Please be my nightingale (Camren)

Part 66

66.

Hey guys! I hope you'll enjoy this part. It's a long one but I think we all waited for it :) I've kinda been neglecting this story. I need to write more and new chapters, so if any of you has some ideas or wants me to include something, hit me up :) Love you♥

Lauren managed to get some little pieces of a banana into her system before her nerves got the best of her, making her feel sick. And feeling sick is the least she needs right now. The girls look decent, all wearing good, clean clothes, little make-up, unsure if they will begin to cry today or not. Lauren knew she would eventually begin to cry. That's why she decided to have her hair open to hide her face. She didn't even care about make-up, feeling more drenched than ever while she was able to get some sleep, her nerves are getting the best of her.

Normani drove the girls to the court safely, hugging Lauren one last time before they have to watch how the young girl walks away with her lawyer to prepare the last things. The four girls walk into the courtroom, taking their places. Every one of them in a serious mood thinks about what could happen and what will happen, praying that Lauren wins and makes it through it. Lauren anxiously waits for her time to be called. Austin goes first, she knows that much. The minutes feel like hours. While her lawyer looks through the files, she nervously plays with her fingers, sipping on her water until they can finally go in.

The people stand up as soon as the dark, big doors open, revealing Lauren and her lawyer. While the girl tries to keep a blank face, her friends notice how pale she looks while her eyes nervously try to find them until they spot them. The girls send her warm smiles which are left alone. Laurens mouth is not turning into one herself. She spots the jury to her right. She tries to elaborate if they look friendly or if Mahone bought some people to vote for him. She doesn't know what he is able to do. He just always threatened her that she started to believe that he has power and dominance. She avoids looking straight forward but needs to as the judge addresses her. He wears not a single expression himself. They are introducing her to the situation, reading her rights before asking her to step up and take a seat beside him. That's the moment for Lauren when she feels that this shit is highly official. She looks at no face in particular in front of her while her body automatically answers the basic questions first. Silence follows.

She tries to find the girls in the crowd. This is it she thinks to herself. The sound of a fallen hammer is missing just like in every other Law and Order Episode when they finally enter the courtroom. Down at the bottom will be the information about the place and time where the hearing happens. Lauren waits for the sound but it never comes. She was too afraid to look to her right, but her eyes skip eventually, making her heart stop. There he sits. Almost smirking. He doesn't even look affected or shabby. He wears an expensive suit and even his lawyer looks well dressed. Her eyes find her representative and sees the difference money can make. She only hopes that she'll get out of this in one piece. Hoping that her lawyer is a good one after all.

"Miss Jauregui", her lawyer gets up to ask the prepared questions. Her mind runs wild and it takes all of her to concentrate to be able to listen. "Can you tell us when Mister Mahone started to offend you?"

She nods, while her mind tells her "No". "It started after the death of my ..of my..my sister", she gets it out. Her friends feel so sorry for her. What they only know for a while now is tickled out of her in front of strangers. And it hurts them to see her suffer. All of them want nothing more than to run up to her. "My mom left me with my..my step-father."

"Thank you. Can you tell us how it started?"

"He uhm.. he started calling me names..", she looks down. "So, it started with verbal abuse, right?"