24. Confrontation

I yawned.

It was around nine o'clock, and the pack had just finished dinner.

There had been quite a big food fight after dinner, and I felt exhausted. I felt so drowsy I could fall asleep right now.

Most of them had gone home, but Jacob and Seth had stayed to watch some soccer game. I honestly don't see the point in it at all. The people just run about, and nothing happens apart from one team getting incredibly depressed! What good does it do?

"A nicely done assist from Walker-Jones, and its Nicolson, Nicolson diving for the ball. He's racing down the pitch. Ladies and Gentlemen, this could be the- AND IT'S A SHUTDOWN! A very cleanly done steal from Payne there! Payne takes the ball…"

The commentator went on and on in the same shouted tone, belting out some sort of strange football-language. Shutdown? Assist?

Jacob and Seth seemed to be widely into it though, screaming at the plasma TV when the commentator roared "And the double team was averted by Ashworth!" I was surprised they hadn't seriously harmed the furniture.

Feeling tired, I absent-mindedly rested my head on Jacob's warm shoulder and began to close my eyes, when I heard a sharp intake of breath from behind me.

I turned around to see Dad walking out of the living room.

Why was he acting like this lately? What did he have against me being with Jacob? We were just friends!

I tried to put the mental image of his angry expression elsewhere, and went back into my position next to Jacob, but this time not resting on him, and attempted to drift into unconsciousness.

Any sort of rest would surely be easier than wondering why my father could possibly be so angry that I was sitting with my best friend.

No, you are being silly, said a voice inside my head, he was probably angry about the football or something else. He likes Jacob. Doesn't he

I was about to fall asleep, when I heard hushed voices upstairs. I doubted Seth and Jake could hear them over the noise. I strained my ears.

"It's not right!" said an angry voice that I hardly recognized.

"They're friends, Edward, she's just a child, you can't stop her from being with her friend," I recognized that voice.

It was Mum, and she was trying to sound soothing, but I could here the hidden rage beneath that tone, and from what I had heard, that rage was because of Dad.

I stood up, with a murmured 'I'll just be a second' and walked slowly up the stairs. Trying to make as little sound as possible, I stood outside my Dad's old bedroom, where the voices seemed to be coming from, and pressed my eye to the keyhole.

"Edward, she is our daughter! She can spend time with whoever she likes!" Said Mum, an impatient tone now entering her voice.

"I thought you were against it too! And now you are all for our daughter getting together with that mutt!" he hissed.

His face was contorted with rage, and I felt horrified at how him and mother seemed to be having a fight!

"Don't call him that!" she retorted, "Whether you like it or not, Jacob is a part of our family now," she was starting to sound desperate I thought that you and him were friends?"

"You used to hate the idea of him being with our daughter!" He shouted, acting as if he hadn't heard her. Mum took a deep breath.

"Edward. When I first found out, I was angry. You know I was. I didn't want our daughter to end up with a man who was only a few years younger than me, of course I didn't, not at the time.

"But come on Edward," she said, a hint of exasperation entering her tone now, she threw her hands in the air, "Can't you see them together?!

"He makes our daughter happy! And if anything will make the fight easier for her, I don't care what the hell that thing might be!"

She took a deep breath, as if to steady herself, and continued in a softer tone, "Look, do you honestly think that Jacob-"

"He wants to be together with our daughter! Doesn't that bother you?" He said, seething.

"Tell me Edward, has he ever, ever thought something inappropriate about our daughter?" She asked, sounding angry.

He had no answer for that, but bitterness glinted in his eyes.

"She is beginning to like him too, I can see it. I can hear it too." My stomach tightened.

"You can't seriously be blaming her!" Her brows furrowed, giving her a scary-looking expression, "It's as much in her instinct as her! Neither of them can help it. Surely you can see that!"

"So you still side with the mutt!" snarled Dad.

"No, Edward," Mum said, and this time her voice didn't display an emotion, but it was final, "I side with our daughter. And you should too."

Dad looked stunned, and then anger crossed his face.

"Are you saying that I don't love our daughter?" he roared.

"No," she yelled back in an equally aggressive tone, "I'm saying that your judgment of Jacob is outrageous. You know, he used to say that you were playing a game for me, and I always stood up for you!

"But now I see that he was right. You won Edward! Jacob wanted me to be with you, he gave in just to make me happy! Even though it hurt him in ways I can't describe.

"He gave up his brothers just to protect me and your family, who he hated! He went against his family for you! Then when he did all that, he could have just walked out of here, and left me with my new life! But, no.

"He stayed here and let me be best friends with him, even though it was against every fiber of his being. Just because he thought that it would hurt me if he went. Just to make me happy!

"Then we put all of the people he loves lives in danger and he supports the daughter of the women he used to love and the man who she chose over him,"

When she next spoke her voice was calmer, but it sounded slightly broken, "And you still can't trust him?"

Her expression was almost sad, and a bit pitying. He however, looked thoroughly offended, and then more rage crossed his face.

"You seriously think-" he began, bottled up rage clear in his tone. I didn't understand how he could still think of a reply to that. Didn't he feel some trace of guilt at all? He was clearly going to fight to the bitter end, but Mum help up a finger to silence him.

"Just wonder if you want your want your daughter to think of you as supporting, or the man who kept her away from the person that she loved. Think which man you want to be."

I barely had half a seconds warning before I heard her coming towards the door. As quickly and silently as I could I raced downstairs and jumped back on the sofa, ignoring Jacob's questioning glance.

I tried to focus as hard as I could on the little people running around on the TV.

"And it's a corner kick! Mustaff kicks… and it is out of the ark!"

I tried to make sense of these meaningless words, and try to put some meaning to them, but they seemed so un-important I wondered how Jacob or Seth could be so raptured by them.

There were so many, many more important things than the fate of a football team.

I simply couldn't. my head was still brimming with the mere information that my parents had fought.

I was angry with my father for not trusting me, but I knew that I deserved it. When will I stop hurting people for no reason?

But much stronger than the anger I felt towards my father, was the way I felt towards my mother.

She had showed amazing compassion for me. She had protected me over the man that she loved, even though I knew that deep down she didn't really want me to be with Jacob.

I couldn't believe that they could do this! My head was burning with images of them, so unlike anything I had ever seen before.

Never before had I seen such hurt cross my mothers face, never before had I seen such anger on my fathers.

I imagined us as magnets.

That my father was negative, and my mother was positive, unstoppably drawn together. But I was messing everything up.

I was positive on one end, negative on the other. If you put the magnet facing differently, so that they look like a cross, everything is fine. But now I had turned myself around.

I whether I was attracting my mother and repelling my father, or it was the other my round, I was just pushing them further away.

Once you threw in Jacob, you had a nightmare.

"Are you ok?" came the voice of my mother from behind me. I jumped to hear her so close. Her voice was calm and chimed like bells as always, it was almost near impossible to hear her shouting at dad in that shrill voice.

If I hadn't gone upstairs I would have never known something was wrong.

"Yes," I said. My voice sounded like a croak. I couldn't even turn to face her. I knew that my expression would alert her that something was wrong, or even scare her.

I don't think I would be able to hide that fact that just seconds ago I had heard her screaming to defend me. To defend Jacob.

"Are you sure?" this time it was Jacob who spoke, turning away from the soccer and looking at me with genuine concern and worry on this face.

There was a small hiss from upstairs, and I saw Mum wince, but Jacob didn't seem to hear anything.

"Yep," I said, trying to sound confident, and failing, but before anyone could interrupt I said "I'm just a bit tired. I think I need to go to bed."

And before anybody could protest, I sped out of the room.

I was lying in bed, and thinking about how I could possibly make sense of the mess I had created.

Selfish, I thought to my self, you've made your parents fight, and you've created a huge mess with your best friend.

Outside my white-framed window, the night was dark. There was no moon, and you could barely see the stars.

I wonder if someday I'll look at these stars, and feel comfortable with them watching over me. Now I just felt that they were judging me.

Coldly looking down at me saying 'you've messed up everything' 'why would you ruin everything' 'your mother trusts you and you eavesdrop, and don't even try to protect her'

I closed my eyes, as if that would shut out my conscience.

My door creaked, ad I saw my Mum peeping her head around the corner of my door, checking to see if I was awake. When I gave her a weak smile, she came in and sat on my bed.

"You were acting really strangely tonight. What's wrong?" she asked. I felt so touched by the worry displayed on her face, I thought I should tell the truth. Well, some of it at least.

"Jacob." I said simply.

She seemed to know what I meant. She nodded sympathetically.

"You know whatever happens with him and you, I will always support you." I noticed how she was very careful not to say 'me and your father will support you'.

"Between you and Jacob, things will happen. But your must never, ever feel like it's wrong. Do you promise?" She said.

I was touched. She cared about me so much, and I was lying to her. Guilt curled in my stomach.

I wished that I could trust myself as much as she seemed to.

I looked up at her to see that she was still waiting for my reply

Could I really swear that I wouldn't blame myself?

"I promise," I said, and forced the corners of my mouth to curve upwards into a forced smile.

With a quick hug, she left the room and turned out the light.

I heard her go into her room, though I wasn't quite sure why, as she didn't sleep. I lay there for hours before I heard Dad come in. I didn't hear him open the door to Mum's room.

I lay there thinking.

How much damage had I done to their relationship? I don't think that it was permanent, but now it was serious. And with the approaching fight, it was critical that they make up.

I thought about what I had said to Mum.

"I promise."

When was I going to stop lying?