closed; a love i can't carry anymore

[senateur]

WHO: Padmé & Sabé
WHERE: Padmé's apartment in De Chima
WHEN: After talking with Luke and Leia
WHAT: Padmé needs her best friend
WARNINGS: More tears and sadness


It was late. The summer sun had set an hour ago, maybe two, and for one of the few times in her all too brief life, Padmé allowed herself to be selfish. Drinking down the last drops of wine in her glass, she fumbled to refill it from an almost empty bottle before typing out the message that she knew would be answered without hesitation.

I need you. Please come over.

Comments

[decoyqueen]

It wasn't that Sabé sat waiting for messages to arrive, she was good at keeping herself busy. She had stayed at the small studio she worked at as a self defense instructor to work out a little herself. There was just too much uncertainty in the city to not keep up on her own fitness, after all.

No, the reason she was able to know the importance of the message at all was because she had assigned Padmé her own tone.

She read it once, then twice... before answering.

On my way.

She didn't hesitate to grab her towel and duffel bag and head over to Padmé's as quickly as she was able. The moment she reaches her apartment, she knocks on the door twice. "Padmé, it's me."

[senateur]

The glass is half gone again by the time Sabé arrives, the empty bottle joining its twin on the coffee table because the kitchen is too far. She hadn't even made it that far to tidy up from the twins' visit, dregs of caf still in the carafe and dirty mugs in the sink. It's not like her and she simply can't find the energy to care. The only thing that convinces her to finally move is the sound of her friend's voice, and even then that movement is slow and sluggish.

When she opens the door, there's no part of her pain hidden away behind a mask. What was the point? She'd asked Sabé to come because, of anyone on this planet, she doesn't have to pretend with her. Her pain, the grief and heartache that threatened to consume her, is laid bare in her expression.

[decoyqueen]

There's a little ball of anxiety that's been building in her stomach since she received the message. It continues to grow as she waits for Padmé to answer the door- and the moment she sees her? It isn't any better.

The look on her face kills her- but it's without a second thought that Sabé drops her bag as she steps inside and pulls Padmé into a tight hug. "I'm here."

She doesn't know what's going on, but she's here- and with a cursory glance around the apartment from over her dear friend's shoulder, whatever it is? Is worse than when she first arrived on Earth.

[senateur]

Wrapping her arms tight around her friend, Padmé holds on as if her life depends on it. Everything in her life feels as if it's falling apart, those shattered pieces that have been hanging on the edge of a precipice for months now finally teetering over into darkness.

And then the tears start. Not for the first time that day, the proverbial floodgates open and she gives herself to the current of emotion, her breath coming in gasps while her vision blurs and hot tears streak down her cheeks. She is broken, and with Sabé alone she truly lets it be seen.

[decoyqueen]

Oh. Sabé doesn't dare move- not as soon as she hears those gasps that undoubtedly cued the tears. It's with very careful, deliberate movements that she strokes Padmé's hair and rubs her back.

"I'm here- I'm not going anywhere," she whispers. She doesn't try to move her, just lets her be for several long moments, before she pulls back just enough to look at her. She carefully brushes the tears from Padmé's cheeks, unable to keep up with how fast they were falling.

[senateur]

It's exactly what she needs. Those little reminders that she isn't alone, that her dearest friend is there with her, through touch and words... It's what she needs. And it's because of those that she is able to pull herself together after Sabé pulls back. The tears still fall but not as violently, and her breathing calms enough that she's able to quietly say, "Thank you."

[decoyqueen]

"Come on," she murmurs. The look on her own face is absolutely reflecting the heartbreak she feels for seeing her closest friend like this. She double checks that the door is closed behind her, kicks her duffel bag even more out of the way, and grabs hold of Padmé's hands carefully.

"Let's get to the couch... and you can either talk about it or whatever will help you right now, okay?"

She squeezes her hands and presses a reverent kiss to her knuckles. Instead of leading her, however, Sabé waits for her to move and lead the way at her own pace. She's has no intention of rushing her, and though her attention is all on Padmé right now? She's mentally cataloging everything she needs to do to help later.