This one's a little darker than all the rest have been. It's completely different from what I normally write, but I really like it. Let me know what you think about in the reviews. Thanks and enjoy!
She had told him she would be fine. He had said again and again that he could find a way to stay, but she told him every time that she would be fine. And so, he left for some stupid royal trip to Corona for three weeks and now Mal felt like she was dying. It had only been a few days, but Mal felt the emptiness in her life nonetheless. Despite the calls, texts, and video chats her heart still longed for him and she didn't know if she could last the three weeks without him. He was the one person she could confide in, the one who could make her smile no matter what, the one who she couldn't live without.
After a week Ben told her he couldn't talk to her as much because he was super busy. He said he was sorry and he loved her and missed her and when he asked how she was doing she answered with tears in her eyes that she was doing fine. If she told him the truth, that she felt dead inside without him, he would come home straight away and then people would be mad at him and Mal couldn't live with that, knowing it was her fault. So, after closing the laptop, she let the dams break and everything finally came rushing out. She cried herself to sleep that night because she knew she couldn't handle this anymore.
People were starting to notice, too. How Mal no longer smiled, and didn't eat as much, and never came out of her room unless it was for food or classes. Evie couldn't even help her because Ben had gotten Mal her own room to herself that year. If someone asked what was wrong, Mal responded with, "I'm fine," and retracted back into herself once more.
By two weeks Mal looked different. She had bags under her eyes from all her crying and restless nights. She was even thinner than before because she wasn't eating as much. No one ever heard her talk anymore unless she had to for class, but even that was scarce. In the middle of the week, Evie, Jay, and Carlos tried to break into her room because enough was enough. But upon opening the door they saw she was no longer in there and it looked like she hadn't been for awhile. After walking through the halls, Evie spotted light coming from underneath Ben's room and instantly knew where her best friend was. She knocked cautiously on the door and called out Mal's name but got nothing in return and the trio knew that, as king, Ben's room was impossible to break into and so they left their friend alone, hoping she could make it one more week.
It was the last week and Mal was laying in Ben's bed, his tourney shirt on and blankets wrapped around her. His smell was still on it all and she couldn't bear to lose it. Ben had resorted to text only, and those very rarely came. So when her phone went off at two in the morning two days before he was coming home she jumped up, but only cried the hardest she had ever cried when it said that he would be gone another week. The pain of all of it was too much and so she threw her phone, hitting the mirror and shattering it to pieces.
The next day Mal wore long sleeves and Evie noticed that when Mal pulled them up to wash her hands there were red lines along her wrist. Evie reached out to her friend, trying her best to tell her this wasn't the answer. Ben would be back so soon, she just needed to hold out a little longer. But Mal yanked away from her, told her it wasn't her business, and left.
No one saw Mal the next day, or the next, or the next. Fairy Godmother knew Mal was having problems, but the girl had never skipped school before. So the woman walked down to Ben's room and knocked on the door, telling Mal to open up. When the door didn't budge, Fairy Godmother knew she was going to have to resort to magic, but upon gathering her good magic, she felt a strange darkness around her. Opening her eyes she saw that the door had a green film around it, a result of the dark magic Mal was using to keep her headmistress out. Fairy Godmother tried to coax the girl, tried all the magic she could, but nothing worked and so she sadly left the child. Ben would be back in two days; Mal would be fine.
Ben had been texting Mal for the past day, counting down until he would be back. I'll be back in two days Mal. See you tomorrow, my love. I'll be with you in less than 18 hours. But none ever came back with a reply. He figured she was busy, but knew she would be there when he came home.
The limo pulled up and Ben stepped out with a smile, ready to see his little fairy once again. But his smile disappeared when all he saw were Evie, Jay, Carlos, and Fairy Godmother with sad faces. Fairy Godmother nodded to him and then to Evie and walked away. After motioning to Ben to follow her, Evie turned around and started walking towards the dorm rooms. He was surprised when they stopped outside his door, a green glow surrounding it. Evie told him she was in there and wouldn't come out and then the three left, knowing they needed to be alone.
He called out her name once, and the glow flickered. He called it out once again and it disappeared for a whole second. He tried again, adding an I" love you" along with it. The glow disappeared completely and he could hear the lock turn. He nudged the door open and was met with darkness. The lights were out and the curtains shut, and despite the light outside, none was getting in. The only light came from the bathroom light, which had been left on.
He slowly walked over to his bed where he could see a small bundle was lying. He sat down next to her, his hand stroking her head lightly. "Mal, it's me. I'm home now and I won't ever leave you again." Her head turned and green eyes met his. He could see how puffy and red they were. He could see how her face had an almost gray coloring to it. She looked so thin he thought she might break under his touch.
"Ben." Her voice croaked from not being used, and he could tell she was already almost to tears. He reached for her hands, only to gasp at what he saw. The bright, red lines across both her wrists could mean only thing.
"Mal, you should have told me." His statement was met with silence, except for her light breathing that kept coming out ragged.
"I can't live without you. This was the only way. You couldn't talk to me anymore. You were so busy. I couldn't handle not seeing you. It was all too much. It just made the pain go away but it always came back. Ben I'm so sorry. I - I." Her voice kept cracking as she carried on and by the end her whole body was shaking from the emotions. Ben pulled her into him as she sobbed into his chest. Ben sat there, rubbing her back and just letting her let go. He never meant to hurt her like this. He now wished he had noticed it more and tried harder to stay connected.
As she calmed down and her sobs turned to sniffles, he lifted her chin and kissed her softly. "It's okay, Mal."
"B-but it's not." Her voice shook and he could see the tears threatening to fall again. "What will I do next time you leave?"
"Next time I leave, you're coming with me."
She gave a tiny smile. "Really?"
"Yes. I can't let you be hurt like this anymore."
She could see how much her doing all this hurt him. She could see it in his eyes, the way he looked at her. She could hear it in his voice, the way he talked so sweetly. She could feel it in his touch, how cautious and gentle he was as if she would turn to ash if he pressed too hard.
She hiccupped a sob and the tears silently started falling again. "I hurt you Ben. You seeing me like this. I'm so sorry. I - I love you so much and yet I hurt you and it wasn't even your fault and you don't deserve me because I'm a mess and I'm awful and I can't even handle a month without you." The words were tumbling out of her. Everything she had kept hidden away was falling freely from her. "Ben, I missed you so much. It hurt so much and I couldn't live anymore, even though I knew you were coming back but then you stopped talking and there are so many other pretty princesses over there. I knew I'd die if you left me Ben."
He pressed a finger to her lips and wiped the tears from her cheeks. "Mal, I love you with all my heart. Nobody could replace you because you are perfect. I don't want a princess, I just want you. You need to know that I will always love you and any time apart will not change that."
Her bottom lip trembled and she leaned back into him, trying to be as close to him as possible. They were silent for a while, both content just being in the others arms, until Mal pulled away and tugged him to the bathroom with her. He was very confused but followed his girlfriend anyway.
As she pushed the door open the rest of the way, he saw why she brought him here. Pieces of glass littered the floor and sink, and he could see blood stains on multiple. He looked at her and saw the tears in her eyes as she rolled up her sleeves and showed him what she had done.
He gently grabbed her wrists, observing all the red cuts on them. Then, he reached down and placed a kiss on every single line, his way of healing her. Afterwards, he washed her wrists of all the blood and bandaged them. He sat her down on a clean countertop and picked up all the mess around him. By the time he was finished, no one would be able to tell what she had done. Ben walked back over to Mal, standing between her legs, and pressed his forehead to hers. "Thank you," she whispered.
He kissed her lips softly, and Mal knew now that everything would be alright. Her cuts would heal, her face would color, she would no longer be skin and bones. Her heart would mend back together and would stay that way forever. Because Ben would never leave her and she would always stay with him.