Never Have I Ever Season 3: an alternative theory

Chapter 11: Part 4

Guys!! This song... how perfect for Devi and Ben! Omg, the reason I ship them is mostly because of that scene in Malibu♡ anyway, enjoy!♡
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Ben eventually wonders back into the screening room, and slides in next to Devi. He cant concentrate on the movie and his eyes wonder up to the top finding Paxton and Aneesa sitting together, and they look kind of chummy. Paxton's arm stretched out over Aneesa's shoulder and he laughs at something she says as they eat popcorn. Paxton eyes come across Ben, and smirks.
A slight smile crosses Ben's face and he turns himself back around... wondering to himself- how had they ended up here... Paxton and Aneesa... and then he and Devi... he shakes his head, his baffled smile growing... at odds off this whole situation.
His still stunned, when he feels Devi's hand slide over his and her eyes search his... they hold a slight concern- Ben picks up- for him.
"You ok?"
He watches how her eyes sparkle at him, and he has a sudden urge to kiss her... her eyes wide, wondering overs his... flowing and sparkling incandescently... like they had a life and ocean flowing endlessly on their own...
He can't... he cant do it... he cant kiss her... not when Paxton was possibly watching but a couple of rows away... he felt uncomfortable...not with Paxton's eyes possibly peircing at the back of his head... when he had known Paxton had been in the same room.
He thinks about telling Devi... but he didn't want that to ruin the movie for her... I mean, if it might?
But Devi catches how Ben's eyes shift up... she follows his gaze and... she suddenly slouches down, deeply into her seat... her eyes widening more... filling and starting to taint with worry.
She also looks like she's about to snap at Ben as her eyes come back to him.
"Why didn't you tell me?!" She hisses. Running a hand through her hair, she bites back her lip, many words threatening to spill out. "Shit. Did you know Paxton and Aneesa were here?!" She snaps. "What are they doing here?" She says rapidly, tensing up and dragging a stiff hand down to her lips.
Ben shrugs with a soft smile- that quickly and slightly becomes amused... which baffles Devi further... she's blushing, feeling herself go red... her skin burning up... and she's not sharing in on the enjoyment or humour that Ben clearly may be... not on this kind of situation?...
"Why is this funny, Ben?" She scoffs.
He weaves his arm about her shoulders trying to draw her closer... trying to playfully comfort her- he might have thought she were slightly overreacting but he were here... to comfort her... to make sure she were ok- to be the big guy and make her worries dissipate- to drift all her worries to nothing... but she pushes him away none the less, unamused.
"God, we got to get out of here... I can't... I can't breathe... or focus... on anything... not now?!" She complains.
Ben's smile turns warm, and more serious... eyes flickering over hers gently as he thinks...
He can feel how much she wants to leave... and for sure he just wanted to do what would make her happy... but he didn't want this to be the way he wanted their first date to end either...
...which is when he had a sudden thought... an idea... an inspiration, epiphany pop to mind-
"Well... I know s-somewhere-" he stammers, the thought lingering and lighting up brightly in his mind... in his memories. "You have to trust me on this." His smile broadening into a grin... so bright it could light up any sky on a darkened grey day- Devi notices- her lips quirking briefly into a light smile as she responds to his... she couldn't help it... his smile could be so infectious at times...
Ben leans in and pecks her lightly on the lips.
Devi feels the warmth coarse through her veins and radiate at her cheeks...
Her eyes wonder over him confused, brown bright eyes, wide, wondering what he had in mind... and it takes her but a short second later to climb out of her seat, and follow Ben as they sneak out of the darkened theatre room, quietly and creeping out slowly.
The second they are out into the light, the corridor leading out into the foyer, Devi exhales out a grunt of relief... catching Ben off guard, and he cracks her an amused grin.
Devi responds by clipping his arm with her popcorn box and groaning.
"Your face..." Ben explains as he laughs..." I don't think I've seen someone pull a more panicked, confused look before. You really wanted to bolt out of there-"
"Yeah, yeah, ok. You shouldnt be smiling, Ben... " she complains, as they begin to walk."Not if you want this date to end any worse." She takes a moment to breath, then groan. "I was really enjoying the movie. Why did we leave? Why did I have to panic?" She complains as they wonder away and toward the doors that lead them outside. "I just don't want them throwing popcorn and booing us from the top. That would be way too-"
"Immature?-"
"Humiliating."
Ben laughs, then takes her hand.
"I don't think that's what they would have done Devi..." he says with a slight smirk, but yet reassuringly. "They aren't ten. Come on... besides, I thought you said Paxton said he wanted to be friends."
Devi shrugs, eating the last of their popcorn then throwing the box into the bin on their way out.
She wipes her hand into each other, wiping away any crumbs, and Ben takes a hold of one of her hands, guiding her back to his car.
"Where are you taking me, Gross?" She says, with a playful wink.
"I don't know." He says, leaning in, her back coming closer to the door of the passenger seat of his car as he reaches past and opens the door for her. "Just some where... somewhere you may consider special... you'll see."
Devi returns a curious smile as she buckles herself in.
"Special, huh?" She chimes in. "Not one of your dorky spots you like to go to, right?"
He walks round to the other side, and climbs in, then buckles himself in, briefly returning a playful look, before his raising his brows and turning to the car stereo.
"What music do you want? Because our trip will take a while."
Devi laughs.
"A while?"
"About an hour."
Devi smirks at him suspiciously.
"An hour?"
Ben's smiles grows.
"I'm pretty sure Malibu is about an hour from here-"
"What?!" Devi laughs, with surprise and awe, and heat rising fast to her cheeks at the sound of the word 'Malibu'. "Really?"
Ben's brows slowly rise, surprised and a little bemused, but also in love with her... and how she seemed in love with his idea... it makes his heart beat faster...
Her smirk then returns. "I don't know, Gross... an hour? It seems almost impossible for you... maybe two at the very least?"
Ben scoffs, amusedly.
"My driving has improved, David."
Devi tries to hold back that smile that begs to grow, biting back the inside of her cheek as an attempt... but it's futile... she breaks, and laughs... and beams him a smile that could illuminated the entire world, Ben thinks to himself... that smile that sometimes can make him forgot that he needs to breath... that smile that can stop the world in its orbit and make time freeze...
He realises that she is still gazing back at him, and he still hasn't moved... his heart beating dramatically in his chest, and he better move before she begins to get bored of him- he thinks to himself quickly, and swiftly puts the stick into reverse.
... she can't believe he can make her this happy... she could curl up closer to him... she could hold his arm as he drives... if only she could...
He pulls the car out and slowly maneuvering it back onto the road and their journey would start...
...and he can't stop thinking about the sunset paradise that was etched to his memories when Devi and he had first kissed in his car... in Malibu... of how it had first began... how they had began... how everything changed from then on... it had all started on that day... in that place where the sunset hung over the ocean like a painting of a blearing ball surrounded of fairy floss clouds...
And he were driving them there... and it scares him a little... it were where he had kissed her for the first time... so, his heart couldnt pounding any harder at the thought... a little heavier... a little faster each time... at every thought of revisiting the place that he fell in love with her...
She still remembers everything about that day... how could she not? It was when something happened inside of her... something she thinks she had never experienced or felt before?... she had really seen Ben that day... for the first time... and it opened something, cracked something so heavy and special inside her, she think she changed that day... she had never felt anything like it... she thinks she fell in love with him... and she's almost certain those feelings may never change.... that she will always be in love with him...