Chapter 21: Ch. 20 - Date...?
I stood in front of the building, waiting while using my phone to pass the time.
"Dipper."
Soon, I heard a voice calling my name. I looked up from my phone, and there stood the person I was waiting for.
A woman in her thirties, with ample blossoms and a curvy body. Chubby but not fat, all the weight in the right places.
She was Vivian, the Caretaker of the Orphanage where I grew up.
Vivian and I shared a special bond as she was the one who found me.
She was also an orphan who grew up in that same orphanage, and when she was 15, she found me when I was abandoned at the doorsteps of the orphanage. Ever since then, she has been taking special care of me.
When she turned 18, she chose to take on the position of Caretaker of the orphanage and give up on the opportunity of leaving the orphanage.
"How have you been...?" said Vivian as she buried my face in her soft blossoms.
"Trying to do better." came my muffled voice from her blossoms.
Hearing me, she let go of my head.
"What about you?" I asked.
"Oh, same old same old, been busy taking care of the little rascals." she said, with exhaustion in her voice.
After the death of the previous Caretaker when Vivian was 23, she had been single-handedly looking after all the kids in the orphanage.
There was a time when I asked her why she didn't choose to leave the orphanage when she turned 18 and live her life.
In response to my question, she said that she had initially planned to do so, but the day she found me, something changed within her, and she couldn't muster up the courage to leave me behind.
"It must have been tough taking care of all the kids alone."
"It is exhausting, but I love taking care of them. They remind me of you." she said.
"You should take some time for yourself too."
"It's OK, I don't need to do that. And I feel lonely ever since you left the orphanage, so it becomes easy for me to distract myself and take my mind off of your absence by taking care of the kids."
Yes, She had an uncanny obsession with me. She loves me a lot and because of this the previous owner got scared and distanced himself from Vivian.
"I was so sad that you decided to leave the orphanage and live by yourself."
"You know, Vivian, that everyone older than 18 had to leave the orphanage."
"But I am the caretaker of the Orphanage, I can allow you to live there."
"Yes, I know that you can make exceptions, but it wouldn't be fair for others. And you have already helped me enough since I was a baby; I can't possibly hope for more."
"But..."
"No buts. You know that I always wanted to get into the real world and earn my living. And that is also why I called you today."
"What...? Did something good happen?"
"Yes, you can say that. Have you been following the latest news of Pokemon?"
"Yeah, but what does that have to do with you celebrating...?"
"Well, I achieved some minor advancement in the Pokemon world and also registered myself as an active player."
"Wait a minute, Are you the one who defeated the gym leader in the 'Kanto Region'...?"
"Yes, I am."
"Oh My God! Dipper, It's amazing."
"Yeah, Well, that and I received a monthly allowance from the 'Pokemon Union', so I thought of celebrating."
"So, What is the Plan...?"
"Well, I am thinking of going for a small dinner in a nice restaurant and after that, we could go for a walk and spend some time together."
"Sounds good to me."
"Then Let's go."
Me and Vivian called a taxi and went to a small but expensive restaurant which was a little far from the apartment.
By the time we reached the restaurant, It was almost 7 PM. We entered the restaurant and sat at a table by the window.
After ordering some expensive and fancy food that didn't justify the cost, taste, and proportion of the food.
With mixed emotions, we exit the restaurant after paying the bill.
"I was expecting to at least eat enough to fill my stomach, but the cost was so high." Vivian said.
"Sorry, I didn't know that they would serve so little under fancy names while charging so much."
"It's OK. Now at least I can say that I have eaten in a fancy restaurant, even though I didn't like it."
For a moment, we continued walking in silence.
To change the mood, I asked Vivian about her journey in the Pokemon world.
"Well, To tell you the truth, I didn't visit the Pokemon world after the first day."
"Why...?"
"Well, Most of my time I am busy taking care of the kids, and by the end of the day, I would be pretty exhausted. And you know that eating or sleeping in Pokemon world wouldn't affect your body in the real world."
On the internet, Similar to Vivian, many people had stopped after only visiting the Pokemon world once or twice.
Just like Vivian, each one of them had their own reasons. Some were family men who needed to earn for their families, where the monthly allowance from the 'Pokemon Union' was far from enough.
Others had similar reasons too; Ultimately they had to kill their dream of going to the Pokemon world for that.
"You know, you are missing out on a world of magic by not going to the Pokemon world."
"I already found my magic. In the joys of the kids I take care of." Vivian said with a soft smile on her face.
"Forget about me, Tell me about your journey." asked Vivian.
"Well, As you know, I have already beaten the gym leader of 'Pewter City' and have reached the next city, which is called 'Cerulean City'."
"I am training my Pokemon and will be challenging the Gym of 'Cerulean City' soon."
"Good luck. I hope you succeed in defeating the gym leader." said Vivian.
We continued walking and talking about various things. I was so engrossed in the talk that I didn't realize when Vivian's hand came into my hand.
I pretended that I didn't notice and continued holding her hand.
Soon, we walked past a small roadside food cart, and the smell of the food caught both my and Vivian's attention.
Since we hadn't had our fill, we decided to eat something from the cart.
After buying the food, we found a bench to sit on and eat. The food was many times better than the food we had eaten in that fancy restaurant.
We talked, laughed, and enjoyed each other's company, and before we knew it, it was almost 11 PM.
After eating, we took a taxi to the Orphanage.
"I am sorry, I didn't realize the time. You need to take care of the kids, and..."
"Sush, Don't worry. I already expected that I would be late, so I left someone in charge of the kids while I was gone."
"They must have already put the kids to sleep. So don't worry."
Soon, we reached the Orphanage. Getting out of the taxi, Vivian said.
"You should make some time and visit the kids; some of them miss you."
"Yes, I will try to visit as soon as I get the time."
"Alright then, Bye. Take care." said Vivian as she kissed me on my cheeks and walked into the Orphanage.
"Bye..."
After parting ways with Vivian, I climbed back into the taxi and went to my apartment building.
"Sign, That was exhausting." I said as I fell onto my bed.
Vivian was SoMeOnE LiKe a mOtHeR To mE, bUt I cOuLdN'T understand her feelings for me.
She had bEeN TaKiNg cArE Of mE EvEr sInCe I could remember, but as I grew up, hEr wAy oF TaKiNg cArE ChAnGeD.
Like the time when she barged in oN Me wHeN I WaS BaThInG To hElP Me cLeAn mY BaCk.
oR ThE TiMe wHeN ShE AlMoSt gAvE Me a *******.
[A/N - Since the story is from Dipper's perspective and in the current scene he is exhausted. So I decided to reflect that in the way of writing.]
"Oh well..."
"I will think about it later..."
"I am too exhausted to even think...."
And Just like that, I drifted into the sweet embrace of the night.
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A/N - Hello Everyone...
This chapter is different from all the other chapters I have written so far.
And I would like to ask for your opinions on this chapter.
Q1 - Was the chapter to your liking...?
Q2 - Any suggestions for the chapter.
Q3 - Anything Else...
That's All, Thank You.
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