“Okay Bonnie, it’s about time to get ready for bed.”

As if on cue, Clemont started to talk and ignored the groan from Bonnie. The siblings started to clean up the table, and Ash excused himself to the boys’ bedroom to get ready to sleep. As I expected, Pikachu and Dedenne were running around on the floor. I quietly stood from my seat, taking care to not draw any attention, attempting to follow Ash as silently as I could.

I hid behind a corner as Ash walked into the boys’ bedroom and closed the door behind him. Waiting a few seconds to not seem suspicious (although I know he was hoping I would visit him), I knocked on the door. Ash opened it almost instantly, giving me a smile when he saw me.

“Hey, what’s up Serena?” He asked. I smiled back at him. I didn’t want to look away from his eyes, but I know I have to answer him. “Uh, Serena, are you okay?”

“Oh, yeah, I’m just great.” I replied. “May I come in?”

“Sure, sorry about that.” Ash nodded and stepped aside, allowing me to walk past. I nodded my thanks and moved to his bed, sitting down and gently bouncing on the edge. It was soft and very comfortable; it would be perfect for the hours of hardcore fucking I planned on (I decided against passionate love-making, we’ll have to save that for when we have time to savor it. Fucking is much easier and faster).

“Would you sit with me, Ash? There’s something I’d like to talk about.” I patted the spot next to me, giving him a bigger smile. Ash didn’t seem phased, but I know that’s he practiced for this moment since the day we parted at the end of camp. He probably has the best poker face anyone’s ever seen. “It’s really important.” I added.

“Is something wrong?” Ash asked, now sounding concerned. He sat next to me, placing his hands on his lap. “Is something wrong with Fennekin?”

“No, Fennekin’s just fine.” I assured him. “I wanted to talk about us.”

“Oh, okay!” Ash replied. He seemed a lot calmer. “Did Clemont or Bonnie or I do something?”

“No, nothing about Clemont or Bonnie, or even Pikachu, since I know you’ll ask.” I answered. “This is about you and me, Ash. I think it’s about time we took our relationship to the next level.”

“Our relationship?” Ash asked. He looked confused, but I knew better. He was probably close to bursting inside. “We’ll always be friends, don’t worry about that!”

“Oh, I’m glad you agree—wait, Ash … what did you say?”

I know I heard him wrong. My future husband did not just say we’ll be “friends” forever.

“Yeah, no matter what happens!” Ash replied with a thumbs-up. “We’re buddies, and nothing will ever change that!” When I did respond, he moved closer and looked at me. I didn’t want to look back at him. I didn’t want to talk, or move, or even breathe. I didn’t think Ash would play this hard-to-get. For a boy who’s waited for me this long, you’d think he would jump at the chance.

If he won’t, I suppose I’ll be the one to do the jumping – and jump I did.

“Hey, Serena!” Ash sounded surprised after I grabbed him and pushed him back onto the bed. I straddled his waist and looked into his eyes with the most loving expression I could muster; he didn’t return it, however. He actually looked confused. “What are you doing? That almost hurt!”

“Oh, I’m sorry! I would never hurt you, Ash!” I apologized. “As long as you never hurt me, I’ll never hurt you!”

“As long as I never hurt you? Why would I hurt you?” Ash really sounded confused this time. Did he just want me to be blunt? I reached down and grabbed his hands, tightly wrapping our fingers together and holding them close to my chest. “Hey, not so tight …” He groaned.

“I know you’d never hurt me, Ash …” I replied. “Just … well,” I trailed off, gripping his hands a bit harder. He winced, or at least it looked like that to the untrained eye. I know it was just a test of my grip. “Well, when you tell someone you love that you only want to be friends, they might take it the wrong way, you know?”

“When I tell someone I love? Who are we talking about?” Ash asked. My romantic smile was becoming very difficult to keep ‘romantic’ by this point.

“You know who we’re talking about, silly!” I removed my hands from his, but kept a hold on them and placed them on my breasts. Ash didn’t squeeze them; what a gentleman. His entire face was red, though. So cute! “We’re talking about you and me, Ash!”

“So … you’re someone I love, and … I—”

“Oh, I love you too, Ash!” I replied. I cut him off, but I know he was just going to repeat it. “I’m so glad you finally confessed to me! I know it must have been difficult!”