Reluctantly, Mal forced herself to say 'good-bye' to Mallory the next morning. After leaving Dragon Hall, the four would immediately return to Auradon. The mother would have no other chance to say her partings. However, the fairy promised to video-call every morning, afternoon, and night until they are reunited once more.
About two weeks before the last day of school, the Royal Family hosted the annual Senior Dinner for the graduating class. Mrs. Potts outdone herself with hearty beef ragout, bubbling cheese souffle, crispy roast chicken, mash potatoes with pools of melted butter, and other various delectable cuisines. It was the best meal any senior ever had.
Although they were only juniors, Carlos and Jane joined them in the feast. It was only right, since the two helped planned everything, including the six-course dessert menu. The young couple were seated with the remaining Core Four and their significant other. As they ate, the seniors discussed their future after graduation with their friend groups.
"Aziz and I eloping," Jay announced, shrugging carelessly to deter overreactions. "It would lessen the stress of planning a wedding ceremony. More importantly, it will give us more time and opportunities to find a surrogate mother."
"A surrogate mother?" Evie repeated, surprised they were thinking so far ahead. "You want a child so soon? Don't you think you're too young to start a family or even marry? You still have your whole life ahead."
"My mother married my father at sixteen and had me at twenty," Aziz reminded coldly. "Your stepsister married at fourteen, remember? In all reality, we are getting married later than the average couple in Auradon. Besides, it will take time to find a surrogate mother since I'm to be Sultan, and Jay's is sadly still recognized as a villain. We probably won't find anyone for months, or even years."
"Sounds like a wonderful plan," Ben encouraged positively, hoping to get rid of the negative atmosphere. "What are you hoping for, a boy or girl?"
"I want a boy," Aziz admitted without a second thought. "But Jay is hoping for a girl."
"Really?" Mal leaned forward with interest, as her best friend was seated across from her. "Why a girl?"
"I thought a girl would be easier to raise because . . ." Jay trailed off, though the fairy nodded in silent understanding. "Um, Aziz and I made a deal. If we have a boy, Aziz will name him. But if we have a girl, I get to name her."
"We won't reveal our chosen names yet," Aziz claimed before anyone could ask. "We don't want to jinx ourselves."
"I call dibs on being the godmother when you do have a child," Mal stubbornly insisted.
"Obviously," Jay agreed with a sarcastic eyeroll. "Do you really think we would choose anyone else? You are the best option."
"Excuse me?" Evie interrogated, clearly offended. "What about me? Are you saying I wouldn't be a good godmother?"
"No," Jay quickly denied. "I've known Mal my whole life while I've known you for less than three years. I'm still learning things about you, but I know everything about Mal."
"Like the assault you refuse to talk about," Evie grumbled bitterly.
"E," Carlos chided sternly, noticing the way the fairy had flinched. "It's not fair of us to keep pressuring her. Mal will tell us more when she's ready."
That seemed to calm the tension, as the blueberry princess resumed eating her meal. Mal mouthed a silent 'thank you', to which Carlos lightly nodded, so no one would notice.
Once it came time for desserts, servers walked around the tables, offering glasses of wine to whoever may want one. Although there was no drinking age limit in Auradon, the adults typically refrained from letting teenagers have alcohol beverages whenever they wanted. However, since this was a special occasion, King Beast and Queen Belle made an exception in the spirit of celebrating the upcoming graduation.
Most graciously accepted the usually forbidden drink. Meanwhile, the castle servants completely skipped over Ben and a surprised Mal. The fairy had snarled her nose in confusion when the servers walked pass her, until she caught her beloved's gaze. That simple look explained everything she needed to know, which made her grateful for his protectiveness.
But it also caused a certain . . . conflict.
"Come on, Mal!" a heavily intoxicated Chad antagonized, holding a half-empty bottle of wine. " It's just one drink! Don't be such a prude!"
"And you haven't learned your lesson," Mal retorted, snarling at the prince's drunken demeanor. "Last time you were drunk, you went behind your friend's back and got his girlfriend pregnant."
"That was so long ago!" Chad argued, coming closer into Mal's personal space. "It's different now! Just one sip."
"My girlfriend told you 'no'," Ben clarified sternly, clenching his fist to control his temper. "Leave her alone before she teaches you another lesson, like she did at Family Day."
"You are such a killjoy," Chad insulted with an arrogant eyeroll. " All I want is her to have a drink so she will stop being a stuck-up bitc—"
"ENOUGH!"
Dramatically rising from her seat, Mal grabbed the bottle of wine from the drunk teenager. Glaring daggers at the brainless oaf, Mal insisted, "I told you NO!"
At her shout, the glass shattered in the fairy's hand, gripping it too hard. The audience gasped as their 'precious' wine splattered the floor, only some noticing it splashed on the fairy's outfit. Anger billowing from her ruined dress and the situation, Mal threw the broken shards to the floor before storming out of the dining room.
Sighing softly, Ben calmly stood, reassuring his friends, "I'll check on her."
Luckily, the king didn't search long for his beloved.
Following the trail of wine and specks of blood, Ben found Mal in his personal bathroom, which was only accessible from inside his bedroom. Although it caught him off-guard, it made sense, since it was the only bathroom she ever used in the castle. He really should've given her a proper tour of the castle.
But what's the point, since theirs will be ready in a few more weeks?
From what the king could determine, Mal tried saving her dress before giving up, focusing her attention on her hand. When the wine bottle broke, some shards cut the skin while others were embedded in her skin. Pulling out the last shard with tweezers from the first-aid kit, Mal rinsed her hand in the sink while Ben cautiously approached, making his presence known.
"I'm such an idiot," Mal scolded herself, shaking her head disapprovingly. "I let myself get worked up over something so stupid. I should have poured it on him instead of injuring myself."
"Chad is the idiot," Ben corrected gently. "He should have listened the first time. But what's done is done. Let me help you before your hand gets infected."
Reluctantly, Mal outstretched her hand, allowing Ben to pour disinfectant over the cuts, rinsing and drying the hand, and wrapping it in a bandage so it wouldn't get worse.
"I reacted the way I did because of the rape," Mal suddenly revealed, noticing how Ben tensed at the mention of it again. "I know I told you before, but I didn't explain it much. He got me drunk on purpose so I couldn't fight it. After that, I vowed I would never drink again because I never want my chance of fighting back be taken away again if someth—."
"Don't," Ben warned before the fairy could finish her statement. "I promise, you will never go through something like that again. I will kill whoever dares to try. I just wish I could've helped you before."
"There's no point wishing when we can't change the past," Mal insisted, a mysterious gleam in her eyes. "But there is something else you can do instead."
"Which is?"
Smirking mischievously, Mal cooed adoringly, "Make love to me, right now."
Flinching, Ben jerked his head upwards to meet her gaze. Although her green eyes shined with amusement, the fairy showed no signs of joking about her statement. "Are you sure?" Ben probed firmly. "I don't have protection and, more importantly, I don't want you to force yourself into something you're not ready for. I can wait."
"I want to show you how much I love you," Mal insisted just as firmly. "I want those memories to be replaced by memories of you, proving how much you love me. And we don't need protection. After that night . . . I can't have any more kids."
Hesitating once more at the declaration, Ben cautiously laid a hand on her cheek, keeping their gazes locked. "If I need to stop," he began slowly, "or I push you too far, you tell me, okay?"
Heart swelling at the request, Mal's smirk transformed into a smile, teasing, "The only thing I'll be doing is moaning your name, while I beg for more."
KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!
Slinking inside the bedroom, Jay quietly closed the door behind them while Aziz walked further into the room. "Ben?" he called out. "Is everything ok? You didn't come ba—"
Aziz froze, noticing the scene. Clothes littered the floor leading from the bathroom to the bed. Cuddled together underneath the blanket laid Ben and Mal, both lightly glaring at the thieves for the intrusion.
After a moment, Jay stood next to him at the foot of the bed. Instead of freezing like his fiancé, Jay raised an amused brow while smirking. "This is why you need to lock the door," he teased.
"Ha ha ha," Ben mocked, pulling his beloved closer. "This is why you wait for an answer before you barge into someone's room."
"To be fair," Aziz disrupted, breaking through his initial shock, "we didn't know you'd be here. You weren't answering our phone calls."
"Now you know why," Mal joked, snuggling into her beloved's muscular chest. "And now I see why you two love sex so much."
"If you're not careful, you'll be addicted," Jay warned, his smirk turning into a giddy smile. "We'll leave you be—"
"Wait," Mal interrupted. "Will you bring me clothes in the morning? And one more thing?"
"Yes?"
Smirking mischievously, the fairy sat up, swinging her leg over her beloved in one swift motion, straddling him in the process. Feeling her beloved's heated stare as she looked over her shoulder, Mal demanded, "Lock the door when you leave."
Without another word, the fairy swooped down to kiss her king, ignoring the engaged couple's chuckling as they respected her request.
On the other side, Jay couldn't help the shit-eating grin on his face. "We're getting closer to Lory coming to Auradon."