Thunderstorms (Camren)

Chapter 8

Camila leaned back against the brick wall, bringing her cigarette between her lips as she inhaled lightly. She let the smoke sit in her lungs for a second before breathing out, brown eyes fleeting across the bustling street.

It was early afternoon, and so the street was busy, crawling with people of many different upbringings, religions, ages and cultures. Camila liked the diversity of Miami, she always had. She liked how everyone had a different story, everyone had a different tale to tell and different hardships and victories to share. It was fascinating.

But, there was one story that Camila was particularly interested in. And that story belonged to a certain noirette, with mesmerising green eyes who was currently working in the pet store just two foot away from Camila.

Camila had had errands to do this morning; at her mom's orders, but she'd made sure she'd finished all of them before noon. That way she'd be able to fit a smoke in before visiting Lauren during her day at work.

Camila flicked a bit of ash of the tip of her cigarette before taking another drag, admiring the wisps of smoke that escaped her lips. It was relaxing, the way the smoke would catch the breeze and come apart, flying off in unpredictable patterns to eventually end up somewhere in the atmosphere. It was one of the things Camila loved about smoking, the other being the way it caused every nerve in her body to relax.

She took a final drag of the cancer stick, letting the smoke rest in her lungs for a little longer this time before releasing it expertly, the white wisps of smoke exiting her mouth and becoming one with the light breeze again. Camila dropped the cigarette to the ground and crushed it with the toe of her boot and then proceeded to pull her hoodie closer to her frame.

She pushed herself off of the wall, and kicked an unsuspecting stone that lay on the pavement. She smiled at the way it bounced randomly and in every kind of direction before coming to a halt. She reached into her pocket and retrieved her packet of gum, throwing a piece into her mouth before approaching the door of the pet store.

She savoured the pepperminty taste as the door swung open, a shrill bell resounding throughout the small store, alerting Lauren. Camila turned her head and immediately made eye contact with emerald orbs, her smile breaking into a grin.

Lauren smiled too, despite the immediate shock that had coursed through her veins. She hadn't expected Camila to show up at the store today. However, she was thankful that she had because Lauren really enjoyed talking to the younger girl.

"Hello," she said cheerily as Camila approached the counter where she was positioned at. Her boss refused to give her a chair to sit at and so, she was made to stand at the counter because she'd get killed if anyone saw her sitting on the linoleum.

"Hi," Camila replied, trying her best to ignore the way her tummy flipped when Lauren's 'hello' sounded more like 'hallo'. The pale girl was too adorable. "You look great," she said truthfully, her eyes scanning Lauren's appearance.

Even in the awful work uniform, Lauren looked gorgeous. But, Camila wouldn't admit that aloud, not yet at least, her and Lauren had still only recently befriended each other. The uniform, although a sickly pale green, fit just right on Lauren's frame, managing to show off Lauren's curves and femininity.

Lauren couldn't hide the light blush that painted her cheeks at the compliment. She wasn't used to compliments, they always made her shy, no matter who said them.

Her green eyes looked down at the uniform, almost insecurely and she shook her head lightly, the movement small enough that it went unnoticed by Camila. Lauren sighed to herself before casting her eyes back up to Camila, taking a moment to admire the girl.