This morning, when she arrived in Storybrooke once more, she'd genuinely intended for them to come home and sleep. They'd done that…eventually.

At first, their morning had taken a turn she would never have expected this time yesterday, they weren't just sharing a bedroom or a bed again, they were sharing bodies again too. It was sudden; she wholeheartedly admitted that, but just like it always did, taking the step felt right. And after they'd finally been tired and calm enough to sleep.

But only for a little while until they woke found lips and skin once more, and unashamedly continued in that pattern for the rest of the morning.

She couldn't say that she was terribly surprised. Their attraction to one another had always been strong, whether they were angry at each other or madly in love, being close to one another like this was never the problem. It was a different type of closeness that was problematic.

And so after the morning had passed, after most of the afternoon had passed too for that matter, and they'd both had nap after nap, and made love too many times to count, after Rumple had gotten up and lit the fireplace in their bedroom for the first time in her memory because she was cold, and brought food to snack on and alcohol to make things interesting, she'd pulled sheets back, welcomed him to bed, and considered a question that made her uneasy. It was an odd twist, but she figured that after all, she'd put him through maybe, it was time for her to feel uncomfortable about a question.

"So…where did you go? After…"

It was mid-afternoon, the sun was still out, though she was beginning to notice that the fire was also providing light for them. She was also getting tired again, it was nearly time for another nap, but as they lay there, he on his back, she on her side facing him, she felt that an actual conversation was in order, especially considering all that had happened.

Rumple looked over at her at her question. He understood exactly what she was asking, and the way he was looking at her now like he was searching her face as if making sure she really wanted to know the answer to what she'd asked, it was disconcerting. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, I have no right to…"

"If anyone has a right it's you," he answered. "And I don't think we're going to get any farther than this if we're not truthful with one another." She blushed and smiled at the pronouncement. That was good. She didn't know if she wanted to know, but she knew that she needed to know if they were to go forward. Finally, Rumple sighed, he located her hand and rested it against her knees before looking back up at the ceiling.

"I went nowhere at first. You and the town disappeared before my eyes, and the only thing I wanted to do was get back to you. I left a tie on a branch near the town line so that I wouldn't lose it and then I just started walking, thinking of a plan.

"I figured I needed people from our world to help me, they were few and far between, but I have lived a long time, and I did know of a few. Ursula was in New York City, she was originally a mermaid and retained the power to travel between realms. After an unfortunate incident, she'd made it quite clear that she intended to go to a place where others wouldn't. I had keys to Bae's apartment in New York City in my pocket, so I figured I'd go there. I'd have a place to stay, and I could work with the sea witch if necessary. Imagine my surprise when I found Robin Hood and who I presumed to be his wife and son living in the apartment when I got there."

Robin Hood! That was where they'd gone! She knew that they'd gone into the World Without Magic, but she hadn't known where exactly until this moment. "Regina…Regina had them leave earlier in the day, before you left. Marian…Zelena she-"

"I recall," he inserted quickly. She hadn't put it together until just now, though clearly he already had. Marian was Zelena. Zelena had magic. Marian had never been cursed or affected by the Snow Queen at all. It was Zelena. She'd done it to herself. It was either risky or crazy and considering it was Zelena her first instinct was crazy. "It wasn't long after I arrived in New York that she revealed herself to me."

"Revealed herself to you? How? I-" She stopped herself when she realized just how accusing her tone had become. She couldn't do that, not anymore, not if they had even the slightest chance of making this work. She had questions, yes. And what had happened with Zelena in New York City was awful, she already knew that, but it was the past. It was a different time, and this was a new chapter. She was allowed to know, but she wasn't allowed to accuse. "Why would she reveal herself to you like that?" she questioned gently.

He turned and searched her eyes once more, and she felt the grip that he had on her hand tighten. "I wasn't well, Belle. You won't remember because I told you that day at the well, but all the deeds, all the sins I'd committed over the years took their toll. Where magic is present, it weakened my heart by turning it black, when the magic was gone it just weakened my heart. It was Robin Hood that called the ambulance that sent me to the hospital and because he is a good man, helped me find an elixir from our world that would cure me, only it didn't work because Zelena had switched it.

"I don't know how but she knew my plan was to find the Author and she traded me the elixir for the promise of a happy ending when I finally met him."

She still had a lot of questions, but there was one thing that had stopped her mind from working properly, one phrase and a memory of a night that she woke up in the middle of the night with an awful, terrible feeling that she'd only ever felt once before. She'd dismissed it before because the pain had passed but now she felt as though she knew what had happened and it terrified her.

"Your heart…it stopped didn't it," she choked out.

He nodded. "Once." She felt her heartbreak all over again and had to force her eyes into her pillow to dry them. Twice she'd felt the pain of his death. Oh, life really was too short. Beside her, she felt the bed shift and his hand move around her back to comfort her. "Belle-"

"It stopped once and then started again, didn't it?"

"How did you know?"

"Because I felt it," she answered finally picking her head off the pillow. "I didn't know what I was feeling, but I felt the way I did when you died a year ago. It was only for a moment, so I dismissed it right away, but I didn't understand…Rumple if I'd known I would have come. Right away! There were times before you were gone that I nearly did, that I almost came over that line and found you, and…" And she regretted that now. Maybe things would have been better that way, if they'd both just gone across the town line and started a life together outside of this town, outside of this world and magic! There were a million ways that the night at the town line could have gone, she didn't regret sending him over, but she regretted-

"It's done Belle," he whispered setting on his side and moving closer so he could rub her back. Comforting. He was always so comforting! He had died, and he was the one comforting her!

She gave a final sniffle and leaned forward to kiss him softly. "I'm glad you are alright now."

"Better than alright," he confirmed. But he wasn't. She could tell just by the look in his eyes that he wasn't as "alright" as he told her he was. There was something.

"Rumple…what's bothering you?" But he didn't answer. He just quietly moved his hand up to her cheek and felt her hair. She reached up and grabbed it for him. "Rumple?"

"You said you almost came after me," he admitted. "Why didn't you?"

She sighed. Of course, he had to ask a question that had half a dozen different answers! Well…of course there were a lot of reasons, each time she'd considered following him over the town line had been a different scenario, but she supposed that in the end there was always one thing that stopped her.

"I was angry, Rumple. What you did…it wasn't nothing. You hurt me. You absolutely destroyed me and the idea of wading back into that was terrifying. It is terrifying, but I'm willing to try again now that things are different."

"And Will?"

"Will was…good for me, but not in the ways I thought he was," she admitted quickly. She knew they weren't done talking about that, but she knew that there was a lot to talk about. Will was complicated. She didn't regret him. She meant what she'd said, he had been good for her! But she did regret how far she'd let the relationship go. He was a good friend; he'd helped her move on, just not romantically.

"Will was a friend when I needed him. But when it came to love…there was nothing there! Both our hearts were already taken. I think we fooled each other by thinking that because we had so much in common and had friendship that we could be more or that we were a smart match. But we couldn't be more, no matter what we looked like on paper we just never had anything. He had Anastasia and I…I had you. Even when I didn't have you and you didn't have me…I was still yours. I will always be yours and if this doesn't work…then I don't think I'll ever be with anyone ever again.

"And with Will…nothing happened Rumple. Nothing serious at least. We kissed. It never felt the same as when I kiss you. And I don't think either of us ever found true satisfaction in the other. We kissed but never went farther than that. Neither of us were ready. And for me…it takes a lot for me to be comfortable enough around someone to take my clothes off. I've never felt comfortable like that around anyone but you."

Her declaration must have been convincing, though she didn't know why it wouldn't be. It was the truth. But she was thrilled that he seemed to believe her and reached forward to kiss her. Again and again, until she felt a stirring below her belly and had to reach forward for him, she had to put her fingers in his hair, she had to breathe him in and taste him. It was a moment of truth and proof; she knew it was. Reestablishing the truth of their relationship and proof of what she'd just stated. Their relationship, the intimacy between them, it was different than it ever would be. Their past might have been behind them, but the way she saw it, they could still make up for it now.

So...if we're going to talk about messed up relationships here is something that is going to have to happen. The writers seriously have to find some time for Rumbelle to actually have conversations. On-screen or off-screen, I don't care, I can write it either way! But this is one of the reasons that this relationship is constantly failing. They run hot or cold and nowhere in between, which means conversations about really important things that they NEED to have get delayed! In season 5A I finally had them discuss things that happened in 4A and here we are in 5B discussing things in 4B. Why? Because there are no other opportunities for this conversation to happen. And I'm sorry, maybe in Adam and Eddy world the stuff that has happened to them can just be put away and never thought of again, but I would hope that in Rumbelle world I'm not the only one shouting at the screen "so, are they ever going to get to talk about what happened a season ago?!" Like I said, I don't need to see it, I just need them to create the space for me to put it in. Otherwise, we'll be talking about the crap that happened in 5B summer of 2018.

Thank you, Ladybugsmomma, Grace5231973, Rumbellefan, Teresa Martin, TracyJean, Fox24, and Carlyle23, for your reviews on the last chapter! I'm so happy to have so many of you back and i hope that you will stick with me and this fiction for the long haul! I know it's not going to be easy but I figure if we got through it once we can certainly do it again. Peace and Happy Reading!