Although the floor was cold, it felt like home to her right now. Amidst her shuddering sobs, there was no place else she could think of to go. The door? That was too far away now. No, this is where she belonged, and she couldn't be motivated to move from it. Skyla had no clue how long she lay there in a metaphorical puddle of her own misery, or how much longer it would last. It was impossible for her to tell who saw or who was watching, what was going on around her, and she honestly didn't care. She felt utterly alone, and anyone who intended to prove her wrong with their presence she wished would just go away. She covered her eyes with her hands and curled up a bit further, the injury to her heart swelling up in a plethora of emotions ranging from anger to despair and emptiness.
It came in waves. At once she would feel like she was able to stand up and walk away with what little dignity she had left, then the heat would rush to her face once more, forcing her jaws to clench and making her feel like exploding like a misfired firework, leaving nothing behind but a fleeting trail of color. Then this too would pass and she would be left hollow and numb for a moment more. Why hadn't she acknowledged it? I'm such a fool. Why did I even come here in the first place? I just wanted her by my side when I went to Kalos and now I'm crying in a cafe floor. You're such an idiot Skyla! I just need to get Squall and fly back home.. I can do that much..
As she felt herself muster the strength to stumble to her feet again, however, there were hands on her shoulders, lifting her up before letting her back down onto a much more comfortable 'pillow' than the tile had been. Skyla wanted to lash out at that touch, swat it away, but she opened her eyes in that same moment and saw that it was Elesa and every ounce of energy she had was sapped away once more. Perhaps the only person she didn't think she could face, she turned her head away from her and the wave of emotion crashed into her heart once more; yet her sobs did not return. The same hands that had moved her from her tiled grave began to caress her head the way a mother consoled a hurt child and it gave her pause.
"Skyla I…I’m really sorry. I was just so surprised I didn’t know how to react, I feel terrible that because of me you’re crying right now, please don’t, you’re prettier with a smile~"
She didn't know what to say to that, wasn't prepared for it, at all. She wanted to tell her there was no need to apologize, she could just go ahead and disappear from the model's life, to tell her that it wasn't because of her that she was crying right now, or even just to say that she wasn't pretty with or without a smile. The only thing she could do was swallow hard and shake her head - whether to all three points or one individual one, she didn't know. Staring off into the distance, the redhead's eyes had stopped gushing tears and all she could do was listen numbly to her friend's words. She wasn't sure if Elesa's comforting gestures were working or if she was simply out of tears, but now she felt more like a pouting child than a heartbroken woman.
"I guess, what I’m trying to say is. I never knew, I always thought it was one-sided with me well…Liking you! I never wanted to ruin our friendship but now I kind of…Want to ruin it and take us a step further."
Price check on super glue? Skyla's eyes opened wide in surprise at the mere thought of Elesa having felt the same pressure of an unrequited love towards her of all people. Timidly, she turned her head back to try and face her now, although she wasn't sure how she should try and look. It was a mixture of surprise, pain, and stupidity, most likely a majority of stupidity, but she couldn't help but want to look at her and try to find the words to say in her friend's beautiful eyes. The pain was slowly subsiding and becoming replaced once more with fear and doubt. "A s-step further..?" was all she could choke out, her throat still containing a massive lump from the perceived eternity of crying.
Then the doubts flooded in. Skyla had never considered what such a relationship would mean, what it would cost the two, even if they were happy with each other. It would mean press for the two of them, moreso Elesa than her, due to their status as role models in the Unova region. The effect on the model's career could be equal parts positive and negative. While the region was probably liberal enough to handle a same-sex relationship, there were leaders in the corporate world that might take their own personal views out on Skyla and bar her from working for them. Almost certainly, this was part of what her friend meant by ruining the friendship; there were pressures beyond the simplistic worries of being rejected.
"Let’s go somewhere more quiet, ‘kay? We don’t want to cause a scene in such a place. Oh! We can go to my place, it’s not far from here at all, I’ll make some tea. The best tea this side of Unova, I swear!"
The redhead simply nodded in acquiescence. She was probably lucky there wasn't a crowd of people standing around them this very moment. Though her heart would have said otherwise, she was calm (if not numb) when she pushed herself to her knees then struggled to stand on her own. She wobbled a little, but she managed it all the same. Ashamed of her actions, her head hang as she turned a bit towards Elesa and nodded again. "Yeah," her voice sounded like it was returning to normal. "That sounds... good." She tried her best to wear a smile as the two exited the Cafe, but she knew it wasn't the same. There was a lot to talk about, she knew, but it would have to wait for now. For now, all she could do was hold onto Elesa's hand for moral and physical support and follow her wherever she went, for better or for worse.