[As you sit only someone peacefully on the porch, you can swear you see a ghostly figure in the distance. She's short with large, curly hair, and a scarf wrapped around her shoulders. It's none other than Mrs. Torres, but... who's that behind her?]
[When she notices you, she turns to the second figure, gesturing them to stay. When the other obliges, she flies right for you, truly smiling for the first time in months. She's so excited, she almost forgets you can't hear her talk, but with little to dampen her enthusiasm, she pulls out her notebook.]
["Mark!! How is your day?"]
[Mark trudges tiredly out of his car. He looks exhausted. His hair is a bit messy, his eyes are hallow, his skin is pale. But, hey... at least he was accepted by some colleges. He'll be rid of this soon. Right?]
[If only he could leave.]
[He stops, flinching at the ghost that approaches quickly, hand absentmindedly gripping the strap of his messenger bag.]
"Oh," [he mutters, blinking.] "M... Ma'am. Hi."
[Oops. Another almost-mom. Oh, well, she'd never know the difference.]
[She giggles a bit. As guilty as it makes her feel... she likes when he calls her mom. But she's never going to admit it. Not after last time.]
[She shakes off the thought quickly and moves onto the next line.]
["I have a surprise!!! You have sit down, though!"]
[He blinks, and they aren't sure what to do because, did she mean here? He glances around before sitting right there, on the cold concrete.]
"What's going on?" [he questions with a tilt of his head.]
[She quells her excitement a bit as she flies back off to where she left the other figure. They take much longer to get back, as they seem to be chattering away as they float towards you.]
[The figure seems more than a little disoriented. His whole body's blue, similar to the woman by his side, but even while they float in the air, he's noticably taller. His curls are also much tighter than Camilla's, maybe even more than Cesar's. He's dressed rather plainly, just a simple t-shirt, from what you can see.]
[You recognize him, but it seems he doesn't quite recognize you. At least at first.]
[Mark blinks at the apparition. Now, he's not stupid—they got accepted to four colleges, and not on luck. But there's... no way this is real. He still wasn't even sure Camilla was real at this point.]
[He shakes their head, as if shaking off the confusion, before sitting on the porch with the ghostly presence.]
[No words are exchanged between the three. No words need to be. Mark is in shock. Camilla seems oddly delighted. And Carlos... Well, they hadn't been around him in so long. He wasn't sure how to read him.]
[Carlos... is certainly feeling things. He knows your basic features—the face shape, the eyes, the complexion—but 6 years of this county made even someone as close as his son's best friend seem... more than a little off. Not that he even knows the half of it.]
[After the awkwardness of the silence starts seeping into his skin, he finally offers a hand and a] "Eh... nice to see you again, eh, Mark." [to the younger man. Camilla winces a bit.]
"He cannot hear, mi amor."
"He is deaf?"
[Mark looked between the two, supposedly conversing in passed whispers his warm, living ears couldn't pick up. So they sit, not quite content in knowing only Camilla will relate information, but not quite wanting to do anything and risk making them both feel guilty.]
[So they sit there, hands bunched up in his stiff jeans, before they murmur,] "Can we go inside? It's, like... a-almost freezing."













