Watch and Learn

Chapter 15

Ben held the door open for Mal and waited for her to walk through before closing the door behind him. There was no need for the whole school and their parents to hear their conversation. Heck, there was no need for his parents to hear their conversation.

"So, what did you want to talk about?" Mal asked. Despite her cool demeanor, Ben could tell that she was nervous, judging by the way she was holding her hands. Ben couldn't help but feel sad—the last thing he wanted to do was make her nervous in any way; especially after watching the last bit of film.

"Mal, do you know what that lake was that we went to on our date?" Ben asked, hoping the sadness wasn't audible in his voice.

"No," Mal shook her head. "I mean, I assumed there was magic based on all the sparkles in the air."

"You could see that?"

Mal shot him a look. "Half fairy, Ben," she said, shaking her head. "Magic is a part of me, just like it's a part of Jane. We're going to have to be allowed to use our magic and not get judged for it otherwise it's not going to be pretty. But I'm getting off topic."

Ben took a deep breath, hoping that Mal wouldn't freak out when he told her what exactly that lake was. "It's known as the Enchanted Lake. It's one of the most powerful magical locations we have."

"Powerful how?" Mal asked, raising an eyebrow.

"It can wash away any enchantment, curses, or potion," Ben told her and Mal stiffened upon hearing the word potion.

"You mean?"

"Yep."

"So the rest of the date, Family Day. You weren't—?"

"Nope," Ben told her, popping the p and giving her a small smile. Mal looked at him, uncertainly dancing in her eyes.

"So what? You've just been faking it the whole time?" Mal asked and Ben could feel his heart break at the slight quiver in her voice. The last thing he wanted to do was make her feel like the relationship wasn't real. Yeah he had assumed at first that it was because Mal had a crush on him but even knowing what he knew now, he didn't mind the love potion.

Mal had an opportunity to kiss him while he was under the love potion—she didn't take it. She could have used that chance to take over the kingdom and all she did was go on a date with him.

Gently grabbing Mal's hand, Ben closed the distance between the two of them.

"I haven't been faking anything," he said, his voice a near whisper as he rubbed his thumb over the back of her hand. Placing his other hand on the back of Mal's head, Ben gently placed a kiss on her lips. He couldn't help but smile after a few minutes as Mal returned the kiss.

Unbeknownst to them, a burst of rainbow light filled the room the moment Ben's lips touched Mal's.

"I love you Mal," Ben said as they broke apart. "Did I mention that?"

Mal paused as she heard that, realizing that Ben was off the love potion when he had asked if she loved him. This entire time, Ben had been off the love potion and he wasn't mad with her or breaking up with her.

He honestly was too perfect to be real—she was a villain! Why wasn't he freaking out?

"I think you're being ridiculous," Mal said with a smirk, hoping Ben didn't notice her pause, and causing Ben to groan.

"I'm never going to live that down, am I?"

"It's harmless," Mal told him, resting a hand on his shoulder. "At least you're not Chad or Audrey. I think they're going to spend their entire summers inside their castles at the rate they're going."