"Now that you mention it," I took a bite out of the fruit, its juices filling my mouth. I was sitting on the edge of the bed. Kenya was sitting on the bunk above me with Darumaka. Bianca was on the bottom bunk of the second bunk bed, reading. "I don't think I've ever had all of my pokemon out at once."
"Why not?" Kenya asked. "How are they gonna bond?"
"Guess I never thought about it."
"Have they ever even met?" She peeked over the edge of her mattress.
"Well, Tepig met Pidove Munna and Pansage when I caught them.
"That sucks." Kenya started complaining about team bonding. I watched Bianca flip through her book, page after page. She hardly glanced at the pages. She reached the end of the book and flipped back to the front.
"You don't owe him anything," I spoke up. "You don't have to prove yourself to him." Bianca closed the book. Kenya went silent.
"Yeah." Bianca lied down, slipping under the covers. "Okay." I shared a look with Kenya. She shook her head. The next morning, Bianca was gone. I sat up on the bed, wiping my eyes.
"She said she's going to the desert resort," Kenya said. I stretched, noticing Bianca's book on her bed. Darumaka was wandering around the room, playing with a Pokeball.
"I thought about something." I picked up Bianca's book and skimmed it. "We could head straight to Driftveil. Challenge that gym leader, and maybe even the next city if we have enough time. Then we could come back for the tournament."
"That sounds like a good idea. You should ask Bianca first." I nodded.
"Come with?"
"I'll stay here." I walked over to the door.
"Andrew." I paused. "Why do you want to be champion?" I hesitated.
"To satisfy myself, I guess."
"What's that mean?"
"I dunno, It's hard to explain." I stepped out, hearing Kenya start to complain again.
