Camila's mood continued to plummet. Two days later, Lauren managed to drag her out of bed and make her tag along to class. They sat at their usual table with Maia and Toby, and Lauren immediately got to work on finishing her painting. It was the Friday before spring break, and she had no time to waste.
She was so focused on her easel that she didn't pay much attention to Camila, who was painting her own canvas. Lauren finally finished her painting, and just in time. The teacher dismissed the class just as she set her brush down and took a step backwards.
"Whatd'ya think, Camz?" Lauren turned around, smiling softly. Her smile quickly faded when she saw Camila asleep with her head on the table, and a completely black canvas next to her.
"Camz... Camila," Lauren moved over and gently shook the girl awake. Camila mumbled something inaudible and looked up at Lauren with a confused expression on her face.
"What is this?" Lauren laughed nervously, pointing to the canvas. Camila squinted, blinked a few times, and shrugged before lying her head back down on the table.
Lauren glanced over at Maia worriedly. The other brunette raised an eyebrow, just as confused as Lauren was. Growing concerned, the older girl quickly cleaned up their table before tugging Camila to her feet.
"C'mon, sleepyhead, we're gonna go get pizza," Lauren bit her lip hopefully. Luckily, Camila smiled and nodded her head.
"I liiiikeeee pizza," she yawned mid-sentence, tugging on her beanie. Lauren looked over at Maia and Toby.
"Wanna celebrate spring break with us?" Lauren asked, inviting them to join along. They accepted, and soon all four classmates were packed into a booth at Laurenzo's.
"Pizza," Camila whispered, tapping Lauren's shoulder and looking around. "Where is it?"
"It's coming, goofball," Lauren laughed and ruffled Camila's hair. The smaller girl scoffed playfully and reached up to fix her beanie.
Surprisingly, when the pizza did arrive at the table, Camila didn't even finish once slice. Typically, the girl would barrel through at least two slices. Lauren grew concerned, but when she asked Camila if something was wrong, the smaller girl simply shook her head.
Camila was quiet on the drive home. The only sound that could be heard was the smaller girl's steady tapping of her fingers against the window.
"We're home," Lauren said quietly. Camila just nodded and followed Lauren upstairs to the apartment. Lauren watched as her girlfriend headed towards the staircase as soon as they got inside.
"Wait, Camz," Lauren jogged forwards and grabbed Camila's hand. "Something's wrong. I can tell."
"I am fine," Camila insisted, shaking her head. Lauren didn't believe it one bit.
"Camila, you h-,"
"I am fine!" Camila snapped, yanking her arm out of Lauren's grip and storming upstairs. The unexpected outburst took Lauren by surprise, and it took her brain a few seconds to register what had just happened.
Lauren knew better than to continue to question Camila. It would only bother the girl more. Unsure of what to do, Lauren ascended the stairs slowly. She heard rustling in the bathroom and realized Camila was with Wolf. Hopefully that would help her calm down a bit.
Lauren was just about to enter her bedroom when she heard a groan of frustration. Raising an eyebrow, she quietly moved towards the door and listened.
Camila was playing the piano, Lauren realized. The smaller girl would get the first few notes of twinkle twinkle little star, but then miss a key and slam her hands down on the keyboard in anger. This would result in a loud screeching noise from the piano, and another frustrated groan from Camila.
Taking a deep breath, Lauren forced herself to move away from the door. She had to give Camila time to herself. With a heavy sigh, Lauren slipped into her bedroom and left the door open a crack behind her.
If she hadn't been listening intently to Camila's piano playing, she probably wouldn't have noticed the way her mattress made an odd crinkling noise when she sat down. But she did.
Lauren raised an eyebrow and stood up. Confused, she pressed down on her mattress with her hand, earning a soft crackling noise. Her first instinct was to lift the mattress, and so she did.
Her eyes widened when she saw what was underneath. Dried, dead flowers were scattered under the mattress, with stray petals everywhere. Lauren bent down, gently taking one of the flowers into her hand and turning it around.
"What the hell?" she whispered to herself, setting the mattress back down and standing up. She had a feeling Camila would have something to say about this. Lauren couldn't help but feel like this was some twisted form of symbolism.
Swallowing the lump in her throat, the older girl cupped the flower in her hands and hid it behind her back. With her free hand, she slowly opened the bathroom door.
"Hey Camz," she leaned against the doorway, trying to play it cool. "Wanna go for a walk and check on the flowers?"
Camila froze. She looked up at Lauren slowly, panic flickering in her dark brown eyes. Biting her lip, Camila shook her head and looked back down at the kitten in her lap.
"Why not?" Lauren tilted her head to the side. Camila just kept her head down, fumbling with her fingers nervously.
"Does it have something to do with this?" Lauren sighed and held out the flower she had hidden behind her back. The moment Camila looked up, her hands started to shake. She set Wolf down and stood up, backing away from Lauren.
"I-I..."
"What's going on Camila?" Lauren asked, desperation in her voice. "What does this mean?" she held up the flower between them.
Camila looked down at her feet guiltily and shook her head. She toyed with the sleeves of her sweatshirt, trying to find a way out of this. Desperately, she tried to slip past Lauren and out the door. The green eyed girl quickly moved to her side to block the exit. Camila inhaled sharply.
"Camila, please," Lauren held up the flower once more and looked at her girlfriend pleadingly.
"I... I..." Camila shook her head and took a step backwards. "I did... I did not.... They cannot die!" She brought her hands up to her face and breathed in deeply.
"I can not lose the pretty things, I can not!" Camila let her hands fall back to her side and she shook her head, beginning to pace back and forth in the small space between them.
"If I lose them, then I lose y-you... then... then I... I just..." Camila groaned in frustration. "I do not feel like Camila!"
"You don't... what?" Lauren quickly moved forward and grabbed her girlfriend's shoulders to calm her down. "You don't feel like Camila?"
The small girl shook her head, holding up her hands between them. "My hands shake and I am tired and I can not think," she squeezed her eyes shut. "I can not lose you..."
"Lose me? Who says you're going to lose me?" Lauren grew even more worried, feeling her heart start to speed up. She hated seeing Camila like this, but she needed answers.
"The... the..." Camila stumbled over her words and she brought her hand up to knock on her own forehead softly. Lauren understood what she meant.
"The nightmares?" Lauren remembered the hand motion Camila had used for a long time to describe the 'bad things.' Camila nodded softly.
"I am scared," Camila shook her head and drew in a deep breath. "I am scared he will take you away."
"Who?" Lauren grew worried and ran her hands up and down Camila's arms.
"Tommy," Camila whispered quietly and closed her eyes. Lauren took a deep breath and cupped Camila's cheek in her hand.
"Camz, he's gone," she shook her head. "He's not going to hurt me. He's not going to hurt you. We're safe." Camila's breath was shaky, and she took a long, deep breath.
"I can not lose the pretty things," Camila whispered, reaching out and taking the flower from Lauren's hand. The small girl studied the flower for a few moments before clutching it close to her chest. "I-I killed it."
That was the last straw for Lauren. She shook her head, grabbing Camila's hand and pulling her across the hallway into their bedroom. Camila watched anxiously as Lauren dug around in her closet and pulled out a suitcase, tossing it on the bed and throwing it open.
The green eyed girl walked over to the dresser, opening each drawer and grabbing a handful from each. The small girl's eyes widened and she quickly shook her head. Tears stung in her eyes as she backed up.
"No," Camila shook her head and held her hands up. The tears quickly blinded her and she backed into the wall, bringing her hands up to her face. "Please, no."
Lauren was brought out of her trance when she heard a small sob escape her girlfriend's lips. She whipped her head up and felt her heart drop in her chest when she saw Camila slide down against the wall and bury her head in her knees.
"Please do not," Camila whispered. "I will be good. I p-pr-promise," she whimpered. Lauren quickly knelt beside her and tilted her head to the side.
"What are you talking about?" Lauren asked softly, reaching out and putting a hand on the smaller girl's knee. Camila flinched and looked up. "Camila, I don't understand."
"Please do not make me leave," Camila sniffed. Lauren's breath caught in her throat and she glanced back and forth from Camila to the suitcase on the bed.
"No," Lauren quickly shook her head. "No, no, no, Camz," she reached out and tilted Camila's chin up and met her eyes. "I am not making you leave. I promise." She reached down and locked pinkies with the small girl.
"But... but why?" Camila pointed to the suitcase on the bed. Lauren shook her head and squeezed Camila's hand.
"We're going on a vacation," Lauren stood up slowly and helped Camila up to her feet. "This medicine isn't helping. So we're going to try something different... is that okay?"
"Vacation?" Camila asked softly, wiping her eyes and taking a deep breath to calm herself down. Lauren nodded, leading Camila over to the bed and motioning for her to sit down.
"We're gonna go visit my family," she explained. This was an idea Lauren had had in the back of her mind for a while. It had only taken this situation to make her realize what she had to do.
"Florida?" Camila remembered. "With Maggie?" Lauren nodded, moving back over to the dresser and resuming packing.
"Just think of this as a... a different type of medicine," Lauren said, folding a pair of pants and lying them in the suitcase. "Is that okay?"
"Mhm," Camila nodded. She reached up and fixed her beanie, smiling at Lauren softly.
"Can you finish packing while I go call your doctor?" Lauren asked, pointing to the suitcase and them nodding towards the dresser. Camila stood up and studied Lauren for a moment.
"Yes," she nodded softly, taking Lauren's hand and kissing the back of her palm. "I love you. Thank you for being here."
"I'm always gonna be here," Lauren promised, reaching up and smoothing out Camila's hair. "I love you, too."
Lauren headed downstairs, breathing a sigh of relief. She knew the worst was yet to come, but she was somewhat relieved that she had a backup plan. Plopping down on the couch, she pulled out her phone and dialed the doctor.
After canceling Camila's prescription and paying way too much for a pair of plane tickets, Lauren took a deep breath and let her phone fall to her side. She gave herself a few minutes to compose herself, but it was cut short when the front door opened and her other three roommates arrived. They immediately knew something was up.
"This medicine is bullshit," Lauren mumbled, standing up and shaking her head. "I'm taking Camila to Miami."
"Wait, what?" Normani laughed in disbelief, raising an eyebrow.
"We're going to Miami," Lauren reaffirmed. "I'm tired of trying to beat around the bush. We're facing her past head on and there's nothing you can do to stop me."
All the three roommates exchanged glances. Dinah was the first to break the silence.
"If that's what you think is best," the Polynesian girl shrugged. Lauren was surprised that they didn't tell her she was insane. Her roommates knew what needed to be done.
"I brought Chinese," Dinah spoke up, holding up a brown paper bag before bringing it into the kitchen. Ally followed her, leaving only Normani and Lauren.
"It'll all work out, y'know," Normani said softly, walking over and pulling Lauren into a hug. "You're the best thing that's ever happened to her."
Lauren nodded softly when the hug pulled away. Before they could say anything else, a pair of soft footsteps could be heard coming down the stairs.
"I finished, Lo," Camila said softly, walking over to Lauren and leaning into her side. "It is all neat."
"Perfect," Lauren smiled, kissing Camila's cheek and glancing back up at Normani. "We're leaving in a few hours. Let's have some dinner."
Shortly afterwards, all 5 roommates sat on the floor in the living room. The TV was off for once. They wanted to savor their last night together for a week.
"Dinah," Camila spoke up, setting her fork down. "You have to play with Wolf a lot. Or else he will get sad and lonely."
"I know, Chanch," Dinah nodded, not looking up from her plate. Camila furrowed her eyebrows.
"His favorite toy is the jingly mouse," Camila continued. "And you have to make sure his bed is nice and neat, or he will sleep on the floor. And the floor is cold, and I do not think he wants to be cold."
"I kn-,"
"Oh, and you have to make sure he eats his food," Camila nodded quickly. "Sometimes he thinks it is a toy and makes a big mess. But if he does that, he will be hungry."
"I think she's got the hang of it, Camz," Lauren laughed, giving her girlfriend a soft smile. "You can call her and see Wolf whenever you want."
"Okay," Camila glanced back at Dinah. "I am trusting you."
"I've got this, Chanch," Dinah laughed, holding out her fist. Camila giggled, bumping their fists together and making her signature exploding noise. There was a mixture of excitement and uncertainty in Camila's stomach. But she trusted Lauren knew what she was doing.
Once they finished dinner, Lauren brought their bags downstairs and glanced around the apartment one last time. Camila was on the couch, cradling Wolf in her arms and giving him a long speech, promising she would be back in a few days.
"Y'ready, goofball?" Lauren asked, leaning against the door and smiling softly at her girlfriend. Camila and Wolf were the cutest combination.
"Yes," Camila nodded, looking down at Wolf and kissing him softly. "Take good care of Dinah, Wolf," she giggled before setting the kitten down on the couch and padding over to Lauren.
They had already said their goodbyes to the other girls, who had just left for a party. Camila tugged on her converse, looking up at Lauren and holding out her shoelaces. With a soft laugh, Lauren bent down and helped the small girl tie her shoes.
"All set," Lauren nodded, extending a hand to help Camila to her feet. "Here's to a whole new adventure," she wrapped an arm around Camila's waist and pulled her closer, kissing her cheek. After giving the apartment one last look, the two girls made their way out into the hallway.
--
a/n: y'all thought camila was gonna overdose yesterday omg so hopefully this is light compared to that haha. i can't see camila's character doing that for some reason
as always, let me know what you think, and have a great day babes. ily endlessly.
- lena (lenajfc on twitter, forbrighterskies on tumblr)