It wasn’t hard to know that he’d hit a soft spot. From the way Rebecca blushed, was now making excuses – Hark looked at the setting sun, remembering quite clearly that the light on the path they’d taken had come on, before looking at Triton who was still comfortably installed on him – to get inside, he’d definitely hurt the Champion who was trying so hard to be self-sufficient, certainly if the guy that had shown up earlier was the one she’d given the title to.
Gently, he grabbed her hand.
“Hey, you didn’t do anything wrong. I’ve just been in your place, Rebecca, and I nearly crashed myself to the ground because of it. It’s not just about looks. It’s about your health, too. And how are you supposed to be healthy when you overrun yourself day in and day out? I’m surprised you don’t fall sick more often.”
Rebecca had just been standing up when Hark took her hand. She looked at him, biting her lip.
“I… I wouldn’t be able to battle very well if I was sick. Or take care of my Pokemon and my orchard. I do get sick every few weeks but that’s usually when a sick trainer comes to the league, which happens more often than you’d think…”
“I don’t want to let those trainers down. I know they’ll understand if they have to wait until I get sleep but I just don’t like making them wait…”
The champion sighed, wrapping her fingers around Hark’s hand and sitting back down.
Back in the Game 