The first time they battled, they were rival trainers, and nothing more.
Calem might have been a little jealous, sure. He and Clemont were around the same age, but the other boy had already gained such status as a formidable Pokemon battler and a genius inventor. People who had such raw talent... Calem was always a bit envious of them.
They fought a hard battle, but in the end Calem came out on top. Even after his loss, Clemont stayed calm and cheerful as he handed out the prizes. That kind of maturity from a kid who just bit the dust was something Calem had to admire. But other than that, he was just another gym leader. He'd done his job; Calem had his badge, and that was all he came for. He had no reason to hang around and chat, so he left. He didn't expect they'd talk to each other again after that, so he simply stashed the memory of their battle away and went on with his life.
However, it didn't end there.
Calem spent a lot of time in Lumiose City. It was right in the middle of Kalos, after all, so his path inevitably led him here on many occasions. And even though it was such a huge, winding city, somehow he ended up crossing paths with Clemont more than once. They met in cafes. They met in Pokemon Centers. They met on the streets. And every time they met, Clemont remembered him. Sometimes he had his little sister with him, sometimes he was alone. But he was always cheerful.
Sometimes he invited Calem to sit with him and talk. And, since he wasn't exactly busy, Calem agreed. Their interactions were stiff and awkward at first... they would talk about the news, about food, about standard small-talk topics. Though it was pleasant enough, it was still nothing more than passing conversation.
But it was when they started talking about Pokemon that they started to connect.
As they soon learned, Calem and Clemont both had their own strong opinions about how to raise Pokemon, and each of them were equally passionate. They got into complicated discussions and intense arguments about the most efficient ways to raise a Pokemon, sometimes getting heated enough to turn a few heads. And after many long debates, they finally decided they would have a rematch.
During that battle and all their battles afterward, they were friends.
Calem was almost invariably the winner, but neither of them really cared who the winner was. It was all about the fun of battling.
By then, they had started meeting up deliberately. Calem started intentionally taking detours on his journey to make a stop in Lumiose and visit. They started making plans in advance to battle or just hang out around the city.
Clemont tried to teach Calem about the art of invention and assembling machines, all of which sailed way over the trainer's head. To make up for it, Calem tried to teach Clemont how to rollerblade. The result wasn't pretty for either of them.
As they spent more time together, they started to learn things about each other beyond Pokemon battling. Calem learned about all of Clemont's wacky inventions, his favorite cafes, how reserved he was when not talking about science or Pokemon, his silly dream of going to the amusement park in Unova. He learned that Clemont and his sister lived by themselves, and that their parents were always busy with important research overseas.
"But I'm not lonely," he'd always say. "I've got Bonnie and all of my Pokemon to keep me company." And then he'd smile for emphasis. Calem never questioned it.
They spent their days sharing that kind of casual friendship. They hung out so much that their Pokemon knew each other like family. And Bonnie was always excited to see "Mr. Calem" whenever he was in town.
For a while, Calem thought he was content with this. But then his feelings started to change, no matter how much he didn't want them to.
He was thinking about Clemont all the time. He wanted to talk to Clemont all the time. When they were together, he got hung up over little things Clemont did and little details that nobody should care about. The way his face lit up as he took out a brand-new invention. His voice barely containing excitement as he fired of technical jargon explaining how the contraption worked. How much tinier he seemed to be when the two of them were side by side. And somehow, in the back of his mind, he swore that Clemont was looking at him differently too.
Calem tried to pay it no mind. But the feelings persisted, and the closer the two of them were, the more distressing the thoughts became. It was starting to scare him. He didn't know how to handle it.
So he didn't. He packed his bags that night and left town without telling anyone.
He set out to distance himself from those thoughts and their cause as much as possible. He knew what they meant, he wasn't stupid. He just didn't want them to exist, because he was fine with what he had and this would change too much. And he hoped that by the time he came back, they would have gone away. Once he was on the road, miles away from civilization, he was sure that would help him clear his head.
But even out there, he couldn't stop seeing the other boy's face and hearing his voice in his mind. He could barely even focus on training anymore. And he couldn't escape his feelings; they kept following him.
It didn't take long for him to crack. A week later, in the middle of the night on some remote mountain, he gave up.
In the darkness of his tent, he took out his holo caster and dialed a certain number, waiting impatiently for the call to go through. A tired face appeared on the other end, but quickly perked up after realizing who was calling.
"Calem, what happened? You disappeared without saying anything! We were really worried about you!"
Calem sighed. "I know, I know, I'm sorry," he replied tiredly, wincing at the bright blue light. "I just had some stuff to sort out."
Say it.
"It's fine, I'm just glad you're not hurt..." A smile on the other end. Clemont looked so relieved to see him...
Calem nearly ended the call right there. He couldn't handle seeing that face right now. But something stopped him.
Say it. Get it over with.
He took a deep breath. "Clemont, listen..."
As clemont looked at him expectantly, he steeled himself and prepared to say the words. He only intended to say a few words, but once he started the words came pouring out. He tried to explain everything, why he left so suddenly, where he'd been, what he'd been doing and what he'd been feeling since he left, and at some point he lost track of all the words he was spouting, but he was pretty sure the three words he needed to say the most were somewhere in there.
Clemont was silent for a minute, then simply let out a quiet "I see..."
A silence followed, which made Calem nervous and he quickly started to regret ever making this stupid call.
His finger was on the end call button when Clemont spoke again. "Please come back soon, okay? I want to talk to you properly."
"Sure," Calem nodded and quickly hung up. Once the holo caster was switched off, he put it away and heaved a heavy sigh.
Idiot.
...
Of course he had no choice but to go back now, so he turned his course right back around and went. As soon as he was back in the city he headed straight for Clemont's house. He knocked, and even though it was late at night, the door opened almost immediately and there was Clemont, his ever-cheerful self, to welcome Calem inside.
The place was dark and quiet. It seemed that his sister was already asleep. Now that they were standing here alone, Calem's first instinct was to start apologizing.
"Hey, I'm... sorry for being such a douche lately," he started hesitantly. "My mind's just been really weird lately and it's not your fault, it's just..."
He looked to the side as he trailed off. He tried to laugh dismissively, but it came out half-hearted, so he just stopped talking. He was just making himself look like more of an idiot with each passing second and he knew it.
Suddenly, he felt arms wrapping around his neck, and when he looked back, Clemont was right there in front of him, smiling.
"I think it's amazing that science has come far enough to let you say that to me from halfway across the country," he whispered, pressing closer to Calem, "but I believe that love confessions are meant to be made in person..."
With that, he pulled Calem down to his height and their lips met. Calem jolted, his brain not quite caught up with his senses, but he didn't get a chance to respond before Clemont pulled away.
Calem kept opening his mouth to try and form words, but nothing coherent came out. Clemont giggled and waited until he finally managed to stutter out a shaky "a-are you sure?"
"You and I have done so much together," Clemont replied, moving his arms from Calem's neck and instead wrapping them around his waist. "We're practically a family now. It doesn't feel right around here without you."
Calem was speechless, and for a moment he thought he might cry. Instead, he reached out, grabbed the smaller boy and hugged him tightly. Clemont just smiled, closed his eyes and leaned his head on Calem's chest.
They stayed like that for some time, until a high-pitched ring sounded from some contraption across the room. It snapped both of them out of their trance, and they moved off of each other before Clemont went to shut the machine off.
"It's late... we should get some sleep," he said after coming back. "I'm sure Bonnie will be thrilled to see you when she wakes up. She's been constantly asking me when you'd come back."
Calem nodded and took Clemont's hand as they went into the bedroom to retire for the night. And he thought to himself.
Somehow... this would be fine.
...
Things did change after that, but not in the way Calem had feared. He and Clemont still battled a lot. They still hung around town a lot. They still talked about nothing a lot. And of course, Calem still had a journey to complete, which meant he'd have to leave. But they were both fine with that.
Somehow, Calem thought, things had changed for the better.
After all was said and done, he had another family to come back to.
