Bet you weren't expecting a sequel! Believe me, I wasn't either. What can I say? Kalosshipping speaks to me.

Disclaimer: I still don't own Pokémon.

In the whopping six months I've known him, I've never seen Calem anything other than calm and collected. I guess I haven't considered any of the feelings he's hiding from the world. I definitely didn't figure he'd be this angry all the time.

"I can't believe they'd make a cave that's only accessible by Rhyhorn," he's yelling at the tour guide/Rhyhorn handler who looks justifiably terrified. "This is the twenty-first century, and that is absolutely ridiculous."

"I don't think people make caves, Calem," I say. It's a joke—a pretty funny one at that, but he only whirls on me in surprise.

"Serena," he says in a much softer tone. The Rhyhorn handler gives me a grateful nod before wandering off to tend to another Rhyhorn. I don't blame him; it's much less threatening than an angry Calem.

"I don't mean to jump to conclusions, but are you scared of riding a Rhyhorn?" I ask. A fierce blush quickly spreads across Calem's cheeks. I find myself smiling despite my honorable intentions. If there's one thing I know, it's how to ride Rhyhorns. I'm quite good at it, actually.

"You know I can't exactly admit that to Grace the Rhyhorn Racer's daughter," Calem mumbles. I'm already breezing past him to the wall of saddles. This is probably what the tour guide is for, but I don't mind doing his job. My entire childhood is right here on one colorful display, for once feeling closer than a thousand miles away.

"Okay, since it's your first time, you'll probably want a saddle with extra padding." I try to tug down a hot pink saddle from the top row, but I'm not tall enough. Calem scrunches up his adorably dainty nose at my selection; he leans over me to get it anyway. I choose a tasteful pastel blue saddle for myself.

"Why do we need these? Grace doesn't use one," he says. I take a second to happily acknowledge he's watched some of my mother's old races. I may be decent with Rhyhorns, but I could never go bareback like her. Those stones are coming nowhere near my more private places. I'm not sure how to explain the obvious to a cute boy, though.

"You realize Rhyhorn is a Rock-type, right? As in it's covered in rocks?" I ask, pointing to the Pokémon in question. "Do you want to sit on that?" Gesturing between the jagged edges and his much softer skin, I pointedly avoid looking at the area this interrogation is directed at. Calem's blushing again.

"God, I wish I lived in Kanto. I bet they get to ride Ponyta," Calem says. I have to roll my eyes a few times before he notices. "What, did you not get to ride any Ponyta as a kid?"

"Need I remind you that my mother is not nicknamed 'Grace the Ponyta Prancer'?" We exchange sheepish grins as I try not to imagine how much more I would have enjoyed a pet Ponyta. "I don't think you'd like fire around your you-know-what either." So much for not thinking about that.

"I can't begin to express how uncomfortable I am right now," Calem says, but he's still smiling. "Thank you for teaching me about Rock- and Fire-types having rocks and fire on their persons, respectively."

"Shut up." The snarky comment costs Calem the rein I was about to attach to his Rhyhorn. Good luck getting anywhere that Pokemon doesn't want to go, you asshole. For fairness's sake, I leave mine on the wall, too. The Rhyhorn handler starts to say something, but a quick wink and a well-placed tip keep him quiet.

I pretend I don't notice Calem studying my every move as I climb onto my Rhyhorn. Despite my flawless example, he still can't swing a leg over without knocking his saddle loose. His Rhyhorn takes every opportunity to stomp on all its hot pink glory.

Easing myself back off my own ride, I approach Calem as one would a cornered animal. He shoots me a frustrated snort, which hits its mark and makes me giggle a bit. This doesn't help matters.

"Here, here," I say in a desperate attempt to appease him, taking his hands before he can argue. With me holding him steady, Calem flings a leg over Rhyhorn's back. The Pokémon is too big for him to comfortably straddle, so he's quickly forced to sit. I throw our hands in the air in an over-exuberant celebration. He rolls his eyes, another tiny smile forming.

It gives me a good chance to stare at him. I never pass those up.

Maybe I should give more thought toward what's going on in Calem's head. It doesn't occur to me until he's right here within reach—so easy to touch—how much I don't know about him. Looking at the miniscule (but beyond meaningful) smile I would pay 10,000P to see, his stormy gray eyes swimming with laughter, and the glowing black hair I'd kill for, I can't stand the idea of not knowing every thought that goes through his mind.

The moment is just that, a moment, because my HoloCaster chooses to start blasting a ringtone I've never heard before. "I'm a Barbie Girl! In a Barble wo-o-orld!" I hit the reject button before it gets too far, not even noticing the caller's name. Whoever it is can face my wrath in person later.

Calem has stopped laughing to simply stare at me. I don't have an explanation for anything that just happened, including our interlocked hands. I drop them awkwardly, and his face slips further into placidity.

"Remember when you changed Tierno's ringtone to the song 'Dancing Queen' from 'Mamma Mia!'?" he asks out of nowhere. I did that at least two months ago when we were all gathered in Sycamore's lab, right before I changed Trevor's to Weird Al's "White and Nerdy." Neither one of them was very pleased with me when I called them up later. I had almost forgotten about that.

I nod hesitantly, because I have no clue where this conversation is going. "He didn't like it very much."

"You're right," Calem says reassuringly. I deflate a little more. "He loved it. For an honest week, Tierno called me every single day just to hang up so I'd call him back. I hated it, but it made him happy, so…"

"This doesn't explain my awful ringtone, Calem. I am not a Barbie Girl." With my hands on my hips, I'm not sure I'm proving my point.

"I think Tierno was trying to return the favor," he explains. "I'll be the first to say he misjudged you, though." Calem doesn't meet my eyes while he says the last bit. That's how I know to take it more seriously than usual, letting the words sink straight to my heart. Smiling at his turned head is easier than smiling at his probing gaze, sometimes.

I return to my Rhyhorn with an extra bounce in my step. It's not often Calem agrees with anyone, especially me. As the official most-sane members of our friend group, I guess we're stuck together, weird ringtones and all.

"Are you ready to head out?" I ask him, tapping his elbow with mine as I lead my steed past his stationary one. Calem blows out a loud sigh in response.

We take the path in baby steps, which I handle patiently for about fifteen minutes. Then I tell Calem to yell if he needs anything while I explore. He makes it a solid ten feet after I've found every item in a five-mile radius and battled a Sky Trainer. It's difficult not to brag once I trek back to him.

Despite my impressive time management, I left a few boulders intact to teach Calem about Rhyhorn's other abilities. He encounters the first one a few minutes after my return. "Serena," he groans, gazing up at the massive rock, "what is this?"

"I thought we already covered the rock part of today's lesson, Calem. You're supposed to be able to recognize rocks now." In response, Calem kicks a few rocks at me. His Rhyhorn snuffles after them.

He's about to hurl another complaint my way when his Rhyhorn gets tired of waiting. I watch pure instinct take over its dutiful, relaxed constitution, and it and Calem go flying into the boulder. The rock splinters straight down the center, sending shrapnel like tiny missiles in every direction. Every party is injured, but I'm still laughing my ass off through the stinging pain in my upper arm.

"What the hell is wrong with this thing?" Calem yells at me. "I'm done, Serena, I'm done! Tell Professor Sycamore to study Mega Evolution himself and see how he likes riding this damn Rhyhorn! I bet Rhyhorn doesn't have a Mega Evolution, because it's the worst Pokemon this world has ever seen!"

It's a good thing Calem doesn't know how to turn the Rhyhorn around, because I'm not sure I could convince him to keep going otherwise. Plus, I manage to film his entire tirade without him noticing. A true win-win scenario.

Only after he refuses to move one more inch do I finally agree to my pre-planned last resort. An Escape Rope is tied between our Rhyhorns, and I lead us to the cave. Calem hardly speaks at all except to chide me for overfeeding his Rhyhorn berries, which I toss over my shoulder at regular intervals. In my defense, it was my way of apologizing. That Pokémon is as scarred as Calem after today's events.

"Hey, Serena, can I see your HoloCaster?" he asks when we're almost halfway there. I covered ground a lot faster when I didn't have almost four hundred pounds dragging behind me. For a second I wonder if he actually saw me recording, but I decide it's only Tierno, Trevor, and Shauna's loss if he deletes that video. I hand him my HoloCaster without comment.

I have a second idea of what he's doing, anyway. It excites me more than I care to admit.

Twenty minutes later sees us to our destination. Calem practically kisses the ground after he crawls off his Rhyhorn. He walks like he's been out to sea for twenty years and glares at me every time I giggle, no matter how quietly I do it. I can't stop glancing at him while I tie up both our rides.

"Well, I'll see you inside, neighbor," he says by way of goodbye. Trying not to seem disappointed, I give him a hearty wave.

To my extreme irritation, Calem roller skates into the cave. I'm left with two emotionally exhausted Rhyhorn.

A few seconds later, my HoloCaster rings. I don't answer. I'm distracted by a song I've never heard before:

"I've been through the desert

And I've been across the sea

I've been walking through the mountains

I've wandered through the trees for her

I have been trying to find her

Want to give what I got, she lit a fire

But now she's in my every thought."

Calem's call goes to voicemail, but I'm already running after him into the cave. He's standing right in front of the entrance and shoots me a hesitant smile as soon as he sees me. It only lasts a second before I crash into him with a bone-breaking hug.

"Do you like it?" he laughs breathily in my ear. I didn't even realize how shaky my own legs are, but once I let go, it's difficult to stand on my own.

The song is perfect, but not as perfect as the boy in front of me. The thoughtfulness makes me feel a little guilty as I plan what his future ringtone will be. Calem hands me his HoloCaster without hesitation when I ask, the poor sucker.

We navigate the cave with much more ease than the trail outside—not even Team Flare can impede our progress. It all turns out to be a ginormous waste of time, though my Sail Fossil is beautiful enough to make up for it.

The dwindling twilight is just coming into view when Shauna calls Calem, just like I asked. "I bet Rhyhorn doesn't have a Mega Evolution, because it's the worst Pokémon this world has ever seen! I bet Rhyhorn doesn't have a Mega Evolution, because it's the worst Pokémon this world has ever seen! I bet Rhyhorn doesn't have a—!" The call goes to voicemail.

I brace myself for another epic Calem rant, but instead, I'm greeted with a wave of incredible, breathless giggles. His smile glows against the cave's dim lighting. I don't need much encouragement to join his easy laughter.

"That's perfect, Serena," he says, reaching out to touch my arm. "You really do know me so well." Calem falters. "All of us, I mean."

I know what he means, so I take his hand no matter how much the gesture scares me. I know he'll need the support in the upcoming moments.

Calem lets me keep his hand until we reenter the real world, where our two Rhyhorn are waiting patiently to carry us back.

"Oh, hell no."