Fifteen years later.

Gaby and Nick sat on the sofa, watching the news when their daughter came in. She was becoming so beautiful. She was 18 now and had the looks of a goodness. She had long blonde hair with some curls, but right now it was straightened and went to her hips. Her blue eyes were looking around the room, kind and curious. Her figure resembled of her mother in younger days.

"Mom? Dad?"

Nick turned around.

"What is it honey?"

Ariana sat down opposite from them, looking worried and facing the floor. She looked miserable.

Gaby noticed that, turned of the sound of the TV and straightened up.

"You know you can talk to us, right. But not right now. I really need to get to work."

Ariana didn't believe what she heard her mother say.

"You are self-employed in your little Spanish shop. You could just listen for a second and open your shop later, you know?"

Gaby stood up, stroke the head of her daughter, smiled carefully and went out of the living room. Nick looked at this scene, feeling left out. He knew that his daughter didn't want to talk to him alone. Somehow they never bonded in the same way as Gaby and Ariana did.

It wasn't that obvious, just noticeable when you lived with them for longer.

He didn't know the reason. But he guessed that his mind was to occupied, because whenever he looked at her, he saw Will. And that made him sick. Maybe his daughter sensed that.

"Do you want to talk to me?"

Ariana nodded, stood up and went to him. She lay her head down on his legs, looking up to his face.

"Am I adopted?"

Nick thought he heard her question incorrectly. Why would she ask such thing? Did Will get to her? How did he do that?

Nick thought back to their move. He insisted on moving away from Salem when he met Will on that square a long time ago. Gaby didn't mind. And here 40 miles from Salem, they build their life. Gaby had opened a shop, selling clothes, food and other Spanish things. He worked in a factory, building garden tools. They had a easy going life. Not a very rich one but still. Nick even had been able to sell Rafe the money back. The apartment was sold to some old married couple now. He hadn't been back in Salem for fifteen years now. And he didn't miss it one bit.

"Dad?" The voice of his daughter pulled him from his thoughts. Suddenly Nick stood up and went some steps away from the sofa. He didn't say anything. After a while he found his words.

"Why would you ask such thing?" His voice dropped low, but she understood him anyway.

"Look at me, please." She pleaded. "I don't look anything like you and mom." Nick saw that that had troubled her for a long time now, cause when she spoke he heard the sadness in her voice.

"Look at my hair, my eyes, my skin, my face. I look caucasian, how can that be. I know you are but still. Blonde hair? Blue eyes? I could live with bright brown hair, grey eyes. But this blonde, this blue?"

Nick took a deep breath. Then he heard himself say something.

"You are definitly not adopted. You are your mom's daughter."

Ariana nodded.

"You swear?" Her voice was still shaking.

Nick nodded.

"I swear on your life." He saw his daughter standing up, hugging him and leaving him alone to the silent TV. Some daily soap was on. He didn't care.

Ariana went through the grey hall. It was her first day at college. She didn't know a single face. But that didn't matter. She kind of knew that it wasn't so important to make friends here. None of them lived in her area anyway.

Her father didn't knew she was going here, he would have approved. She tried to make all of it on her own and her father didn't mind. He said it would a good practise for her to be independent. The tuition here was higher than at the other college. So she had to work at a little diner to pay it full.

So far, so good. Everything worked out just as she planned. When she got a car, she was fully happy. Now she could drive the 40 miles by car and her dad wouldn't suspect anything.

Ariana grabbed pulled down her bag and looked inside. She found straight away what she was looking for. She had been given a small paper with her courses on it.

First course was in room 405. She read the plan of the college, and found the way to the room immediately.

She went inside at sat down in on of the first rows. She know that most of the students sat down at the back of the room but she always liked to sit at the front.

Gladly the room filled itself quickly with all sorts of students, so that nearly every place was taken when Ariana heard the bell. Even the places in the front.

At the same time with the bell, a man came into the room. He didn't look around the room, went straight to his desk, put down his bag. Only then he turned around looking over the students.

Ariana saw his blonde hair, his blue eyes. He looked fit, she thought. A guy she could fall for.

"Morning. I am happy to see you all here at a start of a new semester. I am your economics professor," he turned around and wrote with big,curvy letters his name on the blackboard. "I am Mr William Horton."

The room was filled with many voices at the same time, the moment he stopped to speak. Ariana sighed, there was definitely no way she could fall in love with her prof. Though he was hot.

"Sir?" A voice behind her started to talk.

Mr Horton looked at the boy who wanted his attention.

"Are you the gay boy, Sir?"

Mr Horton breathed in. Then he eyes turned cold.

"That is definitely no question I will tolerate in my class, Mr …?"

"Connor."

"I am guessing you are from Salem, Mr Connor?"

"That's right."

"Well then, I guess you can tell us about the import and export taxes in the European Union." His voice was called, and demanding. Some small laughters filled the room.

Of course, he couldn't. Ariana shook her head. Mr Horton recognized that.

"Who are you?"

"A … Grace Fallon."

She didn't know why she said this name. It was her second name and she hardly ever used it before. Maybe she felt that a new school would require a new name.

Mr Horton stumbled a second over her name. She saw his eyes widening but he caught himself quickly.

"I understand you know the answer?"
Ariana thought a moment and that answered the question. Obviously she had said the right answer. Mr Horton nodded, murmured something like 'Well done.' and went back to the blackboard.

The next months Ariana had learned to love the economics lessons. She respected Mr Horton and he asked her all the question nobody else could answer. And all of them were more or less perfect. Ariana found economics easy, it made all sense to her.

Her parents were proud of the grades she brought home, though she just showed them essays with grades, not anything report-like, because the name of the school would be visible. She still hadn't told them that she was going to Salem U. But she knew that they would want to see the report which was coming up. A report showing all grades over the semester. But Ariana already had a plan.