DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokemon, Calem, or Serena. They are property of Nintendo.
I decided to write this story as a little follow-up to my well-received story New Friends. I'm glad you like that story. I hope you like this one too! (I got the idea to give Calem autism from the fact that I have autism myself.)
BTW, Serena was recently announced to be in the Pokemon X and Y anime. I have mixed feelings about it.
THE ESTATE OF NIBIRU-MUL PRESENTS
A WALK IN THE WOODS
CHAPTER 1: THE WALK
Calem had been living in Vaniville Town for about two weeks now. He was beginning to really like it. Everyone seemed to be really nice - especially Serena, his next-door neighbor. The quietness of the street that Calem lived on helped give him peaceful thoughts.
Today, Calem wanted to go take a walk in Santalune Forest. When he got up from bed, he looked out the window and saw how beautiful it was outside. Then he did his morning routine. After he had eaten breakfast and showered, he went upstairs to get dressed. First he put on a pair of blue floral print boxers. Then he got out a black T-shirt. Next, he put on his jacket, pants, and boots. Finally, he took his cap.
Calem looked at himself in the mirror.
"I think I look good today," he said. "I'll go meet Serena outside."
A bit later, Calem called Serena and asked if she wanted to take a walk in Santalune Forest. Serena agreed to this. Their parents agreed to it as well, but told them to stay out of the tall grass, as neither Calem nor Serena had any Pokemon.
Precisely at noon, Serena showed up to Calem's front door. She was dressed in her usual clothing.
"Hey, Calem," she said.
"Hello," said Calem. "It's such a lovely day. I would enjoy it if we went to the woods."
"I would enjoy it too," said Serena.
"I'm pretty much ready," said Calem. "I guess we can leave now."
"Okay," said Serena.
Calem and Serena went to the woods located near their house. They made sure that they were careful to avoid the tall grass. The two decided to talk
"How do you like it here?" asked Serena.
"It's great," said Calem. "Everything is really wonderful. The people are nice and love to see me perform. I especially like hanging out with you. We've hung out practically every day since I moved here two weeks ago."
"I know," laughed Serena.
"Still," said Calem, "it isn't easy to be in a new place. But I feel comfortable knowing you."
Serena giggled.
"I like how you wear your hair," said Calem. "You look like Princess Aurora from Sleeping Beauty."
"Thanks," said Serena. "She is my favorite of the princesses."
Calem looked up at the sky and saw some Fletchling flying overhead.
"There they go," said Calem, "flying into the distance."
"They look wonderful," said Serena.
While Calem looked at the bird Pokemon, Serena noticed that Calem was scratching himself and making soft noises.
"Calem," asked Serena, "what are you doing?"
Calem turned around.
"Huh?" he said.
"You were scratching yourself," said Serena.
"Sorry that I was doing that," said Calem, "it's nothing out of the ordinary. You might have seen me moving weird a bit. It's part of my disability. When I was two years old, I was diagnosed with autism. Specifically, Asperger's syndrome."
Serena was surprised. She didn't even suspect that Calem had a disability.
"I hope it's not that big of a deal," said Calem. "I didn't want to tell you, since I know that some people aren't very understanding. It's been hard for my mother and father, and everyone in my family."
"It's not a big deal," said Serena. "I know that plenty of people have disabilities. I'll still be friends with anyone nice regardless."
"Thanks," said Calem.
"What's it like having autism?" asked Serena.
"It can be hard sometimes," said Calem. "I've never been able to make many friends because of it. I get very lonely because of it. I tend to scratch myself when I'm nervous, and sometimes I rock back and forth. I'm still kind of attached to my parents in a way that most 14-year-olds aren't."
"That must be bad," said Serena.
"I agree," said Calem. "I also tend to communicate strangely. I tend to go on tangents a lot, so I often rant on and on about something - even if the person I'm talking to is clearly not interested. It's hard for me to understand sarcasm or irony."
"Then might be hard being around Trevor," said Serena. "His love of sarcasm is almost British."
Calem laughed.
"The other day," said Serena," I noticed that you have a lot of books. They're all of the same couple of topics. There's books about the sun, architecture, ancient technology, and the paranormal. I wonder if there is some sort of fixation."
"There is," said Calem. "I tend to fixate on certain topics. Those are just a few of them. I've had many others. At one point I was obsessed with old photos. I have a book with lots of photos. It has color photos from over 100 years ago. There's even some of Santalune Forest. It seems to have been larger back then."
"I know," said Serena. "They've cut down a lot of the trees over the years. Still can't believe there were color photos back then, though."
"I'll show you my book one day," said Calem.
Serena and Calem stood there and admired the scenery around them.
"Whenever I come here," said Serena, "I feel like I'm one with nature."
"I get that feeling whenever I'm in the woods too," said Calem.
"I wish I could just stand here forever," said Serena.
"I don't," said Calem. "Of course I'd like to be with you admire nature - you're my friend. But if I stand too long, I get really fidgety and start pacing. That's why I have to move around."
Calem and Serena laughed.