It was 90 degrees outside and climbing. It was the peak of noon and everyone was indoors trying their hardest to stay cool in the unexpected change in weather. The day before, it had been only 70 degrees, a cool summer day, and today it was burning.

"Damn air conditioner!" Mr. Gold shouted in pure anger as he hit the only device keeping his shop cool and fresh, hard on. It had been turning off all morning, not cooperating with the angry pawnbroker's temper. It had done its final duty that day and it was time to retire the old thing to the dumpster.

"I've had this thing for 28 years! It worked fine yesterday on a low setting! Why does it have to break on the hottest day of the frickin' summer?!"

Pissed off to the highest extent, Mr. Gold sat at his desk contemplating the situation. It was almost half past noon when he decided to pay a visit to the library hopeful to find a book on the subject…and accidently-on-purpose run into the librarian just to check up on her. And so he set out, taking his car because at least that had air conditioning.

Walking into the fresh aired library was a relief to Mr. Gold. He hadn't known if anyone had taught the librarian how to work the air conditioner there, but apparently it was dealt with.

He walked a few paces past the front desk, his cane hitting the floor being the only evidence of his existence.

"Belle?" Mr. Gold shouted a bit louder than he intended. No one was in the library, therefore no use in using his 'indoor voice' especially when he was already as pissed as he was.

"Over here!" a voice called out from a row of shelves. Mr. Gold walked towards the voice trying to calm himself before encountering the young woman. He didn't like to show his bad side to her, especially if she had nothing to do with his negative mood.

"There you are. My…uh…" Mr. Gold started. He stopped short when he saw her face dug deep into a book about…insects? "Bugs? Um, find anything interesting about…them?" Mr. Gold asked a bit shocked. He gazed at the over-sized book in her lap as she leaned herself against the bookshelf.

"There are flies…everywhere! I'm trying to find a way to get rid of them without hurting them."

"Oh…"

"Yes, but I got caught up in the section about fireflies. They're very interesting little creatures."

"Fireflies?" Mr. Gold swallowed hard. "You…like fireflies?"

"Well, when I was a kid, my father used to take me outside our castle in the summer to catch them in jelly jars…I guess they're just something that has caught my interest since I was young."

"Oh…well…um…"

Belle looked up at Mr. Gold for the first time and closed the book. She set it back on the shelf where it had been placed before.

"Did you need something, Rumpel?"

"Uhhh…um, yes? Yes! I came to find a book about air conditioners…mine broke…"

"Why not just call someone to fix it?"

"Right…"

Belle gawked at Mr. Gold for a moment trying to figure him out.

So cute…

"I also came to ask you…something…" Mr. Gold closed his eyes. He was pondering this question for a week and didn't think she would appreciate what he had discovered. He must ask her now!

"What?"

"I was wondering if we could do something a little different tomorrow…I mean instead of our usual lunch date at Granny's…"

"Like what?"

"It's a surprise!" he blurted out. He didn't want her to know in case she would turn him down right then and there.

"Um…alright…same time?"

"No…uh…could you possibly meet me at my shop at ten? I mean…at night."

"At night?"

"The surprise requires…the dark."

"Alright. Ten it is." Belle said contently.

"Really? I mean…alright I'll see you then." Mr. Gold asked suddenly, and then regained his composure, remembering who he was deal with.

"Okay. See you, Rumpel…" Belle smiled shyly.

Why does she have to give me that face?!

Mr. Gold looked away before she could catch his blush. He made his way out of the library as fast as possible. When he got in his car he finally took a breath. Had he been holding in his breath that long?

What the hell did I just do? He thought to himself. He felt stupid for asking her to with him there, but he couldn't help but think about her when he made the discovery a week ago. There she was in his brain, again; he could only imagine her face when she would see this discovery. On the other hand, she could think he was taking things a bit fast, and that they should just stick to eating lunch at Granny's.

No!

They've been eating lunch at Granny's almost every day for weeks! It's time to take the next step! She's going to have fun tomorrow night!

I hope…

It was almost 10 when Mr. Gold parked his car outside his shop. His air conditioner was still broken so he waited in his car to keep cool. He was sweating like a maniac, nervous as hell, and it seemed not to make a difference whether or not an air conditioner kept him cool. He had shed his suit jacket and tie half ways through his wait and unbuttoned the top of his purple button up shirt, but it still didn't make much of a difference. He sprayed cologne on himself to make sure he at least seemed fresh after sweating a while.

When he spotted Belle, she was looking through the window in his shop door. Mr. Gold stepped out of his car into the warm air, almost startling Belle.

"Oh, there you are. I thought you would be in your shop."

"No, Leroy said he couldn't fix the air conditioner until tomorrow when I called him yesterday. I was in my car trying to cool off."

"Well, are we driving to this place or…?" Belle eyed his car.

"No, it's just a walk away." Mr. Gold said firmly, trying not to look nervous. He was nervous. Very nervous, indeed.

"Alright, lead the way." Belle said through a smile and a giggle.

Why does she do this to me?!

"Alright."

Mr. Gold turned in the direction of his destination. As he did, Belle grabbed his hand and squeezed it tight, turning in unison.

"I get a bit…scared of the dark." She said shyly. This time a bit more serious.

"Okay, well it won't be too dark." He said trying not to shake as she squeezed his hand again.

Belle just nodded. He pulled her along, hand in hand, down the sidewalk a bit and down an ally lit only by a streetlight at the end. Soon, he led her to a small dirt path, trees dominating its flanks.

"It's up here. The path is small; it won't be dark for long."

"Alright…"Belle said quietly. She made her way closer to Mr. Gold's side.

She really didn't like the dark. It must have been from her time locked up in a cell.

Damn Regina.

Mr. Gold held Belle close to his side as he walked through the dark path. It wound uphill a bit indicating that his destination was, indeed, a hill.

When they got to the end of the path, Mr. Gold stood behind Belle and covered her eyes. They walked a bit further and through an opening of trees before he enabled Belle to look.

She blinked a bit to let her eyes adjust. The sky was dimly lit by the town's lights, just enough to see where you were walking.

"A…a field?" Belle stuttered, a bit confused. She looked up at Mr. Gold's face trying to figure him out, again.

"Just watch…"Mr. Gold whispered as if he would startle something they couldn't see.

After a few moments, a very tiny yellow light flickered in the darkness. Another came and went…then another and another. Finally, the field was filled with the tiny flickering lights.

"Fireflies!" Belle yelped in excitement.

"Yes. I discovered this place a week ago while taking a walk. I thought about taking you, but I didn't think you liked…bugs. After I saw you reading that book yesterday I thought I'd ask.

"It's wonderful, Rumpel!" Belle said sincerely as she turned to face him. She took a long look into Mr. Gold's eyes before reaching up and pushing a piece of his chestnut hair from his face. "I mean…it's beautiful." She whispered.

She started to reach up for his already cherry red face for a kiss, but stopped after hearing a "crack" behind her as if a twig had broken under someone's weight.

Belle turned to face a wide eyed Leroy standing at the entrance of the small pathway where they had entered the field. He was accompanied by a young woman she didn't recognize.

"I see someone figured out our secret spot." Leroy said, his tone much too grave. "I didn't think Rumpelstiltskin would have a soft spot for such beauty." He added, almost a snarl.

He didn't like the fact that Rumpelstiltskin was in his "territory".

"Well, we're here now so scat!"

"Rumpel!" Belle argued, but was cut off by his finger brushing her lips.

"I know you…are you that girl who I met at the bar that night…the night I went to Firefly Hill…?"

"Oh…" Belle pondered the question for a moment. She knew she had seen this man somewhere before, but couldn't put her finger on it. "Yes, I was the one who told you to go to Firefly Hill to be with the one you love. Is this…" Belle gestured to the young woman who he was accompanied with.

"Yes, her true name is Nova."

Nova shuffled a small curtsy and bowed her head politely.

"A pleasure to meet you, miss…"

"Belle" She finished and shuffled a small curtsy herself.

"Belle? When were you at a bar?" Mr. Gold suddenly interrupted.

"Um…not important…" She tried to shake the subject away.

"You said that you had your heart broken that night…so I'm guessing you found someone…new? I mean…someone to fill the gap?" Leroy asked, hesitating and looking at Mr. Gold, trying hard not to meet his gaze. His face seemed almost disgusted at the fact that she was with such a monster.

Belle looked at Leroy seriously for a moment and then let out a chuckle that soon turned into a fit of laughter.

"What?" Leroy questioned, completely confused.

"Rumpelstiltskin is not the replacement for my broken heart; he was the cause of it. But then I found him in a different world with a different heart…he admitted his love truly to me…and now we can truly be together…" Belle smiled at Leroy finishing her speech with a small giggle.

Mr. Gold stood behind her out of her sight. His face burned crimson as he bowed his head, hiding behind the bangs of his hair. It would be embarrassing to have Leroy and a fairy see him in this state.

Does she really mean that?

"Wait…you were at a bar after you left my castle?!"

"Well…Yeah. I was heartbroken! I wasn't thinking clearly…"

"So you went to a bar to drink your troubles away?! No wonder you couldn't think straight!"

"Rumpel! Not now, please! This can be a conversation for another time!"

"Ugh…Fine…" He would do as she wished only because he didn't want to spoil the moment more than it already had been.

"Leroy, is this what you've been doing instead of fixing the air conditioner in my shop?!" Mr. Gold spat at the petite man standing only a few feet away.

"Listen, Stiltskin, fixing your air conditioner isn't on my top priority list, mining fairy dust is! Now the other dwarves and I are stuck trying to break that curse you-"

"Alright! Enough!" Belle yelled and stepped between the two men arguing. "Listen, this field is big enough for all of us! Rumpel, if we could just make our way to the other side we can continue without interruption."

"She's right. Let's just forget our differences for tonight and have fun! We won't bother you if you do likewise, we promise." Nova spoke up.

Leroy pouted at the suggestion.

Damn Fairy. Mr. Gold thought to himself.

"Fine." Mr. Gold sighed. He turned, heading towards the opposite end of the small field. Belle followed behind.

"Thank you, Nova." Belle turned her head to thank the young woman.

"It's no problem!" Nova said in a high squeaky voice.

As Mr. Gold and Belle walked, they looked up and gazed at the glowing lights. There was a whole swarm of them, now. Not enough to be a nuisance, but just enough to give the little field a light source of its own.

When he found a spot, Mr. Gold sat on the ground, laying his cane next to him. He had left suit jacket in his car along with his plum colored tie, knowing he wouldn't need them. It was warm with a gentle breeze that felt refreshing, perfect weather for fireflies.

Belle stood in front of Mr. Gold, still gazing up at the swarm. She did for a few moments more before she turned to him, holding out her hands.

"Come dance with me!"

"What?" Mr. Gold held out his hands hesitantly. Belle placed her hands on the palms of his. She gave them a squeeze and helped him to his feet, leaving his cane behind.

"I…Don't really dance…"He said, self-consciously. She knew he had a bad knee and that even walking was a chore for him. At the same time he didn't want to disappoint her.

"I know…But you don't even need to move." Belle smiled up at him. She raised her right hand directly above her head along with his and spun in a circle on one foot.

"All you have to do is stand there!" She said and made another twirl, then another and another.

Mr. Gold couldn't help but smile. He enjoyed watching her spin in circles. Of course, he enjoyed watching anything spin.

She finally came to a stop and faced Mr. Gold.

"Do I help you forget, Rumpel?" She asked smiling and blushing.

"Of course you do, dearie," He said softly, memories of their time in the Dark Castle flooded his mind. "But, what I don't forget is my memories being with you." He added sincerely.

Belle broke her gaze from him and looked down quickly.

Was she blushing?

After a moment she looked up at his face.

"I missed you so much." She whispered so soft he could barely hear. She rested her palm on his left cheek. His face was hot under her grasp. He blushed hard. She then placed her other hand on his right cheek and leaned forward to kiss him. Their lips brushed softly against one another, both hesitating to do anything more. Then Belle pulled back, breaking the kiss. She smiled, still holding his face in her palms.

"I missed that, too." She started to blush again. "It's sort of silly...I mean, after you dropped the potion in the well the day the curse was broken…I thought you would be cursed again…and that we wouldn't be able to…kiss," Her smile faded a bit. "And after the purple haze was gone…when you kissed me…I felt relieved…I felt," She hesitated "Like it was right."

Mr. Gold just looked at her. Sympathy filled his eyes.

"After you rescued me in the mines, I felt more upset with my father than with you…I shouldn't have said I didn't want to see you again. Deep down I knew I wouldn't last not being able to see you…" She started to tear up. "And when you…gave me the library key…and told me the truth…"

"Belle…sweetheart…" Mr. Gold said softly. He wiped away the single tear that started to roll down her cheek with his thumb.

Belle buried her face into Mr. Gold's chest. Surprised by the sudden reaction, he wrapped his arms around her and held her there for a few moments in silence. As content as he felt with Belle in his arms, he could feel a pair of eyes on him, making him feel a bit vulnerable.

Leroy…that stupid dwarf!

"You smell nice…" Belle spoke, her face still buried in his chest. She lifted her head to look at him in the eye. He just smiled and brushed his hand through her chocolate brown hair. It was soft to the touch and flowed down her back in long curls. He enjoyed the feeling…he had missed it. When she lived with him, he would stroke her curls until she fell asleep, clinging to his side, intertwined with each other.

When she finally released him and took a step back, she was smiling again. Knee hurting more now that he was carrying his own weight, Mr. Gold made his way to a sitting position on the grass next to his cane.

Belle went back to staring at the fireflies, her face in awe. She stood straight up with her head tilted towards the sky. Her fingers were laced together, propped against her chest. Mr. Gold couldn't help but smile.

She's so beautiful…

Mr. Gold cleared his throat and spoke.

"You said something about catching them in jars?"

"Yes…just old jelly jars from our castle kitchen. We would catch them and then bring them somewhere dark to just…look…and then release them after. It was just a childhood thing…"

"I see…" Mr. Gold raised an eyebrow. He smiled and then held his hand in front of him. A puff of purple smoke surrounded his hand. When it cleared a jar, lid and all, was gripped in his palm.

"So no use for this then?"

Belle blushed, a bit surprised at the gesture. She never liked it when he used magic. Maybe it was because almost every time he used it near her it was for something dark…but this time she seemed pleased.

She reached down and grabbed the glass between her fingers. She could feel the bumps and edges of the glass design embedded into the sides. She reached it up to her eyes to get a better look. The designs were actually words—a label that read: Smucker's Grape Jelly.

"I have a bit of a…sweet tooth."

"I know Rumpel…"

"Really? How?"

"You used to put four sugar cubes in your tea back at the Dark Castle. You would also pour honey allover your toast."

Damn?! She remembers that?!

"Oh…" He chuckled a bit.

Belle looked at him a minute longer before she turned and started to chase the fireflies into the jar.

Mr. Gold just watched, fully intrigued with her technique of catching the little creatures. She would trap one in her hand delicately and then press her palm to the lip of the jar, enabling the firefly to fly into the jar. She would keep her palm on the jar until she was ready to catch another one. It was like picking apples from a tree; at least, she made it look that easy. She looked like a pro and had no trouble harvesting five fireflies and twisting the lid shut.

When she walked back over to where Mr. Gold was sitting, she placed the jar next to his left, reaching over him. She sat down on his right and smoothed down her blue skirt.

"Having fun?" He asked, smiling at her.

"Yes. Thank you for taking me here, Rumpel…it was sweet."

"You're welcome, my dear…I can take you anytime if the weather permits…and hopefully not when they're here…" Mr. Gold tilted his head towards the couple across the field. Both were sprawled out on the grass, side by side, watching the city of lights above them.

"I really don't mind them…I don't think they will tell anyone about our encounter." Belle reassured him. She started playing with one of the pieces of hair that fell in his face. She twirled it around her index finger a few times before Mr. Gold caught her wrist. He pulled her hand to his lips and kissed her middle finger. Belle just looked at him with eyes growing warm.

When he finally allowed her to pull her hand away, she smiled. This time it was a playful one.

"You know what this place makes me think about?" She asked, her playful smile growing wider.

"No. What does it make you think about, my dear?" Mr. Gold asked in a dazed content voice.

"Love" She pushed the word out of her mouth like it had been hiding there all night. Mr. Gold had no time to reply or even look at Belle before she pounced on him, pushing him into the grass. He let out a soft "Oof" when he hit the ground.

Belle hovered over him, smiling. He let out a laugh, one like no other. It was a whole hearted laugh that filled the field with happy vibes. When he collected himself, he pulled Belle down for a full kiss, the kind he never had after he rescued her from the mines.

He cupped her face in his hands and pressed his lips with more force against hers. She breathed in hard when he parted her lips to let him in. He enjoyed her. Her touch, taste and smell filled his senses. She was right about one thing…kissing did feel right.

They stayed in that position for a while, exploring each other. They played with each other's hair, twisting and pulling gently. After a while, Belle undid the first two buttons of Mr. Gold's shirt and rubbed his collar bone. He did the same with her shoulders and back. They shared each other with the intimacy and passion both were craving for. They were letting go of the tension that had built up for the past few weeks of not living together.

When Belle pulled away she stared at Mr. Gold, eyes soft and a smile that made her glow elegantly. He smiled back and brushed his fingertips through her curls.

Belle laid to the left of him pressing herself against his side. She laid her head on his chest, listening to his breathing. It calmed her.

Belle was almost half asleep when Mr. Gold started to play with her hair again.

"I love you…"She whispered.

"Yes…and I love you, too."