Stuck in the Middle (Normila)

1.

Camila's POV

"Mama, mama, you have to wake up," came the whine from my annoying morning person of a daughter. I groaned as I turned over onto my side and looked up at the girl standing on the side of my bed.

"Isn't it Saturday?" I asked as I rubbed my eyes, slowly sitting up. I watched as my girl rolled her eyes playfully, her arms crossing over her chest. She reminded me of her mother when she was frustrated. Her brows furrowed together and a slight pout took over her features.

"It is, but you promised we'd spend the day together."

"I did promise that, didn't I? Okay, I'm up. Just let me get ready for the day and then I'm all yours, Mari," I promised.

"Don't go back to sleep," Mari's voice took on a warning tone, and I laughed softly as I shook my head.

"I promise I won't."

I watched as a grin took over her features before she turned to make her way out of my room. I assumed she was off to search for something to eat for the both of us. I climbed out of my bed silently, running a hand through my hair. I made my way towards the bathroom that connected to my room, and went about getting ready for the day.

This was the first weekend I had off in God knows how long. My partner, Lauren and I, had just finished a case that had us on nails for the last two weeks. The days were long and nights were stressful, but we finally cracked the case and we were able to apprehend the perp. I asked for the weekend off to spend time with my daughter and the captain happily gave it to me.

Before my wife died two years ago, I had been working long nights and extra shifts. I rarely saw my daughter except for the few weekends I would have off, her birthdays, and some nights. There were even times I had to work on Holidays. However, that didn't stop our close relationship. Mari was the light of my life when she was born, along with her mother. I made sure I spent all my free time with my family. When my wife, Tori became sick, I spent even more time at home.

I had to take care of not only her, but Mari, who was only 9 at the time. I went to all the school plays, the parent teacher conferences, the soccer games. I made sure I was there for it all, since at the time my wife could barely make it out of bed, let alone to any events. When she died, I dedicated my life to Mari. Trying to work less, even if I had to take work home with me. We made time to spend together. As a preteen, she was starting to become more active. She wanted to spend time with friends more, get into more extracurricular activities. I was more than happy to let her. I paid for the guitar lessons, and everything else she wanted. It was safe to say she was slightly spoiled, but she was also the most humble kid I had ever came to know.

She and I came up with a pack to spend at least every other weekend by ourselves. We would lounge around the house in our pajamas and eat our weight in junk food and watch movies, or sometimes we would go out and just find something to do together. Mari was my best friend, and I loved that little girl with all of my heart.

Once I finished with my morning routine, I made my way out of my room and down the stairs. I was dressed casually in a pair of dark blue ripped skinny jeans, and my old MU sweatshirt. I wasn't sure what the plans were for the day as I usually left that up to Mari, so I made sure to dress comfortable yet not too unfashionable.

Once I reached the kitchen, I saw Mari finishing up breakfast. It wasn't much, just two bowls of Frosted Flakes with bananas on top. I couldn't cook to save my life, I usually left that up to Tori. When she died, meals had quickly turned into take out or eating with my parents. Mari was learning to cook from my mother, and she seemed to love it. However, there was a rule in the house that she wasn't allowed to cook meals without adult supervision.