Liam's POV.
Smack.
I hit myself in the head, hard and strong.
'Why?'
Because I deserved that for being a jerk, my mum would have hit me harder.
It wasn't in my intention to react this strongly, and I didn't expect her to snap back at me with that force.
Even though she left the place her words still echoed.
"Bipolar asshole!"
"Do you think my world revolves around you? Well, wake up, Mr Fernandes, because it doesn't!"
The pure rage in her eyes, the way her breathing hitched, the way her lips trembled, and the closeness we had for a moment affected me more than I would like to admit.
I told myself that none of it mattered.
I was acting this way, to maintain distance, so that we don't cross the line.
'I wasn't being cruel, was I?'
I was doing this so that she wouldn't fall for a player like me.
So that she wouldn't hope for anything from me that I couldn't provide because Madeline Harlow was a girl who deserved the best in the world.
And I was far away from being the best.
I didn't want her to put in any effort for me, efforts that would go to waste.
I didn't want her to play, or pretend.
Cook, clean or even bother about me because this whole marriage is a sham, a deal.
If feelings are involved one of us would get hurt deeply.
So when I saw that extra plate of food she made for me I realised that she had gone out of her way to include me in something as usual as dinner, I panicked.
I didn't want her acting like a wife.
Because that would mean that we were crossing the lines.
And I needed the lines to be clear.
"You could have just told me you didn't want it!"
Her voice rang in my head again.
True, I could have just said that I didn't want it.
Nothing would have gone wrong if I had just shut my good-for-nothing mouth and ate that damn food.
Instead, I had gone and made things worse.
And the worst part?
I could still feel it.
Her push. The force behind it.
The pain behind it.
The way her breath hitched when she felt trapped.
I sighed as I rubbed my face, contemplating all the worst decisions and actions I had taken the day.
I turned towards the cooker and pan, plating food for myself.
The same food I had been seconds away from throwing away.
As soon as the food touched my tongue I once again realized Madeline deserved someone far far better because the food was f*cking delicious.
As I continued eating reality kept hitting me.
She wasn't the problem.
I was.
I had to get out of here before I made things worse.
Grabbing my keys, I left without a word, slamming the door behind me.
Maybe space was better.
Maybe physical distance was the best way to keep our boundaries in check.