Drew had hoped to not have to talk to anyone today. He had just checked in to his hotel, relieved that he was able to get a decent room. He could see vacancies must have been filling up fast due to the volume of other coordinators that populated the hotel main lobby, their conversations reverberating against the fancy marble floor tiling. He saw a lot of familiar faces from other previous contests he participated in Johto, an indication that the Goldenrod City Contest was being held a couple days later. No one he personally knew was here. Which was good.
Drew quickly scanned the foyer to double check, careful to not make eye contact with anyone. He ascertained the coast was clear and decided to make a beeline for the elevators. He started to make his stride until a voice behind Drew interrupted him.
"Hey Drew!"
Drew stopped in his tracks. His relaxed posture from his own assurances was gone. Drew had replaced it with a tense firmness in his muscles. His arms were now parallel to his body, his hands balled into fists, and his legs had snapped to attention. Drew had shut his eyes tight, a demonstration that he wanted a brief flash of concentration to figure out what had gone wrong or how to get out of the conversation that was about to happen. Of all people he wanted to avoid today, it was her.
Drew turned around, replacing his unseen pained expression with the most disarming and smug smile he could assemble.
And his lie would have to be equally disarming.
"Why hello May. It's good to see you."
Drew at least was pleasantly greeted with a wide heart melting grin. Drew sometimes wondered if May trained herself to do that when greeting people or if this was just something she couldn't help. Drew had to admit to himself that May's smile made it easier to fake his own.
"It's good to see you too, Drew!" May enthusiastically replied, "I thought I would find you here!"
That set off klaxons in Drew's head. Drew knew that the probability of May walking by the luck of the draw into this particular hotel in Goldenrod City was lower than a Meowth refusing Miltank milk. This told him that May was actively trying to find him. His only hope was that May wasn't trying to find him for the reason why he wanted to avoid her today.
"Huh, well, I didn't think we'd see each other before the contest," Drew let himself admit. But his lying then resumed, "But I'm pleasantly surprised you found me. How did you manage to figure out which hotel I checked into?"
Drew suspected someone had told her and he was certain of two suspects. May tilted her head and rolled her wide bright eyes towards the ceiling to recall her memory.
"Yeah, Harley was telling me how you always get a room at the hotel closest to the Contest Hall if it's closer than the Pokemon Center," she recounted, "It should have been obvious to me before but you know me!"
Drew's face wanted to turn sour again. But he couldn't afford to let it happen right now. Not in front of May especially. Of course Harley would rat him out. Nonetheless, he didn't remember ever telling Harley about his lodging habits. Much less talk to him on a one-on-one basis.
"I'm," Drew facetiously sputtered, "I'm glad Harley was able to help you out." Drew was not glad.
"Yeah, it's great that his advice was able to help me find you before the Contest!" May continued, somehow evolving her smile into even giddier levels, "Because I wanted to wish you a very happy birthday, Drew!"
And there it was. Drew's suspicions were confirmed. May was here for his birthday. Drew had hoped no one remembered. He wanted the day to go unceremoniously without any incident. A part of him was touched that May had gone out all this way to find him to say that. But another part of him felt betrayed, as if his friends should have known psychically he wanted his date of birth to go unnoticed.
"Aww, that's very sweet of you May, why thank you," Drew expressed falsely and truthfully at the same time. Drew was genuinely touched as to the extent May would reach out to him. May deserved that from him at least.
But Drew also wanted to take names so he could dole out the appropriate ramifications to the necessary parties down the line. "How did you know it was my birthday today?" he followed.
"Well," May explained, "I ran into Solidad this morning when I was getting my Pokemon checked into the Pokemon Center. She told me it was your birthday today! I'm sorry, I wish I would've known sooner!"
"It's fine, May. You went out of your way to find me to say this," Drew reassured. Solidad's habit of revealing too much about Drew was always an intolerable liability for the La Roussian native. But this cavalcade of intelligence failures was too convenient. Drew needed to press further.
"One more question," Drew interrogated, "When did Harley tell you about where I like to stay?"
"Oh, about, uh," May recalled, "Two days ago I think? It was kind of weird. It was like he was waiting for me outside of the Goldenrod Radio Station right after I had that interview with DJ Mary…"
Drew knew it. They were accomplices. Harley and Solidad basically spoon-fed May into meeting him here. Drew made a mental reminder to make life miserable for them sometime in the future.
"Huh, weird indeed," Drew muttered while rolling his eyes.
"So," May followed, clasping her hands behind her back with a pursed smile, "What are you doing for your birthday today, Drew?"
"Uh," Drew pretended to stall to give the impression he had no definitive plans for the day and was mentally managing his schedule. But his itinerary was already set the moment he woke up this morning. "I think I'm just going to take a nap for an hour," Drew confidently presented, "Then I'm going to do some drills with Roserade and Absol this afternoon and evening."
Drew hoped that May would be satisfied with that answer. But she predictably was not.
"Drew!" May complained, "The contest isn't until three days away! You have a lot of time to relax!"
"Three days isn't a lot of time, May," Drew countered, "Me and the team feel we need to do a hard day today and an easy day tomorrow."
"Well, instead of a hard day today, why not a birth day," May improvised with disdain. "And an easy day tomorrow!" she naively suggested, her disdain turning into pride. May appeared to genuinely believe that her solution was the best idea ever.
Drew ignored the core of May's questionable logic and took it at face value. "Well, I just don't think I can take that chance," Drew explained, "This routine needs to be perfect and the sooner I get my fourth ribbon, the closer I am to getting five which is in your best interests, May."
"Oh, how is that in my best interests?" May asked as she put her hands on her hips. She knew where Drew was going with this based on the sly look he gave her.
"Because as soon as I get my fifth ribbon, you won't have to worry about me getting in the way of you getting your five ribbons," Drew expounded as he narcissistically folded his arms.
And there it was, the reaction that Drew loved getting from May. May's hands on her hips were now fists. She leaned forward to admonish Drew with a look of irritation, noted by her half closed eyes. Drew loved seeing the contrast from May's exuberant optimism to her unfiltered disappointment with reality.
"Drew, I'm serious!" May pleaded, her face now looking worried, "I sometimes wonder if you ever take any time for yourself!"
"I certainly do take time for myself," Drew retorted, "I take time for myself everyday to practice."
"That's not what I'm talking about!" May tried to correct, "It's about… Slowing down? Smelling the roses?"
"I smell Roserade's roses everyday, May," Drew snidely asserted as he brushed his emerald hair away from his eyes.
"That's also not what I'm talking about!" May complained, "Drew, it's your day today. Your birthday. It's your day to be loved and the first thing you need to do is love yourself."
Drew sighed as he surprisingly realized May did have a point there. He tilted his head and cocked his eyebrows as he locked his green eyes with May's sapphire pupils. He never considered May to be a sage of wisdom. But occasionally, just occasionally, she had pearl of wisdom that was an undeniable truth. May was always true to her heart. And as wrong as May's heart can be at times, whenever it got things right, it was impossible to dispute.
"I'm just not like you," Drew admitted in an attempt to futilely dispute her anyway, "May, I don't have this natural talent where I can come up with inspiration on the fly and pour my heart and soul out into an appeal and battle. You do. But I don't."
Drew put his right hand on the back of his head, signalling his discomfort with his excuse, "My weapon is perfection. My style is form and method. I need as much time as I can take to make sure things are flawless. For the days you practice, I need twice as many."
May was flattered that Drew would let himself verbally admit May's strength as a coordinator but she also had to clarify something to him.
"Well, thank you for that, Drew, but where do you think that mojo comes from?" she rhetorically asked.
"Your heart," Drew answered with unwavering certainty. If there was anything Drew was sure of in May, it was that.
May looked to her side, breaking her eye contact with Drew. "It's not just my heart, Drew," May trailed off, "It comes from all the things my heart has seen and heard and did and… Tasted." May giggled at that portion while holding her stomach. It was close to lunchtime. Drew couldn't help but shoot May a look of loving exasperation.
"Your journey with Ash, Brock, and your brother," Drew concluded, "Is that what you're talking about?"
"Yeah," May confirmed as she nodded, "I don't think I'd be half the coordinator I am now if it wasn't for all the stuff I did with Ash before I got to Johto."
"So is that what we should do for my birthday?" Drew asked with a chuckle. "Go out and look for trouble? That story you told me about Team Aqua and Team Magma sounds fun to do for someone's birthday," he added sarcastically with with his eyebrows raised.
"No!" May refuted, "Drew, it's about treating your heart to new experiences! Especially on your birthday!"
"I'm kidding, May," Drew clarified with a compassionate smile, "I get it. I really do."
"Really?" May pleaded
"I guess thinking about it, me, Roserade, and Absol don't have to practice as much as we thought we did today. So yes, really," Drew confirmed, amused that May cared this much about him. May looked relieved as he said that.
"Now, any idea where you want to take me for my birthday?" Drew followed, genuinely curious if May actually planned something for them.
"Well, that's a good question, I'm glad you asked!" May said as she reverted into her spunky mood. May took out a brochure from her fanny pack and handed it to Drew. "Ash said when he, Misty, and Brock were here, they visited a farm that's owned by the local Goldenrod City gym leader!"
"A farm?" Drew asked incredulously as he thumbed through the brochure contents. He didn't recognize the pink haired girl on the cover but assumed it was the gym leader she was talking about.
"A farm with Miltank!" May excitedly blurted, "And they let you milk them!"
Drew couldn't match May's excitement even if he tried. "You want to take me to a farm where you can milk Miltank," Drew reiterated, "On my birthday." Drew could see what May was talking about once he saw the pictures. Drew was resisting the urge to pinch the bridge of his nose.
"Mm hmm," May nodded, "It's going to be so much fun!"
"That sounds. That sounds like a lot of fun," Drew dryly responded. Drew didn't think he'd have to lie again at this point of the conversation. But he was willing to keep an open mind. Because of all the people he trusted, he trusted May.
Drew's tonal dissonance at least didn't seem to bother May. "Before we go, we should grab some lunch! And maybe we should go exploring in the city for a while!" she suggested.
May hooked her arm around Drew's. She gave a forceful tug, giving Drew a slight lurch of acceleration. Drew gave an uneasy but amused smile at May as her tried to match his speed with hers. They cut through the crowd of coordinators milling about the hotel lobby.
"C'mon, Drew!" she said as she led him out the revolving doors of the hotel.
The radiant sunlight of high noon briefly blinded Drew as he emerged out of the building. After his eyes readjusted, Drew noticed the busy pedestrian traffic in front of him. The countless newsstands and food carts. The sheer amount of stores across the busy boulevard. The high rises towering above him. There was a whole city to explore that didn't seem to occur to him when he arrived from Route 34.
But now he was going to explore it together with one of the people he cared about the most. Drew smiled as May guided him, dragging him, holding his hand through the dense crowd of pedestrians minding their own business as they conveniently parted the way for the couple.
Today Drew was going to treat himself for his birthday. Drew was going to let his heart treat itself to her.