58.
chapter fifty-eight
the voice of
Gary Oak

MISTY.

"Ash, stop stealing my churros!" she exclaimed. I watched with a fleeting hope when their bubbles blended into one.

The girl reached toward the sweet, but he was way taller than her. On top of that was how he was stretching himself to not let her reach for it, no matter how much she pouted or banged his chest. "Ash!"

"Let the birthday girl eat in peace!" May hissed, looking annoyed. I nodded in affirmation, shooting the black-haired boy an apprehensive glare.

"Yeah. You forgot her birthday, and now you won't let her enjoy this mini party. What soulmate does it make you?" I reprimanded, munching on my dessert.

The boy went red-faced for no reason. Serena took the opportunity to snatch the churro from his mouth. She didn't wait for him to catch up and broke into a run to hide behind Dawn, giggling. The bluette joined in quickly and went with the flow by spreading her arms out when Ash sighed.

"I swear, Serena, if this is the price I get to pay for snea—"

"Yum!" Serena exclaimed all of a sudden, clasping her cheeks. "Isn't this delish, Dawn?"

"Totally," Dawn added, I noted, a bit too quickly. Even her smile seemed forced, but it wasn't just me who had noticed it. May was already walking to them, holding out a little bowl of molten chocolate.

"Dip them in here and munch!"

Dawn exchanged a look with Serena, who immediately nodded with a smile. "I assure you, May's got the right taste buds for this."

"Hey!" the brunette protested, drawing several eyes. Her boyfriend shook his head, sighing and muttering something about not being classy. "I always have the right taste buds. Girl, I can't believe even you're going against me."

"What do you know?" Ash interjected, crossing his arms. "She goes against her Koibito. It isn't a surprise if she goes against her best friend then."

I barely managed to stifle my laugh; Serena's expression had turned hilarious—so funny that she might as well have looked like Thomas the Train.

"Excuse me?!" she cried. "If I not ad hoc to remain with a mind in your perspective, I can't help with it. And you're not my Koibito!"

"Do you know what it translates to?"

"Hell, if I did!"

In their banter, Serena (and May, might I add) had forgotten to notice how Dawn was casting the arguing couple fond looks. Perhaps memories of Kenny were resurfacing, unbidden.

I could relate—to some extent. Dawn and I were hopeless romantics. We never stopped appreciating other guys despite having a soulmate. Even Serena, but there was a change in the girl ever since she met her soulmate.

Maybe that was understandable. Neither Dawn nor I had someone as caring as Ash was toward his lover. Gary was an absolute player, and despite his best efforts, was a man-child when it came to me or this entire soulmate business.

I minded that—a lot more than he could perceive. I demanded his affection. He gave his attention. But things weren't working out.

The wind rasped by, sending a chill through us. My eyes widened when Drew shrugged off his jacket and handed it to May. They were another perfect couple.

Unlike us.

I took a step forward. Then another. If there was anyone out there who I knew and could empathize with me, it was her. "Guess it's growing cold, eh?"

Dawn tore her gaze away from the teasing Ash and Serena, her lips tugging up into a small smile. But it felt distant—aloof even. "Yeah. I hate wearing sleeveless because of the weather."

"Me too," I mused, shrugging. Truth be told, we hadn't changed after finishing the exam. We didn't have the privilege, seeing how Kenny had been waiting. There was also the absolute menace of a Paul.

"Yeah! I wanna go home," Dawn piped, tilting her head toward the couples. "They can have all the fun they want, but I just wanna get cozy with my penguin plushie!"

A laugh broke out between us, catching the lovey-dovey couples off guard. I could feel their eyes on us, and chanced a glance at Dawn clutching her stomach.

"Anything we missed?" Ash whispered, leaning toward his soulmate. The girl's eyes softened at Dawn. She cast me an appreciative look, mirrored by May, before shaking her head at him.

"It worked."

Ash threw her an imploring glance but didn't press, choosing rather to share the churros he had been holding above his head until then.

Maybe. I smiled, finding Dawn watching them with a fond grin. Just maybe we could work out the knots in our relationships the way they did.

"Shall we hit the road?" Drew proposed, disposing of the empty tub of churros. "It's getting cold."

"You're right," Serena agreed, turning to us. "Thank you for this party, you guys. You have no idea how much I appreciate it! Thank you!"

May rummaged through her bag before taking the stick out. She held it in front of her, and we obliged, placing our hands on the stick. The boys, of course, were dumb to our gesture. Not that we minded.

Blues and greens melted before May rose the stick up, eliciting our friendship motto.

"Together, girls!"

The walk back to Drew’s convertible and Ash's beat-up car wasn't that long. Dawn even seemed to be in better spirits. She was animatedly chatting about the cheese on discount with May and a (rare occurrence, I know) equally interested Drew.

Serena, on the other hand, was talking on the phone. What was weird was how Ash was covering her by walking behind her instead of beside.

What was even weirder was that it wasn't her phone she was talking with. Judging by the look of it, it was Ash's.

And the voice?

The voice made my heart skip a beat despite my best efforts to not be the moth-to-the-flame sort of girl. The voice that haunted my nightfalls.

The voice of Gary Oak.