Lauren's presence, in a nutshell, took Camila Cabello by surprise. Of all the people that she had envisioned being on the other side of the door, she was not one of them. A robber who would hold her at gunpoint and demand all of her valuables maybe, but definitely not Lauren Jauregui. Remembering the events of the past few hours, Camila immediately put her walls up. She had no idea why Lauren was at her house. She had no idea what she wanted, what she was going to say, if her plans were to rip her apart more than she had.
Looking anywhere but the entrancing green eyes, Camila noticed that Lauren looked different to her. Her brunette hair was pulled into a tight ponytail, showcasing the widow's peak that graced the middle of her forehead. She was lacking her usual red lipstick, and Camila didn't know that such a small detail could make someone that much less intimidating. Camila also noticed the raindrops that were running down the girl's black leather jacket. She had decided she should let her in. Stepping away from the door, Camila gestured to Lauren that it was okay to come in.
Right when Lauren had come in and escaped the torrential rain, Camila noticed her mother walking towards the duo sporting a warm, comforting smile. "Who is this, Karla? I didn't know you were expecting company." Camila thought of a quick lie, not wanting her mother to know that she hadn't been expecting company either. "Sorry Mami, I must have forgot. Lauren is my partner for a class project, and we planned to work on it tonight. Is that okay?" Sinu told the girl that it was okay, but kindly requested that Camila inform her the next time she would have a friend over this late so that she could fix dinner for them. Camila smiled at her mom's kindness, feeling guilty already that she had lied to the woman. Lauren smiled gently and thanked Sinu. Camila wondered if Sinu noticed the sadness in Lauren's tone, too. It was the first she had heard Lauren speak tonight.
Going upstairs and entering Camila's bedroom, the pair sat side-by-side on the small twin size bed. Camila, fueled by her own anger, gained a small bit of confidence and was the first to speak up. Turning her head to look at Lauren, she said, "What are you doing at my house, Lauren? Haven't you done enough damage? Is that why you're here, to wreck me more than you already have?" Although her word's feigned confidence, Camila's heart was threatening to beat straight out of her chest. Never had she come close to confronting Lauren about the way she had felt. But here she was, doing just that.
And then there It was. Lauren looked up at Camila with her vibrant green eyes, except in them Camila saw the abyss that was Lauren's soul. They took on a duller green color, but still, the way blue and green and yellow entwined to form her infamous pupils threatened to knock the wind out of Camila's lungs. What Camila saw in Lauren was a longing for someone to ask if she was okay. She had hurt Camila, but here the younger girl was wishing she could comfort Lauren. It was all very twisted.
Lauren's low, raspy whisper broke Camila from her thoughts. "Listen, Camila. I just...wanted to say I'm sorry. For earlier. I was way out of line, even for me I guess." And Camila wanted to scream at how easily she could have forgiven Lauren in those moments. She had completely ripped Camila apart with one sentence earlier in the afternoon, and here she was like putty in her hands because of one sentence that same night. But sincerity dripped from Lauren's lips. She seemed genuinely sorry for what she had said, like it was deeply bothering her. And so Camila forgave Lauren, just like that. She had told Lauren that she understood that people had bad days and that they could put it behind them.
Lauren, her merciless bully for two years, had shown up at Camila's house, spoke a few words, and Camila had forgiven her. Just like that. Camila was a natural dreamer, the characteristic embedded into her DNA partly due to constant reminders of her parents' efforts to immigrate from Cuba to the United States when she was just a little girl. And for that, Camila decided that life was too short to hold a grudge when a sincere apology was staring her right in the face. So she reassured Lauren that it was okay, pulled out her history book, and told her that they might as well work on their project while they were together. Lauren agreed, but told Camila that she would have to leave within the hour.
"Maybe this new side of Lauren will come out more often," Camila thought to herself hopefully as she read a passage out loud. "Dr. Josef Mengele was labeled Auschwitz's Angel of Death..."
A/N
Here's chapter seven for you all! It might be a few days before I post the next chapter. It's been written already but I need to edit it and make sure it's perfect as it's an important one. I thought this kind-of-no-cliffhanger chapter would hold you over until then though. Thanks for your growing support. I'm excited to see where this story goes and I hope you all are too.
- K
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Grace ↠ (Camren)
Fanfiction"a year ago, you did not know today. you did not know how you'd make it here. but you made it here. by grace, you made it here." ✹
