This is a continuation of my one-shot story Better.

AirplaneShipping - Elesa x Skyla - Gameverse, Black and White

Breathe Again: AirplaneShipping

Skyla.

Who's calling my name? It sounds really familiar…

Skyla, wake up.

Wake up? That's…not possible. I can't wake up. I'm…

I'm dead, aren't I?

Skyla, you have to wake up now.

Who…who's talking to me?

Skyla, wake up. Please, wake up!

SKYLA!

I heard a faint noise come from my right ear. It progressively got louder to where I could hear it from both ears. My body twitched and I could feel something warm and soft in my left hand. I could tell that I was laying down on something. A familiar smell entered my nostrils; a very sweet scent. My mouth tasted of iron and something else bland and disgusting.

There was only one sense left to activate: my sight. I was having trouble opening my eyes, so I decided to speak instead.

"…H-hello…?" My voice felt hoarse and heavy. It was like I hadn't spoken in years.

"S-Skyla?" A voice that matched the familiar scent rang through my ears and I gasped instinctively. I continued struggling to open my eyes; it was like they were glued shut.

Finally my eyes slipped open and a bright light above my head forced me to squint. Whatever was in my hand squeezed tightly. I glanced over.

"Skyla! You're awake!" Elesa, my best friend, was smiling at me. Her eyes were red and her hair was a mess, but she still looked beautiful. The perks of being a model with natural beauty. She wiped away tears that were beginning to form at the corners of her eyes.

"Elesa…?" my voice was cracking, but I tried to ignore it. "W-what's going…?" It took me a moment to realize she was holding my hand as she held it in front of her.

"Skyla…" her smile faltered. "You've been asleep for a few days. Do you…" she sniffled a little, still trying to hold back tears. "Do you remember what happened?"

I blinked slowly, as my eyes still wouldn't open all the way. It felt like I was drugged and everything in my body felt heavy.

Drugged… The taste in my mouth sparked my memory.

"E-Elesa…" I frowned and tried to turn my head, but a sharp pain ran through my skull and I flinched. That wasn't going to work, so I gave up. But there was no way I could keep this from her. She had to have known what happened to me.

But…I thought I had taken enough drugs to… Who found me?

I tried to think of the sentence in my head before I said it, since I still felt loopy. "I-I do remember…and I…" Forget forming a comprehensible sentence, I couldn't even think of what to say in the first place. How could I explain to her why I had tried to kill myself?

"Skyla…" Elesa was now in tears and I felt like crying myself. "I couldn't believe it when I walked into your house and found you on the ground, surrounded by pill bottles. How could you…? Why…?"

My eyes widened as much as they could. "W-what? You're the one that found me? But I thought you were on vacation to Undella…with Hilbert…"

"No, I came back early because I was really worried about you…and Hilbert was, too. I was talking to him about you the entire time and he asked me if I wanted to cut the vacation short to check up on you. You hadn't been answering your phone, so I had to come back. And…I'm just so glad I did…" Elesa's tears were shining in the light as they rolled down her cheeks.

I twitched my hand that was in hers and she let go. I slowly raised it to wipe the tears from her cheek. "I'm so sorry…"

"I'm sorry for not helping you sooner, Skyla," she raised her hand to cover mine on her face. "How could I have not noticed it had gotten this bad? I'm such an awful friend…"

"D-don't say that!" I yelled and my throat started to burn. I coughed and Elesa handed me a glass of water on the table next to her. I drank it slowly; the water was lukewarm, but it was much better than nothing. "Elesa, I began to regret it after I did it, but I couldn't move. If it hadn't have been for you being so worried about me… I never would have taken another breath. I'm alive right now because of you."

"…Skyla…" she frowned.

"Don't frown like that," I smiled. "Hey, I'm in a bad situation, but I think with your help, I can get better."

"Aren't I the reason you're in this mess?"

"Elesa, stop," I said. "It was my fault. I was obsessed with being as beautiful as you, possibly even better, and I just couldn't do it. It was my stupidity that led to this. You tried to help me as much as you could and all I did was push you away…"

There was silence for a moment…well, as much silence as there could be in a hospital room, what with the ECG beeping constantly.

"Skyla, you're fine just the way you are. You're a beautiful young lady and you don't have to be a model to prove yourself. Your personality makes up for any faults you could possibly have with your body, but honestly, I can't note any. You're probably the closest thing to perfection in my eyes," Elesa explained. The ECG jumped a bit and I think she noticed.

Did she…did she really mean all of that? I had lost Hilbert to her, but maybe the person I really wanted this whole time was…

"T-thanks, Elesa…" I blushed. "B-but what about Hilbert?"

She smiled. "I…I broke things off with him."

I perked up, then regretted it when that sharp pain in my head returned. Elesa gently pushed me back against the pillow. "You what?!"

"I told him that I needed to focus on helping you. We're still friends and he understands completely. He wishes you the best. Actually, he should be here later to visit."

I blinked at her. "You really did that…for me?"

"Of course," Elesa said. "My modeling is going to be put on hold for a little while as well. I want to be there for you as much as I can."

I tried to hold back the tears that were forming, but it wasn't possible. I held out my arms and wordlessly insisted that she hug me. She smiled, crying as well, and leaned forward into my arms. She wrapped her arms tightly around me and I never wanted her to let go.

"I-I love you, Elesa," I choked though my tears. "Thank you so much…"

"I love you, too, Skyla…" she said back. And I was just so happy that I was able to see her again. To hold her in my arms. To hear her tell me that she loves me.

To smell her wonderful scent. To breathe again.