Crossing these Crooked Lines (caminah/ laurmani)

VI

Dinah has been quiet for about an hour now. She sat in a corner with her knees tucked to her chest and half her face buried in her arms. She stopped crying a little while ago but there was this blank, hollow look in her eyes that made Camila feel like throwing up.

Camila sighed as she dropped her gaze to her phone, staring at the alternating names displayed on her recent calls list and causing the knot in the pit of her stomach to only grow tighter.

Everything right now was just so wrong. Normani,the strong-willed and kindhearted member of the group, had sucker punched Dinah in the face while under a panic attack. Camila didn't even know that Normani had panic attacks and she doubted anyone else had known that either. What's worse though, is that they don't even know where the girl is or if she ever came down from it.

Lauren was missing too. She was the smart one out of the four of them and had gone to look for their distressed band mate the second she heard about the possibility of her undergoing an attack. That was two hours ago. They haven't heard from either one of them since.

Ally took on the job informing Mama Drea and management of what was going on. Of course, she didn't quite go into the details of things (partly because Ally still didn't even know all the details herself) but now the story was getting repetitive and tiring. At least, that's how Camila felt.

The dark-haired girl didn't think anything of it when the eldest kept relaying the message, herself being too preoccupied in trying to get in touch with one of the other girls to notice. It wasn't until she had glanced over to find red-brimmed eyes staring at Ally like a child being chastised by their mother, did she understand. Her slouched and timid form kept wringing the bottom of her own shirt (a nervous habit she picked up from Camila no doubt) as she listened to the story for what had to be the fifth time.

"...No, listen. They were just talking when Dinah had accidentally said something triggering and- No, that not when she punched her. Mani was already panicking at that point. she hit her when Dinah tried to calm her down but... Well, that's the problem, we don't know where Mani is. After she hit D, she bolted and- What? It's not important what Dinah said I'm calling you because... Hey! She didn't run away because of Dinah, she ran because- Puta Madre cut me off again and I swear to God I'll-"

"Ally, do you think you can finish that outside?" Camila asked softly. Ally turned around, obviously getting pissed at however was on the other line, and nearly snapping at the girl before stopping herself. The woman caught Dinah's look and she choked on her words, immediately cursing herself for not being more careful. The crackled voice on the other line could be heard through the phone as Ally lowered it, her gaze and demeanor softening once the youngest member's look became too much.

"Call me if you need me okay?" She whispered instead. Camila nodded slightly and waited until she heard the click of the door closing before sitting on her knees in front of her best friend.

"Dinah-"

"It's my fault." The Tongan's voice came out cracked and vulnerable, fitting her current state to a perfect tee.

The knot in Camila's stomach to climbed to her throat. "D. No it's no-"

"Yes it is, Camila. It's my fault that Lauren left the first time. It's my fault that Mani got mad and shaky. It's my fault that Ally's all worried and stressed and I probably just ruined the whole band. Why am I so-" her words seemed to choke up in her throat and she turned her head away from the girl. Camila's never seen her look so broken or messed up about something before and she didn't know how to make it better.

Despite popular opinion, Dinah was so innocent and pure-hearted about things. When she felt something, she felt all of it at levels that Camila can't even imagine; levels that Dinah herself had a hard time explaining. The Tongan was usually a master at hiding her emotions; always opting to play the carefree, mischievous kid who doesn't care much about anything but Camila was the first person to see her past the camouflage.