Shouldn't Take It For Granite

My eyes narrow as I watch Grant defeat yet another up-and-coming trainer, hoping to be the best. Grant, sadly, is quite the opponent, and I will, begrudgingly, say he deserves his spot as a Grand Duke. Doesn't mean I won't be salty about the whole nobility system, though.

I don't know what thoughts inhabited this girl, bringing a Shedinja to fight in a Rock-type gym. Shedinja is weak to Rock-type moves, and it can only be hit by Rock-types.

Her Shedinja did know Giga Impact, but it missed and cracked the ground open.

I watch the girl hold back her tears as Grant gives her a handshake and tells her to come back another day. He does let her use the exit stairs, so she doesn't have to climb back down under her emotional duress. Grant glances my way but continues onward to his own set of stairs towards his personal rest area. I don't know if he has another match set for today, but I guess I can sit through that one, too.

I've sat through six anyway.

Maybe that's why he glanced at me.

Or maybe he knows what I did at the Battle Chateau.

Oops.

As Grant walks away, the staff come in with their pokémon, using a myriad of ground and rock-type moves to repair the field. I wonder how much upkeep a rock-climbing arena inside of a mountain costs. Probably more than I can imagine.

I lean back in the provided chairs, letting my gaze wander. The pipes zigging and zagging along the ceiling to provide water in the event of an emergency. Even if we have pokémon that can pump out gallons of water, it's still a good idea to have a sprinkler system handy. Looks like they didn't skimp out since those look like high-pressure nozzles.

*Bzzt*

My wandering thoughts are once again brought down a deeper rabbit hole as my notifications buzz. I pull up my phone to see a notification for Serena's social media page.

I absolutely did not set up a macro to notify me every time she posts something. Like a normal person, I just followed her.

I did set up a bot to archive everything on a private server, though.

Oh! It seems Serena is getting into making pokévision videos.

The thumbnail is a closeup photo of her and her Fennekin, both looking adorable together. Aww…

Well, it looks like Grant won't be coming back out today, so I'll just bide my time with this.

Carefully, I make my way down the guest steps, listening to Serena on my earbuds. You know, in retrospect, she really does seem like the baker type. However, something about it feels so natural, and it...

I take a deep breath.

I do feel something about it. My bottled emotions pouring out in a torrent. The feelings and thoughts I had about a few passing girls, or another. Hell, even Courtney is part of those fantasies. I can see myself coming home from a long day doing…something. Not sure yet. Serena wearing an apron over her clothes as she holds out a pan of hot poképuffs for me.

And…now I'm imagining her wearing only the apron.

I shake my head, clearing my thoughts like some children's toy. Is it even possible for us to have a relationship together? For one, we're both girls, and if she wants kids, as most humans do, then that might be an issue. I've heard about genetic experiments, but those were for pokémon, not humans.

I wouldn't mind a few kids. Us sitting on a sofa. Her gentle smile as she rubs her stomach holding her kid. Our kid.

I shake my head again, almost hitting a passerby as I exit the gym. Stop, Nicole! Think chaste thoughts!

What about Courtney? She's a reformed environmentalist. I'd bet I could win her affections if I made some ecological advancement. Maybe she just needs a listening ear?

I could see us laying in bed together…

No!

Ugh, the worst part, from what I can tell, is that these are mainly feelings of lust. At most, my current relationship with these girls can be known as acquaintances. Yes, I have their phone numbers, but we seldom communicate. I sparsely initiate conversation, and they never do.

Probably because the few times they have, just to say hello or check up on me, I've been busy and didn't respond for several hours.

UGH!

What about other potential interests? Cynthia? Hah! Fat chance! I'd need to become champion or something to even have a chance of meeting her!

Lusamine? See above reasons, and also…these people are currently in other regions.

I have feelings for these people, but my social skills suck! I can't properly articulate how I feel to them, nor do I have the courage to act on it! And…Serena…looks like she has eyes for Ash…sometimes. She has those same eyes for me, occasionally, so I know there's a spark of something there.

How do I nurture it?

I can't even talk with people about other things most of the time. I'm a silent watcher, sometimes making things. Then people call me a genius, and that irks me, too! You're summing up all my efforts into a single word as an excuse to refuse applying yourself! I can't cook! But you can! Does that make you a genius chef?

No! It just makes you someone that has an ability to apply themselves. I can cook, somewhat. I can cook enough to keep myself alive. I'm just…on edge near knives.

Ba dum tss.

I set my rambling thoughts about my hopeless future that will inevitably lead to me dying alone aside for the moment as I enter my room at the Pokémon Center. The mysterious egg still sits on my bed, acting as a weight to keep the sleeping Noibat from stealing all the comforter with her rolling around.

Shouldn't she be sleeping upside down?

Eh, whatever. Maybe Nurse Joy has some equipment to see inside the egg. If I get another damned Dragon-type, I will have so many conflicting emotions. Dragon-types are powerful; however, it's making my team extremely unbalanced.

I sigh, once again bottling my worries and anxieties to deal with some other time. I pick up the egg, leading to Alexandra tangling herself in the bed. Walking over to the desk, I set the egg in my lap as I log into my Pokémon League account. Like every public structure, if you can dig enough, you can find floor plans for it.

Now, where is Cyllage City's gym?