Chapter 2

"Why the hell is my phone in your hands? Don't you know what the word privacy is?" Luke yelled, lunging from the bathroom and snatching the phone right out of my hands.

"I just wanted to bring it to you in case it was important, I didn't mean to pry, I am sorry, honey."

"What could possibly be important on my phone at one in the morning that gives you the right to go through my private property?"

"I wasn't going through it, I only picked it up because it lit up on the nightstand while you were in the shower."

"And that gives you an excuse to snoop? Do you not trust me now? Is that what this is?"

"No, of course I trust you, Luke, why would you even say that?"

" Because you're sitting here questioning me every late night at the office, and now you're digging through my phone behind my back."

"I told you I wasn't digging, I just saw the notification chime."

"Stop lying, Bella, I see the look in your eyes, you're turning into a paranoid nag."

"I'm not a paranoid nag, I am your wife, I just want us to be honest with each other."

"If you want honesty, then hear this: keep your hands off my personal belongings, stop accusing me of things I haven't done, and go to sleep."

The next morning, the front door swung open before the sun was even fully up, and my mother-in-law marched straight into the kitchen, slamming her designer handbag down onto the counter.

"Why are you still lying in bed while the entire house is a mess? Get up right now and go start cooking breakfast."

"Mum, I'm tired, you know I am pregnant, I can't really cook massive meals today, please understand," I said, holding my stomach as I sat up.

"Tired? You are always tired, When I was carrying Luke, I worked double shifts, ran a whole household, and never once whined like you."

"I'm not been lazy, mum, the doctor explicitly warned me to avoid heavy standing and stress."

"Don't you dare talk back to me about doctors and complications, You think because you finally managed to get pregnant for my son, you are some kind of queen who doesn't have to lift a finger?"

"I am not trying to act like a queen, I am just asking for a little bit of rest today."

"Rest? You rest all night while my son kills himself at the office to pay for your medical bills and upkeep, You contribute nothing to this family."

"That's not true, I take care of everything else in this house, beside Luke was the one that told me to stop working."

"You take care of nothing, You are useless, ungrateful, and a complete burden on my son, and if you won't get out of that bed right now and cook a proper meal, I will make sure Luke throws you out into the street where you belong."

"Mum, how could you say something like that, you know before I got pregnant I always do all the house chore, just give me few more minutes of sleep I go cook."

"How dare you talk back to me, When I tell you to do something, she yelled, her hand swinging across my face, smack."

My cheek burned instantly, tears streaming down my eyes as I looked over at Luke, who was sitting at the edge of the bed watching tv, completely silent, not even glancing up in my direction.

"Please, honey, help me talk to mum, it's not that I am being lazy, I just can't do much heavy work right now, the doctor told us this, remember?" I pleaded, reaching out to touch his arm.

"Stop stressing me Bella, cooking isn't hard work, besides, you don't work, I do all the money earning, that's what's actually hard, So go in the kitchen, don't keep mum waiting, she's hungry, and so am I," Luke snapped, brushing my hand away like I was nothing.

I turned slowly toward the kitchen doorway, staring down at the floor.

"He changed, Before, when mum yelled at me, he used to defend me, but now he didn't even glance at me, Where did I go wrong?"

An hour later, I carried the heavy plates of food out to the dining table and set them down carefully.

My mother-in-law took one single bite, gagged loudly, and spat the food straight back onto her plate.

"Pah, Too much salt, Do you want to kill me? I know you are angry because I asked you to cook, but wasting food isn't acceptable, Luke, look at the good wife you married, holding grudges and planning to murder her own mother-in-law." she screamed, slamming her cutlery down.

Luke stood up so fast, as he raised his hand and slapped me across the face a second time.

"Is this food, or like mum said, are you harbouring grudges against her?"

"I am sorry, I am sorry, I will go make another batch right now," I sobbed, looking down as tears streamed down my face while I packed everything up and rushed back into the kitchen.

After spending another grueling hour standing over the stove in the heat, cooking a completely new meal from scratch, I finally carried it back out to the table and sat down slowly, pulling a small plate toward myself.

"Who told you to sit down and eat?" my mother-in-law snapped, lunging forward and shoving my shoulder hard enough to send me crashing backward out of my chair.

"Ahhhhhh..."