Theo Charming found Atlas at the private area downstairs that had an open roof, and a view of the garden.
He was leaning against the wall, his eyes scanning the garden with a detached expression on them when Theo walked up to him.
"You good?" He asked, after a minute of just looking at Atlas from behind.
Atlas, who had sensed him even before he walked into the area, nodded.
"You're lying," he walked around, and leaned on the railing so he was now facing Atlas. "I gave your girl the phone."
Atlas lashes flickered upwards. "Oh," he only said.
"Yeah, I know you said to give it to her tomorrow, but I thought she needed to familiarise herself with it starting tonight. You know how nosy our people are."
Atlas nodded. "You did good."
"I did?" Theo smiled. "Did you just compliment me? Who are you?"
For the first time in the last hour, Atlas lightened up. His shoulders relaxed, and his icy gait freed up. "Shut up," he whispered loud enough for Theo to hear.
Theo laughed heartily. When his laughter subsided, he shifted his gaze to Atlas again. "Are you worried about the wedding? What's mummy dearest saying?"
Atlas scoffed. "She's not going to have a say. Not this time," he declared.
An expression of doubt crossed Theo's face, but it was gone as soon as Atlas looked at him. "She already does have a say."
"You know what I mean. She always has a say. Only that this time, it's not affecting the outcome of anything. Aveline and I will be married. That bitch will be gone from my family. I promise you that." His jaw tightened in determination.
"Wow, you really despise Faiza now. You would have killed anyone years ago that called her a bitch. Crazy how swiftly things change."
A rush of anger ran through Atlas, as he was forced to recall a memory he thought he had buried beneath the depths of his mind.
His fist tightened, and thin wrinkled lines formed on his forehead. "If anyone else did what she did, I would have killed them. She's lucky she has the protection of mum. I still don't know why." His voice came out icy, and monstrous.
Theo shuddered a little inside. Atlas never showed his anger. No matter how stoic he was as a person, anger wasn't an emotion he physically projected. Until now.
He still didn't fully know Faiza's exact crimes. He doubted Atlas would ever be ready to completely spill them.
"Aveline shouldn't bear the brunt of all of these conspiracies though," he shifted the conversation a little, hoping it would calm Atlas.
It did for a moment, when an image of Aveline trickled into his mind. But then it was right back to square one.
"I don't think she's as innocent as she projects either. She's hiding something. Her past. I can feel it."
Panic shot through Theo's eyes. Mentioning Aveline had not worked. If anything, it was beginning to feel like he had opened a new investigative path.
He reached into his pocket, and pulled out a pack of cigarettes. Taking out two from it, he whistled.
The sound dragged Atlas' gaze back to him.
Atlas chortled. "This isn't very charming of you now, is it?" He teased as he accepted a stick.
"Your nerves–the angry ones, are all fired up. I think you need to relax. Even us Charmings have to be daredevils sometimes," he joked right back, as he pulled out a lighter, and helped Atlas light up his cigarette.
Atlas shrugged his shoulders in acceptance. "Makes sense," he said, and took a drag.
He held it in for as long as he could, before exhaling.
"Hmmm," a sound spilled from the back of his throat.
The first drag was always his best. In that tiny moment, everything felt blissful. Nothing mattered. Not his responsibilities, or his goals. Everything was simply blissful.
"Mama will throw a fit if she sees us smoking," Theo laughed, grateful he had successfully steered Atlas' mind off Aveline's secrets.
"Which is crazy. Look at the family she married into. What was she expecting?" He laughed right back.
Soon, they were making jokes about everything, whilst smoking the burdens away.
A few hours later, a completely calm Atlas returned to his room.
He stopped at the center of the room, and just stared at the bed.
Aveline's covered body, curved on the bed, had obviously fallen asleep. But what caught his eye was the phone glued to her body.
The corner of his lips stretched into a smile he couldn't help.
Bobbing his head, he made his way straight to the bathroom.
As soon as the bathroom door closed, Aveline opened her eyes.
Her heart began to hammer afresh. She had been at peace thinking he wouldn't return to the room that night, and they wouldn't have to share a bed.
Not only had he returned, he was currently taking a shower.
She bit her lips, her entire being in shambles.
"What do I do now? We can't share a bed," she thought.
"Why can't you share a bed? Remember the rules? He won't touch you except for PDA purposes. Don't panic," the other voice in her head replied.
"Yeah, you're right. The rules. He won't touch me. Everything is fine."
She began to do a little breathing exercise. Just as she took one more breath, the shower stopped.
Swiftly, she shut her eyes right before the door opened.
Atlas walked straight to the closet with a towel wrapped around his waist.
Careful not to make a sound, he began searching for something to wear for the night.
Aveline who was laying on her side, found herself peeking at him. She didn't want to, yet couldn't help it.
"He's going to notice you staring, Aveline!" The voices in her head screamed.
She closed her eyes, but it wasn't long before she opened them again.
In that same moment, he had taken off the towel, and was now completely naked.
Before Aveline could help it, she breathed out hard.
Atlas paused in synchronization with her freezing.
He waited for another sound, or movement. But when he heard nothing, he decided his mind was only playing tricks on him.
Still, he turned around to look. In the dimness of the room, he couldn't see much. He couldn't see Aveline peeping with one eye, despite almost being caught.
"Pervert!" The opposing thoughts in her mind screamed.
However, she was too stunned, much too fascinated to close her eyes again.
That hazy one night with him was too much of a blurry memory. There wasn't much she recalled.
She absolutely could not believe that what her one eye was looking at right now, was the same thing that had been inside of her.
"It's huge," she thought. "So huge." Her face began to turn crimson.
"Aveline?"
Her heart dropped, and in a beat, she shut her eyes tightly.