Ash and Gary were on their way to Snowpoint City for "just a winter holiday", as the seventeen year old had suggested. It was freezing cold even in their fluffy, cotton jackets; their iceproof, woolly snow pants and their tramping, heavy snow boots. Even Pikachu and Eevee had their own set of snow clothes as they were obviously not adaptable to the freezing climate.

"Garyyyyy. I'm so cooooold! And I'm tired! Why couldn't we have flown on your Pidgeot or my Charizard? Or even caught a bus or ridden a car or train or...whatever?" The younger boy complained, dragging his feet against the snow in every heavy step he took.

"I told you already, Ashy! We're just stopping by somewhere south of Lake Acuity so that we could find the nearby campsite we booked in at!"

Knowing so didn't make Ash feel any better. He still believed they could have flown anyway. It was much too hard hiking from Eterna City to where they stood currently.

"But we could have just gone to Snowpoint City and THEN walked a shorter way to Camp Icinda, couldn't we?"

"We were already in Eterna City. We needed the exercise. You should be used to walking by now, Ashy, being the traveller you are. Besides, distance-wise, Camp Icinda is closer to Eterna. It says on the map."

Gary and his irrelevant technicalities... The Pikachu Trainer had no stand against him and his words. Oh well... Ash just hoped they were getting closer to their destination.

"Pika-pikaa!"

"Veeeee!"

Pikachu and Eevee yelped gladly in unison, jumping off their trainers' shoulders before running towards a sturdy-looking shack quite a walk away. It seemed that Ash wasn't the only one excited to finally find shelter. Unfortunately for the little furballs, their extra layer of clothes slowed them down a bit, making them appear to be trudging like Caterpies instead of running.

"Yes! A warm place! To rest! Even though it looks so far, it's still so close! To freedom! And food! Yesssss!" Ash voiced triumphantly to the cloudy sky, arms high up in the air in a fist pumping motion. Gary merely snickered at the cuteness that was his best friend. The little things that made him happy...

Ash tried to keep up with Pikachu and Eevee by attempting to sprint to the almost nearby campsite. The hazel-eyed boy had to work his muscles out just to catch up as the snow wasn't exactly the friendliest of pathways. The Pokémon Researcher lagged behind him, clever enough not to tire himself out in the cold weather lest he experience strains the following day.

"Hey Ash!" He called out worriedly.

"Yeah?"

"Ash, the snow around here is thick and it's hard to walk! Be careful!"

"Gaaaaaryyy, you worry too much! I'm fineeeee!"

The younger kept running, walking really, but running towards the Camp Icinda shack. Unfortunately for Ash...

"Ashy! Slow down! You might trip ov-"

"Waaaaaaaah!"

Thud! The sound of someone falling into the snow echoed audibly around the frost-filled forest.

"-over."

Ash laid in the snow for what seemed a long time, and he didn't get up at all. Even Pikachu and Eevee, who were about a hundred metres away, stopped in their tracks to check on the fallen boy.

"Ash? Ash! Are you okay?"

"Pi-pi-pi!"

"Eeveee-veee!

When Gary finally reached him, the older boy kneeled down and took the ravenette in his arms. 'Dear Arceus, he's so cold!' He let his gloves wander to Ash's rosy cheeks, wiping flecks of snow off of them.

"Ashy, oh my gosh, please be okay!"

Gary looked around in concern for anyone nearby to help out. Not a chance. They were the only ones walking for miles, and the campsite appeared to be the nearest place and his only hope of shelter for his unconscious best friend.

'Darn it, Ash. I told you to be careful! Oh, no use getting prissy, he needs to have some oxygen...'

The emerald-eyed boy was about to perform CPR on Ash, his lips nearing Ash's own in no time when the boy below him blew on his nose, causing Gary to pull back and sneeze.

"Wahahahahahaha! You should have seen your face! You looked like a stressed out Farfetch'd looking for its leek. It was priceless!" Ash chuckled to himself, tears of mirth coming out of his eyes as he sat up to laugh at Gary some more.

Gary on the other hand, wasn't exactly amused. He glared at Ash with an intimidating look that could have belonged to a deadly-looking Steelix. The boy pushed Ash back into the snow and stomped off, leaving him alone.

"You jerk! I was really worried, you know! Why did you do that?" He seethed, picking up Pikachu and Eevee along the way.

Oh great. Gary was angry at him, and it wasn't just that he was angry at him, but really, REALLY angry at him. Smart move, Ash. Really smart.

"Heey Gary, I'm sorry... I was just... I dunno, I wanted to see how you'd react if I was in trouble. To see if you care about me enough. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you so furious... " He mumbled, feeling guilty for his actions. Gary stopped walking and turn around to face the still sitting boy; annoyance painted all over his face.

The look softened when emerald eyes travelled to Ash's foot, which look a little too bent for his liking.

"Gary?"

The latter walked over to Ash, dropped Pikachu and Eevee and looked over at Ash's left leg. He poked at it curiously, earning a paining yelp from the hazel-eyed boy.

"Ouuuuuuch Gary, that hurt!"

"Sorry. I think-"

Another poke...

"Oouuuuchhh! Gaaaryyy!"

"-I think you sprained your ankle."

Chocolate orbs widened to full size. "Huh? Whatt... B-but how am I supposed to walk now? We can't even... Oh no, Gary, I'm so sorry, how are we supposed to have a holiday if I can't even...oh no..." Ash cried, burying his face into green polyester gloves. He just ruined everything Gary had planned. He ought to be ashamed.

"No, Ash. It's okay, I told you to be careful but, we can't do anything about it now. We'll make it work, alright? Can you stand up?" Gary comforted, holding his hand out to the injured sixteen year old.

"I think-oowww ooow owwwieee! T'hurts..." The younger boy confirmed, plopping back down in the snow slowly.

"Well..." The researcher thought for a clever solution to this problem of theirs. He looked at Pikachu and Eevee, who both looked tired but concerned for Ash. He couldn't think of anything else so... piggybacking was his only choice.

"I'll just carry you to the shack. Come on, jump up before we both get a cold out here and then we really won't be able to do anything." Gary concluded, bending down towards Ash with his back to him so that the seventeen year old could carry him.

Ash shifted slowly towards Gary's back, resting his head on the boy's shoulder. He wrapped his arms around Gary's neck and appreciated the warmth that Gary never failed to emit, making him feel just a tad bit better.

It wasn't at all surprising that the Pokémon Researcher seemed to have no trouble in standing up and walking towards the campsite, with what heavy loads he'd had to carry over the years. He just wished Ash was feeling okay. He still needed to walk a few hundred metres to get to the cursedly far campsite, and he was getting worried that Ash's ankle would get swollen. He had to get to Camp Icinda, and fast. Pikachu and Eevee tagged along, tarrying somewhere behind the two.

"Gawwy, 'Msowwy." Ash muttered through the fabric of Gary's jacket, exhausted from running too much. He had made his best friend and crush sad and he didn't feel too happy at all. He should have just taken the boy's advice. He should have. What a jerk he really was.

"Ashy, just rest up for me now, okay? We'll get to the camp soon enough. I want you to get better so just wait a little longer."

"Mhhmmm."

"And for the record, Ash, I do care about you. A lot. We're best friends, if you didn't know that already. You know I love you like the brother I never had or would never have. I told you to watch out, didn't I? I care about you, Ashy. I really do."

"You love me?" The Pikachu Trainer had to ask in confirmation.

"Yes, Ash. Of course I do. We're buddies, remember?"

As the two best friends and their Pokémon made their way towards their chosen campsite, Ash couldn't help but go over and over one particular thought that bother him to no end. The thought that Gary "loved him", but he loved him only "like a brother." Gary didn't say otherwise, but Ash knew that was what Gary had meant. At least he knew his best friend cared for his safety. But that would all that they would be, mere best friends. It wasn't a love-kind of care, but a friend-kind of care. It wasn't fair. He would kill for one chance, even just the slightest chance to be with Gary. If only.

Gary, however, couldn't help but to think about the worse that could have happened. 'He could have passed out into a coma or broken his leg, but he didn't. He didn't Gary... He didn't! Oh what would I do without my Ashy... I just hope he's alright...'

He wondered if anybody else would be willing enough to do something so trivial yet so important for Ash like he would. Ash claimed to love him, but he hasn't even told the boy yet that he felt the same way. Well, he kind of did tell Ash of his feelings, but it wasn't too direct now, was it? No flowers or kisses or hugs. Ash probably took it a different way, but of course Gary didn't know.

The evidence of Ash's feelings were there - Ash told Gary himself, unaware of it at that. All Gary had to do was to confess, since Ash obviously found it too hard. He swore, he'd make it up to Ash. He was planning in his head on how he could show the hazel-eyed boy how much he cared. A plan so extravagant, being the perfectionist the Pokémon Researcher was. For now, he had to make sure he was okay. Happy, contented, safe in his arms. Ash would be alright. He just knew it. And he would make it happen.

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A.N. XD SO MANY ERRORS AHAHA! Part 5, yay!

I really liked this story, but you know how you gradually improve the more you write? This was one of the cases. Dun worry, errors! I love you anyway! XD