16

~Darlina's POV~

On Sunday I woke up a little bit later than usual, though still early enough that I could definitely get ready in time for dinner with my friends at six thirty PM. I had seven hours to kill until then, which was plenty enough for me.

I took a quick shower and then put on some makeup, being careful to apply my lashes when I was nearly done. Getting eyelash glue on my eyelid is something I have always found incredibly irritating. Thankfully, I managed to put them on without any problems and stood from my small vanity, entering my closet to pick out something to wear.

After a few moments I pulled on a white, cropped tank top with lace around the hem of the neckline. I paired it with a white skirt that had a ruched waistline and small red flowers on it, a pair of plain socks covering my feet for the time being. I didn't like walking around with no socks on, even if I was at home.

With a few quick spritz of my favorite perfume, I happily exited my room and made my way down the hall with a pep in my step. Although I knew Atlas had only checked on me yesterday likely for the sake of Emmett, I still felt a little bit glad that he had asked. Realistically, he could've just let Emmett ask me himself when he got home from work, but instead Atlas had come to make sure himself. I tried not to think too much of it or get my hopes up, though. It was nice, but it didn't change anything.

To my surprise, Atlas was already awake and sitting by himself on the couch when I entered the living room. I raised my brows in surprise and he looked up from his phone at my entrance, scanning his eyes down the length of my figure until I nervously cleared my throat, a bit flustered that he was looking at me.

"You're up earlier than usual." I remarked quietly as I leaned against the unoccupied couch. He looked back down at his phone and nodded disinterestedly. "Yeah." He muttered, shifting slightly so his thighs were spread a bit and his left arm was thrown over the back of the couch. A heat crept up my neck as I tried not to stare, instead looking down at the floor awkwardly. Why was he so handsome, and why did I find such simple actions so attractive?

"Do you want me to make you anything for breakfast?" I asked after a moment, finally having gathered the courage to look at him when I spoke. He hummed and didn't even bother to glance up from his phone screen. However, I was slightly glad for that because I was flustered whenever he'd look at me so directly.

Finally, Atlas stopped scrolling his thumb down the screen of his phone. "Maybe one of those egg sandwiches you made before." He responded hesitantly.

Despite the fact that he refused to look at me, I beamed. "Oh, those." I nodded and tucked a strand of my hair back. "You like them?" I asked, feeling a little flattered when he gave a very slight nod of his head. Though it wasn't a full on compliment, it was certainly the first time I had seen him admit that he liked something that I had made and that made me happy. It wasn't like I often got complimented on my cooking considering my other roommate is a chef.

"Okay." I chirped, pushing away from the couch I was leaned against. "I can do that, then. Do you want just one or two?" I asked. My eyes lingered on him still, so I caught when he hesitated. "Two." He decided. "Gimme two."

I silently nodded and headed into the kitchen to make the egg sandwiches that he apparently liked, making sure to make them the same way that I had last time. After I made two for him I made one for myself and then grabbed some fruit, carrying the two plates into the living room.

Though he didn't thank me when I handed him his, I didn't mind much and instead sat down on the opposite couch, knowing by now that he didn't seem to like being very close to me.

We ate breakfast together in silence and, for once, I didn't feel so troubled by it.

**

"Sit down already," Emmett griped at Atlas as he and I sat across from one another, whereas Atlas was standing outside of the restaurant booth like he couldn't bring himself to sit. Only the three of us were here so far, and were left to wait for Avani, Wren, and Remi.

Atlas spared Em a brief glance and then looked away, uncaring. "Why? Nobody is even here." He grunted, crossing his arms over his chest with a slightly annoyed look on his face. It was rather clear that he was uncomfortable with being here, even if nobody had arrived yet except us.

Emmett huffed and rolled his eyes with a shake of his head, shooting me a glance of exasperation that caused me to giggle. I just shrugged my shoulders, sipping on my water. "Yeah, and if you keep standing around trying to glare holes into anyone who looks at us, nobody will be." Em scolded, only making me grin slightly as I peeked up at Atlas, who was now watching me. My smile faded and I shifted nervously, a flush creeping up my neck.

"Fine." He grunted, reluctantly scooting into the booth so he was sitting beside me. I fidgeted in my spot and tried to slide away a bit to give him space, but there wasn't very far that I could go seeing as Em was sitting on my other side.

Only about ten minutes passed before Wren, Avani and Remi entered, joining us at the table once they spotted where we were. Atlas scooted even closer when Wren plopped down beside him, her bright green eyes raking over his rugged appearance, and I noticed the slight scowl on his face. His thigh bumped against mine and I looked up at him, nervously tapping my fingers against my bare leg.

"Li!" Remi cheered, a surprised yelp leaving me when Remi's arms wrapped around my neck from behind, one hand rustling my hair. "Remi!" I exclaimed, trying to escape. He laughed and let me go, gently brushing down the wild hair atop my head. I looked over my shoulder at him and frowned. "You know I hate when you do that." I told him with a huff, but he just grinned. His brown eyes flicked to my left, where Atlas sat, and he tilted his head curiously.

"Who's this?" He asked, glancing towards Em as Avani slid into the booth with a grin on her lips. "You must be Atlas." Avani chirped, brushing a strand of her dark hair back. The man in question just gave a curt nod, not looking very thrilled about being the center of their attention. "Yeah." He said gruffly, and left it at that.

"Atlas?" Remi cocked his head to the side, and Wren rolled her eyes. "Will you sit your ass down, Rem?" She practically demanded, raising an eyebrow at him. He gave her a dirty look and sat down beside Avani, leaning forward against the table. "You're Li and Em's new roommate, right?" Remi asked Atlas, who just eyed him for a second before giving yet another nod. I crossed one leg over the other and gently nudged Emmett with my elbow. "He's...not much of a talker." Emmett supplied for them at Atlas' lack of an answer.

Thankfully, they all seemed more than understanding and didn't try to pressure Atlas into speaking. We all looked through the menu for a while to decide what we wanted to eat and ordered before Avani spoke, her eyes flicking over to me as she closed her menu. "How's work been?" She asked me and I beamed. "Great. Although Diya's been apparently dealing with some stuff, so I have a bit more on my plate than usual." I answered, my leg absentmindedly bouncing.

"I'm doing good at work too." Emmett grumbled, causing me to smile in amusement. Avani waved a hand dismissively, a disinterested look on her face that made Wren snort. "You might be a chef, but let's be real, Li's got a better job." She said with an unapologetic shrug.

Beside me, Atlas shifted slightly in attempt to get more comfortable and spread a leg towards me. The man seemed to default to man spreading when he would sit, as if any other sitting position was uncomfortable for him. "You okay?" I asked softly, a slight frown on my lips as I peered up at him. He glanced down to meet my gaze and nodded. "Mhm." He hummed, though I wasn't sure how much I believed that. Even so, I didn't press because it wasn't like he'd admit it to me anyway.

Emmett and Avani were bickering back and forth about whether I had the better job or not still, causing me to raise my eyebrows. "Guys?" I frowned, and Avani snorted at something Emmett had said, sarcastically. "You wish. My mama could out-cook you." She said, causing me to blink. What on earth had I somehow missed within the span of a minute?

"Just ignore them, Li." Remi snorted, taking a long gulp of his drink. "You know how they are." He added after letting out a burp that made me scrunch my nose up. "That's nasty." I told him with a shake of my head.

Sometimes I found it hard to believe that Remi was older than me by two years, what with how much of a teenage boy he acted like at some moments.

Wren, on the other hand, was probably both the most mature and most reserved among my small group of friends. She was very kind but didn't often talk unless she was being spoken to. That was just how she'd always been, so I wasn't very surprised when I glanced her way and saw she was playing a game on her phone.

Suddenly our food arrived and I perked up as mine was pushed in front of me from across the table, my stomach rumbling. It must've been louder than I thought because Atlas looked at me as if he'd heard the sound, an eyebrow raised while I flushed pink from embarrassment.

"Sorry." I whispered, peeking up at him. I could've sworn I saw the slightest hint of a smile on his lips, but he looked away before I could be sure.