*SORRY!!!*
I didn't notice that this chapter wasn't scheduled properly >.<
Here you go . . .
__________________________
I was surprised when I got a message from Reubert the next day.
'I got your number from Nathan.
I'm glad that we were able to meet again, professor.'
It read.
I immediately deleted it.
"Why erase it?" Aahmes asked when he saw it.
"Better get rid of the evidence before the devil finds out."
For the next few days, all was well and quiet.
Aahmes no longer bugged me about Reubert. We just concentrated on work and the blood samples we received regularly, as more and more kids manifested their secondary gender.
It was the last week of March when Blessing called me while at work.
'Hello, Tito Eric?'
"Okay, so what did Nathan do now?" I asked, used to the fact that Blessing only calls me out of the blue whenever her moron of a brother is in trouble.
'Tito, this is different,' she sounded nervous, 'I thinkNathan's missing!'
"Ha?" I placed the test tube I was holding down on the test tube rack.
Aahmes noticed my tone of voice and came closer to listen to our conversation.
'He went home for a bit on Tuesday morning from Gods know where, and stepped right out again. We haven't heard from his since then...'
"Could he be cohabiting with someone?" I asked. "You know how horny that brother of yours is."
'But Tito Eric, he's not answering his phone. He's replying to my text messages, but it's from a different number... then, just a while ago, I finally got through his phone, but someone else answered it for him!'
"Who did?" I asked, feeling worried myself.
'Do you remember his friend Dan from high school?'
"That troublemaker bastard? Wasn't that the asshole who kept getting Nathan into all kinds of mischief?" I snorted. "Don't tell me he's skipping classes just to hang out with his stupid friends again?!"
'I'm not sure, Tito, but I'm really worried about Nathan... Dan said he's too busy to answer his phone, but I can't help but feel that there's something bad going on...'
"What about your father? What did he say?"
'I haven't actually told him yet, Tito... he's been so busy and stressed out with his current case, I don't want him to worry about Nathan as well, especially if it turns out to be nothing serious...'
"Well, most probably, it's nothing worth worrying about. You know how Nathan can be. He's probably just on a road trip, or out bar hopping with his old friends. It's a Friday, after all. Let's just wait for him to return your call. I'll give him a talking to as soon as he returns."
'Okay,Tito...'
"Call me as soon as that jerk gets home, okay? That idiot will surely return as soon as he gets hungry or runs out of money."
'Yeah, I guess so,' Blessing replied with a small laugh. 'Thanks, Tito Eric!'
Blessing finally ended the call
I hurriedly looked for Nathan's number and dialed it.
The phone is dead.
I tried it a couple more times to make sure, but none of the calls connected.
"This idiot nephew of mine, he's really one big headache!" I mumble as I placed my phone down.
"Why not try contacting Reubert? He might know where Nathan is," Aahmes suggested.
"And what would Reubert possibly know about the whereabouts of my stupid nephew?"
"You mean, you didn't notice?" Aahmes asked me.
"Notice what?"
"Professor, your nephew has a relationship with his professor."
"Ha?!" I stood up from my seat and stare incredulously at Aahmes.
"Nathan has a relationship with Reubert Go," he repeated.
"That's preposterous! And just how did you come up with something as ridiculous as that?!"
"Did you not notice how they looked at each other?"
"What do you mean? I didn't notice anything!"
"The way your nephew looks away when their eyes meet? The way Reubert's eyes keep straying back at him?"
"Isn't that just Nathan feeling guilty for cutting classes?"
"The way Nathan glared at you whenever Reubert came too close?"
"There was something like that?!"
"And the sarcastic way Nathan told you 'I had no idea my professor looked up to you that much'."
"The moron's just being sarcastic!"
"Really, professor, you are too dense."
"Look who's talking!" I frowned at Aahmes while I dialed Reubert's number from memory.
'Hello? Professor?' Reubert's deep voice came from the other line.
"Reubert, do you know where my idiot nephew is right now?" I asked him.
'Actually, professor, he didn't show up in my class this week... I think perhaps... he's avoiding me...'
"Why? Did that jerk do something stupid again?"
It took a while for Reubert to reply.
'Actually, professor... we're had a bit of a fight...'
"What fight?"
'How do I explain this...' he mumbled.
"Well, whatever it is could wait some other time. We're looking for Nathan, his sister told me they haven't been able to contacted him for three days. Do you have any idea where he could be?"
'He's missing?' I could hear the worry in Reubert voice. 'Since when?'
"Last time he showed up at home was on Tuesday morning. His phone has been off since then. My niece messaged him, and only got replies from an unknown number."
The other line went silent.
'What kind of replies did they receive?' Reubert asked.
"That he's hanging out with his good for nothing friends from high school. But we haven't been able to talk to him directly, and my niece is starting to get anxious.
'Okay, I'll ask his classmates about him... I'll message you as soon as I get word about his whereabouts.'
"Please do," I reply, "it's starting to bother me, too."
"Is everything alright, professor?" Aahmes asked as I turned the phone off.
"Yeah, there's nothing to worry about," I tried to sound calm. "I bet Nathan is just screwing around with his friends somewhere."
"Would you need assistance in finding your nephew?"
"There's no need for that. He's bound to come back, sooner or later... although, he's never been off grid this long before..." I said with a frown. "Anyway, we've still got a lot of work to finish."
Aahmes and I went back to work. But it's hard to concentrate, when your stupid nephew is missing and probably doing idiotic things with his moronic friends in gods know where. It was about 7 PM when I got another call, this time from Louie. I quickly picked it up.
"Hello? Louie? Did you find Nathan?"
'Not yet, but we traced his phone to a nightclub district in San Juan.' Louie answered seriously. 'Good thing it was turned on for a short while.'
"Ha! I knew it! He was just messing around as usual!"
'But, I don't think it's that, Eric,' he told me. 'Blessing said she got to talk to Nathan, she said he didn't sound like himself. She tried to ask him where they were, but Dan took the phone from him and said they were heading out to have fun somewhere.'
"That bastard Dan again?" my nostrils flared. "That Dan is nothing but bad news! Isn't he that politician's son who keeps dragging Nathan to all sorts of trouble? Just why is Nathan hanging out with him again? Where in San Juan are they clubbing?"
'I'm sending you the coordinates right now.' I hear Louie sigh deeply. 'Don't you know some 'uniformed' men? Can you maybe ask them for some help? I think maybe they're going to an illegal omega prostitution ring or something...'
"What the fuck?! Just what the hell has that son of yours gotten himself into this time?!" I rub my face in frustration.
'Anyway, get ready in case I need back-up, I'm currently on my way there with one of Josh's bodyguards. I'll call you again later when we get there.'
"Got it. Keep me updated, I'll see what I can do."
"You know uniformed men?" Aahmes asked after the call.
"Actually, when I was still working on the DOME project, some military men occasionally pick me up from home to take me to the facility. I just told Louie that one of my patients was related to an army general."
"So, who do you plan to call now?"
"Reubert, of course."
I forwarded the coordinates to Reubert who answered his phone as soon as it rang.
'Hello? Professor? Did you find Nathan?'
"I just sent you the coordinates, did you see it?"
`Yes... so, he's in San Juan?'
"Yeah, and according to his sister, Nathan didn't sound like himself when she finally got to talk to him. I'm thinking maybe he's drunk, or worst, they might have drugged him. His high school friends were scum, after all."
'Actually, I also got a call from Nathan's phone just now,' said Reubert. 'It was some person I don't know. He asked me what my relationship to Nathan was. I told him I was his professor, then he started saying random crap about him!' Reubert sounded pissed.
"His dad told me he's been going to some club. We might be dealing with an illegal omega sex club."
'A what?!' Now, he sounds angry.
"Anyway," I paused, hesitating for a while, "I know what you're capable of doing. That's why I gave you the coordinates. Can you help us out this once?"
'You don't need to ask me twice, professor,' he replied in a flat tone. 'After all, Nathan is more than just a student to me.'
I couldn't help but smile.
I guess my former student had just found a student of his own to take good care of.
How ironic that it's my idiotic nephew.
"Thank you, and please smack him a bit for me when you see him," I said with a sigh. "Just, don't over do it, okay?"