Our Deepest Scars

Chapter 7

~Possible T/W~

Camila felt a horrible feeling growing and strengthening inside her; taking over her mind and body. Guilt.

She couldn't help but feel like this was all her fault, even though it wasn't in the slightest. In her mind, if she hadn't overreacted to Lauren's comment at the diner, Lauren wouldn't have left and gone to her friend's apartment. And she wouldn't be in the hospital right now.

Carefully, almost as though they were trying not to disturb the girl in the bed, all four girls crept a little closer. Dinah reached out a dubious hand and touched Lauren's own very gently. There was an IV coming out of it but Dinah still managed to stroke the dark haired girl's thumb. A tear rolled down her cheek and dripped onto the bed.

"Dinah...?" Ally asked gently. "What're you doing?"

Dinah sniffed before replying, wiping her tears from her face. "She just looks so different. I wanted to make sure she was real, and not part of a nightmare that I'm having." She looked embarrassed at the words. "This isn't a nightmare, is it?"

Ally shook her head slowly, reaching out to rub Dinah's back. A whimper escaped the younger girl's lips as the reality of Lauren's accident hit her hard. Normani joined Ally and they both embraced Dinah, their own tears joining Dinah's in a pool of misery and despair.

Camila couldn't take it any longer. Not wanting to fully leave the room, she wandered over to the window on the other side of the sterile, bare room. Looking out, her eyes immediately travelled to the evening sky. It was a beautiful one. The colors faded and blended together like the perfect watercolor picture. Candy floss clouds floated dreamily along the horizon, and Camila felt slightly more peaceful in spite of where she was and why she was there.

She had no idea how long she stood there gazing, deep in thought, but a tap on her shoulder some time later made her aware again of the circumstances. The guilt, which had been temporarily dimmed by the view, turned back on like a switch had been flicked inside her. Sighing heavily, she turned back around to look onto the room before her. Her deep brown eyes met Clara's, Lauren's mom.

"Are you okay, Camila?" she questioned in a concerned, motherly voice. "Is this a bit too much? Would you like to leave?"

"I'm just thinking..." said Camila, glancing back at the skyline. Then, after a moment's pause, she asked whether they had any more news about Lauren.

"Nothing," Clara responded heavily. "They said it might be a while before she wakes up, but they're hopeful that she will. In time of course. But when she wakes up, she might not be able to sing, or even speak for a few days because of the amount of smoke she inhaled."

"As long as she wakes up I'll be happy," Camila said fervently. Then she suddenly realized how bad that sounded, and tried to backtrack on her words. "I didn't mean that! I mean, of course she is going to wake up. What I was meaning to say was; when she wakes up I'll feel very relieved."

Lauren's mom smiled gently at her. She liked Camila. Clara was friends with Camila's mom as well. "Don't worry about it. I agree with you."

Reassured that her meaning had been understood, Camila meandered back over to where the rest of the girls were gathered. Lauren's dad was standing very close to them.

"Guys, I think we should go now and let Mike and Clara be with Lauren." Camila just wanted to get out. The guilt was becoming almost unbearable.

"Okay, yeah. We have quite a long journey back anyway," Normani backed the small brunette up before addressing Lauren's parents. "Thanks for letting us see her."