It was late afternoon on New Year's Eve, and Serena and Shauna were in their booth, collecting fares. Thom Avenue station was busier than usual, with people and Pokemon taking the train to grab food and party supplies for New Year parties or on their way to meet friends and family for the holiday. Occasionally, they would have lines because so many people and Pokemon needed to get on a train at once. Both token collectors became eager for their shifts to end, Shauna so that she can set up her own New Year party, and Serena so she can crash on her bed for a few hours before going to Shauna's party.

Eventually, passengers' rush died down to a steady pace, allowing Serena and Shauna to ease up. Serena sighed and rested her head on the wall while looking at the clock, saying that it was only 4:13. Only forty-seven minutes left until her shift was over. While Serena stared at the clock, two customers stood in front of her window, putting tokens under the slot, and she heard a familiar voice.

"Excuse me. Regular fare, please."

Serena turned her head to the window, and her face lit up to find Dawn giving her a friendly grin with a woman her age with spiky vermillion hair standing behind her.

"Dawn, what are you doing here?" she asked.

"Oh, we're heading to the movies before we go home to celebrate New Year's," Dawn said before turning to the woman behind her. "This is my friend, Zoey."

"Nice to meet ya," Zoey said.

"Nice to meet you too," Serena said. "Do you guys want to come in?"

"Really? We can?" Dawn asked.

"Sure, come on in," Serena said.

Serena pressed the button to let Dawn and Zoey through the gate and opened the door to the booth to let them in. Shauna turned around from her seat, confused with Serena allowing customers inside.

"Hi, who are you?" she asked.

"I'm Dawn, and this is Zoey," Dawn answered.

"How do you two know Serena?" Shauna asked.

Serena opened her mouth to answer, but then she froze in place like a statue, and her eyes widened as she realized that she hadn't told Shauna about the misunderstanding. Dawn noticed Serena struggling, so she smiled and decided to speak for her.

"I'm Serena's fiancee's sister."

Serena looked away from everyone and groaned while running her fingers through her hair. Shauna looked at Dawn with her mouth wide open and turned to Serena.

"Serena, you're engaged?!" she shouted. "You never told me about this."

Serena turned to her coworker with a forced grin and said, "Well, it hasn't really been announced."

"I can vouch for that. Our whole family didn't find out until Christmas Eve when she saved Calem," Dawn said.

"Dawn, please stop talking," Serena whined mentally.

"Calem, the coma guy?" Shauna asked. "You were engaged to him this whole time, and you never told me?"

"Well, there never was a good time," Serena lied.

"A good time? We work at the same booth five days a week," Shauna said. "How has there not been a good time?"

Serena hesitated until she saw the train coming. She mentally thanked the Lord and said, "Hey, would you look at that? The train's here."

"Oh, yeah. We better get going," Dawn said. "Catch you later, Serena."

"See you, Dawn," Serena said. "Nice meeting you, Zoey."

"Likewise," Zoey said with a smirk.

Dawn and Zoey opened the door and began exiting the booth. Shauna took this as her opportunity to walk over to Serena's side of the booth and demand answers.

"Serena, are you pregnant?" she asked.

Serena rolled her eyes, and sarcastically said, "Yes, Shauna, I'm pregnant."

Neither token collectors noticed Zoey looking at Serena curiously, having overheard Serena's response before closing the door. Shauna looked at Serena in disbelief and put her hands on both sides of the honey blonde woman's face.

"Serena, you gotta give me details!" she demanded as she shook Serena's head. "Details, details, details, details, details!"

"Shauna, cut it out!" Serena shouted as she grabbed Shauna's hands and pulled them away from her face. "I'm not pregnant. You have to have sex to be pregnant, and I can assure you that Calem and I have never come close to having sex."

"But, I thought you are engaged!" Shauna shouted.

Serena paused before she stuttered, "W-w-well, we're waiting."

"Waiting?" Shauna asked.

"Yes, waiting," Serena claimed. "His family is catholic, so we're not doing anything until after we get married."

"You're waiting because his family's catholic? Are you serious?" Shauna asked, dumbfounded. "Serena, I've seen how gorgeous that dude is. If I were you, I would've hit that by now."

Serena frowned and said, "Shauna, I'm not that kind of woman, so can we just drop this, please?"

Shauna crossed her arms and raised her eyebrow, displeased with Serena's response. She then raised her hands up as a way of saying, "Alright, have it your way," before she went back to her seat. Serena sighed heavily again before she rested her head on the counter, and covered her face with her hands.

"Why does this keep happening to me?" she muttered.

******************************************************************************************

It was half-past nine in the evening. Delia, Mimey, Sonia, and Grandpa Ramos were sitting on one of the couches in the living room, watching the New Year Eve celebration in front of Lumiose Tower on the TV, standing next to the fireplace. The four of them were snacking on chips, dip, soda, a large tray of vegetables and fruit, and a container of cream puffs. Piplup, Yamper, and Pikachu were playing next to the Christmas tree. As she was eating a plate of chips and dip, Delia let out a sigh that made Grandpa Ramos smirk.

"You wish Serena could've come tonight, aren't you?" he asked.

"I am," Delia admitted.

The old man shook his head and said, "Delia, you're getting obsessed with that girl. She has a life outside of us, you know."

"I know, but I love having her around," Delia said. "Serena's such a sweetheart, and I wish Calem found her sooner. I just love seeing how much she's become part of the family in such a short amount of time."

"I hear that," Sonia said.

"Mime, Mine," Mimey said.

As the four of them went back to watching the TV, Ash walked into the living room on the phone. He was smiling as he said goodbye to the person he talked to before he hung up and gave his mother a proud look.

"Took a little negotiating, but I got the St. Germain Estate in the bag," he announced.

"Great job, Ash," Delia praised.

"Atta boy, Ash," Sonia said.

"Good work, my boy," Grandpa Ramos said.

Just then, the front door opened, and Dawn and Zoey came in, hastily putting away their coats before coming into the living room.

"Ah, there you two are," Sonia said. "What kept you?"

"We decided to get some milkshakes and talk about the movie before taking the train back," Dawn said. "But that's not important. Zoey discovered something huge when we were waiting for the train at Serena's station."

Delia, Mimey, Grandpa Ramos, Sonia, Ash, Pikachu, Piplup, and Yamper all turn to Dawn and Zoey. The vermillion woman smirked and waited a couple of seconds to keep the family in suspense before she spoke.

"Calem's fiancee is pregnant."

"WHAT?!" Delia shrieked.

Sonia looked at Zoey concerned and asked, "What are you talking about? Serena's not pregnant."

"Is too. Zoey heard it from Serena's own mouth," Dawn said.

"That's right. When we were about to board the train, I overheard her coworker asking if she was pregnant, and she said yes," Zoey said.

Delia looked at Zoey in disbelief for a moment before she looked down and put her hand on her heart.

"First, we find out Calem didn't tell us that he's engaged, then he doesn't tell us that I'm going to be a grandmother?" She asked in shock. "What am I going to do with those two?"

"Mr. Mime," Mimey said as it took Delia's hand with both hands for support.

"This is unreal," Grandpa Ramos said. "Ash, did you know anything abou - Ash?"

Everyone turned to where they last saw Ash, only to find that he was no longer there. The next thing they heard was the sound of the moving truck turning on and driving away.

*************************************************************************************

Back at Serena's apartment, Serena was in the bathroom combing her hair, having just taken a shower and gotten dressed in a white blouse and a black skirt. Fennekin was watching her do her hair while sitting down in front of the bathroom door. Serena checked to make sure her hair was straightened out before turning to her Pokemon partner.

"Alright, I'm about to head out," she said. "Now, are you sure you don't want to come, Fennekin? There's going to be other Pokemon that you can play with at the party."

"Fennekin," Fennekin replied with a nod.

"Alright, if that's what you want," Serena said.

Just then, there was a knock on the door to her apartment. Serena peaked from the bathroom door and asked, "Who is it?"

"It's me, Tierno," Tierno replied from the other side of the door.

Serena squirmed and bit her lip before she hesitantly asked, "I'm not here?"

"Nice try. I know that trick," Tierno said.

Serena muttered under her breath before she walked over to the door. She undid the lock and opened the door to reveal Tierno holding a bouquet of flowers.

"Ta-da," he said.

"What are these for?" Serena asked.

"This is me apologizing for claiming that we're dating," Tierno said. "And I was wondering if maybe...I could move in with you?"

Serena smiled and shook her head, feeling sympathetic for how much her landlord's son was a lost cause.

"They're beautiful, but I can't accept them, and I don't want to move in together," she said.

"Are you sure?" Tierno asked. "I betcha my old man would knock 50 bucks off of rent at least."

"That sounds like a pretty low cut off rent," Serena said. "I would think your dad would want to cut off way more than that for you."

Tierno frowned and said, "You're just trying to make me feel better."

Serena responded with a look of pity that confirmed the heavy-set man's accusation. Tierno's frown deepened, and he crossed his arms while still holding the bouquet.

"It's that other guy, isn't it?" he asked.

"What do you mean?" Serena asked.

"Come on. I see the way you look at him," Tierno said.

Serena stared at Tierno, confused, and asked, "How exactly do I look at him?"

Tierno shrugged and said, "I don't know. You look at him like you saw a Pokemon do something adorable or something."

"I'm not following," Serena said.

Tierno sighed in defeat, not knowing how else to explain it to Serena.

"Look, just take the flowers," he said glumly. "You can lay them on my coffin someday."

"Oh, hey, don't be like that," Serena said. "You'll find somebody."

"When?" Tierno challenged.

"Someday," Serena replied. "You just need to learn how to better behave around women. You should really talk to your father about it."

Tierno turned his head away from Serena with a hesitant look. Then, he shrugged and said, "Yeah, okay. Whatever you say."

"Good," Serena said.

The two of them were quiet for a few seconds before Tierno held the bouquet up to Serena and said, "Here, take them anyway."

Serena smiled and said, "Thank you," as she took a step towards Tierno and leaned in for a hug. Tierno smiled and hugged her back, his cheeks turning pink. Unknown to either of them, Ash was standing at the bottom of the staircase, watching them. He looked at Serena with a sad look from the way that she was hugging the fat man. He quietly exited the building before the two of them noticed just as Tierno was about to speak.

"Hey, Serena?"

"Hmm?"

"Are you wearing pink underwear?"

Serena slapped Tierno upside the head, and he whimpered in pain as he held the back of his head.

"Talk to your father, pervert!" she shouted before she slammed the door shut.

Tierno rubbed the back of his head and walked down the steps to his and his dad's apartment. After he closed the door, Serena slowly opened her door to make sure the coast was clear before she put on her hat, coat, and boots, grabbed a bottle of champagne, and exited her apartment. She took a deep breath to calm herself before going down the stairs and went out the front door. She was halfway through the courtyard before she noticed the moving van parked on the sidewalk, and Ash was pacing with his hand on his chin in thought.

"Ash," she said.

Ash turned to Serena, forced a smile on his face as he said, "Serena, hi."

"What are you doing here?" Serena asked.

"I...was coming to see you," Ash replied before noticing the bottle of champagne. "Are you heading to a party?"

"Yeah, my coworker, Shauna, is having a New Year party," Serena said.

"Well, then let me drive you," Ash said.

"Oh, no, thank you. It's just two blocks away," Serena said.

"Alright, then I'll walk you there," Ash said.

"Why?" Serena asked.

"Because," Ash replied.

Serena looked at Ash, concerned, finding his behavior odd. She sighed and said, "Okay," before the two of them started walking together. Ash and Serena were silent for most of the walk to Shauna's party, with the two of them glancing at each other.

"Ash, is everything okay?" Serena asked.

"Of course," Ash lied. "Why wouldn't it be okay?"

"You're acting a little weird," Serena answered.

"Weird? I'm not acting weird," Ash said.

"Yes, you are," Serena said.

"No, I'm not," Ash said.

Serena gave Ash a suspicious frown and decided to drop it. The two of them took a turn to an apartment complex and went up the stairs to the fourth floor. They walked down the hall to the door at the very end, and Ash decided to speak.

"So, what about Calem?" he asked.

"What about him?" Serena asked as she knocked on the door without looking at Ash.

"Well, Calem is going to have a lot to deal with when he wakes up," Ash said.

"Yeah, well, he's not the only one," Serena said.

"I know. That's the point," Ash said.

Serena turned to Ash, wondering what he was getting at, but at that moment, the door opened to reveal Shauna in a green dress. The sound of loud music and people talking and laughing could be heard behind her.

"Serena! Glad you can make it!" she shouted as she pulled Serena into a hug.

"Are you kidding? I wouldn't miss this," Serena said.

The two women broke the hug, and Shauna turned to Ash and gave him a flirtatious smile.

"Well, hello handsome," she said. "Who might you be?"

"I'm Ash. I'm Serena's fiancee's brother," Ash replied.

"Ah, I can see the resemblance," Shauna said. "Come on in."

Ash and Serena entered the apartment, and Shauna took their hat and coats. The three of them entered the living room where people and Pokemon wore New Year hats while they ate, drank, and talked. Some of them were dancing to the music and blowing their noisemakers. Iris was talking to an old couple with Cilan before she noticed Serena coming in and walked over to her.

"Serena. Glad that you can make it," she said before she noticed Ash talking to Shauna. "Who is that with you?"

"That's Ash," Serena answered.

"Oh...wait. Who is Ash again?" Iris asked.

"Calem's brother," Serena answered.

Iris looked at her, confused, and asked, "Calem's the one who is in a coma, right?"

"Yes," Serena answered.

"So, why did you bring Ash?"

"I didn't bring him. He followed me here."

"So, Ash is the fiancee?"

"No, Calem."

"But Calem doesn't know that you exist."

"I know."

"So, Ash is Calem."

"Kinda."

Iris shook her head, dumbfounded, and said, "Serena,"

"What?" Serena asked.

"They have doctors for this sort of thing!" Iris shouted.

Without another word, Iris walked away to rejoin Cilan in talking with the older couple. Serena rolled her eyes and muttered under her breath before she walked over to the food table and put her bottle of champagne next to the other bottles of alcohol. She took a cup and filled it with alcoholic fruit punch just as Ash was coming in. The raven-haired man was shocked by what she was doing and rushed over to her.

"Serena, that's spiked," he said.

"Thank God," Serena said.

"You shouldn't have any," Ash said.

Serena frowned and said, "Ash, last time I checked, I'm over twenty-one, I had a long day at work, and I deserve a drink or two."

Ash frowned angrily and said, "Serena, you really can't have any."

"Why not, Ash?" Serena challenged.

"Because it's not good for the baby!" Ash yelled.

Immediately, the apartment went quiet, apart from the music playing. Serena looked at Ash in shock with her mouth hanging open. She turned to the crowd staring at her with her cheeks turning red in embarrassment.

"You're pregnant?" Iris asked.

"When did this happen?" one of the party-goers asked.

"I never pegged you for that kind of person, Serena." another one said.

"Wait, hold on," Serena said. "It's not true."

"Oh, really?" Ash asked in a suspicious tone, like a cop interrogating someone.

"Yes, really," Serena said. "There is no baby."

"That's not what Dawn said," Ash said.

"What are you talking about?" Serena asked.

"Dawn and Zoey heard you saying that you are earlier today," Ash said.

"And you believed them?" Serena asked.

"Of course," Ash said. "Why would I not believe her?"

The crowd gasped, appalled by his response. Serena stared at Ash in disbelief before her shock turned into anger. She threw her drink at Ash's face, stormed to the entryway, grabbed her coat and hat, and exited the apartment, slamming the door behind her. The place was silent apart from the music again as Ash stood in place for a moment before he grabbed some napkins from the table and started wiping the fruit punch from his face. He finished getting it off just in time to see Shauna walk over to him and slap him on the head.

"Ow! What did you do that for?" he asked.

"You're a jackass," Shauna said. "Serena really isn't pregnant. I asked her if she was, and she said yes, sarcastically."

Ash froze in place, realizing what he had done. Without saying another word to Shauna, he rushed over to the entryway to grab his coat and hat and exited the apartment. He went down the steps to the ground floor as quickly as possible and went outside to find Serena running back to her apartment complex. Ash ran after her and caught up just as she made it to the courtyard.

"Serena!" he called out.

"Go away, Ash!" Serena shouted, not looking at him.

"Just wait a minute! Will you?!" Ash shouted.

"No!" Serena yelled.

Ash caught up and stood in front of Serena. She tried to move around him, but he stepped in her way. She huffed, irritated, and crossed her arm while giving the raven-haired man a stern glare.

"What do you want?" she snarled.

Ash scratched the back of his head and said, "I'm sorry."

"Sorry is not going to cut it," Serena growled.

"Look, it's just a big misunderstanding," Ash said. "I mean between this and the Tierno thing -"

"Excuse me?" Serena asked.

Ash stammered, realizing his mistake, and said, "Nothing."

"No. Not nothing," Serena said. "What Tierno thing?"

Ash hesitated and said, "I just happened to come and see you, and I saw you and him with the flowers and the leaning thing."

"The leaning thing? Ash, what are you talking about?" Serena asked. "Is it suddenly wrong that I hugged him because he gave me flowers?"

"No, he gave you flowers, and then you leaned," Ash said.

Serena looked at Ash skeptically for a moment before she sighed and dropped her arms.

"Okay, I'll bite. How did I lean?" she asked.

Ash took a moment to think about it before he stepped closer to Serena.

"Well, leaning is a lot different from hugging," he said.

"In what way?" Serena asked.

Ash scratched under his nose before taking another step closer to Serena, standing only two feet away from her.

"Well, hugging involves your arms and hands," he said. "Leaning, on the other hand, is your whole body moving like this."

He took another step toward Serena, and she backed away, suddenly feeling uncomfortable until her back was up against the wall. Ash put his hand on the wall on Serena's left side and leaned his body closer to her. The honey blonde woman felt her cheeks warming up from the guy she liked standing so close to her, suddenly forgetting that she was mad at him.

"See? Leaning means wanting and accepting," Ash continued. "Leaning is something more acceptable because..."

"Yes?" Serena asked.

Ash opened his mouth to finish his sentence, but he stopped himself, suddenly feeling shy. Serena eagerly waited for him to finish, and the raven-haired man tried to think of a subtle way to answer until Tierno came out from the front door, wearing a New Year hat.

"Hey, Serena, is this guy bothering you?" he asked.

With the moment broken, Ash stepped away, and Serena's blush quickly disappeared. Ash looked away from her, embarrassed, while Serena turned to Tierno.

"No. No, he's not, Tierno," she said.

"Are you sure? Cause from what I saw from the window, it looked like he was leaning," Tierno said.

"Thank you, Tierno," Ash said, suddenly happy that the heavy-set man proved his point.

Serena snickered at Ash's sudden change in demeanor and said, "Don't worry, Tierno. Nothing is going on."

Tierno frowned, unconvinced, and said, "If you say so, but if you need me, I'll be in my apartment."

"Okay, thank you," Serena said.

Tierno put two of his fingers in a V-shape in front of his eyes and then pointed them at Ash. He went back inside the building, and Ash and Serena looked at each other in silence for a few seconds.

"Okay, so what about the other misunderstanding?" Serena asked. "Why did you say you had no reason to believe Dawn when she said I was pregnant?"

"Well, because she's my sister, and I trust her," Ash said. "She has never lied to me, so I saw no reason to think she was wrong."

Serena frowned and asked, "So, you think the only reason your brother would want to marry someone like me is if I was pregnant, right?"

"What? No!" Ash shouted, waving his hands defensively. "No, of course not."

"Really?" Serena challenged. "Cause between the accusations when we first met and you instantly believing Dawn, it sounds like you don't really believe that Calem would want to marry me for me."

"It's not like that," Ash protested. "It's just that...well..."

Serena's frown deepened, and she demanded, "Well, what? Spit it out! You've made it this far, you might as well -"

"It's just that you're not really Calem's type," Ash spat out.

"Not his type?" Serena asked, crossing her arms again. "Alright, then whose type am I?"

For the second time, Ash opened his mouth only to stop himself. He knew what he wanted to say, but he was still uncomfortable with saying it while still thinking Serena is engaged to his brother. Serena looked at Ash, hurt, taking his silence as a sign that he didn't think she was anyone's type.

"Fine," she said. "I see what you're saying. Thank you for the vote of confidence."

"Wait, no, that's not it," Ash said. "Serena, it really is a great idea that you and Calem are together. It's just not obvious to the whole world."

Serena felt a pain in her heart again, taking what he was saying as an insult. She walked away from Ash, not bothering to say good night until he stood in front of her again before she could reach the front door.

"Wait, I'm sorry," he said. "That didn't come out right."

Serena huffed and asked, "Alright, seriously, Ash, what do you want from me?"

"I want you not to be unhappy," Ash answered.

"And what are you? The happiness guru?" Serena asked. "For that matter, are you happy, Ash? Because last time I checked, you still haven't had a conversation with your mom about what you really want to do with your life. Do you want to leave the business, or is all that just another miscommunication between us?"

Ash frowned and said, "Hey, what do you really know about my family? Spending a week with them does not make you an expert."

"And spending a lifetime with them hasn't made you one either," Serena countered.

"Yeah? Well, I do know keeping the family happy gets complicated," Ash said. "After all, would your father be happy knowing that you're sitting in a token booth dreaming about vacations that you aren't taking?"

Serena gasped softly, crushed by Ash's words. She felt her eyes beginning to water, and she hung her head to hide the tears with her hair. Ash squirmed, instantly regretting what he said.

"I'm sorry," He said. "That was out of line."

"No, you're right," Serena said, fighting the tears. "My dad wouldn't be happy that I'm not following my dream. But even so, you don't know what it's like to be alone, Ash."

Ash looked at her, confused, and said, "But you have Calem, right?"

Serena was silent for a moment until she looked up at Ash and shook her head, tears beginning to run down her face.

"No, I don't," she said. "I don't have anybody."

Without another word, Serena walked past Ash and went inside the complex. Ash stayed in place, looking at where Serena was standing and wondering what she meant. Putting it in the back of his mind, he hung his head, ashamed of everything he said that hurt Serena. He heard the sound of people inside the building counting down before shouting, "Happy New Year," and started blowing their noisemakers. He turned his head to the front door, staring at it as though Serena was standing in front of it.

"Happy new year," he whispered.

He walked over to his moving truck, got in, and took a moment to sigh before he turned on the ignition and drove away. Meanwhile, Serena went inside her apartment and leaned her back against the door. With a sniffle, she wiped the tears off her face and walked over to the couch, where Fennekin was sound asleep. She briefly smiled and gently petted her Pokemon, trying not to wake it up. Her frown soon returned, and she sat down next to Fennekin, her head hung low as she thought of Ash.

"Happy new year," she whispered.

*********************************************************************************

Over at the hospital, Dr. Proctor, Joy, the other doctors and nurses, and a couple of Wigglytuff at the ICU were drinking champagne and singing "Auld Lang Syne." One nurse and doctor kissed each other while they were side-hugging. The Wigglytuff took turns hugging everyone, wearing New Year hats and glasses.

But over in Calem's room, one of his fingers started to twitch. He let out a moan and shifted his body before his eyes slowly opened. The first thing he saw was the white ceiling, and then he looked down and saw that he was on a hospital bed. He jumped into a sitting position, starting to panic over where he was. The heart monitor beeped rapidly as he turned to the people and Pokemon celebrating outside of his room.

"Hey! Hey! Over here!"