Hey, y'all! Here's another Pokeshipping one-shot. I should be working on my multi-chapter stories, but I had this idea based on a funny reddit thread I saw on Facebook. I'll write it at the end if you wanna read it lol.

Ash Ketchum, Alola League Champion and future Pokemon Master, takes a deep breath as he gazes down. Swallowing a large gulp, he closes his eyes to block out the image of the deep depths below. While Ash has never been scared of heights, it's different now that he's standing on this flimsy board so high off the ground. How had he even gotten into this situation?

"You can always give up!" Laughs a voice from below, making him scowl. Ash Ketchum does not give up! Ever! Opening his eyes, he takes one final deep breath before jumping off the board while curling up his body as he embraces for the impact. The gush of air rushes around him and adrenaline pumps throughout his body. Yes, Ash Ketchum does not give up!

"Pikapi!" The concerned voice of his loyal friend hits his ears before Ash crashes into the water. Once Ash stops sinking, he uncurls and quickly swims up for air. Gasping for breath as he reaches the pool's edge, he hears the laughter of his first traveling companion, which makes him frown.

"Took you long enough!" She says hysterically because she had to watch Ash stand on the diving board for almost 10 minutes before he finally jumped.

Pouting as he pulls himself out of the pool, the wet teenage boy walks over to her and Pikachu. "Whatever, Mist. It's my turn now!"

When Misty finally calms down, she tosses him a towel while she wipes the tears from her eyes. She really thought she had won the game, and despite being slightly disappointed at her near victory, she's glad her fun with Ash isn't over quite yet.

What game are they playing? Why, Torchic of course! It involves people taking turns doing different stunts until someone calls "Torchic!" and the game ends. Whoever calls "Torchic" usually calls it because they're too scared to do the stunt; thus, resulting in their elimination until the last player is standing.

Since Ash has just returned from the Alola region, he's visiting Misty at the Cerulean City Gym. Brock is due to arrive tomorrow, but to pass the time, the two friends are engaged in a heated game where neither one is willing to back down. It had started pretty simple with Ash challenging Misty to eat some weird concoction he had made in the kitchen this morning. No one would enjoy that amount of ketchup on a cookie except for Pikachu, but she ate it anyway. Ugh, how Ash can eat cookies and ketchup, Misty has no idea; however, it was then her turn to plan her revenge.

The next stunt involved surfing on waves from Gyarados's surf attack, which Misty has done plenty of times, but Ash isn't familiar with the blue serpent. Misty had gotten Gyarados years after she had left Ash to run the gym, so he hasn't formed a strong bond with Gyarados like he has with Misty's other Pokemon. Nevertheless, Ash Ketchum doesn't give up. While Misty gracefully surfed the waves like she always does, Ash crashed, much to Misty's amusement and Ash's dislike.

Seeing as how Misty involved Pokemon, Ash called out Charizard to fly him high into the sky where Ash leaped off of the lizard to skydive back to earth. Of course, Charizard caught him before he could fall to his death, but Misty was terrified. Despite Ash not knowing Gyarados, Misty does know Charizard due to him being one of Ash's first Pokemon. However, could she really trust the orange lizard to catch her?

Ash's taunting angered her enough to hop on Charizard's back where she then started getting anxious once high in the sky. After asking the fire type if he would catch her, Charizard's confident nod gave her some courage. As much as he has a nasty temper, Ash has since managed to gain his trust, making him reliable to everyone Ash cares about. Taking a deep breath, Misty fell off of Charizard, but she found herself enjoying the rush and adrenaline from the dive. It's similar to when she descends off of the diving board in her gym, which is why they ended up at the diving board.

After the diving challenge, the two teens decide to shower and take a meal break for a late lunch before continuing with their game. Since she has been living alone most of the time, Misty learned to cook. Eating out is too costly and unhealthy as well as inconvenient when she can just cook food at home. With Ash constantly traveling, he hasn't quite yet learned how to cook, so Misty has been making the meals for them, although Ash only arrived yesterday evening from Pallet Town.

The three friends always try to make it a habit to visit as much as possible; thus, whenever Ash goes home to Pallet Town, his mother understands that he will spend a few days with his Kanto friends. While a few days is never enough for the three of them, their lives are too busy to stay together any longer. Misty and Brock need to to help with their gyms' offseason preparations, and Ash needs to spend time with his Pokemon in Pallet Town as well as his mother while getting ready for his next region. Therefore, the friends cherish whatever time they get together, especially before Ash has to leave for Pallet Town in a few days.

"Wow! This is good, Mist." Ash exclaims because he can't get over the fact that she learned how to cook. The Misty he remembers traveling with was a terrible cook.

"You say this every time you eat my cooking, Ash." She rolls her eyes, although she is slightly blushing from the compliment. As much as Misty loves having all three of them together, she enjoys the quality alone time she gets with Ash since he is her childhood crush. Does she still like him now? Maybe? Or maybe it's because he's just her first crush, so her heart is lingering onto those feelings? But Misty would rather stay friends than risk losing him over silly childhood emotions.

"Yeah, but you used to be a terrible cook!" Misty hits his head with her trusty mallet, which makes Pikachu sweatdrop at the teens.

Even though Pikachu loves visiting Misty, he doesn't enjoy it when it's only Ash and Misty because the two are always arguing. Moreover, they're now engaged in a dangerous game since they're both too stubborn to back down. Pikachu isn't ready to see either of his friends die today. However, he knows better than to interrupt the competitive teenagers, so he just quietly sips on his ketchup bottle.

"You're still a terrible cook." Misty knowingly tells the raven haired boy rubbing his throbbing head.

"That ketchup cookie was good. You gotta admit it." He smiles playfully at her as she rolls her eyes.

"That was disgusting, and you're not allowed to ever cook in my kitchen again." The redhead fears she may have to eat another disgusting concoction of Ash's. That ketchup cookie was already hard enough to eat, which almost caused her to vomit, but Misty wouldn't give Ash the satisfaction of seeing her not stomach the nastiness he dared her to eat.

"Good thing Brock is coming to cook then." Chuckles Ash before finishing his meal and bringing the plate to the sink where he starts on the dishes. This is usually their routine: whoever doesn't cook, does the dishes. Since Misty cooks, Ash has been washing the dishes, but once Brock arrives, the man usually cooks, so Misty and Ash wash the dishes.

Ash half suspects this rule was implemented by Brock because Brock wants to force Ash and Misty to spend alone time together, thus creating an opportunity for Ash to confess his feelings. Leave it to Brock to try and play matchmaker, but Ash won't ruin what he has with his childhood crush. As much as he likes Misty, Ash doesn't want to risk losing her friendship over his old feelings from when he was a kid.

"I prefer washing dishes than cooking." Misty admits, even though she only enjoys washing the dishes with Ash. While Misty normally doesn't mind doing either task, she favors washing the dishes more when both of her friends visit.

"Same." Ash laughs because he knows he's a terrible cook. As much as Ash gets annoyed with Brock's matchmaking, the boy enjoys the alone time with Misty, especially when they accidentally touch hands as they pass the dishes to each other.

"Thought of your next challenge?" Misty smirks at his back since he's facing the sink. Mew, he has a nice back, she thinks to herself, making her glad that he isn't looking her way as a blush tints her cheeks. With all the traveling he does, Ash has really grown up well throughout the years.

Grinning mischievously, Ash replies, "It's a surprise."

"You can always call it quits now." Misty teases while placing her dishes in the sink for him to wash.

"No way! Pokemon Masters don't give up!" He turns his head to the standing girl beside him and chocolate meets cerulean. Mew, how he loves her eyes. They're his favorite color, which makes him always get lost in them. Are they his favorite color because he likes that shade of blue, or are they his favorite color because they're the color of her eyes?

As much as Ash worries Misty's eyes will make him do something he'll regret, he finds they're the safest part of her to look at. If he looks at her lips, he's scared he'll kiss her. If he looks at the rest of her body...Ash quickly shakes his head as he returns his attention to the sink. Every time he sees Misty, she looks less like that scrawny tomboy he used to travel with. Why is she getting prettier every summer?

Misty is grateful that Ash had looked away because she feared she was about to kiss him. Those warm chocolate brown eyes of his are so enticing, and she's always wanted to taste his lips. Blushing as she too looks away from him, Misty tries to proudly say, "Well, too bad because gym leaders never give up too!"

"You'll lose, Mist." Ash awkwardly chuckles as he feels his hot face heat up more from her close proximity to him. "Just like how you lost the battle for Totodile."

"I let you win." Misty lies as she is still upset over that loss; however, Ash having Totodile was the best option for both Ash and Totodile. Misty smiles at the thought of their Johto adventure together, even though it was their last.

Since Ash finishes washing the dishes, he dries his hand on a nearby towel before walking to the living room with Misty following. Pikachu is snoozing from a ketchup coma on the kitchen table. "Get ready to lose, Mist." Ash smirks once they're outside.

Crossing her arms over her chest, Misty rolls her eyes at his confidence. What can be worse than skydiving off of Charizard? However, Ash calls out Sceptile before standing still and allowing the grass type to spew streams of bullet seed at him. Of course, Ash doesn't move because he trusts his Pokemon to not hit him, but Misty doesn't really know Sceptile due to not traveling with Ash in Hoenn. Her heart slightly aches at the reminder since that is the first region she couldn't travel with him.

Anyway, Ash tells Misty she can't close her eyes during the attack because he kept his eyes open. Despite not fully trusting Sceptile, Misty trusts Ash, and Ash would never put her in a dangerous situation. If Ash trusts Sceptile, then she will too. "Ready!" Misty shouts determinedly as she intensely stares into Sceptile's eyes.

Ash can't help but grin at his friend for being so fearless. Although he knows Misty and Sceptile haven't built any trust between them, he appreciates how both of them are trusting each other through him. Obviously, Sceptile's attacks don't even graze Misty, and Ash is surprised to see the redhead didn't even flinch. Mew, while her courage is admirable, Ash really wants to win this game already. Yes, he's saved the world plenty of times, but that doesn't mean he wasn't scared each time! He was scared of jumping off that diving board!

"My turn!" Misty grins at Ash after he recalls Sceptile. However, before she can tell him the next challenge, her pokenav rings, so she quickly checks the caller ID and frowns. Of course it'd be the League. It's always the League or her sisters. Giving Ash an apologetic look, Misty steps away to take the call.

A few annoying minutes later, Misty walks inside the house where Ash is sitting on the living room couch. He had decided to go inside and relax since he wasn't sure how long Misty's conversation was going to take. Judging by her irritated facial expression, though, it doesn't look like it was a good call.

"Everything okay, Misty?" the concerned boy asks his friend who angrily sighs.

Why did the League have to call her now? Why not last week when Ash wasn't here? Now, she'll be spending the rest of the day working on paperwork when she had planned to spend it alone with Ash, especially now that Pikachu is asleep. By the time she finishes her paperwork, it'll be too late at night, and Brock will be here tomorrow morning.

"The League changed the end of the year report format, so I need to resubmit it. They also added more things, and I'll need to find the data and documents to include in the new report." Misty groans while sinking deep into the couch cushions. She mentally curses herself for not checking for the new report format, but the format had been the same for so long, she never expected it to change. Maybe the email got lost in her hoard of emails she struggles to check as well as the rest of the gym paperwork she tries to keep up with. The life of a gym leader isn't all battles and fame.

"Do you need help?" Ash offers because he hates seeing Misty so stressed out. Plus, he doesn't care what they do as long as they spend time together.

However, Misty just shakes her head. "No. You'll only get in the way." She gives him a weak smile as he frowns. "No offense, Ash. But it's faster if I just do it alone. I'll try and finish it soon, so you better prepare yourself for my challenge when I'm back!" Misty then hurries off to the gym, leaving the boy to sigh sadly as the door closes behind her.

Are their lives so busy already that their few days together are getting cut shorter? He's already the champion of Alola, so maybe he should just stop? Maybe he should just stay and spend time with his friends more, like Misty? Ever since she left, he's always felt this empty void that can't be filled. Yes, he's had other traveling companions, but none of them can ever replace the fiery redhead he likes.

Deciding that he needs to focus on something else rather than these thoughts that are aching his heart, he opts to train in the backyard. Pikachu eventually wakes up and is ready to burn off the food he's eaten, which makes Ash excited to train his oldest Pokemon and most trusted one too. Pikachu has been there with him from the start, and Ash met both Pikachu and Misty on the first day of his journey.

However, Misty had to leave him, which still upsets him to this day. Of course, it was out of her control, and she's told him plenty of times that she wishes she never had to leave him. With the Cerulean City Gym's new high reputation Misty had built, though, she now finds it difficult to leave the gym if her sisters ever return for good. As much as she would love to travel with Ash again, her city needs her leadership, which her sisters lack.

Nevertheless, Ash understands. It's also another reason he likes Misty because she's responsible and selfless. Besides, they're still great friends even though she isn't traveling with him anymore. They've always managed to make their relationship work, so Ash is confident that they can overcome any obstacles that come their way.

By the time Misty finishes submitting the report, it is well past dinner time. She makes her way back into the house next door to the gym where she sees Ash sitting in the living room with takeout. He grins over at her as he lifts up a paper plate. "I know I can't cook, but I got us dinner!"

Misty can't help but smile at his thoughtfulness. After a stressful couple of hours working on the new report, she appreciates coming back to her best friend providing dinner. Plus, Misty is very hungry, and Ash got her favorite: seafood. The two friends dig into dinner with Ash quickly gobbling down the food, like always, and Misty savoring every bite.

Apparently, Pikachu had chosen to stay with the Pokemon in the gym earlier, leaving the two teens alone. Once they're done eating, there aren't any dishes to be washed since they used disposable plates and utensils. Due to it now being pretty late, the friends change into their pajamas and brush their teeth before sitting on the living room couch for their nightly movie.

When Brock is with them, the three will camp out back to remind them of their traveling days. They then just talk and catch up as well as share their future plans or have mindless conversations. It doesn't matter what they talk about or do because they're just glad to be together again.

However, whenever Ash shows up before Brock, Misty and Ash either play a board game, work on a puzzle, or watch a movie at night. They want to save the talking for when Brock comes so that everyone can catch up together. The three always meet at the Cerulean City Gym because Misty usually has it alone. The Pewter City Gym is crowded with Brock's large family, and while everyone loves Ash's mom, they don't really have much privacy there either. At Misty's gym, though, the three never have to fear anyone interrupting them.

"This is so boring!" whines Ash at the chick flick Misty had put on. Last night, he chose the movie, so tonight is Misty's turn. Of course, he should've expected her to put on some uneventful romance movie. Ash always picks action movies, which usually have a tiny bit of romance for Misty's sake. But she always chooses boring romance movies, so Ash falls asleep halfway through.

"Shh!" Hisses the redhead as she's intensely watching the screen. This is a new movie, and she doesn't want to miss any minute of it. Besides, Ash always complains about her movie choice even though she never complains about his.

As Ash glares at her, he's happy when the TV shuts off. Thank you, Mew for saving him from this torture! Since the lights were already off from the start, the room is now only illuminated from the moonlight coming through the large living room windows.

"Turn it back on." Misty growls angrily at her friend.

Ash turns his head to see those furious cerulean eyes that look like they're ready to murder him. However, he doesn't know what she's talking about. "What?"

"Turn it back on, or so help me Mew I will murder you, Ash Ketchum."

The calm sharp tone she gives him makes him flinch as shivers run down his back. "What do you mean 'turn it on', Mist?" Mew, Ash is terrified right now. Someone please turn this TV back on before she makes good on her threat.

"Give me the remote." groans the annoyed girl. She'll punish Ash for playing dumb later. Right now, she needs to watch her movie!

As if realizing what Misty was getting at this whole conversation, Ash nods. "Ohhhhhhh. The remote!"

"Yes, the remote, dumbass!" She snaps at the terrified boy.

"Uh. I don't have it."

"Stop lying, Ash. How is the TV gonna turn off the moment you start complaining?" she rolls her eyes as she starts patting her hands around them for the remote.

"Prayer?" suggests the raven haired teen, which earns him a hit from her mallet. Mew! Why is this moonlight so bright that she's still able to hit him dead center on the head?

"Stop playing dumb and give me the remote, Ash." Misty has already missed enough time from her movie, and she doesn't find Ash playing dumb funny anymore.

"I really don't hav-Hey!" he shouts and scoots back away from her as her searching hands landed too close to his lap. Blushing, Ash exclaims, "I don't have the remote! I didn't do anything!"

Since she's blocked the moonlight from shining on the area between her and Ash, Misty hasn't noticed that she almost touched a sensitive part of her friend's body. Still annoyed, she moves closer to him where she glares into his shocked brown eyes. Fortunately for him, she's since stopped feeling around them. "Ash, I am not playing around here."

"Neither am I!"

The two teens continue to look in each other's eyes with Misty angrily staring at the scared Ash's. As she inches closer to him, he backs up. Soon, Ash has nowhere to back off to unless he chooses to fall on the ground since he hits the armrest. His heart is pounding in his chest while the angry girl gets closer to him. Ash feels his palms getting more sweaty and he's sure Misty can hear his heartbeat now that she's directly in front of him.

As much as he wants to close his eyes and escape from his death, those cerulean blue eyes continue to trap his gaze. He loves looking at them regardless of what emotion they show, like the anger on them right now. When Ash feels Misty's breath on his face, all he can think about is how much he hopes prayer will turn on the TV again.

However, soft lips on his makes the tense boy relax as he notices Misty has closed her eyes. When she separates, there are deep blushes on both of their faces, and they hope that it's too dark in the room for either one to see. Luckily for them, they're both avoiding looking at the other, but it is bright enough to notice the flushes on their faces.

Misty isn't sure why she kissed him. At one moment, she was ready to torture him for the remote, but the moment she got close enough to him, she lost control of herself. Those chocolate brown eyes of his just melted her anger, like they always do. And when he stopped moving away from her, although it was from his hitting the armrest, Misty felt it was her chance to finally taste those enticing lips of his.

Maybe it's due to having just watched a cheesy romance movie, or the stress of the report today, or the fact that she's a little tired, but she acted on her emotion. Inwardly groaning, she closes her eyes in embarrassment. Why had she kissed him? She's ruined everything and Brock isn't even here yet! What if Ash leaves? What is she going to say to Brock? Oh, hey, Brock! I acted on my childhood feelings and kissed Ash, so now we're not friends anymore!

However, a warm hand on her chin lifts her face up, making her open her eyes in confusion. She sees the blushing boy in front of her give her a nervous grin, which causes her cheeks to flush again. Despite wanting to hide from her embarrassment some more, his brown eyes once again prevent her from looking away.

"Pokemon Masters don't give up." he whispers before kissing her, and after Misty's shock, she kisses him back. Ash had been surprised when Misty first kissed him, but once done with some thinking and mental dancing, he came to the conclusion that this must've been her challenge for their game. Why else would Misty inch closer to him? And when he didn't give in, she had to kiss him. Well, challenge accepted, Misty Waterflower.

Once they pull away for air, Misty gazes into his shy eyes. "Why'd you say that?"

Mew, every time he and Misty kiss, Ash finds himself caught up in a daze. Shaking his head, he nervously looks into her cerulean blue orbs. "What?"

Rolling her eyes, Misty replies, "When you said 'Pokemon Masters don't give up.' Why'd you say it?"

His eyes open wide in realization and the blushing boy tells her, "Because that was your challenge, right? You were waiting for me to say the word, which was why you kept getting closer to me."

Inwardly groaning, Misty resists the urge to hit this boy. So he only kissed her back because he thought they were still playing that dumb game? While her heart does hurt a little bit, she's happy she got to kiss her crush twice. Yup. These are definitely not childhood feelings. They're still current feelings.

Her pokenav on the coffee table gets her attention as it lights up. Misty grabs it to read the Cerulean City-wide text. "Oh." comes her surprised voice, which makes Ash look at her curiously.

"What is it?"

"Power's out."

Ash frowns because he just went through all of this torture due to Misty thinking he had turned off her movie. "You owe me an apology."

Smirking at him, the redhead taunts, "Make me."

"It's my turn anyway." Ash smirks back, making Misty pale. They're not still playing this dumb game are they? However, Ash inches towards her, causing her to back up until she's trapped by the armrest. Her shy eyes don't waver from his determined ones until he kisses her once more, but this time with more passion than the last.

Why does he keep kissing her? Misty wonders as she melts into his lips again. Whatever. She's not complaining because she's always wanted this: to kiss this boy and be kissed back by him. Even if Ash thinks this is a game, she will play it. After they separate for air, Misty grins at him. "Gym Leaders never give up too." She then pulls him in for another kiss, and soon, the two teens are making out on the couch as they think about how this game of Torchic will never end.

Reddit Thread that inspired this story: What's a game you've played that ended up being good?

Someone's Answer: We were playing a game of chicken with some friends, and me (a straight boy) and another straight boy were challenged to out-gay each other. Well, neither of us backed down from kissing each other that night. We're now married with an adopted daughter, and if he doesn't say 'chicken' soon, I'm gonna start thinking he really is gay.