It was like time had hit a fast-forward button—before he knew it, Saturday noon had arrived.
Ding-ling-ling…
The shrill alarm tore through his dream, and Grey sprang up out of bed.
Sunlight seeped through the curtains, baking the whole room into a cozy warmth. Squinting, he looked at the clock.
The hour hand was pointing at eleven.
"Ugh… this late already?"
Grey raked a hand through his hair, which had been sleeping at ridiculous angles, threw on some casual clothes, and pushed the door open.
The dojo was unnervingly quiet on the weekend. Even the usual sounds of morning training were nowhere to be heard.
Bumiao and Green's doors were wide open, and a crooked little note was stuck by the headboard.
Grey narrowed his eyes before he could make out the words:
"We went shopping~"
On the living room sofa, Silver was asleep with his arms crossed, and even that signature tuft of red hair had drooped obediently for once.
"You're up?"
Sabrina's voice suddenly rang out.
The space in front of Grey's eyes warped.
In the next instant, she appeared right in front of him—teleporting in—and looked at him quietly.
Today, Sabrina was dressed differently than usual.
A pink crop top showed off her snow-pale skin, and white capri pants revealed a slim stretch of ankle—an outfit that was clearly meant for going out.
"I don't dress up much, so… I put this together online, copying some outfit influencers."
She pinched her own upper arm with one hand, and when she noticed where Grey was looking, she explained quickly.
"It looks great."
Grey took two sun-protection jackets from the rack. He draped one over Sabrina's shoulders, then put the other on himself. "Let's go. The sun's pretty strong today. If we're eating out, we should do proper sun protection."
"Why not use teleportation? Wouldn't that be more convenient?"
Sabrina tilted her head, clearly not understanding why Grey wanted to walk into the city.
With her psychic power, teleporting to a mall downtown would take less than a second.
So why would he choose to go on foot? Wasn't that just exhausting?
"It's not the same. Going out shopping isn't about what you do—it's about who you go with," Grey said with a small laugh. "Besides, if you teleport everywhere, you miss all the scenery along the way."
He shrugged lightly. "We use teleportation plenty as it is. Maybe today we'll see something you normally wouldn't."
"…Alright. We'll do it your way."
After hearing that, Sabrina dropped the idea of teleporting. Instead, she picked up a parasol and headed out with Grey.
Tap, tap…
Their footsteps sounded unusually clear on the empty street.
Saffron City was strangely quiet for a weekend. Even the ice cream shop that was usually packed was practically deserted—only its electronic sign kept flashing tirelessly.
Now and then, a few fallen leaves spun in the wind, making a soft rustling sound.
In a densely populated city like Saffron, scenes like this were rare.
"The business street that's usually stuffed with office workers is pretty calm today," Sabrina said, her gaze sweeping over an empty corner. Her tone stayed as steady as ever.
"Yeah. Not sure if downtown will be any better."
Grey glanced at his phone. According to the navigation, they still had ten minutes to go.
"By the way—anything you want to shop for? Or did you just want to get out and walk around?"
After turning off his phone, Grey looked to Sabrina and asked.
Today's outing had been a bit sudden. He hadn't even planned anything—this really was a rushed march.
"Just walking around. If you have somewhere you want to go… I'll go with you."
Sabrina shook her head. She only wanted to breathe a little, but if you asked her where she wanted to go, she genuinely couldn't answer.
"Ri." (If that's the case, then let's go eat all-you-can-eat barbecue!)
Little Riolu listened to them talk forever without picking a destination, and finally decided to choose one for them.
They were going out to eat anyway. If they didn't know what to eat, they might as well eat what it wanted!
"Fair enough. Then all-you-can-eat barbecue it is."
Grey thought Little Riolu's suggestion was pretty good.
Sabrina heard him and just nodded blankly.
…
…
Downtown's bustle formed a sharp contrast with the quiet outskirts.
When they arrived at the top-ranked place on a review app—"Charizard BBQ House"—the line at the entrance had already wrapped around two corners.
But the moment Sabrina appeared—
"Whoosh!"
The crowd parted like the sea before Moses, automatically scattering away.
In the chaos, a few Trainers even dropped their Poké Balls on the ground.
No one spoke.
No one dared to.
In the blink of an eye, the restaurant entrance—just moments ago packed to bursting—was left with only Grey and Sabrina facing each other.
"Who… is that—?"
The owner saw the scene and thought someone was here to cause trouble. But the moment he recognized Grey and Sabrina, he went silent for a long time, unable to get a single word out.
"Figures."
Even though she was used to it by now, every time Sabrina watched people panic and retreat because of her, a stabbing ache still bloomed in her chest.
She only wanted to eat a meal like a normal person.
And yet… it was still like this.
"…Sigh."
Sabrina's brows drew together.
Memories of being treated like a "monster" surged up—
Then, in the very next moment, they vanished.
Because warmth suddenly wrapped around her palm.
Both hands.
"Ri~" (Forget it, let's just find somewhere else to eat. It's not like we're missing out by skipping this one.)
"I know a place," Grey said quietly. "It doesn't look like much, but the food is just as good as this barbecue spot."
He held Sabrina's hands and lowered his voice. "So—what do you say? Want to go together?"
"…Yes."
Sabrina lowered her eyes to their interlaced hands, then gave the faintest nod.
…
…
With Grey leading the way, they headed into a hidden alley beside the Silph Co. building.
This was where he used to fight in underground matches.
The Silph Battle Club Center—right here.
Coming back again, Grey couldn't help feeling a little emotional.
Old memories surfaced in front of his eyes.
He remembered the last time he'd come here—he'd beaten someone up, and walked away with a check afterward.
But this time, he wasn't here to make money.
He was here to eat.
"Little Riolu, looks like I can't treat you to a big feast today. Next time you can drag that… whoever-it-was along and go eat with them."
Grey rubbed Little Riolu's head as he apologized.
"Ri~" (It's okay. I just didn't expect things to be like this for her in human society. But… this one's on me. I didn't think it through.)
Little Riolu sounded apologetic too.
It had tried to make the choice for them, only to find out the locals disliked Sabrina this much—even with Grey right there.
"Psychics might be a backbone of Saffron City's strength, but most of the time they just stay around the Saffron Gym," Sabrina said, like it was nothing. "Other places… forget it. No point talking about it."
In the past, only the Saffron Gym area and the Fighting Dojo district were places where psychics could live comfortably.
Everywhere else?
If people weren't actively chasing them off, that was already "nice."
"Alright. Don't worry—I'm familiar with the owner here. They're really good people."
Grey held Sabrina's hand and wandered deeper into the alley with her.
"Hey, isn't that Grey? Long time no see! And… Sabrina?! Wow—wow, hello! Good afternoon!"
"Grey's back! Our big hero's back! And he brought the Saffron Gym Leader with him—welcome, welcome!"
Hearing so many greetings at once, Sabrina went a little dazed.
Maybe…
This wasn't so bad?