Sparks Fly [Diodeshipping]

Breaking the News

   It's not what you think, sorry.

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   "100," Bonnie sighed, reading the thermometer as she removed it from Ash's mouth.

   "S-sorry...." Ash groaned. "This is my fault."

   "No, no, it's okay," Clemont grinned weakly.

   The ravenette let out a sigh before having a small coughing fit. "Well, I can't exactly go on a plane back to Alola like this... but I can't stay either. I gotta go back, I'm going to miss a lot of school, and I might make you guys sick too."

   Bonnie nodded in agreement. "I'll go get more tissues. Anything else?"

   "I dunno... maybe some soup?"

   "I'll start on that," Clemont volunteered.

   Bonnie let out a grin. "We'll both work on the soup." And with that, she dragged Clemont out of her room and into the kitchen.

   "So, you wanna-"

   Bonnie held up her hand to cut him off. "I got a plan, Clemont."

   The blonde brother rolled his eyes. "Let's hear it, then."

   She smirked, lowering her voice so that Ash could not hear her. "I make a decent soup for Ash. Decent. He'll think it's okay, but eat it to help him get better. Next time we make soup, YOU do it. You're really good at cooking, so when Ash eats your food, he'll eat it because he loves it!"

   "That's... a good plan and all, but-"

   "Great! So I'll get started." Bonnie grabbed a handful of tissue boxes from the closet and gave them to Clemont. "Give these to Ash. Then you call the professor."

   Clemont nodded. "Wouldn't want him to be left in the dark." Careful not to drop the boxes of tissues, Clemont wandered into his room. Or rather, Ash's room. Choosing to make a small sacrifice, Clemont offered to sleep on the floor and Ash on his bed. It wouldn't be too bad. Traveling with Ash let him get used to sleeping in a sleeping bag. And he could always wash sheets so that he wouldn't get sick either.

   "I got the tissues," Clemont smiled.

   "Thanks," Ash smiled back, a little weaker than Clemont. "Just put them on the bed."

   He nodded and did so. "Bonnie and I are switching jobs. She's making your soup, not me."

   Ash's face fell, and then rose again. "Hopefully she's as good a cook as you are."

   Clemont nodded. "She is," he stated before leaving the room.

   Ash wanted to taste his cooking.

   But Bonnie's words rang in his ear. There was a plan. And he had to follow it.

   So he went into the living room and speed dialed the professor's number, which was what Ash was using to contact him and Bonnie.

   And Serena.

   "Oh, Alola!" a voice came from the television, nearly startling Clemont. "You're Clemont, right? Ash talked about you a lot. Is everything okay?"

   The first thing he took in was the professor being shirtless. Clemont had no idea how to feel about this. He was already struggling his emotions towards his attraction towards Ash, never mind any other boy. Or man.

   "Uh, well that's kind of why I called," Clemont spoke, trying not to let his mind wander.

   A Torracat nuzzled the professor's wrist, which earned him a stroke on the head. The professor turned back to the screen. "What's going on?"

   Clemont adjusted his glasses, nervous for a negative reaction. "Well, Ash has a fever of 100°. He spent the whole day enjoying the snow yesterday, and I guess he's been in Alola so long, he adapted to the warm weather. I'm sorry."

   "I see," the professor nodded slowly.

   "It's my fault he can't come home sooner than you wanted him to. My sister, Bonnie, is making him some soup right now, and we're making sure he gets rest. We're doing everything we can so that he can get better."

   Professor Kukui let out a small chuckle. "Don't try to overwhelm him, okay?"

   "You're not upset?" Clemont raised his brow.

   "Everybody gets sick, Clemont. Trust me, his situation could be a whole lot worse than it is now." His gaze became a bit curious. "But how could this be your fault?"

   "Well, neither of us had him go back in, and-"

   Professor Kukui held up his palm. "I'll stop you right there. You didn't do anything wrong. And neither did he. No one's at fault here. You're definitely making a mountain out of a Drilbur hill." He paused. "Do Drilbur even make hills?"

   "Aren't you a researcher?"

   "On moves, namely on Alolan Pokémon," he clarified. "But I'm also good at reading emotions. Getting back to my point, you're making a big deal out of something minor. Either you and Ash are a whole lot closer as friends, or..." his voice trailed off.

   Clemont waited. "Or what?"

   Kukui sighed. "I have a feeling that if I say it, you'd be offended by it."

   "It's fine, you can say it."

   "That you're into him."

   The blonde was silent. Either he was really good at guessing, or he wasn't lying about what he could do.

   "I'm sorry for suggesting that. You two-"

   "You're right," Clemont muttered. "How did you know?"

   "It was more of a guess, but a reasonable one. Not everything has a single answer you know." Professor Kukui let out a small smile. "You don't need to sound so nervous about this, Clemont."

   The boy let out an embarrassed laugh. "Yeah, but I don't want Ash to know. N-not yet. Please don't tell him. Please."

   "My lips are sealed," Kukui winked.

   Clemont sighed in relief. "I feel like a giant weight has been lifted from my back."

   "Again, Clemont, it's fine about Ash being sick. He'll come home when he's ready."

   "Okay, thank you," Clemont nodded.

   "And remember, Clemont," Professor Kukui continued. "If you want to talk to me about anything, you can."

   He beamed. "Thanks. Bye, professor."

   Professor Kukui waved goodbye, and the screen went dark.

   "You two finished yet?" Bonnie's voice came from the kitchen. "I think me cooking an entire thing of soup took a lot quicker than you telling someone that the kid they're looking after is sick."

   Clemont came into the kitchen and checked the soup. It didn't look awful. But it didn't look too good either.

   "All part of the plan, big brother. All part of the plan," she assured before letting out an evil chuckle.

   He looked at her oddly, rolled his eyes, and left. She was definitely a handful.

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Guess who's back?