Hey guys! So this is basically a series of one-shots (I can't help myself) spinning off of my "Welcome Home" and potentially "Dreams and Dads" works. Once again (obviously) it's a modern-day AU. The title is inspired by the song "If I Didn't Have You" by Thompson Square, which I love to pieces. I thought I was done with this storyline but my brain said "Well, what about...THIS!" and so here I am. They probably will not be in order because I have so many different ideas, once again (if you know me, you already know that my brain works overtime constantly and never shuts up...) but I'll put in bold or italics or whatever what time frame it's set in - whether they're engaged or married. So yeah! So excited to be touching on this storyline once more. I fell in love with it harder than I thought I would. I'm probably overdoing it. If I am just let me know. You won't hurt my feelings. I'll stop rambling now.

Time frame: Engaged

"I don't know how to skate."
Rapunzel stared at Eugene dubiously as he expertly tied the roller skates onto his feet. The roller rink stank of cigarette smoke, air freshener, and pizza, and the music was a little too loud. This was their first date in which Eugene hadn't told her where they were going. She'd never been to a roller rink, and - she cringed as she saw a young boy fall on his tailbone and start crying - it looked pretty dangerous. And painful.
Eugene glanced up at her in surprise. "You've never been?"
"No," she shook her head. "I'm assuming you have?"
"As a kid, lots - the orphanage had a lot of little outings. I went just to get out of the stupid place; not like I got along with the kids," he chuckled. "I can show you."
"I..." she trailed off. "Maybe I'll just watch you."
"Well, that's no fun," he grinned at her, his brown eyes sparkling. "You sure?"
She felt torn as she saw the pure excitement in his eyes. He embraced her in all of her weird little quirks, couldn't she please him with rollerskating, even if it did mean a sore...everything ...tomorrow? (And possibly the next day after?) She shook her head. "If I fall down and crack my head and forget everything I ever learned, it's your fault."
"I'll take the blame," he threw back teasingly.
She shook her head and turned towards the lady who handed out the roller skates, nearly having to stand up on tiptoe because the counter was so tall. She quietly asked the woman - who looked none too amused at Rapunzel's uncertainty - for a pair of skates her size, and flinched when they were nearly immediately clomped down in front of her face. "Thank you," she squeaked, taking them and hurrying off to the nearest bench. Eugene wobbled along behind her, slowing and almost tripping as he tried to sit beside her.

He laughed at her alarmed expression. "It's like riding a bike, don't worry."
"I barely know how to ride a bike!" she grumbled. "I'm gonna make a fool out of myself."
"Then you can beat me up," he winked, his chocolatey eyes melting her heart. She rolled her eyes to mask the feeling and jerked at the tangled strings on her skates. When she got the deathtraps on wheels situated on her feet, he stood up and held his hands out to her. She took them, standing uncertainly, and then a teasing glimmer reappeared in Eugene's eyes.
"Don't you even think about doing anything," she warned him, and he chuckled.
"Who says I was thinking about feigning a fall, or tickling your side, or-"
She pulled away from his grasp to shove his chest teasingly, but then she ended up slipping backwards, her knees catching against the bench she'd just risen from and knocking her back down on it.
"See, don't be mean to your fiance. He knows what he's doing - mostly - and will take care of you. It's going to be fun," he laughed, and she tried to appear annoyed once more. It didn't work.

And then she found herself wobbling alongside him on the slick surface of the rollerskating rink, shuffling along and feeling not nearly as adorable as the five year old kids who were just learning. He was patient, though, and slowly explained how to skate.
"Push off...stride...stride...lean to turn. Lean-not that way!" he chuckled when she, in a moment of bravery, leaned her weight into him instead of the direction they needed to turn. When she righted herself and glanced up to laugh, he grinned. "I told you it'd be fun, and I knew you'd catch on quickly. Are you having fun?"
"I suppose, but we've hardly even been out here yet!"

They skated for about an hour, and then carefully eased out of the rink to buy some incredibly greasy pizza and warm sodas. As they sat at their table, a group of three girls raced awkwardly over to them, blushing.
"Are you Eugene Fitzherbert?" one girl, a brunette with blue eyes, asked. She was beaming, displaying a full set of braces. She clutched a book Rapunzel recognized quite well to her chest.
"I suppose I am, yes...?" he raised an eyebrow and wiped his hands on his napkin, holding back a grimace at the screech of his greasy fingers on the napkin.
"Can you sign our books? Oh my gosh, your poetry is so beautiful and romantic!" another girl, a blonde, exclaimed eagerly. She dragged the third girl, who had to be related to her and very shy, up front and center. "Your work is amazing! How old are you? I'm seventeen."
He laughed awkwardly, evading the question. "Thank you. You're almost out of high school, then?" he asked.
"One more year of high school for me, too," the brunette nodded, answering his question for the other girl. She shoved a pen his way. "You write so romantically. Did you write it about a girlfriend? Are you married?"
Eugene's face split into a larger, less awkward smile. "Yes, I did write it about my now-fiancee. She's my inspiration for everything," he turned to look at Rapunzel, and she blushed, but wiggled her fingers in an awkward wave at the three girls. The shiest one smiled, but the other blonde - the one who had asked how old Eugene was - and the brunette barely covered scowls as they took in the ring on Rapunzel's hand.
"It's nice to meet you three," Rapunzel said, not quite catching why the girls glowered so.
"She was your inspiration for the poems? You described her so differently...as if she were flawless." The blonde allowed her gaze to focus on Rapunzel's freckles, then her scar on her arm. Rapunzel quickly moved to cover the scar, as if she couldn't possibly compare to the seventeen year old.

"That's because she is," Eugene said simply, taking the pen and signing the books while maintaining a smile, which now appeared almost stiff. "There you go, girls. Thank you!"
"Thank you!" they said in unison, but the blonde threw one more glance towards Rapunzel's scar as she left, fluffing her perfectly styled hair. The brunette seemed no worse for wear after her recovery, staring blissfully at the signature for a moment before running off, yelling something to a friend. The shy one stuck back for a moment, still staring, and then turned and sped off on her roller blades.
Eugene glanced back towards Rapunzel to see her fingers moving jerkily up and down her scar. He reached over immediately and tucked her fingers in his larger hand. "Hey. They don't know you. She was conceited and I think pretty upset about the fact that I evaded their little flirty questions," he leaned over to whisper.
"Oh, I know it's silly and I'm not mad at her, goodness no," Rapunzel shook her head, embarrassed. "Just...it seems like the first thing most people notice about me is my scar."
"That's because people see scars as flaws, not history or battles won," he said quietly, smiling at her before dipping his finger in some of his pizza slice's red sauce and then dabbing her cheek with it.
She laughed, pulling her hand away so she could rub at it, rolling her eyes teasingly. "I don't know what I'm going to do with you sometimes."
"Kiss me, maybe?" he asked, winking.

She giggled, shaking her head. "How 'bout we get back to our pizza before another horde of frantic, flirting fans approach?"
"I didn't think my work would be that...you know. Cool."
Rapunzel smiled as his face grew tomato red. "Well, it is great. You have a real talent. And I told you you'd have tons of fans!"
He lowered the whole crust from his slice into his mouth at once, wincing as he chewed and swallowed. "Eh. Beginner's luck, probably."
"Or a super awesome person who just won't accept it as fact," she laughed, standing up and scooping up her trash. She held out her paper plate and he threw his on top, thanking her. Shakily, she shuffled towards the trash can and threw it in, turning around slowly. She'd gotten the hang of skating, but her time sitting down had made her legs settle into a mild shakiness. Eugene caught her eye, grinning, and made his way over to her, slipping his arm around her.
"Need help?" he asked.
"Mmh...yes," she nodded. "Legs are kinda shaky."
"I see. Too sore to keep skating?"
"No," she shook her head. "It's fun."
"Told you," he mouthed, giving her a pleased gri.

Rapunzel dropped Eugene off at his apartment before driving back to her own house after their day out. She got out of her little car and walked with him up to the doorstep of the complex he lived in, smiling pleasantly despite the ache that was settling over her entire body, between the few falls she'd had and just generally using muscles she didn't use often.
"Thank you so much!" she told him, grabbing him up into a hug as soon as he turned to look at her.
He laughed, wrapping his arms around her and giving her a squeeze. "Thank you for coming with and for driving, beautiful."
She reached up on tiptoe for a quick kiss that made her stomach flutter. "I'll see you at church tomorrow?" she asked. They'd recently settled into a church congregation. Whether it was temporary or permanent was still unknown, but she enjoyed the little church nonetheless.
"I'll see you at church tomorrow," he nodded, not in a huge rush to go inside.
She grinned and kissed his jaw. "Better go inside before you're rushed by more flirty fans," she teased.
"Jealous?" he asked, smiling, "Because you've got nothing to worry about." He bent and punctuated his sentence with quick little pecks across her face, making her nose wrinkle.
Rapunzel pushed him teasingly. "Not jealous. Genuinely concerned about your safety if a larger group approaches."
"Then I'll call in my awesome fiancee with her epic abilities with frying pans," he tossed back teasingly.