You Belong To Me

Chapter Twenty-Two

(Approximately Seven Months Later... At Belle and Mimi's apartment.)

Belle grabbed the last serving platter off of the dining room table and carried it into the kitchen. Mimi was still wrapping up the leftovers and finding spaces for them in the fridge. Belle laid the platter on the kitchen counter with a sigh and surveyed the damage.

"So, Meems... Are we going to be eating baby shower food for the next month?"

Mimi closed the refrigerator and shrugged. "Actually, for a bunch of women who are all like size three's, they sure can eat. We have minimal leftovers, really."

Belle quickly busied herself by hand washing the serving dishes in the sink. "Good... I hate when you have a party and you buy too much food. It just ends up rotting in the fridge for a year."

"Well, whatever we don't want, we can just send it home with Chloe... Brady will eat anything."

Belle laughed and nodded in agreement. "And so will Chloe..."

Chloe entered from the living room, her large pregnant belly protruding in front of her. "Chloe will what?"

"Eat all of our leftovers."

Chloe paused, then nodded in agreement. "Yeah, you're probably right."

Chloe leaned into the counter and grabbed for a stack of plates but Mimi smacked her hand away. "Don't you lift a finger, Chloe. Sit your butt down and observe, that's all."

Chloe frowned at her. "I'm pregnant, not crippled..."

"I don't care... Pull up a chair and relax. Your doctor said you should take it easy because you're so close to your due date, so that's what you're going to do."

Chloe sighed and begrudgingly did as she was told. She sat at their small kitchen table, and observed as Belle did the dishes and Mimi took care of the garbage.

"Have I thanked you two enough for throwing me this extremely amazing baby shower?"

Belle stopped scrubbing and turned to reply. "Yes, you have. And, there's no need to thank us. We are your best friends, and we have a sacred duty to do things like this. It's part of the rules of friendship."

Mimi nodded in agreement. "Besides, it was a lot of fun."

Chloe smiled widely and nodded. "Oh, definitely. Except I did get a little tired of everyone asking me if we've decided on a name yet."

"Well, do you at least have it narrowed down?"

Chloe shrugged. "We've had a few ideas, but Brady and I agreed that we didn't want to give her a name until we could hold her and see her. That way we can give her a name that fits her."

Belle paused to think for a moment. "Let me guess... You guys want to name her after a character in an opera."

Chloe raised both eyebrows and shook her head. "Oh, no way. We don't want her to get beat up on the playground every day of her life. There are some nice names in operas, but most of them are too foreign or too old fashioned. We would have ended up with a Floria or a Violetta or Dorinda."

Mimi nodded and interjected, "Yeah, but you don't want to go too modern either. All those girls who are named Brittany or Tiffany or Kelly are all going to be grandmothers some day. I could never imagine having a grandma named Brittany."

"Agreed..." Chloe shifted in her seat and changed subjects. "So, enough about ME and my baby, because that's all that got talked about tonight... I've been so busy getting ready for the baby lately, that I haven't had a chance for some good old fashioned girl talk."

Mimi put the last batch of leftovers in the fridge and turned to face Chloe. "There's not much to talk about really..."

Chloe gave her a doubting glance. "Oh, I doubt that... You two have all night to clean the kitchen, take a break and sit with me. Please?"

Mimi nodded and joined Chloe at the table, while Belle quickly wiped her hands off and joined them as well. Chloe grinned in victory and pointed at Mimi. "Okay, Meems... I've got to know... How wonderful is your relationship with Phillip going?"

Mimi bit her lip for a second, trying to resist the urge to grin like a fool, but the urge overtook her and she smiled widely. "It's so wonderful... It's almost too perfect. Like, strangely perfect."

"Well, what's wrong with that?"

Mimi shrugged, unsure of how to phrase what she was thinking. "I don't know. That's the problem. I've never had anything in my life go this smoothly. Every relationship I've ever had usually sours once you get past the lovey-dovey first few months, but this one is still going strong. It's just weird. I keep waiting for Phillip to develop multiple personalities who all hate me, like my other boyfriends..."

Belle laughed and shook her head. "But, Meems... there's a big difference between Phillip and your other boyfriends."

"There is?"

"Well, yeah... When you meet a new guy, and start dating, it's all wonderful at first, but the more you get to know each other... well, the crappier it gets. You don't have to worry about that with Phillip. He's known you almost your entire life, and he was one of your best friends before he was your boyfriend. The two of you already know all of each other's little quirks, and your faults, and you love each other in spite of those things."

Mimi nodded and smiled slightly. "I see what you mean... I just... Part of me gets worried, because I've always thought that a guy like Phillip is too good for me."

Chloe's eyes widened and she shook her head. "Mimi, don't ever let me hear you say that again. No man on earth is too good for you."

Belle nodded in agreement. "She's right... What on earth would ever give you the idea that you're not good enough for Phillip?"

Mimi shrugged and looked downward. "I don't know... I guess I've always felt like that a little, ever since I was a kid. My family always struggled to make ends meet, and I was never as pretty as other girls... I guess I thought Phillip would want to be with someone more like him... Rich, and popular, and beautiful..."

Chloe sighed and frowned at her. "Oh Meems... Don't talk like that. You are one of the most beautiful girls I've ever known. Maybe people haven't told you that enough, but you are."

Belle nodded and interjected. "She's right, Mimi. You are beautiful, and I know that Phillip thinks so too. And, you should never worry about the fact that you don't come from a rich family. That makes you even more admirable in my eyes."

Mimi half-smiled and looked surprised. "It does?"

"Well, yeah... Kids like Phillip, or me; we get all these advantages in life because our parents are rich. It's not necessarily right, but that's the way it is. We can afford to go to any school we want to, or we could just work for our fathers if we want. But, Mimi... everything you've achieved, you've done it on your own, without any help from daddy's money."

Chloe nodded in agreement. "I totally agree. Maybe I don't tell you enough, but you make me so proud, Mimi. You worked your way through college and had a 4.0 the whole time, and now you've got this great job at the Spectator. You worked hard for it, and you deserve all of the success you've had."

Mimi smiled shyly and looked downward. "I didn't mean for this to turn into a 'Stroke Mimi's fragile ego'-party, but thank you... It means a lot to me to hear those things."

Belle smiled and put her arm around Mimi's shoulder. "Well, it's all true, Meems. And, remember, if you ever need a little boost of self-esteem, then there aren't two better people to go to. We love you more than anyone, except for maybe Phillip..."

Mimi grinned at her friends and nodded. "Yeah... He's crazy, but he does kinda love me, doesn't he?"

"I'd say he more than kinda loves you, Mimi." Chloe smiled at her and then directed her gaze at Belle. "Speaking of love... I assume that it's still Valentine's Day every day with you and Shawn."

Belle let go of Mimi and shrugged uneasily. "I guess..."

Mimi whipped her head around to stare Belle down. "You guess? YOU GUESS? Please, for the love of God, don't tell me that there's trouble in paradise."

Belle shook her head. "No, not exactly. Things have been, like you said earlier, almost too perfect. We're so used to having these big catastrophes that we almost don't know what to do with ourselves when nothing bad is happening."

Chloe raised one pointed eyebrow in curiosity. "But, other than that... perfection? Right?"

"Yeah, for the most part. I mean, it's been... unbelievable. The past seven months are just indescribably great. The past few days though... Shawn's been kinda quiet."

"Quiet, how?"

"He still talks. It's not like he's suddenly a mime or anything. He just seems to be lost in thought, I guess. And, that's okay, but when I ask him what he's thinking about he just waves his hand and says nothing."

Mimi bit her lip thoughtfully and spoke up. "And you don't believe him, right?"

Belle nodded affirmatively. "Oh yeah... I know Shawn... And, I know that look in his eyes... It's like he's processing something deep, something important."

Chloe paused and folded her arms across her chest. "Well, that's the mystery of men for you. Brady does that too... He just kinda closes up his mental shop for a few days, and won't let me in. He did that all the time when we were still just friends, he did it before he asked me to marry him, and he did it a couple of months ago when we found out the sex of the baby. It's like whenever there's some sort of big decision or commitment coming up, he just loses himself in thoughts and worries."

"So... You think Shawn is about to make a big decision and he's just not ready to share it with me, yet?"

Chloe shrugged and stood from her chair. "I don't know, Belle... That's only what I've observed about Brady... It could be something else entirely. Men are strange. Stranger than women, if you ask me."

Mimi nodded enthusiastically. "Amen to that. I swear, they get PMS too, they just won't admit it."

"And it's worse than any PMS that a woman gets." Chloe pushed her chair in and motioned towards the kitchen door. "I've got to visit the little girl's room... I'll be right back."

Belle and Mimi nodded as they watched her go through the door. Mimi sat back in her chair and sighed softly. "Hey... Maybe Shawn is going to ask you to move in with him."

Belle furrowed her brow and shook her head. "I doubt it. You know how much he loves his bachelor life. He knows that if I moved in, he'd have to pick up his dirty socks off the floor."

"But that's what true love is all about, Belle. Picking up your dirty socks and sharing your remote control all in the name of love."

Belle laughed and rolled her eyes. "Well, I don't think that's the case here. He's probably just having a stressful time at work, a bad case or something... No big deal. I'm not going to worry about it."

Mimi nodded, Belle's reasoning seemed good enough to her. "So, when's that wedding your supposed to go to?"

Belle stopped to think about the dates. Her friend Emma from college was getting married in London this month, and she hadn't completely memorized the date, although it was written in her calendar. "In like two weeks, I think... She wanted me to be a bridesmaid, but it's so close to Chloe's due date, I didn't think I'd have a chance to come up and be there for fittings and rehearsals."

"That sucks... Are you even going to be able to go at all?"

Belle shrugged. "I don't know... Probably not. I really do want to go, but Emma is so sweet and she totally understands that the birth of my niece is much more important."

"Maybe we could convince Chloe to have the baby this weekend, that way you can just hop on your dad's plane and fly to London for the wedding."

Belle laughed and shook her head. "I don't think it's up to Chloe... It's all up to my niece, and she'll come out when she's ready, wedding or no wedding."

Mimi grinned and joked with Belle. "Well, that's not how it should work... Don't these fetuses know that we have other things to do besides sit around and wait..."

Mimi paused in the middle of her sentence at the sound of Chloe's voice shouting from across the apartment. "BELLE! MIMI! COME QUICK!"

Belle jumped out of her chair and ran through the door with Mimi quickly behind her. Chloe was standing in the hallway near the bathroom clutching her stomach tightly. She yelped in pain as Belle and Mimi grabbed on to either side of her.

Belle held on to Chloe's arm and tried to move her to a chair. "Chloe... what happened?"

Chloe sat in the nearest chair, still holding on to her stomach. She was clearly in pain, and spoke through her clenched teeth. "I'm having contractions..."

Mimi's eyes widened in shock. "Already? You're not even due until the 30th."

Chloe nodded slightly. "Uh-huh... Well... I can't exactly make them stop. I'm pretty sure this is the real thing."

Belle let go of Chloe's arm and grabbed her keys out of her purse and threw them to Mimi. "Mimi, go get my car and pull it as close to the front door as you can."

Mimi nodded and hurried out the door. Belle held on to Chloe's hand as she reached for the phone on the table. "Chloe, are you sure this is it?"

Chloe nodded confidently. "I've never had a baby before, Belle, but I'm fairly sure that this is what it feels like."

Belle nodded and quickly dialed the seven numbers to Brady's cell phone. Brady picked up after two rings, and he must have seen Belle's number come up on his caller ID. "Heya Tink..."

"Brady... It's Chloe... She's having contractions."

"What?"

"It's time... The baby's coming. Mimi's getting the car, and we'll meet you at the hospital in 15 minutes."

"Oh my God... could you put her on the phone please?"

"Yeah, no problem."

Belle handed the phone to Chloe and watched as a small smile crept over her face. Chloe was mostly quiet, listening to whatever words her husband had to share. Chloe ended the call with a quiet, "I love you too.", and then handed the phone back to Belle.

Belle laid the phone down and threw her purse over her shoulder. She heard the familiar horn of her car honking outside. Belle smiled at Chloe and helped her from the chair.

"You ready to be a mommy?"

Chloe shrugged uneasily. "As ready as I'll ever be."

Belle held on to her arm and led her to the door. "Then let's get out of here. We'll call everyone else on the way there."

Belle and Chloe made their way out the door, and headed towards the hospital. After all they had been through to make sure that Brady, Chloe and the baby survived, the day they had been waiting for had finally come.

***

(About Three Hours Later... We return you to this birthing, already in progress.)

Belle returned from the hospital restroom and paused to look around the waiting room. She smiled at her family and friends, all of them just as excited as she was for the birth of this baby. John, Marlena, Craig and Nancy sat in one corner chatting, while Phillip, Mimi and Shawn sat nearby. Belle returned to her seat next to Shawn and held his hand gently in hers.

Across from Belle, Mimi stretched and yawned at the same time, then fixed her gaze on Belle. "Hey, you might get to go to that wedding after all..."

"I know... I was thinking the same thing earlier. And, I think I have you to thank for it."

Mimi laughed and shrugged innocently. "I know... How weird is that?"

Phillip looked at her in confusion. "Huh? How is this your doing?"

"I was joking around with Belle that it would be good if Chloe had the baby today, that way Belle could go to England for her friend's wedding."

Shawn grinned at her and joked. "Wow, Mimi... While you're at it, why don't you wish for your friend Shawn to come into a lot of money. Tax-free, of course."

Mimi shook her head. "Oh yeah, if I had those kind of powers, I would have used them a long time ago."

Shawn shrugged it off. "Oh well... Doesn't hurt to try. So, Belle... How are you going to make all those travel arrangements in less than two weeks?"

Belle shrugged. "I guess I'll just have to wing it. I'll have to beg my dad for use of his jet, or I can pay a ridiculous amount of money to get a last minute flight."

"Where are you going to stay?"

"Oh... My parents own an apartment just outside of London. They always stayed there when they came to visit me, so I'll probably just stay there."

Shawn nodded and looked towards the floor. "Then I guess it's all working out... Chloe's having her baby, and you'll be able to go to Emma's wedding."

Belle nodded happily and then squeezed Shawn's hand as an idea sprang to mind. "Shawn... I've got a great idea. Why don't you come with me?"

Shawn looked up and stared at her in surprise. "Come with you to London?"

"Yeah, absolutely. You could be my date to the wedding, and meet all my friends from college, and then we could spend a few days in London together. I could show you all the coolest places. It'll be so much fun."

Shawn looked downward again and paused. The silence seemed to last for an eternity, until he finally shook his head. "I don't think so, Belle... I can't go."

Belle frowned slightly, but before she could speak, Phillip interrupted. "You can't go? What's stopping you?"

Belle patted his hand and furrowed her brow. "Yeah, why not?"

"I just can't... I have things to do..."

Shawn looked up again and Belle could tell by his expression that he was definitely hiding something from her. "Shawn... Is there something wrong?"

Shawn shook his head again. His words came out in stutters, and Belle knew he was trying to cover up something bigger. "No, nothing's wrong... I just... There's... There's this big case that I'm helping my dad with, and I don't think it would be a good idea for me to leave while things are still up in the air. That's all..."

"Are you sure there's nothing else wrong?"

Shawn nodded and kissed her on the forehead. "Yes, I'm sure. It does sound like fun, but... just not right now. There's plenty of time for us to take trips together. I just can't take this one..."

Belle nodded, but still pouted slightly. "Okay... But, I'll miss you."

"And, I will miss you too... But go, and have fun, and don't worry about me. Okay?"

"Okay..."

Shawn kissed her again and smiled. "Good... Bring me back a scone or something."

Belle chuckled and rolled her eyes. "You got it."

Mimi yawned again and laid her head on Phillip's shoulder. "You know, this is a lot better than the last time we all had to sit in a hospital waiting room together."

Phillip nodded enthusiastically. "Ain't that the truth... It's nice to be at a hospital for a happy occasion instead of another catastrophe."

Shawn smiled and wrapped his arm around Belle's shoulder. "It is pretty exciting. I don't have any nieces or nephews of my own, so this is the closest thing to it. I can only imagine how excited Belle must be."

Belle grinned and nodded happily. "I'm so excited, I think I'm going to explode. This is just one of the most exciting things to ever happen to me. I was so young when Sami had Will, that it wasn't really a big deal to me. But, now that I'm old enough to appreciate it, I can't wait to completely spoil my little niece."

"Between all of us, and her grandparents, and her parents, that little girl will have more toys than Toys 'R Us."

Belle smiled sweetly at him. "I just hope she knows how much she's loved, that's the most important thing."

Belle paused suddenly because the doors to the maternity ward swung open and Brady stepped forward from them. He was dressed in his hospital scrubs and had a smile plastered on his face that went from ear to ear. The group in the waiting room all turned their heads to face him and waited with baited breath.

Brady clapped his hands together and addressed the group. "The baby's perfect, and healthy and beautiful. Chloe's doing great."

Brady stared at the faces of his friends and family, all of them smiling and happy. He paused for a moment and held out his arms. "Well... somebody hug me... I'm a dad."

The assembled group began to laugh and jumped from their seats to hug and congratulate Brady. Belle held on to her big brother and tugged on his shirt like she had done so many times when they were kids. "So, when do we get to see the baby? I wanna see her, Brady... Please..."

Brady grinned and squeezed his sister tightly. "You don't need to beg me, Belle. They're cleaning her up right now, and then they'll bring her to Chloe's room. All of you can come in right now and wait for the nurses to bring her in. Just behave yourselves."

Belle held on to her brother as he led the large group down the hallway towards Chloe's room. Chloe wasn't back from delivery yet, but there were two nurses in the corner with a bed between them, wrapping a newborn girl in a tiny pink blanket. The group tried not to swarm the baby, allowing Brady to take his daughter in his arms. Brady let his family surround him so they could all get a good look at the new baby.

Belle smiled proudly at her tiny niece. She had a head full of dark hair, and the sweetest face that Belle had ever seen. "Oh Brady... She's absolutely beautiful."

Brady nodded happily. "Just like her mother..."

Everyone took turns 'oohing' and 'aahing' over the new arrival until a couple of orderlies wheeled Chloe's bed back into the room. Chloe was sitting up, and looking fairly well for a woman who just gave birth. Brady went to her side, so that she could hold her baby for a second time.

Her family and friends gathered around her bed, and Nancy went to her side and kissed her lovingly on the cheek. "How you feeling, sweetheart?"

"Not bad... considering..." Chloe smiled at her baby girl and then looked up at the people surrounding her bed. "This makes all the pain worthwhile."

Belle stood in between Brady and Shawn and bounced up and down impatiently. "Well... When do WE get to hold her?"

Brady put his arm around Belle's shoulder and kissed the top of her head. "Right now, if you want..."

Chloe nodded in agreement and motioned for Belle to come closer. Belle reached over and gently cradled the baby in her arms. Her eyes were closed, and she looked completely content. Belle sighed at the sight of her and kept staring as she spoke softly.

"Hey there, beautiful girl... It's nice to meet you, finally..." Belle paused and then looked at Brady and Chloe. "Wait a minute. Uhm, does she have a name yet?"

Chloe nodded in the affirmative and smiled. "Lorelei. It took a long time to decide on it too, so don't anybody criticize it."

Belle shook her head and looked back towards the baby. "It's a beautiful name. And, it suits her perfectly."

Brady smiled and spoke, "And, Belle... there's a reason why we wanted you to be the first to hold her. I mean, no offense to everyone else, but we thought you deserved the honor."

"I do? Why's that?"

Brady and Chloe clasped hands and smiled at each other. Brady continued on, speaking for both of them. "Because, without you... She might not even be here. Neither of us would."

Belle raised her eyebrows in surprise. "That's not true..."

"Yes, it is. And, I'm not just talking about you saving our lives on that island. You were our hero long before that, Belle."

"Brady... Stop... Don't be silly. I'm no such thing."

Chloe shook her head and interrupted. "Yes, you are. And, I think everyone in this room would agree. If it weren't for you, Belle... Brady and I might have never even gotten together. You were the one that saw what we could have, when I was too blind to notice. It was because of you that we finally had the courage to admit that we were in love."

Belle smiled bashfully and shook her head. Before she could speak, Phillip interjected. "She's right. You're one of my heroes too. You've always been the one to tell me I'm acting like an idiot, and to make me stop. Even if you were all the way in London, or right next door..."

Mimi nodded in agreement and grinned at Belle. "You've helped me through all the most awful times of my life, and even sometimes when I didn't deserve your forgiveness, you gave it to me."

Belle averted her eyes from everyone and kept her gaze on little Lorelei. "You guys... you're embarrassing me. I only do those things because I love you all... That doesn't make me a hero."

Brady smiled at his sister and shrugged. "Well, I think it does... And, that's why this moment is so important. I mean, Belle... you asked for the baby's name, but you didn't wait to hear what her middle name is..."

Belle looked up at her brother and raised a curious eyebrow. "Okay... What is it and what does it have to do with me?"

"Well, Chloe was right... It took us a long time to decide on a first name. But, a long time ago we agreed that her middle name was going to be Isabella. So, that's what it is. Lorelei Isabella Black..."

Belle felt her breath catch in her throat and her eyes welled up with tears. "After me? You named your daughter after me? Brady, Chloe... I don't even know what to say..."

Shawn grinned and put his arm around her shoulder. "Say thank you..."

Belle nodded as she squeezed out two slow moving tears. "Yes, thank you... Thank you so much... I'm so honored..."

Chloe ran a hand through her hair and sighed. "Well... You're welcome. We just knew it was the right thing to do. It was Brady's mother's name too, and both of you happen to possess all of the qualities that we want our little girl to have. We thought we'd like to keep it in the family."

The group around the bed stood together quietly for a few moments. All of them were too touched by this moment to speak. John moved towards his son and daughter and Shawn scooted out of the way so that John could put an arm around Belle's shoulder. John looked at Brady and smiled, trying to hold back the tears of his own.

"Your mother would be so proud of you, Brady. I just wish she could be here to see this."

Brady nodded as Belle passed the tiny bundle to her father to hold. "I think she is, Dad... She's always with me."

John held on to Lorelei gently and kissed his granddaughter on her forehead. Belle quickly wiped her tears and hugged Brady tightly. She let go of him and reached across the bed to hug Chloe as well.

"This means... more than I can even tell you. And you know... I'm going to spoil her rotten."

Chloe laughed and nodded her head. "I know... But that's only until you have one of your own, and then you can spoil that one too."

Belle nearly choked on her own saliva and rolled her eyes. "Ohhhh... I don't know about that. I don't think I'm ready to take care of a baby of my own just yet."

Brady grinned at her slightly. "Yeah, I didn't think we would be either... But, as soon as you hold your baby in your arms for the first time... You know that everything is going to be just fine."

Belle and the rest of the family spent a long time in Chloe's room. Each of them taking turns holding Lorelei, until the nurses recommended that they leave so mother and baby could get some rest. They had spent a long time at the hospital, and it was getting quite late, so they dispersed and made their ways to the hospital parking lot.

Belle made a quick stop at the bathroom, and when she came outside she saw Shawn and her father conversing privately near Shawn's car. She made her way towards them and slipped her hand into Shawn's.

"Hey guys... Where did Mimi run off to?"

Shawn motioned towards the row where Belle's car was parked. "She's waiting at your car with Phillip. He rode over here with Brady, so since he doesn't have a ride home, he's just gonna crash at your place."

"Oh, alright..."

John hugged Belle tightly and kissed her on the cheek. "You're not too tired to drive home, are you?"

"No, daddy... I'm just fine. I love you."

John released her and smiled. "I love you too, Izzy. Good night."

John shook Shawn's hand and wished him good night and headed to his wife who was waiting for him in the car. Belle turned to Shawn and grinned wickedly at him.

"And what were you two talking about?"

Shawn shrugged it off nonchalantly. "Nothing important..."

Belle pouted slightly. "Oh... That's boring... Remind me to only be nosy when it's something juicy."

"Check... I will do that."

"So... Why don't you come home with me, we'll sleep in, and then we'll go get some brunch? It'll be like a big co-ed sleepover."

"I... I can't. I've got to get up early tomorrow, run some errands... I wish I could."

Belle frowned at him. "Well, when you're done with that, then call me and we'll spend some time together."

Shawn nodded and spoke quietly. "Okay..."

Belle held both of his hands in hers and looked at him in confusion. "Shawn... Is there something wrong? I know I asked you earlier, and you said no, but I can't help feeling like that something IS wrong."

Shawn sighed and looked downward. "I just... It's nothing really. I have a lot of things on my mind right now, and I just can't talk about it."

"Can't talk about it? You mean, WON'T... Whatever it is, you know you can tell me. I just want you to share things with me, good or bad, just be honest."

Shawn looked into her eyes and nodded. "I know... And, I will tell you... But not yet... I just need to sort a few things out first."

Belle's forehead wrinkled up with worry. "Shawn... You're kind of scaring me. I didn't do something wrong, did I?"

"No, it's nothing like that... I swear." Shawn smiled and quickly kissed her on the lips. "You did nothing wrong at all. I love you, Belle..."

Belle nodded in understanding, but still felt uneasy. "I love you too... You will call me tomorrow, right?"

Shawn nodded reassuringly. "I promise..."

He leaned forward and kissed her again, holding her tightly before he said good night. Belle watched him get into his car before she turned to walk towards her own car. She saw Mimi and Phillip sitting inside the car laughing at each other, and tried not to let her fears about Shawn's behavior ruin one of the most memorable nights of her life.

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