Habit

Chapter 26

Lauren got ready for prom with Normani, and Camila got ready with Ally. Normani was going with Arin, the guy Lauren knew she'd dreamed of for years. The fact that she had the opportunity to go with him, Lauren knew, was enough to make her the happiest girl in the world. While they got ready, Lauren snuck glances at the girl and saw her randomly smiling, big, wide smiles, that she knew were solely because she was just so happy.

The sight made Lauren happy herself. Ally was going with her boyfriend, Troy Ogletree. Ally had this entirely planned out and was hoping it would turn out in the most princess fashion with him as Prince Charming. Ally was one of those girls who basically had her prom and marriage experience already set up in her mind since birth.  It excited Camila for her friend; she hoped everything really did turn out as both of them wanted.

Yes, both the girls had separate reasons to be excited for prom, for their friends, of course, but the one thing that neither of them could get over was the butterflies flurrying around in their bellies, the anticipation of seeing each girl's girlfriend, seeing her in her dress, taking in the beauty and loveliness of it all, knowing that tonight was all about them.Not only was tonight all about them, however. Tonight was all about them together.

There was a sense of finality to the situation, a sense of permanence, especially for Lauren. She couldn't help but think to herself how, even since going to her grandmother's house with Camila, there'd been every reason in the world to believe they could make this work in magical ways. Lauren found hope in this prom night-she found peace in knowing that she would have this girl in her arms all night long, with no interference from the outside world. At least she hoped not.

Lauren sat at her vanity this night, applying dark make up to her eyelids, thinking about how exactly she'd ended up here. She'd fallen for a girl, for one. A female. But in a strange way, she never saw Camila as another girl. She didn't see her as a boy, of course, that would be absurd. But she just couldn't see their relationship as anything out of the normal. Camila was wonderful, beautiful, smart, funny, and god her accent. It made Lauren swoon so hard.

But it was more than that for Lauren. It was in the way Camila would always be a bit shorter than Lauren, no matter how tall her heels were. It was in the way Camila kissed her, the way their lips tangoed relentlessly, with ease, without care. It was in the way Camila would sing in the shower, and Lauren would sit right outside the door, inching as close as possible just to hear the girl's high, belting notes. They were beautiful. It was mostly, though, in the way Camila's eyes were windows. It was in the way Lauren could completely tell how the girl was feeling. Of course, sometimes Lauren could see the pain, the hurt, the suffering, and that broke her heart. She knew that's what came along with Camila, though, her pain. And that was worth it. She would just do everything she could to make the girl feel even a speck better.

More often than not it worked. But sadness aside, Lauren could see in those windows things that made her heart tremble with gratitude and serenity. It was when they danced, that first time, in her grandmother's house. As if the memories surrounding her with her abuela weren't enough, now she had the memory of dancing with Camila, and seeing the dreaminess in her gaze as she realized what was happening-they were dancing. Camila, who couldn'tdance, was dancing. And you could see in those beautiful brown windows just how amazingly prideful that was for her. Lauren loved that. It was so special.

But now, Lauren stopped what she was doing. "SHIT!" She yelped. Normani jumped in her seat in the bathroom and screamed out something in response. "Mani," Lauren said in disbelief, "I forgot the damn corsage. It's in my mom's shop." Normani murmured something in response, which Lauren didn't hear for the panic in her head. "I'll be back." She grabbed her keys hurriedly and shot down the stairs, trying not to trip at the speed she was going.