It felt as if every day my closet would get more and more filled with new clothes. At first, I would cycle through the same clothes every other day or so, but after the boutiques started offering Champion discounts, I got a little carried away. I would never get caught wearing the same outfit twice in a row, and to keep that up, my wardrobe kept getting larger. Unfortunately, my closet remained the same size.

Surely, my friends would have said something to me if I had gone a little too far in my shopping sprees, but we're no longer the young teenagers that first started out on their journey in Aquacorde. My friends have all grown up and gone off to do new things. While I've been doing Champion battles, everyone moved to Sinnoh for some reason or another. Calem left first to take on the Pokemon League because he heard the region champion there was especially challenging, Shauna chased after him and became a coordinator, Tierno started his dancing troupe, and Trevor left for research.

And there I was, curiously enough, the only one who was still in Kalos. Instead of my old friends, I had old clothes.

One day, Mom finally confronted me on the absurd amount of clothes in my room- I ran out of room in my closet, so it was impossible to step on my floor or find something on my desk without digging through the hoard of fabrics. It had become an everyday occurrence to kick away clothes to create a clear path to get from my door to my bedroom, but once Mom mentioned it, I came to realize that kicking away one dress only disrupted a new pile of skirts.

"Serena, honestly, are these clothes sentimental to you in any way?" she asked, lowering her eyebrows.

I shook my head. "No, not especially. Why else would they be lying on the floor?"

"That's what I'd like to know," she quipped, resting her hand on her forehead. "Look, Serena, I don't mind you buying clothes. You have the money for it, obviously, and it's nice to look good and all... but you can't even walk in your room anymore." I looked towards the floor, but there was no floor to be seen... only clothes. She was absolutely right.

"I don't care what you do with it. I'd suggest separating what you want and don't want first." As Mom turned to leave, she tripped over a fluffy pink skirt and had to grab the door to avoid falling. Holding on tighter to the door, she quickly turned to me with a stern blink of her eyes that made me shiver. "Sell it, donate it, I don't care! Just clear up some space in here!"

"Mooooom," I whined, "do you know how long that'll take?"

"Serena, you're not a teenager anymore, so quit acting like one." And without even looking at me, she attempted to shut the door, only to leave it ajar. It had been stopped by a mound of long-sleeved shirts and jean shorts.

Mom was right about that, too. Since I was still the champion in Kalos, I had no real reason to move away other than being twenty-one years old. Sometimes I wondered why I didn't just resign and go to Sinnoh to try and meet up with all my friends. I stretched out on my bed, but sat up straight for a moment when I realized I was lying on a scratchy blue shirt. Throwing it on the floor, I lied on the comforter for a few moments before I came to accept that the clothes swamp wasn't going to clear itself.


I started with the floor clothes on the right side of my bed. As I dug, I decided to start to look for clothes that actually caught my eye. In doing so, I first noticed the red pleated skirt that I wore when I first started my journey with my friends.

"I'll never understand what was wrong with wearing the same outfit..."

I remembered a voice from years ago, but I couldn't put my finger on who it came from. It made me look at the skirt a little differently, though. I wondered if I could even fit in it anymore. Even so, it started a pile on my bed of clothes to keep, followed by the collared top I always wore with it and the thigh high socks to match. I already got afraid that I wasn't going to get rid of anything until I shuffled through the clothes that were underneath. The clothes would not match the season at all, and some of them were too small for me to still fit in, so beginning a pile to do whatever I chose with was not that difficult.

The only difficulty from that point was deciding just what to do with the clothes I didn't plan to keep. Do I sell them? Give them away? I wasn't completely detached from some, and there were others that I could learn to live without. If I did move to Sinnoh, I could have had more space for clothes.

"Is your image really that important to you?"

Another voice found its way into my thoughts, somewhere from my memory, and yet I still couldn't recall who it came from. Disregarding it, I decided to worry instead about having a clear space on the floor where I could place the "tentative" pile to sort later.

Under the dresser, there was a pastel pink dress with a frilly skirt. I remembered there was a pale white shrug to match it, but where that shrug could be was lost on me. I had somewhat of an attachment to this dress, as it was the first boutique dress I had ever purchased. However, after holding the dress up in front of me and gazing at the mirror, I realized I was shorter back then, as the dress didn't even cover my thighs. What would I do with this dress, though?

I could give it to Shauna, I thought. She loves pink clothes. I had to remind myself that she was also grown just like I was; she must be taller, maybe taller than me. I remembered right before my friends had left how Trevor suddenly shot up in height and towered over me, so it was very plausible. It would be a nice sentiment, sure, to let her know that I hadn't forgotten about her, or any of my other friends that I journeyed with for that matter.

But what would Shauna have done with that dress? If she couldn't fit in it, it would've probably lied on the floor like it was then. Into the tentative pile it went.

Some skirts, socks, and shirts found their way into my hands, and unless I could convince myself that there was no way I'd wear it again or that it wouldn't fit me anymore, it ended up in the keeping pile. Finally, there was enough space for me to transfer the tentative clothes onto a spot on the floor where I wouldn't get it confused with clothes I hadn't looked at yet. Feeling accomplished, it was clearly time for a break.

A brief break to go downstairs and drink some juice turned into twenty minutes of indecision. I looked at Shauna's name on the Holo Caster, the contact picture of her with Calem, giving a peace sign. The picture was taken a year after we started the journey. When was the last time I had contacted her, anyway? Would it be weird if I called her just to chat? Looking at Calem, Tierno and Trevor's names didn't help the uncertainty I felt in that moment.

With the excuse to tell her about the pink dress, I pushed Shauna's name on the Holo Caster, and the hologram appeared, reading Dialing Shauna. Each second that passed made me feel more and more anxious. After a minute, the hologram read Shauna could not be reached. A message that, unfortunately, I forgot I had gotten used to a year after my friends had left. Why I could never seem to contact them, I couldn't remember, but before the hologram could familiarly ask me if I wanted to leave a message, I shut off the Holo Caster.

Mom walked into the room. "Oh? Did you take care of it?" Looked like she was in a better mood than before.

"I've started two piles so far," I responded, hoping that another sip of the cold juice could calm down the anxiety I felt in seeing my old friends' names on my contact list. "There's at least a clear spot on the floor right now, but obviously I still have more to do."

Mom noticed the device laying on the table next to me. "Your Holo Caster?" she asked. "Who called you?"

"Oh, no one."


I truly underestimated just how many clothes I had accumulated over the years. I had to take the couch to sleep for a couple days, as there was nowhere for me to store the clothes I wanted to keep. Instead, the clothes I especially liked piled onto my bed while the ones where I would choose what to do with later created a high pile in the corner of my bedroom. As the piles got bigger, I could see my floor. I questioned just how long it had been since I had a somewhat clear floor, as I had forgotten how a purple rug laid on it.

Days would pass, and the piles got bigger, until the only clothes on the floor were the ones in the pile. Even though I had a clean floor and a cleared desk, I thought, why stop there? There won't be any room in my closet to put away the clothes I wanted to keep. I would have to clean it out, too, and while I was at it, I would check my dresser for clothes.

While I worked, occasionally I'd still hear those vaguely familiar voices. When I sorted through the pile of tentative clothes to decide what would be sold and what could be given away or donated, they came back to me a little more frequently than when I first started this great clothing cleanup. It bothered me how I couldn't remember what this specifically came from and who had been speaking to me at the time.

I went through my closet, finding a blue long sleeve shirt in a certain shade that reminded me of Calem's jacket that he used to wear.

"I see you chose fashion over us."

Into the keeping pile.

Through the brightly colored clothes and somber ones, I also found an icy blue skirt, the color of a Vanillite. It made me think of the Vanillite design that was happily resting on the front of Tierno's shirt that he had worn almost every day.

"So what if I wore it every day? I like the shirt!"

Into the keeping pile.

How odd it had been that I remembered that phrase when I thought of Tierno. Could it have been him that said that me? Maybe, but the voice felt so strange to me, nothing like Tierno's hearty, friendly voice at all. Maybe it was a trend for the clothes that made me think of my friends to trigger these vague voices. As I shifted through more clothes in the closet, I tried to think less and less of my friends whenever I came across certain clothes. My thoughts were simplified to keep, don't keep, keep, don't keep.


After having the closet cleaned out, including the boxes of clothes on the floor of it, I had enough room to hang up some of the clothes I intended to hold on to. Next was the dresser.

I had to put the barrier on my thoughts once more so I could quickly go through the clothes in my dresser with minimal hassle from the vague voices that tried to call to me. As much as I wanted to remember where they came from, I just couldn't do it. It got to the point where it hurt to try and think about it.

However, the dresser had other plans for me. When I opened the first drawer, the very first article of clothing was a neatly folded teal sweater vest with a Pokeball-motif shirt pocket.

Trevor?

Strangely, no vague voice penetrated my mind upon seeing the vest, despite not only being something that would remind me of him- it was literally his vest.

Not to mention that I remembered specifically how I had the vest in the first place. I came ill prepared to Snowbelle City on one occasion, so Trevor had lent it to me. I didn't remember, though, why I had never returned it. Not even giving it a sniff, which still smelled of him, elicited any memory, and still did not make me hear another voice. My brain must have been playing a joke. Since Trevor never was one to talk much, it wouldn't generate another indistinguishable voice for me.

Instead of holding the vest up to me in the mirror, I slipped it on over my shirt. Of course, it was too small, and I felt constricted. I could keep it, maybe, but I wouldn't be able to wear it. After all, I could remember the taller Trevor from a few years before, and how the vest wouldn't be able to fit him, either. In attempting the take the vest off, I knew that there was no way I could give it away.

I could give it back to him.

He wouldn't have to wear it, but he might at least appreciate that I gave it back, albeit years later. How long have I had it? Would it be strange to bring it up now? I remembered the anxiety I felt when Shauna failed to pick up the Holo Caster from a few days ago, and my failed attempts to contact any of them before that. Even though I felt a lump in my throat, I couldn't let it get the best of me. A chance to see Trevor and the rest of my friends with a legitimate reason had finally surfaced.

I decided I didn't care if he would find it weird that I held on to it for so long. I was going to give it back no matter what. Even though I already took enough time off from my Champion post, even though I hadn't the slightest clue where in Sinnoh Trevor or the others lived, I would do it.

Before I left Kalos, I told the Elite Four of my extended leave, and they weren't pleased. Their disagreement worsened once I told them why I was leaving in the first place. Threatened with Diantha reclaiming her former Champion position, I told them that they could do whatever they'd like if I was not back in a week's time.

Next on the agenda was to ask Trevor's sister where her younger brother could possibly be. She looked considerably older than what I could remember; her hair was shorter and her eyes a little narrower. She told me I could find him in Jubilife City, and as I thanked her, she stopped me in the doorway.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?"

"I'm certain," I responded. "It's been a while since I've seen them!"

"Alright then, if you're sure," she said before I shut the door. What a weird question, I mused to myself as I stepped on the plane to Sinnoh.

"What were you thinking?"


When the plane touched down in the Jubilife airport, it was two in the morning. I would have to find somewhere to stay, if only I could keep my eyes open long enough. The brisk air of Sinnoh hit me when I first stepped out of the airport. I had brought along some of the clothes I had chosen to keep, including the first outfit I wore on my journey, but I doubted any of them would keep me warm. Not many people were outside, as most of the cars moving around were surely trying to find their way home. Maybe I had kept the vest in case I were to go to Sinnoh.

As long as I kept the timezone difference in mind between Kalos and Sinnoh, I could make it back in time safely after about a week of rekindling the friendships I must have lost a few years ago. Trying to keep the positive thinking, all that was left to do was find a hotel to stay in.

"What were you thinking?"

I moved a little bit faster, as if to run away from the voice. This one felt the most familiar of all, and yet I couldn't remember who said it. I had just about enough of these phrases by now.

"Is your image really..."

I picked up the pace.

"I see you chose fashion-"

At this point, I was running. I could feel the stares of the few passerby that were outside, as it looked like I had been running from nothing. What else was I to do with these voices I couldn't place my finger on?

I thought I could stop as soon as I started to run out of breath, but instead, my running was halted when I blindly collided into one of the passerby.

Before I could even think to apologize, I suddenly blurted "Oh, Arceus!" out of embarrassment. The person seemed more shocked by my outburst than that he had just been ran into. "I'm so sorry," I added, offering a hand to help him up.

Something about his hand felt significant. Then I saw his face.

"Serena?" he asked, his gray eyes widening.

"Trevor!" I stood up almost immediately, sending Trevor upwards on his feet. "You're exactly the person I was hoping to see! I-"

The redhead cut me off. "W-When did you get here? How long have you been here? If I'd known..."

"I just got here," I answered. "I just got off the plane maybe twenty minutes ago. Right now I'm looking for a hotel." It had been so long since I had seen him that I wanted to catch up before I gave him the vest. "What one would you recommend? Preferably not that pricey?"

Trevor looked like he was struggling. Scratching the back of his neck as he faced the ground, it sounded like he was saying something. I asked him to repeat himself, and he looked at me with a rosy face and said, "If it's no problem, you could stay over until you find somewhere to go."

Somehow, I had been handed the perfect opportunity. Miraculously, Trevor happened to be outside at two o' clock in the morning and I was granted time to speak with him longer. "Thanks. I'd really appreciate that."

As he lead me to his house, I noticed how much he'd changed. He had gotten taller since I last saw him, probably taller than Calem had been. His hair was cut to where you could see he had a jawbone, but he still had those bangs that tried to fall over his eyes. He grew a little lankier, and had a five o' clock shadow. He told me about how his research was going until we had arrived at his apartment- a humble place, but he called it home.

He directed me to the room where his bed was and volunteered to take the sofa before I could say anything. I rolled my suitcase into his room and, as I unzipped it to find some pajamas, all the clothes collapsed onto the floor. I had gotten sick of seeing clothes scattered everywhere at this point, but seeing the sweater vest among the clothes made me realize what convinced me to travel to Sinnoh in the first place.

"Trevor!" I stomped into the main room, making him jolt as he was placing a sheet over the sofa cushions. "Uh, the reason why I came here... well, the main reason..."

"What were you thinking?"

This voice pounded in my head more than the others did. It made my head ache, and I couldn't finish my sentence.

"Serena, are you okay?"

I shook it off. "Dandy." I walked over to him and let the sweater vest do the talking.

"This is..." His eyes softened as he held the vest in his hands, and he cracked a little smile. "I gave this to you in Snowbelle City." He chuckled. "Well, thank you for returning it after all these years... but I have to wonder, why did you hold onto it for so long?"

"Funny story," I said as I sat on the armrest of the sofa. "There was literally nowhere in my room to walk, so I started going through all my clothes, and I found your vest. That was what gave me the courage to come here after so long... to return it to you." I looked down at my feet, my cheeks flushing red. "I guess it was weird to hold onto it for so long, I really don't remember why I never gave it back..."

"You still held on to fashion?" he asked. I faced him to answer, but something was awfully familiar about the face he was making. It looked sad.

"..."

It suddenly hit me. The reason why I never heard a voice when I first rediscovered Trevor's sweater vest wasn't because my brain was mocking me. He had been silent when that happened, so there was no discouraging phrase for me to remember him saying.

Then I remembered what that was in the first place, and I remembered that a different calling was not the sole reason that my friends had left for Sinnoh.

"What were you thinking?"