cherished affliction

You Could Be My Sanity

The first thing Camila noticed was that the bed was empty.

Normally, when Camila would roll over onto her stomach in the middle of the night, she'd become pressed up against Lauren's soft body. However tonight, Camila's bare breasts only met the cool silk sheets of Lauren's bed.

No Lauren.

Blinking the sleep out of her eyes, Camila sat up and glanced around the large room worriedly.

Sometimes in the middle of the night, Camila could find Lauren reading on the plush couch. Her eyes would be red-rimmed and tired, and she'd smile and wearily tell Camila to go back to sleep, but tonight she wasn't there either.

Camila licked her lips, brushing her knuckles across her blurry vision in a haste to clear it.

Suddenly, a breeze drifted across her body and Camila rubbed her arms, the sudden cold air further confusing her. Standing up and throwing on her silk robe, Camila moved around the room and stumbled upon the double doors that led to the balcony.

They were open, which explained the breeze, and Camila took a step through them, only to find herself facing the back of the very woman she was looking for.

Lauren was standing on the balcony, wearing her favorite silk blue pajamas (Camila had seen her wear them multiple times during the past two weeks, so she concluded that they were Lauren's favorites). Lauren's left hand was gripping the balcony railing, not tightly because her knuckles remained earthy like the rest of her body, and in her other hand between her index and middle finger, she held a cigarette.

Initially, Camila was confused. Lauren didn't seem as if she was the type of person to smoke, what with her usually calm demeanor...but once Camila moved past all that, all she could focus on was how breathtaking the sight of Lauren was.

Camila had never condoned smoking in her entire life, but there was something so peaceful about the way Lauren looked. Even from the back, her body seemed visibly relaxed. Her shoulders weren't rigid like they sometimes could be while she read over paper work or spoke on the phone with her colleagues.

Because she seemed so at ease, Camila found herself enamored by the way Lauren turned her head to the side and brought the cigarette to her lips slowly.

The end of the cigarette began to swell orange and Camila's eyes trailed over the way the bone in Lauren's jaw became suddenly defined as she inhaled and then softly let the smoke drift from her mouth like a gentle fog.

It was an incredibly sexy sight, no matter how unhealthy it was and Camila licked her lips, suddenly very much awake.

"See something you like?" Lauren's voice came, husky from the burn of tobacco in her lungs. Camila jumped a little at being discovered, before clearing her throat.

"I haven't decided yet." Camila answered, and Lauren smiled, ducking her head. Flicking the butt of the cigarette into an ashtray, Lauren turned around, crossing her arms over one another.

"Why aren't you asleep?" She asked, her eyes shining with mirth. Camila licked her lips, her eyes flickering back and forth between Lauren's piercing gaze and the cigarette that dangled between her fingers.

"When...did you start smoking?" Camila inquired, finally settling for making eye contact with Lauren, despite the way her insides hummed at the sight of the bold green eyes.

"You didn't answer my question." Lauren reasoned. Camila tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

"You first." Camila said defiantly, and Lauren laughed. She stared at Camila's collar, sparkling around her neck underneath the moonlight.