Bonus Scene: Truly Madly Deeply

The Princess Gathering was over, and I was waiting to see Belle off. As she walked around the pillar, she took notice of me and the biggest grin crossed her face.

"Oh, you came to see me off again," she said happily. "I feel so special. Will you walk with me?"

"Of course, milady," I answered without hesitation. She hooked her arm through my elbow, and I immediately fell into step. Almost literally, because her dress was so wide, I was almost tripping over it. Thank God I didn't.

"Hey, an idea just hit me," said Belle as we passed White Caps, the jewelry/general needs store on Deck 3. "These walks are nice, but I could go for a bit longer of a private session with you. Meet me outside the D Lounge after tonight's last karaoke session?"

"You're on," I agreed. "Would you prefer me to dress up?"

"You can if you want," replied Belle, "but it's not necessary."

"OK," I said, "then I will. What have you in mind?"

"You'll see when I get there," promised Belle. By this point, we had reached the entry to the Walt Disney Theatre, where we needed to separate for the time being.

"So I'll see you tonight?" she asked.

"It's a date," I responded. "And one that I wouldn't miss for the world."

So when I left for karaoke that night, I was dressed to impress-a light blue blazer with matching pinstripes on the shirt and a royal blue clip-on tie, complete with black dress slacks, black men's pantyhose (just my name for the type of socks I was wearing), and classy black loafers. I also had my shipboard phone and iPod with my portable speaker on my person, and a celebratory pin attached to each lapel. (Hey, when I clean up, I clean up good.) I reached the D Lounge on Deck 4 with no problems and brought down the house with a rendition of Soft Cell's "Tainted Love", after which I left the lounge and sat outside. Meghan, the announcer for this particular session, came out to check on me.

"You OK, Casey?" she asked kindly.

"Yeah," I said, "I'm just killing some time. I have a date in this area tonight."

"Ooh," she gushed, "how romantic! Who's the lucky lady?"

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you," I said slyly, raising an eyebrow. Meghan did likewise-I got the feeling she already knew exactly who it was and what was going on.

"You dog," she laughed. "I bet you got girls all over the country, huh?"

"Not as many as you might think," I chuckled. "I try to stay loyal to my woman."

"Oh," sighed Meghan, "that's a relief. Well, you enjoy yourself and tell your date I said hi."

"I surely will," I promised as Meghan walked off. Right about that time, karaoke ended and people began to file out of the D Lounge. Some of them wished me a pleasant evening as they walked past me sitting in my porthole.

It was about five minutes after the last person walked out of sight that Belle finally came into sight, turning left out of the hallway that led into the Vista Gallery. She smiled when she saw me and waved hello. I did the same as I started walking towards her.

"You came," she cooed as she pulled me into a hug. "Oh, I'm so happy you made it." She stole a kiss on my cheek before she looked into my eyes.

"I told you I wouldn't miss it for the world," I reassured her. "One does not even turn down a Disney Princess, let alone stand her up." And I shivered at the thought of Belle standing there, sad and alone, because I had completely forgotten about our date. It was a vision I hoped-and still hope-never to see again.

"A man with standards," noted Belle. "I like that. Anyways, before we get into it, there's a question I have to ask, even though I know it's selfish: If I were to give you my heart, what would you do for me?"

I raised an eyebrow, stunned that she would even think of asking this question. But, as it turned out, it worked out perfectly. As I explained to Belle, I had a song on my iPod that would tell through its lyrics what I would do for her. It was put on with a little difficulty (my wire was giving me trouble), but I finally got it working.

"You don't mind if I sing along, do you?" I asked her. "Mainly because I can't really dance. The best I can do is turn on the spot."

"Which is fine for what we're doing right now," she replied, offering me her hand, which I took. Gently bringing her in close to me by the waist with my free hand, I slowly began to lead her around in a 360-degree circle-simple enough that I could focus on the song, but meaningful enough that it would blot out everything else, leaving only myself, Belle, and the music. She laid her head on my shoulder, facing my neck, as I began the song's lyrics:

I'll be your dream, I'll be your wish, I'll be your fantasy
I'll be your hope, I'll be your love, be everything that you need
I love you more with every breath; truly, madly, deeply do
I will be strong; I will be faithful 'cause I'm counting on a new beginning
A reason for living
A deeper meaning, yeah

Oh, I wanna stand with you on a mountain
I wanna bathe with you in the sea
I wanna lay like this forever
Until the sky falls down on me

And when the stars are shining brightly in the velvet sky
I'll make a wish; send it to Heaven and make you want to cry
The tears of joy for all the pleasure and the certainty
That we're surrounded by the comfort and protection of the highest powers
In lonely hours
The tears devour you

Belle surprised me at this point by singing the chorus with her head still on my shoulder. She was surprisingly skilled, even considering what little I remembered of her movie.

I wonder how good she is with instruments, I thought to myself. Maybe she plays something.

As the song moved to the bridge, Belle picked her head up and looked very deep into my eyes. She squeezed my hand and I stopped moving.

Ooh, can you see it, baby?
You don't have to close your eyes, 'cause it's standing right before you
All that you need will surely come...

That was all I managed to get out before Belle was upon me again, kissing me in such a way that it reminded me of when I woke up to her that morning. Only difference is, this time, she went just the tiniest bit farther than she had that morning-very soon, her lips parted...and I felt something enter my mouth.

At that point, everything blotted out except for Belle. All that mattered was the kiss...and filling it with as much love and care as we possibly could. That was about as far as I was willing to go, though our lips remained locked for at least four minutes afterward, by which time the song had ended, and I was just beginning to come back to myself. Belle finally broke the kiss and I opened my eyes to see her own less than a foot away.

It was probably the most beautiful thing I've ever had the good fortune to witness, and definitely the most magical experience in which I've ever been given the grace to take part.

"I love you," I heard her whisper in my ear.

"And I you." It was all I could think to say. Just then, I heard a low whistle coming from the direction of the Deck 4 Shutters photography stand overlooking the Atrium. We both turned to regard the individual, and there was Meghan, obviously having left something in the D Lounge. A look of absolute shock robbed her of her normal beauty, and said look was directed straight at us.

Belle was the first to regain her composure.

"I cleared it with the higher-ups on the ship," she told Meghan. "We're good."

"Not that I don't believe you," Meghan croaked slowly, "it's just that I've never seen one person-"

"Win any of your characters over so completely before?" I offered as a conclusion. She nodded slowly.

"Well," I said to both Belle and Meghan, "I'm going to be honest here-I have no clue how or why I was able to merit this much affection from any of the characters, let alone possibly the most popular Disney Princess since Cinderella, but never once will you hear me complain."

"It's because of your spirit," revealed Belle, "what we see in your heart, and your belief in us. It's what made such a profound impression on me and drew me to you."

"Which explains why you asked where I was when my family met you on Monday after dinner," I guessed, "after having only met me once."

"Yes," confirmed Belle, "and it's why I'll be very sad when it's time for us to part."

"Well, don't think about that yet," chimed in Meghan, sounding a bit more like her usual, cheerful, bubbly self. "You guys still have one more night to spend together."

"True," agreed Belle, "and I think I know just how I'm going to spend it. Will you be doing the last karaoke session here tomorrow?"

"Indeed," I replied, "and hopefully I'll be closing it out."

"Nice," complimented Meghan. "With which song?"

"Normally," I answered, "I'd say 'Closing Time', but Semisonic isn't even on the list. So I have to go with my second choice, which is 'Bohemian Rhapsody'."

"Oh," said Belle, "well, I'll be there. Should I bring anyone else?"

"Everyone you can get," I requested, "because I really don't want any of you to miss it. The more, the merrier, but at least try to get Ariel. She helped save my life; she at least deserves to be part of my final performance."

"I'll see what I can do," promised Belle. "Do we have a date?"

"We do," I concurred. "In the meantime, Meghan, you obviously forgot something."

"Yeah, just my character schedule for tomorrow," responded Meghan. "In and out; I'll be quick." And she walked into the D Lounge without another word.

"Now, where were we?" asked Belle once Meghan had locked the lounge back up and left.

"Hmm..." I mock-thought. "Oh, I remember." And we resumed our kiss almost exactly where we left off.

Dreams come true-believe it.