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Ash Ketchum was nothing if not talented. His love and passion for the world of Pokémon was unmatched, his instincts in battle were top notch. His desire to grow and improve was always on full display.
One thing he was not good at, however, was dancing.
It wasn't that he didn't like to dance. In fact, Ash always had a fantastic time whenever he could just groove to the music and let his instincts run wild. There was no rhyme or reason, no real rhythm to his movements, but heck, he had fun and that was all he ever cared about!
But when it came to more traditional forms of dance, which was where Ash struggled. His mom tried so hard to teach him, and he even tried to get it for her sake, even if he hated the idea. But no matter how many times he tried, no matter how often she forced him into practicing with her, all that ever came out of it was crushed toes and bruised foreheads from bonking into each other.
That just gave Ash all the more reason to not want to practice dancing.
Instinct was how he rolled. The more he had to think about what his hands and feet were doing, the less comfortable he got. All he ever wanted was to let loose and get jiggy with it, as Prof. Oak would say.
Which is why Ash now found himself in a very bizarre situation.
It was somewhat uncommon for Ash to take breaks during his Pokémon Journey. But every trainer gets homesick once in a while. So while he was taking a brief respite in Pallet Town, his mother informed him that she was organizing a dance party at the Pallet Town Diner, an extension of the Pallet House that she was opening with some help of a new family that recently moved into Pallet Town.
So in a way, this was a grand opening party as well. So how could Ash refuse to make an appearance, especially when she played to his ego, touting his status as one of the most successful Pokémon Trainers to ever come from Pallet Town.
"Just think how many people will be excited to meet the Champion of the Orange Islands!"
It didn't sound so bad at the time. But then he learned that it was going to be formal. Part of the theme, Delia said. As annoying as it was for him to have to dress up so uncomfortably, Delia made up for it by allowing him to invite whoever he wanted to the party so he wouldn't be lonely.
That's when the phone calls began.
Ash tried to keep his own personal guest list relatively short. After all, with all the people he could claim he knew, all of Pallet Town would be overrun, to say nothing of the diner. Even still, his list was extensive.
Brock was more than happy to take a quick break from his training to become a Pokémon Doctor, his new goal since moving on from the Breeder path he'd been on before. He even volunteered to help in the kitchen so Delia would be able to mingle with the guests for the grand opening.
Dawn hadn't been gone from the group long, but when Ash called to let her know she was invited to a party in the Kanto Region, she was positively ecstatic…and much to Ash's surprise, she asked if Kenny could come along as well, given the low-key intimate nature of the event. Well, naturally, Ash wasn't going to say no, but he was still a bit confused as to why Dawn would choose to bring Kenny with her, of all people.
At least it wasn't Paul.
And of course he had to invite May. As a fellow food lover, she was all too happy to attend the grand opening of the new diner, especially if there was a dance party to go with it…but just like Dawn, May weirdly asked to invite Drew to the party too. Which, again, Ash didn't mind, but what was it with his friends inviting people who they considered rivals?
In the grand scheme of things, it really wasn't any of his business. He was just happy to have his friends there. Even Gary Oak had taken a break from his adventures as a Pokémon Researcher to make an appearance at the diner…and yet he too, had opted to bring someone with him. A brown-haired girl by the name of Leaf that Ash recognized from when they were growing up in Pallet Town.
When had Gary gotten back in touch with her? It wasn't like they talked much when they were kids.
Looking around the diner, it occurred to Ash that almost everyone had someone with them…almost.
Once Ash spotted Misty sitting alone in one of the booths, he smiled and moved to go and talk with her. At least since she didn't have anyone with her, he wouldn't feel like he was interrupting, considering how engrossed all the pairs seemed to be in each other.
"Comin' through!"
"Yow!" Ash jumped to avoid the little spitfire that raced past him to hand a super thick milkshake over to May and Drew, grinning as she did so. "Man, she's got more energy than an Aipom!"
"Sorry Mister!" The young girl rushed back up to Ash and bowed slightly to apologize. "We've got all these orders to fill and-" But then she blinked as she looked up at him. "Hey, you're Ash Ketchum, aren't you?!"
Ash suddenly felt his heart swell up with pride as he smirked down at her. "You know me?"
"Know you?! Are you kidding?!" The girl's eyes began to sparkle. "You're famous around here! When my mom told me we were moving to Pallet Town, all I wanted was to get a chance to meet you!" The girl shifted the tray she was holding under one arm, extending a hand to Ash for him to shake. "I'm Elaine; my folks are the ones helping your mom open up the diner!"
"Well it's nice to meet ya, Elaine." Ash shook the girl's hand, chuckling at how she seemed awestruck by the simple gesture. "So I guess you wanna be a Pokémon Trainer someday huh?"
"Oh absolutely!" Elaine nodded fervently. "It's all I've been thinking about ever since I was old enough to know what a Pokémon was! In a couple years when I turn ten, I'm running right up to Prof. Oak's lab to get my starter!"
"Well, just don't do what I did." Ash rubbed the back of his head. "I overslept and ended up being late, I almost didn't get a Pokémon."
"Oh my mom told me all about that story! Yeah you didn't get one of the main starter Pokémon, but that's how you ended up getting your Pikachu! It was practically fate if you ask me!"
Ash laughed. "Maybe you're right."
"Hey thanks for talking to me, Mr. Ash!"
"Whoa, just Ash, I'm still waaay too young to be called Mister!"
"Right, Ash." Elaine sweatdropped. "Sorry about that! But either way, as a token of my thanks, let me get you and your date something from the menu, it's on the house! I'll even bring it right to your table! Which one's your date?"
"My…date?"
Elaine's smile faded as she saw Ash's face contort into a confused expression. "Do you…not have one? Everyone else here seems to be with someone."
"I…" Ash looked around the room again, now it made sense to him why his friends had invited their rivals. They weren't just rivals anymore. Dawn looked deliriously happy to be dancing with Kenny as they slow-danced in the middle of the diner, May was obviously reacting to the look Drew was giving her if the blush on her face was anything to go by...and now it made sense why Gary would invite someone he hadn't seen in literal years. "I guess I don't, no."
Elaine frowned as she started walking past him. "Sorry if I made you sad, Ash. Wish I could stay and talk more but I've still got all these folks waiting for their food! I hope you enjoy the rest of the night!"
Ash watched as Elaine went behind the counter again to grab some more food from Brock. For the briefest of moments, he and Brock shared eye contact, enough for the Pokémon Breeder to shoot him a look that even he wasn't dumb enough to miss. He looked back in Misty's direction, seeing once again that she was sitting by herself, a faraway look in her eyes.
"Does she not have a date either?" Ash resumed his original intention, walking over to Misty's booth and taking a seat on the opposite side. "Hey, Mist. Enjoying the grand opening?"
Misty exhaled through her nose, giving a tiny smile in response as she leaned back in her seat. "I'm happy for your mom, really I am. Expanding her business means more revenue for her…and you too, I guess. But honestly, I guess I'm just really not in the party mood right now."
"Yeah, I hear ya." Ash leaned his arms against the table, resting his head in the crook. "Feels like everyone's kinda just focused on whoever they brought to the party. It's like you can't really just go up and talk to 'em."
"That can happen when you bring a date." Misty hummed as she too leaned against the tabletop. "Of course, it isn't so bad to interrupt when you have a date with you too. Then it's not like you're the unwanted third wheel."
"Third wheel?"
Misty just sighed and shook her head. "Never mind."
"Sorry." Ash crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back in his seat with a pout. "Well why didn't you bring a date with you then?"
"Why didn't you?"
"You can't answer a question with a question!"
"I just did!"
"Y'know, somehow seeing you two going at it like this reminds me of the good ol' days." Gary walked up to them with Leaf hanging on his arm, as the boy smirked down at Ash. "Hiya, Ashy boy! Havin' a nice time with your date?" Gary rolled his eyes when Ash and Misty both simultaneously blurted out denials. "How did I know you were going to say that?"
"You have a date, Gary. Shouldn't you be spending time with her like everyone else is?"
"Just because you have a date doesn't mean you tune out the rest of the world, y'know." Gary shook his head. "I tell ya, Ash, you're completely hopeless when it comes to this stuff."
"I am not!" Ash leaned forward in a challenging posture. "I could have a date if I wanted to!"
"You have no idea." Gary rolled his eyes again. "Much as I'd like to antagonize you a while longer, Leaf wants to hit the dance floor. Smell ya later, Ash."
"Bye, Gary." Ash grumbled as he watched his former rival walk away to head to where Dawn and Kenny were still lost in their own little world. "The nerve of that guy, just when I thought we were starting to be friends! Can you believe him?"
"He's right, you know."
"Huh?"
"I said, he's right." Misty leaned forward with a scowl on her face. "You're hopeless when it comes to love and romance. You have no idea what it means to care about someone enough that they become special to you, to the point that you'd want to dance with them just because it makes you happy to be close to them. Everyone else here does, but you don't!"
"I guess I don't, but clearly you do!" Ash scowled right back. "So I'll ask again, and this time I want an answer! If having a date is so important, why didn't you bring someone?!"
The redhead grit her teeth and slammed her fist on the table as she glared at the black-haired boy, her cheeks burning red. "I just said it, Ash! Because the person I want to bring doesn't have a godforsaken clue what it means to care about someone special!"
Ash blinked as his brain stripped a gear trying to process the words he'd just been told. "Wait…are you…" Ash huffed out a breath, seeing how Misty now had her eyes closed, arms crossed over her chest and slouching as if she was trying to make herself smaller. He knew that pose all too well, having done it himself so many times growing up. "Misty, why are you embarrassed to tell me that?"
Her eyes shot open, her mouth agape as she tried to process the words she'd just been told. "You still don't get it?" In spite of herself, Misty began to laugh. "Oh Mew help me, why did I have to choose such a braindead moron?"
"I'm not a moron!" Ash grunted. "What is it that I don't get? What am I missing?!"
"The fact you even have to ask that proves my point." Misty sighed and leaned across the table. "Do you see all those couples out there, Ash?"
"Yeah…"
"They all see something special in the other person. Something that sometimes can't even be defined by words, you just instinctively know in your heart that you care about them, more than anyone else in the world. You want to be with them, you want to see them happy, and you'd do anything to make that happen."
Ash took a moment to ponder on this, his eyes wandering across the diner to see all the couples in the room. May and Drew, Gary and Leaf, Dawn and Kenny, the bevy of other people who had all gotten dressed up to spend quality time with their significant other.
And then his eyes fell back onto Misty. Red hair curled into a wave down her back, a sparkly aqua-colored dress and more glamorous than he'd ever seen her in his entire life. She clearly had her heart set on something by coming here tonight, there was no way she came just to support the diner and be miserable doing it.
It didn't seem fair. Why were she and him the only two people not having a good time tonight? Seeing how downtrodden she was, it lit a fire in his heart. Misty deserved better than to be sad all night…he wanted her to be happy. "Hey, Misty?"
"What is it now?"
For reasons he couldn't explain even to himself, Ash found himself sweating as he prepared to ask the question. "Will you dance with me?"
"W-What?!"
"You heard me." Ash put on as serious an expression as he could muster as his heart started beating faster. "I kinda get what you're saying. If someone is special to you, you want to see them happy. And…you're special to me." Ash smiled, as he extended a hand out to her across the table. "So whaddya say, Mist? Will you be my date for tonight?"
Misty blinked, staring down at the rough and calloused hand reaching out to her as her heart started beating rapidly in her chest. Then she looked up at him, seeing the sincere smile on his face, causing her to blush lightly and take his hand into hers. "I would love to."
"Awesome. Then let's hit the dance floor!" He laughed as he dragged Misty out of the booth and onto the floor where everyone else was dancing along to a faster song. He wasn't sure why everyone seemed to be cheering him on, but hey, it felt good to be able to dance with Misty again. In some ways, this beat Maiden's Peak by a country mile. "Hey, Misty!"
"Yeah, Ash?"
"Think we could go dancing together more often? It's a lotta fun doing this with you!" The look on her face when he said that made Ash's heart skip a beat.
"Ash, I can't think of anything else I'd rather do!"