The Greatest Summer of My Life

A Special Event

The mid-morning weather was perfect; it was nice and warm, the gentle breeze cooled it down just enough to where it was absolutely perfect. The breeze also carried the fresh smell of pollen and flowers, one could just sit there all day and get lost in nature's perfection. Red certainly felt like it.

It had been 4 days since he woke up in the hospital and he had finally been released. Hilbert and Nate still felt like what happened was on them since they invited him to the tournament, so they insisted on paying for the hospital bill. Delia tried to convince that that it was OK and they didn't have to but she eventually relented. Red and Delia were extremely touched by this act of kindness.

Now that he was out of the hospital he felt great. Probably the best he had felt in a long time. Guess it's true when they say you never feel more alive than when you almost die. It also helps that Leaf came to visit him every day. It seems like ever since that day he's been closer with her than he ever had before, he also started to notice that something about her was...different. Not the bad kind of different it was just something about the way she was acting around him and every time he would ask what was wrong she would just brush it off. Whatever was going on in that pretty head, Red hoped it was something good.

Back in reality, there was a number of buses parked in the parking area and people were filing into them by the dozens. Due to a very important upcoming event, Professor Oak scheduled for a camp-wide trip throughout the nearby sights in Kanto that would last the next few days. There were only a select few that were not partaking in this trip; those being Red, Leaf, Ethan, Lyra, Delia, Professor Oak, Tracy, and Blue. It was certainly gonna be weird having an almost empty camp all weekend.

Soon enough, all the buses were full and Professor Oak waved at everyone as they drove off. He swore he could already hear one of the bus drivers yelling about the noise. Boy, he hoped everything would be Ok. Red watched as they drove off from the sidelines, he was already enjoying the almost eerie silence of the now almost deserted camp. Ethan came up to Red, "Welcome back to the land of the living!" Ethan said pulling him into a bro hug, it was the first time he had seen him since he got back from the hospital.

"Yeah and just in the knick of time too!" Red said rather chipper, "It's a beautiful day today isn't it?"

"As always. You're in a good mood," Ethan replied.

"I'm just happy to be here. Almost dying gives you a new lease on life."

"Oh, I'm sure. Tell me, did you see the light?"

"Nope, I just saw darkness. The next thing I know I'm waking up in the hospital bed. I gotta tell you there's no other feeling like that."

"Are you just saying that because Leaf was there?" Ethan said with a knowing smirk.

"You know me too well," Red replied.

"So when are they gonna be here?"

"Any minute now," Red replied looking into the sky. As if on cue, he saw the large, draconic form of a Charizard flying towards the camp. A familiar face popped out from above it and he started waving at Red.

"Hey Red we're here!" he called.

"Pika, Pika!" Called another Pikachu.

Red got the biggest smile on his face and waved back as Charizard came in for a landing. The person on Charizard's back wasted no time and hopped off. He was someone that everyone knows all too well, Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town. In place of the blue and white shirt he wore throughout his Kalos journey he wore an open blue button-up shirt with the sleeves rolled up and a black t-shirt underneath. Perched on his shoulder was his best buddy Pikachu. Clutched onto him from behind was his beautiful fiance Serena who was smiling like the sun itself. Unlike Ash, she retained her old look from their Kalos adventures. She still had her short honey-blonde hair, she wore a pink dress with a blue ribbon tied to her collar, a long red vest, a red fedora, long black stockings, and brown boots. "Welcome home Ash," said Red.