Journeying Through Johto

Chapter 7: Away and Aching

Hey guys! Here's another chapter!

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon.

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Drew pulled his PokeCell out of his bag. He sighed. He slipped it back in. After a moment, he pulled it out again. Then shook his head. Back in. Roselia watched, rather amused by his antics. It had been a week since he and May had parted ways. Every day since then he had thought to message her and ask how she was doing but he wasn't sure how to go about it. She would've texted if she wanted to talk; she was the one that suggested exchanging numbers. Or maybe she was too busy and just forgot to catch up. Or she didn't actually want to talk. These thoughts swam through his mind every so often. Then, there was the thought that she was waiting for him to text her. He doubted it. Why would she be?

He leaned back against the maple tree behind him and stared up at the canopy of red leaves as the sun pierced through the gaps between them. They rustled softly in the steady autumn breeze, a few of them fluttering down next to him. He closed his eyes for a moment, allowing the warmth of the sun to soak through his eyelids. He breathed in the sweet scent of the tree and cleared his mind. After a few minutes, he opened his eyes. Then he picked his PokeCell out of his bag, clicked the texting icon, and selected May's contact. "I'm being stupid," he said aloud to Roselia. "Texting a friend is no big deal." Roselia gave him a look that might have said: "A friend?" Drew rolled his eyes at her.

"Yes. A friend," he stated plainly, avoiding Roselia's knowing gaze. "Just because....just because I have....feelings for her doesn't make us something else. That's not how relationships work. Both people have to feel that way and decide on it." He then began typing.

Hello May.

No.

Hi May. How have you been doing?

He backspaced. Too formal.

Hi May. What's been going on?

He backspaced again. Too informal.

Hi May. How are you?

Yes. That was fine. Before he could think too much to stop himself, he pressed send. Oh no. It was gone. He couldn't take it back now.

"Ugh I should have said 'what's up?' Why did I say 'how are you?'" Drew grumbled aloud. That was how he spoke to people he didn't know. Not someone he had known for two years and had just travelled with for almost three weeks. He looked at Roselia to see a small smirk on her face. He glared at her.

"You love seeing me suffer, don't you?'' She nodded. He sighed and placed a hand on his forehead then slid it through his hair. It's done now, you can't do anything. He then slipped his PokeCell back into his bag and stood. Hitting the road again was the only way he could distract himself. And anyway, he was still on the lookout.

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Two hours. May groaned. It would take, she approximated, two hours to reach the town known as Bonitaville where she planned to meet up with Luna, Cora, and Kace. A week of travelling alone had left her longing for company. She had gone through a multitude of phases over this stretch of time. The first two or three days had been rather exciting. She felt independent and even a little grown-up, having to look out for herself. By the fourth day she had begun to feel bored. Even with her frequent texts and calls with Luna to update on how far she had made it or her conversations with Max about how his training was going after he had received a bit of advice from Ash, she still felt rather deprived of company. And though the call from her mom to tell her that Bulbasaur had evolved had cheered her up for a few days, she was now back to feeling lonely and even a little sad. It was just completely different to have someone else there physically. Training or having her pokemon out for most hours of the day wasn't enough to fill the void either, as much as she loved being around them.