OUT - What happened to us? (Camren)

Chapter 13

Red carpet was extremely uncomfortable for Lauren. Posing for pictures was an obligation she wished she could skip that day. She loved interacting with fans, but everything got blurry when she felt so out of breath. She tried not to let it show and for anyone who didn't know her very well, she made a believeable performance. However, someone closer could notice the nerves that got her. Dinah kept on wishing Lauren would just calm down and she just hoped that their entrance would quickly come to an end.

During the entire time the 5H girls made their way to their dressing room, their eyes scanned the whole place. Lauren and Dinah were the most concerned ones towards a possible encounter with their ex bandmate, but Normani and Ally were also unquiet with the possibility of simply seeing the girl, even if from far.

No damage was done as they found the place in which they would get ready for their performance. Camila was nowhere to be found and the girls didn't see anyone, not even a known crew member.

Dinah saw the moment Lauren took a sip from a bottle of water that was inside the suitcase that belonged to her.

- That's not water, is it? - Dinah questioned after watching the green eyed girl taking one sip from the bottle and the way she reacted to it.

- Of course it is. - Lauren answered with an ironic tone in her voice. - Don't you see it's a simple water bottle? - The smile on her face made it clear she was being intencionally sarcastic as she offered Dinah the bottle.

- Where is this water from? - The Polynesian asked when she realized Lauren was trying to be funny and held the bottle.

- It's from a good fountain of water. - She giggled at the end.

- You worth shit, Lauren. - The taller girl laughed and took a sip herself.

- What is this party here? - Normani came from behind Dinah and put one of her hands around the girl's waist.

- Want some water, Mani? - Dinah offered the bottle and the brunette gave her a look. - Lauren said it's from a good fountain. - They couldn't help laughing at that since Dinah made that simple sentence sound extremely funny.

- If you say so... - Kordei didn't take long to join them in their thristy moment.

- Ok, now I need real water, Lauren, not some transparent liquid that looks like it. - Dinah informed her bandmate as she went for another bottle inside the suitcase.

- Do you have any update for me, Dinah? - The girl from Miami asked as she handed her friend another transparent bottle.

- No. For now, let's just get ready for our performance. We're going first. - The Polynesian informed.

- Ok. - Jauregui said simply.

It didn't take them too long to get ready and they kept on cracking jokes with each other in an attempt to reduce the level of stress they found themselves in. They recorded some videos and did their best to look okay to anyone who saw them.

Almost at the place where the event took place, Camila started having an anxiety attack inside the car. Sinu only realized what was going on when her daughter deep breathed in a rhythm that wasn't common of hers. The girl had her forehead touching the front seat, the one Sinu was in and so the older woman couldn't see the girl's face.

- Camila, what is going on? - She asked with some concern in her voice as she turned to look at her. Camila didn't change her behavior after hearing her mother's question.

- Nothing. I'm fine. - Her voice came out between heavy sighs and she sounded a little out of patience.

- Are you sure? - She asked again to only get the same answer.

- Yes. I'm fine. - She kept her face down, so no one could see her eyes and kept on deep breathing. The older Cabello knew that there was something going on, not just something, she knew what that thing was, but she wouldn't force her child to say anything if she didn't want to talk about it.

Camila was quick to leave the car and go to her dressing room. Once there, she didn't waste time to get ready for her performance. She was moving faster than the usual, an attempt to get her mind distracted. She recorded a video and posted on the Internet. Updating the fans was a nice thing to do, there was always a good feedback. Few moments later, she left the dressing room.

Somewhere else, the girls who once worked with Camila talked to each other.

- We leave through the left and you don't leave my side. - Dinah whispered to Lauren as they were ready for the countdown to get to the stage.

- I got it, Dinah. - She tried to look confident.

Lauren kept on feeling uncomfortable during the entire time she was on stage, but she managed to put on a good performance. Her voice sounded really good and she tried to look like someone who was having fun throughout the whole performance. Dinah would often look at her and as soon as they left the stage and got rid of their microphones, she grabbed Jauregui's arm and winked at Normani, who got the message.

- Last time I've checked Twitter she hadn't showed up at the red carpet. - Lauren whispered as they walked very closely to each other. - It's been a few minutes since the Award has started. What's going on, Dinah?

- Mila skipped the red carpet, but she's been here for a while now. Besides, she'll perform in a little time. - She said quickly.

- Why are we running, Dinah? - She sounded impatient.

- Because of we don't run, there's a slight chance we're gonna... - The Polynesian abruptly stopped as she quit talking and held Lauren so she wouldn't move as well. - Shit.