Gen 3- Chapter 5: Apricot Bloom

Shang Stir Fry was just breathtaking. The view was amazing from the plane(I was told) I was not brave enough to look out the window. In fact I spent most of the flight in the bathroom.

It didn’t change much after we landed. I was ill for hours after the flight. So much so I missed the first tournament.

“Apricot baby are you ok?”

“Uhhh ya…*blehhh* I’ll be fine.”

“Ok.”

How embarrassing my poor boyfriend having to listen to me puke my guts out. I wanted to crawl in a hole and die.

After I washed my hand and brushed me teeth, Amanda came in to check on me by request of Pumello.

“Hey Cuz. You alright?”

“Ya I think I have pretty much puked up everything for next year.”

“Hah! well Pumello wants you to meet him when you are feeling up to it.”

“Alright.”

After that last trip to the bathroom, I actually felt ok. The sickness left and did not return. Although I spent the rest of that day resting.

I loved that I got to spend almost all of my free time with Pummy. We went all over town looking at different monuments and land marks. I had been eying the huge dragon on the hill for a few days, when I finally suggested we go have a look. I was perfectly happy looking from the trail, but unfortunately for me Pummy had other plans.

“Come on Apricot!! Lets go get a closer look!”

Before I chance to object, he started running up the hill straight towards the huge evil looking mouth.

“Pummy! No, Wait!”

“Whoa! Check this out Apricot! I bet this is a secret door.”

“Pummy…I dunno if I wanna go any further.”

“Its Ok baby, I promise we will be fine.”

“mmmmmm ok….” He could pretty much talk me into anything, darn him!

Well he was right. It was a secret door and somehow he figured how to open it. We went down the stairwell into a huge chamber room. The air was completely still, not even the torches on the walls flickered. I really was not liking the whole experience.

There were several secret passages along the walls. Pummy was feeling like Indiana Jones.

“Ooo I bet there is some crazy treasure in here.” He said as he pushed the door open. He started to go through when I finally spoke up.

“Ok, I have had enough fun, can we please go now?”

He stopped. “Awww, I’m sorry. Let me just check out this room here and I promise we can go. Ok?”

He smiled at me and I couldn’t say no.

*sigh* “Ok….”

Again he was right, there was treasure chest inside the room. He lifted the lid of the huge chest, but there was nothing inside.

“Awww, Empty.”

“Great lets go.”

I tried to go back through the door, when there was a huge rumbling, and then the door slid shut.

Pummy pushed and pushed, but the door would not budge.

Lets just say when it finally hit me that we were stuck in that room, I started to freak out!

“I knew this was a bad idea! Now we are stuck! OMB, OMB! We are gonna die in here.”

“Baby, shhhh I promise. We will get out of here. I promise.”

Hours and hours passed and we had made no sort of progress. I was hungry, tired and scared. The combination of all three took its toll on me and I completely broke down. I started to cry and there was no stopping me.

*Sob* “I don’t want to die in here! I wanna go home! Pummy please take me home!”

He walked back over to me and grabbed me by my shoulders.

“Apricot baby. I am so sorry for bringing you here. I should have listened to you.” His voice was started to crack as he pulled me into a hug. “I swear if we get out of here, I will listen to you about everything.”

More time passed, and Amanda started to get concerned. She woke Sensei Dragon Tea out of dead sleep. “Sensei, I am really worried about Pumello and Apricot. Its been almost a whole day since I have seen them.”

“Were they not at the tournament?” he inquired the concern in his voice was increasing steadily.

“No! Thats why I am so worried. They went to look around the Neapolitan Dragon and never came back.”

Meanwhile back inside the tomb, I was still freaked and Pumello was trying his darnedest to keep me calm. It was getting harder for him, because his own calmness was fading fast. Before he totally lost it, he grabbed my hand and looked straight into my eyes.

“Apricot I have something I need to tell you, and since it looks like we may not make it out of here. I figure I better say it now. Apricot, I L–.”

Suddenly we heard the same rumbling as Sensei Dragon Tea pushed the giant door open. I was so relieved, I wanted to jump for joy! “OMB, Pummy we aren’t gonna die!”

Our celebration was cut short by a very upset Sensei. “Pumello I am completed disappointed in you. Why would you bring her here? What were you thinking? I want you both back to camp immediately.”

“Yes, Master Dragon Tea.”

When we got back to camp I was exhausted. I went straight to my bed to take a nap. All I could think about the whole time was poor Pummy. I felt so bad that Sensei had been so harsh. I knew he wouldn’t have put me in danger on purpose.

Pummy was waiting out side my door when I awoke. I came out onto the porch and held me close. “How are you doing? Are you alright now?

“Yes I am fine.” I said with a sleepy grin.

He sighed with relief. “Ahh good. Hey Apricot will you take a walk with me? I swear no where scary. I found an amazing sanctuary just on the other side of camp and I wanted to take you there. What do you say?”

“Sure, a calming sanctuary sounds pretty nice right about now.”

The sanctuary was simply blissful and amazing! So much zen it was oozing right out of the walls. Being there with my favorite person didn’t hurt the experience either. He didn’t say much during the walk, but when we got to the sanctuary he lead me by the hands.

“So about that thing I tried to tell you earlier.” He swallowed hard and continued.

“Apricot…I Love you.”

I could feel my heart bursting.

He reached back and pulled something out of his back pocket. ” And I bought you something.”

He took his hands around my neck and fastened a beautiful heart locket.

I took it in between my fingers and examined it closer. “Oh Pummy, its beautiful. There was an inscription on the back, but I couldn’t quite make it out from the angle I had to hold it.

“It says, ‘This I Pledge To You.’

I was so overjoyed and moved by the beautiful heartwarming gift, I started to tear up. “Oh Pummy you are gonna make me cry!”

“Don’t cry yet. There’s more.”

“Oh?”

“Yes. *deep breath* Apricot that pledge is my promise to you. My promise to be true and love you for all of my life. I know we are young, but I know that I want nothing more than to spend the rest of my life taking care of you. I almost lost you for the second time today, and that is something I just could not bare. So I guess what I am trying to ask here is…Marry Me?”

“Pummy…”

“Not right away. After we graduate, I will get a job and then I will buy you a real engagement ring, not just a sill-”

He didn’t have to say another word. I pulled him into a kiss. “Yes! Pummy. Yes!”

I floated through the rest of our trip and soon it was time to return home. I was still flying high on the flight home, and had a much more pleasant trip. Mom picked us up from the airport, and I invited him to come home with us for a while. It was so nice to be home.

As we started heading towards the house I could see something oddly strange happening on the couch.

Pummy and I walked up to the living room window and stared in awe at what we saw inside. “Please tell me I am dreaming and you don’t see that.”

“Baby you aren’t dreaming…”