This is the second chapter of the I Can't Choose, Eevee manga. It was first published on Poké Times on November 26, 2024 at 8:00 PM JST.[1] It is 16 pages long.
Plot
Continuing from the previous chapter, just after Riku catches Eevee looking through the Eeveelution magazine, Riku asks Eevee if it is indecisive about its future. When he explains that he is also contemplating what he wishes to do, Eevee shoves its paws into his face and leaves the room.
The next day at school, Riku is still dwelling on his future. He is distracted by his thoughts when he notices a Purrloin outside the window. Hoshi soon enters the room, and when Riku starts to share his insecurities, Hoshi takes a serious tone, asking Riku if he has forgotten a certain memory. Before Riku can get any explanation, several students in the classroom begin to realize that they are missing their valuables. Hoshi is horrified to discover that his lunch has disappeared, as well. Riku looks back out the window and notices a Nickit holding a sack.
Riku rushes out of the building and into the tall grass, following the Nickit and coming across the Purrloin, as well as a Skwovet. Suddenly, the Nickit charges at Riku. He is saved just in time by Hoshi's Salamence, who scares off the trio of Pokémon. After they flee, Riku realizes they had been gathered around a tree hollow containing most of the missing belongings. He explains to Hoshi he knew something was off the moment he saw the Purrloin from the window.
Hoshi then points out that Riku is incredibly skilled at observation. He tells Riku that he is thinking about starting his career as a Pokémon researcher, then begins to explain the memory he had referenced earlier: Riku and Hoshi had gone out to find some wild Pokémon, and Riku had been able to find their tracks and lead him to them. Since that day, Hoshi became interested in Pokémon research, and left with a lasting impression of Riku's skills of observation. Riku reveals that he has not forgotten, and that it is an important memory to him as well. As the two begin to walk back, Hoshi asks if Riku will join him in becoming a Pokémon researcher. Riku is too flustered to respond, and the two are soon distracted by a Rufflet eating out of Hoshi's lunchbox.
Back at his home, Riku considers Hoshi's suggestion to become a researcher, thinking about how it will allow him to continue to take pictures. He tells Eevee that when he was attacked by the wild Pokémon in the tall grass, he wished it was right by his side. He then envisions Eevee as a Leafeon. Riku recalls a time when the two of them went out at night to explore, and got into trouble with his mother for staying out too late. After a brief interruption from his younger sister, resulting in him promptly shooing her away, he suggests to Eevee that they take another walk.
