Fragile Heart, Fragile Mind

Safe Haven

Hues of fluorescent orange, pink, and yellow fluttered through the windows as 7:27 AM lit up on the alarm clock in white numbers. 

Dinah woke from her slumber as she yawned and stretched. The young woman looked over to see Lauren had slept peacefully through the night for the first time since Camila's hospitalization. She smiled at the small raven-haired girl, happy for the change of pace for her. 

Careful not to wake Lauren, Dinah slid from underneath the covers to go about her morning routine. After getting out of the shower and getting dressed, Dinah checked on Lauren again, kissing the sleeping girl's forehead gently before heading downstairs to see if anyone else was awake yet. 

Dinah was warmly greeted by Ally, who was sipping from a mug on the couch watching the news, "Good morning. It sounded like Lauren stayed asleep last night," she chirped. Dinah smiled, "She did." 

Normani soon joined the women downstairs, "Morning!" "Good morning" "Hey, hun." "Camila sleep okay, Mani?" Dinah inquired. Normani smiled happily, "Sure did." "Oh, Dinah... I put Camila in there with Lauren, and look..." Normani beamed, showing Dinah the picture she'd taken of the pair on her phone. "Awwww," she cooed. 

They were relieved that the girls had slept well for a change, but the young women sadly knew it hadn't been and likely wouldn't be the norm for a while. 

Due to the recent events that had led to the two youngest being hospitalized, the oldest of the group came up with an aftercare plan together, hoping they could create an environment conducive to healing for Camila and Lauren. They collectively realized that, while in the moment things appeared stable, trauma doesn't disappear overnight and that healing isn't linear and there would be ups and downs throughout the process. 

The young women talked about what their typical days would look like: Mornings would be for a slow start -  no alarms, no rushing, just soft sunlight fluttering through the curtains as they gathered in the kitchen for breakfast; Early afternoons would be filled with play, laughter, and crafts; Then, would come lunch and nap time, when the older of the girls could take care of what they needed to get done around the house or work on their own projects; After nap would be either therapy or structured activities such as sensory play or a trip somewhere special, and following that, snack, free time, a movie, a bath, a book, and lastly, for the little ones, bedtime. 

Satisfied with the schedule they had come up with, they all took the time to make a visual schedule to keep in the living room while Camila and Lauren continued to sleep. Right as they finished and had hung it up, a loud thud sounded from upstairs, sending them running up towards where the girls had been sleeping. 

Everyone let out a collective sigh of relief when they saw that Camila had simply stretched out her arm while holding a stuffed animal, knocking the lamp off the nightstand. Normani giggled a little, "Oh, Mila!" Dinah sat down on the edge of the bed and looked at the time. It was almost 11 and they were still sleeping. Probably catching up on sleep, Dinah thought to herself. 

"Should we wake them and get them something to eat? They won't need a nap today." Ally asked her friends. Normani and Dinah looked down at the peacefully sleeping girls, "Let's cook, then wake them up," Normani suggested. Agreeding, the girls headed out after Mani picked up the lamp and tucked Camila back into bed properly. 

Ally, Normani, and Dinah went ahead and started chefing up eggs, pancakes, and turkey bacon, singing along to Normani's Early but Vibing playlist as they cooked. 

With the aroma of breakfast filling the air, little Lauren began to rise from her sleep, letting out a small sigh as she sat up in the bed. The late morning sun peeked in through the blinds as Lauren shook Camila, gently this time, trying to wake her, "Camz?" she whispered. 

Sitting up Groggy, Camila smiled down at Lauren, hugging her, "Amornin Lolo!" "Camz!" Lauren cheered, tackling Camila onto the bed giggling. "Ea?" Lauren asked Camz as she curiously tilted her head, smelling the yummy food. Giggling, Camila booped Lauren's nose, "Uh huh! Less go!" The girls scrambled out of the lilac covers and raced down the stairs. 

Dinah laughed to herself as she looked up from setting the plates out on the table, "Girls, be careful!" "Sorryyyy..." "A sorry!" "It's okay, kiddos. Come, come sit down for breakfast," Normani told the pair, as she and Ally pulled their chairs out for them. Lauren climbed up in her chair and Camila soon followed her lead. 

Dinah came and put the girls' plates down in front of them, everything already bite-sized. "Fanks!" "Tankoo!" "You're very welcome, cutie pies," Dinah smiled. Breakfast was slow but calm and cheerful. 

Normani occupied the girls in one of the spare rooms, which had slowly become a home for all of the toys they'd bought, while Dinah cleaned up from breakfast, and Ally prepared a craft in the art room. 

Once everything was all set up, Ally and Dinah went and got the girls and Normani, welcoming them all into the space. Lauren and Camila giggled happily, running towards the art supplies. 

Ally led the craft while the girls followed along, ending up with little faux flower crowns for either a doll or stuffed animal. "Good job, hun... good job, sweetheart," Ally praised as they finished. 

Having an idea, Dinah spoke up, "How do you two feel about getting ready and going to the kids' mall?" "Toys?" "Carousel!" "Yes, we can get toys and yes, we can go on the carousel!" Dinah brightly spoke. "Yayyyy!!" the girls cheered.  The girls took turns getting Lauren and Camila ready and getting themselves ready until everyone was ready to leave. 

Before they knew it, they were in the car on their way to the kids' department of the mall. Once arriving and entering the mall, the girls all shopped around for a good few hours. 

They'd come across some seriously cool sensory toys and activities, fun lights, and helpful kids' therapy workbooks. They'd gotten everything they needed to turn the playroom into a safe, sensory haven and were heading back to the house to get started. 

Camila and Lauren, despite having slept in, were worn out from the shopping trip and fell asleep on the way back home, the steady, soothing motions of the car and the gentle hum of the road comforted the little ones to sleep.