Lucas slowly lifted his head when he didn't hear Bella saying anything. He was worried that Bella would despise him even more.
"Please don't feel burdened, Bella. I understand and won't force you to forgive me," Lucas said with a smile, trying to break the coldness between them.
"No, I don't feel burdened. I just feel weird speaking to you now."
Lucas frowned slightly. "Weird? Please, Bella. I no longer have the will and energy to lie to you. I have come to terms with how now I have to pay the consequences of everything I did to you and your mother."
"Okay. But you have to understand why I feel that way. I feel like I'm talking to someone else," Bella gave him a half-hearted smile.
Bella smiled bitterly when she saw him smile. She continued, "This is the first time you are talking to me without being angry or glaring at me. Also, hearing you apologize and beg for forgiveness, hearing those words from you sounds foreign to me. Almost felt unreal."
