Summary of the previous chapter: The gang attempt an intervention

Bette returns from her walk with Mona to find that the gang have departed. She prepares to return to her office but is interrupted by Tina standing at the door.

No so fast, Bette?
Something wrong, Tina?
Yeah, Bette, How long are you going to keep punishing me like this.
Like what?
Like this. You not talking to me; me sitting here staring at that goddamn office door waiting for you to come out and acknowledge that I exist.

Normally, Bette would have gotten angry. In accordance with her new philosophies, she responds honestly. Im giving you what I thought you wanted.
And what is that?

Space. You obviously have some questions about whether you wish to be in this relationship so, I am giving you the space to sort out what you want. I am trying to make this easy for you, T.

Bette, I dont have any questions. I made a terrible, horrible, stupid, foolish mistake. And for that, I am more sorry than you can ever know. But, I dont have any questions Bette. I love you and want to be with you.

With who?
You.
No, Tina, I mean with which me? Ive been criticized for being executive, high-power Bette; for the temper tantrums, the cell phone glued to my ear, the long hours working. Now, Ive given you the exact opposite: no temper tantrums, no cell phone, no long hours. Which do you want? Ive given you the Bette I was and the Bette I thought you wanted. Which Bette do you want?

I want the Bette that you are.
Tina, Im not so sure that I know who that is anymore. Ive spent my entire life trying to be what I am supposed to me: who my father wanted me to be, who my career required me to be, who my friends wanted me to be, and who I thought you wanted me to be. I dont know who I want me to be.

Baby, you are the Bette I love: the person who is loyal to her friends, the person who loves me, the person that everyone turns to for solid advice and wisdom, the person who asked me to make a life commitment. That is the Bette you are. The rest is just extraneous. Whether you throw away that cell phone and never use it again or whether you have plastic surgery to attach it permanently to your ear, you will always be the Bette with whom I fell in love.

I appreciate that, T, but I dont even know that Bette anymore. I need the time to find her. I hope that you will still be here when I do.

Im not going anywhere.
Bette hears what Tina says, but she cant quite believe. What if Helena comes by? Will Tina still say she isnt going anywhere or will she go wherever Helena offers?

Tinas affair did not just destroy Bettes faith in Tina, it destroyed Bettes faith in herself.