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Once he was given permission to enter, he did so. He was half expecting the older male to be laid up in a hospital bed and was both relieved and surprised to see him simply sitting in what appeared to be a comfy chair. That meant he wasn’t too badly hurt, right? From what he could see, he only appeared to have an injured arm.
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“It’s no problem, really. I would’ve come sooner, but I’d only just learned that you turned back up,” he admitted.
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He did feel a bit bad that he hadn’t been able to come sooner, though considering how much of an anxious person he was, that was probably for the best.
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“As for work, it was fine; it was a bit weird knowing you weren’t there, but other than that, it was good. We all made sure to keep the place running smoothly in your absence.”
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He debated telling him he had been part of a search party for him, but couldn’t figure out a way to bring it up without it seeming weird. That being said, there was something else he was curious about. “How much longer are you going to be stuck in here?”[break] Josh Devlin

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[attr="class","header"]THAT’S HOW SUPERHEROS LEARN TO FLY

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His face heated up a bit at the praise. “It was really nothing. I’m pretty adaptable,” he explained, downplaying any kind of achievement he might’ve made like always. Though it wasn’t like he wasn’t telling the truth, he had to learn how to adapt to any situation when he was younger.
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It was good to hear he would be discharged soon, but he still felt bad for him. From the way he had spoken upon their first meaning, he could tell how much the older male loved riding Pokémon. Having to give that up, even for a bit, was too hard. He wasn’t sure if he would be able to be as calm about it as he was being.
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“That’s terrible. I mean, it’s nice that you’ll be able to get out here,” he pointed out, looking around like he half expected someone to barge through the door and tell him he had to be confined there as well. Resisting the urge to shudder, he turned his attention back to Josh. "Anyway, I can’t really say I envy you for being stuck here. I don’t like being treated at a hospital with physical contact and needles..."
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He trailed off briefly before mentally shaking himself. "Still, I’m sure getting your arm back to what it used to be won't last as long as you think,” he said, hoping to make his boss feel better.
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While it wasn’t overly obvious, it was clear he knew what it was like to be out of commission for awhile. After all, when your back is all torn up, it’s best not to move around until it’s been healed enough not to reopen the wounds.[break] Josh Devlin

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[attr="class","header"]THAT’S HOW SUPERHEROS LEARN TO FLY

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“I’m not a very confident person,” he pointed out with a small shrug. In a way, he envied most people. The people he tended to surround himself with were just so confident. And he was not. Of course, most of his issues had to do with his past, not that the older male would know that.
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At the mention of how many Pokémon he had, he simply nodded. Of course, he had noticed he had a large number of Pokémon. It was actually pretty impressive how many Pokémon he had.
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He supposed that was a good way to look at things. It was a whole lot better than moping around. Not that he could say he knew what that was like; he tried to see the good in a situation himself.
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That was another reason he didn’t like being talked about. He liked to keep himself occupied. “That’s understandable; I suppose that’s just when I find a good book to read. Still, I like keeping myself occupied in some way.”[break] Josh Devlin

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[attr="class","header"]THAT’S HOW SUPERHEROS LEARN TO FLY

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“Re-Really?” he asked, his voice a mix of surprise and curiosity. He hasn’t known that. I wouldn’t have guessed that there would’ve been a time where the older male doubted his abilities. He just seemed so confident. “I’m not sure I could do something like that. I wouldn’t even know how to go about doing something like that. I’ve just never had much confidence in myself,” he told the older male, it clear that he didn’t think he had what it took to become more confident.
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Talking about his struggles with confidence was, as one would expect, a bit awkward. He wasn’t really sure how to go about explaining it. Which was why when the conversation moved on to something else, he couldn’t help but be a bit relieved.
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At the mention of video games, he eyed the other with male curiosity. “Video games? That’s that stuff on a screen, right?” he asked, trying to remember what he’d been told about video games. Thinking about it, he realized it wasn’t much. It wasn’t ever something he had ever really been told about; basically, he only had basic knowledge when it came to video games.[break] Josh Devlin

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[attr="class","header"]THAT’S HOW SUPERHEROS LEARN TO FLY

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Yeah, messing up was what he was really scared of. While his friend had repeatedly told him what Val thought was a good form of punishment was wrong, that didn’t mean he wasn’t still worried. He knew for a fact that Josh and Val were nothing alike, but it was hard to shake fears he had for years. Something he had realized when it came to his phobias.
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That was only half of it, though. There was also the fear that a screwup might hurt someone. He would rather not have that happen. It was part of the reason he had struggled so much with the idea of Pokémon battling. However, his willingness to do anything to make his Pokémon happy was helping him get over that.
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“I guess,” he said, still seeming uncertain. Before the older male could ask about the uncertainty, he continued. “I just don’t like making people mad,” he commented, looking away, clearing talking about the part he had mentioned about failing.
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Talking about messing up was hard, so he was relieved when they were able to change the topic. Relaxing, he listened to what the older man had to say with interest. “That’s a lot of different options. It seems video games are quite popular. Though I don’t think anything could be better than books for me,” he told the gym leader.
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Perhaps he would still check out video games. His friend had mentioned liking some after all.[break] Josh Devlin

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[attr="class","header"]THAT’S HOW SUPERHEROS LEARN TO FLY

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It wasn’t like Beckett didn’t know his line of thinking was bad. He knew that thinking the way he did wasn’t the best way of going about things. That it spoke a great deal about insecurities. However, growing up the way he did made it hard for him to shake that way of thinking. Not that he would tell Josh that, even if he was more than willing to share private information about himself.
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It wasn’t that he didn’t trust the gym leader, because he definitely did. Even though he hadn’t known the older male long, he trusted him. But then again, he tended to trust others too easily. Being able to open up didn’t really have anything to do with trust but everything to do with fear. And fear was exactly what led to so many of his insecurities and made him struggle with how others may feel regarding certain things.
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He wasn’t fooled enough to think he was the only one to struggle with insecurities, but the fact the gym leader once struggled with his own insecurities was definitely a surprise. Josh just seemed so confident; it was something he admired about the older male. In a way, the gym leader’s confidence reminded him of his friend, though his supposed confidence wasn’t something one was born with but something one gained over time.
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“It’ll take time for me to not take mistakes to heart and not to feel I’m meeting someone down every time I make a mistake,” he commented, looking away. It would also take awhile for him to not feel he would get punished for every mistake. That even more scars wouldn’t be added to his collection of scars.
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At first he continued to stare down at his clasped hands, though by the time Josh had finished speaking, he was looking up but still wasn’t making eye contact. “I know it’s impossible to go through life without making mistakes and that making mistakes can be a good learning experience. But I still have these feelings; I’m just not sure how to get past it,” he admitted, fiddling with the long sleeves of his shirt.[break] Josh Devlin

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