The One With Apathetic Eyes

Chapter Six

Ash stared at the wall of the new room he had been confined in for the last three months, he'd woken up far too early even if he was feeling excited about leaving on his own Journey. The thought of leaving this town where he was forced to follow a certain flow to survive leaving cracks in the dull cover he'd placed over the world to stop him from feeling or finding interests. Not that he noticed his changing view of course even if he'd noticed a few changes. It was one of the many things that had happened in his weeks of bed ridden recovery. At least in his opinion, since he thought he'd lose his life as he collapsed in the storm so close to his goal.

The largest and oddest change to him was being cared for. Since his dad had left he had been forced into independence, a struggle that practically broke his two year old mind as he hide in the shadows of his own home stealing food. He'd felt so alone that first year understanding that he couldn't go to his mother for anything. Of course it'd taken him a while to realize that and stop making the mistake of thinking she cared.

It was around when he was four that the 'attacks' started and he gave up on the world, on people. He started to open up thanks to Mew shortly before his fifth birthday and it was when he was six that Gary forced himself into his life. Gary had almost made him believe in people again when his mother started being nicer and he no longer felt as alone, empty yes but not alone. He stopped meeting with Mew around then as well something he'd regretted as he once again lost trust in people due to Gary.

He wasn't as naive now as he was as a child, always lying to himself about how much he disliked the other kids, how stupid the world was, the idiocy of the so called Pokémon Journey, and how he liked being alone. He had hated being alone, it was why he was so happy when Mew found him, why he didn't ignore Gary when he forced himself in. But ever since the beating he took the beginning of this year, he found he didn't mind being alone as much as when he was a child. Playing nice for four years had worn him down greatly.

But now he wasn't sure what to think. Daisy was showing him a side of people he didn't even know they had, a side that cared for someone, for him.

Daisy was a very physical person and she had been constantly touching him to check up on his injuries. Ash however wasn't. He had not had any positive experience with physical interaction that did not lead to pain or injury, he never flinched much when it was his mom touching him because if he did she'd beta him for longer amounts of time, he'd grown used to it. However strangers were different, he couldn't control his flinching every movement was random even if he could see it, he didn't have an understanding of others. So he did greatly when Daisy touched him, though he played it off of pain from the injuries.

At the start, he had been right. It had hurt as she re-broke his mangled fingers and cut open his skin to fix the bone before stitching it up and bandaging it, the anesthesia she gave him not blocking anything (he didn't let her know it though).  He watched as she did the same for his left arm placing it in a cast. She placed ointment on his bruised ribs giving him medicine to help his body heal faster and had cleaned and stitched the cut above his ear. The operation ending with her Chansey using Heal Pulse a few times, and he was happy to know he'd be up and moving in time for his Pokémon Journey.

However after that the care and concern she showed unnerved him. It was unexpected to him. And he disliked it because he didn't understand why there were moments it made him feel warm. While Daisy never noticed the Pokémon did and they helped reassure him. After a week or so he found he didn't mind the touching and care, he even had moments where he craved it, he wanted it because he had never had it before. It was with resigned acceptance that he agreed with his doctor and caretaker that he was touch-starved. He was glad however that she never seemed to pick up and put all the pieces together to figure out why.