Pokemon High

Chapter 25

A.U: A whole year and you guys still want to read this??? I re-read everything so hopefully the small details aren't too out of place but ya know *sHrUg* also Paul is like supperrrrrrr O.C.C here but its a story soooo *more sHruGs*

Paul cursed internally. After Dawn left, he went to borrow Gary's car. It wasn't his proudest moment, he was so ashamed of asking someone for help. But he wanted to find Dawn so pride was nothing.

Except that he prided himself on pride so he was kinda feeling terrible at the moment. Also he had been driving around for an hour and it was already almost nine. Dawn wasn't answering her phone or responding to his texts. Well, one text. He didn't want to seem desperate.

Paul was ready to call it a night when he spotted sparkly bubbles emerging from the woods. He quickly pulled off to the side of the road and got out to investigate. He followed the path where they were coming from and began to run when he heard Dawn yelling.

"Daw-"

"Piplup! Peck the bubbles!"

Paul stopped as he watched Piplup jump up. Its beak glowed as it lunged at the flying bubbles. As soon as its sharp beak touched them, they burst into blue sparkles which filled the whole field. Piplup landed and posed with a big smirk.

"That was really good, Piplup!" Paul heard Dawn say and then saw her sigh, "If only I had my other Pokemon, then I could practice for contests..."

Paul silently threw out his Electivire and let it wander towards her. Dawn yelped in excitement when she saw it, her eyes shining bright.

"An Electivire! How cute!"

Electivire drew closer and smiled happily when it saw a familiar face, "Electi!"

"Wait...Ellie? What are you doing so far away from Paul???" Dawn asked, concerned.

"Wait a minute..." Dawn peered into the forest, unable to see anything and groaned. "Paul, I know you're out there."

Paul walked out into the dim light of the moon. Dawn had her hands on her hips as she waited for an explanation.

"I was looking for you, woman, what'd you expect?" Paul shrugged.

"I always knew you were a softie but going out to look for me?"

Paul sighed and walked closer until they were almost a few inches apart. Dawn teetered back but Paul gently took her hands.

"I meant every word I said. About loving you and what I said about you" Paul whispered, carefully trying not to show how scared he was of her rejection.

"Paul...I like you, I really do" Dawn paused.

He waited, not letting his hopes up, knowing there was an inevitable "but".

"But I love Ash. I...I can't give up on him."

Paul quickly shielded his heart before her words could deal the final blow. He abruptly let go of her hands and turned, walking back briskly to the car. 

"Paul, wait, I'm sorry!" Dawn blurted, running to catch up to him. 

She grabbed his hand and planted her feet in the ground, forcing him to turn her way. That didn't mean he looked at her though, as he frowned at the ground.

"Paul, you're my best friend and I care about you so much. Please, let's not fight over this. I...I don't wanna lose you because I like someone else" Dawn begged.

Paul gave himself a second to breathe and gather his words before he stared at her, his words cautiously spilling out in a soft murmur.

"Ever since I met that fiesty thirteen year old girl and her annoying friends, I wanted to become a better trainer and a better person. I saw how you looked at him so I hoped that if I...if I became a better trainer then you would look at me like that, too...this past year in Unova has been the happiest I've ever been and...ugh, that was stupid actually. No, this whole thing is stupid. I'm leaving."

Paul forced himself away, burying his feelings deep, trying to get away from her as far as he could. 

"Paul! Wait! Paul, come back! Piplup, use bubble!" Dawn called out.

Paul tried to dodge the exploding spheres of water but was hit by one and tripped, falling to the ground. He winced as the ground scuffed up his clothes and he was pretty sure a branch had scratched him on his way down.

"Oh, mew, I'm so sorry!" Dawn rushed over and knelt down next to him, examining him for bruises.

Paul closed his eyes, letting himself rest as Dawn dabbed at his cuts with a handkerchief. He heard sniffling and he glanced up, shocked to see Dawn crying. Her tears just seemed to keep flowing and her nose was running heavily. It didn't help that she kept trying to wipe it all away, ruining her makeup.

When Dawn noticed Paul was staring at her , she flushed and turned her head, "I'm sorry I hurt you, I just...I can't seem to do anything right..."

Paul sighed. He pulled off his jacket and used a clean part to cup her face and wipe her face. He fought back a smile when he saw her red eyes looking at him in awe. His heart leapt for a second and he gulped hard. 

You literally just got rejected, man, what are you doing?!

Paul observed her red eyes and messed up face and could feel himself fall for her all over again. 

"You do a lot of troublesome things but I'll always support you. I...I need some time right now but I'll wait for you. Until you say you no longer want me around, I'll fight for you" He said, cupping her face with one hand and just cherished the feeling. 

Dawn didn't say anything but let Paul pull her up. When it became apparent that Paul was limping slightly, Dawn wordlessly swung his arm around her shoulders and held one hand on his back to support him. Both were looking in opposite directions so they couldn't see the small smiles that were sprouting on their faces. 

Just a little Paul and Dawn character development! Or at least I hope so heh...also I have a few ideas on how to play this out but is there any particular ship you'd like me to include? 

Also sorry if the writing style is a bit different. I did try to make it similar to how it was because I really liked that writing style but idk

Thanks for requesting for updates even tho I'm bad at keeping a schedule and thanks for reading!