Meeting on the Beach

"That's totally awesome! You're going under the pretext of research! Genius!" exclaimed Anna from the other side of the garden.

"It's not a pretext, mom, it's legit!" Miya huffed, wiping potting soil on her shorts.

"That's nice of Juniper to stick her neck out like that, don't you think?"

"I guess so," Miya replied.

"Hey, bring that hose over here, would you? These peas could use a drink. Anyway, tell me about this Jiro kid. Do you know him?"

Miya groaned. "Yeah, he's Lara's crush."

Anna winced visibly through a thick tangle of sunflowers. "Oooh. That sucks. She's mad, isn't she?"

"Yep."

"Well, she can get over it. It's not like you decided it."

"Mm."

Anna stood up and yanked off her holey gardening gloves. "Something wrong, Miya?"

Miya sighed. "I just really wish things were different. I'd rather have a trainer license." She looked out at the sparkling sea beyond. "Don't get me wrong. I'm happy to help Professor Juniper. Really! I just wish things were different."

Anna nodded sympathetically. "I hear ya, baby. But... that's the way things are! And you can't do anything to change it, right?"

Miya frowned. "You always say that."

"Fate has its ways," Anna sang.

"Fate is stupid." Miya tossed her gardening shovel at the dirt and it sliced into the moist soil, standing upright. She swept her bangs out of her eyes. Grumpily, she said, "Maybe I'll track down Jiro Takata. I hope he's as great and fabulous and all as he seems at school."

"I'm sure he is," reassured her mother, reaching for the hose. Miya handed it to her and went inside the house. "Yeah, right," Miya muttered under her breath. "Not if it means Lara's going to hate me."

The screen door clattered shut behind her as she shook off her sandals by the tattered welcome mat and trudged upstairs to her bedroom. She flopped face first on her bed and called Milo from his poké ball.

"Cmm cn gntor rr tnk."

Milo couldn't hear Miya when she's speaking to the bedspread. Miya groaned.

The tirtouga nuzzled Miya's hanging ankles with his sharp beaked nose. It's okay; even without a trainer license, Milo would still rather be with Miya than anyone else. Especially not Lara and that snobby pidove of hers.

Unable to help herself, Miya grinned into the bedspread. She sat up and pulled Milo into her lap, giving his scaly shell an affectionate noogie. "Milo, you're a real pal," she said. She dropped him gently into his tank and sat back on her bed with the envelope. Ripping it open, she unfolded the forms inside and started filling them out.

She stopped where she needed her mother's signature. Oh, I don't feel like talking to her right now. Setting the forms on her nightstand, she changed into a bathing suit, grabbed Milo and her surfboard, and headed to the best place to clear her head – the ocean.

Miya slipped out the back door and trotted down the steep cliff path to the beach, guiltily avoiding her mother. She's just so passive and resigned all the time. Is it selfish of me to actually want a good ego boost now and then? she wondered.

Suddenly, a loose rock Miya didn't see slipped out from under her, and with a small shriek, Miya tumbled down the rocky path, landing on her stomach with a thud in the soft sand. Her surfboard followed, thwacking her on the back of her legs. Miya groaned and spat out sand, and pulled Milo's pokéball from where it had jammed itself uncomfortably between her ribs.

"Whoa, you alright?"

Miya twisted to look up. "Yeah, I'm fine," she said, standing up quickly, feeling color rising to her sand-caked cheeks. How embarrassing... She looked around for her other sandal.

The boy who had spoken was jogging over with a dripping surfboard of his own tucked under one arm. He flicked wet, shaggy golden brown hair out of his face and regarded her curiously through dark eyes squinted against the afternoon sun.

"He-ey," he said slowly, "You're... Miya Cattano, right?"

"Uhh, hehe," Miya frantically brushed her hair back into what she hoped was an attractive ponytail. "Yep, that's me." Klutz, she scolded herself silently.

"Hi," said the boy, "I'm Jiro. Jiro Takata." He held out a free hand for her to shake, which she did.

"Yeah, I've seen you around school," replied Miya, hoping she didn't sound like a creeper. "Funny you should show up, actually, because Professor Juniper just told me to go look for you."

Jiro's eyebrows scrunched in puzzlement. "Professor Juniper? The one in Nuvema? What does he want anything to do with me for?"

He handed Miya her unscathed surfboard, which she accepted with a nod of thanks as she corrected, "She," trying not to sound condescending. "Well, you saw the assignment board, right?"

"Oh, oops. And yeah, I did," said Jiro. "We're partners." It was difficult to read his face. I hope he's not too disappointed... Miya tugged at a bracelet on her wrist.

"Okay, actually I'm interning at Professor Juniper's lab. And she is sending me to do field work for her. We'll probably have to leave early, cause there's this lady named Fennel, and Professor Juniper needs me to talk to her. She's in Striaton City. Fennel, not Juniper. I mean, she will be. Fennel. Ugh. I'm not making much sense, am I?" Miya shook her head, smiling hollowly. "I guess I'm just shaken up from that fall."

Jiro returned a sympathetic smile. "I guess so. Oh, there's your other shoe," he pointed to where her sandal was lying upside down several feet above. Miya cracked up. "I really am all over the place today," she commented.

"But no worries. Seriously, if you need to leave early... God, I can't wait to get out of this town."

"Huh? Really?" Miya asked, startled. "But you're like, the swim team star, right?"

"Uhhh..." Jiro ruffled the hair at the back of his head and grinned sheepishly. "I actually quit the swim team..."

"Oh." Miya fought the urge to ask why.

"It's okay, though," Jiro continued. "I just wanted to focus all of my energy onto training and studying for the Trainer program."

That's what I should have done, Miya regretfully noted. Instead I spent all my time working at Professor Juniper's, and it wasn't as helpful for exams as I thought. She replied with a cheerful smile, "Well, at least all your hard work paid off!"

"Oh. Um, yeah," he said "Hey, Miya, I really am sorry you didn't make it this year. Are you planning to enter the League, too? Next year?"

"I'm not sure." Miya tossed Milo's poké ball from one hand to the other. "It'd sure be sweet to beat the League Champion."

"You mean Alder?" A wide, excited smile spread across Jiro's face. "He's amazing. I've heard he's roaming around Unova now."

"Really? Why?"

"I don't know. Maybe he's got a case of wanderlust."

"Like you?" Miya joked.

Jiro let out a little laugh. "I guess so. But anyway... so what's this lady's name we have to go see? Fennel?"

"Yep," said Miya, and explained the assignment.

"Sweet. Hey, if you don't mind, I've got to head back up. Do you want to meet up for lunch and we can talk about all this later?" Jiro shifted the board to his other arm.

"Ummm, sure," said Miya. "That works...!"

"All right, why don't you meet me at... there's this really good pizza joint next to the library. Oh, what's it called? Diamonds or jewels or something..."

Miya brightened. "Do you mean the Diamond Slice?"

"Oh yeah!" Jiro snapped his fingers.

"I love that place!" Miya squealed. "The pineapple pizza is to die for!"

"Yeah, sure, but the mushroom's where it's at." They both laughed. "All right, it's settled. Let's meet there tomorrow at noon, how about that?"

"Sure," replied Miya as Jiro started up the cliff path.

He waved. "See you then, Miya. Nice meeting you! And... you aren't hurt, right?"

"What? Oh, no, I'm fine," said Miya, forgetting for a moment about her embarrassing tumble in front of him.

Jiro laughed. "Cool. And here's this." He tossed Miya her lost sandal. "See you tomorrow."

Miya watched him scale the rock face for a moment. He had long, powerful legs and an apparently well-developed sense of balance. She noticed he was actually kind of cute. No way, Miya, she told herself, shaking her head suddenly. Lara would never forgive you. He disappeared over the ledge and was gone.

Oh, crap, Lara. This isn't a very good time for surfing. She's next on my got-to-talk-to list. What a day. With a sigh, Miya slipped her sandals back on and trudged up the rock face, grumbling about the lack of a paved path with railings.