----
By noon, Kai had enjoyed lunch with Professor Cerise, Chloe, and the lab assistants Ren and Chrysa. Afterward, he accompanied Chloe to the Park to visit his Blastoise and Venusaur.
With no other Pokémon crowding the space, Blastoise had naturally claimed the largest pool in the park as its territory, while Venusaur had settled into a thick patch of shrubbery nearby. The two of them looked relaxed and content clearly, Chloe had been taking excellent care of them.
As soon as they saw Kai, both Pokémon rushed over affectionately, nuzzling up against his arm.
"You two doing alright here? No trouble lately?" Kai asked with a chuckle.
They both shook their heads eagerly.
He knew them well peaceful and gentle by nature. His question was more of a habit than a real concern.
Kai gently patted their heads and turned to Chloe with gratitude in his voice. "They haven't been too much trouble for you, have they? Thank you for looking after them."
"You don't have to thank me," Chloe said, glancing down at her feet, a little flustered. "Blastoise and Venusaur are really easy to care for. I like having them around."
Kai smiled but insisted, "Still, I appreciate it. Honestly, I feel a bit bad about it, but I'm going to be catching a lot more Pokémon in the future. That means I might be leaving even more in your care."
"That's okay," she said, offering a shy, sweet smile. "If they're your Pokémon, I'll take care of as many as you send."
'What a thoughtful girl.'
Kai knew Chloe had always kept a bit of emotional distance from Pokémon. For her to be this invested just because they were his… that meant a lot.
He released the rest of his team, excluding the Legendary Birds, for some fresh air and playtime. While his Pokémon enjoyed themselves, Kai chatted briefly with Chloe, then yawned and decided to head back to his old room for a rest.
It was exactly the way he'd left it.
Clearly, someone had been maintaining it regularly with no dust and no clutter. Clean and quiet.
His trophies from the Indigo League and Orange League sat proudly on the shelf, glinting in the sunlight. A display case held all his Gym Badges from both regions, each shimmering with its unique design.
Everything was so familiar. It felt like no time had passed.
Lying on the bed, Kai was suddenly overwhelmed by memories he could almost imagine himself back at the start of his journey, newly arrived in Kanto.
It was clear Professor Cerise had never treated him like a guest. This room, still preserved, felt like home.
As sunlight filtered through the window, the exhaustion from days of nonstop travel caught up to him.
He drifted off to sleep.
---
Meanwhile, in the park, Chloe brought out some fresh berries, offering them to Kai's Pokémon.
"Eat up! These are all grown right here in the park they're delicious!"
Crouched beside them, she smiled warmly. She truly had grown fond of them.
Just then, a tanned boy with messy hair strolled into the park, hands behind his head, whistling casually.
It was Goh Chloe's childhood friend.
He walked in like he owned the place. Clearly, he'd been here many times before.
"Goh?" Chloe looked up, surprised. "What are you doing here?"
"I went to your house and couldn't find you. Your mom said you were here," Goh grumbled, then looked around at the gathering of Pokémon. "Whose Pokémon are these?"
"They're Kai's, of course!"
"Kai?" Goh instantly pictured a tall, confident, good-looking Trainer.
"His, huh?" He glanced at the Pokémon again. There were only a few scattered around. "Funny, I remember the last time I came here, he didn't have that many Pokémon. Hasn't that guy been traveling all this time? Still such a small team? That's kind of pathetic."
Chloe's smile vanished. Her brows furrowed.
"Kai only catches the Pokémon he truly connects with," she said sharply. "Not everyone wants to capture everything they see. Haven't you seen his battles? He became Champion with just those few Pokémon!"
Goh shrugged. "I mean, yeah, he's strong—I'm not denying that. But real Trainers have numbers. If it were me, I'd have caught enough Pokémon to fill this whole park by now!"
'What kind of logic is that?'
Chloe rolled her eyes. Just when her mood had been so nice...
Goh, meanwhile, strolled down toward the water's edge without a care in the world.
But as he stepped closer to the pond, he suddenly felt the ground tremble beneath him.
He looked down—
And the water exploded.
"WAAAH!!"
A massive, terrifying head burst from the pond, glaring at him with piercing red eyes.
Gyarados.
Its jaw opened wide like it was going to swallow him whole.
Goh went pale. He lost all strength in his legs and slipped straight into the pond.
SPLASH!
Chloe spun around, clapping a hand over her mouth. "Goh?! Are you okay?!"
Coughing and sputtering, Goh flailed in the water for a moment before finally scrambling back onto the shore, drenched and gasping.
But when he turned around—
Gyarados was still watching him. Up close.
He could feel its breath.
Goh's words caught in his throat. He backed away slowly, not daring to make another sound.
This was… terrifying.
His mind flashed back to the last time he visited Cerise Park. Hadn't this same Gyarados scared him into falling into the pond?
And now, it had happened again!
Unbelievable!
He wanted to shout, to curse it for being so aggressive, but the moment he locked eyes with that terrifying red gaze again, he shut his mouth immediately.
But seriously… why was this Gyarados so scary?
Were they always this big?
Either way, one thing was certain:
This Gyarados had left a permanent mark on Goh's psyche.
----
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