So the last update took me half a year. This one was... 3 months in the making? It is short.... but, I do apologize for the long wait.

In my defence, May and June were two crazy months for me. There was nothing but studying, exams and my high school graduation.

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon. It'd be awesome if I did, but I don't.

- X - X - X -

Long Distance

Chapter 3: Strong Words

- X - X - X -

Misty sat in her seat, as rigid as a board.

Her eyes were glued to Lt. Surge as he gave his presentation, but she hadn't heard a single word that had passed his lips. Misty's heart was beating at a steady rhythm, but it was so loud she was surprised no one was asking her to keep it quiet. The clock on the wall informed her that it was 12:47PM, indicating that she had been sitting still for nearly four hours. Her back was sore, her neck was aching and every single muscle in her body was tense.

Lunch break was in thirteen minutes.

Everyone involved with the conference was required to eat in the cafeteria. That meant that Brock had sixty minutes to interrogate her as to why she'd been dodging his calls. Or, rather Ash's calls.

'Misty, you're being ridiculous!' She thought to herself. 'You're just being paranoid! Brock was like a brother to you! He isn't going to interrogate or threaten or intimidate you because you've been avoiding him!'

The redhead managed to relax a bit, but the tension wouldn't completely leave her body. She willed herself to refocus her attention on the Vermilion City Gym Leader's lecture, but found that her pondering had caused time to move more quickly.

"Thank you Lt. Surge, we'll continue with the lecture from Fuschia City after lunch. The cafeteria is down the hall, on the left. You can't miss it. We'll see you all at 2:00PM. Dismissed!"

Misty picked up her bag, and stood slowly. She casually glanced to her left and saw that Brock was busy conversing with his brother. She let out a mental sigh as the familiar head of violet hurried over to her.

"I wish that we didn't have to go over each and every battle we've fought throughout the past year so thoroughly," Erika sighed. "It's so monotonous, and I'm starving! Let's eat!"

- X - X - X -

"I've got to hand it to Surge," Erika managed between mouthfuls of spaghetti. "He may be full of it, but some of his strategies are total genius! The footage of his Raichu battling that Golem... Oh, man! I totally thought he was done for. What an amazing comeback!"

Misty raised her eyes from her plate, managed a weak smile and resumed twirling her noodles around her fork.

"Missy, is something wrong? You look really tense."

Misty internally cringed. Was it that obvious?

"No... I'm fine."

The purple haired woman had a sympathetic look in her eyes.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

Erika wasn't convinced, but let the subject drop when she noticed someone approaching the table. He looked familiar, and she was only able to place him when she saw that Misty had flinched at his presence. He offered her a brief smile, but quickly turned his eyes to her redheaded friend.

The violet haired woman wasn't certain, but it seemed as though there was an almost accusatory gleam being emitted from his eye sockets.

'Uh oh, ' She thought. 'This can't be good...'

- X - X - X -

They weren't hard to spot.

After all, there were only two Kanto gym leaders that supported the respected colors of red and purple on their heads.

Not to mention that their table was smack-dab in the middle of the cafeteria. Thanking the server, he picked up his tray and headed towards them, with Forrest on his trail. He offered the Celadon gym leader a brief smile before facing his old friend.

"Hey Myst." The redhead stiffened slightly at the nickname, but kept her composure.

"Hello Brock," she said politely. Despite his cool exterior, the older breeder's heart ached at her formal tone. This girl had once been his family, and now she was speaking to him like she would a business associate.

"How are you?" He continued cautiously.

"Fine. Yourself?"

"Great. It's been a long time." Misty nodded, a rigid smile forced its way onto her face.

"I mean, it's been how many years since we've seen each other?"

"I don't really remember..." The Cerulean gym leader stated, beginning to pick at her meal again. "It's been quite a while..."

"It really has been, hasn't it? I mean, it seems like it was even longer, since we haven't heard from you in like, forever."

The red headed girl gave no response.

"I guess you must have been pretty busy..."

A half-hearted shrug.

"I know it can be really tough, but you didn't spare us more than a single minute on the telephone, if you picked up at all. Then there are the emails. Even if you didn't have much time, you could have typed up a few lines everyday. At least then you could have sent us a decently long email... but, no. We don't get more than a few words and-"

"I have to pee," Erika suddenly exclaimed with an unnecessarily volume. "Misty, come to the washroom with me!"

Brock watched as the violet haired girl grabbed her friend by the arm and hurriedly rushed out of the cafeteria.

As quick as they were, Brock did not miss the menacing death glare the Celadon gym leader shot him as they made their exit.

- X - X - X -

The bathrooms were small, but exceptionally lovely in Erika's opinion. There were but three pink stalls and two white sinks. The soap smelled like green apples and the floor was tiled in alternating lavender and baby blue. What Erika like best about the washroom, was that there was a plush white couch situated at the end farthest from the door. It was perfect for girl talk.

Pushing her friend through the white door, she quickily turned around and secured the lock.

They needed their privacy.

She ushered the Cerulean citizen towards the couch and became angry when she saw the tears in the blue-green eyes.

'Just who does that Brock guy think he is?' Erika thought. She didn't voice what was going on through her mind, but instead opened her mouth to ask a question.

"Missy, honey, what's the matter?" The redhead hesitated for a moment, but piece by piece began to reveal the emotions she'd been holding back for more than two years.

The initial separation, how much those first few months had really hurt. How they talked on the phone or emailed at least twice a week, but communication became scarcer as time went on. She talked of her only two visits. The excitement of being reunited, but the pain that came when they once again had to part. Eventually, she ended with how he placed first in the Battle Frontier, and had to pass right by Cerulean to return home, and didn't stop for a visit. How he'd gone straight to Sinnoh without so much as an email. And the final straw... How they had so easily replaced her for the second time.

That had led to her to avoiding any means of contact by him.

"I just don't know, Erika," she sniffled. "Am I overreacting?"

"It depends on how you look at it..." Erika chose her words carefully, rubbing the younger girl's arm affectionately. "But, I don't think so. Missy, you obviously cared about them very much. It was hard on you when they left, and people react to pain differently. Some people scream and shout, and some keep it inside until they become overwhelmed with the weight of it all... I just wish you had told me about this sooner."

"I was... confused. There were so many emotions inside me... I guess I wanted to get them all sorted out." The redhead glanced at her watch and was startled to find that there were only a few minutes remaining in the lunch hour. "Oh, wow. We'd better get going if we want to be on time..." She quickly stood, smoothing the wrinkles in her clothing and running her fingers through her hair.

Erika hesitated, but went with her gut instinct and asked,

"Misty, I hope you don't mind my prying, but... How you felt about Ash... Do you still feel the same or..." The words came out of her mouth awkwardly, and they left an unsettling feeling in the air.

The redhead was silent for a moment. Her reply was quiet, but held a measurably amount of strength.

"I thought I was in love with him, but that was a very long time ago. I used to think of him and smile. Now when his name is so much as mentioned, it just... it hurts. So, really, he's just a source of pain. I'm glad he's far away, on the other side of Kanto. I don't want him anywhere near me."

- X - X - X -

Note: I think that updates were few and far between because I planned the general outline of the story, but had trouble and got stuck on the specifics. I've given it more thought and there will be three or four more chapters. I promise to have the next one by the end of July!

So, there you go. I hope that it captured your interest and that you liked it.

I didn't edit this as thoroughly as I should have. If there are any mistakes, let me know and I'll fix them!

Review, s'il vous plaît!