Professor Birch's Pokemon lab was empty today. Professor Birch and his aids were out doing field work today, while May attended to the lab. She was cleaning supplies, putting them neatly on the shelves in the order that her father listed them in. May knew this lab in and out to it's entirety, she grew up in it after all. While cleaning a tool, she heard a knock at the door, making her drop all the supplies to the floor. She groaned in annoyance before walking over to the door.

"I'm sorry, Professor Birch isn't here right now." there was a short pause before she heard a familiar voice.

"Hey May, it's Brendan. I wasn't looking for the professor, I was looking for you. Can I come in?" May formed a small smile on her face. "You made me drop some supplies when you knocked on the door, but sure, come on in." Since the door was locked on the outside, she opened the door for him, allowing for Brendan to come in. Brendan glanced around the lab, it was spotless. Brendan never wanted to admit it to May, but he thought she was a total clean freak, especially when she was bored. Lab work was not her thing, she liked to go out, do field work, and explore the world. Brendan sighed.

"Wow... your dad is going to freak, I don't think I've seen it this clean before, ever... in the six years that I've lived here." May let out a small laugh "Thank you, want to sit down? What is it do you want to talk about?" Brendan nodded, finding a nearby lab table and two office chairs before sitting down in one of them. May picked up her supplies that she dropped earlier before sitting down with Brendan. "So... what's up?" Brendan shrugged "Oh not much really, aside from birthday stuff it's been the same old same old. Some people are acting kind of weird today, but maybe I'm just over analyzing. What about you? I came to ask how your studies were going."

May shrugged "Not much really. Steven found some cool fossils and stones that he donated to the lab, but other than that... not a whole lot. How are people acting weird?" May smiled softly as she rolled in her office chair.

"Well... I talked to Wally on the phone maybe a hour or two ago. It really sounded like something was on his mind, and he told me that he missed me. Then my parents acted strange, dad told me I had a special bond with Wally. Of course we have a special bond, we're friends, you know? Just like how you and I are friends, and how I'm friends with Steven." May's smile turned into a smirk as she listened to Brendan.

"Hm.. well mister Brendan, I think you and Wally do have a special bond. What kind of bond that is, well, I think you'll have to figure that out for yourself." Brendan now had an extremely confused look on his face.

"Now I think you're hiding something from me. Is Wally planning something?... Is he getting sick again? I hope his sickness didn't relapse." He looked down and tugged at the hair under his hat while his elbows rested on his legs.

"No! Don't worry about that, Wally hasn't had problems with his illness in years." May got up from her chair and walked over to a small fridge that was off in the corner on an end table. "Want some water?" Brendan sat back up and slowly began to relax again, Wally relapsing was probably one of his worst fears, aside from endangering his Pokemon. "Yeah, sure. Sorry I just worry, I don't want Wally to get sick again." May handed Brendan a water bottle as she sat back down. "How about I ask you a few questions, sound okay?" Brendan looked at May curiously. "Uh.. okay sure."

"Okay, first question. When you're with Wally, how does he make you feel?" Brendan sat there silently for a long time, he never thought about that before.

"Um... well, he makes me feel happy. I have a really good time with him when he's around. He always makes me feel better when I'm down about something and always encourages me to try my best. He always makes sure that I'm on the top of my game too, we regularly battle. I beat him most of the time, but at the same time he's a fierce competitor. He's improved a lot over the past six years. Um... overall I just feel... fulfilled, everything makes sense and he helps me remember that there are still good people in this world. Sorry if that was a long answer." May smiled and let out a small chuckle.

"It's okay Brendan, okay! Next question! When you're away from Wally, do you think of him often? How does he make you feel when he's away?" Brendan smirked "That was two questions." May then sighed and covered her face with her palm "Just answer the questions." Brendan sat back in his office chair and thought for a moment. He then thought back to the conversation that he had with Wally and how he said that he missed him. Did he miss Wally too, without realizing it?

"Hm... I guess I do miss him I just... always put that feeling in the back of my mind. Yeah I um... usually wonder what he's doing, what he's eating for dinner, where is he training today, I kind of worry sometimes, I admit, but I know he's a strong person, he overcame a medical condition and became one of the best trainers I know." May blushed and glanced down at the lab table.

"Wow... I really wish I felt the same way as you about someone. Love is a wonderful feeling." Brendan blinked.

"I'm confused, ever since I moved here all I've focused on was training my pokemon, becoming the very best, keeping my title as the Pokemon Champion of the Hoenn Region. I never had time for love, I don't even know what love is. Does it mean I want to kiss him or does it mean that I just happen to have a really close friendship with Wally?" May shrugged.

"Honestly Brendan, I wish I knew. I'm in the same boat as you, my entire life has been dedicated to Pokemon research. Maybe you should talk to Wally, tell him what you told me, how you feel. See if you can sort things out with him. I recommend doing it after the Pokemon contest." May got back up from her chair and went through her backpack, which was by one the desks, she'd then hand Brendan a large gift box.

"By the way, happy birthday. Just talk to him, and you're right, I do know something that you don't but I promised to keep my mouth shut. You're going to have to figure it out for yourself." Brendan frowned at May. He really wanted her to tell him what was going on, but he wasn't going to argue with her. He sighed and opened the present, inside was a large orange backpack. It had a ton of extra compartments in it that his old backpack didn't have, plus it was new with no tears.

"Thank you May! I've been really needing a new backpack for my travels. It even has extra slots for more items." Brendan got up from his chair and hugged her tightly, clearly happy with his gift. He then glanced down at his PokeNav, it was 12:30pm.

"Shit! May.. I need to go to my dad's Pokemon catching ceremony is in 30 minutes but I'll see you later, yeah?" May smiled, giving him a quick pat on the back before letting Brendan loose from the hug.

"Yep, see you later. I wish you luck in figuring your feelings out. Be open with Wally okay? Don't hide anything from him." Brendan nodded before opening the door "Be open... got it. See you May!" And with that he exited the lab and began his trek to Petalburg City.