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Mal Bertha and Evie Grimhilde.
Always such polar opposites, always fighting.
Of course, they couldn’t really help it if they weren’t getting along as of recently, right? People can grow out of each other, too.
For Evie, she can’t stand Mal because all she sees is the epic love that’s not even hers to claim, for Mal belongs to another.
For Mal, the sight of Evie is enough to drive her to tears. The blue-haired’s chocolate brown eyes are salvation and damnation all in one. A reminder that she will never be enough, a reminder she was never Evie’s, a reminder that she will never have the strength to protect her precious person, the person she loves.
It felt as if the world didn’t want them together. Or maybe it wasn’t the world, but rather they just never fought hard enough. But both girls wanted each other more than anything.
So why did they keep fighting? It was an unknown force. An unknown force that had them angry at each other for choosing other people, when they knew they were destined to be together.
When they both received the invitation to Carlos’ Christmas party, they just knew the both of them would be there. Not for each other, of course. That was never part of that plan. It was definitely just for Carlos. And Jay. Yep.
Luckily for Mal, she felt fortunate that she was no longer sharing a room with Evie because she sat down and couldn’t stop thinking about how this party was going to be a disaster, crying in her own hands.
Evie laid down in her bed, wishing the world would swallow her whole. Another party, another moment Mal would be so cruel.
It was finally the day of the party and the girls were dreading it.
Mal wore a red suit, while Evie wore a blue dress that had pockets with gold sparkles all around.
Mal arrived exactly 30 minutes before they were all supposed to be there in order to avoid Evie as much as possible when everyone was finally there. Thankfully, she knew Carlos and Jay’s place like the back of her hand, so she knew where all the good hiding spots would be.
As soon as she got there, she said hi to Carlos and Jay and quickly offered to help set up.
While the purple-haired was outside working on the tables, Carlos and Jay were looking at her, concerned. Carlos faced his boyfriend. “What are we going to do if they fight?”
Jay puts a hand on his shoulder. “I don’t think there’s much we can do. I think that friendship got ruined the moment Mal picked Ben over Evie. We tried to remedy things as best as we could, you know this.”
“Yeah, I just wish you weren’t right.”
They kept on working until it was 8 pm. And then it was the first knock.
Evie.
The boys looked at each other briefly before welcoming her in, taking the food she had brought for the party.
They avoided telling her to go outside for fear that things would get bad, but she did it on her own.
Now was when the actual show would begin.
The blue-haired made it outside and didn’t need the person to turn around to know who it is.
“Mal.”
With her left hand in her pocket, Mal looked at Evie without turning around. “Hi.”
“Nice suit.”
The purple-haired faced the front again, picking on an appetizer. “Thanks, I already knew though.”
Evie rolled her eyes and decided to choose violence. “Must you always try to be so cruel? It’s always the same thing all the time. I say something, you make a remark.”
Mal’s first thought was, ‘Oh, so Evie is being bold today? Yeah, let’s combat that.’
“As if you don’t do the same.” She finally turns around and gives the blue-haired a hard stare. “Don’t lie, don’t lie right now.”
Evie stays frozen, unsure of what to say next. Actually, that’s a lie. She knows exactly what to say next and how she’s gonna say it.
“Mal, what happened to us? We used to be so close, and now we’re not. We’re literally strangers.”
Staring at one another, Mal only gives her a sad face. “It doesn’t matter what happened. What matters is what’s happening right now. We can’t go back to the way things used to be.”
The purple-haired tries to leave the area, but Evie grabs her arm, stopping her in her tracks.
Meanwhile, on the inside, Carlos and Jay are watching everything unfold, hoping things change for the better. They can’t hear a thing, but they can imagine what’s being talked about. Though, they just want things to go back to normal, back to when the four of them were friends. That’s what was most important to them.
Carlos made sure that no one could go outside until at least one or both of them came back inside. It was already 8:30 and there were several people dancing to Christmas classics, one of those being Ben. He asked every once in a while where Mal was, but the boys just gave him a half answer or a simple “I have no idea, have you checked the bathroom?”
Clever and sneaky on their parts.
Mal wanted her to let go so bad, but it was the immediate rush of adrenaline, the rush of the touch, the heat of it all that made her stay. Oh, how she missed this so much. How she missed Evie. But she would never dare admit it.
“Mal, don’t go. Just be honest with me.” Her voice was barely above a whisper.
She sighs. “You want me to be honest, when it’s you who hasn’t told me the truth? You were the one who started all this.”
It was true. It was almost a year ago to the day when Evie was the one who caused everything to begin with. Of course, when you see the love of your life accept a marriage proposal, and the wrong one at that, essentially picking the King of Auradon over you, how could you not start picking fights? When the anger is still fresh, just like the wound in the heart?
“Fine, you want to know?”
Mal turns to look at her and rolls her eyes. “Clearly.”
“Okay. You picked Ben.”
She looks at her questioningly. “What are you talking about?”
“You picked Ben, you accepted his marriage proposal. Right after we told each other how we felt. How did you think I was supposed to feel? To act? I thought forever was ours, but instead, all I realized was that you were never mine to begin with.”
Mal closed her eyes. The tears were trying to form around her eyes and she would not let them fall. Not now, anyway. “Evie, you wouldn’t understand.”
“Then explain to me!” Her words came out a little too loud and were the only ones that Carlos and Jay heard from where they were inside the house.
Another sigh.
“I picked Ben, because I don’t have the strength to protect my…. Precious person. You. You, Evie. That day, when my dad tried to escape, all I could think about was what if he had hurt you? And I realized, with how the ember was taking all my strength, that I didn’t have that strength to make sure you’d be okay. That’s why I picked Ben, that’s why I had accepted his proposal. There, it’s out there now.”
Silence.
“However, I realized I couldn’t just… Be with him anymore and… I broke off the engagement. I was only being mean, hoping you would get over me and stay away from me so there would be no risks to your safety. But, did I really want that, when I couldn’t even do it myself? No. I love you, Evie. And that is the absolute truth.”
Was Evie in shock? Of course, she was. This was never the answer she expected from the dragon. She put her hands over her mouth, trying to primarily hide the smile that was threatening to come out of her mouth, until she found the vigor to speak. “Thanks for your honesty, I’ll see you around.”
That’s when she finally let go of Mal’s arm, and it physically hurt to let go of it. All the warmth was leaving. How badly she wanted for it to slow down and not go away so quickly.
She stops when she feels something fall on her head. Touching her hair, she picks up whatever it was and recognizes it: snow.
Heading back inside, she notices where Carlos and Jay were.
They look at each other first and back to Evie. “We weren’t snooping at all, promise!” Jay nods, reaffirming what Carlos said. Which was an absolute lie.
Evie laughs softly. “It’s okay, I know you two have been worried about us for the past year, but I think we finally solved the issue.”
Carlos gasps, smiling. “For real? Are you two back to being friends again?”
Evie smiles right back. “I think so.” She noticed the DJ and right nearby was Ben, dancing with Uma and Audrey. Further to their left were Gil and Harry, pouring whiskey into their individual cups. But she focused on the DJ’s equipment and noticed that there wasn’t much and could easily be moved outside, giving her a bright idea.
She looks back to the guys, a mischievous smirk all over her face. “I have an idea.”
Carlos and Jay told everyone the party was moving outside, and the group walked over to the patio. The confusion was clear as day about what was going on for Mal, but she didn’t want anyone to look at her anyway, because she was crying.
Once the DJ finished setting up, Evie went up to them and requested a song, giving them their specific instructions.
She went up to Mal and extended out her hand to her. “How about a dance?”
Covering up quickly the fact that she was crying, she accepts Evie’s offer. “Fine, but I’m leading.”
“Whatever you want.”
The dragon notices the minor exchange between the DJ and Evie, but tries to not think much about it. Turning back to focus on Mal, she gives her a small smile.
And that’s when Endgame started playing.
Mal was confused, again, because Carlos and Jay had communicated to her a few weeks before and said that the DJ would only play Christmas songs, so why did they put on a Taylor Swift song?
I hit you like bang, we tried to forget it, but we just couldn’t
And I bury hatchets, but I keep maps of where I put ‘em
Reputation precedes me, they told you I’m crazy
I swear I don’t love the drama, it loves me.
As they were dancing, sleet fell. Looking upward, Mal let some fall on her hand. Of course, sleet was rain and snow. She looks back at Evie and they laugh.
And I can’t let you go, your hand prints on my soul
It’s like your eyes are liquor, it’s like your body is gold
You’ve been calling my bluff on all my usual tricks
So here’s the truth from my red lips.
With the sleet falling on Evie’s hair, the dragon tries to remove some of it, but fully couldn’t get all of it out. The blue-haired laughs at her attempts, grabbing her hands. She holds them close, and at that moment, Ben comes up to them.
“Hey, Mal, could I talk to you for a second?”
Mal gives him a serious stare. “No, I don’t think so.”
Ben shrugs. “But─”
“Sorry, Ben. Maybe another time when I’m not trying to mend things with Evie, yeah?”
“.... Sure. Yeah, that would be great. I’ll see you two around, then? You two look good together.” He leaves and goes back to Harry, who did his coochy-coochy-coo thing, leaving Ben blushing.
His statement shocks the girls. Evie goes back to focusing on the girl in front of her. “Right, where was I?”
Evie leans in carefully and slowly, waiting for a sign of a yes. When Mal nods, she connects their lips. And it was like a meteor hit the earth with full force. It was like the adrenaline from a rollercoaster ride. But most importantly, it was like falling in love all over again.
When they pulled away from each other, they noticed that Carlos and Jay were on their right-hand side, near to where they were, looking at them. Rolling their eyes, they head over to the boys, and the four dance to All I Want for Christmas is You , like this past year, never happened, the happiness oozing out of them. Rejuvenated. Mal leans into Evie and whispers softly. “It’s you, it always has been. You’re everything I’ve ever wanted and dreamed of. Home stopped being a place when you entered my life. Thank you.”
To Mal, these, including her confession, felt like the most truthful words that she had ever let her lips say her entire life.
The End.