Ain't That a Kick in the Head (Camren)

Chapter 15

"I have a story for you." Lauren announced, grinning.

Camila gestured with her hand. "Let's hear it, baby."

Lauren's gaze remained on the screen when Mars bounced lightly into her lap. "Louis wanted to come with me this morning, which is fun, even though he surfs like a grom and wears booties with boardies." She began, scratching absently at Mars's back.

"Right." Camila said sagely.

"So we went out past the pier-"

Lauren cut herself off at the sound of Camila's trailer door opening. Camila turned and smiled at somebody out of frame, and Lauren sighed before Harry even came into the shot. He smiled quickly at Lauren before gliding further into the trailer.

"They're ready for you, Camila." He declared, breathless. "They're starting from act two. Loads to cover today. Did you practice those changes to Buddy, Beware?"

Lauren stared at the side of Camila's head and picked quietly at the sand under her nails.

"Who do you think I am, Harry?" Camila replied indignantly. "Of course I did."

"Well, chop, chop, chop!"

Lauren heard Harry clapping his hands together in the background, and then a lot of shuffling and banging as Camila turned back to the camera.

"I'll call you later, baby." Camila promised quietly. "You can finish the story."

Lauren shrugged. "It's not that great."

"I want to hear it."

Lauren sighed. She sat forward, smiling softly, and Camila searched her face. It was so much harder to see things through the screen- a slight quirk of Lauren's lips, a flash of her eyes. Even the small noises she made were lost through the speakers.

"Go sing your socks off, Camila Cabello."

Camila smiled fondly at her. "Love you."

Lauren barely managed to return the sentiment before the call was disconnected.

.....

Thanks to Shawn and the dive boat, which he and Lauren had called Babanees, the scuba section of Jupiter Surf was growing rapidly. An hour before opening, Lauren sat on the floor of the shop painstakingly untangling the hoses, valves, and cords of every BCD that she was adding to the rack, and muttering to herself because honestly she should be able to delegate this task to one of her moron employees.

"Can't even put together a scuba vest." She groused, yanking at a regulator until it came free from the pile.

She sat back on her heels and frowned at the hose. The regulators shouldn't even be in the pile since there was nothing to attach them to without an oxygen tank.

Lauren flung it, gently, off to the side. "Dumbasses." She grumbled.

She was red-faced and sweating, tugging violently at a twist of corrugated hosing, when Normani strolled through the front door half an hour later. Lauren's gaze cut over immediately, and the fright on Normani's face was real but fleeting.

"Why are you late?"

"Good morning, sunshine." Normani greeted, eyes rolling.

Lauren turned back to her pile of scuba gear. "You were supposed to be here an hour ago."

She shifted slightly when Normani crouched next to her and began pulling on the other ends of the corrugated hoses. Normani pointed, and Lauren switched wordlessly to work on the rubber exhaust tubes.