Oceans Away

Validation

Narrator POV and a little note - I am gonna do this POV from now on as the first chapter at first was a hot mess - since I have trouble distinguishing the tenses that need to be used. I hope I don't make those mistakes in the future. Also, I'm gonna try to make chapters longer, as things are going to speed up, and I plan on making this fic last awhile. (around 50 chapters maybe? Who knows?) I got a review within 2 hours of publishing, and it really made my day and it made me want to start on this chapter I am about to write, so thank you Zarok63 (Btw, this fic will have some smut, and some sexual scenes, so if you're not into that I would advise you not to read. I will always warn in the author's note if there are any sexual scenes :3)

Ash continued to sit on the sofa getting lost in thought. He misses Gary so much, but can barely keep it together at the thought of speaking to him again.

Delia started to shout at Ash saying that breakfast was ready. Ash got up and pushed all the thoughts of the chocolate-eyed boy away. He wanted to make this time dedicated to really catch up with his mom, and embrace her presence.

"So Ash, what pokemon did you find in Alola? Any favorites?" Delia asked, awaiting a response from Ash. Ash was still thinking about the boy when he snapped back into reality.

"Oh, uh.. Yeah! I found tons of new pokemon, and my favorites have to be Rowlet and Togedmaru," Ash said. Delia could sense a disconnect between her and Ash. He sounded so monotone and sad. What was up with him? She wondered.

"Ash, how are you feeling?" Delia asked with great concern. Ash had just got back, and he seems depressed. Shouldn't he be happy?

"I'm fine.. I guess," Ash said lowly. Ash didn't want to tell his mom about Gary, hell, he didn't even want to tell her about him being gay. Ash didn't know how his mom would react to such a thing being a reality.

Delia knew something was wrong. Was he hiding something? She needed to know what was going on with him. She hated seeing Ash like this.

"Ash, listen. You know you can tell me anything in the world, and I wouldn't be upset. I know you're hurting right now, and I can't put my finger on it, because just earlier you were fine."

Ash trusted his mom more than anyone, and he was almost sure he had to tell her. He couldn't just lie to her, since this Gary thing wasn't going to go away.

"..Mom," Ash could barely say anything as his eyes started to water, and he felt as if he couldn't breathe. Ash began to catch his breath and he finally gained the courage to finally tell her the truth.

"Before I left off to Alola, I kissed Gary Oak. I've liked him since even before the rivalry between us, and I still do as we speak. When I kissed him, he ran off. I never heard from him. No texts, no calls, no emails, nothing. I wanted to come back to Pallet to be with you all but now all I can think about is Gary and I don't think I can do it anymore." Ash had steadied his breathing, and felt the weight of a thousand Onix's slide off his shoulders.

Delia just sat at the table, staring at her son trying to make sense of it all.

"Ash, I don't care who you like, whether it be a girl or a boy. I just want you to be happy, and I can tell that you are far from it. I wish you would have told me this earlier. I feel like I could've helped you. Ash, I'm really sorry that this has happened. I feel like you should talk to Gary. He would want to see you, and catch up with you. I'm sure you can explain yourself. Even if things turn for the worst, you know that no matter what happens, you can move on from it. I know you can."

Ash knew his mother was right, and with her words, he knew what he had to do.

"Thank you so much mom, I love you." Ash said as he got up and embraced her. Ash then began to walk upstairs to take a shower, and hopefully make his way to the Oak residence. Ash turned the knob and waited for the water to get hot. He hopped in and quickly lathered his body with soap and preceded to condition his hair. Ash didn't like to take long showers, so he was pretty quick. He was out in about 10 minutes, and he began to dry himself and his hair. He looked at the reflection staring back at him while he pondered on about later today. Will Gary actually want to talk to him? Will he just slam the door in his face?

Still thinking, Ash wandered into his room to get dressed. His room was just as he left it, and he was getting nostalgia just being in there. He opened his drawers, grabbing some black skinny jeans that he had left here since it was always hot in Alola. He slipped on some socks and some black shoes, and headed towards his closet. He opened it up and a photograph fell from the top shelf. It was a picture of Gary and Ash when they were younger. His mom had taken it, they were both covered in mud from the rain, but they both smiled in the picture anyway. Ash grinned and put the picture on top of his desk. He knew it was probably just a coincidence, but part him felt like it was a sign. Finally, he pulled on a dark gray long-sleeved T-shirt and headed downstairs.

Delia noticed her son coming down the stairs, and she knew that he was about to go see Gary. She had just gotten everything put up from breakfast, and now she was going to do anything she can to help with Ash's problem.

"Hey mom, I wanted to thank you again. You always seem to help me when I am in trouble and I'm so lucky to have you as a parent," He said, but then continued on before his mother could speak. "I'm going to the Professor's lab right now; hopefully Gary will want to talk to me," Ash continued with hope.

Delia responded, reassuring Ash and his feelings. "I'm sure he will want to talk to you. And if he doesn't, he'll come around. You guys were the best of friends. Nothing can change that bond, not even the kiss that happened between you."

"Thanks mom, you're the best." He shouted as he ran out the door, radiating in confidence.

It was around 1pm, as Ash continued to walk towards the lab. The whole way there seemed to take eternity, but in actuality it was only like 2 minutes. He felt his heart flutter as he approached the house that held the love of his life. He ran up to the door and knocked, hoping that Professor Oak would open. His dreams came true as he answered the door, shocked to see the boy here at his abode.

"Ash! Wow! What a pleasure to see you here! How was Alola? I'm actually going to be visiting there in a few hours as I will be delivering some papers to Professor Kukui about some Rapidash!" the Professor exclaimed.

"Hi Professor! It was an amazing experience! I really enjoyed it there," I spoke, recalling my memories with Lillie.

"That sounds marvelous! Hopefully I also have a good time. Other than the papers, I will be stationed there for a bit to study the Pokemon in that region. But, enough about me, I assume you're here to see Gary?" Ash shuddered at the question, but managed to calm down. "Yeah, I did. Is he around at all? I would love to catch up with him."

"Of course! He's just upstairs in his room; also you know that Tracey has been staying with me, as he's my trusted assistant, but he decided to stay here in Pallet, so you can catch up with him as well." The Professor smiled as he invited Ash in and went back into the lab. Ash didn't know whether to go upstairs or to see if Tracey was around. He began to head further into the mansion, and that was when he saw Tracey come out of a room. He saw Ash and he looked uneasy at first, but then ran up to him and hugged him.

"Ash! What are you doing here?" he asked. It sounded genuine, but It also felt like he didn't want him there, which made him confused.

"I just came back from Alola to see everyone! I was hoping to see Gary, but then the Professor said you were here so I tried to find you, which worked," he replied, Tracey smiling big at him.

"Well, you caught me at a wrong time as I was just about to go and pick some stuff up from the store. I'll be back, why don't you go talk to Gary? He was in his room on his laptop last time I checked." He quickly ran out the door after that, which left Ash standing there, hesitating to go up to see the brown-haired boy that he hasn't spoken to in 2 years.