⟫Cry Baby⟪⟫A Lauren Cimorelli Fanfic⟪

Chapter Five: Crocodile Tears

Dani's POV:

"Dani, come on, just help me out this one time. When do I ever ask you for anything?"
I sighed and rubbed my eyes with the backs of my hands, slumping down onto my suitcase after having given up in the midst of packing my bags for this weekend. For some reason Christina had waited until breakfast this morning to announce that we were apparently going on a surprise, sister camping trip for the weekend. Like, we were literally leaving in a few hours. The response was very mixed. Katherine and Amy were both excited of course, Lisa was angry as was I, and Lauren just seemed nervous. I knew that Chris probably had good intentions deciding that we needed to all go out and bond together, thinking it would fix things between Laur and everyone, but regardless, the outdoors was disgusting and I didn't want to spend three days in it.

That being said I was trying to stay positive. After Lisa and Lauren's fight last night, maybe a weekend out together was something they really needed. I didn't know all of the nitty-gritty details of their fight, but I knew it must've been pretty bad judging by the way they avoided one another like the plague at breakfast. When I asked Lisa about it she didn't say anything, just shook her head. I was guessing it probably had something to do with Lauren's eating habits, seeing as that seemed like their only real source of tension. Even though I'd tried reassuring Lisa that Lauren was fine initially, the more I thought about it the more I worried I was wrong, especially after the whole Christina snooping through her room thing. I mean, I know she said she'd found nothing, but if she'd found nothing then why the sudden girl's trip, and why had she made it a point to apparently confiscate Lauren's phone from her specifically AND 'help her pack'. I mean Chris was controlling, but not THAT controlling without a reason to be.

"Laur I don't know okay, this just seems like a super fucking weird request and I feel guilty because I clearly don't know the whole story and-"
Lauren took me by surprise and yanked me up from my suitcase with surprising strength, an unusual anger in her eyes. In this light they looked less brown and more red, and I felt myself shrinking back from her as she spoke even though I was taller by a few inches.
"Dani look, Christina only said I couldn't bring my phone or a scale or a journal and stuff because Lisa told her a bunch of fabricated bullshit that freaked her out-"
"What? Lisa hasn't said anything to Chris, that's like the last person she'd vent to, you know that. It was me who told Chris that Lisa was worried about you, and-"

Lauren cuts me off, raising her voice a surprising amount, before remembering that our other sisters are quite literally a few doors down.
"I DON'T CARE! Look, the point is they're both just being paranoid, and I NEED those things for the weekend, so you have to let me borrow your bathroom scale and use your phone or journal whenever I need it this weekend on the trip."
Lauren was speaking no longer in questions but in statements. I yanked my arm away from her, grimacing at the way she looked like a total stranger right now. It was freaking me the hell out, and the hairs on my arms stood on edge.

"If there's no truth in the paranoia they've been feeling then why do you NEED a scale on a camping trip Lauren!?"
"I'm just- I'm dieting and stuff and-"
"It's only for three days! You're acting like a completely crazy person right now Laur, you aren't acting like yourself-"
"UGH!"
Lauren turns away from me and goes to kick the side of my bed in a fit of frustration but loses her balance and instead falls to the floor, her knees buckling. I hurry to help her up but she swats me away, trying to hide the tears in her eyes from me with a look of faux anger.
"Forget it, I don't know why I thought you'd understand."
Even though it looks like it takes everything out of her, Lauren gets up from the floor herself, pushing up on her elbows first and then rolling up to a wobbly stance.

I watch helplessly, still trying to hold onto a thread of hope that she's okay. But if she's okay why would she need a scale, who monitors their weight so closely that they can't go without knowing their exact weight for three days? Why would Christina lie to me about finding something in her room? Why would she be weak enough to fall like I just watched her fall? I hated to admit it but I only ever remember Lauren acting out of character like this once before, and it was during last year.
"Laur, I'm w-worried about you."
Lauren rolls her eyes at me, brushing herself off from the ground, but I can definitely see a pang of guilt in the way her eyebrows scrunch up instinctively for just a minute. Without even responding to me though, she walked out of the room, slamming the door behind her.