Anonymous {2nd Place in Miscellaneous (PWA 2018)}

Chapter 1: A Wish Into Fate

"For the last time, Shin, you are not getting a Pokémon!" the woman boomed vexingly at her son.

The boy in front of her pouted. "Why not?!"

"I told you, you're too young! You won't know how to take care of it nor will you know how to train it!" She hastily put the plate she was washing into the dishwasher.

"But everyone in school has a Pokémon!" Shin argued, his eyes on the brink of tears. "Why can't we get one?"

"Because those Pokémon belong to their families," she responded.

"But then—"

"Because Mommy has to work all day! And I can't manage work and a Pokémon at the same time." The woman sighed stressfully, taking off her rubber gloves to massage her forehead. "You have to feed them, and talk to them, and love them. I can't do all that, you know? I already have you to worry about!"

"I can take care of myself!" Shin defied confidently, clenching his fists. "And I can take care of them! I have no one to play with anyway!"

"Honey, we've talked about this so many times already. You're eight." As she raised her voice, she slammed the dishwasher door shut which sent chills up Shin's spine. He could've sworn something broke in there. "If you want your own Pokémon, just wait until you're ten and Professor Kukui will give you—"

"What about Dad?" Shin demanded. He watched his mother flinch slightly, her eyes widening as her body went still. His mind pressed on, blinded by anger. "When he gets home from work he can take care of it! That's his job, isn't it?"

The woman let her ebony black hair drift over her face in an attempt to cover her already conflicted eyes. "Shin, honey," she began, her mouth not wanting to move. "Your father... is a very busy man. He's out making the money we really need! He's never even home, to begin with."

Shin's face perplexed. "But you said he comes home every night," he argued.

"That's different," she replied lowly. "Ever since he got his 'job', he comes home very late. Most of the time he doesn't even come at all." Her eyes began to dart around hastily. "Your father never calls us or talks to us. He doesn't even come to see you! And as soon as I notice him walk through that front door, that bas...!"

The woman stopped herself before she could finish her sentence, leaving the poor boy's mind confused. Although he somewhat comprehended what his mother was trying to tell him, he yearned to know what she was about to say. However, something about her attitude scared him into silence. It was only when she turned away to dry her hands that he attempted to speak again.

"When will Dad quit his job, then?" Shin's voice piped in ever so quietly. "I want to play with him again."

The tired mother let out an exhausted exhale, saying nothing back to her distraught son. She simply slugged away, letting her fingers comb through her damp hair. She only paused once to open the door to her room and tilted her head slightly to Shin. "...He'll never quit," he watched her mouth utter silently before she shut the door behind her.

Without even knowing why, warmth began to well in his raven-colored eyes. He fought hard to bite back the childish crying, yet still, they still leaked over his flushed and angered cheeks. The small child bolted to the front door. He felt scared, clueless to what haunted him so. He was angry, despite knowing it wasn't his mother's fault; distraught from her vague words about his father. And as his feet padded down the concrete streets of his town, tears of desolation trailed behind him, leaving wet brown marks on the pavement.