Anthony Gold was an exceptionally ordinary man. At thirty years old he had little to cherish and even less to mourn. He had a son, Benjamin, who was the center of his universe. He had his mother, Nancy, who would come and spend time with his son every Monday without fail. His ex-wife left him just before Ben's first birthday and he hadn't heard from her since. Something that he never wished to discuss.

Anthony had been an only child and because of this he was forced to take over his fathers cooperation after his death. It wasn't a fate he would have chosen for himself, but it made his mother happy and that was enough for now.

Anthony and his son lived in a very beautiful house on the outskirts of the small town of Stroybrooke, Maine. It was two stories, painted a light grey with hunter green shudders and doors. There was a porch that wrapped around the entire home and often smoke coming from the chimney. It was somewhat deserted which was the way he liked it. There was a small pond close to the property, along with a quiet park where he would take his son to play every Sunday.

His father's business, while it was not what he desired, did make him very wealthy. It also occupied most of his time. Ben spent all day at a daycare center on the town's college campus. While he was rarely at home, Anthony had formed a very special, very unbreakable bond with his son. He loved him more than anything and all he hoped was that Ben returned that love.

He often thought that what Ben truly needed was a mother. He wanted his son to have everything he both needed and desired, no matter what price. He wanted Ben to be brought up in a whole family, not a broken one. Finding him a mother though would be rather difficult. Falling in love with one was no easy task. Never mind falling for two. They were happy enough for now though.

Each year Storybrooke hosted one of the largest pumpkin festivals in the country. It was the only Saturday each year that was easy for him to get off. He looked forward to sharing this day with his son for a month now. He bought him, what he thought, was an adorable costume. A little lion. He had the stroller ready, along with the diaper bag and since it was such a beautiful day and the walk to Main St. wasn't considerably far, he decided a walk would be nice for the pair of them.

What he didn't count on though was how much Ben would hate the enormous crowd of people. He didn't count on the material of the costume to cause a rash against his son's baby soft skin either. Anthony knew he wasn't the best father in the world, but his pride was truly shattered when he realized he didn't even know how to make his son stop crying. So there he sat on the sidewalk with a screaming two year old in his arms staring at the crowd desperately hoping someone would come to his rescue.

He didn't actually believe someone would and when she did he couldn't stop staring at her. She was younger then himself. He assumed she was a college student, maybe in her sophomore or junior year. Her skin was fair, her face wore very little make-up, but she didn't even require what little she put on. Her eyes sparkled blue like the ocean. Her smile could have lit every pumpkin on the street. Her hair was a chestnut brown and cascaded down her back in soft curls. She was perfection.

"You look like you could use some help" she said. Her voice was just as honey sweet as he imagined. When he didn't respond right away she gave him a confused look and added, "are you alright?"

He looked into her eyes and somehow managed to stammer out a yes. He tried to stand up but with his still screaming and flailing child held tight against him, it made the task rather difficult. The girl immediately reached down and scooped Ben up in her arms, bouncing him lightly, stroking his hair and whispering sweet nothings into his ear. Anthony couldn't help but feel a small sting of jealousy. He quickly shook it off as he watched in amazement as his sons screams soon turned to silent tears which turned into soft hiccups.

"Ben is very temperamental" she laughed, "he could probably best me in a screaming contest." He laughed at that. Then looked back at her in bewilderment. How had she known his son's name? He hadn't mentioned it had he?

"How do you know my son's name?" he asked.

"Oh sorry, I don't think we've met yet. I work at the early childhood developmental center. My name's Belle" she replied reassuringly. "I work with your son everyday. He is actually quite the little genius, this one." She looked at his son affectionately, made some silly face that made him laugh that precious little laugh that he had. It takes him ages to make his son laugh and she did it with such ease.

He realized he was staring again a little too late. She had that confused look on her face again and asked him again if he was okay. "I'm fine. Just a bit tired I suppose, it's been a long morning" he said.

"I understand" she said, still gently rocking Ben back and forth in her arms, lulling him into what he was sure would be a deep slumber. "So why have I never seen you pick up Ben before? It's always that, ah what's her name? Ashley! I know she isn't your wife, unless you two just decide not to wear wedding bands. Even then she isn't Ben's real mother anyway. I'm assuming she is some sort of assistant, since you are big business man. Oh I'm sorry I tend to over analyze certain kinds of situations. I hope I'm not prying too much into your personal life."

He didn't know how it happened but he had already fallen for her. What did she say her name was? Belle, that's it. "Belle, right?" She nodded in confirmation. "Would you like to go get some lunch? If we can find an open table somewhere." She laughed at that. He couldn't tell if that was good or bad. Gods he was nervous.

She looked him over thoughtfully and responded, "I would love to." She placed Ben back down into his stroller as gently as she could, cautious not to wake him. Then they proceeded to walk along Main St. looking for a place where they could sit and have lunch. With a lot of luck they managed to find a table for two outside of a sandwich shop. "Why don't you wait here and save our table and I'll go get the food" she suggested.

"Alright" he agreed "but I'm paying, don't even bother arguing with me because you will not win." He grinned at her and it was a pleasant surprise to him to see a slight blush crawl across her features.

"Well," she started "you should know that I'm an arguer." She looked down at him and gave him the same grin he gave her. His heart skipped a beat and he took a large gulp despite the fact that his throat was obscenely dry. She noticed his discomfort and only smiled brighter. He was definitely in trouble. "How about we each just pay for our own? Can you handle that?" she gave him another flash of her brilliant smile and it was then that he decided she had to be his.

"Anthony" he said. "My name's Anthony. I wasn't sure if you knew that already. And yes, I can handle that." His heart was beating so fast at that moment he was surprised he was able to form such coherent sentences. It was like she had cast a spell over him.

"I did know," she admitted "but it's nice to be introduced in person, rather than by a sheet of paper. So what would you like me to order for you?" She asked him so sweetly he thought he would melt.

He made a thoughtful expression, rubbing his thumb along his chin. He looked up at her and said, "Why don't you decide for me? Take a guess at what I like. It could be like a game." He felt like a child again. Like a lovesick school boy. Trying as hard as he could to make her laugh again, deciding that it was one of the most beautiful sounds he had ever heard. He was rewarded for his efforts as she laughed at his foolishness and made her way inside the little shop.

What felt like an eternity later she emerged with two large sandwiches and before handing him his, she decided to play a little game of her own. "Guess which one is yours" she said as she put both subs behind her back. She gave him a smile, encouraging him to make his decision.

She was so much like him, he thought. He again, tried to make her smile as he responded a little too much in character. "After much consideration I must choose the deliciously smelling sandwich you hold in your left hand." She made sure her facial expression was unreadable as she handed him his sandwich. She then sat down next to him and unwrapped her own. She picked it up and took a bite.

He watched her chew, and sip her drink as she swallowed. "You were correct. I am very impressed" she said with another perfect smile. "What made you choose left?" she asked.

"Well," he began "I always choose left. No matter what the circumstance because I figure what's the point in always being right." He paused for a moment to take a bite of his sandwich. She ordered him the pastrami, the same as what she ordered for herself. "What made you decide to order the both of us the same sandwich?" he asked.

She took another sip of her drink before answering, "It was pretty hectic in there, and I figured if you were willing to let a complete stranger decide what you would eat, you weren't very picky when it came to food. So I ordered two of the same to make those poor workers lives a little easier. The pastrami looked like the simplest thing to order off the menu." She gave him a shrug and continued to eat her sandwich.

He looked at her with astonishment. "So you ordered what you ordered out of, kindness?" he asked amazed.

"Yeah" she answered simply. "I think it's easier to be kind than to be mean. Being mean wastes so much more energy."

They ate the rest of their lunch getting to know one other in the most basic ways. When they continued their walk they shared a comfortable silence, simply enjoying one another's company. It wasn't until little Ben started to stir in his stroller that jack realized it was time for him to get home.

"I should probably be heading home, Ben is getting sick of the stroller, and it's a decent walk back to my house." Anthony was reluctant to excuse himself. He wanted to stay and walk with this girl more than anything in the whole world but he had a son, and that always put a huge damper on his love life.

She nodded, understanding completely, then offered to drive them home. "It'll start getting dark soon" she explained, "I don't want you two to be out on the streets with all these drunk idiots out here." She gave him a hopeful expression. It took him a moment to realize this was her way of saying I don't want to say goodbye. Since he didn't want to say goodbye either he accepted her offer, thanking God that his son's stroller could in fact double as a car seat.

It was a faster drive than the both of them thought and when the time came for them to part once again, neither was willing. So Anthony invited her inside for a drink instead. After he had put Ben to bed, he made his way downstairs to find that beautiful woman sitting at his kitchen table smiling up at him like he meant the world to her.

He needed to think of something to say. He wanted to be able to start a conversation without stammering for once. He opened his mouth ready to speak when he saw it. A giant hand shaped bruise on her upper arm. It had been hidden before by her jacket, but was now out and free for his eyes to see.

"What happened to your arm?" He tried his best to make his tone soothing and sympathetic but feared he didn't do as well as he thought. The second the words came out of his mouth her bright and cheerful expression turned to one of embarrassment and sorrow.

She grabbed her arm, trying to cover up the ghastly mark. When she spoke she made sure to keep her gaze set on the table, far away from Anthony's questioning eyes. "Umm... I.. I.. my ex he uh.. he liked to use his hands. I found out a little too late. He.. he still comes after me sometimes. He's mad at me.. be-because I wouldn't... I wouldn't..." she took in a shaky breath, "I wouldn't sleep with him. I'm afraid that he'll eventually get his wish though, even if it is by force." She gave Anthony a weak smile, trying to appear brave when in reality she was broken.

Anthony did the only thing he could think to do, hold her. He held her and she cried. He whispered words of kindness into her ear, as he gently stroked her silky hair. She clung to him like he was her savior. Her nails were digging into his shoulders but he could barely feel the sting. He wasn't letting ago until she was ready to let go.

Hours later, after Belle had calmed down a bit, had a drink of water and wiped away the tears and crawled right back into Anthony's awaiting arms; where Anthony had finally noticed she'd fallen asleep. Not wanting to wake her, but wanting her to be more comfortable than she probably was he carried her upstairs and laid her down on the bed, pulling the covers over her and softly kissing her on the forehead. As he was leaving for his own bedroom he felt a hand wrap around his wrist. He looked down at the sleeping beauty that he still couldn't believe was in his home and heard her whisper, "please don't leave me." His heart broke. How could he have fallen so hard for a girl he had met no more than ten hours ago? As he slid into bed with her and tentatively wrapped his arm around her waist, he allowed his muscles to relax as he felt her snuggle closer to him.

In the morning he opened his eyes to see no one but himself in the once warm bed. He moved over to the window and saw that her car was gone. No note, no goodbye, no nothing. It must have been a dream. A very realistic dream that he wish he'd never woken up from. He knew one thing for certain though, he would be the one picking up his son on Monday.