I do not own these characters. Aladdin, Pocahontas, The Hunchback Of Notre Dame, Hercules, The Princess And The Frog, and Tangled are all owned by Disney. I write just for fun.
Hangtown - Volume VII
"Phoebus…hello…hello Phoebus, are you there? Can you hear me?, it's me, Quasimodo…"
Phoebus eventually snaps out of whatever trance he was in when Quasimodo announces himself to him
"What the…", says Phoebus shaking whatever happened to him off, "Well that was…"
"Strange", Quasimodo finishing Phoebus's thought
"Strange, weird, freaky, odd…the list can go on. I don't know why this keeps happening?"
"Do you know how often this has been happening to you?"
"No…not really, I'm not even sure when this all began"
"Now, I know you don't know why this keeps happening, but, do you have some ideas?"
"The only ideas, I really have are maybe I'm just too worried about everything"
"And what is 'everything'"? asked Quasimodo intriguingly
"Final class projects, final exams, graduation, prom, the party…It just feels like a lot right now"
"Hey look, I understand", said Quasimodo in a consoling tone, "Just know, if you need anyone to talk to, you know where to find me"
Phoebus gave a little smile, "Thanks man, I really appreciate it"
"No worries…now we should be moving a lot faster to get to our class"
"I agree", said Phoebus, hurried for him and Quasimodo to begin their second set of classes for the day. They eventually complete their second set of classes and begin to head home. Phoebus reaches his house by walking back from school and as he uses his house key to open the door, he notices something pretty unusual.
"Hey Dad", said Phoebus
"Son, welcome back home, how was school today?"
"Um…good, where is mom, she's usually here at this time?"
"Oh, your mother just went out to get some groceries that's all, had my house to myself for a bit before you came home"
"Sorry to ruin your fun", Phoebus said sarcastically
"If you call chilling on the couch 'fun' for a few minutes, then I don't what 'fun is", his dad responded sharply
"Can you make some room? I need to talk to you"
"Sure, come on in, make yourself at home…even though you are at home, take a seat"
Phoebus starts to walk towards the couch as his dad begins to make room for him to sit down
"So, son…what do you want to talk about?"
"I keep blanking out," Phoebus said bluntly
"You keep blanking out, what do you mean…like daydreaming?"
"I guess that's the closest thing you can really compare it to, yes it feels like I'm daydreaming"
"And when you're in this state son, what are you dreaming about?"
"I'm not really sure, but every time I do it, two things happen, one, time is pausing, and two, time is moving slower"
"Do you know the cause of this?"
"I'm not sure of this either, part of me thinks it's a combination of things like projects, exams, graduation, the party, prom, etc., I know there's more but that's what I can list right now"
"Okay, did you talk to one of your friends about this?"
"Yes, I only told Quasimodo"
"Alright"
There was a long pause between the two until his dad started the conversation again
"Can I guess something, son, if that's alright with you of course?"
"Go ahead"
"I think you are telling me this because one, this happened when you were at school today and two, you have been meaning to tell us this for a while now"
Phoebus nods his head 'yes'
"And third, you told me and not your mom because I'm better at hiding secrets than her"
"Well…, I don't about that last one", said Phoebus
"What do you mean?", said his dad confused
"C'mon, how many stories do I have to hear from your co-workers every time we go to get to together about how every single time they tell you things you 'spill the water'"
"Fair point son, fair point", his dad said knowing his son got the best of him
"But to get back on track, yes, it did happen today and I was debating with myself if I should have told anyone or not, but…" Phoebus paused his thought and his eyes kind of pop up wide
"But what?"
"But, I felt like it was the right time to tell someone, because it's about the beyond, I mean what am I going to do with myself after graduation…what is next for me, what career is right for me, how am I going to navigate my way through…"
"College", Phoebus's dad finished the thought for his son, "Believe it or not kid, but I was young once and in your position…well not really because I can only imagine what it would be like to have your level of intelligence"
Phoebus showed a little smile, his dad continued
"But the important thing here is this…get a dream, any dream, and hold on to it as long as possible. I feel like what you want to do with your life isn't a decision for me to choose or for your mother to choose, but what you do with your life is your choice and your choice alone. Do what you need to do to make yourself happy."
Phoebus lays back on the couch and reflects on what his dad just told him
"Dad, thank you, that was something I needed to hear"
"No problem son, I am going to be here, as well as your mother, for you whenever you need it. Now, the therapy session is over, where's my five bucks?"
"Really?", said Phoebus with a smile knowing his dad was joking with him with that last line. The two shared a laugh together
"Okay, is there anything else we need to talk about?"
"You know, what…there is…"
LATER ON IN THE WEEK - THE SHOPPING MALL
Esmeralda, alongside Pocahontas and Megara, were at the mall doing some shopping for prom dresses. As they were there they went window shopping in other stores scattered across the mall for some cute outfits, got some snacks to eat, and eventually reached the store that was selling the dresses, along with some accessories. They strike up some conversations while trying on some dresses
"You all, can you still believe that this is going to be our last dance", said Pocahontas
"I know right, man I remember the dresses I wore that went for cheap, nowadays these prices are insane, look at this one, $1200, are you kidding me!?", exclaimed Megara
"Meg, relax", said Esmeralda, "We are clearly here not to look for a dress that is crazy expensive that would take an arm and a leg to purchase, we just need a nice, elegant dress that is in our price range and will its job come prom night", she continued
"Kinda hard for you to say"
"Well, why is that?"
"Um, hello, your very boyfriend that thinks he's a damn prince"
"Who, Naveen?, no, I don't he cares about money that much", said Esmeralda which prompted Megara to side-eye
"Meg, why are you side-eyeing?" said Esmeralda suspiciously, "C'mon, you don't really think he cares about the money so much, do you?"
Megara continues to side-eye
"Do you?... To be honest, I think he just wants me to look beautiful"
"Pocahontas begins to side-eye as well"
"Oh really, not you Poca, someone tells me why you two are side-eying me?", Esmeralda says with a bit of anger attached to her voice
"Because of…", says Pocahontas pointing a various expensive dresses
"Because of what?"
"Because of the money Esme, like Meg said, Naveen walks, talks, and acts like he is a prince"
"I mean he calls his house a mansion, although he does have a really huge house" chimed in Megara with Pocahontas nodding in agreement, "Look the point here is this, he has the whole set up fictionalized royalty he created for himself and the people that surround him, which one of those people is you" she continued
"Wait, so let me get this straight, you want me to buy an expensive dress because of the lifestyle he tries to present"
"Rephrase 'you want me to buy' to 'he wants me to buy'"
"Okay, but you tell me why would he insist on an expensive dress?"
"The two things he's attracted to, outside of himself, are money and beautiful women", chimed in Pocahontas
"Case in point, he tried to try his luck with Jasmine, but once she turned him down, guess who was the second best option" incomes Megara
"Well, that doesn't explain the money argument, since I can't really afford the expensive clothes like how Jasmine can"
"But, man aren't you beautiful", said Megara with Esmeralda and Pocahontas looking at her at the odd tone that she said the last line with
"What…it's true", Esmeralda cracked a tiny smile from her friend's comment, "Anyway, we are just trying to look out for you, that's all"
"Yeah, we just want you to be aware of how Naveen acts in those types of environments because it's sometimes really weird", says Pocahontas
"Trust me, I'm going to be more aware because you two are saying something about it", says Esmeralda who goes out and gives a hug to both Pocahontas and Megara as a thank you. They continue to talk and try on more dresses
"So, have you two gone out to talk to Aladdin and Flynn?" Esmeralda asked
"Um, I think the last time we talked to them was around last week, why?", said Megara
"Oh, just wanted to know if you got info on them when it comes to their tuxes"
"No info, but knowing them, they are probably going to do like they have done for previous dances in the past and that is find something at the last minute"
"Hmm, I don't really think so, this year" stated Pocahontas
"Why do you say that?" responded Megara
"Well, you would think they would want to leave a good impression on Jasmine and Rapunzel"
"Fair point"
"Especially Aladdin, knowing how much he wants to look good for Jasmine and look better than Naveen"
"Why would he still care about Naveen, if he's dating me? let me guess, the money"
"Yep, feels like Naveen can get the fancy, designer tuxedos, while he can't…so he's probably far and wide, high and low for the best tuxedo he can find"
"Well, to be honest, I think it's kinda cute that he's putting in the effort to find something nice to wear for her"
"Because you know that she's gonna have something that's going to blow the roof away", said Megara with all three girls nodding in agreement. "What about Flynn? Is he doing the same for Rapunzel?"
"I think so", responded Esmeralda
"I think so as well, she's going to have something on that's really going to complement the long flowing hair that she has" chimed Pocahontas
"I agree, sometimes I wish I had long hair like hers"
"Even though I have long hair, I too wish my hair would get as long as hers"
"Sorry, to interrupt all the hair talk, but what about Phoebus and Quasimodo?", asked Megara
"Right, I hoping they can go, especially Quasimodo since his parents are super strict"
"I'm sure he going to prom, knowing that's it a school event", said Esmeralda, "Phoebus, I'm not sure"
Esmeralda looks down to the ground after she says that and then looks back up, Pocahontas and Megara comment
"Um, Esmeralda are you okay?", asked concernedly by Pocahontas
"Yeah, that was kinda strange", said Megara
"You two, trust me, I'm fine, I don't know what happened, but I'm fine"
PHOEBUS'S HOUSE
"Alright Phoebus, you had a long talk with your dad, all you gotta do is send her the message. It's been a while since we talked during messages, so I hope she doesn't take it the wrong way…"
SHOPPING MALL
Esmeralda gets a message from her phone. All three girls look
"Wow, speak of the devil", says Megara
"What does it say?", says Pocahontas
Esmeralda reaches for her phone and the message on the screen says
Hey Esmeralda, how's it going? I texting you to tell you that I might not be attending Naveen and your party before prom
Esmeralda looks up from her phone and utters a simple
"What?..."
Intriguing development that we got on our hands on Phoebus not attending the big party before prom. What's his next move? and what is Esmeralda going to do about it?, find out in the next volume next Thursday. Important note that I want to hand out for you all, the times for the next few weeks when newer volumes come out are going to be changing, so just check on my profile for when the latest volume is going to come out. This week's time zones are already posted on my profile and when I figure out my current situation, I will inform you all the time zones when new volumes come out. In the meantime, If you liked this volume and the story overall, consider leaving a like, a review, or a private message. I will see you all soon, have a good day, and thank you :)
I do not own these characters. Aladdin, Pocahontas, The Hunchback Of Notre Dame, Hercules, The Princess And The Frog, and Tangled are all owned by Disney. I write just for fun.