-Multiple-

During childhood, when he still had a semblance of family, his mother would gush about her wedding to his father with stars in her eyes. Photos and wedding items were brought out and exhibited. "It was beautiful," she would whisper.

His mother never told him how exhausting it would be.

"Long day?"

He picks his head up off the couch cushion and squints towards the door. Oh good, Kyle's brought some take-out for dinner. Cooking is the last thing he wants to do right now.

"Like you wouldn't believe," he utters.

Kyle sets the containers on the coffee table and fetches both forks and chopsticks as the two of them tend to switch between the utensils. Kyle plops down next to him, and they eat dinner on the couch.

"So, it turns out telling all your female co-workers about your upcoming wedding can cause hearing loss," he says dryly.

Kyle, the traitor, starts laughing immediately.

"They ask who's wearing the dress?" Kyle chortles.

"That and then some," he says with feeling.

He knew his co-workers would give him grief considering the amount of times he's denied Kyle as his boyfriend. He did not expect the terrifying interrogation about his love-life. Or his wedding plans. Or his procreation plans.

Just remembering it is giving him a headache. He needs a distraction immediately.

"So how are the kids?" He asks, picking the first thing he can think of.

He regrets it the moment the question leaves his mouth. He's trying to not think about children. Kyle perks up at the mention of the so-called protégés, and he keeps the grimace off his face.

"Helios is the current champion," Kyle informs him, "and Selene plans to grab the title next Saturday. She wants to wait and get intel on the foreigners taking the league challenge."

Kyle continues a steady stream of chatter, and he chews through a piece of fish thoughtfully. No matter how much Kyle hides it, there's a certain wistfulness when talking about the kids from Alola. The Ace trainer probably misses their counterparts, Artemis and Apollo.

He can't say he understands. People come and go all the time, and Alola has been anything but kind to the two of them. He'd be happy to never see any of those children ever again.

That's the difference between the two of them, he guesses. He can say goodbye pretty easily while Kyle has a hard time letting go.

"They, ah, said they were going to help Professor Burnet out on her research," Kyle tells him quietly.

Help research how to help Kyle, is what the words mean. Well, at least they have their uses. The nightmares—memories—aren't getting worse, but the situation is hardly getting better. The amount of times he needs to wake Kyle up is ridiculous.

(It never crosses his mind to let Kyle sleep through it or to move back to his old room)

"Have you asked them about being flower girl and ring bearer yet? Will they have the time? Can they even make it to Kalos?" He asks, changing the topic at Kyle's discomfort.

Not that he wants to keep talking about wedding preparations, but it'll never get done at this rate. He's hoping to get most of the hurdles out of the way before having to break the news to Roger and Kyle's parents. Considering they don't even have the venue picked out, he's most likely hoping for too much.

"They told me if I pick anyone else, they'll crush me with a Legendary," Kyle says cheerfully. "They've got plenty of money for the trip, and their mother's looking forward to it."

"Good," he sighs in relief.

That's another thing crossed off the list then. It's hard enough to organize an actual ceremony, but to have it take place in Kalos—not exactly a hop and a skip away—only adds to the stress.

They have to though; same-sex marriage isn't done in Johto or Kanto. Oddly enough, their marriage will be recognized so long as they marry in one of the regions that approve it.

"I don't see why we can't just get married without the fuss," he grumbles.

"Your brother, my parents," Kyle says pointedly.

It's not exactly a new argument. He'd rather get the paperwork done and have a relaxing honeymoon. Kyle refuses though, citing their familial obligations.

He's pretty sure Roger's going to hate Kyle's guts no matter how beautiful the decorations are. Actually, all things considered, he should review insurance policies to be on the safe side.

"This would be so much easier if we could hire a wedding planner," he groans.

"Maybe next time don't have a girlfriend whose cousin is the only wedding planner in the city," Kyle says dryly.

"There won't be a next time," he promises. "That's the whole point of this."

He can feel himself blush at Kyle's ridiculous smile. It doesn't happen as often as it first did, but Kyle still reacts to the little things that confirm their relationship. He supposes the whole getting married thing will only sink in once it's time to make their vows.

Assuming he doesn't tear his hair out and run away first of course.

...

"I'm going!" Jace calls.

Chansey lets out a chirp, and he manages a "Later" from where he's slouched over the kitchen table. The door shuts loudly, and he debates the merits of falling back asleep where he's sitting. Tables can be comfy, he thinks.

A sharp sound causes him to pick his head up off his arms. Amriel stares at him from the floor.

"You just ate," he says incredulously.

The pokemon claws at the air, and he suddenly knows what it wants. His monstrosity of a pokemon has discovered a new love for baths of all things. Hot water, cold water—it doesn't matter so long as it gets wet.

"Why can't you swim in the pond like Mantine?" He sighs.

Amriel lets out a cry that sounds suspiciously like shut up and get the pool out.

"Only because I love you," he tells the pokemon.

He sets up the kiddie pool, and Amriel hops into it before he can finish filling it. Mantine joins the cramped pool with a happy gurgle, and Noctowl swoops in to splash unsuspecting humans and pokemon alike.

"Behave," he says only to get splashed in the face.

He pouts, and Noctowl lands on his shoulder to preen his hair apologetically. He decides to let it go with a grin. His pokemon can get away with whatever they want as long as act regretfully. It's probably a good thing no one realizes this.

"I need to go into the city. I'll be back soon, so watch the house for me, okay?" He says.

He tries not to laugh at the answering cries. Amriel and Mantine look like happy Spheal rather than fierce watch pokemon. He leaves Noctowl to babysit the newer additions of his team. It's not that he can't trust them; it's more that Amriel is quick to attack, and Mantine follows the lead of the highest authority.

"Noctowl will keep them in line," he reassures Arcanine, who lets out an uncomfortable rumble.

No doubt the pokemon remembers the incident with the mail carrier. He runs a soothing hand over the orange fur before heaving himself onto Arcanine's back. It's a short trip to Olivine City. Jace walks the distance almost every day, so it's not exactly a pokemon journey.

He purchases an expensive box of tea leaves, and makes for a small house by the waterside. He hopes the person he's looking for is there. They should be since they supposedly haven't been to work in a week.

(He hopes they're not. It can't be healthy to be cooped up inside the house for that long)

He knocks on the door.

"Yes?" The door opens, and the bedraggled appearance of Teri greets him.

"Hi," he says softly, lifting the tea leaves up, "can I come in?"

Teri looks ready to slam the door in his face. It'd be a lie if he said he wasn't prepared to break into her house like a creep, but they need to talk.

"Okay," Teri deflates.

She steps aside, and he kicks his shoes off. For a moment he thinks Teri isn't going to give him a pair of guest slippers, but Johto instincts win over spite. He finds himself sitting at a small table as Teri brews the tea leaves he brought.

It gives him time to think and observe. None of the familiar drapes or mats that belong to Teri are here. It could be because of conflicting taste with Teri's cousin, who's also her roommate, but he sincerely doubts it. Even the tea cups are different, he thinks, as Teri slams two cups onto the table.

He'd be worried about tampering if it was anyone else, but Teri really is too nice for her own good.

"I'm not going to say sorry," he begins, not touching the tea. "It was Jace's decision, and I can't take responsibility for that."

The woman doesn't look at him, choosing to stare into her tea cup blankly. The tangled hair and puffy eyes make him want to shake someone. Doesn't Teri have friends to drag her out of bed?

"I am sorry for how everything went down. You didn't deserve that," he continues.

He'd been prepared for screaming and tears, to lean against the wall with one hand on a pokeball in case things got violent. What he hadn't expected—

"W-What?"

"I'm breaking up with you," Jace repeats, expressionless. "You need to pack your things."

"But why? Why are you?" Teri's lip quivers. "I thought you loved me?"

He feels a shiver go up his spine at Jace's unchanging expression in the face of Teri's oncoming tears. This is not how a man who was planning to propose to his girlfriend should be acting.

"What did I do? I can fix it! I promise!" Teri cries out, body trembling.

"There's nothing to fix. I don't love you. My future's with Kyle, and you're in the way," Jace announces coldly.

He winces as Teri goes completely still. He doesn't want to imagine being on the other end of those words. He loves Jace, but he's pretty sure Teri does too. And right now, Jace is looking at Teri like she's an ugly painting that needs to be removed.

"Make sure you get everything," Jace tells her. "I'm changing the locks."

Part of him thinks it's false bravado, a way to sever the bond cleanly with the now ex-girlfriend, but Jace never shows any regret over the next couple of weeks. Once again, he's reminded of that fact that Jace only seems to connect with pokemon.

It's enough to make him wonder sometimes: will Jace throw him away too? Then he wakes up to a tired face in the middle of the night and knows he has nothing to worry about.

—what he hadn't expected was helping Teri out the door while Jace groomed their pokemon like it was just another day.

"It should be Jace here, explaining things," he says, finally taking a sip of the tea, "but he doesn't realize what he did. He doesn't view human relationships like we do."

It sounds like an excuse, but it's true. Despite living with and loving her for twelve years, Jace cut his mother out his life without batting an eye. He rather suspects Roger narrowly avoided the same fate; Jace would have never spoken to the man again if Roger had reacted negatively to Jace's career choice.

"You must have felt that something was off even as he asked you to move in," he prods gently.

"I should have known," Teri says miserably to her tea cup. "There was always this wall between us. I just thought—I just thought it'd take time to overcome it."

Clearly Jace thought so too, if the offer to move in was any indication. He wisely chooses not to tell her this. No need to pour salt in the wounds.

"You never had that problem. He was always—with you, he was," Teri gives up and shoots him an accusing glare. "I should have known."

"Can't tell you anything," he shrugs. "As far as I knew, he was straight. Probably still is, but," he trails off.

"Human relationships, right," Teri sighs.

He hums and swirls the tea in his cup. Honestly, he's finished with his obligation, but the fact that no one seems to care if this woman takes a bath seems depressing to him.

"What do you think of this blend?" He asks.

Their depressing chat lightens up, and Teri begins resembling her old, friendly self. He stays until it's time to feed the pokemon lunch. Teri might have had the misfortune to be part of their drama, but she really is a good woman.

Which is why he's going to be visiting every day from now on.

"What?" Teri croaks.

"I'll bring cake tomorrow!" He grins to his new pet project. "Bye!"

Arcanine rumbles in amusement as he slings himself onto the pokemon while Teri tries to grab his attention. The woman has good instincts—he's definitely not going to be making this easy on her—but it's too late. He's already invested.

Her hilariously flabbergasted expressions will absolutely make it worthwhile.