Chapter 9
The morning after the gym incident, Camila is busy swapping books from her locker when she hears Lauren's name mentioned in a conversation happening behind her. It's hard to make out everything through the chatter of the hallway, but she does hear a few sentences that have her fuming.
"Did you see Lauren Jauregui's nose?"
(And of course they mispronounce Lauren's last name which just pisses Camila off even more.)
"Yeah, what do you think happened?"
"My girlfriend has the same gym period as her and she told me that some kid threw a ball straight at her face because he said she's too stupid to block it."
"Really? I heard that she’s so clumsy that she walked into a door and busted her nose herself."
"Someone told me that she got punched because she was being annoying."
“Well, whichever one it is, the fucking nerd deserved it. She’s so weird.”
The group laughs behind Camila who has stopped moving and is just clenching one hand tightly around her locker door. It’s the same hand that she used to punch the boy yesterday but the pain isn’t even registering. All she can think about is the shit they’re saying about Lauren and how much it would hurt the girl if she found out.
Slamming her locker shut with way more force than necessary, Camila whips around and stalks the short distance to the group making fun of Lauren.
“You guys want to repeat that?” she asks in a sickly sweet tone.
“Huh?” the boy who spoke last asks.
“You know,” Camila says, placing a hand on his shoulder. “All those… great things you were saying about Lauren Jauregui?” With each word, her grip gets tighter and tighter until there’s a grimace on his face and he’s flinching in pain.
The other have all caught on to what Camila is doing and they all stare with wide eyes as her smile morphs into a glare. “I better not hear any of you talk shit about Lauren ever again.”
Camila starts digging her fingernails into the boy’s shoulder until he’s slightly bent over, trying to alleviate the pressure. “Am I understood?” she asks, her threatening smile back in place.
They all nod quickly, the boy’s head moving the fastest, and he finally breathes out in relief when she lets him go.
Camila stalks off without another word in the direction of Lauren’s locker. She’s just about to turn the corner when someone lightly grips her arm, stepping in front of her to stop her.
“Mila,” Dinah begins, cutting straight to the chase. “You said it was that Anthony kid from your biology class that busted Lauren’s nose, right?”
“Yeah…”
“Well, is there any particular reason why he was at the hospital yesterday with a broken nose and a half-assed lie for why he got it?”
Camila shrugs, avoiding Dinah’s eyes. “What are you talking about?”
“Come on, you know my sis works at that hospital. She recognized him and asked me if I knew what really happened since he refused to be honest.”
“Um, I wouldn’t know. Sorry.” Camila attempts to walk away but Dinah tugs her back by her arm. “Was that your revenge for what he did to Lauren?”
Apparently mentioning Lauren again is all it takes for Camila to crack. “He did it on purpose, DJ. You should have seen the poor girl! She was in so much pain and I couldn’t stand to see her like that. I had to do something because he thought he could get away with it. Lauren doesn’t know, though, so please please please don’t tell her. She’ll just be disappointed because I promised her I’d stop picking fights… but… I just had to do it for her, you know?”
Dinah stares at her with an expressionless face which has Camila worried for a moment until the girl pulls her into a tight hug. “You’re so in love with her.”
“Shut up.”
“You love Lauren.”
“Dinah,” Camila whines.
“Sh sh it’s okay. Camren is finally rising.”
Camila pulls away from the embrace, giving Dinah a puzzled look. “What the fuck is Camren?”
“Camila plus Lauren. Camren. Duh.”
“Oh my, god, you’re so dumb.”
Dinah ignores Camila’s jab, instead throwing an arm around her shoulders and guiding them down the hall. “Come on. Let’s go see your girl. I want to see how bad her bruise is.”
“Dinah! Don’t make fun of it. She already feels bad enough as is.”
The snort Dinah lets out has a few people turning their way. “Chill, Mila, damn. You’re not even dating yet and you’re already so whipped.”
“I’m not whipped.”
“You so are,” she argues back. “Like I’m surprised that Lauren hasn’t caught on to your crush yet because… you ain’t subtle.”
Camila doesn’t reply, instead she just attempts to push Dinah away from her. It doesn’t work, of course.
She sort of forgets about her irritation towards Dinah when Lauren’s locker comes into view and she sees the girl rifling through it as she chats with Tori. Lauren has on this adorable little floral dress, her hair is done up in an inside out ponytail, and there’s a sweet smile on her face.
Camila honestly doesn’t understand how anyone could hate this girl, because seriously, she’s like a walking dream.
Lauren turns to them as they approach, and it’s only now that Camila sees the full extent of her injury. It’s not as red as it was yesterday; instead, the bruise around her nose is taking on a blueish tint as it begins the healing process.
“Hey guys,” Tori greets them when she notices where Lauren’s gaze is. Lauren offers a shy wave but before Camila can greet them back, Dinah pushes ahead to stand in front of Lauren.
“Damn, Lauser. I can’t imagine how the other guy must look,” she teases with a grin.
Camila goes to speak up and reprimand Dinah for being so blunt but she stops when Lauren lets out a little laugh at Dinah’s comment.
“I wouldn’t know. My eyes were too watery,” Lauren jokes back, her tongue caught in between her teeth. They all let out a genuine laugh and honestly Camila’s surprised because everyday Lauren seems to get more and more confident.
“How are you feeling?” Dinah asks Tori as they all begin to head towards class. Camila tunes out their conversation ahead of her as she turns to look at Lauren on her left.
“Thanks for helping me out yesterday,” Lauren speaks up first.
“Yeah, no, it was… you don’t have to thank me.”
“It meant a lot to me because… I mean usually the person who brings me to the nurse’s office leaves right after so…”
Camila frowns at Lauren, licking her lips as she takes in the girl’s words. “What do you mean usually? Has this happened before?”
Shrugging, Lauren doesn’t think too much of it. “Well, it’s happened a couple of times. It’s dodgeball though, so it’s okay. Someone is bound to get hurt, right? I guess I’m just one of the unlucky ones.”
“No– wait–“ Camila pauses to get her thoughts together. “That’s not normal, though. It’s not a coincidence if it always happens to you.”
“Seriously,” Lauren insists with a gentle smile. “Don’t worry about it, Camz.”
And usually Camila would keep arguing her point except for the fact that Lauren just called her Camz, she gave her a nickname that has Camila’s heart racing and makes her lose all her will to disagree with the girl.
Fuck, Dinah's right, Camila thinks to herself. I'm so whipped.
When Camila finally snaps back to reality, she looks up to see Lauren gazing over at her with a baffled expression on her face.
“Where are– um, you’re not wearing your glasses today?” Camila curses herself under her breath for acting like a schoolgirl with a crush (which she is technically but that’s not the point).
“Oh,” Lauren says, absentmindedly reaching up to fiddle with glasses that aren’t there. “Yeah, I… I tried wearing them but they hurt my nose too much so I’m using my contacts today.”
“You have contacts?”
Lightly tugging on her ponytail, Lauren peeks over at Camila. “Um, yeah, I do. I– I just don’t wear them much.
“Oh,” Camila mumbles, nodding to herself. “Well, I’m glad that you don’t.”
Lauren tilts her head to the side in question and it reminds Camila of her cousin’s new puppy and how it would do the exact same thing whenever you called its name.
“Your glasses make you like ten times cuter.”
“Oh. Uh, thanks.”
Camila smiles at Lauren’s slight blush and returns her sweet smile.
~~
They get invited to a party at Liam's house that evening because Columbus day is Friday which means an extra long weekend. Camila is not a big fan of parties but she has nothing else going on and figures tagging along for a few hours won’t hurt.
Dinah drags her and Ariana to Normani’s house and they agree to meet up with Zayn and Shawn at the party.
Camila attempts to stay out of the war zone that is Ariana, Normani, and Dinah getting ready for a party and just attend in her normal clothes but Ariana refuses to leave her alone and eventually forces Camila into a skirt and short sleeved crop top combo. She touches up her make up and tidies up her hair so it falls in her nice, natural waves.
They don’t head to the party until it’s dark and Camila doesn’t even pay attention to the drive over, shoved in the back seat and preoccupied by her conversation with Lauren. She would much rather have hung out with Lauren tonight, especially when she finds out that Taylor is staying at a friend’s house for the extended weekend and her parents have taken Chris up to Fort Myers for a soccer tournament and are staying there for the entirety of the weekend (Camila is kind of relieved about that because she still hasn’t met the family and she really wants them to like her but she's kind of nervous). But all of that means that Lauren will be alone in her house for three days because while she does have Tori and Ally, they aren’t staying over with Lauren until Friday which means the girl is alone tonight.
Camila wants to offer her company but she doesn’t know if that’s overstepping a line or if Lauren would even be comfortable with it. She wants to make moves but the last thing she wants to do is scare the girl away.
They arrive when Camila is typing out a text to Lauren so she barely pays attention as they make their way up to the already rowdy house. Camila is just pressing send as they push their way through the front door and into the hot, smoky, deafening environment. She doesn’t understand how a party could be in full swing after only an hour but doesn’t have a chance to question it before Normani is tugging her over to the kitchen to grab some drinks.
Camila opts for a beer that she can sip slowly while they line up five shots glasses for the other three girls and Zayn and Shawn who have just joined them. Dinah downs three shots before tugging Normani out onto the dance floor and it has Camila shaking her head at her friend’s antics.
Shawn and Ariana join a few moments later, leaving Zayn and Camila behind.
“You punched Anthony, didn’t you?”
Camila sighs into her bottle. “Did Dinah tell you?”
“No,” Zayn replies, clutching his own beer. “I just know you. You wouldn’t let him get away with it.”
“Can you blame me? It’s Lauren.”
“I know. And I honestly can’t believe I didn’t realize how much you love her.”
“Oh my, god, I don’t love her!” Right on cue, Camila’s phone buzzes in her hand and Lauren’s name pops up on the screen.
Zayn just chuckles as he takes a sip. “Of course. That’s why you’d rather be texting her than partying. Makes sense.”
“Go away, you asshole,” Camila groans as she shoves him towards the living room.
“You love her!” Zayn calls over his shoulder as he walks away.
“Were you just born to annoy me?” Camila shouts back, but Zayn just laughs loudly at her before disappearing into the crowd.
She rolls her eyes but can’t help feeling happy that she can text Lauren in peace now.
Lauren: So since you know now that I’m home alone and watching TV in my pajamas like a nerd, can I know what you’re up to?
Camila: got dragged to this stupid party that i don’t even want to be at. i hate parties, i don’t know why they keep forcing me to go.
Lauren: You are? I kind of feel like I’m at one too. My neighbors are having a crazy loud one and I can hear their music from here.
Taking a sip from her beer, Camila jumps back as Dinah pushes her way back into the kitchen. The girl doesn’t even notice her as she downs another shot and mixes herself a drink before heading back onto the dance floor.
Camila: i’m sorry :( can u lock urself in ur room and turn the volume up louder?
Lauren: Lol I already did. Whose party are you at?
Camila: liam’s. liam payne, you know who he is?
Lauren: Wait, really?
Camila: yeah, why?
Lauren: Because I’m next door neighbors with Liam Payne.
Camila’s eyes widen, because that means she’s right next to Lauren who’s lonely and alone for the evening. She wonders how she didn’t notice that they were on Lauren’s street but Camila chalks it up to the fact that she had only been there once, it was dark, and she was buried in her phone.
Camila: omg, seriously??
Lauren: Haha, if you don’t believe me, come to the fence.
Tossing her nearly empty bottle into the trash, Camila bolts for the back doors, sliding one open and squeezing through it as she searches the darkness for Lauren. She makes it to the fence but is too short to see over, and as Camila’s contemplating grabbing a chair from the deck, a portion of the fence cracks open and she sees Lauren’s messy hair pop out.
“Hey, Camila,” Lauren greets, only her head sticking through the gap.
“I had no idea we were even on your street. I’m… this just made my night ten times better. I didn’t want to come to this stupid party anyways.”
Glancing away, Lauren bites her lip as if she’s contemplating something. “Well, if you want… you can, um, join me. I’m watching uh, The Devil Wears Prada because there’s an Emily Blunt movie marathon on.”
“Holy shit, yes, I love that movie. Emily Blunt is a babe.”
“Yeah, she’s uh… um, she’s really pretty,” Lauren says back shyly. She’s opening her mouth to speak when Camila hears a voice behind her.
“Lauser! What are you doing here? Hiding in the corner with Mila? Clearly you two are made for each other,” Dinah says, stumbling slightly in her heels as she marches towards them, Zayn close behind.
“Clearly—,” Camila speaks up quickly with wide eyes, “—someone’s had too much to drink a little too quickly! Maybe you should, uh, ease up on the shots, yeah? Go drink some water? From the kitchen? That’s not out here?”
Lauren stares at the three of them, nervously playing with the latch on the gate. “Um, I’m sorry, I didn’t realize you were– you’re probably busy, I’ll just go…”
“No, Lauren, wait!” Camila shouts, reaching a desperate hand forward to stop the girl from shutting the gate. “I would much rather hang with you than be here tonight.”
Before Lauren can respond, Dinah speaks up again, apparently having heard Camila. “Oh my, god, Camila you’re so—“ she pauses for a hiccup, “—whipped. No wonder why you—“ another hiccup, “—punched that kid who hurt Lauren yesterday.”
Camila’s eyes widen because Dinah apparently can’t keep secrets when she’s drunk. She glares at Zayn who finally gets the hint and begins tugging Dinah back towards the house, mumbling a sheepish sorry to Camila who just glares harder.
Turning back to Lauren, Camila anxiously scratches at the back of her neck because she can’t read Lauren’s expression.
“Um, I… is it okay if I explain?”
Lauren regards her for a moment before opening the gate wider and letting Camila through. She almost feels like a little child about to get disciplined by a parent as she walks ahead of the girl with her head hanging down and Lauren quietly following behind.
This was not how her evening was supposed to go.
~~
The downstairs of the house is dark, and having only been there once, Camila can’t remember where Lauren’s room is. The girl takes the lead and guides them up the stairs into the only room that has a light on. It’s only then that Camila is able to see Lauren properly since it was also dark and not well-lit outside either.
Lauren is wearing these cute little plaid sleep shorts and a simple t-shirt; it’s only October in South Florida and is definitely still warm enough for summer clothes. Her hair is down in loose waves and her glasses are balanced delicately on the top of her nose, probably due to the pain from the prominent bruise around her face. As Camila is appreciating casual Lauren, the girl finally turns around and properly sees Camila’s party outfit. It’s not crazy and super revealing but Camila does notice how Lauren’s eyes linger on her exposed stomach.
Camila smiles to herself because it’s probably the first time that she’s ever seen Lauren react to her attire and looks. She decides to tease the girl a little because Lauren is adorable when she’s flustered.
“You like this shirt?”
“Huh?” Lauren asks, her head snapping up quickly.
“You were looking at my shirt. You like it?”
Lauren’s cheeks flush at being caught. “Oh, uh, uh…”
Camila chuckles quietly to herself, because she’ll never get over this girl’s reactions.
“Come on,” Camila says, deciding to change the subject. “Let me explain what Dinah said out there.”
They both take a seat on the edge of Lauren’s unmade bed, space between them so that they can face each other comfortably.
“So, we both know what happened at the gym. A ball got thrown at your face and the nurse and all of that.” Lauren nods for her to continue.
“Well, I saw who did it. And… I was just so mad. Because you should have seen his face! He was smirking because you were in pain! Like he did it on purpose. He didn’t think to own up or apologize. He wanted to hurt you. And I can’t stand the thought of anyone wanting to do that. Or the thought of them getting away with it. It makes me so angry because… because… you’re so sweet and undeserving of the shit people give you. But…fuck, I know I promised I would work on my, um, issues. I just… I couldn’t let him get away with it. But I’m sorry. I don’t know if I would take it back, but I am sorry that I let you down.”
At some point during Camila’s spiel, she had stood up and started pacing Lauren’s room, gesturing wildly to express her emotions. It’s only when she stops that Camila realizes that Lauren is still perched on her spot on the bed as she watches Camila convey her feelings.
Suddenly feeling a little embarrassed, Camila quickly takes her seat next to Lauren. She stares at her lap, avoiding Lauren’s eyes because she really doesn’t know what the girl’s face means.
It’s silent for a few moments longer, setting Camila’s nerves on edge.
“Thank you.”
Her head whips up, eyes wide at Lauren’s words. “What?”
“Thank you,” Lauren repeats softly. “You’re right, I– I am a little disappointed that you resorted to violence, but… no one’s ever, you know, felt so strongly about defending me before. So it means a lot to me.”
“I, um…” Camila stutters, because she really didn’t expect this reaction.
“Are you okay, though? Did you hurt yourself when you hit him?” Lauren asks, her green eyes searching Camila’s hands.
Flexing her fingers, Camila rubs over the slight bruising on her knuckles. “I'm okay, it didn’t hurt that much. But… I’m surprised you’re not worried about how he feels. I’m pretty sure I broke his nose.”
Lauren giggles quietly, taking Camila’s bruised hand and gripping it between her own. She runs her fingertips over the discoloring and Camila prays that Lauren didn’t notice the chill that ran through her or the goosebumps on her skin.
"I care more about how you feel," Lauren says quietly as she continues inspecting Camila's knuckles.
A rush of emotions go through Camila all at once and she has to take a deep breath to calm herself down.
“Are you– do you want to–“ Lauren nervously runs the hand that isn’t holding Camila’s through her hair. “Did you actually want to watch the movie with me? Because, um, you never said yes or no when we were outside.”
“Of course I would. That party was stupid and you’re way better company,” Camila says, only then noticing the reverb she can hear from the music next door.
“Great.” Lauren quickly stands up as she takes a step forward before stopping and spinning around on her heels, her hands suspended in midair. “Did you, uh, want a change of clothes? You don’t have to but, um, you’re making me feel really under dressed.”
Camila returns Lauren’s smile, excited to be spending some quality time with the girl. “That sounds great.”
She watches as Lauren trudges over to the dresser and pulls out shorts and a shirt similar to the ones she’s wearing, handing them to Camila as she points to her ensuite bathroom. “You can change in there. I can grab some snacks, if you want?”
“Do you have any popcorn?”
“Duh. The essential movie food.”
They part ways after deciding what to eat, Lauren going downstairs and Camila heading to the bathroom. She still can’t believe that this is happening. At the beginning of the year, Lauren hardly knew who she was and now, they’re about to pig out for their movie night. In Lauren’s room, in her bed, alone. This would be the perfect moment for Camila’s thoughts to go in the gutter, but she’s honestly just really happy Lauren likes her enough to hang out. The fact that her thoughts didn’t even get inappropriate tells her that she’s probably just as whipped as Dinah’s annoying voice reminded her.
Shaking her head at herself, Camila pulls her party outfit off, tugging the shorts on and pulling Lauren’s shirt over her head. She pauses for a moment because it smells like Lauren, coconut mixed with something specifically her, and it makes Camila smile to herself.
She exits the bathroom, folding her clothes and leaving them on Lauren’s desk chair. Noticing that Lauren hasn’t returned yet, Camila heads downstairs to see if the girl needs any help. She’s greeted by the scent of buttered popcorn and walks into the kitchen to see Lauren rifling through the fridge.
“Hey, need me to carry something?”
And apparently Lauren wasn’t expecting Camila to appear because she hears a squeak of surprise followed by a bang and then a groan as Lauren presumably hits her head on a fridge shelf.
Camila feels bad, she really does, but…
“O– oh my, god… are… are you o– okay?” she asks through her snickering.
Lauren pops out from behind the fridge door, a pout on her face as she rubs the back of her head. “You scared me,” she whines.
“Did you kno– I’m sor– just–“ Camila can’t hold in her laughter anymore and has to lean against the counter for support.
“Fine,” she hears as Lauren huffs then grumbles. “I’ll just eat all the popcorn by myself.”
Camila is doubled over now, clutching at her stomach. “N– no, wait… L– Laure–“
Instead of marching off in annoyance at Camila’s reaction, Lauren starts to find amusement in her laughing fit and joins in, first with light giggles until they’re both clutching each other’s shoulders in the middle of the kitchen and gasping for air through their hysterics.
"I swear I'm not that clumsy," Lauren attempts to explain once they've both calmed down slightly. "I just scare easily."
"Good to know," Camila teases with a grin on her face.
Lauren smacks Camila's shoulder as they start gathering their snacks. "Camz!"
"What!"
"That's not fair! I just said I spook easily."
"So? I can still scare you whenever I want."
The mock glare Lauren sends towards Camila is not intimidating in the slightest. "You're a meanie."
"There there. Will this make it better?" Camila asks with a pouty face as she reaches out to rub the spot on Lauren's head that she hit. She notices how Lauren's eyes flutter shut for a moment at the touch and stores that information away for later.
"Come on. This popcorn is going to get cold."
They make their way upstairs, setting the DVR up and arranging the snacks around them as they climb under Lauren's sheets. The pillows they're leaning against are propped up against her headboard as the settle the popcorn bowl between them.
Their shoulders are barely brushing from how they're sitting to make it easier to share the snacks. Camila wants to move closer but she doesn't want to creep Lauren out.
Eventually, the food is moved to the bedside tables once they're done, so Camila takes the opportunity to scoot a little closer to Lauren. The girl makes a surprised sound but Camila doesn't react. She's too busy struggling with herself whether she should go for it or not, but Zayn's voice in her head calling her a pussy makes the decision for her.
Camila breathes out hard through her nose, sucking up the nerve to ask. "Hey, Lauren, does your head still hurt?"
"Um, yeah, a little."
"Do... do you want me to massage it for you? You won't even have a bump when I'm done."
"Oh," Lauren says, green eyes wide and blinking slowly. "Uh... only if you don't mind..."
"Not at all." Camila scoots over, giving more Lauren to shift around. "Here, if you lay your head on my lap it'll be easier."
"Oh," the girl repeats. Camila notices how she licks her lips nervously as she moves sideways so she's facing the TV while placing her head on Camila's legs like a pillow.
She begins running her fingers through Lauren's hair and immediately feels the girl relax. The girl's tension from before dissipates as Camila rubs her fingertips along Lauren's scalp.
It doesn't take more than fifteen minutes before Lauren is snoring softly, and Camila doesn't even make it to the end of the movie because Lauren's gentle breathing lulls her into a pleasant sleep.
~~