Chapter 13 Christmas Eve

After cuddling up on the sofa some more, it was time to go home. So Ash led May to the door and walked her home. When they reached her front door, she leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek.

"I'll see you later Ash." She said and he smiled at her as she walked in. He stood there for a moment, then smiled for himself and walked home.

The next morning, Ash came up to his mother.

"Hey Mom?"

"Yes Ash?"

He blushed and fidgeted a little.

"Well… since Christmas is in a few days, I was thinking… would it be okay if May and her family would come over for Christmas Eve Dinner? They're still relatively new to the neighborhood so I thought we could have them over."

She smiled at him.

"That's very sweet of you Ash. I'd love to have them over for Christmas Dinner. I would also like to meet this mystery girl of yours…" she finished slyly which made him blush. She laughed.

"I'm just teasing you Ash. Can you call them and invite them over?"

"Sure Mom." He said and walked out of the room.

He walked up to his room and shut the door. He sat on his bed and took out his phone from his pocket and dialed May's number. As he was waiting for her to pick up, Pikachu lay down on his lap and Ash started rubbing him behind his ears. Suddenly, May answered.

"Hello?" she asked.

"Hey May." He said.

"Hey Ash, what's up?"

Ash blushed at this.

"Well, I was thinking… since it's almost Christmas and you and your family are still new to the neighborhood, I thought maybe you guys would like to come over for Christmas Dinner…"

Unbeknownst to him, May smiled on the other side of the line.

"I'd love to Ash, but I need to ask my parents first. Can you hold on a sec?"

"Sure." Said Ash and waited for May to return. He could hear sounds of running down the stairs and assumed May was in her room when he called. He could hear some chatter in the background, followed by a cheerful squeal and knew what the answer was based on May's reaction.

She darted up the stairs and spoke into the phone again before making it to the top.

"Hey Ash, guess what? We're coming over for Christmas dinner!" she said excitedly. He smiled warmly.

"That's wonderful. Six o'clock then?" he suggested.

"Six it is." She said sweetly.

"Great. I'll see you soon then." He said happily.

"Not if I see you first." She said and with a giggle, she hung up the phone.

Ash cheered under his breath.

"Ha, ha… alright…" he said happily. This got Pikachu's attention and he sat up.

"Pi? Pika?"

Ash smirked at him.

"Haven't you heard? May is coming over for Christmas Dinner!" announced Ash and Pikachu cheered with delight.

"Pika!" he beamed and Ash stated to rub his chin, causing them both to roll in laughter.

The next few days went by slowly. The two kids could not wait to see each other again for Christmas Eve. Sure enough, the time has arrived.

Ash's house was buzzing with activity and the house was filled with delicious aromas. Delia, really outdid herself this time. There were smells of a roasted turkey stuffed with potatoes and ground beef, potato pie, pumpkin pie, steamed rice and various other things of the sort. Soon it was dark and it was almost six o'clock. At six o'clock precisely, the doorbell rang and Ash ran to open it. At the entrance stood the Maple family. In front of him stood Norman and Caroline and of course, their daughter and his girlfriend, May. He smiled warmly at her. She looked beautiful this evening. She was wearing a light blue dress with a royal blue ribbon near the collar and a yellow flower in her hair along with a coat over it. Ash could feel his cheeks turn red in seconds.

She giggled at his reaction while sporting her own blush.

"Well? Aren't you gonna invite us in Ash?"

It took Ash a while to snap out of his trance.

"Hmm…? Oh yeah, sorry. Come in guys." He beamed happily and stood aside to let them in. May smiled sweetly at him as she passed by him, while her parents watched them, finding the scene rather cute indeed. Once the introductions were made and gifts were exchanged, they sat by the living room for a while before eating. The adults, talked about various things, while Ash and May sat beside each other with a blush. Seeing how beautiful she looked in her dress, Ash had to say something.

"You look beautiful in that dress May. More than usual I mean."

Her face turned a deeper shade of crimson red at his words but smiled shyly at him with a small smile.

"Thanks Ash. You look great too…" she said softly. Now it was his turn to blush. Ash had forgotten that he also was dressed up for the evening, so returning the compliments was in order. He was wearing dark blue pants and button down shirt along with black shoes to go with it.

May laughed slightly at his reaction to her compliment. Soon he joined the fun. They sat there for a while, smiling warmly at each other while looking at each other's eyes.

Soon it was time to eat. After the grace was made and everything was set, they began with a hot bowl of chicken soup. It was most delicious indeed.

After some time Delia spoke.

"So when did you guys move in from the Hoenn region?"

"Just before the start of the year." Said Caroline.

"What's it like there?"

"Very sunny. A lot of green."

"Sounds lovely. I deal in gardening, if you want I could help you set up a wonderful yard." Smiled Delia.

"That sounds lovely. I'll be sure to let you know if I need any help. Thank you Mrs. Ketchum."

Delia pretended to huff.

"Oh please… don't call me Mrs. Ketchum. Delia is just fine."

"Okay, Delia."

After a brief silence, Norman asked

"How long have you lived in Pallet town Delia?"

"Oh I was born and grew up here. So was Ash." She said and Norman nodded.

Worrying he might ask about her late husband, Delia tried change the subject and asked.

"So I hear you're trying to open up a gym here. Any success with that?"

"Possibly. I spoke to Professor Oak. He said he might be able to help and my wife Caroline recently started working as a doctor at Pallet Town clinic." Delia smiled.

"Lovely." She said and soon silence fell upon them. Everyone could tell that May's parents wanted to ask about Ash's father. But seeing as he clearly wasn't around and Delia wasn't talking about him, they thought better than to ask. But Delia could sense their tension and dilemma so she decided to speak up and get it over with.

"My husband used to run a Pokémon Day Care center. He loved Pokémon…" said Delia with a slightly broken voice. Notes of sadness and longing were evident in her voice.

May gulped and looked at Ash and saw the smile was gone from his face. She placed her hand on his palm for support. This made him smile a little and he made sure she saw it and knew it was a smile of gratitude and appreciation. Finally after a few seconds, May glanced towards her parents, who seemed temporarily stunned.

Caroline tried to speak up.

"I… I'm terribly sorry Delia. I didn't realize…" she couldn't find the words to finish her sentence. Delia brushed it off.

"It's okay. Forget it."

"May I ask when he passed on?"

"Five years ago." Came a voice but it wasn't Delia's. It was Ash's. May could see a sad emptiness laying behind his eyes. It pained her to see him like that and she wanted to help.

"Well, I know this doesn't mean much, but I'm sure he's happy and proud of you both for staying happy even after what happened." She said kindly. Delia smiled at her.

"Thank you May. That's very sweet." She said and May nodded. She turned to look at Ash. He smiled warmly at her. The sadness and emptiness nearly gone from his eyes, filled and replaced with gratitude and appreciation.

"Thank you…" he whispered, happy she got them out of that situation. She smiled sweetly at him.

"You're welcome…" she said softly and his smile broadened. He leaned forward and planted a soft yet quick kiss on her cheek and smiled at her and she smiled too, making everyone go 'aww….' At the adorable sight.

Soon afterwards, the conversation was light and happy again. They sang some Christmas carols and stuffed their bellies with the best food around.

Soon it was getting late, and it was time to go home. They helped Delia clear up the table and soon it was time to go home. They escorted them to the door to say goodbye. Before they did, Ash gave May a warm, loving hug.

"Thanks again for helping me out earlier…" he whispered to her. She smiled to him and pecked him on the cheek.

"You're welcome." She said warmly and they parted. Then they noticed it. Mistletoe. They gulped and looked at each other's eyes again, both faces flushed with embarrassment. They moved closer, inch by inch, as their lips slowly made contact. They kissed softly but lovingly, as Ash placed his right hand on May's shoulder and she held his other hand in her own. Soon afterwards, the kiss was over and they parted and looked at each other and smiled. With a giggle, they kissed once more and went for a last hug before saying goodbye for the night. Ash stood there watching her as she slowly walked away until she was out of view. Then he closed the door and let out a content sigh. He walked back towards the kitchen where his mother was.

She smiled at him.

"She's a real keeper Ash…" she said, teasing him slightly, making him blush like mad.

"Mom…" he groaned.

"Just kidding dear. Now are you gonna help your mom out with the dishes, or your just gonna stand there all night?" she asked and he smiled with a soft chuckle, glad things were back to normal and that the ice has broken, as he motioned to help her out with the dishes…

To be continued…

So there's a nice happy one and a longer one as promised. Hope you guys liked it. I would like to apologize though for the downer where they talk about Ash's dad. I originally planned for May's parents to get the hint and leave it alone, but I felt they needed to know what happened to him. So I decided to bite the bullet and establish it as gently as I could and move on with the story. Also I know that in the date I'm publishing this chapter, it already is Christmas Eve, but in the story timeline, it's a little before. So I just wanted to explain that.

As always reviews are most welcome…

Peace out…