He'd been intrigued by the girl. She was always there, never missed a lecture. She always took the same seat, in the back, on the right, behind Ruby Lucas. None of the other professors talked about her, but he knew she attended more courses. His, history, but he was fairly certain she was taking chemistry with Mills and biology with Blanchard too.

There was one small detail: she wasn't enrolled in any of them. The university had no registration of her whatsoever. He was quite sure of that: he'd checked. Several times. Thoroughly.

She was a mystery, but nobody except him really seemed to care. He was quite certain she actually did all the work he set his students, but she never handed anything in. Now that he thought about it, she'd probably be top of the class. She never said anything but she just... she had a look. Something told him she was too clever for her age.

Today, after class, he told himself firmly. Today he was going to talk to her. She was always away before he knew it but today he'd talk to her. He'd never managed to bring up the courage. Today, he decided, maybe a good glass of whiskey would do the trick. God, he was getting to the point where he needed to have alcohol before talking to a pretty woman. The good old days were long gone, it seemed.

The lecture took long. Way too long. He confused about five different names in ten minutes and he dropped his laser pointer three times. He sighed, relieved, when the students finished taking down his last words and packed their bags. He didn't turn his back on the room, scared that maybe she'd slip through his fingers again. He waited until she was down the stairs, hurrying to get out of the room, before he stopped her.

''Hey, you. Come here for a moment.'' God, he didn't even know her name. Maybe if he ran, she wouldn't notice. No, who was he kidding. There was no getting out of this anymore.

She hesitated for a second, deciding whether to turn back to the professor or not. She really wasn't supposed to, he'd probably report her to the board and then, well, she'd be royally screwed. Then again, if she didn't talk to him now, she couldn't come back to this course again. And he did give very interesting lectures.

Taking a deep breath, she turned around to find him smiling at her. ''Sir.'' She said stiffly.

''Please, call me Gold. You're not my student anyway.'' He laughed and started stacking the papers on his desk. Had he really said that? Wow, well done, Gold. He'd lost his game, if he ever had any.

Belle rolled her eyes. ''Well then, Gold, I suspect you want me out of your classroom sooner rather than later.'' She pulled her bag a little further up her shoulder.

''Oh no, you understand me quite the wrong way, miss. I just want to know why you're here every week. You haven't missed a single lecture since Christmas. And, for all my research, I haven't found you on a single university registry list I have access to.'' He looked back at her, a smirk on his face she'd gladly wipe off it. There were plenty of ways to do it, too. To be honest, she'd been eyeing him since she first walked in. She knew she shouldn't, he was too old for her, but he had that look...

She stared at him, mouth open. It took her only a few seconds to regain her composure. ''I... uh... I don't really know what to say to that.'' She stammered.

Gold sat on his desk, facing her, crossing his arms. He look amused, but there was a slight hint of nervousness in the way he fiddled with his shirt. ''Let's start with your name.'' He said, more brave than he felt.

''Oh, well, my name's Belle French.'' She stood awkwardly as he motioned for her to go on. ''There's nothing else to know really. I'm not supposed to be here, just let me leave, I won't come back.''

''I want you to come back.'' He said, voice low. It was then that she realized the lecture room was empty. Everyone had left. Goddamnit, now she was alone with him. Not that the scenario didn't feature heavily in many fantasies of hers, but at least with others around she wasn't tempted as much to pursue them. The silence pressed on her heavily, his look even more so. His eyes pulled her in quickly.

She shook herself out of her trance. ''You want me to come back?''

He smiled. She wasn't completely terrified of him, so that was a good thing. ''Of course I do. You're smart, miss French, I can see that. Who would I be to deny you an education?''

''You'd be a sensible human being. I sneak into your classes and you still want me to come back? You don't even know me.''

This was his opportunity. She was beautiful, smart and he'd be willing to bet she would not be afraid to tell him off. Damnit, he thought, get a grip. You're not a fucking teenager. ''We can change that. How about you join me for lunch tomorrow at that little diner on 5th?''

''Eh...'' She was going to say no, he knew it. Of course she would, she was way out of his league. ''Okay. I'd like that.'' She whispered.

He had a date. A date with this beautiful woman. A woman who was too fucking young to even think about going out with someone like him. But a woman who, nevertheless, agreed to do so. ''Wow.'' He said, slightly flabbergasted. ''I guess I'll see you tomorrow then, miss French.''

''I guess you will. 12 o'clock, don't be late.'' She smiled sweetly as she turned to leave the room. He watched her walk away, still stunned. ''Oh, by the way.'' She turned around at the door, leaning against the frame. ''Call me Belle. I'm not your student anyway.'' She winked at him as she disappeared.

He sat back with a smirk on his face. This girl was going to be the death of him.