Xavier~
"Bella, we should leave now before he comes here and catches us red-handed."
What does that mean? Where are they exactly? Before I could ask him any questions, I heard James' voice on the call, which surprised me. The call disconnected, and after that, he did not receive my call. Bella did not receive my call either. Hearing James' voice makes it very evident that they are now together and concealing something from me. What, though, were they hiding?
I can't believe that Bella can hide something from me; I am sure she will tell me the whole story when she returns home. I tried to ignore the negative thoughts that were racing through my mind, but I couldn't help but feel frustrated due to my strong suspicions about the developing relationship between Bella and James.
I begged her to forgive me last night, but she was not willing to talk or listen to me. Was my mistake so severe that she couldn't forgive me? She belongs to me, so what's the big deal if I kiss her? I tried to study the case file, but all I could think about was Bella.
It's already evening, but she hasn't returned home yet. I called her numerous times, but she never answered. Is she in trouble, or is she upset with me? I find myself torn between loving her and experiencing jealousy. I instantly clicked on the notice that buzzed on my phone, thinking it was from Bella.
However, to my dismay, it wasn't from Bella's number, but rather an unknown one.
When I clicked on the picture and saw James standing close to Bella, placing his hand on her shoulder, my heart boiled with rage.
"How dare he touch her?" I tried to suppress my wrath by clenching my fist, but it seemed impossible today. After learning the truth, I assumed James had moved on from the past, but I was mistaken. He was still looking for a chance to take Bella away from me.
I paced the corridor, consumed by my growing suspicions and anger. Should I confront James? Or would that just make things worse? My thoughts kept circling, and all I could do was wait for Bella to come home.
Bella came home alone late at night. After dinner, Dad, Victor, and Alan had already gone to their rooms.
"Why are you up so late, Xavier?" Bella noticed me sitting on the dining chair and questioned me.
"I was waiting for you; come, let's have dinner." I eagerly rose from my dining chair to bring her dinner. I chose to control my anger in front of her because I didn't want to hurt her again with my behavior.
"I've already eaten dinner. I'm about to go to bed." With a yawn, she headed for her room.
"Are you still upset with me, Bella?" I trailed behind her and made another attempt to soothe her rage. Her ignorance cut deep into my heart.
"Good night, Xavier. We'll talk tomorrow." Once again, she closed the door in my face.
Why is she behaving this way toward me? I went back to the dining room and gathered all of the plates so I could store them in the fridge. After cleaning the dishes and the dining table, I was about to head back to my room when Victor entered the kitchen, carrying an empty water mug.
"We have to go to court early in the morning, so why are you still up, Xavier?" Victor opened the refrigerator to fill his water mug.
"Didn't you have dinner, Xavier?" He turned and gave me a perplexed expression.
"Yes… I cooked lots of food today. That's why I stored the excess food in the refrigerator." I lied to him, but my stomach's rumbling revealed the truth.
"Save your lies for the courtroom. Tell me the truth, Xavier." Victor questioned me as he crossed his arms over his chest.
"I was waiting to have dinner with Bella, but she said she was not hungry and wanted to sleep now." I tried not to show Victor how hurt I was, but remembering her icy demeanor made my heart suffer even more.
"How could she do this to you? Did she know that you prepared all this food only to please her? Let me speak with her." Victor strolled over to Bella's room after setting his water mug on the kitchen island.
"No, Victor, promise me you will not tell her about this. I am sure she didn't do this deliberately. She looked worn out today; maybe that's why she refused to eat dinner." I begged Victor to refrain from asking Bella about this.
"Okay, if you force me not to question her, then I will not say anything to her, but I must advise you that before things get worse, you should clear your misunderstandings." Victor patted my shoulder and asked me to eat something before going to bed.
"What are you doing in the kitchen at this hour of the night, Victor?" My gaze shifted to Bella's face.
"I came here to take water, but what are you doing here?" Victor asked her. His tone showed his dissatisfaction with Bella despite his efforts to hide it.
"I am working on one important case, so I need coffee to maintain my focus on my work." She shrugged her shoulders and brewed her coffee.
I tried to figure out why she had been lying to me just a few minutes prior by looking at her face. When I acquired proof that she was lying, the anger that had been building inside of me was about to explode.
"Xavier, tell me that you were so tired that you refused to have dinner with him, and now you are working on a case suddenly." Victor's question fixed her gaze on her face.
"Yes, I'm not hungry because I already had supper with James. What happened? Why are you looking at me with so much anger?" She questioned him, sensing the anger on his face.
"Did you know Xavier was waiting for you for dinner, and he didn't..?"
"Victor, we have to go to court in the morning, and it's already so late." Before he could tell her the whole truth, I cut him off.
"As you wish, Xavier." He sighed with disappointment and then left the kitchen.
"Xavier, I am sorry; I didn't know that you were waiting for me for dinner. If you had informed me earlier, then I promise I would not have had my dinner with James." She looked at me with an apologetic glance.
"I called you numerous times, but I believe you were so preoccupied with your new friend that you completely ignored my calls. But leave it. Good night, Bella." Before my rage took over, I left the kitchen for my room.
As I lay on the bed, my thoughts returned to Bella. Was this growing distance between us a passing phase or the beginning of something worse? And tomorrow in court—would my insecurities cloud my focus? My world felt on the brink of unraveling, both personally and professionally.