#shieldrival

❛ of course. that's what friends are for ?? ❜

victor laughs airily , shaking his head. beside him , ace hums , curled up next to hop's dubwool. they've always been friends , & victor finds it sweet that their pokemon were almost as close as their trainers. the wild area was quieter for the moment , the only sounds the soft breathing of their pokemon & victor's own heartbeat in his ears.

❛ l-listen , hop. can i ... ask you something ?? ❜

victor shifts , pulling his knees up to his chest. he wishes ace was awake , that he could depend on the comfort his partner offers. instead , he turns his gaze towards the wild area in front of him , hands curling into the fabric of his pants.

❛ h-have you ever ... had feelin's for anyone ?? a-as in , y'liked'em as ... more than a friend ?? ❜

he's almost scared that hop's answer will be yes. hop is great , so kind & honest & bright ; victor can't imagine a life without him. it makes his heart beat wildly in his chest , but he waits patiently for hop's answer , cheek pressed into his knees as he turns his head to look at hop.

oh , boy. this was it. victor wasn't going to let himself back down again , & neither would ace. that doesn't stop victor from wringing the life out of his hat , twisting it between his hands. his heart is pounding in his chest . & his face is so red victor thinks he might pass out.

❛ i-i ... i wanted t' ... t'tell you ... ❜

quickly , victor replaces his hat , trembling hands fumbling for a pokeball , which he holds towards hop. inside it is an applin that he'd spent hours hunting , to make sure it was perfect. & she was , from her shiny red color to her friendly personality , she'd be perfect for hop.

maybe he could be perfect for hop , too.

❛ ... i-i caught an applin for you. you ... know what that means don'cha ?? ❜

victor wants to run , but he knows ace won't let him. & besides , he's not sure he could without his knees buckling. he has to look away from hop , shutting his eyes for a moment. he hopes hop knows what it means , especially as victor steels himself , taking one of hop's hands & gently pressing the pokeball into his palm.

❛ i-it ... it means i ... i really like you , hop. i-i always have , i just ... never knew how t'say it. ❜

a moment of silence as he lifts his gaze from the pokeball to hop's face , struggling to read his expression.

❛ ... say somethin' , hop. anythin' , jus' ... please. ❜

he lost. despite all the work his team had put in , all the effort ace had given on his behalf , it still wasn't enough.

did he even stand a chance against leon if he couldn't beat raihan ??

everyone in the pokemon center is giving him pitying looks , & victor knows he looks pathetic. it's the second time raihan had beaten him , the second time he'd failed his team , failed ace. that hurts more than anything , to know that he let his team down.

his partner is returned to his side quickly enough , & ace can't help but fret , concerned chatter leaving the cinderace as victor's shoulders shake with barely held back sobs.

vic ??

he starts at the sudden hand on his shoulder , hop's voice doing little to comfort him. he doesn't want anyone to see him this way , least of all hop , & he exhales shakily , wiping at his eyes that are still plenty red.

❛ h-hop ... ❜

he even sounds like a mess , voice cracking & raw from all the crying he'd done. he can't bear to think about what people are thinking , are saying about him , though victor could wager a guess.

victor lifts his head after a moment to look at hop , lip shaking & eyes watering all over again.

not like there's any use in lying.

❛ i ... r-raihan ... ❜

& there goes any scrap of composure he might've had.

❛ i-i ... i lost. ❜

ace eagerly runs up to hop , wrapping the trainer in a tight hug. much like its trainer , the cinderace has always held a fondness for the other trainer. though , not nearly as fond as his trainer was of hop , & ace grins to himself , letting go of hop & looking up all too innocently.

❛ hop !! ❜

of course , ace has some tricks up his sleeve , so to speak. he may not fully understand the way victor looks at hop , but he knows hop makes him happy , makes victor smile , even if he does turn red whenever hop's around.

❛ hop is victor's favorite human , y'know ?? makes victor happy. and if victor's happy , makes ace happy. ❜

& that much is true , really. ace likes when his trainer is happier , he's spent far too many days with victor in despair. he'd rather have this version of victor than go back to that.

victor's rotom phone dings distinctively , & without even looking , he'd know the message was from hop. & normally , that's not a bad thing , even gloria's got her own message tone so he knows it's her.

but ... they're in the same room , watching a match on tv. couldn't hop have just shown him whatever it was ??

oh , well.

opening his phone , he can feel hop's eyes on him , as if anxiously awaiting his reaction to whatever it was he sent. it takes victor a moment to find his messages & open it , tilting his head when he finally sees what it was that hop needed him to see. & what was it that was so important ??

a meme. a meme featuring galar's champion , no less.

it's not particularly funny , but victor laughs anyways , shaking his head. from its spot in his lap , his scorbunny makes a curious noise , even though ace wouldn't understand it. thinking for a moment , he responds with a laughing emoji , shooting hop a grin as he hits send.

❛ hm ?? ❜

victor's only barely heard hop's warning before they collide , rolling down the small hill as a surprised yelp leaves him. his partner yells worriedly , fussing over the sudden disappearance of its trainer. victor's hat is lost somewhere in the scuffle , but he hardly notices until they come to a stop.

his back hits the ground with a final oof as the wind is knocked out of him. once he's finally stopped rolling , victor opens his eyes , blinking up at hop. he's sore , but nothing that can't be dealt with.

it's only then that victor realizes how close they are , face turning nearly as red as his shirt. he can hear ace yelling for him , the poor scorbunny wondering where he'd gone in such a blur , but all victor can focus on is how close they are , one hand grasping at hop's jacket as his mouth goes dry.

❛ 'm fine , i think. ❜

have hop's eyes always been so gold ??

❛ i-i jus' ... lost my hat. ❜

❛ because he's a brat now. ❜

out of the corner of his eye , victor glares at his beloved partner , eyes narrowed & arms crossed. but cinderace is hardly discouraged , mimicking its trainer's pose with amused chatter. of course , victor knows the real meaning behind that look , the same expression ace has always had around hop , ever since he was a raboot.

get it together & stop pining so obviously , idiot.

at least , that's what victor believes his partner is telling him. & perhaps ace is right , he should get it together. he's the damn champion for arceus' sake. he should be better than making eyes like a schoolgirl in love.

but that's exactly what he is around hop , utterly smitten , & it's a wonder hop himself hasn't caught on.

❛ he's probably planning on taking some berries when you're not looking. ❜

❛ whaa -- !! ❜

victor's startled when hop leans over his shoulder , face flushing as he scrambles to turn off his phone , nearly dropping it in his haste.

he'll apologize later , rotom , promise.

he collects himself after a moment , clearing his throat & tugging at the collar of his shirt. really , it's embarrassing that he still gets like this , despite how long he's known hop. ace snickers from nearby , & victor shoots his raboot a sharp glare , which does little to dampen his partner's amusement.

❛ give a guy a bit'o warnin' , will you ?? ❜

now that his heart's stopped pounding in his chest , victor remembers hop's question.