Pokémon : The Journey of Travis Tedford

Chapter 19: Rise up!

Efren sat in the chair next to me and looked at my Pokémon. "I see you caught quite a few new Pokémon since I last saw you. You've gotten really strong too. You were like a completely different person when I saw you battle throughout the tournament," said Efren. I stayed staring at the floor, still not able to find the right words to say. Efren began to feel uncomfortable and then found himself unable to sit still due to the tension he felt. He stood up and began moving around while he waited for me to say something. When he realized that I wasn't going to say anything, he walked up to me, touched my face, and directed it to face his. "Talk to me," he said. I looked at him in the face and then quickly turned away. "What are you doing back here, Efren? You made it sound like you weren't coming back anytime soon," I said rather coldly.

"Since I got all the badges I need to qualify for the Sinnoh League early, I thought maybe I could travel with you and cheer you on through the Kanto League," said Efren.

"Why the fuck do you think I'd want to travel with you after what you did? You left me right after I poured my heart out to you and told you how I felt. You just upped and left and didn't even look back. While you were out there collecting badges, I spent weeks depressed during the holidays not even wanting to leave my room because all I could think about was how you left me," I said angrily. Efren remained silent. I reached over and grabbed Pinsir's Pokéball and recalled him to it. I tried looking for Larvitar and Bagon's, but I then remembered that the Mankey had stolen it. I began to feel even angrier, and then I smashed my fist on the table next to my bed, and it split in two. Efren, along with Larvitar and Bagon, jumped when they heard the loud sound it made. I then focused my attention back on Efren.

"Well? Say something!" I said out loud.

"I left to become stronger. I relied on you all the time for everything, and you were always going out of your way to protect me. You literally almost died because of me, and I just didn't want to have to see you go through that again. It was painful for me to watch you lying there, not knowing if you were going to live or die, all because of me. I left to become stronger, and that's what I did. I became strong enough so that you no longer have to protect me. I'm sorry leaving the way I did hurt you. I knew it would, but I had to do what was best for us. I love you, Travis. I feel exactly the same way you do, and you know that," said Efren.

"I don't know anything anymore when it comes to you," I responded.

"Tell me, what do you want me to do? Do you want me to leave? Tell me to leave you alone, and I'll do that," said Efren with sadness in his tone.

I looked at Efren and said very coldly, "I want you to leave." Efren took one last long stare at my face and then walked out of the room. Even though I was very angry at him, I was also sad that I had hurt him in that way. I laid back down and stared at the ceiling. Larvitar came and laid on my left, while Bagon laid on my right side. I was told that I had to remain in the hospital for another two days, and then I'd be able to leave. Meanwhile, while I was stuck in bed, everyone else was already preparing to move on with their journey.

"Where are you headed next?" Efren asked Anna.

"I'm going back home to Viridian City to challenge the gym. I just got word that the gym leader has returned, so I think it's about time for me to get my last badge," said Anna.

Efren wondered if he should ask to go with her or not since Travis didn't want him around. He noticed Adam sitting alone in the cafeteria eating. Jay had left earlier in the day to go and try to get his last badge. Efren walked over to Adam and sat in front of him.

"I think the biggest surprise for me is to see how close you and Travis have gotten since the last time I saw you," said Efren.

Adam took a bite out of his sandwich and then looked up at Efren.