If I Could

{24} - Stone Cold Crazy

It was a beautiful cloudy day, Belle and Freddie had decided to take a walk through the calm streets so they could chat, away from all the paparazzi chasing them. She appreciated spending time with her father even more now, when she cried almost every day and lived so far away from him. At some point they walked past the theatre where Belle had met Roger and she smiled to herself. She used to love him so much, and it was a part of her life that seemed so old but it really wasn't. Her life would be totally different now if she had stayed with him, she just wasn't sure whether it would be better or worse.

"Belle, I can't wait to be in Barcelona again", Freddie said to his daughter as they walked Joe's dog. "Are you sure you don't want to go with me?".

Belle stopped to think for a minute. Going to Barcelona with her father would seem like such a good idea if she wasn't pregnant. But spending so many time with him would imply Freddie witnessing Belle's pregnancy symptoms, so she had to think about that.

"I obviously want to go with you. But I'd only stay for two days. I need to be here on Monday".

Freddie nodded, but he thought Belle sounded suspicious. It wasn't because of the fact she had mentioned she needed to be back on Monday, it was obvious, she had to go to college, it was the tone of her voice that made her sound nervous about something.

"That's alright. Let's talk about something else. Have you seen Brian recently? I haven't heard about him for a long time", Freddie asked as he took a sip of water.

"Yes, I see him every week. It's just that he's a father now, you know, he has a daughter to take care of".

"I understand that. Having children is such a blessing at any age, but it's a really tough job to do when you are so young, like him".

Belle gulped. Brian was a few years older than her and her father still thought he was young to have children. What would he say about her? She felt such a painful feeling in her stomach. She was dreading the day she would finally have to tell her father she was pregnant.

"Brian is such an intelligent and mature young man. He is doing a great job".

"Have you ever thought about having children, Belle?", her father questioned out of the blue, making Belle shiver. Why did he have to ask such questions right in that moment, when she was going through such a complicated and difficult time? The pressure was eating her alive, but she had to remind herself that no matter what happened, she would never show any sign of anxiety.

"I have. I have always wanted to become a mother", she turned to her father and faked a smile.

"That's great, Belle. My advice would be to wait until you are at least thirty. And don't have kids with that Rami guy, imagine if they inherited his personality".

Belle sighed. Her father was really blunt but that was not the problem. The problem was that she agreed with him. But she had to pretend she did not, she had to do everything she could to lessen the gravity of her father's reaction, make him believe that she was happy with Rami even if she had accidentally gotten pregnant.

"Dad, I'm telling you this again. I know you are not fond of Rami but you should get used to him. He's not going away anytime soon".

Freddie raised his eyebrow. It was weird to hear his daughter disagree with him. Freddie knew it was normal, she was an adult with her own opinions after all, but it was really strange to see her attached to a man that was so different to her.

"You're talking as if he was your husband. Of course he can go away any time soon, Belle, some relationships don't last forever, you're stone cold crazy if you think they do, I'm sorry to tell you that", he mocked.