I stood in front of Mark, anger bubbling inside me like a boiling pot. He had lied to me again, and this time, it was about something I couldn't let go of. I took a deep breath and tried to keep my voice calm.
"I know you are lying," I said, looking at him straight in the eye. "Why would you do this to your body?"
Mark shifted his weight from one foot to the other and looked down at the floor. He knew he had been caught, and he didn't have a good answer for me. I could feel my frustration growing with every second that passed.
"I just don't understand why you would do this to yourself," I continued, my voice getting louder. "You know how important it is to me that you take care of your health."
Mark finally looked up at me, his eyes pleading for me to understand. "I know, and I'm sorry," he said. "I just didn't want you to worry about me."
I shook my head in disbelief. "How could I not worry about you when you are putting your health at risk like this? You know how much I care about you."
Mark took a step closer to me, his hand reaching out to touch my arm. "I promise I'll stop," he said. "I'll do better."
But I wasn't sure if I could trust him anymore. This wasn't the first time he had lied to me, and I didn't know if it would be the last. I pulled my arm away from him and stepped back.
"I need some time to think," I said, my voice shaking with emotion. "I can't just forgive you like that."
Mark looked hurt, but I couldn't bring myself to feel sorry for him. He had brought this on himself, and he needed to take responsibility for his actions.
As I walked away from him, I could feel tears streaming down my face. I didn't want things to end between us, but I couldn't ignore the fact that our relationship had become toxic. Mark's lies had eroded my trust in him, and I didn't know if I could ever get it back.
Over the next few days, we barely spoke. I could tell that Mark was trying to make things right, but I needed more than just empty promises. I needed to see that he was taking his health seriously and that he was committed to being honest with me.
Finally, one day, Mark showed up at my doorstep with a bouquet of flowers and a heartfelt apology. He looked genuinely contrite, and I could tell that he had put a lot of thought into what he wanted to say.
"I know I messed up," he said, holding out the flowers to me. "But I want to make things right. I'll do whatever it takes to earn your trust back."
I took the flowers from him and looked into his eyes. For the first time in days, I felt a glimmer of hope that we could work through this.
"I need to see that you're serious about this," I said, my voice still wary. "I can't just take your word for it."
Mark nodded, his expression serious. "I understand," he said. "I'll do whatever it takes to prove to you that I'm committed to being honest and taking care of myself."