Framed
Third in a series. The young, blond-haired trainer from Saffron wishes for nothing more than to move on after his battle, hoping never to use his powers again. His villainous counterpart, however, schemes up revenge.
Author Note: It's advised to read the preceding stories 'A Blond Ray of Sunshine' and 'Brotherly Love' before reading this story. The links for the stories are in my author profile.
He cautiously glanced over his shoulder. His eyes were wary as he scanned the crowd behind him for any trace of sable hair or green shirts. He sighed, the automatic doors of the Pokémon Center sliding open for him and his friend Fireball, following him inside before glancing back once more as the doors closed behind them.
Still in Goldenrod City, Antoshi had recently discharged himself from the hospital. He was forced to lie to the staff and claim he had no parents in order to get out of having to explain what happened to them. In doing so, he was forced to pay for the bill for his stay, leaving him with almost no money. His clothes were still as dirtied and tattered as they were the last time he was in the Pokémon Center. The same one he was in at that moment. As he walked in, Nurse Joy looked away from her paperwork. She gave him an incredulous look similar to the first time she saw him.
"You're all right!" Joy exclaimed as she walked over to him. He gave her a reassuring grin, nervously rubbing the back of his head as he was uncertain of what to say. He felt somewhat embarrassed having to have met her with such extensive injuries. He was so stubborn with her in being with his friend, unwilling to get treatment for himself.
"I'm glad," Joy added as she smiled and placed a hand on his shoulder. She did not blame the boy for being so loyal to his Pokémon — his friend. She then looked up at the taller Fireball. "I see you're doing well," she said with a proud smile. Fireball nodded, giving her a casual smile. He did not want to seem overly emotional about her treating his injuries.
"He was a big baby after he woke up," she quietly said to Antoshi. The boy chuckled.
"I don't doubt it," he replied, grinning at his friend.
"What are you two saying?" Fire suspiciously asked. The boy just turned to Joy with the same grin, unwilling to get into a conversation with his Pokémon in public. Fire folded his arms over his chest and grunted in annoyance, though he couldn't stay mad at them for long. Joy then inspected Antoshi's ragged clothes, becoming even more curious of his presence.
"Your clothes are in such poor shape," she remarked, causing him to look over his own clothes with embarrassment. "Why did you come here first?"
"I need to use the video phone to call home," he explained. "I... sort of have no money after the hospital bill."
"Oh, that's terrible," she replied with a pained expression. "Why didn't you have them call your parents at the hospital? I'm sure you're insured..."
"Well, I--" he stopped himself, turning away from Joy. He didn't want to have to explain that he didn't want his parents to know of his situation. He assumed Joy might scold him for being so dishonest. Joy, however, despite her curiosity, realized he liked to be discreet just as the first time she met him, and she respected his decision. She pointed in the direction of the video phones.
"Home is just one call away," she said, causing him to light up with a smile.
"Thank you very much," he said, "for everything." She nodded, finding a sense of heartfelt honesty in his eyes. It made her feel blessed to have helped him.
"Yes, thank you!" Fire exclaimed with a smile.
"Err, Fireball thanks you as well," Antoshi spoke up for his friend, chuckling.
"You're both very welcome," she replied with a warm smile as her gaze shifted between the two.
"Come on, Fire," Antoshi said as he led the taller Pokémon over to the phones.
"I could speak for myself, you know," Fire muttered.
"No, you couldn't," the boy muttered back. Joy sighed as she watched them walk away. She was unable to shake her curiosity. She felt there was so much more to the young man than her eyes could see. Perhaps, she surmised, something extraordinary.
Antoshi took off his backpack and set it down as he sat down in front of the video phone. He took out his wallet, pulling out his last currency note and pressing it into a slot that pulled it in. He sighed as he gazed into his empty wallet.
"All gone," he commented before he began to press several numbers on a keypad near the video screen.
"Don't forget to ask for money," Fire said with a smirk. Antoshi playfully rolled his eyes at his friend's 'keen' observation. The screen suddenly displayed the word 'Dialing...'. Antoshi took a deep breath and sighed sharply, preparing what he needed to say in his head.
On the opposite end of the call, the video phone in Antoshi's home lit up.
"Ring, ring ring!" the high-pitched robotic voice of the phone exclaimed. "Ring, ring ring! Phone call! Phone call!" His parents had sat down to lunch.
"I'll get that, hon'," Antoshi's father said as he got up from the table. He quickly wiped his mouth with a napkin before giving his wife a reassuring kiss on the forehead. She was still troubled by the odd sense of loss from when her only son had walked out the door. Adding to her worry was the fact that she hadn't heard from her son in several days.
"Antoshi?" she heard her husband speak the name she'd been longing for. Her eyes lit up, quickly getting up from the table to rush to the phone.
"It's about time you called!" his father boisterously added. "Everything going well--"
"Antoshi?!" his mother exclaimed with worry as she rushed to the phone. A sense of relief swept over her as she saw her son's face brightly displayed on the screen, giving them both a nervous grin. "Where have you been?! I've been so worried about you! I was hoping you would call when you got to Goldenrod! Is Fireball with you? Are you all right?!" Antoshi chuckled apprehensively.
"I--I'm doing just fine," he quietly replied. "Fireball is right here," he said, cuing his friend to lean into the camera and wave reassuringly. "I'm sorry for making you worry. I'm really sorry I didn't call sooner..." She closed her eyes and sighed heavily before opening them again.
"What happened?" she calmly asked.
"Well," he started, clearing his throat. "When I got to Goldenrod, there was a, uh... bicycle shop owner. His sales weren't doing so well. So... Um, he saw me. He wanted me to ride around on a bicycle sort of like advertising, you know. Oh, and he was very busy! He couldn't do it himself so he got me to do it. And--and his sales, they started going up and he thanked me. That's... m-mostly it." He finished off by giving them a reassuring chuckle.
His parents looked at each other with incredulous stares. The awkward silence was broken as his father cleared his throat and turned to Antoshi.
"That was... some story," he said. It was fairly clear to him that Antoshi was lying, but he knew the boy wouldn't do so without a good enough reason. "Well now, our son's a good advertiser and Pokémon Trainer!" he added with a boisterous laugh. However, Antoshi was too nervous to share in the good spirits and his mother too worried. After a brief moment of silence, his father stopped laughing.
"No good, huh?" his father asked. "I'll have to work on that."
"Antoshi," his mother spoke up, looking into his eyes through the video screen. "I respect your decision to be a Pokémon Trainer. You've been gone a long time before and I never thought I would ever ask this of you, but... I want you to come home." Antoshi was shocked by her request. He could see the look of deep concern in her eyes and it made him feel all the more guilty for lying to her.
"I... I can't, mom," he replied. "I'm on a journey now. I can't just leave on a moment's notice."
"I understand that," she said. "But I've had the most sickening feeling ever since you left. It felt like... you were walking out of my life. That I would never see you again." Antoshi reeled from her statement, leaving him at a brief loss for words.
"Mom, I would... never leave you...."
"I don't want to lose you, Antoshi," she spoke softly as he eyes began to well up with tears. Antoshi fought away his initial sense of guilt at the sight of his mother on the verge of crying, opting to give her a reassuring smile as well.
"I'll always be here," he whispered. She sighed heavily, wiping the tears from her eyes as her husband put a reassuring arm around her back. She nodded in agreement with her son's words.
"You're set in your ways," she said. "You'll plan out a dream and stick with it to the end. I know you'll follow it through and go on to accomplish great things." She sniffled just before opening her eyes. The two of them smiled at each other for just a moment. She then took a deep breath to calm herself before heaving a sigh.
"Is there anything else you needed?" she asked. He bit his lip before continuing.
"Well, there is one other thing," he quietly said before easing away from the camera to display his tattered and dirtied clothing. His parents gasped in shock, always knowing him to be a clean and sensible young man. They'd never seen his clothes in such terrible shape.
"How... how did that happen?" his mother incredulously asked.
"The, uh, bicycle," he explained. "When I was riding it, I sort of fell over, down a hill with some rocks. Then a couple of Poochyena decided to come after me and started gnawing at my clothes. It was... really bad."
Again, his parents were driven to glance strangely at one another, suspicious of such an outlandish tale. His mother sighed as she turned to her son again.
"And you're not lying to us, right?" she asked, looking him square in the eye. He swallowed nervously, closing his eyes so he wouldn't have to look at hers before he replied.
"Yes, it's the truth." She sighed again as he opened his eyes. A hint of sorrow plagued his gaze and she knew it. As her husband did, she knew Antoshi wouldn't lie without a very good reason. But she was naturally worried of what his true situation was. Regardless, she would never be able to deny him if he needed help.
"So then, you'll need some money for clothes?" she asked. Antoshi groaned nervously as he reached into his pocket and withdrew his wallet once again, opening it in front of the camera to show his parents he had no money. They gasped in surprise, wanting an explanation.
"My... money was stolen, too?" he spoke up with unease and a nervous chuckle. As they both sighed, his heart sank as he saw the disappointment on their faces. He wanted to put their worries at ease, but knew telling them the real story would cause them to worry even more.
But just then, his mother looked up at him with a reassuring smile.
"It's all right, Antoshi," she spoke softly, surprising him a bit as he assumed he would be scolded. "We'll give you as much money as you need." He bit his lip, looking away with guilt.
"We're always here for you," his father spoke up, causing him to glance back at them. "No matter what, you can depend on us for help with anything." He spoke with enough emphasis to convey the fact they knew he wasn't telling the truth and wanted him to come clean with them. But Antoshi was staunch in his defense. He knew it was for the best to keep it a secret.
Antoshi gave his response in the form of a grateful nod. His parents both nodded as well, knowing he would not budge.
"We both love you very much, Antoshi," his mother wholeheartedly spoke. "You're our world, our source of happiness. Our own little ray of sunshine." She then punctuated her feelings as she leaned forward and kissed his forehead on the screen, leaving a visible print of her lipstick. Antoshi nervously chuckled.
"C'mon, mom, you're embarrassing me," he muttered as he looked around. "People can see this call, you know." Both his father and Fireball chuckled in amusement. His mother then turned to her husband, nodding at him. He nodded in response and leaned forward, pressing a long string of buttons on their video phone. Within just a few seconds after, the screen lit up with the word 'Transferring...". A slot near the bottom of the video on Antoshi's end opened, dispensing a wad of currency.
"Good luck, Antoshi," his mother said with a visibly upset gaze, yet keeping a smile.
"Take care, son," his father chimed in, gazing proudly at him. Antoshi smiled coyly.
"Thanks, mom. Thanks, dad," he replied. "I love you, too," he added, just barely able to speak his last few words before the call cut out, having reached the time limit for the amount of money he inserted.
Antoshi sighed heavily, turning away for a moment. Fireball quickly placed a reassuring paw on his shoulder. The boy blindly reached for the money in the dispenser, tucking it safely away in his wallet.
"I messed up, Fire," he muttered as he put his wallet away. "I messed up big time."
"That's not true," Fireball rebuffed him. "You heard them, they love you very much. They know and I know you can take care of yourself," he confidently added. Antoshi's mood remained somber as he picked up his backpack and got to his feet. He quietly slung it over his shoulders before he and his friend began to make their way out of the Pokémon Center.
The two began to aimlessly wander around the city. Antoshi's gaze seemed to be affixed to the ground, unable to shake his glum mood. Fireball was torn up to see his friend in such a state, wanting to do anything to cheer him up.
"Well it's a good thing you don't have to get any clothes for me, since I don't wear any!" he joked, laughing a bit. His laughter faded when it was clear his joke did not get through to the boy, upsetting him a bit. "Hello, Ant? You gotta talk sometime." Antoshi sighed as they stopped at a busy intersection.
"I'm sorry, Fire," he replied.
"What's on your mind, bud? You know you can talk to me about whatever."
"I feel like a huge jerk," he explained as the crossing signal turned green. He, Fireball and others on the street began to shuffle over to the other side. "I lied right to my parent's faces. I mean, I could see they knew I was lying. They looked so disappointed..." Fireball patted his friend's shoulder reassuringly.
"I wouldn't worry about it too much," he said. "Like I told you before, they still love you very much. I know in time you'll be able to talk about what really happened and smooth it over with them."
"There's nothing to smooth over..." he trailed off, his eyes starting to rapidly scan the nearby area. "Not with Latoshi." Fireball's eyes widened at the name. He could see that Antoshi's gaze was darting about, curiously looking around as well, only to find nothing.
"I know he's looking for revenge, Fire," Antoshi uttered, his voice starting to tremble a bit. Fireball quickly rebuffed his statement.
"No way. After the way you pummeled that guy, he should know not to mess with you again," he confidently added. Antoshi shook his head ever so slightly in disapproval.
"I can sense him," the boy explained, "like I sensed you in the trunk of that car. It's like I can feel his presence in my mind. He's not far away and I know he can appear at any time."