~A Mirage~

Dolores slapped the papers against the table in anger. She was being as transparent as she could be with Nicolas to avoid a misunderstanding yet he still had the nerve to hide things from her knowledge. "What are those flyers about?"

Nicolas shook his head, trying to feign ignorance. "I don't know how that got there."

"I didn't know we've gotten to the point where we have the liberty to lie blatantly in each other's faces." There was a smile on her face as she leaned back against the table. "So tell me, did the tooth fairy put that there?"

"You just have to believe me, babe. I--" He resigned to his fate. "Fine. You want the truth? Here it is; I've been the one printing and posting those flyers of Carlos in school.""

She gasped, leaving where she was standing to come in front of him. "Then why did you have to lie to my face about it? That was very unnecessary. Now, why did you have to print them?"

He took her hands in his, staring at her. "I'm sorry I lied to you. I really wanted to tell you before I did it but I know you would not approve of it. You'd want me to have a rethink."

"I know but you still haven't given satisfactory answers."

He huffed. "I want him to expose himself. The more he keep seeing things like these, the more frustrated he'll become. I feel like there's something big he's hiding from everyone. I mean, everyone. I'm sorry I didn't involve you in it. If I did, you'd stop me from attempting it at all."

"It's a good thing you know me." She gave him a small smile. "But that caption though? Is he really a murderer like you said?" It was a question that had been scratching at her chest whenever she saw the flyer.

"I don't think Carlos is as innocent as you think him to be. I know this because we used to walk together. I tried to talk him out of doing certain things but it seemed like the demons he was fighting had a stronger hold on him."

"Wow." Was all she said in response. After a while of deeply contemplating, she turned to look at Nicolas. "Let's turn him over to the police then. I know how much you despise him but you can't take down someone as dangerous as he is."

"I know I can't and that's why I'm trying what I can to break him down so he would end up spitting out the truth himself. If it doesn't happen quick enough, I'd be forced to take things into my own hands." Nicolas spoke with a tone of finality.

"What is in that head of yours?" Dolores bumped her fist into his shoulder, jokingly.

"Don't worry. You'll see."

°•°•°•°•°•°

The next morning, they woke up to Isaias making breakfast in the kitchen and some mouth watering already delicacies served on the dining table. An old hit song was playing from the stereo and they both watched as Isaias swung his hips as though he was dancing tango. It was humiliating for Nicolas to watch.

"Dad!" He called out, disrupting the man's alone time.

Isaias turned around, his eyes sparking up at the sight of them. "You're up early. That's nice. Where is Aurora?" He asked, looking behind them.

"Aurora?" Nicolas blurted out.

"Yes, Aurora." His dad replied, moving to drop a plate filled with omelette which was topped with cheese and chives. There was also a generous serving of bacon in another plate.

Dolores dragged her eyes away from the food and smiled at Isaias, coming to the rescue of her boyfriend. "She called to say she would be spending the weekend with Christie and would not be back until Sunday or Monday afternoon."

"She should have called me instead. The neighborhood isn't as safe as it once was, you know."

At his words, Nicolas and Dolores stared at each other discreetly. Dolores cleared her throat, walking to assist him take some of the plates of chicken slices off his hand. "Of course. It's so sad that the neighborhood got worse but because of that, it's even possible for her to spend the entire week there. I hope it's cool with you? She loves her best friend so much."

The man paused, scratching at his jaw for a second before shrugging. "I guess so. As long as she calls and you both keep an eye out for her. She's still so young." He turned to walk back into the kitchen, still oblivious of the looks the nervous teenagers exchanged again.

After the meal which Dolores had two extra servings, she bade goodbye to him and stepped out with Nicolas. When they got to her car, he spoke up.

"What are we going to do? We can't keep up with this lie if after one week we do not find Aurora."

She inserted her key in. "I'm sure we will. Keep on being positive instead, alright?" Just then, her phone rang. She ignored it.

"Are you going to pick that or what?" His eyes were pinned on her phone even though he couldn't see who the caller was. "You've been having these persistent calls throughout the night. Why don't you pick up so you'll find out what the person wants from you?"

"I will, babe and I'll make sure to warn the person to stop calling. I'm already too stressed as it is. Anyway, see you Monday. I have a date with Adelina and won't be available till school resumes again." She dropped a soft kiss on his lips before hopping into her car.

He waved at her then walked back into the house. Seconds after he did, the call came again. She was going to curse the caller out when she saw it was Adelina this time. She picked without hesitation. "What's up, girl?"

"I'm good. Look, you know I told you my parents arrived yesterday. Well they want to see you today."

Dolores' eyebrows went up in pleasant surprise at the news. "So quick? Turned out you couldn't stop speaking in adoration of your best friend whom you love better than your boyfriend."

Adelina scoffed. "Puh-leez. By the way, where are you? I stopped by your house this morning and you were nowhere to be seen. Your dad said you were at your boyfriend's."

"I was but now I'm on my way home. Wait for me and don't miss me too much." She added and disconnected the call. She didn't want to get fined for driving while on the phone.

In no time, she parked her car in front of the house and then proceeded on her way in. As she opened the door, she met Adelina seated on the couch while her father sat on another single seat. They were both neck deep into their discussion and did not notice when she stepped in. However, it was Damian who first looked in her direction.

"Dolores!" The smile stretched on his face. At his acknowledgement, Adelina also turned her head to spot her best friend.

"Hey biatch! I missed you so much. Of course you wouldn't realize that because you were with a boy." She stood to engulf her in a neat hug.

"Hey, you too." Dolores replied, refusing to respond to Adelina's accusation.

"Go get dressed, amor. We're going out." Damian announced to her.

"We?" She turned to Adelina in confusion. "We? I thought it was just us two."

"My parents changed their mind and wanted us to have some sort of bonding over lunch. You've already wasted three hours and so you have three more hours to get ready for the family date." Adelina announced, tucking back her phone in her pocket.

She sighed. "Alright, alright. Come help me get dressed up. You know I miss you doing that for me."

Adelina smiled. "It's why I came early." She turned to Damian. "Our discussion has to be moved till next time. I'm not done giving you reasons why Marvel movies are better than DC."

He laughed, with the sides of his eyes crinkling. Shaking his head, he wagged a finger at her. "You never learn what defeat is. I'll be waiting with your mighty reasons. For now, you both should go get ready or we'll be late. You know how I hate being late for appointments."

Adelina rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah. We got that. See ya!" Then, she flounced off with Dolores tagging along.

°•°•°•°•°•°

Damian had been the one who drove them to the venue of their lunch date. Adelina had teased Dolores to hell and back for looking too beautiful while Damian couldn't stop laughing despite Dolores' warnings. It was a fun ride. The place, when they finally arrived, was a cute restaurant on the gulf of Mexico with fancy decorations on the exterior. Adelina was thrilled to know what it would look like on the inside but Dolores wasn't. Neither was her dad. The place brought back so many unwanted memories.

"Are you sure this is the right place, dad?" Dolores piped up as she walked with hesitation towards the entrance of the restaurant.

He looked at the map on his phone. "I'm positive. The car's gps cannot be broken at this time. It's too early for that."

Their worries were oblivious to Adelina who kept walking along, thrilled to finally have her best friend meet her parents after the longest time.

As the trio stepped in, Adelina raised a golden card in the view of the sophisticatedly dressed waiter who led them to a reserved private section.

They had just settled in the lounge when two people walked in. "Mum! Dad!" Adelina called out in glee.

Damian almost staggered to the ground as he suddenly rose up to his feet. "Mateo?"

Dolores remained glued to the chair as shock swam through her body, immobilizing her. She looked at Adelina, back at the faces she was seeing and her vision swam with flashbacks.

~~~{•}~~~

It has happened. Remember Mateo?
If you read the prologue, it shouldn't be much of an issue. If you didn't, then you should go back.
Patience guys, it's slowly unfolding.

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~~Chignature~~