A loud, shrill, giggle cut through his day dreams and he blinked, glancing around the area he was in to pin point where it came from. From his bench in front of the Ferris wheel he could see everyone in line and everyone coming and going from the area. It was he favorite place to think or just relax. The memories this place held for him were bitter for the most part but there were a few good intermingled in the bad. It was where he had the most memories of him.

He let his mind wander again, remembering. This was the place they'd had their first date. The place where they'd meet up when they had free time. It was also the place where they'd said goodbye. He smiled sadly at that particular memory.

- - -

"I'm leaving, Touya."

He glanced away from the view of the city to stare at the male next to him. Leaving? For a moment the words confused him but once they settled into his mind they felt like lead weights in his stomach.

"...Leaving? I don't understand."

The other let out a quiet sighed, as if bracing himself to say something that was difficult. Touya held his breathe, praying that this was just a simple trip to another city.

"Leaving Unova. I'm going to travel to the other regions. Learn what I can about their pokemon."

"I...see." Touya mumbled. "...When do you think you'll be back...?"

"I don't know. Possibly a few months, possibly never."

By now the car was descending and he knew the ride would be over soon. It would all be over soon. They didn't say anything else as the car came to a gentle stop and one of the workers opened the doors. Both of them rose and exited the car slowly. They moved out of the way of the next set of riders and made their way over to one of the benches across from the ride.

Touya pulled up all of his courage. He knew this was going to be hard for N as well as himself. Neither of them wanted to make this worse than it needed to be. He tilted his head up to stare directly into the others face, putting on a brave smile.

"I'm guessing that you're leaving immediately. Want to get started and all."

The taller nodded, leaning down to press a kiss to Touya's forehead. "Goodbye, Touya. I hope we meet again in the future."

And with that he turned, stuffed his hands into his pockets, and walked away. And the only thing Touya could do was watch. He didn't want to be selfish and beg him to stay. He was happy that the other was going off to chase his dreams like Touya wished he was brave enough to do. He was too tied to this region to just up and leave. He had his pokemon to take care of. And his friends. He couldn't leave them.

But as the other walked away he desperately wished he could run after him. Go with him. Leave this place and travel the world with him. But instead he stayed where he was, wondering if this hallow ache in the bit of his stomach would be with him for the rest of his life.

"...I love you."

- - -

A flash of a familiar color out of the corner of his eye caught his attention once more, ripping him out of the memory and back into the real world. He turned his head to confirm that his mind was playing tricks on him and caught sight of what had caught his attention.

His breath was caught in his throat as he took in the sight of the familiar figure. It couldn't be...could it..? No. It didn't seem possibly. Had he actually come back after all of this time? It took him three whole seconds to remember that he needed to breathe and another two seconds for him to start to rise.

It was then that his eyes slid past the other male to the woman standing next to him, beaming up at him with sparkling eyes. Her hand was linked with his and they were both smiling.

He didn't think it was possible to experience so many emotions in such a short span of time. In the span of ten seconds he felt surprise, disbelief, joy, realization, jealously, and finally grief.

His heart felt like it had shattered again, leaving him with that hallow feeling once more. He was back but he was with someone else. A million questions buzzed through his mind, circling around like birds of prey.

It would only hurt worse to go over there and make small talk with him and his new significant other. What if he didn't even remember him? Worse yet, what if he did? What if he told him all about the adventures he and his girlfriend had been on. He didn't think he could handle it.

He stayed where he was, staring sadly over at the man that had haunted his thoughts for years. He couldn't go over there. He couldn't let him know that he was here. That he saw him. That he still cared after all these years. That it hurt to see him now. After a few moments of watching the other he took a step back, fully intent on leaving and not looking back.

It was in the moment that N's eyes slid away from the woman next to him to meet Touya's. They widened a fraction in surprise as he took in the sight of the other. Touya gave him a small, sad, smile then turned and walked away.

A/N: This is suuuper short but I just couldn't think of anything to pad it with. I really love this pairing, even if I can't seem to write anything happy with them. This is the first of many, many, one-shots I'm thinking about writing. I hope you enjoyed it!