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Chapter 5: Old Bridges

Steven turned to look. He was dumbfounded. How was she here? When did she get here?

Steven didn't have time to try to even attempt to find something to say before another surprising face peeked from around the corner. "Hey, Steven!" Joseph Stone said with shocking, uncharacteristic joy. Oh no, Steven thought. Was he in trouble? He went through every possible incident that it could be at lightspeed.

"I'm back from my trip to Petalburg!" Mr. Stone said enthusiastically.

There was a moment of unnerving silence. "I can see that," Steven replied slowly and cautiously. "Tell me again, father, what the purpose of your journey was?"

"Good Arceus, you need a shave. And a shirt!" he detracted. "Mrs. Tuffette, will you kindly show Ms. May to her quarters? Steven needs some time to properly present himself," he chuckled pretentiously. Mrs. Tuffette stood behind him, no doubt about to chew Steven out for the pizzas, but she obliged his father with a sweet smile. She didn't want to be seen yelling at him in front of the boss, Steven supposed. Mrs. Tuffette took a jarred May by the hand and pulled her out of the room. The girl he once knew, now a young woman looked back with an expression he couldn't quite pinpoint. As quickly as she came, she was gone again.

Steven touched his face. It was still just stubble but it was getting longer by the hour. He'd always thought himself lucky to have his beard and mustache (which were awful things alone, in his opinion) come in at the same time and...

His thoughts ca me to a slow. "And a shirt!" echoed in the back of his mind. Steven looked down and jumped. He'd entirely forgotten that he wasn't wearing anything but pants. He shook himself and crossed his arms over his chest, turning away to try to conceal the warmth that was growing in his cheeks and ears.

"Her quarters?! Father-"
"Steven, May has come to live with us for the school year." Steven opened his mouth to protest, but his father had kept right on speaking. "She's a good girl and I've known her for many years. She's helped us countless times, so when Norman mentioned that they didn't have money to send her to college I quickly took up the cause."

Steven, though infuriated that his father hadn't told him any of this beforehand, knew he wasn't going to let him talk. He took the time to redress. "Think about how good it will make Devon look, Steven! I can see the headlines now- Selfless President of Devon Corp Takes In Misfortuned Girl," the short man gestured in the air. Steven was disgusted with him. He moved to the bathroom to shave.

"Oh, come on. May's your old friend! You don't have to be so cold about this!"

"I thought that's what good and proper businessmen were. Cold as ice," he retorted calmly, scraping cream off his face with a straight razor.

"You listen here," his voice suddenly got lower. Steven was used to this. He didn't even look. "You'll be nice and you'll show her around. You'll smile for the media and you'll be a good little boy, you got it?"

Ugh, more media. All the attention from her championship had just died down enough so that he could go out in public. He didn't need any more attention.

"I'm not a little boy anymore," snapped Steven.

"If you keep acting like one that's how I'll treat you," he bit back and left the room.

Steven took a deep breath and looked at himself in the mirror, giving himself a silent pep talk. You can do this, Steven. It's just May. She's just a friend, just like Father said. Ready... go! He splashed cold water on his face, wiped it with a towel, and took off.

Steven was pretty sure May was in the Rose Room, his favorite guest room in the house. This was partially because it was a gorgeous room and it led straight to the gardens, but even more so because it was his nursery when he was a child.

Steven knocked on the closed, rounded door. There was a brief pause, as if May was wondering whether or not to let him in. "Come in," she finally said. Steven sucked in a huge breath. He hadn't realized that he hadn't been breathing.

May was sitting in the large, golden, four poster bed. Its poofy white down comforter was a bit wrinkled under the weight of her large suitcase. She looked so... different. Her hair was much shorter, so much that it only barely reached her shoulders. It was tied up in her usual red bandana, but instead of using it as a cap, she used it as more of a hairband. She traded in her shorts and t-shirt for light wash skinny jeans and gray graphic tank-top. Where she used to have tennis shoes she donned yellow rainboots. The only thing that was the same were her big, blue eyes and soft walnut hair. Steven figured she had to be about nineteen now.

"Are you gonna say something or just stand there?"

Steven blinked, realizing he hadn't said anything. He wasn't sure if May was serious or just messing with him. "Er... Are you hungry?"

A few moments later the two had made their way to the kitchen. It was a soft yellow, and very homey. Mrs. Tuffette made a point of cutting fresh flowers from the garden in the spring and summer to place in vases. When they were out of season, she would order them. Today, there were sunflowers.

"Um..." he started, "Do you still like pepperoni and pineapple with jalapenos on your pizza?"

May looked at him with another unreadable expression and leaned against a counter. "Is that even a question? 'Course I do."

"How many slices do you want?"

She shrugged. "I haven't eaten since breakfast so... How many do you have?"

He looked her straight in the eye, blue against blue, and said with a steely gaze, "I have fifteen pizzas."

After a few seconds of staring at each other with completely blank looks, the two burst out laughing. They laughed for a good long while, not because Steven was funny or because she thought he was kidding but because of the reason that, though neither of them would say it out loud, they really missed each other.

Steven looked up and met her gaze again. "I'm serious, though," he said through a bubble of laughter.

May wiped her eyes. "I definitely believe you. Can we go with... three slices?"

Steven ended up putting the whole pizza in the oven just in case and a kettle on the stove for tea and the two went to sit in the breakfast nook.

"So... how did you end up with fifteen pizzas?" May started.

"Well, it was actually ten originally..."

The two sat and bantered for a long while, though it felt very short to the both of them. It was a joyous and carefree conversation, that was, until the conversation died down.

"Four years," May said.

Steven was quiet.

She went on in a very small voice. "Why did you leave?"

He shook his head. "Maybird- I mean May," he corrected, "you don't want to know. You really, really don't want to know. Trust me on this one."

"But I do! You owe that much," she said, and pulled out the puppy dog eyes.

If Steven were not trained in the arts of the heartless businessman, they would've worked. "No, May," he insisted. "We might talk about it one day, but not... not today, okay?" She wasn't ready to know was what he really meant, and he didn't think she ever would be.

She pouted. "Fine. But promise me you'll tell me someday?"

Steven hesitated. A small voice in his head screamed no, but he knew that she was right. He owed this to her. "Fine," he said softly. Maybe someday when one of them was on their deathbed, she would finally learn what happened. In the meantime he would do everything in his power to keep her from finding out. He glanced at the clock behind him. "So... it's two in the morning."

"What?" May giggled. "No way!"

"I know!" he said, absentmindedly petting the Aron on his lap. "Maybe we should get some sleep. Boss says I have to show you around tomorrow and get this- he wants me to be NICE to you," Steven played.

May gasped. "What horror! You should quit," she said matter-of-factly.

"Believe me, I've been trying for a good long time." He chuckled emotionlessly and took the sleeping Aron off his lap. It just curled up into a ball next to him. "Anyway, even if you're not going to bed, I am since I have to deal with a strange young woman who wandered into my house all day tomorrow." He nudged the Aron off his lap and shifted his dead legs

"What a pain."

"It really is," he agreed, stood up, and winced from the pins and needles.

Steven hesitated before he left. "Do you know how to get back to your room?"

May grimaced. "Actually, I could probably use a little help."

"Well, let's go then. I don't have all night. Er, morning," he corrected.

May smiled. However small of a thing that was, it was wondrous and sincere and made Steven's head flood with memories.

"After you, milady." Steven gestured to the door and he followed her out.

"Really, it's not that difficult." Steven's voice echoed down the hall. "From your room you take the corridor straight down, turn right, climb down the staircase, turn right again and you're in the kitchen. The bathroom is just down that same corridor and to the left, second door." They were at the entrance to her primrose papered room.

May still seemed uncertain.

"Do you um... still have my Pokenav number?" Steven asked awkwardly.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure..." she answered, looking down at her yellow boots.

"Then just call me if you get lost and I'll come and get you," he reassured her. "You'll get used to it eventually, I promise."

"O-okay..." she nodded.

He scratched the back of his head. "Don't worry about it. I'll help you with anything you need, alright?"

"Yeah, okay..." May replied absentmindedly, like she was somewhere else for a moment.

Steven didn't want to leave her, but he knew he had things to do the next day and couldn't afford to lose any more sleep. "Good night," he said.

"'Night," she said softly. Steven heard the click of her door as it smoothly opened and closed behind her.

Climbing the stairs to his room, Steven thought about the events of the day. Mostly about May. His heart fluttered at the thought of her being back in his life, but he couldn't afford it to. He couldn't drag her into this life that he had. This life warped and poisoned people, and he didn't want that to happen to her. He didn't want her to end up like Duskstone.

*eyebrow wiggle*

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