Standard Disclaimers Apply.

She usually didn't agree with Ash, her travelling partner who was stupid with feelings as he was with his Pokemon sometimes. But on the subject of Gary Oak, Misty had to agree that if there was ever a boy who didn't deserve half of the stuff he was handed during his life, it was him.

He was a beautiful rebel. A messy haired, beautiful rebel who shared his life in a brightly colored sports car with a bunch of bottle blondes and brunettes drooling over him. He was such an egotistical pig.

It didn't come to a surprise to Misty that Ash was angry, well, more like completely pissed when the passage to Saffron City was blocked and the three travelling partners were forced to spend the night in a rather expensive hotel. But that alone wasn't what made the trainer angry. The hotel they were forced to stay at, since Misty did not want to spend one more night out in the wild, was also the hotel Gary Oak was residing. It was an understatement to say that everyone was annoyed.

Ash and Misty were a sorta-kinda-not-really-but-I-guess-we-are-dating couple. It was awkward at times, especially since Brock was always around, but to Misty it didn't really feel like they were a couple. They had never truly expressed their feelings, people just kept commenting about how they seemed to be a couple and they just stopped refusing that they were indeed not a couple. So when people asked, they both just smiled and nodded and continued on with whatever they were presently doing. He cared for her, and she cared for him, they knew that, but they both were still young and romance wasn't the most important thing at the moment. Besides, he was a good three years younger than her, and that in itself was a bit awkward.

However, Misty was used to the awkwardness, and although Ash and Misty both had some tender moments between them, she was comfortable with their relationship. He wasn't demanding of her, but he was protective, and she was fine with that. Although, something deep inside her often yearned to be held, but she could never imagine Ash being the one holding her.

Nighttime fell and the three began to get ready to call their day of travelling a night. Ash was busy complaining about not being able to get his next badge, and the irritation of seeing Gary at the hotel, which also caused slight annoyance to Brock who would have rather had the talkative boy discuss the difference in taste of the hotel's food to his own. Misty just tuned out the complaining, it wasn't unusual for him to rant about such things. Gary Oak was an asshole, they all got it.

Deciding she had enough of his bitterness, Misty found herself standing up, causing both boys to look up at her. Blushing slightly after the realization that she had stood up with no reasoning, Misty glanced towards the door with a sigh, announcing that she wanted a breath of fresh air and that the stuffiness of the room was not helping her relax. Receiving no response to her declaration, Misty walked outside and into the night.

The hotel faced a beautiful lake filled with goldeen and magikarp, giving a shimmering glow to the dark waters. Slipping off her shoes, the red head strolled down to the edge of the lake, sitting down on the grass and dipping her feet into the cool water, a solace to the smoldering heat of the summer nights.

Hearing the faint chirps of sleepy pidgys and hungry spearow created a perfect scene of pure relaxation for Misty. It had been awhile since Misty was able to just sit and relax, away from the stressors of training and boys and sleeping on the cold hard ground. It was nice to just think. The water was cold, but the numbing feeling she was getting in her toes did not bother her. She was at home in the water, and this feeling was more than enough to clear all thoughts of problems away from her.

The crunching of parched grass brought Misty back to reality as someone seated themselves next to her, tossing a small stone in Misty's perfectly serene lake, causing the magikarp to splash away and the goldeen to rush towards the rock thinking it was food. Sighing softly, Misty turned to look at her distracter, his profile hidden by the darkness. But judging from the spiky hair on the top of her companions head, she knew exactly who was beside her, interrupting her one time to think.

Turning her gaze away from him, she continued to watch the pokemon shimmer and shine beneath the surface of the water, some even coming close enough to brush past her feet. If he was going to shut up for once, so would she. She didn't feel like getting into another argument with him, and he seemed to be outside for the same reason she was, so it didn't seem to matter to her that he was accompanying her.

"Would you be happy if I said I loved you?" he finally asked, breaking the silence that Misty had grown accustomed to.

She merely sighed in response, not wanting to get into this discussion either.

"No, because I don't think you do," she replied, feeling a tension in the air as she spoke. The faraway echo of a fearow killing its prey was the only sound she could hear as silence fell between them. He tossed another rock into the water, narrowly missing a magikarp. She could almost feel his stare, challenging her to say something.

"So why are you mad at me?" he asked after a few minutes more of silence. She sighed once more, trying to think of a good enough reason to why she didn't want to see him. She couldn't.

"I'm not mad at you, I just came out here to think, to get away from all the noise," she weakly replied, pulling her knees to her chest and resting her chin gently upon them. He tossed another rock into the lake, causing her to sigh in annoyance. "Stop it already."

He grinned, getting the exact reaction he had wanted from her. Scooting closer to her, he smirked at her annoyed huffy state.

"Whatcha gonna do about it?" he said, his voice soft enough to make her hair stand on end, but loud enough for her to hear him perfectly clear.

She turned to face him, her eyes meeting his own. She wanted this feeling to stay forever, but at the same time she didn't want this sort of relationship with him. It was difficult, they both travelled and they both were always so involved within their own personal goals.

It wasn't until he cupped her chin, pressing his lips to hers and pushing at the back of her head so she leaned closer to him in the embrace. She tasted like sea breeze, he decided.

She pulled away moments later, getting up and shaking her head. Looking back towards the hotel, she bit her lip gently, knowing she had to leave him. Being alone with him, without anyone else around sometimes frightened her. Not because of what he could do, but what she could do.

"You're leaving," it wasn't a question that he asked her. It was late, and she didn't like being alone. The fearow cried out to its mate, signaling food was found.

"I don't want to, but I need to," she replied softly, sending him a small smile as he stayed where he was. He would probably go to bed late, but that wasn't her problem anymore. He toyed with her emotions enough.

He was still an annoyance to her, always will be. Even after she left him sitting down at the lake's edge, she knew she was making the right choice. He would always be the one who she wanted, the one she would be better off with. But she knew her destiny was inside her hotel room, and not with Gary Oak by the lakefront, with only the fearow to keep him company.

He was still a beautiful rebel, and she loved him.

// Gift to my friend Gaby, an egoshipper….even if I prefer pokeshipping. Go read her fic entitled 'Wanted' if you like this! Egoshipping galore with a bit of pokeshipping!