Freefall

A Beautiful Start

Waking up had never been quite so peaceful. The room was quiet around her aside from the sound of an espresso machine, complaining at whoever was using it. The smell hit her just after she heard it, and a quiet sigh left her lips at the serenity she felt. Was this what it was like to have a good dream? She hadn't had one of those in a long time- maybe if she just laid there for long enough with her eyes closed, the scene around her would stay as it was. The nightmare wouldn't have to start if whoever the players were didn't know she was aware, right?

That's not really how things ever worked for her, though. It wouldn't make any sense for the rules to change now, so she might as well face whatever her mind concocted for her this time.

Emerald hues opened to find the high ceilings of a familiar hotel room. She felt her brows draw towards one another, face scrunching as she registered the fact that she was covered in a pretty massive comforter, soft and plush and perfect for the freezer that the couch she rested on apparently sat in. Slowly sitting up, she pulled the blanket with her and wrapped it around her shoulders as she finally saw Atlas, sitting in the kitchen. Maybe he felt her eyes on him, because the moment they found him, he turned his own on her. His dark hues lit up upon seeing that she was awake.

"Ev! You gotta help me figure this fucking thing out. I was about to throw it out the window."

"What, the espresso machine? What's there to figure out?" She asked, her voice heavy with the weight of the deepest slumber she could remember being in. She still wasn't really sure if this was a dream or not, but it seemed real enough.

And then images from the night before came to her mind. A hand came up to press gently against where Atlas had bitten into her. There was no wound, really, not like she was expecting. Just a bruise. She was sure that would go away pretty quickly, too.

And then she remembered that she had quite a bit to be embarrassed about. Her cheeks turned red as she recalled how forward she had been with her feelings, how clear her arousal must have been even without the way she fell all over him.

Oh, no. Oh, God. Why was she so stupid? Why did she always have to-

"Very funny, but not everyone is employee of the month every month at a coffee shop. Bet I could load a gun faster than you could."

What was she even supposed to say? How was he acting so normal about everything when she had embarrassed herself like that? Was she supposed to act normal?

What was acting normal?

Stopping her constant stream of questions, she took a breath, deciding to focus on what Atlas was saying instead of whatever happened the night before. She refused to recall any of it any further, until she absolutely had to.

She swallowed hard, "I, um. I don't think I could load a gun at all," she agreed, pulling the blanket just a little tighter around her. Where did her shirt go? She couldn't remember where she sat it down. It couldn't have gone far...

"That'll change," he said with a shrug before continuing, "I don't really expect you to be able to move around too much for a while. Could you, like, tell me what to do with this thing? Seriously, it only makes tiny cups. I was trying to surprise you by filling this thermos Lyn gave me, but I can't get this fuckin' thing to work right."

This was a weird morning.

"You were trying to surprise me?" She squeaked, biting her lip as warmth flooded her chest, butterflies fluttering about in her gut.

"Well, yeah," he said hesitantly, raising a brow, "somethin' wrong with that?"

Shaking her head slowly, she supposed there really wasn't anything wrong with that. It was nice, but she couldn't help but wonder, "I mean, nothing's wrong with it, it's just... Why would you want to?"