Once Upon a You | A Beauty and the Beast Retelling ✔️

6 | Unlimited Power (Bea)

"What in the devil's name are you doing in my house?" I dash down the stairs at lightning speed, clasping the intruder's neck, and lifting him a good twenty inches off the ground.

"It's... Me..." The puny trespasser wheezes, his scrawny legs comically dangling in the air.

I'd identify those twig arms anywhere.

"Ross Thorne."

"My... throat..." He points at the marks of red palms, his eyes rolling in their sockets, and the book he carries clangs on the floor.

I scoff and release him.

"Didn't recognize you without that flimsy towel."

"Nor... I... you, without your Pacific foods vanilla soy latte. And your super speed and super strength, of course."

Oh he's good, I give him that. It's also super strange, how he can talk about my transformation in such a matter-of-fact, laid-back way. With full acceptance. Without even a smidgen of fear.

"Oh yeah. I'm sooo Super Sonic. Super fast and super strong now. But... No more latte shopping for me." I growl at the reflection in the foyer mirror, and flinch into the shadow, hiding my growing-back nails within my dark red hoodie sleeves.

Ross is still massaging his neck, and the marks look uglier by the second.

"I... apologize." I do feel awful about what I just did. "You came fifteen minutes sooner. My housekeeper, doña Amparo, has an afternoon off. I had no idea who was in the house."

"It is not entirely your fault. I pulled a Mr. Early there, and did not announce my presence. That had been a mistake. The fear of the intruder was fully justified."

The fear of a... Who the deuce does he think I am? I don't fear no...

My nails bite into my palms, and I shake off my hood. But when he lifts a finger and speaks on, my rage weirdly subsides.

"Besides, these marks? Don't beat yourself over them. That wasn't you. It was Gus. He was furious over the tool shed door being ripped off, and..." Ross shrugs as if stating the obvious.

"He did this to you?" No way. "But Gus is your..."

"Brother, I know. Alas, blood is not always thicker than water. Unlimited power in the hands of limited people..."

"Always leads to cruelty," I whisper-finish his quote. "Cloud Atlas."

"The movie is waaay better than the book," we say at the same time and clasp our mouths.

Welp, that was some jinx.

Ross' eyes widen. I suppose he is a lot more surprised that I read that book than I am that he read it.

I shrug.

"What can I say? Books are a smart refuge from stupid people. And talking about stupid people... I... am sorry about your tool shed door." I swallow.

"All fixed now." He takes a step forward and the hair stands on the back of my neck.

For a guy with such a calm, rigid posture, his eyes are a wild, hungry ocean with hidden depths. As they roam my face, all storms and thunder, and crashing waves, they pause on my nose.

It unnerves me.

That I-am-both-his-journey-and-his-goal look is back again.

My breath catches in my throat.

His laser gaze redirects itself at the tips of my ears and I bare my teeth.

"How are the earlets?" His voice is soft as black velvet.