EPOV

"What do you mean you can't come?" she asked me on the phone.

"Sorry, babe. Some last minute stuff came up. I guess I need to work over the weekend," I said.

"Last minute work? I see." she said.

Why did it sound like she was being sarcastic about it?

"Bella... I'm not lying. I seriously need to work." I said.

"Sure, I understand." she said, "I know this is how it goes. Never mind, focus on your... work."

"What do you mean this is how it goes?" I raised my voice, "I'm not lying, okay? And I'm not going to give you any further explanation."

"I don't want any explanation," she said, "I'm not interested."

"Why are you talking in this tone?" I said frustratingly, "Why can't you just believe it, damn it?"

"Why are you wasting your time arguing with me?" she said, "Don't you have to... work?"

"Bella..." I gritted my teeth, "Never mind..."


Fuck.

Maybe I could have reacted a bit differently?

Were there some issues between Renee and Charlie? They looked like a happy couple to me, but maybe I didn't know anything!

Was that something always impacting her?

Was she trying to compare our relationship to theirs?

I sighed. I wished I could have put in more effort!

But well, maybe one thing I could do now onwards was to not react aggressively in return. That might help us a bit!

The next day when she came to pick up Carlie in the evening from my parents' house, she tried her best to avoid any kind of eye contact with me as if she had committed some big crime or something!

"Are you trying to make fun of me?" She told me when Carlie was busy with my parents and I got a chance to talk to her.

Now how did she arrive at that conclusion! I'd love to know her thought process!

"No." I said, "Why would I do that?"

"You're just... irritating me so much right now," she said.

Okay, how exactly? I literally didn't do anything!

"Sorry if you felt like that. That's never my intention." I said.

"You..." she gritted her teeth, "I should have never cried in front of you!"

I didn't think there was anybody in the whole world who had less faith in me than her! And she was the one I had ever been most honest to in my whole life! What kind of irony this was!

"Bella..." I said, "Give me one reason why I'd make fun of you."

"Because... Because..." She tried to come up with something, but failed.

"Mama! Look!" Carlie ran towards her, and well, our conversation ended there. I wasn't sure if it was for better or worse!