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...I seem to be using the word 'awkward' quite a lot these days.

Not that I'm illiterate or anything, I know other adjectives that can describe the situations I've been put in, but really, no other word describes it quite so well.

From the moment I stepped out my front door that fateful morning, that's all I've been feeling; not sad, not angry, not scared, hell, I haven't even been all that sympathetic about it. I was just horribly,horribly uncomfortable.

From my awkward meeting of Allen and Rori, to getting chucked into a murder case, to becoming temporarily responsible for a six-foot-seven canine that I didn't even want in the first place, to receiving an illegal job, even getting ear-fucked by a Bluetooth that turned me into a damn dog whisperer...nothing, absolutely nothing, compared to this.

Sitting at my dining room table with the family of my dead acquaintance after I've been taking care of their, shall we say 'orphaned' pokemon, that I can talk to but they can't...the only thing that would make this worse is if I was using Allen's dead body as a centerpiece.

...God that was gruesome...what the fuck is wrong with me?

"Anyone want some coffee?" I asked, needing to get out of this room for a moment. I was tired, uncomfortable, and had a rather impressive headache brewing, so I needed a breath of fresh air and something to calm the nerves.

Both of the adults politely declined and the little girl wrinkled her nose at the suggestion.

"Alright, I'll just make some for me then. I'll be in the kitchen. Then we can talk about...whatever it is you're here for."

As if I didn't know already. I added mentally. They didn't have to say anything, really. I knew very well why they were here. There's only one reason why they would be here...they were here for Rori.

I didn't even mind in the slightest. Granted, she wasn't the pain in the ass I thought she would be, but my position still stands at "I don't want to live with a pokemon." If they wanted her back, I say by all means. It means I finally get some sleep. It was the small talk part that I was dreading. No doubt they'd be wondering why some random man who they've never met before is taking care of their son's pokemon. "how do you know Allen? Why was she given to you? Is it true that you saved her?"

Ugh...I'm cringing just thinking about it.

I entered the kitchen and began filling up the coffee maker, rethinking the situation a bit as I remembered the look on Rori's face. That look of pure terror and sadness. I've seen her depressed almost the entire time I've known her, but that look I had only seen once before...at the scene of the crime.

I won't pretend to know about psychology, but that couldn't be good for her. Going back with them, seeing Allen in their faces every day. I know she was supposed to cope with his death, but that's just not the way to do it.

I know after my dad...well...step-dad, died of a heart attack, I couldn't even look my mom in the eyes for a few weeks. If a heart attack can do that to me, I can only imagine what kind of shit must be going on in Rori's head right now.

I took the coffee pot and poured myself a big mug, letting the smell of hazelnut waft up my nostrils and flood my senses. Already, I could feel myself relaxing. Such a marvelous invention, coffee. It's the only drink that can hype you up and calm you down at the same time.

I took a big gulp and shrugged. It's not like she would choose to stay with me anyway. Between her family and a guy she's known for a little over a week, she'll choose family...that's what I would do, anyway...no matter how fucked up they are.

I entered the dining room again to find only Mr. and Mrs. Kirk still in the room. "Where are..." I began, but trailed off as I caught sight of the other two on the back porch through the window. The little one, although harboring a sad look on her face, was petting down the large canine rather furiously and it was obvious that she missed her, but Rori just sat there like a big, fluffy statue, staring off into space.

"We sent them to play outside for a while." The father, Eric, explained. "My wife, Kate, and I both agree that it's not best to bring up Allen in front of Paula...or Rori for that matter."

"Yeah...that's probably better." I agreed as I sat down again. "So...uh...what did you want to talk about?"

Just get to the point, just get to the point, PLEASE just get to the point.

They glanced at each other before Kate started. "Well...first we just wanted to say thank you. We talked to the police chief and she told us your part in...in what happened."

I sighed, knowing that this wouldn't be a grab and go type deal. This was going to be a long sappy talk with possible crying outbursts. Still, I nodded, eager to get it over with.

"Well...it was no problem at all..." I said, unsure of how to respond. I was never good at accepting compliments, mostly because I don't get many. Insults...now insults are easy. Just a cocky smirk and a snarky comeback and I can easily turn it around, but a compliment? How does one respond to flattery? I always felt that nodding absentmindedly worked the best, but sooner or later I was going to have to start talking again.

"No, really." Eric chimed in. "One of the officers at the station filled us in on everything that happened. If you didn't step in then she...well...she probably would have been taken to the clinic."

"Um...yeah, most likely. But...really, I wasn't really thinking about it, I just..." I trailed off when I realized explaining it my way would only serve to worsen their opinion of me. So I kind of just waited for them to start again.

"So...um...how did you know Allen and Rori?" Eric began, trying to restart the conversation.

"Well...I really didn't. We only just met that day...Rori bowled me over on the sidewalk by accident and Allen bought me a cup of coffee to apologize. I guess you can say we were acquaintances, but we had only just briefly met."

"Just met," Kate repeated, as if bewildered by my statement, "they handed her over to you when you only just met?"

I chuckled despite myself. "Well it wasn't handing over so much as it was shoving into my lap, but-" I stopped as I realized they were both staring at me with confusion and a little bit of surprise.

"Oh...no no no." I said, holding my hands up in defense. "I don't mean it like that. Rori's a sweet girl and I love having her around the house." I paused for a moment, surprised that it wasn't just bullshit I was spewing and I was telling the truth, but continued. "It's just that I wasn't asked if she could stay with me so much as told she was going to living with me for a few days."

"So...you and Rori are...close?" Eric asked, seemingly a bit disappointed.

"Well, I wouldn't say we're best friends or anything, but yeah we've-" I stopped, realizing my mouth was running and we were just dancing around the subject that really mattered here.

"Look," I continued, "if you want to take her back, that's fine. I have no right to stop you and so long as Rori is willing to go back with you, I'm not going to fight it, but can we please cut this horribly uncomfortable small talk, because frankly it isn't getting anywhere and, with my social skills, it can only go downhill from here...trust me."

There was a long silence as they stared at me, shocked. What can I say? I have that effect on people. I know it was blunt and they were probably looking for some sort of polite way to bring it up, but all of this chitchat was just avoiding what they came here for and worsening their opinion of me the longer it went on.

They looked at each other and then back at me before Kate spoke. "Well...we...we would love to have Rori come back with us-"

"But," Eric interrupted, "Not at the expense of her well being If she really is getting better like you're saying, we wouldn't want to do anything that might change that. I can imagine that she'd want to move on and...living with us...well..."

"The point is," Kate cut back in, "that we won't force her to do anything that she doesn't want. If she's happy here with you, fine, but we just want her to know that she has the option to come home."

I leaned back in my chair as I took that in. I wasn't expecting that, really. I thought they were just trying to be polite, but their questions now seemed like they were trying to get a read on how she liked it here. Seems I underestimated them, but what can I say? In the world we live in, it's more often that a pokemon wouldn't get a say in the matter, so no one could blame me for jumping to that conclusion.

Hearing their real intentions was actually kind of refreshing, although it did raise a question. "Then why isn't she in here for this?"

They just stared at me with a blank expression for a few seconds, so I continued. "She's a big girl, she can handle a grown up conversation and if this really is her decision, then you should go out there and ask her what she wants. Seriously, I'll even give you some alone time with her if you need it, but dragging out an awkward conversation with me isn't getting anyone anywhere."

They both hesitated before Eric spoke up. "Well, we thought it would be better if you tell her."

"Excuse me?" I asked, not believing what I just heard.

"Well," he continued, "It's just...we don't want to feel like we're forcing her to do anything and with the wa she's been reacting towards us so far...we just feel that she might take it better from you."

I blinked for a moment, confused about their logic. Why would she take it better from me? If anything, I think she would want to hear it from her family...unless of course they don't get along...which...would actually make sense with how emotinless she is around them right now. I mean, I've seen her depressed before but now she's just...dead. That's the only way I can explain it. In which case, asking me to tell her would just be...oh you sneaky little-

"And by 'she'll take it better from me', you mean she'll be more likely to go with you."

Kate scoffed at me. "I beg your pardon."

"Don't play dumb with me, it's just basic psychology. If I tell her, it'll seem like I'm trying to kick her out, and if you tell her, it'll seem like you're trying to take her away. You know, shoot the messenger and all that jazz." I explained.

"How dare you-"

I cut her off. "Yes, yes, how dare I accuse you of such a thing? I've heard that one before, believe me. If you want me to tell her, I'll tell her, but don't try to bullshit me."

I got up and walked out of the room before they could get another word in and headed to the back door, where Rori and the kid were still waiting, but paused before I went through.

...maybe that was a bit of a snap judgment on my part. After all, it's a tendency of mine to always assume the worst of people and in hindsight, what I just accused them of was rather childish and petty. I looked back towards the dining room and debated whether or not I should go back and apologize, but decided against it. The real question was why I even cared.

A week ago I would have gone along with this without a second thought just to get Rori out of my hair...hell...this very morning I would have gone along with it. So what changed? Why did I just call them out on something that probably wasn't even going through their heads?

My hand instinctively went up to my ear as my fingers ran over the answer to my question.

Now that I had the translator...I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to talk to her more. Whether that was personal interest or just scientific curiosity, I don't know, but even if it was from a scientific standpoint, I wouldn't want to just go up to a random pokemon and begin a conversation. I was somewhat-however small the extent to this might be-comfortable around her, and it would be easier to talk to her than anyone else.

I pondered this for a small moment, but then shook it off, reminding myself that it wasn't my decision. It was hers.

I opened the door as both the little girl and oversized canine turned to greet me, the latter of the two looking at me pleadingly, though I didn't quite know what the implication was.

"Paula, you're parents need to talk to you inside."

"Ok," She chirped happily as she grabbed a fistful of Rori's mane, "Come on Rori."

The arcanine begrudgingly stood up to follow her before I placed a hand on her back. "Actually, just you, Paula. Rori needs to stay out here with me."

The child frowned and pouted. "Aw, does she have to?"

"Yes. Now run along. You're parents are waiting."

Her head drooped down as she slowly trudged inside, leaving the door open behind her.

"Thanks." Rori muttered under her breath.

"Don't mention it...sit down for a minute, we need to talk."

She nodded and did so as I pushed myself up onto the railing of my front porch, the slight boost in height leaving us at eye level. I took a deep breath, not quite sure how to start, before just beginning anyways.

"Are you okay?" I asked, surprised that those were actually the first words out of my mouth, but didn't pay them much thought otherwise.

"I'm...fine." She said as if debating that simple answer over in her head.

"Liar." I simply stated, eliciting an exasperated sigh from the canine, but not an actual response, so I continued.

"I mean, you'd think you'd be just a little bit happy to see these people. They obviously care about you, so what's the matter here."

"They're..." she mulled it over in her head looking for the right word for it, "They're hypocrites."

I quirked an eyebrow at that. "How so?"

"Well, they're nice people. They really are. And they say that they consider me part of the family, but...they treat me like a pet." She breathed deeply as she continued her explanation. "They always acted like I was a child that didn't know any better. If I made a mistake they wouldn't let me try to explain it or anything, they scolded me saying 'bad dog' and shoved me in a corner. At least..." Her breath hitched a bit but she moved on. "At least Allen did his best to try and treat me like an actual person, although...that was a little hard with all the barriers between us, but he gave an honest effort and tried to communicate with me. But the rest of them...the only reason I could ever stand the Kirks is because of Allen and...now that he's..."

She began sniffling as I realized that she was about to start crying and I instinctively reached out to put a hand on her head, stroking through her thick, bushy mane to try and calm her down. It worked to some extent, as the tears building up began to recede, but she was still depressed looking.

"I'm not stupid." She finally said, making me furrow my eyebrows in confusion. "I know why they're here. They're going to take me back right?"

I retracted my hand feeling that my job of comforting was over, but her head followed and she leaned against it, subconsciously telling me to keep going. "Well...they said it was you're choice, and they're really right. Technically, whoever owns your pokeball has custody." I explained, taking out the small red and white orb that Jen had brought over to me the day after I took her in. She said she took care of the paperwork and that legally, she was mine until we figured out permanent living arrangements.

"So," I began again, "They can't force you to leave if you don't want. Then again, I'm not going to force you to stay here if you don't want either, so, yeah, it's your choice."

She breathed a sigh of relief and then leaned into me, although I controlled myself from spazzing out this time. Instead, I just drummed the fingers of my free hand against the wooden railing uncomfortably.

When a considerable amount of time seemed to pass, I felt the need to ask. "So...what do you think?"

"I...I don't know." She responded honestly as she finally stepped away to a comfortable distance. "I...I don't really want to go back with them, but...like I said, I'm not stupid. I know you don't really want me here."

"Well..." I started, almost about to deny that last statement. However, there was some truth in what she was saying. I meant what I said about not wanting a pokemon living with me, but, at the same time, for whatever reason, I did enjoy speaking with her...for however short a time that might have been.

"...that's neither here nor there." I finally answered, not wanting to confirm or deny it when I didn't even know the answer myself. "Just focus on what you want, ok. I'm not going to kick you out or anything if you say you don't want to go."

"So I was right, you don't want me here." She didn't seem hurt by it, but rather stated it like it was a simple matter of fact.

"I didn't say that!" I defended, feeling a bit guilty.

She tilted her head in confusion. "So...what are you saying exactly?"

"I'm not saying anything. I'm just trying to tell you that this is your decision, not mine."

She huffed, getting a bit annoyed. "I know that, but it's a simple question, really?"

"No it's not." I countered. "Because depending on what I say, it's going to affect you're decision, and I don't want that."

"So what," She began to shout as she was obviously getting very frustrated with me, "if it makes it easier for me to choose, than why not just answer the damn question."

"Because," I groaned, getting a bit irritated myself, "then I'd just be making your decision for you."

"You're not making it for me! You're _helping _me make it!" She growled. "I'm not going to stay anywhere where I know I'm not wanted, so I'm not choosing anything until you give me a clear answer."

I grabbed at my hair in frustration. "What do you want from me, Rori? I'm not your owner, I'm not your master, I'm not your partner, and I'm not your friend, so does it matter what-"

I stopped as I realized what I just said and snapped my head up to gauge her reaction. Her eyes were wide, jaw partially dropped in a pained expression as if I had just slapped her in the face. After all, I might as well have. For once, I actually needed to apologize.

"Rori...I...I'm sorry, I didn't-"

"Stop," she interrupted, her voice now cold and emotionless as if she were talking to the Kirks, "...just stop. You meant what you said...that's fine...it just gives me the answer I was looking for."

A feeling swept over me that I wasn't quite familiar with, but it felt horrible all the same. I opened my mouth to say something else, but it felt like I had been punched in the stomach and I had the wind knocked out of me.

"I...I..."

She didn't give me a chance to respond but turned and walked back through the still open door.

"I'm sorry" I murmured under my breath as I watched her turn around the corner, and I finally placed a finger on that horrible feeling.

My God...I feel guilty. Quite frankly, I'm used to always being right. I know that sounds arrogant, but it's not, because it's true. I might second guess myself sometimes, but I've never fully regretted anything that I said...not like this anyway. Not to the point like I feel like I have to apologize for what I said. I mean I knew I was a bit of a jerk, but this is the first time I actually felt like a jerk.

I glanced through the window at Rori and the Kirks, all of them huddled around each other in a group hug. She has made her choice...the wrong choice...and I was the one that pushed her toward it.

...me and my big mouth.