AN: Again, I don't own any of the characters or settings described in this piece, they all belong to their original creators and respective companies etc. etc. I'm not going to make any money from this, I'm just a humble FanFic writer. Now that's out of the way, I am proud to introduce the second and final part to my first proper piece of writing. Overall I'm pretty proud of it, but please read on and tell me what you honestly think!
His eyes widened as she placed her lips gently against his cheek. He didn't know what he'd been expecting, but it certainly wasn't this. She was already halfway down the path leading from his door before he could react. He took a step forward as if to call after her, but decided against it. He rested his shoulder against the door frame, watching as she almost ran back to her house. He brought a hand up to his face, barely touching the place where she'd kissed him. He slowly turned around and closed the door.
"Who was that?" Tracey asked inquisitively, obviously a little suspicious that the Professor had chosen to answer the door himself.
"Just a door-to-door salesman. Wanted me to buy some kind of Beedrill repellent. I sent him on his way." Samuel answered, nodding his head as a sign that that was all he that needed to be said on the matter.
The boy looked after the man sceptically, knowing it was best not to press the matter, or try and disturb him for the next few hours, seeing as he'd gone into the study and shut the door. Whoever had been at the door, they certainly hadn't just been peddling bug spray. Tracey shook his head slightly, heading out back to finish the feeding. He allowed himself just one more glance at the study. The door was still firmly closed.
Inside the study Samuel was sat in an armchair facing the window, studying the sun as it traced towards the west, over the hills outside of Pallet, and towards the ocean. A slight breeze was coming in, ruffling the end of his lab coat. Taking a deep breath he reached into a desk draw, pulling out a sketchbook and pencil. In his younger days he'd sketched prolifically, but now he was a researcher it had become more of a hobby.
Carefully he etched an outline of the scene, deftly taking the horizon from the window to the page. The rolling fields were next, and then the houses. He paused when he reached the Ketchums', exhaling and looking up from his work. Finally he let his mind wander; he knew exactly where it would go. Try as he might to distract himself, he soon found his mind's eye focused on Delia. She was a good neighbour; always bringing meals for Tracey and him, and she was a good companion too. He couldn't really think of anyone he'd rather take with him when he went to see Gary and Ash compete. 'A happy coincidence she's Ash's mother.' he thought wryly.
He'd never really thought much of it before, but then she turned up at his doorstep; visibly confused, just to thank him? It didn't really add up. And then there was that kiss. Were kisses ever just neighbourly? Of course friends kissed; but where was the line between friendly and something else? All these questions without any answers. He rubbed his temples in an attempt to relax his ideas, forcing himself to concentrate on his drawing.
It wasn't long before his mind returned to the previous topic. What could she see in him anyway? He was just the old professor next door: widowed and honestly too eccentric to ever be anything but a friend. The idea of him and Delia had crossed his mind a couple of times, but he had told himself such thoughts were bound to crop up when you knew someone as long as they'd known each other; he'd certainly never even dreamed of acting on them.
He stood once more and sat on the windowsill, the sketch long since forgotten, running a hand through his hair as if that could simply brush off all the emotions he now felt. Suddenly Delia's flustered behaviour made a lot of sense, as well as making absolutely no sense at all. Where had this come from? What was she really trying to say? He could write a several-thousand word dissertation on Pokémon behaviour but one simple human act had him more confused than he could ever remember. He sat and lamented for a while, questions and answers swirling around and around his head until he felt numb.
He'd known Delia for decades, and it was true they'd gotten closer over the last few months, but could it be possible they saw each other in 'that' way? He wasn't sure they could ever 'just be friends' now. Equally he wasn't sure if he was reading into things too much. He didn't like being so uncertain of things, but at the same time his nature as a scientist was soon getting the better of him, a desire to 'experiment' forming in his chest.
The sun was low in the sky by the time he had made his decision. He went back into the corridor, calling out to Tracey that he was going out, and wasn't sure when he was going to be back, and also that it would probably be a good idea to eat without him. He didn't bother waiting for a reply; hurriedly closing the front door and setting off down the path in the direction of the Ketchum residence.
Delia was still sat on the sofa, watching the sun finally set, wiping her eyes occasionally. She'd calmed down some, although she was still unsure if she'd ever be able to face Samuel again after the way she had behaved.
The knock that came at the door was soft, measured. Delia sniffed as she got up and ran her hands down her clothes. She hadn't noticed before but she still had her apron on. Tentatively she opened the door, putting on a façade of a smile so as not to upset her guest. It was Samuel, stood looking rather nervous. She glanced to the floor when she saw who it was.
Samuel stared at Delia, her makeup smudged as if she'd been crying. He'd never been great with words, so he simply put his arms around her, pressing her body tight against his. In that moment, everything seemed so much clearer. She was warm, and he felt her fingers tighten on the edge of his coat as she dug her head deeper into his chest, as if she was afraid he might disappear. He rested his head on top of hers, their combined shadows stretching as the sun eventually disappeared completely, the sky steadily fading from orange to velvet blue.
Delia lifted her head slightly, not entirely sure what she should say or do, but the genuine care in Samuel's special, lop-sided smile that she loved so much made things easier, the words forming in an instant:
"Can we just… take things slow?" she asked; eyes suddenly wide with possibility, she hadn't felt feelings like this for many years.
"Of course," Samuel's smile turned into a full-blown grin, wiping any sadness from Delia's thoughts, "Would you care to join me for dinner sometime?" he said.
She nodded and replied: "When?"
He chuckled, the sound floating throughout the entire house, his tongue sticking out of the corner of his mouth, pulling back so he could look at her face.
"When do you think you could bring over a salad?"
THE END
AN: As always, my gratitude to my BetaReader knows no bounds, as I would never have had the drive to write this if she hadn't poked me back into the FanFiction ring in the first place. I've got a few more ideas for stories to write in the near future, but right now I think I'm going to take a short break from Eldershipping and write a short piece of something different. Thank you for reading, and please review if you've got the time as it'll help this fledgling writer greatly.
-Solent