you keep robbing my heart like a bank ~camren~

9.

The morning after the gym incident, Camila is busy swapping books from her locker when she hears Lauren's name mentioned in a conversation happening behind her. It's hard to make out everything through the chatter of the hallway, but she does hear a few sentences that have her fuming.

"Did you see Lauren Jauregui's nose?"

(And of course they mispronounce Lauren's last name which just pisses Camila off even more.)

"Yeah, what do you think happened?"

"My girlfriend has the same gym period as her and she told me that some kid threw a ball straight at her face because he said she's too stupid to block it."

"Really? I heard that she's so clumsy that she walked into a door and busted her nose herself."

"Someone told me that she got punched because she was being annoying."

"Well, whichever one it is, the fucking nerd deserved it. She's so weird."

The group laughs behind Camila who has stopped moving and is just clenching one hand tightly around her locker door. It's the same hand that she used to punch the boy yesterday but the pain isn't even registering. All she can think about is the shit they're saying about Lauren and how much it would hurt the girl if she found out.

Slamming her locker shut with way more force than necessary, Camila whips around and stalks the short distance to the group making fun of Lauren.

"You guys want to repeat that?" she asks in a sickly sweet tone.

"Huh?" the boy who spoke last asks.

"You know," Camila says, placing a hand on his shoulder. "All those... great things you were saying about Lauren Jauregui?" With each word, her grip gets tighter and tighter until there's a grimace on his face and he's flinching in pain.

The other have all caught on to what Camila is doing and they all stare with wide eyes as her smile morphs into a glare. "I better not hear any of you talk shit about Lauren ever again."

Camila starts digging her fingernails into the boy's shoulder until he's slightly bent over, trying to alleviate the pressure. "Am I understood?" she asks, her threatening smile back in place.

They all nod quickly, the boy's head moving the fastest, and he finally breathes out in relief when she lets him go.

Camila stalks off without another word in the direction of Lauren's locker. She's just about to turn the corner when someone lightly grips her arm, stepping in front of her to stop her.

"Mila," Dinah begins, cutting straight to the chase. "You said it was that Anthony kid from your biology class that busted Lauren's nose, right?"

"Yeah..."

"Well, is there any particular reason why he was at the hospital yesterday with a broken nose and a half-assed lie for why he got it?"

Camila shrugs, avoiding Dinah's eyes. "What are you talking about?"

"Come on, you know my sis works at that hospital. She recognized him and asked me if I knew what really happened since he refused to be honest."

"Um, I wouldn't know. Sorry." Camila attempts to walk away but Dinah tugs her back by her arm. "Was that your revenge for what he did to Lauren?"

Apparently mentioning Lauren again is all it takes for Camila to crack. "He did it on purpose, DJ. You should have seen the poor girl! She was in so much pain and I couldn't stand to see her like that. I had to do something because he thought he could get away with it. Lauren doesn't know, though, so please please please don't tell her. She'll just be disappointed because I promised her I'd stop picking fights... but... I just had to do it for her, you know?"