Ian sips at his styrofoam cup of fruit punch. "This tastes homemade."

Bella looks over at her brother, nodding. "It is. Principal Green made it herself. She loves to make new kinds of drinks. I think she even put lime in that."

"Good stuff." Ian takes another swig, leaning against the wall.

By now the energy in the room has died down. People have started leaving, the music has gone off, the snack bowls are empty. Lopunny notices the dance is over and the two of you stop playing around. At the end of the day you rub her ears and hear her coo.

"Hey, you done?" Ian calls out to you from the far side of the gym. You smile and dust yourself off, ridding yourself of the loud music and harsh lights from earlier. You rush back to Ian and Bella who are just enjoying their drinks and—luckily—the last couple snacks they could get a hold of.

Lopunny follows close behind you.

"How come I never got a graduation ceremony like that? They just handed out puzzles and muffins for us," you say, smiling.

Ian shrugs. "Tell me about it. They used to not give a flying Farfetch'd. Now they dump, like, a thousand bucks on these ceremonies."

"Quit complaining. You guys got to come, didn't you?" Bella looks at the two of you. Briefly to Lopunny but her eyes don't linger long. "Call it a redemption party for your lackluster graduations."

Ian laughs a little, amused. "Sure, sure."

Lopunny comes to your side and leans on your shoulder. She whispers her name in that old Pokémon fashion and shuts her eyes.

"That's the exact kind of reaction I'd be having right now if I wasn't drunk on punch," Ian says and finishes off his drink. "Sugar rush."

You hold Lopunny close to you, nodding to Ian and Bella. "Maybe we should head out. Party's over. Snacks are gone. It's almost midnight. Time to go."

Bella sighs. All her party energy is drained. "Yeah. Thanks for coming. I like spending time with you."

Ian patiently looks between you two, suddenly making a face but you don't acknowledge him. Not when you're having a moment with the girl you've had a crush on for a long, long time. And she said she liked spending time with you! A million thoughts race through your head but you try not to speak them aloud.

"Likewise," you tell Bella. "Let's do it again sometime. You and I could have a... a dance competition."

Ian's still looking at you two, eyebrows raised, lips in a smirk.

"Competition?" Bella giggles. "How about we just dance together?" She starts approaching you, clearly without a care for Lopunny who is still there on your shoulder.

Bella holds out her hand and pulls yours forward, fingers intertwined. Your heart skips a hundred beats.

"I'm not usually that social, not that open," she begins. "But dancing with you made me feel like a whole new person out there."

Your eyes go wide as Bella's face inches closer to yours. Ian is probably going to scream. Lopunny is still, but not asleep. The whole world moves a thousand times slower around you.

"Thank you," Bella says, and for an instant your lips connect. Only a split second of a life-changing kiss.

You can barely react as you see a glimmer of red by your shoulder.

"Freaks!" Ian laughs and runs for the gym door. You grumble, not quite wanting to face Bella right now so you chase after him.

"Don't run, coward!"

Behind you, Bella is laughing. And you realize you left Lopunny back in the gym as well. You didn't even feel her move away from your shoulder. How odd, you think.