#but yeah i hope some of you might like this reeeeeeeee

[nessadoodlin]

The Space Between Us

Fandom: PokeSpe/Pokemon Adventures

Pairing: RubyxSapphire (aka franticshipping/RuSa)

Word Count: 2809

Summary: What would have happened if Rayquaza hadn’t brought Ruby and Sapphire back home to Earth at the end of ORAS? (UA, Sapphire’s POV)

Notes: Hello everyone! So I hadn’t written a fic in years, and I just got this idea randomly one night, so I thought, “hey, why not try and write it out and see what happens?” Yeah, I’m not sorry for the angst again. 

(special thanks to these dorks for being my reviewers!! @disnerdpoketrainer @trimystic @blackspies12 @chocochan015 @brindillebon and there might have been a few more if I forgot you let me know I’m sorry but it’s late and I’m tired so I’m just gonna post this now hhhhhhhhh)

A brilliant show of falling meteorites flooded my vision as they descended towards Earth. The sight was so surreal, like a dream that I did not want to wake up from. The feeling was exhilarating, yet terrifying as the shards of space rock hurtled around us. Holding on tightly to Ruby’s hand, I softly gasped as I beheld the magnificent view before me. He was right, despite the danger this was definitely better than the meteor shower show we would have seen at Mossdeep.

After a few minutes, the remainder of the meteorites finally dove towards the Earth’s surface.The horizon cleared, and all that was left in sight was Ruby and myself. I turned towards him when I heard him mutter a soft “Wow” from the radio in my suit’s helmet.

“That was amazin’,” I mused back, unable to think of anything else to describe the spectacle.

Looking back at me, he remarked, “‘Amazing’ is an understatement. That was stunning.”

“‘Amazing’, ‘stunning’, same thing,” I retorted playfully. Ruby chuckled at that, and I followed with a small giggle of my own.

The moments after were silent, except for the sounds of our breathing, so I took that time to really take in our surroundings. Looking out, I can see the Earth, and the Moon if I turn my head a bit, but other than that, nothing. Absolutely nothing, save for the distant stars that speckled the dark blanket of the universe. In that moment, I had realized after all of the strife, battles, heartbreak and anxiety that had led up to this moment, after all of the fast paced action and decisions, it was all over and was now so... eerily quiet. The empty expanse of space suddenly consumed my being, and the frightful feeling of suddenly being entirely alone started to creep up my spine.

Impulsively, I gripped Ruby’s hand tighter. Noticing this, he turned towards me.

“Sapphire?” He tentatively began, “what’s wrong?”

I took a quick glance at him to meet his eyes, then turned back to the great expanse before answering, “Oh, nothing. It’s just… being out here like this, it kinda makes ya feel small, y’know? And there’s literally nothing out here except us... It’s a little scary if you think about it.”

Ruby then firmly gripped my hand and said, “Yeah, I guess with us being the only two people up here like this, it is really unnerving.” A few more seconds of silence passed before he stated. “Well, Sapphire, in that case, are you ready to go home?”

Taking one last glimpse at the Earth, I reply, “Yup, I’m ready to go home, Ruby.”

In unison, we both placed our opposing hands on the Link Cables attached to our suits, and waited to be teleported back to Earth.

…

However, after a few minutes, nothing happened. Alarmed, we both looked at each other in panic as we tried to put our hands over our Link Cables again. After a few more failed attempts, fear started to roll into my core and I began to tremble. I could feel Ruby shaking through his fingers in our joined hands, possibly feeling the same amount of terror that I must be feeling.

A few seconds later, Ruby called out into the radio, “Shoe Maker? Mr. Devon? Can anybody hear me?!��

We listened carefully for any sort of reply, but our cries for help were not heeded. My eyes darted around, searching for an answer as to why our calls were not being answered. I looked at Ruby’s suit, then back at mine, and realization struck me.

“R-Ruby…”

“What is it, Sapphire?’ he frantically replied.

“Our suits…” I muttered, gesturing to his chest.

Ruby looked down, and gasped in shock as he realized what I was referring to. The control panel on his chest, including the Link Cable, was smashed in. I looked down to my own panel, and I saw the destroyed Link Cable sitting there uselessly.

“They must have gotten damaged when that Pokemon from the meteor attacked us,” I mused, not being able to tear my eyes away from the carnage of my panel. My mind spun, trying to think of something, anything, that might be able to get us home. After thinking for a bit, I blurted out, “Wait, where’s Rayquaza?”

We both turned around, searching for the green serpentine-like Pokemon. As time passed, Ruby and I realized it seemed to have vanished, for it was nowhere to be found.

Ruby turned to me and stated, “Maybe since it figured it had finished its role in destroying the meteor and defeating that space Pokemon, it decided to go back…”

In disbelief, I exclaimed, “But didn’t we form a bond with it? What’s that all about then?!”

Ruby looked away from me as he said, “Maybe it was just up until it destroyed the meteor? I don’t know, Sapphire…”

Another pregnant silence fell between us. The pit of my stomach sank as I mumbled, “We’re alone out here then, with no way to get home…”

“There’s got to be something that we can do, there’s got to be a way!” Ruby cried, desperation laced in his voice. “Something…”

I try to think of something, but nothing comes to mind. I am cut out of my thoughts when I hear a sniffle from the radio, so I look over to Ruby. His bangs covered his eyes, and his fingers clutched onto mine.

“Father is going to really be mad at me for making Mom sad, isn't he?” He let out a small, sad chuckle, but immediately after he clenched his teeth. I could tell he trying to be strong.

Feeling my own tears welling up, I look down as I choke out, “It’ll be hard for my dad to live on his own… he's never had to before….”

“And Emerald and everybody else….” Ruby added mournfully.

It became too much to bear that the both of us turned into sobbing messes. I pulled him towards me, and I wrapped my arms around his neck and squeezed, bringing us so close that our helmets bumped together. Ruby reciprocated with a tight grip around my suit around my waist. We just held each other desperately, clinging onto the other person with everything that we had. In this lonely, empty cosmos, we were all that we had left.

Even though our entire worlds were crashing, tumbling down into oblivion right before our eyes, in Ruby’s embrace I felt… safer. I felt as if our little bubble of space could freeze time, and we can stay like this, holding each other forever. Everything stood still for a moment, and an inkling of a thought of us being okay floated in the back of my mind. I found myself believing that as long as we stayed here together, something would present itself and everything would be fixed. I desperately hoped a solution would show itself.

Tightening his hold on me, Ruby sobbed, “I’m so sorry Sapphire, I promised that we would go back to Earth alive, yet…”

“No, don’t apologize Ruby, this isn’t yer fault… I followed ya here myself,” I murmured.

A few more sniffles between us passed before Ruby continued, “Heh, guess this really did turn out to be a self-sacrificing story, huh? Even though I said I would never give up my life for this…”

“Well, if it weren’t for us, everyone would’ve died, Ruby. And if we were gonna die anyways, might as well just be us, not the entire world.”

He hummed in response. Then, a tiny red light started to flash on one of the lights on our arms. A robotic voice cut in, repeating, “Oxygen levels low, oxygen levels low, oxygen levels low…”

Upon hearing that, time stopped. My heart plummeted as I looked into Ruby’s fear-filled eyes. In that moment, we both knew that our fates had been sealed in the message of the lights. Soon the warnings faded away, and we were suddenly thrown back again into harsh reality.

“Looks like we don’t have that much time left…”

Hearing that confirmation from him caused my voice to catch in my throat. I didn’t want to believe it. All that we’ve been through, all of our adventures, all of the time we shared was suddenly going to come to an end. I didn’t want to let all of that go. I wanted to go back home with Ruby, to Emerald, my dad, everyone. I didn’t want to die out here without seeing all of them again!

“Well, since it seems like we’re running out of time…” he started, “I should probably tell you this before it’s too late, Sapphire.”

His gaze pierced straight through me, looking sincerely yet desperately. His breath hitched, as if trying to find the right words to say. Then, after pausing, he says, “Before we… go, I want to tell you that I…,” he took a deep breath in, preparing himself for what he was about to say, “I like you, Sapphire.”

Before I had a chance to react, he shook his head, “W-wait, no. I love you, actually. I really, really do.”

Initially taken aback, my jaw drops. My face goes unbelievably red, but I shake it off. My intuition already kind of saw this coming a while ago. I look back into his eyes and reply, “I know, Ruby”.

Now his face takes on a red hue, and his eyes widen in shock. “You knew?! What do you mean? I’ve never said it to you before.”

The corner of my mouth raises a bit into a smile. “C’mon, the whole ‘I don’t wanna be separated you, so become Lore Keeper with me!’ speech you gave earlier? I kinda figured it out then, ya dork”.

Ruby averts his eyes away from me, clearly embarrassed. I let out a small chuckle, then I add, “But thank you for saying those words Ruby.” My face goes red again, as I consider my words, “A-and, I’ll confess to you again. I love you too, truly. If I were to die with someone, I’m glad I’m with you, until the very end.”

I bury my head into his chest, my cheeks against the rim of my helmet. He places his gloved hand on the top of my helmet, hugging me closer. “I’m glad I got to be with you too, Sapphire.”

Suddenly, another automated voice interrupted us. “Warning: five minutes worth of oxygen remaining.”

The world, or, the universe, is cruel I discovered. I had waited so long to be held by Ruby like this, to finally tell him my true feelings (again) and to live happily ever after. Sure, it’s finally happened, but… I won’t even be able to feel his touch anymore. I won’t be able to intertwine his hands in my own, to run my fingers through his hair, nor would he be able to run his through mine. I won’t be able to caress his cheeks, or lean my head on his chest to hear his heartbeat. Why did we have to confess right here and now, when I won’t even be able to reach him anymore? Why are we finally together now, when we won’t even have that much time left together anyways?

“I-it really stinks…”

“What, Sapphire?”

“I-I mean,” I stuttered, “we won’t be able to feel each other while in these suits…” I gulped, “No matter how much I may want to, we won’t even be able to...”

“To what?”

I splurted, not being able to get the words out right out of sheer embarrassment, “Y-y-you know…”

“Well, what?” Ruby prodded.

“Urghh.. D-don’t make me say it!” I cry out, burying myself into his chest more.

“How do you expect me to know what you're saying if you don't say it? Just say it, Sapphire.”

“To kiss, ya idiot! For goodness sake!”

Heat rushes into my cheeks, and I look down away from his gaze.

“Oh…”

“This is why the universe is so cruel. I really want to kiss you, but I can't… And, we’ll never be able to.” I sniffle, and a tear begin to fall. I make no move to try and hide it, as I know I can't even touch my own face to wipe it away.

Looking down to me, Ruby softly mumbles, “I’d love to kiss you too, Sapphire. Especially to make those tears of yours go away.”

We held each other again, internally lamenting what we couldn't reach. We were so close, yet far from reach. A few minutes later, the dreaded voice returned. “2 minutes of oxygen remaining…”

“You know, Sapphire, we still can. That is, if you want to.” Ruby stated in a low voice.

I released myself from his chest and looked at him in confusion. What did he mean? There was no way we could, since we had helmets in the way. What could he be thinking that could get around that obstacle?

“Whaddya mean? There’s no way we could with our helmets.” I looked into his eyes, searching for an answer to his claim. “The only way we could is if we…” Staring longer into his eyes, I realized what he had meant.

Oh.

I see now.

The idea kinda scared me, I’m not going to lie. I was contemplating it, however. But, was Ruby absolutely certain about that?

“Ruby… are you sure?” I questioned.

“We’re gonna die anyways, so I thought I might as well spend my last moments with you. So yes, I’m sure about it if you are.” Ruby said softly.

He did have a point. We had a little less than 2 minutes of oxygen, and our situation is looking hopeless at this point. Plus, I would probably find myself regretting spending the next few minutes not doing it, which would then turn to never. So I contemplated it for a few seconds, and came to a decision.

“We’re going to need two hands for that,” I stated.

“Oh, just wrap one of your legs around mine. Then when we’re done we can change back to using our hands.” he answered.

Following his suggestion, I intertwined my legs with his, establishing a firm hold on each other so we don’t float away. Giving his eyes a quick glance, we released our hands for the first time since we’ve been thrown out into space. Letting go of his hand made me realize that we were really about to do this, and I became a little scared. However, knowing that I’ll at least get to feel Ruby one more time before departing put my anxious heart a little at ease. I raised both of my hands to my helmet, grasping the base of it.

“Hey Ruby?”

“Hmm?”

“... Just in case you won’t be able to hear me after this, I just want to say that I love you.”

“I love you too, Sapphire, now and always.”

With that, I  breathe in one more time, then exhale. I then released my helmet, and the last thing I hear is the pressurized hiss of the remainder of my oxygen dissipate.

Immediately, everything started to hurt. My eyes and mouth felt as if they were boiling, to a point where it was excruciating. My vision began to blur, but I reached my hands for Ruby, and as soon as I felt him I swiftly pulled him towards me. I crashed my lips onto his, trying to cherish every precious second. I felt him placing a hand behind my neck, so I in return cup both of his cheeks with my hands. I bring his face closer to mine, deepening our lip lock. Despite not being able to breathe, fading out of consciousness, and my heartbeat slowing, I didn’t want this moment to end. I wanted to be able to be able to kiss Ruby again after this, I wanted to be able to tell him that I love him again, to maybe go on a date, have a future together. But this kiss is the closest thing I would ever get to any of that.

Feeling weaker by the second, we slowly pull away from each other. I start to get blotchy vision, barely being able to see Ruby’s swollen face. I see him starting to lose consciousness too, trying desperately to hang on just a few seconds more. The pain has become numbing at this point, and I know that our time has almost come. Weakly lowering my swollen, numb hands to his neck, I try and hang onto this feeling for as long as I can.

However, I feel my mind slip back to unconsciousness.

“I’m happy… that we could be together ‘til the last moment…”

I feebly say against his neck, although I’m not sure if he, let alone anyone, could hear me. Then, I fade completely into the darkness.