Isabella's POV
I
looked at my best friend one last time. She had a smile on her face, and yet
there were tears in her eyes. And then I rushed after him.
"Luca,
wait!" I ran after him, my breath catching in my throat. "Luca!"
He
didn't stop. His jaw was tight, his shoulders stiff as he marched toward his
car like I wasn't behind him, like I didn't exist.
"Luca,
just—stop for a second, would you!" I caught up, grabbed his arm. He yanked it
out of my grip.
"What?" he snapped, spinning around. "What
now, Isabella?" he yelled aloud.
"There's something wrong," I said, voice
shaking. "With Aurora, I can feel it. Can't you see it?"
He let
out an unamused laugh. "What the fuck are you talking about? You saw her for
yourself, you spoke to her, what else do you need to hear?"
"I
don't think she's okay," I said. "That's not the Aurora I know. That's not the
girl you know. Aurora would not just uproot her life for another man just like
that, it's crazy," I shook my head in disbelief. "You couldn't even get her to
move in with you in the first place, why would she—"
He
shot me a glare.
"I'm
sorry," I apologized, "but now I'm supposed to believe she has moved in with a
man she met only months ago and she's in love with him? That doesn't make
sense!"
"She's
probably known him longer," he snapped. "I mean, she's a cheater. What's to say
she isn't a liar! I mean, it goes hand in hand, doesn't it?"
"No,"
I said firmly. "That's not Aurora. She never hides anything from me, and I mean
anything. She would have told me about him."
He
rolled his eyes. "You're overthinking. You're always overthinking. You heard
them, you heard her, why would she lie about that?"
"That's why I think something is wrong! She
could be in trouble, for all we know. We don't know who that man was. She never
spoke of him before, but now she's what? In love with him?"
"You're delusional, Isabella," he said through
gritted teeth. "It's so hard for you to accept that your good friend is a
two-timing bitch who plays with people's hearts, and now you're—"
"Aurora would not do this!" I cut in angrily.
"And the fact that you don't know this speaks to your relationship."
He
chuckled dryly. "You never really liked the two of us together, Isabella.
There's no need to pretend that you do anymore," he retorted.
I
inhaled deeply. "That doesn't matter now, Luca. Aurora may be in great danger,
and she needs our help."
"I'm
sure you can swoop in and save the day as always!" he snapped. "You're
overthinking this, Isabella, and frankly, I'm done!" He yanked the car door
open, hopped in, slammed the door shut, and sped off, leaving me alone with my
thoughts.
But I
wasn't overthinking. I knew her. And this wasn't like her.
Last
night, around the same time I usually got her goodnight text, I'd been waiting,
with my phone in hand but nothing came.
Earlier that evening, everything had been
normal. We had spent the whole day together. She was always sad on the
anniversary of her mother's death, and I never failed to cheer her up. I even
helped pick an outfit, fixed her hair for her, and sent her off with kisses.
We
texted on the ride, up until she was at dinner with her father.
I had
waited until minutes turned into hours. I started texting and calling, but
there was nothing.
Around
midnight, I called her father, but I couldn't reach him either.
I'd
started panicking and called Luca. He didn't pick up at first. When he did, he
didn't take it seriously. "No, I haven't heard from her." That was all he said.
"Well,
call her!" I'd snapped. "Isn't she your girlfriend?"
I
rushed over to her apartment. It looked ransacked, drawers were not closed
properly, a lot of items were knocked over, like someone had rushed in and out.
I asked the neighbors, but they hadn't seen anything.
I
stayed up that night, curled up on the couch, trying every number she ever gave
me. I called friends, old contacts, her dance coach, even her stupid dentist.
Nobody had seen her.
I
must've passed out sometime around dawn.
When I
woke up, I still hadn't heard from anyone. And that feeling of dread at the pit
of my stomach hadn't left. That's when the message came. From her number.
Hey
Isabella, let's meet at the Café Latte. 10 a.m.
It
didn't sound like her. She never called me Isabella. It was always Bella, or
any other variation, never Isabella. We have our favorite spots to hang out,
and she had chosen a café way out of town. And there were no emojis, no kisses,
no hearts, no I love you.
A loud
horn drew me back to the present.
The
silence after Luca left made everything feel worse. I just stood there, arms
limp at my sides, heart pounding in my ears.
Something is wrong with my friend.
I
didn't wait. I flagged down the next cab that passed, waving frantically.
"Police station," I said breathlessly.
"Downtown."
The
driver nodded without a word.
As the
city blurred past the windows, I tried to steady my breathing. Who was that
man, and what was Aurora doing with him? I asked myself.
I
tapped my fingers against my thigh the whole ride, biting the inner corner of
my mouth. I wasn't going to sit around waiting. If nobody else believed me,
fine. I was going to do something anyway.
When
we pulled up, I barely waited for the cab to stop before swinging the door open
and rushing inside.
The
front desk officer was an older man, small and hunched behind the counter,
squinting at a stack of forms.
"I
need to file a complaint," I said, breathless.
He
looked up slowly, blinking. "About what?"
I
stepped forward, voice steady now. "My best friend is missing."