You Hold My Heart

Don't Say You're Hurting

Camila wasn't entirely sure what she had expected to happen that day after Fifth Harmony's VMA performance. She'd replayed the scene on loop in her mind and each time she found another reason that could explain why Lauren hadn't messaged her.

Had she started off wrong with that stupid joke?
Had she been too honest?
Had she said too much?
Had she said enough?

The questions ricocheted around her brain, causing her head to feel as though it was spinning. It had felt that way since Lauren had disappeared through that doorway 5 days ago.

She'd tried not to get her hopes up. After all, the chances of Lauren contacting her were slim. But somehow, even though realistically she'd guessed it would be this way, the lack of notifications on her phone didn't hurt any less.

Each time the scene replayed in Camila's mind, her last words to Lauren rang in her ears. She'd told Lauren she wasn't going anywhere and she needed to prove that she'd meant it. She needed to prove that, no matter how long Lauren needed, she wasn't planning to disappear again.

So she waited.

Another 10 days passed before Camila felt a glimmer of hope light up inside her.

Fifth Harmony were in New York and had done interview after interview promoting their new album. She'd watched them all (even the ones that were of a very questionable quality on YouTube - blurry Lauren was better than no Lauren at all).

But this interview, the one Camila had now watched 23 times in a row, had her heart beating so hard she could've sworn it was going to jump right out of her chest.

Camila found the exact point she was looking for. She knew the time perfectly by now.

7:27

She watched as Lauren smiled, and just like every other time she'd seen it, Camila's stomach filled with butterflies. The actual moment that was causing Camila's excitement wasn't until 7:32 but Lauren's smile was too beautiful for her to resist rewinding the video further than necessary.

As the interviewer prepared to ask the next question, the fact that Camila knew exactly what was going to happen did nothing to quell her emotions.

"So, let's talk about that tweet shall we. After your performance on the VMAs, Camila Cabello posted this: 'Incredible performance at the VMAs. Proud is an understatement.' Obviously, your fans have gone absolutely crazy over this. Do you think she was talking about your performance?"

Just the same as it had been the other times she'd seen this clip, Normani answered, managing to avoid the real meaning of the question expertly. That was something they'd all had to get used to during their years in the spotlight.

"There were so many talented performers that night. They all deserve that comment and they were all so incredible. We were just honoured to be asked to share the stage with them."

Camila took a deep breath. She was completely fixated on Lauren's reaction to the next question.

"If she reached out to you, do you think it would ever be possible to reconnect?"

Lauren's eyes looked to the floor and she reached up to run a hand through her hair. Camila was transfixed as each strand fell effortlessly back into place. That action never failed to make her knees go weak.

Camila watched as Dinah answered first.

"Changes happen in life and you can never really predict them, you know? I wouldn't want to say what might or might not happen in the future but, right now, we're in such a good place and we're so happy and honestly we're just really thankful for that."