STALEMATE [MAFIA] [MXM] ✓

4: DOWNFALL

Salem and Atlas were happy together, believe it or not. It doesn't seem like it now, what with the way they treat each other-well, mostly the way Atlas treats Salem-but their relationship used to be perfect. Salem has never found someone who felt so right. Who felt like fate.

He still avoids thinking about their relationship, though. The happy memories only make him feel worse about his present life. They only make him miss something he should never have had. Salem tries to look after his mental health, considering the fact that he's already somewhat unstable. He  doesn't want any incidents, he doesn't want to take after his mom.

Salem wants to stay positive. To keep his aloof, easygoing attitude. The best way to do this is to not think about it. To stop that train of thought as quickly as possible, every time it appears.

Still... sometimes, he indulges.

He remembers the first time they met. They ended up partners for a project long forgotten. Salem had introduced himself, because that's the polite thing to do, when;

"Salem?"

Salem had never met this guy in his life, but now that he'd actually been looking at him, he admittedly wasn't... ugly. Messy black hair sweeping into his bright hazel eyes, lean and muscular with bandages on his knuckles for whatever reason. It was kind of distracting, and Salem found himself frozen for a moment.

"Uh, yeah."

"What are you, a witch?"

Salem scrunched his face up, feeling irritated. He had always been aware of the connotations surrounding his name, as well as it's lack of popularity. Still, it's not that crazy. He doesn't understand why that is what people always jump to.

"Maybe." Salem had replied, giving him an unimpressed look. The boy simply raised an eyebrow. "What's your name, then?"

Since he wanted to be all judgy, Salem decided to make sure he had a normal name. He didn't.

"Atlas."

Salem had paused, then given him a disbelieving look. Seriously? And Atlas thinks he has room to talk?

"Really? What are you, a map?" Salem replied, eyebrows raised.

Atlas narrowed his eyes. "Atlas is also a god." He said it like that somehow made the name any better. What, was he calling himself a god? What the hell was going on?

Not to mention the fact the Titan Atlas, in Greek mythology, lost and has been forced to hold up the sky forever. Just generally not a great name, so this dude has no business calling Salem a witch.

Salem continued staring at him, unimpressed. "Okay, and he lost. I'd rather be named Salem than GPS."

One would think that this conversation would make them dislike each other, but it ended quite the opposite. Atlas began hanging around Salem as a sort of default, and Salem didn't mind his company as much as he should've. They grew fond of each other. This, obviously, ended in romance.

Well no, actually. It ended in heartbreak.

Still, Salem tries not to focus on that, even now. He tries not to think of it at all, as a matter of fact.

Atlas staring down at him with nothing but pure love and adoration in his eyes. The way his hands shook and fidgeted when they kissed for the first time. How hard he tried to be confident, to act like he knew what he was doing, the first time that they had-

"Hello?" The word breaks Salem out of his trance, as do the fingers snapping in front of his face. Wow, he hasn't zoned out that bad in a while.

Salem looks up and finds an officer standing in front of him. He is currently seated at a table in the main entranceway of the command staff offices. His father had called him over here ASAP because he has exciting news, evidently. Salem is quite curious, though, because it takes a lot for Jack to call anything exciting. He is not an easily impressed man.