Best of the Best

Chapter 12: Pillow Fort

Camila turned down Lauren's offer to call her a car and strolled the few blocks home that evening grateful the air was cool enough to abate some of the heat radiating off her skin. She freed the buttons of her shirt Lauren hadn't already undone, and tugged down the undershirt that had been pulled from her pants and rucked up. Every step of the first block, she considered turning around and running right back. Maybe this time not keeping her hands respectfully glued to Lauren's waist.

Along the second block, despite visions of baggy sweatpants sliding down long legs, Camila decided home was the direction she should be heading. As enticing as groping Lauren on a couch was to certain parts of her anatomy, it wasn't what she wanted. Not yet anyways.

By the third block, she was skipping. By the fourth, trying to cover her giggles as a few people she passed gave her looks. She stopped to grab some snacks at the store on the corner of her block, and was home before she broke out into song. She'd save it for the shower in the morning. Tonight she was going to sleep with the smell of Lauren's perfume and shampoo and skin still lingering around her.

She spent Friday in the same euphoric haze, working out with a grin on her face, definitely taking it easy on her classes.

She was still humming Saturday morning when she stepped out of the shower, loud enough that she almost didn't hear her phone vibrating on her nightstand. Skipping over from the bathroom, still towelling off, she hit talk without looking, assuming it was Kelly calling again for details.

"I'm not tellin-"

"Camila?"

Camila pulled the phone from her ear, her smile spreading as she saw that it definitely wasn't Kelly. "I thought you were some-"

Lauren cut her off. "Are you busy today?"

Camila sat on the edge of the bed, pulling the towel off her head. Her smile fading and forehead creasing as she registered Lauren's harried tone. "Uh.. no. I've got nothing. Is everything okay?"

Lauren blew out a long breath. "There's an emergency at work, and Ella is away this weekend, and I can't take Thomas with me-"

Camila was already pulling clothes from her dresser, phone tucked against her shoulder. "I'll be over in ten minutes."

---

Camila ran the 4 blocks, hair still wet, and leaving a damp trail down the back of her t-shirt. The doorman gave her sweatpants and flushed face a once over, but let her in and over to Lauren's elevator.

When the doors opened, Lauren was waiting, slipping into her heels. "Oh thank God," she breathed, giving Camila a quick kiss, before turning to grab her purse. "Thomas is in his room. He had breakfast, he's dressed, there's plenty of food, we usually have lunch around 1:00, I got Thomas ready for you, it's on the second shelf. He knows if he doesn't eat his carrot sticks, he doesn't get cookies, don't let him convince you otherwise. I'll be home before dinner. I better be," she added. "Or Jauregui's going to be having a job fair on Monday."

Camila chuckled, resting her hands on Lauren's shoulders, giving them a reassuring squeeze. "I got this. Go do your thing. Rule the world."

Lauren took a deep breath, and wiped a damp curl out of Camila's face. "You really did run over."

"Of course I did."

Lauren offered up one last, lingering kiss as she moved around Camila and into the elevator. "You're amazing."

Camila turned and smiled. "What's a girlfriend for, right?" Brown eyes widened as soon as the words left her mouth.

Lauren raised an eyebrow, and smirked, before grabbing the front of Camila's t-shirt and tugging her in for a searing kiss effectively stymying any backpedaling Camila was about to stammer. "All kinds of things, I imagine," she said, letting go and giving Camila a little push back as the doors slid shut.