Belle waited patiently in the booth at the Diner, her hands folded together on the table. She pressed her teeth into her lip as she watched Ruby deliver food to the other tables. Her friend winked at her as she passed, and her smile spread across her face. She hadn't seen Ruby since the previous morning. She was so busy cataloging the library that she had to cancel on their usual Saturday night movie plans. When morning came, she rushed through her routine, checked herself several times in the bathroom mirror and hurried to the Diner. She missed her friend and couldn't wait to see her.

"Hey..." Ruby greeted, setting a plate of pancakes down in front of Belle. She smiled down at her as she slid the syrup onto the table. She placed her hand on the back of the booth. "How was your night?"

Belle shrugged. "Uneventful," she replied, motioning her hand for Ruby to join her. The waitress obliged and slid into the seat across from her. Belle smiled as she began to pour her syrup over everything, a little tip she learned from her friend. She raised her blue eyes to Ruby. "How about you? How was your night?"

Ruby bounced her head from side to side. "It was okay. I went out for a little bit." She placed her hand over her mouth, stifling a yawn. "Oh, wow, excuse me." She opened her eyes wider, trying to force them not to close.

The librarian released a tiny laugh as she placed the syrup down on the table. "Are you sure it was just for a little while?" She started spreading the liquid around the pancakes with her fork. "You look exhausted."

"Well, I did stay out longer than I thought I would."

Belle cut a piece of her pancake and raised it to her mouth. She paused from taking a bite and locked eyes with Ruby. Even exhausted, her friend was still the most beautiful woman in the room. She cleared her throat, breaking the silence. "Where did you go?" she asked, finally taking a bite of her food.

"To that new tavern down the street." She tilted her head to the side. "You know the guy who runs it, right? I think his name is LeFa..."

"LeFou." Belle corrected, rolling her eyes. "Yes, I know him. He is friends with someone I'd rather not remember." She took another bite.

Ruby smirked. "Ex-boyfriend?"

Belle shook her head, placing her hand in front of her mouth. It was rude to talk with food in your mouth, but she had to clarify who the person was. "Not exactly. Someone my father thought I should be with." She placed her fork down for a moment. She would much rather talk to her friend then eat. "Just another thing that I was told to do instead of asked."

The waitress frowned slightly. Belle not being allowed to make her own decisions in their old land always bothered her. That's why she made sure every time they hung out, no matter what they did, she asked Belle's opinion before settling on a plan. It was nice not having all the responsibility on her shoulders. And Belle enjoyed being able to choose. Whatever brought that perfect smile to Belle's lips, made Ruby happy. She loved when she smiled.

"So, what made you decide to go there?" Belle inquired, grabbing her ice tea and taking a sip.

Ruby hesitated for a moment. She ran a hand through her hair. "Well, um..." She swallowed lightly. Her eyes shifted from Belle to the table to the ceiling then back to Belle. She squinted slightly. "Remember when Leroy said he had someone he wanted me to meet?"

Belle stopped drinking. Her stomach started to twist at the reminder of Leroy trying to set Ruby up on a blind date. When he first mentioned it, Belle protested on Ruby's behalf causing some confusion with the waitress. She made sure to tell Leroy they had plans, when they really didn't. Belle's excuse was that if he was doing the set up, it was safe to say the person probably had a horrible personality. Then, she would create plans so Ruby wouldn't be stuck doing nothing on a night she could have done something.

Her cheeks puffed out as the liquid filled her mouth. She swallowed hard, placing her glass slowly back down on the table. "You, uh..." She felt the lump in her throat close off her air. She cleared her throat trying to regain control of her speech. "You went out with her?"

Ruby opened her mouth, but no words came out. The room suddenly turned very warm. She couldn't understand why it was so hard to talk to Belle about girls she met. Belle was her best friend. She should be able to tell her anything. But the look on Belle's face whenever she talked about a date, made her feel guilty.

"Well, Leroy ... he caught me leaving after I closed the Diner," she explained. She played nervously with her hands. "And ... uh ... he noticed I was heading to the Inn and asked me if I wanted to go for a drink…" She opened her hands, her fingers spreading as she talked. "So I did, and she was..." She pressed her lips together. "...There."

"Oh…" was all that Belle could manage to say.

She never understood why this bothered her so much. Ruby going on dates, that is. She was single. She was beautiful. She was amazing. Why shouldn't someone get the pleasure of experiencing all that she was? What right did Belle have to horde it all to herself? They were just friends, after all. There were no romantic feelings. No real attraction. Belle wondered who exactly she was trying to convince when she thought things like that.

She looked down at her plate, pushing it away. "D-did you like her?" She looked up, catching Ruby's hazel eyes staring intently at her. She found herself lost in them for a moment.

Ruby broke their gaze as she leaned back in the booth. "Um, she was okay. I mean, she was cool but, she wasn't…" She stopped, realizing she was about to say too much.

Belle raised a curious eyebrow. "Wasn't what?"

Ruby sighed heavily. She might as well say it. Eventually, it would slip out. She leaned forward, her hands pressing into the cool table. She was about to admit something she had been hiding for so long. The thought of her friend's reaction made her sweat. She opened her mouth to speak.

"Hey, Ruby," a seductive voice greeted as both women turned their attention to it.

Belle stared at the woman hovering over Ruby. She was exotic and beautiful. Her skin was naturally tanned, flawless. Her hair was dark, almost black, which caused her bright green eyes to stand out. Her smile was perfect. Not as perfect as Ruby's, of course, but close enough. The skirt she wore flowed down to her ankles and her top came off the shoulder. If Belle didn't know any better, she would have though she was a gypsy passing through town.

Ruby's face slacked. She pressed her elbow into the table, resting her hand on the back of her neck to hold her head up. If she didn't, her forehead would have smacked the table in disbelief of what was happening. "Esmeralda…" she replied, slowly. "Uh… hey…"

The woman released a tiny laugh. "I told you to call me Esi, remember?" she said, reaching out to touch Ruby's chin. She grinned. "You didn't have a problem remembering last night."

Belle felt her teeth clench. Her heart thumped hard and loud in her chest. She thought it was about to jump out and land on the table between the three of them. She could feel the heat rising up her neck, burning as it coursed through her body. She touched her forehead, thinking maybe she was coming down with something suddenly, but her head felt cool. It was her face, her neck, her insides that were burning.

Ruby laughed nervously as she straightened up. She held her hand out toward Belle. "Uh, Esmer ... Esi ... This is Belle," she introduced.

The woman turned to Belle, a huge smile covering her lips. "Oh, so you're Belle," she greeted, holding her hand out. "I've heard so much about you."

Belle forced a smile. She took the woman's hand and shook it slowly. "Well, that's nice to hear. We were actually just talking about you," she replied, giving Ruby a sideways glance causing the woman to duck her head.

The woman's smile turned to a little smirk. "Really?" She turned her attention to Ruby. "I'd love to know what was being said." Their eyes locked for a moment, and the waitress gave a small smile.

Belle couldn't take the heat filling her any longer. She pressed her hands into the table. "You know what? I have to go," she said, breaking the stare between the two.

They turned to her. Ruby frowned. "You're leaving?"

Belle nodded, clearing her throat. "Yes ... I – uh … I have lot of work to do."

Ruby drew her brow together, raising an eyebrow. "It's Sunday."

"Yeah ... well…" Belle stood, quickly. She shrugged, her hands slapping against her side. "What better day to get some boring cataloging done, right?"

"Oh … okay..." Ruby replied, her tone low and confused. She watched as Belle put on her coat. She could see the distress on Belle's face and this saddened her. "I'll come see you later?"

Belle shook her head. "You don't have too." Her eyes remained focused on the floor. She couldn't look at either of them.

Ruby felt like someone punched her in the stomach due to Belle's tone. Her expression saddened. "I want to."

"Fine … whatever you'd like." She glanced at Esmeralda. "It was nice meeting you." She looked at Ruby one last time, ignoring the puppy dog expression that tugged at her heart. She opened her mouth to say something, but no words escaped. She bit her lip, lowered her head and walked out of the Diner.

Ruby watched her leave as Esmeralda slid into the booth in front of her. "So..." the woman began as Ruby slowly turned her attention to her. The woman's smile brightened her face as she looked deeply into the waitress' eyes. "What were you saying about me?"

Ruby pressed her teeth into her bottom lip, glancing back at the window. She watched as Belle hurried across the street to the library. She sighed, running her hand through her hair as she returned her attention to the woman sitting in the spot of the one who held her heart.