Signs

Chapter 10

They'd been dating for a little over two months, although Lauren was hesitant to label it. Camila was okay with that, knowing that it was Lauren's first relationship.

It was like Camila had come alive and broken out of the box of her normal life. They ate lunch together, and Lauren became a permanent fixture at drinks every Friday night. She got along great with Dinah, the two of them spending hours talking about mechanics and technology.

Lauren took Camila to expensive restaurants and upscale art museums, and Camila took Lauren to the cinema and ice skating. Lauren still came into the library every couple of days, surprising Camila at work and picking up another one of Camila's favorite books, and Camila became a frequent visitor at LJ-Corp, bringing Lauren flowers and making sure she left the office occasionally. Sometimes late at night they would walk to Camila's park and walk around the pond hand in hand, feeding the ducks some bread.

The more time they spent together, the more they learnt about each other, and the closer they became, picking up each other's habits and vocabulary. Camila had been thinking about introducing Lauren to Sinu soon, wanting her adoptive mom's approval. She wanted Lauren to be included in her family, seeing as she wasn't close to her own. Sofi had suggested that Camila bring Lauren to Thanksgiving at their mom's house so that Sinu could meet her.

They filled in the gaps for each other, and everything was perfect.

They were happy.

James and Normani were in town, so the next Friday night, they skipped the bar and everyone met at one of the more popular clubs. Dinah couldn't make it this Friday because she had a World of Warcraft tournament with her computer friends.

"Camila!" Normani squealed, pulling her into a hug as soon as she saw her. Smiling widely, Camila embraced James as well, happy to have her friends back in town. She hadn't seen them in a few months and she missed them. She was excited to introduce them to Lauren though.

'This is Lauren' she signed, gesturing to Lauren.

James had actually photographed and interviewed Lauren before, when she still lived in Miami, and fell into an easy conversation about LJ-Corp and James' latest article he was working on.

Maggie and Sofi showed up not long after, Maggie complaining about having to drag Sofi away from work, and the party got started. Lauren had used her name to snag VIP access for them, so they all settled down in one of the large booths, away from the dancefloor.

They all caught up over a few drinks, laughing at the stories Normani and James told. The tipsier they got they got tipsier as the night wore on, and Normani decided talking time was over and dragged James over to the dancefloor.

Camila raised her eyebrows at Sofi, smiling widely at her.

"Oh no, you're not getting me up there," Sofi argued, understanding what Camila was getting at. Camila protested, gesturing at Maggie to help her out. Maggie just shrugged.

"Your sister's not the dancing type little Cabello," Maggie said, matter-of-factly.

Camila shot Maggie a confused look.

'Not the dancing type? So Sofi didn't tell you about her wild college parties?'

"No way, I have to see this," Maggie laughed, dragging Sofi out of the booth. Sofi sighed, giving in easily as Maggie led them onto the dancefloor.

Camila turned to Lauren, smiling at her.

'Your turn' she signed, sliding to the end of the seat and pulling Lauren along with her.

"No, definitely not, I don't dance," Lauren protested. Her sign language had improved a lot over the past two months, and they didn't have to rely on the whiteboard quite as much.

'Everyone dances' Camila signed back, gesturing towards the heaving crowd moving with the beat.

'You don't have to be a good dancer to dance, and you can't be worse than me' Camila silently laughed as she replied.

Lauren rolled her eyes, giving in as she scooted along the bench. Camila threw her hands up in victory, leaning in to give Lauren a quick kiss in thanks.

Camila had been right. There was no way Lauren could have been worse than her. She didn't even dance in time with the music, and Lauren had no idea where she got her dance moves from. She thought it was adorable. Camila clearly didn't care, she was too drunk and having too much fun.

They didn't leave until the club closed in the early hours of the morning. Everyone stumbled out of the club, too drunk to stand properly. Lauren, probably the soberest out of them all, held Camila up as she swayed on her feet.

Everyone was waiting for a cab, and Camila hugged everyone goodbye as one pulled up alongside them. Sofi cast a worried look at Camila, who she knew wouldn't get into the cab even in her drunken state.

"It's okay, I'll make sure she gets home safe," Lauren promised Sofi, as Maggie slipped into the back of the cab next to Normani.

"Thank you, I'll see you later," Sofi replied, sliding in after Maggie.

"Come on, let's get you home," Lauren said, smiling to Camila, whose head was resting on Lauren's shoulder.

Placing Camila's arm around her shoulder, Lauren took half of her weight and got Camila to start walking forward. They staggered home towards Camila's apartment.

Lauren half carried Camila up the stairs, trying to be quiet so she didn't wake up the neighbors. Stopping outside Camila's door, she propped her up against the wall, digging into Camila's pocket for her key.

Flicking the lights on, Lauren led Camila inside, shutting the door behind her.

"Come on, let's get you into bed," Lauren whispered, leading Camila towards her bedroom.

Lauren sat Camila down on the edge of the bed, catching her as she fell forwards. Camila's shoulders shook with silent giggles as Lauren sat her back up and she flopped backwards. She laid there staring at the ceiling, still giggling, as Lauren took her shoes off for her.

Pulling the sheets back, Lauren dragged Camila up the bed, resting her against the pillows as Camila smiled at her. She helped Camila out of her jumper and jeans, and took her hair out for her so she'd be more comfortable. Covering her with the quilt, Lauren slid Camila's glasses off, placing them on the bedside table.

"Stay here," she whispered, walking out of the bedroom.

She came back a moment later with a glass of water and some aspirin, putting them down next to Camila's glasses, ready for the morning. Lauren figured that Camila was in for a not so fun hangover tomorrow.

She brushed Camila's hair out of her face, smiling at her as Camila squinted up at her through half-closed eyes. A slow smile spread across Camila's face as she pulled Lauren down towards her, placing a clumsy kiss on her lips. Lauren pulled back slowly.

"Camila, that's not a good idea," Lauren whispered, stroking Camila's cheekbone with her thumb. A little frown line formed between Camila's eyebrows as she gave Lauren a confused look, signing something at her. The movements were clumsy, but Lauren's breathing hitched as she understood what Camila was saying.

'But I love you'

Lauren knew it didn't mean anything. Camila was drunk, she wasn't her usual self, and she wouldn't remember it in the morning.

She smiled sadly down at Camila, "I wish I could hear you say it."

Once Camila had passed out, Lauren placed a gentle kiss on her forehead and stood up. She made her way outside, switching the lights off and locking the door as she went. She flagged down the next taxi she saw, heading back to her apartment.