A couple of days had passed since the incident and things didn’t change much in all that time. May still hid her feelings and sadness to everybody else as much as she could while grieving whenever she was alone. The only difference was that she finally understood her feelings, although that didn’t make it easier to withstand the pain and loneliness. She underestimated how much she loved Brenda, but upon learning, her wish to be with her felt much stronger than ever. However, every night she reminded herself to be strong. She couldn’t put her feelings before Brenda’s happiness.

What May found more surprising was Lisia’s lack of interest in the matter. After their conversation, her friend went back to her usual self and didn’t bring the topic back at any moment. While Lisia was very straightforward and insisting sometimes, she had those very occasional moments of restraint and respect with sensitive matters. And at that moment, May appreciated the gesture, finding some slight relief within her turmoil of emotions and the hustle and bustle of the show. At least the Contests were a timely distraction from her continuous ruminating, or that was until Lisia came to her dressing room one afternoon.

“Hey, the producers are holding a special party tonight to thank the staff”, announced Lisia.

“A party? I’m not in party mood actually”, said May with doubtful voice.

“Yeah, I’d like to rest too, but they’ll look down on us if we don’t go”, complained Lisia. “I put a dress on your wardrobe for you. Go to the restaurant at the end of the street in an hour. The fancy one, ya know? Just say my name and they’ll take you to the party hall. I gotta go now to help prepare things”.

“Okay, see you there”, said May before Lisia left the dressing room.

She didn’t lie. May was not in the mood for a party, but those were the kinds of things that came with the job. Knowing she had no other option, May went towards the wardrobe. She expected a flashy dress, since Lisia’s preferences were more inclined onto bright colors. Instead, what she found inside was a beautiful white dress. It was simple, with small embroidered flowers around the lower part, and the fabric was incredibly soft when touching it. Along them, there were a pair of white flat shoes and a small case with a white hairband with a flower on it. There was a sense of charm and cuteness in the whole outfit that took May by surprise. It was far different than the outfits Lisia usually chose. Maybe she didn’t want May to stand out too much in the party? If that was so, she appreciated that. Contrary to her Contest outfit, it didn’t take much time to put on everything and get ready.

One hour later, she went to the restaurant Lisia mentioned. Being close to the Super Contest Hall, it was one of the most elegant restaurants in the area, visited not only by people who attended the show, but also by Contestants and even some celebrities. May only went there a couple of times to eat with Lisia, and only because her friend got preferential treatment being the star of the collaboration show. And from the food she tasted back then, there were good reasons for it receiving so many customers. Even though at that moment she wasn’t looking forward to the party, a part of her was impressed for having a big party in such a place. With some nervousness, she approached the head waiter, gave Lisia’s name, and after a quick glance at some papers, the head waiter took May inside the restaurant. She tried not to mind the other customers and focused on following the head waiter, until they stopped at a table next to a big window with a beautiful scenery of the city at night and she was told to sit there.

There had to be a confusion, she thought. She explained she came to a party, but she was told that was the table assigned to Lisia. With some reluctance, she sat down while exploring her surroundings. There was nobody she recognized from the hall. No other Contestants or staff. It was just her. It didn’t make sense, but she got the restaurant and the time right and Lisia said they would meet there. She decided to wait a bit more just in case, mindlessly looking at the people going back and forth through the street. At one point, she wasn’t actually paying attention and, just like whenever she was alone, her mind went back to Brenda. She couldn’t keep going like that, but she couldn’t help it. Her face was still so clear in her mind, she could swear she could see her friend reflected in the window glass. Her beautiful smile, her pretty eyes and her hair surprisingly let loose.

“Hi, May”.

Did the reflection move? Did she hear a voice? What May first believed to be a figment of her imagination seemed realer the more she scrutinized the image in the glass. A quick turn of her head confirmed her suspicions.

“B- Brenda?”.

There she was, like a mirage in the middle of the dessert, glowing in front of her. Brenda was right there, with a stunning look, wearing a white dress and shoes similar to hers, while her brown hair was let loose, falling gracefully on her shoulder. There were some small traces of makeup, some blush, reddish eye shadow and a subtle touch of gloss in her lips that enhanced her cuteness. May was stunned by her beauty, her brain finding the first words to say, but only one question came to her:

“What… what are you doing here?”.

It was then that May noticed Brenda was holding a bouquet full of red roses, with her friend offering them to her. May took the flowers, their fragrance enveloping her.

“How wouldn’t I? This is your special day”, say Brenda with a smile. However, May’s puzzled expression confused her, and she continued: “Lisia called me some days ago. She told me you got a contract for a TV show and there was a celebration party. I wanted to congratulate you in person”.

“What? Contract? TV?”, kept asking May. “No! I didn’t get any contract. I’m here because-”.

A sudden realization came to her mind, making May stop mid-sentence. Lisia told her about the staff party. Lisia told Brenda about a job party. And their dresses being so similar to each other…

“Say, that dress… Lisia helped you?”, asked May reluctantly.

“Actually, yeah! I told her I didn’t have anything elegant for such a party. So she offered to prepare something for me”, explained Brenda. Then, a bit bashfully, she said: “Do… do you like it?”.

Of course May liked it, but that was not the problem. Everything was a plan devised by Lisia to get them together and make May confess her feelings! How could she have forgotten Lisia was a pro meddler? She shouldn’t have lowered her guard, but she had too many things to juggle with that she thanked not having to worry about her friend. In her mind, she could see Lisia somewhere, probably laughing, proud about her own plan. Sadly, there was no way out of that situation, so without much thinking, she spurted anxiously:

“Yeah, you’re pretty! I mean, you look cute and…”.

May blushed upon realizing what she just said, and at the same time, Brenda blushed for the compliment. With so many circumstances put together (the fake invitation, the compliments, all the time they didn’t see each other), they were terribly embarrassed. The only thing May could do at that moment was a slight gesture with her hand, inviting Brenda to sit in front of her and share the table. Soon after, a waiter arrived to bring them the menu and say the bill was already payed (one more proof this was Lisia’s plan), so they could order whatever they wanted. May tried to focus on the menu, even though she already knew some dishes. Still, she wasn’t actually reading, all her attention focused on the girl in front of her.

Her shiny eyes running over the text in the menu, her soft lips murmuring the different dishes. She looked more like a princess from a fairy tale, her beauty as eye-catching as blinding. But no, May couldn’t think like that. She had to focus on her menu, not on her friend. However, every second hiding her feelings to Brenda felt like a torture, but they were able to finally order something. It didn’t take much longer for them to get their drinks and a salad as appetizer. As they began eating, May got nervous, and she noticed Brenda was as well. The silence was too terrifying, but it was hard to talk. What could she say? How did anybody begin a conversation? She had to think of something and quickly, but Brenda went ahead.

“Say… how are you doing?”, asked Brenda. “How are things here?”.

“Oh!”, exclaimed May in surprise. “It’s been good, yeah! It’s been an experience. Lots of shows, learning a lot… It’s been… fun”.

It wasn’t easy for May to say that word. ‘Fun’. It hadn’t been fun for her during those last weeks, but that was the mask she had been putting on all that time. A mask only Lisia managed to see through, but she couldn’t let Brenda know.

“And what about you? How is Hoenn’s Champion doing?”, asked May with a somehow forced joking tone, although it got its purpose of making Brenda giggle.

“Actually… I gave up on the title. Wally’s the new Champion now”, confessed Brenda.

May’s fork almost slipped from her fingers when she heard that. She was so caught off-guard that she couldn’t say anything, but her shocked expression was enough for Brenda to smile and continue.

“I didn’t like it. It was like acting, but different than Contests”, explained Brenda. “People expected me to go around with this… ‘pretense’, like showing off I was the best Trainer ever to the whole world. That’s not me. So let’s say I prepared a ‘special’ team to test against Wally, and well, he had quite an advantage. He noticed though, but understood rather quickly. So… let’s keep it a secret, okay?”.

Even though the initial surprised, May understood. Brenda and her family came from a place where everybody was incredibly arrogant and pretentious and they ran away from all that. She could see that was the best choice, given the gentle smile Brenda had on her face. Still, May felt guilty. She had been so busy with her job and her worries that she had been completely disconnected from everything happening back home. She probably should have called at some point, but such an idea was incredibly hard back then, and even more after understanding her feelings. Also, since Brenda didn’t call her, she believed she was doing fine, which seemingly wasn’t true.

“Brenda, I…”, began saying May.

“I’m sorry”.

Her intention was apologizing to her friend, but May’s words were interrupted by Brenda, who once again was faster.

“I’m sorry for not calling you since you left”, apologized Brenda once again. “You probably were busy all this time and I didn’t want to annoy you, but… I wanted to talk to you again. I’m sorry”.

“No, please! It’s my fault too! I… I felt the same actually”, insisted May. “I thought you had no time with all that Champion stuff and wouldn’t have time to talk to me. Truth is I… I also miss talking to you”.

It was funny and slightly ironic for May to find out both had the same problem. And while she was willing to say she missed her friend, she didn’t want to go further. Brenda probably didn’t mean it in the same way as her, at least she was sure of that. However, that brief moment was enough for both of them to relax and talk more casually, with May asking Brenda about her life as a retired Champion. The girl began narrating her most recent adventures, like finding out Pokémon under the sea to help May’s father. On the other hand, she had been considering her future as a Gym Leader, but in a similar fashion to Roxanne, teaching children and new Trainers how to take care of Pokémon and raise them appropriately. May listened with attention, captivated by her friend’s enthusiasm and cuteness, while they kept eating. Even though she knew dinner would be over soon, she felt herself trapped within a beautiful world apart from everything else, one where that happiness and bliss would never end. However, at one point, Brenda looked slightly sad and asked:

“Say, May… are you okay?”.

“What?”, asked May surprised while eating her dessert. “Yeah, sure! Why do you ask that?”.

But May noticed something strange in her friend. Brenda seemed reluctant, like doubting about something. What could it be and how it was related to herself?

“You see… The other day, when Lisia took me to my hotel, she showed me a video of one of your shows”, explained Brenda.

“Oh, you didn’t like it? I get it, we prepared some new tricks and they were a bit harder than usual. I make mistakes sometimes”, dismissed May.

“No, you were great! But…”, once again, Brenda hesitated to talk, but continued: “You looked kinda… off”.

Upon hearing that, May felt a chill running at her nape. She tried to keep smiling, but her heart began beating faster and her mouth dried. She remembered Lisia’s conversation then. Could it be…?

“It looked like you weren’t having fun. Like you were forcing yourself to put on a happy face and enjoy it, but you didn’t. When you acted back in Hoenn, you had a different, brighter aura, but you seemed so… listless”, continued Brenda.

A surge of panic emerged from May’s inside, but she tried her best to hide it. How could it be? It wasn’t just Lisia, but Brenda who noticed there was something wrong. But it couldn’t be. Brenda couldn’t find out. Or rather… could it have been… Lisia? If she organized all that surprise dinner, what else she did? What did she tell Brenda?

“What… what did Lisia tell you?”, asked May in a somehow serious tone, trying to keep her composure.

“No, nothing. She only said good things about your show. That was just my impression, but maybe I was wrong”, said Brenda.

However, Brenda realized she wasn’t as wrong as she believed. May, who looked happy just a few minutes before, now kept a stern face, completely silent. But she could feel it, the tension. Just like a Mightyena in front of a threat, she was on guard. Brenda had never seen her friend behaving like that, and that only increased her worries.

“May, if there’s something wrong, I…”.

“I’m fine”.

May interrupted Brenda bluntly as she stood up. She was getting nervous by the second, but she couldn’t lose control, not in front of Brenda. She tried her best to smile again.

“Don’t worry, okay? I… It’s been kinda exhausting, all those shows. That’s all”, said May with trembling voice. “Actually, I’m tired, so… I’m going to my hotel now. Sorry”.

“Wait! Let me accompany you!”, exclaimed Brenda.

“No, please, it’s fine. Take your time with the dessert”, insisted May, turning her back on Brenda. Before finally leaving, she said: “It’s been nice, seeing you again”.