This Is the Safest Place I've Ever Known

5

A/N: Hello, I am late night posting once again with a new chapter. No proofreading because I am lazy. All mistakes are mine.

Maybe read and enjoy? :)

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Lauren fiddled with the hem of her hoodie as she and Camila waited on the front porch. "You're sure it was okay to come over?" she asked quietly, still not looking up.

Camila sighed softly. "Yes, Lauren. For the dozenth time, it's perfectly fine," she answered, trying to be as patient as possible.

She understood that Lauren was nervous and anxious about being a bother to the three women, but they had agreed to let Lauren come over. If that had to change, they would have said something. The only thing Camila had heard from them that morning was a text from Ally saying they were excited to see the two later in the day.

Lauren looked up briefly before she ducked her head again and switched to adjusting one of the straps of her backpack over and and over. "Okay. I just didn't want to show up on the wrong day," she mumbled slightly.

The door opened at that moment, and Dinah smiled warmly at them. "Hi, girls," she said, opening the door wider to allow them in. "You can leave your backpacks in the closet here," she said. "Oh, Lauren, yours is super cute."

Lauren's cheeks turned a light shade of pink as she brushed her face against her shoulder and mumbled, "Thanks."

She had brought her favorite, most special backpack that day: her Lion King backpack. It was a brown knapsack style with a stitched pattern on the top and bottom in black and white, and then pink and orange layers with Simba, Nala, Timon and Pumba in a line with Zazu flying above them. It was a bit small to use for school, but it worked decently enough for short outings where she needed to carry lots of stuff.

She had her wallet, keys, and phone inside, along with a water bottle and a change of clothes. The change of clothes was more because she was pretty sure they were having pizza and ice cream that day and, knowing Camila, an accident had an incredibly high chance of happening. Lauren wanted to play it safe on the off chance she ended up with a pizza and/or ice cream stained shirt. There was also a pair of pajamas and some toiletries since Camila had convinced her to stay the night with permission from the three.

Lauren and Camila both stashed their bags in the little closet under the staircase and then followed Dinah further inside.

Normani and Ally were on the couch watching a show on the tv. Normani looked up as the three came into view, and she smiled and greeted happily, "Hi, Mila, Lauren. How are you two doing?"

Camila grinned excitedly. "Good! I'm excited Lolo's here. Gonna show her all my stuff."

"Well, let's try not to overwhelm her all at once," Ally cautioned gently.

She had noticed that Lauren only looked up at them briefly before looking back down again, and one of her hands twitched at her side. Knowing that Camila could be an uncontainable ball of energy when she slipped into headspace, it would be interesting to see how Lauren handled it. Ally was sure the experience would be different from how Lauren had seen her friend before.

"Did you guys eat before coming over?" Ally asked as she stood up from the couch and headed towards the kitchen.

Camila shook her head. "I had breakfast and then a snack before, but not an actual lunch."

"Of course not. You wanted to steal our food," Normani teased, laughing when Camila stuck her tongue out.

Lauren blushed and twisted her foot on the floor as her stomach rumbled. "I um- I might not have eaten today," she hesitantly admitted.