Grace (Social Anxiety)

Artemis' POV
I hugged Lucario tightly and gave Brooke a fist bump. "Bye Brooke. Bye Lucario," I said, giving a gentle smile. "I thought we were going with you," said Brooke. "You are," I asked, confused. I looked at Lucario, who was smiling. "It'll be good for him," said Lucario. I smiled back. I looked back at Iris and Timothy. "So where are we going this time, Iris?" "You'll see," said Iris, "but before we get on the plane, let's get some breakfast first."

At..some sort of restaurant...
Grace's POV
My friend, Jasmine and I sat at the table, scanning the menu. "You know what you want," Jasmine asks. I quickly shake my head. Whenever we go to a restaurant, Jasmine always sits next to me. The table waiter finally comes. "Hi, I'm Lindsey, and I will be your waitress today. So do we wanna start off with something to drink?" "Um, yeah sure," says Jasmine. Wow. She really makes it look so easy.

Jasmine's POV
I look at my friend. She's already trembling and mumbling. "What do you want to drink, Grace," I ask. "Orange juice," she murmurs quietly. I look at the waitress. "Um, for her, she wants Orange juice. And for me, um, I'd like water." The waitress writes on the notepad and smiles. "Okay. I'll be right back." I gave Grace a gentle pat on the back to try and calm her down.

Grace's POV
A group walks in with their Pokémon, and they sit at the big table next to us. Something happened to that boy's Lucario. BUT how am I supposed to ask? What if I scare him? What if he gets scared? My heart beats rapidly, and I begin to feel like I'm being choked. I think the Lucario can hear me. It is staring at me. I raised my hand slowly, and waved. The Lucario's trainer turns to me and stares. He looks concerned.

Okay. This shouldn't be too hard to explain. I'm not in danger. There's nothing around here that could even put me in danger...maybe except for that pikachu over there. It should be in its pokeball. And so should that Lucario. Suddenly, someone taps me on the shoulder, making me jump.

"Iris said I should talk to some people," said the person, "but I do not like talking to people." "I don't to people...much-either. Glnn..." Why does talking have to be so hard? "I am Brooke," said the person. Brooke continued to look at me with a blank stare. "I'm... Grrace,'' I murmured quietly. "It is nice to meet you," said Brooke. Lindsey is back. But Jasmine isn't. HOW LONG DOES SHE NEED TO USE THE BATHROOM?

Lindsey looks at Brooke, then at me before setting down the drinks. "Do you want to wait on your sister," she asks. Is that even a question? I nodded. "Mmhm." Lindsey nods then leaves.

Brooke's POV
I look back. Iris and Lucario are happy. Iris is jumping and Lucario is clapping. I then look at the person with the pikachu. "He is very excited," I said, fidgeting with my hands, "but I don't understand why he is excited over breakfast..." The person looks our way.

Grace's POV
I begin to panic as the person with the pikachu we were staring at looks our way. Brooke also seems to be in a panic. "HEY," he shouts. Uhh, hey? He waves, and walks over to another table. "Phew." Another person starts walking towards us. At this point, Brooke is looking as choked as I am.

That person is staring right back at us. "Hi there," he said in a happy voice. OH, GREAT MOONS! The person holds out their hand. "I'm Nathan." Brooke and I look at each other. Brooke turns and looks at Nathan. The silence is awkward. After a couple minutes, Brooke finally speaks up, only to say two words. "I'm Brooke." Brooke then pushed away Nathan's hand. Brooke then looks back at me, as if waiting for me to answer.

"Grace," I muttered quietly. "What was that you said," asked Nathan. "Her name is Grace," said Brooke, "she doesn't like talking to other people." I fidgeted with my hands happily. Thanks Brooke. "Well it's nice to meet you," said Nathan. Yeah sure. Jasmine finally returns. Brooke runs back to his table. I can breathe normally again. Actually, to be honest, I kinda enjoyed Brooke's company. He was nice.

Jasmine's POV
A person looks at me as I walk back to the table. "Can I help you,'' I ask. "No," said the person, "I was just saying hi." I glared. "Okay. Hi. Now if you would go along, that would REALLY make my day." "How," the person asked. I gave A frustrated growl. They leave. Good.

"Sorry it took me so long, kiddo. Had A little run in with Kennedy. To think she had let it all go. Heh. When she saw me, she talked smack about me, and you. I mean, I tried to keep my cool. I really did. I mean, usually I'd knock her lights out for talking about you the way she did, but instead, I just walked out the door, well, I tried anyway." "Lemme guess," said Grace, sighing, "she blocked the door." "In a way," I said.

I took a sip of my water. Grace starts swaying. I can tell she's starting to get impatient. "I want waffles," said Grace. "Is that what you want," I ask. Grace starts rocking back and forth. "I made a friend while you were gone." "You did?" "Yeah. His name is Brooke." And you did it without my help. I'm proud of you kiddo.

I look at the table behind me. The boy sitting there was hyper and energetic. Grace isn't one to talk to highly energetic people. But I could be wrong. Lindsey is back. "Are you two ready to order," she asks. "Yes. My friend here wants waffles-"
"Peanut butter!" 
"Peanut butter waffles. And I would like the breakfast casserole." 
"Peanut butter waffles and breakfast casserole…will that be it," Lindsey asks. I nodded. 

Lindsey walks away. I sigh and shake my head. "You and Peanut butter."
"It's yummy!" 
"Maybe so. But still." 
"Still." 
"Why?" 
"Because bread." 
"....How do I even put up with you?"
Grace giggles and I roll my eyes. I see people and pokemon staring at me. They think I have a unique superpower that allows me to understand 'different' people. But the truth is, I don't have any superpowers at all. Anyone can do it, really. You just have to get to know them.

Brooke's POV
I flapped my hands happily. I look at Grace. She looks back with a small smile and waves. I made a new friend without Lucario's help! At least I think we are friends. We are friends, right?

Facts for today:
-Social anxiety disorder is a common type of anxiety disorder
-The fear that people with social anxiety disorder have in social situations is so intense that they feel it is beyond their control.
-Instead of laughing at them for having a hard time communicating, help with their social skills. Help them make friends.