I was standing in my kitchen with a conflicted expression on my face. Kris had told me to apologize to Atlas so I came up with an idea to bake him some cupcakes. 'Because who could say no to cupcakes?' However, as I stared at all the ingredients on the counter, I wanted to slap myself really hard.

"How am I going to bake cupcakes when I can't even hold a knife without slashing myself?" I mumbled to myself.

I couldn't cook even if my life depended on it. I had discreetly asked my mom how to apologize to someone in an interesting way. She had answered that food always lures everyone in. Although, she sure did fire a lot of questions but I dodged them all.

My mom had even offered to help me but I just shook my head. She was horrified, to say the least because I'm the worst when it comes to cooking or baking.

'I should have just taken her up on the offer. Now, I regret it.'

Sighing in distress, I stared at my phone that was screening the chocolate cupcake recipe.

I had come back home from my art gallery early to think about how to apologize to Atlas. The only steam I could blow is from people's ears and nose with my fantastic cooking skills. That right there is pretty explanatory.

After three long and agonizing hours of torturous baking, I blew out a breath of relief. I stared at my cupcakes and wanted to bang my head against a wall.

These hours of baking was not easy for someone who's always strayed from actually making something in the kitchen.

It was honestly a mess by the time I was done with everything. I wasted around seven to eight eggs because I couldn't break them properly. The recipe instructed me to put a half teaspoon of vanilla essence but my hand accidentally hit something and ended up making a blunder. The dough I had prepared was full of lumps because I didn't use the sift for all the dry ingredients so I had to make another one. And lastly, since I didn't wait to demould the cupcakes, I removed them immediately before the assigned time.

When it was time to garnish the cupcakes, I had literally insulted the essence of garnishment. I tried making a smiley emoticon on one of the cupcakes but it was all over the place. It looked shabby instead of mouth-watering. But I don't think icing matters much because at the end of the day we'd end up eating it. Right?

"They look so bad," I whined to myself. I heard footsteps approaching and soon saw Bert and my mom standing at the kitchen doorway. "Hey, mom. Hey, Bert."

"They are the..." mom trailed off, pursing her lips.

"Ugliest cupcakes I've ever seen," Bert finished, making disgusted faces at my hard work. "They don't even look like cupcakes. They look more of like a crocodile swimming in the white snow."

"Shut up! They are not half as bad as they look like... maybe. I guess." I frowned and looked at my baked cupcakes. I blinked back the tears of frustration.

"Bert. Stop being so rude to your sister. She's at least tried, right? And trying is the most important step. Can you bake those?" My mom scolded him with a stern and disapproving look.

Bert grunted and entered the kitchen to have a closer inspection of my cupcakes. "I'll taste one." Bert took a bite out of one of my cupcakes and blinked several times. "It's...-"

"Bad I know. I knew it was the worst idea but-"

"-good," Bert mumbled, raising an eyebrow at me.

"What?" I stood there with my mouth wide open. "Are you serious?"

"Aria," my mom spoke and stood beside me. She put a consoling hand on my shoulder and continued, "I think the icing is not too clean. But that doesn't matter. What matters is you've spent hours on this thing just to make it perfect. You never cook and you're baking these just to apologize to someone which is a big deal and that person should know. They should feel lucky. You didn't initiate this when you had to apologize to Kris, me or anyone for that matter, which is saying something."

"Really?" I gave her an uncertain smile.

"Really. And I think you should keep the icing as it is. So that the person will know your efforts." My mom grinned. "Anyway, who is this friend of yours you are apologizing to?"

"Just some random friend," I said, averting my attention and placing them in a box.

Bert left soon after tasting a cupcake, not interested in knowing about my life problems. I could tell that my mom didn't believe my lie because I could never go to the extent of baking for 'some random friend' as I put it.

"Mm-hmm. I see." She gave me a suspicious look. "I'm leaving you off the hook. But for now. Remember, this talk isn't over."

I sighed in relief when she left. "But she's not gonna let it slide so easily, now, is she?" I asked myself. Now I had to take care of the real problem which was yet to be solved.

I had requested Kris earlier to ask Atlas about his address. I had advised her to give him some fake reason and not the real one because that would seem creepy. Not that going to his house unannounced was any less creepy.

-------

"Do I look presentable?" 'God, I am talking a lot to myself these days. But on the other hand, I think it's pretty cool.' "I should shut up before I really go insane."

Quickly placing the cupcake box inside the basket of my bike, I rode towards the Pristine Street where Atlas lives. However, there was a nagging feeling in my chest. I wasn't worried about those cupcakes as much as I was worried about what Atlas would think about me. 'Sheesh!'

Once I reached there, I parked my bike opposite his house. I was stumped to see the massive abode looming in front of me. It was beautiful but it actually intimidated me because I've never come across such an expensive house before. With tentative steps, I crossed the street and stood in front of his home.

My hands were getting all clammy but I rang the doorbell anyway so as to not change my mind and flee. Before the door could even open fully, I exclaimed nervously, "Hey!" I gave him an awkward wave and lifted the box of cupcakes in my other hand

"Aria?" Atlas stood there in front of me with a surprised look. He was wearing sweatpants and a black t-shirt. His hair was unkempt and sort of all over the place but the disheveled look suited him well. "What are you doing here?"

He made way for me to come inside and I took a small step forward. Truth be told, I was really nervous. I would bet my life that he thought I was some creepy stalker. I stopped my panicky rant in my head when I realized that he knew my address as well. Better yet, I hadn't revealed anything about where I live either. 'Yup, he is a creepy stalker, not me.'

"Hey!" I repeated again with a sickening smile. "I-uh-I just uhm," I stuttered and pursed my lips. "I just, you know, um, wanted to," I inhaled a deep breath and mumbled to myself, "God, why is it so hard?"

When I glanced at Atlas, he was wearing an amused smile. I was relieved internally that he wasn't mad at me and rather smiling.

'I can do this, yeah!'

"Yeah? What is it? You wanted to...?" He asked me teasingly.

"Okay. Well here goes nothing. Yeah, I just wanted to apologize about last night and my nonsensical dramatics." I told him everything in one breath. "Here." I held out the box of cupcakes to him.

He looked at it confusedly before sending me the same look. "What is it?"

"Just a small gift. I thought my simple apology alone wouldn't work. So... I made you these-" he opened the box of cupcakes with weird icing and I continued, "-because I feel bad about how I misunderstood you." I was blushing profusely and he looked at me with such tenderness that I almost melted.

"I am not mad at you, Aria. I never was. Because you were right at your place," he spoke softly and I felt like a bad human all over again. Even after my crude behavior, he still thought I was right. "Also, a small apology would have suffice. But, I think these cupcakes make it even better."

He took a bite of it and a huge smile formed on his face. I wrung my hands behind my back and bit my lip in anticipation. I was curiously watching his face to gauge his expression.

"You don't bake, do you?" He questioned and my eyes drooped in hurt. He must have noticed my visage because he added quickly, "No, that's not what I meant. I mean your cupcakes taste really good but your icing says you're not into baking. So I feel special because you made these for me. I am going to say it again, they taste amazing." My eyes sparkled with happiness when I heard those lines. He continued eating with a huge grin on his face when he suddenly asked, "How did you know where I live?"

I bit my tongue and decided to give him a sassy reply. I threw back his response when I had asked him about how he knew my address. "I have my ways." He snorted at my response. "I am sorry," I whispered after a long time.

"What for? I told yo-"

"No, it's not okay. I should have at least waited for your explanation. I just thought that you insulted me by putting that painting up for the auction. But now that I know the reason, I am so mad at my stupidity. So... I am sorry." I finished my rant with a guilty smile.

"You know, I was wrong too. I should have at least asked you whether you were comfortable or not for me to put up your painting," he said grimly.

"No, it would have been useless anyway. I would have said no so it's better that you did it without me knowing about it," I argued with a frown.

"I think it's better if we stop arguing over such a trivial thing. I agree, we were both wrong in our own different ways." He shrugged. He pulled back a few strands of his hair falling in his eyes and my gaze followed his movement creepily. I couldn't help but admit that he looked really good doing that.

"Right."

"You want some?" He asked, offering me the cupcakes.

"I'll pass." I shook my head.

"Fine. More for me. Come on. I'll show you to the living room," he said and we started walking. He paused suddenly outside what I assumed to be was the kitchen. "Just give me a sec," he told me while pointing towards the box and I nodded.

The inside of the house was simple but had a classy and sophisticated edge to it. Casually strolling, I stumbled inside his living room. It's walls were painted, showcasing nature, forest and skies while they were also adorned with picture frames. A few modern art paintings were hanging on the walls as well. An L shaped couch faced the television just above the mantelpiece with a coffee table in the middle. Everything about this room was so beautiful.

'It clearly shows his love for paintings.'

Furrowing my brows, I walked towards the pictures hung on a wall. I was beyond confused when my eyes fell on a few particular ones. Mars's pictures.

"Hey." I jumped up in surprise and turned around to see Atlas standing there, laughing his guts off.

"Not funny," I mumbled, scowling.

"I know but your face," he said, unable to speak out the words and wheezed, making me roll my eyes in annoyance. "So, what were you looking at?" He asked, after taking a long breath.

"These pictures." I waved behind me. "I understand that Mars is your friend but I didn't know you were a fan too." I chuckled and turned around to look at one of the pictures. It was of Mars receiving an award for the album of the year. I glanced over my shoulder to see Atlas turning pale. "Are you okay?" I asked him worriedly and rushed to his side.

"I'm fine." He cleared his throat and continued, "Actually, did I ever um, mention that uh, Mars is my mentor?" He seemed nervous for some reason.

Not thinking about it too much, I ignored it and shook my head in response.

"Well, then yeah. He's not only my good friend but also a mentor. He used to teach me back when I was in L.A. So, I put up his pictures since he's my first inspiration. Because one day, just like him, I'd like to receive those awards too," he explained, scratching the back of his neck.

"Wow. That's such an awesome thing. You know Kris loves Mars. She never misses out on any of his songs and literally waits for his new album. As soon as his albums release in the market, she's the first one to be seen in Target. Wait, that rhymed." I laughed. "Just imagine her happiness because now he's holding a concert in our town too." I said, sounded very excited.

"Oh. Nice. Um, yeah, Mars is gonna crash here at my place before and after the concert." My eyes widened and the wheels inside my head started working on their own accord.

"Can Kris and I meet him? Because he's never revealed his face. I wonder why?" I said, muttering the last part to myself.

Atlas clenched his jaw and I was almost scared because he looked angry just like the day he'd told me off when I asked him about Jenna. "Actually, I don't think he's ready to meet new people. It's his decision to be that way and I wish to respect that."

"Of course. Of course. No problem," I replied, nodding awkwardly.

We both went silent after that. Atlas seemed to be lost in his own thoughts. I took that moment to look around me absent-mindedly. That's when my eyes fell on something and I squinted to look at a small page on the couch. Upon closer inspection, I realized that it was not a page but a picture. It was a polaroid.

I turned to face Atlas to see him in the same position. I reached out for the picture and held it in front of my face.

The photo was of a girl with an easy smile and Atlas had his arm slung over her shoulder. He was not facing the camera because his soft gaze was on the girl. They didn't look identical to be siblings.

The girl had fiery red hair almost like mine but mine is on the verge of being brown. Her eyes were hazel which could be mistaken for brown unlike my dark brown ones. 'Wait! Why am I even comparing myself to this girl?'

I could almost feel my heart breaking if that was even possible. No, I wasn't hurt because of how beautiful she looked. I was hurt because of how Atlas looked at her with so much love and adoration. Like he would make anything possible for her.

"Aria?" I quickly and discreetly tossed back the polaroid on the couch and turned around to see Atlas's eyes widened. "Are you crying?"

"What? No. I am not crying." I touched my cheeks to find out that I was indeed crying. "They're not tears." I even laughed for an effect.

"Then what are they?" He raised an eyebrow.

"They're-they're, um-" I stuttered, sniffling. I've been crying a lot these days. Just one thing and tears would start pooling in my eyes. Maybe I was PMSing.

"Tears?" He provided. "Yes, they are tears. You're a lousy liar, Aria," Atlas said softly, approaching me in slow steps.

I took a step back and bumped into the arm of the couch. I rubbed my hands on my jeans. In a few seconds, Atlas was standing directly in front of me.

I was about to retort with a good comeback but it was stuck in my throat when I felt him wrapping his arms around my shoulders, holding me tightly against his chest.

My body stilled for the first few seconds and I stood there in his arms limply, not knowing what to do. Reluctantly, I hugged him back and rested my cheek on his chest. I could feel his heart racing just like mine.

"It's okay. Do you want to talk about it?" His voice was full of concern as he caressed my hair soothingly.

I shook my head and mumbled, "I don't even know why I am crying."

"Don't worry. It happens." His voice was like a soft violin and I liked it. Very much. I wriggled out of his arms because his touch almost made me cry again but I held back.

"Thank you," I whispered shyly.

"No problem." He beamed and leaned in closer. My eyes widened at our close proximity. With a wildly beating heart, I tightly closed my eyes and felt his lips on my forehead. They were soft and lingered there for some time. I pouted when he leaned back. "That's better."

My cheeks and neck were feeling hot and burning in half embarrassment, half out of his actions. Atlas just chuckled looking at my red face. "I should go. Bye." I waved and quickly scampered towards the main door. I could hear his rich laughter behind me and soon a smile formed on my lips.