A Year Without Rain

It's been too long since I last saw him. I stopped counting the days ages ago, yet it still hurts like he just left.

I can't stop thinking about him, they're unrelenting… I wonder if he can hear them? I'm sure that would make for an awkward confrontation. But I can't help it, he's just always on my mind, and I wonder if I even cross his. I often doubt it, since I know he's so busy all the time.

With a sigh, I run my fingers over the letter I received from him today. He writes when he can, often month-long gaps between letters sent. I always reply right away. The contents are the same as ever: stories of his journey, simple catching up. I try and refrain from spilling my heart into the letters, and go along with the small talk.

"Geez, like, this is the dullest love letter I've ever read," I hear a familiar voice say from my doorway. I spin around from my desk to give Daisy an irritated glare; she has my unsent reply to Ash in her hands.

"Daisy, it's illegal to open other people's mail," I tell her through clenched teeth, walking up to snatch the letter from her grasp.

"Is this always what you guys talk about?" she inquires, inviting herself into my bedroom. "It's so lame. How do you expect to let him know you love him if you don't just say it?" I blush at how casually she says this.

"Because, I don't want to tell him…" My words trail off, giving away any credibility of the statement. I catch my sister rolling her eyes.

"Puh-leez, that is such a lie. Every time I see you two together, you can barely contain yourself. Just tell him, sis!"

Reluctant, I sit on the edge of my bed and think. She has a point, but as soon as I let myself get hopeful, that familiar wave of doubt comes and crushes my thoughts. Even if I told him in a letter, it wouldn't be the same as telling him to his face… And what's worse, he might even go on as if nothing ever happened. A less terrible rejection, but rejection all the same.

Daisy is watching me think, and can probably see the emotions change on my face because she moves to sit next to me.

"Sis, you don't even have to flat out tell him. Just leave him a clue! Some way of telling him how much you need him by your side. I'm sure that's subtle enough without making it, like, awkward or anything. He can take it however he wants, you know? And if he's smart, he'll take it for what it is."

I think about her words again, and I start to form some ideas. The hopefulness is coming back, but I don't try to fight it off. This might actually be a good idea.

"Well, okay. I suppose writing something cryptic to him wouldn't hurt…" I ponder, still considering the idea. Daisy claps her hands together in joy.

"Yay! My little sis is going to get herself a boyfriend!" she cries, and hugs me. Within the same second, she is on her feet and skipping out of my room. "I'll leave you to craft your love letter!" she coos, and closes my door behind her.

Hours have gone by, I've reread my reply to him a million times trying to think of something to add to let him know how I feel. This is becoming harder than I expected…

My thoughts are interrupted by a clap of thunder in the distance; that's right, a thunderstorm is supposed to be rolling in from the coast. I turn off my desk lamp and move to my bed to watch the storm, when rain starts pounding against my window. I can't remember the last time it rained here, and I think about how much we've needed it; the town was becoming a bit dry and dead.

And then, it clicks in my mind. The simplest thing I could put into words to him just to get him thinking. I quickly run over to my desk and switch the light on, pull a blank sheet of paper from my drawer and grab my calligraphy pen. I print the words carefully in the middle of the page, trying my best to make them look fancy. And when I'm done, I fold it into the back of the letter and lick the envelope shut, rushing it out to the mailbox before I can second guess myself.

Daisy is right, I'm tired of waiting around. This is for the best.

This was the worst idea ever.

It's been almost a month, and I haven't heard back from him. All I have done since I sent that letter is worry and panic, thinking maybe I have ruined our friendship and he wants nothing more to do with me. I've cursed Daisy many times for this ridiculous plan.

As I have countless days before, I'm watching out the window for the mailman. I feel so silly when I see him come by and drop our mail in the mailbox and rush out there like a little girl, but I can't help it. Yet after each passing day since the letter, I've become less enthusiastic about mail, and have resorted to letting my sisters retrieve it instead. Every day they walk in the door with no news, my heart sinks further.

Today when I see him walk up, my heart skips a beat. Lily is in the kitchen, and I let her know he's come by; like a routine, she drops what she's doing and heads out the front door.

Like waiting for bad news in an emergency room, I curl up and hold my breath. I jump a little when I hear the front door burst open and see a frantic Lily rushing towards me.

"Misty! It's here!" she's yelling, waving a letter around in the air. My heart starts pounding as she hands me the letter, and I study the names carefully. Sure enough, it's addressed to "Misty Waterflower", with the return address from "Ash Ketchum". Without a word, I leave Lily in the room alone in return to read alone in my bedroom.

I sit on my bed and continue to stare at it, opening it carefully and slowly. I pull the pages from the envelope, and unfold them to read. As my eyes scan the words, I'm not noticing anything out of the norm; it's the same as all the rest, just catching up and telling stories. My eyes start to tear up as I near the end, and I find an extra page. I'm shocked when I unfold it… It's my calligraphy message. The very one I sent to him.

A Day Without You

Is Like A Year Without Rain

He sent it back… What is that supposed to mean? He must not feel the same; this must be his form of rejecting me…

Tears are falling uncontrollably from my eyes as I fold the page back up to put away, when I notice something written on the backside of it. Curious, I unfold it once more and my heart skips when I read the words.

There's Gonna Be A Monsoon

When I Get Back To You

The words are similar to mine, written in calligraphy, but they are shaky and messy; Ash never was very artistic. My heart continues to pound as read them over and over, I'm unsure how to interpret them.

I hear a faint knock at my door, and it opens to reveal my sisters. They appear worried, and all rush in when they see my tear-soaked face.

"Oh, Misty! Don't worry, if he ever shows his face around here again, we'll kill him!" Violet promises.

"No one breaks our little sister's heart without dealing with us!" Lily adds.

I'm still too choked up and confused to reply to any of their sisterly threats, but luckily Daisy grabs the page from my hand.

"What did he say to you?" I watch them all crowd around to read the page, flipping it over and over to understand the message. Daisy holds up the side I had written, confused. "Didn't you send this to him?" I nod, and she flips it over again. "And what is this, then?"

"Well, I'm not exactly sure… That's the original page I had sent to him, and I got upset when I saw he sent it back… But I flipped it over and he had written that. I'm not sure what to think…"

Before I even have time to start crying again, the three of them start giggling and screaming with joy, and then they are around me again.

"Sis, this is amazing! This is the sort of response you were wanting!" Daisy gushes. "Oh my gosh, just wait until he finally comes back, this is so exciting!"

It's hard for me to fully grasp this new information with all the squealing in my ear, so I usher them out of my room so I have some time alone to think. I lock the door just in case.

I find my way back to my bed and curl up, the page still in my hands. I read it over and over, still in disbelief that Ash Ketchum was able to decipher my message and come up with something like this as a reply. It's almost too good to be true… Unless Brock helped him. It's the only way.

Rain starts pattering on my window, with thunder rumbling far in the distance; it's almost like a sign of assurance. Like I need to believe that all my waiting has finally paid off.

I place the page Ash-side up on my nightstand and pull the covers up to my shoulders, waiting to drift to sleep.

I can't wait for the monsoon.

A/N: Harrr, it's super corny. I know.

THE SONG! A Year Without Rain by Selena Gomez. Listen to it, watch the vid. I love her, she's adorable.

Find the art in my gallery at spirit-the-titan on DeviantART! If it's not in there when you read this, just keep checking back. It will be soon! Thanks for reading!