Hello everyone! Welcome back to chapter 3. I don't really have much to announce this chapter. Got a new job. Moved. Life is rollin'. Hope everything is good with everybody reading this.

Anyway, onto chapter 3.

He taught me how to love, but not how to stop

Anonymous

"Aaron, care to explain to me why you're late, again?"

Aaron stopped dead in his tracks and turned around guiltily. He had been trying to stealthily sneak into the back kitchen and hoped that his boss, Yannick, wouldn't notice him. Judging by the displeased look on Yannick's face, it seemed that he was expecting the assistant chef to pull this stunt.

Aaron sighed, his shoulders deflating. "Sorry Yannick. I've been having a rough time recently, is all."

"I've noticed…" Yannick replied. He adjusted the cuffs on his black suit and furrowed his brow. "This is the fourth day in a row you've been late, Aaron. Not to mention all of your mistakes in the kitchen. What's gotten in to you?"

Aaron averted his gaze, choosing to look at anything other than his boss' intimidating glare. Briefly, the sounds of laughing customers and clanking glasses caught his ear in the dining room nearby. A young blonde girl wearing the black waitress dress of the business came around the corner, and her green eyes narrowed upon meeting Aaron's. She scoffed, turned her face away, and slid through the doors to the kitchen just behind Aaron.

There was silence for a few moments as Aaron's eyes lingered on the kitchen doors until Yannick awkwardly interrupted it with a cough.

"And…I've noticed that you and Talia haven't been getting along for a while."

"I'm pretty sure she hates me now, actually," said Aaron right before taking a deep breath. "I guess I understand though. I did kind of break her heart."

"Your business is your business, Aaron. Try not to mix it up with my business." Yannick's frown lifted into a small smile as he began to turn away. "Just try not to be late tomorrow, okay Aaron? I like you, and we need you here. Now go in there and help Albern get ready for the lunch rush."

Aaron nodded and straightened his posture. Turning around and taking a deep breath, he pushed open the door and took in the sights of the familiar kitchen he had grown accustomed to. The kitchen wasn't huge, but was much bigger than Aaron's apartment kitchen by far. It was organized chaos at best, and the aftermath of a terrible cyclone at worst. Today, it seemed like it was on the organized chaos end of the scale, thankfully. There was a large grill near the back of the room, as well as a huge convection oven. There were stations for putting together salads and soups as well as stations for preparing appetizers. Spread along all of these stations were various ingredients for half-prepared meals and hastily thrown spices and utensils.

Behind the grill, squinting his eyes at the usual microscopic writing on an order sheet, was chef Albern. His graying mustache comically moved upward as he tried to decipher the writing on the sheet, and the two waiters, George and Talia, both looked on him with impatient faces. In the back room dedicated to washing dishes, singing a song horribly off-pitch, was Jack. He was Aaron's dishwashing replacement after he got promoted to assistant chef.

"Come on Albern, it's not that hard to read!" George complained loudly, pointing at the line of orders that were slowly building on the string above the grill. "I have guests to get back to, so pick another time to be old!"

Albern dryly chuckled and put the order back in its spot on the string. "I hope they're gonna like what they're gonna get, because I can barely read any of these! Write bigger!" He pointed the ladle in his hand at Talia, who jumped in surprise. "And you! Tell table 8 again that we don't have any more bisque. I thought you said that already?"

Talia shrugged, holding her pen and pad of paper at her side. "I did tell them that, they just didn't accept the answer for some reason! I even told them the bisque wasn't as good as the bouillabaisse, but they weren't interested in that!"

"Just improvise then! I don't care what you tell them, just make sure they know that we are out of the bisque. And don't come back in here with another complaint from that table again! I don't want to hear it!" He waved his arms dismissively then. "Now get out of here! I have to work to do."

Both waiters nodded with small smiles and turned towards the door, but met with Aaron instead. George smirked and patted his back. "Good to see you're finally here, Aaron." He leaned in close to his friend's ear. "Watch out for Albern though. He seems to have lost it more than usual today."

Aaron scoffed playfully, punching George lightly in the shoulder. "I'm sure you're not helping him. Get back on the floor and leave the poor man alone."

George laughed and exited the kitchen through the push-door. Aaron's eyes met with Talia's once again, and she deliberately looked away as soon as she could. Without a word, she pushed past Aaron and exited the kitchen as well.

Shaking his head, Aaron walked towards Albern, who was squinting his eyes at an order and mumbling to himself. Feeling the presence of someone nearby, he glanced up and his face brightened upon seeing Aaron's.

"My boy! You made it! I was beginning to wonder when you'd turn up!"

Aaron smiled and went over to the prep sink to wash his hands. "I'd never abandon you, Al. You should know that by now."

"You've made me worry in the past, Aaron. Don't even try to pretend that you haven't!" Albern's voice was playful despite his words, and he walked over to pat Aaron on the back as the raven-haired chef was putting on his white apron.

"How has the day been so far?" Aaron asked, putting on his chef's hat.

"Terrible, thanks for asking." Came Jack's sarcastic voice from the dish room. He poked his head out, his face drenched with sweat. "Welcome back, Aaron. We really needed you about an hour ago."

Albern waved his hand dismissively. "Don't listen to him, Aaron. He's just mad because we made him clean up his mess from yesterday." He sighed then, glancing over at his friend. "How goes your head, Aaron? Still getting headaches?"

"They come and go, Al." Aaron replied with a shrug. "Today has been okay so far. Not too bad."

"Talia still have it out for ya?"

Aaron nodded once slowly. "Yeah, she still hates me. It's really not helping the headaches since I have to worry about whether or not she'll throw something at me while we're at work."

"Just give it time, lad. She'll warm up to you again. As for those headaches though, you should really go to the doctor. They could be a sign of something wrong with your head, after all!"

Despite being friends with his coworkers for years, Aaron had never told them that he actually was an amnesiac and couldn't remember anything before four years ago. He figured they would ask too many questions he wouldn't have answers to, and whenever they did ask a question about his past, he would brush it off or answer with something incredibly vague. To keep in line with this secrecy, Aaron also hadn't told them that he was seeing a therapist to retrieve his memories, and that was the real cause of his headaches.

The door flew open, revealing George with dirty dishes and another order tightly held in his fingertips. He gave the dishes to Jack, who mumbled his thanks, and walked up to Aaron and Albern.

"I hear you still got headaches, Aaron. How are those treating you?"

"Just great, George. Thanks." Aaron replied dryly.

The tall waiter put his arm around Aaron's shoulder. He smelled of wine, bread, and soup all mixed together into his work clothes. "I know what will make you feel better, Aaron. I was actually thinking about asking you to come with me anyway."

"That won't help, George!" Al chastised, whipping the waiter lightly with a spare cloth tucked into his apron.

"Hey come on!" George replied, backing up in defense. "We all know his relationship with Talia ended badly, and maybe his headaches are a side effect of the pain he feels from Talia hating him!"

"George, I broke up with her, not the other way around…" Aaron replied, putting his hands on his waist. "What were you planning on inviting me to anyway?"

"Well, there's a showcase tonight, and I figured a little performing could make you feel better!" He rolled his eyes then. "Arceus knows if Jack is anything to go by, straight men love looking at beautiful women putting on a show!"

Jack poked his head out again upon hearing his name. "I don't know how your boyfriend loves you, George! You're as lame as they get! As for showcases, I only have my eyes out for the one and only Kalos Queen! I can picture her wonderful blue eyes every time I sleep at night!"

"Get back there and wash those dishes!" Albern yelled, throwing his spare cloth at Jack, who narrowly dodged it by retracting himself into the dish room.

Aaron laughed and shook his head at the display in front of him. As much as they bickered, he knew they were all close friends. He never imagined as he was descending the mountain to return to civilization years ago that he would make friends with such a crowd of people. He put his hand behind his head then. "I don't know, George. Performances aren't really my thing. I never liked them even back when I was with Talia, and she loved contests, which are almost the same thing."

"Come on, Aaron! It's only one time! I think it'll help you." George pleaded.

"I don't go there to creep on the women like Jack does," Albern added, brushing his hands off on another spare cloth. He liked to stuff them in his apron for future use. "But even I can admit that performing is an art form that everyone can appreciate. I'm almost 65 years old now, and I'm disappointed in myself for taking so long to appreciate art for what it is."

"Maybe we'll find you a new woman there too, Aaron." George teased with a nudge.

"Alright, alright! I'll go!" Aaron replied with a chuckle. "As long as it doesn't interfere with my afternoon plans, I'll go. But don't try and set me with up with anyone!"

George raised his hands in surrender. "I won't! Now, are you two going to cook or what? We have tables waiting on orders out there!"

Aaron quickly grabbed the next order from George, shaking his head in disbelief, and went back to the appetizer station to begin working on his food.

The rest of the work day went along smoothly, for lack of a better term. Albern and Jack were both interesting in going to the showcase as well so they agreed to come along, and Talia continued to ignore Aaron and/or bump into him rudely whenever she got the chance. Aaron couldn't blame her for it, and tried his best to do his job without interacting with her. It was mildly difficult, since she was a waitress and he was a cook, but they managed. He spent the next several hours cooking various meals, laughing with Albern, teasing George, and yelling at Jack for not being faster with the dishes, and soon the day ended. It was busy, but that was one thing that Aaron liked about working in the kitchen. Time seemed to fly.

Saying goodbye to Yannick and promising to be ready for the showcase in the evening, Aaron changed into more comfortable clothes and began his short walk to Dr. Carter's office. It was a beautiful Autumn Friday, and even though the breeze was getting colder with each day, Aaron still felt warm from his first good day at work in four days and his jacket. He greeted the receptionist kindly and waited his turn to meet with the therapist in the waiting room. Sitting on the tree just outside of the office was Aaron's faithful fletchling, munching on some Pokémon food it must have stolen from somewhere.

Aaron's mind drifted to the events of the day so far. Talia continued to ignore him whenever she could, which was to be expected. That was how she treated him ever since he broke up with her. He just hoped they could get back to amicable relations soon. He just wanted to be friends with her. As for the showcase, Aaron didn't have his hopes up for it. He was convinced that the only reason why George invited him in the first place was because his boyfriend couldn't go, and George must not have wanted to go alone. It wouldn't be the first time that happened.

A few minutes passed with Aaron thinking about a meal he had cooked and almost messed up earlier in the day, and his name was called.

Dr. Carter emerged from her office and greeted Aaron warmly, beckoning for him to come in. Aaron obliged and took his seat across from Alakazam after giving it a hearty hello.

"So, how are you doing today, Aaron?" Dr. Carter asked while grabbing her clipboard and taking her seat.

"It's going well, I guess. I've been getting a lot of headaches recently and it's been affecting my work, but it could be worse." Aaron replied, adjusting his position on the chair.

Dr. Carter raised her eyebrow. "Affecting your work? Your headaches are getting that bad?"

Aaron shrugged uncomfortably, then he rubbed his nape in a force of habit. "Yeah. They come and go, and sometime are worse than other times, but I haven't been able to figure out why."

"Do you remember when your last headache was?"

Aaron hummed for a moment. "Ah, I think it was last night as I was going to bed. I didn't have one today. I think it was because I was distracted with work. Didn't have much time to think."

"Do you remember what you were thinking about in particular?" Dr. Carter asked as she was writing notes on her clipboard. She tapped her pen on the end of the wood when she was finished writing.

"Well, I was looking at a map of Kalos and saw Santalune City on it. I think I remember writing on my bio last week that Santalune City gave me an odd feeling?"

Dr. Carter grabbed Aaron's bio papers with his answers to the questions he had to fill out during his first visit. She flipped to the second page where his giant answer was written, skimmed it, and pointed at the paper. "You did write that, yes."

Aaron nodded once. "Yes, well, I've had that feeling about Santalune City since I came down from the mountain a little over three years ago. Thinking about the city just gives me a "warm" feeling that is really hard to describe." He began to wave his hands, as if it would help him come up with better words to help his situation. "Like, Santalune City just feels right to me, you know? But, also when I think about it, I get bad headaches."

Dr. Carter didn't respond at first. She was jotting notes on her clipboard quickly, and Alakazam put his hand on chin as if he was digesting the info that Aaron revealed. "That's quite the conundrum, Aaron." Dr. Carter said after several moments. "So, thinking about Santalune City gives a warm feeling of contentment, but also gives you headaches. Did I hear that correctly?"

"That's right. I haven't been able to figure it out either." Aaron replied. Even now, he began to feel a headache coming on, but he didn't say anything. He feared that Dr. Carter would end the session before it even began if he shared that his head was starting to hurt.

"Well, Santalune City could mean a number of things to you." Dr. Carter began with a wave of her pen in the air. "It could be where you lived when you arrived in Kalos and you associate it with family, or it could be where you met someone you care about. It also could be where a really good friend lives, or pretty much anything that would be considered a good memory." She hummed then. "But what's confusing to me is that thinking about this place that gives you a warm happy feeling also is what gives you a headache. That's what I don't understand."

Aaron chuckled lightly. "I'm glad I'm not the only one who is confused by it!"

"Either way, it's not something that Alakazam and I can help you with at the moment. Pulling specific memories out of your subconscious could be dangerous and might not even work, so it is not something we're willing to attempt. We just have to trust that the reason why Santalune City is special to you will come in time; which it will."

Dr. Carter took another few moments to record info on her clipboard before gesturing towards her partner. "I suppose we could begin our session now if you two would be okay with it?"

Both Alakazam and Aaron nodded, and Aaron straightened his posture and closed his eyes.

"Try not to focus too much, Aaron." Dr. Carter said with a chuckle. "Just let Alakazam do his thing, and let the water flow over you."

"Right."

Aaron attempted to let himself relax, but his headache prevented him from being able to do that completely. Through the blackness of his closed eyelids, he began to feel the familiar sensation of water lapping at his feet, and made no attempt to move so that the feeling could intensify. A few moments passed and the water began to "rise" in his mind. Aaron took a deep breath, and then the water overcame him abruptly, and his mind went blank.

Images of Pikachu and a bicycle came to mind, and a girl with fiery red hair following a much younger version of himself. Many memories of this girl flashed in his head, from their seemingly many arguments to their much friendlier moments where they supported each other. Seeing her in his head made Aaron simultaneously frustrated and happy for reasons he couldn't truly explain, but attributed it to the conflicting memories in his head. For all their bickering, Aaron got the feeling that he was actually good friends with this girl.

Next came memories of a taller, darker skinned man with brown hair and impeccable cooking skills. Aaron's mouth began to water as he pictured the many meals this man had created, and he remembered feasting to his heart's content many times. Maybe he was where Aaron got his love for food and cooking from? The man was very knowledgeable about Pokémon, but Aaron saw a glimpse of sprinklers turning on, and felt ashamed for some reason. Many memories came of both the red-haired girl and the browned haired guy, and Aaron saw many different journeys that the three of them took. Aaron felt very nostalgic and strangely sad, not knowing where these friends were or how long it had been since he had last seen them.

The feeling of water enveloping him disappeared and Aaron opened his eyes, letting out a breath he didn't know he was holding. Taking a moment to collect himself, Aaron stared down at the floor as he leaned forward to catch his breath. His headache was beginning to worsen, but he was still committed to keeping it hidden from Dr. Carter.

"So, what did you see?" The doctor asked after a minute of Aaron catching his breath.

Aaron leaned up and brushed a few drops of sweat off his forehead. "I saw two people who I think were really close friends of mine. We traveled around a lot, and I cared a lot for them. I have a lot of memories of laughing, but also arguing, especially with the girl with red hair." He looked at his hand then, studying it as his face formed a small frown. "I miss them, and I don't even remember their names. How many more people are like this in my life?"

"These things will return with time, Aaron," Dr. Carter said as she leaned forward. "You will remember with time. You just have to be patient. I'm sure they're out there waiting for your return."

"Hopefully so. Maybe my Pikachu is with them? He was with me throughout every memory I have with my two friends."

"Pikachu may certainly be with them. We'll see what you remember. Did you want to do another retrieval?"

Aaron nodded fervently, tightening his fist in determination. "Of course! I want to remember as much as I possibly can!" His headache briefly flared in his head but he willed himself to ignore it.

Aaron closed his eyes and waited. Nothing happened for a few moments and the sound of cloth moving around was all he could hear. Several seconds passed and Aaron was about to open his eyes to see what was happening when he felt the metaphorical water at his feet. Content with being patient, he allowed the feeling to wash over him, and soon he disappeared in a whirlpool of memories.

Aaron saw a rainstorm with a torrential downpour and gale-forced winds. Sitting on top of a rock, desperately holding a leaf over its flaming tail to protect it from the storm, was a Charmander. Aaron saw himself and his two friends rescue the Pokémon, and it became his. He saw a large bird Pokémon that he somehow recognized as a Pidgeot, and his tearful goodbye as he released it. He saw his friend with the orange hair yelling at him once again, although that didn't narrow anything down as it happened all the time, apparently.

Misty

Images of the taller man with brown hair cooking food came to mind once more. He saw himself ogling a girl in a magazine with his friend, and more images than he could count of this brown-haired man trying and failing to hit on every woman they encountered came to mind.

Brock

Aaron saw memories of them traveling all throughout what he knew in his heart was Kanto. He also saw them throughout Johto, and along with that came his heartfelt goodbye with both of them at the end of his journey there. Hundreds of memories flashed into his head all at the same time, and Aaron began to feel overwhelmed.

He opened his eyes, panting heavily, and stabilized himself by putting his hands on his chair.

"Are you alright, Aaron?" Dr. Carter asked as she stood up. She walked over to her desk and grabbed a bottle of water and handed it to her patient.

Aaron accepted it and immediately downed half of the bottle, but it did nothing to silence his raging headache and slight lightheadedness. Not that he expected it to, but he figured he'd give it a try.

"I…I saw so much…" Aaron panted out, and then finished the rest of the water bottle. Dr. Carter accepted it from him, throwing it in the recycling bin under her desk. He put his hand on his forehead and felt it drenched with sweat. He could feel his heartbeat pulsing rapidly in his temples, and every time he blinked, bright flashes formed on the corners of his vision.

"Do you want me to call the hospital, Aaron?" Came the doctor's voice, filled with much more worry this time.

Aaron raised his hand and shook his head. "No…I'm okay…Just give me a minute…"

Dr. Carter nervously glanced at her Alakazam, who only nodded in reply. "Sometimes the retrieval of too many memories at once can be dangerous, Aaron. This chance can be amplified by a patient who isn't feeling very well. Are you sure you were okay to come in today?"

"Yes, I was fine…" Aaron lied. He certainly wasn't going to mention now that he had a headache as soon as he began talking about Santalune City, and that it only got worse as time went on.

Dr. Carter sat down on her chair and gave Aaron the minute that he had asked for. Aaron's panting gradually slowed down but his headache seemed to go away much slower. Once he established that he wasn't profusely sweating anymore and he caught his breath, he looked up at Dr. Carter with a pained face. He couldn't really hide the headache anymore, but hoped that she wouldn't comment on it.

"I found out my friend's names. Misty and Brock. I saw large portions of my journey through the Kanto and Johto regions. I was traveling around to battle gym leaders, I think, which is how I met them…"

Dr. Carter was hastily writing all of this information down on her clipboard as Aaron continued. "I must have remembered hundreds of memories all at the same time. The feeling was…exhilarating…to say the least. I never knew so much of my life was missing…"

"Well Aaron, I'm happy that you made such a great breakthrough, but I'm still concerned for your condition. Such a large retrieval of memories must have been hard on your head. You sure that you're okay?"

"Yes, I'm okay." Aaron lied once again, attempting to ignore the pulsating in his temples. "I just…need some time to process everything I saw."

"That's fine. Let's end our session right here. You can go home and process everything for as long as you need." Dr. Carter said. She stood and offered a hand to help Aaron up, which he accepted. His legs were a little wobbly, but he managed to keep standing, more so as a way to keep the façade of his good health going than anything else. "Please don't hesitate to call me if anything happens again, and go to the hospital if you find your headaches becoming too much to handle. The local hospital should be familiar with me and my work, so they should know what to do." She held Aaron by the shoulders then. "Try not to do anything stressful for the rest of the day. Take it easy. You are likely in a fragile state after headaches for a few days and such a large retrieval of memories. Don't do anything physically strenuous either."

She gave Aaron a few more warnings but he stopped listening after a bit. He was just focusing on trying to not show his terrible headache. He nodded and agreed to everything Dr. Carter suggested, even though he didn't really know what he was agreeing to. Aaron was escorted outside and scheduled another appointment for the following Monday. Then Dr. Carter would check up on him after a few days of a hopefully peaceful weekend and they could go from there.

Aaron bid Dr. Carter and the receptionist a goodbye and walked back to his apartment. His head was killing him, but he tried not to pay attention to it as best as he could. Instead, he thought about Pikachu, Misty, and Brock, and where they all were at the moment. He couldn't believe that he had such good friends and then hadn't seen them in years. Maybe he reunited with them at some point? Huge portions of his memory remained a mystery though, so it was impossible to tell.

Aaron absentmindedly walked back to his apartment, mostly thinking about Brock and Misty all the way home. Thankfully by the time he entered his apartment, his headache was beginning to subside. It certainly wasn't gone, but nearly anything was better than his previously throbbing head.

A vibration rang in Aaron's pocket and with a groan, he pulled out his phone. There was a text on it from George.

You ready to go?

"Oh no…" Aaron said out loud, putting his hands on his head. He had completely forgotten about the showcase. It was supposed to start relatively soon, and he had agreed to go slightly early to get good seats with his coworkers. Dr. Carter did tell him to not do anything stressful though. Maybe a showcase would be good for his head?

He typed out a reply to George, letting him know he would be ready in a few minutes. He walked over to his medicine cabinet and grabbed a few pain medication pills and hastily swallowed all of them dry. Hoping they would work quickly, Aaron sat down on his couch with all his lights off and blinds on the windows shut while he waited for George to arrive and bring him to the showcase. He closed his eyes and hoped that it wouldn't take that long.

Aaron's eyes shot open to loud banging on his door. He must have dozed off. Straining to see his clock on the wall in the darkness, he saw it was 6:35. The showcase started at 7:30, so George was already 20 minutes later than he said he would be there.

Getting up with a groan, Aaron noticed his headache was slightly suppressed by the pills he took earlier. It was now just a dull ache that bothered him, but thankfully didn't nearly cripple him like it did when he was with Dr. Carter. Walking over to the door, Aaron opened it abruptly just as another fit of irritating knocks were starting. On the other side of the door were George and Jack, both with surprised faces.

"Took you long enough, pal!" Jack said loudly.

"Yeah Aaron! I banged on that door three separate times before you answered!" George added. His face then fell. "You doing okay, man? You don't look too good."

Aaron nodded, but even he knew it was a weak one. "Yeah, I'm fine. Let's just go to the showcase. Maybe it'll make me feel better." He pushed past them and walked down the stairs to the door. He could see the headlights from their car through the glass on the door, and he heard his two friends following closely behind him.

"You're really taking this breakup hard, man." George said, his voice filled with concern. "It's been a whole month and you look like this? Are you sure something else didn't happen with Talia that we don't know about?"

"Yes, George." Aaron replied, feeling his irritation rise. "I broke up with her. Something else in my life is bothering me that isn't important right now."

"Well, it doesn't matter what that is because I know seeing hot women at the performance showcase will cheer you up!" Jack added without any of George's concern. He raced in front of Aaron as he opened the door to the building and ran towards the car, choosing to get into the back seat.

"You're an idiot, Jack." George said, punching Jack in the shoulder right as he was opening the door to the driver's seat. Aaron got in the backseat next to Jack, who was rubbing his shoulder. Albern was in the front passenger seat, and greeted Aaron as he got into the car.

"Not everyone is as obsessed with women as you are, Jack." Aaron replied as he put his seatbelt on. He saw Albern nod his head in the front seat as well.

"Try to tone down the creepiness tonight, Jack." Al said as he glanced in the backseat. "The Kalos Queen is supposed to be at the show and I don't want you embarrassing us or the restaurant. If Yannick finds out you said something stupid to the Kalos Queen, he'll fire you for potentially harming the business."

Jack waved his hand. "Business smishness. If I get a chance to talk to the Kalos Queen, I'm not going to hold back. I'm going to profess my love for her on the spot!"

George laughed and put the car into gear. The sudden movement forward aggravated Aaron's headache, but it wasn't that bad. He was just thankful that it didn't seem to be getting worse.

"The Kalos Queen would never be allowed anywhere near you, Jack. She's too good for you." George called out, earning a chuckle from Aaron and Albern.

Jack crossed his arms and glared out the window at the streetlights quickly going by. "What do you know, George? You like men! Even if you did like women, what would you do, impress her with your macarons!?"

At the mention of macaron, Aaron felt his headache briefly spike in pain. He leaned his head on the cool window and attempted to watch the random passerby to try and distract himself. Why did macarons make his headache worse? They never did before, as George loved talking about his home-baking adventures. He thought it was just Santalune City that gave him headaches?

"Actually, the Kalos Queen is quite the renowned baker." Albern added from the front seat.

"Yeah! And you know my macarons are good! I plan on becoming a famous baker some day!"

Macarons again. Aaron's headache increased slightly once more. He began to sweat again for some reason.

"Yeah right," Jack said, a playful grin spreading across his face. "I only told you they were good because I wanted to make you feel better."

"Sure." George replied, his own smirk growing on his face. "With your obsession with the Kalos Queen, I would have figured you would know about her baking. Unless, that is…you only care about how she looks?"

"I was just pretending to not know about it!" Jack said with a small chuckle. He must have known he was caught.

The drive wasn't very long and Aaron didn't really participate in much of the remaining conversation. He caught only little bits of what they were talking about here and there. Kalos Queen this or that, cooking, Yannick, gas prices, etc. Aaron just focused on the street lights that beamed past their car as they got closer to the performance stage. Choosing to park a reasonable distance away to make departing easier, George soon stopped his car, and everyone got out to walk to the exhibition center.

Aaron attempted to not think about anything but the showcase to try and keep his mind off of his headache, macarons, "Kalos Queens", and Santalune City. All of it was making his head hurt worse, and he just wanted it to be over. He silently wished he brought more pills with him and was beginning to think that coming to the showcase was a mistake. It was too late though, as Albern pushed Aaron into the next spot in line for admission. He paid the teenager working at the admission stand the price of the ticket and walked into the stands. Following closely behind him were his friends, and they shepherded behind Aaron in line to get to the seats.

Their seats were in the middle right, and Aaron absentmindedly pushed his way through the crowd so that he could sit down. It didn't take long for him to arrive, and he sat down with a sigh. He rubbed his temples just as Albern was sitting down next to him.

"You okay, lad?" He asked as quietly as he could considering the crowd forming around them. "You really don't look too good."

"Thanks Al, but I'm fine." Aaron replied, ceasing to rub his temples.

Albern didn't look like he believed him, but chose not to push it. The four of them idly chatted for several minutes until the seats around them began to fill. Not too long after that, the lights in the exhibition center dimmed, and a single spotlight shown on the stage.

"Good thing we made it on time." Al whispered over to Aaron. "Looks like the show is starting already. I knew we should have left earlier…"

Aaron didn't answer, and an eccentric looking man appeared from behind the curtains. The stadium erupted into applause. Not knowing what to do, Aaron clapped along as well.

"Greetings ladies and gentleman!" The man started with a wave of his hand. "My name is Pierre, and we at the Showcase Foundation have quite the show for you tonight!" He then went on to explain the significance of the event today and the rules for how performances work. Aaron wasn't really listening though. He was just waiting for the first performer to come out so that he could have something to concentrate on that wasn't his headache.

After what Aaron considered was too long of a timeframe to explain the rules, Pierre finally threw his hand up into the air. "Let's get this show started, folks! Our first performer is all the way from Shalour City! Let's welcome Lindsay with a round of applause!"

The stadium erupted into applause once again and a young woman who was apparently named Lindsay stepped out onto the stage. She had a male and female Meowstic with her and was smiling widely at the audience.

"Hey she's pretty hot!" Aaron heard Jack yell from the other side of George on his right. After that comment, he then heard the sound of Jack getting hit, most likely from George.

Lindsay began her performance after a moment of pause to collect herself. While Aaron had to admit that she was a good performer, he didn't really get into it like everyone else around him was. She put on a good show, but it just didn't interest him. Performances in general never had, as far as he knew. She ended her performance, earned a hoot from Jack, and then walked off the stage to allow the next person to come up.

The next girl was named Alex from Lumiose City and she had a good show too. Jack made another comment about her and was promptly hit by George again. Albern looked to be trying his best to ignore Jack's comments and watch the show, while Aaron was just counting down the seconds until he was allowed to go. He never lied when he said performing didn't interest him. It was pretty, but he was a fan of action more than beauty. That's why he was capable of watching contests and why he considered performing to be boring. At least that's what he thought.

Five more women would go on stage, some better than others. One tripped right at the end of her show, which caused a large number of audience members to sharply inhale in mutual embarrassment. Jack made an inappropriate comment about every girl every chance he got, but would promptly get punched by George each time. Other than that, the performances were lackluster to Aaron. They were certainly well-done, and he would reply with that answer every time George or Al asked him what he thought of each performance. That was mostly to contribute to conversation though. His headache was still there, and he wished that he had decided to stay at home in bed instead of coming to the performance.

Jack's excited scream on his right brough Aaron back from his inner monologue. "She's next, George! My Queen is next!"

Knowing that he was talking about the Kalos Queen, Aaron decided to actually pay attention to this performance. Everyone talked about how great the Kalos Queen was, and Aaron had to admit that he'd never even seen her on any of the showcases he had watched. He would be the real judge on if the Kalos Queen was as awesome as the entire region said she was.

Pierre came back onto stage with his same excitable smile. Waving his hands in the air dramatically, he offered the crowd a small bow. "And now my friends, the moment you've all been waiting for: The Kalos Queen is here to put on a show! Welcome, Serena Yvonne from Vaniville Town! Kalos Queen for three years running!"

Serena

Aaron's headache exploded in pain as the Kalos Queen appeared on stage. He put his hand on his head reflexively, as if that would help the pain lessen or his vision to uncloud. Serena walked out with a Pancham, Sylveon, and a Delphox, all dressed in fancy clothing for the performance, but Aaron paid them none of his attention. His eyes were only on the Kalos Queen. Her familiar blue eyes that he could see even from this distance were the color of the ocean, and her hair reminded him faintly of honey.

Could it be?

The Kalos Queen shined a brilliant smile at the crowd, which elicited deafening cheers from everyone, embarrassingly including Jack. She spun around in her radiant pink dress, and began her performance with a wink and a twirl.

Aaron had never actually paid attention to a performance before, but his eyes couldn't leave the Kalos Queen the entire time she was on stage. She twirled around, danced, flipped in the air, and coordinated her Pokémon with such grace that Aaron could have sworn she wasn't from this world. All the while, she kept her beautiful smile on her face, and she didn't even look like she was breaking a sweat.

Aaron on the other hand could only watch on in total awe. Each time she did a flip in the air, his headache seemed to flare and it was increasing in pain with every second. Despite that, several emotions flooded through his throbbing head. Confusion, awe, pride for some reason? Why?

She spun not far in front of him while Sylveon jumped through a ring of fire on the other end of the stage, and Aaron followed her with his stunned gaze as she danced away once more. He felt a nudge on his shoulder from George.

"I see you have an eye for beauty, Aaron. Don't tell Jack…" George said with a laugh, and Aaron had to remind himself to close his gaping mouth as to not embarrass himself further.

The final act seemed to be starting, judging from Serena's added flair to her movement and her Pokémon seemingly building up for something with their respective movesets. The Kalos Queen danced towards Aaron's side of the stage once more, did a double flip through the air and landed right on the edge of the stage, her smiling-eyes looking over the crowd.

That is, until her eyes met Aaron's.

Blue met brown.

Aaron's headache exploded and his vision began to blacken as he briefly saw something flash in Serena's eyes.

Hurt?

Aaron held onto his head and groaned out loud, no longer looking at the stage. He didn't have to hear what happened, judging by the collective gasps from the crowd and the loud crash on the stage. Choosing to risk a glance upward, Aaron's eyes met azure blue once again, as Serena was leaning up from the ground and staring at him with a pained expression, shock written all over her face.

When their eyes met again, Aaron's head felt like it was going to burst. He couldn't take it anymore. His vision was blurring, bordering on going to total blackness, and he couldn't even hear straight anymore. He averted his gaze from the stage just as Pierre was running out to the Kalos Queen, but he didn't want to think about that anymore. It was too much all at once. Pushing his way past his friends and the crowd and ignoring their calls for him to come back, Aaron found the strength amid his steadily failing senses to escape the aisle of seats, run down the hallway, and flee the exhibition center.

He burst through the doors into the cool night, and began running. His headache was getting worse with each passing second, and the pain was becoming too much to handle. His vision clouded to where he couldn't even read the street signs as he was passing them, but he just continued running. Anything to get him away from the exhibition center and the pain in his head.

Aaron didn't know how long he ran. What he did know is that he found himself at his apartment somehow, and shakily opened the door to the building with his jingling keys. Swaying as he was going up the stairs, Aaron almost fell into his door as he was trying to open it, at his limit for what his body could handle.

The last thing he remembered before passing out was the image of Serena's hurt blue eyes upon meeting his own. And then blackness...

"Yes, yes, I know Palermo. It was…a special circumstance. No, it won't happen again. I promise I'll make up for this somehow. I know. I know. Okay. I'll see you later. Good bye."

Serena hung up her phone and readily accepted a tissue from her faithful companion, Delphox. Tonight was probably the most embarrassing night of the past four years of her life. She had fallen on stage right before the final act: the most important part of the entire performance. Palermo was livid, and she just spent 20 minutes ranting to Serena about how badly she screwed up. She hadn't messed up that badly since her first attempt at performing years earlier when Fennekin tripped on the costume she had made her.

She had good reason for her fall though.

She saw him in the crowd.

She hadn't seen him since that fateful day back at the Winding Woods.

He looked like he was in pain though, which confused Serena. She saw him grab his head and push his way through the crowd to get away. He was gone before Serena could even register what had happened.

Why?

What it really him, or was her mind playing tricks on her? Maybe she was finally beginning to lose her mind?

"Del…"

Serena looked up to see the stern but worried face of her best friend, Delphox, standing next to her with a box of tissues in her hand.

"Delphox, del…"

Serena grabbed another tissue and used it to wipe tears from her eyes. "Thanks, Delphox. I know I shouldn't beat myself up over what happened. I just...I think it actually was him this time..."

Delphox wordlessly put her hand on her trainer's shoulder while Sylveon wrapped her ribbons around Serena's free arm. Pancham at first was reluctant to show affection, but decided to hug the performer's leg tightly anyway. Petting her Pokémon, Serena sniffled a few times and looked at her phone again.

"I have to call her…"

Putting the familiar number into her phone and bringing it up to her ear, she waited patiently for the person on the other end of the line to answer. Thankfully, it only rang a few times before the person answered.

"Serena…?" Came the voice on the other end with a yawn. "What are you doing calling so late? It's past 1 AM here."

"I'm sorry Delia, but it's really important." Serena replied while wiping her face with another tissue.

"Couldn't it wait until the morning, dear?"

"No, it couldn't. I…I-I saw Ash in the crowd today at my performance today…"

Silence.

Delia did not answer, and after a few moments of no response, Serena brought the phone away from her face to check to see if they were even still connected.

"Serena…" Came Delia's voice again. The Kalos Queen brought the phone back to her ear again.

"I know Delia. I know." Serena replied. She gradually felt herself getting worked up again as she spoke, but she felt like she needed to talk to Delia about what happened. "This isn't the first time something like this has happened, but I know what I saw! I bet my disastrous failure today is already all over the news. Go and watch it for yourself!"

Delia was quiet for a few more seconds. "Serena…you know that since the disappearance of my son, I've come to see you as my own child. But you can't keep giving me hope like this. It's too much for my weary heart…"

"Delia, I wouldn't call you unless I was absolutely certain about what I saw! You have to believe me!"

"I don't know, honey…I don't know if I can take another failed investigation again."

"After all this time, I have never given up that I'd see Ash again, Delia! Are you telling me that you have? I thought Ash always said to never give up!?"

Silence for a few seconds again. "Serena, please..."

"If there is even a chance that he's still alive somewhere out there, wouldn't you want to want to find him?"

"...Yes..."

"Then please, Delia! You know that I'd never forget his face, and I'm certain that I saw him today in the crowd."

Delia was quiet for a few seconds again, likely processing this information. She sighed deeply then. "Okay, Serena. I'll do this, more-so for you than me though."

Serena couldn't help the smile that formed on her face. "Thanks Delia! Please, just believe me. I know what I saw."

"I believe you, dear. I just hope it turns out to be real this time. Arceus knows how many false reports of Ash I've heard about since he disappeared. I'll give Brock and Misty a call in the morning and see if they can fly over to Kalos. I'd go too if I didn't have to work overtime soon. Can I go back to sleep now?"

Serena laughed a little and sniffled again. Delphox handed her another tissue. "Thanks Delia, for everything. You can go back to sleep now. I'll call you later."

"I hope this works out, Serena. I just want my boy back…"

This time it was Serena's turn to be silent. "I know, Delia. I do too. Hope is all I have anymore. But I promised myself that I'd never give up as a testament to my feelings for Ash. So, I'll never give up on him, even if this turns out to be false."

"Let's just see what happens, dear…Good night."

"Good night"

Serena hung up the phone, her mind drifting to the mysterious brown eyes of the man she saw in the crowd just an hour before.

Ash…where are you?

Another chapter down. Ash finally remembers his old companions Brock and Misty, and he encounters Serena. We'll have to see what happens in the next chapter in the aftermath of the showcase!

Thanks for reading, and have a good day!

Twilly