walk to town, I had realized that, indeed, I had no idea where I was taking him. I wasn't lost, but I was nearly there.

We were in the small town next to the house. Small shops lined each side of the street. The sunrise hung behind the town like it had been suspended in time. Not a whisper could be heard except for the crashes of the waves against the shore a few feet away. This town looked to be straight out of a movie.

I looked up at Atlas who was taking in the scene around him. When he finally looked down, I smiled. I don't know why it was, but he was... nothing like I've ever felt. He was like a haven... Even if he wasn't my haven, he still made me feel safe.

A small frown made its way to my lips. Not yours...

"What's wrong?" Atlas asked, a frown that matched mine, resting on his face.

I shook my head, shaking myself from my thoughts as well, "Nothing. I just—"

I took a breath and pointed to a small restaurant, "You wanna eat?"

He looked towards the area I was pointing at and nodded, "Yeah, sure."

I made my way towards the restaurant, Atlas following a few feet behind me. When the waitress sat us down at a table by the window showcasing the town to us, I let out a breath, letting my thoughts overtake me.

As I stared at Atlas, I found myself wanting to curl up and hide away from those beautiful eyes. It's as if every time I looked into his eyes, he could see and feel everything it was I was thinking and feeling. It scared me that someone could read me so easily. Usually, I liked it when nobody knew what I was thinking. I liked being able to curl up in the thoughts in my head knowing that no one would know what they were

But now... Now, it was like he was there with me. Looking through every crevice and shelf in my overcrowded head. I hated it, but I love it too.

I loved it because maybe trying something new like this was good. It was like breaking an invisible rule that I had been enforcing on myself for years. It was like a sign that read Authorized Personnel Only was slapped onto my forehead, making it basically impossible for any person to walk through. Any person but Atlas, who seemed to not care about the rules and walls I had put up.

I don't know when it had become alright for me to spill every little thought that came to mind to him. A simple Tell me about home was all it took for me to tell him about my life. I didn't just tell him about my life, I told him about what I liked, my old pets, my parents— everything!

What the fuck was wrong with me?

It was like he had told me that night behind that bar. That night had told me that, in fact, he did know everything it was I was feeling and wanted. He had told me that I looked for a person to love and confide in every person I met. He was right. I was a horrible person for that, right? That was a fucked up thing to want and think. I had people to confide in. I was just being a fucking selfish bitch. I wanted more, like always. I was never satisfied.

I was thrust back into reality when the waitress walked up to our table and asked us if we were ready to order. Atlas told her that he'd have some sort of breakfast sandwich thing and I sat there like an idiot not knowing what I wanted to eat. The waitress sat there through the whole thing and let me finally stutter out my order. I eventually settled on the same thing Atlas was having and asked for four more of that to-go. I couldn't speak to people when I really needed it. I hated myself so much sometimes.

When she was gone, my eyes finally settled back on Atlas. Atlas was slightly leaned on the window on his right. His eyes opened and closed slowly as he watched the sun rise completely into the sky. A small breath left my lips as I watched the beams of sunlight shine onto his face. His skin looked golden and his eyes... His eyes looked like an ethereal color I couldn't find the proper words to describe them with.

Atlas's eyes met mine and I quickly looked away, picking up my phone and acting like there was something more interesting on there. There definitely wasn't.

Atlas let out a sigh and rubbed his hand over his face, not sparing me another glance as he continued to look out the window. My hand slowly lowered onto my lap as I found myself entranced with him again.

I wonder if his home was anything like mine. Did his parents fall in love as mine did? Did they eventually drift apart and not love each other anymore? Did he have siblings like me? Did he have a favorite spot in his house? Did he have friends other than Jude and Dawson? Did he have someone he could talk to unlike me?

"What's your favorite thing in the world?" I found myself asking him. He tilted his head to look at me and I held my breath as his blue eyes focused on my brown ones. He took in a breath and let out a shuddering sigh.

"My nephew, Jace." He said and I smiled, nodding slightly. I realized after a few seconds that he wasn't going to elaborate, so I spoke again.

"Your sister's son?" I guessed.

He nodded, "Yeah, Athena. She's a couple of years older than me."

I nodded, "Do you have any other siblings?"

He smiled softly, "Yeah, two others. An older brother, Jason, and another sister, Selene."

I laughed softly, "Do your parents know that you all are named after mythological gods, Titans, and heroes?"

Atlas's eyebrows rose slightly, "I'm surprised you knew that."

I nodded, clearly proud of myself, "Yeah, I love Greek Mythology. Your sister Athena after the Goddess of Wisdom; Jason after the leader of the Argonauts who lead the search of the Golden Fleece; Selene after the Titan goddess of the moon; And you..."

I stopped, watching his eyes as he looked at me with a new sense of curiosity. Atlas was the Titan who held up the heavens for eternity. I wasn't sure exactly why he was tasked with it, but I knew that it was a form of punishment for him. But without him, the heavens and earth would crash into each other.

"Atlas was the Titan who held up the heavens for eternity..." I said to which he nodded.

"Yeah, Mom has been in love with Greek Mythology for as long as I knew. That's how she and... Dad met." He said, but as he started to talk about his Dad, he became less interested in the topic. I nodded, understanding that he didn't want to talk about that anymore.

"Well, Mom named me because she thought that I'd be some sort of haven or... safe place to either her or someone else. I don't know what she exactly meant by that, but it's not true at all." I said, laughing nervously towards the end.

"I don't think so..." Atlas said after a few beats of silence. I looked up at him, a small frown resting on my lips. He continued, "Maybe you have been, but nobody's told you that you have."

I blinked, trying to understand what it was he had meant. "I guess, but I find that hard to believe."

The corner of his mouth lifted barely more than a quarter-inch, "Is it though?"

I looked away as my cheeks burned red. I ran my hand through my hair, determined to find more about the boy in front of me.

"Tell me about your siblings. Athena... She's the eldest?" I asked, leaning forward slightly. Atlas turned his body towards me, leaning back into the seat as his eyes settled on mine.

"Athena's Mom and Dad's favorite, even if they don't say it. She loved to learn and went to college a year early. She majored in Psychology and Business and a year after she graduated she got married to some... guy. A year after that, she had Jace." He said, simply.

I smiled, tucking my hands under my chin, "Do you have a picture?"

Atlas nodded, pulling his phone out of his pocket. After a few seconds of scrolling through his phone, he turned it around and showed me a picture. Two smiling faces were shown on the screen. The girl who looked to be in her late 20's, was gorgeous. She had the same dark hair Atlas had, but her eyes were brown, unlike Atlas. She looked a lot like the boy in front of me and I knew that they were probably the most similar-looking siblings. I later learned that I was wrong...

The man next to her had brown her, much lighter than hers, and a wide smile on his face. His eyes were brown like hers but looked to be a little green too. A pair of glasses rested on his sharp nose and his pink lips were chapped from the cold they obviously looked to be in. I smiled.

"They're cute," I said and Atlas shrugged. He swiped his screen to the left and a small gasp left my lips.

"That's Jace?" I asked, my eyes glued on the adorable boy on the screen. Atlas laughed, "Yeah,"

"He looks like you," I smiled. He had the same face shape Atlas had and the same milky smooth skin. Although Jace's hair was light like his Dad's and his eyes were brown like his Mom's, everything else of his looked like Atlas.

Atlas laughed, "Yeah, that's what everyone says."

Atlas pulled the phone back and I smiled at the soft smile on Atlas's pink lips. "What about Jason and Selene?"

Atlas rolled his eyes, "Jason's four years older than me and an asshole. He's just like Athena, loves to learn, a Business major like her, and dad's personal favorite. He and Athena are always arguing but in that sibling-rivalry type of way. He's cocky—"

"Like you?" I laughed and he stopped, frowning at me.

"I am not cocky." He rolled his eyes, a small smile making its way to his lips. "Jason takes cocky to a whole new level. He just pisses me off a lot."

I nodded, "Well, what about Selene?"

Atlas smiled, "Selene's tolerable. She's 13 and the best of us, even if Mom and Dad don't acknowledge it. They like to pick on her a lot. Tell her to do better at school, make more friends, think about going into business too."

I nodded, a small frown on my lips. Atlas flipped through his phone again and showed me another picture. "That's Jason and her."

My eyebrows rose, "Wow, they're... beautiful."

Atlas scoffed, "Yeah, they are."

I frowned, "Do you not like your siblings?"

"No, that's not it." He sighed.

I frowned. Atlas had pictures and pictures of his siblings, but I sensed that there was this hate directed to all three of them. It was as if they were really close and they did something to break that bond between them. I considered asking and took a deep breath.

"Well, why do you seem so annoyed by them?" I asked, fiddling with the ring on my index finger as I waited for him to answer.

"I just—" He sighed, rubbing his hand over his face, "I have a perfect family and I just... aren't like them. I don't like being part of a family of people with aspirations and dreams when I don't have any."

"You don't have any aspirations for yourself?" I asked and he shook his head.

"No dreams? Even a simple one?" I asked and he shook his head again, clearly not enjoying the topic, and leaned back and away from me, facing the window again.

Behind him, people were starting to crowd the streets. Tourists, natives, and workers walked up and down the sidewalk trying to reach their destinations.

"Well, I don't have any big hopes and dreams either, but I do have a list of small things I want to do," I said, Atlas looked at me and gave me a confused look.

"It's not what you're talking about exactly, but it's still something. I may not know what I want to do in this world or what I want to be, but I have to start somewhere." I pulled out my phone and scrolled through it, looking for the note entry as I continued to speak.

"It'll help if you do something like that, y'know? Small steps first." I said as I handed him my phone. He sat up and took my phone in his hands. I watched as his ring-clad fingers held my phone in his hand. I don't know if it was normal to admire his fingers like I was doing, but it was hard not to. They were long and thin, but not too thin. They were soft and pale like the moon, but his knuckles were slightly red underneath.

"Make a children's book?" He asked, a small smile stretching his lips.

I nodded, "How hard could it be?"

He laughed as he read the next one, "Create a new color?"

I nodded as I stared into his blue eyes— Did they even count as blue with the way they changed under different lights?

He looked back at my list, "Connect with someone...?

I nodded, "It's stupid, I know. I just—"

He shook his head, "It's not stupid."

I smiled, biting my bottom lip to keep the smile from overtaking my face. He looked back at my list, "Get a tattoo?"

I laughed, "Yeah, I don't have any."

He nodded and read the last one on the list, "Buy a star,"

I nodded, "How cool is that? You'd own a freaking fiery ball of gas!"

He laughed and looked back at the list, "Write a love letter to—"

I let out a gasp and snatched my phone from his hand, my cheeks flaming red. I swallowed my embarrassment, "I forgot that was there,"

Atlas nodded, saying nothing about that list. As we sat there quietly, not exchanging any words, just quick glances, the food finally arrived. I let out a breath of relief and moved to start eating, but the waitress spoke up.

"The sandwiches to-go are upfront. I'll bring them when you're ready." She said. I smiled and Atlas thanked her before she left and we ate in silence.

"Is there anything else on the list?" Atlas aged after a few minutes of silence.

I looked up at him and put my sandwich down. I nodded, "Yeah, loads of things, but I..."

I didn't finish and looked out the window. It's funny how a small memory could trigger so many big emotions. It didn't matter if it was a good or bad memory, it had all the same effect. If he was in it... It always made me feel like I was drowning in thick and dirty grease. He was good to me... But he left.

And when I find myself thinking about him, I start thinking about the other guy. The one who left me unsure if I was worth loving anymore. The one who left me unsure if I was the same girl I was almost two years ago. I hated my brain for this... For always throwing me back into my past.

"Eden?" Atlas asked, leaning forward and reaching his hand out to brush my hair back, but stopping when I squeezed my eyes shut. I took in a wavering breath and as he spoke again I found myself unable to sit there and not cry.

"He's gone..." I whispered, the first tear slipping down my cheek.

"Eden, what— Did I say something?" Atlas asked as I opened my eyes and met his confused ones. I shook my head.

"I'm sorry," I said and dropped my head into my hands, "What the fuck is wrong with me?"

"Hey, hey," Atlas said, getting up and slipping into the booth next to me. He draped his arm over the seat behind me and held my chin between his fingers, lifting my head to look at him. As my eyes met his blue ones, I shook my head, squeezing my eyes shut again.

And every time I closed my eyes, I saw them again. I saw them laughing at me, taunting me, and telling me that it was all my fault. Telling me that everything was because I couldn't keep my stupid mouth shut. If I had stayed quiet, Ethan wouldn't be gone...

I lifted my legs up and dropped my head onto my knees, a small sob leaving my lips. The heartache I had felt those years ago was coming back all over again.

"I miss him," I mumbled into the little dark space I created within myself. I was so scared and so lost. And this was all happening because of that stupid list that he started for me.

A hand rested on my back and a shudder ran through me. I looked up and noticed that Atlas was waiting for me to say something, anything, to tell him that I'd be okay. I didn't know if I could give him that right now.

"I'm sorry I'm so fucked up." I shivered, quickly wiping away my tears with the sleeve of Atlas's hoodie I was wearing. It smelled like him, I noticed.

"You're not fucked up," He said, brushing my hair back and tucking it in behind my ear. I let out a small laugh, rolling my eyes.

"Yeah, that's funny." I said, giggling softly, "I ruined breakfast, didn't I?"

Atlas smiled, "Yeah, you did."

As my eyes met Atlas's again, I found the will to breathe nonexistent. Just one look took my breath away and I wondered if I needed oxygen as long as I kept looking at Atlas. His beautiful eyes reminded me of the sky, the sea, the waves, rain, and a couple of hundred other things.

As we stared at each other, our faces a couple of inches away from the other, my cheeks flamed red. As I moved to look away, I felt his hand wrap around mine, keeping me anchored to his presence, making it impossible to look away. As his face neared mine, I took in a breath.

"Atlas?" I whispered softly, my eyes fluttering close.

"Hmm?" He asked, his other hand softly brushing over my cheek, making my brain turn to mush. I took in a breath and tried to grasp what it was I wanted to say.

"What is this?" I asked. I felt his hand on my cheek falter and the grip on my hand loosen. My eyes fluttered open as I stared into his eyes that were wondering the same thing. He pulled back from me and blinked.

I watched as a few emotions crossed his features: Confusion, fear, anger, and then... blank. I blinked as I waited for him to speak. He shook his head, "Let's get back."

As we boxed our unfinished breakfast and made our way to the front, we hadn't exchanged one word. When we finally picked up the other's food, Atlas paid and I said nothing.

All throughout our walk back home, I thought about saying something to ease the wave of awkwardness that passed over us, but couldn't. Each time, I'd either think about Ethan and him or the inexplicable way Atlas made me feel. So instead, I stayed quiet.

When we finally arrived at the front door, I asked Atlas if he had the key and regretted it instantly.

"Yeah," He answered curtly, making me flinch slightly. As he opened the door, I wondered if I had said something wrong and came up with nothing. Maybe it was like he said, he was going to change. And as Jude said, I should be careful.

-

THANK YOU GUYS FOR 18.5K !! THANK YOU AND I LOVE YOU ALL.

i hope you guys liked this chapter. it was more conversation between eden and atlas and more about atlas's family. also im in love with his whole family LIKE GOD

i hope you guys liked this chapter!! again, thank you so much and sorry ive been getting lazy with the updates. ill try and update more but i doubt it since school is starting in a week. so so sorry, but still, thanks and i love you.