Chapter 4

"There's nothing I want, but money and time" Million Dollar Bills by Lorde

I shouldn't have done that! It was a terrible mistake. I should have known this feeling of confidence was fleeting and that it would bite me back really, really hard!

I walked into the Gym not long after the confrontation with Team Plasma and faced Cress for the Gym badge, but he somehow swept my team with his Lillipup, KO-ing Ganon, Courage the Pansage, and Munny in just a few short rounds. By the time that Lillipup was worn down, it was up to his Panpour versus Madge, who I'll admit is the weak link of my team when going up against Cress.

I'm sitting in my small room at the Pokécenter, bawling my eyes out. Madge and Ganon are trying their best to soothe my crying, but it fails. "I'm so sorry, you guys. I feel like I'm failing you. I don't want to hurt you and force you to take on battles you can't win." I also made the mistake of not ordering my daily coffee before taking out on Cress. All of the money I won from fighting Plama and most of what I won from Fennel was given to Cress. That stung even more considering I could now barely afford to feed my lovelies for tomorrow. I mean, I suppose I could take on more trainer battles, but what for if I might lose again?

"Bianca?" Cheren's voice says from the other side of the door. He fiddles with the doorknob and lets himself in. "I was told you came in crying. What happened?"

I can't speak, bursting into even louder sobs as my best friend watches awkwardly. Neither him nor White are good at handling emotions or confronting them, which makes whenever I cry a problem. He gives me an awkward pat on the shoulder. "I lost."

"What did you lose? I can help you find it."

I wipe some of the streaming tears falling down my cheeks. "I didn't lose anything other than money. I lost the—I lost the Gym battle!" I lose all control of myself, pulling Cheren closer to me and sobbing into his blazer.

"Oh. Uh. That. What made you want to challenge the Gym, anyway?"

I pull myself away from his blazer, noticing the wet tear stains and snot from it. "I don't know!"

"Um. Okay. So something unknown made you want to challenge the Gym."

"I thought it'd be easy. I mean, White won on her first try." Cheren's face then changes.

"Bianca. You know that we're not White. We have to work for what we get. Things...Things don't come easy for us. It's like she's born with something...I don't know." I know of Cheren's longstanding feelings of jealousy and competitiveness towards White. I have them too, but it's mostly due to petty, meaningless, and forgettable things like who attracts more of the opposite gender or which one of us is better with people. Cheren's goes deeper and it honestly concerns me sometimes, however, if it wasn't the extra push she'd obliviously give him, then he wouldn't be the friend I know and appreciate. "I have an idea. Why don't we train a bit together and you hold off from challenging them for a few days? Then we can take on them and win."

"Okay." The last of my tears dries up and Cheren's face shows relief that I'm no longer crying. I'm still sniffing quite a lot, though.

"Great. So what are your Pokémon?" I show him my fab four and his eyes set on Courage. "Wait. A Pansage? Where'd you get a Pansage?"

"Some girl approached me and gave him to me."

"Bianca." Cheren slaps his hand against the side of his head. "You know you shouldn't be so trusting all the time."

"Please don't give me this lecture." Sometimes Cheren acts like he's my dad 2.0 whenever I flub something. I know he means well, but honestly needs to get it together.

"Okay fine, but you had a clear type advantage. Why didn't you use it?"

"Well...I didn't really know. I just led in with Ganon right here and thought he could sweep them."

"Recall your Pokémon right now, Bianca."

"Huh?"

"Come on." He gives me the Pokéballs and takes my hand the moment I recall them.

"Where are you taking me?"

"School. You're going to learn about strategy and tact right now."

"Nooooooooooooo." He drags a reluctant me out of my room. There's not much I can do when Cheren's in a helpful mood, is there?

I wake up the next day feeling overwhelmed and groggy. Okay, there's over fifteen types of Pokémon and I can almost never fully figure out type matchups. Like, how am I supposed to remember more obscure matchups like poison being weak to psychic? Or even immunities? This is so hard! I mean, I got to eat dinner with Fennel, White, and Amanita, but that was a lucky break. I didn't want to tell Fennel I gambled her money away, but the guilt I had was gnawing away at me. Now I have to figure out how I'm going to feed myself and my Pokémon for the day.

I need to figure something out. Fast. I walk out of the Pokécenter, feeling this odd mixture of desperation, determination, and hunger and stumble against someone carrying a bag of groceries. "Ahh! I'm so sorry! I wasn't looking." Wait a minute. I know this guy.

"Hey, I know you!" he says, reading my mind. "You're that pretty chick who went up against my brother!"

"Uh...yeah. What was your name again?" I give him a once over. He's cute, with red hair that looks like a flame and matching red eyes. He's dressed in a waiter's outfit much like Cress was. I was too focused on my impending battle to notice his brothers.

"I'm Chili! You're Bianca, right?" My cheeks burn with embarrassment over the fact that not only has a boy remembered my name, but that I didn't know his in the first place. "See, us firestarters got to stick together!"

"Uh?" Firestarters?

"I didn't mean it like that! You've got a Tepig and I've got a Pansear. And a Simisear. And a Heatmor. And a Darmanitan, but that's not the point. Hey, you wanna go hang out with me for breakfast?" Wait, what? He's inviting me for breakfast?

"Bianca!" Cheren's voice comes out of the Pokécenter. "I was looking for you."

"Really?" I kind of wanted to avoid him and school. I see Chili's face fall as Cheren walks right up. Oh my gosh. This guy can't be...interested in me, can he?

"Yes. Who's this?" Cheren gives Chili an inquisitive look. It's too neutral for me to tell, but I'm used to seeing him gauge people like this.

"I'm Chili. I'm the Gym leader here. Co-leader, actually. I fight those who start with grass types, typically." Cheren raises his eyebrow at this, but I don't think Chili takes notice. "Anyway, I was asking Bianca here to have breakfast over at the Gym with us. You can join us too, if you'd like."

Cheren's now quiet. "Well, Bianca and I were going to spend the day training, but I don't see the harm in it."

"Well, that's great! Follow me and I'll take you to the Gym for breakfast. We'll even make food for your Pokémon." Chili practically takes off and I glance over at Cheren.

"Don't say anything about me battling him later on, okay?" I give him a confused look. "Look, I'm here to know the enemy. Do some reconnaissance."

I pause, staring at his intense dark blue eyes. "Oh, Cheren." I laugh uncontrollably. "You're insane!"

"I'll wipe off that laughter off your face when I beat him. Come on, before he suspects something."

The Gym/café has only but a few people when we enter. Chili has set the groceries on the table and Cress is sweeping the floor. My stomach drops as our eyes meet once more. Him. I'm sure he didn't mean to make me cry, since it is his job and everything, but I didn't think seeing him once more would open up these wounds again.

"I brought some new friends of mine!" Chili announces to his brother. "I think you already know the lovely Bianca..." I can't help my face flushing once more. "And this...uh. Dude, what's your name?"

Cress begins to snicker. Upon closer inspection, he reminds me of Cheren quite a bit.

"Cheren."

"Yes, Cheren. Hey, isn't that a girl's name?" Chili asks.

Cheren gives him a death glare worthy of a Gullotine. I think I'm the only one us three who doesn't get made at certain things regarding our names. White rages when you call her Hilda, Cheren will give you the glare of doom when you insinuate his name is a girl's name, and I...I don't really have any qualms about anything, really.

But before Cheren can retaliate, the third brother comes from the kitchen. I personally think he's the least cute out of the trio, but that's saying something because he's also pretty cute. "Hey, we've got a bit of a problem today," he says, barely noticing us.

Cress sighs while Chili is nonplussed.

"What's up, Cilan?"

"We've got a seventh badger headed our way this afternoon, you know the drill."

"Seventh badger?" Chili asks, his voice excited.

"Interesting," Cress says.

"Ring...the...ALARMS!" Chili screams at the top of his lungs, making both Cheren and I cover our ears at his voice and the loud alarms that come with it. A small amount of waiters and waitresses (I remember fighting a few of them) run into the room, lining up in a horizontal line.

"What the hell is going on?" Cheren asks me in total confusion.

"I don't know. Just go with it."

The three brothers line up opposite of them. "Men! And women, I guess," Chili begins. "Today we have an elusive eighth badge seeker scheduled at two o'clock."

"Actually, it's at noon," Cilan corrects rather meekly.

"What he said. It is imperative that we spruce up the place for the cameras. You," he points towards a random group. "You three will help Cress clean up the place. You three will go help Cilan in the kitchen. And you three will decorate the place with me. And..."

"It's not enough to deal with the pandemonium," Cress says.

"I know it isn't enough! Ahhh! What are we going to do? We need help!" Chili says in a panic, pulling at his hair.

"I can help," I offer. "Cheren can too, if he wants."

"I'll help too, I guess," Cheren says, shrugging. Chili gives us a winning smile while both of his brothers look a lot more relieved.

As the morning races closer to noon, Cheren and I are given a breakfast and all of our Pokémon are fed as well. Except for Snivy due to obvious recon purposes on Cheren's part. I still think he's being a little silly.

I'm wearing an orange dress that's a size too big for most of my body with a large white frock at the center. The dress feels so awkward on me as it keeps trying to rise due to my hips, yet it's loose around the chest, arms, and back area. Nonetheless, the three brothers have complimented me on my wear, though I think they did it out of courtesy. Cheren, on the other hand, looks highly uncomfortable in his waiter's outfit. He keeps on pulling on his red bow tie every three seconds.

The one to approach us is Cilan, who I've come to notice is the behind-the-scenes man. He's the one who receives the itinerary and creates all of the accommodations. Meanwhile, Chili is out there giving directions to everyone and putting people in their places. He's even somehow gotten Cheren to sweep the floor. Cress, on the other hand, is more responding and more comfortable dealing with the kitchen. It's a large, large kitchen, this section of it being the biggest. There's a smaller room for tea and drink making and another for things I don't quite know. I guess it's a larger supply room?

"Bianca," Cress says from outside the kitchen. I come up to him and nod. "Do you have any experience cooking?"

"Cooking? Define cooking?" I've made sandwiches for myself. I've also been able to make myself a salad. I'm also proficient with a microwave. Except when I overtime it.

"Boiling, grilling, you know."

"Ummm. No?" My mom is the one who makes the food and dad doesn't like me walking in there because of the danger it can pose.

Cress sighs, running his hand through his hair so that his covered up eye shows. "I kind of need you to help me make this pasta. It's really easy to make. I need to do some other kitchen things and you're the only one who can help. I need to go and boil a lot tea so it would mean a lot to me."

Oh my gosh. "Of course," I find myself saying.

"Good. I have written directions for you to undertake. Thank you so much, Bianca." I give him a smile. I have no idea what I'll be doing but okay.

Okay. This isn't much to do. The pasta is in a wooden pasta rack and all I have to do is boil it for a few minutes. Easy. I begin to take out the ingredients Cress has written down for me to obtain. Sauce is up there in the middle counter. The garlic is over there on the far side. The Parmesan is here. Okay. Okay. This isn't so bad. I gather them all up in the counter by the sink.

Hiss.

Oh no! When I look over at the large boiling pan, it's overflowing with boiled water, the bubbles flying off the sides and into the the round coil thingys. "Ahh!" I turn off the stove immediately and run to the refrigerator and take as much ice as I can throwing the cubes into the pan. Nothing happens as they all quickly melt. "What do I do? What do I do?" I take the still overflowing pan and run to the sink on the other side of the kitchen, not caring if water pours all over. I'll just clean it up afterwards, I promise.

I take one of those bowls with holes in it and pour the contents into it as carefully as I can. The pasta looks fine on it, which makes me sigh in relief. "Well, at least they're not burned." You can't burn pasta, right? I take the directions and read them again, following everything as explicitly as Cress has written. I take the time to admire his handwriting. It's written in this style that isn't quite cursive or in print, but very elegant in its own right, with some of the letters still being loopy. I'm kind of jealous.

After setting up the fifth plate, I'm able to establish a pretty nice routine and my nervousness stops. Okay, I can do something in the kitchen. Take that, dad!

"You're doing a great job so far, Bianca," Cress says as he's coming into my area of the kitchen. "I'm impressed." I turn over to flash Cress a nice big smile and that's when I notice the unevaporated water on the floor, but before I can say anything, Cress's moccasins make their way over it and his foot slides forward, taking the rest of his body down with it.

I yell louder than he does when he falls on his back. My first instinct is to go outside and summon whichever brother of his is closest, which happens to be Cilan. He runs into the kitchen and sees his brother still on the floor, wincing in pain. "Cress, are you all right?"

"My back really hurts."

"Let me help you up." Cilan reaches for his hand and Cress's foot gains some traction.

Both of them are now staring at me. I know what I did wrong. I forgot to clean up my mess and Cress paid for it. Why is it that whenever I start to feel confident, something kind of messes it up?

"I think it'd be better for you to set up with Chili and Cheren," Cilan softly says. I'm too embarrassed to even look Cress in the eye so I nod and quickly take my leave, watching out for the mini puddle in the center of the room.

By the time I get to where both Chili and Cheren are, they're pretty much done and engaged in small talk. Cheren's legitimately interested in whatever it is that Chili has to say to him. "Hi," I say, sitting down by them.

"Oh hey Bianca. We were just talking about how being a Gym Leader works," Cheren says. I'm not surprised he is.

"You look like you'd be a decent Gym Leader, Cheren. If training doesn't work out and you make enough of a name for yourself, I suggest you contact the League and see if a spot would open up. Of course, my brothers and I have no plans on slowing down. If I placed my bets, maybe Drayden 'cuz he's old and stuff. I mean, he's got a kid subbing for him quite a lot recently."

"I'll keep my options open, but sure." I can see the look in his eyes. If there's something I've known about Cheren for a really long time, it's that his ultimate goal is to become the champion. Being a Gym Leader is nothing really compared to it in his mind. Meanwhile, if I were granted such an esteemed position, I'd have trouble picking which type I'd like to use. I've already taking a liking to fire and psychic, but I don't think I'm suitable to be a specialist in those types. I've heard of cases where there have been more types in a Gym, mostly the infamous Viridian City Gym when Giovanni unexpectedly left and former Kanto Champion Blue Oak came and replaced him. I think it was more of an extreme case being that Giovanni left all of a sudden and they needed backup, but Blue was their leader before he left to pursue his studies in Kalos. I'd love to run a Gym with my signature Pokémon being Ganon the mighty Emboar. It would be so cool to be known worldwide like that.

"Bianca? Bianca?" Chili says. "Earth to Bianca."

I come back from my deep thinking. "Sorry."

"She gets that way a lot," Cheren says.

"I was thinking about what type I'd use for a Gym and I can't really think of any."

"I'm sure you'd figure it out someday if it came down to it," Cheren says. "Don't worry about it. Just keep focusing on training."

"Yeah. I still want you to beat my brother. He needs to be taken down a notch or two. He grows more pretentious when he has a winning streak going." If only he knew that I kind of beat him. And by "beat him", I mean inadvertently injure him without any intention to.

The restaurant begins to fill up with people, mostly camera crews and personnel. Chili checks his watch.

"Oh man, it's fifteen to noon. We gotta go get the tea on each table."

"One more question, Chili," I ask him. I'm not really a question asking person so when I do, Cheren's interested in what I have to ask. I've forced him or White to ask people questions for me or have remained silent. "When do trainers start getting noticed by the League?"

"Ooh, that's a good question! Trainers start getting crews up when they hit their fourth or fifth badge. It depends on their charisma as a trainer and their Pokémon's performance. It isn't unheard of for trainers to start getting attention during their third outing, but they need to be really something to have that kind of stock placed on them. Mostly because trainers give up around their third to fifth try."

"Hmm, I haven't thought of that question," Cheren says.

"Oh that reminds me, Cheren. Are you here in Striaton City to challenge us?"

"Perhaps."

"I haven't had the third starter battle yet so I'm looking forward to smoking you out!" With that, Chili runs off excitedly to greet the patrons while Cheren is left dumbstruck.

"He...He knew all along?"

"Don't look at me! I didn't say anything. I was with Cress in the kitchen." I begin laughing out loud, gathering some weird looks from the patrons, but I don't care. Cilan comes to collect us and gives us instructions on placing the tea on the tables.

It all goes well, actually and the trainer scheduled to undergo their final badge comes in. He's not a young looking trainer like I initially imaged. He's wearing a hat obscuring most of his dark hair, but his face is seasoned and with some wrinkles. He's got to be close to my dad's age. It isn't unheard of for older trainers to seek League battles. Cheren, the other staff, and myself all line up by the sides of the Gym to watch the introduction. We're supposed to serve the first course after the battle begins.

"State your name, stater, and number of Pokémon you plan to use for this battle."

"My name is Martell and I am a veteran of the Unovan Army. My starter was a Tynamo and I only plan on using two in this battle." There are loads of murmurs around the room.

"That's crazy," Cheren whispers low enough so that only I can hear.

"Crazy awesome," I finish for him. Seriously, this man is fearless.

"That rules me out," Cress says out loud almost immediately, backing away from the stage. "You two duke it out."

There's a TV host in the center of the room, explaining the odd setup of this Gym.

"I'll do it. I haven't had a good challenge in quite some time. Bring it on!" Chili says with enthusiasm and hotheadedness while Cilan steps aside. I know its time to accompany the rest of the waiters and to begin distributing the pasta to attendees while the lights around the Gym darken except for the stage, symbolizing that all eyes must go up there as we all act like shadows. I go in and out of the kitchen as fast as I can on each time as Martell's Gigalith just stays in his place receiving Chili's attacks. Speaking of Chili, the Pokémon he is using is one I know pretty well: a Darmanitan, which is one of the most physically powerful Pokémon I am aware of.

I want to keep watching this spectacle, but I have to keep my word to the brothers and help them out the best I can. It isn't until I finish the section I was assigned that I can peacefully rest and watch the battle unfolding. That, and the how the camera crews react.

Martell is emotionless as he continues his battle with Chili, who is wild and sending out attacks in a stylish and all-too flashy manner.

"It is now round ten of the battle between Veteran Martell and Gym Leader Chili of Striaton City," the female reporter states. "Both Pokémon are weary. Gigalith has taken repeated damage from Darmanitan while Darmanitan's speed and power have been sapped due to the Sandstorm effect. Once Darmanitan is taken out, the Steal Rock effect will have taken place.

"Wait, so how many Pokémon does Chili plan to use?"

"He's being fair," a voice in the shadows next to me says. It's none other than Cress. I can't see him very clearly, but I recognize his calm voice. "He's also going two for two."

"Oh," I mumble, still feeling embarrassed about the incident in the kitchen.

"About the incident earlier in the kitchen..." I feel a tension ride through my back at the mention of it. "I forgive you for it. Accidents happen all too much in the kitchen. I don't think hospitality could be your strong suit. I mean this with little offense." Cress's voice is stern unwavering, yet sincere. "I look forward to your second challenge. Also..."

I can't see it very well, but there's a wad of cash on my hands.

"This is for helping us. I know I should pay you in the end, but you are a good person."

"AND DOWN GOES DARMANITAN!" The announcer yells over Chili's soft spoken words that prevent me from reacting.

"Let's go. It's time to serve the dessert course. By the way, your friend. I haven't seen him in a while. Chili's going to get the wrong idea."

Come to think of it. "Oh gosh. You're totally right!" Where did Cheren go?

"But we do not have time to search for him." I follow Cress into the kitchen with the other waiters. Cilan is already in there, having cut up different slices of Unovan cheesecake for the spectators. Meanwhile, I can hear some of the other waiters make bets among themselves. I am given a large plate meant for one table each and with that same plate, I am instructed to take the pasta plates and stack them up and come back by Cilan. It sounds easy enough.

When I come out, the first thing I notice is Chili's Simisear, who has the same exact look in his eyes as his trainers as well as their heads. I don't know if it is just me, but the Simisear and Chili both have their heads ignited like a raging inferno. I've heard that if a bond with a Pokémon and their trainers is truly strong, then they will emulate each other. It's not been proven, but it certainly leaves something to wonder.

"OH AND GIGALITH IS DOWN FOR THE COUNT!"

"Good job, you deserve a long nap," Martell says. "Eelektross, go!"

The audience gasps, including the announcer. "Eelektross! Eelektross is a rare, rare pure electric Pokémon type notable for not only its rarity, but its slow experience rate. As you know, electricity has relatively few weaknesses, the only known one being ground. What makes Eelektross so special is its ability, Levitate. Levitate assures itself to be completely immune to any ground attacks, thus rendering itself with no weaknesses. We'll only see what Chili has in store."

That Pokémon...it's so scary! Yet I can't help but look at it and I don't want to walk back to the kitchen, yet I have to. I'm just about done scooping out the pasta plates when I take my leave. I don't want to miss a single moment of this-

"Oof!" I fall on my side, taking the plates with me. They all make a splash noise directly to the side of me. I can hear the telltale sound of some of them breaking. I'm not injured, luckily and no one seems to have noticed.

"BIANCA!" Except for the person I crashed into.

"Cheren?"

"I'm so sorry!" He quickly reacts by stretching his arm down at me, which I quickly take. Cheren helps gather up the unaffected plates. "Go get me a broom. I'll help clean this up when you come back."

I go into the kitchen for a second time, collecting a broom and pail that I saw near the fridge. When I come back outside, I see Cheren not too far ahead standing by the broken plates. I quickly glance at the ongoing battle and see that nothing has changed and both Pokémon look raring to go. "Cheren where have you been this entire time?"

"I was in the audience. See, I was here to watch Chili battle, as you know and I figured I could watch a little and catch any battle strategies off him. Thing is, he's unpredictable. Also, I was seated next to White."

"White's here?"

"Yes, but she's in the back, which I don't think was assigned to you because she would have surely noticed you."

"And why did you bump into me?"

"Because I was starting to feel guilty about not putting any work effort. So now I want you to sit back and watch the end of the battle while I take on your job."

"Um...okay?" I'm not sure if I'm supposed to be doing that, but Cheren gives my hand a reassuring squeeze, something he does very rarely so I take it as a gesture of goodwill and look for White, whose indeed sitting in the back, yet has a decent view of the battle (I can't really see neither Chili, Martell, nor their Pokémon's faces, but their bodies are pretty distinct from the distance). We quickly hug and stay still. White even offers to share the cheesecake due to being too full.

Simisear is far more speedy than its opponent and when I look at the screen, showing their data, gender, and hp, they're both in the orange range.

"Both of them have used their full restores on them so its coming down to the final moments," White informs me as Simisear avoids the sandstorm that affects Eelektross more. When the Thunderbolt attack misses, I notice Martell loses his last bit of composure.

"Eelektross, use Crunch." The attack manages to hit Chili's Pokémon, but barely inflicts damage.

"SIMISEAR USE FIRE BLAST! NOW!" But Simisear doesn't move as swiftly as he once did. In fact, he's—

"It appears Simisear has flinched!" the announcer finishes my thought.

"Now use Thunderbolt one more time." It surrounds the now still Simisear, who takes in the attack and falls down when it is finished.

"OH IT IS A CRITICAL BLOW! SIMISEAR IS DOWN AND UNABLE TO BATTLE! OH WHAT A GLORIOUS BATTLE! WE SHALL SEE MARTELL CHALLENGE THE LEAGUE NOW!"

The audience roars in thunderous applause and Martell and his Pokémon give a curt nod before he calls him back. If Chili is disappointed, then it doesn't show at all, as he's quick to shake hands with the man and gives him a winning smile. He's just as gracious as Cress was when I lost to him yesterday.

"That was really awesome!" White says as the lights go back on and people take their leave. Her eyes instantly go up and down, observing my attire. "Whoa, look at you. So formal."

"Oh right. I'm supposed to go back into the kitchen. I'll see you later, White."

I hurry along and find Cheren washing the dishes as what I'm assuming is punishment for not being true to his word. He seems to be okay with it and is taking everything in stride. Chili walks into the kitchen like he owns the world and is met by a round of applause.

"Oh yeah!" Chili begins to hop around, flashing a smile at everyone. Then he does something I didn't quite expect. He pulls Cheren into a giant, bone-crushing bear hug. "I can't believe I've excited you so much that you saw the entire thing!" He kisses him on the cheek. Cheren stays still, completely unaware of what just transpired.

Cheren is totally confused but he plays along, his yellow gloves awkwardly hanging around Chili's neck in the air. It doesn't take him long to do the same gesture towards me. I'm surprised a really cute guy is willingly hugging me, but I react a bit warmer than Cheren does, embracing his warm body. He's sweating, but I ignore it. Chili makes his way back towards the door, still feeling pumped. "You and me," he points at Cheren then at himself, "we gotta do this soon. WHOO!"

And just like that, Chili leaves. Presumably to go heal his Pokémon. Cheren goes back to washing dishes in a stunned stupor.

I don't say anything at what just happened. "Oh boy. Chili's got quite the crush," I hear Cress murmur to Cilan. I gape at him and he notices. "He's totally got the hots for your friend, Bianca, pun intended."

I gape. "Chili? He's..." But I swore he was—

"Bi? Oh yeah. It's not a well kept secret. He says he wants to marry Flint and have his babies. He also says that about Malva, too, but I think he's scared of her," Cilan finishes.

"But totally turned on by that," Cress adds. I just nod my head many times, losing track of how many times I do it.

"Anyway, Bianca. I thank you for your service. You were an invaluable asset to our volunteer staff," Cilan says. "I am glad to have made new friends today and even though this grump won't say it out loud, so is he." And Cilan does something rather unexpected. He takes my hand and kisses it. Cress takes my other hand and repeats his brother's actions.

"I will see you soon," Cress says.

I smile wide at them, still in complete shock that I had not one, but three really cute guys take notice of me. I managed to try something new and even though I don't see myself cooking or being a waitress anytime soon, I found it fun.

I find White over at the front of the Gym, talking to a still overexcited Chili. I sit down on the steps and summon Ganon. I'm sure he's eager to get out of the ball and eat a snack. Speaking of snacks, I remember that Cress already paid me for my work. I take out the money that he gave me and begin counting.

It's the exact amount I had just given to him yesterday.

"Come on, little one, let's go and get some training done." I scoop him up in my arms and away we go.

Please do leave a review!