Falling for the Beast: A modern fairytale romance

by Angela Blake

  Even then he seemed apprehensive about it, “I don’t know sweetie. I don’t want to be judgmental but I really don’t have anything to base my opinion on except for what I see on the news and on the Internet.”

  “Yeah but I’ve been with him for nearly three months,” I told him. “I think I should know who he really is, you know?”

  “He might just be showing his good side to you,” my father still didn’t back down. “Guys do that, you know? We lie and pretend to be anything a woman wants just to get on her good side. I know I’m guilty of that with your mother.”

  That kind of caught me by surprise. I looked at my father and asked, “Can you elaborate on that? What do you mean you’re guilty of that with mom?”

  My father leaned back on his seat, thought really hard about his next choice of words and then explained, “You know back in the day being a computer nerd wasn’t really the coolest thing in the world. When I first met your mom she was this smokin’ hot chick wearing black leather. I knew jack-shit about rock bands.”

  I laughed and asked, “So what did you do?”

  “I did my best to pretend I was into the whole heavy metal scene and that did not churn out well,” he answered with a big smile. “She drilled me on different bands and eventually called me on my bullshit.”

  “She must have been furious,” I commented, knowing how my mom was whenever I lied.

  “She was but I got to make up for it by buying tickets to an Aerosmith concert,” he then said. “I like to tell everyone that that’s the night we made you.”

  I rolled my eyes and just guffawed at him, “Dad, please, I don’t need to hear this.”

  He laughed too and eventually, once he had relaxed, said, “Man, I miss your mom.”

  “I do too,” I replied. “Dad, what really happened to mom?”

  At first I thought my dad would get really dark and sad but instead he smiled when he started thinking about mom. He even chuckled before he said, “Y-your mom was one of the coolest persons I had ever met. She was a daredevil. She was always on the front lines. She was always at rock concerts.”

  “Dad, you’re cool too, you know?” I tried to console but he put up his hand and then continued on.

  “There was a time where I genuinely believed your mom couldn’t be stopped, you know? She was just so head-strong but then eventually all the partying caught up with her. She got lung cancer and it’s mostly blamed on her heavy smoking,” he explained. “You were too young to really understand. That’s why we just said she left town for work and died while she was away from work.”

  A void that had been growing in my heart ever since I was a kid suddenly vanished and was replaced with something warm. It was something I had never felt before. I didn’t know if I was going to cry or if I wanted to smile after knowing the truth.

  “She was a great woman,” I told my dad. “I want to let you know that I think Adam is a great man.”

  My dad reached forward and placed a hand on my leg, “Baby, I don’t know everything about him and I do have my protests against this idea of you being with him. However, you do know better. You’ve been with him for a long time. You’re not a child anymore. I can trust you with this. Now let’s go deal with the real problem.”

  “Which is?”

  “That boy, Aiden,” my father answered. “Someone really needs to put that kid in his place.”

  “I don’t know where he gets his confidence or his ideas,” I told my father. “I used to think he was really handsome but now that I got to see him this way he’s just… sad. He’s a sad narcissistic human being.”

  My dad whistled in agreement and said, “If I were younger I would’ve smacked him in the face the moment he strolled right on in my house. The nerve of that guy to just go in like he owned the place was appalling, to say the least.”

  “I know dad,” I knew exactly how he felt. “He’s been that way with me ever since we met. It was a really bad experience since then. Honestly, I don’t want anyone to get hurt but I do have this feeling of hope that maybe Adam will sock him a good one in the face.”

  As if the universe itself was on our side I felt my phone buzz and I checked to see it was Adam. I took a moment to read it.

  “Let me take care of this Aiden,” Adam’s text read. “I promise not to hurt him… much.”

  Quickly I looked up at my father, “Dad, I need to go.”

  “B-but you just got here,” he protested. “Can’t you stay here a bit longer?”

  “No, Adam and Aiden might get into a fight,” I reasoned. “Adam just sent me a message. I need to stop this bullshit. Aiden’s got things all wrong and his stupid narcissism is going to get everybody into a thick mess we can’t swim out of.”

  My father was about to say something but I stopped him with a hug and a kiss. He patted my back and acknowledged me before I turned around and left the house. I ran straight back to my car and started it as quickly as I could. Before I drove out back to Adam’s manor I sent him a text message.

  “I’m driving back right now,” I told him. “I freaking hate Aiden but I don’t want things to blow over our heads.”

  I then slid my phone back into my pocket and drove. I felt the phone buzz and I could guess that it was Adam texting me but I didn’t have the time to check it. There wasn’t a lot of traffic on the road and I drove as quickly as I could.

  Unfortunately by now traffic had congested within the main city streets. Every now and then I found myself sitting in the car doing nothing but waiting for a chance to move forward or switch to another lane. I was getting anxious and I’d stare at the clock on my dashboard.

  Every time I’d reach for my phone, however, the lanes would move and I couldn’t get the chance to check if Adam or even Aiden had texted me. It was a little frustrating but I pushed forward, thinking it was just a matter of time before I got there anyway.

  When I did arrive back at the manor I feared for the worst when I saw Aiden’s big jeep was parked there as well, meaning he was already inside confronting Adam. I quickly parked right across from it and ran up into the manor.

  Inside I found Adam seated on his big couch in the entrance foyer, dressed in a suit, casually drinking wine as Aiden stood still half-naked about fifteen feet away from him.

  “Ah, you’re here,” Adam then said. “I guess you didn’t get my text message.”

  “I-I didn’t, I was driving,” I answered. “Adam, please don’t hurt him. He’s just a really stupid fool.”

  Aiden turned around and looked at me, “Baby, what are you saying? Come on, let’s just teach this gangster who’s the real boss around here so you and me can celebrate on the beach, drinking some whiskey and banging our bodies like it’s the Fourth of July, eh?”

  I looked at Aiden with disgust and then back at Adam, “You know what? Forget whatever I said. Go beat the living shit out of him.”

  The Showdown

  Adam smiled when I said the words. Aiden’s face just went pale for a moment but he then geared up, flexed his muscles and then looked at Adam with pure determination.

  I then took my phone out and quickly read what message Adam had sent me while I was out driving. As it turned out, he told me he had no intention of getting physical with Aiden. He explained there was no need. I didn’t know what that meant except that Adam had some kind of plan in his head. Now that I was here I just had to see it in action and hope that it meant no one would get hurt.

  “Come at me, bro, let’s do this,” Aiden said as he started pacing around. The arrogant little prick began smacking a fist against his palm, initiating a fight with Adam.

  Of course, Adam didn’t bite it. He did put his wine glass down, stood up and fixed his coat a little bit. He then told Aiden, “Do you really want to get into a fight with me? You do know who I am, right?”

  “I was going to say the same shit to you, old man,” Aiden said. Simply hearing his voice, paired with those words, drove me mad. I w
anted to grab something and smash it against his head. “Do you know who I am? Huh? I’m fucking Aiden Gaston, yo. You know what that even means?”

  “Aiden means little fire and Gaston means stranger,” Adam answered nonchalantly as if it was nothing. “None of those words intimidate me. You are a stranger in my house and you’re nothing more but an annoying little spark. Get out or you will get in trouble.”

  The tension was building and I could feel my chest heave up and down as I feared for the worst. One of the back doors opened ever so quietly and slowly. I noticed most of the staff members, including Lumiere, Cogsworth and Mrs. Potts, were all staring at the commotion.

  “Aiden, just leave,” I tried to convince him more time. I didn’t want Aiden to get hurt and while I knew it was unlikely I didn’t want Aiden to win either. I wanted no one to get harmed in this confrontation but I knew that was like asking for a cure for cancer in the Medieval Ages.

  He just wouldn’t believe me though and he quickly rushed forward to slam a fist against Adam. It all happened so fast I couldn’t even scream in shock. One moment Aiden was standing still and in the next he was suddenly dashing forward throwing a punch.

  It landed. I heard a heavy thud. Yet when I looked closely I was surprised to see Adam didn’t even budge. He took the hit right in the face but he didn’t even budge. I knew it must have hurt but he just stood there, all menacing and firm in his place.

  “A-Adam?” I muttered softly when no one moved. Even Aiden seemed a little shaken and shocked to see how his massive, free blow to the face didn’t move Adam even by an inch.

  Adam then waved his hand and shoved Aiden’s fist out of the way. Aiden took a step back, afraid that Adam was about to retaliate. However, Adam didn’t throw a punch at all. He didn’t jump in for retaliation. Instead, he began to undress.

  I watched as Adam took off his coat and then his dress shirt. He threw them off to the side. Now his torso and arms were fully exposed and for the first time during this showdown he stood up straight and tall. It was a magnificent – and horrifying – sight to see him suddenly tower over Aiden by a few inches.

  Height wasn’t the only difference between the two. Aiden was pretty big and buff since he went to the gym a lot but even his body was no match for Adam’s. The difference between the two became much more obvious when Adam then stepped forward and just pressed his chest up against Aiden’s, forcing the latter to take a step back.

  Adam didn’t even say a word. He just kept on taking slowly steps forward, pushing Aiden back. Aiden finally tried to fight back, ramming in another punch against Adam and this time at the gut. Adam simply steeled his body and took the hit without even flinching.

  That was when Aiden really started getting nervous. He sent in another punch and then another. However, with each incoming hit Adam just stepped forward and pushed Aiden further back. Since he kept pushing Aiden, the impact from each blow was obviously getting weaker and before long Aiden couldn’t even lift his arms up. He was too tired from hitting a walking brick wall.

  However, Adam wasn’t done. Now that Aiden had shown signs of exhaustion there was no way Adam was just going to let Aiden get away scathe-free. It all just happened so quickly like a blur too. Before Aiden could land another hit Adam raised his hand and stopped the final punch by grabbing onto Aiden’s fist. He then gripped hard, crushing Aiden’s hand with his own.

  “O-ow, let go, man!” Aiden demanded when the pain was becoming a little unbearable. I was worried that Adam would break the guy’s hand by shattering his knuckles and fingers but fortunately Adam did let go and he pushed Aiden down to the floor.

  This was when I got to see Adam in his full power. He stormed right over Aiden and grabbed the latter by the neck. Adam then pointed and wagged a finger inches from Aiden’s face.

  “I’m only going to let you go once,” he warned Aiden. “Only once so remember that. If I ever see you coming near my property again I will beat the living shit out of you. If I find out you’ve been bugging Bella or her father again, I will beat the living shit out of you. If I ever learn you’re plotting to seek vengeance and do anything against us I will beat the living shit out of you. Do you understand, boy?”

  The threat immediately sunk into Aiden’s empty head and he nodded back in response, “P-please, just don’t hurt me. Please don’t hurt me. Don’t hit me in the face. I need my face for work.”

  I rolled my eyes when I heard him say those words. Out of all the threats and conditions that Adam threw at him, after the one-sided battle that took place and out of all the different ways this could have gone wrong he only cared about his face. It was disgusting even just to hear it. I wanted to pick a heavy object and break his face for being an annoying narcissist.

  “Get out of my house,” Adam commanded. Aiden was quick to obey and he jumped up to his feet and began making his way out of the foyer.

  However, right at the last moment, he turned around and I thought he was going to grab me. Instead he made a bee line for Adam and attempted to tackle the bigger man.

  “I will never quit!” Aiden then shouted but even then Adam had the upper hand. Despite Aiden’s best efforts to ram his body against Adam and pulled the big man down, Adam didn’t budge. He just held his ground and pushed Aiden, aiming to throw the guy down once more.

  This was starting to look more pathetic than it should be. Aiden should just leave!

  “Aiden, please, just go!” I started shouting. “Get out of here! You’re no match for him! You’re only going to get hurt.”

  “Never! You’re mine! I will fight for you, I will rescue you and I will do anything for you!” Aiden kept on screaming. “I don’t want any other girl because none of them are as hot as you! Just thinking of another girl is below me! They don’t deserve a moment with this beautiful face!”

  Even Lumiere and the others in the back were cringing when they heard those words. He was literally just digging his own grave at this point. It was like watching a big man come to fight a grizzly bear and not realizing that no matter how big he was the bear was always bigger, meaner and cared little about pesky human business.

  “Aiden, stop! Both of you just stop this nonsense right now!” I screamed as loudly as I could.

  Quickly both men halted and Aiden stumbled over to the side before he fixed his self and looked at me. I now had everyone’s attention. I had one plan and it could work really well or backfire on me like there’s no tomorrow.

  I took the shot now, “Aiden, you’re hot. You’re like the pancake and maple syrup combined. However, I don’t like you. I really, honestly, simply do not like you. I never have and I never will. It’s not going to happen. You and me, we’re not compatible.”

  Aiden looked at me with an oblivious expression, “I-I don’t understand. The words you’re saying don’t jive with me.”

  “Aiden, shut the fuck up and leave,” I was angrier than I had ever been before. “I don’t love you. I love Adam.”

  I never made that admission before. I never said the magic words to Adam through the weeks we’ve been together. I never told anyone that line, including my ex-boyfriends. I was not one to say the words I love you loosely and I just said them now.

  Everyone looked at me in surprise. I then walked forward and wrapped my arms around Adam. I gave him a kiss on the chest and then another on the cheek and then a third on his lips.

  “Oh, p-please don’t do that,” Aiden grossed out. “Fuck, I don’t want to see that.”

  “I’m not going to stop,” I answered. I taunted him further, “Aiden if you’re not going to leave us alone right now you’re going to end up seeing a lot more.”

  He was disgusted beyond belief. It didn’t take long for him to begin backing up. I knew he was turned on from seeing me being so sexual but he wasn’t going to stick around to see another man all over me. He would feel so insecure for being there and watching that.

  But I wasn’t even halfway done. I started ma
king out with Adam passionately, took his hand and slipped it under my top. Sure, the staff might have seen Adam naked since most of them had raised him since he was young but they had the decency to look away when it was me in the spotlight.

  Aiden’s interest betrayed him and his gaze glued to me as I began to explore Adam’s body with my hands.

  “See all this?” I asked Aiden as I then gestured at my body. “None of it is yours. All of this belongs to Adam Rousseau. He’s mine and I am his. I am his beauty and he is my beast. You’re nothing to me. You’re nothing to him. We’re in love, Aiden, so you either step out or just watch in disgust, jealousy and pity as we fuck each other’s brains out.”

  Adam finally added in as he wrapped his arms around me, “She’s right, you know. I promised that I wouldn’t hurt you. I promised I wouldn’t fight you. But if you continue to make some stupid decisions here I swear I will make your life a living hell. You will never get a job again. I will ruin you until the only career you’ll qualify for is to give cheap fifteen-dollar blowjobs to old retiree guys and even then that’s being too generous.”

  Fortunately for all of us it didn’t have to come to that. Aiden finally understood he wasn’t the one at the top of the world. He finally got that the universe didn’t revolve around him.

  “I-I’m leaving,” he finally stated and we all let out a sigh of relief.

  He started to back down and towards the front door. Even as he did I didn’t stop flirting around with Adam and my constant stroking really grossed Aiden out that he started bolting towards the door. It helped that Adam was staring down at him like a wolf ready to devour its prey.

  Finally once Aiden was gone and we could hear the whir of his jeep skidding along and out of the driveway I slipped my hand out of Adam’s pants and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

  “I love you,” I whispered.

  “I love you too,” he then told me. “I thought it was too late for me to fall in love. I thought the final petal had fallen and I was going to remain lonely for the rest of my life but then here you are, back before I knew it.”