Delphine and Dorian were surprised by Helena's remark.
They immediately understood what she suspected, especially after Delphine had been away for the whole night.
A chuckle came out of Delphine's mouth, and between bites she replied "Mum, it's like that every summer, we always hang out together".
Her mother, with a wink of understanding, said "True, but usually when you sleep away from home you tell me first".
"Mom, stop it!" Delphine interjected, still in an amused tone but visibly embarrassed.
"What's the matter? I didn't say anything false" she retorted and looked at her and then at Dorian.
Meanwhile, Dorian was smirked and didn't say anything, aware that Delphine's mother believed that there was something more than a friendship between them.
She usually minded her own business and when she asked for something it was just because she wanted confirmation, because she was already sure of what she was saying.
But this time she was wrong and both best friends were amused by that suspicion.
Indeed, Helena, Delphine's mother, was surprised by the behaviour of Delphine towards Dorian in those recent days and certainly suspected that their long friendship became romantic.
Eventually, she decided to change the topic, but she didn't change her mind about the situation even if both of them denied.
Their lunch continued uneventfully as always, even though a slight sense of awkwardness and embarrassment lingered in the air.
But in those moments, things seemed to return to their normality and Delphine finally felt a sense of calm.
Dorian was right there with her and their friendship didn't change and her mother believed that she hanged out with him when she was with Ethan.
After lunch Delphine and Dorian decided to spend some time together, waiting for the sun to cool down a bit before going out.
At that hour the sun was scorching and sunstroke was assured.
They went to Delphine's room and she quickly picked up the remote and started scrolling through a catalog of movies on the TV she had in her room.
Dorian made himself comfortable on Delphine's bed, waiting for the movie choice.
The only sounds that could be heard outside were those of the cicadas in the trees and of the women who washed the dishes and the glasses with their window open after lunch.
The movie started and the two best friends, sitting comfortably on the bed, began to watch it as they usually did when they were at Delphine's house.
Less than 20 minutes into the movie, Delphine involuntarily fell asleep next to Dorian.
A few minutes later Delphine's phone, which she had placed on the nightstand next to the bed, vibrated and the screen lit up.
Dorian didn't really want to peek and didn't know whether to wake Delphine up, because maybe it was something important and she had to reply.
"Fine, I'll check who it is and if it's important I'll tell her" he thought to himself and he slowly reached for the phone, trying not to make any sound that would wake Delphine up.
To his surprise, he read the message on the screen.
"We can meet this afternoon if you have no plans, let me know" the message read.
The name on the screen was unfamiliar to him: Ethan.
No "Ethan" was among their mutual acquaintances and Delphine had never told him about him.
Who was he?
Suddenly he realized.
"I bet he's the guy from the party..." he almost thought aloud.
On one hand, that realization hurt him and on the other it didn't surprise him because it was exactly what he suspected.
"So it's him she's going out with and he's the cause of our argument" he thought, this time almost irritated.
For a moment he had considered waking Delphine up and telling her that the phone had vibrated, obviously hiding from her the fact that he had peeked, and see what she would do.
But then he changed his mind, and even though he was irritated by her discovery he decided to act as if nothing had happened.
Delphine's nap didn't last long and when she woke up they finished watching the movie.
Then, they went out on Dorian's motorcycle.
At that time the sun was less hot and it was possible to go to the beach.
When Delphine went out with Dorian in the summer, she always wore her bathing suit under her clothes.
After a few minutes they arrived on the beach and almost immediately jumped into the water.
Laughter filled the air as they playfully joked and drenched each other with cascades of water, as if they were still kids.
"Now summer truly begins" remarked Dorian as he scooped Delphine into his arms and playfully tossed her into the water.
Delphine, laughing with amusement, clung to his back, attempting to pull him underwater with her.
Then she wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him, saying "how I've missed all of this".
Dorian hugged her back and they stayed like that for a few minutes before Dorian started splashing water on her again.
Emerging from the refreshing embrace of the sea, they made their way back to the spot on the beach where they had left their clothes.
Delphine quickly retrieved her phone and squinted as she attempted to read the screen, but the sun made it difficult.
"Is everything ok?" asked Dorian, who had already understood that Delphine had just read Ethan's message.
In fact, the expression on her face immediately switched and she looked more serious.
Delphine just nodded as she typed into the phone with a serious expression.
"Who is that?" he asked, pretending to be curious.
"Are you jealous?" Delphine asked back with a smile and an ironic tone.
Dorian didn't answer but made an amused grimace and finished dressing up.
Then he put on his sunglasses.
"Do you want us to go to the boat?" he asked as naturally as possible.
"Yes, why not?" Delphine answered immediately.
"This is weird, I thought she would say no to go hang out with her boyfriend" he thought.
The rest of the afternoon proceeded normally and Dorian couldn't stop thinking about when she would meet that guy again without his knowledge.
What if he was dangerous? He didn't look very friendly at the party.
And why didn't she tell him anything about him? After all, they were best friends and she had nothing to be ashamed of.
The light evening wind ruffled their hair on the motorcycle as they rode back to Delphine's house.
Now, Dorian was sure that she wouldn't meet that mysterious guy on that same day.
Arriving near Delphine's house, she got off the motorcycle and gave him a kiss on the cheek, saying "See you tomorrow".
It was at that moment that Delphine hesitated and, when she saw that Dorian was further and further on his motorcycle, she changed direction and headed towards the wood which was located a few minutes' walk from the inhabited area in which her house was situated.
It was there that she had decided to meet Ethan while she was with Dorian, so that he wouldn't suspect a thing and she wouldn't need to postpone their meeting.
Delphine was scared to walk there alone at night, but she knew Ethan was waiting for her.
The path stretched before her, shrouded in shadows, illuminated only by the delicate glow of scattered street lamps and the gentle radiance of the moon above.
Each step she took echoed softly in the stillness of the night.
The amber glow of the street lamps cast a warm, intimate aura, their light weaving a delicate contrast against the darkness that enveloped the surroundings.
Entering the wood, Delphine found herself immersed in a realm where moonlight filtered through the thick foliage.
Shadows danced and swayed, giving an air of mystery to the ancient trees that stood tall and proud.
The nocturnal creatures stirred, their sounds echoing through the silence.
She started her way through the woods, waiting to see or hear from Ethan.
After a few minutes she found him.
"You did it!" he said, smiling at her.
"Sorry for making you come so late, I couldn't do otherwise without them suspecting" she justified herself.
"Don't worry, the fact that you came is the only important thing" he replied, reassuring her.
Delphine smiled at him and looked at his beauty under the moonlight.
His features were breathtaking.
They walked through the woods for a while, looking for a place where it was possible to sit.
"You know, I never come into the woods at night" Delphine said to break the ice again.
"You know, it's the second time I've been in a wood in my entire life" Ethan chuckled.
"And are you not afraid of being here at night?" Delphine asked him, continuing to look at him.
"No, there are other things to fear" answered Dorian, this time with a serious voice tone.
Delphine just looked at him, as if she expected him to continue the sentence, but he didn't.
"Let's stop here" he said.
Delphine was thrilled that in that moment she would discover more about the world to which they both belonged.
She had been thinking about that meeting all afternoon, even though Dorian didn't notice anything.
She had so many questions and she couldn't wait to ask all of them if they had enough time.
"I know it's not the ideal time and place for this, but I asked you to meet today because I wanted to talk to you a little about the history of Atlantis" Ethan said.
"Sure, it sounds great" Delphine quickly responded.
Ethan sat down and motioned for her to sit next to him.
"You can't understand what's happening in Atlantis right now if you don't know what happened in the past, right?" he asked, almost rhetorically.
"Yes, of course" Delphine replied without hesitation.
After a few moments she asked "Wait, what's going on? You look worried."
Ethan sighed.