Chapter 46: Dozing 

We stayed up late that night as Dawn continued to ask me more questions about my childhood, about what traveling through the other regions was like, and about the Pokemon I've raised and still wanted to acquire. 

"Are you going to Unova sometime?" Dawn questioned. 

"Eventually. I'm not sure exactly when. For now I'm very content with where I am." 

Yes, I was content. We'd been moved to the biggest guest room Nurse Joy had to offer. I guessed Nurse Joy felt guilty for letting the cretin Kenny into Dawn's room and this was her way of asking for forgiveness. The room had multiple beds, desks, and even a TV and couch which was where Dawn and I were currently both sitting side by side. Dawn had a blanket and her splinted wrist propped up by a pillow while she iced it. 

"I've heard Pokemon Contests aren't very big over there, but Pokemon Musicals are."

I almost snorted. "I've just gotten used to the idea of Contests. Please don't ruin it with Unova crazes." 

"I bet they're fun." 

"What do the Pokemon sing? Their name over and over again? That doesn't make any sense."

Dawn rolled her eyes. "Ok, fine. We don't have to talk about them. What do you want to do?" 

Not leave. Stay here forever. Move closer to you. 

I sighed and tried to refocus for the millionth time. "Want to watch a movie?" 

"Sure. What are you in the mood for? Nurse Joy has a pretty big collection down here. She seems like a big My Little Ponyta fan." 

"Anything but that." 

Dawn giggled. "Ok, how about something with Pokemon battles?" 

"Ok." 

"How'd I guess that?" she asked sarcastically. I smiled. 

She put the disk into the player and came to join me on the couch, looking at the screen eagerly. 

The movie did have me pretty intrigued- a Salamence was involved. Dawn had apparently known that before putting in the disk because she kept peeking at me to see my reactions to certain moves and plot twists. A lot of other Pokemon were used, but Salamence was the only one I truly paid attention to. The entire rest of the movie I was most attentive to the few inches that separated me from Dawn. I began constructing ways to breach the divide, though I was unsure why I wanted to so badly in the first place. I struggled to not submit to that desire which refused to go away. 

Before I knew it, the credits were rolling. 

"Did you like it?" Dawn asked, grinning. 

"Yes." 

She beamed at me. "Want to watch one more?" 

"If you want to." 

Dawn went over to the selection of movies. "Um, ok... how about Wailord Rider?" 

"What the heck is that?" I raised an eyebrow. 

"There's some girl riding a Wailord on the cover? I've never heard of it." 

"Throw it in if you want to watch it." 

She did. The movie started off on a faraway island I'd never heard of before. A tribe of people following ancient traditions of their people was introduced. Only the men were allowed to use Pokemon. The girl on the cover just kind of watched for the first thirty minutes, though she wanted to become a Trainer...

Hm? I thought to myself. I'd woken up. Why, I didn't know. I was so comfortable. My left side was very warm and pressed against something soft. I sighed contently. What I was resting on moved. 

Confused, I opened my eyes. The room was dark. I must have fallen asleep hours ago. 

And then my eyes rested on what I'd been using at a pillow- Dawn. My head had been resting on hers, my body fitting comfortable into her side. Even now, I could feel her breathing, her body's movement to the air leaving and entering her lungs. 

We'd both fallen asleep watching that awful movie. Still, how could I hate it if it resulted in this? 

But really- should I wake her up? I was comfortable. Her splint was in a good position that wasn't hurting her. She seemed happy. A smile rested peacefully on her face. 

For maybe the first time I freely admitted that she was beautiful. Her skin was flawless, her hair was dark and shiny, her smile was perfect. So sincere and innocent. Her neck was slender and graceful, as was the rest of her body. I'd never really thought of beauty as something that meant anything- brute power was everything to me. But now, as I stared at her, I realized that I finally appreciated it and wondered how I'd ever taken Dawn for granted. 

I promised myself right then, as I stared at her slumbering form, that I wouldn't take her for granted anymore. And with that, I leaned forward and gently kissed her forehead, my lips brushing her smooth skin. 

She sighed pleasantly and sunk into a deeper sleep. I smiled and rested my head atop hers, sinking back into dreams. 

The next morning I woke up first. I'd dreamed of Dawn again. This time we had been sitting by a fire in the woods at night, talking. She'd been so close... and then it'd ended. 

Frustrated, I sat very still, eyes open in the morning darkness, Dawn's body pressing against mine and moving as she breathed. As the sun rose slowly from the horizon, I began to accept the fact that Dawn meant more to me than I'd ever let on and began devising ways of telling her how I felt. The phrase "What do you have to lose?" entered my plans and I thought glumly, Everything. This girl had somehow become my whole world and to lose one's whole world seemed like something that would kill a man. 

"Mmm." Dawn nudged me as she twisted her body into a more comfortable position. Her head slid onto my chest. I moved my arm around her back, stunned by her using me as a pillow, curled up against me. It felt nice having her body against mine.  

About ten minutes later I came to the conclusion that she needed to be woken up eventually and I wasn't going to be happy about it no matter what time it was, so now was as good a time as any. 

"Dawn?" I whispered.  

She cuddled her head against my chest. Arceus, she was killing me. 

"Dawn," I murmured into her ear. 

"Five more minutes. I was having a nice dream." She sighed happily. 

A dream? "About what?" 

"You." 

"Me?" 

"Mhmm." She sounded half asleep as if she wouldn't remember this later. "We were at the beach. You made a sandcastle with me. Piplup made one too."  

I chuckled quietly. "What else?" 

It fascinated me- this dream of us. I admired her vision, this world that she'd made and was happy to share with me. 

"We watched the sunset together. It was nice." She smiled. Her eyes hadn't opened once and I felt her drift back to sleep. 

Her dream sounded so wonderful. And she wanted it to happen. She wanted to spend time with me, to enjoy life with me. It hadn't been about Ash or Kenny. It'd been about me. Well, and Piplup, but I didn't count him. 

Maybe that's what I'll do, I thought as Dawn's head pressed against my heart. I'll take her to the beach. Mauville City was the closest waterfront city. Maybe that would suffice.

Hello Pokemon Trainers and Coordinators :)

I hope you liked the chapter. I find the idea of Piplup, Dawn, and Paul building sand castles together absolutely adorable. Especially Paul's "What's the purpose of this activity if the sand is just going to get knocked over, probably by Piplup?" expression. :P

Anyway, let's see.. that will be my Pokemon Question of the Day! Which activity would you be participating in right now in the Pokemon world? And I mean besides battling and training and all that normal Trainer stuff. Would there be a certain city you'd be in, or maybe checking out the shops at Slateport in Hoenn or a department store in Celadon? Competing in a surfing contest with Pokemon? A Ryhorn race? What just sounds like a lot of fun in the Pokemon world that you just don't get to do here, or would just be so much more awesome with Pokemon? 

Thanks for reading and make sure you comment, vote, and/or follow if you aren't already! Have a great day :)

-Flips