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Moon’s phone buzzed away in her pajama pocket, and she lazily slid it out to see who was calling her so late at night. She turned down the audio on the TV, and the Salazzle on the couch next to her gave her an annoyed look at having her show interrupted. Moon rolled her eyes at the lizard’s antics, and checked the caller ID.
It was Hau. This was unusual. He almost never called past nine if he could help it. Moon picked up the phone, more than slightly concerned. Salazzle noticed Moon’s shift in emotion, and watched her curiously.
“Hau?” she asked, trying not to let her concern slip through into her voice.
“Yeah. So hey,” his voice was apologetic, and she could hear loud music and poor singing on the other end. “I’m at a bar-”
“Oh no.”
“You didn’t even let me explain! I’m not calling for me, I actually need-”
There was a rustling on the other end of the speaker, and Moon could hear Hau’s voice get farther away. Before she got a chance to ask what was going on, another voice came through. “Moon? Are you there?”
The words were slightly slurred, and pitched way higher than she’d expected, but the voice definitely belonged to Gladion.
What were he and Hau getting up to without her? She almost felt jealous. It’s been a long time since the three of them (and sometimes Lillie) went out together for drinks. They hadn’t told her that they made plans tonight, and the realization that she might have been purposely excluded stung.
“Having fun without me, Glad?”
“Absolutely not.” He said, firmly. Hau laughed in the background, loud enough to be heard over the music. “It’s not fun at all without you. There was no one to challenge to a drinking contest. Hau would die if he tried.”
Moon laughed at that, and Salazzle threw her some knowing side-eye, which Moon waved away dismissively. That Pokemon was way too keen.
“You should’ve called me earlier, then.”
“I wanted to. I didn’t know I’d be here this long; it was for business. But when the clients left, I ended up staying. Moon, I think I’m drunk.”
“Yeah, I’m pretty sure you are. Why did you call?”
There was a silence on the other end, and Moon was almost worried that he’d blacked out for a second, when he finally spoke up, “I’m not really sure.”
Moon let out a heavy sigh and dragged her free hand down her face in exasperation. This boy was too damn much sometimes.
“Why didn’t you use your own phone?”
“Hau’s is less breakable.” He said, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world. “Also I wanted a dramatic reveal.”
In the distance, Moon heard Hau say, ‘And you got it. Now give me back my phone.’
There was some rustling on the other end, and she vaguely heard Gladion complaining about the unfairness of the situation, before Hau came back on the speaker. He cleared his throat and apologized again. Moon almost pitied Hau, assuming he was acting as a chaperone and not an accomplice.
Gladion was an overbearing drunk, always saying more than he needed to. But he also liked to go on late-night adventures after drinking, and more than once they’d found themselves spending entire nights island-hopping and sneaking into national parks to have dramatic moonlit Pokemon battles. They were some of Moon’s fondest memories.
Gladion was always more honest after a few drinks, and his blunt affection for her became apparent when they drank together. Of course, whenever Moon tried to bring it up in the light of day, he brushed her off and refused to comment. But she supposed that was a part of the appeal.
“Sorry Moon, but can you come get him? He’s not letting me take him home. To the Paradise, or my house, or anywhere, really. I don’t really know how to handle him like this, but I know you do.”
Moon groaned, but she was already standing up and slipping on her shoes before she asked, “Where are you guys?”
“Akala. You know the one. Gladion’s client was a big-shot from the Royal Dome, apparently.” In the background, she heard Gladion say, ‘And I nailed the meeting. Tell her that. That I nailed it.’ Hau sighed, and with extra emphasis said, “Gladion says he nailed the meeting.” Then, in hushed tones that Moon could barely hear over the music, he urgently whispered, “Please come get him. He’s driving me insane.”
Moon laughed, and grabbed her keys off of the kitchen counter. She recalled Salazzle to her Pokeball and slipped the capsule into her bag, which she slung around her shoulders with practiced ease.
“I’ll be there in just a second. Keep him alive for me.”
“No promises. He’s done karaoke three times already, and on the third it looked like the bartender was going to skin him alive. If he tries it again, I can’t be held responsible for what happens.”
“Do your best. I’m counting on you, kahuna.” She double-checked her bag, and then headed on outside. The air was crisp, and Moon almost debated putting on actual clothes. But her pajamas were flannel, and super comfortable. They would do. “And Hau, if he tries karaoke again… please record it. I need it for reasons.”
“Blackmail.” It wasn’t a question. Hau knew what was up.
“Absolutely. I’ll see you in a few.”
“Mahalo, see ya.”
Moon locked the door to her apartment behind her and hung up the phone. She shoved it deep into her pocket, and headed off towards the docks. She desperately hoped that there was no press hanging around at this time of night, because a picture of Alola’s Champion in pajamas would be worth a lot more than Moon would care to think about.
Mercifully, she was the only one boarding the boat to Akala. The ticketer gave her an odd look at her outfit choice, but Moon studiously ignored it. None of the crew approached her, even though she stayed abovedeck the entire way there. It was a pleasant ride. Made only slightly less pleasant when she remembered that she was traveling to pick up her drunk friend from a bar. Hopefully he’d come quietly.
She knew exactly which bar they were at. A small dive just across from The Dome, whose claim to fame is their well-seasoned french fries. While she wasn’t a fan herself, she knew Hau always made sure to get a few orders every time they went. You could smell them anywhere within a six-meter radius of the bar, and it always drew in late-night Battle Royal spectators. The place made a killing, despite it looking like someone could sneeze it apart if they tried.
Moon didn’t even need to enter the building. Before she could take out her phone to call Hau and tell him she was there, Gladion stepped out of the bar with Hau in tow. He raised a hand to her in greeting, and immediately headed her way. Seemed like he would be willing to cooperate tonight.
“Ready to head out, Glad?” she asked, already being pulled into a loose hug by Hau, who looked so genuinely relieved that Moon wanted to buy him a drink for his trouble.
Gladion just nodded, pointedly looking away from their casual display of affection.
Hau stepped away and clapped Moon on the shoulder. “He’s all yours; I’m going home to sleep. Mahalo again Moon.”
She waved him off and then turned to Gladion, who was currently trying to re-tie his hair and failing miserably. Eventually he just held his hair band in his palm and gave it a disapproving look, presumably looking to discipline it into working. Moon couldn’t hold back her laughter. He turned the full force of that look to her, and she laughed even harder.
“What’s so funny?” he demanded.
“Let’s head back to the Paradise, and I’ll tell you.”
He scoffed and crossed his arms, looking down his nose at her. “You really think I’d fall for that one?” In a softer voice, he added, “I’m not ready to go home just yet.”
“Rough day?”
“No, I nailed the meeting. Didn’t Hau tell you? I told him to tell you.” He noticed he was getting off-track, and waved his hand in the air to clear away his wayward thoughts. “I just need to do something else before I go back to my endless mountain of work. Something fun… Nice pajamas.”
“Nice hair.” She parried, and he held a hand to his heart like he’d been pierced by her words. “Anyways, I’m off work tomorrow, so if you wanted to come by my place, I’m free all night. We could watch scary movies and eat pretzels or something.”
“I can’t even express how amazing that sounds right now.” Gladion said, walking off in the direction that Moon came from. Moon caught up with him, and together they began their walk to the docks.
After a terribly eventful boat ride back to Ula’ula, in which Gladion needed to write an apology to the owner of the liner and a check for one broken handrail, they arrived at Moon’s apartment.
Moon unlocked her door and threw it open with wild abandon. The metal door slowed to a heavy stop just inches before hitting the wall, and already began its arc back towards them when Moon pushed past it and into her apartment. She held the door open for Gladion, who upon entering immediately kicked off his shoes and laid down directly in the center of Moon’s living room. Moon carefully guided the heavy door back into its place in the frame, terrified to wake her neighbors.
Gladion was staring at the ceiling, and the bare-bulb light fixture that hung there. It flickered occasionally, and each time it did, he looked Moon’s way, personally offended.
“Why don’t you just replace the whole thing? There’s no reason why your apartment should be this shabby; you’re the Champion of Alola.”
Moon pretended to step on him, and he faked being squashed without hesitation. “I happen to like my shabby apartment, thank you very much.” She went into the kitchen to grab snacks, and decided to break out the big guns: her homemade cold brew coffee. She brought the whole carafe to the living room, and Gladion lit up when he saw it.
“It’s been so long since I’ve had your coffee. I’ve been trying to get better at making it myself, but man, it has nothing on yours.”
“Well, you’re in luck, buddy. Have as much as you’d like.” She poured out two cups of the brew and set the rest on the coffee table beside the couch. “Maybe it’ll sober you up a bit.”
He rolled his eyes, but sat up and accepted the cup of coffee she held out to him. Moon made two more trips to the kitchen, grabbing all sorts of crackers and candy and adding them to the coffee table. Gladion was still on the floor, leaning with his back against the couch, holding his cup of cold coffee with a severe reverence.
Once Moon was satisfied that she’d laid out everything she wanted, she flung herself onto the couch and fluidly scooped up the TV remote in one swift movement. She switched over to her video player, which was already locked and loaded with The Garden of Phantump , and then readjusted the volume back to an acceptable level.
For a while they sat in comfortable silence, laughing occasionally at the cheesy special effects and awful writing. Halfway through the film, Gladion looked back at Moon and asked if she could tie his hair up for him.
“Still too much for you?” Moon teased. “The foe that could not be defeated, eh?”
“Shut up. I’m drunk.”
“It’s been hours, Glad.”
He said nothing, but she could tell he was sulking. He wordlessly handed up his hair band, and scooted so that Moon would be able to reach him properly. Moon sighed, but took the proffered hair band and started to gather up his hair into her lap. It was a mess from the boat ride earlier, tangled in some places and just plain out of place in others.
His bangs were always beyond saving, even when he’s at his most well-groomed, so that part wasn’t much of a surprise.
She carefully dug her hands into his scalp, and slowly ran her fingers through his hair, working through the tangles with practiced ease. He let out a pleased sigh and leaned further back into her touch. The sudden intimacy made Moon pause, and Gladion looked back to her with an eyebrow raised.
“Too weird?” he asked.
“No, I just wasn’t expecting it.” She resumed her ministrations until his hair was tangle-free and ready to be retied. “Your hair is actually incredibly soft. It’s kind of scary. Did you make a pact with a fairy Pokemon or something?”
“Nope. Despite what you might think, I put a lot of work into maintaining my appearance.”
She thought about his chronically-uneven bangs again and had to hold in a laugh. She gathered all of his hair up in one hand, and tied it with the other. Curious, she wrapped it into a bun and tied it in place. He reached back to feel her handiwork, and shot her a narrow-eyed look when he realized what she did.
He looked like a model. A young, female model. Moon couldn’t hold in the laugh this time, and covered her mouth when she snorted. He got up and towered over her menacingly. As menacingly as someone with a full bun could. Moon couldn’t stop laughing. She gripped her sides in her mirth, and Gladion leaned over her, trying and failing to keep a straight face. He placed both of his arms around either side of Moon’s head, and leaned in even closer, trying to intimidate her.
“If you don’t stop laughing right now, I’m gonna…” he trailed off, his face only inches away from hers. “I’m gonna-”
Moon’s laughter slowed to a light chuckle, and she leaned her head back against the couch cushion, tilting it upwards in defiance. “What are you gonna do, man-bun?”
He swallowed thickly, all traces of humor vanishing from his face. Moon could feel his breath on her cheeks, and it made her heart skip a beat. She’d never seen him this close before. His eyelashes were a mixture of both blond and brown hair. It was incredibly interesting.
His eyes fluttered closed, and before Moon could register what was happening, she felt the soft press of his lips against her own. It was quick. Barely a peck. He pulled back just a fraction of an inch, waiting for her move.
He was drunk. He was drunk, and she shouldn’t do this, but-
She curled her fingers around his side, and she felt him shudder at the contact. She closed her eyes and returned the kiss, letting it linger longer than the first time. He shifted, and she felt his knee sink into the cushion next to her. His hand came up to rest on her neck, and he kissed her again, this time with feeling. His lips parted for her, and she took the opportunity to pull his bottom lip in-between her teeth and give him a playful bite. He groaned at the contact, and she had to place a steadying hand on his chest before she completely lost herself in him.
They pulled away from one another, their breath shaky and their hands unsteady. They couldn’t go on like this. Moon couldn’t go on like this.
“Gladion, you’re drunk.”
“I’m not.”
“You said you were not even ten minutes ago.”
He opened his mouth to deny it, but saw the serious expression on her face, and dropped it. He pushed away from her, and decided to join her on the couch instead. On the TV, a group of children wandered through a misty wood, calling out for a playmate who disappeared there weeks before. Moon’s seen it half a dozen times, twice with Gladion already. This made for the third.
Gladion reached up and undid his bun, pulling it into a respectable ponytail before leaning back into the couch cushions.
They sat in an awkward silence for a moment before Gladion cleared his throat and said, “Hey, can we at least…” and opened up his arms to her, indicating the space next to him.
Moon nodded and scooted over to him, and he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close to his chest. She leaned back into him carefully, ignoring the steady warmth against her and how it made her feel.
He would probably deny this in the morning, or pretend it never happened. But for now, they held each other close, and watched scary movies and drank coffee and let the world be theirs.