Author's note: Hiii guys! Sorry that this one was SO LATE. I actually accidently broke my computer like an idiot so I lost access to a lot of things (I actually had to finish this chapter in the library while it was getting fixed.) But now I'm back! I try to update my stories weekly, and I wanna keep it that way.
Also, I've decided to do something else: If I remember to do it, I will put an asterisk in front of words that are slang terms, and then define them at the end of the chapter, in case it's not understood. Given that the time that this story takes place is around 2020, trainers are gonna use some slang terms that we'd be using in, well, the 2020s.
The terms are SO not gonna age well a decade from now... oh well.
Anyway, without further ado, let's get into this chapter!
Chapter 12: Flashback
Quaxly opened his eyes and raised his head. He turned to his left to see, not too far from where he was, Nemona slowly getting off of Kai. He went on his too feet, brushed his toothpaste-like hair and waddled over to Kai's side as Kai stood up.
"So how've you been? Have you been training?" Nemona asked.
"Well, uh... Kinda?" Kai said.
Quaxly looked back and forth between the two as they talked, even trading a glance with the Tinkatink who was still bonking Kai's leg.
"I didn't really do any training just yet... " Kai said.
"We can fix that! C'mon, get up! Let's battle!" Nemona replied.
"Heck no!"
"Why not?!"
"Because- I need a minute to collect my thoughts and stuff! I literally woke up in the middle of nowhere!"
Quaxly sighed. He had known Kai for a while, and he had a pretty good idea of how Kai was. These two are supposed to be complete opposites, and yet they got along so well.
He found himself pondering how this friendship even came to be.
FLASHBACK
Kai was alone. Among the crowd of students that surrounded him on his first day in school, he had never felt more alone.
Nothing was scarier than walking on campus without having anyone to talk to. As he watched students mingle, laughing with each other, he felt a twinge of pain in his chest. Was it jealousy?
It didn't matter. All that mattered was that he was going to get from point A, the campus grounds, to Point B, his classroom. Then, he could go into his room, read comic books or watch anime, and everything would be okay.
There would be no pain if there was no one to envy.
"Hey, Kai!" The girl named Nemona came running from behind the young boy before he could reach the school's front doors. The older girl soon caught up. "Why'd you walk off while I was talking with Director Clavell!?"
"I um, you were talking about how… I was going to be a great trainer one day…" Kai lowered his head. "And uh, I got angry."
"Why'd you get angry?"
"...because… I hate it when people say that I'm gonna be a great trainer someday, because I know I'm gonna ruin their expectations," Kai said.
"Whoa," Nemona said. "That's harsh."
"Yeah, well, it's the truth. The sooner I accept it-"
Nemona raised an open hand and landed a light karate-chop on Kai's forehead.
"Wh-" Kai blinked and stared, bewildered.
"No one talks badly about my friends, not even my friends!"
"...That doesn't make any sense… Are you dumb or somethi-"
Nemona bonked Kai again and Kai backed away as a reflex.
"Wh-What's that for?"
"I said, no one talks badly about my friends! Not even my friends!"
"...But I'm not talking to any of your friends."
"I'm my own friend."
Kai narrowed his eyes in slight annoyance.
"And If I can become my own friend," Nemona continued, "then so can you. Now apologize!"
"What? Apologize to who? To you?"
"I already forgive you, so you don't have to apologize to me. Apologize to yourself!"
"Why would I apologize to myself-"
Nemona bonked Kai in the head.
"Stop!" Kai cried.
"I said that no one talks badly about my friends! Not even my friends!"
"But we're not friends!"
"Wanna be friends?"
"No!"
"How about now?"
"NO!"
"How about now?"
"NO!"
"Now?"
"Oh my goodness." Kai pinched the bridge of his nose and lowered his head. Nemona grinned widely. "Why are you doing this to me?"
"Because, I think you're neat."
"Wha- You've literally only known me for… let me think, yeah, counting the time you saw me with Clavell, I'd say about ten minutes. Fifteen if you count the five minutes you've spent talking my ear off."
"Yeah, but we can spend even more time together!"
"Why would I- Ugh, go away! Leave me alone!"
Kai spun and walked off.
Jeez, that Nemona person is just… crazy, Kai thought. There's no way someone like that could possibly be made his way to his first class, and thankfully, Nemona wasn't a part of it. Even while the teacher was making their lecture, he couldn't stop thinking about her, and what she'd said.
'Because I think you're neat,'
Those words Nemona said echoed in his mind like a child persistently asking their parent about the toy they wanted. It was really, really annoying. After class ended, Kai left his classroom in a huff. He made his way over to his next class.
"Hey, Kai!"
The moment Nemona's voice reached Kai's ears, he felt a chill run down his spine. He saw her running over to her waving her hand. Her eyes had met with his, so there was no escape.
"What do you want..?" Kai grumbled.
"I wanna hang out with you! The next class doesn't start for another ten minutes!"
"Unfortunately for you, I like getting to class early." Kai marched on past Nemona.
Nemona followed.
"Oooh, Lucky me, I'm going the same way!"
"Right, right. Lucky you."
Nemona smiled wide as she stepped in front of Kai, walking backwards as they stayed face to face.
"So, what's your favorite Pokémon type?" Nemona asked.
"Ghost types."
"Why?"
"Because I'd love to ghost* you."
"Ooooh! Good one!"
Kai narrowed his eyes. "...It wasn't a joke."
"It's a good thing you aren't a ghost, then!"
"In one ear and out the other.."
"Huh? What'd you say, soon-to-be-best-buddy?"
"I SAID, OUT ONE EAR AND OUT THE OTHER!" Kai's shouting startled Nemona. "And I'm not your 'buddy'!"
Nemona's startled expression soon changed to a sunny smile.
"That's why I said 'Soon-to-be-best-buddy!'"
Kai sighed. "You've got a screw loose, lady."
"Hey!" Nemona put her hands on her hips. "I'm not old enough to be a 'lady'!"
"I mean- you're a lot taller than me, and look at least two years older than me,"
"Still not old enough to be a lady!"
"Well, I dunno," Kai said, shrugging. A smile even came to his face. "With the way you're acting I swear you're old enough to become senile."
"You're mean!" Nemona cried. She started to pout.
"Well, if I'm mean, maybe you should stop hanging out with me."
"Hmmm... Nah!" Nemona said with a sudden smile.
"...What the heck is wrong with you? Why are you so... Ugh- why me of all people?"
"Because I think you're neat!"
"How do you think I'm neat!?" Kai cried. "I literally have only talked to you for twenty minutes!"
"Five minutes have already passed? Huh, time flies when you're having fu-"
"NO!" Kai cried. After a brief silence, Kai sighed. If he was going to get this girl off of his back, it was time to get mean.
"...What's your trainer rank?" Kai asked.
"I thought I told you, I'm a champion-ranked trainer!"
"No, seriously, what's your trainer rank?"
Nemona pouted. "Champion-rank!"
"And the award for the biggest liar goes to…"
"Hey! I can prove it!"
"How?" Kai shrugged. "You can prove it by battling me, but if you beat me, congratulations, you just bullied a novice trainer! And if you lose, then you've gotten beat by a novice trainer."
Checkmate, Kai thought. He knew that Nemona was a champion-ranked trainer from the beginning. If his assumptions were correct, he figured that champion-ranked trainers have an ego. The pride to not want to lose to weaker trainers or else they'd look bad. By putting Nemona in a lose-lose senario, he could be one step closer to having her leave him alone, and-
"I don't mind losing to a novice trainer!" Nemona said.
Kai paused.
"I-..." He muttered.
"What's wrong?" Nemona asked.
"…Are you even human?"
"Yeah! Of course I am!"
"THAT WAS A RHETORICAL QUESTION YOU DIMWIT!"
"And I gave you a rhetorical answer!"
Kai cupped his hands and put them on his face, and proceeded to scream into them.
"Why're you screaming into your hands?" Nemona asked.
"ARCEUS, SMITE ME NOW! DESTROY ME WHERE I STAND, PLEASE. I BEG YOU."
Nemona crossed her arms. "That wouldn't be nice. I hope Arceus doesn't do that."
Kai let out another scream of mental anguish into his cupped hands.
Nemona proceeded to shove her way into Kai's life wherever he went. Kai sometimes had to look over his shoulder as though a predator were looming over him for days. No matter how many times he tried getting rid of her, being as mean as possible, Nemona would deflect it with her sunny personality and general obliviousness.
Two weeks had passed since Kai's first day in school, and Kai was looking over his shoulder every few seconds, expecting Nemona to come running to greet him.
But she wasn't there.
"Oh, thank goodness," Kai groaned. He went into the school by himself. And the moment he did, the feeling of loneliness crept and held him close from behind.
In front of him, he saw students mingling and chatting. He noticed them a lot more now that Nemona wasn't next to him talking his ear off. Kai sighed deeply. He kept his hands in his pockets as he held his head low. His first class ended, and the moment Kai went out of class, he looked around, looking for Nemona.
He wasn't looking for her for the sake of having someone to talk to! No, of course not!
He was just looking around to make sure the coast was clear, and that he could move on without Nemona walking around.
Yeah. That's it.
As he made his way to his next class, he heard the sea of students around him talking so much that he couldn't hear himself think. Why was it so much louder now? Were there more students? There's no way he wasn't able to hear everyone sound so loud while Nemona was around…Right?
"Kai!"
"Oh, jeez, Nemona-?" Kai turned around and saw a Teacher standing in front of him. He raised his eyebrows as he saw the teacher holding a folder.
"You forgot this." The teacher said.
"Oh," Kai said, taking the folder. The teacher waved before walking off.
Kai watched the teacher disappear into the sea of students. He turned around, half expecting Nemona to come running in, waving at him.
He had finally gotten what he wanted. Nemona left him alone. And yet he sighed as though depression had taken hold of him. As he made his way to his next class, his head lowered even more. He could see his own reflection on the squeaky-clean floors. Not once had he noticed how clean they were, not until today.
A thought that fought its way into his mind finally broke through the chains that Kai had created for it. The thought was:
'I miss Nemona. Did I scare her off?'
Kai stopped walking. Why would he think this? He wanted Nemona to leave him alone. She was finally gone, maybe the amount of times he was mean to her finally got through to her dense head. Now she was finally gone, and he felt like crying- not out of joy.
"Hi!"
Kai spun around quickly. his heart bounced; his mind raced… as his eyebrows rose, he even smiled a bit.
Then, that smile disappeared. It turned out that he had overheard a student say hi to their friend. Kai clenched the arms of his backpack as he watched the two students talk to each other. Where was Nemona? Sure, she was annoying, but she was…
His only friend.
Kai couldn't take it anymore. He missed her. He couldn't hold it back any longer. He missed the way she'd keep coming back no matter what he'd say to her, and even retort in her own special way. He missed how dense she could be sometimes, and how relentlessly friendly she could be.
Did she finally decide to leave him alone? Was he too mean to her?
Why would he be mean to her? She was the only person who decided to talk to him. Kai wished he had another chance, just one more chance to talk to Nemona. To have fun with her and have banter with her one last time.
"Hiii Kai!"
Kai's eyes widened the moment he heard Nemona's voice from behind him. He froze in place. "Sorry I was late," Nemona continued. She stepped in front of the astonished Kai. "I was sick for a bit, but now I feel a lot better!"
"I-..." Kai stared at her in complete shock.
"Didja miss me?" Nemona asked.
Kai's heart bounced. He suddenly shook his head, crossed his arms and pouted.
"N-No!" He cried. "W-Why would I miss you?! Of course not! You just won't leave me alone- so I was just… weirded out that you weren't around this time!"
"Ooooh. Well, no need to be weirded out anymore!" Nemona cried. "I'm back!"
"...Yeah, yeah," Kai said, rolling his eyes. After a brief pause, he sighed, pulling out his phone from his pants' pocket. "Just-... give me your phone number-" Kai pulled his phone out. "S-So you can tell me that you're sick... and so I don't get weirded out again."
"Okay!" Nemona cried.
"Ugh… Jeez." Kai grumbled. "Why are you like this?"
"Cause' I think you're neat!"
"Yeah, yeah. Honestly, I have no idea why you think I'm neat. I'm not anything specia-"
"Hey! No! Bad!"
Kai grumbled.
"I want you to promise me something before I give you my phone number!"
"Promise what?"
"Every time you say something mean to yourself, turn it into something positive! Instead of saying that you're nothing special, say that you're super special!"
"What? That sounds stupid. No."
"Then I won't give you my phone number!"
"What?" Kai said. "Wha- No! You- you can't just do that!"
"Yeah, I can!"
"No you can't! You literally kept bugging me to be friends with you and now I'm giving you my phone number, and-"
"That's the deal! Take it or leave it!"
Kai grumbled loudly. "Fine! Fine! Jeez- okay, I promise!"
"Think of it as a crutch until you become confident for real!" Nemona cried.
"...Yeah, yeah. Just give me your phone number already."
The two traded phone numbers, and after they did this, Nemona went to hug Kai.
"I believe in you," Nemona said.
Kai's face became slightly red.
"Oh- uh… thanks." He said.
Nemona pulled away from Kai and put her hands on his shoulders.
"You'll become confident in no time! And eventually, you'll become a champion-ranked trainer like me! I know you will!"
Kai said nothing, he just nodded slowly. "Y-Yeah," He said. "I mean…i guess..."
"You've gotta say that with more confidence! C'mon, say it with me! Yeah!"
"Yeah…." Kai mumbled.
Nemona sighed, nodded and smiled. "We'll work on that," She said.
"Anyway, let's walk and talk!" Nemona placed a hand on Kai's shoulder, and Kai looked to her and nodded.
"I swear, I don't know why I keep you around..." Kai grumbled.
End of Flashback
"So, wanna fight now?" Nemona asked. Quaxly blinked as he came back to the present, watching Kai talk with Nemona while Tinkatink, without fail, kept whacking Kai's leg. Kai hunched over and grabbed Tinkatink by the head as she swung her tiny hammer at him while still staring at Nemona.
"No!" Kai cried. "You're addicted to fighting, I swear!"
"Fiiine, fine! I'll just hang out around you until you're in the mood to fight!"
"You're absolutely insane. I swear."
Nemona grinned widely and Kai grumbled.
"I should kick your butt right here." Kai said.
"Oooh, is that a threat? Because I'm totally down for fighting if that's a threa-"
"I MEANT WITH MY OWN TWO HANDS YOU JERK!" Kai tackled Nemona to the ground, and the two of them started play-fighting. Nemona giggled and laughed as she playfully fought off Kai's half-hearted punches. "You're SUCH a battle-holic, I swear!"
"Let's fight with invokers on instead!"
"SHUT UP!" Kai cried. "WHY ARE YOU LIKE THIS?"
Quaxly smiled. He knew that after Kai knew deep in his heart how much he appreciates Nemona, he just would never say it to her face, because her reaction would be embarrassing to him. Kai was interesting to Quaxly. He would act like a total show-off in front of Aeon, but in front of Nemona, he'd become a tsundere*. That 'tsundere' part of him was his true self- and the 'show-off' part was what he wanted others to see him. But in the end, Kai wanted to hide his true feelings from others no matter what. Why was this? Quaxly had to learn more about his partner to find out.
Quaxly knew that when Kai said to Nemona, 'Why are you like this' he really meant, 'Never change.' 'You're insane' Translated to 'I like talking to you because you're you.' 'Why do I keep you around', translated to, 'don't ever leave me.'
Kai and Nemona kept at it until Kai got tired. He stared down at Nemona, breathing heavily and glaring as Nemona spread her arms out and smiled at him.
"So," Nemona said. "You wanna fight now?" Nemona asked.
"GAAAH! You'll never stop until you get what you want! Ugh- why are you like this!? Why do I even keep you around- Goodness! Fine! We'll fight!"
The water type Pokémon grinned. Quaxly totally shipped* them.
"Quaxly!" Kai cried. "Get ready, cause we're gonna fight!"
Author's note:Now that I have my computer back, the next chapter SHOULD be coming next week. Take care of yourselves guys! And take care of your computers! Haha
*the slang term version of the word 'shipping' refers to when a person supports or wants two people to get together.
*The slang term version of the word 'Ghost' refers to when someone suddenly stops communicating with another person.