Chapter Text
“Uh, what the hell was that? ”
“What?” Mal asks.
Jay stares at her. “That flirting you were just doing with Ben?”
“What, that? That wasn’t—it was nothing.” Mal waves a hand dismissively, “Like you’ve never flirted with people.”
Jay isn’t buying it. “Not Ben .” he insists.
“He has a point, babe.” Evie says, all faux-casually, like it’s no big deal that Mal wasn’t flirting with the crown prince of Auradon. “That was some pretty heavy-handed flirting. I was going along with it because I thought you had some kind of plan for him.”
Mal can feel her mouth drop open. “I just—he’s interested! He likes us, you guys!”
“He likes you, ” Evie says, significantly. She looks kind of upset, like it’s just occuring to her that somebody else might think Mal is pretty, might think she’s worth their time and energy to flirt with, even though Evie is right there looking better with her artfully smudged eyeliner than Mal will ever look in her entire life.
“No, Mal’s got a point.” Jay cuts in, interrupting Mal’s discovery that she might possibly be a little bit mad at her girlfriend. “I think he likes us.”
It’s Evie’s turn now to look absolutely enraged. Mal hopes she flushes red with it, and her skin goes blotchy and uneven with rage and ruins her perfect china-doll face.
Of course, because Mal just can’t win, Evie’s mouth drops open in an elegant red circle, red as blood, as a shiny apple, as the gates of hell themselves. “He’s never flirted with me!” Evie cries. “He likes-- he--!”
Mal shouldn’t be glad that Evie is too flustered to form sentences. That she can’t just say what she means with a perfect smile to carry it along and get her point across. The curl of-- emotion, that’s it, bubbling up in Mal’s chest isn’t because Evie is finally losing her composure. It’s not.
“I think he likes, uh,” Jay nods at their last member, who has been suspiciously quiet so far. “a few of us.”
Evie moves closer, eyes flashing dangerously. “Oh, so not me or you?” she spits “He’s into the sweet little things, is that it?”
Jay leans into Evie’s space right back. “Think so, yeah.” he says, voice low and calm, like this is something that happens every day.
Fine. If Jay is too much of a wuss to press the issue and actually deal with their problem, Mal can do it herself. “You’re being awfully quiet, C,” Mal breaks in sweetly, “Do you think Ben likes us?”
Carlos is doing something very intense with his cup, which apparently requires all of his attention, to the point that he won’t even look up and meet Mal’s eyes. Boys, honestly. Without her, they’d never get anything done. “Do you think Ben likes us?” Mal repeats. “Jay seems to think so.”
Carlos is shaking his head, very slightly. He won’t fucking look her in the eyes, and if Mal can face down her mother at full power for the good of the group, he can damn well give her the respect she deserves and look her in the face as he lies to her. Mal clicks her fingers right under his nose, where he can’t help but notice her. “Furball! I’m talking to you!”
His eyes flicker up to her, but only for a second. “I don’t know,” he says quietly, “I wasn’t listening.”
Mal snaps. “You were!” she shouts. “I know you were listening because you’re right here, and if you want to stay in my good graces after the night that I’ve had, you need to get it together and give me an answer.”
Carlos’ hands freeze on his cup, but he still won’t look Mal in the eyes. Little freak. “I don’t know, ” he insists “Ben flirts with everyone. He’s just like that.”
“No, baby, people just flirt with you all the time because you’re a sweetheart. Ben does not flirt with everyone.” Evie says.
“He doesn’t flirt with me either.” Jay adds. He’s trying to play peacemaker, like an idiot. Peace doesn’t get anybody shit, and look at what happened the last time villains got caught up in trying to be peaceful and cooperative. Look where it’s gotten them. “Eves, I’m pretty sure it’s not for lack of interest.” he finishes.
Evie stares. “Just say what you mean.”
Jay spreads his hands. “You and Mal act bonded. If he’s really a beta, doing things the ‘right way’ by Auradon standards means he would have to go to your alpha to declare intent.”
“So he’s what, flirting with Mal to get at all of us?”
Jay shrugs. “I don’t know! Maybe, yeah.”
“How are you the smart one about this?” Mal asks. She’s not happy with him, but okay, yeah, there might be something to this idea. It’s possible that there’s a reason he’s her second in command, and it’s not just because he’s not awful looking, for a boy.
Jay shoots her a grin. If she were anyone else, he’d be trying to get her skirt off by this point, probably. “Practice, babe. I’ve hooked up with more people than you’ve even fantasized about. I know how to read a room.”
“Please, I’ve had way more dating experience than you.” Mal snorts, “I’ve had fucking rivalries in the time it takes you to get a girl to stop smacking you every time you open your mouth. Do you really wanna play this game? You’ve been with what, two pirates?”
“Do all the pretty betas on our half of the island not count as people, now?”
Oh, he is so on. Mal isn’t angry now so much as she is all keyed up and spoiling for a good fight, and she and Jay could do this all night. Arguing is a great way to get him to fall into bed with her, and a good tussle could turn into just the thing she needs to shake off this mood. They could get the others involved, even, fight for their chosen partner or something.
Mal is all ready to go, to get some of the tension out after this weird fucking argument, when Evie lays a hand on her arm.
“Could we maybe not do this right now?” she says softly.
Evie is usually okay with Mal getting rowdy as long as she can direct it at someone who’s not her. Mal is tempted to shake her off and keep going anyway, but Jay is leaning back, disengaging before Mal can pull him back in.
“Sorry, Eves.” Jay is saying, and he’s pulling back, letting Evie guide Mal away from him.
Wait, what?
Evie uses her grip on Mal’s arm to turn her bodily around to face the bathroom. “We are all too tired and worked up to be having this conversation right now.” she’s saying, “Mal, babe, I want you to go and get the shower started for me. I have been around way too much dust today to go to bed without rinsing my hair, at least.”
Evie wants her to be in the shower. Okay. That’s something Mal can deal with. “Got it.” Mal says, even though she’s not really sure where this is going. She wants to fight, to bite and claim her family, her pack. The shower isn’t the ideal place for that--
Unless Evie wants to fuck, and they have a pack member who doesn’t like that, who’s extra sensitive right now, and--
Oh.
Shit.
“Jay, baby, you stay here, okay?” Evie is saying, even as she’s hustling Mal into the bathroom, and okay, Mal gets it, she shouldn’t have yelled, she’s being irrational, acting like some knothead who can’t control herself around a pretty omega, but that doesn’t mean she needs to be taken out of the room, she can stay calm, she can get herself under control--
Jay is standing up too, putting a physical barrier between her and their littlest pack member, which is overkill, okay, she’s fine, she’s cool, she doesn’t need to be separated from where Carlos is still sitting--
Still frozen, clever fingers locked around that stupid cup.
Mal lets herself be hustled out of the room. “Sorry, Eves.” she says, as she lets her girlfriend drag her away. “I’m sorry, babe.”
Evie heaves in a sigh. “Yeah.” she says. “Yeah, Mal. You should be.”