Fantasizing You

Use Protection

"Fine! Leave! You do it all the time...see if I care now." Camila heard her mother roar from the kitchen as Camila attempted to finish her cereal in peace before Shawn shows up to pick her up for school.

"Leave? I'm not going anywhere!" She heard her father. Camila let out a breath that she had no idea she was holding. At least he wasn't leaving, she thought. "I'm going to work for my family! Why can't you understand that?"

"Because...you're always sleeping around with random clients on the job! Don't think I'm stupid."

Camila's heart ached, painfully. She wasn't sure what the real truth was or when her parents started fighting or when it even got this bad but what she did know was that their relationship was toxic.

It wasn't always like that, as far as Camila knew.

"Bye, mi amore. I'll see you later." Her father walked into the dining room, kissing her head before leaving for work. She could see the sadness and anger in his eyes. It was something that Camila hated.

"Cam, that gorgeous boy of yours is outside waiting for you." Her mother called to her, she had a smile plastered on her face and it bothered Camila that her own mother expected her to believe that it was real. She internally thanked her mom for trying, though.

"He's not my boy, mama." Camila corrected her, "we're just friends."

"Yeah, alright. Whatever, now go!" She tossed Camila her book bag before ushering her out the door.

"Hey, sunshine." Was how he greeted her as she made her way into the car. She, too, like her mother, plastered a fake smile on her face but Shawn caught on, "what's wrong?" He shifted in his seat to fully face her, capturing her face in between his hands. "Nothing." She murmured, looking down. Shawn sighed, "there's something wrong...you can tell me. You know that don't you?" He lowered his head so that they could make eye contact.

His heart clenched at the sight of her raw emotion. The emotion that showed just how vulnerable she was. Her eyes were covered in clear sheets of glassy tears and her smile was no longer there, it was as if it faded with the wind.

Reassuringly, he stroked her hair and let her cry into his chest, not caring that they could risk being late. "Shh, Mila. I'm right here. Talk to me." He rocked them back and forth which was quite the struggle, considering they were in the car.

She pulled away, wiping away the rest of her tears. "They just...they fight so much. I can't take it." She clenched onto Shawn's clothing, in hopes that it would take the pain away from her heart. "I'm sorry, Mila. It happens, though. Things will get better...with time." He wasn't sure when but he needed to reassure her that it will happen, it was just a matter of when.

"I'm so sick and tired of it, Shawn. They don't give each other the time of day and...and now I don't have the time of day." She sighed, defeated.

It broke Shawn's heart to see and it only made him want to take her place and take all of her pain away. If he could, he'd do it in a heartbeat. Much like anything else, he'd do it for her, no questions asked.

"You can...stay with me for the weekend...there's this party happening at Connor's and he told me to invite you." Camila raised an eyebrow, "just tell your parents that you're staying at a friend's house for the weekend, my mom won't mind." He shrugged, engulfing her in another hug.

Shawn's heart slowly was put back together once the smile formed on her face, "okay."

It made Shawn's knees weak to see her smile so brightly and the thought of her in his home, meeting his family, kickstarted his now irregular heartbeat.