Talk To Me (Camren)

Prologue

Prologue

She hadn't meant to knock the girl over. It was quite embarrassing actually.

Lauren widened her eyes and bent down to pick up a paper that had fluttered down from the petite girls' pile. Her curious green eyes studied the brunette who was now scrambling to her feet, not meeting Lauren's eyes.

"I'm so sorry. I totally just bulldozed you over," Lauren couldn't help but smile at the nervous looking girl biting her lip and handed her the paper that was practically covered with notes in somewhat messy scrawl. She seemed to relax at the gesture.

The girl took the paper with the tiniest of sheepish grins, but didn't say a word.

Then she watched as the girl shifted from one foot to the next nervously in front of her. Lauren studied her face, wondering why the girl hadn't replied. In fact, Lauren was surprised she'd never seen the attractive girl in all her years at high school.

Lauren could sense it getting awkward any second now before, "Hey Lo, you coming?" Lauren turned to meet the voice of her best friend, almost having forgotten that she had been walking to class before the unexpected collision.

"Yeah, yeah I'm coming Mani."

Just then the bell rang and the girl with the dark brown eyes looked at the clock above the lockers. With a more hurried manner, she clutched her books tighter and gave a hesitant, slight wave before twirling around and walking quickly through the crowd of students. Lauren hadn't even had the chance to ask her name.

"Mani, do you know who that was?"

"Who?"

"That girl I bumped into," Lauren fell in an easy stride with Normani to her next class.

"Oh yeah, that girl is in my homeroom. Apparently the girl, Camila- I think that's her name- never talks."

"Wait, never? Like, never says anything at all?" Lauren's eyebrows rose in curiosity.

"Nope, nobody has ever heard her say anything to even the teachers. Come on let's go get a raspberry smoothie before they run out," Normani brushed off the subject as if it was old news and everyone had already gotten used to the idea of this Camila girl not ever speaking to anyone.

However, Lauren was interested. Did the girl ever talk at all? Even to her family? There had to be a reason for a person to never voice their thoughts. Maybe it was like in Hunger Games where Camila was an avox. Lauren certainly had never had any classes with her.

"Hey you guys," Dinah, who had appeared at the entrance of the cafeteria, said.

Dinah and Normani had become friends long ago because of the dance classes they took twice a week. Occasionally, the other Beyoncé fanatic had joined Lauren and Normani's group at lunch, but after a while, the four, Normani, Lauren, Ally, and Dinah, became inseparable. Sure they talked over each other and tended to annoy the other, but that's just what happens with a group of girls.

"Hi y'all," Ally appeared next to her.

"Well now that everyone is here, can we please go get lunch? I'm so hungry you guys. I didn't even eat breakfast," Dinah whined.

"Yeah, okay let's go sit down," Normani stated, tossing her bag over her shoulder. Lauren lead the way and sat at their usual table to the far left of the cafeteria. As always, she sat in the chair that was facing the whole cafeteria so she would be able to watch other people interact, like people-watching. Her friends took the seats next to her and started a playful banter as they often did.

"So Mani, is there a little thing going on between you and Masi? I'm just asking because I saw a bunch of pictures of you two on Instagram. Mmm get that girl!"

"You stalking me, Dinah Jane?"

"Yup, in our amazingly productive debate class."

"You need a life. Read a book or find a cure for cancer."

"Girl, I'm allergic to books."

Lauren blocked them out like she always did and looked around at all the other tables. There were stoners, your typical high school girls with expensive clothes, the jocks, drama people, the hipsters, band members. Although, that would just be if you were to specify a person into one stereotypical clique. 

That just wasn't what high school was like, despite what the media has put out.

Scanning the room, Lauren spotted a particularly loud clump of students about three tables away from her. There she spotted her boyfriend being just as loud and boisterous as all the other guys. Nothing new there. Lauren had no need or desire to sit with him or his noisy, rude, cocky friends.

Lauren's eyes landed on a table in the far corner, about five tables away from where Lauren sat. There a girl sat crouched over a book with a piece of pizza in her hand. Dark brown strands of hair covered half her face but Lauren knew it was the girl- Camila, had Normani called her? The girl who never spoke. Why hadn't she ever noticed her before?

Soon the girl would be much more to Lauren than "the girl who never spoke".