Chapter XII: The Ill Trainer and the Healing Visit

It was back to school after summer vacation. It was a bummer for some but it couldn't be helped. Even great Pokemon trainers start off by learning stuff from scratch. Haruka's butt side was feeling fine after days of applying ointment to the burn. Strangely enough, she didn't reprimand Shuu for getting almost fried by his Rozelia's Solar Beam. Whatever happens at Muro Island stays at Muro Island. A few days after their return, Haruka noticed something missing today. She checked her backpack (you think her belt bag would accommodate all of her books and notebooks; not to mention her monster balls?). After double-checking her school stuff, everything she needed was right there in her bag.

So what was missing?

"You seem awfully silent today." Kanata said. "Usually you would be ranting about Satoshi right now."

"That's the problem, kamo." Haruka answered. "I haven't seen Satoshi since this morning."

"Come to think of it, where's that dense goofball anyway?"

"Kanata, that's not nice."

"What can I say? He's too dense to even understand that Kasumi is actually a freak of nature. A bathing suit…how hilarious…"

"That's even worse than before. Come on, kamo."

"I'm sure he's here somewhere. This school's not very big."

Without Satoshi, Haruka felt very incomplete. A day without him, at least at school, was like a week without water while traversing a barren desert. She went to his classroom where she asked Hikari about Satoshi's whereabouts. The only thing she got from her blue-haired rival was dire news.

"Didn't you know? Satoshi came down with a fever last night." Hikari explained.

"Why didn't he tell me? Now I'm more worried than before, kamo." Haruka replied.

"Tell you what; let's go visit him right after class. How does that sound?"

"B-But…wouldn't it be bothering him?"

"Haruka…Haruka…Haruka…doesn't that defeat the purpose of a friendly visit?"

"Well…I guess it wouldn't hurt to see him."

"Then it's settled."

The brunette girl's face turned red in an instant; shrugging her shoulders.

---0---0---0---0---0---

A few hours later after the last lesson for the day has been taught, Hikari and Haruka went on their way to Satoshi's house just outside of Touka City. His house outside of the city wasn't fancy or anything. Heck, it wasn't really a house but a…

"A tent…?" Haruka said. "Satoshi lives in a tent?"

"I always ask him to stay at my place but he won't." Hikari replied.

"Satoshi…"

But he wasn't alone. Just outside the tent was their friend Takeshi whipping up a delicious soup by the campfire. In fact, both of them were living under one tent. Looking for a place to stay was almost impossible in Touka City.

"Oh I forgot. Ryuzaki-senpai is living with him." Hikari added.

"H-He is…?" Haruka seemed to dislike the scenario. Her built-in theater kicked in with another skit.

---0---0---Stage Kamo! Haruka's Fantasy Theater---0---0---

Takeshi went inside the tent; carrying a bowl of hot soup. Satoshi was really down and out. He tucked himself behind the blanket and enjoyed the comforts of his soft futon. The trainer's condition was only worsening considering that they were roughing it in the great outdoors.

"Satoshi, have some of this soup. It'll clear up your nose." Takeshi put the bowl of soup beside the sick trainer. But for some reason, not even the appetizing smell urged him to take a spoonful of it.

"Takeshi, I feel cold." The ill trainer responded weakly. "Even with this blanket on…"

"Well, this soup should fix that chilly feeling."

Suddenly, Satoshi grabbed his companion by the shoulders and drew him closer to the sick trainer. The only thing that will make this scenario sick and wrong is a kiss.

"S-S-Satoshi, what's gotten into you?" Takeshi asked.

But the trainer refused to answer. The next thing that happened; the tent started to shake violently with male screams echoing outside.

---0---0---Curtains Down---0---0---

The next thing Hikari knew, her friend was banging her head against the tree.

"What the heck's wrong with you, Haruka?!" The brunette girl asked herself. "What? What? WHAAAAAAT…?"

"H-Haruka, what's the matter with you?" Hikari grabbed her friend and began pulling her away from the tree before any real damage could be done to her head. "For goodness sake, take care of your head!"

After calming down and patching her red forehead, Haruka went inside the tent while Takeshi and Hikari talked outside. The brunette girl saw the ill trainer all cozy in his futon. Even hiding under the blanket on a hot sunny Saturday didn't help with his illness. Satoshi felt as cold as a freezer. Haruka looked at him helplessly; thinking of what she could do to ease his pain.

"S-Satoshi, I brought you some fruits." She said; carrying a small basket of fruits which she handpicked from the trees around the campsite earlier.

"Hey Haruka, thanks a million for coming to visit me." Satoshi replied weakly.

"Well…I was worried, kamo."

"Sorry for making you worry."

"You know that you can always count on me, kamo." Haruka smiled and winked at him.

"I'll be sure to keep that in mind."

Half-an-hour has passed. Satoshi fell asleep after eating Takeshi's remedial herbal soup (no, it didn't contain any sleeping powder). Haruka begged Hikari for them to stay a little bit longer. For some reason, she wanted to keep a watchful eye over Satoshi. Hikari had no choice but to agree. After all, that's what they came for. While Hikari and Takeshi were having a practice battle with their Pokemon, Haruka missed out on the fun outside and watched over her beloved. Every few minutes she would change the damp towel on top of his forehead and wash it in cold water. His fever had subsided; all he needed was rest and he would be back on his feet by Monday.

"It looks like his fever broke." Haruka said; touching Satoshi's forehead. "I'm relieved, kamo."

"N-No mom, I'm already full…" Satoshi muttered in his sleep.

"But one thing hasn't been broken, that's for sure." The brunette girl giggled.

Hold on…

The two of them…all alone inside the tent…Satoshi sleeping…she just realized that an opportunity was knocking on her door. Suddenly, two figures appeared on both of her shoulders: an angel and a devil Haruka; both wearing the same adventure outfit as hers but with slight differences: a golden halo and a pair of small horns respectively. This just proves that her conscience was going to take over from this point on.

"Come on, go follow your heart!" The devil said.

"Oh please, at least wait for him to wake up." The angel replied.

"Love won't wait for that! Get in there and show him your love!"

"Love can wait! There's a right time for everything."

Haruka noticed something odd about her consciences—they were saying the complete opposite of what they should be saying.

"Since when did devils learn to follow their heart?" She asked them one by one. "And since when did angels become so pushy? Isn't it supposed to be the other way around?"

"I told you the old switch-a-roo won't work on her." The devil said to the angel then left in a puff of smoke.

"You're the one who started it!" The angel let out a sigh and disappeared as well.

So much for conscience; they were utterly useless in planning Haruka's next move…now she didn't know what to do. She wanted to follow her heart and kiss him while he's asleep but that seemed like hitting below the belt. She was stuck in the middle with nobody to guide her. But five minutes later, an involuntary response from her beloved made her change her mind.

"H-Haruka…" Satoshi muttered involuntarily.

The brunette girl was rendered speechless. It was her first time hearing Satoshi calling out her name in such manner. To make things more shocking to her, the trainer puckered up all of a sudden as if he was about to kiss somebody in his dreams.

"T-This may be my chance, kamo." Haruka decided to go for it and responded to her beloved by closing her eyes, lowering her head, and puckering up.

Their lips were about to meet as the brunette girl drew closer and closer to her beloved. She was so preoccupied with one of her dreams coming true; she didn't let Satoshi finish his involuntary statement right until the last period.

"Haruka…Haruka…Ha…Ha…Ha…HAAAAAAACHOOOOOOO…!"

---0---0---0---0---0---

Two days later, Satoshi was back on his two feet and fighting Pokemon battles once more. The combined effort of rest, herbal soup, and Haruka's healing visit last Saturday did the trick. He never felt better his entire life. As soon as it was lunchtime, he went to class 1-A to go look for the brunette girl. Unfortunately, she was nowhere to be found in the classroom.

"Have you seen Haruka?" Satoshi asked Kanata. "I want to thank her for visiting me last Saturday."

"Haruka…?" Kanata replied. "Didn't you know? She came down with a cold last night. It was very awful."

"Oh I see…if you do visit her, please send my thanks."

"Sure thing, kamo…" Kanata winked.

TO BE CONTINUED

Kamo! Trivial Trivia #7: A futon is a soft bed mattress that is laid down on the floor instead of the traditional bed mattresses that needed to be mounted on bed frames. It's complete with a pillow and a thick blanket. It is still in use inside traditional Japanese homes especially in hot springs. So it's not your typical outdoor sleeping bag but hey, this is fiction after all.