The air around her felt heavy, as if the world was about to collapse over her.
Brushing away up-curled locks, she rubbed the back of her hand against her eyes, adjusting to the light. The hollow room echoed with her yawns, resounding in quiet pitter-patters. Empty, as usual.
Caitlin slumped back against her bed, staring up at the faded canopy that surrounded it. She blinked a couple of times; even pinching herself and shaking her head. What time was it? With a sigh, she curled back underneath the covers of her bed.
"Empty, huh?" she said quietly. Her hand found itself warming the left side of her chest. The thumping of her heart was muted. The room continued to mirror the voiceless sounds of her thoughts.
"Do you ever get up, Sleeping Beauty?" Caitlin's throat went dry. She peered from under her covers, briefly scanning for the sound.
She sat up straight, folding her hands around her knees. "What do you want?"
A figure clothed in the murky darkness slipped past her view and appeared on the side of her bed. Caitlin glanced the other way. "Boo." Grimsley stuck out his tongue and stretched his eye with his finger. Caitlin said nothing. Instead, she tucked herself back in while facing the opposite direction. The room was still for a moment, until Grimsley let out a puffed sigh. He hoisted himself over the overflowing sheets of the bed, sitting upright against his knee.
"Don't you want to do something?" Grimsley said, leaning into her ear.
"No." She pulled the covers over and around him, encasing herself in a cocoon.
Grimsley crossed his arms, kicking at Caitlin. "Don't mess up my bed," came her disgruntled reply.
"It's been unmade for the last three days," he said, then paused. "Aren't you getting tired of well, sleeping? Come on, Cait."
"I said I don't want to get up."
Grimsley sighed, closing his eyes for a while. This girl had problems. He remembered the day she first arrived, her Pokémon having levitated more than a dozen suitcases and luggage while she walked without even lifting a finger. Her eyes casted shadows, dark bags that hid something far deeper than her delicate surface.
"W-welcome," Shauntal said, bowing to her. Caitlin didn't move, and Shauntal hadn't stopped bowing either. Marshall had tapped her on the shoulder before she was able to regain her stance. Caitlin was led behind the main League facilities.
"The Pokémon League is home to only the most skilled and triumphant trainers, Unova's pride and joy. We're all glad to have you here… err…" Shauntal glanced at Marshall and Grimsley, who were both inspecting their fingernails at the time. She pursed her lips at Caitlin, who hadn't said a word since she arrived.
"Caitlin." she kept her stare trained on the ground. "It's Caitlin."
As they continued walking, Grimsley found it odd that how she didn't even ask where they were going. Perhaps Shauntal had set too much of an awkward environment? The three of them got that a lot with challengers who asked them for autographs outside of the League. Shauntal was overly talkative, he had decided. On the first he had arrived, she gave him the same introductions that Caitlin now bore. He didn't concern himself with his co-workers after their initial meeting, and never planned to from the start.
"I'm tired."
The three of them turned to Caitlin, who lay on the ground with her torn fur coat and luggage collapsed around her. She was swaying slightly, as if dazed. Marshall said nothing, but carried half of her load over his shoulder and continued walking. Shauntal took two with her. Grimsley turned his back.
"I said, I'm tired."
She looked sullen, her cheekbones having sunken themselves into her face. Grimsley marvelled at her, glancing from over his shoulder. Maybe she would be prettier if she tried. He waited for Shauntal to say something, but even she was tired of dealing with Caitlin's uptightness.
"Well, then," Grimsley finally spoke up, tightening the scarf around his neck. "We better get you to your room quickly, your majesty." He leaned down and picked up Caitlin, suddenly realizing how frail she felt. His brow furrowed, and he turned to the others.
"Is the nurse in today?"
Grimsley held his head, his fingers cold against his own skin. The memory often escaped his mind. He would recall it every once and a while, but almost as rare as Caitlin would come out from her battling room. He wondered where she lived.
"Wake up, already." Something tugged at his voice. He was sick of this. "Get up, Caitlin. You're gonna fall asleep forever if you keep at that." When she said nothing, he threw himself over Caitlin's body, not caring that his suit was crumpled.
"W-what…"
"I said get up!" Grimsley said, grabbing her shoulders. "When… when will you ever stop looking so dead? Try and live a little, all right?" She didn't look the least surprised. It took a second before he realized what it looked like he was doing.
"I-I-"
"Okay."
Before he could say anything more, Caitlin pushed the sheets off of her and slipped on her Munna slippers tucked underneath her bed. She stretched, yawned, and tossed away the large hat she was seldom seen without. Soft footsteps crept down the silken stairs. Her movements were fairy-like, her shawl fluttering in a non-existent breeze. At the bottom of the last step, Caitlin stopped. She turned, her face holding the expression of someone who seemed to have forgotten something.
"Are you coming, Grimsley?"