"So what have you decided, Lo?" Normani asked as the five girls sat down in the same place their discussion took place in a week ago. The only difference was that candles and string lights ignited the area seeing as it was late into the night. The guys had gone out to meet up with some of Devon's friends, and the girls decided to get Reagan down an hour after her bedtime before actually discussing the impending matter.
"I talked to my parents, and I thought a lot about returning to the music industry. I know I said I was worried about Reagan, and I am, but she's good at adjusting. She's open to change. I'm not."
Ally saw the shift in her friend's body language and new something was wrong. "What is it, Lo?"
"After our split I was... well I wasn't okay. The stress of the baby, and losing everything that I had grown to know was frightening. I don't know, I haven't been able to place myself with any commitment other than Reagan. Everything else I've been touch and go about, including work."
"Do you not trust that Fifth Harmony would last?" Camila asked carefully.
"I don't trust Fifth Harmony with another end," Lauren clarified, finally making the others understand.
"Are you worried that we are going to just drop one another again?" Normani asked, receiving a nod.
"Why don't we make a promise right now?" Camila began, leaning her elbows over her knees as she looked to all the girls. "If we chose to get back together then we will take the proper time and effort to slowly exit the music industry once again should we all chose to in the far future."
"Like a proper and safe end that allows us all the time to find where we are going instead of leaving people on their asses," Dinah said, nodding with her friend.
"I could work with that idea," Lauren said, smiling for the first time since they sat down.
"So does that mean what I think it means?" Ally asked, her pitch rising with excitement.
"Fifth Harmony is getting back together," Lauren said, jumping to her feet so she could tackle the three girls on the other couch. Dinah joined in on the hug, allowing the five to squish and tickle one another in their pile of bodies.
"Things are about to get insane," Camila said, smiling when her laughter subsided and she found Lauren nearly on top of her due to their hug being the initial start of the large group hug.
"Please, they already were," Dinah said, flipping her hair with a smirk before a small voice interrupted them all.
"Why didn't you invite me to the hug?" Reagan asked as she held her tiger cub close to her chest.
"Aww, Reggae Sun!" Normani gushed, pulling her arms from under Dinah and reaching them out for the little girl. "Come cuddle."
"Okay!" The little blonde ran forward and jumped on top of Dinah, which made the dancer below her groan from the extra weight.
"Jesus," Normani coughed out earning laughs from the others.
"What are you doing up, wild thing?" Camila asked, brushing some blonde hair from the child's face. Reagan shrugged and began to play with the fabric of Dinah's shirt.
"What is it, cubby?" Lauren asked, pushing herself off of the Cuban and reaching down to take Reagan into her arms.
"I had a bad dream," The little one admitted, a blush coming to her cheeks.
"I'm sorry to hear that, babe. Do you want to talk about it?" The child shook her head to her mother's question and nuzzled her face into Lauren's neck.
"Hey Reggae Sun, guess what!"
"What?" Reagan asked, perking up slightly at Ally's cheerful tone. The shorter woman looked to Lauren for confirmation before speaking again.
"You're going to be seeing all of us more often."
"You mean we're not going home yet?" Reagan asked her mom, taking the woman's cheeks in her hands.
"No, we have to go home tomorrow night still, but we are coming back real soon because I'm going to sing with your aunts again."
"Like the real music?" Reagan asked, having seen her mom's performances when her grandma and grandpa would show her videos.
"Yup. We'll be moving out here real soon and you're going to see your aunts every day."
"Wow! I'm so lucky," Reagan said in amusement, looking to the others. "Now I won't be sad to leave!" She stated, earning laughs.
"You know you can't see grandma and grandpa as often, though," Lauren reminded, not wanting to put a damper on the mood but also knowing that Reagan had to have say in what was going to be her new life.
"But I can talk to them on the phone, right?"
"Of course."
"So I will still see them," Reagan said with a nod, her mind not fulling registering the lack of contact that will soon come.
"You're okay with this, cubby?"
"Yup! Can we all share a room?" The child asked, looking to her aunts expectantly.
"That's for the future to work out, Rey. We'll see what happens," Dinah said, pinching the little one's cheek before she made a move to go inside.
"Dinah, don't you dare go raiding my cabinets!" Ally called after the girl.
"I'm raiding the fridge!" Dinah responded.
"I wanna help!" Reagan said, wiggling from her mom's grasp before running into the house.
"Oh boy, that kid is never going to bed," Lauren sighed, rubbing her forehead.
"I'm going to make s'mores," Camila informed the three girls around her as she too made a move for the house.
"No sugar for Rey, Camz," Lauren called after the girl.
"Live a little, Lo," The brunette teased walking backwards for a moment so she could shot a wink at the emerald-eyed woman. She nearly stumbled backwards when a bark from Tucker spooked her but she stayed upright.
"Looks like someone is working on her balance," Normani said with laugh, shaking her head at the woman who stumbled.
"Clumsy. I know," was all Camila could say before she entered the kitchen.
"Those animals are going to make a mess," Ally sighed as she blew out the candles.
"Come on shorty, I'll help you clean," Lauren promised, wrapping an arm around the shorter woman before walking her towards the house.
~.~.~
"Thanks for having us, Ally," Lauren said as she wrapped her smallest friend in a hug. Reagan was currently in a long embrace with Camila who was her new best friend.
"Of course. Remember we're all having the conference call with management on Wednesday," Ally said, making sure the brunette was aware of the time difference she had by being in Florida.
"I won't miss it. Send me the listings for the houses you guys find tomorrow. I refuse to live in some ugly place," Lauren said playfully.
"Please, like I'd let that happen," Normani said from her place.
"It's you I worry the most about," Lauren said, wrapping the girl in a hug.
"Rude," Normani said, swatting Lauren's arm as she moved back from the embrace.
"You love me," The emerald-eyed woman said, sticking her tongue out before Dinah pulled her into a bone-crushing hug.
"I'm seeing you in like a month, DJ," Lauren said as her words were muffled by Dinah's shoulder.
"Too long," The Polynesian stated, shaking her head.
"You won't be thinking that once we're all living under the same roof."
"The only disturbing part about that is having to watch Mila and Ally getting all cuddly with their boyfriends 24/7," Lauren made a face when Dinah said Eric's name, but quickly hide it with a swipe over her nose as if she had an itch.
The only bad part of deciding to move in together as a group was that Eric was included in the move since he was already living with Camila. Lauren could handle Devon, she liked the man and he was good with Reagan. Eric, however... She chose to suffer in silence when the decision was made earlier that morning.
"Please drive safe tomorrow," Lauren said, pointing to her friends who were departing from the beach house the next day.
"I'm a great driver," Dinah said with a smug grin.
"We almost missed our highway exits twice because Beyonce was blaring through the speakers and you got distracted," Camila piped up, placing gentle kisses on Reagan's cheek. The little one lagging in energy and seemed rather depressed to be leaving. She had clung to her aunts the entire day, Camila mostly.
"At least I didn't crash," Dinah said.
"Yeah, tell that to the line up of cars you almost swerved-"
"Hush!" Dinah said, moving to put her hand over the Latina's mouth. "Lauren is leaving, we should not worry her."
"Reagan is coming with me too," Lauren reminded.
"Nu-uh. I'm keeping her," Camila said in a slightly higher voice, hoping to get something out of the girl. "We're going to see you real soon, wild thing."
"Come on, cubby. We have to go now," Lauren said after hugging Devon and exchanging glances with Eric. Thankfully the others were busy watching Reagan.
"No," The blonde whimpered, wrapping herself tighter around Camila.
"We have to go back to Miami to pack our things, remember?"
"'member," Reagan whispered, fiddling with her Saturn necklace.
"I love you, wild thing. Be good for the unicorn, okay?" Camila asked, carefully unwrapping Reagan from her embrace.
"Okay," Reagan agreed with a sniffle, tears welling in her eyes when she was put on the ground.
"Love you, Reggae Sun," Dinah said, bending down to pepper the little one's face with kisses. The others also said goodbye to the child, allowing Lauren to properly hug Camila as she was now free of the child.
"I'm glad you came this time, Camz," Lauren admitted in a whisper.
"I'm glad I did too," The brunette said with a small laugh, her hands drawing aimless patterns on the small of Lauren's back, much like she used to do when they were younger.
"Please take care of yourself," Lauren said, taking a moment to look at Eric who was distracted by his phone. Though she couldn't see Camila's face due to the hug, the Cuban had pulled a face of slight confusion, not knowing entirely what Lauren was hinting at.
"I will. Make sure the wild thing calls me, okay?" Camila pulled back from the embrace and smiled brightly.
"Of course. She loves you too much to not talk to you on the phone," Lauren said with a slight laugh, turning to look to the others were now making Reagan laugh instead of cry. "See you soon."
"Yeah. See ya soon," Camila said, squeezing the hand of her emerald-eyed friend.
Lauren turned to pick Reagan up, adjusting the girl's pajama top before looking to their friends once more.
"What do you say, Rey?"
"Bye-bye."