Pieces of Us (SatoGou)

Chapter 21

yoooo it's the penultimate chapter, hoping to get the last one up tonight and then i'll write a little epilogue
thank you everyone that's stuck along for this one, i love you all <3
truthfully i've been waiting for the gen 9 anime announcement to start writing anything else. i do think goh has a better chance of going into the next series than most of ash's other companions but I don't wanna get my hopes up too much. what i want to know though is, even if he leaves, are people still interested in another satogou fic? ik i'm always gonna love this ship anyway
sorry if these next two chapters seem kinda rushed. i didn't mean for it to seem that way i just didn't want to drag it on too long <3

Goh climbs into the bed beside me when he's done, pulling the covers up to his nose. It's pretty chilly in here, so I shuffle under them too, watching him out of the corner of my eyes. When he lies down on his side, I copy him, facing him, our faces a few inches apart.

"Is this really happening?" He asks, his eyes flicking over every inch of my face.

"I don't know," I say back, my gaze intense. "Is it?"

He shakes his head, his hair falling over his face a little. "Two weeks ago we were saying we hated each other."

"I never hated you," I say quickly. "Not even eight years ago. I don't think I ever could."

"I never hated you either. Obviously." He chuckles a little, and I smile, inching slightly closer. His eyes drop to my lips, and suddenly he's frowning. "The hardest part of it all was seeing you everywhere. I always knew who you were dating. I saw all of the photos of you in public with them. I've lived in jealousy for years."

I wonder, if the roles had been reversed, how I would have coped with that. I'm not sure I could have. "None of them were you," I admit, my face burning. "I was chasing you for years and didn't even realise it."

He looks back up, and the intensity in his eyes steals my breath away. "And what happens now?" He asks, his voice low. I stare back at him, his face dimly lit under the lamp light. I watch his jaw twitch with nerves, and notice how his eyes roam my face, searching for the answer in my expression.

"I still have to go back to Unova," I say honestly. The words send a stab of pain through my chest, and I see the same reaction on Goh's face.

"I know," he says. "It'll be okay though, right?"

"Of course," I say, smiling sadly. "I only have a year left."

"A year is a long time," he says quietly, almost to himself. I want to reassure him, but I can't, because it feels like a long time to me, too. I hate the thought of being apart for that long, even if we call and visit each other. Honestly, knowing what I know now, I can't imagine us ever being apart. "But what- I mean, what about us?"

"What do you mean?"

He bites his lip, looking down. "I mean, what are we?"

A fire ignites in my chest again. "I love you," I say again, reminding him. "And I want to be with you."

He leans in, our noses colliding briefly as he kisses me clumsily. I kiss him back, wishing I could hold him there forever, and never have to move.

He smiles against my lips and moves away enough to look me in the eyes. "I like that I'm your first boyfriend."

Boyfriend.

My skin prickles, and Goh laughs, seeing the reaction on my face. I don't know why that word affects me so much. I suppose it's just the confirmation that we're dating. That he is my boyfriend. That this is real.