Bonded (Camren)

•chapter 13•

What a bitch, I muttered internally, seeing the crestfallen look on Lauren's face that was mingled with a heavy weariness. I gathered that dinner parties with work colleagues were probably something she was very used to, since her parents were so work oriented.

And as I quickly glanced at the raven-haired girl, I didn't see anything wrong with what she was wearing or what she looked like. Her light gray jeans were paired with a cropped black sweater, and her makeup was hardly even smudged from the earlier rain that had slowly reduced to a drizzle that made a calming sound against the window pane.

However, I couldn't comfort the girl in front of her mother, who was staring at Lauren expectantly. I could only sit in silence and hope that the older girl wasn't taking what Clara was saying to heart.

"Can Camila come?"

I turned my head sharply when those words left Lauren's lips; first to her and then to her mom.

"Lauren...I just said I need your help," Clara muttered warningly, her eyes shifting uncomfortably towards me as she addressed her daughter.

"I will help, and Camila can go home first if she wants to, but can she please come over during the dinner? I won't be eating with you anyway, will I?"

The older woman couldn't exactly argue with that. Even the idea of Lauren sitting at the table with her colleagues was enough for her to sigh deeply and nod.

"Fine. But you'll have to be upstairs. And...is it Camila?" She glanced at me, uncertain of my name. "Don't expect me to make any dinner for you. I won't have time," she warned.

Lauren suddenly glanced at me worriedly, concerned that I hadn't actually been asked if I wanted to go or not. With a smile, I reassured her that I would definitely be there. Not because I particularly wanted to spend any more time in her mother's company, but because I wanted to spend time with Lauren.

"Thank you, Mrs Jauregui," I smiled politely as I stood up and began to make my way towards the door, where the older woman abruptly stood to the side like I had some sort of contagious disease. "And I'll see you later," I said in a quieter tone to the girl still sitting on the couch.

"Bye," Lauren whispered back gratefully.

Before I'd even opened the front door to leave, the sound of Clara ordering Lauren around forcefully pierced my eardrums. It took all the willpower I had to continue walking out of the door and back towards my own house.

~

"Thank God," Lauren muttered as soon as she opened the door to see me standing on the porch nervously. Grabbing my wrist lightly, she pulled me up the stairs immediately before exchanging any other words.

"How's the dinner party going?" I questioned as we made our way along the carpeted hallway to a door at the end that I assumed must be the entrance to Lauren's bedroom.

"I wouldn't know," the green eyed girl returned bitterly, letting go of my forearm so that she could turn the door handle. "The preparation was hard enough for me to need a nap."

As I examined her, I noticed that her eyes did look a little red and bleary, as if she had been sleeping not too long ago. "I'm sorry," I comforted, before realizing that Lauren's eyes had suddenly widened and her face had gone slack. "Lauren?" My voice rose with worry.

"Sorry," she breathed, blinking a few times and seeming to come back down to earth. "You just...you're stunning." Her eyes wandered up and down my body, but not in a way that made me feel uncomfortable and self-conscious. It was in a way that made me feel...kind of beautiful.