still the one | camren au [completed]

Part Two

"Pretty please," Dinah drags out her words while sticking her bottom lip out and doing her best impression of puppy dog eyes at her roommate.

"I'm not going, D," Lauren responds exasperatedly, her attention still on the book that she's trying to read.

"Oh come on!" the blonde cries out. "I thought you were the captain of the ship."

"I completely and fully support Norminah," the raven-haired girl deadpans. "And that is why you guys should take this time to spend some time alone. Just the two of you and no other distraction. I don't wanna third wheel."

Dinah just groans in response, burying her face into the cushions of their sofa. "It just feels like a date, you know? And I don't know if we're ready for that. We need a buffer," she says into the pillow, her words muffled.

"Ah, so I'm just some buffer when it's convenient for you, huh?"

"What if Camila comes," Dinah suddenly sits upright as she says the idea out loud. "You'd go then, right?" she beams at her roommate.

Lauren tries to make her expression as passive as possible when she replies. "Why would I go just because she's going?"

"Because you like her," Dinah's tone is impatient, as if that's something everybody knew.

"What?! No I don't!"

"Wow, Lo. I thought we were past the gay panic," the blonde says with a bored expression.

"That's not what this - I am past the-," the green-eyed girl takes a deep breath before facing her friend who's trying not to smile too widely. "You know what, fine. I'll go because I'm the best best friend in the world and this has nothing to do with Camila whatsoever."

"Right, of course," Dinah nods patronizingly.

----

"I don't wanna go, Mani" Camila whines as she tries to focus on completing her mission for GTA. If she doesn't deliver the drugs on time, she's gonna lose some money and she needs money for an upgrade on her car. Her cheat codes aren't working for some reason so she actually has to work for the money.

"Come on, Mila. Please," Normani pleads. "I don't want it to be weird if it's just me and Dinah."

"Aren't you guys like in love or something? Why would it be weird?"

"Camila!" Normani squeaks out. "We're working on things, okay? We're not just gonna jump the gun."

"Whatever, maturity is overrated."

"Lauren's probably going to go," Normani eyes her friend's reaction as she says the girl's name.

"So?" Camila hopes she pulls off the nonchalance she was aiming for.

"So, the more the merrier!" the girl exclaims. She knows better than to confront Camila head on about her apparent crush on the raven-haired girl. She'll most likely just deny everything vehemently and they won't get anywhere.

There's a few seconds of nothing but the shooting noises coming from the TV before Camila sighs and pauses her game to look at her friend, "Fine."

"Yes! You're the best, Mila!" she squeals as she gives her best friend a tight hug.

And that is how Camila and Lauren find themselves paired up for wine slash paint night. Normani and Dinah had the idea to go to a paint night that's being hosted by some restaurant just outside of downtown Manhattan and though they were both initially excited, their nerves got the best of them and they'd thought that stringing their best friends along can help alleviate the inevitable tension.