House of Moonlight (Halren)

eight- "I'm here because I want to want to be here."

Dinah was the first to notice the change in dynamic of her small, but loved, friend group.

In fact, it was a significant change. Dinah's main company lately had been Keana and she didn't really make for an avid conversational partner.

Lucy was always occupying Camila's time and Halsey and Lauren were always off somewhere having in depth conversations that Dinah simply couldn't connect with. So Keana was her last resort.

And it wasn't like she didn't adore the girl, Dinah knew Keana's heart was kind and open to all, but Dinah needed more than head nods and little noises sometimes.

Sometimes she needed Camila to tell her that she was being an idiot, that she shouldn't be eyeing Ally's pill-occupied hand too long or the doctors would pull her aside. Dinah just wanted her friends around more.

But at the same time, she couldn't fault them for wanting to be with the people that had them smiling wider than she'd ever seen them smile.

Lucy never failed to make Camila laugh and that was new for Dinah because Camila's personalities always switched so suddenly but with her recent interaction with the older Latina, Dinah had yet to see Camila's explosive sight leering. And maybe that's a good thing, she was deeming it a good thing and she was damn well not going to ask Camila to cease interaction with Lucy if the result of their recent hang outs is mental stability for Camila.

As for Halsey, Dinah barely saw her at all. When Lauren was having a bad episode, Halsey was the first person she sought out and the blue-haired girl never failed in bringing Lauren back from the brink of insanity. Dinah still had no idea why the blue-haired girl was even in the institution but what she did know was that she was doing Lauren the world of good simply by use of her presence.

"Hey," Said blue-haired girl perched herself down beside Dinah in the cafeteria after her one-on-one session with her therapist. "Why the long face?" Her eyes drifted over to Keana who offered her a welcoming smile. "Hey, Ke, have you seen Lauren?"

The silent girl shook her head and Halsey turned back to Dinah.

"Where's Camila?" Halsey frowned, her eyes drifting around the cafeteria because where there was Dinah, Camila wasn't far behind. But Camila wasn't even in the room and that caused Halsey's frown to deepen.

"She's with Lucy." Dinah shrugged and stuck a forkful of her salad in her mouth. "They hang out a lot lately."

"Oh..." The older girl's frown lessened but didn't fail to notice how Dinah's was still prominent. "You okay?"

"I'm fine." The blonde shrugged again.

The blue-haired girl turned to Keana with questions sparkling in her eyes but the younger girl could only offer her a halfhearted shrug.

"We should get everyone over into our room tonight and request the TV for a movie night, what do you think?"

"I think I'll be fifth-wheeling with two couples." The blonde arched a brow.

"First of all, Lauren and I aren't dating. We just...click. Second; I can't really speak for Camila. Her and Lucy have chemistry. And third; I haven't hung out with you in days, come on Dinah, movie night?"

"You want to date Lauren."

"I want to get my head sorted out and get out of this place and get on with my life, if by some stroke of luck Lauren is part of that life...then I'm not about to complain."

"Aww." Keana's small voice piped up from the other side of the table and Halsey let her head drop as a place crept up her cheeks.

It was stupid to deny it now, not after all the time she's spent with Lauren Jauregui and how lost she always got in the girl's dazzling green eyes.