A/N: Look, a chapter that's on time! Hopefully the first of many. Thank you all for the support last chapter, and I hope you enjoy this one!

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon or the picture used as picture, though I did edit it.

Days

The day May gets a call

May

Thursday, December 12th

The smile slipped off May's face as soon as she left the agency, and with brisk steps she walked back to the apartment. A few snowflakes drifted from the grey sky, and May pushed her gloved hands further in the pockets of her coat.

It was cold and she couldn't wait to be inside, but at the same time she wasn't looking forward to going to the apartment. Not that she would rather stay longer at work; her (all female) colleagues were very supportive, but their pitying looks and questions made it all so much worse. She didn't want to imagine how they would react if they knew about the pregnancy as well.

She sighed. May hadn't wanted to tell them – she hadn't wanted to tell anyone, she just wanted things to continue like always – but one look at her face the morning after Drew left and Nicole hadn't let go of the issue until she told her what was wrong.

So that lead to a breakdown during the coffee break, and after that everyone from the Dewgong Tours and Holidays agency knew she had broken up with her boyfriend.

She knew they meant well, but she wished they would just leave her alone. That everything would leave her alone. She just wanted to go to sleep and wake up and that everything would be fine-

How long lasted a broken heart? She had never dated anyone besides Drew – and wasn't that unhealthy? – and while she and Drew had had their fights, she had never experienced anything like this.

Arceus... Already May felt tears welling up again and she blinked rapidly while speeding up. She didn't want to cry. She was so sick of crying, but it seemed that it was all she could do.

The apartment was dry and warm, and Glaceon and Beautifly came to meet her, cooing and nudging comfortingly.

She patted them in response, before hurrying to the kitchen. It was spotless, thanks to her Pokémon. In fact, the whole apartment was completely clean. Her Pokémon had done that, removing any sign Drew might have left behind.

It felt so empty.

Her throat constricted, and she quickly turned her mind to more practical things, like making dinner. May did so swiftly, and took her plate to the living room, where she nestled herself on the couch between her Pokémon. She turned on the TV, purely for some distraction, and for some time watched a battle without really registering it.

Then some gossipy news program came on, showing that the one or other famous couple had had a baby-

She and Drew would never pose for the camera's like that.

May wanted to scream. Or curl in a ball. Or run forever. She just didn't want to think about it anymore, forget it all…

She pushed her plate away, not feeling hungry anymore. Wartortle let out a worried sound and tried to push the plate back to her.

On screen, they were showing a picture of the baby, healthy and happy, and with a sigh and a nod May accepted the plate back from Wartortle. It was important to eat well, because she had a responsibility now after all. She had also gotten her prenatal vitamins from the doctor, who had offered his condolences on her broken relationship and some advice where she could find help as a single mother.

A single mother. She was pregnant. Drew was gone and she was pregnant.

Still, she had never once thought that perhaps she should have done that abortion. She had made the right decision, even though it had had these horrible consequences... May felt tears appear in her eyes again – damn it, she hadn't cried since lunch break, she wasn't planning on starting now – and with a determined nod she got up.

For a moment she faltered, wondering what to do, but then continued on to the kitchen to clean up. She tried to distract herself by cleaning up the mess she had made and doing the dishes, but soon enough thoughts crept up on her again.

What was she going to do now?

Her hands slowed and everything felt overwhelming. Drew was gone, she was pregnant, pregnant and alone-

Blaziken appeared at her side and started to dry off the dishes, for which he didn't even need a towel. May looked at her Pokémon for a moment, and then let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding. She smiled tiredly at her first Pokémon.

"Thank you, Blaziken," she said.

Blaziken grunted and nodded.

She was not alone. She had her Pokémon, she had her family, she had her friends…

They still didn't know. She should start by telling someone, Mom, Dad, Max, Misty, Dawn, Iris, Solidad- No, not Solidad, she was too close to Drew, she didn't want the reminder- But her friends and family, they needed to know, and they would help her-

She quickly finished the dishes, and before she could lose her nerve, she walked over to the videophone.

But she never got the chance to think about who she was going to call, because the moment she sat down in front of it, the phone started ringing.

A million thoughts ran through her head, or maybe just one- But of course it wasn't Drew, and May pushed those stupid ideas away.

On the screen a strange number was displayed, one that neither her phone nor she recognized. It was from Unova, and after a moment of gathering herself May accepted the call.

"Hello, this is May Maple," she said, putting on the smile she had used all day towards her clients. At first she only saw a mass of purple, and then she recognized Iris.

"Hey, Iris!" The surprise seeped into her voice when she greeted her friend. Iris only occasionally called, and it was rarely without a purpose.

"Hey, May," Iris said, and her friend's smile seemed to falter a bit.

A paralyzing thought occurred to May: what if the press had already gotten their hands on the information of their break-up? Oh, surely Drew wouldn't have gone to the media... Wouldn't he? Or what if someone from the agency-? She didn't want her friends and family to find out about the pregnancy and break-up like that!

"Is Drew at home?" Iris asked, and just like that, tears sprang in May's eyes. "May!" Iris sounded alarmed. "What's wrong?"

"I... Drew and I broke up," she stuttered, and then blurted, "I'm pregnant." The tears were now full on falling. Damn it all! "I'm pregnant and that's why he left!"

"What?!" Iris yelled, before cursing. "What the- When did that happen?"

"Four days ago," May said, wiping away her tears. "I- I'm sorry for springing this on you-"

"What, May, don't be sorry, seriously… And- and you're pregnant- really? And he left?!" Iris swore again, calling Drew terms May hadn't heard before but that strangely made her feel slightly better, before the purple-haired woman seemed to deflate and looked at May with sympathy. "How are you feeling, now? No, wait, that's a stupid question…"

"Like- Like hell," May said. "I feel like hell." It felt good to say it. "I keep thinking about him, and I don't know what I'm going to do, and at work everyone keeps looking at me like I'm going to break down, which I do-" She took a shaky breath. "I just- I don't know. I don't know what to do anymore."

"You should get out of there. Take a break." Iris's eyes lit up. "Come to Unova!"

"I- what?"

"Come to Unova! You can see my new Gym, see some sights, new Pokémon, new people, enjoy some time away from work and the daily things and you won't be reminded of that stupid dick-" Iris paused to breath. "If you want to, of course."

Iris's enthusiasm surprised her, and the idea suddenly seemed a lot more appealing. "I... suppose I can take some time off from work, I've worked overtime so many times..."

"Perfect!" Iris beamed, and May almost grinned back. Then, a thought occurred to her.

"Why did you call in the first place, actually?"

"Oh, don't worry," Iris said, and she almost seemed flustered. "That can wait. Now, let's see when you can come..."

A/N: Thank you for reading! It was nice to write Iris and May's interaction, and I hope you liked it, too. Please review!

Thank you!

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