Lightning (Camren)

Chapter Twenty-Three

That night, the five girls went out to dinner in celebration of moving on to the next round. They had chosen to go to Chipotle, where they were already chowing down on the food that had been placed in front of them. Lauren's mom insisted on watching over her grandchildren for the night so she could get to know them for a little longer, making this night possible for Lauren and Camila.

They all talked about how they felt during their auditions and what the plan of action was from there on out. In two weeks the girls would get on their flight to Los Angeles, where they would partake in battle rounds by going head-to-head with other contestants to be placed in the live shows. During those two weeks, the girls would pack and Camila would finally have her shot at the puzzle competition that was only a few days away.

"So what about the twins?" Camila turned to her girlfriend to ask. "We can't abandon them, obviously, but who will watch them?"

Lauren smiled and replied, "They're going to come with us. My mom has taken time off of work and will be coming with us to Los Angeles. She's going to watch the twins while we're working hard with the competition, then we can finally see them when we've finished up for the day. Sound like a plan? You could even meet my mom for the first time."

"Meet... your mom?" Camila asked nervously.

"Yeah, you know. She's been dying to meet the woman who has made her daughter happy. You're not nervous are you?"

"Maybe a little," Camila gave a nervous smile. "It's just... what if she doesn't like me, Lo?"

Lauren lightly patted her girlfriend on the back and replied, "She will. Anyone that I approve of, she knows that she can approve of as well. My mom is really nice, Camila. There's nothing to worry about. Especially from what I've been telling her about you."

"You talk about me? What do you say?"

"That you're the best thing to ever happen to me and that you're a strong woman that is capable of doing anything that you set your mind to," Lauren smiled, causing Camila to do the same.

Dinah butted in, "Hey! I hate to break-up this mushy fest here, but I'm trying to get food down, not bring it up."

Everyone at the table laughed, then continued to eat their food. Camila had felt much better about meeting Lauren's mom now that she knew about the things that Lauren had said about her. She smiled as she ate because of how her girlfriend truly thought of her. Her worries were completely washed away at the thought of Lauren's family accepting her. 

Camila's thoughts shifted immediately to yet another worry of hers. She asked everyone at the table, "I don't know how many times that I'm going to ask this, but what'll you all do if two of us have to go up against each other? What if it all comes down to two of us? It's my biggest fear, and I don't know what you guys would do."

"I'd cheer you guys on!" Ally announced, pumping her fist in the air.

Normani added, "Of course I'll be there will you guys till the very end."

"I agree," Dinah began, "there's no reason to ruin a friendship over something as silly as that."

Lauren also said, "Don't worry. I hope it won't come down to the five of us. It wouldn't be that bad if it did happen though. At least one of us would win. But to answer your question, I wouldn't be mad if any one of you won instead of me. I'd be proud of whoever it is that wins because they clearly deserved it."

Everyone agreed with what Lauren had said, and Camila felt a little more at ease as she continued to eat her dinner. Then yet another worry arose in Camila's mind about the puzzle competition. How would it go? Could she actually have a chance at winning?