Just Off The Key Of Reason

Chapter 21: You've been the Song in the Background, Turning up Now

Camila was preparing dinosaur egg oatmeal when they made the call. Lauren had seen it in the grocery store and requested it, and Camila complied because she was in awe of this phenomenon. Colored dinosaurs emerged from tiny eggs made of sugar.

It was fucking magical. And Lauren was delighted.

But right now Lauren sat ramrod straight at the kitchen bar with Jelly in front of her, sprawled over the phone and looking for attention. Lauren wasn't giving it. She ran her hands along her red reindeer pajamas nervously.

Camila was trying to keep her thoughts of "this is the worst fucking idea ever" and "this will determine Lauren's fate and the rest of our lives forever" inside her head. She was aware they were just a tiny bit dramatic, but she just kept thinking them.

And watching dinosaurs emerge.

"Lauren. This is amazing." Camila stated overly brightly, sliding a bowl full of transforming eggs in front of Lauren and hopping up onto the chair next to her.

Lauren switched her somber gaze from the kitty-covered-phone to her food, and her eyes lit up a little. She looked at Camila's bowl and they widened even more.

"Wait, why do you have so many triceratopses? All I have are stegosauruses!"

Wow. Camila had a girlfriend who could successfully pluralize stegosaurus. She wasn't so sure about the triceratops, because she wasn't a damn paleontologist. Really, Camila could be eating fucking velociraptors for all she knew. She willingly traded bowls, even though Lauren's was covered in a mountain of powdered sugar, and Lauren ate all her dinosaurs before switching to the actual oatmeal.

Lauren had brightened by the time they shoved Jelly off the phone to call Lisa, and Camila had determined they would both be diabetic before they turned thirty.

Lauren looked at her nervously, fingers hovering over the numbers, and Camila gave her a dorky thumbs-up and a confident nod. She still wasn't sure that this was a good idea. At all. But Lauren smiled slightly, and Camila took her free hand as she dialed, stopping it from playing with the spoons on the counter.

"Hello?" Lisa said loudly over the speakerphone.

Camila knocked two of the spoons off the counter she was so startled. This woman always seemed to terrify her when they crossed paths. And yep, she still sounded like a blender.

Camila watched the words get stuck in Lauren's throat, and her jaw work up and down a few times before Lauren gathered herself and spoke.

"Hi, Aunt Lisa. It's Lauren...And Camila."

There was a pause for a second, and Camila swallowed more of her oatmeal extremely slowly because it sounded like the loudest thing in the world right now. God, could she swallow more loudly? No. It was impossible. Did Lauren hear that? Why was her apartment so quiet? Where were all the damn animals?

"Oh. Hello...Lauren. How are you?" Lisa didn't sound cold or unwelcoming, maybe just unsure. Surprised. Camila couldn't blame her. She'd almost shanked the woman with a spork the last time they spoke.

"I'm well, thank you." Lauren said slowly and clearly.

Camila swallowed again, contracting her neck muscles like a python to make it as quiet as possible. She started choking, and Lauren stared at her and then thumped her on the back.

"Who was that? Is that Camila? Is she alright?" Lisa said through the speaker, tone more curious than concerned.

Camila nodded vigorously. God, pull yourself together. Fucking dinosaur oatmeal. Lauren smiled and tweaked her ear.