if ezra thought he was going to escape doing rocket grunt shit, then he was absolutely wrong. there was never any escape for any of them until they got promotions. at least for now he was just dealing with glitch, something that was an absolute delight if he did say so himself. today they were supposed to do something with some ugly egg or something. he didn't read the job. he didn't care about the job. he cared about getting paid and harassing other grunts. it was a blast. "don't drop it Ezra Zeke! if you do it'll diieeeeeeeee." or maybe it wouldn't. he didn't know how sturdy a pokemon egg was after all. he didn't even like babies.

The wails from his left elicited a dreadful sigh. Glitch definitely wasn’t the worst grunt to spend his day with, but they definitely weren’t the best. They were brimming with chaotic energy, and well, Ezra was often caught off guard by it.

”Ahaha... noted.” He felt bad for his lackluster response, but he wasn’t quite sure how to react to this abundance of energy. They were just delivering eggs - nothing worth jumping around about.

Stretching out his lips into a tight smile, he looked over at glitch. “SoOoOoO,” he started, elongating the word just enough to give himself the time to figure out what to say next, ”Got any ho-" 

Pause. Like lightening caught in a bottle, Ezra's eyes zapped to life, lighting up his face completely. An idea had sprouted in his head. "Wait, actually, aren't you the new gym leader around here??" The question may've seemed random, and it was to an extent. But, like with all things, there was an obvious intention hidden behind each word. An intention to use this casual mission as a way to gather information.

There are no breaks for a successful reporter. 

ezra was fun to stress out, even if it wasn't that big of a deal or that much just the littlest hint of being on the edge was funny. at least to glitch. yeah he was kind of a terrible person sometimes, so what. he was nice enough to get by with it most of the time. gently he patted the little egg on what he assumed was the top since it was facing up. the pointy bit of the egg was the top, right? maybe. he couldn't ever tell. "mhm! the illustrious new leader of the mossdeep gym for the precision badge. ready to fuck things up for everyone." as far as he knew he was the only rocket gym leader at the moment which was a huge shame. more than anything he wanted to be able to fuck around and talk to people about it. but of course he couldn't. that was fine though. he had rocket friends to talk to about it. "are you looking to get a free badge?" he teased Ezra Zeke, knowing he was too good of a guy to actually want that.

As obvious as Glitch's tease was, Ezra instinctively tensed up, shoulders raised to his ears. "Ah- Nono, nothing like that aha..." His eyes glazed over to the ground below. Only after pointlessly defending himself did he realize the lack of intention behind their words. Spazzed out for no reason yet again. Dumbass. He shook his head before averting his eyes back towards the fellow grunt beside him. If he were to make a name for himself, he would have to press out the useless wrinkles of his personality - starting with his aversion towards initiation.

"Actually, I was wondering if I could ask a few questions about that? For an article." Briefly after pausing did he realize Glitch's possible confusion by his sudden suggestion. Not many knew of his life beyond menial grunt work, so, who was he to expect some random to automatically understand. "A-ah, you might be confused. Outside of all of this, I'm a reporter for Vantage. I usually do cutesy fluff pieces and interviews with local influencers," He offered a lopsided grin, "And, well, if you don't mind...I'd love to interview you about your sudden rise. Would make for a g r e a t addition!"

he laughed a little bit when Ezra Zeke tensed up, even though he knew he shouldn't have. "you're so cute ezra." and he meant it. if he wasn't hopelessly head over heels for another guy he might have even tried pushing his luck. but for now ezra would be safe from that sort of admiration from the new gym leader. "an interview would be fun! i've never been interviewed before. and the further along we can get your career in reporterhood the better it is for all of us." after all having a rocket work in the media would be a good thing. especially if he and Chu-e Choi got their plans under way. he'd have to ask the underboss about it though. after all they were supposed to be playing it safe.

Hearing Glitch's words awakened a festering feeling of fear within him. Any Rocket mentioning his job title always did. All it takes is for one suspicious set of eyes to start digging. All it takes is for one person to instill doubt. Then he's dead. "True, true." He forced a laugh up his throat. "I'd appreciate it either way."

Trees strode by as they continued to make their way towards the upcoming town. They were growing close to it's outer walls-- not too much longer now. "Maybe we could meet up later then? I would be free now, but..." He slightly lifted the nestled egg, gesturing towards it with both his eyes and chin. "This little guy needs to get home."

he'd completely forgotten that Ezra Zeke was out here doing a job. especially since glitch rarely did any sort of errand work that he used to. not when he was busy with all that gym leader stuff that he was now in charge of. it was so much fucking paperwork. no one had warned him about the paperwork. but he could deal with it as it came. after all he wasn't afraid of paperwork or whatever. "oh yeahhh! you've gotta deliver that little eggie safe and sound. and see! you were so busy talking to me you stopped worrying about dropping your precious cargo!" mainly because he probably had other things to worry about while carrying it. "you can show up to my room on the sub anytime." though he feasibly wasn't going to be able to stay there much longer. not with all eyes on him as a new gym leader.

Ezra's face entirely lit up in response to Glitch's words. Interview secured. Due to his life now revolving around his undercover mission at rocket, his actual career path had taken too much of a back seat these recent weeks. It was a good idea to spend time investing into his future some more - he had to get his name out there, after all. "Great, okay, awesome! I'll reach out to you soon then."

As their conversation unraveled, the sight of several cozy buildings began to populate their vision and the sounds of a buzzing town rippled through the air. Ezra first noticed the emerging sounds, then the scenery. A bittersweet feeling swirled in his eyes as he realized this meant their conversation was coming to an end -- for once, he was actually enjoying his time with a rocket. Just a little. "Ah, I think this is it." He looked back at Glitch. "I'll catch you later then, okay? See you around."

With quick farewell, the man picked the pace and sped towards the town's entrance, ready to finish up the delivery. The faster he delivers the egg, the faster he can get home to watch his favorite soap opera!

---

glitch maverick

Finishing it here! We can continue w a social tho ))

he gave a small wave as Ezra Zeke decided that it was time for them to part ways. he was absolutely sure they would end up meeting again though. especially since there were only so many rockets that could get in between them. "i'll see you later ezra! make sure not to drop that little egg!" otherwise his whole job would be ruined, wouldn't it?