Chapter Text
Chapter Eight
Laura woke up with a jump. She’d been half awake, half asleep when she recalled the events of the night before. She frantically looked around for her phone to find evidence that what happened hadn’t actually just been a dream. Her phone rested not too far from her head on the bed. She snatched it up from the sheets and immediately went to her call history. It was true, she had called Carmilla. They’d talked and shared a few great moments and then – Oh no. She actually fell asleep on her? Dammit.
She did notice that Carmilla had ended the call a little after two, meaning she and Laura had talked for about an hour. That meant she had slept for a decent amount of time. She did feel well rested, now that she thought about it. She didn’t feel the need to crack her neck, or yawn, or try and go back to sleep. She was perfectly fine to get up out of bed.
She glanced at the clock on her phone and saw it was already nearing nine AM. Then she really did have a goodnight sleep. She got out of bed after turning off her Friday alarm which was going to go off in a few moments. She started up her laptop and while she waited for that to get going, she fixed herself some breakfast. Nothing beat toast with Nutella for her. Okay, maybe chocolate chip cookies, or mac and cheese… But as far as breakfast goes, she was quite happy with the simple things. Yes, pancakes or waffles were really nice and all, but why go through the trouble when you have a perfectly capable toaster and a jar of Nutella?
She grabbed her yellow pillow from her bed to support her back - or to sit on if she wanted to make herself taller – put the breakfast down and took one more trip to the kitchen to fetch her TARDIS mug. She couldn’t blog without it. It was a form of tradition to sip whatever drink she wanted from that mug while she blogged.
Of course, because of her cast, she’d been blogging less. It was hard for her to type and she had this little project figured out to make up for her lack of posts lately. She was going to make videos instead of writing long posts about whatever topic was sparking her interest that week. Sometimes she made opinion posts, sometimes it was a journalism post. But mostly, she used her blog to vent about whatever feelings she had.
So for the past few weeks, it had been about the struggles of having your arm in a cast, and that night, and she even hinted something about Carmilla but she just called her the ‘heroic lifesaving beauty’. That did Carmilla justice, right? She thought so for sure.
Now, she was setup for a whole new experiment: Vlogging, video blogging. Only, she wouldn’t be doing it on the move like most people did. But it was still called vlogging right? Whatever. She thought it would be the perfect way to keep her readers in the loop and spare time and effort.
She took a deep breath and turned on her camera. She didn’t know a lot about lighting and positioning but the way her camera was directed and she came into view seemed good enough. Especially for a first time vlogger. She did do her research and found out that most Youtubers used scripts to make their best content so that’s exactly what she did. She’d typed out a little script that was composed of key words instead of sentences. This worked best for her and she wouldn’t go completely off track with her ramblings. She had the tendency to ramble. A lot.
She took a deep breath and pressed the record button. “Hi there, gentle viewers! And welcome to me blog” She starts off but immediately pauses. Was that good? Good enough? This had to be good. Okay sure, there weren’t thousands of people watching, but she still cared about her little journalism projects, even if they were for her own personal use and not a school project. Maybe this was going to be in her portfolio as her first vlog ever. This had to be perfect, not just good.
She started over.
“Hi there, gentle viewers! Welcome to the video version of this blog!” She smiled into the camera. This already felt really normal.
“I know I’ve talked about it before but… This,” she held her casted arm up for the future audience to see, “is why I’m switching to video’s. For a while at least.” She put her arm down again. This was going well so far.
“For those of you who don’t know about the cast yet, we need to go back to where it all began. I’ll keep it short.” She had thought about wanting to broadcast her story all over the internet, okay maybe not all over but it was still out there, and she decided this was a good thing. Who knows, maybe other people took comfort from it? To know they’re not alone? She wasn’t sure, but she knew this would be okay.
“I got attacked on the street and while dialing by best friend, I accidentally ended up talking to a stranger who was in the neighborhood and totally kicked my attacker’s a- butt. She’s totally my hero and I couldn’t thank her enough. She gave me her plaid shirt to cover me up a bit. She wasn’t in time to help prevent this,” She pointed towards the cast again, “but she saved my life.” She couldn’t help but smile at the image of Carmilla in her mind, even though she was talking about one of the worst things to ever happen to her, she was smiling because she was just so thankful for having Carmilla there.
“Of course I had to return her shirt so we met up at my local coffee shop. My cast was decorated with the names of my three best friends but she thought it could use a little… something. She pulled out some markers and boom!” She put up her arm and turned it a few times to show it to the camera.
“She drew me a galaxy! A freaking galaxy! Can you believe it?” She was still as in love with it as she first had been. “When I asked her about it, she told me she’d show me why she drew it for me one day.
She’s so wonderful and I’m glad I met her.” She already couldn’t wait till she got to talk to her again, even though it had technically only been about seven hours since they last spoke.
“She even helped me calm down after a nightmare I had last night. She’s all kinds of amazing and I hope the people in her life know that.”
She took a pause and watched the paper version of the script she made. She’d just cut it out later.
“Okay! So now that you know the story, we can move on to other topics.”
Laura went on like this for a while. She decided to leave out some topics that she had written down initially and talk a bit more about some others, but overall, she was glad with the progress she made. She had to record some things twice but eventually everything came together after an hour of editing. It wasn’t a lot of work because she did most pieces of one topic in one take, but she still wanted to add some special features like a track in the background and maybe a dorky image here or there. She thought it added in charm.
When she was done, she started the upload. In the meantime she got ready for class. She wasn’t that hungry so she figured she could just stop by the coffee shop Sugar and Spice and get a muffin to eat on the way. She checked her phone for any new messages before heading out. Her dad had sent her a text and Danny texted her asking her to meet up at the coffee shop. When the upload was done and a reply text was sent, she headed out the door. She couldn’t wait to get back from class to see if she got any views or notifications on her video.
Danny was waiting by the door of Sugar and Spice with two cups in her hands.
“Hey Laura!” She waited until Laura was in front of her to hand her the hot cup of coffee. She’d just skip the bite and eat later.
“Thanks! Sorry I’m late, I was working on this project – “
“Are you ever not working? You deserve a break with that cast and all…” Danny left the rest unsaid but they both knew what she meant.
“Well, this is actually something for my blog, not school.” She and the tall redhead started walking towards the university while Laura filled her in on her new idea. She did ramble, but Danny didn’t seem to mind. Danny had always been a good friend like that.
“So, have you heard anything about that, that uh ‘galaxy girl’?” Danny asked once Laura was done telling her about her new vlogs. Laura wasn’t sure what to detect in Danny’s voice, but there was a curious tone to it. She hadn’t really told Danny about Carmilla when telling her about the vlogs.
“Carmilla? Um yeah, I have actually.” Laura smiled just thinking about it. “Why are you so curious?” She didn’t mean for it to sound so… weird. It just did.
Danny shrugged, “I was just wondering if you’re staying in contact with her. Do you think that’s a good idea?”
“Why wouldn’t it be?” Laura was confused now. Why would Danny be so protective? To be blunt, it was kind of annoying her.
Danny shrugged. “I don’t know. I mean, you don’t really know her, right? She just helped you out one time and not that that’s not great – it is – but, you know…” Something was off. Danny was being weird and she just couldn’t figure out what was going on. Sure, Danny had a point. A good one in fact. But the tone of voice she used when saying it reminded her of the tone Danny used when she was trying too hard to sound casual.
“Carmilla’s a friend, Danny. At least, I think I can consider her one.” Her brow furrowed in thought. How could she not when Carmilla saved her life? The least she could do was be friendly. She kind of enjoyed her company, so it wasn’t like it was hard to like her in the first place.
Danny just regarded her for a moment. “If you say so.”
They walked to their classes in silence for the rest of the way. Laura was lost in thought. Maybe she could meet up with Carmilla this weekend? After last night, she wanted nothing more than to be in her company again. She may have come off as snarky but she really does have a soft side.
Her class wasn’t too boring. She was able to take notes despite her arm. She couldn’t wait until she got home to check her blog though. How many views would it have gotten by now? Probably not a lot, but hopefully more than 10. But what she really cared about were comments. They’d help her get better at vlogging and in the end that mattered most. Improvement.
Then a thought wandered through her mind. What if Carmilla saw it? Nah, that’s impossible. She didn’t even know about her blog. She disregarded the thought and focused on her walk back home.
She walked back past Sugar and Spice when her stomach grumbled. Her body was craving some food and when another customer walked out the door, she smelled the fresh baked goods and simply couldn’t resist them. She went inside and ordered her regular cup of hot chocolate with cinnamon along with two giant chocolate chip cookies. Though it was technically spring, some days had cold fall weather. She took a seat at the same table she had shared with Carmilla not long ago and smiled at the memory. The conversation had started off kind of awkward but the more they talked, the more Carmilla seemed to feel at ease. As a result, so had she. Opening up to someone new had been scary in the past, but all felt right when it was Carmilla. She had liked watching Carmilla focus on the drawing on her cast. She’d looked so absolutely stunning.
She caught a glimpse of deep dark hair walking past the window and shot up. Could that have been Carmilla? She tried to lean as close to the window as possible without completely pressing her cheek against the window. If it had been her, she was gone now. Laura deflated a bit and sipped her now lukewarm chocolate. Geez, how long had she been lost in thought? Far too long for sure. She finished her cup and her cookies before heading out the door again. Homewards, this time for real.
--
The rest of her day was quiet uneventful. Checked her vlog for views. Thirty views already, and two comments of long time followers of her blog. She smiled at that. They were all positive and gave her some feedback. She really appreciated their support. Maybe she should try to pick up vlogging some more?
She checked her phone more than once that day. Waiting, maybe even hoping – no, surely not – for a text message from a certain someone. That hope led her to jump when her phone actually did buzz while she was working on some homework. Alas, when she checked it, she saw Danny’s name flashing on her screen. It was a text asking if everything was alright. She’d gotten those kinds of text more and more from Danny lately. She told herself it wasn’t because of what happened, but she knew she was kidding herself deep down. Danny would always look out for her. Even when she didn’t want it.
She answered in the most neutral way possible. She didn’t want to sound sad or annoyed that it wasn’t Carmilla that had texted her. Certainly Danny didn’t want to hear she was sad because of some stupid crush she had on – Oh. Oh.
She froze in her seat. Was she crushing on Carmilla? She totally was, wasn’t she? Oh crap.
“Let a girl draw on your cast once and you’re already crushing on her. Well done, you.” She mumbled to herself and let her head fall onto her arms that were laying on the desk.
Maybe not the best decision because laying your head on a cast? Not that comfortable. Who knew?
She sighed and stared up at her computer screen. This wasn’t working at all. She couldn’t get the words on paper and just started to get frustrated with herself for being unable to write. It used to flow so easily and now, she couldn’t even make two coherent sentences. She snatched her phone from beside her as she got up and fell down on her bed. She needed a distraction.
Yes, she thought about calling her. A lot. Her fingers hovering over the call button on her phone for what felt like an eternity. She had all the pro’s and con’s listed in her mind. The pro’s being:
- Carmilla’s company ++
- Carmilla’s voice
- Carmilla’s funny remarks on things she so obviously found stupid that Laura adored.
- Carmilla’s laugh, maybe, if she’d get her to laugh.
- Carmilla’s everything
And the con’s were limited to:
- “I’m a nervous wreck when I think about talking to her because we only talked just yesterday and that was very intimate and maybe we don’t know each other well enough for that and Laura breathe.”
She had the tendency to ramble. A lot. Sometimes she forgot how to breathe. Not a good quality, she agreed. But she couldn’t help it!
Eventually, she tore her eyes and hands away from the name in her contact list and scrolled down the alphabet.
The phone rang a few times before an excited voice came through.
“Hey L!” Then their voiced changed to a bit more serious. “Something wrong?”
Laura smiled. They always knew what was going on. “Hey LaFontaine. Yeah – well, no. Nothing’s going on… Not really. But you know, there is. And,” she dragged out the vowel to give her some time to think, “I’m not really sure, you know, what to do about what’s on my mind and I’d like for you to help me with that. But it’s like, totally ridiculous and you’re going to laugh at me for sure. But I really need someone to talk to but it can’t be Perry because you know how she is with problems like these. And it can’t be Danny because - well, it just can’t. That would be awkward. Do things seem weird between me and Danny. They do –“
“LAURA!” She got pulled out of her ramble by LaFontaine’s strong voice coming through the receiver. “Breathe first, okay?” When they were satisfied to hear Laura take a few deep breaths, they continued. “Okay. First thing’s first. What’s on your mind? I’ll totally help you with it but I first need to know what the problem is. That’s kinda how problem solving works, you know?”
Laura smiled a bit. LaF was a good scientist and problem solving was one of their specialties. Only it didn’t always go so well. When it came to science. They were a great friend.
“Well, there’s this girl. I think I like her. Like, have a crush on her? I don’t know, LaF.” Laura sighed.
“Just to be sure that I’m on the same page… You’re totally crushing on Carmilla, right?” There was amusement in their voice rather than a questioning tone.
“Wha-“ Laura didn’t expect them to actually know who she meant. Should she have expected more? It was LaFontaine after all… They knew everything. “Yes this is about Carmilla. But about the crush? I mean, I think I am. I’m not sure.”
“Oh well, I am. Don’t worry, Laura. It’s totally cool. It’s not hard to see the hearts your eyes form when you’re talking about her.” Laura blushed. Did she really have heart eyes? She didn’t even know the girl that well.
“I do not have heart eyes!” Laura went in defense.
“Uh huh, sure Frosh. Whatever you say.” Laura was about to interrupt when they spoke again. “So what was that part about Danny? Awkward? Explain.”
Laura took a deep breath. She wasn’t even sure if there was anything to explain. “So, you know how Danny was kind of protective about the attack thing?” She got a dragged out, questioning ‘yeah?’ as response. “Well, she’s been getting very protective. Waiting for me to walk me to class. Texting me to ask if I got home safe. Asking me all these questions about Carmilla and if I’m sure I can trust her. She’s just being so… weird. And it got pretty awkward this morning between us.”
Okay, maybe implying that Danny had asked a bunch of questions was a bit over the top. It were only two or so, but two very weird ones. Overprotective ones. Ones Laura didn’t really know the answer to and perhaps didn’t want to find out.
“Look, Laura. I do get what you’re saying, but when your best friend gets attacked, you do have to understand that Danny is going to be a bit more protective of you then.” They went on before Laura could cut in. “Yes, maybe a bit too much. Just let her know, kindly. She’ll understand, I’m sure. If you don’t want her to text you those kinds of things, or walk you to class, talk to her.”
“Okay, thanks LaF. I guess I knew what to do but just didn’t really want to do anything about it, to make it even more awkward, you know?” She heard a hum on the other side of the line in agreement.
“As for the questions about Carmilla. I get that. I mean, you tell us about her sure, but we don’t know her. And look, the circumstances in which you met her weren’t really normal, right? So I’m sure Danny is just implying to be wary of strangers. Of course I’m all for making new friends, just don’t overstep. Okay?” Laura understood what LaFontaine was saying. She did. But she just couldn’t help but think that everything was fine with Carmilla. Sure, Carmilla wasn’t exactly a ray of sunshine among people, but she was sweet. She was a sweet person deep down who had saved her life. She was a hero. Her hero.
She rounded up her conversation with LaFontaine, asking about how they were doing and how Perry was before calling it a night and deciding to crawl into bed early. She had a few things to think about as she lie awake, waiting for sleep to hit her and take her mind to a simpler place. But after all, today was not a bad day. Even though she hadn’t talked to Carmilla, having passed today meant she was one day closer to seeing her again.