Designed

(Tuesday Morning, August 20th)

"Ben." Someone shakes his shoulder. "Ben." He shrugs it off, and Charming says, "The judge wants you on the stand."

Ben incoherently mutters, and his pillow moves. He falls onto the bench, and he looks up at Chad. "Where are you going?"

Chad pulls him up. "You're going to the witness stand."

He moves Ben into the alley, and the judge asks, "Did I wake you Your Highness?"

Ben saunters past the benches. "Quoi?"

Chad translates, and Ben glances over before answering, "Yes, Your Honor."

She asks, "You didn't catch anything up until this point, did you?" Ben walks up the podium, and she says, "The defense may approach the stand."

His father's lawyer walks up to him. "Have you ever acted – towards your mother?"

Ben's brows furrow. "Sorry. What?"

"Have you ever touched her hair?"

Ben frowns. "Yes."

"Have you ever kissed her?"

His eyes shift. "On the hand."

"Have you seen her naked?"

The judge interrupts, "Mr. Droit."

"There's a point," he reassures before returning his attention to Ben. "Do you keep any inappropriate photos of her?"

"Can you slow down?" Ben agitates. "What does inappropriate mean?"

"Inappropriate," he says again. "Revealing. Provocative."

Ben stares, dumbfounded, and Rapunzel stands from the table. "If I may, Your Honor, English isn't his first language."

The judge nods. "Mr. Droit. It's early. Dumb it down, please. For all of us."

"Yes, Your Honor." He pauses. "Do you have any pictures of your mother where she has little, if any, clothing?"

Ben glances at his mother in the audience, her expression saddening, and tears his eyes away from her. "One. We were swimming. She looked happy."

"Does she know you have it?"

Ben's eyes lower. "No."

"And when you touched her hair or kissed her hand," he backtracks, "did you ever do that without her permission?"

"Yes," Ben whispers into the microphone.

"Out of all the times you claim your father hurt you, how many of those times do you think was because he was trying to keep her safe from you?"

Ben wets his lips. "A few times, at least."

Mr. Droit turns towards the panel of judges. "The opposition would have you believe that my client has uncontrollable anger, but think about this. If your son had feelings for your wife of which he was acting on, would you not be angry? If your son had been doing something illegal, would you not want to handle the situation yourself? If your son was touching your wife and she continued to put herself in that situation, what else could one do but forcibly separate them? My client is guilty of nothing but the love and compassion he has for his family, which is why he never alerted anyone of this inappropriate relationship until now." He pauses. "I rest my case."

When they get into the car, Charming comments, "I'm going to need you to show me that photo." Ben takes the phone out of his pocket, types in the password, and then hands it over to him. "You have it as your background?"

"Sometimes I really miss her."

"He claims he doesn't do anything with it," Chad butts in.

"I don't," Ben enthusiastically says.

"I believe you." Charming sternly eyes him. "But this is still a very inappropriate picture for you to have. If you miss her, why not just ask for one? One with clothes."

"I don't know why." Ben glances down. "I just like this photo."

"It's the boobs," Chad says.

"You're fifteen." Charming turns to the back. "I don't want to hear you sexualizing someone in their forties.

"There's no way she's that old," Chad doubts.

Charming frowns. "Even Belle doesn't know how old she really is— but my point still stands. And didn't you say you're homosexual? How are you even talking about this?"

"I only find guys interesting," Chad explains. "I still think girls are hot. I'll fuck one, but… it wouldn't mean anything."

"It would mean something to her," Charming counters before facing Ben. "Did you see how upset your mother was when she found out about this? All this talk about wanting to respect her, and you've been sexualizing her this entire time."

"It's not like that," Ben denies.

"Then explain it to me," Charming requests, "because I'm really trying to understand." Ben doesn't speak. "Tell me why. What are you thinking?"

"No." Ben shakes his head. "It's wrong."

"Tell me," he says again.

He faces him. "She's mine. After everything I've done for her, I deserve to have her."

Charming quietly questions, "You understand it doesn't work that way?"

Ben gulps. "I do." He feels his cheeks wet and wipes the tears away. "I just want to be able to look at her. Is that a crime?"

"Not if you ask for a photo with proper clothing." Charming starts the car. "This goes both ways, Ben. You don't get to tell her not to see you just so that you can look at a picture of her all day."

Ben stares out the window. "She probably does the same thing." Charming doesn't respond. "I need to stop at the butcher shop. I have a present for Mal. I need to give it to her before it's too late."

"You just told the entire country that you keep porn of your mom," Chad says. "I'd say it's a little late."

"He's not using it for porn," Charming dismisses.

"You don't believe that," Chad discounts.

Charming turns towards him again. "Ben's underweight. His body isn't even going to perform consistently right now." Chad quiets, and Ben shrinks in his seat. Charming takes a deep breath. "Ella's meeting with some friends. I'll drop you off before I take Ben back to the butcher."

"Why does my mom have to watch me?" Chad complains. "You already have a guard watching me."

"I want the guard on Ben, while he's visiting Mal."

Chad whines, "Where did Dino go, anyway?"

"He's sick, Chad."

"Sick from what?"

Charming starts to drive and then glances at Chad in the mirror. "We don't know, yet. He had stomach pain and diarrhea. I'm calling him today."

"When does he get to protect me again?"

"When he's better, Chad." Chad's expression saddens. "I'm sorry your dinosaur is sick, but he's on our health plan. Once he sees the doctor, he will be given the best care possible."

When Ben gets back in the car, Charming examines the bone and beef bouquet. "It's, uh… beautiful."

"Hopefully, it tastes better."

"How much did that set you back?"

Ben tries to smile. "Not as much as what I spent on myself."

His expression slips, and Charming says, "We need to talk."

He shakes his head. "About?"

Charming frowns. "About why you're not eating." Ben shakes his head harder. "We need to talk about this."

"Why?" Ben's voice raises, "So that you can tell me it's normal, that everyone feels uncomfortable at first, but I will get used to it?"

"Most people do get used to it." Charming defends, "Change is scary. It's confusing. At the time, I was convinced you would change your mind."

Ben's voice crackles, "Change my mind about what?"

"You're entering your senior year," he continues. "If you were going to get used to it, you would have by now."

"Change my mind about what?" Ben grits his teeth.

"About the way you feel of how your body's designed," he answers.

Ben widens his eyes. "I really don't want to talk about this."

"It needs to be talked about." Ben folds his arms and turns his head to the window. "Life doesn't need to be hard. There are things that can be done to make it easier on you."

"Are you going to give me my waist trainer back?" Ben argues.

"You don't have any fat to redistribute right now," Charming calmly says.

"Then what?" Ben turns back to him. "What's your bright idea to make things easier?"

"Well." He pauses. "If you're serious about not wanting to pass down your genetics, you could get the testis removed." Ben cringes. "It was the thing you had the hardest time with before. Has that changed?"

"No." Ben looks away and focuses on his watch. "I almost think I could have sex if I didn't have to feel… the stuff."

"There would still be a clear ejaculation that the prostate produces," Charming warns, "but it's like the lubricant some women squirt. And any nocturnal—or, in your case, daytime—episodes should stop, as well as any spontaneous erections… You might need medication, since your testosterone levels would be lower."

"Isn't that the point," Ben questions, "to lower testosterone levels?"

"I say might," Charming pinpoints, "as in if you or your partner wanted sex. There's medication to help with blood flow, should an erection be needed—not that you would."

"You know, I still think about being close to people, despite being underweight."

"You're young. I don't doubt that." He pauses. "But if you're doing this to prevent secondary sex characteristics, then I need you to know there's a safer option."

"No doctor is going to mutilate a king," Ben dismisses.

"I wouldn't call it that."

"Most people would," Ben mutters. "The only way I would get away with it is if I had cancer, but then there's the radiation treatment that's always done first."

"Everyone has their price, Ben."

His frown deepens. "You would bribe a doctor?"

"Some doctor somewhere would agree that it doesn't matter if your sexual organs are healthy if the symptoms of having them is causing you mental distress."

Ben cringes again. "I really don't like this conversation."

"It's just something to think about," Charming says. "Starving yourself doesn't give you the same guarantees as the surgery would. It's a temporary solution to a very intense process. You will have to eat eventually, and when you do, the ejaculation, voice drop—everything you fear—it will start up again."

"Woah. Wait." Ben's eyes widen. "Voice drop?"

"Oh. Um. Not necessarily that." Ben's jaw drops, and he explains, "Your doctors just find it peculiar that the men in your family have deep voices and, well, you don't."

"My voice isn't scratchy," Ben stresses. "It's done dropping."

"Maybe," Charming gives in. "Maybe not." Ben stares out the front window, holding his eyes open, trying not to cry. "It wouldn't be a sudden change. There's time to—"

"Drive," Ben manages. "I need to get these to Mal."

"Ben," he whispers.

The tears drop, and he watches them slide down the bone flowers. "I said, 'drive'."

Ben sniffles, wiping the tears from his face, before he exits the car and heads into the school. He focuses on his breathing, trying to calm down, as he makes his way to the dorm. He knocks on the door, and when it opens, he smiles. "Mal. It's nice to see you."

"Wow." She evenly expresses, "I'm making you cry, and I didn't even say anything, yet. You must be feeling pretty guilty."

He moves the bouquet towards her. "These are for you. I know you don't like watching things die, so I got you flowers you can eat." His expression slips. "Does that still count as watching something die?"

"Come inside," she requests, and he follows her into the dorm. "Not you."

Ben turns back and notices the guard. "He's going to translate if I mess up."

She looks between them before shaking her head. "Why not?" The guard comes in, and she closes the door behind him before turning to Ben. "These are beautiful."

He hands her a small bag. "I also got some chewing sticks from the butcher. The bone is already pre-cooked."

"Well, that's good," Mal slowly says, "considering I don't have fire breath."

Ben's frown deepens. "I thought you said—"

"That I would burn you alive if you talked to Evie again," Mal finishes. "I had to. You're bad for her." She eyes over him. "You're bad for each other."

Ben hesitates, "I thought you were doing better."

"Something about your boyfriend almost dying and not being able to talk to him kind of gets to you." Mal questions, "Are we still together, by the way? I don't think we really talked about that, since you went and broke up with me for my own good."

Ben's eyes shift. "Chad's right. My memory is bad." He wets his lips, stepping forward. "Mal. I'm sorry for everything—and what happened yesterday."

"You don't need to apologize for that." She folds her arms. "It was my fault for holding you close and telling you to listen to my blood."

"Mal." He hesitates, "I really would like to spend my life with you, if you give me the chance. There's something here." He takes her hand. "Can't you feel it?"

"What I feel—" Mal takes her hand from his. "—is something missing." Her jade green eyes meet him. "As much as I care about you… this doesn't feel right… not anymore."

His voice raises in pitch, "That's it, then?"

Her mouth hangs open, and she releases a breath. "I don't know, Ben. I mean, relationships shouldn't have to be this hard, and there's so many things getting between us right now, I just don't know."

"This is because I don't speak English," he assumes.

She uneasily smiles. "That's part of it." His head lowers, and she places a hand to his face. "You taught me what love is, Ben. You made my world bigger and brighter, but… I don't know who I am here. I don't know who I am in this relationship."

He gulps. "I understand."

She lets go of him and smells the beef flowers. "These really are beautiful."

He solemnly smiles. "I love you, Mal."

She cautiously eyes over him. "I'm here if you need to talk… or not talk, I guess."

He holds his breath, as his heart races. "Thank you."

"Pumpkin," Chad's mom comments. "Would you like to talk about anything?"

Chad moves the mashed potatoes around his plate. "Not really."

His parents glance at each other, before his dad suggests, "If you talk with us about what happened with the professor, then it might make it easier to explain to her."

Chad shakes his head. "I keep telling you, I don't know what to say."

"But if you just," his mother starts, and his dad's phone chimes. He takes it out, and Chad's mom widens her eyes. "We're trying to get our son to open up."

"It's Derek." He frowns. "Ben's been crying for the last hour. He doesn't know if he should interrupt or not."

"Mal said no, didn't she?" Chad assumes.

His father hesitates, "He seemed fine earlier. He was more upset about the conversation I had with him."

"And what conversation was that?" she asks. He glances between them, and she inquires, "Charming?"

He sighs. "I don't know how much I should say."

"We can't help him if we don't know what's going on," she states.

"Agreed," he says before looking at Chad. "You're going to need an open mind. I don't want you making this about you." He holds up a hand to Ella. "Poor wording, I know."

Chad frowns. "I'll try not to take it personally."

His father clasps his fingers. "You both probably know that Ben's been uncomfortable with himself."

"He wants to be human," Chad blatantly says.

"There's that." Charming nods. "And then there's the fact that he's been starving himself again to counter sexual characteristics."

"You mean, like…" Chad's eyebrows furrow. "Him being a guy?"

"Sort of," Charming answers. "It's a very particular thing about being a guy that bothers him… And then, of course, there's the facial hair and deep voice, but maybe he just doesn't want to look like a beast. I don't know."

"What do you know?" she asks.

He faces her. "I know that earlier I let slip that his doctors think he might not have finished puberty, and now he's crying." His phone chimes again, and he sighs. "I should talk to him again."

"No," Chad rejects. "I want to talk to him."

He frowns. "Ben's not going to want to answer your questions."

"Who says I'm going to ask questions?" Chad takes offense. "You really think he's going to want to talk to you after your last conversation?"

"I was trying to give him options," he defends. "Ben can't starve himself forever, especially with his binging behavior, and I don't want him to kill himself."

Chad's voice quiets, "I get it, but I can calm him down. Trust me."

She touches his shoulder, and he gives in, "You have an hour."

Chad cracks the door, and Ben looks at him. "Hey. Can I come in?" He turns away, and Chad shuts the door before walking towards the bed. "Hey. I'm talking to you."

"Chad," he painfully says, "I don't care."

He takes a seat on the edge of the bed. "I can hear you crying from down the hall."

"Sorry to disturb you," Ben forces, his voice hoarse.

Chad lays next to him. "You know, we've known each other forever. I know we're not on the best terms right now, but you can tell me anything and I will take it to heart."

"I know." Ben rolls back over and faces him. "Mal ended things."

"That's it?" Ben gapes, and he smiles. "Come on. What did she really say?"

His eyes shift. "She said a relationship shouldn't have to be so hard and that she doesn't know who she is."

"That's what you're upset about?" Chad grins. "That's nothing. Villain kids shouldn't even be dating right when they get out of that prison anyway. If she needs time to figure out who she is when she's not stealing and selling her body for heat, then let her. She'll come running back to you soon enough."

"No." Ben mumbles, "She won't."

Chad's expression fades. "Why not?"

"Because." He cries harder. "She was dating me for my heat. She liked how hot I was, but I could barely even undress for her. She wanted to take things farther, but… I couldn't."

"Hey." Chad places a hand on his shoulder. "You're not required to put out. Okay? And if she's dumping you over that, then she sucks. It just means she never even liked you, anyway."

"But I love her," Ben splutters. Chad opens his mouth, and Ben hugs him tight. "She didn't say it back."

Chad moves a hand to his back. "It's okay." Ben heaves a sob. "It's okay." Ben's breathing slows, and he feels the breath on his neck. "Ben?" He sucks on his neck, and Chad presses him back. "Ben."

"I didn't even bite."

"I know." Chad pauses. "But your doctors were worried about you growing a tolerance to morphine. Sucking my neck is enough to do that."

Ben lays his head on Chad's chest. "I miss you."

He looks up at the ceiling. "I know."

"Do you miss me?"

Chad nods. "All the time."

"What were we fighting over again?"

Chad chuckles. "Just how fucked up I felt about you wanting to own me after what Hawthorne did."

Ben rubs his head back-and-forth. "I'm sorry."

Chad takes a moment. "I'm sorry for not telling you why it bothered me."

"For the record." Ben shuts his eyes. "I could take blood from anyone. I just wanted you, because you're special."

"Do you find me attractive?"

He yawns, "You're very charming."

A minute passes, before he asks, "Do you love me?" There's no response. "Ben?"

"He's asleep," the guard notes.

Chad sighs. "Why am I such a great pillow?"