Long Story Short

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She felt no lonelier place on earth than the outdoor bistro she found herself in. Her coffee had gone cold. Her hands went cold. The color left her face. She watched Drew walk away after he paid for their beverages. May expected him to stop. May expected him to look back. May expected him to take back what he said. He never did any of those things. He was gone.

Her body trembled with overwhelm where she sat. Her fists clenched. Tears rolled down her cheeks. It was the end of the road for them. She knew in her bones by the way Drew looked in her eyes that their curtain had fallen. It was over. It was a new reality. One she never imagined she would have to face.

Glaceon and Blaziken emerged from their Pokéballs without command, a rare thing to do. They sensed something was troubling their trainer and took it upon themselves to see what occurred. Blaziken closed his eyes with pain when he saw his broken friend. Glaceon lowered her ears with a sense of defeat. They could feel May's torture. Blaziken kneeled to caress her back. Glaceon gave a soft purr when it nuzzled against May's torso. Bystanders were concerned by the coordinator's whimpering. It was a painful sight.

"Gla," Glaceon cooed. It placed its front paws on May's lap to lick the tears from her face. They tried to ease her hurt but to no avail.

May abruptly got up with angst. "Let's go!" the brunette clenched her eyes shut. Blaziken and Glaceon were caught off guard by her sudden outburst. The coordinator turned around, dashing in the opposite direction of where Drew walked off. She needed to get as far away from him as possible.

Glaceon and Blaziken followed the girl. "Blaz!" Blaziken tried to stop the hasty trainer with little success. May kept running.

Their trainer appeared oblivious to everything except her agony. Spectators recognized her as she sprinted through the street. Blaziken and Glaceon kept the nosy onlookers at a distance with their glares. Nevertheless, that wouldn't stop them from making comments.

"What's up with her?"

"She's going to get run over if she keeps running like that."

"Isn't she supposed to be training in Unova?"

"Spoiled brat."

They ignored whatever was said. All that mattered was that they stick as close to May as they could. She was vulnerable, and they feared to leave her alone in this bustling city.

May didn't show signs of tiring. Her adrenaline appeared infinite. In her rush, she nearly ran over a Piplup exiting a boutique store. The Piplup's eyes widened when it jumped out of her way at the last second. She didn't acknowledge the penguin-like Pokémon and kept running. "Sorry!" May apologized but didn't stop to make sure it was ok.

"Pip pip lup!" Piplup waved its flipper with annoyance but got ignored. Unfortunately for Piplup, its woes continued when Blaziken and Glaceon sped past it. This time, the Water-type had no time to dodge their sprints. May's Pokémon didn't acknowledge Piplup and ran past him, making the Penguin Pokémon spin comically with dizzying eyes. When the little Pokémon got its head straight, it frowned at the trio of troublemakers. It narrowed its eyes to glare at them as they vanished in the distance. With his beady eyes still focused on their direction, a realization shocked his mind. "Piplup!" Piplup gasped and flailed. It immediately ran back into the shop.

I believed him. I hung on to every word. I'm so stupid for believing Drew and I would be together forever. It was all a lie. I thought I was the love of his life. I'm such a stupid, naïve child! May cursed herself for believing in fairytales. She clenched her fists so hard her nails were digging into her skin through her gloves.

Glaceon and Blaziken's eyes fixated on May. Their sprint led them to the edge of Hearthome, where there was no company and only silence. The pair stopped when May fell on her knees in defeat. She hunched over and banged the dirt road leading into the city. Her ache was so great she felt the need to vomit, yet she only managed to cough between her cries. They never felt so powerless. What could they do to strip her of the pain she felt?

"Why does this hurt so much? Why does love hurt?!" May cried in anguish. It felt as though the memories of Drew embroidered in her heart were ripped off like a band-aid. It was a disaster, unlike anything she ever experienced before. The brunette screeched into the air, provoking a flock of Starly in the trees to flee in fright.

Blaziken and Glaceon noticed wild Pokémon hiding behind trees and bushes, eyeing May with the same empathy as them. They wondered what troubled the human. May's loyal Pokémon approached her. Glaceon rubbed its head on the body. Blaziken rested his head on the top of May's head. They lamented their situation. It seemed nothing could calm her endless crying.

Suddenly, a voice called out her name. "May?"

The voice sounded so familiar that May stopped crying to see who said her name. She looked behind them to find a recognizable blue-haired girl with an alarmed Piplup beside her. The blue-haired girl's eyes carried a worried expression. "Dawn?" May looked at her with disbelief.

Dawn's heart broke when she saw the redness in May's eyes and her tear-stained cheeks. Dawn took one step forward, but before she could say anything, May spoke, "Drew dumped me!" May's wailing disrupted the few seconds of calm.

May's friend ran to embrace her. May wrapped her arms around Dawn as if her life depended on it. "I'm so sorry, May," Dawn wished they could've reunited under better circumstances, but she was glad she was present in May's time of need.

Piplup looked at May with sad eyes. Glaceon and Blaziken remained close to May, watching May cry her heart out in Dawn's chest. Every time May heaved from crying, Dawn's soft voice calmed her. "There, there. Let it all out." Wild Pokémon gathered around them to understand the commotion. A display of mutual human affection was uncommon for the woodland creatures, so to witness it was heartwarming. Alongside Blaziken and Glaceon, Dawn gave May the warmth she needed when May experienced the most significant loss of her life.