I do not these characters. Aladdin, Pocahontas, The Hunchback Of Notre Dame, Hercules, and Tangled are all property of Disney. I write just for fun.
Club 23 - Chapter XX - The Long Awaited Answer
The group would describe Phoebus as someone who had a confident attitude, but his confidence sometimes would be perceived as cockiness, still, however, he wasn't like a guy like Gaston or Hans, he is approachable, he'll sit down and have a chat with you, he is a cool guy to be around, although he wasn't always like this since he was Professor Frollo's hall monitor when he was quite younger, then quit since he didn't like how he was abusing his power over students. Back to the matter, Phoebus is a friendly, helpful person that had the personality of being a "cool guy" or a "class clown" depending on how some people look at him. However, these past few weeks, he hasn't been himself, and he knows this. He needs to know if she has the same feelings towards him. He needs her to understand where he is coming from. He wants to know if this question is going to ruin their friendship or be the start of something beautifully new. Right now he is approaching the table with his friends holding a white bag with a gift inside covered up with tissue paper. As he is approaching, Flynn notices him and shouts
"There you are, we've been wondering when you would show up"
He smiles and responds with "So sorry, nobody told me that we were moving to a larger table and I had to prepare a little bit", Phoebus then lifts up the white bag to show Flynn
"Oh, I see, that's a decent size bag you got there Phoebs, gotta be something mindblowing in there"
"Oh, just wait and see my friend" He then takes a seat next to Quasimodo, who is sitting next to Madellaine, who is sitting next to Esmeralda, who is sitting next to Naveen. Naveen is doing his thing, trying to woo Esmeralda and her playing into it since she's sorta into him. In Phoebus's head, Naveen trying to ask Esmeralda out to the Formal was unlikely, but it wasn't out of the question. To keep himself focused, he strikes up a bit of conversation with Quasimodo
"Phew, Damn Quasi, some girl, huh" He smiles at his friend and at Madellaine gives him a pat on the back
Quasimodo looks towards him, "Yeah man, she's great, I'm still happy she said yes"
"Well I'm glad she did, if anybody deserves happiness, it's you"
Quasimodo smiles, "Thanks man, I really appreciate it", he continues, "So…"
"So…what", says Phoebus, Quasimodo then nods over to Esmeralda, who is still talking to Naveen
"What about it?", Phoebus said bluntly
"When are you going to ask her the question?"
"When the time's right"
"Which is…"
Phoebus slightly lowered his head, "Yeah…about that"
"C'mon Phoebus, now," Quasimodo says trying to motivate his friend
"Now?"
"Yes, Phoebus, Now…the right time is now"
"I mean…of course I know now is the right time…but I don't know how to approach her, I don't know how to start off…will she just, you know, walk away…"
"Phoebus", said Quasimodo laughing while trying to stop his friend's rambling, "I think there's nothing to worry about, you got this"
Phoebus has his head down still, but slightly raises it up to face his friend, "You know what, you're right Quasi, I do got this" and they continue with their lunch
Meanwhile, Flynn, who is still sitting next to his date Rapunzel, is being his usual Flynn self and just talking about whatever comes to mind, this time it is a matter of the Formal
"So, group and other people associated with the group", looking at Jasmine, Rapunzel, Madellaine, and Naveen when he said that, "Who's excited for the Spring Formal?"
"Well I'll start", said Aladdin, "I'm very optimistic that the night will go well for all of us", he then looked smiled at Jasmine
"Well, in that case, I am too optimistic", said Jasmine
"Alright you two lovebirds, get a room", said Flynn while Jasmine and Aladdin laughed and so did everyone else, "Anyway, does anyone know the location"
"Coronado" Megara chimed in
"Really?" said Pocahontas, "Interesting choice"
"Hmm", said Flynn giving it some thought, "Sounds like that there experimenting with the theme and the location this year"
"Yeah, that's what they trying to do", responded Megara
"How do you know?" chimed Esmeralda
"Bumped into Hercules in the hallway, told me all about it, also the info was sent through email, the timeframe is from 8 pm-12 am"
"Hercules…interesting", said Flynn with Megara giving him a 'whatever' look. Megara continues with, "Anyways, there should have been an email that was sent out"
"Hmm…I got no email from Tiana, but yet again, I really don't check my emails so…", said Flynn
Well, I think would all should", Pocahontas injected herself back into the conversation, "I mean, imagine we miss a similar major announcement like that"
"She's got a point", said Esmeralda, "We gotta do better when it comes to things like that"
"Ok, you girls are right", says Flynn, listening to the ladies, "Still, though, how you think that the event is gonna play out"
"For starters", Quasimodo raises his voice, "It's an interesting jump from Grand Californian and the Grand Floridian, my main concern is my parents gonna let me stay up that late"
"Mines too", Rapunzel agreed with Quasimodo. Flynn then looked at Quasimodo and Rapunzel and said
"You two, I'll make sure that nothing bad happens to you, and that is a sure promise"
"Aww, thanks Flynn", said Rapunzel as she went to hug him
"No problem," said Flynn and smiled at her, Aladdin in the distance smiled and said
"You two, get a room", Flynn looked up and said, "Quiet Ali, you ruining the moment" Everyone laughed at the interaction between the two, Flynn continued with
"You know, I've been considering something, Ali, Phoebs, Quasi, and Esme", he paused for suspense, "Should we bring back the band for the Formal?" Jasmine, Rapunzel, Madellaine, and Naveen looked up and said almost in unison
"You were in a band?"
"Um, yeah", said Esmeralda with the four of them still in shock, "It was me and Aladdin as the two singers, Flynn and Phoebus, would do guitar and background sing, and Quasi would be on drums and background sing, it was a fun little thing we did when we were younger, honestly though, I don't know if I can sing that well since I've been focusing on dancing"
"You and I talked about this in a video chat, not long ago," said Phoebus, "I mean, I'm not opposed to it, it's just I've barely played my guitar" he continued
"Same, most of the free time goes to carving and barely drumming", said Quasimodo
"I don't even remember the last time I was seriously into singing", said Aladdin
Flynn listened to each of his friend's concerns and said, "I'm not going to lie, I'm a bit concerned as well, but I feel like this can be a good experience for all involved, I mean don't we all want a Spring Formal to remember"
Naveen moved some of Esmeralda's hair out of the way to see her eyes and said, "You know, not only don't I like a woman that can move, but a woman that can hit some sweet high notes", He then winked at her and she rolled her eyes smiling, Phoebus saw this interaction and looked at Flynn and said
"You know what Rider, I'm in"
Quasimodo looked at his friend and knew why he said yes, he smiled slightly and said,
"You know, I'm in as well"
"Me three", chimed in Aladdin
Esmeralda smiled at the boys and said
"Well…why not", she looked at Flynn and then at Naveen
"Great!", Flynn exclaimed in excitement, "I'll talk to Tiana as soon as I can, we'll get to practicing as soon as we can"
"Nice, can't wait to see your performance, gorgeous", said Naveen, Phoebus, on the other hand, knew that time was running out, Flynn noticed that they had to return to class pretty soon, so this was his final statement
"Alright you guys this gathering has been great, but good things must come to an e…"
"Wait!, Flynn", blurted Phoebus and got the attention of the entire table"
"Or maybe not, Phobes, whatcha got?"
Phoebus' surroundings felt like he was moving through slow motion, Quasimodo tapped him on the shoulder and told him good luck, for the final time it seems. He went to the front of the table, faced his friends, took a deep breath, and shared what he felt about her
"(Deep sigh), For a good while now, I have stated that I am asking out with some 'mystery girl' to the Spring Formal"
Everybody, well at least in the group shakes their head 'yes'
"Well it isn't a mystery of how beautiful she is and how happy she makes me feel every time I see her"
Quasimodo smiles as everybody else does
"She is a light that shines brighter than any other light in the world. She is so beautiful, so confident, so full of life, words can't describe how amazing she is.
All the girls there cooed and blushed, including her
"To say that she is kind is an understatement, she literally would take the clothes off her back for somebody who was in desperate need of them. Everything about her from the way she dresses, the way she moves, the way she carries herself, the way she interacts with others, is different, unique, and cute"
Everybody is now really invested in this speech now, he is really pouring his heart out there
"She is someone, I can see spending my whole life with, hopefully for my sake, she has those same visions"
Now for the hard part, he walks towards her direction knowing he has to get past him, he grabs her hand and while everybody does this, everybody around the table is kinda shocked and a bit caught off guard. She, on the other hand, is really caught by surprise but still wants to hear him out. Now she and he are standing in front of their friends and he takes a deep breath and continues his speech
"As you all know (looking towards his friends), "I'm not really the best with gifts", they all laugh at him and he continues, "But, hopefully (towards her) you'll like it"
She pulls the gift out of the bag and pulls out a teddy bear holding a heart, but there is also a book, a scrapbook to be exact. A scrapbook of photos they have taken with each other. She is overcome with emotions as she looks through all the photos of him and her and them with the rest of the group
"Oh..my..god", is all she can muster to herself and for a while, the rest of the table is waiting in suspense for the next words coming out of his mouth. After a few moments, he continues
"All those moments in that book really mean a lot to me and hopefully they mean a lot to you, I cherished every moment we have spent together and I want to know if you want to continue doing that, but a little differently"
He takes a deep breath, two deep breaths, and asks the question
"Esmeralda, will you be my date for the Spring Formal?"
All the girls, including Pocahontas and Megara, are squealing in anticipation. The boys are crossing their fingers hoping this goes well. And Naveen…he's just there, taking it all in, is he a little disappointed…kinda, but is he angry…no, he actually is happy for this moment. Everybody is still waiting, then she finally gives her answer
Right now, she is hesitant…very hesitant, mainly because this came as a total shock to her. I mean, she wasn't really interested in Phoebus, or none of the boys in the friend group because of the tight bond they built as friends, but also she really wasn't interested in Naveen as well. Were they both attractive guys?…yes. Did she like them both?…yes. Did they both care for her?
That was the question, that meant the most to her. On one hand, you had someone that was complemented and flirty, on the other, someone who she had spent some good and some bad times with, made jokes about each other, and always had each other's back. She always had thought that every guy she came across wanted a quick hookup and not get to know who she really was. With his speech, Esmeralda thought, she finally had a person that was willing to give her a chance at something true. She looks back at him and speaks
"Wow Phoebus", she gets closer to him, "That was some speech, huh", she pauses and ponders about the emotions that he is feeling and what she is feeling too, she musters up a smile and says one word
"Yes", she lunges at him and gives him a tight hug, he returns the hug back, and the rest of the table cheers. Amidst all the cheers, Esmeralda stands off to the side a little and turns her back, just thinking about all the positives this could come about…however, the doubt starts creeping in and she doesn't see the friend group that she would go out to pretend, just crumble, she needed to do some thinking
"I need to talk to Flynn"
Well...it finally happened, so...what happens next? that's something to find out for the next chapter coming out on the 26th or the 27th. We will continue if this new bond between Esmeralda and Phoebus will work out for good...or bad. If you liked this chapter and the rest of the story, consider dropping a like and a review. See ya next week. Thank you :)
I do not these characters. Aladdin, Pocahontas, The Hunchback Of Notre Dame, Hercules, and Tangled are all property of Disney. I write just for fun.