8 - Kids These Days

Lauren had taken a shower then, even though she'd taken one right before going to bed the night before. Her mom had always told her a shower could work miracles and she was really trying to believe in that. When she'd gotten out to dry herself up then however, nothing much had changed and her mind was still a mess.

"Lauren, the airbnb guy says we need to check out." Camila's voice called out through the bathroom door. "We're an hour late."

"Oh shit. Okay I'll be out in a sec." Lauren called back at the brunette before quickly brushing her teeth, deciding to skip the make-up routine for the day and rushing out of the bathroom. "What time is it?"

"Ten."

Lauren scoffed. "Places with checkouts at nine suck."

Camila chuckled. "Agreed." She said before quickly brushing her teeth in the bathroom. She'd already packed up some stuff and gotten dressed, much to Lauren's surprise. It's not like she thought Camila wasn't able to look after herself, she just hadn't expected the girl to be this independent.

They were sat in the car about ten minutes later. Camila had applied some mascara and nothing more and Lauren had packed the rest of their stuff into the car. She'd also checked her phone and texted Tom and Zayn that she and Camila were alright.

"So what now?" Camila asked.

Lauren looked at the clock 10:11am. The deal would be taking place around dinnertime tonight. She had to keep Camila busy until that time. "How do you feel about theme-parks?" She asked the young woman sitting next to her. Camila let out the cutest giggle Lauren had ever heard before nodding her head excitedly.

Lauren smiled widely. "Universal?"

"Oh my god, you are kidding right?" Camila asked, her face practically shining in the morning sun.

Lauren shook her head. "Or do you have other plans today?" She asked, already hoping to know the answer.

"N-not really." Camila mumbled, grabbing her phone from her pocket and furrowing her eyebrows when seeing what's on her screen. "Armando is- he's-"

"Pissed?"

She looked up from her phone and towards where Lauren was sitting, behind the steering wheel. "11 missed calls." Camila practically whispered, holding her phone up for Lauren to see, together with the 24 messages her husband had sent her.

"I mean.." The raven haired woman sighed. "We could also just go home. I just figured it would be nice to spend a day together, since you're leaving in two days you know.."

The brunette ran a hand through her hair while staring at the electronic device in her hand. "No- y-yeah I wanna- I would like that, Lo."

Lauren smiled when hearing the nickname she'd only ever read on that one text and reached out to take Camila's hand in hers. She sighed deeply while staring into the other woman's eyes before shaking her head. "God.." She breathed out. "I really don't want- this to end."

What she'd said had a bit of a double meaning. Of course she was talking about whatever was going on between her and the beautiful latina sitting next to her. But also about her undercover mission and persona she was still trying to keep up even though the real her was shining through more and more, with every hour that passed.

She watched how Camila bit her lip before the slightly younger woman reached forward and pressed a soft kiss onto her cheek. Bubbles filled with glitter and fireworks went through Lauren's body every time Camila's skin touched her, let alone when her lips touched her cheek. "Fuck.." She breathed out. Realising once more how fucked up the situation she'd gotten both herself and this beautiful girl into. "I'm so sorry.." She whispered.

Camila's innocent brown eyes widened slightly as she stared at the woman sitting in the driver's seat. "Sorry?" She asked, a small smile on her lips. "What are you sorry for?"

Lauren, afraid that she'd ruin whatever thing they were having, shook her head quickly and let go of the girl's hand. She started the car and opened up her window, needing some fresh air. "A-anyway. W-would you like to go to Universal with me?"

"I'll send Armando a text." Camila said.

Lauren could feel the woman's eyes burning onto the side of her face. She couldn't help but feel annoyed when hearing the bald man's name. Immediately pictures of him smacking Camila's butt flew into her mind. A feeling she'd never really experienced that much bubbled up and she scoffed. "Tell him we're having a BFF day."

An obnoxiously loud laugh made it's way out of Camila's mouth as she slapped Lauren's arm before getting her phone again. No other words were said for some time, Lauren drove the car, lost in her thoughts and Camila sang along to Tame Impala's; Let It Happen.

———

"Camila Cabello.." Lauren breathed out as the girls were making there way to a very special section of the Orlando theme park. "Don't tell me you're a fan of-"

"Harry Potter!" Camila shrieked. "Oh my god, Lauren they have the whole castle here?! Why didn't I know this? I've been living in Miami for years, I would've visited every freaking day!" The brunette was bouncing up and down happily as the big Hogwarts castle came into view more and more. "God, this is the best day ever!" She cried out happily, grabbing Lauren's hand in the process.

Lauren was wearing the biggest smile on her face she'd had in weeks, months, maybe even years. She looked up at the castle, then down at the smiling Camila and at their intertwined fingers. They had been enjoying themselves so far, riding several rides and eating some snacks here and there, but this was the best part of the day so far. "You're such a nerd!" Lauren said, smiling at Camila, who's head snapped in her direction.

"Why do you keep acting surprised when saying that? Haven't we established that fact already?" The brunette asked, happily swinging their intertwined hands back and forth.

"I- yes I should have known you're a potter-head."

"Yes you should have!" Camila said. "Wait, what house are you in? Let's buy scarfs!"

"Camila I'm not buying a sca-"

"Lauren!" The brunette shouted, squeezing the other girl's hand temporarily. "We're getting scarfs. I bet you're a Slytherin!"

Lauren stopped walking and gasped loudly. "I'm not!"

"We'll then you better tell me your real house, 'cause I'm gonna buy you one." The brown eyed girl said before letting go of Lauren's hand and dashing over to a souvenir stand. Camila was wearing some jeans and a white shirt and now grinned at Lauren with a blue scarf around her neck.

"Ravenclaw." Lauren stated, walking closer towards the girl and her big grin. "Suits you well."

"Here." Camila said, handing Lauren a yellow scarf.

"Hufflepuff?" Lauren scoffed, her sunglasses almost sliding off her nose as she looked down at the scarf Camila had just given her. "I've always thought of myself as a-"

"Gryffindor." Camila interrupted her. "I knew you'd think that of yourself."

Lauren furrowed her eyebrows and gave Camila a confused look. "You don't think I'm brave?"

"I do." Camila nodded, fishing for her wallet in the white leather bag she'd brought into the park. "I just think you're- softer than you think and- and cute. Hufflepuffs are cute."

Lauren felt her cheeks heat up and she was glad Camila busied herself with paying for their scarfs. "Cute?" She whispered underneath her breath.

———

"Did you know that Harry Potter's parents are soulmates? They have the same patronus." Camila told Lauren, who was still confused as to why on earth, Camila would have called her cute.

"That's.. tragic and sad, but.."

"So romantic." Camila beamed. "Right?"

"Romantic?!" Lauren exclaimed. The two had ridden a few more rides in the 'Harry Potter' area of the park and were now sitting on a bench, hiding away from the hot Florida sun underneath the shade of a large tree. The park wasn't that busy, which Lauren had already hoped for, since she didn't really enjoy large crowds all that much. "What about Snape though?"

Camila scoffed. "That's a whole different story." She said, shaking her head. A comfortable silence settled between both women as they sat and both enjoyed the cold drinks they had just gotten. "Do you believe in soulmates?" Camila asked after some time.

Lauren was a bit taken aback by the question and looked down at her hands. She fidgeted with her fingernails as she shrugged. "I guess." She mumbled.

"I do." Camila said, confidence laced in her statement.

Lauren looked up, slightly frowning. "Is- do you think Armando is your soulmate?"

The brunette ran a nervous hand through her hair as she yet again bit her lip. Lauren couldn't help but look down at those lips she'd kissed only hours ago. "I don't think so." Camila said. "I mean I- I love him. But not like- it's-" She took a deep breath and shook her head before smiling at the other woman, who's eyes were still on her. "I haven't felt the- the way they always describe in music and books and movies with him. You know?"

Lauren nodded before sighing and looking away. "Yeah, I know."

"And you?" Camila wondered then. "Is Zayn your-"

"No." Lauren was quick to reply, done with the lies. She knew she wouldn't be able to speak the full truth to the woman sitting next to her, but she figured she wouldn't straight up lie in her face anymore either.

Lauren listened to the people screaming in the rollercoaster behind them and smiled. "Wanna ride that one again?" She asked.

Camila frowned and scratched her head. "I- I don't know."

"Come on, you weren't scared, were you?"

"Lauren, that coaster went from like 0 to 50 miles in one second." Camila stated. "I'm just- I just.."

"Coward." The raven haired girl smiled, pushing her shoulder against Camila's playfully before getting up from the bench. The brunette reached out for her hand then however, and pulled her back down. She was sat on the bench again and suddenly felt Camila's lips against her ear.

"You better be nice to me or there will be no more kisses for you." The young woman whispered seductively before jumping upwards and swinging her bag over her shoulder, a wide grin on her face. "Well come on then!"

Lauren's ears were ringing with her own heartbeat and her cheeks felt like they were on fire. She smiled shyly, shook her head and followed the other girl to the entrance of the rollercoaster.

———

"You're at a theme-park!?"

Lauren sighed dramatically and rolled her eyes. She couldn't wait to never speak to this guy anymore. "Yes, Tom." She stressed. "I figured I should keep us away from all of the action that's about to take place in a few hours."

"Cabello is a suspect as well and you know that."

Lauren leaned against the sink of the bathroom she was in. Camila was waiting outside with her cotton-candy and the raven haired girl had told her she'd use the toilet and that they would head towards the other side of the park after. "She doesn't know about the- the things he does." She lied to her supervisor, keeping her eyes trained on the bathroom door.

"How are you so certain about that? Has she said anything to you?" Tom asked, his voice laced with annoyance. "Because you haven't been reporting much about Mrs Cabello, agent Jauregui."

Lauren took a deep breath, her fingers pinching the bridge of her nose as she shook her head. She knew that the man was right, she hadn't reported the conversations she's had with Camila about her knowledge of her husbands' day to day activities and her drug-use. She was being a bad undercover agent, she knew that, but she had accepted by now, that this might just be her last operation for the MPD. "I.. just know." She mumbled.

"This is what is going to happen." Tom said, his voice a little louder now. "You will be driving to the location I'll send you and you'll arrive there at 7 p.m, with Cabello."

"You're gonna let me drive her to the- the drug-deal?"

"Yes." Tom said strictly. "Do you have something to say about that?"

Lauren shook her head violently as she turned around and smacked her fist against the sink. "She doesn't deserve to be locked up, Tom."

"Court will decide that. We're only here to collect evidence and her living with the biggest drug-dealer in the country will be enough evidence to lock her up for at least a few years." Tom said, talking fast. "I'll send you the location and you'll leave the fucking theme-park." He hung up then and Lauren was left with a balled fist and a fast heart-rate. She looked at the time on her phone then. 4:05. "Fuck." She hissed.

"Is.. everything okay?" A familiar voice asked calmly.

Lauren turned around quickly, stuffing her phone in her pocket. "Y-yeah." She stammered. "It's just.."

She noticed how Camila's eyes looked worried and tried taking a few deep breaths before continuing to speak. She found herself hyperventilating again however and turned away from the beautiful young woman again in an attempt to calm herself down. Everything would end today and she hated it.

"Lo.." Camila's soothing voice spoke up softly. "What's going on?"

'Tell her the truth or lie?' Lauren thought to herself while looking down at her feet and shaking her head. 'Tell her the truth or lie? Tell her the truth or-''

"Hey.." The brunette was now standing right next to her and was reaching out to take her hand in hers. "Hey, you can tell me anything. You know that, right?"

There were tears in Lauren's eyes and she didn't want Camila to see them and so when the girl pulled at her arm slightly, in an attempt to turn her towards her, she shut them tightly and shook her head. "I wish." She breathed out.

Camila's eyebrows furrowed together slightly while she tried looking into Lauren's mind. She reached her hand forward and tilted the other woman's chin up a little bit. "Lauren." She said, her voice calm. "What is going on?"

Lauren opened her tear stained eyes and looked right into Camila's brown ones. "I- I- Camila I- I- don't know how to- I can't.. I-"

"Hey, hey.. It's alright." Camila whispered, pulling the other girl into a warm hug. Lauren closed her eyes again and tried enjoying the by now familiar scent of Camila's hair. It smelled more and more bittersweet though, since she knew how this was all gonna go, especially when Camila would find out about her.

"It's Zayn." Lauren said then, through gritted teeth. "I- we need to go."

Camila stepped back slightly and put a lost strand of hair behind Lauren's ear. "What is it?"

"He won't tell me." She shrugged. "I'm sorry, I'm ruining our- y-your day."

Camila smiled and shook her head. "You're not ruining my day, silly." She said. "I've had an amazing time with you so far. It felt like a dream okay?" Camila looked how Lauren nodded and stared into her emerald eyes. "I guess we'll have to get back to reality now though." Camila said, a certain amount of sadness laced in her words. 

"I don't like reality all that much." Lauren stated bitterly before wiping the tears out of her eyes. "God, sorry that I'm being such a cry-baby again. I've- I have never cried this much in front of someone."

"It's alright." Said the brunette before leaning back against the sink as Lauren readied herself. "You're beautiful, also when you cry."

Her words had come out more as a soft whisper and a smile broke through Lauren's sadness. She was a mess in front of this woman and yet she still found her beautiful? "T-thanks." She said, her voice a few octaves higher than it would usually be. "God, I'll miss you." She said, hugging herself as she stared at the gorgeous brunette.

"I'm gonna miss you too. You don't even know." Camila said, the smallest smile present on her face. "But- this is not the end, right? We can still call each other and maybe like- facetime."

Lauren looked away but nodded anyway. She realised already that their little dream would be over and that their pink skies would be washed over with grey, thunder-clouds.

Camila looked down at her feet. "Maybe I shouldn't move. Maybe I should stay here." She whispered, more to herself than to Lauren really.

Lauren let out a sarcastic laugh. "What about Armando?"

Camila stayed awfully quiet as Lauren stared at the side of her face. She saw what the brunette was about to say and stepped forward, shaking her head. No, she wasn't going to let Camila ruin her own life. She wasn't going to let this happen. "Camila please don't say you-"

Camila, looking awfully determined all of the sudden, stepped forward and placed her hands on Lauren's cheeks before placing her lips on hers quite roughly. Lauren stumbled backwards slightly before wrapping her arms around the other woman's tiny waist and kissing her back fiercely. Camila's tongue found hers as the brunette's hands moved to the back of Lauren's neck. Lauren bit down on Camila's bottom lip and sucked on it and Camila released the softest moan. Two green eyes opened momentarily before taking a few breaths and pushing Camila back against the bathroom sink. She looked over at the entrance of the little toilet building, hoping that no one would walk in. She lifted Camila up slightly, placing her on top of the sink before they continued making out.

Camila's hand roamed through her hair before sliding down to Lauren's waist, where they moved underneath her shirt. Lauren shuddered at the contact of Camila's semi-cold fingers against her hot skin and pushed the girl back even more. She moved from her lips, to her neck then and started placing sloppy kisses on her skin, sucking softly every now and then. She made sure not to leave any hickeys, but loved the sound of Camila's hitching breath whenever she'd suck just that little bit harder. Camila's fingers were holding onto Lauren's waist for dear life while she'd thrown head back against the bathroom mirror, giving Lauren all the space she'd need.

A crack sounded through the bathroom then, before a loud gasp. "Oh my god." Lauren heard Camila mumble before she looked to her left, where a very shocked older lady was standing, her hand covering her mouth while she stared at the two younger women, who were obviously doing more than just using the toilet-building for it's original use.

"I'm- we are- we're so sorry ma'am.." Camila breathed out, quickly running a hand through her hair in an attempt to straighten it out a little. Lauren couldn't help but grin and look the other way as she pulled her shirt down and let Camila squirm out of her hold.

"Kids these days.." The woman muttered underneath her breath before going into one of the stalls. When the door slammed shut, Lauren dared to look at the brunette's face again, who looked wide-eyed and embarrassed. A snort of laughter came out of Lauren's mouth as Camila smacked her arm and she grabbed her bag from the floor and left. Lauren looked in the mirror to manage her hair, which had luckily been up in a ponytail, before leaving the small building as well, her worries temporarily as she wore a proud grin on her face. Reality soon hit her though, as she realised it was already 4:30 p.m. The dream that was Camila Cabello, would soon be over.

———