STORY SYNOPSIS
Rhys has always wanted to be a Trainer. For the past half-year since graduating from school, he’s studied feverishly in preparation for the day he’ll finally have the guts to register. But as each day passes, his confidence wanes. Fearful yet unsatisfied, he remains a dreamer, his anxiety holding him back from pursuing his childhood passion. But when a good friend’s return to town propels him to step outside his comfort zone, a chance rescue in the woods forces his hand and sets his future into motion.
What happens when an anxious mind meets an anxious kind?
Art by Cyzark
Chapter 1: Disquiet
… and now it’s time for your 🎵Flo-ridge mornin’ weaaaaa-ther!🎵
“Goooood morning, Floridge Town! It’s now 8 a.m. on this beauuutiful sunny Friday morning! Spring is in full swing today as temps will stay cool in the mid-sixties, with a slight chance of rain early in the evening! If any of you Trainers out there have Grass or Fire types, today’s a great day to let ‘em soak up the sun and get an energy boost! As for the weekend, w-”
Startled by my alarm, I lifted my head from my pillow and quickly switched it off. After fumbling for my phone under my pillow that had been softly looping videos on PokéPlay, I resisted the urge to curl back up into my blankets, groggily lifted myself out of bed, and stood idly for a few seconds as a head rush began to blind my vision.
“I really need to stop staying up so late watching Gym battles,” I thought as I rubbed my eyes profusely and stumbled over to my dresser. I opened the top drawer and rustled through the mess of clothes. Instead of taking a million years to decide what I wanted to wear like I usually would, I decided that a plain white Pokéball tee and a pair of beige shorts would suffice. I didn’t need to overthink it, not today at least. I gave myself a good look in the mirror; my brown, wavy hair needed a good brushing, but my drowsiness was overriding the urge to tend to it. I kinda liked having it a bit unkempt anyway. Paired with my pale complexion, I felt like a Cursola, which I honestly found fitting. I often felt as if I were adrift like one, floating around my room all day as I went back and forth between analyzing Pokémon battles and researching the creatures themselves.
After slipping on my clothes and patting myself on the cheek to wake up a bit more, I walked over to my window and cracked it open. The sight was as beautiful as always; the vast expanse of pines and oaks swayed gently in the breeze; the flowers lining the dirt path in front of the house had finally begun to bloom, their tiny white and red petals just starting to poke their heads through each bud; the cool spring air brushed against my face as I fixed my gaze up toward the clouds. I felt like I could stare at them forever.
BUZZ BUZZ!
I jumped at the vibrations coming from my pocket. I’d totally forgotten about putting my phone in there after I got dressed. A wave of anxiety washed over me; Who could it be? At eight in the morning? I don’t want to talk right now. It’s too early for this. Just ignore it. But what if it’s important? If you don’t read it then you’ll—
A tinge of embarrassment flowed through my consciousness; “It’s just a text Rhys, RELAX,” I berated my mind as I reached into my pocket and raised my phone to my face.
”Unread Message from Harrison: Tap to open”
All of a sudden, I felt my stomach growl; I clutched it in hunger. “Shit…” I thought as I realized how long I’d spent pondering by the window. “I hope I didn’t miss breakfast!” My mom wasn’t one to barge into my room in the mornings, but usually, she’d text me a reminder that there was food ready. I took another glance at my phone screen— The time read 8:20 and Harrison’s notification remained front and center. My thoughts began to churn; You should respond to your friend! He’s been on a journey for a long time now. Harrison’s probably asking if you’ve caught a Pokémon yet. Or, if you’re finally going to stop holing yourself up in your room studying Pokémon and actually start your journey. You don’t need this right now. Ignore it and eat. You’ll deal with this later.
My eyes refocused on the screen as I took a deep breath. I hadn’t realized it at the moment, but my hand was shaking from fear. After hastily slipping my phone back into my pocket, I vigorously rubbed my cheeks in an attempt to snap myself out of the temporary stupor I’d found myself in. My stomach groaned a little louder as I approached my bedroom door. “I’ll respond to his text later,” I thought. “I’m starving…”
I reached the bottom of the stairs and the divine scent of Oran Berry pancakes began to overwhelm my nostrils. I cracked a smile as I hopped off the final step onto the creaky wooden floor, nearly tripping from excitement as I turned the corner, and walked under the archway into the kitchen. My mom was standing at the stove adorned with her signature messy black apron, whisking the batter as she softly hummed.
“Good morning, Mom…” I meekly spoke as I walked toward the table. I let out a huge yawn as I took a seat and rubbed my eyes.
“Oh, good morning, sweetheart!” my mom turned her head toward me, one hand brushing her long brown hair out of her face. “You sleep in again?”
“Yeah…” I replied as I spread my arms out onto the table and buried my face in them. “Another late night, had a rough time knocking out…”
Mom sighed as she poured the batter in neat circles onto the pan. “I can tell. You sound exhausted, honey.”
“Uh huh…” I said as I lifted my head from my arms and leaned back against the chair. I stared up at the cracks in the ceiling and traced them with my eyes. I wondered what I was going to do today; ever since graduation last summer I’d virtually been a housesitter while my mom worked at the local Pokémon Daycare. Even if I wanted to hang out with any of my friends, all of them were long gone. Once you graduate from Trainer’s School, it’s pretty much a rite of passage to venture out into the world on your own journey. Sure, there were other options for recent graduates — you could pursue higher education in one of the many universities throughout the world, go to a Breeder’s school, or even do something as simple as volunteer work. Whatever your heart desired, there was a path toward it; but for some reason, all of that just felt out of reach for someone like me.
“Rhys…”
“RHYS!”
I snapped out of my daze. Jolting my gaze down from the ceiling, I saw my mom standing in front of the table with a plate full of pancakes in her arms.
“Are you alright?” she asked me with a look of concern. “You’ve been really distant lately, is something the matter?” Setting the plate down on the table, she walked toward me and gently started rubbing my back.
“I’m alright, Mom,” I sighed. “Please don’t worry about me. I’m just tired, is all…” I let out a fake yawn in an attempt to dissuade her from probing any further. As much as I loved my mom, I really didn’t feel like listening to another one of her corny “cheer up!” speeches. Usually, they made me feel a bit better when I felt only a little bit low, but today my emotions were way more heightened than usual; it felt like an inferno of fear was raging in my stomach, and every little thing was feeding the flames.
I turned around to look up at my mom and was met with a staunch look of concern. It was obvious she wasn’t buying my usual “everything’s okay!” act that I tended to pull whenever I was having a rough one.
“Rhys, I’m concerned,” she crossed her arms, her serious gaze meeting mine. “You’ve been especially moody for weeks now! You’re always cooped up in your room and saying you’re ‘busy’ studying! That’s not like you…”
I winced, the weight of her words bearing down on my mind. I’d always generally been transparent with my mom about my aspirations even when I wasn’t too confident about them, but she was right; I hadn’t been telling her anything. But what was I supposed to say? That I desperately wanted to become a Trainer more than anything but couldn’t muster up the courage to apply for a license? That I researched battles day and night to get a sense of what it was like to be a real one, to try and feel the adrenaline of combat that must be coursing through their veins. Was I supposed to tell her that despite all the work I’d done, I still couldn’t do it? Because you can’t.
“I’m alright, Mom, I promise!” my stomach churned as I broke my gaze with her and looked away, quickly wiping away the tears forming in my eyes as I fought to compose myself. “I’m just… trying to figure things out.” I hated lying, but I didn’t have the guts to tell her that I felt terrified of leaving home. It’s embarrassing that you’re squandering your potential. Don’t make yourself look silly.
“Honey…” Mom replied, pulling a chair close to mine and taking a seat, “I know you’re still uncertain about your future — and that’s okay!” She began to rub my back as I sank my head into the table, “You’re seventeen. You’ve got a lot of time left to figure out what the future holds.” I felt her elbow nudge my side, “Y’know, I heard there are some really great universities in Unova where you can do all kinds of Pokémon research,” she said reassuringly. “Your grades from school are more than good enough to get into wherever you want to!”
I lifted my head from my arms to look at her again. The words began to quietly creep up my throat.
“I… I don’t think I…”
My core began to burn. You don’t want to play second fiddle. You want to be part of the action!
“I’ll… I’ll let you know later today,” I straightened my posture and began to stand up from my chair and walk toward the kitchen. “I-I’ve been thinking about a lot of things lately. I’m not sure I’m ready at the moment.”
“You don’t need to decide today,” Mom replied, “I just wanted to let you know that you’ve got options. I have faith that whatever you decide to do you’ll excel in, Trainer or not. Just promise me you’ll let me or your father know if you need help, okay?”
I reached into the cupboard to grab a plate. “Trainer or not…” I thought, setting the plate on the counter and grabbing a fork and knife from a drawer below. I took a deep breath to help steady my mind as the room fell silent. With plate and utensils in hand, I turned back to face my mother whose worried gaze remained locked on me.
“I will,” I replied. “I promise.”
Mom smiled, “Love you, Rhys.” Standing up from her chair, she made her way over to the kitchen and ruffled my hair, “Now go eat! It’s never good to think on an empty stomach!”
“I know I know,” I laughed, gesturing for her to stop. “Thanks for breakfast, Mom.”
“Of course sweetheart,” Mom replied, removing her apron and hanging it on the wall next to the back door. She quickly began tying her hair up and hastily slid her shoes on. “Oh, and sorry I can’t have breakfast with you this morning. Work needs me a bit earlier to help deal with another big mess.”
“Again? What happened this time?” I frowned. The daycare in Floridge was perpetually understaffed since we’re a pretty small town, but the boss seemed to always have my mom do all the dirty work instead of working on, y’know, hiring more people. I couldn’t even begin to count all the times she’d had to work overtime because some dumb Trainer passing through gave the staff little to no instructions on how to properly attend to their Pokémon’s needs. Sometimes I wondered how some of those Trainers even survived taking care of them on their own.
“Apparently some wild Rattata managed to sneak in through the back and pillage a good chunk of the pantry,” Mom sighed and wrestled her light brown coat on. “They absolutely wrecked the storage room so I have to help clean up — again.” Giving her forehead a slight pinch of frustration, she laughed and gave me an amused look. “Just another day in the life!”
“They really oughta be paying you more, Mom,” I said as I took a seat at the table and began taking a few pancakes off the plate. I took a quick look back at the kitchen before digging in and realized Mom had completely forgotten to clean up the kitchen. It wasn’t uncommon for the kitchen counter to look like a tornado had ripped through it most mornings, but Mom’s cleaning skills were just as impeccable as her cooking; judging by how much of a rush she was in to get out the door, it seemed the debris hadn’t been gotten a chance to be cleared.
“How about your mess?” I said jokingly, cutting a piece of pancake and beginning to eat.
“…Oh! Shoot,” she slapped a hand to her forehead. “You don’t mind cleaning up after me, do you?”
“Noh worrhies Mahm,” I laughed with a mouthful of pancake, my one free hand shooing her out the door. She gave me a quick wave goodbye, blew me a kiss, and sped out. Without hesitation, I ditched my usual etiquette and began ravenously devouring the rest of my food; for just a moment, the sweet taste of Oran berries suppressed all of my wandering thoughts.
“I’m totally gonna miss this one day,” I thought, already finishing up the last bits of pancake left on my plate. After wiping my face clean with a napkin, I went back into the kitchen and awkwardly stared at the disaster on the countertop; bits of batter were strewn all over with berry juice splattered on every surface you could imagine. This was gonna take a while.
“C’mon… you… piece of…!” I sputtered as I vigorously scrubbed at the last bit of berry that had stuck itself to the hardwood floor. Cleaning up had taken more time than I’d like to admit and my poor stamina was, even in a situation as silly as scrubbing a floor, really making it difficult. I guess that’s what happens when you spend more time reading books than staying in shape. With a final scrub, I finally wiped clean what remained of the mess and sat down, exhausted. After catching my breath for a moment, I fumbled around in my pocket for my phone to check the time.
“10:45?!” I exclaimed. I stumbled off my knees and scrambled to put away all the cleaning supplies. I’d spent way longer on this mess than I thought I would’ve and now half the morning was gone in an instant. I slid my phone back into my pocket.
“Well, this sucks,” I thought as I let out a yawn, “and I’m still tired…” Taking a final moment to admire my thorough cleaning job, I stretched my arms wide and began to mosey my way back upstairs. After nearly scrubbing my arms off, I couldn’t wait to climb back into bed and sink into my mattress for a little while. Once I reached my room, I immediately threw myself face-down onto my bed.
“I think I’ll just… sleep today away…” My eyes felt heavy and I could feel myself beginning to drift off. I didn’t really want to waste another day taking it easy, but neither my body nor my mind were in any state to tackle the laundry list of things I still needed and wanted to do. Reading, studying, thinking about applying for university; all that could wait a while longer. Just deal with everything tomorrow. You deserve a bre—
A vibration against my thigh jolted me awake; my phone buzzed fervently as I realized someone was calling.
“What now…” I groaned as I forced myself to take my phone back out of my pocket. Overlayed on top of a picture of him and his Pikachu flashing a peace sign and smiling ear-to-ear, my eyes widened as I read the name I saw on the screen; Harrison! I’d completely forgotten to text him back earlier! I gritted my teeth in embarrassment as my phone continued to buzz wildly in my hand. Harrison usually texted me every now and then, but what could be so important that he had to call me instead? I know I’d ignored his text, but that was an honest mistake! He didn’t need to worry about me. He’s going to ask why you haven’t registered like he did. He knows you’re too smart to still be home. You don’t need more pressure. Don’t—
Deep breaths; I felt my chest rise and fall slowly as I try and calm myself down. “It’s just your friend dude, nothing’s gonna happen.” With determination, I stuffed my thoughts into the depths of my consciousness and answered the call.
“…”
The silence was deafening. For a moment I thought he might’ve butt-dialed me, but that thought was quickly disproven once I heard a slight commotion quickly becoming more audible.
“HEY!! Bring those back here!”
Sounds of hasty footsteps and erratic shuffling echoed through the microphone following Harrison’s cry. It sounded like he was having trouble chasing something down; maybe a Rattata had broken into his place, too? That would be a nasty coincidence. But what if something bad is happening?
“I… urk… gotcha!” I heard Harrison yelp amidst the struggle.
“Chuuu!” something exclaimed in response. I sighed in relief, shrugging off another anxious thought with the knowledge that it was just his Pikachu getting into trouble again. Although, I could swear its cry sounded a little bit different than I remembered.
“What did I tell you, Byte?!” Harrison exclaimed. “Batteries are NOT for rubbing your cheeks on and suckin’ all the energy out of!”
“Chuu…” Byte whined, followed by the muffled noises of Harrison picking up his phone.
“Hey, Rhys! How’ve you been, man?”
“I’ve been, uh, hangin’ in there,” I gulped. I wish I was better.
“Glad to finally hear from ya,” he responded. “Totally forgot I texted you earlier so I thought I’d ring you up. My bad!”
“N-no you’re fine!” I assured him. “Truthfully I saw your text earlier and also forgot, please don’t worry about it.”
“Guess we’re both at fault, huh?” he laughed. “How’s Floridge been?”
“It’s been,” — I paused for a moment — “chill, I guess?” I sank a bit further into my pillow. I felt like an idiot not having any interesting things to share, but I wasn’t technically lying; I took a lot of comfort in my studies. Sometimes, burying my head in a book was one of the only ways I could truly relax.
“I wish I could say the same, man,” Harrison sighed. “You’d think all those years of us running around outside play-battling would’ve given me a bit more stamina. My team and I have been exhausted!”
“I totally understand,” I assured him, secretly imagining myself in his place running around different regions, befriending Pokémon, and growing stronger together. Even if it was exhausting, I knew the thrill of battle had to be the coolest feeling in the world! But being far from home is scary. What if you still feel alone?
“Yeah I bet, and you were always way too curious!” Harrison said enthusiastically. “Remember in elementary when Ms. Fern had to call an officer when you snuck into the woods and tried to catch a Caterpie ‘cause they thought you got lost only to find you all cocooned up?”
“Did I really?” I meekly replied, embarrassed at the memory of my younger self being dumb enough to try and catch a Pokémon unarmed. The woods surrounding Floridge were teeming with danger if you strayed too far off from town or the routes, but I guess that knowledge didn’t matter to an impulsive eight-year-old who really wanted to prove he had the right stuff to his friends. I couldn’t really remember why exactly I’d been so clumsy in that moment, but I did remember how pissed the officer was trying to break me out of that silk. Caterpie are no joke when you’re defenseless.
“It was hiiilarious seeing a cop have to clean off all that webbing— oh! That reminds me,” he cut himself off mid-thought, “I was gonna ask what you’ve been up to! Have you registered yet or are you still thinkin’ about being a researcher like your dad?”
“Oh Arceus he’s asking you.” My brain scrambled for ideas of what to say; I couldn’t just say I’d been sitting here dreaming for six months! But what else could I even say that would save me the embarrassment of admitting to my friend that I wasn’t anything that I’d been chalked up to be? My silence grew louder as each moment passed without my reply. Say something. Anything! Don’t be a disappointment!
“Y-yeah, I registered the other week, actually!”
“Oh, cool!” he replied. “Who’s your starter? Didja catch one or are you gettin’ one from a specific region?”
“I caught one in the forest actually, haha!” I quivered at the lie. Floridge was located on a pretty small chain of islands so the few Trainers who register usually opt to have a professor mail over a starter of your choice. The process usually took about a week or two if you were lucky, but it’s pretty convenient for rural kids like us who didn’t have a lab in town. That’s what Harrison ended up doing with Byte as Pikachu weren’t exactly native around here; I remember him constantly telling me how excited he was to finally get his favorite Pokémon from the Kanto region. As for me, I didn’t really have a favorite. With what little diversity there was around here I couldn’t really be picky about which ‘mon I’d want if I was going to catch one, which I totally just said I did like a big giant idiot. I put my free hand to my head. “Why am I like this?”
“Sick! Who’d you get?”
“It’s…” I paused for a moment to make sure what I said next wouldn’t break my facade. “It’s a uh… a Caterpie!”
“Really!? No way!” Harrison exclaimed. “Things really come full circle, don’t they? Can I see?” My phone immediately vibrated as the video call request noise sent buzzing through my ear. I gulped as I hit accept, the reflection of my tired face and messy hair staring back at me from the darkness of the screen as the picture slowly began to fade in. Before I could even think about how dumb I looked, Harrison flashed onto the screen; he quickly brushed his wavy blonde hair out of his eyes, which presumably had covered them from wrestling with Byte, and gave me a two-fingered salute.
“Yo! Where’s the lil guy?” he said as he propped his phone up on a desk and sat down in a chair. I squinted trying to make out exactly where he was; the room was small and dimly lit; a plain white bed was nestled in the corner, its sheets wrinkly and blanket balled up like a tumbleweed; a figure was visible on his pillow, but the light was dim enough that I couldn’t quite make out what it was. Was that Byte? It certainly looked larger than a Pikachu—
“Uhh, knock knock?” I heard Harrison ask. “You still in there?”
“Sorry!” I exclaimed, realizing I’d zoned out a bit. “You asked about the Caterpie?”
“Yeah, is it still in its ball or somethin’?”
“T-They’re actually at the daycare with Mom right now,” I replied. “We’ve been training a little too hard so I figured they needed a little spa day, if you get what I mean.”
“Ohh, got it, got it.” Suddenly, the figure on the bed began to shuffle. Tiny sparks of electricity shot outward from the sides of its head, bathing the room in a faded yellow glow as it yawned and stretched its limbs out. Before I could even inquire, it zipped onto Harrison’s lap and nuzzled his face with its bright orange and yellow cheeks.
“H-hey! Byyyyte!” Harrison scolded playfully. “While I’m on the phone? Really?” He began petting the now visible Pikachu-like Pokémon’s head as it plopped itself snugly into his lap.
“No way…” my eyes widened as I came to a realization. “Byte evolved already!?”
“Oh shoot, did I not mention that?” Harrison laughed, “We managed to get our hands on a Thunder Stone last week!” He looked down at the smiling Raichu as he kept petting it, “I wasn’t sure if he was ready yet cause he’s only been a Pikachu for a year, but he kinda coaxed me into it!” After the two flashed each other grins, Harrison looked back up at me. “I coulda sworn I sent you a text about it though…” he put a hand to his chin for a moment before shrugging in acceptance.
“Shoot, did he really?” I thought to myself and cringed. It wasn’t unlike me to miss texts from people while I was focused on studying, but I’d usually make an effort to at least write a short reply the day of. Had I really been that out of it lately?
“Sorry about that,” I rubbed the back of my head in embarrassment. “I’m glad you two are doing well. I know evolution can be really taxing when it happens fast! Just don’t overwork yourselves, alright?”
“No sweat man! Byte and I have been K-I-L-L killin’ it out there!” Harrison pumped his fist in the air with Byte following suit. They were so goofy that I couldn’t help but smile. “Although we’ve been taking it pretty easy the past few days at the Pokémon Center. You wouldn’t believe how hard it is to even book a room for even a night in Castelia though! We’ve had to make some… sacrifices…”
“Chuu…” Byte softly chimed in and rubbed its stomach. It seemed Harrison’s wallet wasn’t the only thing feeling a little empty.
“Do you guys need a few bucks for a meal?” I inquired with concern. “You guys shouldn’t have to starve yourselves just to have a bed to sleep in!” I had a lot of allowance money saved up from months’ worth of lawn-mowing, bathroom-washing, and flower-watering, so I could afford to help them out a bit. With how impulsive Harrison could be, I didn’t want him to neglect his and Byte’s health just so he could stay in the city for longer.
“Oh, no worries!” he waved his hands side to side in polite disapproval. “We won’t be here much longer! I’ve actually been meanin’ to tell you something.”
“Really?” I leaned my head back onto my pillow, my breath filled with anticipation. “What’s up?”
“IIIIIIIII’M COMIN’ HOME!”
I jolted, juggling my phone in my hand after nearly dropping it from shock; Harrison had always been a loud guy, but that one really caught me off guard!
“Chu chu!” Byte beamed in the background. The two sounded really excited about scaring me.
“Wanna run that by me again?” I spoke softly, exhaling to calm my nerves. “Maybe a little quieter too…?”
“Sorry! Sorry,” Harrison replied. “I’m coming back to Floridge for a few days! Figured I’d take a breather for a while and see some folks. It already took half a year for me to get one Unova league badge, plus staying in Castelia has got me really missin’ home.” I heard him sigh exhaustedly. “Big city life is overwhelming!”
“Chuuuu…”
My breath ran cold. He was what?
“P-pardon me?” I quivered slightly. “When?”
“Tomorrow, actually!” he grinned from ear to ear. “I’m taking the ferry from one of the ports here to Seaside and then I’ll stretch my legs and walk the hour home. I can’t wait to lay in my own bed… Oh, and see my family! And maybe play around on the farm a lil, and…”
I remained frozen in a stare. Harrison’s mouth continued moving as each word melted together, muffling slowly until I could hear almost nothing at all.
“Can’t… to see… Caterpie too!”
You lied.
You lied and now he’ll find out you’re a liar and a fraud.
With foggy eyes, my gaze remained fixed on the screen. I could barely make out Harrison waving uttering words I couldn’t hear, words I didn’t want to hear. My core was ablaze in fear as my lie reverberated in my skull, the realization striking me that once again, as always, I’d set myself up for disappointment. What was I going to do? Why did I do that? Why—
“DUDE!”
I blinked. I wiped my eyes and sniffled, taking a few deep breaths to calm myself down. “Just stay positive!” I thought in my clouded mind, “Everything’ll be alright. Don’t panic. You’re smart enough to figure something out.” I stirred in my thoughts further, taking a breath as a moment of clarity pierced through the fog. “If I can just head to the mart and buy some balls, maybe I can— I could—“
“Uh… dude?” Harrison inquired, crossing his arms with concern. “Are you alright?”
“YEAH, yeah, I’m good man, I’m good,” I lied, faking the most genuine smile I could. “I’m just a little bit under the weather! Y’know how early spring can be, haha!”
“Ohhh, gotcha, gotcha,” he replied. “Just making sure! You seemed a little out of it for a moment.”
“No worries dude,” I nonchalantly waved. “Anyway, can’t wait to see you tomorrow! Listen, I gotta go take care of some, uh— stuff around the house! You mind if I let you go?”
“Sure man, I getcha! Wanna say bye, Byte?”
“Chuu chuu!” the Raichu waved happily, small sparks escaping from its cheeks.
Beep.
I clutched my head. My phone slipped out of my hand and onto my wrinkled sheets. Calm filled the air within my room, but a searing inferno filled my lungs. As much as my mind fought the thought, there was only one solution; it was something I’d wanted so badly yet dreaded all the same.
I needed to catch a Pokémon.
By the end of the day.
Oh no.