In Lava [Pokémon Watty Awards, 2016 2nd Place Romance]

Chapter Sixty-One

The morning following the event was strange. Repairs were in progress due to the damage caused by the flooding in a few cities. The stadium where the Leaguewas to be held, was slightly damaged, but that was an easy fix. Brendan stood on the bridge with Katrina and Tim.

"So yesterday was crazy..." Tim began, breaking the silence that reigned as they stared out at the island that was nearly demolished.

"Because of the event? Or because Lucia chewed you out after she saw you here?" Brendan replied.

Tim laughed nervously.

"Lucia sounds like someone I could get along with," Katrina stated, her attention now on the two men.

"She can be a lot to handle," Tim said with a slight chuckle.

"Yeah, she can be a bit scary," Brendan added.

"Speaking of terrifying women," Tim started, "Where's yours?"

Brendan blinked. "Courtney? She's sitting in the center with the others. Seems like our teams have a lot to sort out. I needed some air, so I came out here."

"Sounds reasonable. If I had to listen to two sides bicker, I'd probably lose my mind," Katrina replied.

"Trust me...I didn't know how bad it was between them until I joined Magma," Brendan said casually.

"Why did you join them anyway? I mean, that is one sweet uniform and all, but...why?" Tim queried.

"You mean it wasn't obvious?" Brendan sweat-dropped.

Katrina face-palmed.

It took a moment for Tim to register the answer. He mimicked Katrina's action.

"Duh...I had a feeling. Can't say I blame you," Tim laughed, watching as Courtney stepped out of the center.

Spotting Brendan, Courtney made her way over to him and stopped beside him. Brendan turned to Courtney and smiled faintly. She returned the action and leaned in to kiss him gently on the lips, lingering for a while before pulling away.

"How's everything going in there?" Brendan inquired.

Courtney shrugged. "Well, I guess. Maxie and Archie talked things out after an extensive argument. We all came to the conclusion that what we tried to do was ridiculous and would have upset the balance of nature. Oh...and for some reason, Miles and Shelly excused themselves within five minutes of each other. They still haven't come back..."
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The cleaning crew was just arriving at the closet of supplies, when a sound caught their attention. They reached out to open the door to the closet, only to find it jammed. Puzzled, they put their ears to the door.

"Odd, I swear I left this unlocked," one of the staff stated.

"It's fine. There's another closet down the hall," said another.

The crew agreed to move on and carried on down the hall to the other closet. Inside the closet, Shelly had her lips pressed to Miles', effectively silencing him.

"I told you I'd have to tell you to be quiet," she said with a smug grin.
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Tim laughed and Katrina snorted.

"I can think of a few reasons..." Brendan replied with a smirk.

Courtney grinned and leaned in to whisper. "So can I my dear Brendan, and I think we ought to be following their example, no?"

Brendan shivered at the thought and smiled. Courtney looked up at Brendan's friends and smiled.

"Pardon the interruption. I'm afraid I will be stealing Brendan for a while. He has a gym match later and I plan to "prepare" him for it," Courtney stated, tugging on Brendan's hand.