If I Were A Boy (camren)

Chapter Twenty-Four

Shouts that were drifting along from door to door in the hallway had waken me from my hangover slumber. I groaned and slouched out of the messed covers, holding my aching forehead in attempt to soothe the banging headache that had been bothering me for hours.

Before I slumped towards the door, I had grabbed a cup of water from my sink. I stepped into the apartment hallway in a loose t-shirt and booty shorts, raising my voice, "Why can't you people shut the fuck up? It's way too early for this bickering bullshit and-"

I stopped talking and lowered my eyes to a woman whose knees were pulled tightly against her chest and her fingers tangled through her knotted hair. I frowned while I approached her, sitting across the crouched body that breathed uneasily. 

I lifted the cup to my lips and gulped down a bit of the curing beverage and then stretched my hand out in offering, "You want a sip, Mila?"

She raised her head out of the folded arms and furrowed her eyebrows, "I didn't hear you come out here."

"Well I heard you," I shrugged and slid down onto the wall behind me. "From my bedroom. You know it really sucks when you're having a hangover and people wake you up by yelling. Are you sure you didn't hear me come out here? I was pretty loud."

"Slow down," Camila weakly showed her teeth in a grin, but that soon vanished. "Do you need Gatorade? I also heard banana smoothies work for hangovers. We have tons of bananas."

"I'm not really planning on going out today, so I think I'll just let the water work," I declined and retrieved my H2O. "Who were you out here with?"

I knew the answer, but to be honest, I really wanted Camila to just admit it to me.

"Austin," she murmured loud enough for me to hear. 

"Why are you so mad at each other?"

"You're nosy, aren't you? Why do you have to get in everyone's business all of a sudden?" Camila's usual brown eyes turned even darker once she started to glare me down.

"Not in everyone's business, just yours," I answered honestly as I swirled the liquid around, not in the mood for a fight. 

She let out a deep, loud sigh, "He's mad at me because I refused to get pregnant and have our baby."

"What?" I spat and choked on my own spit, a little annoyed by the stupid reason. "That's crazy. It's your choice, after all."

"I've turned him down too many times," Camila muttered and loosened out her legs to the side. "I'm not ready to have a kid. Besides, I'm about to get a raise and I can't risk that chance! Once you're baby bumped, you basically are demoted in your career. Ask Ally, and she'll tell you all about it."

"You and Ally have been talking," I pointed out; Camila immediately nodding. 

"We discovered that I was teaching Trevor during the first parent-teacher conference," Camila huffed. "Did you not know? I expected her to tell one of you guys."

"I'm too caught up in my work and I really don't think Normani would like to know," I honestly explained to Camila. "And Dinah-"

"Dinah hasn't talked to me in years," Camila whispered, almost like she was ashamed of herself. 

"Are you serious?" I sputtered in disbelief. "We all expected her to be socializing with you! What's Dinah up to then?"

"I have no idea. She kind of just, fell off the map for me," the tear-stained girl admitted. "Changed her number, moved away from her family. Dinah disappeared into thin air."

"Yeesh," I chuckled, and that earned a harmful stare from Camila. I put my hands in the air for defense, "Sorry."

"I just miss having somebody around that I can relate to, you know?" Camila dropped her death gaze. "When Dinah left me after you guys all did, I had no other choice but to tie the knot with Austin."