It had been a few hours since they had brought Ben into hospital and Belle & Adam were getting restless. Mal had finally cried herself to sleep half an hour ago and both parents had done nothing but pace around the room and worry since. All they wanted was to be told how Ben was but they still hadn't heard anything. The longer they were in the room, the more on edge they became meaning there had been a few times where Adam's anger had almost got the better of him. Thankfully Belle had managed to calm him before he stormed out of the waiting room to demand answers.
After a few more minutes the royal couple heard the door to the waiting room finally open and immediately turned to see who had come in. Their eyes settles on a young looking red headed male nurse who bowed as soon as he noticed he had the monarchs attention. "Your majesties." The young male greeted them. "I'm Sean. I'm assisting in the care of King Ben." He introduced himself. Belle took the few steps to stand next to her husband, grasping his hand to keep herself and Adam calm. "Doc asked me to come and show you to King Ben's room." The pair released a breath they didn't realize they were holding at the sound of the familiar name treating their son.
"What's wrong with Ben? Is he alright?" Belle asked the nurse. He still hadn't told them what to expect when they walked in there and that worried the mother. It was never good when they didn't explain things.
"He is awake, your majesty." The young man responded but it did nothing to ease the mothers fears. Sean saw this immediately and continued to explain what was happening. "We are waiting on a few test results to come back before Doc will give an official diagnosis. But King Ben is awake and responsive. He has also been asking for you all." He said with a small smile, hoping to ease their worries a little.
Adam turned to lift their sleeping daughter into his arms before turning back to the nurse. The former King took hold of his wife's hand once more, since he could easily settled Mal's small body into one of his arms, before nodding to the male nurse who had remained near the door. Sean took the hint and turned to hold the door open. The three royals walked past the nurse and out into the corridor where they waited until Sean was once more in front of them. They silently followed the red head through the hospital corridors looking into each room they passed that had the door open, trying to make sure they didn't pass their sons room.
It took a few minutes, but to the royal parents it felt like hours, before they reached a closed door and Sean stopped. The red head held the door open again and the royals walked in. Instead of following the family though Sean simply closed the door behind them leaving the family alone. Belle couldn't contain her gasp at just how ill Ben looked. He looked worse then he had when they had brought him in. He was paler then they had even seen him with large bags under his eyes and a drip attatched to his hand.
"Hi." He greeted his parents before he noticed his little sister asleep in his dad's arms and smiled a little. Ben welcomed a hug from his mother and to his surprise one from his father as well, as best he could since he still held Mal in his arms.
Before his dad could fully move away Ben lifted his arms and began to maneuvore Mal out of his dad's hold. "Ben, are you sure you're okay to hold her?" Adam asked his son. He certainly didn't want Ben making himself any worse but the look in Ben's eye as he nodded told the former king he wouldn't win this battle without waking Mal who would try and get to Ben once she was awake anyway. The two had become inseperable.
Slowly, so they didn't wake the sleeping girl, Adam passed Mal to Ben who shifted slightly so his favourite purplette was curled into his side with her head resting on his shoulder. Ben wrapped his arms around her protectively and turned to look at his parents faces. They looked understandably worried but were still smiling at the sight of their children curled up together. It was a daily occurrence at the castle but it never failed to warm the parents hearts, seeing how close they had become.
"How are you feeling?" Belle asked her son as she settled next to Adam in the chairs next to their sons bed. The couple grasped each others hands as Belle rested her head on Adam's shoulder.
Ben simply laid their for a few minutes to think about how he really felt. In all honesty he felt worse then ever but he wasn't about to tell his parents that. One thing Ben did know was that he would rather feel like this for the rest of his life then abdicate the throne and Mal end up like this. He would never forgive himself for that if it happened. "I feel alright." He lied for the first time to his parents. He felt horrible doing it but he couldn't worry his parents more then they already were. He didn't even want to think about how Mal had handled him passing out in front of her.
Both Belle and Adam looked at his with disbelieving looks on their faces but for now they let it drop. They would talk to ben more once Doc came back and they knew what was wrong with him. They made small talk for around ten minutes before they noticed someone coming through the door. Ben, Belle and Adam all turned to find Doc, Doug's uncle, walking in with Sean just behind him. Both bowed to the royal family before Doc looked up at the them. Despite knowing he was going to worry the family with Ben's test results he couldn't help but smile at little Mal curled into the King's side.
"King Ben, King Adam, Queen Belle." Doc greeted the three royal family members that were awake. The three family members nodded their greeting to him but kept quiet. Ben was wishing for this to be over while the two parents were hoping it was nothing to serious and could be easily treated. The trio watched as Doc opened the file in his hands and quickly scanned the results before looking back at the family. "How long have you felt like this King Ben?" Doc asked the young king.
He shot a quick look to his parents before looking back to his doctor. "On and off for over a year." Ben admitted. Neither Belle nor Adam could believe he had gone this long without seeing a doctor.
Doc nodded to the young royal. "That explains how things have gotten this bad." He states causing confused looks from the monarchs. "How your feeling all relates to your stress levels, your highness." Doc told the young King and he had to admit he wasn't really shocked.
"So if I limit my stress then I'll be fine right?" Ben asked hoping for an easy solution to this.
"I'm afraid not." Doc answered, a frown forming on his face. Ben couldn't help but feel a little disappointed. While his parents still looked confused and concerned.
Adam decided to speak up next. "So what can be done?" He asked, worried about his son.
"Well King Ben's blood pressure is very high." Doc told Adam and Belle before turning to Ben. "This is likely causing dizzy spells, headaches, nausea, am I right?" He asked and Ben reluctantly nodded. "Now we can get your blood pressure under control with medication but I'm afraid that isn't the only condition your stress levels have caused. Our scans show you have multiple ulcers in your stomach which we may have to remove surgically. But if your stress isn't reduced drastically it could cause other more serious health problems." Doc explained.
Belle felt like she was going to be sick. She couldn't believe how sick/ill Ben must have been for so long. "What kinds of health problems?" Adam asked. Belle tightened her hold on Adam's hand as Doc cleared his throat.
Doc looked between Ben and his parents before answering the question the former king had asked him. "It can lead to neck, back & shoulder pain, sleep dysfunction and possibly heart and lung problems such as heart attacks." He explained to the royals. Doc didn't want to tell them this but he wouldn't lie to them about how serious this could become if not handled. "This can be avoided by stopping the cause of the stress..." Doc started to say but Ben quickly cut him off.
"I can't do that!" The king whisper shouted trying not to wake his little sister up. "The cause of the stress is me being King. I can't leave the Kingdom with no ruler."
"Actually I may have a solution to that." Doc stated causing three curious faces. "Obviously for health reasons it's not safe for Ben to rule which would mean he would have to abdicate the throne. What I would suggest would be you two, you majesties, taking over as acting King and Queen until little Mal here is old enough of there is a solution found to turn her back to her previous age and she can be coronated as Queen."
A defeated sigh passed by Ben's lips before he could even try and stop it. "Is that the only solution?" He asked. Doc nodded to him and he instinctively looked down at the purple haoired girl, still sound asleep and curled into his side. "What about Mal's health?" Ben questioned. He would never forgive himself if the same happened to her because he wasn't strong enough to deal with the stress of being King.
Both Doc and Sean smiled at the young king. "She survived sixteen years on the Isle with Maleficent as her mother, she will be fine." Doc stated but Ben was clearly not conviced. Adam noticed this straight away.
"What if Doc gave Mal monthly check ups to keep an eye on her?" He asked, trying to get his son to agree to this. It was the best thing for his health and had to be done. Adam just hoped the councils don't put up too much of a battle about it. Ben laid looking at the innocent face of his little sister before reluctantly nodding his agreement. He hated the idea but it seemed like he didn't have a choice in the matter. It was in his best interests to give up the crown but he still worried for Mal. Sure Doc was right about her surviving the isle but they didn't even know if she remembered that anymore let alone how the stress of having to be perfect and run a Kingdom would affect her.
"Okay. So I will come back after you've had some more scans to discuss how's best to deal with those ulcers." Doc stated. "Nothing to eat or drink until I give you the all clear, okay?" Once more Ben nodded along with his parents. Doc and Sean then left the room leaving the royal family to their own thoughts. Each was so far lost in their own heads none of them noticed the purple haired girl starting to stir. Until she spoke.
"Benny?" Mal asked, her voice filled with sleep. The sound drew Ben from his thoughts immediately and he looked down, his gaze landing on tired green eyes. "You okay now?" She asked her voice as innocent as ever. Ben didn't notice the sound of his sisters voice had also caught the attention of his parents.
"I will be." Ben promised her, prompting her to nod and smile at him. The young king had no idea how to tell the five year old she would eventually have to rule the kingdom but since a reversal still hadn't been found, despite two years of looking, they had plenty of time to prepare her for what was to come.
Author's Note: Hope you guys like this chapter. Sorry it's a little late. Please review and let me know what you think x