1
Siblings
"Look, Braden! It's a Swellow!" An eight year old girl said happily, pointing to the sky. Braden, an eleven year old boy, looked up and smiled.
"Some day, Mel, I'm gonna catch one. Then I'll bring it back home and show it to you." He said to his little sister, stroking her long, soft red hair.
Mel looked up at him and grinned then said happily, "I can't wait!" Her smile soon faded and she looked at the vast grassy field in front of them.
"What's wrong Mel?" Braden asked. Mel looked back at her brother with her shimmering brown eyes.
"I don't want you to leave. Why can't I come too?" she asked, tears rolling down her cheeks. "I don't have to get a pokemon and battle… I just want to be with you!" she threw herself onto her brother, hugged him tightly, and began to cry.
Braden gently pushed her away and held her hand. "Mom and Dad won't let you. I would take you with me if I could. You know that, Mel." Mel wiped her eyes with her arm and began to walk back home with her brother in front of her.
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The next morning Braden laid in bed, half asleep. He began to feel something poking his cheek. He groaned and slowly opened his eyes. "What the…!" he screamed, jumping nearly two feet into the air.
Mel laughed and got up off her knees. "Mel! I hate it when you stare at me like that!" Braden yelled. Mel just continued to laugh.
"But it's funny! Besides, you're leaving today so I won't be able to do that for a while." Braden just stood there like his feet had been cemented to his bedroom floor. Mel turned around and opened the curtains in her brother's room to let the sunlight pour in. She turned back around to find that Braden had disappeared. The shower came on in the bathroom as Mel walked down the stairs for breakfast.
"Good morning Growlith!" Mel said when she reached the kitchen. Her father's Growlithe was lying in Braden's chair at the table.
"Growl!" Growlith said as Mel patted his head. He jumped down and walked over to Mel's dad. "Hey Dad?" Mel asked when she sat down in her own seat. "Hm." Her father replied.
"How come you never evolved Growlith?" Mel asked him.
Her dad rubbed Growlith's head and answered, "He didn't want to."
"Why not?" Mel asked as her mom placed a plate of waffles in front of her. Her face lit up as she stabbed them with her fork. "Easy Mel, Easy." Her mom laughed.
"He likes himself just the way he is." Mel's dad answered. "Growl- Growlith!" Growlith said happily.
Mel swallowed her first bite and said, "Well I'm glad you didn't evolve, Growlith. If you did then you would have to be outside all the time cuz you'd be too big."
She stabbed her waffles again as Braden walked into the kitchen, his brown hair still wet. He sat down in front of his breakfast and quickly began to eat so fast that Mel could only see a blur out of the corner of her eye.
"Slow down Braden!" his mom said. Braden swallowed and said, "I need to finish getting ready to go." He got up and put his plate on the floor in front of Growlith. Hardly any was left but Growlith ate happily.
Mel sighed and put the last bit of her breakfast into her mouth. She chewed slowly then finally swallowed. She sighed again and put her plate in the sink. "I'm gonna get dressed." She said as she left the kitchen.
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"Now, Braden, remember to call us every chance you get." His mom said as she held him in a tight hug.
When she released him he took a breath and said, "Don't worry Mom. I will." He then turned to his dad and Growlith and said, "I'm gonna miss you dad. You too, Growlith." "Growl…" Braden hugged his dad and patted Growlith's head and turned to his little sister.
"I'll miss you." Mel said. She threw herself onto her brother like she did the day before.
Tears ran down her face when Braden said, "I'll miss you too Mel. More that you know."