The Tattooist & The Florist

Chapter 24:

Camila's POV:

June had come so quickly and my business was growing fast. The other week I had an order put in for a wedding and I was dedicating all my time to perfecting the brides bouquet and the bridesmaids flowers. Lauren, on the other hand, would go home feeling drained and dull. She told me it was nothing for me to worry about because she was working on it – still, I found myself worrying about her.

On this day, Lauren and I had separate lunch times because the wedding I was preparing for was two days away and I needed all my hours for that day to finish the bouquet. So when closing time come, I was more happy than usual about seeing the older woman and thought she would feel the same; which is why I was shocked to see her standing long-faced and staring at the floor in my doorway.

"Hey!" I beamed, taking my earnings from the cash register. I had to do a double-take because of how gloomy Lauren looked. "Are you okay?"

I started to approach her and noticed her change in posture as she straightened her stance and focused her eyes on me. "I'm fine." The green-eyed girl failed to smile.

"Okay... Do you want to come for coffee at my place?" I let my hand caress her cheek before cupping her face and planting a kiss on her soft lips.

"How about we go to my place?" Lauren said, giving me a smile. I shrugged before agreeing and followed my girlfriend out the store and to the car.

Though it was only a 10 minute car ride, it was painfully long due to Lauren's mood. I knew she had been feeling rather stressed out but if this was the start of a cycle – she needed to do something about it. Looking over at her sat in the passenger seat deep in thought was killing me because I just wanted to go on about how well business was treating me – but I had to bite my tongue. I'd tell Dinah later.

-

By 6:35pm, my girlfriend and I were sat in front of the TV and watched trashy TV shows like 'Keeping up with the Kardashians'. In the past when watching, the two of us would make jokes throughout it – but this time Lauren's silence and frequent daydreams were just getting to me and I'd had enough.

"Lauren," I addressed and grabbed the remote to switch the TV off – getting her attention instantly. "Can you please tell me what's going on?"

"Nothing." She argued, trying to get the remote from my hands but I pulled away just in time. "Camila, put the TV back on."

"No. Something is going on and you're not telling me." I had to pull my hand away when she went for the remote again.

"For God's sake, Camila! I don't have to tell you about everything little thing that goes on in my life!" Lauren snapped, going for the remote one last time and winning. However, the sudden harshness of her action reminded me of my relationship with Ariana and I almost went into panic-mode before remembering that it was just Lauren. I stared her down though her eyes were on the screen and I eventually stood up and grabbed my jacket to leave. I was approaching the door when I felt a pull on my arm.

"Please don't leave." I heard and turned around to see Lauren stood behind me, her emerald eyes wide with worry. I obviously swooned right away, taking her hand into mine and using my free hand to caress the side of her face.

"Please just tell me what's going on." I spoke just above a whisper. My girlfriend sighed and guided me back to the sofa, eyeing me up intently for a moment before taking a deep breath.

"You know how I told you that I'm getting really tired of my job? That even though I'm still enjoying the art itself I'm just not enjoying this particular form anymore?" She didn't wait for me to answer before she carried on. "And you also now know that Ally and I have been trying to find jobs for me in Miami but we've been unsuccessful."

I nodded, caressing her hand with my thumb.

"I was at work today and some guy came in; he started eyeing up my work on the wall so I asked him what kind of tattoo he wanted. He told me that he was from an Italian magazine company and he was actually over here looking for artists. You see...his company need a graphic designer." Lauren explained, gesturing every now and then with her hand.

"Oh my God. Lauren, that's amazing. Was he interested in you?" I gasped, remembering that being a graphic designer was something that Lauren had always been interested in.

"Very. The money would be double, if not triple, the money I'm on now." Lauren shared, a smile hinting at her lips.

"So...what's the problem?" I asked, tilting my head to the side knowing that there must have been a reason Lauren didn't take the job there and then. The Miami-native took a deep intake of breath before answering.

"It's in Rome."

-

A/N:...nice weather we're having.

- fay

(short chapter but I'll make up for it! hold tight.)