It was Saturday afternoon, and Gray typed on the computer at the reception desk in the Garcia Drive apartment complex. Only a couple of the people living in the building came in or out, for most of them wanted to stay home and enjoy the weekend.
Just then, a woman close to her thirties came inside and walked straight toward the elevators without acknowledging the doorman. She had short dark blue hair and was wearing sunglasses. She walked down the hall as though she owned the place, feeling superior with her high heels that made up her five-and-a-half-feet tall height and her expensive black suit that complimented her short waist and her chest above average size. Gray looked up from the computer to notice her, and he hurried over to her before she reached the elevators.
"Excuse me, ma'am, what apartment are you going to?" He called out.
The woman stopped walking and huffed before turning to Gray. She took off her sunglasses and examined him from top to bottom with her brown eyes before looking him in the eyes with a condescending look.
"You're new here," she said bluntly.
"Uh, yes, ma'am. I am," Gray confessed.
"Then let me make this simple for you," Miette said. "I'm going to Calem Ketchum's apartment, and no announcement will be necessary."
"I'm afraid I still need a name," Gray said.
"Miette Johanna Gulia," Miette announced with pride. "I'm Calem Ketchum's fiancee."
Gary stared at the dark blue-haired woman for a couple of seconds before he started chuckling.
"What's so funny?" Miette asked.
"You're not his fiancee," Gray answered.
"Yes, I am," Miette answered.
"No, you're not," Gray said. "I met his real fiancee, and you look nothing like her."
Miette's left eye twitched, and she stood still for a few seconds before she gave the poor doorman a black look that sent shivers down his spine.
"His real fiancee?"
Back at the hospital, Joy was in Calem's room, helping him get up from his bed and putting him in a wheelchair. The light black-haired man's legs wobbled with each step, not used to standing up again apart from whenever he needed to use the restroom. As Joy was slowly helping him to his chair, Ash, and Pikachu, walked in with the former carrying a cooler lunch box on his shoulder.
"Heya, champ, how're you doing?" Ash greeted.
"Great," Calem replied with a chirpy attitude. "They're moving me to the second floor. They say I'll be discharged as soon as tomorrow."
"That's great," Ash said. "We'll have a party for you once we get home."
"I'm looking forward to it," Calem said.
"Hey, Joy, is it alright if I drive him?" Ash asked.
"Sure. I'll meet you two downstairs," Joy said.
The nurse walked ahead of the two men and Pikachu, and Ash began pushing the wheelchair to the elevator. Pikachu hopped off Ash's shoulder and landed on Calem's lap. Calem smiled and pet Pikachu affectionately as though it was his own Pokemon partner.
"You're pretty cheerful today," Ash said.
"Of course, I am," Calem said. "I feel happy to be alive."
"That's good," Ash said. He checked to ensure none of the doctors or nurses were around and then opened the lunchbox to take out a small carton of ice cream and a plastic spoon. "By the way, I brought you some Vanillite Swirl."
"Oh, you're a pal, Ashy-boy," Calem said as he took the ice cream and spoon from Ash. "By the way, Serena visited me yesterday."
"Oh, yeah? How was that?" Ash asked.
"Wonderful," Calem said with a dreamy look. "She's a terrific person. We're engaged, you know."
Calem and Pikachu don't notice Ash grimacing.
"Yeah, I heard about that," Ash said with a fake smile.
As Ash pressed the down button on the elevator, Calem opened the ice cream carton and started eating. He let out a pleased "Mmmm" and offered a spoonful to Pikachu.
"Now this I remember," Calem said. "I tell you, Ash. Now that I've started to get to know Serena, everything is better. Everything looks, better, feels better, even this chocolate peanut butter ice cream tastes better."
Ash looked at his brother, concerned, as the elevator door opened and they went in.
"Calem, that's fudge mint," he said.
"Whatever," Calem said, waving his hand. "The point is I'm a new man. If either you or Pikachu were a priest, I'd confess everything right now."
"That's okay, Calem. Just stay positive and eat your ice cream," Ash said.
"Pika, Pika," Pikachu said in agreement.
But Calem's face turned grim, and he stared at his reflection on the elevator door.
"I don't remember what I had my secretary send mom for Christmas," he said. "I've never been loyal to a woman ever. Even when we were kids and the girls were chasing me, I was always seeing a few girls at once."
"Calem, we really don't need to -"
"Do you remember the Skwovet?"
Ash and Pikachu grew unsettled as they stared at Calem, who looked at his reflection in disgust.
"Calem, if there's something wrong about that day, please don't share it," Ash said.
But Calem shook his head, still staring at his reflection, and said, "I knocked them off their nest with a rock. I was hiding behind the bushes, so no one saw me do it. And when everyone saw them on the ground, injured, I decided to come out from the bushes to their aid. I became famous just because I wanted to publically fix my cruel deed."
"Pikachu!" Pikachu exclaimed, shocked.
"I can't believe you," Ash said. "Does Serena know about this?"
Calem immediately brought back his cheerful demeanor as if nothing happened, and said, "Are you kidding, Ashy-boy? I'm taking that to my grave. I'm making a clean start with Serena. She's… she's…"
Calem's happy face turned into a look of confusion. He tilted his head, unsure how to finish his declaration, and Ash took a moment before speaking for his brother.
"I'd say she's someone who gets under your skin the first time you meet her," he said. "She wants to go to any place in the world just so that she has traveled like her parents did, and you don't know if you think it's silly or is something so precious that you want to hug her tight."
Pikachu looked at its partner dumbfounded, having never heard him speak that way about a person. At that moment, the yellow mouse Pokemon began to wonder if there was more than friendship with Serena in Ash's mind. Calem, on the other hand, was staring blankly at the elevator door, thinking about Ash's response before he began chuckling.
"Nah," he chortled. "Nah, nah, that's not it. She's something not as silly as that."
Ash furrowed his brow asked, "Okay, Mr. Ladies Man, then what is she?"
Calem continued to stare into space until he turned the upper half of his body to give Ash a happy-go-lucky smile.
"I have no idea," he said. "But you know what? That's okay because I've been engaged to her since before I was knocked out. That tells me that she's someone special, and I could spend the rest of my life to figure out why. I don't know if I'll find out tomorrow or next week. It could take a year, maybe even ten years, before I get a clue, but that doesn't mean I can't make a life long commitment. Does that make any sense?"
Ash stared at his brother, bewildered, and then looked at Pikachu, who shared his reaction.
"Uh, no, it doesn't, but I guess you deserve some leeway," he said.
Calem shrugged and turned his body around to face the door just as it opened to reveal Joy on the other side. Ash pushed the wheelchair to the nurse and moved back for her to take the handle while Pikachu hopped back onto his shoulder.
"Well, Calem, I better get going," he said. "I just came over to say hi before I head to the outskirts of town to train."
"Oh, yeah, you're getting ready for the Kalos League," Calem said. "Train hard."
"You can count on me," Ash said with a toothy grin.
Ash and Pikachu took the elevator to the ground floor, exited the hospital, and drove away on the moving truck. Two minutes after they left, Miette was walking down the street toward the hospital. She walked in, asked the receptionist where Calem was, took the elevator to the second floor, and stormed over to Calem's new room. The man was lying down comfortably in his new bed, still eating his ice cream until he noticed his ex.
"Miette," he greeted.
"Scumbag," Miette greeted back with venom in her voice. "I hear you are engaged."
Calem nodded happily. Miette took off her sunglasses and walked over to the bed, glaring daggers at Calem.
"Need I remind you that you proposed to me?" She asked.
"You said no, and we broke up," Calem answered.
"No. No, I was confused, and we took a step back," Miette claimed.
"You moved to Alola," Calem pointed out.
Yes, well, I didn't expect you to run around and marry the first bimbo you come across," Miette said.
"Serena is not a bimbo," Calem said.
"Oh, so her name is Serena?" Miette snarled. "Serena, who?"
"Serena Yvonne," Calem answered.
"And how long have you been seeing this Serena Yvonne?" Miette asked.
Calem looked away from Miette and stared into space before he answered, "I don't know."
"Liar!" Miette hissed.
"I'm serious, Miette," Calem said. "I was in a coma for a week and then woke up with selective amnesia. I don't remember a thing about Serena, but I still want to marry her."
"Amnesia? Oh, that's rich," Miette said. "Fine. If that's the way you wanna play, then I want Meowstic and my stuff back."
"Fine. Then I want my stuff back," Calem said with a shrug.
"What stuff?" Miette asked.
"Your nose," Calem answered.
Miette gasped and covered her nose with her hand defensively.
"M-my nose? You can't take back my nose," she said.
"Of course, I can. I paid for it," Calem said.
Miette frowned and said, "Well, if you want everything you paid for, then I suppose you want my breast implants too."
"No, those you can keep," Calem said. "I'm a changed man, Miette. I don't need the woman I wanna marry to be someone who changes how she looks."
Miette looked at Calem, appalled, with her mouth agape until she straightened her suit and put her sunglasses back on.
"Fine. Go ahead," she said. "Go ahead and marry her, you one-balled jackass."
She stormed out of the room with her head held high, hiding her discontent. She took the elevator back to the ground floor and left the hospital, unknowingly passing Serena, who was walking toward the building. Along the way, the honey blonde woman saw Sonia walking to the hospital entrance from the other side of the street. She rushed over to the peach-haired woman, who gave her a warm smile.
"Sonia, are the Ketchums inside?" Serena asked.
"They're still at home," Sonia answered.
"Okay, so how did they take the news?" Serena asked.
"I haven't told them yet," Sonia answered.
Serena looked at Sonia in disbelief and whined, "Sonia, you said you were going to handle it."
"I am handling it," Sonia said.
"This is handling it? Still pretending while they're worried about Calem's memory?" Serena asked.
"Yes, that's handling it," Sonia said.
Serena huffed and said, "Okay, you know what? That's it. I'm tired of trusting you."
"What are you saying?" Sonia asked.
"I'm saying you're fired," Serena said.
Sonia looked at Serena, baffled as she went inside. Serena marched to the elevator with a determined look until Joy saw her coming and rushed over to her.
"Serena, hold on," she said. "They moved him to the second floor."
"They did? Where?" Serena asked.
"Come with me, I'll show you," Joy said, pressing the button to the elevator.
The elevator door instantly opened, they went inside, and Joy pressed the button to the second floor. Before the door was fully closed, Sonia rushed over and squeezed her way in. The honey blonde woman frowned and looked away from Sonia, who panted with her hands on her knees.
"Serena, hold on," Sonia huffed. "What are you going to do?"
"I'm going to tell Calem everything," Serena announced.
"You're what?!" Sonia and Joy shouted simultaneously.
"It's the right thing to do," Serena said. "I'm going to tell everyone else later, but Calem needs to know first after everything he's been going through over the last two days."
"Are you sure that's what you want, Serena?" Joy asked.
"I am," Serena replied.
Sonia and Joy looked at each other, unsure of Serena's plan. The elevator door opened, and Joy led Serena and Sonia to Calem's room. He was still in a cheerful mood, holding an empty ice cream carton like a teddy bear. Serena walked inside while Sonia and Joy stood by the door, mentally praying that things would work out.
"Calem," Serena said.
Calem turned to Serena, and his smile grew at the sight of her.
"Serena," he chirped. "I'm so glad you're here."
"Er, thank you," Serena said, taken aback by his demeanor. "You look good."
"Oh, I feel great," Calem said.
"I'm glad to hear it," Serena said before she took a deep breath to collect herself. "Calem, I have something to tell you."
"And I have something I need to tell you," Calem said.
"Okay, but I should go first," Serena said.
"No, please, let me speak," Calem begged. "It's important that I say this before I go crazy."
Serena hesitated, wanting to tell the truth right away. After a moment, she gave in and nodded, not wanting to risk what Calem would do. Her longtime crush grinned and spoke with enthusiasm.
"Serena, facing death makes a man evaluate his life. I've been thinking about mine, and I don't like what I've seen," he said. "I see a man living alone in an expensive apartment, a lucrative investment portfolio, and seasonal tickets to the Lumiose Magnezones."
"The what?" Serena asked.
"Lumiose City's basketball team," Calem explained.
"Ah," Serena said. "I don't watch sports."
"That's alright," Calem said. "Anyway, the point is I have all of these things, but I don't have someone I can trust. Someone I would want to raise a family with."
Serena froze in place, unsure if she heard Calem correctly. Sonia and Joy looked at each other, their mouths hung agape.
"You were there when I needed someone the most. You gave me a second chance at life," Calem continued. "It took me a coma to wake up and see the truth. My whole family loves you, and I might as well love you. I want to do everything in my power to make you happy. You want to travel? Just say the word, and we'll go anywhere in the world. Whatever it takes to see you smile."
Calem sat up from the bed, took both of Serena's hands, and lifted them up. Joy quietly gasped before she and Sonia huddled close together in anticipation. Serena felt goosebumps in her body as Calem said seven words she waited all her life to hear a man say to her.
"Serena Judith Yvonne, will you marry me?"
Serena's heart stopped beating, and her pupils shrunk until they were like grains of sand. Joy and Sonia huddled closer until their cheeks were touching. Calem gave Serena a pleading look, worried about how she wasn't responding.
It took a moment before the honey blonde woman snapped out of her shock and thought about the question. Her common-sense demanded that she let him down as nicely as possible and tell the truth, but the latter half of her mind argued that marrying Calem would be great for everyone. She would officially be a part of the family, she'd have a husband who would put her before himself, and she could finally travel. Serena also considered how if she told Calem the truth at that very moment, he would lose his new positive outlook on life, affecting both him and the family. She didn't know how she truly felt about Calem, but she knew that she wouldn't do anything that would hurt anyone in that way.
Serena continued to debate with herself, leaving everyone on pins and needles. Then she smiled and moved closer to Calem, giving the man hope.
"Yes."
Joy passed out into Sonia's arms.