“It’s me! It’s Lauren!” the older girl’s voice grew raspy as she shook Camila’s hands, trying to get it into her head that she wasn’t going to hurt her. Camila stayed frozen, her eyes wide.“I’m not going to hurt you,” her voice grew calmer, her eyes pleading into the smaller girl’s. Camila’s eyes softened and she relaxed her arms, allowing Lauren to move closer to her.“Camila, look at me,” Lauren brought her hands up to cup the smaller girl’s cheeks, lifting her head to meet her eyes. “You’re safe. We’re home. No one’s going to hurt you.”Camila stared at her blankly, which made Lauren’s heart drop.“Please say something,” Lauren whispered, shaking her head and looking into the girl’s eyes, begging her to tell her that this was all just some sort of joke. When silence enveloped them once more, though, it took everything in Lauren to fight the new round of tears that threatened to spill over.“Okay,” Lauren took a deep breath, squeezing her eyes shut and forcing herself to think about this rationally. “Let’s just… let’s just go lie you down for a bit,” she said quietly. When Camila didn’t protest, Lauren grabbed her hand and led her into the bedroom.“Just try and calm down a bit, okay?” Lauren asked softly, making Camila sit down on the edge of the bed. “I’m going to make you something to eat. I’ll just be in the kitchen.” When Camila nodded softly, Lauren gave her a sympathetic smile and slipped out of the room.Moments later, though, she heard rushed footsteps behind her. When she turned back around, Camila was right behind her, looking up at her nervously.“Camila, go lay down,” Lauren nodded towards the bedroom. The smaller girl just glanced at the door before turning back to Lauren. Sighing, the older girl allowed Camila to follow her into the kitchen.Lauren dug through the pantry, trying to find something easy to make. When she turned back around, Camila was standing in the doorway, watching her silently.Taking a deep breath, Lauren moved to the fridge. She heard soft footsteps behind her once more, turning around to Camila a few steps closer to her.The smaller girl’s eyes met Lauren’s pleadingly. At this point Lauren gave in, closing the refrigerator and turning around. She bit her lip, slowly holding out her arms. Camila’s eyes flickered between Lauren’s arms and her eyes before she hesitantly moved forward, allowing Lauren to wrap her arms around her.Lauren held Camila close against her chest, stroking her hair to try and calm her down. It was at this point that she felt how much the smaller girl was shaking.“C'mon,” Lauren sighed, attempting to take Camila’s hand and lead her into the living room. Camila stayed glued to Lauren’s side, though, so the older girl wrapped an arm around her waist and led her slowly to the couch they’d just gotten a week before.Lauren sat down, waiting for Camila to do the same. The smaller girl looked at her nervously, but eventually sat down next to her. Lauren watched as Camila’s wide eyes slowly took in her surroundings.The green eyed girl was terrified. Okay, more than terrified. She wasn’t sure if there was a word to describe how she was feeling. Seeing Camila in this state was only bringing back an onslaught of memories that she thought she’d never have to face again.Camila was still shaking tremendously. Lauren watched as the smaller girl tried to fold her hands in her lap, but resorted to hugging her arms around her torso and looking down at her legs.“It’s gonna be okay,” Lauren whispered, turning slightly to face Camila. The smaller girl gazed at her, tilting her head to the side slightly. “No one’s gonna hurt you when I’m around.”Camila brought her knees up to her chest, nodding her head softly. Moments later, though, she inhaled sharply, nearly falling off of the couch.Lauren was confused at first, but then she saw Camila’s phone on the ground with a new message on the screen, she realized what had scared Camila. She quickly turned to the smaller girl, placing her hands on her shoulders.“Can you stay here while I go grab you something to eat?” she asked softly, trying her best to assure the smaller girl that she was safe. Camila nodded hesitantly, and Lauren lingered for a moment to study her eyes, wishing with everything in her that she could have a glimpse into the smaller girl’s mind at that moment.She gave Camila’s shoulder a reassuring squeeze before swiping the girl’s phone from the carpet and dialing Dinah’s number. She disappeared into the kitchen, tapping her foot impatiently as she leaned against the counter. Dinah picked up on the first ring.“Mila, oh my god, you’re okay,” the Polynesian girl sounded worried, and Lauren bit her lip.“Uh, it’s… it’s Lauren,” the green eyed girl moved over to the fridge, searching for something to give Camila to eat.“Where’s Mila?” Dinah’s voice was laced with panic.“The living room,” Lauren said quietly, holding the phone against her ear with her shoulder as she dug throug
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