Hi all,
I'm so sorry this is really late. Here's the latest update, and I hope everyone is safe around the world.
Chapter 20'Come on, let's go!' May beamed at Dawn and Harley, flashing her pearly whites at the duo as they left the Pokémon Centre for Nabiki Beach. After all, the man in the Banette costume had encouraged his younger counterparts to clean up, and May felt prettier than ever with Dawn's slight makeup tricks.
'What about Solidad?' Dawn frowned, appearing troubled, glancing back to the Pokémon Centre they were leaving.
'Don't worry, I'm sure she'll find us soon,' Harley beamed a little too energetically as he herded May to a side strip on which a giant hotel stood.
'Wow, I don't think I could ever afford to rent a room in there,' May muttered, staring up at the imposing sandstone building.
'Me neither, but only people who're compensating for a certain something spend time there,' Harley scowled as his gaze was focused on a nearby café, in which sat a pink haired woman and a green haired man, the latter staring at the brunette with horrified disbelief.
Catching sight of what the purple haired man was suddenly grinning at, Dawn frowned, 'say isn't that—'
'—Just the cutest coat you've ever seen on a girl, hon?' Harley beamed, suavely hitting Dawn's hips so she lost balance as he nudged May to a slightly flustered auburn haired woman, who was wearing a bright pink coat with large buttons, a Furfrou walking beside her.
'Hmm, I'm more impressed by her pokémon,' May frowned as she eyed the white poodle pokémon, discreetly scanning her Pokédex.
'Furfrou, the poodle pokémon. Historically, in the Kalos region, these pokémon were the designated guardians of the king.' Her electronic device stated, surprising her.
'Guardians of the king?' May frowned as Dawn squealed, 'oh those are the pokémon you can style in so many different fashions, dying their fur and cutting it to create unique looks!'
'Hmm, it's a normal type pokémon,' May frowned as she considered the pokémon as it walked beside its oblivious trainer.
Shrugging, Harley dragged May along, saying, 'but hon, we've only just begun. I'm sure you can research that weird Kalosian poodle later!'
'H-Harley!' May squeaked as she walked into the back of the man, who'd stopped suddenly before her.
'Ok, pipsqueak, are you going to catch this pokémon or dance in circles with it? It's been following us for days! By Groudon, even the people in the contest thought you were just emulating your black haired boy toy by letting it loose!' Harley shrieked, stomping his foot in anger as May felt the blood drain from her face.
Blinking, the brunette glanced past the man to see the light blue Elgyem frowning at them, his coloured hands flashing in confusion.
'Hmmm, really? They thought Elgyem was with me? What do you say, Elgyem, do you want to come along and train for contests with me?' May whispered as she stared into the pokémon's large green eyes.
Flashing her a green light, the extra-terrestrial pokémon launched forward, tackling May in a surprise hug.
Letting out a light laugh, May pulled a pokéball from her bag, whispering, 'well, I suppose we should welcome you to the team, Elgyem, thank you!'
The pokémon responded by tapping the white nozzle on the pokéball, allowing it to be encapsulated in a red light.
'Well, I suppose that's one way of catching pokémon, hon,' Harley frowned, his green gaze inspecting the pokéball, causing the brunette to flush slightly.
'Why, what's wrong with it?' Dawn frowned, focusing her blue gaze on the pokéball in May's hands too.
Glancing around, May grimaced, praying to Kyogre that something would come to distract her companions.
'It's not particularly conventional, is it?' Harley scoffed irritably as May saw Drew exiting the nearby café.
'Drew!' May called, rushing away from her companions, knowing just how irritably Dawn would react to her other friend's remark.
'May?' Drew frowned, hurriedly placing his hands in his pockets as a shadow inside rushed deeper into the café, though May pretended not to notice.
'How're you?' May smiled anxiously, hoping that Harley would notice Drew's presence.
'Well, considering a few things. What about you?' Drew frowned, his emerald eyes searching May's sapphire ones.
Recalling Dawn's reference to another woman, May felt herself flush slightly, 'well, I suppose I've been better. Harley and Dawn are fighting again and I'm not too sure how to put an end to it this time.'
The chartreuse haired man didn't comment, simply leaning on a wall as he let his emerald eyes gaze on her face.
'Drew, are w-we friends?' May whispered, poking her fingers together anxiously as she found herself unable to meet his gaze.
'Hmmm? Why wouldn't we be?' Drew frowned, distractedly glancing into the café he'd left.
Noticing this gesture, May felt her hopes dash. She couldn't help but think that he'd been visiting his crush. Seeing him talk to her might ruin his chances at happiness with another, and that gutted her.
Smiling anxiously, she responded, 'Oh, no reason. Just wondering, you know, with all the time that's passed.'
Without so much as sparing the man another glance, she turned on her heel and rushed away from him, power walking past her two arguing friends as she groped for her Xtransceiver.
Fumbling with a number she'd memorised long ago, May waited for the number to ring.
'May?' A troubled voice answered, sounding more anxious than she'd heard in quite a while.
'Brendan,' she whispered, her voice shaking as she suppressed her tears. She'd been a fool to think that she'd ever have a chance with Drew.
'What's happened? Do you need me to come over? I'm in the middle of a conference, but I'm sure my uncle will cover for me,' her black haired friend spoke, surprising her with his anxiety for her.
'No, I've got Dawn and H-Harley,' May sobbed, cursing her inability to lie to her childhood friend.
'Right, and they're obviously looking after your needs right now. It's exactly why you haven't called me and are currently talking about your worries to them, right?' the man frowned, his voice laced with sarcasm.
'Ok, they're fighting about various ways to capture pokémon, but that's ok. I don't really want them to see me like this,' May whispered into the phone as she hurried into the nearby forest, hiding from her friends as tears began to slide down her face.
'May, I'm coming to see you,' Brendan scowled down the device, reminding the brunette of exactly why he was the one she'd turned to, and not her other friends. Whilst Ash would have dropped everything for her too, she wanted him to focus on his impeding battle, like Misty was. Then there was Brock, who'd simply listen and focus on his job as a pokémon doctor, as Serena would be with her PokéVideos. Last, there was Iris, who definitely wouldn't hesitate to travel to Almia to teach Drew a lesson. Sure, there were Steven and Wallace, but they were always busy, as were Orlando and Wally, trying to complete a pokédex.
'No, it's ok, I'm being stupid. Besides, you're too far away,' she tried to argue with forced optimism, but it sounded flat, even to her ears.
'Gary, tell my uncle I've had to go. A mate of mine needs help,' Brendan glowered to an unseen person.
'Someone needs help? I'm coming,' a familiar voice responded in the background, making May's heart stop momentarily in her chest.
'Brendan, do not bring him!' May squeaked, her grief forgotten by her intense dislike for the man.
'Gary, just go and tell my uncle, please,' Brendan glowered forcefully, and May could only picture his inner anger at her demand.
'Are you kidding me? Your friend needs help and this lecture is beyond boring. Gramps will understand, and I'm sure your uncle will too. I'll just send them a text from the Xtransceiver,' Gary's voice scoffed before the sound of a pokémon being released from their pokéball could be heard down the Xtransceiver.
'Brendan!' May hissed down the device, picturing thousands of ways to murder the man.
'Sorry, 'hon', the man's mind has been made up. We'll see you soon,' Brendan's slightly amused voice filled her ear before she heard the dial tone of death.
With a growl, May moved to throw her device, but thought better of it. Just what she needed, her pain for Drew reiterated by the smug rival of Ash. Why did they need to be so alike?
Just as she was about to put the device away, she noticed a call from Dawn.
Slumping her shoulders, she answered the device, 'hey Dawn.'
'Where do you think you are? Do you have any idea how worried we are? Get your butt back out here before I get Mamoswine to find you and freeze it off!' Dawn screeched into the device, evidently still furious at Harley's arguments.
'I'll be there shortly, I just wanted some time alone,' May muttered before hanging up on her friend, whose mood would indefinitely decrease at this news.
Quickly scrubbing her eyes, May released her Skitty and whispered, 'I think I'll need some back up for this.'
Her pokémon glanced at her before chasing its tail in an adorable manner as her Trainer took a moment to visibly recollect herself.
With a light smile, May leant down to pick the pokémon up before heading to her friends.
Seeing her bluenette friend, May called, 'Dawn, I'm over here. Sorry if I worried you!'
'As long as you're ok!' Dawn grinned back, as Harley, Solidad and Drew regrouped behind her.
Seeing the troubled gaze of her chartreuse haired crush, May's breath hitched in her throat. Reminding her that Brendan was on his way to see her, May feigned a smile.
'So?' Dawn frowned, crossing her arms expectantly.
Knowing her friend wanted a full report, May pretended to be clueless, innocently repeating, 'so?'
'Where were you?' Solidad frowned, walking up to place a gentle hand on May's shoulder, her light blue eyes searching May's sapphire ones for a reason.
With a fake smile, May responded a little too optimistically, 'I was in the forest, there's no need to worry.'
Hearing this, Dawn arched an eyebrow, knowing perfectly well that there was every need to worry. Next to the brunette, Solidad withdrew her hand, her expression filled with concern.
'What were you doing in the forest alone, hon?' Harley questioned, his countenance as sceptical as the blue haired beauty's.
Scratching her cheek nervously, May responded, 'well, I wanted to call a friend, that's all.'
'Misty?' Dawn questioned, apparently clued on that May had needed comforting.
'No, it wasn't Misty,' May responded, bouncing on the balls of her feet slightly, hoping to at least convince herself that she was ok as Skitty nuzzled deeper into her arms.
'Was it Ash or Brock? Max, perhaps?' Dawn frowned, listing off people May might seek comfort from.
'No, I've known one of them much longer than that. Besides, you adore the other one, and Misty seems to enjoy his company too. Why is beyond me,' May responded, blushing as she felt Drew's gaze penetrate her own, even if she tried to avoid his eyes.
'Gary? You spoke to Gary?' Dawn gasped, clasping her hands together before twirling and rambling about how awesome the Pokémon Researcher was.
'But hon, you hate Gary,' Harley frowned as May glanced at him, missing the flash of pain that filled Drew's expression.
'Well, I didn't call him, did I? He just gatecrashed the conversation!' May scoffed bitterly, still disliking the auburn haired man's existence.
'How was Brendan?' Solidad smiled softly, her expression mildly amused.
'He's good, though he may be coming for a visit,' May offered slightly, frowning as Dawn's expression became elated as she began squealing about the apparent-celebrity visiting them.
'Who's Gary?' Drew questioned, his gaze searching May's and Solidad's expressions for an answer.
'He's just someone who won't leave me alone,' May glowered bitterly as Solidad chuckled knowingly.
'Do you want me to have a word with him?' Drew offered, surprising May by the concern and protective tone in his voice.
'No, I'll have Brendan talk to him, thank you. There's no need for you to go to any trouble on account of myself,' May responded, ignoring Dawn's silent squeal at Drew's offer. Clearly the bluenette was still shipping May with the emerald eyed man before her, even if she was a fan of the Pokémon Researcher and May had found her crush's interests lay elsewhere.
'Are you sure?' Drew questioned, his gaze searching May's as Harley began to chuckle quite eagerly nearby.
'May, what are you going to do, hon? You've got all these boys throwing themselves at your feet and poor Harley can't even get one! How many boy toys do you possibly want? Most of us would settle for just one, but clearly you and Miss Blue over here are greedy,' Harley chuckled, enjoying Drew's heated glare as Solidad smiled.
'I don't want any boy toys!' May squeaked, flushing at the older man as he walked ahead, swaying his hips in a sultry manner.
'So, Drew, will you be joining us to Nabiki Beach?' Solidad asked the chartreuse haired man, ignoring May's subtle pout at the question.
'I don't see why not,' he responded, flicking his hair out of his eyes before sauntering after Harley, as nonchalant as ever.
'Does he have to?' May whispered, digging her hand into her blue bracelet painfully.
'Yes, he does!' Dawn hissed angrily before taking May's arm in her own and rushing after the two men, sending a knowing wink at Solidad, who shook her head in amazement.
With a heavy sigh, May decided that the powers that be would have to decide her fate. However, if what happened on her journey with Ash, Brock and Max hadn't killed her, and she'd survived the Cave of Origin as well as Rockson's, she couldn't help but wonder if the strain of Almia would finally get to her.
Deciding that there was only one way to find out, May set aside her pain as she nuzzled Skitty's head with her nose. At least she'd always have her pokémon with her.
Hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Let me know what you think :)