Surely other people remember that mini-game from HeartGold/SoulSilver? And surely I wasn't the only one who really enjoyed it for a time?

Anyway, thank you for reading. I'm always grateful to anyone who reads my writing.

When I was Flipping Voltorb

The music sounds like

The jingle of gold,

A shower of coins all falling to the floor.

And that green, green board

Has filled your vision for so long,

Your eyes hardly notice it anymore.

This vibrant place encourages your heart to race.

.

That roar of excitement

Is paired with methodical motions:

Your eyes hunting for "2-3" and "4-1" rows to knock them out,

The flips of your wrist as you open the memo

To mark the dead tiles with the familiar "1 O",

Your lips whispering your new numerical system, "1-2-Voltorb-Voltorb",

As your mind puzzles out how many 1s are in a row,

How many numbers, how many dangers,

What combination of numbers and Voltorbs are needed

To add up to the total that sits at the end of the line.

Somewhere in the distant background, time ticks away

And your thoughts tick too, just like the clock.

.

I'm not even here for the prizes.

I became the Champion long ago.

I have money and Pokemon aplenty.

I don't need those accumulating coins.

What I'm here for is the allure of rising numbers.

I want to see that "Level" go up.

I want to advance through boards like I'm climbing the stairs.

I've learned to seek the triumph and relief

That comes with digging out all the 2s and 3s on a board,

And getting to move on, next level.

The feeling of power that surges through you

When you get to leave behind

All those unturned tiles that don't matter anymore,

All those wisely-unturned 1s and Voltorb tiles.

.

"Is this what you're expecting?"

.

It all ends with

That feeling when you flip a Voltorb

And its angry face hits you for a moment before it blows up

And you cry, "Noooo!"

And the Os in your "Noooo" are just as round and loud

As the Voltorb that destroyed your board.