Camila glanced up at Lauren, glad that she didn’t say anything, ‘never again, promise?’ Lauren asked her and Camila nodded her head ‘pinkie promise?’ Lauren asked her trying to lighten up the mood, Camila wrapped her pink around the taller girls and pulled her in for another hug ‘thank you’ she mumbled against her ear. ‘Just.. talk to me when you feel like it alright?’ Lauren said uncertain of what to say in those kind of situations and Camila just nodded in response.
Lauren cleaned up the blood on Camila’s wrist and the floor, she got out some bandages and put them over the cuts, she was glad that the cuts weren’t that bad. When she saw Camila rolling down the sleeves of her jumper out of the corner of her eyes a million questions popped into her mind. She crouched down next to the smaller and took Camila’s other arm and started to move up the sleeve, did she cut before?. Camila shook her head and Lauren glanced up with a questioning look ‘I know what you’re doing..’ she mumbled ‘it was the first time.. and the last, I promise’ Camila said bringing up her pinkie again.
After an hour of being upstairs, they entered the living room again, Lauren held on tight to Camila’s hand to reassure her that everything would be ok and that she won’t go anywhere, while Camila held on to her crutch with her other hand. Most of her family was already gone, her eyes fell on Chris and Taylor who were sitting around the Christmas tree, carefully shaking the new presents. “Those presents weren’t there that morning” she thought, it was a different wrapping paper than the paper her parents used. She glanced over to her right, knowing that Camila had gone out that morning, a small smile was creeping on Camila’s lips and Lauren immediately understood that Camila had put those presents under the tree when she got back. ‘I thought you were saving the money for College and important circumstances’ Lauren whispered with a smirk, ‘I just.. wanted to do something back’ Camila said as she kept her gaze fixed on the two younger children who were still trying to figure out what they were getting ‘besides, Christmas is pretty important don’t you think’. Lauren smiled at the smaller girl and hugged her carefully from the side before she pulled her onto the couch behind them.
‘Mom! Everyone’s gone can we unwrap our presents now?’ Taylor asked her mother wile bouncing up and down as her mother closed the front door to let out the remaining family members. The clock on the wall chimed eight as Clara walked back into the living room ‘Let’s put on the lights of the Christmas tree first alright?’. While his wife was fixing the Christmas lights Michael also entered the room while holding some snacks which he placed on the small table between the couches. As they sat down on the couch Clara and Michael noticed the five new presents in green wrapping paper, the two of them shot Lauren and Camila questioning looks, Lauren nodded towards Camila who just smiled shyly.
Chris and Taylor practically attacked the Christmas presents, they picked up every single one and handed them out. They sat down on the floor in the middle of the room with their own presents while the four of them watched intently. ‘Youngest first!’ Taylor called as she attacked the wrapping paper, Lauren smiled as she noticed it was her present ‘It’s from me’ she told her little sister, Taylor shrieked as she held up the new One Direction album “midnight memories” ‘Thanks Lo!’ . She quickly grabbed her next present which was taped to another one and Lauren looked up at Camila as she noticed the two packages in green wrapping paper taped together ‘two?’ Taylor asked questioningly as she looked around the room, ‘It’s from Mila’ Clara told her as she shot the girl a heart-warming smile. Taylor carefully opened the present after Camila told her that she had to be careful with one of them, 1D This is Us and two cinema tickets fell out of the paper and Taylor shrieked again as she picked them up ‘Thank you Mila!’. Camila smiled at how excited the girl was about a simple movie, Taylor was a true fan girl. Taylor quickly grabbed her last present which was from Clara and Michael, it as an envelope and Taylor carefully ripped it open but screamed as she saw the content ‘I AM GOING TO SEE ONE DIRECTION LIVE’ She screamed as she waved the two concert tickets through the air, she shot up from the ground and engulfed her parents in a big hug.
As soon as Taylor finished Chris grabbed his presents and started unwrapping them, he started with the one from Michael and Clara, he thanked the both of them with a huge smile while putting the GTA V game on the small table next to him, afterwards he grabbed the one from Lauren and also thanked her when he unwrapped his new controller since his other one broke when he threw it against the wall in a wave of anger. He took the green presents and unwrapped it to reveal a brown cardboard box, he opened the box and a white box with a note on top appeared, he casted a questioning look in the direction of Camila who just smiled at him ‘just read it’.
Sorry for dropping your phone ;)
It read, and Chris’s mouth fell open when he removed the note, ‘AN IPHONE 5S?’ he screamed shocked, Camila just nodded with a smile ‘Damn, you’re the best sister ever!’ he told her while he took the phone out of the box. Camila smiled at the word sister they really saw her as a family now, and she still got to be a big sister, she even had a little brother and a little sister now, a single tear rolled down Camila’s cheek and she felt Lauren wipe it away. ‘are you ok?’ she whispered and Camila nodded ‘I’m family right?’ she asked with the same smile still plastered on her face, Lauren nodded her head with a broad smile as she pulled the girl in for a hug.
Lauren grabbed the presents Taylor had given her earlier and placed them in her lap after Camila practically forced her to go first. She grabbed the small red box first just to tease Camila, she opened it and her mouth fell open when she saw the content ‘w-what’s this’ she stuttered ‘car keys’ Clara told her casually ‘now you don’t have to borrow our car anymore, plus it’s for Christmas but also for your birthday!’ Michael continued ‘You can pick it up from the shop tomorrow’ he finished and Lauren quickly ran over to hug her parents. ‘Thank you, thank you!’ she said with a huge smile. With the same huge smile she opened Taylor’s and Chris’ presents who bought the Paramore album for her. And last but not least she grabbed Camila’s present she opened it to be shocked all over again, in the box was the Polaroid camera she’d been saving for since it was way too expensive ‘T-thanks Camz’ Lauren stuttered as she hugged the girl. Next were Clara and Michael who got gift cards and chocolate from their children and some self made cards, they got two tickets to go to a luxurious spa from Camila and thanked her for that since she also offered to babysit Chris and Taylor that day.
As soon as it was Camila’s turn she was handed a huge box which said Chris, Taylor & Lauren on it, she unwrapped it to reveal a new electric guitar, she thanked the three of them with a hug ‘Thanks! I really wanted a new one’. The other box was a bit heavy to put in the girl’s lap so Camila sat down on the floor next to her two younger “siblings”. She opened to box to reveal a new amplifier to go with the new guitar ‘wow thanks!’ Camila said as she hopped towards Clara and Michael to hug them.
They watched Elf and The polar Express, somewhere during the movie Lauren fell asleep on the other end of the couch. When the movie ended Chris and Taylor went upstairs since they were exhausted and Lauren was still asleep. Clara and Michael were in the kitchen cleaning everything up. Camila noted the wrapping paper still spread around the floor so she decided to help a little, she got up from the couch with the help of one of her crutches, and she moved around the room bending down every once in a while to pick up a piece of paper.
As she entered the kitchen with the big wad of wrapping paper Clara and Michael send them thankful looks ‘Thank you Mila’ Clara told her with a sincere smile. ‘You got those presents when you went out this morning right?’ Michael asked the girl as she sat down on of the stools, she nodded with an apologetic look ‘sorry about that’. She received a confused look from both Clara and Michael.
‘about what?’
‘It were great presents’
Camila looked up ‘you aren’t mad I got them just this morning?’ she asked them, ‘Christmas isn’t about presents Camila, we know you feel like your some kind of burden, but you’re not, really. We’re very glad to have you as our daughter now, you aren’t ruining anything for us.’ Clara and Michael told her, ‘I didn’t want to ruin their Christmas by not getting them anything..’ she mumbled as she played with the wad of paper, ‘you made their Christmas at least three times better by just being here Camila, you know how much they like you. Chris called you his sister remember?’ Clara told her with a sincere smile. ‘I’m not going to ask you how much you spend, that would be rude, but you don’t need to spend so much money we rather have you saving your money for your future plans, but it were lovely present.’ Michael told her.
For the first time in a long time Camila felt like she was a part of a family again..
