Several weeks passed by, and slowly but surely, Red was moving on with his life. He went to classes, played his video games, and spent his free time alone. But as much as he tried to live normally, he couldn't stop thinking about Leaf. Crazy ideas flooded his mind. He thought about going to every club in town looking for her, but he knew that would be futile. He knew it was just some unrealistic fantasy to think he could actually find her that way. Besides, the idea of setting foot in a place like that unsettled him. He knew he couldn't do it.

Of course, Blue did his best to try and cheer him up. Whenever the subject arose, his friend would assure him that he had done everything in his power to try and help Leaf, but that only made Red feel worse. He hadn't done everything in his power. He'd crossed the line when he made all those assumptions about her and how she felt about her life. Honestly, he really just wished that he could find her so that he could apologize to her. There was nothing he could do now though. All he could do was hope that as more time passed, he'd be able to forget about her, or at least tuck her into a corner of his mind where she wouldn't be thought about constantly.

More and more time passed by. Days and weeks turned into a month. Winter was beginning to come to a close, and the first hints of spring were making themselves present in Saffron City. It was still cold, but the snowy season had ended. Soon there would be greenery and cherry blossoms to enjoy throughout the densely populated city.

Just when Red finally thought that he might be able to move on and forget about Leaf Green in this new season, his progress was brought to a screeching halt.

"Red, I saw her!"

"Saw who?" Red asked lazily as he flipped through the pages of his textbook. He needed to get this reading done before his next class.

"I saw Leaf! At a club me and my friend went to last night!"

Red froze. No way. He had worked so hard to forget about her, so why now?

"You… saw Leaf? Why didn't you call me last night?!"

"Sorry. We were too drunk. I was going to call you when I got home, but I passed out almost immediately."

Red's mind was reeling. Blue had seen her. At a club. Horrible thoughts raced through his head. Horrible thoughts about what kind of girl she was and what kind of guy he knew his friend to be.

"Blue, you didn't… like… pay her to do anything, did you?"

"No, no! I know she's your girl, Red!"

"She's not my girl! She doesn't even like me!"

"Well she must still think about you, because she was totally trying to avoid me the whole night. You should go and see her! It's a place called 'Thirsty Oasis'."

Red blushed at the name of the place. It sounded so sultry.

"She probably avoided you because she hates me," he sulked, "I don't know if I should go see her or not."

"You should. I'd offer to go with you, but… we sorta… got thrown out last night for being a little too drunk and rowdy."

"Damn it, Blue! You probably made a total fool of yourself!" Red sighed, "I'll think about going. I really do want to see her, even if it's just to apologize."

"Atta boy, Reddy."

Red tried to go about his day normally, but he couldn't focus on anything at all. The only thing he could think about was Leaf and whether or not he should go and see her. On one hand he might be able to get some closure. He wasn't happy with the way things ended between them. On the other hand she might hate his guts and end up telling him off if he went to see her, which would make him feel so much worse.

Blue had given him directions to the club. It was on the bad side of town, but it was out on the edge where it was far enough from the worst areas to be safe. Why did she have to work in a place like that? What was the attachment she felt to that lifestyle? He just wanted to understand. If he could understand why she felt the way she did, then maybe he could accept her choices without feeling this sick nagging feeling in his stomach.

It took him all day to finally make his decision, but in the end he knew that he needed to do this. He needed to say he was sorry, and he needed closure. If he could talk to her and end things on a good note, then this guilt would finally leave him in peace. So he had to do it, no matter how uncomfortable it made him.

Luckily his mom was working late again, so he wouldn't have to explain where he was going or why he was going there. Not that she'd probably mind. She'd probably be proud knowing made his plans, and come night time, he set off to do what felt like the riskiest move he'd ever made in his life.

This was a stupid idea.

Red was leaning against the back of a building. It was cold and dark outside. His watch read 9:00 pm, but it felt much later in a place like this.

He'd made it to the club where Leaf worked. The Thirsty Oasis. When he'd arrived, he'd just stared at it from the outside and hadn't found the courage to set foot inside. So he came around the back and waited for her to leave. That was his only option. To catch her on her way out and get her to talk to him. He knew that she might blow him off. He could be standing around out here for nothing, but he was more than willing to risk wasting his time for her.

He'd been waiting for nearly an hour. He had no idea what time she'd leave. Places like this were probably open into the early hours of the morning. Sometimes a girl would come outside and smoke, but none of them were Leaf. They'd just look at him for a moment and then focus on something else while they sucked in the nicotine.

More time passed, and Red felt more and more uncomfortable every minute. He didn't belong in a place like this. He didn't even know if Leaf was even working tonight. If he could just muster up the courage to go inside… no. He couldn't. There was just no way he could do it. What would she think of him if she saw him in there? And what would he think of her… if he actually saw her doing things like that?

"If you're planning on jumping one of our girls, you'd better think again, pal," a gruff voice warned. Red turned to see a hulking, shirtless man looming over him.

"No, no! You've got it all wrong!" he insisted. This was bad. Why hadn't he anticipated something like this happening? Idiot!

"All I know is one of the girls told me a guy was creeping around back here," the man said as he grabbed the front of Red's shirt. He pulled his face close to his, "we don't take kindly to people who try and mess with our girls."

Red was scared shitless. This man was about to beat the crap out of him and he knew there was no explanation he could give that would make him seem less suspicious. They must deal with guys like that all the time in a place like this.

"Wait! Stop, please!" a voice begged. Red turned and saw Leaf running towards them.

"I know him! He's okay, Bruno! He's a friend of mine!"

The man let go of Red's shirt and dusted his hands off as though he'd been touching something disgusting.

"If you need to talk to one of our employees, do it inside next time!" he told Red. Cold sweat dripped down the back of his neck as Bruno walked away.

"What are you doing here?"

Red turned his attention back to Leaf. He almost didn't recognize her. Her face was coated in makeup and her clothing was extremely provocative. She wore a coat over her outfit but she hadn't zipped it up. He could see a lot of lace and bare skin, which made his heart pound awkwardly.

"I… I came to see you," he told her.

"We were done, weren't we? I have a new job now, and you did what you needed to as far as giving me that ninety dollars. We're all squared away, so just forget about me. Please."

Her eyes looked almost pleading, like she really wanted him to just forget about her and move on. Maybe she couldn't forget about him either. Maybe she wanted him to forget about her so that she could forget about him as well.

"That's why I'm here. I can't just forget about you," he said. She narrowed her eyes at him, but he thought he could see a light blush on her cheeks. Maybe it was just from the cold.

"I wish you would. I don't need to live my life knowing that there's someone out there feeling sorry for me all the time."

Ah. So that's how it was.

"No, it's not like that at all!" Red insisted, "More than anything, I really just want to apologize to you for all those stupid things I said! It was wrong of me to try and tell you what you should do. I'm sorry."

Leaf didn't respond. She didn't even look at him. Red felt an indescribable tension hanging in the air. He was inwardly begging her to say something, even if she was going to tell him off it would be better than this unbearable silence.

"Let me show you something," Leaf said as she grabbed his hand. Red knew he was blushing but Leaf didn't seem to notice as she lead him inside the club.

Red's mind was screaming at him to run away, but if Leaf wanted him to come in here then he would do it. He had lost her once and he wasn't going to lose her now that he'd found her again.

"This is what it's like in here," she said as they entered the main room. Red saw a stage in the center of the room where two girls were dancing lewdly. He quickly looked away. He kind of wanted to watch, but he knew that wasn't what Leaf wanted him to see. He looked over the whole room, and saw that scantily clad girls were waiting on customers, bringing them drinks and flirting with them. He saw mostly men who were talking to the girls and smiling. Some of them were older, and some of them looked like college students. There were even some female customers who looked to be enjoying themselves. It wasn't quite what he imagined it would be like. The workers even seemed to be having a good time, or at least they were really good at pretending. Everything seemed so laid back.

"It's not what you expected, right?" she asked.

"No… it's so… chill."

"There are different kinds of strip clubs. Some are designed for lap dances and prostitution and all sorts of depravity. Others, like this one, are more laid back. We get up there and dance, we flirt with the guests, but there's a no touching policy and we don't get fully nude. People come to places like this because they're lonely, or because they want to relax. Or because it's easier to come here without feeling so guilty. If we want to offer… extra services to the guests, then we have to do it outside the club."

Red felt a little embarrassed. He was sure that Leaf was laughing at him in her head for being such a naïve kid at heart. All this time he'd pictured a club with pounding techno music and raining dollar bills. Guys with sunglasses and cigarettes groping bare skin… secret VIP rooms that smelled like sex… all of the worst things. But this place was… well, not classy, but sort of… he didn't know exactly what to call it, but it wasn't really sleazy.

"Okay. I feel better knowing that this is the kind of job you took, but… I still don't like it," he told her honestly, "I just feel like you don't need to do this. But if this is what you want to do, then I won't interfere anymore. Like I said earlier, I really just wanted to tell you how sorry I am about everything I said."

He turned to look her in the eyes. He wanted her to know just how serious he was. He wanted her to know that he still cared about her.

Leaf smiled at him tenderly.

"You don't really need to apologize. Some of the things you said were true after all. "

Red felt his heart skip a beat. All this time he'd been consumed by his guilt, so it was a bit of a shock to hear that she wasn't mad at him.

"To be honest… I've kinda been kicking myself for turning down your offer that night. And when I saw your friend in here yesterday… a small part of me hoped that you'd be paying me a visit soon."

"You…. Really?" he asked.

"Yeah. I'm sure it's too late now, but at the very least, you've gotten me to reconsider who I am and where I belong. So… thank you, Red. Maybe one day, I can be in a place in my life where I don't have to do things like this."

"It's not too late!" he shouted, "Please, Leaf, if there really is one bit of doubt in your mind then just go for it!" He had to get her to agree to this. He felt the blood rushing through his body and it felt like every hair was standing on end in anticipation. He wouldn't let her turn him down this time.

"Fine. If the offer's still there, then… I'll do the interview," she agreed.

"Yes!" Red cheered, causing Leaf to laugh happily. God, her laugh was really cute.

"We can go back outside now if you want. I'm still on my break."

"Yes, please."

The two of them went back outside into the cool night air. Leaf's long silky hair blew gently in the breeze. Her jacket blew around softly too, giving Red little peaks at her work uniform. He blushed and averted his gaze. Was she leaving it unzipped on purpose?

"So what about you?"

"Huh?"

"What's your story?"

All Red could do was look at her dumbfounded. Ever since they'd met, all they'd ever talked about was her. He'd never imagined she'd want to know anything about him.

"I can tell you've got some issues too, you know," she said. She wasn't being accusatory, or pitying him. She just stated it as though it were a simple fact.

"Is it really that obvious?" he asked, a slight smile breaking out on his lips. Normally he'd be annoyed if someone said that to him, but there was something about this girl. To her, having issues was totally normal. There was nothing good or bad about it, it was just… reality.

"My dad died last year. I cut almost everyone off in my grief. And I'm afraid to move on." He found himself spilling it all out at once. But even though the admissions came tumbling out, his voice remained calm and even.

"I see."

Once again there was a shared silence between them. Red knew that she didn't pity him, because she too knew what the pain of losing someone was. Maybe her pain was even greater than his. After all, there were always scenes in books and movies where a character says something along the lines of 'Your dad might have died, but mine chose to leave'." Maybe Leaf was thinking something along those lines right now.

"You know, now that you've done all these things for me, we're friends, yeah?"

"Of… of course!" Red agreed. She said that out of nowhere, and he stammered with his response. She considered him as a friend now. All this time he just thought he'd help her and that'd be it. They'd never really see each other again. But maybe… maybe this all really could lead to something more. After all, they were about the same age. There was no reason why they couldn't be friends.

"Okay, I think you'd better get out of here before my boss hunts me down," Leaf told him, "I'll give you my phone number and we can work out when a good time to interview would be. I'll be looking forward to it."

"Alright," Red agreed, pulling out his phone. They exchanged numbers and then she left him. Wow. What a crazy night. He'd really found her. He'd really convinced her to interview for his mom's restaurant. He'd pulled off something that he'd never thought himself capable of, and it was all for a girl he'd just met a short time ago.

What was happening to him? Was this his true personality creeping out from his torn and shattered heart? Honestly, he couldn't really remember what he'd used to be like before his dad died. He'd been pretty average as far as he knew. So why was he suddenly changing? Why was he suddenly trying to play the hero? It was so unlike him. The only thing he knew for sure, was that all of this change was happening because of Leaf. And he kind of liked it. For the first time in a while, he didn't feel like such a loser. He felt like… his life mattered.

Red turned and looked back at the Thirsty Oasis as he walked away. She was inside that place, but hopefully not for much longer.

"Until we meet again, mysterious Leaf Green."

"Wow… I can't believe he really found me," Leaf sighed as she walked down the sidewalk. It was very early in the morning when she got off work, and she knew that it was dangerous for her to be walking home alone, but she had no choice. This was just the way it was.

If I get a job at the restaurant, I can work regular hours and come home around midnight or sooner I suppose, she mused. It was funny. The idea of having a normal job…. A respectable job… it just didn't even seem real. Like it was all a dream or a joke or something. She could hardly believe it, but the warm beating inside her chest told her it was real.

She knew she was getting ahead of herself. After all, Red had said the job wasn't a guarantee. But having the opportunity given to her… that itself meant something. Red was the first person in a long time to see that kind of potential in her. She could only hope that his mother would feel the same way.

Oh crap. I can't think too much about it. Otherwise I might… start to like him. She held her knuckles up to her cheek and could feel the hot red glow radiating off of it. That wasn't like her. She'd given up on the idea of romance a long time ago, after all.

Nah, I don't like him. This is just the way I am.

She'd built herself to be the kind of woman that men fell for easily. She was blessed with a curvy body and a pretty face, and she'd taught herself the art of irresistible flirtation. Most men couldn't compete with a triple threat like that. They were all putty in her hands. Of course, if they knew what she was like on the inside, they wouldn't give her the time of day. That's just the hand she'd been dealt in life.

I just naturally flirt with every man I meet. There's nothing special about Red. It's second nature for me to think about him as a potential customer. It's just instinct, and I need to stop it because I know he isn't like that.

Even though she was only twenty years old, she had built so many walls up around herself. Years of pain had piled onto her like thick walls all layered together. No one was allowed inside. No one could see the real Leaf Green. So all she ever showed to people was a fake version of herself. A promiscuous, fun-loving girl who seemed to glow with confidence.

Red had seen through it though. He'd caught her in a moment of weakness and she'd allowed him to know more than anyone else. As stupid as it was, him knowing that she needed money and that she had low self esteem was far more than anyone else knew about her. She always hid these things from her other acquaintances.

Even though her mask had slipped though, she wasn't really upset about it. Normally in a situation like this, she'd just cut the person off and be done with it. But there was something about Red… she found herself wanting to keep him around a little bit longer. And maybe… she'd even remain friends with him. Especially if she got this job. If his mom was going to be her boss, then she needed to keep up a friendship with him anyway. That's right. She'd be obligated to remain friends with him. And she really didn't mind, because… he was the first person who'd ever tried to help her.

Truth is, I think it's wrong to pay money in exchange for sexual favors. It's not my ideal vision of how to live a good life. But it exists and it gets results. I've always tried to justify it to myself, but I can't. And even though I want to stop, I've always felt like I can't get out of it. But with Red's help… maybe…

As she walked, she passed by store window after store window filled with makeup, perfume, fancy foods, clothes, electronics… all things that she couldn't afford. Not when almost every cent she earned was instantly ripped out of her hands.

Who was she kidding? She'd never be able to trust Red. After everything she'd been through in life, she'd never be able to trust anyone.

An unpleasant shudder rippled through her body as the same memories she'd played over and over in her head for years came cycling back through. She took a moment to focus and buried them back down. She couldn't let them have control right now. Not when so much was on the line.

She'd use Red to get this job, and then she'd ultimately end up disappointing him in some way. That's how it always went. The sooner she could accept that the better. She was destined to cut him off eventually and that's how it would end. She was a user, because all she'd ever been her whole life was used and abandoned by everyone she ever cared about.

"Okay, I have a plan now," she breathed. The cool air filled her lungs as she inhaled deeply. Yes, this was how it was truly meant to be. Stepping on Red was going to be the first stair step to her own success. And she hated herself for it.