Potential Happiness

(Day 6: Friday Evening)

"I should probably thank you," Mal begins, as she sits with Ben and his parents for the early dinner. "I'm glad I didn't scare you off or anything with what happened earlier."

"We're just glad that in the end you chose good," Belle smiles in reply.

"Yes," Ben's father agrees. "But I must say I still have some reservations."

Belle holds her husband's hand, "We both do."

"Nothing serious," he insists. "We're just a little…"

"Curious," Ben's mother offers. "How did this thing between you start in the first place?"

"Oh. Ahh," Mal uneasily responds, before she looks to her left at Ben.

He answers, "I was just trying to convince her to sign up for art class, and then, uh." He looks at his girlfriend for a moment, "Mal doesn't actually know this, but that talk caused me to find something intriguing about her. So, I went to check on her later."

Mal covers a part of her face with a hand in embarrassment, "And that's when I practically slammed the door in your face. Wow. I feel pretty horrible now."

Ben laughs, "I admit it wasn't very funny at the time, but looking back on it I admire how independent and strong-willed you are." He looks back at his parents, both not seeming to know what to think. "It just sort of continued from there."

"Huh hmm," his father responds with slight disbelief, before he sets a phone on the table before them all. "Then you won't mind explaining this."

Mal's eyes grow wide and Ben uncomfortably laughs, as a video of Ben's dance for Mal plays in front of them. Ben awkwardly smiles, "Someone recorded that."

"Yes, they did," his father answers. "Now. I know you hate to dance, especially in public, and I know you know how serious the things you sang are."

"It was just some foolish song," Ben reasons, and Mal can't help but grimace at how horrible his lie is.

"No," his father asserts. "The kingdom will see this and think that you are yet an incompetent child, but I know better. I know you must have done this for a reason."

Belle looks at her husband, "Adam. Love— even crushes— can make people do stupid things. He's already ashamed enough. Do you really need to interrogate him?"

"Yes. I do," Adam replies to her, but his sights never leave Ben and Mal.

"Really." Ben uneasily answers, "I just did it to ask Mal to the coronation. People do that kind of thing all the time."

"No. Ben, just stop," Mal interrupts, and Ben's father looks at her in concerned interest. "They're your parents. You shouldn't lie to them for me."

"I'm not lying," he horribly smiles in denial.

"Technically no," Mal sternly responds, "but Lying 101 is all about twisting the truth to fit your means or to leave parts out to make it sound better." She looks at each of his parents before saying, "I had him under a love spell at the time. Don't worry. It's not a thing anymore, but that's why he did that. I guess the chocolate chips made the potion really strong. I'm sorry."

"Sorry that the potion was so strong that it made him look like a fool," Ben's father growls. "You should be sorry for putting a spell on him in the first place."

Belle places a hand on her husband's shoulder in attempt to keep him fully seated, "Adam. Calm down." She smiles at Mal, "We're glad you told the truth, but you must know how bad this looks."

Mal tries to smile back, "Yeah. I do."

"I'm not sending her back to the Isle," Ben intrudes.

"No. Of course, not," his mother immediately responds, as if the mere idea is preposterous. "Honey. Just let me talk to the girl."

Mal rolls her eyes when Ben doesn't seem to budge, "They just want answers, Ben. I'm more than willing to give them to her." When Ben seems to relax a little Mal looks back at Belle, "I gave Ben the anti-love potion just before the coronation, but it was then that he told me that the spell had already worn off in the middle of our first date." She shakes her head, "Something about the magic pool of water we visited." before she smiles at him. "Nice to know that at least a little mischief is allowed here."

Ben smiles, "Your reaction was priceless."

Mal admits, "It did take me a minute to realize what you'd said." before she turns back to his parents. "I just figured that if I really was going along with my mother's super evil plan, then it would be just a little too mean to leave Ben under the influence of that potion. Little did I know that his feelings were— and are— actually real."

"And what about you?" Belle asks. "Are your feeling for him genuine."

Mal huffs a small laugh, "I never admitted to having any feelings." Ben's father shifts his seating as his mother expresses some discontent. "As I've already told Ben, I don't know what love is supposed to feel like, but I want to find out." She shuts her eyes for a second and slightly shrugs, "At the very least I like spending time with him."

"But you don't have a crush on him or anything?" she questions.

"I don't know," Mal sincerely answers. "I've always just been so focused on surviving, I guess I never really thought about crushes or attraction."

"So, you've never been with anyone?" Adam asks.

Mal half-smiles in disbelief, "What, is that some kind of requirement to date the heir of the throne? I've never had a boyfriend, if that's what you're asking." She looks down at her plate of potatoes, beef, and carrots. "But that doesn't mean that I've never done anything." When she looks back up, Ben's father folds his glasses in his hands, seemingly unsettled. "The Isle can be a really boring place. We have no television, Wi-Fi or internet, and no one really trusts each other enough to go over to someone's house for a game night. So, it gets replaced with things like alcohol, drugs, and sexual encounters. Not that I've really done much of those things, but it would be nearly impossible to find someone from the Isle who hasn't done any of those things."

"And which of those things have you done?" Adam sternly questions.

"I've never touched drugs," Mal begins. "I have had alcohol every once in a while, and as far as that other thing goes… I have some experience." She can feel Ben staring at her, "But it usually didn't go any farther than holding each other and making out."

"Usually didn't," Belle examines. "But then, that means—"

"Any other questions?" Mal interrupts as she looks between the former King and Queen.

"How many relationships have you had?" Adam interrogates.

"Are you asking how many people I've made out with or…"

"How many people did it go farther than usual?" he elaborates.

Belle glances between her husband and Mal, "You don't have to answer that."

"It was one," Mal answers. "It was this guy that I'd been hooking up with for over a year, but it happened a couple years ago. I ended it a couple years ago."

"A couple years ago," Belle repeats in slight shock. "How old were you?"

"I was fourteen," she answers without looking up. "He was fifteen." Mal feels a catch in her throat and tries to clear it. "Ah. Is there a bathroom I could use?"

Adam nods, "Ben. Show her where it is."

After Mal stands and Ben leads her out of the dining room, down the hallway, and to the door of the nearest bathroom, he notices her shiny eyes. "You should know, there is no law saying that a prince or king cannot date or marry someone who has had prior sexual relations. There used to be, but since that was out of fear of the woman already having a child, it was later deemed sexist and was repealed as result. You are still allowed to date me."

Mal tries to smile, "That's good to know." but then she nods and looks at the bathroom door. "Excuse me." She goes straight into the bathroom, afraid if she offered Ben a final glance that he may see her tears. The bathroom seems to be more of a restroom, now containing three stalls and a counter of sinks, and Mal places her hands down on the corner of the marble counters. She looks down, feeling tears escape her eyes as her breathing increases, and when she watches her vision change to infrared she stares up into the mirror. She remembers it all too well. Come on, Purple. How he'd touch her hair. Everybody does it. How he moved his hand up her ribcage. I'm telling you, you're going to like it. Mal blinks several times, as she watches her eyes glow brighter. She gulps and lets out an unsteady breath, before she tells herself, "Forget about it. Forget about what he did to you. Forget about Harry Hook."

After speaking her command into the mirror Mal tries to calm herself down, but even after her eyes return to their usual light shade of green, she finds she still remembers everything. She lays one arm on the counter, as the other is placed against the middle of her forehead in the form of a fist's side. All she wants is to forget, and how cruel is it that she isn't able to use her own power on herself. Even for a moment. If I could forget just for one minute… She takes a deep breath, wipes her face, and washes any of the likely tear stains away, before she nods at herself in the mirror and heads for the door. This can't stop her. She won't let this keep her from her life or potential happiness.

- Sorry, Ben, but not everything's about you.