I laid in bed, staring at the ceiling like I've been doing for the past few hours since I tried going to bed. I haven't slept a wink last night, mainly because my head was pounding and my heart was beating so fast that it's all I could focus on aside from what happened to me yesterday.

My Pokémon got a relaxing night's rest after bathing them before my own shower. Even if my body was refreshed, everything was numb, almost.

It wasn't smart to stay in bed when I can't even go to sleep again, so I got up for the day and left the hotel to head to the dance theater I planned on going back to the next day since what happened.

There was someone staring at me just like before, yesterday. I looked back to see nobody there this time. Turning at the direction I thought the staring came from, I laid eyes on the Bell tower I wanted to see before.

"I'm too exhausted to even bother go into the theater today... I'll just take a visit at where dad grew up" I told myself before heading there instead.

My knees got weak again. The gravity around me shook and made me fall towards the ground. I stared at the floor beside me, wondering what happened to me. This wasn't due to what I did in the theater yesterday... I forgot to eat again.

"Oh..." I said without expression. I can't believe I haven't learned since the last time I stopped eating. Back before I arrived at the city, I was more focused on looking for the right path to take that I forgot to eat as well. My Pokémon got to eat after they battled and trained, and I was more focused on my map.

There were people around me, trying to talk to me, but all I could do was stare at the floor. Pichu was even trying to get my attention, but just like everyone else, they were muffled out.

I got myself to glance up when a man in purple walked to my sight and kneeled down to check my eyes. It was the guy who was watching me the other day, I believe...

"Can you hear me?" Is what I think he said. I read his lips instead "If- can hear- blink" I slowly blinked my eyes, then kept them closed. My body felt heavy and numb. It had felt like I ran a marathon and the world was spinning. My body was raised into the air. Every part of me wanted to protest and get them away from me.

"I will not..." I managed to say "be a slave again..." I opened my eyes and looked at a blurred image of the man who just spoke to me, I think "Don't mess with me... I'll teach you a lesson for ruining my life" because he was so close to me, I made out what he said.

"Well, young lady, I didn't expect to see you again after my first visit to Kanto" I pushed myself to snap out of it to look at his face more clearly. He looked familiar... and I never forget a face. He just smiled "I almost didn't recognize you outside your pretty little dress" I blinked a few times as he looked down at my stomach for some reason "Looks like you're hungry. That's the loudest growl I've ever heard" he chuckled. He walked away with me in his arms "For being the most honest dancer I've ever met with a slap to the face, I'll treat you to some lunch" lunch... Is it really that late?

"Slap to the face..?" I said in my head and observed the man as he walked through the streets with a calm look on his face. If I focus enough, I can sort of understand why he looked familiar to me.

"You're not getting a lap dance" I blurted out. He nearly dropped me when I said that, but stayed on his feet and pulled himself back up.

"T-That's not why I'm carrying you" he nervously smiled "It seemed that you passed out due hunger. You look quite thin in the face. I'm just trying to help out"

"I'm not going to sleep with you" he almost lost his balance again.

"D-Did you even hear what I said!?" I almost didn't.

"So... You want-"

"I don't want anything!" I looked at him for a moment before pushing myself to get him to put me down. He did, and once touching the floor, it was like gravity was pushing me down, but I managed to stay on my feet while hanging onto his arm.

"I'm going to take you to the Pokémon center. They'll provide the nutrition you need and maybe help you out with whatever you need. I can take you there if you just let me help you" I raised my arm unintentionally and threw it to slap his face, not really meaning to. I just wanted to push him away.

He flew back a bit, releasing me, which made me fall to my knees and scrap them on the concrete floor. He held his cheek and looked down, hiding his eyes with his hair.

"I guess I deserved that for randomly taking you without asking permission" I looked away and used my hands to push myself up, but failed "Come on" he offered his hand, kneeling down to me. I looked at him for a bit, focusing on his features. There's no doubt... I remembered him as a customer back in my old job.

There's no point in trusting him if he wanted to get with me that time, but he looked like he genuinely wanted to help me. I took his hand and accepted his help in getting me back on my feet and let me walk on my own.

"It's most likely that your blood sugar dropped. The Pokémon Center is really close" he pointed up ahead at the Pokémon center and took me inside. He instructed the nurse to take me to the back, which she nodded and walked us to a back room. I was placed on a large bed that was set up for me to sit on as the nurse walked out the room.

The guy who brought me here sat across from me and watched me looking at my shaking and blurry hands.

I can almost remember that he was trying to talk to me the whole time I was staring at my hands. It kept me focused and helped me notice if I was going to black out soon.

"Here you go dear" the nurse walked in with a tray of food "Please eat up and make sure to chew" she placed the tray on my lap. Instead of using the utensils to eat, I used my hands instead.

"Poor thing..." the nurse frowned "I'll be back to check on you after you're done. Don't eat too fast or you'll get a stomach ache" I slowed down my pace just as she said and watched her leave the room. The man that brought me here was just watching me, but I ignored it and continued eating.

"You worried a lot of people" I heard him say. I looked at him leaning on his knees. A better look at him showed that he looked a lot different than I first saw him. He was sober.

"I did?" I asked with my mouth full.

"You suddenly passed out like nothing while walking. I'd say it was the most graceful fall I've ever seen" he sighed "It was wrong of me to have picked you up without permission, but I just wanted to get you somewhere safe"

"You're kind for someone who tried pinning me to the wall and try to kiss me back then" I narrowed my eyes. He blushed and looked down.

"I-I was drunk! I would never do that to a woman!" I snorted and continued eating "I don't remember much about that night, but I do remember your face. I was reminded of my actions when I got sober the next day" he stood up and bowed to me "forgive me" I stared at him genuinely wanting to apologize to me. I don't know why he bothered to go to that length after all these years, but I'll let him take it as it is.

"You helped me, so I guess we're even" I said "Although, it could just be an excuse to mess with me again" he jumped at my joke.

"W-What?! If it were that I would had took you to my house!" He cleared his throat "I am the Gym leader of Ecruteak city. I set a high example and often come and go to protect the people of this city. My actions when I'm drunk may not be intentional, but at least I have friends that pull me away"

"You have good friends, or are they bad friends for letting you get drunk after knowing how you are?" he jumped again. He was trying to find a way to explain, but I was just laughing in the inside "Forget it. You've made your point. I accept your..." I yawned and laid my head back. It seems that the sleepless night is finally coming back to me "apology..." without fighting it, I fell asleep sitting up on a clinic bed.

I woke up to someone yelling in the other room. I shakily sat up from a bed I don't remember getting in and looked at the door to listen to what was going on.

"Where is she?!" A familiar voice yelled out "Monty! Why didn't you foresee this before it happened?! Aren't you suppose to be the mystic seer of the future?!" Bayleef had walked pass the other side of the bed I was on and used her vines to open the door. The guy who brought me here to the Pokémon center had his hands up to defend himself against Falkner yelling at him. The two of them looked over at me staring at them.

"Can't a girl sleep?" I asked, yawning. Falkner quickly hurried into the room and rested his arms beside me and leaned close to my face. I jumped and leaned back a little, not understanding why he got so close.

"Valerie!" He yelled at me "What happened to you?! Monty called me over to tell me you passed out in the middle of the city with no explanation! The nurse theorized that you haven't ate for the pass few days!" He glared at me, showing he was serious "this is the same thing that happened back in Violet City! How could you do this to yourself again!?" I looked away.

"It wasn't intentional..." I frowned "I was more focused on something else. My body doesn't tell me that I need to eat until the last minute"

"That's because you are taking a medication that keeps you from doing so" the nurse walked in with my pill bottle "If you use these regularly, which I see that you have, your body forgets to remind you that you need to eat because it's more focused on doing what it's suppose to do" she walked up to me "Don't you know that taking medication without food is dangerous?" I bit my lip, feeling like a victim.

"I did eat when taking the pill, but it was only a berry a... day" Falkner looked like I got hit by a bus.

"You're so stupid! Any trainer knows that when they're on a journey, they need to eat! They travel so long in the routes that they shouldn't forget to at least pack something!" I pulled on my fingers nervously.

"I-I'm sorry... I didn't do it on purpose" I closed my eyes "You have every right to yell at me" Falkner sighed and moved away from me.

"Why do you take these, ma'am?" The nurse asked.

"They're anger management pills..." Falkner snorted when I said that.

"I never heard of this drug..."

"Yeah, it came from Kanto" she tilted her head upwards, understanding.

"That's why. I'll keep you in the resting room for another day to make sure you're doing fine. We wouldn't want you to have another episode" I looked down more when she walked away. How could I do this to myself..? I'm so use to not eating that my body just stopped noticing. I could blame the pills since I've been using them for years, but even so, I should know better.

"I'm sorry, Falkner" I said. He turned away from me.

"You really got me worried when Monty called me about you" I looked at the guy in the scarf leaning on the wall. Monty is his name "You let this happen twice"

"I know!" I frowned "I'm sorry!" I looked at Falkner and Monty in the same room "Why are you here?" I asked Falkner.

"Like I said, Monty called me"

"I was friends with Falkner before he became a gym leader" Monty explained "He wouldn't tell anyone what he did with his nights, so I followed him to the train going to Kanto and witnessed him working for a strip club" he chuckled "I thought it was very bold of him to be a bouncer and a cop, but it seemed that he took his job very seriously, so it confused me on why he worked there. Turned out, he was watching over a red fairy dancing on stage that wasn't relevant to the kind of club it was" he crossed his arms "I got curious and approached her after I took some drinks just to blend in. Not sure what really happened after that, but I knew I was really confused upon looking at your face. You looked 15" I shook my head and looked away.

"I was 15" he gasped while Falkner remained looking away "You hit on a minor, shame on you" I joked. I have some nerve to be joking around at a time like this.

"I-I-" I shook my head.

"It was against my will" I stood up from bed and reached out to take a rubber glove to blow inside to make a balloon and throw it at Bayleef to play with "If you had asked, we could had slept together" I felt heat growing from behind me "Luckily you were saved by Falkner who kicked you out. Yeah, I remember it all" I looked back at them frowning at me "I never forget a face... I always remember a moment. You got saved before you realized you were going to do something illegal" I sighed "but that didn't matter to a lot of men who took advantage of me. I was robbed from my childhood and lived my days forgetting that my own health was important. I went days without eating many times, and I didn't have money. Nothing was more important to me than my Pokémon. Even with the slightest money I earned, it would all go to the hospital bill. Till this day, even if I've been living free for almost half a year, I can't shake the habit of putting my Pokémon first" I sat down "I trained them and fed them, but all I could focus on was the map I had. I'm sorry I can't be better even after I got better..." I looked down, ashamed. Falkner walked up to me and pet my head, which made me tear up again.

"No one is pushing you. Your Pokémon wouldn't want to see you like this" I looked at Bayleef giving me the sad eyes while she had the rubber glove in her mouth "This is for your own good" he reached out to pick up the pill bottle "This bottle is almost gone... and there suppose to be 30 in here. How could you swallow so many? Did you overdose?" I hid my face with my hands.

"They are not required unless I need them, but anything could happen when I can just snap. After what happened yesterday, I went to a hotel and took two... That's the only time I overdid it"

"Valerie... Why?"

"Because of what happened yesterday at the dance theater" Monty said "She almost looked like she was about to kill a man" I sobbed when hearing that.

"Stewart..." I said. Falkner quickly looked at me, wide eyed and in shock "That's who I saw..." I squeezed my eyes shut "I'm sorry..."

"It seems that Team Rocket is always the big issue. They pop out of nowhere, and that's why you rely on these pills to keep you calm" I nodded "It's okay" he brought me into his arms. I sat there, not knowing how to return a hug yet "You're going to be fine. Just believe in yourself" I frowned and rested my forehead on his shoulder.

"Believe in myself... I'm really trying" he pulled away and looked at Bayleef trying to get on the bed.

"It'll be smart to have your Pokémon help you. They care about you, so... Will you make sure Valerie eats?" Bayleef nodded quickly. The nurse came into the room with a doctor and a cart that held needles and test tubes

"Alright boys. Time to head out. We have a patient we need to take care of" Falkner got up from bed and walked towards Monty before looking back at me.

"I'll be heading back to Violet city. Please call me whenever you leave" I nodded "I'll have Monty remind me as well"

"Thank you... for looking after me" I bowed my head "I'm sorry I made you feel like a victim, Monty" Monty waved his hand nervously.

"Just get working on getting better" I obeyed and watched them leave me in this room where I'll have to be for the next few days. That's what I get for not taking care of myself. Why me..?