Makenna inhaled deeply as she stared at him. There was no way he was standing there inside her house. She was definitely having another nightmare like the one she had the night after their...accidental...kiss.

Yes, sure. Let's go with that.
A tiny part of her scoffed at the use of the word accidental.

No, she was not going crazy and she was going to wake up. Soon.

"Hey."

Makenna's breath quivered as she exhaled.
"Hi."

Why wasn't he attacking her?
She wondered.

"I...uh...came with Thee."

She knew Thea was coming for dinner but she knew nothing about Atlas joining them for dinner.

"I didn't know you were joining us."

"Me neither. It was last minute."

"So, you're real." She said under her breath,

Atlas frowned,
"Pardon?"

"You're...here." Makenna shook her head,

A smile tugged at his lips as he watched her adorable head shake like she was warding off thoughts in her head. He bent his head as he tucked his hands into the pocket of his jeans.

He looked up at her,
"Do you not want me to be?"

Makenna's shoulders sagged as the tension left her body that this might, after all, not be another nightmare.

Shaking her head slowly and continuously, she shrugged,
"I shouldn't have a say in what you do or don't do."

Before, her opinion about him hadn't mattered. But in that moment, he realized that what she thought was starting to matter. That scared him because it seemed like she wanted nothing to do with him.

The feeling of dread took root and he felt it deep within him. It was his wavering hope that soared one second and crashed the next. He was scared of what might come and what might not, which sounded crazy because there was nothing to be scared of.

But knowing that didn't get rid of the dread at the pit of his stomach.

Makenna had the urge to run away like a criminal fleeing when they spot a witness. It was absolutely ridiculous and she'd told herself every single time she'd avoided him at the University.

But knowing that didn't stop her from wanting to flee anyway.

"I guess not." His soft voice reached her,

Who is this girl?
Makenna asked herself,

She wasn't whoever this girl she was acting like and that made her mad herself.

"You can do whatever the heck you want." She proceeded to walk down the hall, towards him, to head to the kitchen but stopped mid-way when Killian showed up behind Atlas,

"What's going on here?"

Atlas calmly looked over his shoulder, not directly at Killian, but in his direction,
"Nothing," He shifted his gaze at Makenna and smiled, "All good."

Atlas turned around and headed back to the living area. Killian watched him leave and turned his attention back to Makenna.

"What was that about?"

"What about?"

"What I walked into?"

"You walked into me walking away."

"Yea, and a lot of tension."

Makenna angled her head at him like he was crazy.

"I thought you two were hitting it off and finally...buddies." Killian had a hard time getting the last part out,

"Just because you have a civil conversation with someone and don't completely hate it doesn't mean you're...buddies."

"Killian," Brianna's voice reached them,

Killian walked backwards,
"That sounds like you enjoyed his company."

"I didn't..." But he was gone before she could say anymore,

Makenna took a deep and calming breath. She looked at the cabinet where the photos were and felt panic rise up in her chest. She didn't like the dance she and her mum had been doing for a few years. She would put all her pictures in the drawer and her mum would put them back up. Now they were out and that's where she'd found Atlas.

She hoped he hadn't seen them but the chance was slim to none.

She headed towards the kitchen and of course, she had to walk through the living area to get there. Atlas was seated with Thea when she turned and saw Makenna.

"Mac." Thea jumped from her seat when she saw her,

"Hey," Makenna smiled when Thea came around to give her a hug,

Atlas sat there and watched both of them still unable to believe what he'd seen not too long ago. It was really hard to picture because he'd only known Makenna to have raven hair. He watched her with his sister and tried to picture her with red hair but it was almost impossible.

"How's work?" Makenna asked when they pulled back,

"It's a lot now that I have full shifts." She sighed, "Which is why I can't wait to get back to my normal routine with classes and training with you."

"Just don't go getting into any fights anytime soon." Joe called from the kitchen,

"Alright," Brianna finished setting the dinner table that stood between the living area and the kitchen, "Let everyone get seated."

Makenna and Thea headed towards the table but Killian pulled out a chair for her on the other side of the table. That left one empty seat beside Makenna that she was going to ignore.

"Atlas, please, take a seat."

"Thank you," Atlas smiled as he waited for Thea, Makenna, and Brianna to sit before he did so.

Joe came in with a plate of salad,
"Final dish that your mum likes me to prepare."

"Yours is the best, honey."

"Thank you, darling," Joe took his seat at the other end of the table with Brianna on the other end,

"Killian, will you say the grace?" Brianna asked,

"Of course," Killian reached for Thea's hands as well as Brianna's,

Oh, crap.
Makenna took her dad's hand and placed her other hand in Atlas' waiting one. She could feel his gaze on her face but she didn't dare look at him.

Immediately their hands touched, she felt the warmth of his hands engulf her hand which appeared small in his. Something settled in the center of her chest and she closed her eyes and held onto every word out of Killian's mouth to focus on anything but.

"Father, we thank you for this food we are about to eat, for providing it, for giving my parents the strength to prepare it and for blessing this home with good company tonight. Amen."

"Amen." Everyone resounded,

"Let's eat." Brianna smiled,

Makenna looked up at Thea to find her grinning at her which made Makenna frown. Her gaze shifted to Killian next to her to find him watching her intently. His gaze dropped down and met hers again. Makenna dropped her gaze to find that her hand was still in Atlas' hand.

She pulled her hand back as normally as she could then placed it on her neck. The short prayer had clearly been long enough for her limb to get comfortable in his hand. She looked up to find Thea and Killian sharing a look and her brother didn't look too happy about it.