Love Me Like You Do (Ash Ketchum x Reader x Calem)

- 58 -

"And Bella's Aggron is defeated by Peter's Arbok! What will her next Pokemon be?"

I stood up from my seat and announced, "Well, I better headed down there. After this battle is over, mine is up next. And I don't exactly want to be late like Ash and be almost disqualified."

Ash sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck, giving me a grin.

"Good luck, [Name]!" Bonnie cheered, throwing her hands up in the air.

"Best of luck," Clemont sent me an encouraging smile.

"Uh...break a leg out there," Serena encouraged before she waved her hands in front. "I don't mean it literally though! Please do your best."

I understood what she meant but I appreciated the support. Tierno gave me a pat on the back and winked.

"Don't worry about the results, just go out there and have fun!" Tierno motivated.

"Good luck out there," Trevor smiled weakly, still dejected by his defeat.

Calem grabbed my arm and gave my hand a kiss. "Bonne chance. You'll do great. You've been training for this moment, so I have no worry."

Suddenly, Ash grabbed my other arm and gave my hand a peck. I raised a brow as Ash glared at Calem with jealousy.

Ash's glare disappeared when he looked up at me. "Good luck, [Name]! I know you'll do amazing. Show them what you're made of!"

I pulled my arms back and placed them behind my back. "Thank you for the support, not only you two but everyone. I'll be sure to win this match!"

Waving goodbye to my friends one last time, I walked up the stairs and made my way inside the stadium. The loud cheering of the crowd could still be heard inside as screens inside displayed the battle currently transpiring. It was starting to become intense as Arbok fainting from Quagsire's powerful Muddy Water. The two Trainers were down to their last Pokemon, so it could be anyone's game.

I'll be lying if I said I wasn't nervous. I am confident but nervousness still got to me. In the past leagues, I would just barely make it past the first round. The farthest I've gotten was the quarter-finals in the Sinnoh Region. So this time, I have to show everything I've experienced and learned throughout my journey with my Pokemon right here.

Trevor and Ash are already done with the round, albeit one had lost and the other won. Alain and Trevor had Mega Evolved their Charizard, X and Y. Although Trevor fought hard with his Pokemon, he was defeated by Alain. The devastated expression Trevor had was heartbreaking. Ash's battle, on the other hand, was something else. Ash was almost disqualified but he made it just in time or else his league was over before it even began. Ash had used Greninja who then turned into Ash-Greninja and won with ease. It seems they were able to master it just like Alain had hoped.

Calem and Tierno had yet to battle. Lucky them.

As I walked down the hallway, my eyes caught the sight of my opponent walking towards me. He wore a black leather jacket with a hood and a white basic shirt. He had on black jeans and matching leather laced up combat boots. His maroon hair was styled in a sidecut as the many piercings on his ear with a Key Stone on an earring could be spotted. I took note on how pale his skin looked. He had his eyes closed while his hands remained hidden in the pockets of his leather jacket.

He finally took notice of my presence as he opened his eyes, his amber-colored eyes staring directly at me. I could almost detect a hint of annoyance in them. We stopped in our tracks as he let out a sigh and placed a hand on the back of his neck.

I decided to break the awkwardness by introducing myself. "Hi there. I'm [Name] and you must be Lukas, right? I can't wait for our battle. Let's both do—"