Miss Cabello

The Real Her

Poke.

Camila was in the middle of a deep slumber when she felt a finger prodding in her belly. She assumed it was only a part of the unreal dimension of dreams, but when she felt it once again, her eyelids fluttered open only to see Lauren lying on her bed, her face close to her stomach. Camila blinked, her eyes adjusting to the bright light coming from the sun, she must have left the curtains open the night before.

Lauren's wavy hair was unkempt, flowing past her shoulders like a waterfall, with some strands protruding at certain sides. Her face was naked from any cover of her make-up. The dark shade of her hair seemed to glow in its exposure to the sun's rays. Judging from her appearance, Lauren had just woke up like her.

And Camila never knew a woman could look so beautiful upon waking up in the morning.

Seeing Lauren had not noticed her, she pretended to still be asleep, closing her eyes.

"Good morning, Camila's baby!" Lauren raised her voice, not until she realized the mother was still fast asleep. She placed her index finger to her lips. "Oh, shhhh, we better be quiet." She whispered, and Camila had to bite the inside of her cheeks to keep her lips from forming a smile.

Lauren glimpsed at Camila, relieved she had not been disturbed by her voice. "Your mommy and I are going to buy you clothes for your arrival next month and a half. What characters do you want? There are The Lion King shirts, T. Rex onesies, and many more."

That was right, the long journey of her pregnancy was almost coming to its end. The end of her pregnancy also meant the end of her stay under Lauren's care. 'Friends come and go.' She had heard the phrase before, but Camila thought of Lauren as more than a friend, rather a soulmate. She had read what Aristotle said when she was young.

"What is a friend? A single soul dwelling in two bodies."

At that moment, if the question, "Who is the person that means most to you?" Camila had thought someone to live for, she had thought of someone who truly loved her, had thought of someone who she surrendered her whole self to. There were none, but instead of those things, she found the answer in a someone who had shared her pain and touched her deepest wounds.

"I really can't wait to meet you. I could never be pregnant, just like your mom, but taking care of her makes me feel like I'm having a child of my own. Tell her she better make me a godparent, or else..!"

Though Camila would have normally laughed at Lauren, she couldn't help but feel for her. When they have started to open up to each other, she noticed how Lauren would fondly talk of children.

To want, but to never have.

"You know, I wish you would look like your mom, not your father." Camila held her breath by then. "I wouldn't want her to see the reflection of the man who hurt her. But I know no matter how you look like, your mom would love you more than anything, because that's how generous, compassionate, and kind woman she is."

Camila felt Lauren raise her shirt to reveal a part of skin of her belly. "Your mom has been through so much, little one. Love her as much as she loves you, maybe even more, if you can." As soon as she felt Lauren gave her belly a kiss, Camila savored that morning, savored the part of Lauren she had never seen, catching the moment to keep it safe within her heart.

"Better leave and make your mommy breakfast. See you again tomorrow morning." Laurn softly whispered, but Camila still heard her words. Lauren pulled her shirt back down, and stood from the bed, leaving the room.

It was a good morning.

-

Grace walked inside the kitchen early in the morning to an unexpected sight. Lauren was wearing an apron and holding three eggs in one hand, a bowl in the other.