Fragile (age regression)

Chapter 10

It had arrived.

The day Lauren was finally going back home after spending three weeks on the road with Camila had finally arrived. She knew she'd miss it, because not only had she grown close to Camila, but she had also grown close to her team too. She had formed a bond with them that she had never experienced with her friends at home with the exception of Dinah and in a way, she wishes she could stay but she knew that was impossible.

As she'd said at the beginning of her journey, she couldn't be away from her business for too long as she had other clients that needed her too.

After zipping up her suitcase, Lauren makes her way through to the bus until she was in the kitchen area. It was there she was greeted with Normani, and after setting her suitcase aside, she sends her a small smile.

"Where's mila?" She questions, shrugging on her leather jacket that was slung on the back of one of the chairs.

Normani closes her planner and rises to her feet, "in the back lounge. I tried getting her to come out to say goodbye but she seemed pretty happy to stay where she was" she replies, "are you sure she's okay slipping without you here? Like, you're the professional when it comes to this, not me or any of the team" she adds.

Lauren rolls her eyes, "you'll be fine mani. She might not even slip without me here anyway I just said that on the off chance." She points out, running a hand through her hair, "anyway, it's coming up to three so I gotta go. Don't worry about getting miss stubborn butt in here, we said our goodbyes earlier." She reassures, looking around the bus one last time.

Boy was she gonna miss it.

"So...I guess this is it" she says sheepishly as her eyes flicker to Normani, her arms held out in front of her.

The singers assistant nods and pulls her in for a hug, "when are you coming to see her again?" She murmurs into her shoulder.

"Next week. I'll be driving up remember? We spoke about it last night" Lauren responds, giving Normani a soft squeeze before pulling away from her, "and if anything happens, give me a call okay? Just because I'm not gonna be here doesn't mean I don't care" she adds after a few seconds of silence.

"Of course." Normani nods, "speak soon" she says, sending Lauren a wave as she heads towards the bus door.

Camila watches on from a few feet away, her cheeks wet with the tears that have already escaped from her watery eyes.

She hated this. The fact Lauren had to leave just when she was starting to feel okay again. It made her feel like she had taken a step forward and two steps back because she was finally starting to feel like maybe, just maybe, she wasn't alone.

The tears appear to fall faster when Lauren disappears behind the now closed door of the bus, and so Normani didn't see her break, she rushes back to her bunk and climbs in before pulling the curtain closed.

She doesn't know why she's getting so upset really. The big part of her knew she'd be seeing Lauren next week and that was only five days away, but the little part of her was fighting with her that five days was like an eternity when all she wanted was to slip.

Choking back sob, Camila curls up as small as she possibly can and reaches for her blanket that was at the bottom of her bunk. That was all the comfort she had considering her paci and bottle were in the back lounge, way out of reach.

It while her a while, but she eventually manages to calm down and numb herself from feeling anything. She hated doing it, but it was the only way she was going to cope without the source of comfort she had grown so used to not being here.

*

"How is she?" Lauren asks as she holds the phone between her ear and shoulder, her main focus on the computer that was open with the information of yet another client she was taking on.

She hears Normani sigh, "honestly? I'm not too sure. She appears okay, maybe a little too okay for what she's going through. She hasn't cried, gotten upset, thrown any tantrums..." she trails off.

Lauren's eyes flicker from her computer to a document in front of her, "Well, that's a good thing then isn't it?" She asks distractedly.

"You would think so. But here's the thing Lauren. She may not be doing any of those things but she also hasn't smiled, laughed, or shown any other emotion other than blankness since you left. Not even on stage with her fans and you know how much that girl loves to perform"

That gets Lauren's attention. Normani was right, Camila loved to perform. She saw that herself many times during the few weeks she spent with them, "seriously? My next appointment with hers in two days right?" She asks, clicking on Camila's file.

Normani hums in conformation.

"I'll try and clear my schedule tomorrow so I can see her then too. We need to find a healthier way for her to deal all this instead of numbing herself entirely. Because not only will that make all the progress we've made disappear, but it'll also start effecting the moods of people around her too, especially the ones closest to her" she speaks, her tone serious.

"That's great Lauren, thank you. Should I tell her?"

"No no, I don't want her to get her hopes up if I'm not able to make it." Lauren interjects, already having have emailed Dinah, her assistant about the change of plans tomorrow.

Normani hums again, "Okay. If you're not able to make it, call and let me know" she responds.

"Will do. See you"

After hanging up, Lauren drops her head into her hands and lets out a deep sigh. She had a feeling this would happen, but she somehow hoped that everything would be smooth running to save any spontaneous changes to her schedule that had already been messed around enough the last few weeks.

*

The next day quickly came and Lauren found herself parked outside the familiar store of Walmart. Thankfully, she had managed to clear her schedule for today, but she had been warned by Dinah that this couldn't happen again if she wanted to maintain all of the clients she had and as much as she hated it, she'd agreed.

Yes, Camila was extremely important to her both outside and inside of work, but if working with her caused her to lose clients, clients she had had for years, then she may have to consider dropping her.

Of course she didn't want that happening, so she was going to have to try and get the young girl in the right mindset between appointments so this didn't happen again.

She spots Normani almost immediately as she gets out of her car, and as soon as she had locked it she was pulled into a tight hug that she quickly returned.

"Hi laur, thank god you're here" the assistant mumbles into her shoulder.

Pulling away, Lauren smiles softly, "that bad huh?" She speaks, running a hand through her hair.

Normani snorts, "you could say that. Not only is she blanking everyone around her but she's also taken to snapping at anyone who comes near her. Even the members of her team." She replies, hooking her arm with Lauren's before beginning to walk.

"That sounds awfully familiar" the green eyed girl chuckles, "don't worry, I'm gonna try my best to snap her out of this mood before I leave today. I get she's feeling a bit lost with this whole slipping into a younger mindset thing, but that's no excuse for her to act like this" She reassures and points out, letting out a sigh as they come closer to the bus.

"I agree, but try not to be too harsh with her." Normani replies, beginning to type in the code that allows you to enter the bus.

"I won't mani. I promise"

**

Surprise! I know it's been a while guys, I'm sorry, but as I've stated in my a/n in torment, I have a lot going on at the moment.

Anyway, tell me what you think!

Next chapter: 180 votes!