Pokemon Oneshots

Gladion x Reader || His Regrets

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For some unfathomable reason, the first thing I heard when I came to was the low voice of my rival. Gladion's words were usually barbed with hate and ice, but when I opened my eyes to see the painted white ceiling of a hospital, he... was crying.

The sound was so soft, so... bizarre. Gladion never let his impenetrable barrier and protective walls of arrogance down, not even after we grew close on our journeys around the tropical, archipelago region of Alola. But as the tears slipped down his face, my body moved without thinking.

From where I lay on the hard, cold mattress, I jolted up and pulled him into a hug.

"Uh... um, (Y/N)...?" He tensed up, struggling to find the words as I let the embrace last a moment longer before I pulled away.

When I lay back and let my head fall onto the pillow, his momentary warmth in the fleeting second seems like a dream. Shifting my gaze away from his wide, quivering, emerald ones, I speak up in a voice choked from the illness I had caught. "Why are you crying?" I whisper, staring intently at the pale beige walls that surround me.

After a brief moment of what appears like hesitation, Gladion speaks up. "When I was told by Hau that you were in the hospital... something inside me felt like... I was scared." He hides his face under his atrociously long bangs. "And, um... I hadn't felt that way since I left Mother and the Aether Foundation. I... I was worried, okay?"

I stare at him, jaw dropped. Gladion, caring for someone? Maybe I had died and my imagination was getting the best of me. No way in heck Gladion would show me of all people such a delicate side to him.

"So, once I came to see you here... and you were so pale and you wouldn't wake up and- and..." I noticed his hands began to shake as he clenched them tightly in his lap.

Before I managed a reassuring response, memories hit me like a brick thrown at my chest. I had passed out. Unfortunately, I had caught a cold staying up late into night and training up my team in preparation for the next Island Trial I was planning on facing soon, and I ended up exploring more the next morning instead of resting. Not long after battling several wild Pokemon, I'd collapsed from exhaustion and strain on my body -- and in the middle of a large field of tall grass to boot.

"I'm sorry, Gladion." I sigh, then continue before he can protest. "It was my own foolish decisions that got me here. As much as I think you'd like to rub it in, let's just leave it here. I'm really, really sorry for bothering you."

He immediately frowns, turning to face me and waiting until he has my full and undivided attention. "No, you're wrong. I should be apologizing."

"Wait, excuse me? What?" I sputtered, not comprehending how that could possibly be the case.

"Just.. hear me out, alright?"

Gladion's sudden shift in tone startled me. He doesn't seem irritated or cold like he usually does, but instead, he is alarmingly solemn with subtle but evident hints of... genuine sincerity. "Of course. I'm all ears, Gladion. Is... Is something wrong?"

He takes in a breath, then continues. "Look, I've never been nice to you -- ever since we met at the very start of our journeys. I always found a sharp thing to snap at you about and didn't once miss the chance to judge you and disapprove of everything you did. I can't express this enough, but... I'm so sorry. I... I especially regret saying that... we weren't friends."