Camren One Shots

Without a Doubt

"Alright, Mani. I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"Okay. Bye, Laur."

"Bye, Mani," I reply, and I end the call, sighing and running a hand through my hair.

I'm not really in the mood to clean right now, so I decide to hold off on it until later and hop in the shower. 

The shower tends to be one of my happy places. It's one of the few places I get to think and just let loose all emotions and thoughts hidden away in my mind. This is where I always end up when she is the center of my thoughts. I smile to myself as the warm water hits my back. Soon, I feel my stress and frustration wash away down the drain.

I'm finished after 20 minutes, and I take an extra 5 to dry off. Soon, I''m back in my room, looking through my drawers, deciding on if I want to be lazy today and put on pajamas or if I want to get dressed in case I end up going somewhere. After thinking for a while, I settle on pajamas and quickly get dressed and comfortable. 

My phone buzzes again, and as I check it, I see a somewhat familiar number. My thumb hovers over the 'answer' button, but I decide after the 4th ring to decline the call. It was probably just another salesman. They have been calling a lot more now, so maybe that's why I recognize the number. 

I shrug it off just like that and dive into my warm bed, burying my face into the pillow. My body relaxes as I sink into the mattress, and I can't help but sigh in content. "God, I'm so comfy," I mumble out loud and soon, I begin to feel tired again. Deciding it wouldn't hurt to take a nap for a few hours, I allow myself to fall into a deep slumber. 

I'm woken up by the sound of the doorbell, and I groan. I quickly check my phone, and see that I missed 4 calls from that one number earlier. 

'That's peculiar. They aren't usually this persistent,' I think, and the doorbell rings again. 'Who could that possibly be?'

As I make my way out of the room and downstairs to the front door, my mind immediately goes to the conversation with Normani I had earlier that morning, and I sigh, groaning out loud, "I swear to God, Mani, if you came here to pester me about going out, I'm going to-"

I stop mid-sentence as soon as I look through the peep hole to see who's out there. I freeze in place and my heart stops. My mouth goes dry and I can't bring myself to move from my spot. The doorbell goes off again and I snap out of it. 'What is... she doing here?'

My mind tells me to ignore it, to not open the door, to go back to my room and wait until she gives up and leaves. My body does the exact opposite though, as my hand, shaking violently,  unlocks the door. I slowly turn the doorknob, and within seconds, I find myself looking into the familiar brown eyes of the one person that captured my heart so long ago. 

"H-Hi," she whispers, almost inaudibly.

I let out the breath that I didn't realize I was holding. My heart races as I try to fight the urge to just melt right there. I missed her voice so much. There was so much I wanted to say to her, to ask her. I can't bring myself to speak though, so I just blankly stare at her.

"I tried calling before coming," she says, a little bit louder and clearer. 

Realization hits me, as I think back to when I got those calls. 'That's why that number was familiar. It was hers,' I think, still staring at her blankly. Part of me feels bad for not answering, but I push the guilt out of my mind and maintain my blank stare. 

"Lauren..." My breath catches in my throat. It still sounded so heavenly, my name coming from her mouth. The way she said it always made my heart skip a beat. Thankfully though, she either doesn't notice or just chooses not to acknowledge the effect she has on me and continues. "Please talk to me."