Grace ↠ (Camren)

it's okay, lauren, it's okay

Lauren Jauregui had experienced near-death one time in her short life. Only five years old and not yet an experienced swimmer, the little girl was chasing her dog, Dash, around her family's backyard. And unfortunately for her, she had lost her footing right next to the six-foot-deep underground swimming pool. Her tiny body slipped into the water and she began to sink right to the bottom. The lack of oxygen had caused panic to settle in Lauren's stomach. Her lungs burned for air and she couldn't see or hear anything. Everything hurt. Luckily, Lauren felt her father's large hand wrap around her tiny arm to pull her to safety, ultimately saving the child from certain death. In the present, with Michael Jauregui's evil voice echoing through the house, Lauren felt like she was dying. Except this time, there was nobody to save her. It felt like she was still trapped under the water and her body was shutting down. Instead of saving her, her father was pushing her further and further into the water. She was drowning.

As Lauren heard her father's footsteps boom through the house, she instinctively pulled her daughter closer to her chest and braced for the impact that Michael Jauregui would bring. Rounding the corner of the living room, the man shot daggers at the baby in Lauren's arms before glancing at his own daughter, a similar look of disgust in his eyes. "Why the hell do you hold her so much, Lauren? I've told you not to do that and you don't listen. You never listen!" Lauren wanted to respond, but she was frozen in fear, although she had finally gained the courage to glance in Camila's direction. She hated that the girl looked terrified and confused. Following Lauren's gaze, Michael directed his attention to Camila as well. "And who is this? Someone for you to bring to the house I pay for and experiment your sinful ways with? Your mother and I won't tolerate this! You've caused us enough pain by being a little slut and bringing that abomination into the world. Get her out of here." And just like that, the man walked into the kitchen like nothing of significance had just went down.

Lauren was fuming.

The girl walked away for a moment, putting her daughter in her crib in the upstairs bedroom before returning to the living room where a silent, confused Camila still sat. She grabbed Camila's arm and directed her outside to her car. And Lauren completely snapped. It was like the pain of Lauren's adolescence was held on by a single stitch and the humiliation that had just conspired snapped it in half. They had been doing so well, but just like that, Lauren turned into the same girl Camila had feared throughout high school.

Camila stood in horror as Lauren yelled, no screamed, right in her face. The green-eyed girl demanded that Camila get in her car and drive away. That she was ruining her life, she was the reason for all of this, that she never wanted to see her face again. Camila saw the anguish that flooded Lauren's face and she desperately tried to ignore Lauren's hurtful words and tell her that things would be okay, but when she noticed Lauren wasn't having any of it, she relented. She got into her car, drove away, and wondered what the hell had just happened. One moment they were studying together and things were good, and then they just weren't. The high-schooler's mind was racing.

Why was Lauren's father so vile?

What "sins" was he talking about?

And most importantly, Grace was Lauren's baby?

She had so many questions.

Arriving home, Camila went straight to her bedroom and began texting Lauren. She apologized profusely, even though she wasn't sure what she was sorry about. She was just sorry. She promised she wouldn't tell a soul about Grace. She said that she was there for Lauren if she needed to talk. No replies came and over the next two weeks, no opportunity to talk to Lauren about what had happened came about. Because over those weeks, Lauren's attacks on Camila grew frequent again.

On Tuesday, one day after the incident, Camila was rushing through the halls to ensure that she wasn't late to her next class, as it was located on the other side of their large school building. And unlucky to Camila, she had bumped into someone along to way. Before she knew it, a pale hand was wrapped around her wrist, nails painfully digging in to her flesh. Looking up to apologize to whoever she had run into, the girl was met with dark green dagger eyes. "Don't fucking touch me, Cabello. I will rip you apart."

On Thursday, Mrs. O'Connor informed Camila that Lauren's father had requested his daughter to do the project alone, and because Mr. Jauregui held such a powerful stake in the school's finances, the teacher was forced to agree. She had given Camila an extension and apologized profusely for the inconvenience. Lauren didn't even glance in her direction through the duration of class.

On Friday, Camila walked into the school bathroom, but was stopped in the doorway as she saw Lauren standing in front of a mirror. She wasn't washing her hands, but standing there, looking herself in the eyes. And before Camila turned to walk away before she was noticed, she swore she saw wet tears running down the girl's porcelain cheeks.

Camila was fed up.

While Lauren's incessant bullying had dug Camila into a deep hole throughout high school, that was the least of her concerns right now. She was well aware that there was a part of her classmate that was seriously damaged. The Lauren that she had come to know was not the real, authentic Lauren. So, with a small bit of bravery coursing through her veins, the girl made a detour to where she knew Lauren's locker was. Digging through her school bag, she found a scrap of paper and pen and scribbled a few sloppy words down, praying to God Lauren would be able to read her chicken scratch handwriting.

Meet me at Serenity Park at 5:00 – CC

A few hours later, as Camila sat on an uncomfortable bench in the park, she thought of autumn. It was her favorite season. She wasn't a fan of insane heat, which Miami was infamous for bringing in the summer, but she didn't like the bitter cold of the winter either. Although Miami's winters weren't incredibly brutal, they were still enough to deter the young girl. Autumn was a happy medium between the two so Camila didn't really mind sitting in the park. The breeze comforted the anxiety that was pooling in her stomach.

Camila wasn't sure if it made her feel more or less anxious when a luxurious black car pulled into the small parking lot. Time felt like it was moving in slow-motion, but eventually Camila was met with Lauren's perfect form exiting the car, her long, dark hair swooshing behind her as she walked to the backside of the car. Camila watched as she unbuckled a black infant carrier before turning around and making her way to where Camila sat. Camila was quick to look away, still too nervous to meet Lauren's gaze.

Lauren had come. That meant she cared a little, right? Or was she here to tell Camila off?

She felt the air around her change as a warm body sat next to her, and instead of focusing on Lauren, Camila decided to put her attention on the car seat that was now sat on the ground in front of Lauren. Now that she knew, Camila really saw so much of the young mother in Grace's features.

Camila noticed that Lauren was picking the skin on her nails and she desperately wanted to reach her hand over and grab her hand to let her know that it was okay. But judging by what had happened last time Camila touched Lauren's skin, she decided against it for now. She was stunned on what to say. And then the brown-eyed girl heard it. Coming from the girl to her left, there was a soft sniffle. Finally looking in Lauren's direction, her suspicions were confirmed; Lauren had started to cry. She wasn't fully sobbing, but her eyes glistened will pools of tears, her cheeks wet with ones that had successfully spilled over her eyelids. Lauren looked broken.

"I'm sorry."

Two words fell out of Lauren's mouth and it was like Camila had forgotten everything the girl had ever put her through. She threw her arms around Lauren comfortingly and she was relieved when she felt the girl melt into her embrace. "It's okay, Lauren. It's okay." 

A/N

Can you guys do me a favor and let me know if you're enjoying the story/the direction it's going in? It's been so long since I have written anything. Just feeling a little insecure and shit. Ew feelings. Lol. I hope you enjoyed chapter nine! 

- K