A/N: Sorry for the long wait. I sorta sat on this chapter for a bit as well as worked on other fanfics to get some ideas going!

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

At the hotel laundromat, Paul was standing in front of one of the dryers, watching his wet clothes tumble around in it. The hotel staff were kind enough to offer him a bathrobe while he waited for his clothes to dry.

Luxio tried to comfort his trainer by rubbing his head against his leg. Paul merely kicked him away. "Stop that!" he scolded. "You know, part of this is your fault too! You're the one who ran off and forced me to chase you here."

Luxio dropped his head in shame. "Thanks to you and that stupid girl, I almost drowned! And everyone saw me at my weakest."

Paul turned towards the doorway. There, he saw Dawn, who had just walked into the room, with his bag in her hands. He jumped and clutched onto the top part of his bathrobe. Meanwhile, Luxio crouched down, ready to strike in case Dawn tried anything. "What do you want?" Paul asked, angrily.

"Y-You left your bag...at the pool," Dawn said, nervously.

Paul quickly walked up and snatched his bag from her hands. Then, he quickly stepped as far away from Dawn as possible, refusing to even look her in the eye. Dawn gulped nervously. "Look Paul, I'm...I'm really sorry about what I did," she said.

"You should be sorry!" snapped Paul. "I almost drowned because of your stupid trick! Thanks to you, everyone's laughing at me right now."

Dawn was confused. "What are you talking about?" she asked. "No one's laughing at you. Everyone was worried about you."

"Well, that's just great. They all probably think I'm weak now."

"What? No! Why would anyone think that?"

Paul refused to answer. "It's nothing!" he growled, quietly. "Just go away!"

Paul turned his back on Dawn and crossed his arms. Dawn was about to leave and head back to her friends, but she didn't want to leave Paul alone. She wanted to clear the air with him. "Hey Paul," said Dawn.

"Didn't I tell you to go away?" asked Paul.

"I'm…I really am sorry that I pushed you in the pool," she said. "I didn't mean to hurt you or anything. Please forgive me."

"Forgive you?!" Paul asked, angrily. "Why should I…"

Dawn quickly backed away nervously. Upon seeing this, he stopped and took a deep breath. "I know you didn't mean to," he sighed. "It's not like I expected you to know that I…"

Paul's voice trailed off. Dawn could tell that something else was bothering him. "That you what?" she asked.

"Um, forget it! It's not important!" snapped Paul.

"What is it?" Dawn asked again. "Come on, you can tell me."

"I'd rather not," Paul said.

For a moment, things were quiet between the two. After thinking back to what happened in the pool, Dawn figured it out. "Paul, do you not know how to swim?" asked Dawn.

"Of course I can!" snapped Paul. "I can swim just fine! Maybe if you hadn't pushed me in the deep end!"

"It was only three feet deep. You could have just stood up and you would have been fine."

Paul struggled to think of another answer. "It's not that I can't swim," he said. "It's just that…being pushed in the water like that…just brought up a bad memory. That's all."

"A bad memory?" asked Dawn. "Why? What happened?"

"None of your business," replied Paul, bluntly.

"It's okay. You can trust me," Dawn said.

Paul looked at Dawn's face. He saw that she really was concerned about him. "…Do you promise not to tell anyone about this?" Paul asked.

"I promise," Dawn said.

She then stuck her pinky out. Paul was confused. "What the heck is this?" he asked.

"It's a pinky promise," Dawn said.

He looked at her very confused. "You never did a pinky promise?! Alright look, it's easy."

Dawn then grabbed Paul's pinky and entwined his pinky with hers. "It means should I ever break this promise, I must swallow a thousand sharp needles."

"Huh?!" gasped Paul. "That's kind of extreme. You could just say "I promise" and that's it."

"Well…I'm not really going to swallow a thousand needles," reassured Dawn, "but I won't break the promise."

The two shook pinkies and let go. Paul still didn't understand the whole thing. "Now, tell me what happened."

Paul took a deep breath as he began his story. "It happened when I was about seven years old…"

0o0o0o0o0o0

A young Paul walked alongside his older brother, Reggie. He was carrying a box full of fish bait and Reggie was carrying the fishing rods. The two were making their way to a nearby river.

"Reggie, why do you keep bringing me out here?" complained Paul. "We never catch anything good. Just Magikarp. That's it."

"Ah come on, Paul," replied Reggie. "You're missing the point of fishing. We don't fish to catch strong Pokémon. It's all about relaxing and easing the mind of your worries."

"That sounds boring," said Paul.

Paul and Reggie found a spot along the riverbank and they began setting up. "Why don't we ever get those Super Rods, like the ones on TV?" Paul asked. "I bet we can get some better Pokémon with those. Like maybe a Starmie or a Gyarados…"

"Theirs is nothing wrong with these rods," Reggie said, handing Paul his Old Rod.

"Yeah, there is. They suck and they catch Pokémon that suck even more."

Reggie just sighed. "Just cast your line out."

Paul and Reggie snapped their fishing rods forward, sending their lures out into the river. "Now we wait," Reggie said.

"Goodie," Paul said, sarcastically.

0o0o0o0o0o0

THREE HOURS LATER…

Paul and Reggie were still fishing along the river. Reggie had already fallen asleep, with Paul not too far behind.

Paul looked out to the river. He then saw a Barboach swimming in the water, looking at the bait on his hook. Paul watched as the Barboach swam closer and closer to the bait. "Come on, you know you want it," he murmured.

The Barboach stared at the bait for a few seconds before swimming away. "Hey come back, you stupid fish!" Paul shouted.

Paul charged into the river, stopping once the water had reached his knees. He reached down and grabbed a big rock from the riverbed. He flung it into the river. "Stupid fish!" he shouted, angrily.

He then picked up and threw another rock into the river. But this rock bounced off the surface of the river as if it had hit something in the water. Paul saw that something was quickly swimming towards him.

Suddenly, a big Floatzel came up from under the river and jumped up in the air. Paul screamed as the Floatzel bared his sharp fangs at Paul. Paul tried to run back to the shore, but the Floatzel grabbed onto his shoes and dragged him into the water! "Reggie!" cried Paul. "Reggie! Wake up!"

Reggie began stirring when he heard someone shouting his name. He opened his eyes and saw Paul swimming in the river. He immediately shot up when he saw that his brother was drowning. "Oh crap! Paul!" he shouted.

Reggie rushed into the water. "Hold on, Paul! I'm coming!"

0o0o0o0o0o0

"I did everything I could to fight off the Floatzel," said Paul. "But the river was rough and the Floatzel was very strong. I was tossed around in all sorts of directions. I felt so…scared."

Paul turned to Dawn and Luxio, who were both horrified to hear the story. "Oh gosh, Paul," said Dawn. "That's awful."

"You're telling me," replied Paul. "Reggie saved me, but even he had trouble fighting off Floatzel. I barely made it out of that alive."

"Oh dear," Dawn said.

"When he brought me back onto the shore, I just started crying and crying. Mom was furious when Reggie told her what happened. She told us to never go to the river again."

"Oh Paul."

Luxio began rubbing his furry head against Paul. Paul quietly shooed him away. "So, yeah. That's the story," Paul said. "Ever since then, I always stay away from rivers and beaches. In fact, I just avoid swimming period."

Dawn's heart sank. "I would have never guessed someone like you went through that," said Dawn.

"Yeah…well…" stammered Paul.

Just then, a loud beep went off as the dryer that had Paul's wet clothes had stopped spinning. Paul opened the dryer and examined his clothes. "Good, they're finally dry," he said.

He took out his clothes and laid them out on the bench seat in front of the dryers. He was about to take off his robe before he realized that Dawn was still right there. "I'm going to get dressed," he told her. "Could you…y'know…"

Paul pointed his finger towards the door. Dawn wasn't sure what the problem was…until she saw that Paul's underwear was among the clothes lying on the bench. It then occurred to her that Paul was wearing a robe…and only that. "Ahhh!" Dawn screamed, as she quickly stepped outside.

0o0o0o0o0o0

Once Paul was fully dressed, he and Dawn started making their way back to the hotel entrance. The sun was beginning to set.

Now that his clothes were dry, Paul was in a slightly better mood than before. "Soooo…everything is good between us?" Dawn asked, nervously.

"Yeah whatever," replied Paul. "I forgive you. Just as long as you don't tell Ash or Brock about…y'know."

"Relax, I won't," assured Dawn. "I did promise after all."

"Hey Paul!"

Right on cue, Dawn and Paul were suddenly stopped by Ash and Brock. "Paul, are you alright?" Ash asked, worriedly.

"Yeah, I'm fine," murmured Paul.

"Are you sure? You almost drowned back there."

"I said I'm fine!" snapped Paul.

"Take it easy now, Paul," Brock said, kindly. "He and I were just worried about you. We all were."

"Dawn was the most worried out of all of us," mentioned Ash. "She nearly cried."

"Hehe, what are you talking about?" laughed Dawn, nervously. "I didn't cry."

Paul knew she was lying, but decided not to push it. "Don't worry," he said. "She and I talked about it. She said she was sorry. I forgave her. End of story."

Paul then turned to Dawn. The two of them looked each other in the eye. Dawn had a nervous smile while Paul continued staring at her with his usual scowl. Paul tilted his head towards Ash and Brock, signaling to Dawn to leave him. Dawn caught on and quickly ran over to Ash and Brock's side. "Say, it's getting late," said Brock.

"Right, I should get going," Paul said. "Last thing I need is to stay here and end up slacking off like Ash."

"Hey!" snapped Ash.

The trio watched as Paul walked away from them. Just then, Dawn remembered something. She grabbed something from her bag and then she ran after Paul. "Paul, wait!" she shouted.

"What is it now?" Paul asked, annoyed.

Paul turned around and saw Dawn standing in front of him. And in her hands…was the voucher that Crasher Wake was trying to give him for winning the gym battle. "You held on to it?" he asked, surprised.

"Paul, why don't you just stay here for the night?" Dawn asked. "It's already getting dark."

Paul only scoffed at the idea. "No thank you," he said.

"But wouldn't you rather sleep in a nice, comfy bed instead of outside on the cold, hard ground?" asked Ash.

"I'll be fine," he said.

Just then, everyone heard a loud growling noise. Everyone looked around trying to find the source of the noise. It wasn't until Paul nervously shifted his bag that they figured out what it was.

"You know, this place has a buffet," mentioned Ash. "And they have some amazing food!" Ash's Pikachu chimed in and agreed.

"Alright fine, I'll stay in this stupid place!" Paul said, begrudgingly. "But just for one night! First thing in the morning, I'm out of here!"

He then swiped the voucher from Dawn's hands. Without saying anything or even looking at her, Paul walked right past her and headed towards the lobby. "You're welcome!" Dawn said, annoyed.

0o0o0o0o0o0

After a fairly awkward buffet dinner with Paul, the four trainers decided to call it a night. They went to their respective rooms and went to sleep.

Well…all but one went to sleep.

Dawn lied in her bed, tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep. She kept thinking back to Paul's story about his near-drowning. "Poor Paul," she thought to herself. "He's a jerk, but what happened to him was really sad."

She then looked up to the ceiling, trying to clear her mind. But it was no good. "To think that he's had a fear of swimming for so long, it's no wonder he's always so miserable…among other reasons, I'm sure. If only there's a way I can help him…"

It was then that an idea began to form in her mind. But the big question is…would Paul agree to it?

0o0o0o0o0o0

"Reggie! Reggie, help me!"

He tried as hard as he could to swim away, but Floatzel was very strong. He held onto Paul and refused to let go.

He tried kicking Floatzel in the face, but that only made things worse as Floatzel chomped down on his ankle.

"Reggie! REGGIE!"

0o0o0o0o0o0

Paul's eyes suddenly shot open. Paul felt his head sweating and his heart racing. He looked around and saw that he was no longer underwater or even anywhere outside.

Paul quickly sat up and realized that he was in a hotel room.

Relieved that he was only having a nightmare, he fell back into his pillow. He pressed his hands against his eyes in frustration.

Just then, a stream of light seeped through the curtains of his room and blinded Paul. He opened the curtains and saw that it was a bright and sunny day. The ocean glimmered as it reflected the sun's rays.

Paul looked over to the clock placed next to his bed. It was 9:30 a.m. "Oh no! I slept in!" worried Paul. "I need to get out of here!"

Paul wasted no time packing his stuff and getting dressed. "I spent more than enough time staying here!" he said, as she stuffed his backpack. He quickly made his way to his door.

He opened the door to his room…and was surprised to see an equally-surprised Dawn on the other side. "Oh! H-hey Paul!" she said.

Paul let out a yell and fell backwards, scaring Dawn. She quickly rushed in to help him. "Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you!" Dawn said.

"What are you doing here?!" Paul asked, angrily. "Were you just hanging out in front of my door all this time?!"

"I…literally just walked up," explained Dawn. "And then you just opened the door before I could knock."

Paul let out a growl as he stood back up. "What do you want?!" he asked, angrily.

"Well…I was hoping you and I can hang out for the day. Maybe we could…spend some time at the pool?"

Paul only looked at her, completely bewildered at the suggestion. "No!" he said, bluntly. "That's a stupid idea!"

"Well, excuse me!" snapped Dawn. "I was just trying to help you."

"Help me?" replied Paul. "How is going back to the place where I almost died helping me?"

Dawn took a deep breath to try and calm herself down. "I want to help you get over your fears," she said.

"…why?" asked Paul.

"When you told me yesterday, about what happened when you were little…it made me feel sad. I felt bad that you have to deal with that kind of trauma for so long."

"Well…don't feel bad," Paul replied, calmly. "It's nothing that you should be worried."

"But I am…a little worried," protested Dawn. "I was thinking that if you and I spend the day at the pool, maybe take things one step at a time, I can show you that swimming is fun! And it's not scary at all!"

"I'll pass," Paul replied, hastily.

"Oh come on!" said Dawn. "Just give it a chance!"

"No! I really need to get going," Paul said.

He tried to push past Dawn, but Dawn refused to budge. "Come on, Paul!" she pleaded. "Please, let me help you! I don't want you to go through your life being afraid of the water!"

"I'm not afraid of water," said Paul. "I'm afraid of drowning."

"You won't drown. Just give me a chance to help you!"

"What's the point? I don't even have any swim shorts!"

Dawn then surprised Paul by holding up a pair of black swim trunks. "You got me swim shorts for something I wasn't going to agree to?" Paul asked.

"If you want, we can go to the gift shop and buy some water wings too," smiled Dawn.

"Are you making fun of me?!" snapped Paul. "I'm not a baby!"

Paul then let out a frustrated sigh. He then quietly grabbed the swim shorts from Dawn. "Alright fine," he said, reluctantly. "Let's go to the pool."

"Really?! You mean it?!" Dawn asked, happily.

"Just give me five minutes," he said.

Paul then closed the door on Dawn to get ready. Dawn clapped her hands and danced quietly. While she was happy to have the chance to help Paul, secretly Dawn also wanted to see how Paul reacts to doing anything but training for his next gym battle.

0o0o0o0o0o0

Paul and Dawn made their way over to the hotel pool. Dawn couldn't help but giggle at seeing Paul dressed in summer clothes. He wore his new black swim trunks along with a plain purple T-shirt and a towel draped around his neck. "It's funny," she laughed. "You're wearing vacation clothes, and yet you still have a scowl on your face."

"I'm not doing this for fun," reminded Paul. "I'm only doing this to humor you. Just one hour and then I'm out of here."

Dawn's smile quickly changed to an angry pout.

Soon, they arrived at the pool. It was still early in the day, so there were only a few families plus their Pokémon playing in the water.

Paul and Dawn grabbed two pool chairs and set their stuff down. Dawn then took out her Poké Balls. "Alright, everyone! Let's have a bit of fun!" she shouted, happily.

Her Pokémon popped out from their Poké Balls. Alongside Piplup, her Buneary, Pachirisu, and Ambipom were eager to have some fun. They all jumped into the pool, creating a big splash! Paul quickly jumped back to avoid getting wet.

Dawn and her Pokémon began swimming around and splashing each other. For a moment, it seemed as if Dawn forgot that Paul was even there. Paul had to let out a loud cough to remind her.

"Oh!" Dawn said. She then turned to her Pokémon. "Everybody, you remember Paul, right?" she asked them.

Dawn's Pokémon looked up at Paul. He looked right back at them with his signature scowl. Dawn could tell that Paul was making her Pokémon feel uncomfortable. "Uh, well…he's going to join us for a bit," she said, nervously. "Maybe if he wants to let some of his Pokémon join in…"

"No," interrupted Paul. "Let's just get this over with."

"Well…alright then," Dawn said. "So, are you going to get in the water or not?"

"What happened to taking it slow?" Paul asked.

"Paul, it's only three feet," said Dawn. "There's no Pokémon besides mine. You'll be fine."

But Paul was still hesitant to jump right in. Dawn took a deep breath and swam over to the edge of the pool. She lifted herself up and sat down right on the concrete edge. "Come on Paul," she said, patting the space next to her. "Have a seat!"

Paul sat down next to Dawn. "Now, put your feet into the water," Dawn said. "Like this!"

Dawn soaked her feet into the water. Paul slowly and carefully placed his right foot into the water before quickly snapping it back. "Paul, relax," Dawn said, reassuring him. "My Pokémon aren't strong enough to drag you in."

"It's not that. It's just…the water is really cold."

"Oh, stop being such a baby!" scolded Dawn. "Maybe I should have brought water wings after all."

Paul let out a growl. Slowly but surely, he managed to put both his feet in the water. "Now, just lean back and relax," Dawn sighed.

Dawn demonstrated by leaning back and gently kicked her feet back-and-forth, creating small waves. Paul followed her lead and leaned back as well. "Doesn't it feel nice to soak your feet like this?' she asked, kindly.

Paul then kicked his feet back-and-forth, sloshing the water around. But he wasn't really feeling as relaxed as Dawn was. "What's the point of this?" he asked.

"It's meant to put your mind at peace," explained Dawn. "To make you feel less stressed."

"…I don't get it."

"Just close your eyes and take a deep breath."

Paul rolled his eyes, but did as he was told. He looked up to the sky and closed his eyes. He breathed through his nose and tried his hardest to de-stress. "Nope. Still not working," he said.

"Try harder, Paul," Dawn said, sounding annoyed.

"I am trying."

"Try harder!"

Paul then took another deep breath as he continued gently kicking the water.

Much to his surprise, he eventually felt himself loosening up. The cool ocean breeze greatly helped as well. He found himself feeling far less anxious than he was feeling just a moment ago.

Dawn noticed this too and was pleasantly surprised to see Paul's change in demeanor. "I think it's actually working!" she thought. "I've never seen Paul like this before. Maybe this won't be so hard after all."

But that optimism faded away in an instant when a little boy in the pool suddenly appeared and splashed Paul in the face with a water gun. Paul was quickly snapped out of his peaceful state and he pulled his feet back from the pool. "Haha! Got you!" laughed the little boy.

"I'll get you, you stupid kid!" snapped Paul.

"Whoa Paul, take it easy!" said Dawn. "He's just a little kid!"

Paul's nostrils flared as he hurriedly grabbed his bags and stormed out of the pool area. "Wait, Paul! Come back!" Dawn shouted. She lifted herself out of the pool and quickly chased after him. Her Pokémon also followed close by. The little boy was left alone, scared and upset. "Did I do something wrong?" he asked.

0o0o0o0o0o0

Luckily for Dawn, Paul didn't run too far away. He stopped just a few feet away to dry his face. "Lousy kid," he murmured, angrily.

"Hey Paul!" shouted Dawn.

Paul paid no attention to her. He only picked up his bag and quickly ran towards the exit. But Dawn grabbed his hand and stopped him. "Paul, wait!" she said.

"Dawn, I did what you told me. Now let me go!" ordered Paul.

"Look, give it another chance!" pleaded Dawn. "This time, we'll go somewhere where there's no one around!"

"And where would that be?"

0o0o0o0o0o0

"Here we are!" Dawn said, happily.

"You brought me to the lake?" Paul asked.

Dawn and Paul stood on the banks of Lake Valor, which was just a short walk from the Hotel Grand Lake. It was a large lake, said to be home to a mystical Pokémon. Although, Paul wasn't counting on being that lucky.

Dawn set her bag down and stripped back down to her swimsuit. Unlike the hotel pool or the beaches, she and Paul were the only two there (plus Dawn's Pokémon). "Alright, here we go! Round two!" Dawn said.

Dawn then turned to Paul. "Ready to give it another try?" she asked him.

"Doesn't this lake have wild Pokémon in it?" Paul asked, trying his best to hide his nervousness.

Dawn looked to the lake and realized that Paul was right. Along with the supposed-mystical Pokémon, there were other wild Pokémon swimming around in the lake.

"Oh! I know!" Dawn said, coming up with an idea.

Dawn turned to her Pokémon. "Alright guys, secure a perimeter!" she ordered, pointing towards the lake. Her Pokémon saluted her as if she were a drill sergeant, then they ran into the lake. They spread out and formed guardposts along the deep end of the lake. "Alright! Now if a wild Pokémon tries to get too close, my Pokémon will fight them off!" Dawn said, cheerily.

"I'm going to entrust my life…to them?!" Paul asked, indignantly.

"Excuse you! My Pokémon are actually very strong!" yelled Dawn.

"Oh, I bet they can put on a performance, but I wouldn't trust them to take on some rampaging, out-of-control Pokémon."

"Y'know they do more than just look pretty!" snapped Dawn. "You'd know that if you actually watched a Pokémon Contest!"

"Whatever," replied Paul.

"Don't whatever me!"

Paul reached into his bag and grabbed one of his Poké Balls. He threw it into the air and out came his Luxio. "Huh?" Dawn asked.

"Think of him as backup," Paul replied. "In case your Pokémon aren't able to handle it."

Dawn just angrily pouted at him. "They can handle anything just fine, thank you!" she growled.

Paul ignored her and turned his attention to the lake. He then lifted his shirt over his head and threw it on top of his bag. "Alright, so what do we do first?" he asked, somewhat impatiently.

"Just like we did at the pool," Dawn said, joining him. "We're going to soak our feet. Only our feet."

Dawn demonstrated by slowly walking into the lake until the water was up to her ankles. "See? Just like that!" she said, happily.

Paul carefully walked into the water, watching his step to avoid sharp rocks and any wild Pokémon that may have slipped through. Eventually, he made it to where Dawn was standing. "So far, so good?" Dawn asked.

"I guess," replied Paul. "The water's really cold."

"Oh, you'll be fine," scolded Dawn. "Now, let's go a little deeper!"

"Deeper? How deep?"

"Hmmm…how about up to our waists?"

"That's…pretty deep…" Paul said, somewhat nervously.

"Everything will be fine," reassured Dawn. "There's no need to worry!"

Suddenly, Paul's body shivered. And he didn't think it was because of the cold water. Dawn failed to notice this and pressed on. "Just follow my lead," she said.

She slowly started walking deeper into the lake until the water was up to her thighs. "See? This isn't so bad, right?"

She looked back…and saw that Paul hadn't moved at all. She let out a frustrated sigh as she waddled back up to the shore. "Come on, Paul," she pleaded. "You have to try."

Paul didn't respond, but Dawn knew he was more anxious than stubborn. "Alright, give me your hands," she said.

Dawn reached over and grabbed Paul's wrists. But before she could lead him, Paul quickly snatched his hands away. "I don't need my hands held like some little kid!" protested Paul.

"Just give me your hands!" barked Dawn.

Dawn reached down and grabbed his wrists again, lifting them up. Dawn looked Paul in the eyes. "We're going to do this together," she said. "Just focus on me. We'll gonna take it one step at a time."

"…fine," Paul replied.

Paul and Dawn, holding each other's hands, slowly stepped into the deeper parts of the lake. "Don't look at your feet," warned Dawn. "Just focus on me."

The two continued looking at each other's faces. And as the water level began to creep up their legs, Dawn noticed a slight change in Paul's face. He had his usual scowl, but she saw his lips quiver a bit. He was gulping constantly and making small groaning noises. It was the first time that she saw Paul look visibly nervous. "How are you feeling?" Dawn asked, concerned.

"Fine," Paul replied, quickly. "Are you sure I'm not going to drown?"

"Don't worry," reassured Dawn. "This is the shallowest part of the lake."

The two continued inching further and further into the water. Eventually, the water was up to their waist bands of their bottoms. Dawn let go of Paul's hands. "Alright, you did it!" praised Dawn. "This was about how deep the pool was at the hotel."

"Okay," Paul replied. His nervousness was a bit more apparent now.

"See? It's not so bad, right?" he asked. "There's no wild Pokémon, no little kids, no beach balls…"

"I guess," replied Paul.

Dawn then grabbed Paul's hands again. "Okay, now let's go a little deeper!" Dawn said, happily.

"Deeper?!" Paul asked, worriedly.

But before Paul could protest, Dawn began leading him further into the lake. They had taken only a few steps before Paul managed to snatch his hands away. Now the water was up just past their stomachs. At this point, the two of them could barely feel the ground. "Okay! That's enough!" said Paul. "This is as far as I'm going."

"Okay, okay!" Dawn said, trying to calm him down. "That's fair. But look! You're floating!"

Paul looked and saw that, by instinct, he had his arms spread out and he was keeping himself afloat by gently kicking his feet. "Yeah…I am," he said, in disbelief.

"And nothing's happened," Dawn said. "You're not drowning and there's no wild Pokémon here."

"Don't jinx it," warned Paul.

"Paul, it's fine," Dawn said. "My Pokémon are doing a great job being look-outs!"

Paul looked out to the water. Dawn's Pokémon were all swimming in their inner tubes, keeping watch for any wild Pokémon. They all cried out and waved their arms happily at Paul. Paul looked to the shore, where his Luxio roared happily. He then looked back at Dawn, who smiled back at him.

"Isn't this fun?" asked Dawn.

Paul didn't reply. Dawn could see that he was still looking around nervously for any wild Pokémon. She then splashed water in his face, snapping him out of his funk. "Hey!" he snapped. "What was that for?"

"I'm telling you, everything is fine," said Dawn. "Man, I've never seen you so scared before."

"I'm not scared!" protested Paul. "I'm just being cautious, that's all."

"Well, whatever you call it, I've never seen you like that before," said Dawn. "You're always so grumpy and moody. It's kinda nice to see a different side of you."

"What? A weak, pathetic side of me?" Paul asked.

"Huh?" Dawn asked, surprised.

"Uh…nevermind," murmured Paul. "So…what's next?"

"Well…let's see…" Dawn thought to herself for a moment. "Oh! How long you can hold your breath?" she asked.

"Huh?" Paul asked.

"Y'know, like this!"

Dawn took a deep breath and then dived underneath the water. Paul watched as Dawn kept herself underwater for a long time. "Uh, Dawn?" Paul asked, somewhat worriedly.

A few moments later and Dawn hadn't resurfaced. "Dawn!" Paul shouted, worriedly.

Before he could reach down and save her, Dawn then shot back up to the surface, taking him by surprise. "Alright, now you try!" instructed Dawn. "I want you to take a deep breath and see how long you can hold it."

"You want me to duck my head under the water?" asked Paul. "Isn't floating like this good enough?"

"You got to face your fears, Paul!" Dawn said, pumping her fists. "You'll never get over them unless you face them head-on!"

"Well…okay then," Paul said.

He took a deep breath and then he placed his head underwater. But before Dawn could even count to one, Paul suddenly came up. "That wasn't even a second!" Dawn said.

"Forget this!" Paul said, nervously.

He tried to make his way back to shore, but Dawn quickly grabbed his arm and held him back. "Wait, hold on!" pleaded Dawn.

To her surprise, Paul calmed down and stopped in his tracks. Paul let out a deep sigh. "Look, I'm really trying," said Paul. "It's just that every time I try placing my head underwater, I think about what happened when I was a kid."

"Paul, I know this hard for you," sympathized Dawn. "I do want to help you, but you have to…"

Dawn was suddenly interrupted when she heard her Buneary and Pachirisu shouting and calling out their names. "What's going on?" Dawn asked.

"Is it a wild Pokémon?" Paul asked, worriedly.

They then saw the water parting as something was quickly approaching the two. Paul wasted no time darting towards the shore. Both Dawn and Paul tried their hardest to escape, but because they were so deep in the water, they couldn't move very fast.

They managed to get close enough to the shore where the water was only up to their waist. But it was too late! A Pokémon suddenly leaped out from the water right in front of Paul, splashing water in Paul's face. Paul fell over backwards into the water, letting out a loud yelp in the process.

"Paul!" Dawn shouted, worriedly.

Paul began panicking and flailing his limbs all around. Horrified, Dawn tried to grab Paul's hand to lift him back onto his feet. But Paul was moving so frantically that Dawn couldn't get a grip.

Luckily, Dawn managed to get a hold of Paul's wrist. Using all of her strength, Dawn hoisted him up with all her might. Paul gasped for air as he resurfaced. "Are you alright?!" Dawn asked.

"No, I'm not alright!" snapped Paul. "I almost drowned again! What the heck was that anyway?!"

Dawn and Paul looked up…and saw Piplup pointing and laughing at Paul. "You got to be kidding me," seethed Paul. "Was it really your stupid Piplup that nearly killed me?!

"Piplup!" scolded Dawn. "What did you do? That wasn't funny at all!"

Piplup didn't care. He grabbed his belly as he continued laughing.

With a loud growl, Paul raised his fist and smacked Piplup hard on top of his head! Piplup cried out in pain as a large, egg-shaped bump formed on Piplup's head. Piplup certainly wasn't laughing anymore. "You think it's funny now?!" roared Paul. "Huh?! Do you?!"

"Whoa! Take it easy, Paul!" replied Dawn. "That's my Pokémon you just punched!"

Paul replied by violently pushing Dawn back down into the water. Her Pokémon were shocked to see Paul act so aggressive and quickly swam their way over. Paul stormed off towards the shore. "I'm done with all this crap!" he said.

Dawn quickly resurfaced. She was shocked to see Paul so angry. He was angrier than he was yesterday.

Luxio was waiting for Paul on the shoreline. He quickly moved to the side as Paul quickly put his shirt back on. He grabbed his bag and slung it over his shoulder. "Come on, Luxio!" he barked. "We're out of here!"

Dawn joined them on the shore, along with the rest of her Pokémon. She had her Piplup in her hands. "Hey Paul!" she shouted. "You didn't have to…"

"Shut up!" snapped Paul. "This is the second time that I almost drowned because of you!"

"Because of me?! Hey, I didn't tell Piplup to…"

"I don't even remember why I even agreed to this!" continued Paul. "You're nothing but a…bad luck charm!"

"A…bad luck charm? Paul…I…I was just trying to help you!"

"I didn't ask for your help! I don't need your help! Especially if it's just going to get me killed! Now just stay the hell away from me!"

Paul then stormed off back to the hotel, leaving Dawn alone with her Pokémon.

Buneary and Pachirisu looked up at their trainer. Her face was shrouded by her long hair. They weren't sure how Dawn was feeling.

But then, they saw Dawn clenching her fists. She looked up at Paul and charged right at him.

Paul had his back turned, so he didn't see Dawn chasing after him.

Suddenly, Dawn grabbed onto his bag and ripped it off his shoulders! "What are you doing?!" Paul asked, angrily, as he held onto his bag strap trying to get it back from Dawn. Unfortunately, he lost his grip and it slipped from his hands! Dawn smacked him in the head with his bag, knocking him down.

As Paul was on the ground, Dawn reached into his bag and started digging around. "So you're a thief too?!" accused Paul.

Dawn then took out a small, metal case with a red Poké Ball on the cover. It was where Paul kept his gym badges. He immediately began to worry. "Hey…those are my gym badges!" he said. "What are you doing with them?"

Dawn threw Paul's bag in his face. As Paul jumped up to snatch the gym badges from Dawn's hands, she raised them high up in the air. And with one mighty, swift movement, she threw them towards Lake Valor! The badges soared through the sky…landing right in the deep center of the lake!

Paul and Luxio's mouths dropped. Both were horrified at what just happened. Even Dawn's Pokémon were shocked at what their trainer has done.

"No!" Paul shouted.

He ran towards to the lake, but he hesitated to jump in and try to reach his badges. "What did you do that for?!" he shouted, angrily.

Dawn didn't respond. She picked up her own belongings and walked away. "Hey, I'm talking to you!" Paul shouted. "Go in there and get my badges back!"

"You don't deserve them!" snapped Dawn.

Undeterred, Paul grabbed Dawn's hand and pulled her back violently.

What happened next, no one could see coming.

Dawn swiftly turned her whole body around…and she slapped Paul right across the face. All of the Pokémon jumped at the sound of the impact. The sound was so loud, it echoed all around the lake area.

Paul was knocked off his feet. He could feel an intense stinging pain on his cheek. He didn't need a mirror to know that it was probably bright red with the imprint of a hand where Dawn had slapped him.

"You know what your problem is, Paul?!" cried Dawn. "You're a quitter! You never want to put forth any effort into anything! You just want everything to be so easy for you because you can't be bothered to actually try!"

"Excuse me?! Who are…"

"Shut up!" ordered Dawn. "You're always so worried about being seen as weak and pathetic. Well, I got news for you, buster! You're already weak and pathetic!"

Paul was taken back by her comment. "What do you mean I'm…"

"You're just a big, nasty jerk who's afraid of being a failure!"

Paul's eyes shot wide open. For some reason, the word "failure" really hit hard for him. He felt himself freeze up and unable to say anything back.

Dawn ignored this and continued on her way. Dawn's Pokémon, not wanting to be left behind, quickly followed after her. Piplup especially didn't want to be left alone with Paul. The only ones left were Paul and Luxio.

Paul just sat down on the ground, with a blank stare on his face, as he rubbed his cheek where Dawn slapped him. Luxio was concerned to see his trainer so somber. He was more surprised when he curled up next to Paul…and he didn't push him away.

TO BE CONTINUED...

A/N: This one ended up being much longer, but hopefully it did the story good by expanding on some things that weren't in the original chapters!

I look forward to what you guys have to say about this chapter!