"There are a few moments in life that are perfect and surreal; like a beautiful dream you don't want to wake up from, but when you do, you can't seem to remember what it was about. Then there are the terrible moments, absolute nightmares that nothin...
Makenna looked up from the words she was reading on the pages of the book. That was when she noticed the clouds were darker matching the thick wind she'd been feeling.
The unpredictable weather of Tacoma.
She thought it was best to get ready to head back before the weather caught up with her. It looked like it was going to be a heavy downpour.
Just a minute more. Makenna thought as she lifted her face toward the heavens, her lids falling shut as a gust of cold wind blew. Her hair danced away from her face as a small smile touched her lips. She loved the chaotic darkness and the sharp chill that pierced through her skin right to her bones. Her fingertips began to tingle with numbness. Her body tried to decide if it loved the peace in the wind, or hated the prick in the chill.
She opened her eyes after a few deep breaths. Without delaying any longer, she pushed herself up and dusted the sand from her jeans. She bent to pick up the book which dropped. Turning to head back, she immediately stumbled backwards as her heart skipped a beat. The tree bark tripped her and she went falling on her ass.
"Oomph." She groaned as her back hit the ground, and her Airpods fall out of her ears, with her feet over the bark.
She didn't see it, but she heard the rushed crunching of sand beneath the intruder's feet.
"Are you alright?"
The accent did something weird to her but she quickly shut that thought down. She swung her feet off the bark so she could get up.
All thanks to Atlas, she had fallen for the second time.
"Here, let me."
She put her hand out to stop him from reaching for her, "I got it."
Atlas felt bad as he watched her struggle to get up. She brushed off as much sand as she could from her clothes. He stood a few feet away from her, feeling bad about catching her off guard. He hadn't meant to scare her, but he also hadn't been trying to hide the fact that he'd stood there and watched her for a moment.
That sounds wrong. He thought with a frown.
When he'd been close enough and realized who it was, he had been both surprised and curious. The Airpods told him she had no idea he was nearby and he would catch her off guard. But he was the one who was caught off guard when he noticed the barely there smile on her lips. His foot had remained rooted to the ground as he couldn't help but watch her.
Fuck it! He had thought with a sharp exhale,
How can someone be so utterly bitter, yet so achingly beautiful? He thought getting to know someone affected how beautiful they were, or handsome.
He'd been as surprised as she was when she'd turned and seen him. Her reaction wasn't what he'd expected and he'd instantly felt bad. His reaction time was slow but his efforts weren't acknowledged or needed. He should have figured that out earlier. But he hadn't frozen long enough to deliberate his action.
He was dealing with Makenna. His response to her and everything about her should be the opposite of what he was used to doing.
So, rather than voice out the apology on the tip of his tongue, he smiled, "I didn't think anything could frighten you."
The death glare she sent him would have made someone else swallow, but Atlas' smile deepened, and she hated it.
"I wasn't frightened," She picked up her Airpods and looked at him, "I was surprised."
Atlas' gaze was drawn to their location when he felt a drop of rain on his neck, "Nice hideout."
"How did you find this place?"
"It wasn't that hard."
"Well, I'm sure it wouldn't be hard to forget as well." She brushed past him,
Atlas frowned and followed her, "And why would I do something like that?"
Makenna didn't have an answer for that, but she just didn't want him coming back here, "Because there are other amazing places to be."
"Maybe, but this is just as beautiful." Nice choice of words,
It had begun to drizzle as they headed into the grove towards their vehicles.
"Just," She didn't know how to convince him without clueing him on the truth, "What exactly are you doing here anyway?"
"Ah yes," Atlas instantly remembered why he was here. "There's a black mustang that..."
Makenna turned to face him and, thankfully, he reacted quickly this time so they didn't collide.
"Don't say bashed."
"It's your car." Very astute, "You should probably hurry back before..."
Makenna turned and left in a hurry before he could finish his sentence,
"The battery dies." He muttered to himself,
The trees filtered the rain so Makenna and Atlas weren't as drenched as they were supposed to be. Barely even damp.
Makenna stopped and frowned when she saw the car was in the same physical condition she'd left it. Atlas came to a stop behind her.
"I don't see anything wrong."
"You should try giving it a start."
She glanced at him over her shoulder before she got behind the wheel. Clenching her jaw, she slid the key into the ignition and turned it. She closed her eyes when she heard the sputtering sound she was dreading. She looked at Atlas past the wet windshield expecting to see an 'I told you so' smile but there was none in sight.
Atlas leaned against a tress, one leg crossed over the other, hands in his jacket. He caught her gaze through the blurry windshield as she tried again. Having learnt his lesson, he stayed where he was rather than go offer some help.
Makenna tried a few more times before she gave up and exited the car. She inhaled and let out a sigh as she braced herself for what she was about to do. She looked at Atlas from the open driver's door.
"Are you going to help?"
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I'm so excited to let you all know that I'm currently about to start working on the Epilogue for Broken. (Yay!) I'm not going to tell you how many chapters you have left in store but I just wanted to update you on the progress of my writing.
If you've been following my stories for a while, then you know I usually don't take a break between stories. Except maybe to work on a few chapters of my next story before I begin posting them. I'm hoping to complete the Epilogue this month so that I can start preparing for what I have in store for you.
I am very grateful for and to every single one of you for reading my story. I really look forward to seeing more of your reactions in the comment section.
