Title: Aftermath
Rating: T
Summary: After the season one finale, Rumple finds that Belle is slightly less okay than he was expecting
I quite obviously don't own OUAT or its characters.
Rumple was elated. Everything was going better than he ever thought it would. Sure, there had been a few bumps along the way, but the town was awake, the spell was broken, and he had his magic back. And right now, he was in his guest bedroom magic-ing up pajamas for his Belle. His precious Belle was alive. Regina- words couldn't describe how he was feeling about her right now, but he was cooking up a plan- had lied. She had lied and imprisoned and tortured his Belle for twenty-eight years. Curse her a thousand curses. But everything was going to be okay now. He would keep her safe.
"Rumple?" He turned as Belle stuck her head in the door. Rumple rose to his feet and walked- almost trotted- over to where his beautiful Belle was standing. He placed his hands lightly on her shoulders.
"Mm-hmmm. What can I do for you?" He saw immediately she didn't share his giddiness. Her eyes were rimmed with tears and her lips were pinched together.
"Hold me." She gasped, burying her face in his chest and letting out a sob. Rumple overcame his shock in less than a moment and wrapped his arms around Belle, pulling her further into him.
"Sshh, it's going to be okay." He whispered. His joy flew from him, disappearing deep into a locked vault, one he could never open. At this moment, if Belle wasn't okay, then nothing was okay.
His shirt was growing damp with her tears as she continued to sob, huge, choking sobs that broke his heart just a little further with her every gasp for air. He pulled her off of him, his fingers digging deep into her shoulders and hers into his, and their eyes locked. With one hand, he wiped the tears from her face, though more continued to fall.
"I'm so sorry." He managed to choke out. He was holding back his own tears now, his mind a swirling storm of dark emotions. How quickly one's mood could change. "What-what's wrong? What can I do to help?" She only shook her head and leaned back into him. So he held still, after a few minutes guiding her to sit down with him on the bed. How long he held her, he didn't know, but it felt like eternity until she mumbled,
"I need to sleep, Rumple, I need to sleep." He nodded, and helped her to stand again. Handing her the nightgown he had magic-ed up, he headed for the door, but she gasped,
"Don't leave. Please, don't leave me alone." So he didn't, keeping his back turned as she changed, reminding himself that, at this moment, she was little more than a broken down girl.
"Okay." She whispered, and he turned back around to tuck Belle into the bed, but when he did, she begged,
"Stay. Please, just stay." And he did, carefully lowering himself into the bed next to her, him laying on top of the blankets that she lay under. She sighed, the closest to content she had been the entire evening. After a few moments, her fingers found and entwined with his. She drifted off to sleep, but Rumple lay awake for hours, crying silently.