Gary was in the middle of reviewing some test results when Ash strolled into the clinic, trying way too hard to act normal.

“Hey, Doc,” Ash greeted casually, waving with his left hand while his right stayed firmly pressed to his ribs.

Gary looked up, unimpressed. “What did you do?”

Ash blinked. “What? Nothing! Can’t I just visit my best bud without being interrogated?”

Gary raised an eyebrow. “Ash, you don’t visit me unless you’re dying or avoiding something.” His gaze flickered to Ash’s awkward posture, the way he kept his arm protectively over his ribs, how his breathing was just slightly more shallow than usual. His eyes narrowed. “Take a deep breath.”

Ash hesitated. “I can take a deep breath,” he said, but he made no move to actually do it.

Gary sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Ash, I swear on Arceus—just do it.”

Ash inhaled, but the second his ribs expanded, he winced and immediately coughed, curling in slightly. “See?” he wheezed. “Totally fine.”

Gary set his clipboard down and stood up. “Oh yeah, you’re so fine.” He gestured to the exam table. “Sit.”

Ash groaned but obeyed, still cradling his side. Gary stood in front of him, arms crossed. “Tell me what happened.”

“...I fell.”

Gary rolled his eyes. “Obviously. How?”

Ash mumbled something unintelligible.

Gary leaned in. “What was that?”

“...I tripped over a rock trying to catch a Butterfree,” Ash muttered.

Gary snorted. “And let me guess, you didn’t land gracefully?”

Ash grumbled something under his breath, but Gary was already moving on. He knelt beside the table, placing his hands on either side of Ash’s ribcage. “Alright, I’m gonna check for injuries.”

The second Gary’s hands got too close, Ash flinched and immediately swatted him away. “Nope! Nope, I’m good! Totally fine! You do not need to check anything.”

Gary froze, eyes narrowing. He recognized this behavior—Ash wasn’t just in pain; he was avoiding something.

And that meant it was probably bad.

Gary sighed dramatically. “Ashy-boy,” he started, drawing out the nickname just to be annoying, “if you let me check now, we can get this over with quickly. If you fight me on this, I will sedate you.”

Ash paled. “You wouldn’t.”

Gary smirked. “Try me.”

Defeated, Ash let out a whine and hesitantly dropped his arm from his side. Gary moved quickly, running his hands over Ash’s ribs, pressing gently along the bone structure.

The second he pressed on a certain spot, Ash flinched hard, nearly doubling over.

Gary frowned. “Ash, you dislocated a rib piece.”

Ash stiffened. “Oh. Okay. That’s, uh. That’s bad, right?”

Gary sighed. “Yeah, it is. If we don’t pop it back in, it could make breathing harder and start affecting your organs.”

Ash immediately crossed his arms over his ribs. “Cool, okay, new plan: we don’t do that.”

Gary gave him a deadpan look. “Ash—”

“Nope! Not happening. You just said it’s gonna hurt, and I like my ribs exactly where they are.”

Gary sighed, rubbing his temples. “Ash, if we don’t fix this, you could get worse.”

Ash shook his head stubbornly. “I’ll be fine!”

Gary knew that tone. Ash was scared. Really scared.

So, Gary took a deep breath, then did something he never did.

He held out his arm. “Fine. You can hold onto me.”

Ash blinked. “...What?”

Gary rolled his eyes. “You heard me, Pikachu-brain. You can hug my arm if it makes you feel better.”

Ash hesitated. “You never let me do that.”

Gary groaned. “Yes, well, I’m feeling generous.”

Slowly, Ash reached out and wrapped his arms around Gary’s arm, squeezing it way tighter than necessary. “This is weird,” Ash mumbled.

Gary scoffed. “Yeah, well, it’s about to get worse. Ready?”

“No—”

Pop!

The second Gary relocated the rib, Ash yelped and buried his face into Gary’s sleeve, squeezing his arm so tight it nearly cut off circulation.

“Ow ow ow ow ow—” Ash whined into his sleeve.

Gary sighed, rubbing Ash’s back. “Yeah, yeah, I know, kiddo. You’ll live.”

Ash groaned dramatically. “You suck.”

Gary smirked. “And you are a stubborn idiot.”

Ash grumbled but didn’t move from his spot, still clinging to Gary’s arm. Pikachu hopped onto the table, checking over his trainer.

Gary ruffled Ash’s hair. “Next time, maybe don’t trip over rocks.”

Ash just whined louder.

Gary leaned back in his chair, rubbing his temples as he flipped through yet another patient file. It had been a long day, and it wasn’t even lunchtime yet. He was about to take a sip of his much-needed coffee when the door to his office creaked open.

Ash stood there, looking oddly hesitant, which was unusual for him. Normally, he burst in like a Tauros in a china shop.

Gary immediately narrowed his eyes. "What did you do?"

Ash blinked. "What? Nothing!"

Gary arched an eyebrow. "Then why are you standing there like you got caught sneaking snacks before dinner?"

Ash shifted uncomfortably, crossing his arms over his chest. "I just... wanted to check in."

Gary nearly choked on his coffee. "You wanted to check in? On your own? Without me dragging you by the ear?"

Ash scowled. "Okay, okay, don’t make it weird!"

Gary was about to fire off another sarcastic remark when he noticed something. Ash was holding his ribs—subtly, but it was there. His arms were crossed just a little too tightly, and every time he shifted, there was a minuscule flinch.

Gary’s eyes narrowed. "Ash."

Ash froze. "What?"

Gary set his coffee down, standing up. "Take a deep breath."

Ash hesitated. "Why?"

"Because I said so, Ashy-boy."

Ash scowled again but inhaled deeply—only to suddenly stop with a wince.

Bingo.

Gary crossed his arms. "You’ve been guarding your ribs this whole time."

Ash’s eyes darted away. "No, I haven’t."

"Ash."

"…Maybe."

Gary sighed and gestured to the exam table. "Sit."

"I’m fine," Ash protested.

Gary gave him a look. "Sit."

Grumbling, Ash reluctantly climbed onto the table, still protective of his ribs. Gary moved closer, his hands hovering near Ash’s side.

"Alright, I’m going to check, so tell me where it hurts."

Ash tensed. "I don’t think that’s necessary—"

Gary, already ignoring him, placed a hand against his ribs. Ash flinched—hard.

Gary’s jaw tightened. "Ash, how long has this been hurting?"

Ash mumbled something under his breath.

"What was that?"

"...Since this morning."

"This morning?!" Gary practically threw his hands up. "And you’re just now coming to me?!"

Ash shrugged, looking anywhere but at him. "I thought it’d go away."

Gary pinched the bridge of his nose. "Of course you did." He exhaled sharply. "Okay, lie back. Now."

Ash hesitated, but the look on Gary’s face left no room for argument. He slowly leaned back, visibly wincing as he did so.

Gary pressed carefully along Ash’s ribcage, feeling for abnormalities. It didn’t take long to find the issue. "Yep. You dislocated a rib piece, genius."

Ash groaned. "Great."

"Not great, because I need to pop it back in now, or your breathing’s gonna get worse."

Ash immediately sat up. "Wait, wait, now?! Like, right now now?"

"Yes, now now."

Ash looked alarmed. "That’s gonna hurt!"

Gary gave him a flat look. "And leaving it like this won’t?"

Ash bit his lip, gripping his own shirt. "…Do we have to?"

"Yes, Ash. It’ll be quick, but you have to trust me."

Ash fidgeted, clearly not liking this plan. He curled his hands into fists, his breathing quickening.

Gary sighed. "Okay, you big baby, come here."

Ash blinked as Gary held out his arm.

"You can hold onto my arm while I do it."

Ash stared. "…Seriously?"

Gary shrugged. "Just this once."

Ash hesitated, then slowly reached out, wrapping both arms around Gary’s forearm, gripping tightly.

"Alright, Ashy-boy, take a deep breath."

Ash did.

Gary didn’t give him a chance to brace any further. With a swift, practiced movement, he popped the rib piece back into place.

"AUGH!" Ash yelped, squeezing Gary’s arm so hard his fingers nearly turned white.

Gary didn’t say anything, just rubbing soothing circles into Ash’s back as he trembled slightly. "Shh. It’s okay, it’s back in place."

Ash took shaky breaths, still clinging to Gary’s arm. "That sucked."

"Yeah, well, so does ignoring your injuries."

Ash muttered something under his breath but didn’t let go.

Gary sighed, letting him hold on for a moment longer before patting his shoulder. "You done using me as a security blanket?"

Ash huffed, finally letting go, his face slightly red. "…Maybe."

Gary smirked. "I’ll take that as a yes. Now, next time something’s wrong, tell me before it gets this bad, got it?"

Ash mumbled.

Gary flicked his forehead. "Say it louder, Ashy-boy."

"Fine! I got it!"

Gary grinned. "Good. Now let’s get you patched up, dummy."