Chapter 27

"What was that about?" Vanessa asked Atlas,

"What?" Atlas asked,

"Asking him to surprise you," Vanessa scrunched her face and Makenna smiled, "What if he brings something you don't like,"

"What if he brings something I never thought to order but I end up loving?"

"Ah, so you love taking your chance,"

"Just in some instances," Atlas glanced at Makenna and turned away before she could catch him, but Vanessa and Will did,

"Mac," Will was on a mission to get her to talk, "What do you do for fun?"

"I go to the gym,"

Will looked at Atlas,

"That's why you're always there,"

Vanessa snickered and Makenna glanced from Will to Atlas and back,

"I...we don't...He doesn't even show up anymore,"

That caught Atlas' attention and he looked at her,

"You've been checking on me,"

And Makenna knew she'd thrown herself under the bus,

"You are pretty hard to miss."

Atlas' smile grew as his eyes bore into hers. Makenna quickly shifted her gaze and it landed on Vanessa who had a smile on her face. But the second Vanessa saw the look in Makenna's eyes, her smile dropped and she leaned away from her seat.

"You guys are graduating in a couple of months, how does that feel?"

Makenna took a deep breath grateful to Vanessa for changing the topic. She found it amazing that Vanessa understood her need to be saved.

Will looked at Atlas and back at Vanessa,

"I'll be done sometime in May, maybe June. Atlas' date varies."

"Why is that?" Makenna looked at Atlas,

"My transfer set me back a few months," Atlas looked at her, "But I met with my Dean and tried to get it cut short."

"How short a'we talking?"

"Normally, I'd have an extra six months. But once this term is over, I can get reading materials for all the courses I have left, then sit for the exam when I'm ready."

"So it depends on you," Vanessa said,

Atlas nodded,

"Exactly,"

"That's great," Vanessa smiled,

"It is," Atlas looked at Makenna and smiled,

"Drink's here," Will said as the waiter arrived with a tray,

"Your food's going to be a while longer," The waiter served their drinks leaving Atlas' for last,

They all snickered, including the waiter, as Atlas stared at his drink,

"It's...pink."

Will looked at the waiter with a huge smile on his face,

"Thank you,"

"Try it," Makenna smiled to herself,

Atlas didn't hesitate when he saw the expectant look in Makenna's eyes. He took a sip and actually loved it.

"That is...really good. What is it?"

"It's a pink lady punch."

Atlas smiled,

"Thanks, mate,"

The waiter left them to their conversation.

"You may have just found your signature drink," Will said,

"Just maybe,"

"You know, Will," Makenna started, "A lot of men are afraid a lady's drink will make them feel less...masculine,"

Vanessa's mouth slowly began to drop and humour danced in her eyes.

"You're not one of them, are you?" Makenna finished and Atlas looked at her with pride written on his face,

Will's gaze stayed on Makenna for a moment longer clearly not missing the subtle dare. Without saying anything, he turned towards the waiter,

"Excuse me." He called, "Can I have a pink lady punch?"

Everyone at Doyle's turned to him.

"I'd like it extra pink, please."

The waiter smiled and nodded. Will then turned back to Makenna as if to say: Challenge accepted. Their conversation went on and to Vanessa's delight, their food arrived not too long after.

It didn't take long for Atlas to notice that Makenna wasn't actively talking. She only did when the conversation was directed at her and that was it. He longed to hear her speak more about herself. He wanted to get more pieces to the puzzle that was her and put them together. No detail was too little.

"You both grew up here. Didn't you ever meet before University?"

Makenna and Vanessa looked at each other,

"We've actually talked about this before," Vanessa smiled, "And we might have crossed paths, but Mac isn't very forthcoming with her childhood."

"Did you have a terrible haircut too?" Will frowned,

Makenna smiled, but it was barely there,

"You could say that,"

"I don't think you did,"

Makenna immediately looked at Atlas who had his gaze on her,

"In fact, I loved your hair." His gaze shifted to her hair and he had the urge to run his fingers through it, "I love it now too,"

Makenna was not prepared for him to disclose that he knew she was a redhead. She had so many questions about how he knew. But just as the questions popped up, so did the answers. However, she still wanted to hear them from him. She felt like someone had made a crack in a wall of the dark room she was in and light was finally streaming in. It was uncomfortable but there was not much she could do about it.

Atlas' smile grew as he realized she looked exactly like that Pixar animation. Red hair, green eyes. He had no idea why he hadn't thought of it until now.

"What?"

He shook his head,

"You're not ready,"

"For what?"

"You'll know what when you find out,"

Vanessa laughed and they looked at her to find her looking at Will's phone,

"You were so cute," She looked at Atlas, "Have you seen this?"

Atlas shook his head and Vanessa immediately turned the phone their way. Makenna choked back on her laugh and Atlas laughed,

"You looked like Spock from Star Trek,"

"Thanks, mate," Will said sarcastically with his best British accent,

Vanessa burst out laughing,

"I just googled who that is,"

Makenna sipped on her water, smiling to herself. She enjoyed their company far more than she cared to admit. It was moments like these that almost made her forget those moments that made her who she was.

But it was like the world wanted to get a good laugh as it chose that exact moment to remind her exactly who she was.

For fucks sake.

She thought as she watched the person who'd just walked into Doyle's.

"Mac, do you know who that is?"

Oh, she knew exactly who that was.

"Mac?" Vanessa looked up from her phone at Mac,

Atlas and Will turned to her as well but she was so caught up staring daggers at the person that she was unaware of them. They followed Makenna's gaze to find Victor walking in with a couple of guys. The idiot that had come onto Thea.

Makenna felt her walls come up as Victor narrowed in on them and headed towards their table with a smile. The last time she'd seen him, he'd pushed her buttons and given her tunnel vision.

"Stand down," Atlas muttered only for her ears.

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