Notes: Hey all! And here is the third chapter! I'm having so much fun writing this! And I hope if anyone reading this enjoys the story as well. Let me know what you think if you want. The plot starts to progress from here. I apologize for any grammatical errors and spelling errors. If there's anything that needs to be explained please don't hesitate to ask.
(Bold italics = text messages between characters)
(Italics = flashback or emphasis on something)
Faraway/Outcryshipping, some PokéShipping, AmourShipping, possibly Dawn/Drew or Dawn/Gary, mentions of other shippings.
WARNING: There are mentions and talks about terminal illness if you don't like reading things like these or if it triggers you please don't read!
Chapter Three: What did I get myself into?
By the time of the end of his class, Paul wasn't in a great mood. All he could keep thinking back on was the conversation he had with his brother that morning. He was on his way back home since Ash had texted him saying that he would get a ride from Dawn, since the interview was near Misty's apartment. Which honestly couldn't have worked better because he wanted to be alone at the moment. He gripped the steering wheel so tightly his hands were pale. Loosening his grip he pressed the gas pedal when the light changed to green and drove home the conversation playing over in his head again.
"I'm going to just come out and tell you, dad's sick."
Paul frowned but didn't say anything. His relationship with his father was basically nonexistent. But that's because he couldn't find it in him to forgive him. Not because he didn't love him but because his father failed him. He had failed his family. The entire reason Reggie had to become his legal guardian was just so that they didn't get separated and so that he didn't end up in foster care. Reggie sighed he guessed from his lack of reply but he didn't speak.
"Are you still there?"
"Yeah, is that the news or is there more?" Paul almost winced at the words, they sounded so cold and cruel.
"Paul."
"People get sick all the time, he'll get better soon."
"I don't think you understand, he's terminally ill. He's dying, Paul."
That knocked the wind out of him. He leaned on the wall. While he wasn't talking to his father he wouldn't wish him harm upon him or anyone really. Not knowing what to say he asked. "What is it?"
"Brain tumor."
"How long?"
"More or less a year, they say. They're still going to be going through chemotherapy, dad wants to keep trying until he can't."
"Damn."
"The reason for the call is that he wants to see us. Before his health starts to deteriorate, he wants to talk with us."
"No."
"Paul."
"I am not-"
"Please…look, you don't have to give me an answer right now. Just please think about it."
"Alright."
Reggie let out a breath in relief. "Thank you, that's all I ask. I'll call you next week."
"Take care."
"You too. Bye." and with that Reggie hung up.
Walking into the kitchen, he sat down on one of the chairs. He put his head in his hands and closed his eyes. His mind conflicted on what to do. Between feeling sad and angry at the same time on top of the stress of everything going on in his life he was at a loss at what to do. He hadn't felt this feeling since he was a preteen and he didn't like it. He felt completely helpless at what to do.
May had completely forgotten about her brother's text earlier that morning, as she made her way to the bookstore to buy a book she needed for her statistics class. She had told Brendan to meet her there and then the two could walk to the pizzeria that was on the way to Richie's house. She also made a mental note to text Richie to verify when he was coming back so that way she could set up her next job which would be pet sitting for Jasmine if it all worked out. Just as she walked inside she felt her phone buzz in her pocket. Pulling it out she tapped her screen to look at the notification.
May, you need to call today when you have the time.
Damn it.
She had hoped to avoid talking to her parents so soon, well mostly her father, she loved her mother and still cared for her, but her father was really starting to push her buttons and her boundaries. She wasn't going to call now, it was better to have that call at a private place not at her university. Last time they'd spoken to each other it ended in a screaming match and an exchange of hurtful words and tears being shed on her end. Taking a breath to calm her nerves, she decided to text back.
I'm at University at the moment. I can call you around 5.
Make sure that you do. I'll be waiting for your call.
Putting her phone away she closed her eyes and tried to calm her breathing. Brendan found her standing in the front of the bookstore and walked over to her with a smile, however when he noticed the distress on her face he immediately frowned, going into protective friend mode.
"What happened?"
"Technically nothing."
"It's not nothing, not when it seems you're on the verge of a breakdown."
"My dad texted." her throat felt heavy from holding back tears so saying that hurt.
"Yeah no fuck this, where not staying here," placing his hand on her back he gently walked her back out of the bookstore and started heading to his car. "I'm driving you to Richie's. We'll pick up food anyway so you can have it later when you're hungry and you can relax there."
She was about to protest but he cut her off. "No, you can pick up the book tomorrow or Friday. We're going."
"Okay."
"Good." he pressed his car key to unlock it. "Now get in."
May managed to smile at him and seeing her smile with the shine of unshed tears broke his heart.
"Thanks Brendan."
"Don't mention it. It's what friends do, you'd do the same for me."
May opened the door and slid into the seat. Buckling in she sighed as Brendan went to press the start button she put her hand on his.
"Wait."
"What's wrong?"
"I'm just going to call him now. I'll be damned if this ruins my afternoon and I need you to take the phone away if it gets nasty."
"Ok." Dropping his hand away he plugged in his phone into the usb and sat in silence as May called her parents house. One ring…two rings…three rings…four…and someone finally picked up. He could hear it clearly as the car was completely quiet.
"May! Sweetheart how have you been?"
"I've been doing okay mom. How are you?"
"Better now that you've called. Are you sure you've been okay?"
"Yes."
"Good."
"Caroline don't baby her." May pressed her lips into a thin line as she heard her father in the background. She heard her parents go back and forth, "May honey your father wants to speak with you. I'll call you soon if not you call. Love you."
"Love you too, mom."
"Why haven't you called, young lady?" The question sounded rather hostile and accusatory, and she couldn't figure out if that was in her head or if her father was intending to be like that on purpose now.
May bit the inside of her cheek to hold back the urge to answer his question rudely or sarcastically. "I'm sorry I've been busy between working and going to classes and studying. I forgot. It won't happen again."
"Make sure it doesn't." the brunette rolled her eyes at his reply.
"Where have you been staying?"
"I don't know why you'd want to know that."
"May…" he warned.
"I'm sorry but you told me you didn't care where I ended up when you told me I was on my own."
"I just want to make sure you're not doing anything you shouldn't be."
"Dad it's your fault I'm in this position to begin with."
"Don't use that tone with me."
She wanted to scream at him, the hypocrisy was laughable at this point. "I'm sorry but it's true. But if you must know I'm staying with Dawn, happy?"
She lied knowing he had no way of figuring out the lie since he stopped paying attention to her life around six years ago and probably didn't remember who Dawn was.
"No, I expected more of you, we didn't raise you to be disrespectful-"
Something in her snapped and cut him off before she said something she may regret later.
"Look, I have to get back to class. I'll call all of you whenever I have the chance." She ended the call.
Turning to face her friend he had a stunned look and he let out a silent 'wow'. He didn't know what to say to that. He had known May and her family since they were little toddlers so he was aware of the deteriorating state of their family however it wasn't that bad when he last visited then again he also moved to Mossdeep City during their High School years so that's probably when it got to how things were now.
"So…let's go get pizza, I'm hungry." she whispered.
He just gave a quick nod. "Alright, and you can control the playlist."
Thursday came by quickly and Paul arrived at the bar earlier than the arranged time, by a half hour. He turned off his car and sat in silence debating between just waiting in the car or going in and getting acquainted with the building.
'I should go inside it's early afternoon so it shouldn't be annoyingly busy.'
Walking inside he was relieved and surprised that the smell of cigarettes wasn't as bad as the first time he was there. However it could be a different story as the rest of the afternoon went on. Not knowing where he was going to go he approached one of the women working at the counter.
"Excuse me."
The lilac haired woman towards the voice.
"Yes, can I help you?"
"I have a meeting with Cyrus and I don't know where I'm supposed to meet with him."
"Oh!" she exclaimed like a light switch went off in her mind, "I remember Cyrus mentioning something about that. Come this way." turning around she headed off in the direction of the office. Paul followed and they both walked in silence. The halls were dimly lit and some lights in some sections were constantly flickering. The place was bigger than he originally thought since they walked a good distance, the bar looks small from the outside. On the next right turn she pulled open the door and motioned for him to walk in and she walked in behind him. "Cyrus is in a meeting with someone so," she motioned to one of the chairs, "you can have a seat, it shouldn't be too much longer. See you around."
"Thanks." Paul told her, Courtney nodded before making her way out of the room to go back to work. The creak of the door being pulled open made the man direct his attention to the office he watched as May stepped out of the room she turned back to whom he assumed was Cyrus. He was wrong the voice was one he didn't recognize.
"Thank you again, I appreciate the offer however I hope you understand why I declined."
"No worries May. There aren't any repercussions for your decision. We offered because we thought you'd be good for the position. We will let you get back to work."
"Thank you, Cyrus, Maxie." She turned to walk out of the office and turned to where he was sitting. Their eyes met once more she gave him a smile before walking out, a man with red hair walked out of the office behind her.
"I'll be in the back office Cyrus." and the man walked right out without a word.
"Hello Mr. Evans, I hope you weren't waiting long."
Paul walked over to Cyrus, who extended his hand, Paul shook his hand.
"I wasn't waiting long, sir. And you can call me Paul."
Nodding he motioned for him to walk inside. The purple haired man walked past Cyrus stepping into the room. "Please have a seat." He said before walking to his desk and taking a seat. He waited for Paul to sit before talking.
"I believe we spoke over most of the things during the initial interview but it's good to go over things, just so that there's no misunderstandings. As I said this is a salaried position, are you okay with that fact?"
"I am."
"It pays semi-monthly. First check on the 10th second one on the 24th."
"That's not an issue."
"We don't have any benefits in terms of health, given that this is an at-risk job where you can be injured. However we do pay very well to compensate for this fact. We also do have paid leave if you get sick or injured."
Paul thought that sounded sketchy however he figured as much. "That wouldn't be an issue. I have independent health insurance."
That wasn't a complete lie, he had insurance through Reggie however it wasn't getting close to the time where he'd have to come off of his plan. He'd deal with that when the renewal forms were mailed out.
"Very well," the older man pulled out a paper and slid it across the desk, "that's the pay schedule with the amount you'll be paid. Read it over and sign it if you feel like it's fair and would still like the job."
Paul looked it over and almost widened his eyes when he saw the amount the position offered. He read it over three times thinking there was a mistake or that he was reading it wrong. This was more than enough to live comfortably and build his savings back up, since that was depleting, he had worked all through his teenage years saving every cent he made because his parents told him to save. And when he went off to University, and Reggie took over the parental role he said he'd pay his tuition in full if he got good grades, Paul shut that down but soon relented to having it be partially paid with him paying for the other. The scholarship money was spent since he opted to get his masters. He wasn't about to ask his brother for more money, so he signed it sliding it back to Cyrus.
"The uniform is just a black shirt. And in the winter you can wear a jacket, coat and hats but they have to be black. As for footwear and pants that's up to you." he explained, he saw Paul nod before he added. "Hours are from 4:00 PM to 2:00 AM, weekdays, weekends are from 4:00 PM to 3:00 AM. If that works then we can write up your schedule, add you on to the program that logs your hours."
"That works sir."
"Please, call me Cyrus."
"Okay s-", he paused, correcting himself, "Cyrus."
"Well let's work out the schedule and then you can get started.
May was wiping her bar down with disinfectant when Courtney walked over to her.
"Hey girl."
Pausing mid swipe, the brunette looked at her co-worker and smiled. "Hey Courtney. What's up?"
"You tell me. I heard you were up for a promotion and declined?"
"What…how did…nevermind." she figured Blaise or one of the other employees overheard.
"You turned down a promotion?" she asked in disbelief.
"It technically wasn't, they just offered me the opportunity to make "better" money by transferring to the back and "dance."
"And you said, no!?" she exclaimed.
"I can't do that! I'm not cut out for that!"
"Why not it pays better money, or so I've heard. You're so gorgeous I know you'd do well."
May winced and scrunched her nose. "I'm really not."
Courtney frowned and rolled her eyes.
"Girl you're definitely crazy. You are so hot it's ridiculous and if you can't see that I don't know what to tell you."
May's cheeks flushed. "Thank you."
Courtney gave her a smile. "Oh I think we may have a new security guard which is good because Blaise and N could use the help."
"That's true. We've been getting more customers so more security is always a plus."
"And he's also cute."
The brunette raised her eyebrow and shot her coworker a look that screamed what the hell did you say.
"What? I'm just stating facts. He seems like the quiet type so not my type but he's a looker for sure." she shrugged.
May laughed. "I can't with you, love you though."
"Same but don't make fun of me, I just admire pretty people."
"I wasn't making fun, and you should definitely admire yourself more in that case."
"Uh huh…you flatter me," she gave the brunette a wink, "anyway I'm going to head back to work and a hot guy incoming." Courtney winked at May once more before she strutted off. She felt a presence behind her so she turned coming face to face with Paul.
"Hey."
"Hey."
"I see you got the job. I guess everything went well?"
"A little too well, but yes it did."
"That's good...so when do you start?"
"Officially, on Saturday. I'm supposed to stay with you now apparently since I'm going to be working in this section and the one across from the TV. then after my break I'm supposed to find someone named N and shadow him."
"Ah." The brunette muttered. She felt flustered and didn't know why.
"Well it's usually pretty slow around this time. It doesn't typically get busy until after six and even then things don't pick up until after nine. You can take a seat. I'm just going to finish cleaning my section and get everything prepped and then I'll be a better hostess."
Paul nodded and watched her prep for her shift. "If the bar opens at four, why are you prepping this section now?"
"This section is closed until after six, either Cassidy or myself get here. Cyrus doesn't like opening the full bar until after the bar has been open longer." she explained. Ten minutes later she was done with prep and handed him a glass of ice water.
"Thanks."
"You're welcome." she smiled at him.
The rest of the night was split between watching the section May and her coworker worked and learning the ins and outs and building shortcuts with N.
He glanced over to where May was once again, she was pouring drinks into glasses and slid them to the group of four patrons, she was apparently laughing at something one of the women in the group said. Shaking his head he followed N to the break room, to take their break.
'Just what am I getting myself into?'
Notes: And that's the chapter. May and Paul will be interacting more now that the plot has been set. We also get some insight into their lives. There is a slight time jump in the next chapter, but I will add flashbacks when necessary if something has to be explained, just wanted to clarify since any OOCness it's going to be due to that so the pacing may also seem off. Anyway I hope someone is enjoying the story. Please review if you like just to make sure the story is decent. See you in the next update!