blue ➸ camren

two

"C'mon," Lauren laughed softly, watching Camila hop around the room on one foot, attempting to get her shoes on. The smaller girl giggled and fell back on the bed, finally tugging on the second shoe.

"Where are we going?" Camila asked, tilting her head to the side. She stared questioningly at her shoelaces before looking up at Lauren.

"The mall," Lauren informed her, bending down and knotting Camila's shoelaces. "You need new shoes. And clothes."

"I do?" Camila furrowed her eyebrows, looking down at her shoes. They seemed perfectly fine to her.

"You've practically worn holes into these shoes," Lauren laughed, standing up and motioning for Camila to follow her. "Plus, you need an actual winter coat. Even though it's January, winter doesn't look like it's gonna end anytime soon."

"Oh," Camila nodded once and studied Lauren's face. "You are mad at me."

Now it was Lauren's turn to be confused. "Mad?" she raised an eyebrow. "What makes you think I'm mad at you?"

"I was bad," Camila shook her head and followed Lauren across the parking lot. Once they reached the car, the smaller girl sighed softly and buckled herself into the passenger seat.

"Are you talking about last night?" Lauren asked as they pulled out of the parking lot. Camila nodded hesitantly.

"I ruined it," Camila crinkled her nose. "Why am I like this?"

"Because you're you," Lauren shrugged and reached over to lace their fingers together. She wasn't going to deny that Camila was different. The girl already knew that. Lauren just wanted to make sure that Camila didn't owe anyone an apology for the way she was.

"And I am stupid," Camila muttered, shaking her head and looking down.

"Camz..." Lauren sighed. "You're not stupid." This conversation had become a recurring one lately.

"But I do not..." Camila groaned and pulled her hand out of Lauren's. "I do not want to talk right now," she mumbled, shaking her head and pressing her forehead against the window.

Sighing, Lauren retracted her hand back to the steering wheel. She wasn't sure anything she said would make Camila believe her.

The rest of the car ride was practically silent. Camila didn't understand the tension between them. Was Lauren mad at her? The girl had been annoyed with her the night before.

Camila squeezed her eyes shut. Everyone must be annoyed with her. They didn't understand. She took a deep breath, like she's been taught to do when she was feeling anxious.

"We're here," Lauren said softly, pulling into an open parking spot. Camila lifted her head and studied the large building in front of them. She suddenly felt increasingly nervous.

The minute she got out of the car, she scurried over to Lauren's side and held onto her forearm. The last thing she wanted was to be separated from the other girl. Lauren was her security, her safety. Without her, everything was ten times scarier.

Lauren looked over at Camila, biting her lip as she led the smaller girl into the mall. "I'm not going anywhere, Camz," she laughed softly. Camila looked up at her and Lauren could see the nervousness in her features.

"C'mon, it's less crowded in here," Lauren pulled them both into the first clothing store she could find. Camila relaxed slightly, following behind Lauren when she began to search through the racks of clothes.

"For you," Camila giggled, pulling a pair of cat ears off of one of the displays and holding them out for Lauren to see.

Lauren crinkled her nose and shook her head, taking the cat ears and putting them back where Camila found them. "We're not shopping for me, anyway. We're trying to find clothes for you."