Last hope

by Benderine

Gary's resources had never been a problem for him. He always had what he wanted. Of course, it wasn't handed to him. He fought for what he wanted. He found smart ways to get what he wanted. He had never thought of something as his 'last hope' because he never had a 'last hope'. He always had thousands of ways to solving a problem. He had to have thousands of ways because he firmly believed that relying on a last hope was something stupid and useless. Or at least, that's what he used to believe…

It had all started on a trip back to Pallet Town. He was passing through Cerulean City when his umbreon fell ill. It was getting late so his only option was to leave Umbreon overnight in the Pokémon Center. Nurse Joy had space for Umbreon but sadly, due to the Cerulean City Heaven Carnival, all the rooms for humans were taken. He tried to go to Cerulean City Hotel but it was full there too.

"Shit…" he muttered. He didn't want to sleep outside. His sleeping bag was soaked from a rainstorm earlier that day and he didn't feel like getting pneumonia. Suddenly, he remembered something.

Years ago, Ash used to be friends with the now Cerulean City gym leader, Misty Waterflower. Maybe she'd let him stay at the gym for the night! But then again, he hadn't been all that nice to her in the past and she was rumored to be quite the hot-head. Gary shook all hesitation from his mind and decided to at least go and ask. Even though he hated to admit it, Misty was his last hope if he didn't want to have a terrible night's sleep.

Cerulean City Gym looked intimidating under the glow of twilight but Gary wasn't going to back away just then. With a determined spirit, Gary rang the doorbell. After a few minutes, the door opened and a young woman appeared.

"Gary?!"

Gary smiled awkwardly at his rival's friend. She had changed a lot from the last time he saw her. She looked more like a young woman and less like a girl. Her tomboyish attitude had been replaced by a feminine charm. She was, to put it bluntly, a gorgeous nineteen year old.

"Hi…uh, Misty. How are you?" he asked, extending his hand awkwardly.

Misty stared at his hand for a few seconds before hesitantly shaking hands. "I'm fine, Gary. Uh…so what brings you here?" she asked, standing sideways so as to let Gary in. "Ash told me you were in the Sinnoh Region."

"You're still in contact with Ash?"

"Yes, of course. I often talk to him on the phone."

"I see," Gary said thoughtfully. He wanted to ask more about her relationship with Ash but forced himself to stick to the reason of his visit. "So Misty, I need to ask you for something."

"I knew you hadn't come here to pay me a visit," Misty said, her voice becoming slightly sarcastic. "What do you need?"

Gary suppressed an annoyed sigh. "I want to sleep with you tonight."

"Excuse me?!" Misty said, skeptically.

"Wait! That came out wrong!"

"I'll say!"

"Ugh, nevermind!" he exclaimed, turning away from Misty and towards the door. Before Misty could say anything, Gary had already closed the front door behind him.

"So much for that…" Gary muttered, kicking dirt. "Now I'll have to sleep in that bloody, wet sleeping bag and on top of that, she must think I'm a pervert."

Suddenly, the door of the gym opened and Misty came out. "Wait, Gary!" she called, running towards him.

"What is it?" Gary asked when Misty reached him.

"Listen, I have a spare room you can stay in," she said, catching her breath. "I assume you meant 'Can I stay at the gym for tonight', right?" she asked, smiling playfully at him.

"Of course I mean that!" Gary quickly said. "I wouldn't want to sleep with you!"

"Hey!"

"Argh! I didn't mean that! You know what I meant!"

Misty laughed. "Listen Gary, how 'bout you just stop talking before you say something that's really going to get you in trouble?"

Gary chuckled and nodded as he and Misty both walked back to the gym.

Gary wasn't very religious but a part of him couldn't help but thank god for last hopes.

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A/N: first egoshipping fic. Twas a b-day present for a friend~