Although Kaim had now reached the strength of a Gym Leader, one thing was certain: he could never have reached that level alone. He had only started battling again because he met Cynthia. If he had never met her, he probably would not be battling now. Perhaps he would have given up, compromised, and lived a life of gloom. You can't accomplish anything. You can't become anyone. Kaim wondered whether he would have gone on living such a gray life.
To be honest, Cynthia might not have changed all that much. Even without Kaim, she might have achieved great things in both battling and scholarship. Yet what she could accomplish in the same amount of time would probably have been different. Kaim had made so many things possible that, even if the outcome remained unchanged, the path those changes took might have been very different.
"We were lucky to meet and be together now."
"I was lucky."
"Both of us were."
Cynthia rolled over to face Kaim as she told him that.
"Hey, Kaim."
"Yes?"
"Could you give me a squeeze?"
"Yeah."
At Cynthia's request, Kaim wrapped both arms around her and hugged her tightly. In response, Cynthia wrapped her arms around his body too. Feeling each other's warmth and hearing each other's breathing and heartbeats put them at ease.
"I always feel like I'm the one being held, even though I'm holding you. It's strange."
"Doesn't that mean I'm more embracing?"
"I can't deny that."
They closed their eyes with wry smiles. They could meet like this, share their feelings, and hold each other. The two drifted off to sleep, realizing just how fortunate they were.
A few days later.
"I managed to get a lot of research done."
"Yeah."
Over the past few days, almost all their