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The New Normal - 5-10 - Interlude - Brock
🕑 Added 2023-09-20 06:29:50 +0000 UTCThe New Normal – 5-10 – Interlude – Brock
They were abandoned. Again.
He had just woken up one morning to find an empty bed with a note on it. There was no explanation written on it, other than a simple “I’m sorry.”
Brock didn’t even bother to show that letter to his younger siblings; he had just ripped it apart and disposed it before they could see it. He didn’t want to break their hearts any further. At least he could spare them from this.
Brock supposed that he should have saw it coming; his fath- Flint had been acting strangely over the past few days after they had announced the League inspections. But he had bought into his…Flint’s reassurance that they everything would be fine. That Flint could handle it. Brock now realized that he had just tricked himself into believing the lie.
Brock knew that the Gym wasn’t in a good repair, and that Flint’s management of it wasn’t exactly ideal. It hadn’t been in good condition ever since his…mother…left the Gym behind. But he had bought into the Flint’s lie that things were being handled and that no one had really complained, and that the other Gyms were in similar conditions.
He should have known better. Over the years, he had glanced at some of the paperwork that Flint accidentally left hanging around, and even though his young mind couldn’t understand everything, he knew that things weren’t running nearly as smoothly as Flint wanted him and his siblings to believe. But he ignored it, even when his gut was screaming at him to DO SOMETHING, because he wanted to think that everything was okay.
That he and his siblings could still be okay even without a mother.
But now, the illusion had broken, and Brock was forced to grapple with the harsh reality. Flint had abandoned his family, just like their moth-Lola did, leaving him and his siblings to fend for themselves, with only a ruined and failing Gym to support them.
At first, Brock remained optimistic. ‘It will be fine’ he told himself and his siblings, ‘I’ll just become the new Gym Leader and work to improve the Gym. I’ll make sure that everything will be fine.’ He lied to himself and the others.
However, he quickly realized the crushing weight on his shoulders when he arrived at Flint’s old office and began digging through the paperwork. That was if he could find the paperwork that needed to actually be completed! The office was in such a mess that it was as if Flint alone knew how to navigate it.
Files were organized without rhyme or reason and important documents were left scattered around randomly. Brock KNEW that they had just submitted these documents for review for the League inspectors, and if THIS was the state of the Gym’s paperwork, he could understand why Flint had panicked.
There was no chance in Arceus that this Gym would pass the inspection, not in the terrible state that was in. In fact, Brock swiftly realized that the situation was a lot worse than that. Since he couldn’t actually decipher Flint’s terrible organisation, Brock didn’t know the first thing about how to handle the administrative side of the Gym.
And to make matters worse, the Gym was behind in Pokémon acquisition for the first badge challenge too. The Pewter Gym still had a stockpile of Geodude and other common Rock types to use, but they would eventually grow too strong to handle the standard first badge challenge. And Brock hadn’t a clue where to acquire more, or where they would find the funds for it.
The other Gym Trainers and staff members around the Gym were of no use either. Brock KNEW that they were there only for the paycheck and little else; his attempts to befriend them over the years were met with cold nods and terse greetings. Brock was fairly sure that Flint garnered very little respect from them if at all.
Fortunately, the circuit was already well underway, meaning that the busiest periods had already passed. But, after spending the better half of an afternoon trying to understand the inner workings of the Gym and how to be an effective Gym Leader, he finally gave into despair as he realized that he couldn’t possibly hold the Gym together. Not like this.
And so, refusing to follow in Flint’s footsteps, he told his younger siblings about the disastrous state of the Gym and his inability to manage it. There was an outcry at that, and Forrest, as the second oldest, was angry at Brock for his ‘failure’, but Yolanda managed to calm him down. Still, the hurt and frightened faces of his siblings tore at Brock’s heart; it hurt him to see his younger siblings like this.
All he ever wanted was for them to remain a happy family…how hard of a wish was that? Why couldn’t his pare- Flint and Lola just understand that? Why did they have to run? Why would they abandon them like this? Why was he asked to stay at home to run the Gym instead of going on a journey? Why? WHY? WHY?!
But before he could lose himself to his rage and despair, he felt Yolanda’s small hands grasp his shoulders comfortingly. He opened his eyes and, seeing the worried expressions on their faces, let out a deep breath as he forced himself to calm down.
He couldn’t give up and react emotionally. His family was depending on him now, and he couldn’t fail them any more than the adults already had.
He gave off a small thankful smile to Yolanda before he started to go through his options one more time in his head. He couldn’t possibly run the Pewter Gym; he simply didn’t know enough to fix the myriad of problems plaguing it. And the Gym Trainers weren’t at help either-
“Can we ask for help?” His younger brother, Salvadore, asked. “Didn’t dad say something about that?”
“Oh, that’s right! He did!” Forrest exclaimed, “He was talking to me about how the Cerulean Gym might need to ask the League for help since they weren’t doing so great…I guess we aren’t that much different, huh.” He finished bitterly.
Yes, they could ask for help from the League. But to do so might cause them to lose ownership of the Pewter Gym if the League found them incompetent at running it. A part of him, the part of him that shared Flint’s pride, wanted to refuse immediately. Surely, he could run the Gym by himself, and therefore convince the League that everything was fine. They didn’t need to suffer through the humiliation of asking for help.
But, as he stared at the faces of his siblings, he threw away his pride. If they lost control of the Gym, so be it. He would not follow in Flint’s footsteps; his priority would always be to protect and provide for his family.
And right now, the best way to do that was to lower his head and ask the League for help.
A.N. This time we see Brock’s POV on Flint’s leaving. Parental abandonment is hard to write, and I REALLY hope I sufficiently conveyed Brock’s emotional state well.
I understand this was not the most pleasant of chapters, and I do apologize for that, but is some setup for the future.
BETAed by Allute! Cheers!
Comments
Odis
I hope there is punishment for abandoning post or something like that. Great story
Xylneir
Damn forced to be an adult. Guess thats how he was able to do almost everything during the journeys.
