Signs

Chapter 14

A few weeks later winter came.

Camila stepped out of the elevator at LJ-Corp, waving at Ally as she walked past her desk and headed towards Lauren's office. She didn't notice Ally's silent, wide-eyed warning, but as she got closer she could hear a raised voice.

She hesitated outside the door when she heard Lauren yelling. Knocking twice, Camila opened the door just enough to poke her head in. Lauren whirled around, her face stony and her eyes blazing with anger. Camila shrunk back, closing the door before Lauren could react.

She'd never seen Lauren so angry before.

The yelling cut off and the door opened two seconds later. Lauren stood there awkwardly, looking down at the floor as Camila walked in. She sighed as she shut the door and walked over to her desk. Sitting down, Lauren put her head in her hands, exhaling slowly before she looked up. Camila was watching her with concern, but Lauren wouldn't meet her eyes.

"Sorry about that," Lauren said, barely concealing her anger as she picked up her tablet, tapping the screen with unnecessary force.

Camila reached out and lifted Lauren's chin up, forcing her to look at her. Lauren's shoulders dropped as she sighed again, closing her eyes for a moment. She could see the questions written all over Camila's face.

"I'm fine," Lauren uttered, rubbing her forehead as she looked back down at the tablet. Her gaze flashed back up as she saw Camila's hands move.

'You're clearly not fine, you can-' She stopped signing as Lauren slammed her tablet down on the counter.

"I said I don't want to talk about it," Lauren snapped.

Camila flinched at the steel in Lauren's voice, her hands falling uselessly into her lap. Lauren saw the hurt flash across Camila's face and immediately regretted snapping at her.

"Fuck, I'm so sorry Camz," Lauren whispered, looking ashamed. Camila picked up her bag and stood up.

'It's fine, you obviously have a lot going on, I'll just call you later'

Lauren shot out of her seat, reaching across the desk to try and touch Camila.

"No, please don't go, I'm sorry," she begged, "I know it's not an excuse, but it's been a long day."

Camila hesitated, and Lauren took that opportunity to walk over to her. She gently kissed Camila, cradling her head between her hands.

"I'm sorry," Lauren apologized again, "look, I'll get my things and we can leave."

Lauren had made reservations at a new Chinese restaurant, hoping that Camila would enjoy it there. The food was amazing, but Camila couldn't enjoy it knowing that something was going on with Lauren. She had barely said anything all through the meal.

They were supposed to be going ice skating afterwards. It was a couple of weeks before Christmas and the outdoor ice skating rink had been set up. Camila had gone every year since she had moved to New York City, dragging Sofi or Dinah with her to get peppermint hot chocolates and skate for a few hours. She had been excited to go with Lauren, but now she was considering just going home and coming back another night.

Lauren paid for the meal and took Camila's hand, walking outside. "Okay, which way is it to this Winter Wonderland?" she asked, flashing a small smile at Camila.

'Maybe we should just go back to mine' Camila signed.

"What? No! I said we'd go so we're going," Lauren argued, "come on Camila, please can we just have a good night?"