Chapter 1209: Fly like an angel I am

"You’re losing your mind," Atlas breathed through gritted teeth, seated in the co-pilot seat while the pilots were knocked unconscious and were now lying by the shut door. She had used them as a doorstopper. "Do you even know how to pilot an aircraft?"

Penny rolled her eyes and cast him a disgusted look. "That’s the point! If I knew how to pilot this thing, why would I even take the job? It won’t be scary for you, then."

"Are you insane?!" Horrified, Atlas felt his breathing hitch. "You’re going to kill everyone on this plane, Penelope! It’s not just your life at stake, but everyone’s—including the cabin crew, these pilots you knocked out, your brothers, your husband, and even Allen and Benjamin!"

"So?" Penny remained indifferent, casually putting on her headphones. "What if we’re all going to die? There’s a high chance I’d get reborn again!"

She chuckled and gave him a knowing look. "At least, when I get reborn, I won’t have these lingering feelings of hatred. We’re even." A smirk appeared on her face as she turned her attention to the countless buttons before her.

"Wow. This makes my hands tingle!" she clapped excitedly, rubbing her hands together as she searched for which button to press first. But just as she reached out, Atlas grabbed her arm. "Huh?"

"Don’t... touch anything," he said through gritted teeth. "Penelope Bennet, this is not a joke."

"You think I’m joking?"

"Penny."

Penny adjusted her seat, her body twisting to face him. "First Brother, are you scared?"

"Scared?" he repeated. "There are lives here, Penny."

"But you believe in rebirth, don’t you? If this aircraft crashes, it’s likely we’ll all just wake up as babies again."

"There’s no certainty in that."

Penny blinked and rocked her head. "True, but I also wasn’t certain I’d get to live again, but I did. Don’t you want to test our luck in this lifetime?"

This time, Atlas didn’t respond. He just stared at her sternly, holding her arm as tightly as he could. Whatever was going on in her mind, he had no idea—but he felt it wasn’t good. She was serious.

She wanted to pilot this aircraft, carrying many lives, just because... she was drunk.

"Penny, let’s talk," he whispered, his voice growing milder. "But not like this."

"And since when can we talk on your terms?" she returned, tilting her head to the side. "Those were the words you often say to me, Atlas."

She pulled her arm away from his grip forcibly, scoffing. "Wear those headphones. You’ll hear me better if you do."

"Penny."

"Do you want to talk?" she spat back calmly. "I don’t want to repeat myself, and I’m sure you don’t want to repeat yourself either. Wear them."

Silence fell between them, and eventually, Atlas gave in. He picked up the headphones and put them on, keeping his eyes on Penny.

"What are those buttons you just pressed?" he asked, only to see her shrug.

"I don’t know. They look fun—see?" Penny flipped a switch a couple of times, almost giving him a heart attack.

"Stop that—" he forced out a breath, his hands raised. "Please. Don’t touch anything here."

"But if I stop, we might crash, right? I mean, the pilots are here for a reason. And seeing there are so many buttons here, I’m quite sure they have to flip the switches every once in a while."

"Just stop!" His voice rose in distress. "Stop that now, Penny."

Her lips curved down while staring at him. She slowly retrieved her hand, but then she reached out and pressed another button. Seeing this, Atlas held his breath and closed his eyes.

"Pfft—" she laughed, keeping her mouth closed to muffle it.

"This is not funny."

"I am laughing, so it is."

"Penelope."

"Atlas."

"Please."

"Hmm..." Penny hummed a tune, rubbing her chin while studying his face. "Maybe if you jumped out of this plane, I’d reconsider. But even then, I’m not sure. I really want to fly like an angel I am!"

"Do you not care about people’s lives?"

Her brows crinkled as her mouth curved into a more amused smirk. "And why would I?"

"Pen—" Atlas halted to take a deep breath, briefly closing his eyes again. When he reopened them, a glint flickered across them. "Let’s stop this now. If you don’t want to talk, so be it. I’m leaving this place even if I have to crawl."

At this point, Atlas understood that he would never make her stop. Penny was out of control, and in this state, she only listened to herself. Her logic was twisted and illogical. Hence, he knew he needed to ask for help, even if he had to crawl out of there.

She might beat him and knock him out, but he had to try.

With that thought, Atlas tried to unbuckle his slightly intricate seatbelt, not realizing a punch might come flying in his direction. Meanwhile, Penny didn’t do anything. She just sat there, watching him unbuckle his seat.

When he succeeded, Atlas gave her a stern look. He gulped and pushed himself up, grateful that she wasn’t doing anything to stop him. Even so, he didn’t feel secure because she might come up behind him and knock him out. So when Atlas turned his back on her, he stopped and looked back.

Penny was still seated, buckled into her seat. She blinked almost innocently, tilting her head as their eyes met.

Without a word, Atlas peeled his gaze from her and resumed. However, just as he took a step, Penny spoke again.

"Sometimes, I wonder why you care more about other people," her voice was calm, free of the mockery she had earlier. "And yet, to your sister, you’re nothing but cruel."

Slowly, Atlas looked back at her. "I’m doing this for everyone."

"No, you’re doing this for everyone else but me," she returned, eyes ahead. "It’s just like that time. When others make a mistake, you try to fix it. You’re lenient with them, only giving warnings. But I made one—just one—and that is helping you, but I didn’t get the same leniency you had for others. If anything, what I got was a devastating punishment."