Dare You To Love (Camren - Norminah - Vercy)

Chapter 7: Squirtle Squad

August 26, 2017

Camila's POV

It was the first day of the two-day motorcycle expo. Ally, Normani, Vero, Dinah, and I had all woken up at 3 am to load everything into the refrigerated trucks and make the two-hour drive to Santa Barbara. I was groggy and grumpy throughout the trip, but as soon as we reached the expo, an enthusiastic energy took over me. I rushed out of the truck and looked around excitedly. The smoky, gasoline-scented air. The random revs of bikes from people showing off. Badass bikers in leather jackets and tats checking out the latest models like kids in a candy-store. This was heaven.

Last time I'd been at a motorcycle expo was 7 years ago with my dad, a few months before he'd succumbed to cancer. I remembered how excited he used to get before every expo. He would meticulously spend hours cleaning and polishing his bike. And then he and I would zoom off to the venue and spend the entire day geeking out over different motorcycles, eating junk food, watching the competitions, and just having the time of our lives. Memories of past expos flashed through my mind as I looked around.

I wish you were here with me, papi...

"You okay?" Vero asked, putting a comforting arm around me.

"Yeah," I said, wiping my watery eyes before they could leak.

Dinah appeared at my other side, squeezed my hand, and said, "He'll always be with you, Walz."

I smiled at my two best friends. It was a mark of the strength of our friendship that they knew exactly when I needed comforting without me having to say a word.

"Is everything okay?" Normani asked, walking to us with a cart full of baking stuff.

"Yeah," Dinah said irritably and walked off to help Ally unload the trucks. Normani's face fell at Dinah's reaction.

I quickly said, "Everything's fine, Mani. I used to come to these expos with my dad, so I just miss him, that's all. And don't worry about Dinah, she'll get over it soon."

Dinah had complained to Vero and me about feeling suffocated with Normani's presence because they'd been going everywhere together. Church events. Weekly choir practices. Frequent family gatherings. At one of these family events, Normani had invited Dinah's family to the motorcycle expo without consulting Dinah. Dinah had been irritated with her wife for the past week, because now, Dinah had to attend the two-day expo with Normani too, when originally Dinah was looking forward to her first Normani-free weekend. Earlier in the week, poor Normani, who in my opinion hadn't done anything wrong, came into the bakery all distressed because Dinah was irritated at her. Normani had tried making it up to Dinah during the week, but Dinah spent all her time at work and was barely home. Today was the first day they'd spend time together after their fight. And from the looks of it, Dinah was still annoyed. Usually Dinah wasn't one to hold grudges, so I knew she was unfairly taking out all her frustration with the marriage situation on Normani.

"Yeah, don't worry about it, Mani. Dinah's probably just stressed cuz of work," Vero said, helping Normani push the cart to our kitchen booth.

"Still, I shouldn't have invited her family without asking her first. I just wasn't thinking," Normani said.

"You have nothing to be sorry for, Mani," I reassured as we unloaded the cart onto the kitchen counters.

"Dinah's just overreacting," Vero said, "You're bound to make up this weekend. Just stuff her face with a few pastries and she'll come around."

Normani smiled appreciatively and set up the kitchen area in a solemn silence. Vero looked at Normani, then raised her eyebrows at me, silently conveying that we needed to have a chat with Dinah about how she was treating her wife. But we barely had time to breathe that day, let alone have time to drag Dinah away for a chat. All of us were so busy switching between manning the cash register, replacing the rapidly diminishing stock of baked goods, washing dishes, and running to our trucks to get more ingredients, that I wondered if I was even going to have time to run into Lauren or explore the expo.