Princess Mal - A Descendants Fanfiction

Chapter 14: Face-To-Face

A/N: I don't watch Steven Universe... But I guess the song kinda fits this chapter :) Big thanks to Smartypants82 for her awesome comments! It totally made my day xxx

M A L ' S P O V :

"S-Sir!" I gulped as I came face to face with the stern man. I had never had a proper conversation with him - and I was happy not to. King Beast looked strict, and he probably did not like the fact that his son had the daughter of The Mistress of Evil as his girlfriend. I tried being friendly and polite to him without looking as if I was trying too hard, but I don't think he noticed the difference. I was afraid of him - he had the power to send me back to the Isle, which might be the worse case scenario to happen.

"Well, it's pleasant to see you again, Mal. May I know where your date went?" Mr Beast asked, raising an eyebrow. My blush deepened. He saw Carlos dragging me away from the ballroom, of course he would ask such a question. His lips were pressed into a thin line as he waited for me to answer. I suddenly felt guilty for leaving Carlos back there, after all he's done for me. "Well, I just wanted to see Ben... I haven't properly said hi to him at the ball." I said, facing him in the eye and using my most courageous voice possible so he wouldn't suspect that I broke down earlier. Surprisingly, Mr Beast smiled down at me. A genuine smile. My eyes widened as I stared at it. It was the first smile he had ever given to me. "Get in there." He motioned for the door. Taking a deep breath, I nodded and rushed into the ballroom. Ben's father approves of me! Yes! His encouragement made me stronger than ever to face Ben head on. I had to understand how he felt too, and I had to apologise to him, and tell him I love him.

I searched around the ballroom. It seemed a little emptier. I saw Lonnie and Chad, but they didn't seem like they were having the time of their lives. I approached them slowly.

"Hey. Have you seen Ben?" I looked at them, searching their faces for an answer. Lonnie shook her head. "Nope we haven't seen them." She said in an excited voice, as if I were suddenly interesting to talk to. Her eyes were pleading me to stay - and I probably knew why, but I had to look for Ben. He couldn't be far off... right? As if reading my thoughts, Chad leaned forward and smirked at me. "You'll never find him." Chad said slyly. I gritted my teeth before thanking Lonnie and stomping off. Note to self: after this whole mess has been cleared up, look in my spell book to see if there's a spell where I could wipe that irritating smirk off Chad's face. Permanently.

I spotted Audrey and Jay at the buffet table. They were sitting on chairs they found at the corner of the ballroom, probably resting from all that dancing. I walked quickly over to them, dodging the other dancing couples on the dance floor and avoiding the gazes of other people who noticed I walked into the room barefoot. "Jay, Audrey, have you seen Ben?!" I nearly shrieked. Audrey stood up, smiling a bit nervously. "Whoa, easy there Mal. Yeah, I saw him head out to look for you after he saw Carlos led you away. Why?" I stared at her in shock, before thanking her profusely, tossing Jay a grateful smile before heading to the door. "You look great in that dress by the way!" I heard Audrey yell after me. I turned to smile back at her before turning back to head to the door. Ben cared enough to run after me? I've never been this emotional in my entire life. I felt so lost right now. Just make it out the door, and try to find Ben. I told myself. Determined, I made a beeline to the door, only to be stopped by a fair and dainty hand.

I turned to see the blonde girl from before.

The one that forced herself on Ben. Her eyes narrowed into slits, her other hand twirled and played around her blonde curls, before stepping in front of me. "Charmaine." The girl extended a manicured hand to me, expecting me to shake it. "I'm Cinderella's daughter, by the way. But you'd probably know that. Our family comes from a prestigious history." She finished, batting her eyes at me.

"I don't." I raised an eyebrow, crossing my arms.

()()()()

B E N ' S P O V :

Jealousy was boiling at the pit of my stomach when I saw Mal and Carlos' hands intertwined together. What Chad said was right. But another emotion overtook jealousy, and that was guilt. Mal had seen everything. Charmaine had tried to kiss me! I was beyond stupefied. Sure, she had been flirting with me a couple of times when we reached Auradon, but I never would have thought that she would be pulling this sort of thing on me. I half-expected Mal to cast a spell over her or something, but she looked devastated. And hurt. And suddenly all thoughts of keeping secrets from her and being around another girl without her knowing washed over me like a hurricane.

After seeing the two leave, I felt anger. Towards Carlos. Towards myself. I couldn't believe I've done so much to hurt her without even knowing it. I had to find her, apologise to her, and tell her I love her. But I felt a grip on my arm, a strong grip that's not letting me get to her. I turned to see Charmaine with confusion and sadness mixed together on her features. "Where do you think you're going?" She asked in a strained voice. I placed a comforting hand on hers. "I'm sorry, Charmaine, but I don't think this is going to work out." I explained, trying to make her let go. But her grip on me was tighter. "What? What do you mean?" She asked, hope laced in her tone. I sighed. This way, I would never find Mal and apologise to her. "Charmaine. I don't like you that way, in fact, I already have a girlfriend." I said slowly. Her eyes widened as she loosened her grip, she recoiled as if I had just hit her. "Sorry," I mouthed before heading to the exit. I threw open the door, and headed down the hallways, picking up Mal's strong perfume. I sniffed the air like a bloodhound, the trail of perfume had led me to the campus ground. My heart stopped. She wasn't there.

But Carlos was.

I marched up to him, something fuming inside of me. I tapped on his shoulder as he spun around, surprised. "Carlos." I said, my voice harsh. He froze still, as if he was expecting me to punch him in the face, which I really felt like doing right now. But before that, I needed to ask him a very important question. "Carlos," I began again, inching nearer to him. His face looked determined now, knowing that I wasn't going to hurt him. "I need to ask you something." His eyes widened a little, but I could tell he wasn't backing down.

"Ask me anything."

"Do you like Mal?" He seemed a bit surprised. He stared blankly at me, his mouth opening a little, but no words escaped out of his mouth. "Do you like her?" I said, my voice raising a little. I was surprised myself at how harsh and brusque it sounded. But I needed to know the truth, what had been going on between Carlos and Mal.

His eyes looked into mine, cold and distant, as if he was shooting daggers at me. He wasn't the friendly and smart genius Carlos that I knew. He was shorter than me, but now, I felt smaller compared to him, the way he looked at me made me feel as if he was towering over me.

"Yes."