Back with another chapter! And finally we have another song in the mix. Now I am using the full version of "If Only" that is on the soundtrack, and againI don't own it. And if you listen closely to it, you can actually hear Ben singing in the background during parts of the chorus. It really is a pretty song and like its two counterparts in the next two movies, I don't like it that they cut the songs down for the movie. It doesn't fit the song, especially My Once Upon a Time from the third movie.
So enjoy reading!
In Mal and Evie's dorm room, Evie had picked out an outfit for Mal to wear and was putting some blush on Mal's cheeks. Mal sighed and said, "OK. Easy on the blush. I don't want to scare him away. Not that I could." "Please," Evie replied. "My mom taught me how to apply blush before I could talk. Always use upward strokes." Evie put the blush away and pulled out lip gloss while Mal said, "My mom was never really big on make-up tips. I never had a sister." Evie smiled and said, "Well, now you do. We're gonna need all the family we can get if we don't pull this off. My mother's not a barrel of laughs when she doesn't get her way. Just ask Snow White. As for my dad…well, I never met him so I don't know what he would think." Mal stared at Evie and asked, "Are you afraid of her?" Evie sighed and said, "Sometimes. Are you afraid of your mom?" Mal sighed and said, "I just really want her to be proud of me. She gets so angry with me when I disappoint her. And, yeah, she's my mom, so I know she loves me in her own way. I think. As for my dad….he left when I was a baby so I don't know what he thinks." Evie took Mal's hand and saiid, "Moving on. Come see."
Evie lead Mal to the mirror and Mal looked at herself. She was surprised at her look for the date. The purple dress with the black leather jacket matches her hair and makeup well. Mal laughed and said, "I look….not hideous." Evie smiled and said, "Not even close." The two girls heard a knock on the door. Mal took a deep breath and thought, "You can do this. It's just a date. With a guy you secretly like who is also under a love spell. Be brave." Mal turned and walked to the door, opening it to see Ben on the other side, wearing a blue polo shirt, white pants, his Auradon Prep letter jacket, and was carrying two helmets. Ben smiled and said, "For the first time, I understand the difference between pretty and beautiful. I hope you like bikes." Mal smiled and took the other helmet that Ben offered. Ben then escorted her out of the dorm while Evie closed the door, smiling.
Ben took Mal on his motorized bike that his grandfather, Maurice, gave him for his 15th birthday. Mal clung to him behind him, enjoying the scenery that Ben was driving them through. Mal's arms were around Ben, which made the prince smile at how close she was to him. He parked next to an entrance to the forest and guided her across a bridge. He then said, "Tell me something about yourself that you've never told anyone." Mal giggled and said, "Um, my middle name is Bertha." "Bertha?" Ben asked. "Yeah," Mal said. "Just my mom doing what she does best. Being really, really evil." "Mine's Florian," Ben admitted. "Florian?" Mal giggled. "How princely. That's almost worst." "I mean," Ben chuckled. "You know, it's better than Bertha."
After they crossed the bridge, Ben had Mal close her eyes and guided her through the forest, making sure she didn't trip on anything and placed her right where he wanted her. "You ready?" Ben asked. Mal nodded as Ben whispered, "Open." Mal opened her eyes and saw a lake, the same lake from her dreams about Ben. "It's the lake from my dreams," Mal thought. "I was dreaming about the future?" She looked and saw a gazebo where Ben had a picnic set up. She turned to him and smiled, making Ben smile. "Go on," Ben said. Mal nodded and walked down to the gazebo, Ben behind her thinking, "I think she likes it."
They sat down and started eating the food Ben brought. Ben then asked, "Is this your first time?" Mal sighed and said, "We don't really date much on the island. It's more like gang activity." Ben chuckled, secretly knowing that she never dated anyone before, and said, "I meant, is this your first time eating a jelly donut." "Is it bad?" Mal asked. Ben chuckled and put his hand to her lips and said, "You got a….just a..I mean, yeah, do this." He mimed to her to lick her lips as she had donut bits on her lips. She licked her lips and asked, "Gone?" Ben nodded as Mal said, "You can't take me anywhere, I guess."
"You know," Ben said. "I don't know that much about you. And you don't know much about me. So why don't we take turns telling each other about who we are. You first." Mal sighed and said, "Well, I turned 17 on July 31…" "Oh," Ben said. "I turned 17 on July 30th. Our birthdays are close together." Mal smiled and continued, "I'm an only child. And I've only lived in one place." Ben smiled and said, "All of that describes me as well. That…We have so much in common already." Mal laughed and said, "No. Trust me, we do not." "You sure?" Ben asked. "That's why we're here. To get to know each other. Maybe I might surprise you." Mal nodded then said, "I know that you're about to be king." Ben sighed and said, "A crown doesn't make you a king. You know. Your mother is Mistress of Evil and my parents are the poster parents for goodness. But we're not automatically like them. We get to choose who we're gonna be. And right now, I can look into your eyes and I can tell you're not evil. I can see it." Mal was shocked at what Ben said, sensing that he was telling the truth.
Ben smiled and said, "Let's go for a swim." "What?" Mal asked. "Right now?" Ben nodded as he stood up and said, "Come on." Mal sighed and said, "I think I'm just gonna stay here. I'll try a strawberry. I've literally never tried a strawberry before." She took a bite of one and she instantly fell in love with it. Ben chuckled and said, "Don't eat all of them." Mal nodded as Ben walked toward the cliff side as Mal ate more and more strawberries. She turned and saw Ben in his swim trunks and waved. Mal then shouted, "Are those little crowns on your shorts?" Ben gasped as he realized, "That's right. I dreamed about this moment. She said those exact words. I wonder if she has dreamed about this too." He then shouted, "Maybe." He then jumped off, splashing in the water. He could feel the magical properties of the water around him, knowing that if the love potion actually worked on him, it would be washing away right now. He swam around and then noticed Mal turned around. He then swam behind a rock and he heard Mal start to sing Ben decided to join in at different parts when his heart felt like it,
(Mal)
A million thoughts in my head
Should I let my heart keep listening
"Cause up 'til now I've walked the line
Nothing lost but something missing
I can't decide
What's wrong, what's right
Which way should I go
If only I knew what my heart was telling me
Don't know what I'm feeling
Is this just a dream?
Ah oh, yeah
If only I could read the signs in front of me
Could find the way to who I'm meant to be
Ah oh, If only
If only
If only
Every step, every word
With every hour I am falling in
To something new, something brave
To someone I, I have never been
I can't decide
What's wrong, what's right
Which way should I go
(Mal and Ben)
If only I knew what my heart was telling me
Don't know what I'm feeling
Is this just a dream?
Ah oh, yeah
If only I could read the signs in front of me
I could find the way to who I'm meant to be
Ah oh, if only
Yeah
(Mal)
Am I crazy?
Maybe we could happen
Yeah
Will you still be with me when the magic's all run out?
If only I knew what my heart was telling me
Don't know what I'm feeling
Is this just a dream?
Ah oh
(Mal and Ben)
If only I could read the signs in front of me
I could find the way to who I'm meant to be
Ah oh
If only, yeah
If only, yeah
If only, yeah
If only, yeah
If only
If only
"So," Ben thought. "She can sing. Her voice sounds beautiful. She feels the same way I do. And I sang again. Man this world is weird. But is this my heart telling me that I am truly in love with her?" He suddenly heard Mal shout, "Ben?" He then heard a splash and saw Mal trying to swim out to find him and struggling. "No!" Ben thought. "She can't swim!" He then dove down under the water and swam right up to her and picked her up bridal style and walked her back to the gazebo. She then hit him on the arm and shouted, "You scared me!" "I'm sorry," Ben said. "I forgot that you can't swim." Mal looked at Ben and asked, "How did you know that?" Ben shrugged and said, "Sure you live on an island, but there's a barrier around it, so no one can swim away. But you knew that you couldn't swim and yet you still tried to save me." Ben could sense that Mal truly wanted to save him, seeing the light in her balance out with her darkness to perform that deed. "Yeah," Mal said, still a little upset. "And do you thank me? No! All I get is soaking wet!" "I apologize," Ben said. "Thank you. It really means a lot. Here. Have this fancy rock. It's yours. Make a wish and throw it back into the lake." Mal was going to just chuck it in anger, but she thought about it and wished in her head, "I wish that my connection with Ben is real and that it grows." She then chucked it into the lake and got up, shivering. Ben got up and grabbed his jacket and put it on Mal, who blushed at the gesture.
Ben got himself a towel and dried himself off and sat down with Mal. He then started to weave his fingers through her hair as Mal looked at him, puzzled at the gesture. Ben gulped and said, "Um, Mal. I brought you on this date because I feel something for you. Something that I haven't felt with anyone else. Like we are meant to be. I know that this seems a little fast, but I have feelings for you. Feelings that I hope one day can be love between us. How about you? Do you feel the same?" Mal looked at Ben and saw the spark in his eyes. She turned away and said, "I think I do. I felt this connection between us when we first met. But you were with Audrey and…" Ben sighed and said, "I should tell you something first."
Mal turned to Ben as he said, "To tell you the truth, Audrey is my betrothed." Mal gasped. "He's betrothed?" Mal thought to yourself. Ben saw her panic and said, "Wait. Let me finish. Even though we are, in reality, I am against it." "Really?" Mal asked. Ben nodded as he looked out to the lake and said, "You've told me things about you that no one knows. Now it's my turn. I found out at my 7th birthday party that my parents and Audrey's family arranged a marriage between us. I was hiding outside the door to my father's study. When I saw it, I was horrified. It felt like my parents were selling me away like a piece of meat. And I hated the fact that I was being promised to someone I despised." "You hate Audrey?" Mal asked. Ben nodded as he continued, "She was mean and spoiled, even back then. Plus, I was thinking about my dream girl." Mal tilted her head in confusion as Ben chuckled and said, "You might find this crazy, but I think I've been dreaming about you for a long time." "What?" Mal asked, as Ben explained, "Ever since I was little, I've been having dreams about a purple haired girl on the Isle, you. I didn't realize it was you until I was older, but, I was having these dreams and I didn't know why. But I saw that you was lonely, like me. Then I dreamed about you, at this lake. That's why I wanted to bring you here. Because I think we were meant to come here, together. I'm sorry if that sounds creepy…"
"No!" Mal shouted. "I mean, no, you're not crazy. To tell you the truth, I think I have been dreaming about you too. Always you at this lake. When you brought me here, I was shocked. It was like my dream was happening for real. So I guess I can relate. So, what happened after you found out about your betrothal?" Ben sighed as he said, "Well, I ran away to the forest outside my home. I didn't care where I was going. I just wanted to get as far away as possible. From everything. From my future that was being planned out for me. I just wanted to make my own choices. And I wished that I could find you. The girl I've dreamed about. Then I tripped and got hurt. I got scared, not knowing what to do. Then someone came to me." Mal stared at Ben as he continued, "A dark figure. I got scared at first, but then I heard a deep voice say that everything would be OK. That he would look out for me. And there was a woman standing next to him. I couldn't see their faces. It's like they were cloaked or something. Then my world went black. Next thing I knew, I was in my bed in my room back at home. I lied to my parents and said that I was just overwhelmed by my big birthday party and my parents bought it."
Mal grinned and said, "Look at you. I guess you aren't the stereotypical prince after all. But you don't know who that dark man was?" Ben sighed and said, "At first, no. But over the years, I've always seemed to catch a glimpse from him, or whispering in my ear that I will always be protected. I asked what his name was once and he just replied, "Solo." I bought it and he's shown me that this world isn't black and white. He showed me the gray in between and I learned so much from him. So I guess in a way he's my guardian or something. Weird, huh?" Mal nodded, not wanting to reveal her connection with Solo yet. She then asked, "So, then, why didn't you try to break the betrothal with Audrey since you don't like her?" Ben sighed and said, "I read over that document so many times and I haven't figured out how to break it. But a part of me feels that if I fall in love with someone else, maybe it will break. Now, please don't take this the wrong way, because I am not using you in any way, but if there was someone I would rather be with and make that contract break, it would be you." Mal gasped as Ben took her hand and said, "I care about you Mal. A lot. Like I said earlier, I hope that one day, our connection might turn into love. Do you agree?" Mal sighed and turned her head away from Ben and said, "I don't know what love feels like." Mal then felt Ben's hand on her chin and turned her head towards him as he stroked her cheek with his thumb and said, "Maybe I can teach you." Mal looked at Ben and felt her heart melt. "I hope my wish comes true," Mal thought.
