And here's the 2nd part of chapter 5...
CHAPTER 5.2
Bella sat at the large dining table next to Alice, with Emmett, Rosalie's husband, on the other side of her. One of the twins was on his lap and Bella was grateful for the distraction. She watched the little boy so that her eyes didn't wander to dangerous zones.
Tanya was sitting across from her and Bella couldn't help but examine her from the corner of her eyes. She could see all of her perfections. Bella started to silently list everything that Tanya had that she didn't. She was tall. She was blond. She was the same age as Edward. She was well spoken. She wore red lipsticks. She knew about fashion. She was rich. His parents treated her like family.
Emmett complemented Esme on the meal and Bella realized that she wasn't even tasting the food she was swallowing. Her mind was miles away.
Bella tried to refocus on the conversation. They were talking about the upcoming wedding. Esme and Alice were very enthusiastic, talking about color themes and centerpieces.
Bella's thoughts drifted once again, her mind reeling with billion of thoughts. She remembered the time when Edward had told warned her that his mom would want to take over their wedding plans to make it a bigger-than-life event. Bella had made him promise that their wedding would be small and simple. He had kissed her softly and had promised he would make sure it would be exactly the way she wanted it to be. He'd looked her in the eyes and had vowed that it would be perfect.
Bella glanced with sorrow across the table at Edward and still, after all these evidences, she couldn't understand how everything had turned so bad. Their gaze momentarily locked and she quickly lowered her eyes.
Edward wasn't participating in the dinner discussion and sat silently, barely eating and taking long sips from his glass instead.
"And Tony is going to be the ring bearer, right?" Carlisle, Jasper's father, asked with a gentle smile.
The mention of Tony's name got Bella's attention, her heart skipping a beat.
"Yes, he's already practicing!" Alice exclaimed with glee. "He is so excited."
"How I wish he could've come today," Esme sighed. "Alice has been talking about her little prince since the first time I've met her" She added, looking at Bella.
Bella swallowed the lump stuck in her throat, purposefully not looking toward Edward. She had been pretty successful of keeping her emotions at bay until now, but suddenly, she felt her anxiety take over. Everybody was looking at her, except Edward who kept his eyes downcast.
"Uhm, yeah, it's too bad," she stammered nervously. "He really wanted to come tonight but, uhm, he's not feeling well. I… I didn't want to take a risk, especially with the twins." Bella lied with a strained smile, feeling utterly stupid for sounding so inarticulate.
"I'm grateful," Rosalie answered. "When these two get sick, it's a nightmare! They keep on passing the germs back and forth."
"Do you have any pictures of Tony," Esme asked with such genuine interest.
Bella's heart squeezed. How could she show them pictures of her son when Edward was here with his wife, and the whole Cullen family completely clueless?
"Oh! I have some," Alice announced, reaching for her purse. She took out her phone and searched for the photos.
Bella wanted to stop Alice but she couldn't do it fast enough. Alice passed the phone to Esme, sitting right next to Jasper.
"Oh my! He is beautiful Bella," Esme praised, "What an angel!"
Esme sounded so caring. Bella couldn't restrain the flow of emotions taking over her. She didn't understand why she felt so guilty toward Esme. How she wished that Esme could've been there for Tony all these years.
Bella had no parents. Her only family, her father, had passed away a few years back. Bella had always wanted for her son to have a big family, and grandparents who loved him.
"Thank you, Esme," Bella said, smiling tenderly at her.
Esme passed the phone to Carlisle, who smiled widely at the picture.
"What a handsome little man! He seems so alert and so happy," he said, smiling at Bella tenderly and passing the phone to Edward, who was sitting next to him.
Bella stopped breathing, her eyes watching him anxiously. He stared at the picture for an agonizingly long minute, an impassive expression on his face.
Bella wanted Edward to look at her, to give some kind of sign that he acknowledged that Tony was his son. They had created a life together, and she wanted to share this with him.
Edward didn't say a word while he passed the phone to his wife. Tanya made some loud, fawning sound that sounded fake. But Bella continued to watch Edward from the corner of her eyes. She noticed the tensed muscles on his neck and shoulders. He chugged his drink in one quick gulp and abruptly rose. He swiftly left the room.
An excruciating, boulder-sized knot coiled in Bella's gut.
Tanya passed the phone to Rosalie without another word, glancing toward the door where her husband had disappeared. She frowned and looked back at Bella with a weird expression.
"Bella, Alice, I apologize for my son's rudeness," Esme expressed. "He's going through a difficult time at this moment."
Rosalie rolled her eyes. "Mom, please stop defending him. He's been acting like this for years. He is rude and selfish and bad-tempered, and it's not because he's going through a difficult time. That's just the way he is."
Tanya gasped and stared at her sister-in-law.
"Rose, baby," Emmett chastised.
Rosalie looked at her husband and sighed.
"I'm sorry," she finally said, looking at Alice and Bella before turning to her mom.
Esme gave her a small, forgiving smile before getting up.
"Who wants tea with dessert?" she asked, effectively breaking the awkwardness.
Carlisle and Jasper started collecting the dirty plates from the table to bring them into the kitchen. When Alice and Bella offered to help, everybody declined. They found themselves alone at the table and Alice leaned closer to Bella.
"Jasper told me that Edward is kinda the black sheep of the family. Apparently, he started drinking a little too much a few years back," Alice whispered.
Bella frowned at this information. "He's an alcoholic?"
Alice shook her head. "I don't think it's to that extent but he sometimes drink too much and makes scenes."
Alice and Bella promptly stopped the gossiping when Rosalie and Emmett came back to join them, announcing that the kids were finally sleeping. Alice asked Rosalie about her wedding to Emmett when Bella's phone started to ring.
"Sorry. It's the babysitter," she explained before answering. "Hey, Jake, how's everything?"
Bella got up and walked away from the dining room table to talk to Jake. She went back to the living room, near the large windows as she listened to Jake assure her that everything was fine and that Tony didn't seem sick.
"He just wanted to say good-night before going to bed," Jake said and passed the phone to her son.
"Mommy!"
"Hi honey! Are you ready for bed?"
"Yeah. I brushed my teeth and Jake read me a story."
"That's nice. Good night my angel. I love you." Bella said.
"Good night mommy. Love you too."
Bella smiled, feeling all warm and fuzzy, and hung up.
She headed toward the hallway to use the bathroom before going back to the dining room. She stopped abruptly when she witnessed Edward and his wife talking in hushed voices in the foyer. They were arguing and Tanya seemed very confrontational.
"Who is this woman? Answer me, Edward!" She insisted. Tanya's fury was obvious even from afar. Bella could only see Tanya's back but she noticed the stiffness of her body and the anger that emanated from it.
"Tanya, We. Are. Not. Together. Remember?" Edward enunciated with annoyance. "I don't have to tell you anything."
Bella gasped. Inwardly, an incomprehensible sense of relief came over her at these words. Edward tore his eyes from his wife and caught Bella's. Her heart skipped a beat and she wanted to run away but then she heard Tanya's next question. It paralyzed her.
"Is he your son?"
Edward's whole expression changed. He looked utterly distraught. He glanced at his wife but quickly looked back at Bella, his gaze full of unspoken questions. His eyes searched into hers with a kind of desperation.
Bella gulped, staring back at him. Bella's heart was racing so fast. All she could think about was that the truth was finally coming out. She could see that Edward was trying to process everything in his head, confused and lost.
"Well, is he?" Tanya pressed.
He nodded and brought his gaze back to his wife.
"Yes, Tanya. I believe he's my son," he answered, his voice full of emotions.
Bella's eyes welled up all of a sudden and she felt the tears roll down her cheeks. She wiped them off quickly and rushed to the bathroom. As she walked away, she heard the echo of Tanya's slap.
Bella was shaking. She washed her face with cold water.
Edward knew now that she had kept the baby.
She took a deep breath and exhaled loudly.
She wondered about what he had said earlier. About them not being together. Somehow it made her happy but she shook the thought away quickly. She reminded herself that it didn't matter. He had broken her heart. He had used her and deceived her, and she would never be able to forget that.
She took one last deep breath and opened the door. Edward was there, waiting for her. His hand was tugging at his disheveled hair. He looked miserable.
He gaze up at her when she came out and they stared at each other.
"Why didn't you tell me?" he finally asked, seemingly troubled.
Bella pressed her lips tightly and glared furiously.
"Because you didn't want him," she spat.
His face fell and he furrowed his eyebrows.
There was a growing pinch gnawing in the pit of her stomach.
"I didn't know," he breathed with shame.
He shook his head, his expression of someone in agony. Bella froze, perplexed. They stared at each other in utter disbelief.
Somewhere in the background, Esme announced that dessert was being served.
Bella and Edward didn't break their eye contact.
"Bella, can we -," Edward started but Bella cut him off quickly.
"We should get back. They are probably wondering where we are," she declared, tearing her eyes away from his. Her thoughts were all jumbled up and she felt lost.
"Please, Bella," he begged. "Could we talk?"
She shook her head, confused, and turned away from him. She didn't know if she could trust him. He had deceived her before. She was afraid of being hurt again.
"I'm so sorry, Bella," He said in a broken voice.
Bella's insides twisted. It was as if her old wounds reopened and bled anew. It hurt horribly.
Bella left him there without a glance back and went back to join the others with a heavy, troubled heart.
Edward and Tanya never came back for dessert and Bella didn't see them again that night.
...
so? what do you think?