Game On || C.L.16

4.5

Amelie's pov
"Don't take this the wrong way Lie, but you really need to calm down." Esteban says whilst I'm still sobbing like crazy. It's the only thing I've done since he has entered my apartment.

My eyes are stinging from the salt in my tears, my cheeks sticky from tears that had trickled down. Esteban is holding me tightly, my tears having stained his shirt. "I - I can't." I stammer in between sobs.

"Yes you can." Esteban says encouragingly before wiping my tears away. "Look at me Lie. We're gonna breathe together, because I'm scared you'll start hyperventilating if we don't." I nod softly, trying to calm myself down once again. "Breathe in." Esteban says carefully, taking a deep breath himself signaling for me to do the same. "And breathe out."

I don't know how long Esteban had to coach me through my breathing, but eventually it did help. "Better?" He asks carefully once I've stopped crying and my breathing has reached a normal pattern.

"Yes, thank you." I say forcing a small smile on my face.

"Now if you don't want to talk about it, that's fine. But would you tell me what's gotten you in this state?" He says handing me a cup of tea he made me.

I take another deep breath, uncertain of what to do. I trust him, I could talk to him. I'm sure I can, maybe he has heard something from Pierre or Charles already. "I think I fucked it all up." I say trying to keep my calm, although I can feel the tears returning already.

"It's alright, I won't judge."

It's the last bit of encouragement I need to tell Esteban the whole story. How the nightmares returned, how I started feeling as if I wasn't good enough and how I started slipping back into the old habits I'd been working to avoid for the last year. Of course I cried, I almost felt disappointed in myself. Esteban kept convincing me that I was anything but to be disappointed at myself. He told me that he was very proud that I was accepting help and that I was doing the work to get myself back on track.

"I'm not even allowed to play this weekend." I say in the end showing my disappointment once again.

"Hey, think about it this way. Take the mental health you need, PSG is taking some of the pressure off of you. They're just making sure you're in the right mind set for next week."

"But I need to play to clear my head."

"And that's where your mind takes over again. You don't need it. It is one of many tools to get your mind to rest."

"So what do you suggest?"

"Have a weekend with your boyfriend?" Esteban suggests, me raising my eyebrows in respons.

"He's still here?" I wonder having thought he would've taken the flight to Monaco with Arthur earlier today.

"He's waiting downstairs, he wouldn't leave until he was certain you were alright. But don't tell him I've told you that." A cheeky smile on his face.

"I won't. I'm just surprised he still wants to see me."

"Lie, he cares about you. Shall I send him up?" Esteban suggests standing up from the couch we were sat on.

"I'd like that." I admit, as Esteban heads for the door to my apartment building.

The bit of time I spend in my apartment by myself seems to go by extremely slow. However I am relieved to hear a soft knock on my door, before the doorknob twists and Charles peeks in. Esteban must've given him the key he used to get in. I can see in Charles' eyes that he's uncertain of what he'll find. Which version of me it is he'd be encountering.

"Hi," I say smiling, while my eyes meet his. My voice is calm but careful, a bit uncertain about how to act.

"Hi." Charles says walking towards me, I can tell he's trying his best to not seem excited to see me. Yet it is still very visible to me. "Is it okay if I sit here?" He points to the empty spot on the couch, the exact spot where Esteban had just sat.