Several days later…

Liam awoke startled, barely aware that something had jolted him out of his sleep. He immediately noticed the pounding pain in his head, recognized it as a hangover, and then heard the aggressive ringing and vibration buzz of his cellphone a short ways away.

'That fucking bitch,' was the first thing he thought, assuming it was Clara contacting him but soon collected his wits a little bit and changed his mind. It was pretty doubtful she'd call to apologize.

He fumbled around on the couch, searching for the device. He swept his hand across the carpet in the direction of the sound, knocking over but quickly righting a now empty glass . The next ring allowed him a little more accuracy in his search - It was on the floor behind the arm of the couch his head was tucked into. He brought his hand back, and then swung it over, before quickly realizing that none of his limbs were long enough to reach the phone from this angle. He sighed loudly, and contemplated giving up for a brief moment. However, as soon as he thought this, he noticed that it hadn't rang on time - he had missed the call.

He let himself relax for a bit , and then forced himself to sit up, hearing his message tone go off as he did. He stood up and walked over to the phone, picked it up off the carpet, turned it over so the screen faced him, unlocked the screen, and sat down.

It was from Erik: Hey. Hope ur alright. Haven't heard from u in a while. If ur up to it wanna grab something to eat today?

Sure. Sorry I missed your call. Actually right now would be best. Have a killer hangover to get rid of. U free?

Yep. If u can give me 30 minutes I sure can be free. Make sure u drink water while u wait. I guess we can go to the blue light cafe

Alright. See u there

Liam put his phone down on the couch cushion and brought the glass he had almost knocked over earlier back to the kitchen to refill it. He didn't usually drink, except for fun when he was over at Erik's place, but he had nothing better to do last night and wanted to see if alcohol was as good a problem solver as everyone else seemed to think it was. He regretted it. It hadn't really made him forget his sorrows over his failed relationship. It had actually done almost the opposite, to the point where he'd considered that maybe his whole life had been a waste of time.. He just needed to focus on something else - a few cups of coffee and some eggs and bacon would surely help with this hangover.

He downed the glass of water he was holding before pulling off the clothes from last night and grabbing a quick shower. He then brushed his teeth, threw on some warm and comfortable clothes and a pair of sunglasses to avoid as much light as possible, and then headed out the door.

The Blue Light cafe was an old mom-and-pop diner that he was surprised could still stay in business. It was a bit worn and tired-looking but had a relaxing aura to it. The prices were cheap too. Sadly, he doubted the place could stay open much longer in the declining economic state of the city, as the poor were finding it more and more difficult every day to eat out somewhere, and the rich could afford to eat at more upscale restaurants.

He pulled the door to the business open, found Erik at a booth near the entrance, and went to sit down, giving the best smile he could muster back to the waitress.

"Be with ya in a sec," she called out.

"Good morning, Sunshine. You look like a shady drug dealer, to be honest," Erik teased.

With a laugh, Liam replied, "The sun hurts. My eyes hurt. My head hurts. Everything hurts."

Erik didn't have any food or drink on the table, so Liam figured he had arrived just before himself. He sat down across from Erik and was able to glance through the menu before the waitress arrived to take their orders, both getting traditional breakfast platters. They talked about Liam's drinking episode. Liam explained about why he had tried it and how he felt about it.

Erik nodded and leaned back in his chair, replying, "Hey, it's certainly not for everyone and I think breakup drinking has done more harm than good for humanity."

"Yeah well, you live, you learn. Got any better ideas, for next time?"

"Best you can really do is just sleep on it, to be honest," Erik explained. "Do everything you can to relax yourself and fall asleep." It's always easier to deal with it in the morning. Especially when you're not having to deal with a hangover."

Liam grinned at the advice. "Gotcha."

After a few moments of silence, Erik decided to ask, "So did you end things with her?"

"With Clara? Yeah. She said I wasn't going anywhere with my life. Said she'd found someone who was going to… 'make real money.' " Liam emphasized the foolishness of her idea by making quote marks in the air with his fingers.

"Wow, I didn't think she was that shallow," Erik said with a scowl.

"I didn't either. Good luck to her though. She'll need it. Thinks she's found a good life and true love by fucking a drunk guy at a bar."

Erik shrugged. "You live, you learn."

"Yep, true that."

"You're taking it pretty well though, I have to say," Erik commented.

"Well I mean, I cried on the floor like a bitch, the first few days. Nothing I can really do about it though, besides move on or mope around and complain."

"Good to hear bud. At least you found out now, before you invested even more into a relationship with her."

Liam nodded. "Yep."

Once the more serious issues were out of the way, they passed the time chatting companionably for a while. Liam could feel an air of expectancy, though; There was some important news that Erik hadn't shared with him yet.

"Look, I doubt you came out here just to ask me about Clara. So, what's going on?" Liam asked as he finished his breakfast.

Erik smiled and tried to talk but it was a feeble effort with a mouthful of food. He closed his mouth again and put his finger in the air to indicate that he needed a second. "Ok, so..."

He interrupted himself to shovel the last of his toast into his mouth, putting his finger up yet again.

"I hope it's good news this time, man. I'm not sure I can take another breakup."

"Yeah, don't worry, it's nothing bad this time ," Erik chuckled , swallowing as he did. He heaved a sigh and put on a big smile as he put down his knife and fork. "You remember at the sushi place, when I said I had something for you - part of my going away celebration?"

Liam tilted his head slightly in confusion and responded, "Barely. Why?"

"I think you might like this one, but I'm not sure."

"Well, spit it out then," Liam insisted, sitting up and leaning forward a bit in anticipation.

"Alright. If you want it, I got you a plane ticket out of here."

Liam was caught entirely off guard. "What? Why? What for?"

"I got you a job too."

"A job? What are you talking about, dude? I'm entirely lost now."

Erik smiled and waved his hand to mentally clear the conversation. He explained to his friend, "Sorry, sorry. You know I'm going to another school to continue. I'm going to leave early next month."

"Next month? That's in just a few weeks," Liam interrupted.

"Yeah, listen. You're my best friend and you looked after me when we were kids. I haven't forgotten that. I wouldn't leave you in this situation, so I'm gonna do the best thing I can to help you."

"I'm not taking your money, Erik," Liam interrupted yet again.

Erik chortled at the remark."I figured you'd say that, and so I took that into consideration. Let me finish this time. Alright, where was I? Right, I'm leaving soon. Again, it's up to you if you want to or not, but my aunt and uncle have a job you can do. They offered it to me when I was looking at schools in the area. It pays decently - about what you're getting paid now."

Liam opened his mouth to remark, but was quickly cut off as Erik continued.

"BUUUT… you get free rent."

Liam shut his mouth and started properly listening, his interest piqued by that element of the offer.

"You also get breakfast and dinner for free every day. The work isn't too bad either. You just have to help Erika and Greg with the customers. They're the owners. They run our family's "skiing-slash-hiking" lodge."

"Skiing? Where is this?" Liam asked with intrigued caution.

"Northern Sinnoh. Overlooks Snowpoint City," he said with a grin.

Liam thought about it for a second then broke out in a smile himself, remembering the conversation about Sinnoh at dinner the other week.

"You clever bastard! I see what you did. I should have caught on sooner. What if I had told you I couldn't stand sushi, back at the restaurant?"

"I had never thought about it, to be honest! So anyways, I got you the job, the ticket, I've got you some cold weather clothes. Just about got you a brand new life. It's a big change though, so think about it. You're gonna have to sell most of your stuff. Can't really bring much with you on a plane. I can't promise I could get you back here either, if you change your mind afterwards. You should probably just consider it a one-way trip, if you do take it."

"Have you met them? Erika and…"

"Greg," Erik finished for him. "Yes, I have."

"Right. Erika and Greg. What are they like? "

"Erika is one of the nicest ladies you'll probably ever meet. Think of the most endearing grandmother you can and that's about what you should expect from her. Greg is your typical lazy old man. Nice, just lazy. He's most of the reason they need help running the place, I'm pretty sure."

Liam rested his head on his hands contemplatively while he thought it over. It was a big decision to make - he was being offered a fresh start, but that required leaving everything he had here behind. He really wasn't sure. He looked up at Erik and breathed in through his teeth.

"Man, I don't know. It's a lot to think about. How much time have I got to decide?"

"Plane leaves two weeks and two days from tomorrow. Same as me."

The pair stood up from the booth. Liam reached into his jacket pocket and grinned determinedly.

"I'm paying this time."

"Alright, alright. I'll let you this one time," Erik replied, some good-natured mockery in his voice.

Liam raised his hand for a handshake, which was quickly grasped by his friend's. He leaned in and gave Erik a small, short hug.

"Love you, man. Can't tell you how much I appreciate this."

"Yeah, I know. Me too," Erik joked. "Let me know what you decide."

"Will do."

Liam put the cash out for the bill and the two left the restaurant together. He turned down his friend's offer of a ride home - he wanted some alone time to contemplate everything - and the two went their separate ways. As he started his walk home, his headache forgotten in the excitement, he admitted to himself that he already knew the answer he'd give to the offer. He'd known well before they parted, but thought he should probably at least wait until he got home, so Erik knew he was taking it seriously.

What was there to stay for anyways? He had nothing connecting him to this town anymore, besides a family that hardly cared about him and probably couldn't help him even if they did. Memories? He could make new memories - better ones than he could make in this place. His shitty apartment? The one with the old carpet and broken appliances, with the lovely view of the parking lot? His friends? The one he had left was moving away.

He walked the rest of the way home daydreaming about what his new life might be like. Maybe he'd meet new friends, try new food, take up some new hobbies. He imagined what life at a ski lodge would be like: the tasks he'd be in charge of completing, the smell of the mountain air, the sight of fresh snow. He also wondered if he'd meet any pokémon like Chelsea, maybe even find friends in them like she had suggested he try. He smiled as he made it to his apartment and ripped a piece of paper out of one of his spiral notebooks, writing a hasty note on it. He signed it, folded it up into his pocket, and drove to his work to drop it off.

After climbing back into his car, he pulled his cellphone and sent a text to Erik.

I'll do it. I just gave work my two weeks.

He grinned with newfound excitement, vigor, and hope, and pulled out of his work's parking lot.

Author's notes:

Fun fact that's relevant to enjoying the story as it continues: Sinnoh is based off the island of Hokkaido in Japan. I found this out while researching areas for my story. As such, I decided to go with that theme. I hope this explains the sushi thing and will allow you to understand the story better, going forward.

:End author's notes