"Mani?"
"Yeah?"
"Do you wanna watch a movie with me?"
"Sorry but I can't, Laur. I've got work to do." Normani answers apologetically without looking away from her laptop.
"Oh, uh, Mani?"
"Mhm?" She nods distractedly, trying to focus on the screen as Lauren continues to talk.
"What time is it?"
"Just gone one."
"Mani?"
"Yes, Lauren?"
"I'm hungry, do you want a snack?"
"No thanks, babe."
"...Mani?"
"Why can't you go over to Dinah and Ally's again?"
"They're both working. They said I could stay but I said I'd come home for a bit. Camz said she was working and I didn't want you to be on your own." Normani nods at this, knowing that the younger girl was only there because she didn't want to be alone.
"Thanks, Laur." She smiles gratefully as she pushes her laptop away, turning her attention to the other girl. "It's nice to see you actually, you haven't been around much lately."
"Uh, yeah. I've been spending some time with Dinah because she was away."
"Are you glad she's back?"
"Mhm, I missed her." Lauren admits, her cheeks growing pink.
"That's good, did you tell her that?"
"Lots."
"I'm really happy that you're letting them in, Lauren." Normani smiles genuinely, her arms crossed over her chest as she watches the younger girl.
"Me too." The raven haired girl agrees quietly, shifting from foot to foot in the doorway.
"You can come in you know?"
"Don't wanna bother you, you're busy."
"Not too busy for you. Come on, I'll set up a movie in here and you can watch it on Mila's bean bag while I finish up."
"Are you sure?" Lauren asks hesitantly but Normani can see the longing in her eyes.
"Of course, get comfy, okay? I'll go get 'The Lion King'." She instructs, standing from her chair and leaving the room once the girl is settled.
————
"Mani told me she's happy I'm letting Dinah and Ally in."
"What did you say?"
"I told her that I'm happy about it too."
Camila nods, continuing to walk in silence for a few minutes. "Do they know about your Dad?"
"Mhm, most of it anyway."
"What did they say?"
"They told me it wasn't my fault that Anna left."
"They're right, babe." Camila nods, giving Lauren time to respond before speaking again when she realises that she's not going to. "What else did you tell them?"
"Just that he stopped being nice and started drinking a lot and that I had to go live with my abuela."
"Did you tell them what he did?"
"Didn't think they needed to know." Lauren's shrugs, causing Camila to tug on her hand to stop them walking any further along the beach.
"It's important, Lo. I can only assume you were a mess when Dinah was away because I was there when she told you she was leaving, and I barely heard from you and that only happens when you're little. And considering you only texted me twice in the four days she was gone, I can only assume that you were little for most of that time. Am I wrong?"
"...You're right."
"They deserve to know why you're so worried about being left, baby. It's not fair to let them wonder."
"I know but they'll be mad."
"They won't be mad with you though, Laur. They'll be mad at your Dad, which personally, I think is fair enough because I'm still pretty pissed about it and I didn't even know you at the time."
"Yeah I guess."
"I can be there when you tell them if you want me to be." Camila offers, gently tugging on Lauren's hand so they can start walking again.
"I think I need to tell them on my own. I appreciate the offer though, Camz."
"I just want you to be happy, baby and I think this is something you need to do first."
Lauren takes a deep breath before nodding slowly. "I'll tell them."
————
The green eyed girl hesitates as her hand hovers over the door handle before knocking quietly on the door.
"Lauren? Hey, sweetheart you know that you don't need to knock." Ally greets, taking the girl's hand and leading her into the house.
"Sorry."
"It's okay, baby. Dinah's just at the store, she won't be long. Would you like a snack?"
"Can I have some water please?" Lauren asks nervously, following the older woman into the kitchen and sitting down at the table.
"What's wrong, nena?" Ally sighs, sitting down beside the girl and handing her a glass of water.
"Nothing." She answers quickly, shaking her head. "Uh, I mean- I need to tell you something."
"Take your time, love. There's no rush."
"Dinah too."
"Alright, baby she won't be long. Would you like to wait here for her to come back or do you wanna go sit on the couch?" Ally offers, trying to get the younger girl to relax a little.
"Here, please." Lauren whispers shyly, keeping her eyes fixed on her glass of water as her fingers begin to tap against the table and her leg starts to bounce.
After a few moments of watching the girl's nervous ticks, Ally sighs and stands from her seat, moving over to crouch in front of her. She places her hands on Lauren's thighs, causing her to let out a gasp as a tear rolls down her cheek.
"Lauren, you need to calm down, baby. Whatever you need to tell us isn't going to change anything. You know that, right?"
"I guess."
"No, love you need to understand that I'm telling you the truth. We love you so, so much and I need you to know that."
"I love you too."
Ally presses a kiss to the girl's head before standing and grabbing a bottle out of the fridge. She quickly heats it up, gently taking Lauren's hand and leading her to the couch. When the younger girl realises what's happening she takes a step back and shakes her head.
"'lly, no. Gotta be big."
"You don't have to be anything, baby. What you need right now, is to calm down. So we're gonna cuddle and you're gonna have your baba and then you can tell me what's going on when Dinah gets home, okay?"
Lauren visibly relaxes at this, practically crawling into her Mama's lap as soon as she sits down, her hand tangling in the blonde's hair.
"Such a good girl, nena. Shh, that's it. Nice and calm now."
