Redemption

Chapter 18

        The heat of the kitchen was nearly as bad as the heat outside, but it was something Silver had grown accustomed to. He just wished he had thought things through a little more this time before he had gotten so focused on his task. The sound of the door opening had him quickly looking to see who was there. Of course, there were only ever two possibilities. (Y/n) with guests or just (y/n) by herself.

        "Huh? I thought all the malasadas for the festival were done. It's tomorrow, you know," (y/n) said as she entered her home with Lycanroc and Marowak following closely behind her. The two pokémon disappeared shortly afterwards.

        "Yeah, everything is done. These are for you," he casually spoke. She seemed taken aback by the truth to which he slightly smiled. "Um, can you pull my hair back for me? I forgot to do it before I got started." He didn't really have to ask. (Y/n) had already been on her way to do so. "Thank you." She gave a quick hum in response. "Any luck on finding Lightning Lucario?" They had finally been able to somewhat track the pokémon causing the outages across Alola. The attacks had become far less frequent, so it didn't hinder the plans for the festival in any way.

        "Nope, but Professor Kukui and Professor Burnet found out that he's called Zeraora. We've managed to close the ultra wormholes in his hiding spaces thanks to Moon's Necrozma, so at this point all we can do is wait. He hasn't been attacking the cameras so we might be able to resolve the issue with a simple peaceful encounter. I just hope he doesn't attack during the festival. We don't know which island he's hiding on, so we all have to be prepared." (Y/n) waited for him to finish coating the treats in sugar before she continued. "What time are you going back home today?"

        Truth be told, he didn't want to. The professor's loft was fine and all, but he found it painfully lonely. The professor was usually busy or not there which left him to do as he pleased. The only problem about it was that the professor's absence left him alone with his thoughts. Silver no longer trusted his own thinking past a certain time of day. After the incident about a month ago, (y/n) wouldn't let him go anywhere without herself, Hau, Lillie, or Gladion present for two weeks. Now that she had given him back his freedom, he had the choice of being by himself now. "I don't know yet." (Y/n) immediately caught on to his unease.

         "Worried about tomorrow?" she  ventured. He shook his head, choosing not to answer. He felt (y/n)'s troubled gaze watching over him as he started cleaning up her kitchen. She and Hau both let him use their homes to work in, but he often chose to use (y/n)'s home over Hau's only because Hau was prone to eating a malasada nearly every time a new batch was made.

        Once he was done, Silver just stood there leaning against the counter. (Y/n), although worried, didn't try to pry any further. She stood with him, taking the liberty to try one of the malasadas he made for her. "Is it good?" She gave a small nod and leaned onto his side as she finished the snack.

        "Silver?" She waited for him to reply with a hum. "I wanted to ask you...I don't know how to put it. You're a really cool person." She was looking down at the floor. "I'd like to get to know you better, like as more than a friend...if that's okay with you."

          He could easily tell what she meant. It wasn't that hard to figure it out. "More? I..." he mumbled. She didn't move, nor did she speak which scared him a little. "Will you leave if I say no?" he asked.

        "Of course not," (y/n) said without hesitation. "If it makes you uncomfortable then I'll-" she had attempted to give him back his space, but he leaned to catch her by the waist so that she didn't go anywhere.

        "No, that isn't what I meant. I have so much on my mind all of the time. You've already done so much for me. It wouldn't be fair to you if I asked for anything more." Now she was trapped against the counter, Silver's arms on both sides to keep her there. "I would never forgive myself if I hurt you. I've already done so much wrong..."

        "It's okay, I understand." (Y/n)'s features were unreadable. She pulled him closer just enough to hug him, hiding her face from view. Why did he feel like he was wrong? Was pushing her away like this the right decision? But really, it wasn't him pushing her away. He was simply just thinking of all of the things that could go wrong. His thoughts couldn't be trusted. If anything, he craved the attention and reassurance that she often gave him without asking for anything in return.

        "I do want to," he decided. "Just not right now. Is that okay?"

        "Yeah, that's perfectly fine with me. As long as you're happy." He felt his heart skip a beat, and (y/n) flinched. "Silver?" She sensed the temporary disruption in his heart's electrical rhythm. Him? Happy? He knew it to be true. He hadn't felt this elated since his childhood years. And he suddenly noticed how hot he was from the kitchen's heat now being added to with (y/n)'s comfort. His face burned with an emotion he wasn't familiar with and he backed away from her. (Y/n) let him go without a second thought out of concern for him.

        "Your nose! Stay right there, I'll get some tissues," she quickly vanished to the bathroom leaving him standing there in confusion. What was happening to him? (Y/n) led him to sit down while she did her best to treat his nosebleed. She must have noticed how jittery he was because after Silver was able to hold the tissue on his own, she didn't touch him anymore. Actually, it was him who stayed out of her reach as a result of his own guilt. "I didn't mean to alarm you," (y/n) apologized, but there was really no need for her to.

        Silver, very lightly so as not to upset his bleeding nose, shook his head at her. He was the one that felt like he should be apologizing. "Desire." That had been it, and it had been strong. He wasn't sure if (y/n) was aware, but now that he knew what was driving him, he couldn't stay there with her. He certainly wouldn't be telling Gladion about this. The blonde often texted him about things, as did Silver, but this would never be one of the topics. He had to get out of here as soon as possible. Silver intended to escape to the professor's loft to cool his head. For once, the idea of being alone wasn't so bad.
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Just in case no one noticed, a month had already passed in the story starting from the previous chapter. Until next time you amazing readers!