Wait For Me To Come Home

Chapter 28

It was almost lunchtime on Thursday, and Lauren had come home from the office early, and as she walked into her empty apartment, the loneliness hit her again. She hovered just inside the doorway of her apartment before she stepped back out into the hallway and fished her phone out of her pocket.

"Sawyer," she said as soon as Maggie picked up the phone. "I need your help."

"With what?" Maggie asked, her tone serious for once.

"I need you to take me to an animal shelter," Lauren told her, smiling at the muffled shout of enthusiasm on the other end. Maggie promised she'd be there as soon as possible before hanging up, and Lauren walked downstairs to wait for her outside.

---

"Okay, so what kind of dog are we talking?" Maggie asked as they walked into the animal shelter.

"I don't know. A small one?" Lauren said, unsure as she spoke. "Like a lapdog? One that's like comforting."

"For fuck's sake, Jauregui, you're not getting some prissy posh girl's dog. You're not Paris Hilton," Maggie said, rolling her eyes.

"I mean, technically I'm richer than her, but whatever," Lauren smirked at Maggie, who rolled her eyes.

They were greeted by a staff member and spent a few moments answering some questions about Lauren's situation to help find out what kind of dog would be suitable for her. After filling out some details, they were taken back through to rows and rows of cages full of dogs, and Lauren's heart sank at the sight of so many abandoned animals.

"How am I supposed to just pick one?" Lauren said to Maggie, frowning slightly.

"That is also one of the reasons why Sofi never let Camila and I come here," Maggie laughed. "We'd probably come home with five each and Sofi would probably kill us and dump our bodies down by the docks."

"You know, sometimes I'm not sure if you're joking or not," Lauren murmured, and Maggie laughed as she peered into the first cage.

"What about a corgi?" Maggie asked, "they're not too small but they're also not like, the lamest dogs ever."

"Who am I? The queen of England?" Lauren said, rolling her eyes.

They spent the better part of two hours debating the pros and cons of dogs until Lauren finally found one and Maggie gave her approval. They ended up stuffed in Maggie's car with Lauren's new dog, and a thousand toys and products for the dog.

---

"Hi!" Lauren smiled widely as Camila's face appeared on the screen on Lauren's tablet.

"Uh oh, what's happened?" Camila replied, smiling as she took in Lauren's wide smile.

"So, um, it's completely Maggie's fault. You know how it's always her fault, right? So, anyway, I might have taken her advice and ... adopted a dog," Lauren said, trying to look innocent.

"You got a dog?" Camila repeated, her eyebrows shooting up in surprise. "You got a dog? I thought you were joking when you said you were going to get one."

"Mhm, I didn't really think I'd do it. Do you want to see her?" Lauren asked, her eyes lighting up with excitement.

"Um is that a trick question? Of course, I do! I love dogs!" Camila smiled, finding Lauren's excitement contagious, even through the screen. Not that she needed any help. Considering the fact that Camila was a walking ball of sunshine, practically bursting with excitement. Lauren flipped the camera around and focused it on the dog laying in the basket.