álvaro
it's been a week since the last interview with harper reilly, so to be back again at the same time to see whatever guest she's going to bring has made his stomach turn itself inside out for the past 12 hours.
"welcome, álvaro!" she says, shaking his hand as he sits down on the edge of the couch. his nerves are visible now as he bounces his leg up and down rapidly, waiting for harper to introduce his past in front of millions of viewers.
"alright!" she grins, using a booming voice that causes him to cringe. "joining mr. mendoza today is... adam hoell!"
there's clapping even though no one knows who the man is, but alvaro's chest has tightened to the point where it might burst. half of him is ready to vomit in his lap, and another half of him is ready to slam his fist so hard into adam's face that he'll hopefully knock out a few teeth. the brunette wears a button down, yet it doesn't hide the small bruise on his collarbone.
álvaro doesn't do anything but watch adam take his seat at the middle of the sofa. his smile is wide, and he presses his hand in between alvaro's shoulder blades as a greeting.
he turns to the other man, wants to smack the smile off of his face, but asks, "what are you doing here?"
there is no politeness or kindness behind the question whatsoever, and adam removes his hand and places it in his lap. "i came to see you, since it's been so long. i reached out to harper since you've been... avoiding me, and she invited me on the show. it's great to see you!"
"i wish i could say the same," álvaro replies coolly.
harper clicks her tongue at his side. "why would you say that, álvaro? he says he's been a friend and you haven't made the effort to talk to him. is there something that happened between you two?"
"ever since the fame really started taking its toll, álvaro hasn't made time for his family," adam says, and his expression is sinister, masked by pearly whites. "especially your brother, atília, and my wife, his own sister, micaela. she was devastated without you, especially since her accident."
álvaro's world is collapsing around him. the breath has been punched out of him, and he doesn't know how long he sits there before harper jumps in, interrupting the gasps from the audience. "you have siblings? why did you keep this a secret? why did you leave them behind?"
he takes a sip of water but it's obvious how badly his hands are shaking. "my career is not related to my family. they deserve privacy and not to be hounded by the paparazzi."
"what accident was your sister in?" harper asks.
"she fell," adam says, and at the same time álvaro says, "it wasn't an accident."
"what do you mean that it wasn't, álvaro?"
álvaro watches adam, who is way too smug despite the truth finally coming out. "i have tried to protect my family from this toxicity of l.a. for as long as i can remember. my sister was always taking care of us when we were younger, so when i grew as an actor, it was my turn to take care of her and my brother. i did my best until my sister ending up marrying adam, who ended up being just like our father." he doesn't break his gaze away. "you were violent; more than once, and her little 'fall' was from you pushing her. so did you know that she wanted to divorce you? is that why you took your beatings to the next level?"
adam is so quick to reply over the murmurs of the crowd that it must be rehearsed. "to address your allegations: mine and micaela's relationship is loving, and i don't expect you to understand it, especially after your breakup with that redhead."
"was loving," álvaro spits, and he does his best to cool his temper before he commits murder. "your marriage was loving. it pretty much died the second you laid a hand on her."
"oh, álvaro," adam says, as if consoling a small child. "álvaro, why would you construe such a lie? i know you didn't want us to be together, but to create such false accusations? it's very unfair to actual victims of domestic abuse."
"stop being so fucking immoral," álvaro fires back, and it ignites gasps from a few viewers. "you did what you wanted because you believed yourself to be powerful. you beat my sister into submission and when she gathered the courage to consider divorce, you couldn't take it, so you hit her harder. does that get you off— inflicting pain on others? do you have some tragic backstory to tell everyone so maybe they pity you?" he leans closer, and he's twitching with fury, ignoring the way harper is signaling for security in his peripheral vision. "you can believe whatever you want, adam, but it won't matter. you will lose, and i cannot wait to crush every single bone in your body as you try to tear me down."
the security guards grab ahold of both of their arms to pull them away from each other, and there's indistinct chatter from the entire room, which is deafening, but álvaro still manages to hear adam, who hasn't lost the smirk on his face. "i'm not trying to tear you down. you made the wrong move, mendoza, because now you will be the one to lose."
