The Stage Door (Camren/Norminah)

One Week

It was exactly one week before the Sunshine and Snowflake Festival and the girls had spent their morning apart, working on the solos they so desperately wanted to be prepared to take the stage with, Dinah claiming that no amount of preparation from her could do Beyonce justice. Camila and Lauren had put the finishing touches on the duet they wrote together using the poem from Lauren's journal a few days before and Dinah and Normani had perfected their version of Baby, it's Cold Outside a week earlier. The girls had all sat and listened to Ally's rendition of Merry Christmas Darling, deeming it their favourite with Ally's silky voice hitting each note flawlessly, the eldest of the friend group happy that the girls approved. Normani and Camila finished the songs they had written and while Normani was the only one who had heard the song Camila wrote, Camila was the only one who had heard the one Normani had composed, despite their friends protests and begging; And Lauren could be heard singing If I Ain't Got You every spare moment she had, so they all knew she was prepared without her having to say it. They practiced their group version of Mariah Carey's All I Want For Christmas is You every night after dinner, until they were all too tired to sing another note, they were confident in their arrangement and so was their teacher, Mr. Rinaldi constantly giving himself mad props as he put it, for putting the girls together in the first place.

After lunch, Lauren had finally decided it was time to take the bus ride to Mike and Clara's to invite them to the festival. She hadn't been as nervous as she was expecting herself to be, a combination of knowing the festival and the girls would act as a buffer between any awkwardness, but she was  still not completely comfortable talking to them.

The five girls and Oliver, made it to the Jauregui's just before two that afternoon, no written invitation, just the words Lauren had rehearsed with Camila in her bedroom that morning. Lauren rang the doorbell, expecting Mike or Clara to open it, but instead she was met by a tall boy with brown hair and a California tan who smiled wide, eyes shining.

"Well," the younger boy laughed as he looked Lauren up and down. "If it isn't my big sister in the flesh."

Lauren furrowed her brow and gulped nervously, she wasn't sure how she felt hearing the term big sister coming from the mouth of the boy she had only ever seen from across the street and they stared at one another for a moment before a girl about a year or so younger than him appeared with a smile on her face.

"Chris is that Kayla?" The girl asked before her eyes fell on the six people standing on her porch, she eyed Lauren up and down, her lips pursed before she let out a sigh and turned back to her brother. "Let me know when Kayla gets here, will you?"

"Taylor," Chris exasperated. "This is-"

"I know who she is," Taylor laughed harshly. "She has our Mother's eyes." No one, especially not Lauren, missed the way she said our, motioning her hand between herself and Chris before raising her eyebrows at Lauren pointedly and turning to walk back up the stairs to her bedroom and Lauren sighed, her head dropping.

"Mom, Dad," Chris called out before looking at Lauren with a small smile. "Don't worry about her, she can be a bit of a brat!" He laughed causing Lauren to smile, her head still down.

Mike and Clara joined Chris at the door, looking from their son to the group on their porch. "Lauren," Mike greeted. "Girls, boy I've never met before," he laughed looking at Oliver who's arm was wrapped around Ally's shoulder. "Did you come back for your photo album, we got copies of the photos, so it's all yours if you would like it back. Chris, go get Lauren her photo album."

Chris grumbled something about having to do everything before he stalked off, Mike letting out a laugh while Clara rolled her eyes.

"I was actually coming here because," Lauren said nervously, shifting her weight from one foot to the other while she reached for Camila's hand and laced their fingers together. "We're having a Sunshine and Snowflake Festival and-"