I Built This Home For Me, For You

Chapter 2

She was doing the crossword at the table when Camila came into the kitchen, yawning widely as she walked over to the coffee pot and fetched a cup. Lauren smiled, filling in the answer to six down, "Morning."

"You got up early. How'd you sleep?" Camila asked, carrying the pot over to the table and filling up Lauren's cup for her.

Smiling up at her wife, Lauren pulled Camila close by the bottom of her shirt, leaning up as much as she could for a kiss, which Camila obliging pressed to her lips. "Very well, I was just prepping for the meetings today. You look like you could've used a few more hours though."

"You were sleep talking," Camila laughed, running her fingers through her awry curls. "I couldn't help but listen."

"What'd I say this time?" Lauren sighed, biting back a smile.

Camila laughed, sitting down at the table and stealing some bacon off Lauren's plate. Pushing her chair back, Lauren pressed a kiss to the top of Camila's head and walked to the kitchen to reheat the bacon that she'd already fried up. "You said you loved me - I always love that one - and then you said that you can only stop them with bread, which was ... concerning."

Letting out a snort of laughter, Lauren smiled at Camila, "Well, I'm glad the love part always makes sense because I have no clue what the fuck the bread means."

"Mom, that's a quarter for the swear jar," Lily said as she walked in, already dressed in her school uniform. Camila gave Lauren a pointed look and gestured towards the jar on the counter, and rolling her eyes Lauren promised to add some money later.

"Is your sister up?" Camila asked, gesturing for Lily to come towards her so that she could fix the wonky tie that she'd clumsily tied. Lauren smiled, watching Camila fuss over her, and cracked some eggs into the frying pan, keeping an eye on the bread in the toaster.

Lily shook her head as she sat down, "She stole the bathroom first but I think she went back to sleep afterward."

Sighing, Camila climbed to her feet, stealing a slice of toast off Lauren's plate and wrinkled her nose as she went off to drag their eldest daughter out of bed. Lauren scrambled eggs in a pan, watching as Lily doodled on the newspaper and read the crossword. "Mom? Who was Lenin's successor? It's six letters."

"Stalin," Lauren said, smiling as she watched her daughter fill in the answer for her. Plating up breakfast for everyone, Lauren balanced the three plates as she carried them over to the table, setting one down in front of her daughter and smoothing her hair. As she set down Camila's and Daisy's, she listened to the sound of raised voices approaching, as Camila herded their eldest daughter downstairs and to the kitchen. Sitting down, Lauren sipped her coffee and watched as her daughter filled in another one. "What's next Lils?"

"Um, Athens is the name of the city named after which Greek goddess," Lily read aloud.

Lauren's expression softened at the answer, and she quickly turned in the direction of the door as Camila answered. "Athena." She gave Lauren a small smile, tinged with sadness, and Lauren felt her heart ache slightly. The day they'd had to have Athena put down was one of the hardest of the past two decades, and Lauren knew that sometimes Camila panicked without the familiar comfort of her support dog, even though it had been years. She refused to get a new one though, even when the girls had asked for a puppy.

"Thanks, mom!" Lily said, happily writing down the answer as Camila walked over to the table, closely followed by a ruffled looking Daisy, who was only half-dressed.

"Morning, love, did you sleep okay?" Lauren asked, watching as Daisy walked over to the table and dropped down into a seat, reaching for the coffee pot, before Lauren jerked it out of her reach. "No. You know the rules - no coffee."