(ignore the mistakes. The school computers don't have the same checkers as mine has so I'll check it once I return from work.)

Day 27: You have a Bulbasaur and I have a Squirtle, hey wanna trade? Also you’re very cute, let’s go out.

When Jonghyun got his first Pokémon, a Squirtle called Leonardo, he asked his mother what she had been thinking when she brought it home. Jonghyun wasn’t a very confident boy when he was younger while the new-born Squirtle was nothing but, so it ended up with Leonardo dragging him everywhere rather than the other way around.

Now they’re 10 years older; he’s 18 and his Squirtle is still the same, only older. Jonghyun did change, however. Not only his appearance, and while puberty did him rather well, his personality changed even better as he’s now confident. He’s the one dragging Leonardo everywhere now, though that doesn’t happen much anymore. He let the Squirtle retire after all those years fighting and winning. It stays home now, at his mother’s place, most of the time and helps her with watering the plants and other small tasks.

That didn’t mean Jonghyun was alone now; he made quite some friends over the years and found many Pokémon after all the journeys he went on with Leonardo.

He goes to college now and his life is starting to become repetitive. He doesn’t exactly dislike it, but he misses the excitement of the journeys he would make in the breaks from school he had when he was younger. College and his side job as a helper in a care center for Pokémon doesn’t leave him much free time for traveling so he welcomes every change in his life with open arms.

One of those changes is a blond boy that is standing in the garden of his mom’s house when Jonghyun visits. He lives in dorms so doesn’t see his mother anymore and even though he loves the freedom he knows his mother misses him a lot and keeps his promise of visiting at least once a month.

The sun in shining bright yet the cool wind makes goosebumps appear on his arms. It’s not the wrong kind of goosebumps, he isn’t freezing, it’s welcomed and Jonghyun enjoys the freshness of the early summer morning.

The boy doesn’t notice him when he walks inside and he has to fake a cough to get noticed.

When he does get noticed, the boy starts apologizing and introduces himself as Minki. Apparently, his mom discovered that only having Leonardo as help wouldn’t be enough anymore and hires Minki to help her whenever she needs him.

He also discovers that Leonardo took a very big liking in the boy when he sees the Pokémon beg for attention, them playing together or as the Pokémon hugs the fragile legs of the boy.

“You got pokémon yourself, Minki?” He asks when he sees how great he is with all the Pokémon that occupy his mom’s house.

“I only got one since I don’t have much time to travel. It’s a Bulbasaur named Floor, it’s just that she’s really energetic and wants to fight but I can’t take her out for fights as much as she would like,” the smaller boy explains and Jonghyun nods, recognising the feeling that an owner feels when he can’t give his Pokémon what he likes.

“How about this; Leonardo really likes you and is already retired, so he doesn’t feel the need anymore to fight. Floor is still a young one and needs to get properly trained, something I can do without taking many journeys. What if we would exchange our Pokémon for a while so they could be happier? We could meet up a bit more so we keep seeing them and make them happy.”

The blond boy is silent for a while, the fact that he’s thinking clear on his face.

“We could do that. I would like to regularly see Floor but if you can train her and it’ll make her happier I won’t see why I wouldn’t agree.”

“Nice! We could always travel together once the summer break starts. It isn’t that much longer until we have our freedom again and we can actually travel for a month then.”

Minki agrees.

(And Jonghyun is glad he did, since it was the start of their relationship, what started as a friendship, turned into one of love and ended as a marriage.)