Beyond the Adventure - A Pokémon Story

Chapter 8: Fragile Dreams pt4

                I wake up to the rising sun peeking through our curtains.  I yawn and sit up, hang my feet over the edge, and slowly step onto the soft carpetted floor.  Darius is still snoring away in his bed, and I cannot help but feel sorry for how he will feel when he wakes up.  Jaws is also still asleep on the couch, his massive jaw hanging over the edge.  I throw some clothes on, grab some of my winnings from last night, and head out of the room, silently closing the door.

                I get on the elevator and head to the first floor.  I head straight to the gift shop and decide to browse.   The shelves are lined with lots of trinkets and staple souvenirs, the typical stuff a tourist would buy.  I skip past those and head to the more luxurious gifts.  Among these, I find a very detailed statue of Lance, the Indigo Champion.  The statue is very fancy and does well to capture his superiority among trainers.  It is made from various precious metals and stones and quite expensive.  I pull out my winnings, count it really quick, and discover I have more than enough, so I decide to buy it.  I take it to the counter, pay for it, then walk out of the store.  I stop by the restaurant, order breakfast, and request it be delivered to our room when it is ready.  I then get on an elevator and head back up to the room.

                When I enter, Darius is attempting to sit up in bed.  I close the door and walk over to help him up.  When he is sitting up, he grabs his head.  “Ugh,” he groans.

                “How do you feel?” I ask.

                “Like an Electrode exploded in my skull,” he grumbles.

                “I have breakfast on the way,” I say.

                “Cool.”  He notices the bag in my hand.  “What is that?”

                I look at the bag, then hand it to him.  “A birthday gift,” I say.  “I would have gotten you one yesterday, but I didn’t know it was your birthday until last night.”

                Darius looks up at me from under his shaggy bangs.  “Ugh,” he grumbles again.  “Yeah, sorry about that.”  He takes the bag.  “Thank you.”  He opens the bag and unwraps the statue.  He stares at it, then looks at me.  “What is this?”

                “That is Lance, the Indigo League Champion,” I explain.  “I figured you would like it, considering it is your goal to become a Champion.  Someday, budding trainers will be buying statues of you.”

                Darius looks at the statue again, then sets it down on the nightstand and smiles.  “That’s great,” he says, brushing his hair out of his eyes.  “Thanks a lot.  I really appreciate it.  How did you afford this?”

                “You gave me a ridiculous amount of money last night,” I explain.  “I won some money.”  I place a stack of cash on the nightstand next to his statue.  “Here’s what you gave me.”

                Darius looks at the stack.  “Wow, really?” he asks.  “Yeah, I definitely was drunk.”  He picks up the cash, looks at it for a moment, then hands it back to me.  “Keep it.  You deserve it.”

                I shake my head.  “No thank you,” I say politely, “but I’ll keep my winnings.”

                Darius chuckles.  “I’m taking a shower.”

                While Darius showers, our breakfast arrives.  I tip the man, then pull the cart into the room.  Jaws stirs from the clattering of dishes and jumps up at the sight of food.  He and I eat in silence.  Darius finishes his showers, dresses, then joins us.  When we finish, we pack up our stuff and head downstairs to check out.