The stars are forever (red/green)

Title: The stars are forever
Words: 1,717
Rating: PG
Summary: Hours pass, the stars illuminate the night sky, and it’s the usual routine again- falling asleep close to the fire, but now even closer to each other.
Author’s note: Written as part of my Contest!Verse with viridianite. Red runs away to Hoenn to become a coordinator, creating a new identity for himself, and Green follows him, not wanting to be left alone again. This particular one-shot takes place during the events of BW2, more info regarding the timeline can be found here.

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“Hey, ya loser! Wake up!”

Crimson red eyes open to meet the sunlight. Except in this case, the sunlight is Green, and his Eevee, Vee, on his shoulder. A lot more pleasant, Red hates to admit. He thought he liked loneliness, but Green’s been visiting so much recently that he can’t imagine a life without his best friend with him now. A smile graces Red’s face as he slides off of Snorlax’s belly and runs over to hug Green as if he hasn’t seen him in years.

It’s April, 8 years after Red escaped to Mt. Silver, and he didn’t think he could be any happier now. The snow still hasn’t melted on the outdoor paths of the lower half of the mountain and he knows it won’t- all the more worthwhile when Green treks up here.

“Seriously, I trudge all the way through this stupid snow, and all I hear from you is a snore when I get here?” Green makes a face at Red, pretending to be annoyed- though he would never stop hoping for a faster way up here. “Says the Gym Leader who’s almost never in his Gym,” Red teases, and Green makes a knowing smirk; because Red is absolutely right.

“How many times do I have to tell ya- I do this for you, ya know... work is boring as hell.” The stories that Green’s told of the few challengers that actually make it past his Gym Trainers- there was one girl who showed up using a bunch of ‘cute’ Pokémon and lost handily. And that one Bug Maniac, who was a lot older than Green, screamed at him when Arcanine set each of his “flimsy little pests” aflame, one by one. But challengers were few and infrequent, and Green spent most of his time in the Gym doing paperwork to send to the League- when he was actually in the Gym at all.

“I’d much rather hang out with you, even if it is really damn cold up here.” Green thinks of asking Red to live with him for the third time this month, but knows the answer will be the same, so he speaks about it no further. He’s acting like Red now, holding back on his thoughts for once. It’s actually heartwarming, knowing that he’s really starting to understand his friend more than ever before. He wouldn’t dare admit it out loud, though- he’s not that much of a sap like Red usually is. “The fire’s right here, you know.” Red sits before the fire, patting the cold ground next to him as he watches Vee nervously jump off of Green’s shoulder, landing safely next to Red. Green knows exactly what Red wants.

He sits right beside Red, arms wrapped around him. Red nestles his head into Green’s chest and everything suddenly feels warmer for both of them, especially when Charizard returns back from his training to rest next to them. Vee grins and gives an excited ‘hello’ to the fire-type, though she’s filled with energy while Charizard is exhausted. Red’s Pokémon friends always trained themselves- sometimes they didn’t train, and just played with each other instead. It was even better when Green was there; Vee would often spend lots of time playing with Pikachu, and Espeon, who she saw as a big brother to her. They all treated the mountain like it was a big mansion, roaming freely around it- except without the warmth actual houses provided, save for the one fire in the middle of the cavern.

“I like cuddling. It feels nice,” Red comments without thinking beforehand like he usually does, his voice a gentle whisper. “Uh... sure, Red.” Green can’t think of an equally sappy comment, even though he’d love to find the words to say how important it is to him that Red is still here, hasn’t run off again or worse. Green just blurts out whatever comes to mind in that instant. “Just don’t run off on me, ever. You got that?” Red almost giggles at that, but it comes out as a gentle chuckle instead- he knows it’s just Green’s way of showing affection. “It’s not funny! I spent years thinking you had disappeared off the face of the earth, and-” Damn, he couldn’t even finish his sentence.

“You were worried about me, I get it.”

“Like hell I was!”

Green figures it’s time to stop talking about past events. Red’s always said the mountain tends to make him reminisce all the time, and Green feels it now. And then he suddenly remembers why he came here in the first place, events of the outside world penetrating the walls of the cavern.

“Oh yeah... I got this invitation from the Unova League. They want us to go participate in this huge tournament in Driftveil City.” Vee tilts her head at the mention of a tournament. Maybe Green would finally get to battle for real again?

Red’s eyes widen. The media will be all over him. Questions, crowds, strangers, anxiety. He likes the prospect of battling strong trainers, but is it worth enduring his fear to reach that end? “I don’t know. Sounds like you’d enjoy it more than me.”

“Figured you’d say that. That’s exactly why I’m not going.”

“W-what??” Red is completely shocked; Green would never turn down this chance considering he hadn’t received any tough challengers since Ethan and Lyra showed up all those years ago. This is obviously Red’s fault.

“Yeah, I’d much rather stay with you than go to that lame tournament. I knew you wouldn’t be going, anyway,” Green explains. He’s starting to sound awful sentimental now, and it’s a little embarrassing. Almost. Vee smiles at Green’s answer; that’s the best answer. She’d hate to leave Red alone.

“But ... I don’t want to be the reason that you decide not to go.” Red feels like he’s dominating Green’s life now. He’s the reason why Green neglects his Gym all the time, staying with Red for several days on the mountain each visit. Sometimes, Red doesn’t really understand why Green keeps coming back, even though they’re best friends. He thinks Green will probably get tired of him. But yet, his old rival always shows up with a playful smirk on his face, and all Red can do is accept that this is the way things are now. He can’t deny himself happiness.

“Seriously? Red, you’re way more important than some stupid tournament. Besides, I can always battle you.”

“And you’ll lose again,” Red is quick to remind him.

“Hey, I beat you that one time last week! Is your memory getting fuzzy, or what?” Green retorts, earning a laugh from Red and a giggle from Vee. Green can never admit to himself that Red might actually be a little stronger than him. It’s not even within the realm of possibility. Though years have passed, Red notices that their dynamic hasn’t changed much- there’s still hints of their rivalry left. It’s more of an affectionate rivalry than anything else. “No, actually,” Red says honestly. “I think I remember too much. There’s some things I’d really like to forget.” The tone becomes more serious, and Red remembers those first visits Green made to Mt. Silver, how their conversations were always one-sided.

Green’s a bit surprised to hear those words from Red, someone who he knows has difficulty expressing his emotions through words. He looks into Red’s eyes just to see if it’s true. And it is; he’s been around Red so much now that even simple expressions and little gestures equal a thousand words.

“I won’t ask, then.” Green gives a reassuring smile and holds Red just a little closer. A blush makes its way to Red’s cheeks and he suddenly gets an idea in his head that might lighten the mood, that would give proof to just how much he cares for Green.

“Hey Green... uh... wanna try kissing?”

“Wait, what-?!” This time, Green is the one who’s speechless. For a moment, anyway. “You sure about this? I’m not gonna say no, but- you know that’s the kind of thing that-”

“Yeah, I know.” Red is absolutely serious about this, Green can tell as crimson eyes meet those of emerald. “I just feel really close to you. As a friend,” he makes sure to add. “I don’t see why we can’t try it.”

“Sure, whatever.”

Even though Red seemed so determined, he’s a little hesitant. Perhaps this is because it’s his first actual kiss, and probably Green’s, too. But the moment that their lips lightly touch together is not one of surprise, but that of comfort. Despite the cold, Green notices, Red’s lips are soft and warm. He somehow can’t believe he’s actually kissing his best friend; he couldn’t have ever dreamt about something like this, but yet everything he’s feeling now keeps telling him that this is all real. Red doesn’t notice anything physical except for the warm feeling of being in Green’s arms. All he feels is that overwhelming happiness of everything coming into place. The fact that this was all meant to happen somehow, and all he had to do was muster the courage to ask.
The kiss lasts longer than both Red and Green thought it would, and it’s almost magical when they both smile at the same time after their lips part. There’s a short silence in which they only communicate through body language and the affectionate smiles adorning their faces. Red is the first to speak, it’s all up to him to put out all that needs to be said into the open.

“I want you to stay with me. Don’t know how long that’ll be for, probably however long forever is. But ... you’re the most important person to me. Um... thank you.” Vee nuzzles up against Red, as if to congratulate him for finding that little spark of courage.

“Forever’s a really long time, ya know. You sure you can put up with me?” Green teases.

“I don’t have to, Green.”

---

Hours pass, the stars illuminate the night sky, and it’s the usual routine again- falling asleep close to the fire, but now even closer to each other. Charizard is the only one awake, but he’s still dreaming, dreaming of a future for all of them, brighter than the constellations.