On Thanksgiving weekend, Mal and Ryder flew to Seattle to spent the holiday with Ben and his friends; when Belle and Adam called the boy to say hello, the couple decided that it was time to tell them about their relationship. The excitement that the boy's parents show made the couple laughed as they predicted Belle started planning vacations for them together, she announced that the four of them were spending Christmas and New Year together in New York so that Mal didn't need to ask for vacations while telling Ben that he shouldn't have any problems telling Azis and Jay that he was taking a week off. Ben turned to look at his friends who were shaking their heads because they knew that aside from Christmas day there would be no chance for days off they had to finish a lot of things before the end of the year, so the boy nodded to them, he would tell his parents about flying out for Christmas day and then making his way back for New Year. Mal had already used her vacations for the year, and he didn't want to put her in a situation where she needed to ask for extra time off knowing how difficult things were at the magazine at the end of the year, everyone was asking for time off, and they would be understaffed. When the call with Belle and Adam ended Mal turned to Ben, she had noticed the way Jay and Azis looked at him when Belle mentioned him taking two weeks off and soon she was telling him not to worry and that she would be asking for time off so they could all spend holidays in Seattle with him. Ben smiled at Mal, but was quick to tell her not to do that, he shared his plan with her and also went on to tell her that he would be telling his parents next week on their weekly call, after that he kissed the top of her head and went on to stand next to Azis and Jay to talk about his plan. Mal sighed looking at Ben and knowing that he was hoping they would share the traveling for the holidays, she wanted to call his parents and tell them that, but she knew that Belle would only put extra pressure on the boy to stay the entire time in New York.
A week later, after Ben canceled the call with his parents due to work obligations, Belle called Mal and went on to share with the girl all the plans they had for the holidays, and the girl couldn't contain herself. Suddenly Mal was telling Belle that Ben couldn't make it and to please not be mad with the boy; she went on to explain why he was only going to be with them for three days. At first, Mal was planning to tell the couple that all of them should fly to New York and spent the holidays relaxing in Seattle, but when she mentioned the possibility to take a few days off, her boss said no and was kind of rude about the entire situation. When Elliott who usually was her biggest advocate whenever she wanted something openly said that it was a horrible idea for the girl to take time off and even followed with a comment about how the girl needed to start thinking about how that would affect other people jobs, Mal decided that she was not going to bring up the subject again. Also, Ben's voice saying that now that Elliot knew that she had a boyfriend, the boy was going to stop being nice to her came in full force, and Mal vowed not to give Ben the satisfaction of saying that he told her so.
Belle finished the call assuring the girl that she didn't need to worry about it and that they were going to have a lovely time together. Mal should have known then that the woman wasn't going just to accept that her plans were not going to be a reality. When Ben called the girl the next morning she was surprised, it was six in New York and that the boy usually didn't stay up so late if he wasn't working. However, when the first thing the boy asked her was what she said to Belle, Mal felt panicked. She went on to tell her about the conversation they had and listened to Ben sighed, annoyed. Mal asked him what happened.
"My mom called Jay's parents and told them that they needed to make him give me time off because we were finally together, and we needed to celebrate that. Of course, Jay's parents told her that he was a grown man as they thought I was, and they didn't meddle in their working life. Let's say that the call didn't end well between them and then Jay received a call from his parents telling him that I should be ashamed of myself to try to use my mom to get out of work and a lot more things about how childish I was which was a disappointment for them. I already call his parents to apologize, they were still mad, but I'm hoping they'll eventually forgive my mom and me for the call. At least, my mom doesn't have the number of Azis's parents; Jay's parents already told them what my mom did, though. Azis called them and explained to them that I had nothing to do with it, but they are close with Jay's parents, so I'm sure they don't like me either." Mal felt horrible and went on to apologize to Ben and tell him that she honestly thought that she was helping by telling Belle that she was ok with him not taking time off.
"I understand why you did it, but Mal, when I tell you that I'm going to talk to my parents, please let me do it. You know them as this couple that is always nice and tried to please you but trust me, they are more complicated than that. " Mal told him that she knew that although as she said it, the girl realized that her relationship with them was basically how Ben said it. Suddenly, a thought came to her, and Mal asked Ben if he stayed up until 3 am to talk to her, guilt growing stronger when he said yes. "I decided to stay at the office and made some progress on some projects while waiting to call you. I'll call you next week, and again, please don't talk to my mom about this; I already talk to her."
After that, the boy said goodbye and the line went dead. Mal saw her watch it was 6:20 am; she stood up and went to knock on Ryder's door. When the boy didn't answer, she hit the door harder until a sleepy voice screamed what. Mal took that as an invitation to go inside, and soon, she was pushing the boy, so there was space in his bed before getting on. "I messed up." Ryder looked at her with concern and asked her what was going on, and Mal went on to tell him everything. They laid together for over an hour talking until it was time for them to go to their jobs. The girl barely texted Ben knowing that the boy was busy and still uncomfortable with the situation she created between him and his friends. Ryder assured Mal that Ben wasn't mad at her, but she needed to listen to him when the boy's parents were involved.
Trying to take Mal's mind off the situation, Ryder told the girl that it was time for them to buy a tree, so when Ben's parents arrive in a week, they would have the apartment ready. The boy was staying for the holidays again, so together, they started decorating everything for the arrival of Adam and Belle. The time came, and the couple arrived, Mal noticed that Belle seemed to be taken aback at first with Ryder's presence, but the girl assured her that he was friends with Ben too and that he like a girl called Maya. Still, one day Mal heard Belle calling Ben telling him that he should be there with them because Ryder was great with Mal just like they used to be together. The girl fought the instinct to scream at the woman, poor Ben was barely sleeping trying to finish projects to get there with them, and she was planting these ideas in him. Taking her phone, she called the boy, knowing that he was talking to Belle but hoping that he would end the call to speak with her.
Luckily he did, and the second he said hello, Mal went on to tell him that she heard what Belle told him, and it wasn't right. "Ryder is great, but he is never going to be you. There is nothing you need to worry about with him or with anybody. I love you."
The second she said that Mal realized that it was the first time she had said that to Ben. Sure, Mal knew that she loved him, but for some odd reason that she couldn't remember why she never told him. Silence followed her statement to the point that the girl wondered if Ben was still on the call. However, when she said his name a couple of times, she heard a sigh, and her phone started to ring, announcing an incoming facetime call. Mal answered, looking confused and was rewarded with a Ben fighting a big smile.
"So you chose now that I'm states away to tell me you love me. I love you too, but I was hoping we could say it face to face so I could thoroughly show you how much I love you. Now, I can't even show you when I see you because my parents are going to be there, you owe Mal." She blushed but also laughed at the boy's comment wishing they had a chance to be alone and go ahead with Ben's plans. They ended up talking for a while until he was needed in his office, and after a quick goodbye, Mal couldn't help but daydreamed a little about the boy finally making his way to New York with her. The day he was supposed to fly to New York, sadly, the weather was against them, and the boy ended up staying in Seattle, spending Christmas Eve in his apartment alone until Jay realized he was in the city and invite him to spend with him and his family. At first, Ben declined, but Jay told him that he was there because he tried to work until the last minute, and that was not ok. Jay's parents felt bad for the boy; the second their son explained the reason Ben was in the city, and they tried their best to make the boy feel comfortable. Ben called Mal after midnight, and the couple saw how Ben's face light up when talking to the girl, and at the same time, a sadness intensified in him. That made the couple sent a text to Belle as a peace offering that the woman accepted and took the opportunity to thank them for taking care of Ben. Even though Jay invited Ben to spend Christmas day with them, the boy declined thanking his friend for the offer, but he wasn't in the right state of mind to try to act happy around people when he honestly felt devasted for not being with Mal.
Instead, he went to the office and worked the entire day trying to keep his mind busy, Mal sent him a couple of text asking him what he was doing, and he shared what he was doing. A second later, she was calling him sad to hear how he was alone, but Ben was quick to tell her that he wanted to be there. "I just need to work and get as much done as possible. At least this way, I feel like being here isn't just a horrible thing that happened. I'm ok, and we are still going to see each other in a couple of days, so don't worry about me."
The conversation ended soon after that, and Mal couldn't help but feel guilty. If she hadn't created the situation with Belle and Jay's parents, maybe Ben could have taken an extra day, and he would be stuck in New York with her instead of that in Seattle alone. In the next couple of days, the couple checked the weather to see if things got better, but things weren't looking good for them. By December 30, Ben was presenting his project to one of their biggest clients, who was extremely impressed that the boy managed to have it done days before the dateline. The boy had tried to find a ticket for that night, but all the flights were full, and he was worry that tomorrow's blizzard was going to get him stuck in Seattle again. Still, he knew that leaving before the presentation would be wrong, so Ben just hoped for the best, after the meeting ended he made his way home ready to sleep for the first time in days.
The moment he hit his bed, the boy was asleep; hours later, when his stomach made him woke up for the lack of food, Ben found himself being hugged by none other than Mal. The boy turned and was face to face with the girl that looked adorable while sleeping. At first, Ben thought he was dreaming, but when he went to touch her face, the girl woke up and smiled at him. "Hey, I came in, and you were sleeping, so I decided to join you." Ben was confused and started asking her a thousand questions making the girl smile. "I decided that I could do my last meetings via Zoom, and if they are mad, well, that's their issue. People are mostly out of the office by three these days, so why not follow their example. Also, there is a storm hitting the city tomorrow, so you would probably be stuck here alone, and I just want to be with you. Your parents couldn't find tickets for themselves, but I managed to find one for me."
Ben smiled at the girl and leaned in to kiss her, slowly pushing her back onto the mattress while whispering how glad he was that she was finally there with him. Mal kissed him back, whispering that she was ready for him to show her how much she loved her, making the boy smile devilishly at her.