bad idea, right?

chp. 6

The car ride to Bellamys house is silent, save for the sound of tires on asphalt. Bellamys eyes are staring out the passengers side window while Delaney's although focused on the road are also silently stealing glances at Bellamy. He wants to speak but the look on her face says she doesn't want to be bothered. And he's willing to comply, although reluctantly, but she starts to speak.

"Please tell me Liz was asleep. I hope she didn't see any of that. I wouldn't want her to have seen that. God this has probably been the most embarrassing night of my life." Bellamy says breaking the silence. The mention of his daughter makes his heart melt because she was worried about his daughter more than herself. She was so selfless. But the feeling didn't last as a rage bubbled in his gut again.

"Why are you embarrassed you were in danger, that's nothing to be embarrassed about it wasn't your fault that guy's a prick." Delaney defends. He would understand if she had been scared or sad or even a little (a lot) traumatized but embarrassed? She did nothing wrong and trying to save yourself is nothing to be embarrassed of.

"I mean yeah, I know but-"

"But nothing. You have nothing to be embarrassed of, if anything he does. He has to result to violence to get laid, that just goes to show that piece of shit deserves to rot in hell. And no Liz didn't see anything cause she wasn't home. Her and Adaline are at my in-laws for the weekend."

"Oh, how come you aren't with them?" Bellamy says steering the conversation else where. She' grateful Delnaey is trying to get her to see that she has no reason to feel the way she does but right now it isn't registering. She just wishes to never hear, think or speak of tonight every again.

"They live like 5 hours away and I had a conference to speak at today. Plus I hate my in-laws." He whispers the last sentence, as he would be crucified for even utter such a thing.

"Hate is a very strong word, Mr. Harding." She says bemused. Delaney looks at her for a second too long before turning his head back to the road.

"I know but I definitely mean it. It's fine though because they hate me too. So we're even." Delaney confesses with a slight shrug.

"And why would they hate you?" Bellamy had said it in humor, wondering what he could've possibly done to make them hate him. She thought maybe he had insulted them or made one of those jokes that is funny but only to a certain audience that you hang around. Something that older people wouldn't take to kindly too.

"They have every reason, to be honestly." He says, dragging his hand vertically down his face. "I was a complete dick head to my wife when we started dating. Well technically, not dating, when we met I told her I didn't do relationships or titles, I wasn't in the right space mentally and emotionally to have been in a committed relationship. And she was okay with that but somehow we ended up doing couple things together outside of the bedroom. She'd bring me to her parents, we'd go on dates, we celebrated important dates together. That gave people the idea we were together and I never said or did anything to prove them wrong. But I was also sleeping with other people, I'd be seen out and about with a different girl and people would take that and go tell her and her family. Her parents insisted she stop seeing me but she refused, despite it breaking her heart that I wouldn't commit to just her. She used to cry herself to sleep most nights but she never said anything; she never ended it."

"And it wasn't just the sleeping around, I was angry at the world I would be such an ass when she was only looking out for me. Call her names, act cold and uncaring towards her, ghost her for days, weeks, months on end. After awhile, like her parents, I started to resent myself, decided I wanted to stop being that guy. I got my shit together and we started dating, didn't tell anyone when we did. When she finally told her parents, we had just gotten engaged, they refused to be happy for us, said they wanted nothing to do with the wedding, so they came as guest. Her father didn't even walk her down the aisle. I told her we shouldn't have gone through with it but she was so dead set. Then I found out why; she was pregnant with Liz. So I stopped fighting her on it."