Day 1 of 14

The first thing they did was go back to sleep.

Camilla became exhausted as soon as her adrenaline ran out, and Elsie was completely in favor of heading back to bed. Since Elsie's room was closer, they both headed there, and Camilla allowed herself to lean on Elsie as they trudged up the stairs together.

While Camilla felt bad about getting into Elsie's bed when she was covered in grime and sweat, Elsie waved off her concerns. It was just as well, because as soon as Camilla's head hit the pillow, she was drifting off to sleep, and she only barely felt Elsie's arms pulling her close.

When she woke up, she wasn't sure how much time had passed. The only thing she did know was that Elsie was still with her, holding her tight with her fingers gently stroking Camilla's head. The gesture almost put Camilla back to sleep, but her empty stomach was against that idea.

"What time is it?" Camilla asked, her voice a little rough from sleep.

"A little after noon," Elsie muttered. "You hungry? I can make breakfast. Or lunch, brunch, whatever."

"You know how to cook something besides toast?" Camilla said with a chuckle.

Elsie tapped Camilla's head lightly with a finger in gentle admonishment. "Hey, I can toast frozen waffles too. Besides, I've picked up a few tricks recently. I think I'm fairly confident in my scrambled eggs now."

Camilla hummed, impressed. "I'll be the judge of that, I guess. I need to take a shower though. I feel too gross to do anything else."

So while Elsie busied herself in the kitchen, Camilla got cleaned up, using Elsie's bathroom out of convenience. As much as Camilla loved the feeling of the warm shower washing days of grime off her skin, she also worried about Elsie's ability to use a stove without starting a fire, so she rushed a little more than she would've liked. After she hurriedly got dressed, she used her abilities just long enough to check that everything in the kitchen was still at a normal temperature before starting a load of laundry with all of her guardian uniforms and Elsie's bedding.

Elsie's attempt at cooking turned out to be a pleasant surprise, especially since her scrambled eggs were actually closer to a Japanese dish. Evidently, during her extended stay in Hawaii, Hitomi's suite included a kitchen where she taught Elsie and the Song brothers some simple Japanese recipes during a drunken night in. Elsie admitted that she didn't remember most of what she learned, and she actually had to message Hitomi for a reminder once she was back in LA.

After breakfast, Elsie shooed Camilla out of the kitchen, not letting her even think about helping clean up. While both of them were stubborn, Camilla eventually gave in when she felt her exhaustion catching up with her again, and she settled on the living room couch to wait.

In the meantime, she ended up calling Hitomi. Her cousin couldn't talk long—Japan was ramping up their guardian presence in case Exodos decided to go international again—so Camilla only wished her a very belated happy birthday ("You've finally hit the old age of 30." "Shut up, you little brat.") and also thanked her for teaching Elsie how to cook something that involved more than just reheating premade food. By the time she hung up, Elsie was still cleaning up, so Camilla leaned back in her seat and rested her eyes.

Camilla woke with a start when she felt something nudge her leg, and she bolted upright, almost headbutting Elsie in the process.

"Sorry!" Elsie suddenly apologized from where she was crouched on the ground in front of the couch. She pulled out her hand from around Camilla's feet and showed her phone. "I just dropped my phone. I didn't mean to wake you."

Even though it was nothing to worry about, Camilla's heart still hammered in her chest, and her body had tensed for a fight. Apparently, it could take her a while before she actually left the battlefield completely.

"It's fine," Camilla managed to say, but the words sounded strained to her ears. Her body wasn't shaking, but it was a near thing, and she just wanted to forget everything that happened while she was away, even if it was only for a moment.

"Did you want me to stay or go?" Elsie asked, looking ready to comply without argument to whatever Camilla wanted.

"Stay," Camilla answered immediately. She scooted over to let Elsie have the corner of the couch to further emphasize her point.

After waiting a second, Elsie took a seat, then lifted an arm onto the backrest. Camilla easily settled herself into the open spot at Elsie's side, then let Elsie's arm wrap around her.

"Anything good to watch?" Camilla asked, levitating the remote from the surprisingly clean coffee table and to her hands, then passing it to Elsie.

"I'm sure we can find something," Elsie said, turning on the TV.

As she was browsing through shows, Elsie suddenly sniffed a couple times, the second time directed at Camilla's hair.

"Did you use my shampoo?" she asked, grinning.

Camilla felt her face flush slightly. "Hurry up and play something already," she said in lieu of answering.

Elsie continued to beam proudly as she turned her focus back to the TV, and Camilla couldn't help but smile a little as well.

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Day 4 of 14

The rest of Lee Squad all returned to LA safe and sound, but Camilla heard the news from Elsie before she was informed by the Org. While she and Elsie had been watching a movie, Jordan texted Elsie repeatedly about Mack's homecoming and how it was absolutely necessary to celebrate both his and Camilla's return. After Camilla said she was fine with it, Elsie immediately jumped into party planner mode and began working out the details for an impromptu gathering at one of their go-to bars.

About an hour later, Camilla got her own official phone call about the squad's return, as well as another bit of info: their return was partially due to a reorganization of personnel, and both Mack and the younger Pala would be moved to Camilla's new squad, with Mack being promoted to Vice Captain.

Upon hearing the news, Elsie was a few taps on her phone away from congratulating Mack herself, but Camilla convinced her not to. If Jordan hadn't told Elsie himself, then there must have been a reason, and it was either because Jordan didn't know or Mack didn't want the news to get out. Camilla admitted she suspected it was the latter; she knew enough about Mack to know that he didn't take pride in his position at the Org, and a promotion was probably the last thing he wanted.

In the early evening, they started getting ready to head out. Camilla ended up taking a little longer than she would've liked once she realized that she owned nothing but multiple sets of her guardian uniform, and Elsie dug through her expansive closet to search for something that wouldn't look like a tablecloth on Camilla's small figure.

Eventually, she found a pair of black leggings and a dark red blouse that wouldn't look completely ridiculous if it was a little baggy. Camilla preferred loose-fitted clothes anyway, and the ensemble ended up looking pretty decent. It even paired well with her tall black boots from her guardian uniform.

In contrast, Elsie wore a thin-strapped, fitted black crop tank top with blue skinny jeans, and she had a pastel pink pleather jacket to keep her warm in the chilly October air. She even accessorized with a dainty gold pendant necklace and matching bracelets. The only thing that was similar to Camilla's outfit were Elsie's black ankle boots.

When Elsie noticed Camilla's gaze scanning her outfit, she blushed ever so slightly, or maybe that was the makeup she was putting on.

"I look weird, don't I?" Elsie asked, suddenly self-conscious. "Aside from going to restaurants and stuff, I haven't really gone out to just socialize since... well, since the Games." She shrugged, embarrassed. "I guess I felt like dressing up after so long."

"You look good," Camilla said honestly. Even though she wasn't interested in anyone physically, she could still find people to be visually attractive, and Elsie had always been one of those people.

"Really?" Elsie sounded doubtful as she reexamined her outfit in the mirror, but after a few seconds she seemed convinced. "I trust your artistic eyes."

On their way to the parking garage, Camilla volunteered to drive, and began to forcefully take the keys from Elsie when she refused to cooperate. According to Elsie, it wasn't right to let Camilla drive if she was one of the people they were gathering for, and she only relented when she was reminded that Camilla didn't drink. While that was the most sensible reason for why Camilla wanted to be the one behind the wheel, the reason she kept to herself was that she just didn't want to sit through another round of Elsie's reckless driving.

For most of the ride there, Elsie was buzzing with excitement from the passenger seat, and even Camilla felt slightly energized from her anticipation. As they got closer to the venue though, Camilla felt Elsie's excitement turn a little into nerves.

"What's wrong?" Camilla asked when they reached a stoplight.

"Nothing's wrong..." Elsie immediately answered, but the way her voice trailed off indicated that something wasn't exactly right either. "There was just... something I didn't consider when I planned this."

That was so vague that Camilla didn't really know what she could do with that information. So, of course, she did nothing, and simply let her eyes wander over the street around them. And eventually, Elsie elaborated all on her own.

"How would you feel about people knowing about us?" Elsie finally asked, turning to watch Camilla's reaction.

Camilla thought about it for a few seconds as she drove through the green light, then shrugged.

"I don't mind," she said. "If people know, that's fine, but I'm also fine with not telling anybody, if that's what you want. I don't really care about what other people think, as long as you're happy."

The sigh that Elsie let out was a mixture of amusement and forlornness.

"How are you so cool?" she said. "Like, I try not to be concerned about my image, but sometimes, I can't help it."

"That's understandable," Camilla offered. "Your career is mainly based on what the public thinks of you, mine is mainly based on my strength. So even though I don't care if the public or Org doesn't like me, I still worry if I'm not as strong as I'd like to be." Camilla paused to focus on changing lanes before continuing. "Still, I guess I still need to retain some public favor, just like you still need to be strong at acting, but those aspects are more helpful than necessary."

Elsie hummed in thought, and didn't speak up again until Camilla had parked in a lot behind the venue several minutes later.

"What would you do?" she asked, her expression desperate for any kind of advice. "In my place?"

Camilla was already in uncharted waters just by being in a relationship, so she wasn't sure if her opinion would be helpful. Regardless, the least she could do was offer it, and Elsie could follow it or ignore it as she wished.

"I would just do what I wanted," Camilla said. She held out her hand above the center console, and when Elsie took it, Camilla brushed her thumb over Elsie's knuckles reassuringly. "And whatever happens, I would deal with it later, even if it sucks."

Elsie seemed tentative at first, but eventually she squeezed Camilla's hand and smiled.

"Just be ourselves then," she decided, then grinned wide. "Well, let's get this party started, shall we?"

The venue was one of Elsie and Jordan's favorite bars in downtown LA and one of their usual spots when they had a reason to celebrate something. It had the feeling of a casual bar but seemed to attract upper-class patrons, probably due to its overpriced menu. While Camilla would never go to such a place normally (not that she went out much anyway), she appreciated the lack of a crowd and the tolerable level of noise.

Surprisingly, Mack was already there by the time they arrived, chatting away energetically by the bar with Jordan and a cluster of several others. They must have been friends he invited, or they were strangers and Mack simply decided to strike up a conversation with them. Elsewhere, at one of the tables, Minyoung was also having a passionate discussion with a few others, except it seemed serious and, from what Camilla knew of him, was probably work-related.

Mack was the first one that spotted Camilla and Elsie arriving, and he stopped whatever he was saying to boisterously greet them, much to the embarrassed amusement of Jordan.

"El-milla!" he exclaimed once Camilla and Elsie neared. He scooped Elsie up into a big hug that lifted her off her feet, then thankfully only offered Camilla a fist bump. "Captain Wyatt," he said with a grin.

"Vice Captain Olomana," Camilla returned. The fact that Mack brought up her captain promotion himself implied he had come to terms with his vice captain rank and didn't mind if others knew. Or, he was just drunk.

"That's too long of a name," Mack nearly whined, and yeah, he was drunk, meaning that he must have already had a significant amount of alcohol beforehand to overcome a meta's high metabolism. "Cap, can you just call me Mack on the field?"

"I'll think about it," Camilla replied, but she knew she still had to maintain some semblance of formality.

After that, the others began to chat loudly amongst themselves, and Camilla was perfectly fine with just listening. The group included not only their invited friends, but also acquaintances from the patrons already there, and the crowd only expanded as Elsie and Mack dragged more people into the celebration. Even Jordan added his own friends to the mix; Camilla guessed by his flushed face that liquid confidence helped.

As the night went on, the conversation grew louder and the number of consumed shots grew higher. While Camilla didn't actively participate in any of the night's events, she found that she wasn't as bored or miserable as she thought she would be. The entire party was busy enough to keep her engaged in a sense of normality, but small enough to not be overwhelming.

It was mildly entertaining watching the large group of people getting steadily drunker at varying rates, each taking on their own unique persona as they did. Plus, Camilla found herself captivated by watching Elsie in her element, away from the set and cameras, and Camilla's gaze would unconsciously follow her throughout the night.

At one point, Elsie caught her staring, and Camilla didn't bother feigning innocence. She kept her eyes on Elsie as Elsie returned to Camilla's side, and when Elsie placed a hand gently on Camilla's waist to pull her close, for an instant, everything felt right and normal in the world. Even though Camilla knew that she would shortly have to leave this all behind, for now, she was content with enjoying what she had while she could.

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