Chapter 16:Chocolate
This is slightly different as it's an AU one-shot.
WTLM
School had ended five minutes beforehand and Ash Ketchum was making his way home through the crowd of other students and through the streets near his school. It was Friday, the last day of school for the week and Ash wanted nothing more than to eat, sleep and then maybe eat some more until Monday.
Yeah, that sounded nice, just a weekend of rest and relaxation. Maybe he'd call up a few friends and go see a movie. Brock, a guy in the year above him would definitely go, but that ran the risk of being thrown out if there were any remotely good-looking women there. But screw it, that would probably be more entertaining than the movie.
Maybe Misty too, even if she was a little... Well, borderline psychotic would be the polite way of putting it. He might ask Dawn and May, they seemed to go everywhere together. But that sort of limited their choices because those two were fifteen, a year younger than Ash and Misty.
The herd of teenagers thinned as Ash stepped onto a smaller street, automatically navigating his way home as he thought. Maybe that new arcade that opened up, that way May's little brother could come too. He should probably invite Cilan and Iris as well, come to think about it.
So caught up in his thoughts, Ash didn't noticed the sound of running feet come up behind him, or the sound of slightly laboured breathing. He did notice, however, the sharp voice in his ear. "Ketchum!" The feminine voice called. Ash turned with a start and paled when he saw who stood before him.
Cynthia Shirona. Cynthia Goddamn Shirona!
Oh crap, oh crap, oh crap! What did he do!? He was just going about his business like every other day, what did he do to piss her off today!?
Many may wonder why the sight of the tall, blonde girl from the year above would inspire such a response. Well trust me, there was a reason.
There were a few rumours about Cynthia Shirona. Some said that she was the granddaughter of the head of an infamous crime family. More said that she had the entirety of the school faculty under her thumb, the fact that she regularly had tea with Professor Rowan, the principle and Bertha Rowan, the student guidance councillor and Professor Rowan's wife, added credibility to those rumours.
They even said that the four guys she was often seen with, Aaron, Flint, Lucian and Riley were her bodyguards, despite her ability to cripple a group of grown men by herself.
Of course, her appearance did nothing to counteract these rumours. She was a beautiful young woman, anyone with eyes could see that. She had sharp, fearsome grey eyes that seemed constantly narrowed at the world, as if every living thing displeased her. One eye, her left, was covered by light blonde hair that reached her knees.
Over her uniform that consisted of a white blouse and red plaid skirt, black shoes and white socks that reached over her knees, she wore a calf-length black winter coat that she wore in all weather. Some said that was where she covertly hid weaponry to deal with anyone who annoyed her.
She stared him dead in the eyes, almost paralysing him with fear. She opened her mouth and Ash almost expected her to start with, "For the crime of..."
But she didn't, instead she started with something rather different. "Ashton Ketchum, sixteen years old, a year younger than myself. Known to associate with Brock Slater, Cilan Boyard, Misty Waterflower, Iris Wyvern, Dawn Berlitz and May Rose. Excels in physical education, average in all others, except for math, significantly below average." She finished, never taking her eyes off of his.
Ash grew more and more nervous with every piece of information. How and why did she know that? "Uh, yeah, that's me?" He half-answered, half-asked.
"I know that's you." Cynthia replied, still staring. Did she ever blink? "That's why I'm here."
"How do you-" He started but Cynthia quickly cut him off.
"I hear things." She told him, not at all answering his interrupted question.
Ash blinked in bewilderment. What exactly was going on? Was he asleep already? "Why were you looking for me? I-if you don't mind me asking?"
Ash flinched when her right hand reached under her coat. Oh, this was it! That was why she had all that information, she was targeting him for some reason! Ash closed his eyes and waited for his end. After a few very long seconds, Cynthia's voice called out again, with a slight note of confusion. "Ketchum?"
Ash slowly opened his eyes to Cynthia, noticing that she was no longer meeting his eyes, she was now focused on her hand. He looked down and that she was holding in her outstretched hands, a small, pink, expensive looking, heart-shaped box with a red ribbon wrapped around it.
Cynthia was now looking back at his face, just left of his eyes. "I've heard that you like f-food." She stated bizarrely. This had to be a dream, Ash thought, because if this was what he thought it was, then it certainly wasn't reality.
Seeing that she was still waiting for some kind of response, Ash replied. "Uh, yeah, I like food, I guess..." He answered uncertainly.
"Good, because this is chocolate." She clarified unnecessarily. "Do you like chocolate? I wasn't sure if you did?" Again, what was going on right now? A minute ago, she was making him feel very uncomfortable with her staring, and now he was uncomfortable because she wouldn't look him in the eye.
"I love chocolate, actually. Hey, if you don't mind me asking, what's this about?"
Cynthia seemed to flinch. "What do you mean? I'm just giving you chocolate! B-because it was a two-for-one thing and I ate one box of chocolates by myself and I couldn't eat another one! Not that spend all day eating whole boxes of chocolate by myself or anything! Doesn't matter if I did anyway, because I work out! Do you work out?! You look like you work out?!" Cynthia moved her arm as if to grab his, but thought better of it. Cynthia took a deep breath. "Nevermind, what I'm saying is, I have a box of chocolates, I heard that you like food and I thought you might like it. That's it." Cynthia nodded. "Really."
Now it was Ash that couldn't help but stare at her slightly pink face, probably from the chilly February wind. "I think that's the most I've ever heard you speak." He said with a slight tone of surprise.
Cynthia's face turned a slightly deeper shade of pink, not that Ash noticed. "Well, you should talk to me more." She told him quietly. "You talk to everyone, but you don't talk to me. You should talk to me more." She reiterated.
"If you want me to, I suppose I will. But what about those guys you hang out with?" Lucian, Flint, Aaron and Riley weren't scary in a typical sense, but combined, they had a certain feeling of foreboding and with Cynthia being scarier than the four of them put together, it made her more than a bit unapproachable.
"Them?" Cynthia blinked, then nodded in realisation. "Oh no, they're just friends, nothing more. Our families just know each other.
Completely missing the point of what she was trying to imply, Ash nodded. Ah, so they weren't bodyguards of some sort.
"S-so, the chocolate?" Cynthia asked after a moment of silence, still holding out the pink box.
"Oh, y-yeah, thanks!" Taking the box, Ash slipped it under his arm.
"Well, um, bye. See you on Monday?" She asked over her shoulder as she walked away.
"Wait!" Ash called out. Maybe this was stupid, but he was Ash Ketchum, stupid ideas had a habit of working around him.
Cynthia turned her head back so quickly, Ash worried he might get whiplash just by looking. "Yes?" Cynthia answered with a certain note of something in her voice.
"This..." He started slowly, trying to pick his words carefully. "Is a lot of chocolate, isn't it? It seems a shame that I should have it all to myself. Maybe you and I could share it?"
Cynthia's eye seemed to glitter with an emotion unknown to Ash. "I would lo- really like to!" She almost shouted, but caught herself. "I know this place nearby that I like. Do you like ice-cream?"
Seeing that he wasn't instantly rejected, Ash answered happily. "Yeah, I love ice-cream.
For the first time ever, Ash saw Cynthia Shirona smile and in an instant, he was hooked. Was it him or was the sun shining a lot brighter all of a sudden? "Good, let's go now, shall we?"
They walked oddly close together, their hands brushing against each other with every other step. "Hey, Cynthia?"
"Yes, Ash?" She replied, using his first name for the first time."
"I should probably mention..."
"Mention what?" She asked curiously.
"Happy Valentine's Day."
Cynthia stumbled slightly, staring skywards and trying her hardest to act casually. "Oh, is it Valentine's Day? I didn't even notice..."