Meet Back Up With The Girls.

Doing your best to ignore the slight chill lingering in your mind, you make your way back into the lobby of the Seabreeze Bathhouse alongside Daniel. You’re thankful for the ever-cheerful boy’s presence, as his positive attitude makes it easier not to focus on the odd experience you just had. The two of you chat idly as you walk through the “tropically” decorated halls, moving past randomly hung life preservers and paintings of beaches, steps clacking against the tiled floors as you make small talk.

After arriving back in the lobby, you look around in search of the girls. There are only a few people in the room, so it doesn’t take you long to notice that the ones you’re looking for aren’t among them. “Looks like we made it back first.” Your friend remarks, and you nod in agreement as you reply.

“Yup. Guess we have to wait a-“

“Oh, you two are already here! Hello!” Comes Daisy’s voice, cutting you off and cutting your wait short. You and Daniel both turn to face her, finding her smiling at the pair of you, causing your breath to catch in your throat. You’re not sure why - maybe it’s because of the kiss earlier, or your friends teasing you about her - but the freshly-bathed woman looks absolutely stunning to you, even more so than usual. Her slightly damp honey locks perfectly frame her delicate features, her face is still lightly flushed from the heated water and her blue eyes sparkle happily as she looks at you.

With a small gulp you return her smile. “Hi Daisy. H-How was your bath?”

Continuing to gaze at you with a warm expression, she replies “Oh, it was lovely! Very relaxing, and we had some enjoyable conversation. Oh, and we met someone quite interesting as well! Right, girls?”

As the honey-blonde addresses the two younger girls, your attention is drawn away from her and to them for the first time since they entered. And both of them look… less than relaxed at the moment.

Blue seems incredibly tense, her furrowed brow, tense shoulders, and slight frown denoting her poor mood. She seems… angry? Irritated? Frustrated? Some form of upset, that much you're certain of, though oddly enough not one you can instantly identify. You’re more than familiar with “upset Blue” in all her various forms after so many years, but you don’t recall ever seeing her quite like this. And judging by the occasional sidelong scowling glances she’s throwing Kayla’s way, you feel like the Vermillion girl may have something to do with your rival’s strange mood.

Meanwhile, the skinny brunette is exhibiting a different type of tension; nervousness. She seems anxious, unable to stay still and fidgeting with the hem of her shirt, occasionally glancing towards the younger of the two Oak sisters. Their eyes meet at one point, and both quickly look away, faces flushed and troubled expressions deepening. “Y-Yeah, it was a lot of fun!” Kayla stammers out as she turns away from Blue, making an attempt at a smile.

This only seems to worsen the sandy-blonde’s mood. Her frown sets further into her face, and a mumbled “Mhm…” is the only response she gives to her older sister’s words.

You exchange a quick glance with Daniel, but the muscular young man just shrugs at you. Neither one of you has any idea what’s going on between those two right now, but you know it’s odd. You’d expect them to either be excitedly chatting with Daisy or sniping at each other like they normally do in this situation, but they’re both just… quiet. It’s awkward.

As confusion passes over your face, the eldest of the girls catches your eye. You see a faint bit of humor twinkling in her beautiful crystal-blue eyes, and she gives you a quick wink, before speaking once more. You raise an eyebrow at her, before she goes on talking about what had happened in the women’s bath. “Yes, it was a lot of fun. Blue and I got to know Kayla a little better, and vice versa, and we met someone famous. The Abyssal Diva!”

The name means nothing to you, however now it’s the Vermillion boy’s turn to raise a brow. “Oh yeah? I’m pretty sure I’ve heard of her before. Big shot actress and singer, yeah? What was she doing here?”

“Taking a bath, dumbass.” Blue mutters under her breath, just loud enough to be heard, still averting her eyes from the rest of the group.

You see one of Kayla’s green eyes twitch, and she grumbles in response. “You literally asked her the same thing.”

The younger Pallet girl proceeds to spin and glare daggers at the brunette, but then simply huffs wordlessly in response. Meanwhile her sister chuckles softly, before continuing to share. “Yes, apparently she has an attachment to this particular establishment. She was here with a friend of hers, and the two of them spent some time chatting with us.”

“Yeah, after they caught little miss wandering eyes over here leering at them.” The Vermillion girl says with a smirk, jabbing a thumb in the sandy-blonde’s direction.

The brown-eyed young woman bristles, openly glowering at Kayla. “Hey, they were cool with it! And, may I remind you, that ended up with getting to grope some awesome titties! Which I’m sure you’re just jealous of!”

“Ayo?”

Daniel’s reaction elicits small bits of laughter from you and Daisy, but his now-irritated **** is too busy shooting back to laugh. “Yeah, you did get to have some fun, didn’t you? So much that it left you super hot and bothered, and I-“

“YOU BE QUIET!” Your rival loudly interjects, catching you all by surprise and drawing stares from the other people scattered about the bathhouse lobby.

Whatever tension that exists between the two girls that had been keeping them from their usual barbs seems to have flipped. The two are openly glowering at each other now, hackles raised and fists clenched. You and the buff blonde exchange looks once again, and once again he just shrugs at you, as uncertain as you are about what’s going on or what to do about it.

But at least one member of your group seems to have an idea. “Hush, Blue. You’re making a scene. And Kayla, there’s no need to provoke her like that.” The elder Oak says firmly. “Now, apologize to one another.” She lays a hand on either girls’ shoulder, squeezing gently and giving them both a stern, sisterly staredown.

Kayla wilts under her gaze, instantly starting to mumble out an apology, but Blue -who is far more used to her sister’s usually vain attempts at calming her- has other ideas. “She’s the one who started it! I’m not apologizing for anything!” She insists, stamping her foot and crossing her arms in defiance.

This sparks a resurgence of resistance from the brunette, eyes flaring with indignation. “I started it!? In what world did I start any of this!?”

Before the younger Pallet girl can retort and enter another shouting match with your friend, her sister steps in once again. “Enough.” The blue-eyed young woman’s single word is sharp, so much so that both younger girls stop in their tracks this time, and you and Daniel flinch, even though you haven’t done anything.

“S-Sorry, Sis…” The sandy-blonde says sheepishly, her fiery anger finally doused by her sister’s icy tone.

The green-eyed girl also stammers out a quick apology, after which Daisy sighs. “Honestly you two, bathing together really should bring people closer. I was hoping it would help you two get along, especially considering how close you two got.” As the two girls’ faces both go bright pink, you and Daniel both blink in surprise, with the latter sporting a massive grin. Daisy, without giving anyone a chance to interject, continues by saying “But, if that wasn’t enough for you two to settle your differences, then we’ll just have to lean on the usual way trainers do things.”

“Huh?” The younger Oak seems confused for a moment, but you see comprehension flash over the Vermillion duo’s faces instantly. And you understand what the honey-blonde means as well, what her words imply… Earlier, you and Daniel had discussed who you thought was the most likely to snap between Kayla and Blue, who would challenge the other first. But, as it turns out, there was a third option neither of you would have even considered considering, it’s so unexpected. Yet Daisy’s next words bring it into reality.

“Blue, Kayla. I think the two of you need to have a battle.”