Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon. Thanks to Amorous-Thunder for beta-reading~

The Part of Me I Will Never Forget

Chapter 8: Keep Falling Down

"Ash, dear!"

The curtains were drawn abruptly as a sleeping heap awoke to his mothers hearty wake-up call, ringing through the gradually-filling household.

"Uhhh... what..?"

His drowsy reply annoyed Delia, as he slumped down into the duvet, wanting to shrivel away from the prospect of getting up. She pursed her lips and listened to his tired yawns erupting from the covers:

"Wake up~! It's school time!"

Her ever-cheerful calls were echoing around the walls, and Ash scratched the back of his head through messy, black locks, unstyled from restless tossing and turning.

'School? Aww, man. Where's the time gone? It feels like only yesterday that I'd been unloading cardboard boxes from the moving van...'

He shifted lazily, using only one arm to try and prop himself up straight. Upon completely missing the surface of the matress, he pushed out into the thin air beside the bed and flinched suddenly. With his late reaction, before he knew what was going on, his entire body crashed to the floor in a tangle.

Somehow, his mother was far from sympathetic. "Ash! Get up! First day at this new school and you cannot - I repeat, cannot slack off!"

He sighed, darting a sidewards glare from beneath the stuffy blanket. Knowing his mother, although kind and caring, she would not accept anything less than what she asked. 'I better get up I suppose...'

"Ah, I've got loads of time to spare!" Misty careered down the landing, kicking away collections of splattered make-up that gathered in piles on the carpet. She marched straight up to the mirror, hung from the wall on a not-so-safe angle, and looked at herself for the hundredth time that bitter morning.

'I look okay, don't I? I mean, I don't wear make up, and my hair's just a bit... flat.' She examined the only limp part of herself in the mirror, pulling out random strands of orange hair.

'A simple ponytail's fine!'

She screwed up her face in the mirror.

"Damn it!"

She stomped her foot on the marine carpet, rubbing her forehead in thought. "Why do I feel like this... I don't care what ANYONE thinks of me, usually!" Her breath caught in her throat as she spotted several ragged envelopes littering her desk.

"Arghh!"

She shoved the letters away in a drawer in anger. 'He is NOT getting to me.' She'd persuaded herself to definitely not open them no matter what; she wouldn't let Ash have the "satisfaction" - although he wouldn't know, anyway.

His phone bleeped from the top of the drawer, and two messages popped up from it's screen.

'Erika... and Sakura...?'

She clicked the first text from Erika. 'Probably reminding me about school, as if I already didn't know.' She sighed hopelessly at her reflection.

'Wake up, Sleepyhead! Although you're probably already showered and dressed, and I'm the sleepy one... Anyway, find us at the school gates, okay? I'm quite afraid; I mean, it's our last year... but it'll be okay. I know it.

And don't be afraid to do your hair up a bit, y'know? You're so pretty; I'm jealous; so show those other girls what you're made of! -Erika x'

"Oh, Erika, what are you like?" She chuckled at Erika's wake-up message, twisting her hair around her finger in thought before clicking the next text, certain it would be Sakura.

'Hey, I've just rose up from my stinking pit of a bedroom. Just joking. But it was so hectic last night from sorting out clothes and books for today! I can't believe it's here. We're meeting at the gates, as Erika probably told you already; she's so confident about it all!

I bet the boys will be chasing you if you fix up your hair; don't hesitate. - Sakura~'

She rolled her eyes at both their comments. "Hah, both of you need to work on subtly hinting about my hair." Snapping her phone shut, she huffed and crossed her arms over her chest.

'I should probably do a little fixing up to it...'

Skidding over to her hair accessory drawer (which was pretty empty compared to her sister's), she picked at the selection. "Mm, I hope you won't mind, Daisy..." Sneaking into her older sister's unorganized room, she crept pass the glamour queen, catching up on her beauty sleep.

Creeeak...

"Oh, sh-shoot," she whispered, correcting herself quickly. Thankfully, the sleeping girl didn't stir at all, and if she had flickered her eyes, Misty couldn't see because of the black balcalva that plastered over her eyes, sucessfully tip-toeing out with numerous hair bands and clips stolen from a box.

Kneeling down in front of the mirror, she began trying out ideas. 'I'm being so out of character; what's wrong with me?' She thought furiously as she brushed at her ginger locks.

"Well, I suppose I could..."

"If I style it there..."

"Mhmm."

"Yeah that could work..."

"Finished! I forgot what styling my hair was like, y'know, espeon?"

The tiny pokemon had joined her side through her testing, mewing triumphantly at her master's choice.

The pretty teenager had styled her hair by gripping half back into a loose braid, and leaving the rest to hang around her shoulders freely. Two strands hung around her face, curling a bit at the ends and framing her perfectly. Spraying the tiniest bit of hairspray on, straightening the hair that hung around her, and adding a few more grips made her feel all the more confident - not to mention awake.

"Well, I feel much better after that. I wonder if anyone'll notice..." She smiled at the mirror before grabbing her phone and shoulder bag - full to burst with books and guides, checking the clock. "I'll be early, but that's good. I wanna get there before all the fuss," she muttered idly, stroking Espeon between the ears.

Sneaking one last glance at the drawer which held the unopened letters, she sighed.

"He's gonna be there, I know."

"Jeez, it's deserted."

Ash had arrived at the school gates and was certainly confused by no one being there to meet him. Not one person at all. It was completely silent as the morning wind wrapped around his midnight hair.

"Is school really that bad for people?" He whispered aloud, scanning its windows and peering through the fence.

'Oh no, if everyone's already gone in...' His eyes nearly popped out at the thought, and he frantically searched his bag for his phone he'd dropped in.

"What time is it... Books, books... Aha!" He unlocked it, only to come to a stunning realization.

"7:00... Wait... Doesn't school start at 8:30?" he slapped a hand to his forehead. "Oh, mom! I bet you did this on purpose. I mean, I could of had an extra hour's sleep!" He stomped around like a two-year-old, gritting his teeth madly. "See how you like it when you miss the gardening show I always wake you up for on a Saturday!"

"Awww... What am I gonna do for a hour and a half?" He hissed, but stopped.

'I seem to remember... Yes, I packed food...'

"Wow, it's so sparce."

Misty was walking idly down the street, feeling quite alive and awake; not a normal schoolgirl returning to the building, she dreads, that's for sure.

"Ah, for summer, the air's so cool..." She shivered slightly, turning a corner pass the park. The school's grounds were suddenly in sight, and she quickened her pace.

"Erika and Sakura'll be there by now, right?" she thought aloud.

'But it's weird, though... No one's around...' She looked both ways, flicking her hair out in it's new style.

"Eh? Oh, there's someone..."

A tall figure with black hair was standing alone at the school's gates. From her viewpoint, at the top of the street, they were shifting through their bag, making quite a lot of racket as they searched, sounding like grunting and packets being crushed.

"I still can't see them properly... Maybe I should talk to them..."

The tall dark figure turned suddenly, and it alarmed her as they started walking away.

"W-Wait...!"

She didn't care who it was. They looked around her age and she was getting particularly afraid of the eerie street. The figure didn't stop however, and whomever it was, kept walking.

"Wait! Wait! Waaaaait!" She began to sprint down the path, feet tumbling and hitting the ground as she hap-hazardly dodged the uneven paving that threatened to trip her.

"Huh?"

"Oh thank g-"

It felt like ages before Misty had reached him, and now she had. She didn't even have time to think of what to say in her hasty act. She hardly noticed where her flying feet were taking her, and trying to skid to a halt, tripped over her own feet on the dodgy pavement. Everything went by so fast.

"Ahhh!"

Her knees crashed to the floor along with her elbows that collided with the stone surface. She had fallen completely flat on her face, scuffing her hands and messing up her perfected hair into a tangle.

"Jeez, are you okay?"

"O-Ow..." she moaned, and although she couldn't see herself, she could picture it. "Oh, god, what a mess I must look..." She couldn't see his face through the shield of hair covering her eyes. Blindly grabbing out, she tried to prop herself up with an arm, but to no avail: it was battered and bruised from being crushed under her own weight.

Ash dropped the bar of chocolate he'd been feasting on, but couldn't recognize the girl, either, what with her hair being so different from usual and her face completely covered in the locks. His denseness really showed as he treated his once "best friend," with no clue of who she was.

"I thought I heard someone... I'm sorry. It's my fault."

'A boy's voice?' Misty's brain whirred madly, feeling embarassed. Still, she was idle to him as she was more focused on her injuries than the person in front of her.

"No, no. It isn't. I'm just so stupid I don't even watch my own feet..." She chuckled nervously, desperately trying to reassure him she was okay. 'I must look awful, not to mention helpless.'

Ash knelt beside her, not being particularly helpful. He just watched motionless, tapping a finger to his mouth whilst trying to wipe off the chocolate smothered 'round his face.

"I recognize-"

She tried to push herself up again, and he stopped as he watched her fail once more.

"Ugh..."

"Here, let me help you..."

"N-no, I'll be just fine..."

Before she could stop him, his hands were clinging tightly to her shoulders. He grabbed her hand lightly and brought her up slowly to stand with him. Her head faced the floor, but soon enough flipped it up and her eyes locked with her mystery rescue.

"B-Brown eyes...?" Misty stuttered aloud.

"M-Misty?"

"Oh..." Her mouth formed into an "o" shape as she flushed bright scarlet, trying to break free from his firm grasp, but he gripped onto her shoulders.

He looked into her cerulean eyes, cheeks turning a pinkish color. But he couldn't speak at all, like he was frozen. 'It's been forever since I saw her eyes, those sea blue eyes...'

"You're hurt, and no matter what, I'm not letting you go with that injury."

She looked away - confused, angry, and upset. She couldn't do anything about it. 'What a situation to be in,' she thought bitterly.

"G-Get off." She tried sounding confident, but the lack of faith in her legs walking without any help dominated her mind. "I mean it." Her pressed, icy tone was still hurtful to Ash, who winced.

"Come on, whether you like it or not, those legs aren't gonna walk themselves, are they? Not without any help?"

"N-no... but I can try..."

Shrugging him off, she stepped out quickly with one foot, underestimating how far she'd go, faltering straight away. Ash was ready to catch her, though, as she'd expected.

"No, you can't," he confirmed.

"Whatever," she mumbled. "If my arm wasn't hurt, I'd swing for you. So don't get comfortable."

He ignored her mutters and simply started walking to the iron gates of the school, closing his eyes calmly through her thrashing.

'She just won't give up, will she?' He thought.

'I'm not giving up,' she thought.

"Right, I'm leaning against the gate now," she began, freezing as his hands were still on her shoulders, like gripping on for dear life. "A-Ash, you can get off now."

Ash. She hadn't said that name in years. It felt weird to say, like her heart was going to burst into a thousand pieces if she ever uttered it again.

"Hah, yeah. Sorry." He scratched the back of his head with his hand, reluctantly letting go with the other.

'Oh no. Don't start that cute trait with me...' Misty stared. She'd always loved the way he'd done that, so innocent. His immaturity was hellishly annoying, but somehow it made her heart melt.

She ripped her eyes away and turned away, irritated, back facing Ash as she hid her flushed face in her hair.

'So much for a thank you...' He thought, equally turning away. 'Would this be a good time to ask what I've done? I don't want her getting upset because of me ever again. But if this goes on for much longer, I don't know what I'll do...'

He rolled his eyes and decided to look for comfort in a wrapper rather than talking it out.

'What's that noise? Don't tell me...' She giggled loudly, unable to stop herself before pressing a hand firmly over her mouth. 'Why did I do that? He's a stupid, fat pig who finds comfort in food! How on EARTH is that the slightest bit amusing?'

"Whaaat?"

Unfortunately for Misty, Ash had heard her laugh.

"Nothing, just a text," she answered, a bit too quickly.

"You were laughing at my eating, weren't you?"

Misty hesistated, a bit too long. "No! All you do is eat! It's not funny - not in the slightest!"

Ash had found her weakness. 'If I make her laugh, she can't possibly hate me, right?' He smiled goofily at his plan, like a kid. 'And if it involves eating...'

He turned to face her, a massive beam spread across his face. But she had turned around again, not interested in anything he had to say.

"Plan failed," he muttered miserably.

'Why am I like this?' Her mind buzzed hotly and she clenched her fist tightly as her eyes bore into the pavement. 'I HATE him! After everything he's done, I still laugh at him. Why can't I just stop? Maybe when I get home, I'll burn those letters. Yes, yes. Burn.' Her evil planning continued, although she knew she wouldn't go through with it at all.

She checked her phone, hoping time had flown by and people would be turning up soon.

7:15.

Fifteen minutes past seven.

She almost had a fit. 'ONLY FIFTEEN MINUTES?' Her mind screamed as she stomped her foot irately on the pavement. She really shouldn't of, and she clasped her aching knee. 'Ow, damn; bad idea to stomp around.'

"Whoa, calm down. What's the matter?" Ash exclaimed, shocked by her sudden movement (although her foot was hurt.)

She froze. "I'll tell you what's the matter," she spat angrily before turning around abruptly and looking him straight in the eye. She gripped the iron bars to balance herself. "I have only been out here FOR FIFTEEN MINUTES. I was hoping, oh, y'know, time would of passed and people would of been out here. But no." Her free arm flew in the air, showing her fury. Ash stared, mouth quivering at her anger. "I'm probably going to be waiting another HALF AN HOUR, with YOU, before anyone turns up outside this building!"

Suddenly she realised that with every word, she'd gotten positively closer and closer to his face, and was only inches away from his lips. His eyes searched hers for an explanation, but she didn't have one.

Sulkingly, she turned on her heel and faced the other way again, flushed half to death.

"You're scary when you're mad, Mist..."

"Tell me something I don't know," she huffed, and upon realizing the name he'd used, added icily, "and don't call me that."

"What?"

"Mist."

"Oh..."

'Maybe if I talk about a memory, she'll remember the time we spent together and maybe, just maybe...' He lit up at his new plan.

"Do you remember when I first called you that?" He said wistfully, listening intently at her reaction.

"No," she replied stubbornly. 'Of course I do,' her mind seethed.

"Do you remember when we first met?"

"Oh, do I? I don't know..." She rolled her eyes and gritted her teeth. This was going to get annoying. Real' fast.

"Do you remember when-"

"Ash. I'm not stupid. You wanna know what I do remember?" She hissed, irratation taking over.

"Th-The dance at Maiden's Peak...?"

Her eyes widened, but she let it go. "Doesn't matter," she sighed.

After a pause that lasted forever, Ash spoke up:

"So are we frien-"

She turned around instantly as soon as she heard the start of "friends." Despite her injured knee that was bruised and aching, and also the comment about not punching him, she could still land a smack in the mouth to anyone quite easily. Especially Ash.

"Friends? I wouldn't count on it," she stated savagely. She watched as he held onto the iron fence, lightly clutching his mouth, much like the other time she'd punched him. He didn't really look that hurt, and it had really only meant to be a warning smack, anyway. The thing she wouldn't and couldn't believe, is that her hatred towards him had softened. She even felt bad she'd punched him.

'Oh, Delia, she'll kill me. I'm not making it any better, and he's trying.' She slowly reached a hand out for his shoulder, but stopped. 'And he's also made no apology, asked what's wrong, figured it out for himself, or begged me for mercy.'

Her hand hung in mid-air, fingers stretching and curling as she bit her lip.

"Oh what the hell...," she muttered. Taking a deep breath, she stumbled forward. "... Are you okay...?" She said, almost silently.

Ash was completely astonished. 'She... she's wondering if I'm okay?' He gulped slowly. "Hah, yeah, I probably deserved it, didn't I?"

"Damn right you did," she murmured under her breath.

'She still hates me, I figure...'

The two stood in complete silence, not daring to speak to ruin the moment.

Misty sighed, looking at him with eyes full-to-bursting with regret. 'I want to forgive and forget so badly. But I just can't. He can't get away with it.'She shifted her feet uncomfortably. 'Maybe I should open those letters, after all...'

'I'm confused...,' Ash thought, the pain easing in his jaw. 'She hates me, I know. But, now... she's looking at me with something else. Maybe she wants to forgive... for whatever I've done...?' Hope sparked in his heart like a Pikachu, and his brain whizzed and whirred at the thought. 'I love her, I think... Anyway. I can't stop myself, and no one else does this to me...' He arranged his thoughts again. 'But... nothing would mean more to me than being at least friends...'

"Misty," he breathed slowly, reaching forward, "I'm-"

"Ash, shut up!" Misty snapped, suddenly angry. "People are here now, I'm going to find my friends."

Misty stomped away - barely though, as if she were limp. She was furious with herself, now that she had looked back onto what she'd been like. 'I can't believe I... Oh, why did I even...'

Bringing a hand to her forehead and patting her hair with the other, she sighed. Biting her lip enough to even draw blood, she counted the events so far: Meeting with Ash, hair ruined, falling over...

'How much worse can you get?'

"Eh, oh, wait-!" Before he knew it, she had left him, looking full of hell too. He stood alone, abandoned, even with an ever-growing amount of teenagers surrounding him. He'd forgotten what it felt like to be around Misty, whether she hated his guts or not.

"Hey, Ash!"

"Ash, sit with us!"

"Is that... Ash...?"

No, he didn't want to talk to them, no matter how interesting their holidays had been. He wanted to resolve with Misty - whether she hated him or not, and whether they'd ever be true friends again, He wanted to treasure that special short time he'd spent with her forever.

Longest chapter yet I think! Please R&R!