If I Could

{74} - Long Away

Today is my birthday and I had this beautiful dream of Freddie singing Happy Birthday to me and eating cake with him. It was truly so beautiful I don't know why I felt the need to share it with you guys haha 💛 enjoy!

The sudden movement of the door swinging open caught Belle's eye, and she turned her head so quickly that her neck hurt. Her heart stopped, not even figuratively. She was horrified to see a disturbed, appalled Roger crying at the sight of his fiancée and cousin kissing, and her anguish increased when she saw he wasn't alone — Michelle was behind him, and the Mazzello's were behind her as well, Mailen was pushing Alice's pram and Joseph was carrying Eric, who was asleep. Somehow, Michelle didn't look surprised, her face was rigid as a stone — like it was the scene of a film that no matter how climactic it was, she couldn't react to it because the scene simply had been very well engraved in her mind. Belle pulled herself away from Ben as soon as she saw Roger, Michelle, Mailen and Joseph, halting the kiss as her heart hammered in her chest. She had never feel such fear.

"This is my fault. Blame it all on me," Ben gibbered with a horror so extreme that it could be noticed in his breathing, voice and face all at once. He wanted to crawl out of his body. "Belle didn't kiss me, I was the one who kissed her. Roger, Belle loves you and only you."

"How could you have done this to me and Michelle, you goddamn bastard?", Roger grabbed Ben's arms and pulled him against him, leering at his cousin as every nerve in his body smouldered as if alight with fire. Belle flinched, eyes wide open, and her immediate reaction was to place a hand on Ben's back, probably as a way to protect him from falling if Roger decided to hit him, an act he was very close to doing.

"Why the hell are you touching him, Gabrielle?", Roger shrieked as he cried at the same time and Belle could swear the sound of his voice could be heard through all of Virginia Water, London and throughout the entire freaking country.

"Could you please calm down?", Belle raised her voice as she pulled Ben away from Roger, grasping his shirt tightly as if her life depended on it, not taking her hand off him. Belle could feel Ben's agitated breath, he was truly scared, she could even smell his fear.

"Don't bloody defend him, Belle! Don't you dare to!", Roger shouted louder, an act neither Ben or Belle thought was possible. Joseph and Mailen winced, trying to cover the children's ears. "Are you trying to tell me you enjoyed kissing this bastard?".

"No, of course not. Could you please—

"Shut up, Gabrielle." Roger took a bottle of champagne that was on a small table besides him and threw it at the wall, nearly hitting Ben, which was his obvious purpose. Michelle, Mailen and Joseph gasped, and the sound of the glass breaking woke Alice up and she started to cry, her sobbing being now the only sound that could be heard.

"Roger, calm down, for God's sake," Joseph intervened, grabbing Roger by his shoulders as he made sure Ben had not been hurt at the same time. Ben was scared, but he still was willing to protect Belle from Roger.

"Oh my God, Roger, have you lost your mind?", Belle screamed with fury, hot tears starting to stream down her cheeks like a waterfall because Roger had just done a injustificable and unprecedented act of violence. He could have easily killed Ben. Her vision of Roger suddenly changed — everything about him seemed ugly and wrong, and she wasn't sure if Roger would have ever been able to redeem what he just had done.

"I don't want you near me any more, Ben," Roger bellowed. "I don't want you near Belle any more. I don't even want you in London any more. Either you Belle quit your job, or Ben does it. I'm giving you some minutes to decide."

"Who do you think you are to feel entitled to the right to tell us what to do based on your insecurities, Roger?", Belle snapped at her fiancé. Roger was making her angry, so angry, making her want to scream into her mattress with rage until her lungs ached.

"Perhaps Roger is right, Belle," Ben spoke with indignation. "It would be better to get the hell out of here, somewhere long away where I don't have to be near the cousin who just tried to kill me."

Belle grimaced at him, but Ben had made his decision. Thankfully, his luggage was intact, it had not been unpacked, so he simply took the bag and stormed out of the room, surprised by the fact that neither Roger or Belle said a word to him. Belle took the pram where Alice was sleeping from Mailen before following Ben all the way towards the field, where she found him driving already.

"Ben, stop!", Belle positioned herself in front of Ben's car, placing her hands on the car's bonnet, causing him to dramatically brake.

"What are you doing, Belle? Are you crazy? That was extremely dangerous!", Ben shouted, wondering what she was even planning to do. Alice's pram was a few meters away from her, at least she had not put her daughter in danger.

"No, I'm not crazy," Belle walked to the side of the passenger seat and spoke to Ben through the window. "Where are you going?".

"I don't know," Ben responded with fright. "Somewhere far away from here, that's for sure."

"Let me come with you."