"Mommy, mama?" A small voice called, making both Normani and Dinah look to their bedroom door where Lauren currently stood. She was wearing Dinah's hoodie, her Nala tucked under her arm as she nervously sucked the fingers of her free hand.
"Hi, sweetheart. Is everything alright?" Dinah asked, placing her laptop aside as she shuffled away from Normani to make room for their daughter in the middle of the bed.
"Can't sleep," Lauren whispered, looking to her feet nervously. She didn't want her mamas to be upset with her for not being able to go to sleep with her medicine.
"That's alright, angel. Do you want to come cuddle with mama and me?" Normani asked, earning a hesitant nod. She gave the bed an encouraging pat, making the five-year-old shuffle forward and climb onto the bed. The girl sat cross-legged in the middle, her forehead clearly distressed and her breathing slightly labored, a sign of her growing panic.
"What's on your mind?" Dinah asked, cringing slightly because she knew she sounded like Dr. Alveraz. She wanted to be Lauren's mother in the moment, not her therapist.
"I scared," Lauren admitted around her fingers.
"Of what?" Dinah encouraged, running her hand over the girl's back.
"School."
Normani nodded and gently pulled Lauren's fingers from her mouth before she sat up and looked at the girl, showing her she had her full attention.
"What about school is scaring you?"
"I don't wanna be away from you and mama."
"My angel, we don't want to be away from you either, but I promise we'll come back to pick you up. We aren't going to leave you there forever. Plus, you'll have Ally. She's going to be the best big sister and make sure you know what to do."
"Wanna go to the studio, though," Lauren croaked out, sad tears welling in her eyes.
"I promise, you and your sisters can visit the studio anytime you want, and next summer we'll go back again everyday, but right now you need to go to school to learn."
"I smart! Honest!" Lauren insisted, making Dinah laugh lightly.
"We know you're smart, Lo," the Poly said, wiping some of the tears that trickled down Lauren's cheeks. "School is going to help you learn stuff that you don't know yet. Remember how much fun you had reading with mommy the other day?"
Lauren nodded.
"Well, if you go to school you can learn to read even more books and then you can share them with mommy and I."
"I no wanna leave," Lauren whimpered, her tears falling a bit faster. "Wanna stay with you forever."
"Hey, little bug," Dinah cooed, now sitting up herself as she realized Lauren was possibly freaking out over another thing. "Where's this coming from? Who said you were leaving us forever?"
"Not 'dopted yet," Lauren said, a pitiful sob falling from her mouth.
"Baby," Normani cooed, lifting the girl onto her lap and cradling her close. She started to gently rock her in hopes of getting the girl to relax. "Adoption takes time. Mama and I are doing everything we can to make it happen. I promise you and Mila will officially be ours soon. You just have to be patient. You know we're your mamas, though, so what's got you so worried, huh?"
"Ally said I gotta write my name at school. I still Lauren Jauregui but I wanna be Lauren Kordei-Hansen like Ally," Lauren explained in a rush, sniffling as she let her erratic breaths rattle her chest.
YOU ARE READING
The Story of Our Life
Fanfiction"There's something about wanting to protect a person that is hurting more than you that takes away the pain of losing your baby." Normani and Dinah love their little family. But something was missing. Something that could only be filled by the love...
