Belle woke the next morning, feeling strangely cleansed, despite all she’d been through the previous evening. She stretched and pushed herself out of bed with a yawn. Snow White had her head under the pillow and she groaned upon hearing Belle awake.

“Too much sun! Too early!”

“The bell’s about to ring,” Belle pointed out and a second later it did. Snow White groaned again. “Why do you always have to be right?”

“Come on!” Meg battered her with her own pillow. “Get up and at ‘em! It’s the football game today, remember?” She looked over at Belle. “You alright, sweetie?”

“Yes, I’m fine.”

“Of course she is!” Jasmine grinned, sitting up. “She was dreaming about someone with lovely blue eyes last night!”

“Shut up,” Belle smiled.

Jasmine laughed. “Seriously! I’ve never known Adam to give a hug to anyone in his life before! What the heck did you do to him?”

“I have no idea,” Belle mused.

The four girls dressed and made their way down to breakfast. Adam was sitting with the boys, but when Belle walked in he looked up and smiled in her direction. Belle returned it. Jasmine and Meg nudged one another and Snow White giggled. They ate and then trooped out to watch the game.

“Oh!” sighed Meg as the players came out. It was red shirts vs blue. “Why can they never play shirts vs skins?”

“In this weather?” Jasmine exclaimed. “The skins would all get sunburn!”

“Besides, you just want to see Herc with his shirt off!” teased Snow White.

Meg blushed. “What’s wrong with that?”

Belle watched Adam, who was in blue, on the same team as Hercules and Aladdin. Flynn was on the other team, but she heard him shout to Adam “Don’t worry, I’ll go easy on you!”

“Don’t do me any favours!” Adam laughed back.

Belle smiled. Flynn might be her friend but she was definitely rooting for blue. Gaston was on the red team and she felt a pit of dread in her stomach. She hoped he wasn’t about to try anything with everyone else around. But, as the game began, she saw that Adam was perfectly capable of taking care of himself.

“Wahoo!” Meg cheered as Hercules scored the winning touchdown, and then, embarrassed, clapped politely to save her dignity. “I mean, well done.”

Belle smiled as she watched the blue team congratulating each other. I’ve got butterflies, she realised as she smiled at Adam. Flynn clapped his friends good-naturedly on their backs, but Gaston, looking thunderous that they had lost, stomped off the pitch.

“Belle, you’ve gone pink as your dress!” Meg hissed.

Belle felt her cheeks, hurriedly. They were rather warm. “It’s hot,” she stammered.

“No, you’re hot. Hot for Adam.”

“Shut up!”

“Great game!” announced Mr Phil. “Now, off with you all!”

They had Music and Drama that afternoon. Belle quite liked this class. Mr Genie was a riot, forever bursting into song or doing impressions of animals or people – being a genie, that came naturally to him. Belle spent her break time away from the others in the library and when it was time for class, she made her way there alone. To her surprise, someone was already in there. She could hear the piano playing a beautiful melody; soft, lilting, low...

She stepped into the room. Adam looked up. “Oh, hello, Belle.”

He sounded like he was trying to disguise the fact that he was happy to see her. “I didn’t know you played, Adam,” she said, walking up to the piano.

“Well, there’s still a lot you don’t know about me, Belle,” he replied, with a smile.

“What was it you were playing just now?”

Adam looked embarrassed. “Just a piece I wrote a little while back.”

“Does it have a name?”

He looked even more embarrassed. “Well, actually...I call it...Belle.”

She looked at him in surprise. “You named it after me?”

“Well, it’s sort of about you. Listen.” Adam flexed his fingers and began to play. Belle sank down beside him and listened. There were no words; just music, but it sounded like her, somehow. “Adam, that’s amazing. It’s so...beautiful.”

“I know.” Adam looked flustered and ceased playing. He cleared his throat. “Well, I mean, it’s still a work in progress.”

“Well, I wish I could hear it every day.”

“I could make you a CD.” Adam looked up at her. “If you like.”

“Would you?”

“Yes.”

Belle looked at him. She didn’t know whether to feel flattered or awkward. “Thank you,” she finally said. “That would be...great.”

Adam smiled. “Right. Well, I’ll...get to work on that, then.”

Belle blushed and she tried to think of something to say that might make the situation less awkward. “Well done for winning the game, by the way. I was rooting for your team.”

Adam laughed. “Thanks, but tell me that wasn’t you that shouted out when Hercules won us the game.”

“No!” It was Belle’s turn to laugh. “That was Meg!”

“Ah! Should have guessed!” Adam smiled. “Yes, I don’t suppose your boyfriend would have been very impressed if you’d been the one cheering for Hercules.”

“Boyfriend?” Belle stammered. “I don’t have a boyfriend.”

“You don’t?” Was it her imagination or did Adam sound a little relieved as he said it?

“No. What made you think that?”

“Aladdin said that Jasmine had told Gaston you had a boyfriend.”

“Oh! No, she just said that to get Gaston to leave me alone. And it clearly didn’t work.” Belle ducked her head, embarrassed. “I’m not going out with anyone.”

“Oh.” Adam smiled. “I was going to say; if you were, he didn’t do a very good job of protecting you from Gaston.”

Belle looked up at him. “Thank you for saving me.”

“Belle, you’ve thank me about six times already. But for the sixth time, you’re welcome.”

“Alrighty!” Mr Genie was in the room as the rest of the class filed in. Belle and Adam turned. “Let’s make some magic! Everybody gather around. We’re gonna try a little Shakespeare exercise. First, find yourself a partner.”

Belle looked around Jasmine and Meg had already bagged one another and Snow White had run up to Aurora with a smile. “Do you want to be partners?” she stammered to Adam.

He gave her a reassuring smile. “Sure.”

“Alrighty, then! Spread out! Now, what I want you to do is choose a little bit of Shakespearean dialogue and improvise a scene as those two characters. If you’re stuck for ideas, ask me! Otherwise, enjoy! You have five minutes!”

“Any ideas?” Adam asked.

“Well, I really like that scene where Benvolio talks to Romeo about his love for Rosaline; you know, when he’s trying to find out what’s wrong with him?”

“Good morrow, cousin? I can do that. I know Romeo’s lines by heart.”

“Oh, well, I’ll be Benvolio, then.”

In a quiet corner of the room, they worked until Mr Genie announced their time was up. Adam was surprisingly fun to work with, and, Belle was surprised to learn, he had a clear understanding of what he was actually saying when reciting Shakespeare.

“Ok, who wants to go first?” Mr Genie asked, excitedly. “How about you two?”

He pointed to Belle and Adam. Belle felt a quiver of nerves in her stomach. “Come on,” Adam murmured, “we can do this.”

Belle nodded and took a deep breath. “Good morrow, cousin.”

Adam sighed. “Is the day so young?”

He gave her confidence to go on. “But new struck nine.”

“Aye me, sad hours seem long. Was that my father that went hence so fast?”

“It was.” Belle took a deep breath and tried to sound jolly and upbeat. “What sadness lengthens Romeo’s hours?”

“Not having that which, having, makes them short,” Adam grinned, playfully.

“In love?”

“Out.”

“Of love?”

“Out of her favour where I am in love.”

“Alas,” sighed Belle, “that love so gentle in his view should be so tyrannous and rough in proof!”

“Alas,” Adam countered, “that love whose view is muffled still should without eyes see pathways to his will.” He patted her arm. “Where shall we dine? Oh, me, what fray was here? Yet tell me not, for I have heard it all. Here's much to do with hate, but more with love. Why, then, O brawling love! O loving hate! O any thing, of nothing first create! O heavy lightness! serious vanity! Mis-shapen chaos of well-seeming forms! Feather of lead, bright smoke, cold fire, sick health! Still-waking sleep, that is not what it is! This love feel I, that feel no love in this. Dost thou not laugh?”

“No, coz, I rather weep.”

“Good heart, at what?”

“At thy good heart’s oppression.”

“Why, such is love's transgression. Griefs of mine own lie heavy in my breast,which thou wilt propagate, to have it prest with more of thine: this love that thou hast shown doth add more grief to too much of mine own. Love is a smoke raised with the fume of sighs; being purged, a fire sparkling in lovers' eyes; being vex'd a sea nourish'd with lovers' tears: what is it else? a madness most discreet, a choking gall and a preserving sweet. Farewell, my coz.”

“Soft,” Belle concluded, with a passion, “I will go along, and if you leave me so, you me wrong.”

There was a brief pin-drop of a pause and then the class erupted into applause. “Fantastic!” exclaimed Mr Genie. “Well done! I loved the way you two acted that together! You clearly gave a lot to thought to the character’s emotions! Well done!”

Belle felt her blush rising again as she sat down beside her friends on the floor. “That was amazing!” hissed Snow White. “You and Adam definitely should work together in Drama again!”