Random x reader (BOOK 2)

(Live Action Little Mermaid: 2023) Prince Eric x Reader Part 5

(Dr. Howard Gate's Intro)

'When you truly love someone, sometimes you become insane, you become possessive and do mad things', and 'There is always some madness in love; But there is also always some reason for the madness' - Rediff & Friedrich Nietzsche.

(Dr. Howard Gates Pov)

I waited for the Prince a couple feet down the hall from the guest room, questions brewing in my mind that had simple answers that were right in front of me; but for some reason I can't seem to see it.
I heard the door open/close before I turned to see him, and I immediately saw the differences.
He was still the same Eric he was the day before last night; but the way he carried himself and the way he behaved were different; a man possessed by something more powerful than the pull of the sea.

'My god, He's in love'.

🧑‍⚕️'Or he just thinks he is'🧑‍⚕️; murmured the part of me shaped by years of learning/studying/research and experience/training.

When he spotted me, I saw that he knew he was prepared for an inquisition while I checked to make sure he was okay.
I then asked, after he walked towards me and joined me at my left side as we began walking to my office.
"She doesn't know, does she"?
Eric shook his head and said, turning to look at me.
"No, she doesn't know, and how could she know?
Y/n never saw me before last night, let alone as Prince Eric and I was in my regular sailor uniform.
(Eric had that dreamy look in his eye, as he was probably thinking about her right now and I could feel the right side of my mouth turning up in happiness for the boy.
While my heart clenched for him at the thought of what I must do.)
Last night was the first time we met, and although the circumstances weren't highly ideal,
(I nodded and shrugged my shoulders, completely getting where he's going with this. Meeting the one after they saved you from nearly drowning may not align with most peoples vision of the moment, but that's life, nothing goes exactly as you plan it.)
She is still the most beautiful and incredible creature I ever saw".

I smiled, carefully making sure the grim feeling didn't show in my expression as I patted his back lightly while I spoke as we tok the left turn down the hallway that led to another, which had my office on the right side.
"While she is truly remarkable, Eric, it's important to recognize how fortunate you both are to have survived, and that your emotions may not be as clear as you think.
(Eric met my gaze, looking at me in confusion when we stopped at my door.)
Eric, I want you to know I express my genuine happiness for you in having found Y/n and developing an affection for her;
(I looked in the general direction of where we came from and then I looked at Eric, seeing as he was looking down the hallway we used to get here from the guestroom.)
But, you must understand, what you're feeling for Y/n could be true love,
(Seeing the dawning sadness in Eric reminds me of many patients who, mistaking their feelings for love, have actually formed trauma bonds with those who saved them, and it pains me to witness his realization.
Eric feels more like a son to me, Marcella, and Grimsby.
It was only natural we grew fond of the boy when he came into the castle all those years ago after he lost everything to a storm, just like the one that nearly took his life last night. He found warmth/belonging/love in our family, and captured not just my heart but also that of Queen Seline and King Walter, his mother and late father who adopted him on the spot when he was just a boy recovering in our infirmary wing when all other clinics were closed do to the storms aftermath.)
or a trauma bond you formed with her, this scenario is often called a Rescue romance.
(Eric shut his eyes and, with his hands resting on his hips, breathed deeply, struggling to steady himself against the tremors of despair that he failed to keep from showing in his shoulders.
Though it pained me to address this with him, it was crucial for his safety and that of the kind young woman who rescued him. So, I placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder and spoke to him gently.)
I know it's tough to hear Eric, but you must hear it before falling any further".