Matthew collapsed on the grass outside the Pokemon center, Hope's Pokeball in hand. With the help of the Hoppip, he had managed to sprint out of the forest and into Pewter city and once there he had instantly ran to the Pokemon center to get Hope the help she needed. It was still fresh in his mind, the moment that Hope had been hurt, the brute force of the Beedrill and just how hopeless he had been to help. That wasn't what being a Pokemon trainer was about, he shouldn't have been quiet, he should have been telling Hope what to do, helping her fight the Beedrill. The only conclusion Matthew could come to was that he simply wasn't strong enough, not yet anyway.

"I'll make it up to you." Matthew murmured to the Pokeball in his hand "Just you wait Hope, together we're going to do this, we'll take the world by storm." Even as he spoke, Matthew wasn't sure of what he was saying, he had just been so useless in the forest, so utterly pathetic... Not so long ago he was ready to become the best Pokemon trainer ever, now he wasn't even sure if he could really be called a Pokemon trainer at all... Matthew was torn from his spiraling self deprivation by a shadow blocking the sun from his eyes.
"Huh... What are you still doing here?" He muttered to the Hoppip circling around his head. The Hoppip gave no audible response, but seemed to be quite content with rotating gently in the spot just above Matthew's head. "Listen, thanks for everything you did for us... But your home is in the forest, right?" Again, the Pokemon gave no indication of understanding, it just hovered. Eventually, Matthew just gave up, getting to his feet and walking away. If the Hoppip wanted to float there, it could do as it pleased.

As Matthew walked away from the center, the Hoppip began to follow. Matthew span around to face it
"You're not my Pokemon, why are you following me?" He barked at it. The Hoppip gave no response, instead hovered in the spot just in front of Matthew. Matthew had always had a short fuse, and today was not a good day. The Hoppip was, to him, a reminder of how he failed in the forest. Every time he saw the little pink blob of floatiness, he was reminded how he had needed its help for his Pokemon's survival. 
"Please." Matthew sighed  "I'm not anyone worth following. Go home, there's nothing here for you." And with that, he started to walk away again. The second Matthew began to move, so did the Hoppip. After a mere two steps, Matthew stamped his foot and shouted at the top of his lungs
"GO. AWAY!" The Hoppip didn't even flinch, it just... Floated. By this point, Matthew was was physically heaving, he was so close to exploding. The Hoppip didn't seem to have a care in the world. He just... Floated there, spinning gently in the spot, enjoying the warmth of the sun. Eventually, Matthew gave up entirely, waving his arms in total exasperation. "Okay. Fine. If that's what you want, follow me. You're not my Pokemon though.. You stupid... Whirlygig!" And with that, he huffed off in a random direction, not really caring where he was going. Whirlygig followed along blissfully.

Matthew's random tantrum led him to a large, impressive looking building with a brown roof that Matthew instantly recognized. It had only been a few hours since he had been standing outside an identical building in Viridian city having a strop in front of an innocent janitor.
"Y'must be that kid." A man was hunched over on a nearby bench, cigarette in mouth "M'cousin said you'd be coming. You got here faster than he thought y'would. Taking on the gym then kid?" So, this was the Janitor's cousin. Matthew suddenly had a flash of the conversation he had this morning. Eight badges to become the champion. That's what he had said. Back then, it had seemed so easy. Now, Matthew didn't know if he would ever be able to get one.
"I-I think I'll give it a miss." Matthew's voice was barely a whisper, his voice weaker than it had ever been. 
"Suit yourself." The Janitor mumbled, not really caring. A part of Matthew wished that this was one of those cheesy anime shows he had liked to watch, where the unassuming janitor would motivate him to reach his potential and follow his dreams, and all of a sudden Matthew would become a legendary trainer with abilities like no-one had ever seen before... But instead the Janitor picked up his newspaper and continued to smoke away.

Matthew wondered where he could find a phone. It was time to phone Emily, to tell her that this whole being-a-trainer thing wasn't for him after all, to tell her it was time for him to give up, when something caught his eye. She was holding a different Pokemon, so Matthew didn't recognize her at first, but she was certainly wearing the same clothes as before. The girl, the one from the forest with the Caterpie, she had just emerged from the gym holding a Budew. Matthew was about to shrug it off, to turn and wander away, when Whirlygig floated down in front of him and something struck him from the back of his mind. It was her, running past and dropping her potion that meant that Matthew had managed to get Hope to the Pokemon center. Without so much as a second thought, Matthew took a few confident strides over to where she was standing.
"Excuse me. This may seem a little strange, but I saw you drop a potion when you were travelling through the forest." His voice was stronger than before, like a little of his confidence had been restored, but there was still a hint of sadness in his voice "Anyway, I wanted to return it, but my Pokemon got hurt and... Well, I used your potion. I'm sorry, but I needed to. You dropping that potion it... " He swallowed, suddenly the reality of the situation hit him "If you hadn't, my Pokemon may not have made it out of the forest. I know you didn't mean to drop it, and I shouldn't have used it... But, I really wanted to say... Thank you."