V

Shiri's shift managed to drag and fly by at the same time. The rush earlier had calmed after a while, but periodically throughout the day, the Poké Mart would see large clusters of trainers dropping by. Shiri listened to the trainers as they discussed strategy, previous battles they had seen, and what pokémon they hoped they would get when they won.

This Poké Mart was open twenty-four hours per day, so Shiri didn't have to worry about closing. She simply finished up her last task and clocked out as soon as the next employee arrived, just before seven o'clock. The sun was down when Shiri left, and she pulled her jacket tight around her. Pewter was nestled in the valley below Mt. Moon, so the air around the town was much cooler than in Viridian.

Despite the busyness of the day, or maybe because of it, Shiri had not even considered that her arrangement with the Pokémon Center would be waylaid until she walked up to the automatic doors and saw the bustling lobby through the glass. There were trainers everywhere inside. Her stomach dropped at this realization, but she tried to push aside the building anxiety. She could always ask. Maybe there was just one bed she could curl up on somewhere.

She shot her shot, but no such luck. The kind, wearied nurse at the counter informed her that they were entirely booked up for rooms. Shiri left the Pokémon Center irritated, hungry, and trying to stop herself from crying.

She didn't really want to call Ashton and go home. It would be a waste of time, for both him and her. She wanted to stay in Pewter. She was looking forward to having a bit of time to herself to explore the town in the morning before her next shift.

Taking a deep breath, Shiri decided that the first thing she must do is get something to eat. Everything seems dire when you're hungry. Once she had a nice meal, she'd be able to sort herself out.

Twenty minutes later, Shiri had settled down in a small corner of a noodle house, slurping down a steamy, salty bowl of ramen. She had swallowed her pride and called Ashton, told him what was happening. It would be foolish to waste money on a hotel. He was on his way to come pick her up.

The restaurant was moderately busy, but not loud. Shiri sat facing the door, and although her face was mostly buried in her well-earned meal, she did look up when the door opened, triggering a doorbell to announce a new customer. Butterfree erupted in her stomach as she watched Simon cross the small dining room toward the counter.

He seemed too big for that little noodle shop, too out of place. It wasn't just his physical size, either, but his whole presence: Shiri could hear his footsteps as the rubber of his boots slammed against the tile floor, hear his gruff voice he tried to keep low as he ordered his own presumably well-earned meal. She felt like no matter where she looked, part of him was always in her peripheral view.

He stepped away from the counter, rubbing the back of his neck and slumping a little. He looked exhausted. Shiri could sympathize.

"Simon," she called before she realized what she was doing. His head snapped up and his posture straightened as he turned to her, his eyebrows raised. She smiled at his surprised expression and waved him over.

"I was willing to consider our meeting twice a coincidence," he said, his tone playful, "but three times is starting to get very suspicious."

"That just means we're friends now," Shiri replied. She spied color starting to creep up his neck. "So join me," she added, kicking the chair across the table from her out.

Simon hesitated for a moment, but he put up no resistance. He slid down easily in the plastic chair, meeting Shiri's eyes. "I see you survived your day."

"So far," Shiri said with a laugh. "My boss didn't mention anything about this giveaway when he asked me to pick up some shifts here. Maybe he thought I'd turn it down if I knew." That sort of deception by omission was not beyond Joseph.

"That's why you're in Pewter?" Simon asked. "Picking up shifts at the Poké Mart?"

"Does that sound like an unlikely cover story?" she teased. "You see, I'm actually following this one weird trainer, and I was hoping he would buy it."

That drew out a chuckle from him. "You think I'm weird, do you?"

"I wouldn't call someone who wrangles ditto in an alleyway very normal."

Simon looked a little uncomfortable with the direction of the conversation. He was given momentary reprieve when the chef called out a number from the counter. Simon got up to retrieve his own large, brothy bowl of ramen.

"How long have you been in Kanto?" Shiri asked when he returned.

"About a year now, I think," he said. "Before that I was in Sinnoh. Johto before that. I travel around." He paused. "For work, you know."

"What sort of work has you traveling that much?"

"Pokémon catching," he said. "For promotional companies and such."

"Oh," Shiri said, recalling that Simon had been the one to tell her about the Pewter Gym giveaway earlier. "Oh! That's why you knew about the thing this weekend."

He scoffed. "That was a bit of a surprise for me too," he said, taking a big sip of broth.

"I never really thought about where the pokémon for these things come from," Shiri said, tilting her head. "I guess someone does have to catch them. That's an interesting career." Simon shrugged, slurping up some noodles. Shiri watched as he awkwardly worked his chopsticks. He'd clearly had little practice with them. She guessed they weren't common in Galar.

Shiri's phone chimed, and she glanced at the screen. Ashton had texted her that he was in town. She responded with the name of the noodle shop she was at, feeling a pang of disappointment. She didn't want to leave so soon.

"Do you have any pokémon?" he asked as she put her phone back down on the table.

"Oh, no," Shiri said, feeling a little embarrassed at the admission. "I never really had much interest in keeping or training them." It seemed like everyone in the world had pokémon or trained them or folded them into their lives somehow. She often felt a little odd for her natural disinterest.

But Simon simply nodded. "They are a lot of work," he commented. "I'm sure a busy career woman like you wouldn't have the time."

Shiri laughed. "My mother is the career woman in the family," Shiri said, shaking her head. "I'm just…" She paused, biting her lip. "Well, I don't really know what I'm doing." She gazed down at her phone, but she felt Simon's eyes on her. She must have seemed boring to someone like him, who trained pokémon and traveled the world.

But Simon didn't find her boring at all. He watched her silently, finishing off his ramen. Warmth from the meal radiated from his belly through his whole body, making his hands feel sweaty. Shiri absentmindedly fiddled with the end of one of her braids, looking lost in thought.

The door behind Simon swung open, and the doorbell chime sounded a new arrival. Simon paid no attention to the newcomer, but Shiri looked up suddenly, a smile coming to her face. This wasn't quite like the smile she had given to Simon when she saw him. This one was wider, warmer, lovelier. Simon couldn't help but turn around to see who was granted this smile.

"Ashton, hey!" Shiri called to the tall, lean man who had just walked in. He spied Shiri immediately and grinned, walking over to them with three long strides. He was dressed in all black, from the distressed, fitted black jeans to the V-neck top which clung to his muscular chest and was fitted with a length of silver chain down the front. His long black hair was worn loose, tucked behind his ears which held countless piercings and framed a handsome, angular face.

He was hot.

Shiri bounced up out of her seat to hug the man, and he wrapped a long, muscular arm around her narrow shoulders. They held each other for a moment, and Simon felt like he was invading some sort of intimate moment, so he tried to find somewhere else to set his gaze.

But it didn't last long before Shiri introduced the two. "Ashton, this is my new friend Simon. Simon, my best friend in the whole world, Ashton." Simon smiled as he shook hands with Ashton, noticing the powerful grip the man had. He was keenly aware that Shiri had said best friend, not boyfriend.

Ashton settled into the seat beside Shiri, leaning back and resting his hands on the table.

"You wanna grab a bite?" Shiri asked him.

"Nah," he said with a wave of his hand. "Already ate. I do have a proposal for you, Shir."

"Oh?" she said, cocking one thin eyebrow.

"I know you don't really want to go home. How about you and I split a hotel room?" Shiri's dark eyes widened at the idea. "It'll be cheaper if we split it, yeah? Then maybe we can raise some hell around here." Ashton's eyes cut to Simon, his grin widening. "You can come along for the ride too, friend."

"I'm a bit too old for much hell raising," Simon said.

Ashton scoffed. "What are you, like twenty-eight?"

Simon didn't want to admit to himself how much it irked him that Ashton had guessed his age correctly. "Something like that."

"So you're not exactly retirement age," he said.

"Hey, if he doesn't want to, he doesn't want to," Shiri cut in. She smiled at Simon. "I'm sure he's got to be up early in the morning." She turned back to Ashton. "That sounds great to me, though."

Simon was starting to feel extraneous, so he got to his feet. "Shiri's right. I should be going." Her smile faltered, but she nodded. "I'm sure we'll run into each other again."

Shiri hopped up from her seat and wove around the table. "I know we will," she said. Then she threw her arms around his chest and gave Simon the warmest hug he had ever felt in years.