"Pay up loser" Rosa smirked.

Hugh groaned, "Yeah yeah, whatever- here's your ice cream"

Hugh handed Rosa a Casteliacone. Hugh had lost a battle and had to buy Rosa whatever kind of ice cream she'd wanted. They sat on a bench across from the ice cream stand.

"Thanks Kitty!" She chirped.

"I don't look like a cat Pokémon..." Hugh protested.

"Qwilfish, then?"

"Haha- eat your ice cream"

The two ate in silence. It wasn't awkward- at least not for Rosa. Hugh didn't talk all the time, so there were often silences between him and her. Something was different this time, however. Rosa wanted his attention. She didn't have anything to say, but she just wanted him to pay attention to her. She craved his gaze.

"Rosa?" Hugh called, snapping Rosa from her thoughts.

"Hmm?"

"Your ice cream is melting" he stated, pointing to the glob of melting ice cream in Rosa's hand. When Rosa didn't react, Hugh took the cone and licked all the melting edges, fixing it so that it looked normal again. Rosa blushed a deep red as he handed back her ice cream. He didn't seem to notice, though.

That part didn't bother her so much- they shared food often. Well...Hugh mostly ate food she didn't want anymore, but it wasn't rare for him to do something like this. He used to do this a lot when they were kids; Hugh would always finish his ice cream first, and Rosa would always struggle with eating it before it melted. But this time something was different. When he had been licking the ice cream, something had urged Rosa to stare at him.

"You okay?" Hugh asked as he finished his ice cream. "You look like you've seen a ghost Pokémon"

"Huh?"

Hugh laughed slightly, "Are you scared of something?"

Rosa looked him dead in the eyes as her expression became serious "Terrified"

Hugh's posture became alert. He looked like he was going to ask questions, but Rosa said before he could, "I'm not hungry" offering Hugh the frozen treat. Hugh shook his head and Rosa threw the treat into a garbage bin nearby.

"Let's go" Rosa said, getting up and walking in the direction of the Pokémon Center. Hugh chased after her.

"Rosa, you're scaring me" Hugh said firmly.

"That makes two of us..." Rosa said shakily.

A sudden wind picked up through city and Rosa shivered. Rosa heard the sound of something unzipping, then a jacket was draped on her shoulders.

She stopped abruptly. "Please stop" she begged.

Hugh stopped, confused. "Stop? Stop what?"

"Stop scaring me!"

"I'm scaring you?"

"Yes!" Rosa screamed.

Hugh rolled his eyes, "That clears things up" he said sarcastically.

"It's not funny, Hugh!" Rosa yelled.

"Who said I was joking?" Hugh hissed, raising an eyebrow.

Rosa noticed a few people around them giving them curious looks. "Let's not argue here" she said, pulling Hugh through the city all the way to the Pokémon Center. The two got a room to share, and continued their argument.

"Rosa what's your deal?" Hugh asked sternly.

"I'm scared, Hugh" Rosa confessed.

"What are you scared of?!"

"You!"

Hugh stepped back. "You're scared of me?" He asked quietly. She shouldn't have said that. She knew that he was self-conscious about his temper- how easily he could just lose it. She knew his biggest fear was scaring people away from him.

"Yes..." Roa said hesitantly "but not in the way that I don't feel safe around you..." she added quickly. "I feel incredibly safe around you. That's the problem..."

Sometimes what you're looking for is hiding in plain sight

Hilda had said those words to Rosa once, but she hadn't understood them then. She did now.

Hugh soaked in every last drop of information. Rosa saw the gears turning in his brain, the fear and anger in his eyes turning into pain.

"What do you want from me, Rosa?" Hugh asked softly.

Rosa struggled with her answer, "I don't know...I want you to...I don't know"

"I can't help you if you don't know"

"Can you take my emotions away?" Rosa joked.

Hugh didn't respond. His red eyes glowed with pain and desire. Rosa felt those same emotions, except she had the urge to flee. Being in the same room as Hugh suddenly became exhausting.

Rosa turned to the door to escape, but Hugh grabbed her wrist.

"Rosa please. I'm your friend" he pleaded.

"That's all I'm ever gonna be..." Rosa whispered, her eyes filling with tears. She ripped her wrist from Hugh's grasp and faced him.

"That's all I'll ever be to you?! Your smiley, dopey, little friend?!" She screamed, tears falling.

"Do you not want to be friends or something?!" Hugh snapped.

"That's not what I'm saying!"

"What do you want, Rosa?!" Hugh yelled.

"I want you!"

Hugh stepped back, away from Rosa. The room was dead silent.

Finally, Hugh whispered, "No you don't"

"Don't tell me what I want"

"But you don't want me"

Rosa stepped closer to Hugh, only to have him take more steps backwards.

"No Rosa. You shouldn't want someone like me" he insisted.

"Why?" Rosa cried, "Why shouldn't I?"

"Because I'm a monster, Rosa!"

Rosa stepped forward again, "No" she denied. "No you're not! How could you say that?!"

Anger flashed in Hugh's eyes, "Don't argue. You deserve better than me"

She knew not to test Hugh's patience, but she was going to test it anyways. She knew his fuse was short, though she'd never seen how short.

"What makes you say that?" she pressed.

Hugh turned his back to her. "What if..." he whispered, "What if one day I hurt you? What if I lose it?"

"You won't"

"How can you be sure?"

"Because I know you"

"What if you don't know me as well as you think?"

Rosa silently walked over to him and gently pushed his shoulder so he faced her. Hugh's eyes once again displayed fear and pain, but the difference was that he was scared of himself.

"Hugh, I've known you for as long as I can remember. I've never once seen you act like the monster you think you are"

"That doesn't mean it can't happen..." Hugh said quietly, turning his head to the side to avoid Rosa's eyes. Rosa hugged him, putting both of her arms on top of his shoulders. Then, pulling away slightly, she reached up to play with a tuft of his hair. She felt him tense at her touch, and saw his face become a crimson red.

"I know it won't happen, Hugh" she whispered in his ear. "I trust you"

She felt a small tug at the bottom of one of her long pigtails, signaling that Hugh was playing with her hair as well. He's turned his head back in her direction, but wouldn't look at her face.

She moved her head back so that they were looking at each other. She kissed him quickly, not giving his lips time to respond. She kissed him quickly again, but this time he kissed back. Their third kiss lasted longer, Hugh pulling Rosa as close to him as possible, and Rosa tangled her fingers in his hair. As they pulled away for air, Rosa bit Hugh's lower lip softly. The two pressed their foreheads together, staring into each other's eyes, processing everything that just happened.

"Are you sure you want this?" Hugh asked softly.

"Yes" Rosa answered.

Hugh grew a wicked grin on his face, and mischief danced in his eyes.

"Lock the door"

(A/N. YEET THATS ALL SHE WROTE FOLKS SEE YA NEXT TIME. Those sinners

I actually had a lot of help writing this chapter mah friends helped meee

I kept asking for advice lol I NEEDED FEEDBACK

I hope they see this I'm calling them out)