Happiness I

Sighing, Hayzel took a seat at the edge of his savior’s bed and watched as the other squeezed between a small refrigerator and the wall of the hallway to enter the main part of the room. Grinning madly, Carter flopped down next to the blond and laid a red and white checkered blanket in his lap. “Sorry it’s so tight in here Hayzel. I can’t even let Charger from his ball,” the sand brown haired man said as he gestured over to his prized Pikachu’s ball.

“It’s…it’s okay,” the other said weakly as he draped the blanket over his shoulders and scooted back against the wall. Carter stood up then kneeled down and began to adjust one of the legs on the bed, giving Hayzel the opportunity to take in the room in its’ entirety. It was small, something you’d picture when you’d think of a room underneath a staircase. There was a small door that you had to duck to enter followed by a tiny hall with the mentioned refrigerator and a set of drawers to the left that lead to the tiny room with a sink, bed, and a curtain that blocks the doorway into a bathroom. The bathroom was a bit bigger than a closet. Right when you walk in there is the toilet and without any sort of blockade was a small pipe fixed to a shower head hovering over a drain.

Noticing this Hayzel’s cheeks began to flush, remembering the incident from earlier. He was washing his hands in the bathroom sink at the mansion and had gone to exit the room. The room was l shaped so that if the door was left open, you couldn’t tell it was a bathroom. Unfortunately, Carter didn’t know Hayzel was in the restroom and began to go down the hall and had already undone his fly in preparation. Upon his exit, Hayzel turned the corner and got an eyeful, causing a very awkward moment between the two. “Carter…are you sure you want me here? I don’t want to take up your space…”

Looking up at the blond through his sandy brown hair, the man simply laughed and shook his head only to return to adjusting his bed. “You don’t need to apologize. I told you I wanted you to stay. It’s no problem to me at all. Unless you’re uncomfortable here, I could get you a room at the Inn.”

“Ah..no. This is fine,” the other said quietly. Truthfully, he felt uncomfortable letting Carter do so much for him. After all, the man was responsible for getting him the job restoring the mansion. In Olivine, their home town, Hayzel had grown tired of being a burden to his half-sister, the Gym Leader Jasmine. The boy getting very sick in unclean air, she gladly took him in at thier father’s request. On the day he decided to leave, his sister retired his childhood companion, an Ampharos that used to light the Lighthouse, and then set off on his own.

Carter had grown up on Moo Moo farm and had grown restless of the simple life of the farm. Grwoing up, he had more interest in building things for the Pokemon than taking care of them. Known for helping restore the burned tower in Ecruteak he was asked to do a job in Vermillion City which he eagerly accepted as a way to break free from his farming duties.

Serendipitously, the two ended up in the same Cabin on the S.S. Aqua. At first Carter just stared at Hayzel a bit. The latter nervously asked him if there was something wrong. Still smiling, the other simply just shrugged his shoulders and said, “I was captivated by your eyes.” causing Hayzel to turn beet red, and become unable to focus on anything else that was said. Somehow during that period, Carter had talked Hayzel into working with him on the mansion.

Once they arrived in Vermillion, Hayzel was given a tiny apartment from Lt. Surge as a favor to his sister, much to his displeasure as he wanted to become a little more independent. Unfortunately, today it was blown up during the gym leader’s training, thus leading to their current situation.

“Err..Hayzel? You’re sort of staring off into space.”

“Ah…I’m sorry…” Hayzel mumbled as a light shade of pink began to show in his cheeks.

Laughing the other stood up pulled the string to the light, making the room pitch black. “You don’t need to be so apologetic Hayzel. Relax a bit more,” his disembodied voice rang out followed by the sound of clothes being tossed onto the floor.

Taking advantage of the darkness, Hayzel slid out of his shirt, leaned over to lay it on the floor followed by his jeans. After waiting a moment and hearing Carter bumping into things, the boy felt him slide into the covers and settle. They laid there in an uncomfortable silence, unsure what to say for the moment “So…you said your sister was Jasmine? Must be pretty cool to have a gym leader in the family,” Carter said in a hopeful tone, trying to spark a conversation.

“I….I have three gym leaders in my family…my mother, Clair, my grandpa, Pryce, and as you said Jasmine,” Hayzel said softly, their faces running through his mind slowly.

“Ah…that’s where you get those eyes from.”

“What’s that?”

“Clair is well known for not only her battle skills, but her appearance as well. She is ranked one of the most beautiful women in the Johto-Kanto area. You seem to have inherited her eyes, though…I find yours to be more alluring.” As he blushed profusely from the comment, Hayzel felt Carter’s arm drape lazily around him in sort of hug like gesture, “It must be tough for you…having that sort of pressure.”

Hayzel’s cheeks instantly began to heat up as he rested his head against the other’s shoulder, somehow feeling it was the natural response.“Ye..yeah…it’s…why I came here. Sort of like running away…I don’t think I’m…good enough to be with them. Amphy is the only Pokemon I’ve ever had…and I didn’t train him myself…”

Carter’s grip tightened around the boy after he finished his sentence. “You shouldn’t feel obligated to be something you don’t want to be just because your family is. No one said you had to be a great trainer. I grew up on a farm, and now I’m running my own contracting business. Yes my parents wished I could have stayed to help them, but I rather help others by giving something to them directly than be stuck on my own. Hayzel, you need to find what makes you happy and go with that.”

“I…I…” nothing came to his head accept Carter’s last sentence. Letting out a sigh, he curled up a bit, careful not to bump into the other. “I don’t see how that can work…”

“It’s worked for me. I’m doing what I love. I live comfortably, yes, even in this small room, and now I have…well…that’s a secret. For now at least.” He smiled down at the other, even if he knew the other couldn’t see it. From the moment he had laid eyes on the other, he knew Hayzel had something special within him, though he couldn’t say what. But whatever it was, he wanted Hayzel to see it for himself. “Good night Hayzel.”

“Good…goodnight,” the boy replied breathlessly, still trying to absorb Carter’s words.

They turned softly, trying to find the best way to lie together in the small bed. Finally they settled in, Hayzel up against the wall and on his stomach while Carter lay against him, his arm slightly around the other’s waist and the bulk of his body against the boy’s back. Comforted by the man’s warmth and the secure feeling of the other beside him Hayzel drifted off into a deep sleep.

Feeling the blond’s breaths become longer and his muscles relax, Carter tightened his grip around Hayzel and drew the boy in close. He could smell the hint of lavender and vanilla coming from the other, most likely from shampoo or maybe remnants of the other’s clothes, causing a memory to blossom forth.
When he was younger, an earthquake happened while he was visiting the light house. The lights had gone out within the tower and a few ghost Pokemon had decided to play around. As he wandered through the lighthouse, he heard someone crying and followed the noise to a small kid who was crying in a corner while a Haunter made scary faces at him. Using the flash light he scared it away and went to the kid’s side. Looking up at him with scared teary blue eyes, the boy clung onto Carter and refused to move or let go until the lights came on.

Something about the other…made him feel like it was his job to guard the other, like a knight. Silently, he sat there with the flash light and scared the ghost Pokemon away while holding onto the young boy. When Carter wasn’t shinning his light he was trying to stop the other from crying. He couldn’t bear to see the other’s beautiful blue eyes so sad, it felt…wrong to him. After a long while, the boy fell asleep in his arms causing him to do the same.

Before he knew it, it was the dead of night he was on the top floor of the light house under a blanket while a great yellow Pokemon glowed silently while petting Hayzel’s head with concern. Noticing Carter awake, the big Pokemon got up and handed him a berry from a small basket and then picked him up and pushed him into the elevator that took him safely to the bottom floor. After that, he never saw the kid again. Of course, he was unable to go back due to being grounded for not coming home. Still, he had always wished to see the other again.

Sighing, he looked down to Hayzel. A beam of moonlight had found its’ way into the room and brushed against the boy’s soft white face. “Could you be…” he whispered softly to his sleeping friend. “…the one I’ve been looking for.” Sheepishly he rested his head back on their shared pillow and drifted towards sleepy, whispering, “I love you,” with his last conscious breath.