Ash was used to this. He had to leave people and Pokemon behind all the time. But it didn’t change the facts—it still hurt, a lot. And even though Ash and Sawyer had parted ways many times before, he couldn’t help but feel more hurt than usual at this parting of the ways. Maybe it was because it had been so long, maybe it was because this was by far the longest amount of time they had been together, and maybe it was because they had finally realized they had feelings for each other and talked about it. Or maybe—and most likely—it was a mix of all three. But, alongside being newly declared boyfriends, they were still rivals, and they didn’t want to just be constantly peeping the other’s strategies and the likes. Or so they thought.

But now, watching Sawyer walk away in the opposite direction, Ash wanted nothing more than to run and catch up with him. Instead, he just waved, petting Pikachu with his free hand. Ash knew he wasn’t typically one to overly cling to anything other than Pikachu, who everyone knew at this point was there for life, no matter how short or excruciating long that life may be, but he couldn’t help but want to cling to Sawyer and the new feelings he brought Ash.

Maybe he just needed to train and run for a bit—that is usually how he cleared his mind and figured things out, after all. And besides, maybe if he ran fast enough, he wouldn’t end up accidentally making Sawyer wait in the next town because he got caught up in some random shenanigans, meaning he’d get to see him a whole lot sooner.