Blind and the Beast

Happily Ever After

-Adam-

Belle emerged from the kitchen, and he was at her side instantly.

"Are you alright?" He asked.

It was a good sign that her father had not tried to run with her, but he searched her face for any signs of regret.

"No." she said, wrapping her hand around his arm. "I am still upset that our moment was interrupted."

He laughed, "I can have you back in that room in a second." He wrapped his arms around her, waiting for her consent.

To his great disappointment, she shook her head.

"It will have to wait. My father wants to speak with you."

He looked from the kitchen door where the new threat loomed back to her. He would much rather whisk her away to some far secluded corner of the castle.

"Should I be scared?" He asked.

"Yes, but I will be right outside for you if you need my help."

He kissed her forehead, "I always need your help."

He grabbed the door handle and stilled. He was surprised to find that he was scared. He could face monsters as a monster, but facing one man as a man was another thing. Especially when that man was father of the woman he loved.

"I love you." She said quickly, and then she found his hand and opened the door for him, forcing him into the room.

Maurice stood across the kitchen, his face was sickly pale, and he still held the knife in his hand. Belle closed the door behind him, and Adam felt cut off and trapped.

"Is it true?" The man whispered.

They stood apart and stared at each other down. The room grew more and more tense as the seconds passed.

"I do not know what she said, but if she said it, it is true."

Maurice took a step closer. "I want to hear it from your mouth."

He had a dangerous look in his eyes that animals often had before they lashed out. Adam felt adrenaline build up inside him. He could only guess what Maurice wanted him to say.

"She is trapped. Here. With me." Adam said.

He still could not believe that Belle had chosen this. She had chosen him.

"And?"

and what? What else did Belle tell him?

"She will be safe." Adam said.

"She loves you." Her father accused, angry.

Adam's eyes widened. Hearing the words from her father felt foreign. It made everything seem solid. She loved him.

"I cannot tell you her feelings. That is her right, and her right alone."

Her father was not advancing towards him anymore. He leaned against the counter in defeat.

"You love her."

"I love her." Adam agreed.

Her father slid down the cabinets and sat on the ground, his face fell into his hands.

"What have I done?" He asked himself, miserably. "I have cast her out, and now she can never return."

There was nothing Adam could say. There was nothing he wanted to say to her father's hoarse cry of defeat. He was right, but her father's actions only worked out in Adam's favor. It would not be helpful to point that out now.