The arcade was a riot of noise and light, a chaotic symphony of beeps, buzzes, and synthesized music. The air was thick with the smell of popcorn and cheap plastic. Eliana weaved through the crowds of teenagers and young adults, her eyes scanning for a familiar face. She spotted him near the back, hunched over a dance game, his movements sharp but enthusiastic.
Gabriel, a tall teenage boy that had a head full of dark red hair and light blue eyes. He was pretty much the complete opposite of her, a ray of sunshine in her self-made darkness. Gabriel had also become, much to Eliana's surprise, one of the few people she genuinely liked.
"Hey," Eliana said, tapping him on the shoulder. He was so absorbed in the game he hadn't noticed her standing behind him. "You're getting better, but you missed a beat there."
Gabriel flinched, almost losing his rhythm. He finished the song with a flurry of frantic steps, earning a "B" rating. He turned to her, a wide grin on his face.
"Eliana, you made it!" he said, his voice buzzing with energy. "And don't lie, if you hadn't scared me I would've gotten near-perfect score and you know it!"
"It was okay," Eliana said with a shrug, a teasing glint in her eyes. "So, what's this super duper important thing you had to show me? Did you finally beat that boss you've been stuck on for a week?"
Gabriel's grin widened, a flicker of pride in his eyes. "Better," he said, grabbing her arm and dragging her towards a much louder corner of the arcade. "Much, much better."
He stopped in behind a large crowd in front of the prize counter. And slowing began pushing to the front, he hand was tightly gripping Eliana's so he wouldn't lose her. Although he didn't acknowledge it much, Gabriel was abnormally strong due to his training and had no issues getting to the front.
"You've got to be kidding me," Eliana staring back at the crowd with disbelief. There was never this many people in the arcade, mostly due to the fact that there were multiple in the city. "Is this crowd what you wanted to show me?"
"Not exactly," Gabriel laughed, before pointing to a flyer "Look up there!"
Eliana turned her head to look up at the paper on the wall. It was informing them about an upcoming competition. And it wasn't one she was expecting since, aside from the prize it had nothing to do with gaming since it was battle competition. The poster, with its glossy, professional design, was advertising the "Gamer Cup." An annual competition for trainers that played video games, sponsored by the Arcade itself. The winner got a nice sum of money and a free pass to game for the year. The format wasn't actually gaming however, it was double battles between the competitors.
Eliana hadn't heard of the Gamer Cup, mostly since this seemed to be exclusive to this specific arcade. She didn't come here too often, but it would be nice to not pay when she did come. Seemed her training with Gabriel would come in handy.
"The sign-ups are today," Gabriel said, his voice vibrating with excitement. "We have to do it, Eliana! You and me, I feel like we know each other's battle style quite well! We could win! It's a tag-team competition, so I've never been able to enter before."
Eliana looked from the poster to Gabriel's eager face. He was practically bouncing on the balls of his feet, his eyes shining with a hopeful, competitive fire. She saw the passion in him, the pure, unadulterated love for the sport of battling. It was a foreign concept to her, Eliana saw battles as a means to an end, a way to test her strength and dominate her opponents.
But for Gabriel, it was something more. It was a game, a challenge, a way to connect with others. He was so different from the people she was used to. Different from the cutthroat students at Sabrina's gym, different from the predators she'd encountered in the alley.
And he was asking her to be his partner. "Okay," Eliana said, the word coming out a lot softer than she intended. "Let's do it."
Gabriel's face lit up. "Really? Awesome!" He grabbed her hand again, pulling her towards the registration table. "Come on, let's sign up before we change our minds!"
The registration process was surprisingly simple. They just had to write down their names and their chosen Pokémon for the competition. Gabriel, without a second thought, wrote down Hitmontop, Machoke, and Riolu. His Machop had recently evolved during his training at the dojo. Eliana looked at the rules for a moment, just to confirm there were no restrictions. And there weren't any so she happily registered all three of he Pokémon.
Raichu was a no-brainer. Her speed and power were unmatched, especially in the chaotic environment of a double battle. Starmie was also a strong contender, its diverse move set making it a versatile and dangerous opponent. Her Kirlia, so close to evolution, so eager to prove himself. He was refusing the stone until he had learned whatever move he was trying to get down.
"We're going to wipe the floor with the competition!" Gabriel declared, looking at her list.
"I know." Eliana said, a confident smirk on her lips.
Gabriel blinked, before asking her "So, when's our first battle?"
"In three days, all competitors have to be at the arcade before Eight am," Eliana said, her eyes already scanning the details posted on the wall. "We also need to come up with a name, the rules say it has to be gaming related."
"Oh yeah, what are you thinking?," Gabriel said, a competitive glint in his eyes. He was already in game mode, his mind racing with possibilities.
Eliana thought for a moment, her mind sifting through a thousand different titles. Then, a sly smile spread across her face. "How about 'No-Clip'?"
Gabriel stared at her for a second, before breaking out into a wide grin. "No-Clip? That's brilliant! It's like we're walking through the competition! I love it!" He then scribbled it down onto the registration form, much to the amusement of the person at the table.
"You guys are going to be a tough team to beat," the man behind the counter said, a knowing look in his eyes. He had seen countless pairs come and go, but there was something different about these two. They had a certain spark, a certain synergy that couldn't be taught.
"We'll try," Eliana said, her smile unwavering.
With their registration complete, they were free to go. Gabriel was still buzzing with excitement, his mind already planning their training strategy. "Okay, so we should focus on our synergy, you know? Like, we should practice our double battles, work on our combos, and…"
Eliana tuned him out, her mind was already elsewhere, strategizing, analyzing, planning. She was thinking about the other teams, their potential Pokémon, their strategies. She was thinking about how to win, not just for the prize, but for the sheer thrill of it.
"Oh yeah, and what about Sabrina?" Gabriel hesitated looking over his partner.
Eliana who had been lost in her thought, blinked out of them, "Hmm, what?"
"You know, your teacher! I know mine isn't going to be happy I'm putting of training for this and Sabrina seems even stricter than Karate Master Jason." Gabriel explained his question further.
"I'll just take whatever punishment she has for me. I haven't gotten in some real trouble for a few weeks anyways." Eliana shrugged nonchalantly, as the two split up and went their separate ways.