Sex & Drugs

Chapter 5.2 - Atlas

Augustus was the first to spot me as I entered the room. "Hey, come and have something to eat," he urged, his eyes reflecting genuine worry.

I shuffled over to him, taking a seat at the table. "I was planning to. Are there any specific tasks for today?" I inquired, trying to deflect the attention away from myself.

"First, eat something," Wendy insisted, her tone almost forceful as she placed a pancake onto my plate. "Don't get too drunk later on an empty stomach."

"Who's getting drunk?" Lady's presence suddenly eclipsed the room as she descended the stairs, an imposing figure that commanded everyone's respect.

They all rose to their feet in unison, offering her a respectful bow, a show of deference that I intentionally withheld. As per her prior instructions, I remained seated.

"No one," I replied calmly as she took the seat beside me. Augustus and Wendy resumed their seats, but an air of tension settled over us like a suffocating shroud.

"Start eating," Lady ordered, her gaze boring into me with an intensity that sent a shiver down my spine. "Then we can discuss your... activities over the past week."

Reluctantly, I took a bite of the pancake, but almost instantly, a strange nausea clawed at my insides. It wasn't certain that I would actually vomit, but the queasy feeling seemed likely to linger.

"I feel like I'm going to be sick," I admitted, pushing the pancake away.

"Atlas—" Augustus began, concern etched on his face.

"Augustus, be quiet," Lady snapped, her impatience cutting through the room's thick atmosphere. "Atlas, I'm not satisfied with your performance over these past few weeks."

Huh... I thought to myself, annoyed. I turned on her switch by not eating...

"My success rate has been a consistent one hundred percent," I replied, putting down my fork, my voice betraying none of the anxiety that was deeply rooted in me. "I can't think of any reason for your dissatisfaction."

"Come with me," Lady said abruptly, her expression darkening further with a deep frown. "You said you're not hungry, right?"

"Lady!" Wendy's concern seemed misplaced but still genuine. "He hasn't eaten anything yet."

"It doesn't matter if he's not willing," Lady replied with a sneer, turning her gaze to me, her eyes piercing and filled with shadows. "Isn't that right, Atlas? Come with me."

"Very well."

"Atlas!" Augustus tightened his grip on my hand, preventing me from moving, his voice laced with desperation. "He should eat something. Serena, this is utter nonsense!"

"That single bite should suffice for the morning," Lady retorted, her eyes locked onto Augustus, who seemed to fade into the shadowy background of the room. "Provided, of course, he intends to have a normal day rather than plunging further into his little games."

"Serena!"

"Enough!" Lady seized my other hand, her grip firm and unyielding, pulling me toward her.

"Augustus, you're only complicating matters," Wendy sighed, getting up and leading Augustus away. "Lady, if possible, I want to have a talk with you later."

Lady nodded, seemingly content now that Augustus was no longer resisting. Her satisfaction cast a haunting pallor over her otherwise resolute features. She then ushered me into her office, which lay at the end of the hallway.

"Idiot," Lady muttered under her breath once we were inside her office. The word dripped with contempt, mirroring her thoughts regarding Augustus, and perhaps me as well. But I paid little heed, for I knew she was referring to him, and perhaps me as well. "Now, Atlas..."

She took a seat on her desk, and I stood there, not moving an inch.

"Yes?"

I really wasn't in the mood to get lectured like a teenager again...

"You really have no idea why I want to speak with you?"

"I do," I replied, offering a slight smile, though the shadows in my eyes betrayed the darkness within. "I just don't see how it's any of your concern. As far as I'm aware, my performance within the group has been commendable, without any complaints."

"Is it that you simply wish to revert to how things were before?" Lady asked, her expression now a swirling tempest of anger and foreboding, darkness dancing in her gaze.

"I was never any different."