CHAPTER 25

Peering through the window of Zar's room, Fang smiled as she watched Ben accompany Mal towards the lockers area. His hands are covering her eyes, preventing her from the seeing how beautifully he'd customized and decorated the place for their dinner. Though Fang is also baffled onto why the King of Auradon had chosen the Auradon Prep's lockers area of all places to have a date with his consort. Still, it was a sight to behold to see these two people spending their time with the only person they can't live without.

The thought brought sadness to Fang. Looking through her left shoulder towards Zar and being reminded by the fact that they are not together still wounds her to her very core, consuming her with such anger that no amount of revenge or retaliation can mend. And even the fact that they'll be together soon doesn't make the situation any less painful.

The skin below her right collarbone suddenly burns, snapping her out of her thought and diverting her attention towards the location of her insignia. Looking down to the marked skin above her tank top, she discovered it is glowing. "What the?"

"What's with the long face?" Fang heard Zar's voice said. She immediately turned towards Zar's bed, expecting him to be awake. But all she saw was still his unchanged condition.

Her face fell with disappointment. What was that?

"I'm over here," his voice said again. Fang then turned to her right. "Boo!" Zar startled her, almost sending her stumbling to the floor if she didn't just manage to grab the window.

He laughed hard.

"What the hell!?" She angrily exclaimed, readying to beat him. But when the rational portion of her mind kicks in, she trailed off. She stared at him in disbelief and then glanced back and forth to him who is standing right in front of her and to the him that's still sleeping in his bed. She tried to reach him, to touch him. But when she does, her hand just pass through him. "What's going on?" She asked, confused. "Zar, is that you?"

He nodded.

"How did you….how are you?" She stuttered, looking back and forth again to the two Zars.

"I synched with your insignia," he said. Fang looked down to the glowing Arendelle emblem on her chest. "So you can see me even though," he gazed towards his sleeping self, "I'm out cold."

When that registered on her, she immediately exclaimed. "Dumbass! Dumbass! Dumbass!" She shouted repeatedly, tears pouring out of her eyes. "Do you have any idea what I've been through while you were gone!? It was Hell! Hell! And now, you're telling me that you can actually do this!? Why now!? Why only now!?"

"I'm sorry, babe. I would have done this earlier if I can but my consciousness had just awakened an hour ago." He explained, staring back to his body. "I'm literally awake now, I can even hear you and everything. But Mal's spell is still in effect, keeping my body asleep despite being awake."

Her expression softened as he justified everything. Her face then dropped to her palms and her back slid down against the wall until her bum touched the floor. She started crying, both in tears of joy and tears of frustration. This is still screwed up! Her mind exclaimed. She'd gotten Zar back but only a portion of him and she can't even touch him. It's like a sick TV show prank!

Sadness, frustration, and longing, those are the first things that welcomed Zar when he regained his consciousness and it's emanating from the very person whom he couldn't bear to be in pain. The worst part, he can't do a thing about it. Zar discovered that even though he had regained his awareness, the magic that spelled him to heal his injuries is still in effect. He is awake but his body is still in slumber. He can hear Fang, he can feel her, but his body can't move to do anything. He can't touch her, comfort her, can't tell her that he loves her.

Zar felt so helpless. The person that means everything to him is right beside him, suffering, and yet he can't do anything to soothe her sorrows. He tried with all his might to break free from Mal's spell but it's as absolute as the rising of the sun. Thus, keeping him chained as he watched Fang suffers.

It was then that he came up with the idea of synchronizing his qi with her through the insignia of their family. That way, he can gain access into her mind as she is to him. It succeeded. He managed to make contact with her, to talk to her but still not to touch her. He thought that it might feel her better but the situation just upsets her even more.

"I'm sorry, Fang." He said guiltily, cursing himself of considering this stupid idea instead of just waiting until the spell wear off. "I thought I'll make you feel better if I do this but it turns out I'd just upset you more."

Her wailing finally subsided, reduced into silent sniffles but still remains unmoved from her curled position.

"I guess I should go," he said. "I'll see you tomorrow with…the rest of me."

"Wait! No!" She exclaimed, shooting up immediately to her feet in order to stop him. "Please, don't go," she pleaded.

"But…"

"I'm sorry for whining. I'm sorry," she apologized, mumbling 'I'm sorry' repeatedly. "But please, don't leave me. I just got you back."

Zar complied. And after ten excruciating minutes of calming Fang from her emotional frenzy, they finally settled, sitting down on the floor, staring dreamily at each other.

"It's amazing," Fang gasped, playfully extending her hand through his astral body. "How are you doing that?"

He shrugged. "Honestly, I have no idea. It just worked."

She frowned, unconvinced. "It was your first try?"

He nodded.

"And it worked?"

"I guess humans are capable of unbelievable things when they're desperate."

Fang pushed her lips into a cute pout. "You really miss me that much?"

"All the times that I was asleep, I'd done nothing but to dream of you," he told her honestly.

Her pale cheeks blushed, but there was also a playful shimmer in her eyes. "All decent."

It was now his turn to be embarrassed. He shook his head. "That's impossible."

She giggled. "Don't worry. Once you woke up, we're gonna spend a lot of time in your workshop again. And we're gonna reenact all of those naughty dreams of yours."

Zar blushed and smiled as well. They then spend the next hour chatting and catching up with everything that he missed during his three days of slumber. And he was surprised of how much trouble Fang and his mother had put themselves into during that short amount of time. And he can't also believe as well that they'd gone that far just to give him a payback. But what truly shake him the most was the revelation of Mal's pregnancy with King Ben's child, not to mention that they're outside right now trying to set things up.

However, in the middle of their bright conversation, Fang sniffed something in the air and her expression immediately hardened.

"Hey? What's wrong?" He asked when she turned her head towards the window.

"I think we should call it a night," she said tensely, not just through her words and actions but with her disturbed qi flow as well.

"Fang? I know that something's wrong. Tell me." He demanded for an explanation. He'd never seen Fang this anxious. So whatever it is that she's worried about, it's big and very dangerous. It's not worth her worry if it's not.

She didn't answer. Instead, she covered her insignia with her hand, disrupting the flow of his qi to her. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Fang," Zar tried to call her as she hurried out of his room. "Fang," he called again. However, the synch had already been broken and he disintegrated from the real world, returning him back to the depth of his consciousness.

"Wow," Mal gasped when Ben removed his hands from her eyes, revealing the fancily established and decorated dinner for two in the…lockers area? What the hell? Mal frowned. Why here of all places? This is completely not what she's expecting when Ben invited her for a simple dinner. First, it's not simple. It's extravagantly prepared, too extravagant even for Ben's taste. Second, it's not a dinner. It's more like that dates that they spend at the Enchanted Lake. The setting might be different but the essence is no doubt the same. Which is so odd since Ben prefer having it at the Enchanted Lake over everywhere else and he also hates doing it during nighttime. And lastly, it's an overall so out of character for him to do, a summary of everything that she'd just enumerated. He spends too much. He'd settled it in a weird place, in an unlikely time, and on his least preferred circumstances. They even have servers.

All in all, it's like Ben is trying to throw a party but just for the two of them. It's so suspicious that Mal believed that he must be up to something. She can't just pinpoint what.

"But why the lockers area?" She asked as he accompanies her to their table.

"Don't you remember what started here?" Ben attempted to remind her about the significance of the place as he pulled her chair for her.

Mal gritted her teeth. She concentrated remembering something special that she had with Ben in this area but all she could recall is opening and closing her locker. "I got nothing," she surrendered.

He chuckled, settling down on his chair. "This is where you spelled me," he finally told her. "This is where what we have now started."

Mal's lips parted as that moment returned to her. From Ben, her gaze shifted to the lockers behind him, to the same spot where it all commence more than a year ago. She smiled, reminiscing that day when she gave him that cookie with a love potion. He almost screamed her name back then if Jay didn't just stop him. It was not the start of their genuine love for each other but it was what started everything.

"Alright, now I remember," she smiled, returning her gaze to him. "Weird huh? I thought back then that I was doing it to please my Mom. Unconsciously, I was actually stealing you from Audrey so I can have you for myself."

He chuckled. "This is where everything all begun."

Now she understands the importance of the place. But that still haven't answered the question on why here? Yes, it's sentimental but they also have other momentous places that serve better significance on their relationship. Not to mention, has a better location and atmosphere.

The thought died though when the servers started flooding them with gourmet delicacies. With all of them being her favorites and due to her craving condition, she dug in uncontrollably in which both shock and amused Ben as he watched her eat.

"Wow, you eat like a starved lion," he said as they now settle for the dessert. "What got into you?"

"Actually, there's something that you have to know. But it's a little bit of a shocker. So, I'll tell you about it later."

"I have something to tell you too," he admitted. "But unlike yours, I don't think this can wait."

"What's that?" Mal asked.

Ben didn't reply. Instead, he stood up and went to her side of the table. He took her hand and pulled her up to her feet. He then led her to the same spot where she gave him the cookie with the love potion one year ago. "Mal, more than a year ago, on this very spot, you gave a love spelled cookie that opened up everything that we have now."

She blushed, embarrassed but not ashamed on what she'd done back then. It was the only evil deed that she is proud of.

"Since that moment on, I realized a lot of things and one of that is that I can't live my life without you." He reached inside his suit and pulled a small box, in which Mal recognized immediately as a ring box. She then flinched when he kneeled a knee down and opened the ring box, revealing an antique but mesmerizing diamond studded platinum ring.

Mal almost ceased breathing when Ben took the ring placed it around her finger, she didn't even realize that tears are already falling down her cheeks "I love you, Mal, and I want to spend the rest of my happily ever after with you. Will you marry me?"

Mal couldn't stop blubbering. Heck, she could barely see him for her tears. All she could do was nod like a hysterical swan.

She thought that tonight she's going to give this up for her baby but she didn't expect that she's gonna have them both.

"Yes?" Ben asked, confirming. As if he could not believe the reply she gave. But she keeps on nodding, telling him that yes, yes, she will marry him. He rejoiced, lifting her up and whirling her around in joy.

However, their celebration was suddenly interrupted when they heard an ear shattering explosion within the school premise.

END OF CHAPTER 25