So I finally found an opportunity to upload this chapter, so sorry it's a bit late. I should be able to continue the every other day upload schedule, but no promises. Enjoy chapter 21!

The five all arrived at the same diner that Jake, May, and Max had eaten at on the first day they arrived at Slateport. They were all seated at a table, which was barely enough to fit all five. The square table was at a booth, with two people on one side, and three on the other. May sat on the end side with the wall. Jake sat next to her in the middle, flanked by Max. On the other side, Morrison sat across from May, with Tyson sitting next to him. Eevee had claimed a spot on May's shoulder that was next to Jake, so he could hop between the two at will.

The waitress took their orders, and when she left, Jake spoke first.

"So Tyson, did you win your last match?" He asked, breaking the silence.

"Yeah. I'm moving on to Driftveil!" He replied.

"Man, I'm like the only one who isn't going." Morrison complained.

"Hey, I got knocked out too. I didn't even make it to the qualifiers! I was knocked out by the same person you were!" Max piped in.

"I didn't knock you out, I just beat you. I'm sorry if I sound like a dick saying this, but it's not my fault you lost to that other guy." Jake said.

"Guys, lets not worry abut the tournament now. Jake and Tyson have moved on, so let's leave it at that. Besides, I wanna know what y'all have been up to since the Hoenn League." May said, changing the subject.

"Okay. I say Morrison goes first." Max said.

"Well, after Hoenn, I decided to travel to Unova. I had just learned about it, and I wanted to meet all the cool new Pokémon."

Morrison continued his story, telling of his various travels throughout Unova and Kanto. Tyson then recalled his travels through Sinnoh and Unova. The group got their food and continued to talk, staying there for quite a while.

The group had just finished eating. Morrison and Tyson had left, leaving May, Max, Jake, and Eevee. The four decided to head back to the hotel, and meet back up tomorrow. Jake had to leave on the ferry there in two days. He was allowed to bring one guest that was a non family member. Like he had previously asked, May agreed to go with him. The four had arrived at their rooms, and Max had already gone inside of his, leaving May, Jake and Eevee outside in the hall.

"So, we got two days before we have to leave. Is there anything you'd like to do here in Slateport?" Jake asked.

"I'd like to go to the museum. I never got a chance when I was traveling with Ash. Team Aqua took it over, and we had to leave before we got a chance to see it."

"Alright, let's go there tomorrow. However, like you suggested, I wanna see how Maverick and Juggernaught fare together in a double battle. Think you could help with that?" Jake asked.

"I'd love to. We can go to the museum in the morning, have a quick lunch, then train during the afternoon. Besides, it would allow me to work on some contest moves."

"Alright, cool. See you tomorrow."

"See ya."

The two shared a quick goodbye hug, before heading back into their respective rooms.

Jake walked in, and the first thing he did was plop down on the bed, the day's events quickly catching up to him. Eevee simply decided to find a comfy spot on the bed and go to sleep.

"Night, bud." Jake said.

"Vui!" The normal type replied, quickly falling asleep.

Jake was exhausted. Four battles in one day took their toll on a trainer, and Jake was no exception. Even though it was only 8:30, he was on the verge of falling asleep. He decided to get ready for bed. There was no point in trying to stay awake any longer. Within minutes, he changed into a black t-shirt and decided to sleep in his boxers. He brushed his teeth, and was about to climb into bed, when he heard a knock on the door.

Reluctantly, Jake got up, annoyed that he had to get up just as he was about to go to bed. He trotted over to the door and looked into the peephole. He saw Max on the other side, so he opened the door.

"Sup Max." Jake said.

"Hey Jake. Can I talk to you for a minute?" He asked.

"Sure, I guess. Come on in." Jake said, opening the door more so Max could come inside, and the two headed over to the bed. Eevee perked up at the noise, and when he saw Jake and Max coming over to the bed to sit, he decided that he would be more comfortable in Jake's lap. When the two sat down, Eevee went over to Jake's lap and curled up.

Jake started stroking Eevee's fur, when he asked the first question.

"So what is it you want to talk about?" Jake asked. He had a feeling that it had to do with him and May, but he asked for conversation's sake.

"I wanted to ask about you and my sister." Max said, confirming Jake's theory.

"Yeah, what about us?"

"You're not leading her on, are you?" Max asked, getting straight to the point.

"What!? No, of course not! Why would you ask such a stupid question?" Jake asked. He was shocked at Max's question. Why would he ask me something like this? Wait, maybe...

Even Eevee was shocked at the question. He cocked his head, wanting to know why it was asked.

"Cause I'm supposed to look out for my sister. I promised my parents I would, and I intend on making sure my sister is in good hands. I'm leaving for Petalburg tomorrow, and I need to be 100% sure nothing bad will happen to her." Max answered.

"Don't worry. May can look after herself. She's pretty independent. She always was, even when we were kids. I know you don't really remember me, but I can assure you that I won't let anything bad happen to her." Jake said confidently.

"Promise me you'll look after her when I'm gone?"

"I promise. Don't worry."

A moment of silence passed, before Jake mustered up the courage to ask his next question.

"Tell me, does this have anything to do with Drew?"

Max sighed. "Look, I know May doesn't really want this out there, but I only feel that it's right to tell you this. Long story short, when Drew and May were dating back when they were in Johto, he cheated on her. Led her on. He was apparently with someone else before he and May started going out."

Jake was stunned. Even though he didn't know Drew like Max and May did, he never did like him. In an interview after winning the Sinnoh Grand Festival, he seemed arrogant and had an attitude. When he first saw him in person, he was bothering one of his closest friends. He had battled Jake and lost, yet still refused to leave like he had agreed to. Learning that he had done something like this did not sit well with him one bit. However, he knew he had to keep his composure.

"Max, that will never happen with me. When I met back up with your sister, all the good memories that we had together flooded back. How we used to laugh and play together, how she was always smiling when we did so. Even though she didn't like Pokémon and I did, that didn't stop us from being best friends. When I saw her again, something inside of me sparked. A feeling I've never felt before for anyone else. A feeling more than just liking her. The point is, I would never forgive myself if I ever did something bad to her, she means too much to me, and I don't want to lose her. It might seem a little weird that I'm saying this even though we've been dating for only a few days, but I've known her my whole life. So don't worry, I would never do something like that to her."

"Okay. Thanks for being such a great—ahem—boyfriend to my sister. I'll leave you alone now. Good night."

"One more thing," Jake cut in, stopping Max from leaving just yet.

"Yeah?"

"Are you gonna tell her what you told me?" Jake asked.

"Yeah, even though she may not like it, I felt like you should know what happened. Don't worry though, she'll take it out on me. See you in the morning."

"Good night Max. See you in the morning."

Max left the room, leaving Jake sitting there, Eevee in his lap.

"Wow. I can't believe Drew put May through that." He said to Eevee.

"Vui. Eev. Eevee."

"I know, people like that really need to be put in their place. If I ever see him again, and he bothers us, then he'll leave with more than a bloody nose next time, just like I said."

"Eevee. Eev!"

"Don't worry, I won't do anything stupid. Come on, let's get some sleep. We go to the museum, then we get to see how Maverick and Juggernaught fare together."

Jake got under the covers, and Eevee found a comfortable spot in Jake's arms. Within minutes, both fell asleep, their tiredness quickly caught up to them.

Jake awoke, feeling refreshed. Eevee had already gotten up. He was sitting on the edge of he bed, amusing himself by rolling a Pokeball around. Jake took notice of this, and wondered who's it was.

I hope that's an empty one

Unfortunately, Eevee hit it too hard, and it opened. A flash of light appeared, and Eevee was sucked inside. Jake, having seen this happen before, simply chuckled, seeing how long it would take for his friend to break free.

The pokeball shook once. Twice. Three times. And then stood still. Just when Jake thought that Eevee had actually been captured, Eevee broke out, wide eyed and panting. Jake couldn't help himself. He bowled over laughing.

Eevee wasn't amused. He finally got his bearings, and when he saw Jake having a laughing fit, he charged towards him with a Tackle attack. It didn't hurt Jake, after all, Eevee was still at a low level since he doesn't battle. All it did was cause Jake to stop laughing.

"I'm sorry, but when are you ever gonna learn to not to mess with empty Pokeballs? That's like the tenth time that's happened!" Jake said, trying to stifle his laughter.

"Eevee!"

"Okay, okay, I'll stop." Jake took a deep breath, and finally regained his composure. "Come on, let's go get something to eat before they close the cafeteria. It's 10:30, so we're cutting it close.

Jake and May were walking down the road to the Slateport Museum. They had met up right after Jake finished eating breakfast. Max had already left, and they were walking away from the harbor, where they had said goodbye to the younger sibling. It was a bit emotional for May, but secretly she was glad that he was gone, since that would give her more alone time with Jake. They were walking hand in hand, Eevee sitting on May's shoulder that was closest to Jake.

"I can't wait! Based on what I've heard, this museum is all about submarines and ships and stuff." May said.

"Yeah. I went here once during my initial run through Hoenn. It was pretty cool. I even got to meet Captain Stern!" Jake replied.

"I wish I got to meet him. Max and Ash saved him from Team Aqua while I was out shopping with Brock." May said dejectedly.

"Who knows, maybe we'll see him there. It's a long shot, but anything's possible."

"Maybe."

The two arrived at the museum, and walked inside. They were greeted by a receptionist.

"Welcome to the Oceanic Museum. There is a $5 entrance fee. We offer many exhibits on the ocean, and upstairs there are models of submarines and ships. We hope you enjoy your stay."

Jake pulled out his wallet, and handed over ten bucks to pay for the tickets.

"Please enjoy yourselves," the receptionist said sweetly. "Have a good day!"

"You too!" The teens replied.

When the two walked through the doors, they were amazed at the impressive display of exhibits. The museum was one of those buildings that looked relatively small from the outside, but when you got inside, it was huge. There were hundreds of different displays of various things, all related to the ocean. That didn't even cover upstairs, which housed models and various things all related to ships and submarines.

"Where do you wanna go first?" Jake asked.

"I don't know. Alls I know is that if we were to see everything, we'd be here all day!" May replied, clearly impressed by the size of the museum.

"I wanna head over to the section that displays the habitats of all the water Pokémon that live in the ocean. Sound good?"

"Yeah, let's head over that way!"

The two weaved in and out of various displays, stopping whenever they found something interesting. Jake learned that Hoenn had the largest oceans out of all of the six main regions. May found out that the deepest ocean in the world was actually route 131. They continued exploring various exhibits, getting sidetracked from their original destination. It was an hour before they finally got there.

"Here we are, the Pokémon habitats exhibit." Jake said, reading the sign.

"Wow. Look at all these Pokémon. Corsola, Relicanth, Finneon, Lumineon, the list goes on and on." May said, listing off various Pokémon. She continued looking through the list, before stopping on a particular pink heart shaped Pokémon. "Luvdisc." She said.

Jake pulled out his PokeDex.

"Luvdisc, the Rendezvous Pokémon. It is said that couples that see this Pokémon are promised a loving relationship that never ends. It is said to be a symbol of love." It stated in its metallic voice.

"Do you really think that it's a symbol of love?" May asked.

"Makes sense, I mean they're shaped like a heart, and hearts represent love." Jake replied.

"I wonder if it's true that couples that see Luvdisc are promised eternal love." May wondered aloud.

"Maybe."

The two continued looking at various habitats, when Jake stopped at a brown Pokémon.

"Relicanth." He said.

"What's wrong with Relicanth?" May asked.

"Nothing. I just remember fishing once, and a Relicanth caught the line. I really wanted to catch it, but it escaped before Riptide could battle it. I haven't seen one since."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't worry about it. It's really not that big of a deal. You're aware of Wailord, right?"

"Yeah, it's the biggest Pokémon in existence. Why?"

"Would you believe that I know a guy who caught one? While fishing?"

"How!?"

"This guy Billy, who I met in Kanto, caught one. He's got that body builder type of body, and we went fishing once when we were traveling through Kanto. It was off the coast of Vermilion City, and he got a bite. He fought it for hours. Finally, he reeled it in, and it was a fucking Wailord. It almost tipped over the boat. How it didn't, I don't know. He was somehow able to damage it enough with his Blastoise to catch it."

"Wow. Where does he keep it?"

"I don't know. He never mentioned sending it to Professor Oak, so I have no clue. He's from Saffron City, so I doubt he keeps it there."

"Maybe he released it?"

"Possibly, although unlikely. My best guess is that the poor thing is kept inside its Pokeball all the time."

"Well I don't blame him. Where are you gonna keep a 47 foot water based Pokémon anyways?"

"I don't know." Jake replied, looking at his watch. "It's one thirty, you wanna stay here or head out for lunch?"

May's stomach grumbled, causing her to blush slightly in embarrassment. "Well that answers that. Let's go eat!"

"Let's eat at the Pokémon Center. I need to exchange a few Pokémon for today's training session."

"As long as they have Ramen, I don't care where we go!" May exclaimed.

May was sitting down at a table, a big bowl of Ramen in front of her. She was waiting for Jake to finish exchanging his Pokémon with Professor Birch. Eevee sat on the table, a bowl of Pokémon food in front of him.

"You're a real cutie, you know?" May said, scratching Eevee behind the ears, causing him to coo in enjoyment. "I remember when Glaceon was still an Eevee. She hatched from an egg. I raised her from that egg when I travelled throughout Kanto with Ash. I brought her with me to Johto, and when I found out about the Wallace Cup, I went to Snowpoint City by ferry, and evolved Eevee there into a Glaceon. It was her choice of course, but it's just...different."

"Vui!"

"I don't know what you just said, but all I'm saying is that you bring back memories." May said. She then reached for a Pokeball on her belt, and opened it.

Glaceon appeared, and once she saw Eevee, they immediately started chatting in Poke speak, none of which May could understand.

"I see you let Glaceon out," said a voice from behind.

May turned around to find Jake walking up with a tray full of food. She eyed it with envy.

"Yeah, I was just talking to Eevee about when I used to have one. Now she's a Glaceon. I don't love her any less, but it's just different, you know?"

"Yeah. Eevee made it very clear to me that he doesn't want to evolve, like I told you." Jake said, taking a bite of a large cheeseburger.

"Yeah, I remember. Are you gonna be able to eat all that?"

"Of course. I wouldn't want all of this food to go to waste." Jake said, swallowing his food.

"You and Ash are the only people I know who can eat that much food and still remain skinny."

Jake was about to say something about May's eating habits, but decided not to say anything for fear of upsetting her. Instead, he said, "What can I say? I'm a sixteen, almost seventeen year old boy who needs to eat. I have a fast metabolism, which allows me to eat without getting fat."

"Well, the more you eat, the less time we have to train."

"Touché."

"So, who do you have with you?"

"Blazer, Maverick, Juggernaught, Riptide, Talon, and Shadow."

"Cool. Now let's finish eating so we can go train."

Jake and May had just finished eating, and decided to find a place on the beach to train. As they were walking, some small pink Pokémon started jumping out of the water. Upon closer inspection, they realized that it was a school of Luvdisc.

"Remember what the PokeDex said about Luvdisc?" Jake asked.

"Yeah. That any couple seeing them are promised eternal love. I guess you're stuck with me now!" May said playfully.

"You're acting like that's a bad thing!" Jake replied.

"Is it?" She asked coyly. She started leaning in towards Jake.

Jake took the hint. "No," he said, also leaning in.

Before they knew it, they were sharing a kiss. When their lips met, Jake felt a sensation inside of him it was different than the previous kisses. It felt good, and he didn't want the moment to end. That was when he came to a realization: he had fallen in love. He remembered all the good times they shared together when they were kids, to when they met back up only a few days ago. He couldn't remember a time when he didn't enjoy being with her. May, the girl who he was sharing this moment with, was the most beautiful girl he knew. He had come to that realization just now. He felt like the luckiest man alive, and that made him feel happy. Happy that he had found love. Any nervousness that he previously had, was washed away during this moment. He felt...complete.

May also felt good inside. She felt different this time. Of course, she had enjoyed all of the other kisses, but this one she enjoyed the most. She relived the memories from when they were kids. She relived the time only a few days ago when Jake stood up to Drew for her. She thought about how happy she had been the past few days. She had never been happier beforehand. She felt safe when she was with Jake. She then realized why: she too, was in love.

Both Jake and May enjoyed every second of the moment. They didn't want it to end. They finally broke off catching their breath. They looked each other in the eyes, and no words were needed to be spoken. They both knew what the other was feeling, and both were glad that they were.

Finally, after a few minutes of them standing there in silence, they continued on their way, walking hand in hand, smiling.

Eevee simply smiled. Seeing his friend like this made him happy, and even though he didn't completely understand the concept of human love, he had a general idea of what it was. Seeing his friend find it made him warm inside, and he knew then and there that changes were coming, and for the better.

The couple finally found an open space, and reluctantly let go of each other. Even though both of them wore gloves, the warmth that they got from each other's hands was enjoyable. Jake walked several feet away from where May was. May followed suit, and they were about thirty feet away from each other.

"You ready for this?" Jake asked, breaking the silence that had ensued since their special moment.

"Of course," May replied.

"I suggest you pick two Pokémon who know how to deal with a sandstorm." Jake said, pulling out two Pokeballs.

"Although I don't have any Pokémon who are immune to the effects, I know exactly who to use." May replied, also pulling two Pokeballs from her belt.

"Alright then. Maverick and Juggernaught, engage!" Jake shouted.

His Garchomp and Excadrill appeared.

"Beautifly, Blastoise, take the stage!" May called.

Beautifly and Blastoise appeared, ready to go.

"Alright you two. You may notice that this is a double battle. Upon the suggestion of my lovely girlfriend, I have decided to see how well you two can work together. Both of you battle extremely well in the sand, so we're going with Sandstorm Offense. This is just a training match, so don't worry about messing up, although I'm sure that wont be a problem. Right now let's work on accuracy over power. We're facing a very talented coordinator, so be prepared for combination attacks." Jake said.

Maverick and Juggernaught looked at him, taking this in. They then looked at each other. They knew each other well, since Maverick taught him the ropes back when Juggernaught was still a Drilbur during their travels in Unova.

"You two ready? Jake is a really strong trainer, so be prepared for anything. I chose you two because I know you can handle the sand. Let's work on some combination attacks to try and throw them off." May said to her Pokémon.

They both nodded, and struck a battle ready pose.

"How does a five minute time limit sound?" Jake asked.

"Perfect. Just like in a contest." May replied.

Jake dug through his bag, pulling out a timer. He set it to five minutes, and then walked back over to his side.

"You get first move, ladies first." Jake said.

"Fair enough. Blastoise, start out with a Bubblebeam! Beautifly, push it ahead with gust!" May commanded.

"Alright, Sandstorm! Maverick, hit Beautifly with a Flamethrower! Juggernaught, Drill Run on Blastoise!" Jake commanded.

Blastoise opened his mouth and shot dozens of bubbles at his opponents. Beautifly rapidly flapped her wings, causing the bubbles to fly faster than before. They shot towards their targets at a high speed. However, sand started to flow freely, amplified by the beach sand all around, which popped the bubbles. Maverick faded into it, and Juggernaught gained a newfound speed. Out of nowhere, Beautifly was struck by a stream of flames, causing a good deal of damage. Juggernaught spun his body like a bullet, and shot towards Blastoise, hitting him on his exposed underside.

"Beautifly, use Psychic to locate Garchomp and trap him! Blastoise, Hydro Pump on Excadrill!"

"Good luck!" Jake taunted. "Maverick, Dragon Rush on Beautifly! Excadrill, Focus Blast on Blastoise!"

Beautifly's eyes glowed blue, and she used a psychic power to try and locate Maverick. She found him, immobilizing him on the spot, preventing any attack. Blastoise shot two streams of water out of his shoulder cannons, aimed straight at Juggernaught, or rather where he used to be. Juggernaught avoided the attack, and he sent a blue orb of fighting energy at Blastoise. Blastoise grinned as the attack sailed wide, the notorious accuracy taking effect.

"Blastoise, Ice Beam on Garchomp! Beautifly, keep it up!" May shouted.

"Juggernaught, disperse it with Rapid Spin! Maverick, break free!"

As Maverick was struggling to break free of Beautifly's grasp, Blastoise shot a beam of ice at the blue outline. Juggernaught jumped in front of it, spinning his body rapidly, which dispersed it. Meanwhile, Maverick was struggling to break free of the psychic grasp, but to no avail.

"Keep it up! Both of you!" May encouraged.

"Maverick, get free! Juggernaught, close the distance!" Jake shouted.

Beautifly continued to hold a struggling Garchomp in her psychic grasp, refusing to budge an inch. Blastoise continued to fire the Ice Beam at a spinning Excadrill, who was slowly but surely closing the gap between the two. The ice was being dispersed to the sides, but it froze particles of sand, causing the unintended consequence of dealing damage to the backside of Juggernaut.

Jake took notice of this, and changed his strategy accordingly.

"Go into Drill Run!" He shouted.

With only a few feet between them, Juggernaught turned his spinning to a more offensive roll, and quickly closed the gap, slamming into Blastoise's underbelly for a second time this match.

Before either trainer could call another attack, a bell rang, signaling the match to be over. Beautifly released Maverick from her grip, and the raging sand died down.

"Great match you two. A bit more practice, and we'll nail it in no time!" Jake exclaimed.

"You too guys. You put up a good fight." May said.

"I have to hand it to you May, I think that's the longest anyone has kept Maverick locked up like that. That Beautifly of yours is strong."

"Thanks. You didn't so too bad yourself."

"Still could have done better," said a voice from behind.

Cliffhanger! What happens next will be revealed next chapter.

We finally find out what Drew did to May. A bit of a dick move if you ask me. The idea isn't entirely mine. Some of you may be familiar with testsubject069, who is well known for writing The Aura is With Me. In his fic, something similar happened between Drew and May. I read that chapter the other day, and I realized that that same idea could work here. I added my own twist to it, for plagiarism's sake, just to be sure. Anyways, what happened will come to play soon, so there's a heads up. Go read The Aura is With Me. It's very well written, and much better than this.

And some more shipping. Hope it wasn't too cheesy. I never have been good at writing that kind of stuff.

Excadrill and Garchomp seem to be natural teammates, they just need to work out the kinks. Expect to see them battle together in the future. I attempted to write a half battle-half contest battle, so please tell me how I did.

Hope you enjoyed this semi-filler chapter. Guest reviews are on, so you don't even need an account to tell me what you think. If you have any criticisms, ideas, or anything else you want me to know, leave it in a review. I'll take note of it, so long as it's not blatant flaming.

Hope you all have a Merry Christmas Eve tonight, stuff your faces with good food! Tomorrow, have a Merry Christmas! That's all from me.

As always, read and review everyone!