Both of You (Day 55: Friday Afternoon)

"I wonder," the therapist comments, "does your busy schedule prevent you from taking care of yourself at all?"

"What do you mean?" Ben asks.

"Well," she explains, "when people get really busy they can forget to do simpler things like eating, for instance, or they may force themselves to stay awake longer to get tasks done. Sometimes, even, the anxiety of so much to do will prevent them from sleeping." She looks at him in question, "Has anything like that happened to you since your schedule got busier?"

When Ben's phone dings he glances at it, "Not really." and there it is. Another voicemail.

"Do you need to get that?"

Ben shakes his head, "If it were someone I know, then they would know not to leave a voicemail. They would just send a text if I couldn't be reached, especially if it were important."

When the phone rings again the counselor questions, "It sounds important. Are you sure it isn't something work related?"

"It's not," Ben answers as he cancels the call. "Those calls get sent to the landline in my office. I usually check them when I visit my parents, but most of the time they're just citizen complaints anyway." Another voicemail is left. "Sometimes they get ahold of my personal cell number too." He turns it to silent and smiles back up at her, "You were saying?"

"Is keeping such a busy schedule hard on you at all?"

It takes him a moment to answer, "I wouldn't say hard. I mean, I've made sacrifices." He lifts his thumbs over his clasped hands, "But it's fine. I'm used to it." She nods. "To be honest, the only thing that's really changed since I became king is how people treat me."

"Could you explain further?" she questions. "How do people treat you differently?"

"Well," Ben begins. "Some people treat me with more respect, kind of awkward at times, while others have put me to a higher standard… Some people don't talk to me anymore at all, particularly those who only barely know me. It's like they're afraid to inconvenience me."

"It must be hard," she speculates. "Do you ever feel like people hold you to too high of a standard? Do you ever feel like they expect too much?"

A glimpse of his father comes to mind, "Yes. Yes, I do." but then he notices the notification pop up on his phone. "It's the lawyer." He opens it and shakes his head, before he types back a response; however, the message he gets back is no more of help.

"What is it?"

Ben looks up at her, quiet for a second, "Mal's in the hospital. He doesn't know why."

"If you need to go," the therapist offers, "then we can just make the next appointment a little longer."

He lets out a breath, "That would be great." before he stands and exits the room.

Ben hurries over to the desk, "Which room is Mal in?"

She searches the system, "I'm sorry King Ben, but it looks like she's not allowed visitors until her lawyer arrives."

"She's my girlfriend," Ben sternly states, "and her lawyer is my lawyer. Just tell me which room she's in."

"I'm sorry, but—"

"Now," he growls.

"Wow," the blond woman calmly responds. "That's a nice set of vocal cords you have, aren't they?"

Ben cowers, his hands moving back so that the tips of his fingers hang off of the height of the white marble desk, "I just really need to see her. I need to know she's okay."

She glances back at the screen, "Well, it looks like here that she's stabilized."

"Stabilized?" Ben softly questions, and she gives him a look. "Please. Tell me. What happened to her?"

She slowly shakes her head, "I shouldn't be telling you this, but the report says that she came in with a vertical laceration on both her left and right wrists." She looks back up at him in hesitation, "It's listed as a possible suicide attempt."

Ben's quiet for a moment, "When can I see her?"

"As soon as the lawyer arrives." She explains, "But because you are not her primary contact and because she was being held in custody, I cannot permit you to see her until then."

Ben sighs, "She's never been to a hospital before." before he nods back to the computer. "Who's taking care of her? Please tell me it's Dr. Robert."

She shakes her head, "It's not." Ben runs a hand through his hair. "It shouldn't be an issue now that she's been stabilized, but if you're worried about any allergies she may have, then I might be able to page the nurse for you."

"I'm not sure," Ben realizes, and then he shuts his eyes. "I need to make a call." He turns around and then walks back to the waiting area, taking a seat in one of the plush chairs, before he pulls out his phone and dials the number. He hears her voice, "Hey. Evie… It's about Mal."

When Ben sees Evie he stands from his chair. She worriedly asks, "How is she?"

Ben shakes his head, "I haven't been able to see her yet, but the lawyer just got here. So, hopefully, we'll be allowed to see her soon." Evie nods. "Is there anything they should know about her, medically speaking?"

"Not really," Evie comments. "I mean, she can't really drink a lot of water or she'll get sick, but that's about it."

"Seriously? Water?"

Evie tensely smiles, "I know, right? If only we could all survive on three tablespoons of that a day." He doesn't speak. "One small glass won't kill her, but she tends to avoid it anyway."

Ben shakes his head, "Well, hopefully that won't be an issue. What I'm more worried about is any transfusions they may give her. If the blood isn't compatible to hers, then her body may reject it and there could be serious complications."

"Complications?" Evie questions.

"Namely death," Ben worries.

"Oh." Evie fidgets with her necklace, "Only that."

Ben glances from her hands to down the hall, "Okay. I've had enough." He turns back to Evie. "I got her room number. Follow me."

Evie nods and then follows him down the halls, until they're met with an open door and see Mal lying in the hospital bed. The lawyer comments, "I'm going to step out for a minute." before he stands from the chair. "Get some coffee. You have twenty minutes alone."

Ben nods, before he takes one of the chairs and brings it over next to Mal. He sits down, quietly observing her, before she speaks, "I know what they told you, but it wasn't like that. I promise it wasn't."

Ben takes her hand, and when he feels how cold it is he moves his other hand towards it too, "What happened?"

She tiredly comments, "I was cold. I asked to see you, but he refused." before she partly smiles. Ben glances down at the electric blanket. "I thought I'd threaten them into letting you see me. I said that if he didn't let me see you, then I'd kill myself." She lightly laughs, "But he thought I was bluffing, even after I explained how it seems like my nails always grow to a point." Ben opens her hand and notices how the nails are shorter in width towards the end, only part of the reason seeming to stem from the curved edges. "They also grow really fast."

"So, what?" Ben questions. "You tried to kill yourself just because you couldn't see me?"

"I was going to die anyway," Mal points out. "I just figured it might as well be in a place that I could potentially be saved." She painfully grins, "But that guard was so shocked. I had to hypnotize him in order to even get here."

"I hope you don't get in trouble for that," Ben comments.

"I know," Mal responds, "but I was cold and they just kept insisting on giving me a blanket." She shakes her head as she lets out a breath, "And seriously." before she looks up at him and moves one of her hands down to his wrist. "Now that I finally have you, can I just please have you."

When Ben looks up at Evie she attempts a smile, "I will give you two a minute." before she walks away and steps out of the room, shutting the door behind her.

He looks back down at Mal, placing a hand to her neck with a thumb up towards her cheek, "You're like ice. How did you ever survive on that island?"

Mal breaths a laugh, "Well, fire helps. That, and ovens. And stoves."

"Tell me," he moves in and kisses her, "on a scale from ice to fire, how hot am I?"

She smiles, "Somewhere between a heat lamp and a stove." before they kiss again. "You can get hotter than that, but I'm guessing that isn't good." He feels her hand clutch the back of his neck, as the bandage wrapped around her wrist scrapes against his skin. "Is it?"

"Is what?" he questions.

"Are— Are you supposed to be that hot?" She places her other hand on his shoulder. "Because you're a hybrid." Ben stops kissing her, and it's quiet for a moment. "Your mother said—"

"My mother insists I'm not one," he interrupts, "and no. It's not good for me to be that hot." She doesn't respond. "May we discuss this later?"

She nods, "Yeah. Alright." before he starts to kiss her again; however, when one of his hands moves to the hip under her shirt he looks over towards it. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Ben frowns as he looks back up to her. "I just don't remember you being this thin."

"Oh," Mal frowns in return before shrugging. "What the jail serves, my mom would call it bird food." She glances down, "I didn't really see the point."

Ben grins, "When this is all over I'll get you a nice, juicy steak."

"You seem so sure."

"Well, yeah," Ben evenly expresses. "You didn't even get the chance to kiss her. The most they could probably get you with is attempted assault. Or, well…"

"Well?" Mal eyes him in worry.

Ben sits up and uses a hand to gesture, "Well." but then the hand closes and is brought down. "The thing is Audrey is a girl."

"So," Mal prompts.

Ben wets his lips, "How do I put this?" before he tries to explain. "Because you targeted someone of the same sex, what you attempted to do could be seen as perverse."

"Perverse?"

"Yes. Well, with how— you know. Some crimes are considered worse than others. Like how a pedophile would have a harder sentence than someone who raped someone of age."

"Pedophile?" Mal repeats. "You mean that thing where people rape kids?" Ben lets out a breath but doesn't speak. "You're comparing me kissing a girl to that?"

"I only meant," Ben tries to justify, "that a crime can be considered worse based on context, and the lawyer brought to my attention that because what you almost did is a homosexual act that it could make the attempted crime appear to be worse due to perversion."

Mal slides up in her seating to look him face to face, "I still don't think you're hearing what you're saying. You're saying that you think that kissing someone of the same sex is perverse." She gives him a look, "I mean, really?"

"It's not about what I think," Ben bypasses. "It's about what the jury will think. Audrey is an innocent princess— of Christian morality, no less— and you are a corrupt, Godless creature who only just barely passes for being a hybrid." He places a hand up to his head, "I mean, your entire heritage is filled with nothing but wild beasts and magic users. Do you know how bad that is alone, and then on top of that you enacted in this immoral behavior." He sees her about to speak, "I get it. I really do. On the Isle of the Lost you didn't have options, and who are you going to trust more than your best friend?" He shakes his head, "But this looks bad. I cannot stress enough just how bad this is going to look to the judge."

It takes Mal a minute to respond, "Are gay relationships a crime here or something?" Ben doesn't speak. "Because, I don't know about here, but on the Isle people were allowed to express their likes and dislikes openly with only minimal backlash. Experimentation was expected, actually. It was only when you got serious with someone that you got any flack for it."

"I don't know what flack means," Ben slowly comments, "but what I can say is that I didn't even know it was a crime. A lot of people probably don't. It's clearly just one of those laws that aren't enforced… but since you committed a crime, they can add this to it."

Mal places a hand to her head, "God. Evie."

"Evie's not the one who's going to be on trial," Ben tries to reason. "You are. You don't need to be worried about her. You should be more concerned about yourself." He takes her hand, and then she looks at him. "Everything is going to be fine. You have to believe that, and I will be here for you right through 'til the end."

She lets out a breath, "You said that I only barely pass for a hybrid. Does that mean that they're still going to see me as some sort of monster?" Ben can only frown, and then she shakes her head. "Maybe you should get out while you still can. This can't be good for your crown."

"No," he sternly responds. "I've already made my choice. And my choice, it's you." He attempts to smile, "We're going to get through this, and when it's finished I can explain in an interview that I knew you were innocent all along. There's no risk to my crown here."

Mal continues to frown, "Do you really think I'm innocent?"

"You were trying to get heat," Ben evenly answers. "Were you a little vengeful at the time? I don't know. Maybe. But even if you were, it's not like you were trying to hurt her."

She looks down, silent for a moment, "And if my intention had been to take all of her heat and kill her…" She looks back up at him.

He glances down, "You didn't." before he meets her eyes. "You're a good person. I have faith in you, and I have faith that we will get through this. All we need is each other."

"And a lawyer," Mal reminds him before laughing. "You're so cheesy."

Ben awkwardly smiles, "Yeah. I know. I really am." and then there's a knock at the door. They look over to find Evie peeking in, before she opens it further and his mother is revealed.

She steps inside, "Mal. How are you doing?"

"Still a little cold," she honestly answers, "but fine."

Belle eyes her wrists for a second, "I didn't think they allowed sharp objects in jail."

"She used her nails," Ben lets her know.

She takes a step closer before eyeing Mal's long, pointed nails, "We'll have to cut those."

"And then what?" Mal objects. "Pull my teeth out?" Belle quietly observes her. "I had no intention of dying. I promise you that. Just let me cut my own nails when I'm ready to." She breathes, "Which will not be until I'm safe at home in my own room."

"You mean your dorm at the school?" Ben clarifies.

"Yeah. Of course," Mal furrows her eyebrows. "What did you think I was talking about?"

It takes a moment for Ben to answer, "I wasn't sure. It's just when people say home, it normally means a permanent residence."

"Yeah, well," Mal counters, "for us home and shelter is the same thing."

"It's true," Evie confirms. "When nowhere feels safe your home is only just a shelter."

After a minute of quiet Belle comments, "Mal. I'd like to help you with your paperwork, if you don't mind."

"Paperwork?" Mal questions as she glances from Belle to Ben.

"The hospital paperwork," Ben explains. "If you ever end up here again, it's better to have a file on you." He sees her questioning look, "It will list things like allergies, medical problems, your species, emergency contact, and primary physician."

"I think we should have Dr. Robert be your physician," his mother tells Mal.

"Doctor Robert?" Mal questions.

"You're a hybrid," she explains. "You're going to need someone competent to treat you."

Ben looks at his mother, "So, because she's a hybrid she needs my doctor?"

"Yes," Belle simply says, before she continues on with focus. "He's very good at asking questions before anyone gets killed. You will need him." Mal looks from Belle to Ben and then back again. "Also. Because Ben is too young, I would like to be listed as your emergency contact in the meantime."

"She's really focused right now," Evie notices.

"Yes." Ben replies, "That can happen." before he addresses his mother. "Mom. Mal's fine. There's no reason to panic."

"I'm not panicking," she denies. "I would simply just like to be prepared. I mean, there's no way she's going to get through that trial if something bad happens to her, right?"

"Mom," Ben says again, before he gives up and smiles. "Get the paperwork."

When she leaves Mal comments, "Ugh. I'm exhausted. Do we really need to do the paper stuff right now?"

"She's stressed," Ben explains. "This will make her feel better." He kisses her hand, "But don't worry. When this is all said and done you will have all the rest you could need."

"Yeah," Evie butts in. "Because when this trial is over, you will be back in our dorm where no one can bug you."

"Evie," Mal warns her. "Be nice."

Ben watches Evie cross her arms and then sighs, "I'm just going to go check on my mother." before he stands from his chair and walks towards the door; however, when he steps next to Evie he whispers, "Three minutes." before leaving the room.

Evie uncrosses her arms and gazes, as she watches him leave, before Mal irritably comments, "I need Ben too, you know. You can't fight over me."

She frowns, "I know."

"I swear," Mal compares, "it's like I got a new pet and you're jealous that you're not getting all of the attention anymore, even though I'm probably still giving you about the same amount I always have."

"I know," Evie says again. "I'm sorry. I just… He's been nice and everything, very considerate," she responds as she makes her way to the chair and sits. "But, I still can't help but feel like it really is some sort of competition."

Mal let's out a breath, "Eves. Trust me. There's no competition here. I need both of you."

- Yeah. I really don't like that Evie got all... however you put it and how that single comment about no one bugging Mal in their dorm seems to just crumble (in my interpretation) the nice friendship she was forming with Ben, but when I was writing it I felt like she would say that. So, I guess this is happening. *shakes head* Hopefully Mal can knock some sense into them if they start to tear each other apart... I don't know. It's surprising how circumstances can change how people behave towards one another. It's completely possible that Ben focuses on the trial and just sweeps this under the rug, yet it's also completely possible that he gets a little territorial of Mal too. After all, didn't he not question Evie being a heat source in the first place simply because he was more worried about Mal?... What do you think? Any predictions? There's no right or wrong answers here. Just speculations.