I Know I Was for a While

Lightly pulling her hairbrush through her hair, Camila spared a cautious glance towards the bathroom mirror, her dark eyes surveying her tired appearance. It wasn’t a surprise, after a pretty restless night and a day which had mostly been spent moping around Lionel’s house, she wasn’t at all shocked to find that she looked rough, but she had opted to try and fix it slightly, not wanting her mother to start fussing as soon as she stepped foot through Lionel’s front door. She knew that there was no avoiding it, as soon as she explained to her mother that she was pregnant, as well as what had happened between her and Noah, she knew that Lucille would start to fuss, and whilst she knew that it was inevitable, she didn’t want it to start as soon as her mother arrived.

Studying her reflection quietly, she brushed a few more tangled knots out of her hair before she caught sight of Lionel in the mirror, something which caused her to shake her head. “My madre’s here already?” she asked, gently pulling her hair up into a messy ponytail.

Lionel nodded. “She’s in the living room” he quipped “I told her I’d come up and get you, but if you’d rather I sent her up here, I can do” he added gently.

Camila, who’d been trying to brush a few stray hairs off of her face, shook her head. “I’ll go down and talk to her” she noted.

Lionel watched her mess with her hair for a second before he stepped towards her, lightly brushing a couple of loose pieces of hair that she’d missed behind her ear. Camila flinched a little, slightly surprised by his action, before she smiled up at him thankfully, a soft hint of a blush spreading over her cheeks. “Gracias” she mumbled.

Lionel returned her smile. “It’s no problem” he quipped.

Camila offered him another smile, allowing a comfortable silence to pass between the two of them, before the sound of Lucille’s voice filled the air, causing her to let out a soft sigh. “I really have to go and talk to her, don’t I?” she asked.

“You do” Lionel confirmed “She deserves to know what’s going on, Mila” he added, his stare briefly drifting down towards Camila’s stomach.

Camila followed his stare, sparing a small look down towards her stomach, before she let out a quiet sigh, something which caused Lionel to lift his hand slightly, offering her shoulder a soft squeeze. “She’s your mama, Mila” he noted “You never know, she might be able to make you feel a little better” he added, his voice warm and hopeful.

Camila quirked a faint smile, like she had thought of an amusing retort, before she lifted her hand, placing it on top of his before she offered it a soft squeeze. “You’re a really good friend, Leo” she mused.

Lionel smiled bashfully before he turned his hand over, squeezing hers gently as Lucille’s voice filled the air once more. Shaking her head, Camila halfheartedly rolled her eyes before she stepped out of the bedroom, jogging gently down the stairs before she came to a stop outside of the living room. Pausing for a second, she took in a breath before she nudged the door open, offering a feeble smile to her mother who sat on the couch. “Mama” she greeted gently.

Lucille, who’d been quietly messing with her hands, looked up at the sound of Camila’s voice before her expression softened, something which caused Camila to let out a weak laugh. “I still look awful, don’t I?” she mumbled “I mean, I tried to make myself look a little less tired, but I am guessing that I was unsuccessful” she added, her fingers messing with the bottom of her shirt.

Lucille blinked a couple of times, looking Camila up and down, before she gently shook her head. “What’s going on, Camila?” she murmured “I mean, when I went to see Noah earlier...” she trailed off, not missing the flinch which flashed across Camila’s face at the mention of Noah’s name.

Camila, who’d moved to sit down beside her mother, shook her head. “I...uh...I need to talk to you about Noah” she mumbled “Things between us...me and Noah...it’s over” she stumbled out.

“Over?” Lucille squeaked.

Camila nodded her head stiffly.

“Why?” Lucille pressed tentatively.

Camila blinked a couple of times, allowing the question to hang in the air for a few long seconds, before she tilted her head, peeking up at her mother softly. “I’m pregnant” she murmured “Twelve weeks now, and Noah...he doesn’t want to be around for our baby” she added, her voice faltering slightly.

Lucille’s expression slackened for a few seconds as she tried to process what Camila had said before she reached her hand out, gently taking a hold of Camila’s which fiddled distractedly with the hem of her t-shirt. “You’re...you’re going to have a baby?” she stumbled out, the faintest of a smile pulling at the corner of her mouth.

Camila sniffed, trying not to cry, before she nodded, something which caused Lucille to shift a little, wrapping a comforting arm around her. “That’s wonderful news, sweetheart” she murmured quietly.

“Noah didn’t think so” Camila muttered, shaking her head to herself.

“Then he is the biggest idiot on the face of the planet” Lucille replied, squeezing her shoulders gently “And I am sorry that he can’t see how amazing this news is. I know you were crazy about him, sweetheart, but if he can’t see what a good thing this is, he doesn’t deserve you, and he certainly doesn’t deserve that baby. You’re going to have a baby, Camila, a beautiful little boy or girl, and if he doesn’t want to be a part of that, then more fool him, because he’s going to miss out on you two. You’re going to make the most amazing mother” she fussed, her voice caught between angry and reassuring. It had knocked her for six, the idea that Noah had ended things with Camila had come as a surprise to her, but she wanted to offer Camila a little reassurance, wanting her to know that, even despite Noah’s reaction, the news of her pregnancy was good.

Camila, who’d moved to lean her head against her mother’s shoulder, closed her eyes. “You really think so?” she muttered.

Lucille didn’t hesitate in nodding. “I know so” she mused confidently.

Camila allowed a faint smile to spread over her face, something which caused Lucille to squeeze her shoulders gently, mumbling a few more soft reassurances into her ear.

~#~
“Lionel?”

Lionel, who’d been staring at the screen of his laptop, looked up at the sound of his name, his dark eyes settling on Lucille who stood in the doorway. “Lucille” he replied “You need something?” he asked politely. It had been a while, with him wanting to give Camila and her mother their space, he’d opted to stay up in his bedroom whilst they talked, and he was surprised to see the older woman. He hadn’t been expecting her to drop by to speak to him before she left.

Lucille shook her head. “I was just hoping to talk to you for a moment” she mused “But if you’re busy...”

“I’m not” Lionel replied as he sat up slightly “Where’s Mila?” he asked.

“She fell asleep on the couch downstairs” Lucille replied “I thought about waking her before I left, but she looked like she could use it” she added.

Lionel nodded in agreement, allowing a couple of seconds of silence to pass between the two of them, before Lucille shook her head. “I just...I wanted to thank you. Camila...she’s a mess after what Noah did, and I wanted to thank you for stepping in and looking after when she needed it. You didn’t have to do that, Leo” she mused, a fond smile on her face.

Lionel shook his head, a small nervous laugh falling out of his mouth. “She asked for my help” he noted “I couldn’t say no to that” he added as though it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Lucille looked at him, not missing the slightest hint of a blush which had started to spread over his cheeks, before she quirked a small smile of her own. “She’s still lucky to have you” she mused.

“I don’t know about that” Lionel replied sheepishly.

Lucille merely grinned at him before she stepped towards him, pressing a quick kiss against his cheek. “I do” she mused.

Lionel shook his head. “I just want to help her, Lucille” he noted “She’s my friend, and I want to help as much as I can” he added.

Lucille merely offered him another smile, something which caused him to let out a nervous laugh before he excused himself, mumbling something she didn’t quite catch beneath his breath before he stepped out of the room. Lucille watched him go for a couple of seconds before she followed him out of the room, glad that Camila had someone like him to support her.