So Close (Camren)

34 - In the Sunlight (Part 2)

a/n: and we're back, sundance! this chapter is relatively short as i was out running errands the whole day and my bed has been incessant on luring me in. anyway, the song rec for this chapter is Too Many Friends (Acoustic) by Hearts & Colors. fingers crossed you'll like reading through this one. hearts!!

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The competitive energy can be felt from everyone as the first few people struggle to race around the poles and back to their teams. Lauren waits readily for her turn and she clenches her jaw as her mind drifts off to a distant memory she has from back in high school.

She remembers having two or three friends she'd have lunch and occasionally hang out with during weekends. They'd gossip, talk about whatever pop punk song they recently discovered - all that jazz. But she hasn't really met Ally at that point yet which means that although she technically was never really alone, Lauren has always felt like she was irrelevant. She remembers walking her high school's corridors with her friends but never really feeling like she 'clicks' with them - never really feeling like she's an integral part of their group.

Like it wouldn't really matter that much to them if she just disappeared one day.

Which is why she quickly fell in love with playing soccer the moment she realized that she could play it well. She just happened to receive one of the flyers being passed out by the school's soccer team one day and her dad, aware of Lauren's potential in the sport from how she'd score against her older cousins whenever she played soccer with them during their family gatherings, managed to convince Lauren to try out.

To cut the story short, Lauren listened to her father's advice and tried out, albeit hesitant at first. The coach instantly saw her skill and welcomed her to the team after weeks of intensive drills to sift through who's good enough to make the cut.

Lauren remembers the feeling - the thrill of competing against other soccer teams under their division, the respect she's gained from her teammates even though most of them were seniors by the time she made it into the team, and most of all, the mutual trust she's built with them.

The artist hears someone from another team yell an encouragement to what Lauren assumes is their teammate. This seems to bring Lauren back to the present as the girl reaches out her hand when she sees the first person from her own team approaching.

"Come on, Kimmy! You got this!" Lauren hears her teammates cheer on the first person from their team to race around the pole and she smiles, remembering just how she used to live to compete.

Their team's cheer seems to push 'Kimmy' on as she finally touches Lauren's hand to signal that it is now the artist's turn to race around the pole and back.

Lauren struggles to brisk walk at first because of how heavy the boxes filled with paper that's tied to her feet are. But after the first few meters, she manages to find an effective way to race, feeling her muscles flex at every step. Moving as quick as she could without tripping, she makes it around the pole and back to her team in record time, high fiving the next person to race in their team.

The green-eyed brunette shifts her weight from one foot to another as she stands at the back of her team's line, watching the rest of the competition play out. Her eyes scan the field and she happens to catch Camila, of all people, looking at her... in a peculiar manner.