"Hiding in the trash can isn't good."
After Ye Chuan picked up Charmander, it merely hung its limbs limply, the flame on its tail flickering slightly.
Just as Ye Chuan carried it back to the second floor, a call came from outside the window: "Ah Ye, dinner's ready!"
On the ground floor of the house across the way, a girl wearing an apron and with her hair tied in a ponytail was making a trumpet shape with her hands, looking up and shouting loudly towards Ye Chuan's place:
"Hur-ry up, now—"
"I know, you're so loud the neighbors will complain," Ye Chuan said, holding Charmander in one arm and opening the window with the other. "Couldn't you just text me?"
An Shiyu, standing behind the windowsill of the opposite house with her hands on her hips, retorted, "Isn't that because Ah Ye often disappears after replying to messages?"
"I'm coming over now." Ye Chuan seemed unable to refute, then swung over the balcony.
His house and An Shiyu's house were very close, and the distance between his balcony and hers was less than a meter, so Ye Chuan skillfully climbed into her room and then opened the door.
Coming downstairs, An Shiyu was preparing dinner. Her long hair was tied up in a ponytail, revealing her fair nape. Rowlet was perched on her shoulder, its head turned a full 180 degrees: "Hoo?"
"Looks like you two are getting along quite well." Ye Chuan put his Charmander on the ground, then crouched down to look at it: "Are you hungry?"
Charmander quickly turned its head away, but the next second, its stomach let out a rumbling sound.
"Ga!" Charmander immediately waved its claws, seemingly trying its best to indicate that it wasn't hungry.
Ye Chuan smiled slightly and reached out to pat its head.
At this moment, An Shiyu brought over a plate of Fire-type Pokémon food and placed it on the table, saying, "Dinner's ready."
"Okay."
After washing their hands, the two humans and two Pokémon began to eat dinner.
Rowlet seemed to have been hungry for a long time, its beak constantly pecking at the crystal-clear green cubes, looking very happy as it ate. Coupled with its round body, it had an indescribable cuteness. Charmander, on the other hand, sat at the table, staring blankly at its portion of food.
Seeing this, An Shiyu turned her head to look at Ye Chuan: "Doesn't Charmander like it?"
Ye Chuan looked at Charmander for a moment, then smiled at Rowlet and said, "Since Charmander doesn't want to eat, Rowlet, why don't you help it out?"
"Hoo!" Rowlet happily flapped its wings. Just as it was about to snatch Charmander's plate, Charmander let out a low growl and then grabbed the food, stuffing large mouthfuls into its mouth, not wanting to share with Rowlet at all.
As it ate, Charmander seemed to sense that something was wrong. It looked up and found Ye Chuan, An Shiyu, and Rowlet all looking at it with smiles.
"Ga." Charmander hugged the plate and turned its back to them, eating silently.
An Shiyu said, "Hehe, it's shy."
Ye Chuan also smiled slightly.
"Ah Ye, how do you plan to train Charmander?" An Shiyu asked, looking at Ye Chuan beside her while eating.
How to train it?
Ye Chuan actually didn't have any systematic training methods, but he still said, "Normal training, I guess."
"You just focus on your efforts, and leave the rest to fate, Little Ye," An Shiyu said, extending a finger and speaking in a tone like an old man.
But the next second, something was stuffed into her mouth: "Mmph?"
"Eat properly." After stuffing an egg roll into An Shiyu's mouth, Ye Chuan smiled.
An Shiyu's cheeks were puffed out like a little hamster chewing, and she made indistinct sounds: "Too big, mmmph."
"Eat slowly."
After dinner, An Shiyu cleared the table. While washing the dishes in the open kitchen, she asked:
"Ah Ye, which school's entrance exam are you planning to take? Have you decided yet?"
Ye Chuan, who was using a hot towel to wipe Charmander's body, replied, "The Pokémon Department of Silver Mountain High School."
"Isn't the Pokémon Department of Silver Mountain High School the hardest to get into in our city?" An Shiyu blinked her jewel-like eyes. "Ah Ye, you're really aiming for the Alliance University."
"Alliance University is a top-tier school in the country, and even a first-class institution in the world," Ye Chuan nodded gently. "And Silver Mountain High School has one guaranteed admission spot to Alliance University every year. Everyone is scrambling to get it, so it's normal for it to be difficult to get in."
An Shiyu showed a troubled expression: "What if you can't beat the others?"
Looking at An Shiyu's worried expression, Ye Chuan smiled slightly: "Although Silver Mountain High School isn't the strongest overall in our city, few schools can compare to its Pokémon Department. Even if I don't get the guaranteed admission, being able to study there will be a good thing for me."
"Why does Ah Ye want to become a trainer?" An Shiyu muttered.
Seeing An Shiyu talking to herself, a look of curiosity appeared on Ye Chuan's face: "What are you mumbling about?"
"Nothing," An Shiyu quickly shook her head. "When is the entrance exam?"
"A month from now."
"That's so fast."
Half an hour later, Ye Chuan went home. An Shiyu, on the other hand, hugged Rowlet and sat on the sofa, staring blankly at the ceiling.
"Hoo?" Rowlet looked at its owner, seemingly curious about what was wrong with her.
An Shiyu sighed a long breath: "I want to go to the same school as Ah Ye, but Silver Mountain is so hard to get into."
Although Rowlet didn't quite understand, it still nudged its owner as if to comfort her.
"We've always been together..." An Shiyu looked out the window at the lit window on the second floor of the opposite house, where shadows could be faintly seen moving. She hugged her knees and lowered her head, making a barely audible sound:
"Idiot."
On the other side, after Ye Chuan finished showering, he found Charmander standing at the bathroom door, raising its head to stare at him.
"What's wrong?"
Charmander seemed to look at the showerhead inside with some fear, and then after seeing that Ye Chuan was alright, it turned and left.
"So it was worried something would happen to me while I was showering." Ye Chuan wiped the water droplets from his hair, unable to help but smile. "This is probably how Fire-type Pokémon think."
After washing up, he sat in front of the computer and roughly drafted a schedule.
For the entrance exam a month later, a reliable schedule was necessary. Ye Chuan not only had to study Pokémon-related knowledge, but also train Charmander's battling abilities. After all, practical battles were definitely unavoidable during the exam.
After organizing the information online, Ye Chuan finally put together a fairly decent schedule. He glanced at the time and found that it was already twelve o'clock.
Time to sleep.
"Let's go back into your Poké Ball, Charmander." Looking at Charmander lying at his feet, Ye Chuan took out the Poké Ball.
Charmander glanced at it, seemingly not wanting to go in.
"Then let's sleep together," Ye Chuan reached out to pick up Charmander, but with a "buzz," Charmander turned into a red light and went into the Poké Ball.
Huh? Is that such a lack of respect?