Chapter Seventeen

The four of them, André, Michel, Gabrielle, and Evan were enjoying a gourmet Irish cuisine dinner now —after Michel and Evan went looking for André and Gabrielle downstairs on the second floor of the pub.

André ordered a large plate of Cottage Pie, alleging he had barely eaten anything during the day and was quite hungry. Michel went for a plate of Porridge, thus declaring his preference for bittersweet food. Gabrielle opted for a bowl of Colcannon, trying to pick a healthy yet still delicious option. Evan on his side simply decided to stick to his English heritage and ordered a classical plate of fish and chips.

They were having a pleasant exchange right now as they laughed over their small glass bottles of Harp Lager and took sips of them every now and then.

Michel and Evan were telling them the fun and silly stories of that summer when they met. Right now, for example, Michel was telling them about that time where, in history class, the teacher was describing the inventions of Leonardo DaVinci, and Evan, being only an innocent six-year-old little boy who didn't know a lot about this world, raised his hand and asked why DaVinci lived enough and looked so young in the Titanic movie.

Everyone burst out in laughter.

"Honey! How could you mistake Leonardo DiCaprio with Leonardo DaVinci! That's so silly of you!" Belle added as she giggled.

That name made Evan's cheeks go bright pink. Why was she being cheesy in front of the princes? That was utterly inadequate.

He surreptitiously eyed Michel, who had an ambiguous look on his face, like somewhere between upset, uncomfortable, and maybe even a bit jealous... Evan caught a glimpse of that feeling as well… But why, though?

André on his side also had a bit of a concealed disapproving expression on his handsome face, he was chewing on his lower lip and smirking awkwardly.

Gabrielle seemed to notice this little accident that she had provoked, and she blushed violently in sheer embarrassment. She lowered her glance and fidgeted with her fingers, like silently apologizing, and wished for the earth to swallow her whole on that instant. Why did she have to say that?

André suddenly cleared out his throat, attempting to ease the situation.

"Well, it's past midnight already. Why don't we pay for the food and call this amazing outing a night?" He suggested, raising the palm of his hand horizontally to put some emphasis on this last phrase.

Everyone nodded, agreeing with the idea.

A couple of minutes passed until the waitress came back with the bill and her usual warm and polite smile. Everyone went silent during that lapse of time, though.

"Your Highnesses, Lord, and Lady. I hope the meals you ordered were of your liking. Everything would be a total of two-thousand and eight-hundred fifty cockatoos, please." She informed them.

"It'll be on us, Evan, Belle, so please don't worry about your orders." André said calmly, handing his credit card to the waitress.

"Oh, that's so kind of you, thank you very much!" Gabrielle exclaimed, her cheeks were still reddish due to the awkward mess she had made.

Evan blushed again. If he were in Derby having dinner with them, he wouldn't let them pay for him or for Belle under any circumstances. But he wasn't given any money by Lord Stefano and Lady Caterina unfortunately. He simply lowered his head and sketched a shy smile.

"Thank you." He simply muttered.

Then, he frowned, half confused and half curious.

"Cockatoos? Is that the Avevian currency?" He raised his glance to ask.

"Yes, that's our currency. One British pound is worth a bit more than twenty Avevian cockatoos." Michel replied, smiling warmly when he explained this fact.

Evan simply let out an astounded "oh" when Michel replied to this question. It was such a funny name for a local currency!

Then, the waitress bowed rapidly at them (she seemed to be getting better and better with every bow she took) and left to slide André's card through the Postnet downstairs, which was probably found on the ground floor.

The wait for the waitress' return was quiet and awkward. Everyone seemed to be uncomfortable. Only five minutes passed until she was back with the receipt and it felt like an entire eternity to Evan and the rest of them.

All of that just because Gabrielle dared calling him "honey" in front of the princes...

Yes, it was something inappropriate, at least to Evan. Evan did feel awkward whenever Gabrielle called him something sweet. But it shouldn't be something weird to someone else. They were engaged, after all… Why were the two princes uncomfortable with these name-callings, then…?

The rest of the trip back to the Martí Manor was long, silent, and wholly awkward. No one dared utter a word in the Alfa Romeo the whole way back home. Evan and Gabrielle feeling utterly embarrassed about the cheesy name that she had called him a while back when they were eating dinner, and André and Michel feeling plainly uncomfortable, they even looked mildly annoyed, but that was something that neither Evan nor Gabrielle seemed to understand.

The way back to Île des Toucans usually took around twenty minutes to half an hour, but during the night, the bridges that connected the islands were almost free of traffic, and this fact made it easier for the quartet to arrive in Gabrielle and Evan's respective island.

When they arrived in the Martí Manor, it was almost two in the morning and really dark outside. Gerard's shift had ended and another security guard was sitting behind the cabin.

The murmur of the sea had become louder and the breeze had turned into an intermittent, moderately fierce zephyr.

The outer lighting was still on, though, but the unknown guard had eased its intensity —the front garden was just lit enough to see where you were stepping on, and it was also illuminated by the pale and dim moonlight shining bright on the cleared out and starry night sky.

André and Michel got out of the vehicle, and the security guard pressed a button to open the entrance gate.

The oldest prince opened the Alfa Romeo's backdoors after yawning. Then, Evan and Gabrielle got out of the car, Belle straightened her dress' skirt and took off André's jacket, handing it to him after that.

"Thanks a lot for lending it to me." She uttered, her voice sounded bitter and, what was worse, slightly rude.

"There's no need to thank me for it, I didn't want you to catch a cold or something like that." Was his response, which sounded as if it were almost struggling to stay smooth and cool.

André himself looked as if he were struggling hard to keep his cool, and even more than just that: he seemed to be having a tough time staying awake and trying not to faint flat on the ground at any moment due to the prolonged sleep deprivation he had been experiencing during the day.

But such a response wasn't warmly welcomed by neither Evan nor Gabrielle.

The noble lady averted her gaze and fidgeted with the platinum golden chains of the strap of her shoulder bag, blushing for the hundredth time on that night.

Evan on his side simply buried his hands deeply into his pockets and, as he looked away, he shrugged, feigning being cold to express his discomfort.

Michel cleared out his throat. Trying, again, to say something that could be able to ease the awkwardness of the moment occasioned by André.

He felt even mad at his brother, who had been flirting nonstop with Lady Gabrielle that night. Who knows what he must have even said or done with her while they were dancing on the second floor of the pub. She was an engaged noble lady, how could he dare acting like that? Didn't he mind Evan by any chance?

He felt wholly upset at André for sure and was certainly going to be giving him a good long lecture later on that night.

"Well, I guess we can call this a night, then." Said Michel, smiling a bit awkwardly. "I'd like you two to tell us if you enjoyed this night out and if you'd be down for another one like this soon."

He wasn't expecting the most amazing reviews, in all honesty. And let's not even talk about a request from them to repeat such an awful outing like that one… Everything felt awkward since the moment André lent his jacket to Gabrielle.

Well, at least he got to spend some time with his childhood friend, right…?

"It was really nice. I'm very glad I got to spend some time with you, Michel. It was about time we'd catch up." He said, giving him a shy yet tender smile. And this made Michel's heart throb with excitement.

"I had a really good time, too. It was nice to get to know you two better." Said a mortified Gabrielle, who was shaking again due to the cold temperature.

Michel tried to open his mouth and reply. But got suddenly interrupted by his brother.

"Well, then. I guess it's time to go back home. Evan, you should take Gabrielle in before she freezes off." He blurted out before walking up to the Alfa Romeo.

Michel gave his brother a deep disapproving frown, trying to warn him that they had had enough of his nonsense already and he really needed to quit all of this annoying act before something bad happened between Evan and him.

But André simply decided to ignore this gesture, walking past his brother nonchalantly.

Evan walked up to Michel, probably to express his disappointment. But he was surprised when he said something that wasn't expected at all for him.

"Hey, I had a good time despite having your brother constantly hitting on Belle… I'd like to go out with you some other time. I feel we haven't entirely gotten to learn everything that happened all of this time... And I really like being around you." He muttered, smiling timidly for him. Then, he blushed hardly all of a sudden. "I-I mean... I-If that's okay with you… Of course..." He tripped on his words, and Michel could have sworn he had emitted a complaint sound.

Michel smiled, trying to hide the deep adoration emotions that he was experiencing right then. Evan was completely, absurdly adorable.

"Don't feel so overwhelmed, Evie. It's just me, you don't have to be shy around me." He chuckled, patting his friend's shoulders to reassure him.

Evan let out some giggles. He felt so conflicted, he never felt this conflicted yet so utterly, impossibly elated before… Not even his first kiss with J.J could compare with this unknown happiness he was feeling at that moment...

"Thanks, Your Highness." He teased the prince.

Michel led his hand to Evan's ear and pulled it harshly, trying to make him understand he didn't like being called like that at all in a goofy, friendly way.

"Ow! Ow! I'm sorry, I get it! I get it now! Stop! Please, I promise I won't call you like that anymore!" He laughed between physical pain and loving emotions.

Both of them let out heavy, goofy, and amused guffaws. The complicity and closeness were slowly starting to bloom again…

"Hey, I should really get going. My father must be worried about us. And... even when I hate admitting it, André is right, Belle must be freezing off, so you should really take her in right now before the weather gets even colder." He warned Evan, trying to sound as polite as possible. "Text me soon, please?" Michel muttered, sketching a small and friendly smile.

"Sure thing. Please don't forget to text me when you're back home, I'll be worried about you otherwise." Evan added, smiling now a confident smile.

Michel grinned. Evan did worry about him after all.. didn't he? Such words made him feel actually important and wholly worthy to his childhood friend who he adored so much…

"Of course, I hope not to wake you up, though." He replied, teasing again. "Expect an invitation letter to my birthday party during this week. And… well, I guess that's pretty much everything, see you later?" He finished his last sentences, raising his well-defined eyebrows.

"See you later, Michel." Evan gave him one last smile and proceeded to walk up to Gabrielle, who had become a shaking mess by those moments.

He turned around to see Michel one last time, and his heart shrunk and throbbed when he saw him getting in the car and turning on the engine to make his way back to the palace; as if it were pleading for him to return and hold Evan, tightly, amorously, in the most loving of ways, just like he never held anyone else before.

His feelings towards the prince were blossoming again, weren't they…?

"Let's get in the manor before you catch a serious cold. Your parents would never forgive me if you fell ill because of my fault." He wrapped his arms around Gabrielle's petit body frame to try and warm her up.

Gabrielle simply giggled. But those weren't her usual girly, flirty giggles, no. They sounded somewhere between bitter and regretful now.

They got in the manor. Everything was quiet and still at that time of the night. The lights of the entrance lobby were off, thus letting it be exclusively illuminated by the moonlight that seeped through the windows spread every-which-way.

One thing was for sure, though, and that was the fact that it felt certainly warmer in there than outside.

Gabrielle had stopped shaking. Apparently, she wasn't cold anymore. But she was still standing still in front of the entrance door, and this had to worry Evan, of course.

"Belle? Are you okay?" He inquired, his frown rotated upwards and his voice sounded deeply concerned. He was feeling certainly worried about her.

"No, I'm not okay. I don't feel okay at all… I... I am so sorry…" She replied, her voice slowly cracked until she found herself crying between Evan's slender arms.

"Why are you sorry? W-What's wrong? Don't cry, Belle, please... Just tell me what's wrong." Evan tried to comfort her, rubbing her bare shoulders lightly with his warm thumbs. "If this is about Prince André, then you don't have to feel sorry about anything, really. It wasn't your fault. It was entirely his."

Gabrielle kept shedding tears, unable to do anything else but cry her heart out. Suddenly, she turned around on her heels to face Evan.

God. Even when she was crying, she was still breathtakingly and otherwordly beautiful… If only Evan liked girls... He wouldn't have to stop and think twice before kissing her tears away.

"Please, it wasn't my intention to make anyone feel uncomfortable. I screwed up entirely, I-I…" She burst into tears again, burying her face in Evan's chest, and he couldn't help embracing her.

Seeing such a delicate and lovable girl like Belle crying like this… It simply broke his heart. He wanted to do something to make her feel better really badly, to reassure her that everything was going to be alright, and she shouldn't worry that much about being so perfect all the time.

"Belle, please, he is the crown prince, you can't do anything against him, you can't say no to him. I understand that you felt intimidated by André, this is not your fault, I promise." Evan reassured, resting his chin on Gabrielle's head, feeling her smooth and silky hair roots tickling it.

Gabrielle sniffed and pushed herself away gently, looking Evan in the eye, still tearing up.

"Am I still a suitable wife to you? Am I still worthy of marrying you?" She asked, her voice cracking with each word that escaped her pinkish and gorgeous mouth.

"You'd never stop being the most perfect woman any man could ask for." Evan lied again, sketching a reassuring and sweet smile for her. "Forgive ME, for not being able to defend you. I was a coward, letting another man try and take you away from me…" He felt so bad with himself for saying so many lies… He was slowly mastering the art of lying and such a thing was seriously making him feel so utterly disgusted about himself…

Belle smiled through the anguish and embarrassment. It was a bittersweet smile, but, at least, she seemed to finally feel comforted by Evan.

"You did nothing to be forgiven for. You're still the sweetest man in my eyes. And I like you, Evan, I really do..." She let out, still panting uninterruptedly and smiling tenderly.

Belle stood on tiptoe, and then she deposited a small peck on Evan's lips, hoping he would kiss her with this small, sweet gesture.

Evan understood immediately what she was asking for. And, even when he really hated having to kiss Belle, he couldn't really do anything against her wishes…

He wrapped her waist and carefully lifted her up to his face height, this way they'd have better direct face-to-face contact. He brushed his nose tip against hers, tickling it a bit and making her giggle in excitement, and then he pressed their lips together at last.

Belle purred into the kiss as she stroked Evan's carrot red hair, enjoying the pleasant trimmed texture with her cold fingertips. They caressed his freckled cheek after then, feeling the warm, perfectly hairless skin on his handsome face. Finally, she placed her hand on his chest and broke the kiss, gently pushing away for some air.

Evan put her down carefully.

"Better now?" He asked, his face was hot and red.

Belle let out some giggles. This time they were indeed her usual giggles, those that could make anyone's heart melt in seconds.

"Yes, much better." She replied. "We should go to sleep now, honey." She added, standing on tiptoe and pecking his lips one last time. "Goodnight."