Spoiler Warning!

I would recommend not reading this unless you have beaten Pokemon Sun/Moon.

Gladion paced back and forth in the basement of the Aether Paradise. With his head down and and hands in front of his chest, he mumbled his thoughts aloud. With every pivot he made to turn and pace back again, his walking speed increased, and his words subtly became more audible. If he wasn't careful, he could have run into the lift. Luckily, even while in this state, he was fully aware of his surroundings; every creak, every step, and every movement was noticed by him. What could have gotten this angsty teen all riled up? He was normally either calm or agitated, and whatever he was feeling while doing this ritualistic walk was neither of those emotions.

Gladion stopped to brush his hair out of his face. As he tapped his foot, it would seem that his mind was suddenly set on whatever it was that he needed to do. With a quick check of his team and his inventory, Gladion took the lift to Aether's entrance, and paged a Charizard to fly him to Melemele Island.

After landing on the island, Gladion made his way to the nearest Malasada shop in hopes that a certain someone would be there. As he walked, Gladion could feel his heart pounding as if was ready to leap out of its chest. Being the drama queen that he is, Gladion almost called Wicke in a panic, and was going to explain to her that he was having heart problems. A few deep breaths later, and Gladion confirmed that it was just his nerves getting the best of him. There really wasn't anything for him to be anxious about, and although he knew this, he still felt weak in the knees.

The moment Gladion walked through the doors of the shop, he was met with the lovely smell of fried dough. He wasn't there for the food, though. Rather, he was there for one of the patrons.

Sitting at the seat closest to the entrance was a young man that was more focused on feeding his Alolan Raichu a malasada rather than eating it himself. He looked at Gladion, and a smile that could warm almost anyone's heart appeared on his face. "Gladdy! What's up?" Hau waved at his 'friend', and his Raichu did the same.

Gladion took the seat directly across from Hau. "Don't call me that."

"Oh. Sorry." Hau gave the rest of his malasada to his Raichu, who happily sat down on its tail and began nibbling away at the pastry. "So, what's up? Don't you have important science stuff to work on over at the Aether Paradise?"

"I... wanted to talk to you about something," Gladion answered. He found it difficult to maintain eye-contact with Hau for some reason, so his gaze became shifty.

Hau smiled with his eyes and mouth. "Sure, man! I'm up for anything. Lay it on me."

Gladion could feel his face begin to burn up, and he started fidgeting with the collar of his jacket. He'd planned what he was going to say, but now that he had to put those words into action, he wished he hadn't said anything in the first place. If anything, he wished he had the option to opt-out of the conversation. "It's..."

"Whoa, hey. You look really flushed- Are you sick or something?"

And there was the option.

"Yes. I haven't been feeling well lately, and I'm uncomfortable going to Wicke or Faba for any sort of help, as pathetic as that sounds."

"Hey, I don't think it's pathetic! I totally understand. C'mon, I'll take you to a motel for you to rest up a bit away from everyone else."

Gladion sighed internally, and reached into his pocket for money for the motel. If this was going to be his excuse, he wasn't going to burden anyone else with it.

Hau returned Raichu to its Poke Ball, and gestured for Gladion to put his money away. "You don't have to pay for it or anything. I've got more than enough money from all the trainers I beat." He flexed jokingly in hopes that Gladion would find it amusing. Unfortunately, all he got in return was a blank stare. He then pulled out his Ride Pager, and called for a Pokemon. "Uh... It'll take a minute for the Charizard to get here, so I'm gonna but some malasadas for the road."

While Hau went off to buy more food, Gladion was left to wonder why Charizard took so long for them, but whenever Sun paged it, it would appear right away. It would seem that it was one of Alola's many unsolved mysteries.

Hau quickly returned with a bag full of happiness, and a smile to match. "Let's get a move-on. I don't want you to collapse or anything."

At the motel, Gladion was left alone on the bed while Hau went off to buy something. He hoped it wasn't more malasadas, otherwise Hau would quickly become as big as his grandfather.

Gladion rolled over onto his side, and rubbed his eyes. He could have just flown home to end all this, but he just had to convince Hau to rent him a room. How long was he going to play sick like this? And, doesn't pretending to be ill just make Hau want to care for him? If only Gladion had thought this through. If only he-

SLAM

The door the the room burst open while Gladion was deep in thought, which caused him to leap out of bed and throw his Silvally out into what he assumed was to be a battle. Unbenounced to him, the person who opened the door was Hau, and he did so in such a loud manner because he thought it would make for a dramatic entrance- Which is, of course, not a good idea to do when your friend is "sick" and has a killing machine for a Pokemon.

Silvally raised one of its claws to attack Hau, but Gladion dashed forward to grab it by the white fringes at its neck, and pulled it away. Soon after, Silvally was returned to its ball, and Gladion was able to see Hau with his arms covering his face in terror-riddled defense. There was a can of something in his hand that was nearly crushed because of how hard he was gripping it, but that wasn't what concerned him.

Gladion gave a cautious tap to Hau's arm. "Are you alright?"

Hau lowered his arms and had let out a shaky laugh. "Oh man, I thought I was done for!"

"Sorry about that-" he moved his gaze to the somewhat dented can. "And you have that for what reason?"

After blinking a few times, Hau remembered why he brought it. "I got it for you because you aren't feeling well. Speaking of which, you really shouldn't have gotten out of bed. Go sit down, wouldya?"

Gladion did as he was told, but he crossed his arms. "Hmph. Would you have preffered it if I just let Silvally attack you?"

Hau shrugged, and handed Gladion the dented can. "I would have gotten to my Pokeballs eventually."

Eventually...

"What even is this?"

"It's lum juice," Hau explained as he took a seat next to Gladion. "I heard it cures most common illnesses, so it can't hurt to try." His eyes widened for a moment. "U-Unless you're allergic. You aren't, are you?"

With a shrug, he opened the can and took a sip. The juice was somewhat bland, but had a sweet aftertaste.

Hau took it upon himself to scoot a bit closer to Gladion. "How are you feeling, anyway?"

Maybe I should just try and be honest, Gladion thought to himself.

"Bad."

...Not like that.

"Oh..." Hau pouted slightly. "Is there anything I can do to help?"

Maybe be honest but less blunt. Just tell him what you want. Ask for something that would help.

"I know you've already done so much for me already, but could you maybe rub my back?"

NOT LIKE THAT, YOU MORON! WHY WOULD YOU EVEN-

"Oh? Okay, sure."

Cautiously, Hau placed a hand on Gladion's back. At first, Gladion instinctively flinched at the contact, but it felt nice after a moment. Being touched by someone who wasn't shoving or hurting him felt pleasant, and he wished that he would've had an opportunity like this sooner. If he closed his eyes, Gladion could pretend that this situation wasn't brought upon him so awkwardly. He could pretend that being cared for like this was the norm. He could pretend-

"Are you... purring?"

Gladion's eyes snapped open, and he quickly sat up straight. "WHAT? NO!"

Hau backed off; he pulled his hand away, and held his arms up in a defensive position. "Whoa, it's ok! Sorry for saying anything."

Embarrassed, Gladion pulled his hood over his head to hide his reddening face. At that point, he'd determined that this day needed to end."I'd... really like to be alone now. To rest, I mean."

Hau gave him a quick nod before getting up. "Sure thing."

Just as Hau was halfway out the door, Gladion mustered up the courage in his angsty heart to say one last thing.

"Thank you for your company."