Chapter 3 of the Fangirls, book two rewrite!!!!!:D:D

 

Chapter 3

Mal and Ben were on a nice walk on the pleasant day, happy that all of their royal work was done for the week. But they were on that walk for another reason. They were trying induce labor. Mal put one hand to her swollen stomach. “Ouch,” she said quietly. Ben turned to her.

“Are you alright?” he asked her in concern. Mal nodded. “Let’s sit down for minute,” Ben said, motioning to the park that was on the dirt path facing a green that was basically their backyard since the rear of the castle was also in sight. Ben slipped his arm around Mal’s shoulders and kissed Mal’s forehead. Mal smiled and leaned her head against Ben’s chest. The day was so sunny and peaceful and perfect. Until it wasn’t.

Out of nowhere, the perfect cloudless sky turned gray and they heard this loud, booming, evil laugh all around them. Mal panicked as she realized she could no longer feel Ben’s touch against her shoulders and she heard him screaming so she turned around and found that Ben was getting sucked up into the gloomy sky. She screamed after she heard the laugh again this time, she recognized it.

“Mad Maddy!” she cried up to the clouds. Mad Maddy cackled like the bad little witch she was.

“You took everything away from us when you sealed off those catacombs! Now I take something that you love!”

“You won’t get away with this!” Mal screamed. She had just had a really painful contraction, but she ignored it. Mad Maddy scoffed as though Mal was the stupidest person in the world.

“Oh, really? Look down!” she cried spiritedly. Mal knew it couldn’t have been good since Mad Maddy sounded so excited, but she looked down anyway. The dirt path was drenched in a sort of fluid! Mal’s water had broken! Another powerful contraction drove to fall on the ground and she started sobbing. She wouldn’t be able to save Ben in this condition!

“No! No please! Please have mercy!” she sobbed as tears started flooding down her face. But Mad Maddy just kept cackling.

 

Ben awoke to someone kicking him in the leg. Confused and disoriented for a moment, he looked over at Mal’s side of the bed. He saw that she was thrashing. He also saw that tears were running down her face, that her eyes shut very tight, and she was muttering, “No! No please! Please have mercy!”

She’s having a nightmare, Ben realized. He had to get her out of it, she was clearly suffering. “Mal, wake up!” he said as he shook her. After three attempts of shaking, she finally awoke. Her eyes snapped open. But the moment they did, she started weeping because it was all too much. Ben looked at her in sympathy, turned on the lamp and sat up. He took her hand in both of his. “What’s wrong? Were you having a bad dream?” he inquired softly. Mal squeaked.

“I was having the most hideous nightmare!” she sobbed and she started explaining the bad dream. How she was pregnant, how Ben got sucked up into the sky and how Mad Maddy was coming after them.

“Okay, shh, shh,” Ben comforted because she was clearly getting very worked up about this.

“It felt so real!” Mal cried. Ben nodded.

“I know, but it wasn’t. You won’t ever lose me,” Ben whispered before a teasing smile came onto his lips. “You’re stuck with me forever,” Mal laughed a little, but Ben could see that she was still freaked out. Ben layed down again and took Mal in his arms, her head leaning on his chest. “Did I mention that I’m in love with you?” he said softly before he kissed her. He always did that when Mal was scared or sad to make her smile. As always, it worked. And Mal replied like she always did.

“Did I mention that I love you, too?”

A few days after that, Mal started feeling really weird. She started feeling nauseous and sleepy a lot, her body would ach after doing nothing, and some foods were sounding downright nasty to her. Ben told it some sort of bug that she had to fight off and she assumed he was probably right. One day, they had the day off from all of their royal duties, so, they sat in their living room, playing card games. Mal had just told Ben that he did not have any fives and to go fish, when a sudden jolt of nausea sent her flying towards the nearest bathroom. (They lived in castle, so there were a lot of bathrooms.) Ben instantly came running after her and by the time he caught up to her, she was lifting her head up from the toilet bowl. Ben looked at her concernedly. “Are you alright?” he asked. Mal shook her head.  

“No! I don’t understand. I’ve been feeling like garbage for days and I- 

she cut herself off as she realized what it might be. “Ben, I’ve got to run to the store really quick!” she said as she got up and ran past him. Ben just looked her.

“Okay, do you want me to come with you?” he asked, sounding slightly confused. Mal shook her head.

“No need! I just need to go to the store!” she said. Ben nodded, though he still didn’t understand.

“Okay. . .” he said as Mal went through the door and left, leaving Ben standing in the hallway.

Mal went to the health center of the little Walmart they had and bought some pregnancy tests. Then she went to the bathroom and took the test. A few minutes later she looked at it again and, two lines. Mal gave a little shriek of excitement she washed her hands, washed the pregnancy test and ran out of the bathroom. Some of the Walmart employees saw the test in her hand. “Congratulations, your Majesty!” they said. Mal awkwardly thanked them and kept running and, in her haste, ran into Mad Maddy.

“Oh! Sorry, Maddy. I’m just in a hurry to get home,” Mal told her. Mad Maddy nodded.

“I can see that. Congratulations.” She spoke.

“Thanks!” said as she started walking away. When she was out of earshot, Mad Maddy tapped her fingers on her chin.

“A royal baby, huh?”

Ben was sitting in the living room on the couch reading an adventure novel when Mal ran back through the door and practically trampled Ben in her excitement. “Ben, I’m pregnant!” Mal squealed as Ben let that process through his mind. Mal is pregnant. . . A little voice in his head said. Ben jumped up in excitement!

“Wait, really?!” he exclaimed excitedly. Mal nodded and showed him the positive pregnancy test. Then they both screamed with joy and started jumping around like children who find out school is cancelled because of a heavy rain.

“Okay, we have to get everyone together and tell them,” Mal urged. Ben nodded assent and started chuckling.

“I can’t wait to see Evie’s face,” Ben laughed. But then, a thought occurred in his brain along with his joyful mood. It would be up to him and Mal to keep that little baby alive. Neither of them had a clue what they were doing. And then another thought came. What if something goes wrong in the delivery room? What would he do with himself if something Mal or the baby? He would lose his family, for good. Ben swore to himself that he would protect his wife and child if it was the last thing he did.