Keep Me Where The Light Is (Camren)

Ch 10

Warning: Aaaaaaangst!

[To Listen To: 'To Love & Die' then '3:16 AM', both by Jhene Aiko]

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My nerves start to tingle, and I'm crossing my fingers in my head as they list out all of the nominees.

"And the award for Favourite Group/Duo, goes to..."

Shit.

When Fifth Harmony's name isn't called out, my eyes immediately zip to their faces on the big screen.

The disappointment is clear on their faces, especially on Camila's.

I want nothing more than to get up and scoop her into my arms, but it'll probably only make things worse.

Instead, I settle for pulling out my phone and sending her a quick text.

From where I'm sitting, I see her head bow down for a couple of minutes, then come back up.

I stare at my screen, but there's no response from Camila. That's okay, she must still be wrestling with her emotions.

From that moment on though, the rest of the show crawls forward, but eventually, my band's shuttled over to the afterparty.

It takes a while for us to get there, and by the time we arrive, the party is already in full swing.

My band disperses to say hello to other people in the industry.

So I make my way through the teeming crowd, eventually spotting Normani, Dinah, and Ally at one of the booths.

They're all clearly smashed, because when they spot me, they practically stumble over one another to squeeze me into a big group hug.

"Lauuuuren! We missed you!" Dinah shouts over the music, patting me roughly on the head.

I try to laugh myself out of her grip, only to get pushed into Normani's arms.

"Congratulations on your win," she says.

Ally pulls my face down to kiss my cheek, and she slurs, "You toootally killed it tonight!"

I manage to detach myself from all of them, and I look around, asking, "Thanks, guys... Hey, where's Camz?"

Dinah throws up a dismissive wave, saying, "She's with her squad. And by the way, Laur, your girlfriend's being totally salty tonight. Can you, you know, do something about that, please?"

She wiggles her hand in the direction of my crotch, and when I look back up at her, I can tell she's serious about what she's implying.

I don't really need to do anything though, because Ally slaps her on the arm, saying, "Dinah Jane! Stop being so inappropriate all the time!"

Of course, Dinah slaps her right back, and while they get into a mini smack war, with Normani now getting stuck in the middle, I can't help the way my brows knot.

It's not that I have anything against Taylor and her 'squad'; if anything, they're all very nice girls.

But really, what bothers me more, is the way Camila changes when she's around them, like she's trying hard, to fit in.

"...being extra salty!" Ally adds, grabbing my arm, and forcing me back into the conversation.

I nod slowly, already turning myself around to go, but Normani grabs my hand, and says, "No! You can't go yet. You have to stay and drink with us a bit. Plus you can't leave me with these two."