12 months

52.143 weeks

364 days later... and it was finally time.

The airport was loud and busy, like they always were. But today specifically it felt ten times busier. Maybe it was the rapid beating inside her chest, or the fact she hadn't slept at all the night before, but Megan felt as if gravity was pulling her down as her eyes occasionally darted up to the screen the flights were presented on. She still had ten minutes to get her shit together...

The past year had been eventful, to say the very least. Rose, being the oldest of the group finished her final year on her dancing course and started training to become a coach as an apprentice. She moved in with her boyfriend, Guzma a few months ago, and to be honest neither had looked happier. Sun, after a bit of pestering from his friends, finally asked Ein out on a date. And he agreed, after a few minutes of stuttering out nonsense. They'd been together ever since. And... Well, let's just say innocent little Sun ain't so innocent anymore. As for Hau and Megan, they had become considerably closer over the past year- not to say they weren't close already. But it was probably something to do with how they both were waiting for someone... this year had been the hardest for them.

Megan mostly, because she didn't know what would happen as soon as those gates opened...

The last year she had spent without Gladion had been a long journey. Shortly after her mother returned, Luke had finally proposed to Ashley after years of worrying about his sister's wellbeing, and they now lived together with him living out his lifelong dream as a vet. It was a huge change, but honestly, Megan was happy that her brother was finally thinking of himself. Her mother signed her up for therapy sessions, which gave her the chance to finally let out everything she had kept locked away. And because of that, she had never felt more relaxed. She started to expand her social bubble, like her friends had urged her to so many times in the past, which allowed her to let in new friends such as Rafe, Avory, Ein and even Sadie to some extent. She was so much brighter...

But that didn't stop her from being stupidly anxious at this moment in time. She was looking forward to this day for so long, why did she want it to be pushed back another year??

"Megan please stop pacing."

"I can't help it!" The girl whined out, her fist pressed to her mouth as she panicked "Ughhhhh, why'd it have to be today?! I don't know if I'm ready, and look Hau's petrified!" Everyone glanced at the green haired boy, who on the contrary seemed rather relaxed "I don't know if I'm ready to see him again! I mean, yay Lillie's back! But Gladion? The guy I made a love proposal to a year ago?! How can I be ready?! Hau stop panicking!!!"

The group sweatdropped. It was great she had become more attuned with her emotions.... Buuuut her overthinking situations never went away. Though they could understand why she was nervous.

After all, the man she had confessed her love to was 7 minutes away from walking through that gate.

Sorry, 5.35 minutes.

As the day drew near, Megan was flooded with an infinite amount of worries. The necklace that still hung securely around her neck stood as a reminder of their promise, but it also stood as a reminder of their feelings... Hers remained unchanged, even after all this time. But what about him? What if he didn't feel the same? Hell, what if she saw him in person and she didn't feel the same anymore? What if the blood didn't rush to her cheeks? What if her heart didn't race in that constant breathtaking beat?

What if they didn't love each other anymore?

"The gate!"

The sudden squeal from Rose made Megan stop dead in her tracks. She was tense, standing straight as a ruler for a moment before stiffly turning around. Two flight attendants opened the gate, allowing a stampede of uncomfortable, messy jet lagged passengers to emerge like a bunch of sleep deprived zombies. They divided off, looking for loved ones and/or their ride home. In unison, the group of friends began searching for their friends' unmistakable platinum blonde heads of hair, impatiently beginning to fidget as the crowd lessened.

Then suddenly, a figure zoomed forward.

The four of them were knocked over by a girl wearing white and pastel blue, and they lay tucked under her arms as she squeezed them to death. Once the shock was gone, they all broke out into wide grins of undeniable happiness.

"Lillie!"

The now 17 year old laughed out and brought herself into a sitting position, her long term friends following as they hugged her between them. They were given weird looks from the people that passed by, but they were too happy to care.

Hau, who had been the eagerest to embrace the girl suddenly pulled away, only to cup her face to pull her into a long awaited sweet kiss. She returned it with little to no complaint, though blushed at the whistling from their smirking audience.

"You have no idea how happy I am to see you..." Hau croaked out to his girlfriend, still cradling her face in his hands with the tender eyes she had missed the whole year they were apart. She giggled and placed a hand over his.

"Me too. I missed you..." She glanced around "All of you..."

Though the moment was sweet, Megan gasped in realisation. If Lillie was here, and she saw them before they saw her... That means her brother was likely to have seen them too...

And boy, was she ever right.

Her eyes fell on a specific spot in the airport, where three figures stood surrounded by bags and suitcases. One was a woman, tall and fair despite her age. Another was a man, plump and friendly looking with a walking stick in his right hand. And in between them... was a paralyzed standing figure with wide emerald green eyes. He stood gaping like a fish, his backpack falling to the floor after slipping off his tense shoulder... It was him. It was Gladion, it was Frenchfry! Suddenly the world around Megan became irrelevant as she stood from her spot on the floor, and her heart was set aflame with so many burning emotions.

Had he gotten broader? He was taller, that's for sure, and his signature fry shaped hair looked rather unkempt, but that was most likely due to the long flight he had just sat through. But it was him, in all his glory. She could recognise that piercing emerald gaze anywhere, and it was beautiful...

A hand was placed on her back, which pushed her forward as the voice of her best friend spoke.

"Go. Get yourself the love of your life."

That seemed to fuel her engines as she began to walk towards him. His feet moved almost in complete harmony with her own. And soon, walking turned into running. The doubts and anxiety she felt before flowed behind her like her hair as locked on to her target. The closer they got, the looser the grip of their fears became.

And then they let go, as soon as they met in the middle of that packed airport.

Megan leapt into Gladion's open arms, wrapping her own around his neck while her legs securely locked around his torso. She felt the hold of his noticeably stronger arms around her waist, holding her up as he dug his face into the crook of her neck. Megan sobbed quietly into the hood of his jacket as he held her up, supporting her just like he always had while inhaling her oh so familiar scent. It was as if they hadn't been apart for a year, because there they were closer than ever.

"Oh my God..." The girl cried out, sinking her face deeper into his hoodie "Y-You're really here! It's not a dream, it's you!"

"Yeah... It's me, I'm here..." The obvious crack made her realise Gladion was most likely crying too, as he leaned forward to allow her legs to slide down to touch the ground. Yet he still held on tight. Megan removed her face from his hood to look at his face close up for the first time in forever, and oh gosh since when did her heart beat that quickly? She didn't know what came over her, yet in an instant her lips had crashed firmly against his. All the times she felt his mouth against hers came rushing back to her, and for the first time since he left... she felt complete.

Wait, wasn't she supposed to...

Oh glob.

"Sorry!" She pulled back, hands on his shoulders as she turned bright red from embarrassment. She couldn't get far however, as he still held onto her waist with an unmoving grip "I-I probably should've asked if that was okay, I shouldn't have--"

She was cut off when one of his hands came up to cup her cheek, which caused her to meet his gaze again. His eyes seemed to sparkle with love and desire as his face neared hers.

"You shouldn't have stopped." He finished for her, and pulled her into a long lasting passionate kiss. She responded instantly, brushing her fingers through his hair as their bodies remained pressed together in the middle of the chaos. But that didn't matter. All that mattered was what was happening right now...

When pulling away Megan pulled the boy into another hug "You have no idea how much I missed you! Don't you dare leave again, do you hear me Frenchfry?!"

Despite the yelling by his ear, he couldn't help but ease up at the nickname she'd given him. Of all things, why was that the thing he missed hearing her say the most?!

"Never... Not after all that waiting... Besides, there's still so many Mcdonalds we gotta eat, together!"

She laughed out loud, giving him what was supposed to be a peck, but he held the back of her head so it lasted way longer. When finally pulling away, she pressed her forehead against his "I swear, here I was worrying my ass off about things not working out."

He groaned "I think I had the worst flight of my life... not even the turbulence could distract me from the thought of you being distant..."

Megan giggled, not surprising to when Gladion's lips kept planting themselves on every part of her face and jaw.

"Come on, man! Hehe! The others want to see you, too!"

"Mhh," He pressed his lips against her neck "Five more minutes."

"Gladion, come on."

He pouted "Oh, alright..."

When he let go, he already noticed his friends standing behind Megan with large smiles on their faces. In an instant, the two of them were crushed in the middle of a group hug much like Lillie had been. Gladion laughed out, feeling at home once more as he held the dancers close to him.

"Hey, guys." He muttered "How are are yo-- Sorry. Sun, is that a hickey?"

"Oh Gladion..." Rose sighed out "We have so much to catch up on."

---

"It's like we never left." Lillie breathed out as soon as they entered their temporarily vacant home. She turned to her friends, smiling gratefully at them "You kept it clean all this time?"

Sun shrugged, stuffing his hands into his pockets "Well we thought it made sense. After everything you two have done for us, the least we could do was take care of this place while you were gone."

"Yeah!" Rose piped up "We cleaned every inch of this place! We even washed your clothes once in awhile, well mostly because--"

Megan suddenly laughed out loud, cutting off the short girl and skipping ahead "Anyway! We bought some groceries before we left for the airport, so you don't have to worry about eating fast food. They're in the fridge."

Despite being curious about what Rose was saying, Gladion smiled "Thank you guys... You didn't have to, but it will make settling in way easier. Especially for dad."

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Lusamine was suddenly behind them, smirking with her arms crossed "Go unpack, you two. You'll have time to catch up, later."

"Yes mom!" Her kids replied.

Megan felt a hand on her wrist as she turned, meeting Gladion's eyes making her lose her breath again. Maybe it was because she still couldn't believe he was really here.

"Could you help me?" He asked.

"Huh? What for?"

Rolling his eyes, he began tugging her along with his suitcase and bag on his other arm "Just come on."

"Gladion, you've been holding onto Megan all day!" His mother called out "Are you ever gonna let go of the poor dear?"

A loud snort emitted from the boy's throat "Not likely!"

WHAT?!

---

As soon as Gladion entered his old room and dropped his bag, he pulled Megan towards the bed and sat her on top of his lap. Once again she found his arms around her waist and his head buried in the crook of her neck.

"W-Woah, Gladion." She glanced at him over her shoulder, trying not to make it obvious she was a hot mess "You okay?"

He nodded against her shoulder "Yeah, sorry... I just... I really missed you, you know. Being here right now feels like a dream, so I don't want you out of my sight at the moment, in case you disappear..."

Heart squeeze

"Does it make you uncomfortable?"

Megan scoffed "If I was uncomfortable, would I have thrown myself at you in the airport?"

He chuckled lightly "No, I suppose you wouldn't have."

Gladion's head lifted to meet Megan's eyes, his smirk morphing into a gentle smile once again. His eyes trailed down when he noticed something shimmering around her neck "I see you kept the necklace."

Blushing, she touched the pendant with a nervous laugh "It was sort of a reminder, of what we said in the studio."

"Have you thought about it?"

"I have..."

"And? What's your answer?"

Megan leaned over to peck him on the lips, smirking afterwards "I think you already know..."

Gladion broke into a wide grin, holding her closer to him as he rested his chin on her shoulder. His lips planted themselves on the side of her neck, causing her to squeak. Then, suddenly he sighed out as if he realised he'd left something unsaid.

"Remember when you said you loved me?"

"Umm, yeah. That's what started this."

"Well, shortly after we moved I came to the realisation... I never said it back."

"What? Yes you did."

"No, I only kissed you."

"No you--" she paused, before letting out a dramatic extended gasp "Oh gosh, you're right! Why did I think you did?"

He shrugged "It was implied? I don't know, but I kinda feel shitty for not saying it back... Especially since, you know... I obviously had- and still have very strong feelings for the girl who said them."

Gladion was silent for a bit, but his heartbeat was quickly paced as Megan could feel it pulsing into her back. He suddenly gripped her hips and lifted her off his lap, sitting her beside him before turning to her with his legs tucked under his butt. He reached out and took the pendant between his finger and thumb, watching as the light of his room reflected off it with a small smile. When looking up at Megan again, he reached up to tuck a few stray hairs behind her ear.

"I'm glad it's you I met in that dance studio - If it wasn't, I don't know where I'd be... but I'd most likely not see the world the same way I do now. And, um..." He chuckled when pinching the bridge of his nose "Shit, I don't even know why I'm procrastinating over three simple words."

Megan tilted her head cutely. Why was he nervous, it was only her... who he'd been aching for for twelve months. Maybe it was her obvious newfound confidence throwing him off guard; he knew she changed but not to this extent. It made her easier to talk to, but at the same time more difficult to talk about how he felt.

"You don't have to say it, you know. If you aren't ready..." Her voice brought him out of his thoughts "The kiss was enough for me."

But it's not enough for me.

"No, no. I'm gonna say it. I've waited a year, I'm not going to chicken out." He claimed stubbornly "I mean, before I left I would've happily yelled it out to all of Moscow. Well... now I'm gonna tell the world!"

Megan raised an amused eyebrow as his eyes sparkled with determination "Well then, who am I to stop you? Go on."

She said that, but on the inside she was like: OMYFUCK! IS HE ACTUALLY GOING TO YELL IT OUT?! AHHHHHH, I WASN'T READY FOR THIS! IT'S EMBARRASSING ENOUGH IF HE SAID IT NORMALLY!

Despite the nerves he felt, Gladion smirked. He leaned forward to level with her, and laced his fingers with hers.

"I love you..."

BA-DUMP

A large cherry red blush spread across the girl's face all the way to the tips of her ears. She wasn't expecting to get a bloody stroke when he said those words... No one had said they loved her before - ruling out family, so she didn't know what it felt like exactly. But it felt like being shot by Cupid's arrow... again!

"W-Why did you whisper?" she asked, unable to look away from his eyes. The boy's smirk softened into a soft smile, as he placed his free hand under her chin.

"Because, you're my whole world."

Oh my G--

Megan made a move to hide her face, but Gladion took ahold of her wrists and pulled them down "I don't think so, chika. I want to see your face."

Her jaw dropped, clearly at a loss for words "Wha- Where did this confidence come from?!"

"The fact that I love you," He answered simply while cupping her face in his hands, pulling her into a long passionate kiss "Like it or not, I'm going to keep on saying it over and over. Because I never want you to forget."

Even though she was still shocked, Megan wrapped her arms around the boy's neck to deepen the kiss. Her cheeks were glowing a bright pink hue, which made him to smirk in victory.

"Well, I love you, too... and I don't plan on letting you forget that, either..." she muttered between kisses.

"Gladion!" A sudden shout from downstairs made them jump "You better be unpacking, and not clinging to your little girlfriend!"

They separated instantly.

"Um, oops?" Gladion chuckled shyly, rubbing the back of his neck with pink cheeks "Guess I was so excited to have actual alone time with you, I forgot about why we were up here in the first place..."

Oh my... He's so cute! I have been blessed! Thank you, Hylia!

"Well, we better not give your mom anymore reason to tell at us, eh? Come on." Megan tried to hide her own blush as she stood up, and made her way towards the boy's luggage.

"Wait!"

Gladion's hand suddenly grabbed her arm, pulling her back so he could press his lips against hers once more "Last kiss."

When letting go he walked towards his bags, with a flustered Megan trailing behind him. She groaned out, but helped him sort out clothes regardless.

"Stupid Frenchfry..."

---

"I'm clingy, huh?"

Gladion's pouty glare was left unnoticed by the green haired boy currently cuddling with his little sister, but it obviously got a chuckle out of his father.

"No one's stopping you from being clingy with your girlfriend, son."

"Yeah," the boy scoffed "No one, except my girlfriend."

He pointed towards the girl, who was currently facetiming her brother and his new bride Ashley. They were currently on their honeymoon in Hawaii. Hearing his comment, Megan scoffed playfully and turned from her phone momentarily to address him.

"We've been apart for two minutes, Gladion. That's nothing compared to this year. You can survive girlfriend withdrawal while I make one call."

The boy continued to sulk, while Mohn, Hau and Lillie laughed alongside each other.

"She's a good girl, Gladion." The blonde haired man told his son, nodding towards the girl laughing along with her brother "Be sure to not let her go this time."

Those words made both teenagers pause. They glanced at the man, not sure exactly what to say, before allowing their gazes to move towards one another. Gladion examined her face, recalling every feature perfectly, before giving her a gentle adoring smile.

"Never again. She's a keeper."

Megan felt her breath hitch yet again. He was seriously killing her with those sweet words, yet she wanted to hear more. A cough from her brother had her turning back to her phone.

"Are you seriously going to keep talking to us after he said that?" The man asked with a deadpan.

"Well... Err--"

"How about we make this simpler for you," Ashley grinned before snatching the phone off Luke "Bye!"

The screen went blank.

"Wait, I didn't even-..." She trailed off and stared at her phone in exasperation. It always seemed to be married couples that try keeping newer couples close at all times... Groaning, she placed the device on the coffee table, before she turned to the fry haired male next to her. He was staring at her, excitement clear in his eyes as he waited for her next action. To be honest, she had been trying to hold back all this time, because she didn't want to seem too needy... But now...

"You know what, fuck it!" She declared as she launched herself into Gladion's arms "I'm clingy as hell, don't @ me!"

Gladion laughed out loud holding her close as if he hadn't done so in forever. Well, it had only been a few minutes... But by the amount he missed her, he was sure he'd be let off this once.

"Oh my God..." He whispered, catching Megan's attention even though her head was buried in his chest.

"What? What is it?"

"Y-You're really here..."

"Yeah, I-- wait..."

Was it just her, or was his voice several notes girlier than usual?

"It's not a dream, it's you."

Hold up!

That's exactly what I said when--

"Boi!" She feigned anger, pushing herself up so she loomed over a sniggering Frenchfry who seemed rather pleased with himself "Keep that up and I'm dumping your ass!"

Gladion chuckled and gripped her hips, pulling her closer "Aww, you don't mean that~"

"Ha, really? We aren't even official yet, I can literally just-- Gah!"

She was yanked down back on top of Gladion's chest, where he quickly caged her in his arms to keep her in place. When she looked up to glare at him, her breath was caught in his throat after seeing his content expression.

"As I said," He began, his hand running up and down her back soothingly "I'm never letting you go again, so you're stuck with me sorry to say."

Megan gulped, propping herself on her arms so she wasn't craning her neck. However, her waist was still pinned under Gladion's arms "Do you mean that in a literal sense, or..."

"That depends, Meg..." He responded, leaning closer so their noses were one movement away from touching, his voice lowering like it was only meant for her "Do you plan on running away?"

Her heart was sent into another frenzy.

Slowly she shook her head, seeming unable to look away from the boy as he leaned closer.

"Soooo..." The sudden voice of Hau broke their little moment "For clarification, I can hug Lillie without you moaning now, right?"

Gladion groaned out, leaning his head back against the couch's arm "Yeah, sure, whatever!"

"Can we kiss, too?" Lillie added smugly, hoping to irritate her brother further. It worked, since Gladion started giving the two of them evil eye. His gaze fixed on his sister's boyfriend for a moment, before he gave a smirk that made the happy pineapple flinch.

"If you mess up," He mouthed, before dragging his thumb across his neck in a slitting motion. Hau gulped, which resulted in Lillie pulling the both of them up while glaring at her brother.

"You know what, Hau," She huffed "Maybe we should give them some alone time."

Well, she took the hint.

Hau didn't complain as he was lead out by the hand, but he made quick glances at Gladion to see if he was still staring. When they were out of sight Megan turned to her boyfriend with an exasperated yet amused pout.

"Was that really necessary?"

"To get you alone?" Her face was suddenly pulled into yet another kiss, which had her yelping like a startled puppy. Their eyes met when they pulled away, and Gladion's smirk changed into a gentle smile as he planted another kiss on her forehead.

"Without a doubt."

----------

A/N - Omg

That's it

That's the end.

I cannot believe that after almost a year of working on this story (Will literally be a year in seven days) it's actually complete.

I cannot thank you enough for all the support I got with this story, even if it's a bit all over the place. Especially when it got to #1 in Gladion a couple weeks ago. It was a short time, but you have no idea how ecstatic I was. I have to say this year of writing has been so overwhelming and incredible. And it's all thanks to you who found the time to click on this story.

Oh man, I feel so accomplished right now!!!! It has been rough, I have to admit. My motivation streaks have been coming less these days, but yet here I am like "Holy Shinx and Eevees, I did it!"

Well, anyway... Back to business.

The book itself is finished, that's true. Buuuuut, as I said on my feed, I may add some after stories. Like, how Megan met Sun, Hau and Rose, or maybe give some of the minor-er characters some light. Hell, I might dedicate a chapter to Sadie, since ya know. I was a bit harsh on her.

But you know, only if it's something people want to see.

Speaking of which, what I'm planning to do next...

Well...

I was thinking, maybe I should try my hand with doing an X Reader (Yes, I know I tried one before. We shall never speak of it again)

I have two ideas in mind, that I've been thinking into and working on this past month and a bit.

One's probably not going to be much of a surprise, while the other's... unique, to say the very least of it.

Anyways, enough blabbering. I'll just show you now:

Here's one....

And

Here's the other.

I did say unique.

I dunno, Are these stories you'd like to see? I'm probably gonna upload them anyway, but still...

Well, anyways. I think that's it

*Exhales*

Wow, I'm actually kinda in denial right now. But, every book has to close eventually, right?

Yeah...

Well anyway, I hope you all have a great day- night- afternoon, whenever!

And I'll see y'all when I see ya!

Bai!