Say You Won't Let Go

Past Reasons & Transparent Emotions

CAMILA'S POV:

It's three a.m. and I'm entangled in my book, my eyes rapidly flitting across the page and my heartbeat pounding loudly in my ears.

Thank god, tomorrow is Saturday or else I would pass out at school for staying up this late.

I'd like to think that I'm still awake because this book is captivating—which it definitely is—but it's not the honest reason why I'm still up.

I'm waiting for Lauren to call me about the visit with Ally. She said she would and I promised that if things went bad, she could come here.

So, here I am, awake at three a.m., waiting for something that may never happen. Look what Lauren does to me.

Blinking sleepily, I turn the page. I have my small lamp near my bed flicked on and it's partially blinding me.

But Lauren's worth it.

Seconds turn into minutes and I yawn. I could be sleeping, but I'd rather not.

Words and meanings blur as the minutes tick away. My head lolls to the side and my eyes almost flutter shut.

But my phone starts buzzing silently near my thigh.

I drop my book on my chest and quickly grab my phone. A picture of Lauren is smiling up at me and her contact name is bolded in white at the top of the screen. I tap the green answer button and press my phone to my ear.

"Hello?" I hum quietly. I don't want to wake my father. Lauren's raspy voice cracks through the line.

"Camz? I can't believe you're actually awake." Lauren laughs softly, her tone hushed, as well.

I feel embarrassment rush to my cheeks. "Yeah, I was just r-reading." I stutter out a lie. Technically, it's not a total lie. I was reading but I was mostly waiting for Lauren to call like she promised.

"Oh, well, I can go if you want to continue reading." Lauren says.

"No, no!" I blurt out a little too loudly. I mentally shush myself. "It's okay, I promise."

Lauren lets out a small, happy sigh. "Okay." Even her words seem to be smiling.

I curl up into my blanket, hugging the sheets closer to my body. "Tell me what happened at Ally's. Why are you calling so late? Are you alone outside? Are you safe? Are you—"

"Love," Lauren hums affectionately and I feel my heart jump and I immediately stop rambling. "Everything is okay. I just crashed out too early and woke up, remembering to call. I'm okay."

"So then what happened?" I smile, leaning into the phone.

There is a short silence then I hear a small breath. "They're taking me in—Patricia and Jerry—permanently." Her voice shakes when she exhales the word permanently.

"Lo!" I beam, forgetting to keep my voice down. "That's amazing!"

"Yeah." She gushes.

"So you're there?"

"Yeah, I'm sharing a room with Ally." Lauren pauses for a second. "She looks funny when she's sleeping."

"Aww," I coo, imagining a tiny Ally wrapped up in huge blankets, drowning in warmth.

"How was your evening?" Lauren asks solicitously.

"Lonely." I sigh dramatically. "You stopped texting me."

"Oh. I'm sorry." Lauren murmurs, her voice getting small.

"I was just kidding, Lo." I coo, smiling softly. "My evening was good. My dad made us homemade pizza. The best thing ever. Yours?"