Me Without You

"Are you happy?"

I'm gonna be late, fuck! I'm gonna be late, I'm gonna be late and she's gonna hate me and, just, fuck!

Tresses of dark hair rushed through the hallway in an almost full sprint, familiar lockers gleaming as the sun beat down of them harshly. The place was still warm, but the girl had no time to really take that in.

She was late. She was half an hour late.

Her heels clinked against the hard floor, the sounds bouncing off the brick walls and settling in her ears, almost making her cringe as she disturbed the silence.

She took a brief moment to think about how comical the entire situation was...she, Camila Cabello, was managing to run down a hallway...in heels. When the hell had she acquired that skill?

But those thoughts were quickly put on the side-burner when she finally reached the double doors. That's when her steps became more hesitant, trying to keep them silent. She lightly pushed at one door, peeking her head in to find she'd not disturbed many, only a few people sitting on the back seats turned to check who it was. Some's eyes widened, others kind of shrugged her off, but Camila slipped into the auditorium and quietly found a seat in the back.

Dinah was still seated on the stage up the front and when Camila listened, she heard that they'd only reached E in the alphabet.

She hadn't missed it.

She was still in time for Dinah's graduation.

Initially, she wasn't planning to come. She thought about the pros and cons of attending and found that the cons outweighed the pros by a long shot. But then she remembered how Dinah had surprised her last year by showing up for her eighteenth birthday and Camila knew she owed the girl.

So there she was, at Dinah's high school graduation.

Her eyes started scanning the people around her, curious to see who had attended, if there were still people she knew and she was pleasantly surprised to find Ally seated about five rows ahead of her with Jake beside her. Camila was pleased the pair were still together, Ally deserved that happiness.

She didn't really know if she was looking for anyone in particular so when she caught the side of Normani's face in one of the aisle seats, she smiled. The dark-skinned girl had a bunch of flowers settled in her lap and a wide smile on her face. Dinah and Normani were still together, going strong. Good, Camila thought.

Camila knew that her eyes were searching for Lauren next, she hadn't spoken to the girl in just over two years so she would have no idea what Lauren was like anymore. Maybe she'd changed physically; cut her hair, got piercings...something. Or maybe she stayed the same; long, jet-black locks cascading down her back, sleeves of tattoos covering her arms, that little slit in her eyebrow lacking hair.

Camila's heart rate picked up at the memories.

Even after those two years passed, Lauren still managed to evoke those emotions from her.

Unfortunately she couldn't find Lauren anywhere but a part of her was almost grateful for it.

Camila's head shot up when her best friend's name was called out and the sassy blonde strutted across the stage. Dinah still carried that air of confidence that Camila craved. Her hair was looped in perfect curls and her make up was flawless, but that was just standard for Dinah Jane. Camila noticed a sort of calm in the girl as well, she walked with comfort and ease across the stage, the smile on her face not tainted by playfulness but actual appreciation for being there.

It was the first time Camila came to notice that Dinah had matured in their time apart.

"Thank fuck I didn't miss that queen's hot ass strut across the stage." A soft whisper hit Camila's ear and a wide smile spread across her face as her head instantly shot back, almost causing whiplash.