Johnny opened his eyes to see Frank staring into his face. "Holy-Frank!" Johnny jumped and almost fell off the bed.

Frank looked at him. "Good morning to you, too."

Johnny got up from the bed and looked at Frank, sighing. "Frank…you don't live here."

"Key's still under the mat. At this point, I should."

"Frank, you have your own family. Your own house."

He shrugged. "It's not as fun over there."

Johnny said, "What exactly are you expecting over here?"

He pointed at a random Flannery photo. "What do you think."

Johnny sighed again. "Give me five minutes to actually get dressed."

Frank nodded, and Johnny went into the bathroom with clothes to brush his teeth and change. Once he did so, he walked out, and Frank said, "Something's up with Flannery."

Johnny asked with sarcasm, "You mean besides the burns?"

Frank ignored it and said, "Yeah. I don't know what, though. I said hi to her on my way over and she just mumbled. You know how enthusiastic she is."

Johnny nodded. "Dude, don't worry about it." He patted Frank on the shoulder. "I'm sure it's nothing."

As Johnny walked out of the house, he saw Flannery walking towards the Gym and said, "Hey, Flannery!"

She looked at him like a deer looks in the headlights and ran towards the Gym. Yeah, Frank was right…Johnny went over to the Gym and went to open the door, but Flannery had locked it. "Flannery, why'd you lock the Gym? A challenger might come along."

He heard her reply from inside, "Wattson gives me a heads-up when someone beats him, and there's nothing yet. So I'm not worried."

"But still, you've never locked the Gym before. What's the problem?"

"I can't tell you."

"Why not?"

"Because it's you!"

Johnny was silent for a moment, and Flannery said, "Well, not you, just relating to you…ugh, this is complicated!"

He heard her lean on the doors and slide to the ground, and he said, "Look, if it's me, maybe I can help figure it out. Will you let me try to help?"

A large sigh emanated from the Gym, and Flannery said, "You can't help. It's nice of you to ask, but you can't help. I just need some time…"

Johnny sighed. "Well, how are your burns?"

"Better. Still not 100%, but it's getting better."

"That's good to hear. Can I see?"

"I dunno, can you?"

Johnny rolled his eyes. "You get my point, smart-ass."

"I do, and no."

"Why not?"

"Because then you'll try to get in and talk to me."

Johnny couldn't deny that. "Well, if you're gonna think, at least do it in the hot springs. I'm sure it's better for relaxing than your Gym."

Silence. Then "Face away from the Gym doors."

He did so and said, "Alright, I'm not looking."

He heard the doors open, and as much as he wanted to turn around and see her, he stayed true to her request. He stayed like that for a few minutes more until Frank's voice said from behind him, "Something fascinating about that tree line?"

Johnny turned. "Flannery's in the hot springs thinking. Apparently the problem has something to do with me."

Frank thought a moment, then grinned. "She's never had a boyfriend, right?"

Johnny nodded, and Frank said, "Well, this is just her way of coping with new feelings."

"But…I'm not reacting like her. I'm not flipping out."

"Because you've had a crush on her since pretty much when you were born. You want this…she doesn't know if she wants this. Not good, not bad, just a thing. Give her space."

Johnny nodded. "This is agonizing, though."

Frank gave him a look. "Just think about how she feels."

Johnny nodded, and Frank said, "You had a good idea. Wanna soak in the springs?"

"I don't have my suit."

Frank handed him a pair of trunks, and Johnny said, "You really need to go home once in a while. Where's yours?"

In response, Frank ripped off his pants, revealing trunks. "Dude, you just wasted a perfectly good pair of pants."

"That's what you think." Frank grabbed the pants, and Johnny noticed there was Velcro on the sides. "These pants work wonders."

Johnny shook his head. "You are, by far, one of the weirdest and most resourceful people I know."

Frank grinned. "Thanks."

The two of them walked into the Pokémon Center and went to go soak in the hot springs. They both sighed as they relaxed, and Frank muttered, "If I didn't look like a raisin after I got out, I would never leave this."

"Me neither."

"Same here."

The two looked around for the third voice, which had not come from their side. Johnny looked at the separating wall and said, "Flannery?"

"Oh crap, Johnny!" They heard movement on the other side, and Johnny hurriedly said, "No, don't worry about it! I'm not here to talk, just to relax."

Silence. Then "Fine. Just…please don't talk to me."

"Deal."

An awkward silence filled the area after that. Frank looked at Johnny, then at the wall, then back at Johnny. "Well, this is awkward."

Johnny and Flannery said at the same time, "Tell me about it."