Lightning (Camren)

Chapter Twenty-Seven

A/N: Hey guys! I apologize for not updating these past few days, as I was adjusting to my new college class schedule. I'll update the most that I can, I promise! 

Lauren and Camila had returned to their seats after their VIP meeting with Lana Del Rey. Everything went extremely well during their time together. Lana, who was moved by the couple's story up till now, asked them for a photo. It had turned out that Lauren had been nervous to meet her idol, only to get the best experience out of it that were possible. 

Lauren gazed at the group photo that she had taken with Lana and Camila, admiring it even more with each passing second. As much as she was intrigued by her idol's beauty, her eyes continued to be stuck on her girlfriend's smile. Camila's smile was still that one thing that made her life worth living, and it was still shocking to her that Camila chose her of all people in the world to be her girlfriend. She looked up from the photo, then smiled at the sight of the real-life Camila, because of course the real thing is better than a photo.

Camila was glancing downwards at her two hands placed on her lap, not looking up at Lauren like she usually was. Lauren suspected that something was wrong, so she decided to ask, "Are you okay, Camz?"

Her head perked up and she turned her head to Lauren to say, "Yeah. I'm fine. Why?"

"You seem down, so I just thought that I'd ask. You're just not as excited as I'd hoped you'd be."

"It's not that I'm not excited, because I am... it's just that my surgery is tomorrow. I'm really scared that something will go wrong. I don't want them to damage anything, and I'd rather not wake up during the middle of the procedure. But most of all, Lauren, I think I'm scared to behold the gift of vision," she explained to her worried girlfriend.

Lauren was confused. Scared to be able to see things? Why was that? And why would she not want to see things the way that other people could? There were so many times where Camila had said that she wanted to see the world, her friends, and especially Lauren. But now that things were changing, she was scared of that change. Things came on fairly quickly for the blind girl, and she never really had the time to think about it or even process the fact that it was actually happening. 

"Are you just scared of it all happening too quickly, Camila? This did all kind of happen at once, so it makes sense. And as for the technical surgery, you should put your trust in the surgeons. The workers at this hospital have devoted their lives to these jobs, and they won't treat you as any less of a patient than the rest. They strive to make those people's lives comfortable and healthy, and you will receive the same treatment. Everything will all turn out great in the end, trust me," Lauren reassured her.

Camila shook her head and replied, "Thank you for the reassurance, but that isn't exactly the reason why I'm scared of it all. It's not that everything is changing, it's more that I don't know if I want to see things now, Lauren. I was excited at the first sound of it, but I don't know if it would exactly change my life for the better. Does this make sense?"

Lauren shook her head, "I'm not sure that I do, Camz."

She sighed and said, "I'll try to explain it better. You do know how I've been blind for my entire life, right?"

Her girlfriend nodded in confirmation and answered, "Yeah."

"Well, it would be hard for me to adjust to seeing. I'd have to learn about what every object is, who every person is, and so forth. It would be like learning everything from the start, and I don't know if I want to do that. As of now, I'm content with my life. I can feel what things are and I can tell who people are without using my eyes. People's voices and some objects's sounds are a straight giveaway at what something might be as well. And puzzles... puzzles would never be the same. I'd be able to look at their fine scenery and not be able to figure them out as easily. I could always close my eyes, but it wouldn't be the same still. People would think that I was weird, more than they already do now. They'd question why I wouldn't just use my eyes. The only things that I can't do as of now are drive and go places by myself, but those are things that I can do without. I am capable of everything else. It sounds like I'm chickening out now, but I don't think I want the procedure to be done anymore," Camila explained.

A somewhat saddened Lauren told her, "But Camila, Dylan donated his eyes to you. I'm really not trying to sound rotten, but I think that you should re-think this again. You shouldn't care what people think of you. If you want to close you eyes for the hell of it, who cares? The girls and I know your story, and that's what matters. You shouldn't worry about what others think, because you don't need to impress them. People should be impressed by your story and personality, not by the things that you do. You impress me more and more each day, and you will continue to do that without even trying. My feelings for you are incredible, and there is no way that I could ever not love you."

"While I appreciate your thoughts and Dylan's donation, I really don't think I should have to go through with this procedure. It's unneeded. I've been re-thinking this over and over again, and I've come to a conclusion on this. There's no changing my mind now, Lauren. I don't want to see anymore. The only thing that I want is to live that life that we have been."

Lauren let out a loud sigh, then ran her fingers through her hair. She was feeling frustrated with Camila's decision to throw away everything that they had worked for together. Lauren knew how indecisive her girlfriend could be at times, which made this situation worse. If she decided to cancel the surgery, then it'd be possible for her to never get this chance again. While she understood Camila's point of view, she wished that Camila would understand hers. 

Seeing was all that Camila could have ever wanted since she first opened her eyes after birth. She wanted to see her family, the world, and even every day objects. Camila wanted to drive everywhere that she wanted to go to get away from it all. Growing up, she was never able to escape the house, which caused her to be locked away in her room like it was the tallest tower of a fairy tale castle. But once opportunity struck for all of that to disappear, she tried throwing it away. Lauren, who cared deeply for her girlfriend, wouldn't let a dream slip away from her.

"Okay," Lauren finally said in order to end the conversation for now. It was supposed to be a fun night, and she didn't want it to go sour over a life-changing argument. 

Lauren avoided any contact with Camila for the next few minutes. She had to calm down, so she played a few random games on her phone. When it had been about fifteen minutes, Lauren thought that she had enough time to clear her head. She locked up her phone, then turned her head only to find an empty seat where Camila used to be seated. Where was she? Lauren got to her feet quickly, then glanced around the room frantically. Camila was nowhere to be found in the venue from what she had been seeing.

She dashed away from her seat, glancing in every direction possible in search for her lost girlfriend. This would have been less nerve racking if Camila wasn't blind, but unfortunately, she was. She could have wandered off anywhere, and she could have even got hurt, which worried Lauren deeply. How could she just get up and walk away? She didn't know this place. She didn't know these people. There was no one around to assist her except for maybe the venue staff. Lauren's biggest fear was to have Camila trip and get trampled by the thousands of Lana Del Rey fans at the venue. The worst thing that you could do to a blind person is lose them. 

Lauren asked the venue staff and the fans if they had seen a short, Cuban-Mexican girl who had appeared lost, but no one could tell her anything. Camila had gone missing without a trace. Lauren called her about a million times only to receive no answers, and she had no idea if the calls were being denied or if they were being ignored. 

Tears spilled from her eyes as she ran around the venue, and she was beginning to lose hope fast. Where had Camila gone? Would she ever find her?