Xavier~
"Bella, stop; you can't leave without answering my question." I blocked her path by spreading my arms in her way.
"Xavier, what are you doing? Let us go; it's already so late." She avoided my gaze and attempted to move my arm out of the way.
"No, first tell me how your son got this birthmark." I bowed my head and pointed toward Alan's right leg, dreadand a fierce curiosity boiling under my calm exterior.
"What birthmark are you referring to? There is no birthmark on his leg." Bella's face paled after hearing me, her expression betraying shock.
"Bella, I am talking about this birthmark." I embraced Alan, showing Bella the spot on his leg, the same one that held me in agonizing suspicion.
"No, this is not a birthmark; it's a burning mark on his leg." She made an effort to seem calm in front of me, but her trembling voice and perspiration on her forehead told me otherwise. Her denial, paired with her reaction, only confirmed my worst fears.
"What are you trying to hide from me?" I looked at her with suspicion, my mind racing with unresolved questions. The similarities between Alan and me had caught my attention before—his expressions, his quirks—but I'd forced myself to ignore them. I had dismissed it, thinking it was impossible, yet Bella's repeated denials and deceptions around her marriage to Victor and Alan's parentage made me feel manipulated, almost desperate to know the truth.
"Why would I conceal anything from you? I am not a liar like you, who deceives others for personal gain." She attempted to grab Alan out of my arms, defensive but transparent as her words only fueled my conviction.
Alan circled my arms, resting his head on my shoulder to fall asleep, his small frame still feeling the effects of the medication. My arms tightened protectively around him. Whatever this was—whatever history Bella and I shared,whatever secrets she kept—Alan had a right to be shielded from it.
"Bella, no matter how much you want to taunt me, whatever we see is not always the truth; sometimes the truth is something else we don't want to see." I looked into her eyes, feeling a strange, hollow ache, seeing reflections of both our past and the lingering pain in the gaze she tried to avoid.
James had sabotaged my last chance to speak openly with her after the court hearing, so I resolved to let her go.
But each day, my emotions remained relentless, fueling a need to understand—to make sense of Alan's existence, to know if my instincts about him were real.
When Victor would bring Alan to the hotel, I'd make efforts to be calm, trying to hide my feelings from Alan, who would look up at me, clueless but seemingly connected. My desire to talk to Bella grew every time I saw them together, but I had forced myself to let it go. Until today. Today, it had all resurfaced. I didn't expect Bella to bring Alan herself, but seeing her again, a sense of peace settled, and yet, the pain came rushing in like a wound torn open.
"Xavier, if you do not clear my way, then I have to call the police." Her words jolted me back to reality, and my inner turmoil interrupted. Her firm tone and the way her fingers hovered over her phone revealed how seriously she intended to carry out her threat.
"Why would you report me to the police?" I asked, stunned by her words and the disdain flashing in her gaze.
"For kidnapping my child." She took out her phone and dialed the police number.
"What? Have you lost your mind?" Her accusation shocked me, but I saw in her eyes the panic of a mother ready to defend, though she hesitated as Alan's sleepy voice mumbled against me.
"No, if you don't allow me to take Alan with me right now, I'll file a police complaint." Her resolve wavered for a moment, her eyes glossed with tears as they met mine, pleading silently for me to let go.
Seeing her desperation, I moved aside, signaling her toward the car, then followed with Alan still resting against me. Bella kept glancing back, checking if I was still behind her, torn between frustration and anxiety.
"I want to sleep in your lap, Mama." Alan's sleepy eyes blinked up at her as I lay him gently in the backseat, his small body curling into her lap.
"Alan, just give me twenty minutes, and we'll be able to sleep comfortably on the bed." She opened the driver-side door and tried to reassure him.
"No, Mama, I want you now," he whimpered, reaching for her, his exhaustion amplifying his need for her presence.
"Bella, let me drive the car." The plea was instinctive, a reflex to seeing them both this way. Her fierce glare could have deterred me, but Alan's pain softened her enough to yield.
"You don't have to do us a favor; I'll take care of it." She shot me an angry look before sitting in the driver's seat.
"Mama, my leg is in pain." Alan's face scrunched in discomfort, and her eyes glistened with guilt. My heart clenched as I watched her bite back her worry and fight her pride
"Bella, that's enough. Go and sit in the back seat of the car." I opened her door, extending my hand to help her out.
"What are you doing, Xavier?" Her surprise was genuine, but the concern in her eyes betrayed her façade.
"Can't you see his condition?" I took the car key from her and locked her gaze with my own.
"You can't do this to me. I will file a complaint against you," she repeated, her voice cracking slightly as she held her phone with trembling fingers.
"I don't care; you can complain about me wherever you want, but for now, sit quietly with Alan." I gestured to her, moving to the driver's seat as she let out a defeated sigh, finally relenting to my decision.
"Mama, my leg is in pain," Alan repeated as she tenderly brushed his hair from his face, murmuring words of comfort while arranging a doctor's appointment over the phone.
As I drove, Bella's quiet directions to the nurse echoed in my ears. "Alan is five years old," she had said, her voice soft but clear. My grip tightened on the steering wheel, and I instinctively hit the brakes.
I glanced at her reflection in the rearview mirror, her expression still tender from calming Alan, completely unaware of the storm she'd unleashed in my mind.