We rejoin Ash and Serena as Serena just let Ash know that she does remember him now.

No one's POV

"Almost 11 years ago. Professor Oak's Summer Camp in Pallet Town, in Kanto. I met you, Ash Ketchum."

As soon as Serena said that, Ash's world just stopped. It came to him so quickly and so suddenly that he didn't know how to react. Of course, from the moment he saw Serena on that day, he had been playing for this moment, however, now that the moment was finally here, he was at a loss for words.

Ash just started at Serena wide eyed. Serena took this as a cue to continue. She remembered the handkerchief that she shoved into her bag in the morning. She quickly took it out and held it in between her and Ash.

"Remember when we went to Conference Park that day and you told me about how you met 'that girl' during Summer Camp? Well, I wanted you to tell me how you met her... but you told me 'I was hoping you would tell me the answer to that one day.'. Well, here it is, Ash. Now that know that the girl was me... I can tell you everything from my point of view.

I had wandered away from my group and ended up getting lost near the entrance of Viridian forest. I was lost in an unfamiliar place. For a young child, that was a terrifying experience. For all that I knew, an Ursaring could have jumped out of nowhere and mauled me. Being the pessimist that I was, I was really expecting the worst." Serena started.

"I only got more scared when a bush right next to me started shuffling. A Poliwag the jumped out of nowhere and it scared me so much that I tripped and hurt my knee. I absolutely hated it. I hated being at that camp. I hadn't made a single friend and I didn't see a point in any of the activities.

As I was thinking about that, the bush rustled again. This time, I could tell from the sound of the rustling that whatever was in that bush was a lot bigger than a Poliwag. I remember how I couldn't stop crying. This time, I really thought that it was one of those Ursarings... so I clenched my eyes shut and cried even harder... but then I heard a human voice. It was a calm and soothing one." said Serena as she smiled at a still bewildered Ash.

"The head of a boy, about my age, popped out of the bushes looking for the same Poliwag. He was looking around until his eyes met mine. They were the most amazing shade of Auburn I had ever seen. I just couldn't tear my gaze away. That was until he started talking to me. He told me his name was Ash. He saw my bruised leg and tied this very handkerchief around my knee. He also taught me the words that I live by these days.

'Never give up until the end.'

He was so kind and so sweet. He took my hand in his and walked me back to the safety of the camp-grounds.

From that day on, Ash, you and I were the best of friends. Just like you said in the cave that day, we spent every waking hour together. We played together and ate together and worked together. We did almost everything together.

Thank you Ash!" finished Serena as she gave him a big bright smile.

Ash was still in a trance. He couldn't believe that Serena had remembered it all. He soon broke out into a smile too, however, it was all overcome by a feeling of dread immediately. This caused him to frown.

Seeing that frown on Ash's face upset Serena a lot. She now knew that something was definitely wrong.

"What's wrong, Ash?" she asked in concern.

"Serena... it's great that you finally remember me. It really is... but I'm afraid, just as I said earlier, you are a bit too late. I have to go to Alola." finished Ash as his eyes glistened with tears.

Ash found this extremely unfair. Unfair that he spent 7 whole months, hoping and praying that Serena would remember him, and when she did end up remembering him, it happened in the worst time possible. It happened at a time when Ash was powerless. At a time when Ash would have to leave everything he had at KIT and go back in search of his dream again. The dream to become a Pokemon Master.

Serena's heart broke at the sound of Ash's reply. She looked at Ash in the eyes and saw the helplessness. He looked lost and confused.

Serena wanted to tell Ash not to go to Alola. She wanted to tell him to stay with her... but she couldn't. She couldn't do so knowing that Ash was going to Alola in pursuit of his life long dream. She knew he wanted to live that dream of becoming a Champion all over again. She knew how much it meant to her. She knew she wouldn't dare to stand in between Ash and his dreams. She wouldn't be able to forgive herself if she was the reason that Ash never became a Pokemon Master. At that moment, she decided to support Ash's decision of him going back to Alola.

She knew that Ash was a very caring and selfless person... and that's why she didn't want to confess to him. She knew that if she confessed her feelings to him, he would force himself to stay with her. She didn't want that. She didn't want Ash to know how upset she would be when he leaves. Serena was completely broken inside. It would be weird for her to train without Ash by her side. It would be weird for her to perform without Ash by her side. She knew it was going to hurt. It had already started hurting, however, she forced a smile. She wanted to wave Ash off with a smile.

"I understand Ash... good luck..." she croaked as she gave him a teary-eyed smile.

Ash looked at Serena. Seeing that expression on her face was painful to him. Just like Serena could see that Ash was helpless; Ash could see that Serena was helpless too. Ash knew that Serena wanted him to stay with her, however, he had duties to perform. Ash wanted to stay with her too, but he knew that he had one very important errand to run in Alola. He had to find a new Champion for the whole region... which could take him months.

Ash, too, forced a smile as he waved goodbye to Serena. He then painfully turned away from Serena and got in the passenger seat of the car. He was holding back tears at the moment as he watched Serena from the wing-mirrors. She stood there with one hand clutching the handkerchief in front of her heart while the other was waving him goodbye. She was standing all by herself. If anything, the sight upset Ash even more.

Mr Goodshow then started the car. He started driving away slowly and Ash kept staring at the image of Serena in the wing mirror. He kept staring at her unto the car rounded a corner and she wasn't there anymore. Mr Goodshow then spoke to Ash.

"She is important to you, sin't she?" he asked.

Ash was initially taken aback by his question, however, he had nothing to lose anymore, so he answered.

"Yes, she is..."

His voice was quiet and weak. Nothing like the Ash Mr Goodshow had come to know.

"All I'm going to say Ash is that if she is important to you, don't let her go..." replied Mr Goodshow with a smile.

After that, it was all quiet.

Serena watched the car round the corner. As soon as it did, she burst out crying. She didn't want to watch Ash go. She had never felt so helpless in her life. She could have put anything on the line to make Ash stay there with her... anything but Ash's dream. She wiped her tears away and then turned around to walk back to the classroom. As she walked, she started thinking about her encounter with Ash just now... and she immediately started regretting thing. She regretted not apologising to him. She completely forgot about apologising about yesterday. She regretted not thanking him one last time for everything he had done for her so far. However, her biggest immediate regret was not confessing to Ash.

Serena knew that Ash deserved to knew how she felt about him. After all, he had already confessed his feelings to her multiple times. It was a painful goodbye to Serena. There was no kiss, no hug, just a simple verbal goodbye.

Serena kept on walking into the school grounds. That's when Dawn and May spotted her.

"Serena! Any sign of Ash?!" asked Dawn.

As soon as Ash's name was mentioned, a couple more tears escaped her eyes. Dawn and May noticed this and got worried.

"What's wrong, Serena?" asked a very concerned May.

"He's gone..." replied Serena as she wiped the tear way.

"Huh?..." whispered Dawn.

"He's gone to Alola..." replied Serena as she hung her head and started walking towards the classroom.

Dawn and May looked at each other. The communicated verbally as Dawn gave May a determined nod and started guiding Serena towards the classroom. May nodded back at Dawn and gave Serena a sad smile. She then turned around to collect Drew, Gary and the rest to let then knew that Ash was gone and bring them back to the class room.

As Dawn and Serena made their way through the corridors, Serena reminisced on the moments she shared with Ash in those very corridors. Minutes later, Dawn and Serena entered their classroom. Seeing Serena in that state, Prof. Rowan decided not to question anything. He just remained silent. The two sat in their seats. Moments later, everybody came back to the classroom. Serena was just staring at her table and didn't pay attention to anything... that was until she heard movement behind her.

'That's where Ash sits!' she thought to herself. She immediately twisted her body to look behind her only to find a depressed looking Gary next to an empty seat. Seeing that empty seat was the last straw for Serena. Seeing almost every other seat full and seeing that one empty only reminded that Ash wasn't there anymore. The seat that was always taken and always open for any conversation was empty today... and would always be from today onwards.

Serena completely broke down again at the thought of that. She shot up out of her chair and ran out of the classroom. as tears streamed down her cheeks. Dawn was about to chase after her, however, Gary stopped her.

"She needs some time alone..." said Gary as he gave Dawn a sad smile.

Dawn hesitated for a moment, however, understood what Gary meant and nodded reluctantly.

Serena ran out of the building and ran towards the forest. She wanted to be away from everybody else and wanted to be alone. She just wanted to relive her moments with Ash, so she ran. Ran to that one spot where her and Ash would always spend time together. She ran through the forest until she reached a small clearing near a cliff. It was the same clearing where her and Ash would watch the sunset after every training session. She sat there and thought about Ash. That's when she remembered that ribbon Ash gave her.

Serena quickly took her bag off and took that box out. She opened the box and held the ribbon in her hands. She took out a pair of scissors from her bag and cut a sizable strip. She wrapped it around her collar and tied it into a gentle knot right on top of her chest.

"I miss you already, Ash..." she whispered to herself as she looked at the ribbon on her chest.

Ash was now already in Lumiose City. This whole car journey, he had been thinking about his time at KIT. He got to meet all of his friends in that school. He got to live with them and spend time with them. They all felt like more than friends to him. After spending so much time together, they felt like family. He regretted the fact that he never got to say goodbye to any of his friends except Serena.

Ash and Mr Goodshow soon arrived at Lumiose Airport. They look their suitcases out of the boot and walked inside. The whole time, Ash was still in deep thought. Right now, he was thinking about Serena. He remembered how he had spend that last 10-11 years waiting just for her. That was a lot of time to dedicate to one person, he thought. What scared Ash a lot was the fact that he didn't know when he would see Serena again. He found her after so many years... could he really afford to go back to Alola?

He then started thinking about the time he had spent with Serena. That one moment when they shared a night in a cave. When they went to Lumiose City for shopping and flew back on Pidgeot. The day she was late for her Performance and they had to fly on Charizard. When they went to Coumarine City. Those were all wonderful moments.

However, what Ash would miss the most was the little moments. Training together everyday. Walking through the forest. He knew he would definitely miss Serena's macarons. He would also miss the occasional pecks Serena would lay on his cheeks.

The more he thought about it, the more he realised how wonderful that time that he had spent with Serena had been. He knew that he wasn't ready to let go of all of those moments. He knew that h wasn't ready to let go of Serena. He wanted more of those moments. He wanted more of those kisses... and he wanted more of those macarons.

Ash wanted to be with Serena again, however, he couldn't... unless...

Then suddenly something clicked in his mind. He knew it was a viable solution.

Ash was nearing the gate to his aeroplane... but he knew that what he was about to do had to be done. After thinking over everything, his mind was set.

"Mr Goodshow, come with me." said Ash as he stopped in his path and gave Mr Goodshow a determined look.

"But Ash, the plane-" he started, but was immediately cut off by Ash.

"Screw the plane! What I'm about to do is much more important... so please come with me!" he yelled as he started running towards another direction.

Mr Goodshow saw that determined look and knew that what Ash was about to do was definitely coming from his heart. He didn't know what Ash was bout to do, but he knew that nothing bad was going to come out of it. With that, he followed Ash.

~Timeskip to evening~

It was now starting to get dark. Serena sat there watching the sunset.

Yesterday, it was Ash who was watching the sunset alone... now, it looked like it was Serena's turn.

She felt lonely without Ash. As she sat there, she began realising just how much time she spent with Ash. He was an integral part of her life. That old saying 'You don't know what you have until it's gone', now really made sense to Serena.

She felt hollow. Something was definitely missing, and she knew it was Ash. She knew that nobody could fill the void Ash had just left. It was too big a shoes too fill. After all, Ash gave her a dream, a goal. One that she enjoyed pursuing. She knew that she was happy because of Ash... but Ash wasn't there to share her happiness with him.

By now, Serena couldn't even cry anymore. All her tears had dried up. There was nothing left. She watched the horizon as the sun began setting. It was the first time in 6 odd months that Ash wasn't there to see it set with her.

With a broken smile, she watched the sun set. She was in her own little world where she wall all alone with memories of Ash... until she was brought back to Earth by a voice behind her.

"Serena!" said the voice.

Serena recognised that voice. She froze as her heart started going insane. It was almost as if time stopped. It was a voice she thought she wouldn't hear for a very long time.

Serena needed confirmation to make sure that she wasn't hallucinating. She quickly looked towards the direction of the voice. As soon as she did so, her eyes widened at the sight of the person in front of her as they, somehow, started welling up with tears again.

She honestly thought she was dreaming. She was in so much shock that she couldn't figure out what to do. After a moment of staring, she snapped herself out of it and finally mustered up enough strength to speak.

"A-Ash?!"

End of Chapter 23.

First of all, I want to say thank yo so much for 5K reads and 250 votes. I started 2017 off with that and I can't thank you guys enough for reading, voting and commenting on my books!

I am going to start working on the storyboard for the sequel to this book. Yes, it will have a sequel!!

Now, onto the chapter,

I know that this chapter is a bit shorter than my other chapters, however, I felt like that was the perfect time to end this chapter.

I hope you guys enjoyed this little roller-coaster of a chapter!

I have repeated the word 'chapter' a lot of times now.

Anyways, I hope you guys did enjoy reading this. I hope I didn't rush it. I don't know. Every time I end a chapter early, I feel like I've rushed it.

Well, thank you for reading this chapter!

I'll see you in the next one!