"Is this your idea, Mom?"
"I guess blood really is thicker."
The words continued playing in Marleen's head as they were heading home. Noticing that she had been quiet, Flynn started talking, "I didn't have time to tell her yet. I will try to settle this misunderstanding." He nodded slightly when Marleen turned to look at him.
Marleen gave him a slight smile without replying. She looked out the window, watching the city lights blur as they drove by. "You didn't answer my question before," her voice was low, but it was enough to break the silence in the car.
"What question?" Flynn asked, not understanding.
"Why Anna?" Her words were short, but she knew they would get through to Flynn.
"Bella is just twenty-one years old, Marleen," Flynn's voice sounded strained. "And—"
"You know she loves Ethan so much, and you clearly knew this whole thing would create misunderstandings between me and her. Obviously, Anna will be the one who gets hated the most." She let out what had been on her mind these days.
"Are you doing this because you think it's unfair to Anna?" Flynn frowned as he stopped at the crossroad. Marleen usually agreed with almost everything he decided for the family, and this was the first time she tried to argue.
Marleen sighed, "You don't get it, do you?"
"What? What?" Flynn raised his voice, growing angry. "Am I doing a bad thing by marrying her into that family?" He turned his body halfway and looked deeply into Marleen's eyes. "Their family is good, and I am trying my best to give the best to Anna too..."
"She is doing just fine without anyone interfering," Marleen retorted.
Flynn scoffed, "Now you're showing your true self when it involves your daughter."
"What I meant..." Marleen stopped, taking a deep breath as she felt frustrated. "Bella loves him; she should be the one marrying him, not Anna. Anna should find her own love too!"
A silence followed Marleen's words. Flynn could only sigh. "It is not my decision…" he said lethargically. "They proposed, and it was Anna from the start."
"They've never met Anna," Marleen furrowed her brows, feeling confused. She recalled that since they got married and both families met each other, Anna had always refused to join.
"They knew about Anna; they just never met her," Flynn explained. At first, he was surprised too, but from what he heard from Edward, his wife Diana was very eager to have Anna as their daughter-in-law. "And…I heard Diana was the one proposing Anna for Ethan."
"Diana? Why?" She muttered while looking down.
Flynn sighed. "I don't know. If you want clarification, it would be better to ask her yourself." He then took Marleen's hand. "You know I never discriminate between Bella and Anna, right?"
Marleen pursed her lips. "And I never did either…" She seemed hurt by Flynn's earlier words.
"I know. I'm sorry. I'll try to talk to Bella about this," Flynn said, offering her a warm smile as reassurance.
The drive home was quiet, filled with their own thoughts. By the time they arrived, the classic clock in the living room began to chime, announcing that it was nine in the evening. Flynn and Marleen settled into their chairs, thinking on how to clear the misunderstanding with Bella as she locked herself in the room, refusing to talk.
"I'm home…" Anastasia's voice from the entrance made both of them turn.
"Did you just come home?" Marleen asked, surprised. She thought Anastasia had already returned from work and was in her room.
Nodding weakly, Anastasia sighed, "There was some urgent work I had to finish."
"Have you eaten?" Marleen asked, concerned.
Anastasia smiled, "Hmm…" She hummed in response, lying about having eaten. She hadn't eaten since lunch but, despite her hunger, she preferred to rest right away.
Marleen nodded. "Okay, take a shower and get some rest."
"I'm going up first…" Anastasia said and started toward the stairs.
"Anna…" Flynn called out, stopping her. "We need to discuss something with you."
Marleen immediately looked at Flynn, clearly disagreeing. She quickly interjected, "Let's talk tomorrow. Just go up and rest."
"Okay," Anastasia replied, noting their expressions. At that moment, her bed seemed like the most appealing place, and she was eager to head there.
Anastasia finally reached her room; the flight of stairs seemed unusually long today. When she opened the door and switched on the light, she was shocked to find the floor in disarray with her things scattered around. Bella was sitting at the edge of the bed, staring at her. "Oh my God! Bella, why are you sitting in the dark?"
"Did you plan this with Mom, sis?" Bella stood up and slowly walked toward Anastasia.
Anastasia's eyes widened in confusion. "What plan?"
"You know I love him, and you know he's my Prince Charming! Why?!" Bella's voice grew louder.
Anastasia was frozen in place, still bewildered. "Prince Charming?"
"I've waited for him for so long, and now you're betraying me. How could you? I love you so much, sis, but I won't let you have him. He's mine!" Bella began to throw things around. She picked up a glass snow globe from Anastasia's study table and hurled it to the floor.
"Bella! What are you doing?!" Anastasia, more confused than ever, could only think about stopping Bella from hurting herself. "Stop moving, you'll get hurt!" she said, as Bella advanced toward her.
"You promised me! You said no Ethan Harrington in your life. So, sis, can you help me? Tell Mom and Dad you don't want to marry him… Please… please…" Bella grasped Anastasia's hands and pleaded.
Anastasia pulled her hands away, her heart racing. She looked at Bella, feeling a mix of shock and concern. "Ethan Harrington? What do you mean by marrying him?"
"Anna…" Marleen called from the door. She had been surprised by the commotion coming from upstairs and rushed to check on what was happening. Hearing the chaos and the urgency in Bella's voice, she decided it was time to address the situation. "Since this happened, let's talk now."