He wanted to shrug Cian off. But then there was also something a little bit comforting about his friend consoling him after he got shocked.

Wait, he was the reason he got shocked.

"Yeah, yeah. Let's get to work. Maybe you'll get shocked this time."

He heard laughing behind him, and he turned to scowl at Cian, raising his hand to flip him off ever so graciously.

"Fuck you. I'm not doing that again. Let's get to work. Maybe you'll get shocked this time."

Great, now he's grumpy.

He saw someone walk out from the crates, tensed and ready for a fight. It looked like the stranger was also ready for a fight if it came down to it, since he had a pokemon out beside him.

Eli's Houndoom made a low growl, tail waving behind her as she waited for his word.

However, he noticed that the man held his hands up in surrender. Or to say that he was no threat. So Elliott relaxed, only a little bit. "It's okay, Enya." She sat down beside Elliott, keeping an eye on the stranger.

He looked back over at the stranger. "You here to help today?" he asked cautiously, narrowing his red eyes.

Elliott barely heard the other guy speak, too busy stomping ahead to lead to the nearest place that sold chicken nuggets since that's what this idiot wanted.

Why was he nice to people? He wasn't sure.

He did look behind him as he asked him a question. "I don't know. Jewelry, weapons, something pricey. Not less than a dollar," he said. "At that point, you should just go in the sewer to see if there's loose change dropped there. Or dive into a wishing fountain."

He spoke from experience.

Elliott noticed the Lioone hop in front of him, like he was stopping him to get attention. He tsked, but he knelt down to give it a few pets before picking it up. "Your stupid trainer's hungry. C'mon, let's go before he starves."

Elliott felt like he could hear everything amplified to a thousand, but of course that was because he was aware of the situation at hand. He refrained himself from giving Mint a look that said what the fuck, instead offering a smile that was definitely not the friendliest.

He needed to be careful.

The man grabbed them both by their waists, holding them close, too close, to him. If Eli wasn't posed, he'd try to break this guy's arm right now. But, he leaned into it instead, offering a laugh and throwing an arm over his chest to play with a button on his shirt.

"Well, we'll be in the back, so... don't keep us waiting too long, now." Elliott took one of the chips, holding it between his teeth rather seductively before blowing him a kiss and flipping the chip in his hand.

When they walked away, Elliott grimaced. "What a creep," he muttered under his breath, dropping the chip into the cup that Mint held.

"What?"

He barely got the word out when the Pikachu used THUNDERSHOCK on him, sending a coarse of electricity through him. He dropped the thing after a moment, shaking his hands and jumping around like an idiot.

"Fuck! That hurt!" He scowled at the Pikachu, who he swore stuck its tongue out at him.

Elliott snorted, raising his brow. He tilted Cian in the direction he wanted to go, shaking his head. "I don't care, bro. Didn't you listen to me when we talked about this before?" he asked.

He followed his gaze to the crowd of people. "I don't do well with new people."

The shattering noise startled him, causing him to let go of Cian's hand and stop dancing. "The hell was that?"

Elliott gave him a look. "C'mon, if you will give me money for it, I will do it." But his terms went slightly over his head.

Cian picked out his target, and Eli approached the mass swarm of Pikachu. "Hey, buddies. Let me see... you."

He managed to pick up the one Pikachu that Cian pointed out, and it stared back at him rather grumpily. "Look. He ain't gonna shock me," he said, looking back to him with his tongue sticking out of his mouth.

Clearly not looking at the Pikachu in his hands.

Elliott wasn't expecting that response. Okay, well, that wasn't fair.

Well, he also didn't have a boyfriend, so he couldn't exactly complain, could he?

"You're turning me off by mentioning the smell. No thank you," he said with a turn of his head, wrinkling his nose.

"Date? I told you that I was coming alone. No date for me, no sir."

There seemed to be constant shushing on the way to their destination because Elliott would not shut up on the journey. It wasn't his fault he couldn't control his voice.

And the fact he may have had some caffeine way too late at night to function at a normal level.

"How much you gonna give me if it doesn't electrocute me first?" he said, stepping forward to emerge from their hiding spot. "Bet I won't do it. Come on, how much?"

Elliott rubs the spot that Cian elbowed, shooting him a look. However, it was fleeting, since they were occupied beginning to dance together.

As two bros did.

"That's my line," he said, though he did what he was told, leading his friend to the tune of the song. Because who knew that Elliott actually knew how to dance.

At least a little.

"So, your boyfriend. How's tonight been? You getting lucky?"

The man looked at Mint, grinning wickedly. "I'll give you something special. Hell, I'll give you both something special later on tonight," he said with a wink, laughing giddily. On top of his gambling high, this man was probably highly intoxicated too.

He'd probably be easy to steal from.

"Oh, a treat, for us?" Elliott leaned in a bit, his chest brushing the man's shoulder. "I'd be thrilled." He blocked the man's view of the money on the table, giving him a view of his face instead, all smirks and raised brows.

A signal for Mint to subtly take the winnings away. "Would you like us to take your money away, somewhere safe? Perhaps we can count it for you, and send you some pictures..." He reached up to play with the man's bow tie.

He seemed almost flustered by Elliott's remarks. "Right, Clover?" he said, looking to Mint.

Elliott looked at the sky, seeing a Pidgeot flying through the sky with someone on its back. "What the-" Was that his company?

The person landed, and it took him a moment for it to click. And he felt like he wanted to die inside.

Her smile. Ugh. He felt like it was so fake, nothing real behind it. Just how he remembered when they were in school together. Fighting for first.

"Amelia." Elliott didn't address her by her nickname, instead greeting her curtly. "I guess."