Worthless (Camren)

"I'm so sorry I scared you"

Lauren woke up disoriented on the couch the next morning. She was covered by the same blanket that had kept her warm during her afternoon nap the past day and to her displeasure she was still wearing the same clothes she had worn all of yesterday. Then again, she figured it would have been much more unsettling if someone had dressed her in pajamas instead, so she silently appreciated her family's acceptance of personal boundaries.

"Oh good, you're up." Lauren sat up to see her dad leaning in the living room door, nursing a cup of coffee.

"Is Camila-"

"Still asleep in her room." Her father assured her before she could worry. She leaned back against the couch with a sigh, rubbing her eyes.

"There's coffee in the kitchen, if you want any." Mike said, taking a seat in the armchair.

Lauren shook her head. "Where did you disappear to yesterday?"

"Your mom  and I decided to drop in on the guys at the garage. They were really happy when Clara offered to make dinner. Apparently, Coop was the only one with any cooking skills whatsoever. I guess, I'm gonna have to send one of them to the education centre for cooking lessons." Mike chuckled.

Lauren smiled, but she could tell her dad hadn't just randomly decided to drop in by the auto shop on a Saturday night.

"You're staying away on purpose." Lauren stated, puzzled at her realization. Mike sighed, nodding. "Why?" Lauren asked with a sinking feeling in her stomach. She sat up straight facing her dad. "I thought you weren't mad that I bought Camila!"

"No, babygirl, of course I'm not mad! You're doing a great job taking care of her too, kid. But if I learned anything about helping new slaves settle in, it's that the more people they have to answer to, the harder it is for them to focus on getting adjusted. Most of them are used to having one master and until Camila understands that she's not a slave to us, that master is going to be you." Mike explained calmly.

"I don't know what I'm doing, dad." Lauren admitted miserably. "I think most of the time I just scare her. I have no idea what to say to her at all-."

"Lauren, when your mom and I brought Jim home, we had no idea what the hell we were doing. He wasn't as hurt or as scared as Camila, but he wasn't used to decent people either." Lauren felt a pang of sympathy in the pit of her stomach.

Jim, now in his late thirties, had been the first Jauregui slave to be set free. The dark skinned man had been with the family for almost 13 years now; he was a strong, intimidating guy at first glance, but Lauren knew the man was a teddy bear inside. She had a lot of fond memories of Jim babysitting her at the auto shop when her dad had to take her to work with him.

"What did you do?" Lauren asked.

"It was tough at first," Mike said. "He thought we were tricking him into a punishment when we offered him the same food we were having and he wouldn't sit at the table with us or do anything that would put him into an equal position."

Mike removed his cap and rubbed his head thoughtfully. "He'd just sit in a corner during meals and wait for the leftovers. We didn't know how to make him comfortable." A fond smile appeared on Mike's face when he looked up and met Lauren's eyes. "But you did."

"What?"

"I'll never forget it", Mike chuckled. "You were coloring at the living room table and your mom made you a PBJ sandwich as a snack. We were all sitting in the living room, I don't remember what we were doing, but Jim was sitting in his usual corner, away from the rest of us. You just got up with your plate and you sat down right on Jim's lap and held up a half of your sandwich right in front of his mouth." Mike laughed at the memory. "I still remember his face; he was so confused, but you didn't move until he'd taken a bite."