Lightning (Camren)

Chapter Thirty-Five

"What the hell were you thinking, Lauren?!" Camila exclaimed on the other line of the phone call.

Lauren had decided to call Camila just as soon as she had finished meeting with her mother in order to earn her approval. Camila thought that it was flat out stupid that Lauren even thought of doing such a thing, knowing damn well that Sinu would never even think of approving of them being together.

"I don't know, Camz, she seemed a lot nicer towards me today. But what I'm trying to say is that it really bugs me that your mom hates me. All I want is her approval. It just doesn't feel right that she doesn't like us together. Like, doesn't it make you feel like you're betraying her at all?" Lauren asked.

Camila was silent on the other line, thinking about it to herself for a moment. "I really don't feel like we need anyone's approval but our own, Lauren. Even if the whole world seemed to hate us together, I'd still choose to be with you despite the fact. Believe me when I tell you that my mother not liking us together is meaningless."

"I mean, I totally agree, but what about your father? What does he think of me? Did your mother corrupt his vision of me?" 

"I wouldn't think so, Lauren. My father likes to ignore anything that my mother does regarding drama in mine or Sofia's lives. He knows that she has a mind of her own, and he knows that I do as well. Everything that my mother does is in her own little, crazy world. Trust me when I say that Sofia and my father are brilliant enough to know that my mother isn't. You still have a chance of getting my father's approval as long as you're worthy of it. The only person who tells my dad who to like and who to hate is himself. So really, don't worry about him just yet." Camila explained her father to Lauren.

Lauren sighed and responded, "Okay, that puts things into perspective."

"Why are you so obsessed with getting my family to like you, though? Is there any hidden reason behind why you're trying to do this?" Camila questioned.

"The real reason? Well... if we're ever going to get married, I want both of our families to be there for it. I honestly just want the stereotypical wedding that everyone has always dreamed of." She answered honestly.

Camila giggled on the other side of the call and said, "But Lauren, you do realize that our relationship, our lives... they are anything but stereotypical. I hate to destroy any perfect image of a wedding you seem to have, but I don't think my mother will ever be a part of it. A perfect wedding, I think, would be very small with only our closest friends and your family. We can try to get my family interested, but I can't promise you anything. But we have plenty of time to go over the details of this, so don't worry about it now Lauren."

Lauren sighed and said, "You're right, Camz. I don't know why it has been bothering me so much lately. It might be because I dreamt about it recently. Sorry for visiting your mother without consulting you first, I just wanted to see if things would get better. I mean, they kind of did. She does hate me, she just doesn't really approve of us being together."

"Oh, really? Tell me more about this." Camila demanded.

"Well, at first she attempted to slam your front door in my face, but things got better after that. I told her about why I stayed here and why you went to Los Angeles, and she seemed to earn a little more respect for me as a person. Then I told her all about how you might be able to see for the first time all thanks to an operation that was donated to you from Dylan." Lauren explained. "Oh, and then she introduced me to Sofia. She's a real cutie."

"You know she only likes you now because you're not with me, right? She likes us apart, so when she heard about us being on opposite coasts, she must have been enthused."

Lauren frowned, knowing this was true. She never thought about that possibility, since she only wanted to think about positive thoughts, but now that she did think of it, it was almost definitely true. 

"You have a point, Camz. I guess I just didn't want to think of that possibility." Lauren replied. Her conversation with Camila had been interrupted suddenly by the sound of the twins crying in her bedroom up the stairs. "I think I have to go, Camz. The twins need to be fed their dinner, then I have to send them off to bed for the night. When would you like me to call you next?"

Camila answered, "You can just call me anytime in the morning. I love you, Lauren. I really look forward to talking to you again."

"Me too. I love you too." Lauren replied, hanging up the phone shortly after.

Lauren slid her phone back into its place in her pocket, then made her way up the stairs to feed the twins after making their baby formula up for them. As she struggled to feed both twins at once, she wished that she had Camila there to help her out. Two babies for one person to handle was nearly impossible, and Lauren willingly took up the task. 

She then thought about moving in with her family again for the time being and how much easier it would be for her to take care of Laurie and Cameron. The load would be so much less, and it would give her family a chance to really get to know its newest members. 

Just as soon as she had finished feeding the twins, she laid them down for the night and dialed her mom's cell phone number. The phone rang a few times before her mother finally answered.

"Lauren? What's up?" Lauren's mother Clara asked from the other side of the phone call.

"I've been considering moving back home. Taking care of two twins all by myself is a lot of work for just one woman. It would only be until someone is sent home from Los Angeles, so it wouldn't be forever. I hate to ask this, but will you have me and the twins at the house for that time?" Lauren asked, finally giving into a decision that she said that she wouldn't make.

"Oh! Of course you can! If you want, I'll even come to your house early to help you move back here. But seriously, you don't even have to ask to come back home, Lauren. This house has been and always will be your home." She responded, overjoyed that her daughter had made the decision to finally come home. "You know, I've actually been waiting for you to ask me that question. Not that I didn't believe in you raising those kids alone, I just figured that you'd want some help."

Lauren responded with a smile, "Thanks a lot mom, I really do appreciate all that you've done for me. I've contemplated over this decision a few times, but I've realized that maybe I do need a little help."

"Well, I'm always here for my family. I'll see you tomorrow?"

"I'll see you then mom. I love you." Lauren replied.

Clara replied, "I love you too, Lauren. Goodnight."

Lauren hung up the phone, then placed it on the night stand beside her bed. She decided that it was time to get some rest, herself since she had such a busy day ahead of her in the morning. As she got dressed into her pajamas, she thought about how bad she felt for having to move back to her mother's house. But was it really that bad if her mother wanted it? Lauren shook the thought off and decided to finally get some sleep for the night.