Chapter 238: Don’t You Want To?
Meanwhile...
Willow Town was just like any countryside where, once night fell, everything went quiet—except for the whispers drifting through the fields and the rare houses spread out across wide gaps of land.
"Are there more people in the main town?" Lola looked around the empty road, fields stretching on either side. "I haven’t met anyone since we left the cabin."
"Does that scare you?"
"Not meeting people?" Lola laughed, turning to Atlas. "Do I really look like someone who gets scared just because I don’t run into anyone?"
He gave her a side-eye and nodded.
"If anything, whenever I was out, I used to pray not to bump into someone I knew," she went on, enjoying the quiet stroll—maybe because she’d just woken up from such a long sleep. "So, I started wearing disguises."
She paused, thinking it over. "Yep, that’s how it started, I believe."
He stayed quiet, even when Lola glanced at him.
"Atlas, do you want me to make you a disguise next time?" she offered mischievously.
Atlas cast her a sidelong glance, considering her taste in disguises. "No, thank you."
"It’s not that bad," she muttered. "It’s better than the head mask, don’t you think?"
"I don’t have time."
"But what if someone pulls off your fish-head mask?!" she argued. "Then the disguise is ruined. At least with mine, all I’d need is makeup remover. Water won’t easily take it off."
"I see," he hummed. "So that’s why."
That explained what his children had in their bags earlier when they were fussing over Lola’s face. She’d fallen asleep with makeup still on, after all. It seemed they’d learned from their failed attempts at removing it while she slept.
"That’s why, what?" she pressed.
"Nothing."
Lola pouted a little but let it go. She’d already learned not to push on matters he’d closed off—it was a waste of time and energy.
Silence fell between them, but their steps and pace never wavered. Strangely, it didn’t feel awkward or heavy. If anything, Lola enjoyed it.
"How long until we reach the main town?" She asked, glancing at him again.
"At this pace, around fifteen minutes."
"Not bad." She shrugged.
She said nothing more, simply raising her chin as she walked, letting the night breeze brush her cheeks. Atlas, meanwhile, kept her in the corner of his eye. The longer she stayed quiet, the more this foreign worry crept under his skin.
His mouth opened, but nothing came. He looked at her again before asking,
"What is it?"
"Hmm?" Her brows arched as she looked back at him. "What?"
"You’re smiling."
The lingering smile on her face brightened as she looked away. "Nothing. It’s just... maybe because I haven’t had such a long walk in such a quiet place. It made me realize how much I overlook when my life moves too fast."
"That’s not nothing."
"Well—" she chuckled. "You’re right. It’s not nothing at all."
Lola drew a deep breath, eyes forward, only to hear him say, "Tell me about it."
She hummed, giving him a look. "Are you... trying to keep the conversation going?"
"Yes."
"Haha!" she laughed. "You’re really strange. Sometimes you hate people talking, other times you don’t mind it. But anyway, where do I start?"
Lola thought about the things running through her head during their earlier silence, then smiled.
"I realized I’m kind of ungrateful," she admitted with a chuckle and a shrug. "But don’t get me wrong—I’m not laughing because it’s funny. I’m laughing because I’m silly. My life’s been moving so fast the past five years that I’ve been scrambling for control. And in that struggle, I’ve overlooked things. For example... I overlook the fact that I’m surrounded by good people."
"I have Silo, who always worries about me. Sometimes I take it for granted because he annoys me, but whenever I think about it, I feel guilty, because I know his intentions are good. Then there’s Amala, who does her best to support my ventures," she listed, keeping it short so as not to bore him. "And Haji—that guy always has an opinion about me, but he’d risk his life for me."
"Does he like you?"
"Huh? You mean Haji?" She laughed. "If he liked me, he would’ve hung himself. That guy would rather die than catch feelings for me."
"..."
She raised her pinky as she went on. "Then there’s Chairman Lancaster, who supports me the best he can. Director Sarian and Ida, too. I have good friends, Atlas. Not many, but they’re really good people."
"Hehe." A quiet giggle escaped her. "Walking out of the city really is like hitting pause."
Otherwise, she wouldn’t have thought about these things—not that she didn’t know. She knew she had good people around her, but she hadn’t taken the time to appreciate it. Atlas was right. She needed this short break—a real one, not just a ’day off’ where her mind was still elsewhere.
She smacked her lips, turning to him. "What about you? Do you have friends?"
"I do."
"You do?!"
Atlas paused, turning toward her, only to see the shock on her face. Lola laughed and waved dismissively.
"Sorry, I wasn’t expecting that," she admitted, still laughing. "I was just asking so I could brag about mine. I used to be the biggest loner, so I’m itching for it."
"..." He shook his head but let it go. "Allen is my friend."
"Mr. King?" She blinked. "Who else?"
He stopped briefly, glanced upward, then resumed walking.
"Only him."
Her face twisted, but she couldn’t bring herself to comfort him. They both knew why he had no friends.
"I have my siblings," he added casually. "They’re enough."
Her steps faltered, and she stared at his back.
"Way to rub salt in my wounds," she muttered before skipping forward to catch up. "Well, that’s a worthy brag."
"Is it?"
Her brows lifted as she studied his side profile. "You don’t think so? Having a good relationship with your family... I’m jealous."
"If you are, you’re always welcome to join the family," he answered casually. She was so used to his bluntness by now that she only clicked her tongue—until he added, "Don’t you want to?"