Pokemon The time traveler

Ch 33 Drew Chance

May and Drew had quickly arrived at the restaurant after leaving Ash in the battlefield. They were seated at a table and decided to wait for him to show up before they ate. They were quiet at first—thinking about the events that just happened and how odd they were for different reasons. Drew still could not believe he lost to Ketchum so easily, and May still could not comprehend why the beautiful stranger did not settle well with her. However, the silence did not last long as Drew thought he would make good use of the time Ash was giving to him.

"So, are you excited to compete in the Sinnoh contests?" He asked. He wanted to slowly bring the subject up.

May was still in deep thought, but she heard the question. "Yeah, it should be fun."

"I suggest you start thinking about new performances and strategies," Drew said while crossing his arms. "This will be more competitive than the Kanto and Sinnoh contests. It won't be easy to get through the appeal rounds with mediocre performances."

May focused more on the conversation as he started to talk about contests. She was beginning to worry and scare by his descriptions. "What do you mean the Sinnoh contests are more competitive than the ones we've competed in?" She asked curiously. "What's makes them so different?"

"Well," Drew started, "besides the fact that we dress up for the contests, many of the best coordinators originate from Sinnoh. There's even a gym leader that takes time off to do coordinating...it's a big deal there. I did a lot of research before getting on the ship and it turns out the judges seem to be tougher there, too."

"Wait, we have to dress up, too?" She questioned wanting to make sure she heard him correctly.

"Yeah, though, I'm not sure if it's really mandatory," he admitted. "But, I think it's best we do, so it shows that we're serious about competing. I'm pretty sure everybody does it, anyways."

"Oh, okay...thanks for the heads up."

Drew knew this was his chance. "May," he began, "I can tell you're starting to worry about the contests, and it's normal for you be." He reached his hand across the table and put it on top of hers. "I can help you, though. We can help each other if you travel with me..."

May looked towards their touching hands and could feel her face heating up from the contact. She pulled her hand back and placed both her hands on her lap before responding.

"Drew, I'm already—,"

"Before you answer," He interjected. "Let's eat first. I can tell you're really hungry."

"I'm waiting for Ash to eat," May replied. However, her stomach betrayed her as it growled loudly.

Drew chuckled. "I'm sure he'd understand after hearing that noise."

May flushed from embarrassment.

"If it makes you feel any better, we'll eat slow so that it gives him a chance to catch up. Deal?"

May smiled. "Deal!"

Drew smiled to himself. "It seems like I'm getting through to her," he thought to himself. "Not to mention I'm keeping on her good-side by pretending to like Ketchum...the more late he is the more it helps me."

The two coordinators got up and gathered a few plates full of food to bring back to the table. Moreover, May brought back a few plates full of food while Drew had one plate with a decent amount of food. When Drew asked her if she brought some of the food for Ash, May hesitated and shyly replied it was only for her. The green-haired teen knew it would be better for him if he didn't push the topic further.

May and Drew both ate slowly as they promised to give Ash time to show up and join them, but he never arrived. They ate for about thirty minutes and there was still no sign of the trainer and his Pikachu. They had finished eating and May knew Drew would want an answer to his question, but she seemed too worried about Ash to start up the conversation. Drew, however, was feeling very confident and spoke up.