Hello, my avid and faithful readers! Welcome to the official first Sunsetshipping date!

I know, I know, it's two days late! But unfortunately, some...events happened *cough* seeing Star Wars Episode VII *cough* and I wasn't able to post this on Monday. I didn't find the time to yesterday, either, unfortunately. But now I've found the time to finally post this!

The tone and writing overall may be a little choppy, but either way, I'm proud of this piece of work. I hope I can write a few more "dates" like these as Best Wishes progresses, such as one where they reach Virbank City or maybe the Unova League. Only time will tell, though.

WARNING: To any new readers, this is a Sunsetshipping one-shot (Alice [my OC] and Cilan). You may want to read what I have so far of Best Wishes just so you don't get confused, but that's your call. If you don't want to, I totally understand.

Disclaimer: I do NOT own Pokémon, and never will. However, I do own my character Alice, but nothing else.

~A Tasteful First Date~

"Would you like to accompany me for a day in Nimbasa City? Just the two of us?"

"Y-y-you mean, like a d-date...?!"

"Yes. Well, would you? Please?"

"Uh... Y-yeah, sure, why not?"

The scene keeps replaying over and over in my mind as I scrub my teeth with a sharp bristled toothbrush. I'm brushing so hard my gums feel raw.

"Pika pi?"

Pikachu sits beside the sink, watching me. The expression on his face doesn't show much encouragement.

I spit out the toothpaste—this is the third time I've brushed my teeth in the past ten minutes—and place my hands under the running faucet. Water pours into the cup my palms form, and I lift it to my mouth, tilting my head back. I feel the cool liquid slosh around in my mouth before spitting it back into the sink.

As I grab the nearby towel, Pikachu looks at me. "Pika, pikachu."

I wipe my mouth and stare at him. "Sorry, buddy, but I'm a little busy. This is my first date, you know. I gotta look...presentable, at least."

"Pika pika."

I look at my reflection in the mirror. I try to smooth down my messy hair, but it shoots right back up, sticking out in every direction. After a few more attempts, I give up and move away from the mirror.

Taking a deep breath, I turn to Pikachu. "Well? How do I look?"

He stares at me as I tug down on my blue skirt. He motions to his shoulders while looking at me, so I take off my blue jacket, revealing the sparkling black tank top underneath. Exposing my shoulders leaves a dark blush spread out across my face.

"Better?"

"Pika," he says, nodding.

I straighten the white hat on my head, in an attempt to control my mop of black hair, and walk out of the bathroom, Pikachu at my heels.

"Iris?" I call as I reach our assigned Pokémon Center room. "Could you watch Pikachu and the others for me today?"

Axew popping out of her huge purple ponytail, she gives me a quizzical look. "Why?"

I blush fiercely as I explain, "Uh, well, I'm going out with—uh, I mean, I'm going to explore the—no, that's not right—"

"C'mon, Alice, spit it out," she chides. "Tell me why."

"...Cilan and I are going on a date..."

Her eyes grow to the size of Poké Balls. "A date?! An actual date?!"

My face feels scorched, so I bury it in my hands. "Please, Iris, don't make this any harder—"

"Harder?" She raises her eyebrow at me. "What's so hard about it? It's obvious you like him, so what's the problem?"

I look up from my hands and give her that look—the kind of look Mom gave me back in Kanto when I stole freshly-baked cookies from the platter as a child and then later lied about it. The kind of look that says, That's the best you can come up with? That's all you've got to say?

But she just rolls her eyes. "Oh, you're such a kid! You're seriously worried he doesn't like you back?!"

"Love is really complicated when you get older, Iris," I tell her, moving my hands from my burning face. "It's not all flowers and hearts and forever, like people tell you. It has more depth than that."

"Uh-huh, okay. Now, you wanted me to look after your Pokémon?"

I nod and unclip my Poké Balls from my belt. I leave the empty ones on there, though, just in case I meet a new Pokémon on my date.

"Pikachu," I whisper, kneeling down to my baby, "you be good for Iris, okay? I promise, I'll be back soon."

I place a kiss on his yellow forehead, and he nuzzles against my cheek affectionately. It hurts to part ways with him, but I have no choice. I need to be alone for a little bit.

Maybe I should contact Misty. Or May, or maybe Dawn. They'd know what to do, since they're so attached to Tracey, Drew and Paul.

Or maybe I should contact Bianca. What—! No, what would she know about relationships?! Maybe Georgia...if she didn't hate mine and Iris's guts. Maybe Burgundy, but she hates me, too.

These thoughts race frantically through my mind as I make my way down the stairs to the main lobby of the Pokémon Center. I chew on my bottom lip, my heart pounding in my chest so hard I think it might burst.

I can't do this. I can't go down there and face him.

Yes, you can! another voice screams in my head. You're Alice Ketchum, the girl who can take anything that's thrown in her path!

...Except relationships and complicated feelings.

No! Don't think like that! You can do this!

"I can do this," I whisper to myself, stopping halfway down the stairs as I shut my eyes. "I can do this!"

"...Do what, Alice?"

A shriek rips through my throat, and my eyes shoot open to see Cilan standing at the bottom of the staircase. His emerald eyes, those eyes I've fallen in love with, glimmer with confusion and concern.

"Oh, n-noth-nothing," I stutter, walking down the rest of the stairs. My cheeks feeling scorched, I force my blue eyes to meet his. "Uh, y-you ready...?"

He probably can sense I'm too nervous to keep talking, because he doesn't press me to speak again. "Only if you are," he replies, holding out his hand.

A new wave of blood surges into my cheeks, giving them a sickly red color as I reach out and place my hand in his. He closes his fingers over it gently, giving it a light squeeze.

"So, where shall we go first?"

His question makes me jolt in surprise. "Uh, I...I'm choosing?"

"Of course. Where would you like to go?"

My eyes trail up to the ceiling, my mind searching for a location to go to. "Well..."

"You know, you really didn't have to say you wanted to come here, Alice."

I shake my head, waving my hands. "No, it's okay. I wanted to come here."

He raises his eyebrow at me, like he doesn't believe me, but I can see the excitement in the smile he sends my way. "Well, if you're sure..."

The train pulls to a stop at the Anville Town train station. Yes, I figured we'd go to Anville Town, since it's one of Cilan's favorite places around the area, and it has a cute little ice cream shop, like the one in Nimbasa City.

The doors slide open, and the two of us walk out. Well, Cilan kind of runs out, but still, I'm happy he looks like he's enjoying himself. I'd hate to be the reason if our date turns out to not be that great.

He runs over to the railing, where the turntable with the many trains lies below. I run over next to him, my arm brushing up against his as I lean down to view the trains under us.

"Just like before, it's a Metro Connoisseur's dream to be here!" he gasps dreamily.

"What's that one called?" I ask him, pointing to the gray train in the shed off to the side of the turntable.

Immediately, he jumps into "Metro Connoisseur" mode and begins explaining: "It's called a Single Train. It's the oldest train in the Battle Subway, and known for running on the Tubeline Bridge. And that one," he says, pointing to the white train in the shed next to the Single Train, "is called a Super Single Train."

"What's the difference between a Single Train and a Super Single Train?" I ask him, tilting my head to the side.

"A Super Single Train is environmentally friendly," he answers, looking at the shed below with illuminating emerald eyes, "and made from revised parts to reduce power consumption drastically!"

"Wow... And that one?" I point to a white car with a thick orange stripe across the side.

"That's a Super Multi Train," he tells me. "It's equipped with an ATO system, just like the ones in the Nimbasa Subway System, and has exceeding acceleration! It's the latest train car yet!"

I bite my lip to hold back a giggle. He's just so cute right now, I could kiss him! "You really know your stuff, huh?"

He smiles proudly at me. "Well, a Metro Connoisseur has to be up-to-date on his knowledge, you know."

Later, the two of us are perched on a bench near the railing, holding and eating strawberry ice cream cones. We still have a pretty clear view of the rail yard and shed, but our attention's not focused on that right now.

"Okay, it's my turn," Cilan says, those emerald eyes burning into mine. "Which type of question should I ask you now?"

We're playing some kind of question game, similar to truth or dare, just minus the "dare" part.

...Yeah, I know, it's a childish game that Iris would totally chide us for playing, but you know what? Forget it, we're on a date!

I'm silent for a moment before I take another bite of my ice cream. "Any kind o question," I finally answer. "Your choice. Ask me anything."

"What's your full name?"

The question catches me off guard, and I freeze, feeling the cold ice cream melt away in my mouth.

"My full name?"

"Your first full name."

"...It's Alice. You know that."

He shakes his head. "I know you well enough to know Alice isn't your full name. Every time you introduce yourself to someone, your voice stops short, like you're holding yourself back from finishing your first name. It's a nickname—it's short for something else, but what?"

I should've known better than to hide something like that from him. After all, he's a Detective Connoisseur, too.

My cheeks grow warm again as I answer, "...Alison."

His eyes meet mine, and they're filled with genuine surprise. "Alison?"

"Y-yeah, Alison's my full name." My eyes drop to the ground, my cheeks getting hotter by the second. "I don't like telling so many people about it, though. Only my mom's allowed to call me that, but when she does," I chuckle nervously, "it's usually when I'm in trouble."

"...I like it."

I meet his eyes once more. "You do?"

He nods and takes another bite of his ice cream. "It suits you—the perfect blend of a sweet and soft name to match your hot and spicy personality."

...Okay then...

"If you say so," I tell him, shrugging. "Just don't use it too often. It'll get annoying after a while."

"As you wish, Alison," he says, winking. Another wave of blushes makes its way to my cheeks. "Your turn."

"Okay."

I stop and think for a minute. What's a good question to ask him...? Something about relationships...for future reference...! ...I've got it!

"Tell me about your first kiss."

His own cheeks are slightly tinted with a pink color at the question. "...M-my first kiss?"

"Yeah. I mean, you're really handsome, so you must've had one or two girlfriends in the past, right?"

Where in the sweet name of Arceus did that come from?!

The words pour out of my mouth so easily I don't even have time to register what I said. But when I realize I've said the h-word in his presence, my cheeks become redder than a Darumaka's pelt.

But he doesn't seem to notice or acknowledge it, which makes me feel relieved yet sad, and looks up to the sky. "Well, you're correct about a past girlfriend." His emerald eyes flash with seemingly bittersweet memories. "Her name was Raven." *

"...Raven?"

He nods, his eyes meeting the ground. "Yes, Raven. She was, well, how can I describe her? She was...peerless, to put it nicely."

I blink twice in confusion and tilt my head. "Peerless?"

"It means unique, or unparalleled," he explains. "She couldn't be compared to anyone else—she had that special ingredient you can't find normally."

"...Oh." I'm starting to regret asking him about this. I stare at my strawberry ice cream for a minute. "Why did you break up?"

"...She became too possessive of me," he finally answers. "She always demanded to know where I was, or what I was doing. She lost her mind whenever I was with someone else or alone." He shudders slightly at the memories. "Not my type of recipe at all."

While his eyes are glued to the ground, I scoot over to him and place my hand near his leg. Half of me says to lean over and kiss him, or make some sort of affectionate gesture, but the other half tells me I shouldn't.

"It's okay," I finally whisper, reaching up and setting my hand on his knee. "If you ever want to talk, I'm here for you."

He looks up and over to me, a small smile glazed onto his face. "Thank you, Alice."

"No problem. Now, it's your turn to ask me something."

He nods, but after a moment, his face grows genuinely curious. "A few days ago, when Bianca's father came to bring her back home with him, you confronted him. But you'd told him you never had any experience with a father of your own."

"...You really like all these personal questions, don't you?"

It's his turn to blush and turn away. "Oh, well, I just thought—"

"No, no, it's okay." I hold up my hand and shake it. "It doesn't bother me that much," I chuckle nervously. "It's just...the subject makes me a little uncomfortable, since I never knew my dad. Mom never really talked about him, so I never asked."

His hand rests on my shoulder, and a new wave of blushes make its home on my cheeks. "I understand. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to." When I merely stare at him, not knowing what to say, he laces his arm around my neck gently. "I'm here for you, as well."

I close my eyes and snuggle into his chest, feeling the warmth radiate off of him. "Thanks, Cilan. You're a good friend, you know?"

"Okay, now you pick the place."

The two of us are now back in Nimbasa City, wandering the streets. My hand frequently brushes up against his as we walk next to each other.

He suddenly takes my hand in his and leads me away from the busy streets. Redness and heat swamp my face and neck, but I follow him as he walks away towards a less-busy area of the city. Tightening his grip on my hand, he leads me out of the city and onto a dirt path outside.

"Here we are." He suddenly smiles and lets go of my hand. "Close your eyes."

I place my hands over my eyes, but then feel his own hands covering up mine. I hope he doesn't notice the intense heat radiating off my face.

He starts walking straight ahead, an I don't have much of a choice than to follow him. I try my hardest to keep my balance, but it's a little hard, since he's directly behind me.

"Okay, open them."

After I feel his hands lift off of mine, I peel my hands off of my eyes and blink. What I see causes a surprised gasp to rip through my throat.

A beautiful forest with abundant trees stands in front of me. Colorful berries are scattered among the leaves on the trees, and a clear blue waterfall rests to my right. The water that slides down from the waterfall forms a pretty blue river as shiny as crystals. Stretched out over the river is a wooden bridge.

I want to speak, but no words come out. I just stand there, like an idiot.

"This is Lostlorn Forest," Cilan whispers, wrapping his arm around my shoulders. "It's supposedly an abundant area shrouded in mystery. At least, that's what Elesa told me." I raise my eyebrow and stare into those bright emerald eyes of his. "When you and Pikachu had run off after defeating Elesa two days ago, I had asked her for suggestions of places to bring someone I truly cared about." My cheeks grow even darker at his words, but I try to take no notice. "And of course, she mentioned Lostlorn Forest."

"It's beautiful," I finally whisper, my eyes roaming around the magnificent scenery.

Immediately, I feel giddy and excited, just like a child. I run to the bridge and cross it, not wasting a second. Once I'm past the bridge, I wave my arms over to my date.

"Come on!"

I don't wait for him to answer, though, and run over to the nearest tree. Without wasting another millisecond, I grip the rough bark and pull myself upwards. I'm able to scale the tree a few feet before calling back down to him.

"You've gotta come up here! I bet the view is amazing from the top!"

His soft chuckle fills the air as he steps closer to the tree. "Sorry to disappoint you, but I don't do well with climbing trees. I'm a city boy at heart, you know."

With a roll of my eyes, I grip the next branch and swing myself onto it. "You'll miss out on all the fun~!"

But as I pull myself up to the next branch, my foot slips, and my leg sinks down. A small shriek escapes my lips as I grip the branch for dear life.

"Alice!" Cilan steps closer to the tree, his eyes filled with worry. "Are you okay?"

I swing my legs up and over the tree branch, so I'm sitting on it. With a sigh, I yell back down, "I'm okay! No need to worry—AH!"

The branch suddenly snaps, and it tumbles down, along with me. The two of us crash into Cilan, and land in a small pile on the grass-infested ground. Moaning in pain, I sit up, rubbing my head.

"Ugh, that hurt," I mutter, running my hand through my hair.

On the ground, Cilan groans lightly. "I agree. Next time, be more careful," he whispers, closing his eyes.

With another look his way, I settle myself on the ground and place my head next to his. My hair touches his lightly, sending waves of heat to my face. We're so close, I could just lean over and kiss him.

"What was that, Alice?"

I nearly kick myself when I realize I must've said those words out loud.

"N-nothing," I stutter, frantically trying to change the subject. My face is scorched with hot blushes, but I keep my gaze fixed on the pale red sky above us. "It's already sunset?"

"It is. It's amazing how time flies, isn't it?"

"I guess so."

"...I've always liked the sunset," he murmurs after a moment.

I raise my eyebrow and turn my head slightly. "Why? It signals the end of the day."

He meets my eyes, and I can almost see my reflection in those emerald orbs, which makes my heart nearly stop. "It ensures a new day in the morning," he whispers, reaching up and touching my burning cheek lightly with his hand. "It promises an abundance of fruitful adventures and excitement."

I shrug, trying to ignore the furious blushes that swamp my cheeks. "If you say so, I guess." I turn my head upwards and stare at the sky.

The faintest of white specks start twinkling in the red pool, the dying sun shining over us. Its last rays shine brightly before settling in for the night.

"Red skies are so pretty after it rains, aren't they?" Beside me, Cilan nods. "But it's sad when they're like that."

"How so?" he questions, his voice damp with curiosity.

"When it rains," I explain, smiling up above, "it's like the world is upset. The sky's pretty after it rains, though, because it's a nice red color, but it reminds me of red eyes after crying."

He's quiet for a moment before responding, "I've never thought about it that way. Where did you hear that?"

I shrug again, feeling the redness in my face increase. "It just came to me, that's all."

The two of us lay there in the soft grass for a few minutes, resting in total silence. His soft breathing is like music to my ears—low music that nearly sends me into a deep slumber.

"It's getting late," he finally murmurs, sitting up. "We should start heading back to Nimbasa City."

With a huff, I pull myself up and stand, brushing stray grass blades off of my outfit. "You're right..."

I guess this is the end of our date, I realize with a deflating feeling in my chest. But I can't complain—it was fun, with stops in Anville Town and Lostlorn Forest.

When he stands up, the two of us make our way towards the wooden bridge stretched out across the river. We're halfway through it when suddenly, Cilan stops in his tracks

"Wait up, Alice."

I turn my head over my shoulder and meet his bright emerald orbs. "What?"

"This date isn't over just yet," he says, smiling as he steps closer to me. He reaches over and gently takes my hand in his, squeezing it slightly. "I have one more thing planned for our special evening."

The way he says special makes my heart flutter. What else does he have up his sleeve?

"It's beautiful," I whisper, pressing my hand against the glass window.

The two of us now sit across from each other in a small Poké Ball car on the Nimbasa City Ferris Wheel. The moon now shines brightly in the black sky, surrounded by tiny white specks. The bright lights of the city illuminate the buildings and small skyscrapers in the darkness, giving it that busy-city look.

"I'm glad you like it," Cilan chuckles, smiling at me.

I turn away from the window and place my hands in my lap. As I wrap them around each other nervously, I try to find the right words to speak what's been buzzing in my mind:

Do you like me the way I like you?

But I can't just blurt out the question like that; I have to work my way around it—try to be oblivious to it. But when I open my mouth to speak, my lips become dry and my throat becomes sore. I'm a complete mess.

Suddenly, he reaches over and places his hand on my shoulder. For a moment, I'm certain he'll lean in for a kiss (the thought sends my heart into a frenzy), but I calm down slightly inside once I see his lips aren't aimed at mine, but my cheek.

He presses them against my cheek tenderly, and I try to ignore the heat that rises up from my face. When he pulls away, I feel his hot breath lingering at my ear.

"Je t'aime, ma chère. Mon meilleur ami, mon doux ange." **

I jolt in surprise and stare at him when he pulls away. "What did you say?" I may be able to understand some of the small, easy words Burgundy speaks sometimes, but I can't translate full sentences like that.

He merely smiles and winks at me. "I'll tell you when the time is right," he answers with an almost-cheeky smile.

My red cheeks puff out into a pout as I cross my arms over my chest. "And when will that be?"

"Soon, ma chère," he whispers with a kiss on my forehead. "I promise."

* This is an inside joke. My first OC for this story was actually a girl named Raven, and she was going to accompany Ash and Pikachu with her Pikachu named Sparky and Umbreon named Dark Angel. It wasn't until I'd created Alice I decided to scrap Raven and just replace Ash with Alice. But just as an inside joke to myself, you'll see some references to Raven in the main story, as well as future one-shots like this one.

** Translation: I love you, my darling. My best friend, my sweet angel.

Okay, I'm kinda squealing inside. Not only was this fun to write, but Sunsetshipping has advanced so much (to me, anyway) since Chapter 5 of Best Wishes! It's clear Alice and Cilan are a little bit more than friends, but it'll be a while before they're an official couple. ;)

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed reading this! And by the way, Best Wishes returns on January 22nd, with Genesect and the Legend Awakened coming in February!

Bye! I love each and every one of you!