Letting a drawn out sigh pass his lips, Falkner shifted his weight to a more comfortable position. He wasn't even really sure why he was standing there. After all, it was rather trivial if he thought about it. Coming there every Monday, waiting there for at least an hour, and then meeting up and talking to the poison-type Gym Leader for Arceus knows how long. In all honesty he barely knew the girl outside of there little 'meet-ups' (he dared never call them dates) and the occasionally get together at the Saffron City fighting dojo. He had thought about it often, probably more than he would deem necessary, but there was something about these visits that brightened up his Mondays.

Lazily, Falkner looked up at a clock that was hanging across from him and shifted his weight again. He had arrived here approximately fifty minutes ago, which means she should be here in about ten. It was the same every Monday. He would always come early just in case, and she would always arrive late. On one of the previous Monday's they had meet up he had asked her about it and she had replied cheerily that she was a heavy sleeper and that she usually never heard her alarm ring. Falkner, who was by all means a light sleeper and usually woke up at six every morning, didn't quite understand how a normal human being could sleep through an alarm ringing for an hour or more before hearing it. He then figured that maybe the noise would eventually just blend into the rest of the background noise, but that seemed pretty impractical as well.

"Staraptor. Star…"

Falkner threw a glance at his beloved Staraptor, who was currently sleeping on the shelf he was leaning on, and reached out to pet him affectionately. Though he was more of a relatively new addition to his team, Falkner still loved him greatly.

"She'll be here soon. I promise", he whispered more to himself then Staraptor, something he didn't realize until he'd said it. Was he worried she wasn't going to come? Why would she? After all, they had met up with each other every week for as long as he could remember. He knew he shouldn't worry; there was no need. The fact that for a moment he almost did though was what bothered him.

Before his thoughts could get to him any longer, the sound of quick footsteps caught his attention and he picked his head up to see who could possibly be running in a mall, but when he looked up no one was there. Falkner kept his gaze up for a few seconds more before shrugging it off and-

"Oi! Falkner, try looking this way!"

Jerking his head to his left swiftly, Falkner came face to face with the girl he'd been waiting all morning to see. And she was hanging upside from the ceiling. Typical.

"Good morning Janine. Thank you for that, that heart attack you just gave me", quickly, as to not let her see, Falkner wiped the surprise from his eyes and have the girl his usually welcoming smile. It was odd, he realized, how so few people actually saw him smile like that. And she was one of them.

Janine abandoned her place from the ceiling and joined Falkner against the shelf, her Ariados joining Staraptor on the various potions and poke balls that lined it. Making sure she wasn't to close to him, Janine stretched happily. Falkner watched her as she did so and could have sworn he heard her murmur, or maybe purr. Whatever it was, it made his cheeks redden.

"So, how's your week been", Janine chimed, her voice still immersed with signs of sleep.

"Well, it's been rather pleasant so far. Challengers come in every now and then, and when I'm not being challenged I have plenty of time to train", he took a quick breath and raised his hands up to settle them behind his head before continuing, "So, how about you? Gym running smoothly?"

"Of course! Though I haven't gotten probably nearly as many challengers as you. Probably because my gym isn't the first like yours, but I guess that makes each challenger a little more fun to fight".

As she spoke, Falkner nodded every now and then and kept his eyes on her. When the two met a stand still for words Falkner returned his arms to his sides and sighed deeply. This also seemed to happen whenever they met up. They would start a conversation and it would usually last a good few minutes before dying out. He wasn't particularly sure why, but he enjoyed these little moments of silence with her. It let each other enjoy the other's company without having to fret over what to say next.

Casually, Falkner glanced at Janine for no reason in particular. It wasn't usually like him to look at her just out of the blue, for he usually deemed it impolite, but there was something that was bugging him about her appearance today. It wasn't her clothing, they looked the same as they usually did, and it wasn't her face, which held a tiny grin and playful, lavender eyes.

"Janine", Falkner asked quietly. The poison-type gym leader gave him her full attention to show she was listening and then prodded him to get him to continue. "Well, not to sound rude, but why is your hair so messy this morning?" Falkner raised a hand to point out the obvious mess of purple hair that sat upon her head. Janine followed the direction he pointed in and smiled at the little gesture.

"Hehe, I didn't even notice that this morning. I guess I really did rush out of the house a little faster than usually", she stated humbly as she tried, and failed, to run a hand through her gnarly, purple hair.

"Besides brushing your hair, is there perhaps anything else you forgot to do this morning?" As if the rest of her body could hear him, Janine's stomach rumbled quietly. In her haste to quell her embarrassment, Janine grabbed her stomach to try and quiet the noise, but the noise Falkner was able to hear was enough for him. Grabbing one of her hands gently, Falkner urged her towards the escalator.

"C'mon, why don't we grab some breakfast? You can't properly start a Monday without it", he chided in a mock parental tone that only made the girl giggle as they continued down toward the first floor. Their Pokemon following as they went.

"Yes, mother", she called back in a mock tone of her own. Falkner's smile grew as he continued to lead her down and out of the mall.

As they sat in a booth in the back of a little café, Falkner glanced at Janine again. Not because something was bugging him. Not because they were exchanging meaningful conversation. No, he looked at her because he realized why he enjoyed his Monday's so much. He enjoyed them simply because he got to spend time with her. I guess you could say that's all he ever asked for.

I guess you could say I wrote this of boredom, or maybe it was more just because I'm having a writer's block with 'Ignorance wears an Apron'. Whatever the reason, hope you enjoyed it and sorry for the incredible shortness of it.