Atlas

ꜰᴏʀᴛʏ-ɴɪɴᴇ

A smile creeps up on my face, totally betraying me. Hate that I can't stay serious with this man.

"God, I hate you." Atlas slides a hand down his face. "I was about to cry, again."

"Aw, I missed the crying?"

He shakes his head, exhaling deeply. My hand reaches up to his face, my body internally screaming for me to stop moving as it hurts worse than giving birth. To be fair, I had an epidural as I gave birth to Allie, so maybe that doesn't count.

Anyway, I won't lie. For the first minute of me waking up, I had no idea what the hell was going on. When I saw Atlas, my first thought was "What is my boss doing here?" It took me a hot second to remember, though I am still stuck on me running into the building. Everything that happened after that is completely wiped off my mind. Guess my brain loves taking memories from me.

An actual tear slips from the corner of Atlas's eye, temporarily taking away my breath. Truth be told, I didn't think this man could cry. At least I haven't seen that happening even once, and from what his mother has told me, it didn't sound like much could shake him.

I wipe the tear away just before he grabs my hand in his and brings it up to his mouth, kissing my knuckles. "How long was I out for? It hasn't been years, has it?" He shakes his head instantly. But by the heavy weight that I know is weighing on his chest, I know it hasn't just been a day or two.

"Two weeks, Mrs. Storm," a doctor that must have just entered the room answers for Atlas. Then he fills me in on everything that happened during my emergency surgery, how I almost died and that my heart stopped beating like three times that day. All the while this man does some tests on me.

I personally think he should tell me all this after he ran the tests, because how stupid is this? He listens to my heartbeat while my thoughts are somewhere in the deepest depths of the Galaxy because I was way closer to death that I had thought.

Guess my rapid heartbeat it no biggie then.

"Now, Mrs.—" he turns to Atlas "—and Mr. Storm, you cannot leave the hospital for another couple of days. We'd like to monitor you, Mrs. Storm, for a short while still. The shot wound is healing, and looks great for what your body has been through."

Not sure what I had thought happened, but of course I was shot. Like I said, my memory was erased...again. At least this time it wasn't thanks to alcohol.

Wait—if I was shot...and I remember walking inside the building with Allie in my arms then..."Where is Allie?"

Dr. Shirman chuckles, Atlas doesn't, yet both men turn sideways, allowing me a sight towards the crib in this room. The relief is immediate.

"Someone will come check on you every now and then, as so will I every morning and evening until you're all good to go," Dr. Shirman chirps before he says his goodbyes and leaves the room.