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Chapter 123: Elsie Maria Bates

Elsie

March 7, 35 AE

Downtown Los Angeles

For the month leading up to the big day, Elsie was fine. In fact, she had actually been excited. She had psyched herself up by imagining how smoothly the whole night would go, and she had convinced herself that everything would go perfectly and absolutely nothing could possibly go wrong.

After all, how could there be any repercussions by telling the world you're not straight when your entire career hinged on how much the public loved you? And who would care that she had just been involved in possibly the biggest political scandal of the decade?

Only later did Elsie realize that she had actually suppressed all of her doubts and hadn't thought through anything at all. But by then it was too late, and their limo was only mere minutes away from the red carpet and the dozens of reporters that lined it.

"This is a bad idea," Elsie said shakily, probably for the hundredth time since they got into the limo.

She knew she was repeating herself, but she couldn't help it. Or maybe she thought that if she said those words enough, she would magically wake up and realize this was all a bad dream.

"You didn't think so for the past month," Camilla reminded her as her eyes calmly scanned the crowded street outside, completely unfazed by the spectators surrounding them, or by the prospect of what they were about to do.

Elsie tried to let herself feel the calm Camilla exuded. When that immediately didn't work, she tried to distract herself by how amazing Camilla looked.

She had on a silky black jumpsuit with pants that were loose enough to look like a long, flowing skirt. The top was decorated with a gold but subtle lace-like design on her chest, and it went just above Camilla's collarbones and cut off right at her shoulders. It also highlighted Camilla's toned arms and elegant neck, and Elsie tried her best to immerse herself with the sight.

Two seconds later, she gave up.

"I definitely did not think this through," Elsie groaned as their limo inched forward before coming to a stop again.

"Sounds about right," Camilla replied instantly.

"Why didn't you talk me out of it?" Elsie grumbled. "You know I never think about the consequences of my actions."

Camilla finally turned to Elsie, eyebrows raised with an expression that clearly said "are you kidding me."

"And you know that I can never talk you out of something once you set your mind to it," Camilla pointed out. "And this, if I need to remind you, was something you were absolutely set on doing."

Elsie groaned. Camilla was right of course, but Elsie didn't want to be reminded about her poor life choices.

For a second, Elsie wanted to ask Camilla if she could use her abilities to calm Elsie, just as she had done to dozens of guardians in San Francisco months ago. But as soon as the thought came to Elsie's head, she immediately rejected it. She couldn't ask something like that of Camilla, nor could she always rely on Camilla to fix her problems. Elsie got herself into this mess; she either had to get herself out of it or see it through.

"Besides, I know you can do this," Camilla continued, her tone suddenly softening. "You've taken on metas with nothing but a rebranded taser. And you did that for me. So I know that you're strong and brave enough to do this for yourself."

 But Elsie didn't feel strong or brave. At that moment, she felt terrified, as if she was perched up on a ledge hundreds of feet above the streets of Downtown LA. She felt as if she was being chased through the dark streets of Japan by a creep, or falling into the depths of the Unity Games stadium, or she was being attacked by merciless metas. She was minutes away from one of her greatest fears coming to life, and all she wanted to do was ignore it and run away, or wait for someone to rescue her.

But she couldn't.

Suddenly, Camilla took one of Elsie's hands in both of her own, and she squeezed gently.

"Look, if you're really worried about it, it's okay," Camilla assured. "We don't have to go through with this."

"And then what?" Elsie said softly. "I'm just supposed to say that I brought my roommate as my plus one? How weird is that?"

"I don't have to go," Camilla offered. "This thing can just take me back home, right? Besides, it doesn't matter to me if people know about us or not. Whatever you want, I'll be fine with it as well."

What Elsie wanted was to be happy. She wanted to be happy with Camilla, and for them to live freely without having to worry about what other people thought. She wanted to be happy with her career, and to not have it be affected by shallow-minded people. She just wanted to be herself without having to worry about being hurt for it.

But she knew she couldn't have everything she wanted. Elsie couldn't change people's ideologies, and she definitely couldn't please everyone all the time. For years, she tried to, and it had been stifling. Sure, it had been bearable, but for how long could she do that? And was it even worth it?

Over the past year or two, Elsie had seen what it was like to live in hiding. She saw how Camilla had been forced to wear a mask, and what she could be when she took it off. Elsie saw families living in hiding, fearing for their lives, and she couldn't imagine how they must have felt after years on the run. Even though she too had been in hiding with them, it hadn't been for long in comparison, and at least she had her friends right by her side.

At that moment, Elsie realized that she didn't want to hide any longer. Unlike Camilla and the refugees within Exodos, Elsie had the luxury of being free, and she wanted it. The only thing she risked hurting was her career. Her goals and dreams meant a lot to her, but if they kept her from being happy then maybe they weren't worth it. Maybe she could live without them. And while she had managed to avoid her fears for years, maybe she had been running away from her own happiness as well.

Elsie turned to Camilla, letting her gaze look over the amazing woman that always stood firmly by her side. For years, Camilla had inspired Elsie to be just as strong as she was, and even more so in recent months. And now, Elsie had that chance to show she had changed too.

"I want this," Elsie said firmly, finally squeezing Camilla's hand in return. "I want us."

And Camilla smiled in return.

Elsie had made her decision just in time, because a few moments later, their limo pulled up to the red carpet, and Elsie's door opened. Immediately, she was greeted by a barrage of flashing lights, and she blindly took the gloved hand that was offered to her before stepping out with a practiced smile on her face.

While Elsie had years of experience with red carpets and award ceremonies, this time was different. And for the brief moment that Camilla was still exiting the limo, Elsie actually felt lost. So as soon as Camilla joined her side, Elsie linked arms with her before she could think twice about it.

"Hanging in there?" Camilla muttered, and Elsie didn't need to look at her to know she too had a tense smile on her face.

"I haven't passed out yet," Elsie offered. "And you?"

At her question, Camilla shifted her weight a little before carefully moving her free arm behind her back. She was still a little self-conscious about the web of scars that covered her skin, but, like Elsie, she was determined to face her fears that night.

"Getting by," Camilla replied stiffly. "But don't we have to get out of the way now? I'm following you, you know."

At Camilla's reminder, they continued along the red carpet, the flashing cameras following their every move. As always, reporters shouted a variety of questions at her or tried to get her attention, and Elsie returned all of their inquiries with a polite smile.

While they were waiting in line for the photo op, one photographer had the nerve to ask Camilla to smile more. Elsie glanced at Camilla just in time to see her expression shift abruptly, her stiff smile transforming into a chilling glare.

At the sudden change, Elsie couldn't help but laugh, and Camilla turned the look towards her. But while the photographers balked in fear for a brief moment, Elsie only smiled wider, and she playfully tapped Camilla's hair bun with her free hand. With that, Camilla's glare softened ever so slightly, and she rolled her eyes at Elsie's immaturity.

By the time it was their turn for the photo op, Elsie had calmed down significantly, and Camilla's arm had relaxed a bit as well. After they posed together for a bit, an attendant stepped in and gestured for Camilla to wait on the side. Camilla seemed more than happy to escape from the limelight, but Elsie was a little disappointed to see her go, and she silently urged the photographers to quickly wrap up their solo shots of her.

Except when she was done, the attendant had Camilla take a few solo shots of her own, and Elsie became more amused than disappointed as she watched Camilla angrily get her photo taken. In fact, Camilla looked so bitter that she seemed to forget about her self-consciousness over her arms as she crossed them over her chest impatiently.

After the photo op came the interviews, and Elsie felt her heart rate pick up again. But as nervous as she was, she wasn't going to run. This time, she was going to face her problems head-on, and she would deal with whatever aftermath was in store for her.

When it was their turn, Elsie's smile widened naturally, and she greeted the reporter as effortlessly as she had always done.

"Both of you look stunning, by the way," the reporter gushed overdramatically. "Who are you wearing?"

"Thank you," Elsie replied, genuinely pleased.

She truly did love her dress, both how it looked and how practical it was. It was made with a light pink satin-like fabric covered with a layer of pastel blue chiffon for a beautiful blend of colors. It had a floor-length skirt that flowed gently with her every movement, covering her feet enough so no one could tell she wasn't wearing heels. The top was much less modest, and had a dramatic V-neck that dropped below her chest at her front and almost to her hips at her back.

"We're both wearing outfits made by a close friend of ours, Hitomi Andou, and her company," Elsie said proudly, and she used her free hand to gently sway the skirt for emphasis. "Everything is made completely out of recycled materials. Plus, they have pockets."

"The pockets are impressive on their own," the reporter agreed, then looked at Camilla. "Camilla, Hitomi is your cousin, right?"

Camilla gave a short and stiff nod. "That's right."

"Well, you both have had quite the year," the reporter said, appearing unaffected by Camilla's disinterest in interviews. "It was like you were in your own version of For the World. What's it like, now that you're settled back into the normal world?"

"It's mostly the same, actually," Elsie answered truthfully. "Camilla still works as usual, and I'm still unemployed between projects like always. If anything, I'd say our perspectives changed the most.

"I can't speak for Camilla, but for me, this past year, these past two years, actually, have really opened my eyes. I always knew that life was never as perfect as movies made it out to be, but what we've seen really showed that most stories won't have perfect, happy endings. More than likely, most people encounter problems that won't have a happy resolution. And sometimes, unfortunately, there's nothing we can do about it."

"I guess you're lucky you had your friends with you," the reporter interjected, probably wanting to highlight something a little more exciting and uplifting than Elsie's bout of pessimistic philosophy.

Elsie chuckled, letting them redirect the interview. "Definitely. I wouldn't have made it through this last year without them."

The reporter nodded cheerfully, probably happy that Elsie didn't try to veer the interview off-course.

"And to think, you would've been in a much different situation if everything at the Unity Games a couple years ago didn't happen," the reporter observed. "I mean, you two might not have even become roommates."

"Actually..." Elsie only hesitated for a moment before she steeled herself. She had been handed the perfect segue, and it was now or never. "Camilla's not my roommate."

"Oh?" the reporter asked, eyebrows raised, then glanced at Camilla. "Did you move out?"

"No," Elsie quickly answered, then paused a beat to take a breath. "Camilla's my girlfriend."

And to Elsie's surprise, the world didn't end right then. However, the reporter did falter ever so slightly.

"I'm sorry, what?" the reporter asked, clearly unprepared for Elsie's abrupt admission.

"Camilla's my girlfriend," Elsie repeated, trying to keep her voice steady even as she noticed that more camera flashes seemed to be directed at them. "We... we're dating."

"Since... when?" the reporter asked, their professional demeanor now replaced with pure, unfiltered surprise.

"Well..." Elsie began, but stopped short when she realized how dry her mouth and how scratchy her throat had gotten. Thankfully, as she tried to find her voice again, Camilla stepped in.

"Over a year ago," Camilla said calmly. "But a good portion of the time I was either deployed, imprisoned, or unconscious, so we've actually been together for less than that."

"I'd say that time still counts," Elsie countered bluntly, momentarily disregarding that they were still being recorded, and there were still people watching them in real time. People all around the country, maybe even the world.

Camilla looked at her skeptically. "Really?"

"Of course," Elsie answered honestly. "It's not like other couples are together every second of every day, and it's not like they only count the time they're physically with each other. The same goes for us. We don't have to be in the same place to be in a relationship. We can always be together mentally, emotionally." Elsie tugged Camilla a little closer and gave her a reassuring smile. "Our hearts will always be together."

For a moment, Camilla still looked skeptical. That is, until her doubtful expression quickly transformed into a sly smile, and Elsie felt like she had just been swindled.

"You tricked me," Elsie said, her face suddenly growing warm from embarrassment.

"So dramatic, as always," Camilla returned unsympathetically, but she still squeezed Elsie's arm in apology.

"My family's watching this," Elsie continued, dumbfounded.

"I'm sure they wouldn't be surprised," Camilla assured.

She slid her arm out of Elsie's, finding her hand instead. As soon as she did, she lightly brushed their fingers together, not doing anything more unless Elsie wanted to.

And Elsie did. So she returned Camilla's gesture before taking her hand in her own, intertwining their fingers before letting their hands drop to their sides. Elsie knew that a lot of eyes and cameras were on them now, and multiple people were not-so-subtly talking about them in the background, but at that moment, she didn't care. All she could care about was Camilla, her unwavering presence at Elsie's side, and the way her small smile could fill Elsie with an immeasurable warmth.

With that thought, Elsie's smile grew even wider. She easily ignored everyone's stares and commentary in favor of focusing solely on Camilla as she tugged her closer. Similarly, Camilla's gaze didn't move from Elsie's, and she squeezed Elsie's hand as she immediately stepped closer.

Sure, Elsie wouldn't know what tomorrow would bring; she didn't even know what would happen in the next five minutes. All she was sure about was that at that moment, she felt strong, proud, and, most importantly, happy. And no matter what happened, whether it be that night or the next or the hundreds after that, she knew she would have Camilla right by her side.

And by the look in Camilla's eyes, Elsie knew that she felt the same.

End

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"Triple Point: the temperature and pressure at which the solid, liquid, and vapor phases of a pure substance can coexist in equilibrium"

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