Chapter 4 – The Poach Ball
A Delibird flew over the shining blue ocean in the evening sky, wings flapping wildly and straining to bear the intense weight of the large wooden crate cruelly tied to his ankles. Delibird was sweating and grunting with effort as he flew at such a gradual speed. He was getting tired, but he persevered; he had a parcel to deliver.
Delibird hovered down to a small beach against a tall cliff side, being careful to avoid the poorly moored speedboat nearby. With the box safely on the sand, Delibird could finally stop flying and he panted heavily. Using his beak, he pulled out an A4 sized clipboard from his sack and held it to the approaching Jordan, who, using the pen tied to the clipboard, signed an X at the bottom of the form. Using his dagger, Jordan then freed Delibird from his delivery. Delibird, with some of his breath back, replaced the clipboard back into his sack – after giving the underlying yellow copy of the form to his client, gave Jordan a little salute and flew away, wings now flapping at a more reasonable speed, as he no longer had to carry such a massive package. Jordan then proceeded to use his dagger as a makeshift crowbar and forced the lid of the box to open. Jordan momentarily placed the receipt inside the box and picked up one of the many identical compressed Poké Balls from inside. The Poké Ball itself looked unusual compared to the standard ones; the top half was dark grey and the bottom half was light grey, with a white band around the middle and has a diamond shape in the middle as opposed to the traditional round shape. There were also thin mid-grey bumps stretching across both the top and bottom of the Poké Ball, as if to resemble cage bars. While Jordan examined his delivery closely, Andy approached the box and took out the receipt.
"Thank you for your purchase at SnagEm Co," he read aloud. "We hope your thieving needs will be met with this product."
"Only one way to know for sure; test it out," Jordan said casually, tossing the new Poké Ball into his other hand.
"What on?" Gabby asked. Andy's eyes widened as he read the product description on the receipt.
"Hey, this thing can catch other trainer's Pokémon!" he said, with an amused grin on his face.
"Hmmm...now I hope those kids find us again," Jordan muttered. Gabby raised an eyebrow.
"But you're not interested in stealing other trainer's Pokémon?" she questioned. Andy was also puzzled.
"Yeah, you said it'd make you look like Team Rocket!"
"I did, yes," Jordan nodded. "Bunch of mafia-wannabes..." he grumbled. "No, I just want them around to see if that special feature is true."
"Why?" Jordan sighed heavily.
"Work it out, Gabby, use that lumpy thing inside your skull." Gabby pouted at the disguised insult.
Keith sat semi-cross legged on Alexa's bed. Taking advantage of her absence, he studied her bedroom more carefully. Aside from the clothes Lily purchased for him being somewhat scattered across one square foot of the room, the room itself was kept tidy. He looked out to the balcony door, and spotted Chaser, Xavier and Ryder having a conversation. He couldn't hear a word that was said, as the door to the balcony was closed. But, from what he could tell, Keith assumed Chaser was filling Xavier and Ryder in on what happened in the Safari Zone. Keith moved his eyes away from the balcony and ended up noticing a photo frame sitting on the bedside cabinet on Alexa's side of the bed. He shuffled over to it and picked it up. He smiled upon looking at the photo inside the frame; the photo was taken at what Keith recognised to be the Lookout Ridge in Almia, and he was holding Alexa's waist with one hand while holding the camera in another. Both were smiling happily. Keith, in the photo, was in uniform, while Alexa wore her tunic and headband from Ollie and Elaine's wedding.
Alexa quietly returned to the room, clad in her nightgown and a baby blue cotton dressing gown, and with a white towel wrapped around her hair. She spotted Keith looking at the photograph and smiled.
"I remember that afternoon well," she began, attracting Keith's attention. "After the post-wedding celebrations, we spent most of the afternoon on Lookout Ridge where that photo was taken."
"Then we went to the beach until sunset, I remember," Keith continued as he returned the frame to where he found it. He rolled on the bed to face Alexa and looked at her, looking mildly annoyed. "I almost stepped on a Krabby but stepped in the hole it came out of." Alexa laughed as she approached her bed. She and Keith sat next to one another and their eyes met. Their warm smiles faded as the events in the Safari Zone were fresh on their mind; Keith knew Alexa had a shower because, despite Iara's improvised shower, she was polluted with Victreebel saliva, stomach acid and who knows what else. Alexa, on the other hand, knew that what happened to her worried and angered him.
"I thought I was going to lose you, Alexa."
"I can't say I wasn't scared, Keith."
A few light knocks at Alexa's door caught their attention as Lily entered the room with a small tray in her hands, upon which were two steaming mugs, one brown in colour, the other cream in colour.
"Hey. Here, I made you some cocoa," she said politely, handing the mugs to Keith and Alexa respectively. Still with the tray in her arms, she crouched in front of the two exhausted teenagers. "How are you both feeling?"
"Clean at least," Alexa sighed before taking a light sip from her mug.
"I think we're in way over our heads," Keith said half-heartedly. Alexa lowered her mug as Keith raised his to his lips.
"We don't even know who these poachers are, yet they really don't want us in their way," Alexa continued. Keith sighed a contented sigh as he lowered his mug onto his lap.
"I just wish they'd face us ourselves," he concluded.
"Sounds like they're not taking you seriously because of how old you two are," Lily suggested. "Maybe they will once you've asserted your authority." Keith gave off a sarcastic laugh.
"Yeah, that worked really well the first time," he complained, recalling the ridicule he received when he first attempted to assert his authority.
"I guess we need to prove to them that we actually are a threat to them," Alexa assumed. "Maybe if I bring more than one Pokémon with me tomorrow, that might be a good start." Lily nodded.
"That's a good idea." She lost the smile she had for a few seconds. "But there's something I want to ask of you both."
"What is it, Lily?" Keith asked politely.
"Let the professor know if you need a break," Lily requested.
"Has he said anything to you?" Alexa asked.
"No, sweetie, I just think you should let him know if things get too much for the both of you," Lily said earnestly.
"Why're you telling us this?" Keith asked in confusion.
"Hayden and I are worried, especially after today's events. If the professor has a problem with you taking a break, Hayden says he'll 'do his thing'," Lily explained.
"Thanks, Mum," Alexa smiled sweetly.
"Yeah, thanks," Keith thanked, despite not understanding what 'do his thing' meant. Lily stood up properly.
"You can just leave the mugs here when you're done, I'll pick them up in the morning," she smiled. "Just take it easy tonight."
"Thank you," Keith said kindly.
"Good night," Lily smiled as she carefully left the room. Keith faced Alexa, eyebrow raised.
"What the heck does 'do his thing' mean?"
"Dad will basically talk with the professor and debate with him until he wins," Alexa explained, with a smile dominating her face
"I doubt he'll be so willing to let us have a break," Keith sighed. "He seems persistent."
"So's my father," Alexa winked.
With the morning greeting the Johto region, an Aggron carefully dipped its tail into the ocean from the edge of a wooden pier next to a harbour filled with moored ferries of all sizes. A weak electrical current flowed down the tail from Aggron's spine and into the ocean, causing an electric shock to spread across the immediate vicinity of the harbour. Jordan, Andy and Gabby watched as lumps of blue and red begin to surface, giving off static electricity. Jordan smirked. A Chatot with what appeared to be a Poké Ball in its talons flew overhead.
The Chatot flew into one of the houses in Violet City, where Lily had just finished clearing up after breakfast. Alexa and Keith sat on the three-seat sofa, just enjoying each others' company. Robbie lay at Keith's feet, with Reese enjoying his break on one of the two armchairs. Hayden sat at the kitchen table with a mug of coffee next to him, reading the morning newspaper. Keenan and Iara sat at the remaining armchair, relaxing. Ryder lay flat on the floor for no reason. Xavier, under his human guise, had a bowl of cereal in one hand and was leaning against a wall, eating the contents with a metal spoon. While Keenan wore his usual red attire, Keith and Alexa were both in casual clothes; Keith wore a blue vest with dark grey jeans and black trainers, while Alexa wore a purple hooded sweatshirt and black leggings with white trainers. Keith wore his styler on his right arm, but Alexa was without her styler. The Chatot, whose beak was yellow instead of pink, flew over to Alexa and sat on her lap after dropping the Lure Ball from his talons.
"Hi, Skywing. I didn't call you here?" Alexa said in confusion.
"No, no, Ronan and I wished to speak to you in person," the Chatot explained. His voice was refined and clear, as if his tongue was of noble birth. Ryder lifted his head up from the floor.
"Lionel again?"
"Indeed, Ryder," Skywing nodded. "Alexa, my dear, we cannot tolerate that Turtwig's juvenile shenanigans any further," he complained.
"I'll find a tutor for him," Alexa sighed. "But if that doesn't sort him out, I'll have to take matters into my own hands." Skywing's eyes seemed to have lit up as Alexa spoke.
"Very much appreciated, Alexa, very much so," he said with gratitude. "Incidentally, I saw an unusual occurrence while I was flying over Olivine City," he said, quickly changing the topic. The shirtless figure approached the colourful parrot Pokémon with his bowl in his hand and a spoon in his mouth. Xavier took the spoon out of his mouth before he spoke.
"Well, don't leave us hangin', what did you see?" he asked.
"Keep your currently hidden fur on, Xavier! I saw the ocean around the harbour completely flooded with Tentacool and Tentacruel."
"That IS unusual," Alexa agreed. "Especially given that you only find Tentacool near the surface by the beach..."
"There were three humans on one of the piers," Skywing added. "And an Aggron, from the looks of it. They were just...standing there for no reason."
"Sounds like something we should investigate," Keith said firmly.
"And quick; the SS. Aqua can't said with those Pokémon in the way," Keenan added.
"Or any other ship for that matter, regardless of the size," Alexa agreed as she shot up quickly, catching the little bird off guard. Ryder lay back down.
"Ryder, why're you on the floor anyway?" Keith asked.
"Conserving energy. Plus I enjoy it," Ryder smiled.
"I thought you were doing that for no reason," Keith sighed.
"I'm sure everyone else did too," Ryder winked. "Alex! Poké Ball please!"
"I was going to put you inside it anyway," Alexa said plainly as she recalled her Lucario back into his Poké Ball. She picked up the Lure Ball and pocketed it along with Ryder's Poké Ball. She, Keith and Keenan began running to the front door. Xavier, after placing his empty cereal bowl in the sink, filled with fresh and steaming washing up water, and Skywing gave chase.
"We'll be back as soon as we can!" Alexa exclaimed before they left the house. She closed the door once Robbie was out of the house. Buizel sighed contentedly, but Lily looked worried.
"Still worried?" Hayden asked.
"I can't help that something bad's going to happen..."
"Snap," Hayden admitted.
Alexa, Keith, Keenan and Xavier ran speedily to the pier Jordan, Gabby and Andy stood on casually. The ocean behind the poachers was literally swamped with blue and red lumps, big and small. Skywing landed on Alexa's shoulder as she, with the boys, confronted the poachers. Keith vented his frustration.
"Okay, I want answers now!" he shouted demandingly. "Why are you doing all of this!?"
"Nice to see you too, Spiky," Andy greeted with a sarcastic smile.
"Aw, and he has his treat right next to him! Excuse me while I vomit," Gabby said spitefully. Keenan tilted his head in confusion while Skywing took off from Alexa's shoulder and hovered in front of her.
"Do NOT speak of my trainer in such an unholy manner!" he squawked furiously. Gabby and Andy were taken slightly aback at the talking bird, but Jordan merely raised an interested eyebrow.
"...who ARE you people?!" Alexa questioned. Jordan nodded.
"Oh, yes, it's high time we were on familiar terms," he agreed. "The name's Jordan." Andy pointed at himself with a thumb.
"Anthony. But for the love of Arceus call me Andy," he sighed.
"Gabby~!" Gabby sang.
"Charmed I'm sure," Skywing retorted meanly. "Why are you just standing there? Aren't you afraid the Tentacruel might attack you?"
"And the Tentacool?" Xavier added. Xavier hadn't disguised his voice in the slightest, yet the three poachers had no clue as to his identity.
"They might, but we're not afraid of that," Jordan answered, hinting the bulky Aggron standing behind him.
"I'll bet you're responsible for them blocking the harbour!" Keenan exclaimed accusingly. Jordan chuckled.
"Very good."
Electricity coursed through the ocean once again. This time, the jellyfish Pokémon groaned and gurgled as they each flailed a pair of tentacles in the air. The ones nearest the pier slammed their tentacles down, attempting to attack anyone who stood on it, while the rest attacked the moored ferries. Keith, Alexa, Keenan and Xavier backed off of the pier for safety, but Skywing couldn't help but feel utterly flummoxed as to how Jordan, Andy and Gabby could tolerate the blind onslaught.
"What WAS that?!" Keenan exclaimed.
"Looked like Thunder Wave," Alexa replied. "But...the Pokémon are already paralysed..." Keith looked at Alexa, wide eyed.
"ALL of them?!"
"Y-yeah," Alexa replied quietly. Keenan faced the poachers furiously.
"Why would you do this?!" he shouted interrogatively.
"Because I knew you'd come," Jordan replied. "Now then, Keenan, Alexa, let's see your Pokémon handle ours and the jellyfish Pokémon." Frustrated, the siblings each took out two Poké Balls from the packs buckled around their waists.
"There's no way we're going to battle you!" Keenan yelled. "But that doesn't mean we won't try to fight off the Pokémon you agitated!"
"And paralysed needlessly!" Alexa added. Pressing the central buttons on their Poké Balls. From Alexa's Poké Balls came the fluffy Lucario, Ryder, and Ronan the Golduck. Iara stood next to the newly summoned Hitmontop, Mason, and Lucius, the Ampharos with the lilac scarf around his neck. Jordan's Skarmory descended towards the pier.
"Tough talk from such small fries. Skarmory, strike!" Skarmory flew into action, but his movements were halted before they could even commence, as the steel bird was struck by a large gust of hot air, courtesy of Skywing, whose wings shone in a burning orange glow as he flapped his wings.
"Back, you ruffian!" he insisted firmly. "You'll not attack any human being on my watch!"
"Skywing, I highly doubt they care about that," Xavier sighed. Skywing inadvertently turned his attention away from Jordan to face his past apprentice. Jordan took out one of his new Poké Balls from his pocket. "They attacked Alex and the others more than once."
"Is that so?" Skywing faced Jordan again. "Well I-"
The Poké Ball tapped Skywing's head and, to everyone's horror – emphatically Alexa's – captured the Music Note Pokémon in an eerie dark grey light. The Poké Ball bounced back into Jordan's hands and the button shone red briefly. Alexa couldn't believe what she had witnessed, and began to quiver slightly. Jordan glanced down at his new catch.
"Huh."
"Wow, that feature really works!" Andy smiled.
"L-LET HIM GO!" Alexa shrieked.
"Should we?" Gabby asked Jordan. Xavier assumed she was mocking Alexa, but she was genuinely curious.
"Hmm...keeping it is bloody tempting," Jordan confessed as he examined the foreign Poké Ball closely. "I mean, a Chatot that can fluently speak English? Could be valuable." Xavier fought intensely hard to conceal his anger, but faint flickers of dark aura began to emanate from his body as he glared at Jordan.
"Chatots can do that anyway, you piece of Muk!" he roared. Jordan nodded.
"Indeed so," he agreed. "But it will still make for a good hostage." Those words spoken, it was Ryder's turn to conceal his anger, his aura threatening to engulf his entire being.
"You'll EAT those words!" he barked furiously.
"And I hope you choke on 'em and puke!" Xavier added. Keith couldn't hold back any longer.
"I've had enough!" He ran straight towards the three poachers, but was oblivious to a tentacle approaching his ankle. It grabbed his ankle, causing him to fall flat onto the pier. Frantic, Alexa ran to his aid, but, as soon as she stepped onto the wooden pier, the tentacle returned to the ocean, dragging Keith with it. Alexa was too late.
"KEITH!"
"Iara, help him!" Keenan panicked.
"You too, Ronan! Please!" Alexa begged desperately. The aquatic Pokémon complied loyally as they dived into the ocean, in hopes of rescuing the submerged Ranger. Ryder spotted another tentacle headed for Alexa's ankle and pulled her back off of the pier moments before it made Alexa meet the same fate as Keith. Xavier held onto Alexa, both completely rattled at both Keith's 'abduction' and Skywing's capture. Gabby enjoyed Alexa's torment.
"N-no Poké Ball I know can capture Pokémon belonging to another trainer! What IS that?!" Alexa cried.
"Since it successfully captured your Chatot...it's my new poaching tool; the Poach Ball."
Keith struggled hopelessly to free himself from the tentacles that bound him. That while holding his breath and enduring the pain of being squeezed tightly as Tentacruel pulled him closer was proving to be a challenge. There was a small hole on Keith's sleeve, which revealed a needle-sized hole in his arm, which appeared to be infected. Iara and Ronan swam hastily to the Tentacruel. Iara smacked its blue head with her tail, but Ronan decided to slash the black body vigorously. Their efforts were for naught; Tentacruel was adamant and refused to release his prey.
The Tentacool and Tentacruel began to dive back into the ocean, which confused Keenan, Alexa and the Pokémon.
"Where're they going?" Keenan asked.
"Maybe to help the one that took Spiky under," Andy suggested, almost tauntingly.
"No...Keith..!"
"He's as good as dead; once Tentacruel grab their prey, they don't let go," Jordan said truthfully. "Ever."
"...n-no..." Alexa felt her knees trembling as they gave way. Xavier's grip on her was the only thing that kept her off of the concrete floor. Robbie's eyes were tearing up, heartbroken at the prospect of his new friend and partner meeting an untimely demise. His exterior hardened as he looked towards the pier. He spotted a small puddle near where Keith was when he was dragged into the ocean, and a lightbulb lit inside the Deerling's head. He ran onto the pier and stood on the puddle, making sure all four hooves were on the water as his tuft illuminated in a light blue glow. A rapid barrage of bubbles spewed forth from the tuft and struck Jordan's chest. The Poach Ball fell from his hand and opened on impact with the ground, consequently releasing the evidentially shaken up Chatot. Alexa and Xavier ran towards him, Alexa scooping him up in her arms and holding him tightly, taking care to not suffocate him. Ryder approached the cuddle.
"Skywing, are you hurt?" he asked worriedly.
"T-that contraption...n-never again..!" Alexa felt Skywing shivering in her arms.
"Was it that bad?" Xavier wondered.
"I-It felt as though I was in absolute loss of consciousness," Skywing trembled. "I-I couldn't move, I couldn't see, there was silence everywhere, I couldn't speak...it was terrifying..!"
"Sounds like it works better than you thought, Jordan," Gabby smirked. Andy's attention was fixated on the very Deerling that caused temporary damage to one of his hands.
"Stupid Deerling! You've been a pain in the ass ever since we captured you!" he yelled furiously.
"Kill it, Aggron!" Jordan instructed demandingly.
Keith continued to struggle for his freedom while Iara and Ronan were now forced to fight off the other Tentacool and Tentacruel that got in their way as well as the Tentacruel wanting to make a meal out of Keith. Time quickly ran short; Keith could no longer hold his breath and opened his mouth, releasing what little air he could no longer contain. His lungs cried out for air, but all they received was sea water. Keith's consciousness escaped him gradually, his last thoughts being about Alexa as the world went dark for the boy. Iara witnessed Keith losing all consciousness and attacked Tentacruel desperately. Ronan became frustrated; it was because the other Tentacool and Tentacruel that he and Iara failed to rescue Keith. He held two claws to the bright red gem on his head and concentrated. The gem shone and released large pink waves of telekinetic energy, as if from Ronan's entire head. Iara veiled herself in a small green bubble, which protected her from the waves.
Aggron was three feet away from slamming his thick arm down on Robbie's head when he noticed the ocean was flashing pink. Soon enough, the poachers, Alexa, Keenan and the remaining Pokémon spotted the flashing. Alexa wasn't sure if she should be happy or concerned at the sight.
"T-that's Ronan's Psychic attack," she said shakily. Keenan worried about Keith even more than he cared about the current situation.
Aggron fell to the wooden floor with a thud and a creak; the pier threatened to give way to the immense weight of the rugged Steel type Pokémon. Ryder stood tall, with a paw held in front of him. Jordan was vexed; he didn't even see Aggron getting attacked.
"You're not the only one who can play dirty!" Ryder snarled.
Ronan and Iara surfaced abruptly, carrying the unconscious Keith between them. Ryder and Robbie ran away from the pier to meet the two Water types. Ryder and Xavier combined their efforts to lift Keith out of the water and lay him flat on the ground, where Xavier immediately commenced chest compressions. Alexa watched anxiously as tears threatened to leave her eyes. She hoped and prayed that he was still alive. Keenan noticed Iara and Ronan having climbed out of the ocean and faced his timid Ampharos.
"Now's your chance, Lucius!" he exclaimed. Lucius nodded and dipped his tail into the ocean. His body gave off electricity, which flowed down his tail and into the ocean. Whatever electric attack Lucius used, it was far stronger than Thunder Wave; after the attack ended, the Tentacool and Tentacruel floated up to the surface, singed. Those that survived the attack hastily made their way away from the pier. The defeated ones merely sank into the depths of the sea.
Keenan stopped paying attention to the poachers; he hadn't seen Jordan recalling his fainted Pokémon and reclaiming his Poach Ball, nor had he seen all three of them escaping in the speedboat that was moored nearby the whole time. He had heard a speedboat leaving the harbour, but didn't care; his main focus was on the still unconscious Keith. Xavier occasionally stopped his chest compressions to listen to Keith's chest, to see if he was breathing before resuming the compressions. Skywing was worried, even though he didn't understand what had happened.
"Come on, Keith, come on..!" Xavier growled. "Work with me..!"
"Don't die...please...please don't die..!" Alexa begged tearfully.
Keith moved sharply, catching everyone by surprise. He moved to one side and coughed out the sea water he had taken in earlier. A smile grew on Alexa's face while everyone else was relieved.
"Oh, Keith..! I thought we'd never see you again!" Alexa cried happily. Keith rolled back onto his back and breathed deeply. Skywing grew concerned as he noticed how red Keith looked. Keenan noticed the infected spot on his arm.
"A-Alex..? H-he's poisoned..!" he said quietly. Alexa nodded, having noticed the infection herself.
"The Pokémon Centre here carries anti-venom. Thank Arceus it's a stone's throw away. Come on!"
Skywing flew away from Alexa, allowing her to grab Keith's arm. She placed it around her shoulders and lifted him up with every ounce of strength she had; she hadn't held Keith over her shoulders before, and the fact his clothes were soaking wet and weighing him down didn't help matters. Xavier helped to carry Keith to the Pokémon Centre. Keenan and the Pokémon followed.
Andy drove the speedboat further out to sea. He and Gabby were highly agitated over Keith's retrieval.
"For goodness' sake, that boy's got more lives than my Liepard!" Gabby moaned.
"Now I hate that little kid as much as I hate that Deerling!" Andy said spitefully.
"And I hate that blonde tart!" Gabby screeched.
"Shut up, both of you," Jordan sighed as he lit the fresh cigarette that was close to falling from his lips. "The Poach Ball works, that's all I care about at this point."
"Poach Ball?" Gabby laughed. "From what Chatot said, it's more like a Bondage Ball." Andy quickly shut off the engine and faced Gabby, wide-eyed.
"Eh?!" Jordan raised an eyebrow at Gabby.
"I seriously have to question where you get these ideas, Gabby," he said calmly. Andy was freaked out.
"Yeah, people are gonna start questioning that..." Jordan breathed out some cigarette smoke from his mouth.
"Did either of you two notice how the Poach Ball didn't affect Chatot's behaviour?" he asked rhetorically. "It's designed to simply capture the Pokémon without befriending them."
"As if poaching is a good way to make friends," Gabby laughed. Andy became impatient.
"That reminds me, are we actually going to do something about those damn kids?!" he asked. Jordan took another puff from his cigarette and faced Andy calmly.
"In time."
"Oh for Muks sake! Just kidnap all three of them, tie 'em up and stash 'em in the basement and be done with it!" Andy stressed.
"NOW who sounds like the one with the bondage fetish?" Gabby teased. Andy paid no attention to her, waiting for Jordan's reply.
"There's no challenge in that, Andy. Besides..." A slightly bigger smile grew on the lead poacher's face. "My best fighter is yet to shine."
Keenan sat in the lobby of the Pokémon Centre with Iara, Robbie, Skywing, Ryder and Xavier. All of them looked content and relieved.
Keith and Alexa, meanwhile, sat in an examination room within the Pokémon Centre. Keith looked as embarrassed as he felt, as he was only in his boxer shorts, and his soaked clothes were nowhere to be seen. Alexa sat next to her mildly damp partner with her hand on his.
"Listen, I'm just happy to see you're alive," she said sweetly. "How do you feel?"
"Sick," Keith replied bluntly. His face was mostly red from an impending fever and his voice didn't reflect his optimum health.
"M-maybe you should take the next few days off? To recover," Alexa suggested. Keith finally faced her.
"What about you?" he asked.
"I'll be fine on my own for now. But there's no way you can work with a cold on its way," Alexa smiled.
"I-I guess..." Keith wasn't overly enthusiastic about the idea. "Just promise me you'll be okay."
"I promise," Alexa replied. A reassured smile grew on Keith's face. Alexa moved closer to him, showing little to no care about the dampness. The two faced one another and closed their eyes softly as their noses touched lightly.
To be continued...