Bonded (Camren)

•chapter 2•

•Trigger warning for homophobic slurs and mild violence•

~

When I awoke from my afternoon nap, it was to the sound of my cellphone ringing. The vibrations and beeping escaping the speakers were enough to make me sit up and bring the device up to my ear.

Camila: Hello?

Kyle: Baby, it's me. Where are you?

Camila: ...At home. Kyle, why are you calling?

Kyle: Cammie, I asked you to call me. Didn't you get my text?

Camila: I did, but I fell asleep. Sorry. What do you want, anyway?

Kyle: Baby, are you okay? You sound kind of mad at me.

I rolled back onto my pillows, rolling my eyes at the same time. Dealing with Kyle was becoming harder every day. He was just so clingy and irritating. Breathing out shortly, I replied to his question.

Camila: I'm fine.

Kyle: Girls always say that when they're not actually fine. But if you're sure...I just wanted to see where you were. You skipped class and I thought maybe...

Camila: You thought maybe what?

Kyle: I thought you would have gone back to my place.

Why the hell did he say things like that? I'd been to Kyle's house a grand total of once in my life, finding excuses for all the other times he had asked me. And it had not been a good experience in the slightest.

Camila: Um, no, I didn't. Like I said, I fell asleep at home.

Kyle: But why did you leave school early?

Camila: I wasn't feeling well, so I left. Kyle...my mom's calling, I have to go. Bye.

Kyle: Bye then.

Hanging up on him, I swore quietly under my breath. Maybe pretending to like Kyle had been a bad idea. I had fallen into a deep hole of lies and pretense and now the chance of being able to get out was very slim.

I looked down at the floor to see that Luna had gone, probably downstairs when my mom and Sofi had returned to the house.

"Mija?" My mom's voice called from the kitchen and I got up wearily from the bed, making my way down the stairs.

"Yeah?"

Seeing that I had appeared in the doorway, she smiled. "How was school?"

I hesitated. Should I tell her that I left early? Should I tell her about the strange experience with Lauren that my brain was still turning over and over in my head?

"Um...school was...fine. It was good," I lied, feeling less guilty than I should have. Oh well. What she doesn't know won't hurt her.

~

The second I arrived at school the next morning, I made my way to a small, empty classroom that was hardly ever in use. Dinah was waiting there for me, as we had just arranged over text. The taller girl was lounging on the desks at the back of the room, reading a book as I silently entered.

"A book? Wow, you've really changed." My voice startled her and Dinah jumped, dropping the novel to the ground and cursing loudly.

"Mila, you scared the crap out of me! Don't sneak up on me like that!" she said shakily, bending down to pick up her book again. "And about the book...I just figured I should actually start studying at some point. I don't want to fail any classes this year."