beyond the monotonous city

fourty one

Shawn said he wanted to try for school in Canada as well if not for the schools in their state. He wasn't big on leaving home. Ariana wanted to go to an arts school in New York where she could hone her opera and maybe even theater singing. As for Dinah she wanted to go back to where they were from, in LA and try for something related to singing in one of the schools there.

Lauren was hit with the reality that their high school bubble was over and that they were all moving onto another chapter in their lives. It made her think of reality and the fragility of time, that they didn't have long before they were all going to graduate. It was after all, more than halfway through the semester.

She thought of this as she chose to walk home alone, instead of riding with Shawn. She appreciated the solitude the silence gave her as she used it to think back, to retrospect about her senior year. The school year started out really slow for her, but others were right as time couldn't come sooner as she went on with the year. She made friends, made memories yet somehow, time was always the biggest enemy.

She dropped her bag at home and made her way into the Cabello house. She rang the doorbell until Sinu showed up who was wiping a glass. She was her usual cheery self.

She smiled when she saw who it was. "Oh Lauren, Camila is sleeping upstairs. I could wake her up for you."

"No Sinu, it's fine I wouldn't want to disturb you further. I'll just drop by." She said as Sinu let her in. She familiarly made her way up and opened the door gently to see a sleeping Camila at her side. Lauren couldn't help her smile. Camila was still wearing the bright blue denim jumper over a worn out yellow shirt from yesterday. It was a cute color combination.

She sat at the chair next to Camila and just watched her sleep. She intertwined her hand in Camila's, not thinking if it was right or wrong because she did it to her all the time. It was honestly the first time she did it as Camila was usually the one who initiated. She tucked the loose hair behind Camila's ear as to not cover her face. Lauren smiled as Camila looked like the prettiest when she slept and she could never get enough of it.

Camila was ethereal and Lauren knew it.

She stayed there studying every stroke, every bit of her face. She wished she could paint Camila then and there because she was a sight to behold right then.

"Today was surreal honestly." Lauren said softly, mostly to herself but she pretended like she was talking to Camila. The girl didn't flinch when she talked. She realized Camila was a heavy sleeper. "Talking about colleges, like I talked to someone from Harvard. I can't believe it won't be long until we're gone. I'm gone."

She was looking at the hardwood floor, in thought.

"I'm thinking about what next adventures we can do. There's still some stuff in your bucket list we could maybe do. The funny part is I'm just as excited, even more. I can't wait to-live." Lauren said melancholic. She remembered what Camila had told her that one time. I just can't wait to y'know, really live. For once she understood what she meant.

She wanted to tell Camila a lot of things but she didn't want to disturb her sleep any further. Lauren said her a silent goodbye and stood up when she was pulled back by Camila's grip. Lauren turned, shaking her head with a smirk that Camila didn't want to let her go. When she went back to her, she realized Camila's hand had gone cold and that she wasn't gripping her hand at all, but was rather stiff. Her smirk disappeared.

"Camila-"

And in those seconds, Lauren realized that time was her enemy again.

Lauren felt a second pass before she could breathe again. Camila on the other hand, did not. She realized her chest wasn't in the usual rhythm of rising and falling, but she was too late. She felt cold sweat and her hands, one of them still in Camila's, gone clammy.

She felt the blood move down from her head. Queasiness rose from her stomach.

She put another arm at Camila's shoulder and gently shook her awake. Soft at first and then becoming shakier as her hand was shaking. "Camila, wake up." Her voice was hoarse. She shook her again until Lauren's entire self was shaking. "Camila-" A tear showed in her voice, making it crack. "Wake up please."

Seconds were passing and nothing was happening. She convinced herself it was a blackout, but why couldn't she speak? Why couldn't she act the way she did the last time? She then couldn't open her mouth to utter a single word. She couldn't move. People had different ways to deal with stress and it was usually fight or flight, but for Lauren in that moment it was to freeze. She felt her body turn to stone, her voice turn into cement.

No, this was just a nightmare. It was one of her nightmares. Camila was perfectly fine and her head's just been acting up again. But something in her knew it was different.

She felt helpless as all she could do was stare and watch.

It looked like she was just sleeping.

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A/N: Btw, gonna update every day until the story is finished. So....the weather.