One Day More

"You're a teacher, not a tyrant, as I know you already understand. You already possess the skills that these trainers are seeking. It is your job to help these young ones tap into their potential. Remember that."

"Yes, sir."

"Both in battle and out of it, you are a role model for future trainers and current ones. As a gym leader and as a teacher at the school, you will be well-known in Aspertia. Your every move will be scrutinized, so make sure those are some good moves, yes?"

"Yes, sir."

A large hand clapped me on my shoulder, startling me out of the automated daze that I had somehow fallen into during this lecture. I blinked the haze out of my eyes, and Alder came into focus, his smile more innocuous than I would have expected from his tone. But he was just trying to help, I knew. I just couldn't seem to get his words to sink in.

He squeezed my shoulder once before lowering his hand back to his side. "You are to be a wall for your challengers to overcome, Cheren—for those who have the potential, it's not impossible for them to defeat you. Remember what it was like for you… and for Hilda, too." I looked away from Alder, hoping that my sudden movement was at least a little subtle. "Most importantly, have fun with it. There's no point otherwise."

"Yes, sir."

Alder laughed, and I looked back up at him. "You'll be fine, Cheren. You're ready."

He clapped me once more on the shoulder before turning and walking out of my office. The air sat a little heavier when I walked out after him, only to find that the door was already swinging shut behind him. And then I was alone.

"Teacher?"

Well, that wasn't quite accurate.

My classroom, small though it was, usually had a fair few students within its walls. Despite taking up the position as teacher only within the last year, youngsters tended to rush en masse here every morning with eagerness—perhaps more than I once had as a child, though certainly no less than Hilda or Bianca.

But now… being the gym leader, too… the pressure felt heavier, like it was harder to breathe, but Alder was right. I was ready. I had been waiting for this my whole life—waiting to give Hilda a show, to tell her that there was something to come back to see.

"Sorry for the interruption." I put my hands in my pockets as I looked around the classroom, meeting the eyes of worried ten-year-olds. "It seems I've been appointed Gym Leader of Aspertia City."

Their worried frowns widened into toothy grins; I didn't expect the roar of cheers that followed, and I couldn't keep from smiling back at them. It was the dawn of a new day—the beginning of a mountain escaping from the seas. Tomorrow I would build my wall and await the day that I would find someone worthy of the Basic Badge.

"All right, all right, settle down!" I called, and though serious, I couldn't wipe my smile away. "We've got work to do. Let's work hard and find out who will be able to surpass me."

As it turned out, none of my students were ready to be my first challengers. They were a talented bunch, certainly, though I couldn't in good conscience say that any of them had the real fire within them to take on the League Challenge yet. Then again, no one ever told me whether I was ready or not at the time my journey began.

But they knew, if I didn't. A week passed, and all of my students still sat at their desks, scribbling down the notes on the board. During our training time in the field behind the school, they were still highly supportive of each other, though I expected their competitiveness to get the best of them. They proved me wrong on all accounts as the week passed.

"All right, excellent! That was a good choice, Serena!" I called to one of my young students, who had taken to battle with Pedro. "Remember that if all of your Pokémon are knocked out, then you lose the match. Using a Potion in a critical moment is a wise choice. It will heal some of your Pokémon's HP, or Health Points, during the battle."

Serena nodded, a blush creeping onto her cheeks.

Pedro, on the other hand, pointed to something beyond me. "Um, Teacher…"

I turned around to find a girl a couple of years younger than me stepping onto the gravel. Her brunette hair was long, though some of it had been curled into two giant buns, giving the appearance that it wasn't as long as it probably was. Her clothes hinted that perhaps she was in a hurry or that she might break out into a sprint at any moment. But her smile—that was something else entirely, reminiscent of a long gone friend.

"You must be a challenger!" I assumed, if only because she was older than all of my students here, and there seemed no other reason for her visit. When she nodded, it as if something dropped in my stomach. I had to pull it together. "Welcome to Aspertia City's Pokémon Gym. I'm Cheren, the Gym Leader! Hmm?" I paused, wondering if that was a bit much. "Well, maybe I'd better say that I just became the Gym Leader! More importantly, we need to prepare before welcoming you to the Gym."

Uh, well… what was I supposed to do now? It wasn't as if Alder had really given me any training on how to be a gym leader… But, from what I remembered, most gyms had trainers to fight prior to taking on the leader. And… well, it would be a good opportunity for Serena and Pedro to battle someone other than classmates or me…

"We have a challenger! You two, take your places!" I called, turning to face Serena and Pedro. They looked panicked for a moment, but when I nodded at them, they walked tentatively to separate battle fields. Once they were in their spots, I turned back to the girl. "If you can defeat these two, then I'll be your opponent!"

The girl nodded, her giant buns bouncing. I sighed, walking to the back of the field where I had set up a platform to oversee the battles on the fields.

That… had gone better than expected. I certainly sounded the part… though I hoped it didn't sound contrived, like I rehearsed it or anything. It would be embarrassing if it got out that I had been rehearsing my speech during my lunch hour.

I climbed up to the top of the platform, watching as the challenger took care of Pedro and then Serena. Neither of my students stood much of a chance. This girl, whoever she was, was good—really good. And the longer I watched her battle, the more she reminded me of Hilda. The two of them were one and the same.

When she finished off Serena's last Pokémon, she stood before my platform, her hands on her hips as she shouted at me, "I'm Rosa! This is my first Gym challenge, but don't go easy on me!"

Her determination, even, was the same as Hilda's. I smiled as I hopped down from the platform and held my hand out towards Rosa. "Just as this is your first Gym challenge, this is my first Pokémon battle as a Gym Leader. Let's both do our best and have a battle we can be proud of."

She took my hand and gave it a quick pump. "Sounds good."

Strategy was everything when it came to being a gym leader. This was Rosa's first gym, which meant that her Pokémon were probably new to her. Based on my observations from her battles with Pedro and Serena, her Pokémon were slightly stronger than theirs—while her intuition and problem-solving far exceeded theirs. That meant that I could use low-leveled Pokémon and still provide a challenge for her if I used strategies that would make her think.

Alder was right on that account: I was to be a wall for these trainers to overcome. This girl could beat me—that was the point—but she would only be able to do so if she and her Pokémon collaborated and fought to the best of their current abilities. And once my wall was overcome, she could move onto the next blockade.

Rosa was talented; I couldn't deny that. Everything about her made me think back to Hilda and how I never defeated her. The bond that she shared with her team, and the bond that Rosa evidently shared, was something special. And that was the reason why Hilda kept beating me over and over again and the reason why Rosa would do the same.

The feeling in my gut wouldn't shake even after the battle ended, and I had to confer the Basic Badge to my first challenger. This girl was going to go all the way to the top.

"Thank you so much. This is… this is incredible," Rosa whispered, holding the badge carefully in her hands. "Thank you! I won't forget this!"

She smiled, turning and waving as she made it back to the schoolhouse. And like Alder once vanished through the doors, Rosa was gone, too. Alder wasn't the Champion anymore—and neither was Hilda, for that matter. But this girl could end up following in their footsteps.

I couldn't just let her go. This girl was a prodigy, and I was a teacher. I could be of use to her.

I ran across the field and back through the schoolhouse, waving off students' requests for assistance as I made my way to the front door. I only stopped when I saw blonde hair at the foot of the schoolhouse steps, resting a hand on the doorframe to steady myself. This… this was some day, wasn't it?

"Bianca!"

My old friend looked up, stopping her conversation mid-sentence with Rosa. She was so close all along, and she hadn't even stopped by to say hello?

"It's been two years, hasn't it?" I asked, questioning both myself and her, lowering my hand from the doorframe once I was sure I wouldn't fall over. Had it really been two years? Two whole years since I last saw this girl who was, at least, in the same region? At least Hilda had a better excuse not to show up.

Bianca put a hand on her cheek, disillusioned by my appearance, perhaps. "Oh, wow! Wh-what's up?"

I couldn't help but be slightly disappointed by this less than exciting reunion. I had been expecting… better. But that was what happened to friends who had fallen out of favor, wasn't it? Would our reunions always be so awkward and uninspired?

I shook my head, remembering why I had come out here in the first place. "I thought it would be a good idea to register each other in the Xtransceiver," I told Rosa, bounding down the steps and holding my Xtransceiver out towards the younger girl. She raised her wrist, tapping her brace against mine, and there was a soft beep to indicate the deed being done. "Now you can communicate with me from your Xtransceiver."

Bianca gasped, rolling the sleeve of her blindly bright orange jacket up to reveal her Xtransceiver. "M-me, too." The two girls tapped theirs braces together. Bianca clicked something on her screen, and then on Rosa's, and nodded. "I registered Professor Juniper for you, too."

And, by some strange coincidence—or maybe not so strange when I considered the source—our Xtransceivers all began to ring, the sound reminiscent of my days before I became a teacher. The three of us glanced at each other in silence before we clicked our own screens.

It had been a long while since I last saw Juniper, as well. All of these people… why was it today of all days that we were reunited?

But we were still missing a piece of the puzzle.

"Hi, there, Rosa! I'm Professor Juniper," the newest recruit to our party greeted. "Bianca told me you accepted the Pokédex. Thank you so much! Thanks to you, we will all know more about Pokémon and be able to get along with them even better!"

So… Rosa was a Dex-holder, too…

"Hi, Professor Juniper! It's really interesting over here!" Bianca said cheerfully into her wrist, but I was staring at her rather than her face on my screen. Interesting was certainly one word for it… I probably would have used awkward or painful. "There are so many Pokémon we couldn't prove were here two years ago!"

But Professor Juniper didn't skip a beat. "Thank you for going so far for this errand, Bianca. And, Cheren," she added, as though noticing me on the screen for this first time, "how are you enjoying being a Gym Leader?"

"Professor Juniper, it's been a long time. I'm glad you're doing so well. The Gym Leader position is very tough…" I responded, my gaze darting towards Rosa, who looked up at me, too. How was I supposed to tell the professor that I already lost to my first challenger, even if it was a good battle? "If I had my usual partners…"

"Oh, Cheren." Professor Juniper chuckled, which kind of reminded me of my mom. She had that effect. "Having battles that come down to the wire will make you a Gym Leader who deepens the bonds between your challengers and their Pokémon, right?"

"It'll be fine!" Bianca cheered before I could respond. "Cheren's a new Gym Leader, I'm an Assistant Pokémon Professor, and Rosa is a new Trainer, but we always have Pokémon by our sides!"

I lowered my wrist to hide the fact that I rolled my eyes, but it actually made me smile a little. That was the Bianca I knew—always dreadfully optimistic, at least in my opinion. Where Bianca was the optimist, I was the pessimist. Hilda was always smack dab in the middle, the bearer of good and bad news.

Where was she?

"That's right, Bianca!" Professor Juniper announced, and I held my wrist up again. "Our world is a world where we live with Pokémon! Everyone! Keep that in mind as you pursue your dreams with your Pokémon! Particularly you, Rosa. The Pokédex may be important, but… first, enjoy your journey with your Pokémon to your heart's content!"

Suave as always, Professor Juniper winked before her screen went black, and the three of us here lowered our arms in unison. It was probably a good thing that Bianca and Juniper were working together—they were more alike than they knew.

"Hey, Rosa. Isn't Professor Juniper cool?" Bianca asked, and Rosa smiled awkwardly. "If you talk to her on the Xtransceiver, she'll evaluate the completeness of your Pokédex or tell you a lot about how Pokémon evolve! And you can call us, too, of course." Bianca looked expectedly at me, and I nodded. "I'll tell you how well you and your Pokémon are getting along, okay?"

Rosa nodded, and when she looked at me, I panicked for a moment to think of something to say. I always had a talent of keeping my emotions in my head, though. "Bianca makes a good point. I'll tell you what I know about Pokémon abilities and Pokémon type matchups," I decided. Yeah, that sounded good.

"Hey, thank you so—oh, Hugh."

The three of us followed Rosa's gaze down the road, where a disheveled young man was hurrying towards us at a frightening velocity. I was tired… somehow, these past fifteen minutes had taken a lot out of me. There was something about being reunited with two past acquaintances, one of whom I had been good friends with, that was mentally draining.

When the kid approached us, he pointed a finger at me. "Are you the Gym Leader?" he asked, ever so polite… If there was one thing I prided myself on as a teacher, it was the fact that I taught my students manners. "One, two, three—let's battle!"

I sighed, looking tiredly at Bianca and giving a little wave. "You look like a tough Trainer," I told Rosa's friend, who beamed. "Understood. Please come into my Pokémon Gym."

And that was that. I gave one last look to Bianca before disappearing back into the place I now called home. I barely said two words to her, but if I never saw her again, I didn't know how I might feel. Like nothing had changed, I guessed.

It made me a little sad. I wasn't sure that I could ever say the same thing about Hilda.

It was human nature to say that some people were more important than others, even when it came down to friends and family. I would, for example, be sadder if one of my parents passed away than if my Aunt Fran, who I hadn't ever met, died. Bianca was a good friend—a best friend, one might even say—but we hadn't been through the same things as Hilda and I had.

Over time, Hilda had become the most important person in my life. I could admit that. We were rivals, best friends, and—for a moment—perhaps more than either of those.

"I'm going to find N," she told me the day she left, though this wasn't so much a surprise to me. In fact, I half-expected her to leave without saying anything. "I know that it's probably stupid… I don't know why I'm going, and I… I know he probably wants to be alone. But there's just something about the idea of him all by himself—without people—that is just so overwhelming to me. I need to make sure he's all right."

"Okay," I agreed, like she needed my permission or something.

"I already told Bianca."

"Okay," I repeated.

She nodded, turning around slowly and heading to my bedroom door. "Bye, Cheren," she said, her hand lingering on the doorknob. I couldn't move from where I was, sitting on my bed with a book in my hands, safe in the realm where I belonged. I wasn't the type of person to hug a friend or kiss a parent on the cheek.

I wanted Hilda to know that I would miss her every day that she was gone, but that was easier said than done.

"Bye," I said, not even shutting the book.

She didn't leave, though. I could see even from where I was, fifteen feet away from her, that her grip had tightened on the knob. But she didn't leave.

"Cheren, just once, can you at least act like you care?" she demanded, dropping her hand from the knob and turning back around to face me. "You are so selfish, you know that? You could at least say something to me! You could at least act like you want me to stay! But you're so self-absorbed that you can't even do that!"

"What?" I finally set down my book, standing up from my bed and taking a single step towards her. "It's not like you said anything like that to me—that you care. You're going to find N. I get it."

"Oh, ho, ho, you're jealous!" she mocked, stepping closer with each word. When she stopped, we were almost touching. Her expression softened in that last moment, an almost-smile on her lips. "I'm sorry. I have to go. But I'll write. My Xtransceiver isn't going to work while I'm gone, so I'm just leaving it at home. Old paper and pencil, I guess…"

I nodded, and she leaned forward to kiss my cheek. There was a burning sensation when her lips left, but she was the one who raised her hand to touch her lips, clearly having done that subconsciously. It was silent, then, like it had been the moment that she stood still by my door, the same tension pressing on me.

"Find him so you can come back soon. I'll be… waiting," I told her, as close to what she wanted as I could go.

She grabbed my shirt collar with both hands, pulling me towards her and kissing my lips this time. It was strained and hurried, and it was true that neither of us had much time. But there was only so much that could happen in the time we had left, and this was just a start that would have to end another day.

"Bye, Cheren," she whispered against my lips, and this time she didn't hesitate when she grabbed the doorknob.

"Bye," I whispered back. But she was long gone, and it was too late to ask her to stay. I wanted one day more, but that was too much to ask.

She didn't write, but neither did I. I was always one step behind, too late to ever make a difference for either of us.

The day dragged on after my reunion with Bianca and Professor Juniper, not to mention my first (and second) battle as Gym Leader. I couldn't tell if it was because everything had just happened so fast or because I was just so exhausted that time seemed to stop altogether. I just wanted the sun to set so I could sleep.

But the sun set, and I sat awake in my bed against my wall, staring at bright computer screen on the other side of the room. I didn't know how long I sat like that, just staring, until the doorbell rang and rang again when I didn't answer it right away.

I sighed, using all of the energy I had left to push myself off my bed and hobble down the stairs to the front door. And when I opened the door, it was like everything I had left was sucked out with that one simple movement. The orange jacket waiting on the other side was a lot like the computer screen in my room.

"Cheren."

"Bianca…"

I opened the door wider, gesturing for her to come in, and she moved hesitantly through my living room. The silence screamed between us, and I sat down on the couch to remind her that she didn't need my permission to do so. We were friends, weren't we? Even after all this, as awkward as it was for both of us, we were still… friends.

"It's been a really long time. I meant to come visit as soon as I heard that you became a teacher—never mind a gym leader. But I've been working all the time, and I know you must be busy, too." She paused, as though that might alleviate the tension a little, but it didn't. "I'm glad I ran into you today, Cheren. I really am."

"Me, too," I agreed, a cordial response. "You seem happy."

"Oh, I am! I really am. Things are… amazing. I've been helping study the potential effects of friendship between Trainers and Pokémon through more scientific methods, and it's been really something incredible." She laughed, covering her mouth with her hand when she realized how loud she had gotten. "I've learned a lot."

Considering that I didn't think I had ever heard the words scientific methods come out of Bianca's mouth before, I would definitely say that she had learned something. But she was a good person—she really meant well.

"Have you heard from Hilda?" I asked.

Bianca nodded, reaching into her jacket and retrieving a stack of letters bundled together with a rubber band. "These are for you. She started forwarding these to me because she didn't know your address, but I didn't know either—so, of course, I meant to drop these off to you sooner, but I only just got your address from someone at the gym earlier."

Letters. Hilda had been writing all along.

I grabbed them from Bianca so furiously that it must has seemed that I was pissed at her, though this wasn't the case at all. In fact, it was the opposite. I collapsed back onto my couch and ripped the rubber band off.

"Thank you, Bianca, I—"

I cut off when I looked back up at my old friend just to see that she had tears in her eyes. When she noticed that I saw, she wiped them hastily away under her glasses. "It's nothing. I just thought, after all this time, that maybe you…" She wiped her eyes again, this time leaving a black trail of makeup down her face. "Never mind. It was nice seeing you."

She hurried out of my house before I could stop her, though I couldn't say that I tried particularly hard. That was never my strength, anyway. I didn't understand what happened. Girls…

I didn't dwell on it for long. When I made to clench my fists, the thick paper beneath my fingers stopped me, and I remembered the pile of unread letters. Why was it today of all days that everything came rushing back?

It was too much. I couldn't bring myself to open them. Not now. Not today.

I set them on my coffee table for another day, making my way back upstairs so that tomorrow might come faster.

Tomorrow came. And so did the next day and the next day. The pile of letters remained unopened and unread on my coffee table below a growing stack of workbooks and ungraded papers.

I never read them, and I couldn't bring myself to see a future where I would. I wanted to talk to her.

It was easy enough to return to the life before everything came rushing back, though. I went to work, taught my lessons, trained some students, and challenged the occasional Trainer. Life went on as usual—or so I hoped it would until reminder after reminder piled onto the mess on the coffee table of my mind.

My Xtransceiver rang often these days with the news that Team Plasma—or at least some branch of it—was up to their old shenanigans. But it was rare that I received a call from Rosa, who had all but forgotten that I gave her my data so I could help her.

"Cheren."

There was something frantic about her expression and her voice, like she needed one day more to just take everything in. "Rosa?"

"What's your friend's name?"

I gaped at her for a moment as the question settled within my already-convoluted mind. "Bianca? O-or…"

"The Trainer that N knows. The one that he told me about," she elaborated exasperatedly.

I jumped up from my desk chair and shut my office door. The school day had long since ended, but my pile of papers had grown so large at my house that I had to start correcting here if I didn't want to add more. Now that the sun had set, there was no chance of anyone coming into the building, but my heart started pounding so fiercely that I was concerned—irrationally so—that someone might be able to hear.

"Did you say N? Rosa, how do you know N?" I demanded. "Is Hilda there?"

"Hilda…" Rosa's expression softened into a daze, and I wished I could reach into the screen and shake her back to coherency. Finally, after a moment, she shook herself back. "Ah, no, she's not here. N isn't anymore, either… but he helped me."

There was… no way that Rosa had been dragged into this the same way that Hilda had. It would be too much of a coincidence—too close a string of fate binding them together, and it didn't seem possible for two people to share that in the same existence. Their lives, one way or another, had tangled too closely for people who had never met.

"Rosa, what happened? Are you okay?" I questioned hurriedly, leaning against the wall.

"T-Team Plasma is gone. Ghetsis…" Her eyes refocused again, a little less glossed over than before. "Sorry, I didn't know who else to call. I tried Bianca, but she didn't answer."

"Why did you ask about Hilda?"

Rosa smiled, her exhaustion evident in the creases around her eyes. "Everyone always compares me to her, but no one ever told me who she was—or is. I guess… I just wanted to know at least her name. It's even a little similar to mine. Tch." She shook her head disappointedly and then vanished from my screen. "I'm going to meet her someday. I swear it."

The screen went black before I could call Rosa's name, and I lowered my wrist dejectedly.

"Me, too, Rosa…" I muttered into the air. "I'll see her again."

"Teacher, thanks for the help today!" one of my students, Jenna, shouted as she waved from beneath the doorframe. I smiled, raising a hand to wave back, and she beamed at me. "I'll see you tomorrow! Thanks!"

Jenna turned and ran down the schoolhouse steps, vanishing from my line of vision. She was the last one left—or at least the last one gone now—and the days always felt so long now that summer was drawing closer. Vacation wasn't far off, and though I didn't really get a break from being Gym Leader, I was beginning to feel that I needed some sort of holiday from everything else.

I erased the chalkboard and retreated into my office, slumping in my chair. "One more week," I told myself, letting my head fall back. My dark hair, which was getting a little too long, fell out of my eyes, and I stared at the ceiling as if expecting something magical to fall from the sky—like a time machine or a genie.

"Teacher, huh? I'll admit, I'm impressed."

I started suddenly at the sound of her voice, moving a little too quickly and nearly tumbling out of my chair and knocking myself out in the process. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw her reach out to me, to save me perhaps or offer a hand if I actually fell, but she dropped her arm back to her side when I steadied myself.

"Sorry. Maybe I should have knocked."

I rose from my chair, staring at the girl in front of my desk. This was an illusion, right? The magical thing that I wished to fall from the sky?

But when I reached a hand towards her—to touch her just to make sure that she was real—she grabbed my outstretched hand, hooking my fingers with hers. With little effort, since I was more akin to a ragdoll at this point, she tugged me closer and wrapped her free arm around my neck.

"What are you doing here, Hilda?" I began tentatively, amazed that I could get my voice to work at all. I pulled myself back so I could look at her face. It was amazing how much a person could change in two-and-a-half years. Her cheeks had thinned out, and she wore makeup now. But her eyes, through it all, were the same.

And as those eyes searched my face as mine had hers, maybe in disbelief that I was here, too, I wondered what thoughts might be going through her mind now.

"I caught wind of a rumor that N was here in Uno… Unova again." Her voice caught on the name of our region, and a second later, tears began dripping down her cheeks in quick succession. "I just want to go home."

I pulled her close again, letting her use my shoulder until her moment of vulnerability passed.

Finally, Hilda hiccupped and wiped her eyes. "You never wrote me back," she accused, holding me away with straight arms. "I sent you letters. Did Bianca ever deliver them?"

I hummed a yes, knowing there would be no easy way to explain this. "She brought them to me several months ago. I never even read them," I admitted.

"What? Why not? I was worried about you!" There was a silent addendum, "Why weren't you worried about me?"

"I just… thought that you wouldn't seem so far away if I didn't read them. And it had already been so long, and I… was tricking myself into thinking that there would be no use reading them because you would be home soon." I paused, looking down because I was afraid to look at her. "Are you going to leave again? Because I really don't want you to go."

When I glanced back up, light filled her eyes, reflecting like stars off the tears brimming on her eyelashes. Her mouth was slightly ajar, and the quiver of her lip was barely noticeable but still conspicuously there.

"Are… are you actually asking me to stay?" she asked, and I was slightly insulted by the incredulity of her tone.

"W-well, N is okay. A girl I know—Rosa, the new Champion—sees him occasionally, so… so, there's really no need for you to keep looking. Unless, of course, you need him for something. Oh, and Rosa wants to meet you, so you'll have to stay in Unova for that…" I finished slowly, and awkwardly. When her eyebrows furrowed, I sighed. "Yes, I'm asking you to stay."

Hilda nodded—once, twice, three times, and with each consecutive lift of her head, her smile grew wider and wider. "Fine," she said matter-of-factly, her smug tone clashing incredibly with her smile. "I'll stay. But only because a teacher asked me to, and I couldn't possibly go against a teacher's wishes."

"A teacher?" I repeated. "Who?"

She laughed, grabbing my collar—just as she had those many years ago—and pulling me close to her. "You, silly," she whispered, and she kissed me again.

Two-and-a-half years ago, this had meant goodbye. Today, though, would lead to a tomorrow, and tomorrow would lead to another. And maybe we didn't have eternity, but for now, one day more was enough for me.

Author's Note: For those of you who read my profile (you totally should if you haven't), I opened up requests recently for fanfiction pairings, strictly for readers. This is the first of those requests for xSatomi: a Checkmateshipping fic set in the B2W2 universe. I hope you like it!

I still have two requests open, but please DO NOT send your requests through a review. You will need to send me a PM with your pairing request, and I have the right to refuse a request. Also, it's first come first serve, so please do not be offended if I don't accept your request.

Also, it's been forever since I played B2W2, so I used YouTube videos to help me out. I couldn't remember if Cheren ever, like, helped out later in the game, though, so… hopefully not so? But the dialogue in the second and third scenes (partially, anyway) comes directly from the game.