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Ben stood in front of the mirror. He was getting ready for the latest royal event, one that he wouldn’t mind missing, and he was having trouble getting dressed. It’s not like Ben had that many options to choose from; he mostly wore a royal blue suit.
The problem today was that Ben’s pants didn’t seem to fit right. He pulled and wiggled and sucked in his stomach, but the pants didn’t seem to want to button. They were barely high enough on his waist in the first place.
“Having a little trouble?”
Ben glanced into the mirror to see Mal standing in the doorway, leaning against the door frame.
“Maybe a little?” Ben shrugged his shoulders. “These pants fit last month when I wore them for Princess Melody’s coronation. I don’t know why they don’t fit now. I know I’m not playing tourney every day like I used to while in school, but I still workout a few times a week.”
Mal made her way into the bedroom, wrapping her arms around her husband’s waist and resting her head on his shoulder.
“Maybe it’s because of this,” Mal said, pinching lightly at Ben’s stomach.
Ben looked down where Mal’s hands rested. Huh, when did that happen, Ben thought. Last he noticed, he had actual muscles, not the fluff that was his stomach now.
“I mean, I’ve noticed you tend to eat a bit more around when I go to the doctor about the baby,” Mal said. “Maybe it’s a bit of sympathy weight combined with stress eating. You’re definitely not the only one who’s gaining weight in this house.”
Ben turned around, keeping Mal’s around wrapped around his middle.
“Yeah, but you’re the only one who is actually growing a baby inside of them,” Ben replied, placing a kiss on the top of Mal’s head. “I don’t have a good excuse for any weight gain, besides lack of self control in the kitchen.”
Mal giggled.
“I think it’s cute that you’re gaining a little sympathy weight. It means that you care!” Mal smiled. “Plus, when you have a little fluff, you make a much better pillow!”
Ben groaned. Just what he needed to hear, that he had fluff .
Guess he needed to make a stop at Evie’s before this event to get his pants adjusted or else he was going to be the laughing stock of the kingdom if he showed up and he couldn’t even button his pants.
“Now, take those off and put on your sweats. I’ll call Evie and get her over here to fix those before you need to leave,” Mal said, reading Ben’s mind. At least she had the foresight to call Evie to their house and not send Ben to Evie’s place so he wouldn’t have to worry about being seen in public with his sweats; it wasn’t very kingly.
Evie, being the talented seamstress that she was, was able to fix Ben’s pants in less than five minutes. And, with the new suit jacket she brought along, no one was able to tell that Ben had started gaining some sympathy weight.
Because Ben was the king, he had a slew of other events that he was required to attend after that, which required more dressing up in fancy clothes. Luckily, Ben just wore the same suit that Evie had altered for him the first time and it all worked out.
A few weeks later, Ben carved out time in his schedule for a surprise date with Mal. Because he had been so busy lately, and because Mal had been stressing about the baby, like always, he decided the two needed an afternoon to get away from it all before hell broke loose when the baby finally came.
“Where are we going, Ben?” Mal whined. “You know I don’t like surprises.”
Ben grinned, but ignored his wife while continuing to lead her down the path toward the picnic he had set up next to the Enchanted Lake.
“I swear to god, Ben, if you-” Mal was cut off when Ben finally took the blindfold of her eyes.
Tears welled in her eyes before she had a chance to realize it.
“Oh my god, you hate it,” Ben rushed out, looking toward his wife.
Mal quickly shook her head.
“No! I love it! It’s just like our first date. It’s just these stupid pregnancy hormones that are making me cry,” Mal said, tears running down her cheeks.
Mal turned toward Ben and gave him a hug before standing on her toes to peck him on the cheek.
“I love you, Ben.”
“I love you, too,” Ben returned the sentiment. “Now, come on before the food gets cold.”
The two ate their picnic, all packed with Mal’s favorite foods and all the foods she had been craving since she became pregnant, like donuts, lots of peanut butter, and anything that was covered in chocolate.
Once they were finished, Mal wanted to lie down and take a nap, but she knew if she laid down on the ground, she wouldn’t be able to get back up.
Suddenly, music filled the air. Mal glanced to her husband to see him putting a small radio back on the ground before he stood up and held out his hand to Mal.
“May I have this dance?”
Mal grinned and let herself be pulled up off the ground. The two moved away from their picnic blanket so they would have room to actually dance, though Mal didn’t think they would be doing a lot of actual moving and dancing between how full she was and how pregnant she was getting.
Ben bowed to his wife to start their dance. A faint ripping noise could be heard, and Ben quickly stood back up, his face turning red.
“You know what, I don’t think I’m feeling like a dance. How about we just sit back down for a while and take a rest,” Ben said, walking awkwardly sideways back toward the blanket.
“Ben?” Mal questioned. “What’s wrong?”
Mal’s eyes suddenly grew as she put two and two together and realized what the sound had been and Ben’s reaction to it.
“Did you rip your pants?” Mal laughed. “Oh my gosh, you ripped your pants! I thought Evie had been altering them so they would fit!”
Ben grabbed his jacket from where he had set it down when they first arrived and tied it around his waist before sitting on the ground.
“These are the altered pants! I don’t know why they ripped!” Ben grumbled.
Mal looked at the downtrodden look on her husband’s face and hurried to sit down next to him.
“I’m not making fun of you, Ben. I think you’re adorable in any way, shape, or form. I just think we might want to do something about this before we spend all our money in new fabric for Evie to keep making and altering your clothes,” Mal said.
Ben nodded. He started to pack the leftover food back into the basket. He was so glad that they had decided to ride in the car to the edge of the woods to get here. He would not be okay walking across the kingdom with his pants ripped, even if it was covered by his jacket.
The next month passed by too quickly for Ben. He had been super busy trying to get things done before the baby came since he would be taking time off to take care of Mal and their newborn once the time came.
It seemed like Ben had finally stopped gaining any fluff, as Mal called it, and Evie only had to alter his pants a couple more times.
Ben knocked on Evie’s castle door, waiting with his arms full of clothes that he knew would need to be altered with the newest royal wedding (Audrey and some other princess she had met after graduation) coming up that he would be attending.
“Ben! Come on in,” Evie greeted, waving him inside. “Let’s take a few measurements and then I can tell you what the best outfit would be and we can get to altering from there.”
Evie motioned for Ben to lay the pile of clothing down on the table in her workroom before pushing him onto the stand in front of the mirror so she could get accurate measurements.
Once finished, she shooed him off to the side so she could go through his clothes and see which outfit would need the least amount of altering.
Before she could even sort through the clothes, a crash came from the other end of the room.
Evie whirled around to see Ben sitting on the floor surrounded by splinters of wood.
“Oh my god, Ben! Are you okay?” Evie asked, rushing over to help him up. “What happened?”
Evie had never seen the king cry, but it looked like she might be about to. Tears were welling in Ben’s eyes, but he quickly breathed in, blinked his eyes a few times, and rolled his shoulders back.
“I’m okay, Evie. I’ll leave you to your altering, if you have everything you need from me?” Ben asked hopefully.
Evie just nodded, still confused by what happened. Ben quickly rushed out, Evie hearing the slam of the front door a few moments later.
Turning back to the mess on the floor, Evie realized what had happened. Ben had broken a chair when he sat down. To be honest, anyone would have probably broken that chair when they sat down because it was a chair that the Smee twins had carved for Evie one day as a thanks for bringing them to Auradon, and it wasn’t the most sturdy piece of furniture, but Ben didn’t know that.
Oh well, Evie thought. She shrugged her shoulders and quickly turned back to the pile of clothes waiting for her. Now, if she could just find the perfect outfit.
…
Ben made his way to the gym, thankful that he had a locker there with clothes that he knew would fit.
An hour later, Ben found himself drenched in sweat and punching the life out of a sandbag.
“Dude, what did the sandbag ever do to you?”
Ben turned around to see Jay standing in the doorway, wrapping his hands.
“Nothing, I just needed to get a little frustration out,” Ben muttered before turning his attention back to his punching.
“Maybe it would help if you got a little frustration out on an actual person who can fight back?” Jay asked, making his way into the fighting ring on the other side of the room.
Ben thought for a moment, but quickly agreed, following Jay into the ring.
Ben barely had enough time to turn around and face Jay before the other boy’s gloved hand was coming toward his face. Ben quickly threw his hands up to block it.
The two quickly went back and forth, neither really getting any good hits in as both had great reflexes.
“Dude, we need to stop,” Jay huffed out twenty minutes later. “I need to breathe!”
Ben nodded, chest heaving with how heavy he was breathing. He turned to grab his water bottle, pouring some over his head before taking a sip.
“So, do you want to tell me what’s going on? Or do I have to beat it out of you?” Jay asked once he caught his breath.
Ben glanced up, eyebrows furrowed.
“Who said anything was going on?”
Jay raised his eyebrows.
“Fine,” Ben huffed. “I’ve been stressed out with all my duties as king, and with Mal being pregnant, I’ve been even more stressed, especially since there’s never been a baby born that was a cross between a fairy/god and a beast.
“I’ve been gaining a bit of weight, which Mal thinks is cute and all, but when I break a chair while I wait for Evie to alter my pants that no longer fit, it kind of pushes you over the edge.”
Jay sat down on the mat, patting the space beside him for Ben to follow suit.
“I totally understand, man,” Jay said once the two were settled next to each other. “But, just know, Mal will love you in any way, shape, or form that you’re in. She didn’t just fall in love with you for your looks. She fell in love with you because of how you lead people and how you stand up for those who can’t.
“And, if you really want to work off some of that weight, I’m always here to take a swing at you!”
Ben laughed, punching Jay in the shoulder.
“Thanks, Jay. That really means a lot,” Ben said.
The two sat in silence for another moment before Jay stood up, holding his hand out to help Ben back up.
“Now come on, that fat isn't going to work itself off. And I can’t beat your ass if you’re just going to sit there!” Jay challenged.
“Oh, it’s on!” Ben yelled, holding his hands in front of his face, stance ready for a fight.
Even if he was a little fluffy, at least Ben had friends, and a great wife, that would always love him (and maybe throw a punch or two at his face when needed).