Blood and Snow

Chapter Thirty

Ten minutes later, Mason calmed down and let go of Belle. Belle looked at him with sympathetic eyes, "Are you alright?"

Mason's crystal blue eyes connected to Belle's pink ones. "Yes," he said, "I'm fine." He looked towards the door and wiped away any remaining tears from his eyes. Looking back at Belle, Mason smiled with a weird look in his eyes. "Okay, I know that was very emotional and that this isn't the time for threats, but if you tell anyone that you saw me crying, I'll break your hand." He said. Belle casually smiled at him with a small laugh, "First my hand, then my legs, now my hand again? Why don't you get creative once in a while?"

Mason's smile turned into a large grin. "Now listen here—."

Belle pat his hand with one of hers. "Don't worry, Mason. I won't tell anyone." She reassured him. Mason closed his mouth and gave her a slightly confused look. 'She really is good at changing someone else's mood, isn't she?' He thought. He shook his head put a hand on her good shoulder. "Listen, Belle..." he said slowly, "If what Lefte did to you made you so afraid that you actually lashed out on me, I'm genuinely concerned about what could happen while he's here."

Belle's smile dropped and she looked away. Mason frowned and used his other hand to gently grab her chin. He tilted her head so that she was looking at him. "I know that you're terrified to see him again. I know that it's probably going to kill you just by being within a mile of him. As long as you stay with one of us while he's here, you'll be okay. Don't go anywhere alone unless you absolutely have to, alright?" Mason told her softly. Belle nodded at his reassurance. The man smiled at her again, "And if he gives you any trouble, come find me. I'll be more than happy to break his face for you."

Belle suddenly wrapped him up in another hug. Mason was about to make a joke about her giving someone a hug every five minutes when she spoke first. "Thank you, Mason, for everything." she said, her voice muffled as she buried her head in his chest. Mason might have blushed and he had an odd feeling in his stomach. "I—It's no problem, really." He tried hiding the expression on his face by talking and acting casual, "I mean it when I say that—."

"— I meant everything, not just your offer to fight Lefte so he'll leave me alone." Belle elaborated, looking up at him while still hugging him. "For the books, for talking to me, for being mostly nice and patient with me... and I especially want to thank you for not shooting me this morning."

Mason's eyes went wide. "How...?" He asked in surprise. Belle separated from the hug and awkwardly put a hand on her neck. "You may be smart, but you're not good at hiding weapons in your coat." She said while looking at the wall, "I saw the gun in one of your pockets when you asked me if you broke my shoulder."

Mason sighed after a moment and ruffled her hair, "... You're welcome..."

The two sat there in silence again. "Well, I better get going. That party's not going to set itself up, right?" Mason told her. Belle nodded. Mason nodded back and stood up to leave. Right before he walked out the door, he turned back to Belle. "Hey... If you want to come to the party and celebrate with us, you can. I'll stop by here later to see if you want to go or not. Have a nice day, Belle."

Belle gave him one of those genuine smiles of hers again, making him have that weird feeling that bubbled up in his stomach. "Thank you, Mason. I'll see you later. Have fun setting up the party." She said to him. Mason gave her a wide smile in return before walking out and closing the door.

}—————{

[That Evening...]

Belle looked at her dress to make sure that she had it on right. It was a black dress with a white diamond pattern on the sleeves and the hem of the skirt. She felt like her boots completely threw off the look, but what else was she supposed to do about it? The woman did a twirl and the skirt flowed nicely with her. She giggled a little bit in her excitement. 'This'll be fun.' She thought with a big smile. Someone knocked on her door. "Belle? Are you going to the party?" Mason's voice asked from the other side. "Yep!" Belle responded, "Give me a second!"

She checked one last time to make sure her outfit was alright, then walked over to the door and opened it with a smile. Mason was waiting on the other side of the door and looked at her. His jaw probably would have dropped if he let it. "You look... very nice." He complimented her with a blush.  Belle blushed a bit as well and scratched the back of her neck. "Thank you. You're looking sharp tonight." She complimented him back. Mason nodded in thanks. He was wearing a black suit with white stripes on the sleeves. He was also wearing the scarf still. "Do you have an attachment to that scarf?" Belle asked as she closed the door. Mason led her away as he answered. "My mother made it for me on the Christmas before she died. I've never taken it off or gave it to anyone." The tall man told her. Belle smiled at him again, "That's actually very nice to hear. You must have loved your mother a lot."

"I did." He confirmed. "She was the best mom I could ask for."

Mason coughed and looked a little embarrassed. "I'm sorry, I forgot my formalities." He said to Belle and held out his arm for her. Belle looked confused for a moment, so he quickly explained how a man is supposed to offer his arm to a woman if they were going somewhere together. Belle smiled at him as she understood and linked her arm with his. "Oh. It's alright. I didn't know about that." She told him. The two walked into the dining hall together a few minutes later. The tables and chairs were set aside and there was food and drinks on them. The lighting was dim and there was loud music playing. Everyone was wearing a dress or suit of some sort, even Bradley was. The only exception was Baron. "Baron's not a social person, so he doesn't really have any party attire like the rest of us do." Mason pointed out for her.

They separated and went their own ways. Happy ran right up to Belle and gave her a big hug. "See! I told you that you'd be alright!" She said. Belle smiled brightly at Happy. "Yeah, I guess you were right. Thanks, Happy." She looked from her friend back up to Mason. He was on the far side of the room, talking to Fredrick and Tyreke. It must have been something important, as the two looked very relieved at what he told them. "So, you and Mason, eh?" Happy elbowed her side with a big smirk. Belle grinned at her, "I have no clue what you are talking about."

"C'mon, Belle! He walked you here! Do you see the way he looks at you when you smile and laugh?" Happy asked her, "He totally likes you!"

"As a friend." Belle acted like she was finishing Happy's sentence. "No, not as a friend! Like, as a—!"

"Happy, what are you going on about?" Sierra asked from behind the two girls. Happy looked unfazed for the most part. "Cece, tell Belle that Mason's totally into her!" Happy asked her friend. Sierra looked at Happy, then at Belle, then at Happy again. "Belle, Mason is keeping you alive because he likes you." The blonde said casually. Happy put her hands on her hips and smiled triumphantly at Belle, "Ha! Told ya!"

Belle frowned at them both, "Oh come on now. That's not very fair."

Happy giggled and slung her arm around Belle's shoulders. "Who cares! It's true and you know it! Now c'mon! It's Christmas! Let's have some fun!"

[FunnyCutecece4 Can I keep my lungs now? (owo')]