Our communication was a bit off and on most of the time. We'd talk for a long time when we could, but then we wouldn't for a while. Though there were times when Wallace would just call me and talk for a really really short time, and then have to leave. He always seemed to be a little off in those moments, but I never asked if something was wrong.
However, we didn't always tell each other when we were going off somewhere. I was particularly bad at that, and would leave to be digging all day, only to come back and see five missed messages. Eventually I think Wallace caught on that I wasn't necessarily dying if I didn't answer, but I know that he was still worried when I got back.
I'm not sure if he had any other close friends; I didn't. He was my closest, and only, friend. I got the image that I might be his only one too, but I didn't want to jump to conclusions. Not that it really mattered much.
One day, when I was twenty and on my way back from looking around in the desert, I ran into Wallace in Mauville. Understandably, I was surprised to find him so far from Sootopolis.
"Wallace!" I called to him when I saw him, walking up to him. I knew that I was a mess from my trip out to the desert, and the only reason that I was not flying back home was because Skarmory was by far too tired from my trekking about. From head to toe I was covered in scuffs and dirt, and I probably still had sand in my hair, but most of this came in a quick thought right before I called for him, and I thought little of it afterward.
Or I would have, if Wallace hadn't commented on it.
"Steven? What in the world, you look like you've been dragged through the dirt and beaten," he said, a trace of worry in his voice. I smiled and laughed in return.
"I've just been looking around in the desert. Did you know that it's a bit windy there?" I asked jokingly. He smiled with relief, and I continued, "So what are you doing here?"
"I was trying to call you, but I guess your stint into the desert explains why you weren't answering. I'm here to face Wattson. I would ask if you wanted to come with me, but you probably just want to rest now," he told me, and I shrugged.
"I'm really not as tired as I look," I responded, "I'd be up for it, if you wouldn't mind an audience."
"You know that I don't mind an audience. Especially not you. I'm sure you'd just make feel less nervous," Wallace said. I looked him over.
"You've gotten much better at looking calm," I told him, "I hadn't noticed that you were nervous at all."
"Glad I've got that down already," Wallace told me, brushing his fingers over my hair and releasing some of the sand that was stuck in my blue-gray hair. I didn't react to it, though I probably should have. He chuckled as he did it.
"You really care so little about how you look," Wallace said, which confused me quite a bit.
"Well I'm hardly trying to impress anybody," I said, brushing some of the sand off of my shoulders. Wallace made a face and then changed the subject.
"So would you be up for going with me to the gym?" he asked, and I nodded that I would be. We both started toward the gym, which was not too far from where I had come into the city. I knew that the type disadvantage that Wallace had would probably hurt him a bit in this gym, but I also knew that Wallace could easily take Wattson.
So it was no surprise when he blew through the gym and made it to Wattson quickly. The trainers there seemed to remember me, even though I had faced the gym a while back. They seemed puzzled to see me again, but after having to deal with Wallace's ability they were distracted from my presence.
As always, I was in awe of Wallace's skill as he battled. He managed to be great both in contests and battles; other people probably would have been jealous, I suppose, and maybe I was. But mostly I was just glad to be his friend, and be able to cheer him on like this.
He had grown since I first met him, and he stood confidently behind his Milotic when he faced down Wattson. I'm sure I had a big dopey smile on my face when I watched him, and I'm also sure that I wouldn't have been able to explain it if I'd been asked about it. And while it wasn't a cake walk, I could tell, Wallace didn't have nearly as much trouble as someone with mostly water pokemon should have had.
At one point I swear he winked at me, to which I could only roll my eyes. When the battle was over and Wallace was awarded the Dynamo Badge, I walked over to stand behind him. Wallace turned around and grinned at me when it was over. Or, really, I don't think that grinned is a good way to put it. It was much more graceful and kind than the word grin portrays it to be.
We then made our way to the Pokemon Center, as both of our pokemon were now tired, and I felt ready to drop. I tried not to let Wallace know how tired I was, after being out for so long, but he seemed to notice it; he really could pick up on my every little thought sometimes, I could never hide things from him.
So after our pokemon had been looked over and we were sitting there in the main room of the Pokemon Center, I felt myself ready to drop. The conversation waned and I felt my head rest on his shoulder. I hadn't realized earlier how tired I was, but the sky outside was dark, and I had been up and about all day. I just hoped that Wallace wouldn't mind the fact that I had conked out on his shoulder.
When I woke up, I was in my bed at home, and could hear Wallace's voice drifting down the hallway to my room. In my groggy state I wondered how I had gotten home, and managed to roll off the bed and into the floor with a thump.
"Steven?" I heard both my father and Wallace call. I started to pull myself up.
"I'm fine," I called back, pulling myself up off the floor. Wallace opened the door to my room, seeing me on the floor, and I couldn't help but feel embarrassed.
"I was surprised to be in my bed," I said as an answer to the unasked question.
"I can tell," he said with a smile, holding out his hand to help me up, "Skarmory helped me get you back here. I wouldn't have tried it if he hadn't been so eager to take you back home for some reason."
He didn't mention me falling asleep on him, and I didn't bring it up. I dusted myself off and decided I should move out. I'd been living with my father for too long, and maybe all of this was causing me to think it over at an odd time but that hardly mattered.
"How long are you planning on staying here?" I asked Wallace.
"Trying to shoo me away, are you?" he responded, grinning wide and poking me in the shoulder. I noticed my father leaning in the doorway, listening to our banter.
"Not at all. I just need to know so I can plan," I responded.
"I didn't know you planned ahead," he told me.
"Funny. Now if you'll excuse me, I think I'm going to go take a shower. If you wanna borrow some of my clothes, Wallace, you can. I'm sure I have something that'll fit you," I told him, gathering some clean clothes and heading to the bathroom.
"I already had, but I'm glad you gave me permission," Wallace said, and I looked back to notice that he was wearing one of my light gray button ups and baggier black slacks (which were hardly baggy on him). I only raised my eyebrow at him. "See you."
I waved as I stepped into the bathroom.
...
After that time moved on and we both got stronger. I decided to try moving for a bit, and my father approved of my choice, and while he might not have approved of my new home in Mossdeep, I think he understood my reasons for moving there. It was much easier to keep up with Wallace, at least when I was actually at home. I tended to wander most of them time, and really my home was not nearly as well used as it could have been. I could almost say that I stayed at Wallace's house in Sootopolis more often than my own house.
Things went on the same for a while; at least, until a couple of events broke up the routine. The first of these was that Wallace took over from Juan as the Sootopolis City Gym Leader. The second was that I challenged the Elite 4 and won. Between these two events, we lost contact with each other a bit.
And by a bit, I mean we were usually too busy to see each other in person, but we got into the habit of calling each other regularly. We were both in the same area much of the time, but our positions didn't allow for much movement, and both of us had to stick around. The only time it wasn't like that was when we had our own duties to tend to. Sometimes I would have to double up and do things for my father in Rustboro, which led to me being much more busy than I had ever remembered being.
I got into the habit of calling while I was in transit, which was probably dangerous but I was stupid and wanted to talk to my friend so I did it anyway. Wallace had a tendency of dropping whatever he was doing in order to talk to me, which made me happy that he cared but also worry about if it could be hurting him. Really the only times I remember him turning down my calls would be when he was battling someone; he'd always call back quickly though.
Everything went downhill when we got involved in the Kyogre/Groudon mess. The only upside was that I got to see him in person. Though really, that was only a little bit in the middle of all of the rest of the mess. I stuck around him though, because he couldn't go into the cave, and as much as I wanted to see what was in there, I also wanted to stick around with Wallace. He might have been the picture of grace, but I like to think that I know how to read him by now. And he was nervous and worried right then; more so than I remember in a while. So I hung back with him, a comforting hand on his shoulder as we dealt with the near end of the world (and its eventual saving by a little kid).
Things settled down after that, but of course it did. And with it, Wallace and I went back to talking through devices and in between our other duties. I was being run ragged and I knew that some time soon my father would win out in pressuring me to come work with him. Meanwhile Wallace was the picture of grace; he ran his gym efficiently, and managed to be a contest superstar with tons of fans all the while. I was hardly surprised though; I had seen it coming even when I first met him. All in all, I was amazed by Wallace and his abilities.
And I was tired.
So I stepped down.
When I called Wallace to tell him that, he didn't look surprised. He didn't even seem disappointed. He understood, or at least that's what it seemed like to me.
"I assume you'll be going to work with your father now, then?" he asked me. I sighed.
"Yes. But at least this way I'll have time to do other stuff too," I told him, "Plus, there are other people who would be better candidates for the role of champion than me."
"You're not giving yourself enough credit," he told me with a smile, an echo of our first meeting. In the same moment, I felt both so young and so old. "You became the champion when you were only 20, Steven. You spend all day in caves and think nothing of the dedication it takes. Your pokemon adore you, and you work together so well."
This random burst of praise likely brought color to my face.
He continued, saying, "And you balance your dedication to your father with your post as champion, doing everything for other people, rather than doing what you yourself want."
"Well, I..." I started, but trailed off, not knowing what to say. He seemed to realize that he'd embarrassed me and looked a bit nervous himself. "Thank you."
"Plus, you are one hot young fellow," he said, his tone light, trying to distract from his earlier statement, though he somehow only managed to dig himself deeper. He laughed nervously.
"Oh, sorry to run off, Steven, I have something I need to do," he said, and we said our goodbyes. When he clicked off I knew that he was just trying to end the conversation before it got weirder, which I appreciated. However, the way he'd said my name stuck in my mind. Was it weird that I just really liked hearing him say my name?
I brushed it off at the time and moved on. I was going back to my house to gather some things before going back to Rustboro for a while. Life was going to get a bit more hectic, if only for a few days.