A/N: So, you can picture them in their mid to late teens here. ^u^
Cheren's Glasses
Bianca wore a small smile as she flipped through pages of a thick, heavy book. The blonde leaned against a railing, facing the magnificent view of Aspertia City's famous lookout. In her opinion, it was by far the best place to accomplish her research. It was a miracle that the lookout was never crowded. Aspertia was one of her favorite places in the entire region for more than one reason.
"…and then he called me back on the Xtranceiver, saying something like, 'Sorry for ignoring your call, I was in the middle of a riveting conversation with Professor Juniper's Minccinco'. I mean, really?" Touko scoffed and slumped against the railing. "Who does that? I'm his girlfriend for crying out loud! And it's not the first time, either."
Bianca nodded absently, emerald eyes still glued to the text. Touko decided that she would not be having any of this and cleared her throat for emphasis.
"Sorry, Touko," Bianca giggled and slid a bookmark into between two pages. "I'm really into this ancient book I found at the Unova Library."
Touko smirked.
"I can tell. You read so much that it's no wonder you had to get glasses."
Bianca rubbed the back of her head sheepishly.
"Yep! Being a researcher is a lot of work and reading, so it's a good thing that I enjoy it." She walked over to a nearby bench and set down the book. "Now, tell me about you and N. I want the deets! Have you kissed or what?" Bianca pried animatedly.
Touko chuckled. "You're always so relaxed when you're reading, and then as soon as you set a book down, you go back to hyperactive mode," she observed.
"Don't change the subject!" Bianca exclaimed with a pout.
The brunette rolled her eyes. "Well, I already told you about him ignoring my calls all of the time because of 'Minccinco', or so he claims…"
Bianca nodded in understanding.
"I can vouch for him on that. Juniper's Minccinco is a chatterbox. It's notably sociable towards the other Pokémon at the lab. It must be excited that it found a human who it can actually have an engaging conversation with."
Touko was silent in thought for a minute before letting out a sigh.
"I guess that's true. Maybe I'm just being slightly jealous," she muttered.
"What did you say~?" Bianca teased.
"I'm not repeating it!" Touko exclaimed and crossed her arms. She relaxed them after a brief moment. "I'll meet up with him later and apologize."
"Mm-hm, and then you can take a lovey-dovey ride on the Ferris wheel in Nimbasa, share a passionate kiss and make up!" Bianca enthused, clasping her palms together in delight.
Touko's face flushed. "S-Stop it, you're embarrassing me," she said. A smirk crawled across her lips. "Now, why don't you tell me about what's going on between you and Cheren?" Bianca froze. "Mm-hm. I bet there's a reason why you're in Aspertia all of the time."
"I had to deliver a Snivy, Tepig, and Oshawott to those new trainers starting out here!" she quickly defended.
"That was a month ago. They've already left on their journeys," Touko reminded.
"Well, it's not like that between us—"
"That's sweet of you! He probably can't come and visit you since he's the new Gym Leader here, so that's why you're always here to visit him, right?" Touko teased.
"No, there's nothing going on between us, Touko!"
Touko pursed her lips and paced a few feet away. "I don't blame you; puberty has really done him well. He looks like a model these days compared to how awkward and nerdy he used to be."
"Touko!"
"I'm just kidding," Touko laughed lightheartedly. "We all know he's still a nerd, anyway. I'm allowed to make fun of him since we're all best friends, you know."
Bianca frowned.
"Seriously, I didn't mean to insult your boyfriend—"
"Not my boyfriend!"
Touko ignored her. She tapped a finger against her chin. "I bet it was the glasses."
Bianca tilted her head to the side. "Hm?"
"His glasses—those thin, red ones that he used to wear a few years ago. He probably looks so different because he stopped wearing them. He has nice eyes," she commented.
"Y-Yeah, I guess so."
"You look good with glasses, though." The brunette eyed the blonde, observing the spectacles that rested over the bridge of her nose. "Wait a minute…are those Cheren's?"
"Wh-What?"
"Come to think of it, he stopped wearing his glasses around the same time that you got yours, right?" Touko realized. Her sapphire eyes widened in amusement. "They are his!"
Bianca fiddled with her fingertips.
"I don't know what you're talking about. That's silly."
Touko crossed her arms.
"Bianca, tell me the truth! How did you get them? Seriously."
"How did I get them…?" Bianca repeated to herself. She recollected the memory and soon found herself drifting away in thought.
She scanned the lines in front of her hopelessly. It was no use—everything was fuzzy. The blonde knew that her vision was blurring, she had even been told so by a few friends, but she was too stubborn to buy a better lamp for when she would read in her room.
She had insisted that there was no time for that. There were so many interesting things about Pokémon to read up on, she simply could not spare the time to run out and buy a new lamp.
Those were during her more obsessive days when she had just started studying to become a Pokémon Professor. She would research day and night, only breaking for lunch.
A tap on her shoulder made her jump. The blonde squinted her eyes to make out the familiar figure standing beside her, which turned out to be none other than her best friend Cheren. He was gazing down at her through his signature glasses with clear disappointment written in his eyes.
"Cheren?" Bianca clarified. "What are you doing here? It's late."
"Professor Juniper asked me to make sure to pass by and make sure you had left by eleven. She's a bit worried about you." Cheren shook his head in dismay. "...Touko and Touya are, too. You should stop pushing yourself so hard."
Bianca folded her arms over her chest. "I am not pushing myself. I'm having fun!" she contended.
"That doesn't mean you're allowed to read nonstop like this. You have to get out and go see the outside world. Better yet, go see some actual Pokémon. Being a Pokémon Professor isn't all about the bookwork, you know."
Bianca pondered the idea for a moment. "Maybe you're right," she admitted. "But now what am I supposed to do? I can't read at all! What if I never become a Pokémon Professor?" she panicked.
Cheren pulled out the chair next to her and sat down.
"You get glasses, he said simply and gestured towards his own.
"Nooo," Bianca drawled out. "Then I'll look like a nerd!" Cheren raised his brows with half-lidded eyes at her remark. She giggled sheepishly. "They look nice on you; glasses probably won't look good on me, though," she added.
Cheren shrugged. "Well, I don't think they'll look bad on you," he disagreed. "You're supposed to go to a doctor to get a pair, but try these anyway."
Cheren reached for his crimson spectacles, sliding them off of his nose and over the tops of his ears. While she squinted her eyes shut hesitantly, he gingerly moved the pair of glasses towards the blonde's face and set them in place.
"Hmm…" Cheren closely observed her. The glasses actually complimented her nicely. They worked oddly well with her bright green eyes.
Bianca finally opened her eyes. She looked around the room in delight, then glanced at the small text in the book that she had been having trouble with. "Whoa, I can see everything perfectly! These glasses work amazingly!"
Cheren let a small smile grace his lips. "That's good."
Bianca jutted out her bottom lip. "But do I look weird?"
Cheren started to oddly fumble with his hands. "Well, I can't see you as clearly, but you don't look bad." He took up a sudden interest in his shoes, locking his eyes downward and away from her. "You look sort of cute, actually…" he mumbled, his ears reddening.
Bianca blushed slightly. "Y-You think so? Thanks," she murmured happily.
"You can keep them, if you want," he said.
"No, I couldn't! They're yours and—"
"You need them more than I do," he pointed out. "Besides, I have contacts at my house. So, they're all yours."
"Wow, thanks so much, Cheren!" Bianca beamed. She closed the distance between them and enveloped him in a tight squeeze.
Cheren had somehow managed to fight the blush that threatened to invade his face. "Just make sure you don't lose them. I know how flighty you can be," he warned after she pulled away.
Bianca grinned cheekily. "Sure thing!"
"Come on, you still need to take a break from all of this researching. I'll walk you home," he offered.
"Okay, fine," Bianca agreed after a moment. She grabbed a jacket that was slung over her chair and followed Cheren to the door. As they stepped outside and Bianca locked it, she looked at him absentmindedly for a while as they walked.
"What?" Cheren finally asked.
"You know, you look sort of cute, too, without your glasses on," she admitted with a smile.
Cheren's face flushed. "Er…thanks, I guess," he replied awkwardly.
The blonde chuckled lightly. "Oh, Cheren."
"Bianca!"
Bianca snapped out of her thoughts to the voice of the impatient brunette. "Yeah, Touko?"
"You zoned out and never answered me. How did you get those glasses? Did you get them from Cheren or what?" she persisted.
"Oh yeah, sorry." Bianca paused and smiled inwardly to herself before firmly replying, "Nope. I didn't."
Touko looked disappointed at the lack of truth in her theory. She sighed and finally let the subject drop, moving on to chatting about the latest news about contests, legendary Pokémon and such.
Bianca decided that she would tell her the truth—another day, that is.
A/N: I'm pretty happy about how this turned out. I love how they gave Bianca Cheren's glasses in B/W 2. They are so his! Well, I'm off to watch Fairy Tail. X3
