First Faith

Chapter 27: Vulnerability

Chapter 27: Vulnerability 

I kept staring at Roric, too surprised to really do anything, "How'd you get in here?"

If he said God somehow made him appear in there, I didn't know what I would do with myself.

"With help from a friend." Roric stepped aside to reveal a Ralts, which I recognized to be Demi's.

"Is Demi here too?"

"No. I'm the only one who's supposed to be here right now." Roric answered softly.

"So what are you supposed to be then, a guardian angel?"

"I'm a bit lacking of wings at the moment." His mouth quirked up, like there was some sort of inside joke I didn't know about.

"And why are you here when an hour ago I didn't want to talk to you?"

"An hour ago you hadn't made a choice." Roric said firmly, smiling as if he was proud of me. It was a bit creepy, the almost fatherly affection that seemed to be emanating from him.

He seemed to notice how I was about to change my decision, "Listen, I know you don't know me. I'm a stranger. And for me to just come in here without asking, knowing that you just prayed for the first time in years, especially for praying for help for the first time, can be a big turn off. I know."

I wracked my brain to see if I'd mentioned how long it'd been since I prayed, or what I'd prayed about. I hadn't.

"You have no idea what to make of me." Roric repeated from earlier.

I thought through my options. I could stay in this room forever, acting like no one cared. I could not tell Dawn how I was really feeling and keep lying to myself that she was all I really needed when, in reality, I kept getting worse. Or I could accept that there was someone in front of me, whether sent or not, that could help me. That's what instinct told me. And I wanted to be helped for once, even if my dignity suffered.

I took a breath, my voice finally feeling like itself as I said, "Actually, I make you out to be a friend."

"You seem like a guy who isn't one to be vulnerable first." Roric said.

We'd just started walking through a forest nearer to the town. It was nice to be outside again. I was still shaky from all of my emotions, but there was sunlight. The trees were growing, Pokemon were scurrying about. There was life. It reminded me that my own life could be full of that again. That that's why I was here, about to tell this complete stranger things I hadn't ever talked about with anyone.

Roric took my silence as his answer, "Mind if I tell you my story first then?"

I gave a nod, disbelieving that I wasn't being sarcastic or rude in any way.

"Demi and I grew up in Sinnoh. At first, I wasn't very close to Demi because we have such a big age difference. I'd already started my Pokemon journey through Sinnoh before she was even born, so I didn't really get to see her grow up when she was a baby. But my parents and I had been close. They had a Christ centered marriage, led Bible studies, mission trips- everything was for God. So I was always at church and surrounded by people who loved me, even if they weren't related to me by blood.