Here is the next chapter. It's the shortest but I hope you will enjoy regardless!
Chapter fourteen: A Dream Or A Flashback?
White light…
White light is all I can see…
I hear a voice nearby…it's calling my name…
"Lucas?" Then suddenly, the white light disappears and there I am sitting on a chair. In front of me is a table with several filthy plates. Despite this there are organized utensils set neatly on the plate nearest to me. I'm in a restaurant and I'm human again! It's somewhat noisy and bright light enters from outside through several windows surrounding the Italian-inspired bistro. It's nothing fancy but it's no dog food joint either. I like the fact it's in between, to please everyone.
I shake my head several times. I turn away from the window, which is to my left next to me, towards a young woman sitting on the other side of the table, "Huh? Oh sorry, I was just thinking about something."
"Something? Home again I presume?"
"Yea. I was thinking about life back when I was a kid."
"You know, you should really forget about all the bad experiences from your childhood. They're draining energy from you."
"Well…I am going back in a few days Jen…it's hard to keep my mind off the topic."
"True, but think about positive things! Kind of weird I'm saying this to you because you're almost always optimistic! Be positive, Mr. Positive!" She giggles as I cross my arms several times.
"I know, I know! I just…can't stop thinking about my family."
"Your father, mother?" She asks.
"And my brother." I add.
"Are they okay?" She asks me. A waiter comes and refills Jennifer's glass. He's pours a popular smoothie made from Oran Berries into her glass. We pass our plates to him and he receives it gladly. He walks away afterwards. I look at Jen with a confused face. She looks up at me as she is drinking the smoothie from her straw and raises both her eyebrows, "What?"
"I thought you hated all Berries associated with the color blue."
She moves her index finger sideways, "No…no! I hate Apicot, Belue, Pamtre, Wiki and Bluk berries."
"I remember now, the only blue-color berry you like is Oran and I remember you also hate the color blue in general..."
"Yes…sir! I only like this because it actually tastes good!" She smiles.
"Well anyways…my brother is doing fine patrolling the border between Johto and Kanto. My dad…if I can remember…is back home with mom. As for mom herself…she's always at work as usual"
"That's sweet. They're going to be happy to see you again." Jennifer replies.
"I know that for sure. I haven't seen my mom and my brother in three years. The same can't be said for my dad, I haven't seen him for more than twenty years. When I get back home…it'll be the first time I see him in person after all these years."
"Jeez…that's really something. Your dad must be proud of you, seeing as how you opened your own business in another region."
"I know he's proud of me, but it's bad that he is because of…well all that counterfeit conspiracy I found out about in the store yesterday. Anyways, he's always known I love Sinnoh: the mountains and forests here are much more beautiful, but now I want to go back home because it's safer now."
"Which reminds me…what did your dad do again during his military deployment in Johto?"
"He was a part of a vast platoon of soldiers heading west inside the country to help fight against the civil war that was going on. If I remember, he told me for the first half of the journey his commanding officer was somewhat of a fool. After the officer was killed because of his careless attitude, the group was left leaderless. They decided to do the smart thing and head back to the nearest allied base, but then came the hour when the platoon was ambushed by Johto rebels just outside of Azalea Town, a peaceful town that was under fierce control of the rebels. My father…was shot in his right arm and left leg."
"Jeez…that must have been tough for him."
"Thankfully, those were only flesh wounds. He was taken to a nearby M.A.S.H to be operated on. After a few months, he was, unfortunately, sent back into the battlefield under the command of a new officer for the remainder of the civil war. After the war ended and the rebels lost, dad was forced to remain stationed in Johto for several more years."
"That's pretty harsh…he couldn't even leave for vacation I presume? How must that feel like…not being able to see your own kids and wife for so long." Jen says as she finishes her smoothie.
"And you already know this because it's been on the news a lot: during his stay, the region had been sealed off from everybody outside the borders of Johto. The country only accepts aid from Kanto and its borders remain closed to this day."
"And you were…how old again when all of this was going on?"
"When the the war started…ten…more or less." I explain. I see the waiter come and I ask for the check.
"Must have been hard to be a Pokémon trainer during that time. Is that why you didn't…"
"I don't want to talk about it" I say.
"Aright, what about when you left?"
"Well ten years ago, when I was eighteen, I left Kanto because the economy was doing really badly and Sinnoh was a perfect place to start a small business because it was the exact opposite: its economy was off the charts."
"Okay Lucas" Jen suddenly says, "I've heard about your family…to some extent and what made you leave…somewhat…but now I would like to know more about…you, all the good things you remember.
I blushed slightly, "I um…loved to read a lot adventure books, one of them I loved to read was the trilogy novel: Mystery Dungeon. The author who wrote the book is amazing."
"I heard of them, it's the novel where the main character is a Pokémon right?"
"Yup and as a kid reading them, I felt like I was a part of the story. It 'pulled me in' so to speak, adventure books in general did. I was inspired to become a Pokémon trainer because everyone told me the life of a trainer is one filled with excitement and adventure. I had nothing to lose."
"You still read them, the books I mean?"
I look to her, "Well…I can if I wanted to, I would feel nostalgia, but would they bring the same feelings now…I'm not sure. I can say this for sure: the same feeling of adventure I felt as a kid came back to me yesterday."
"Here you go sir." The waiter hands over the check to me, "Thank you."
"What else did you do as a kid?" She asks.
"I did a lot of walking around. I loved scenery, walking through parks and safe forests made me feel like I was always on an adventure."
"I did the same thing actually." Jen responds
"Really?" I say.
"Yea, but for me…walking down a trail I would always feel a sense of freedom…freedom…from my parents…Oh dear…now I'm thinking too much about my own parents..." She looks away in embarrassment, "My mom...she's always working in this...place...and it's horrible to see her do the things that she does..."
Jen…what do you mean?
Then suddenly, everything around me suddently gets dark…
Wait! Jen!
Jen…
…
Hey guys! I apologize if this chapter may seem confusing to you, but I've really wanted to make a slight back story for Lucas. Anyways,I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Once again, a poll has been made and posted on my profile for you to vote on which character you like the most. If you're interested, just visit my profile page by clicking on my name next to the name of my story on the top of the page. Thanks!
