up close. Despite those truths, he
knew very well that was not how May smelled. Not just that, but now that this girl was out in the
open, he noticed she definitely did not feel like May. May wasn’t so… adjusted.
His eyes narrowed. “…Duplica?”
“H-How did-?! N-No! I’m May! See? Laaa laaa laaaaa~” her voice was trying hard to achieve
the perfect pitch. “I’m Mayyyy~!”
“Duplica, what are you doing here?” Ash had enough of these games. It was stressing enough for
him to get the courage to knock on the door, even more stressing to enter it, but now confusion
was put into play. What would Duplica be doing in the room? What would Duplica be doing in
Pallet Town?? Ash had felt like he had enough trouble with women as of now – one more was
not welcome.
“Er… I uhm…”
“And what in the world do we have here…” Misty’s presence was suddenly noticed.
“Hm? Oh Misty –” Ash was about to explain.
“H-Hey M-Misty…” Duplica said with a rather convincing May voice.
“May, get out.” Misty stated coldly.
“Y-Yes, ma’am!” Duplica scrambled to her feet and ran out of the room.
“M-May?? Misty, that wasn’t May!” Ash was shocked at the turn of events. How could she…?
That wasn’t…
“Right. So it wasn’t May just lying on the floor in front of you.”
“Wh-What?!” Ash wasn’t sure if he wanted to know what that would have looked like.
“And it wasn’t you and May in this room making a lot of commotion that the entire house could
hear.”
“WH-WHAT?!” Ash’s face had turned crimson. “B-But!”
“Whatever. Just get out of the r–”
MISTY!
…
Ash had focused all of his emotions into that single Empathic shout. He wasn’t sure how that
would affect a human, but normally using that on his pokémon would get them to react faster to
his emotions. Whatever it did to Misty, it had made her drop her guard. He could feel her again.
Her inner feelings – not just the cold treatment she had been forcing on him lately.
S-Sorry… I was trying to say… that WASN’T May.
Ash felt Misty wanting to lash back at him, to continue disbelieving him and to insult him for
thinking she was a fool. … but she didn’t. The empathic lash he stunned her with apparently
made her willing to give him a chance. One chance. That’s all he got.
“It was Duplica…”
And that chance was lost.
“Duplica.” Misty said with a tone so cold it would’ve put a charizard in intensive care. “That’s
the best you’ve got.”
“I’M NOT LYI–”
“Hey guys, what’s going on?” an unexpected yet extremely welcome voice popped into the
room.
“May, I told you to go.” Misty stated with the smallest hint of irritation.
“What are you talking about? I’ve been outside this entire time.”
The Cerulean Gym Leader analyzed her position.
…
So you think you two can play with me? Think that a double-team would really work on me?
Misty’s emotions were no longer cold. They weren’t hot either. They were… hurt.
“What? No! We’re not lying to you! I’m not lying to you!” Ash was getting desperate. “Tell
her, May! You weren’t in this room this en–” he cut himself short, realizing what would happen
if she agreed.
May looked between Ash and Misty. “…what?”
“Oh May! Are you leaving already? You haven’t had anything to eat yet.” Delia’s voice echoed
from the kitchen.
Thank you! Ash cried to fate.
Misty’s eyes widened.
May’s head tilted.
Before any of them could react, the Cerulean Gym Leader was dashing down the stairs.
“So… what just happened?” May stared at Ash oddly.
“Oh, h-hey Misty! I was just about to l-lea–”a near-perfect copy of May’s voice was silenced.
The real May looked even more confused after hearing the chilling mimic.
She grabbed Ash by the sleeve and hid behind him. “Do… do you… think it’s a
doppelganger?!” May had showed genuine concern in her tone.
Ash laughed. “A- A what?? N-No! That’s just Duplica.”
“Duplica…? What’s a duplica?” The news seemed to confuse her more.
Ash grabbed May by the arm and started running for the stairs. “An extinct species if we don’t
get there in time.”
_________________________________________________________
“So a girl can’t just visit when she wants?”
Duplica had been cornered, and was in the process of being interrogated. The house’s judge and
jury were present.
She eyed each of the girls with a tinge of spite. “With the… certain gathering here, you’d think
I’d be more welcome.”
“Now, Duplica dear,” Delia had started, “you can come and go as you please. But you have to
ask permission, and you certainly don’t come in dressed as one of the guests. It’s quite
unsettling.”
May stared at her curiously; she found it similar to looking at a mirror. Except, this mirror had
something ‘off’ about it. Duplica returned her gaze and gave a mocking smile. Rather than be
offended, May had shown fear and stepped behind Ash. ‘Unsettling’ is right. she thought to
herself.
“And you certainly don’t go through their things.” Misty added with a growl.
Ms. Ketchum stepped in front of Misty to prevent her from attacking Duplica… like she had just
a few minutes ago. “Duplica?” she stared directly into her eyes.
Duplica turned away. “Yeah?”
“Why did you come here? And why are you dressed like May?”
“Honestly, I thought May was leaving today.” Duplica admitted.
“You were replacing me???” May’s eyes widened in horror. She IS a doppelganger!
Ash calmed May down by pulling her close. …and though that did calm her, it also put the two
of them in a very unfamiliar position. Ash tried his best to ignore it, but May’s suddenly stiff
body was getting warmer by the second.
“That still doesn’t answer anything.” Misty hissed behind Delia.
…
“Just let me go. I won’t bother you anymore, promise.” Duplica bargained.
“Duplica…” Delia sighed.
“Move aside!” a rough voice rang out as each of the girls were being shoved to the side. “If
talking ain’t getting anything done, maybe a kick to the face will!” Angie seemed almost too
eager to play the bad cop.
Duplica sneered. “I’ve worn hair pins that hurt more than anything you can do, kid.”
“K-Kid?!” Angie’s eye twitched. The role of bad cop would no longer be pretend in a few more
seconds.
With a silent nudge, Anabel had moved herself to the front and slid the tomboy out of the way.
“Here. Let me try.”
“Wh-What are you–” Duplica’s face turned into uneasiness. There was something about Anabel
that frightened her.
Anabel placed one hand on her own chest, and the other on Duplica’s. She stared directly into
the copycat’s eyes.
Duplica twitched as if she wanted to look away, but her limbs would only flinch. Her eyes were
completely locked on Anabel’s.
…
…
“She wanted to find out about Empathy…” Anabel let go of Duplica and stepped back.
“Wh-What… What did she-?” The copycat’s tough act fell and became vulnerable in reaction to
the Empathy trainer’s actions.
She wasn’t the only one shocked by the Empathic’s power; each person within the room shared
equal surprise, but none were more impressed than Ash.
How… How did you do that? He sent to Anabel.
Remember that I’ve been an Empathic longer than you have. I may not have been able to learn
Empathy as fast as you have, but I certainly still have more experience with it than you do.
Anabel smiled with shy pride. Being able to read someone’s inner emotions without connection
is just one of the many skills you can learn after mastering Empathy.
Ash was more than impressed, though he wondered if such a skill was comfortable. He wasn’t
sure if he would ever want to know a person’s innermost feelings if he hadn’t made a connection
with them first.
“So what does that have to do with any of this?” Misty broke the silence. “Why not just ask?”
“Because she didn’t think she could.” Anabel turned towards Misty and continued, “She honestly
thought asking about Empathy would have gotten her alienated from the group. She didn’t seem
to want to ruin any friendships by asking.”
“What gave her that idea?” Angie curiously threw in her question.
“It might be her experience with Psychics. They don’t tend to share their knowledge of psychic
powers with strangers.” Anabel had her eyes closed, recalling everything she had felt during her
moment with Duplica. “More than likely she thought we’d treat her similarly.”
“But why all this?” Misty pressed the real question again.
“She–”
“I can talk, too, y’know.” Duplica had interrupted Anabel from continuing her deductions.
…
“…go on, dear.” Delia motioned her to continue.
With a sigh, the copycat trainer spoke, “Look. I can copy, I can act, I can mimic, and I can
pretend. But no matter what I do, I can’t be the person I want to act.
“No matter how much I train; I can’t figure out what the person would really think or really feel.
I can make assumptions, I can make educated guesses, but I can’t ever be sure.” Duplica adjusted
in her seat to make herself comfortable before explaining more, “And when you’re in the theater
business, especially an interactive theater business… that can get problematic, especially if you
happen to insult a patron.”
“Then why –”
“Let me finish. I tried asking Psychics before, but all that did was get me kicked out and locked
out – with a few missing patches in my memories. And trust me… sneaking around a Psychic’s
house would only get you into worse situations.
“Honestly, I don’t know what all this ‘empathy’ business is. I just saw Ash pulling off some
psychic skills during that Tsunami tournament, and I wanted in. I already knew Ash and you
guys well enough – and those I didn’t, I’d just stalk them until I figured them out.” Duplica let
out a laugh that sent chills down May’s spine.
“I figured, hey, if I could get close enough to the gang, maybe I’d figure out how Ash got his
Psychic powers. Because I KNOW he didn’t have those before…” She had suddenly felt unsure
about her statement. “…right?”
“I’m not a Psychic.” Ash stated plainly.
Duplica stood up. “Taurosflakes you’re not! I saw you! Thousands of people saw you! You were
commanding your pokémon without even saying a single word!”
She looked around as if to get a testimony from a fellow witness. “I know something’s going on.
Something after Ash went blind made him get all that psychic wave stuff, right?”
“Is that why you visited my son when he went blind?” Delia seemed offended.
“What?? No! I didn’t even know he turned Psychic then. Was he? … I was just… well, worried.
I like Ash, he’s a good friend.”
There are way too many good friends these days. Misty tossed at Ash.
Ash ignored it and walked towards Duplica. “I’m not a Psychic, Duplica. I’m an Empathic.”
“A what now?”
“An Empathic,” Anabel reentered the conversation, “is one who reads emotions, not minds.”
“Even better!” Duplica exclaimed. “I can get the feel of people right! Get their real attitudes and
quirks! And if I teach it to my dittos, we’d definitely create an unforgettable performance!” She
was staring off into her own imagination.
“You can’t become an Empathic.” Anabel crushed her dreams with a factual statement.
“Let me guess… ‘it’s too great of a responsibility for an amateur to bear.’” Duplica had made a
mocking accent and facial expression to emphasize the ‘importance’ of the phrase. “Hey, I
promise I won’t abuse it, it’s just for my acts!”
“No,” Anabel stated factually again, “you, personally, cannot become an Empathic.”
“What do I need to do to prove myself?”
“You don’t prove anything. You’re just not… right in your heart to ever become Empathic.”
Duplica looked hurt. “What’s wrong with my heart?! Who are you to judge?!”
“Nothing is wrong, it’s just not right. Ash learned to become an Empathic due to his close
relationship with his pokémon – and not just the closeness, but the kind of closeness.
“Ash would die for his pokémon if he had to. Ash would be willing to hurt himself if it were to
save a pokémon. As long as he breathed, he’d love pokémon. As long as he breathed, he’d do his
best for them. He had the right heart. Even May here had the right heart.”
May blinked in surprise. Ash seemed as bewildered as she was.
“Not everyone can be an Empathic.” Anabel continued, “It takes a certain heart – a certain
emotion. A sort of innocence of the spirit, to become an Empathic. It isn’t that you were destined
to never become one, but you yourself would never want to change who you are to become
one.”
Anabel gave a deep sigh. “Tell me – would you lose who you are just for your job?”
“Well…” Duplica considered it.
“Even if it meant you couldn’t be you anymore? Even if it meant that how you treated your
pokémon, how you spent your money, how you viewed others, and how you spent your free time
changed? All just to improve your performance?” the Empathy trainer pushed each question in
front of Duplica like a challenge.
…
“…no. No, I wouldn’t.” The impressionist surrendered.
“To be an Empathic. You have to be someone, not just pretend to be them.” Anabel explained,
“If you changed yourself to become an Empathic, you’d change yourself. Much in the same way
if you changed yourself to be a Psychic. They look at the world differently because of their
powers. Much like Ash and myself do.”
“Then… why does he have it now? Why didn’t he have it before?”
“Even being the person isn’t enough. You have to give yourself to others to become an
Empathic. It takes a certain kind of training to become one – much like how Psychics train.”
Duplica seemed satisfied. “Ah, well, forget it then… sorry to have bothered you al–”
“No no no, you’re not getting away that easy!” Misty stomped towards her and stared her down.
A few hours ago she might have shown defiance, but at her susceptible state Duplica felt the full
effect of Misty’s glare. She shook in fear.
“So Duplica… What were you doing with my stuff?”
“W-Well…” Duplica stuttered. “Y-You write a-about Ash every night in your diary, so I thought I
could find what happened to him in th-there…”
Misty’s angered face shifted into shock. Her face turned pink. She had no idea what to say, do, or
if she should even move from her position. She was far too embarrassed to even break eye
contact with Duplica.
Duplica’s hands were shaking as she reached behind her back and produced a pink diary. She
gestured it towards Misty. “H-Here… s-sorry for taking it.”
With a quick snatch, Misty took her diary and stomped back upstairs. She let out a weak cough
as if to seem distracted by something in her throat rather than what had happened.
…
Everyone seemed to be at a loss for words.
“…can I go now?” Duplica squeaked.
“C-Can you...” May moved closer towards her. “…um… you know.” She motioned at her head.
“Oh, right! Sorry about that.” The copycat removed her wig and accessories, revealing thick
eyebrows and bushy blue hair.
May sighed in relief. Glad that the doppelganger was gone.
“So I can go now, right?” Duplica asked again.
“Go ahead, dear.” Delia added. “But you’re free to stay for dinner if you want.”
The other girls seemed uneasy about the offer. Duplica took notice and shook her head. “No
thanks, Ms. Ketchum. I’ve been gone for too long from my dittos. I have to head back for them.”
“Well alright, dear. Take care now.” Ms. Ketchum opened the door for her and smiled.
“Thanks Ms. K!” Duplica made a quick exit, hoping to free herself from the awkward situation
as soon as possible.
She had almost reached her bike when a voice stopped her in her tracks. “WAIT!”
Oh what now… Duplica’s shoulders slumped.
“Wait.” It was Ash. “I have to ask you something.”
“Go ahead, shoot.”
“Why go through all that trouble?” Ash asked.
“I thought I already explained that.”
“No, I mean…” his voice had become soft. “You’re already a great actress. You fooled everyone
with your costume, and you almost fooled me with your voice this time around. You’re very
talented, Duplica. Why risk yourself on something so… fake, when you’re are a hundred times
better without them?”
Duplica tried holding back a blush and kicked Ash in the knee.
“OW!”
“And you should quit risking your friendships by being so sweet!”
Duplica sighed, shook her head, and placed a hand on his shoulder. “I do it for my work. I love
my work. I would risk life and limb for my work and talents. I guess I’m good, but I want to be
better. I guess I’m great, but I want to be the best. You’d do the same to be a Pokémon
Champion, right?”
“Well yeah…”
“Same here. And like you, I wouldn’t risk changing who I am for that. It wouldn’t be worth it.
Nothing’s worth losing who you truly are. So I guess I’ll quit chasing after those things.
…besides, it’ll be better for my health and popularity. Those Psychics…” Duplica shrugged.
“…they never forget. Haha.”
“Take care of yourself, Duplica.”
“You too, Ash.”
The two approached the other and hugged. The hug lasted longer than the two thought it would,
but it would be a while since they’d see each other again.
After exchanged pats on the shoulder and repeated goodbyes, Duplica finally rode away from
Pallet Town.
I can’t spend my time with “What if”s on you , Mr. Ketchum. You’d be bad for my business…
_________________________________________________________
The party was winding down. Food, conversation, and excitement was had and enjoyed.
It would be a few months before May would be able to visit again, the very fact that kept her
from leaving the Ketchum Residence immediately.
And despite the party slowing, there were still pockets of entertainment to be had in various
portions of the house…
In the dining room, Delia Ketchum was sharing favorite soap operas with Anabel, who had been
writing down each title with excited glee.
In the living room, Angie was yelling in anger at the television as Mr. Mime had pulled off a last
minute aerial counter to ruin her winning streak.
In Ash’s room, a playful Espeon carefully watched a confused Pikachu search underneath piles
of clothes in a long-lasting match of hide-and-seek.
And on the staircase, a victor and loser were found. Misty’s newest deck had completely
destroyed any fight left in May. Her excited gloating had incited the game-exhausted Angie to
challenge her to a match.
Misty had obviously accepted, and a new battle was on its way.
May, on the other hand, was horribly disappointed at her loss – as this would be her last card
battle in a long time, as the game wasn’t popular in Hoenn. …not that she was the type to
challenge random strangers to something as silly as a card game.
She excused herself from the girls’ competition and walked out the front door. Needing fresh air
and lone time to get lost in her thoughts, May took a deep breath and jogged into the open night
air. Her feet shuffled to a stop as she noticed a strange figure huddled in the middle of the dirt
path.
It was Ash.
“Hey Ash, what are you doing out here?” she asked with feelings of curiosity and concern.
The boy didn’t turn her way. His fingers played with the rocks and grass around him as his mind
seemed to be somewhere else entirely. “Oh, hey…” was all that came from his mouth.
May walked up to her friend and sat next to him. “Something wrong?”
“Nah, just thinking…”
“Thinking? About what?” May’s own thoughts suddenly felt insignificant in the face of Ash’s.
Ash was never a thinker, and to see him so lost in thought would give anyone the news that
something terrible had happened.
“It isn’t as bad as you think.” He did a quick tilt of his head towards her as if to signify that he
was pointing at her own thoughts. “Just a lot of things to think about.”
“…like what, exactly?”
“Well…”
…
…
“…Ash?”
“What are you thinking?”
“Hm? I asked you first.” May seemed taken aback.
“Well, what I’m thinking about has something to do with what you came out here for.” Ash
plainly stated. “And I just wanted to know what you really thought about it. Because I really
have no idea what to think about any of this.”
May was surprised. At times she forgot that Ash could feel her out with Empathy. In a way, that
ability still seemed like a myth. To May, only certain people had those kinds of abilities. Special
people. People who lived with it all their lives. And to her, Ash didn’t feel like those people.
…even if it did feel natural for him in his blindness.
“Um…” she started. “I just…” She thought long and hard what to say next. “I’ll miss you.”
“You really want it to end like that?” a statement May never expected to come out of Ash’s
mouth.
“Wh-What?”
“You’re leaving. For months you’ll be gone.” Ash’s voice seemed to become abnormally
serious, “And if you come back and I’m not here? If I moved on? I’ll be gone too. And we won’t
see each other for years.”
She had never thought about it like that. May always thought she would always see Ash again…
but the amount of time never seemed like a problem to her. When she’d start missing him, he’d
just suddenly appear again, like some kind of miracle to answer her prayer. Then just as quickly
as they met, they’d split again.
But that was always okay with her, because they’d meet again. …right?
May took one long look at Ash. Despite it feeling like they never aged, they did. The times they
spent together were almost as if they had frozen in time, but so much happened. And outside of
those moments, time would move again and they’d find each other changing. Ash had changed.
May had changed.
To everyone, Ash would always be a ‘boy’. Just a ‘boy’. But he wasn’t. He was just as old as
Gary, but Gary was a ‘young man’ already in everyone’s eyes. Yet… Ash was the same age…
he just seemed to always stay the same no matter how many years passed.
Her thoughts were fixated on him. This ‘Ash Ketchum’.
Now that she truly looked at him, she realized Ash felt… different. Actually different.
Something she would have never noticed because of how much she had gotten used to him.
Ash was blind; he had a strange scar around his eyes – something she rarely noticed whenever
she looked at him. He looked older. More mature. For the first time in their years together, she
noticed Ash really did look like a ‘young man’. But his behavior always made him seem
eternally young.
Within that moment, May could no longer deny that Ash was aging. And with him, so would
she.
Years is a long time. And they may not see each other for another five years… maybe ten
years… maybe never… Time continued moving forward. And with every moment they split from
one another, the more time seemed to fill before they’d see each other again.
They were growing up. And they would soon grow apart. A thought that had concerned her once
or twice that day, but one she had never fully put full focus on. …and it may have been the
thought that Ash had buried himself in.
Eventually, they’d have more important things to do other than just hanging out. There’d be no
more time for that one day… They’d have other responsibilities, other journeys, other…
relationships…
May’s eyes watered. She remembered that she had dated Drew.
Why did I?? I remember when it was just Ash, me, and the others... it was never about dating or
relationships or anything like that. Love could wait. There was too much to do. Love was too
distracting…
…but I did date Drew… that jerk…
Her emotions sank into a dark corner of her heart and mind. An area that she blocked off and had
forgotten whenever she had spent time with Ash or stood confidently in the Contest stages…
The corner was filled with insecurities, fear, self-loathing, and depression… a deep pit that was
only formed after what Drew had done to her…
… I HATE HIM! May slammed her fist into the ground. Her body began to shake.
Ash’s arms quickly wrapped around her. Her thoughts vanished in an instant. “Ash?”
He answered with a tighter grip.
May blushed softly and relaxed her body.
She felt safe in Ash’s arms. As if nothing would change as long as she was with him.
In her mind, Ash was just another boy. She could date him if she wanted.
In her heart, Ash wasn’t just any boy. She wasn’t sure if she could ever be with Ash in that way.
He was a friend. Her foundation when everything else shattered. Because no matter how much
the world would change, Ash never would. Ash, her always friend.
She laid her eyes on his face. But he does look different. He just… never really feels different.
Ash would always be Ash. No matter how much we change, no matter how much we do, where
we go and what we accomplish, he’d still be Ash…
“…even with your sight gone…” May whispered. “…even with your Empathy, you’re still
Ash…”
“And you’re still May.” he answered.
Her breath was taken away. The world she had built in the time she had spent away from him
had come crumbling down. Despite all she had done and made of herself, despite all that’s
happened to her, despite all of the barriers she had built up, despite all of the walls she had torn
down… Ash still saw her as May. The same May he had travelled with, the same May he had
struggled with, the same May. The May that was… fine.
You really see me, don’t you…?
“I do…”
I thought I changed. I thought I got so much better. So much stronger. But just one look at you
makes me feel like I’m back at square one. A tear ran down May’s cheek. With you still holding
my hand as I learn the basics.
“You have changed. You’ve changed a lot, May… but you’re still you.”
Ash went silent. His mind and thought somewhere else entirely.
For a moment, she had thought she could feel him searching inside her. His emotions flowing
and exploring her every crack and passage… for the moment she had imagined it, she had felt
perfectly safe… as if he knew how to fix her.
“…what Drew did to you was horrible. He should have never done that.”
May broke. She turned and clawed at his vest. She started screaming and sobbing, beating into
Ash’s chest as hot tears rained from her eyes. “I – I HATE HIM!!! I HATE HIM SO
MUCH!!!!”
Her cries paused. Her hands firmly gripped his shoulders, strong shoulders.
Stopping any thought from continuing, May found her lips on Ash’s.
…
…
May pulled away. Her eyes and mind in a fuzz. The moment had frozen her every thought, and
she could have sworn that she had stopped breathing and that her heart had stopped beating.
But now that she had broken away from it… she felt like she had broken an unbreakable law.
Like she had destroyed a barrier she had never thought existed. She had done the impossible…
something she should have never done…
She… kissed Ash.
“…Ash…”
“…May…”
“… I’m… sorry.” She leaned her head against his chest. “I just…”
His hands slowly ran through her hair. Ash…
“I don’t want to change, Ash… I don’t want to be away from all this.
“I want to always be May. The May you see…
“I don’t like the May out there… she feels alone, she feels scared… she lies to herself and others
just to stay sane. She keeps winning just to keep people happy, just to prove she exists.
“But here… I know I exist here.” Her hand held Ash’s. “You can see me.”
“May…”
“You don’t have to say anything… we don’t have to change… not yet… not now… We can just be
us. We can just be us for now. I want to remember us like this.”
May sat straight up and smiled. “We’ll hold everything off for next time, Mr. Ketchum.”
She grabbed his wrist and wrapped her fingers around his. “There will be a next time. I know it.
I’ll be back. We’ll meet again. You’ll still be Ash. And I’ll still be May. …but for now, we have
to do what we promised ourselves we would do, right?”
Ash smiled at her. “Right.”
With a pat on his shoulder, May stood and helped Ash up. “Can you help me with the bags when
the taxi gets here?”
“Sure thing.” Ash cracked his back and loosened his legs, trying to rid of the dull pain that was
running through them. “And… May?”
Her heart skipped a beat. “Yeah?”
“You can do it.”
May admired Ash’s face one more time before answering. “You can too, Ash.”
The two walked into the house in silence and were greeted with invitations to the last songs of a
karaoke game.
Ash and May sang, played, and competed throughout the rest of the night. Not as a boy and girl
that had a moment, but as Ash and May – friends that had more than just a moment in time
together.