000// Phone Post-O

[rivalsweetscent]

[Hello you have reached the phone of one Bulba.

You may leave him a VOICE MAIL, TEXT, or just CALL him. Leave the date and time and he will get back to you.]

Comments

[rivalsweetscent]

[Bulba sat back a little at that look. It was one that said the other knew him too well, and knew exactly what the Ivysaur's intentions had been. His frozen ears still possessed enough ability to flick back, though the unconscious gesture brought a sharp tingling sensation. Gosh. Fine. Bulba lowered his eyes again with a sigh, yielding.]

... All right.

[The unspoken promise that Vinnie would go with him was enough. He knew he couldn't keep the Venusaur out of the cold. It helped him think. He remembered that. Other trips were fine, but this one... This one was different. With the storm of negative emotions freshly released and at its rawest... This one had scared him a little.

He hadn't been alone. It would be okay. Slowly. Bulba would believe it enough for both of them.

Bulba took Vinnie's hand in his, carefully rousing himself to his feet.]

[punchtheflowers]

[Looking satisfied with this response, Vinnie rose as well. Their hand to hand contact was finally broken when he unfurled his fingers from Bulba's in order to dust off all the dirt still covering him.

As nice as it was, the moment was gone. With a task in mind now, it was easy for Vinnie to let go and focus away from his illusions - not thinking how the Ivysaur felt about the abrupt release.

When it was clear that wiping off everything was a lost cause, Vinnie straightened himself back up and glanced at Bulba. Though he said it before, words by themselves didn't feel enough for the gratitude he owed. Hell, he was starting to feel a little embarrassed for it. But he said it again, with more certainty, because he needed to.]

Thank you. For finding me.

[In perhaps more than simply the literal sense of the word.]

[rivalsweetscent]

[He hadn't been ready for it. There was a rush of nervous energy grasping his chest tightly as the Venusaur abruptly broke the contact. He wanted nothing more than to grab it back, but he knew very well that even if he did, it wouldn't matter. Reality had come crashing back without warning. The lie was over, and in its wake there was only a dull ache.

Even with all of his own reprimands, he had still let himself get caught up in all of it. He was a fool, and he had no one to blame but himself for the sting.

It felt that much colder now.

But still, Bulba managed to smile for him, small and genuine.]

You're welcome.

[He paused.]

... Thank you for letting me.