Things started to change a few days later.
Camila had been outside in the cool November air, finally getting around to taking down their Halloween decorations. Presley was taking a nap, and Lauren was supposed to be on the phone with Toby going over the final touches on one of their recent projects.
The brown eyed girl was startled, however, when Lauren came barreling through the front door and onto the front porch. Camila nearly fell off the small stepladder she had been balancing on, and she quickly grabbed onto the railing to keep her footing.
"You need to come inside," Lauren looked at her with wide eyes, and an expression Camila couldn't quite read. "Now."
The younger girl grew confused, quickly hopping off of the ladder and looking at Lauren in confusion. Her wife didn't offer her an explanation, though. Before Camila could open her mouth, the green eyed girl had disappeared back into the house.
Furrowing her eyebrows together, Camila quickly tossed the decorations in her hands aside and hurried inside.
"Lo?" she called out, seeing no sign of her wife. She made her way over to the hallway and wrung out her hands nervously.
She had to cup her hands over her mouth to keep herself from gasping when Lauren quickly hopped out from behind the wall and grabbed Camila's hand.
"Shh," the raven haired girl met Camila's eyes. "Listen."
Confused but comforted by the fact that Lauren was there, Camila knelt down next to the girl in the middle of the hallway. She sent her wife a questioning look, but moments later something else caught her attention.
"Oh let me be... your teddy bear,"
Camila and Lauren exchanged glances. The smaller girl's eyebrows stitched together and she shook her head, not recognizing the voice.
"She's singing," Lauren whispered, pointing to Presley's door that was cracked open slightly.
"That is Presley?" Camila's jaw dropped open in shock, Lauren's sudden burst of energy was now making sense. The raven haired girl nodded, holding up a finger to keep Camila quiet when the tiny voice sung the same line again.
"I think I know where she got her name," Lauren spoke up after a few moments of silence, keeping her voice low and turning to Camila. "That's an Elvis song."
"Elvis Presley?" Camila raised an eyebrow and thought for a few moments. Lauren giggled softly when she saw the realization spread across her wife's face.
"Don't," Lauren quickly grabbed Camila's hand when the girl began to rise to her feet. Confused, Camila paused, turning to Lauren and tilting her head to the side.
"We shouldn't be listening," Lauren bit her lip, nodding towards the door. "She'll talk to us when she's ready, right? I... I just want to do this the right way."
"Oh," Camila whispered, gently kneeling back down. "You are right, Lo," she nodded. The brown eyed girl glanced back at Presley's door. "Do you think she hates us?"
Lauren couldn't help but laugh at Camila's question, and she shook her head. Grabbing her wife's hand, she led them both into the living room, collapsing back on the couch and pulling Camila down beside her. "Why would she hate us?"
"I-I do not know," Camila shrugged, instinctively curling up in Lauren's side. "I just... I do not want to mess up."
"Oh," Lauren nodded slowly, understanding what Camila meant. "Well, me neither. We've just got to try our best. That's all we can do."
"What if it is not good enough?" the brown eyed girl bit her lip, looking over at Lauren worriedly.
"I think with someone who cares as much as you do, she'll be just fine," Lauren laughed softly, reaching over and smoothing out Camila's hair.
"That is you, silly," Camila mumbled against Lauren's side, leaning her head against her shoulder. "She is lucky. Cause' of you, Lo."
"Cause' of both of us," Lauren nodded. She found Camila's hand and laced their fingers together. "She'll talk when she's ready, whenever that may be."
Luckily for both girls, they didn't have to wait much longer.
Everyone ended up going to bed early that night. Even Lauren. She and Camila were bundled up under the covers in their bedroom, legs entwined and fingers laced together.
For some reason, sleep came easily for Lauren that night. Which is why she wasn't awoken by the storm that made its way through the night, lighting up the house with the occasional flicker of lightning.
A tug on Lauren's sleeve brought her out of her slumber, and the green eyed girl groggily brought her hands up to wipe her eyes. She turned to look at Camila to see what she had wanted, but grew confused when she found her wife was still fast asleep.
Something else that caught her attention, though, was a small voice that pierced the peaceful silence.
"Mommy?"
"Wha...?" Lauren mumbled, turning her head to look in the direction of the voice. Lighting flickered through the window, lighting the room for just a moment, and allowing Lauren to see the outline of the little girl standing timidly beside the bed, clutching a stuffed dog against her chest with small hands.
Lauren's face immediately froze when Presley's words registered with her. Upon seeing Lauren's reaction, the smaller girl realized what she had said, and her eyes widened in fear.
"I, uh," Lauren stammered over her words, unsure of what to do. Biting her lip, she turned over and grabbed Camila's shoulder to shake her awake.
"Camz," she whispered. There was enough concern in her voice to cause her wife to practically shoot up out of bed, looking at Lauren in confusion as she wiped her tired eyes.
"What?" her wife whispered, looking at Lauren worriedly. The green eyed girl nodded behind her, directing Camila's attention to the smaller girl standing at the edge of the bed, bottom lip quivering.
"She spoke," Lauren whispered between gritted teeth, keeping her voice almost silent. "She called me mommy."
"I'm sorry," the smaller girl at the end of the bed whimpered, becoming aware of what she had said and shaking her head timidly.
"No," Camila quickly shook her head, crawling to the edge of the bed and holding out her hands towards the smaller girl. "Do not be sorry," she said softly. "What is wrong?"
"I-I don't like storms," Presley's tiny voice filled the air, taking both Lauren and Camila by surprise. "I wanna g-go home," her voice cracked slightly and she hugged Sunny tighter against her chest.
Lauren and Camila both exchanged glances. On one hand, they were both relieved that the smaller girl had finally spoken to them. But on the other hand, they were both now faced with another problem. One that they both weren't quite sure how to handle.
"C'mere," Lauren whispered, sitting up and patting the space beside her. Hesitantly, the tiny child crawled up on the bed and sat in the space between Camila and Lauren. Camila immediately pulled Presley into her lap, holding onto the small child protectively.
"Storms can be scary sometimes," Lauren said softly, reaching out and brushing Presley's tousled hair out of her face. As if on cue, a large clap of thunder made both Presley and Camila jump. The tiny brown eyed girl held onto the fabric of Camila's sleeves timidly.
"But sometimes it's less scary if you think about it," Lauren shrugged, turning to glance out the window for a moment. "Even the sky has to get sad and angry and let all its feelings out sometimes. Just like us."
"Yeah," Camila whispered, nodding in agreement. "You do not have to feel bad for... for feeling," she shrugged softly. Presley turned to look up at her, watching Camila intently. "If you ignore your feelings... they do not go away. They get worse. And then it is a hurricane... not just a storm."
"I'm sorry," Presley spoke again, sniffing and turning back to Lauren.
"Sorry for what, bug?" Lauren tilted her head to the side. Camila loved watching the way Lauren treated Presley so gently. Concern radiated in the green eyed girl's features.
"You're not my mommy," Presley mumbled. The small caramel haired girl shook her head and brought her hands up to wipe her eyes, looking down at her lap shyly.
"Oh, no," Lauren shook her head. She reached out, lifting Presley's chin gently so the smaller girl would look up at her. "I know I'm not, babes. It was an accident. That's okay."
"Camila and I aren't here to replace your mom and dad," Lauren added softly, glancing up at Camila for a moment, met with her wife's soft smile. "We're just.... we're just here for whatever you need us for."
"You can call us whatever you want," the green eyed girl nodded. "We're here to watch over you and take care of you but we're also here to be your friends, yeah? You're a part of our family now."
"Family?" Presley's voice was small and raspy, fitting her petite disposition. She looked back and forth from Lauren and Camila, a flicker of curiosity in her eyes.
"Yeah," Lauren laughed softly. "I mean, if that's okay with you," she added, looking over at Camila, who was running her fingers through Presley's hair.
"You'll take real good care of me?" Presley tilted her head to the side, her expressive eyes studying the two girls beside her. "I don't wanna leave again."
Lauren glanced up at Camila, who gave her a soft nod.
"We aren't going anywhere, kiddo," Lauren smiled softly, squeezing Camila's hand and holding out her pinkie. "Promise."
"Promise," Camila added, doing the same and holding her pinkie out beside Lauren's.
Smiling for the first time that night, Presley interlocked both of her pinkies with the girls and looked up at them shyly.
"A kiss makes it official," Camila added softly, leaning down and kissing her hand. Lauren gave her wife a small smile before doing the same. Presley watched them, giggling quietly.
Lighting flashed through the room once more but no one flinched. Instead, Presley crawled forwards to kiss both of the girl's hands before unlocking their fingers, looking up at them hopefully.
"I don't wanna sleep all alone..." the tiny brown eyed girl mumbled. She glanced towards the door, shivering slightly. Lauren and Camila both exchanged glances.
"The more the merrier," Lauren laughed, scooting back on the bed and motioning for Camila to follow. Presley watched them quietly for a few moments, sitting at the end of the bed while Lauren pulled the blankets over her feet.
"C'mon, little one," Lauren smiled, holding out a hand towards the smaller girl. "You need your sleep."
A soft smile made its way onto Presley's face, and she quickly crawled to the top of the bed to join them, along with the yellow stuffed dog that seemed to accompany her everywhere.
Once all three girls were lying back under the blankets, Camila bit her lip, rolling over on her side and studying Lauren, who was gazing up at the ceiling quietly.
"Lo?" Camila whispered, reaching out over Presley and finding Lauren's hand. The small child between them looked back and forth quietly.
"Yeah?" Lauren's raspy voice filled the silence, and she turned slightly to look at Camila.
"I-I, uh..." Camila bit her lip, looking down at her hands. "Do you wanna sing?"
Lauren couldn't help but giggle, raising an eyebrow at her wife. "I dunno, do you want me to?"
"Yeah," Camila mumbled, a shy smile on her face. Presley giggled, watching the exchange between them.
"Well then," Lauren giggled, propping herself up on one elbow and planting a kiss on Camila and Presley's forehead before laying back down. "Only for you."
The wind changed, the first day that you came through
Cut the corn, washed it clean
Now everything that's ever gone before, is like a blur
And it's all because of you
And now I find, this city's like a stranger to me
I once was fooled by Cadillac's and honey
But no one feels like you
Not like you
Not like you
Not like you
Cause even though the flower fades something takes its place
A marching band on a sunny day, two pretty eyes or a a pretty face
And in the forest I make my home
Lay down my heart on an ancient stone
And if my heart should somehow stop
I'll hang on to the hope
That you're not too late
That you're not too late
And there are times I know when I will have to chase you
And the further from my side you go, the longing grows
And I will hate it, I still want you,
Cause I will hate it, but I still want you around
Cause even when the flower dies something's by its side
A helping hand or a kiss goodbye, to ease it on its way
And in the forest I make my home
Lay down my heart on an ancient stone
And if my heart should somehow stop
I'll hang on to the hope
You're not too late
Not too late, no no
And in the forest I make my home
Lay down my heart on an ancient stone
And if my heart should somehow stop
I'll hang on to the hope
That you're not too late
That you're not too late
--
a/n: i love this song with a passion.
also, were you expecting that? lol, lemme know what you think.
have a wonderful day babes. ily.
- lena (lenajfc on twitter, speakhurricanes on tumblr)