The Descendants 3 teaser brought me back to this wonderful friendship :)

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Something was wrong with Mal, but Evie didn't know what. It's not like Mal ever opened up about her feelings... ever. But Evie was determined to get to the bottom of Mal's hidden troubles.

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When Mal walked into her and Evie's shared room she was greeted by the familiar sounds of Evie's sewing machine. She looked over at Evie, who smiled warmly. 'uh oh. It's a trap.' Mal spun on her heel to walk out of the room again.

"No. M, tell me what's been going on with you, I'm worried." Evie remained seated and passive, but her words were strong enough to make Mal freeze.

"I don't know what you're talking about, E," Mal robotically answered.

"Don't lie to me." Evie stood up and walked up behind her. "I know you better than anyone, Mal, even Ben. I know you're hiding something from me; from everyone. Try and look me in the eyes and say that again, I dare you."

Mal faced her best friend, her face completely emotionless. "I don't know what you're talking about, E," she repeated, making direct eye contact.

Evie breathed out through her nose. "I still don't believe you."

Mal squinted. "What is this, a courtroom? Stop grilling me, dude, I'm fine." And with that, she left, forgetting the reason she went there in the first place.

Evie watched her leave, feeling dejected. Was it wrong to push her friend so hard? Evie knew Mal would have to come back eventually, so she decided to wait until that night to try again.

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Mal purposely came back later than usual, hoping that Evie would be asleep. She crept into the room, only to finding Evie with a flashlight, reading a book. "What are you still doing up? I thought you couldn't live without your beauty sleep."

Evie looked up. "Normally, but this book was too good to put down." That was only a partial lie. Sure, the book was good, but that wasn't the reason she was still up.

"Okay, well, goodnight, I guess." Mal started to head towards her bed, only for Evie to make her stop in her tracks again.

"Wait!"

Mal looked over and sighed dramatically. "What, are you going to go and accuse me of things again?"

"No, I just... I was going to hug you goodnight..."

Mal raised an eyebrow. "Is this an elaborate plan to get me to talk? Because I'm telling you-"

"It's not." Evie stood up. "I just want to hug my best friend. Is that okay?"

Mal was almost certain it was a trap, but she still caved in. Why? Because despite everything, she still loved Evie. "Fine. But make it quick, I'm tired."

Evie went to stand in front of Mal, smiled sweetly, then opened her arms to see if Mal would come to her first.

Mal stared at her for a moment, then carefully wrapped her arms around Evie's waist.

Evie rested her chin on Mal's shoulder, taking note of how tense she was. "It's okay, Mal, I'm not going to make you talk."

Mal shoulders slowly yet surely relaxed.

That alone proved to Evie that something was wrong, but she didn't bring it up. She knew that pushing Mal to talk would get them nowhere.

Mal bit her lip when she felt Evie run her hand down her back. "E..." She suddenly stepped out of the hug. "I, um... Goodnight."

Evie nodded once. "Goodnight." And that was it. The two friends went to their own beds without another word. But at the very least, it was a start. Evie had hope.

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Evie awoke to the sound of someone crying softly. She lifted her head up and looked towards Mal's bed. Sure enough, there she sat, tears running down her cheeks. Evie swung her legs out of her blankets and went over to her friend. Without a word, she sat next to Mal, hoping that at least her presence would be enough.

Mal couldn't think straight, so she instinctively tucked her head under Evie's chin, whimpering like a puppy that had been kicked.

Evie held Mal and stroked her hair, trying to make the lump in her throat go away. She was afraid to speak, for she feared if she did Mal would shy away from her and not get the comfort she knew she needed.

Mal was still shaking with sobs. She didn't realize what was happening, but she could feel gentle fingers threading through her hair. A foreign feeling, but strangely... welcomed.

Evie pressed her lips to the top of Mal's head and didn't move away until Mal's sobs lessened. She waited a few more seconds, then bowed her head and whispered into her ear, "It's okay. I love you."

Mal was more aware of what was going on at that point, and she instinctually wanted to push Evie away, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. She was tired of feeling alone. "Evie, I-"

"We'll talk about this in the morning, M. For now, I just want you to go back to sleep."

Mal slowly nodded. "Okay..."

Evie held her friend until she knew she was definitely asleep. Giving her a light kiss on the forehead first, she carefully settled Mal down onto her bed. "Goodnight, Mal. Sweet dreams."

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Despite telling her they would talk in the morning, Evie left Mal alone for the next few days and didn't bring up what had happened that night. She figured that if she didn't push Mal to talk, she would admit to what was wrong a little easier.

Mal remembered what had happened that night, and regretted that she had opened up. She didn't need Evie to worry. She wasn't worth all that trouble.

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After a few more days, Mal couldn't take it anymore. "Hey, Evie?"

Evie lifted her head up from her work. "Yes?"

Mal bit her lip. Hard. "I... I wanted to talk to you about... what's wrong..."

Evie's expression softened. "Okay. Go ahead."

Mal placed both of her hands behind her neck, pausing to make sure she really wanted to do this. She decided she had no choice. "I... don't deserve all of... this."

Evie raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

Mal threw her hands up in the air, frustrated with herself. "Everything! Living here, dating Ben, having people care about me, just... all of it."

Evie got up and walked over to her friend. "Mal, what are you talking about? You deserve to be happy. You deserve everything good that comes your way."

Mal averted her gaze. "E... I've done some terrible things... I don't-"

Evie suddenly reached forward and held the side of Mal's face. "Hey. You've been trying, Mal, that's all that matters to me, and I'm sure that's all that matters to Ben too. I get that after our little... "adventure" with Uma and Harry you might still be feeling... unworthy, to say the least. But we're here for you. Jay, Carlos, Ben... me. You don't have to be alone anymore."

Mal listened to Evie's kind words with wide eyes. Her heart felt heavy, and her vision blurred when Evie smiled softly. "I-"

Evie leaned in and kissed Mal right between the eyebrows, then wrapped her arms around Mal's shoulders. "C'mere. Let it out."

Mal finally dropped her facade completely and hugged her best friend with everything she had. "I don't want to be alone... but there will always be that part of me I can't change and... sometimes, I hate myself, Evie..."

Evie ran her fingers through Mal's hair, encouraging her to keep going.

Mal released a shaky sigh. "That night, when you comforted me... the reason I was crying was that everything had hit me all at once... I'm broken, E... I don't know who I am anymore..."

Evie gently squeezed her middle. "You're my best friend. Isn't that important?"

"Of course, It's just... is that enough?"

Evie dropped her hands away and took a step back. "You're so much more than that. You're Jay and Carlos' best friend too. You're Ben's girlfriend. You care deeply about the people you're close to and you would do anything to help them. You mean so much to me so if you can't love yourself the way I do, I'll just have to help you through this. You don't need to hide from me, Mal; you don't need to be alone."

Mal gently held Evie out by the shoulders and smiled a watery smile. "You broke me, Evie... In the best way, possible you broke me. Thank you... for everything."