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-Your POV-
In front of me, a stylish lady stood poses with her slender hand placed on her hip just so, with a satisfied but brittle smirk on her pale, pale face. Her shimmering green eyes match Lillie and Gladion's so well, you couldn't mistake them as not related. One look on Gladion's face told me he loathed this woman with all his heart and soul.
The lady's gaze daintily flicks between Gladion and me, then she opens her mouth to say, "Well, you're here. Gladion, darling, are you going to introduce me to this lovely little lady?"
"Yes, Mother," Gladion's shoulders slump, and he doesn't rebel, gesturing to me and then his mother, saying, "This is (Y/N). And (Y/N), meet my mother, Lusamine."
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Aether." I bow my head, feeling in the presence of someone with a lot of authority.
"Oh, the pleasure is all mine, child." Lusamine coos with a wide smile plastered onto her face, tightening her expression.
"Will you pay for our apartment now?" Gladion huffs, getting straight to the point.
"Of course, of course," Lusamine waves her hand dismissively, "But would you grant me a moment to have a word in private with (Y/N)?"
Gladion groans, then walks to the door, and no farther, keeping a sharp eye as his mother pulled me aside. Lusamine put a hand on my shoulder, then murmured, "I hear you live with my son?"
"That is correct," I reply lightheartedly.
"And are you taking good care of him? I know he hates me, and I can't say I'm fond of his attitude or his phase for that matter, but I want you to know that he does deserve a better mother than me, and he doesn't even have a father, so... I hope you understand." Lusamine sighed softly, and I understood the slight innocence in her voice.
She might have made terrible mistakes or decisions in the past, and that caused things with her and her son to go awry, but that doesn't mean that she deserves punishment or an unmoving grudge. She's only a flawed but decent person if you look far enough.
I offer her a small smile, and then I reply, "I think I understand. But I do hope you decide to pay for the rent. We'd both appreciate it greatly."
Lusamine's rigid shoulders relax, and she says, "You have my gratitude, child. Take good care of Gladion for me!"
A blush appears on my face, and Gladion heads over, suspicious.
I run up into his arms, and he tenses up at the contact but relaxes a bit when I exclaim, "I can stay in Alola!"
Gladion wraps his arms around me as I cry tears of joy and utter relief, and he looks over at his mother, also immensely thankful.
"No need to thank me! I'm sure the price of your apartment is nothing but a drop in the bucket to a wealthy business like mine." Lusamine says, watching with an arrogant grin at our embrace.
My face heats up a bit, and I timidly step away from Gladion, but still stand close — comforted by his presence.
"Oh, and (Y/N)!" Lusamine puts a finger up, motioning us to wait just a moment, "The right style does wonders, you know. And, I'll have to take you out sometime and help you pick a smashing outfit if you ever need to dress up for something."
"Uh, you really don't have to," I say, rather embarrassed. Was she implying I would need to dress up for a date or something? No, let's not jump to conclusions.
"Oh, don't you worry. You just leave everything up to me. Trust me – children would all be much happier if they'd only listen to the adults around them." Lusamine beams brightly to herself, as if she'd said something wonderfully beneficial to us.
I cringe just the slightest bit but insist on thoroughly thanking her once more, and then resolve to leave as soon as possible. "Mrs. Aether-"
"Please, just call me Lusamine. I'm so glad that we got to meet, but I can feel your urge to leave, so this is farewell! You may leave," She waves and an Aether employee rushes in to swiftly escort us out.
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Word count: 731 words
Author's Note: This is the third update today, so you're welcome!