Meanwhile...
Silo narrowed his eyes, staring at Lola, who was leaning against the slightly furnished wall of her office. He had already tilted his head in front of her face, but she didn’t react.
"Lola, what the hell are you thinking about?" he asked. "Yesterday, you didn’t know what you were doing. And now, you’re just... deep in thought."
Surprisingly, just when he thought he would be ignored, Lola glanced at him.
"A lot of things, Silo," she muttered. "One of them is thinking of ways to splurge a few hundred million I earned yesterday from playing poker. I’m thinking of buying a... taxi."
"A taxi — wait. You went gambling?" he gasped. Now that she mentioned it, she was wearing a slightly more formal dress than her usual outfit yesterday. His face twisted. "Lola, gambling is bad."
"I know, but I was lucky yesterday." She shrugged, snapping her eyes out the window to the street below. "I’m not planning on pushing my luck any further."
Silo craned his head and then leaned his face closer to hers. "So, how much did you win for you to get so distraught yesterday?"
"Around two hundred."
"Million?"
"Mhm."
"Wo—wow!" he gasped, covering his gaping mouth. "Really?"
She only nodded as an answer.
"What the hell?" His face contorted. "You won that much money, and what? You’re just going to nod like that?"
"Silo, I’m already distressed at how I’m going to spend that money."
"This is a sign that you really made it in life," he clicked his tongue. "If I had this kind of problem, I’d rather be stressed all the time!"
A bit annoyed at Lola’s quiet brag, Silo pushed himself away and strode off. "I’m just going to grab some snacks downstairs. Do you want something to drink?"
He stopped at the open entrance and looked back at her. Lola simply offered him a short smile and shook her head.
"Okay, then!" he shrugged and resumed his steps.
Meanwhile, Lola kept her eyes on him and kept staring at the doorless entrance of the office even after he was gone. The slight smile on her face faded as she diverted her gaze to the window.
"Strange," she whispered. "How would he... what did he mean by that?"
Unlike what she told Silo, Lola had no interest in the winnings she earned from gambling. She almost forgot about them as she had already planned to donate all of them to those who needed that money more than her and Hudson.
What had kept her mentally occupied was her exchange with Atlas this morning in the cemetery.
*
*
*
"This is the type of thing you don’t know, so before you bother me... think about all of this."
For a full minute, Lola and Atlas stared at each other without another word. Thanks to the soft whistle of the wind, the silence didn’t completely conquer them.
Slowly, Atlas looked away from her. She couldn’t read him; she didn’t know what was inside his mind after she had said all of this. However, for her, this was the right thing to do.
But then, he finally spoke.
"So, you don’t know where the father is until now?"
Her brows rose as she studied his side profile while he quietly stared at the grave of her son. Lola pursed her lips and didn’t answer. Her hesitation earned a look from him.
"Well," she cleared her throat. "I was looking for him to get answers... and Amala, my assistant, found a lead. I met him... just yesterday. Technically, he didn’t meet me, or rather, maybe he simply didn’t recognize me."
Just like how everybody else didn’t recognize her.
Again, he didn’t say anything. He just stared at her without giving anything away.
"It’s also why I went to you yesterday," she continued. "I said it was personal, but I guess thinking about this situation with you... it’s necessary."
"You... found him, huh?" He tilted his head, and somehow, there was something different in his tone. She simply couldn’t pinpoint what laced his voice exactly, but she knew there was something in it.
"I hope you get your answers by exploiting your trial period," he said, almost politely. "And I hope I get mine as well."
"Huh?" Deep lines formed on her forehead. "Get yours...? Are you also looking for answers about something?"
"Mhm," he hummed. "But it’ll take time. I’m certain of that."
Lola wanted to ask what kind of answer this man, who seemed to know all, was trying to get. But she decided against it and shook her head. Shifting her attention to her son’s grave, her lips curled up.
It feels liberating, she thought. Now, if he still pursues me, then... I guess... I can try trusting him more?
It wasn’t that she didn’t trust him. In fact, she did trust him. However, there were still so many parts of her that she couldn’t just share. After all, she still left out a few details since she believed there were just side details he shouldn’t bother with.
Just as her lips curled up into a freeing smile, Atlas suddenly spoke.
"Lola Young," he called, making her look at him while he kept his eyes on the graves before them. "Can you handle this affair yourself?"
"You mean that guy Hudson?"
He paused and glanced at her. "Is that his name?"
"I don’t want to call him the father of my children when he didn’t deserve to be," she smiled, and then pressed her lips together and shrugged. "Of course. I can handle him, and everything."
Her mouth broadened at him. "I had the pre-trial, remember?"
"... okay," he nodded at her in understanding. "Then, I’ll take a step back. However..." he paused, scanning her face. "I will put my foot down if necessary."
****
[Present Time]
Another shallow breath escaped Lola as she rested the side of her head on the slightly rough wall. Her arms crossed, fingers tapping her arm.
"Put his foot down when necessary?" She let out a short chuckle. "Why did he have to make it sound like a threat?"
Lola snapped her eyes over the window, catching Silo crossing the street from the other side as he was coming back to the building.
"He didn’t have to," she muttered. "I’ve already made up my mind."
Just as those words rolled out of her tongue, a clap of thunder was heard in the distance. Lifting her gaze to the sky, she noticed that the clouds were gloomy and gray.
"It’s going to rain," she whispered. "Did the twins bring an umbrella?"