The morning rays were slowly trailing their way across the room, chasing the darkness away. Rumpel sat huddled in a corner where the sunlight could not reach, remaining in the comfort of the darkness. Pondering over his life in Storybrooke, he had been thinking about whether it was worth it anymore. 'Was living worth it?' he kept asking himself. It was becoming apparent that no matter how much he behaved and tried to be good, someone was still trying to beat him back down. However, it was becoming tiresome to keep getting back onto his feet and pushing himself forward.

In the last seven years, it had been enemy after enemy. He had spent his life in the Enchanted Forest not plagued by anyone. He had been the one in control. Now, everyone else was in control of his destiny. Telling him how he should behave, what he could and could not do. Life was so much easier as a villain, not answering to anyone's rules.

He was torn between running like the coward he was and living up the expectations of his wife. It was so much easier to run. Escaping into the darkness where feeling hurt never burdened him. The darkness was good at drowning it out. Rumpel knew though, he did not want to return there. He loved his life and what future he knew was coming. However, it did not make it easier fighting the darkness that clawed at his soul, trying to drag him back down and out of the light she brought into his life. The light that his family gave him.

Rumpel's attention perked by hearing faint voices upstairs. It must have been around ten in the morning. He surmised that Gideon must have just come in and was talking to Belle and Lilly upstairs. He hoped that no one knew that he was in the basement. Talking to them was not high on his list. Self-loathing felt more productive.

He heard the front door shut, intrigued Rumpel stood to see out one of the small windows three pair of legs walk off to the driveway. They must have decided to go out looking for him. Taking a long deep breath, Rumpel shuffled across the basement and up the stairs, unbuttoning his shirt. He was going to make the most of his time alone in the house, by showering and changing before they came back.

Turning the corner into the kitchen, Rumpel shrugged off his shirt and pulled his arms out of his sleeves when she spoke. "I told them you were in your man cave. But what does his mother know?"

Rumpel stopped dead, slowly gazing up to see Belle sitting in the armchair in the small sitting area next to the kitchen. He looked away from her, ashamed of the thoughts he had been having all night. The idea of ever leaving her was the furthest from his mind, but the idea of running away from everyone else was at the forefront.

He held the shirt by its collar and shook it before laying it over his arm. "His mother knows too much at times."

"Come and talk to me, Rumpel." She said, gesturing towards the couch end that was nearest to her.

"I don't want to talk." Rumpel told her and began to make his way to the stairs.

"I want you to talk." She said with a small bit of annoyance in her voice.

He scoffed. "We never get what we want in this life, dearie."

"Rumpel," She called, watching him go up the stairs. "Don't push me out!"

"Sweetheart, I have enough to deal with right now." Rumpel paused on the stairs as he spoke, his hand steadying him on the banister. "Just ignore me." He quickly climbed the stairs leaving their conversation. The mood to talk always alluded him and talking never helped. All it did was remind him of the awful things he had done or that someone had done to him. Why anyone would want to talk about things and go through it all a second time?

In temper, Rumpel threw his shirt across their bedroom, hating how he had spoken to Belle. She was his biggest problem. Like she had said, she knew things, knew him too well. There were things he did not want her to know. 'She wouldn't understand' he told himself as he sat down onto his side of their bed.

"Rumpel." She called from the doorway. Rumpel did not answer her, just watched as he played with his wedding ring. He knew she deserved better, she always deserved more than he could give her.

Her hand touched his bare shoulder as she sat down beside him. "Please, talk to me."

He closed his eyes at her plead. "I can't."

"Gideon thinks that Zelena hurt you last night." Belle said, her hand lingering on his shoulder. "But I think she hurt you a long time before last night." Rumpel did not dare say anything. She would not understand.

He felt her hand slid over his shoulders with her weight shifting beside him to be nearer. "If you don't talk to me, then I'm going down to the sheriff's office and asking Zelena."

At hearing Zelena's name, Rumpel's head shot up and his eyes opened to look at Belle beside him. "You stay away from her!"

"If my husband won't tell me what is wrong, then I will go and find out why he's put his walls back up?" She said, moving her hand from his back to touch his face.

Her touch burned against his cheek, warming him. "Please, don't go near her."

"Rumpel, I can't help if you don't let me." Belle beseeched, clasping his face between her hands.

"Believe me, you won't understand." He told her, turning his face out of her hold. The warmth he felt fleeted away and the coldness of the darkness returned.

Belle frowned at him and then grabbed his chin roughly with her hand, turning his head to look at her. "I won't unless you tell me." She told him. "You have to let me in, Rumpel. Don't let her knock you down. You've been so courageous the last two years, being here for me and Gideon. Don't ruin it, please."

"You don't want to know what she did to me!" He swatted her hand away, his emotions getting the better of him.

"Tell me!" She yelled at him and grabbed hold of his arm to shake him.

Rumpel snatched his arm out of her hold and shifted on the bed to face her, his leg folded in front of him, holding onto her by her upper arms. "You want to know do you? You want to hear, how she made me do things to people? How she commanded me to do things against my will? How she made me do things to her? Commanded me to kiss her? And not just kiss her! Oh, no, dearie, no! She commanded that I kiss her in the way I would kiss my true love, the way I would kiss you!" He shouted at her. "Do you want to hear the rest, do you?"

During his burst of anger, he shook Belle by her arms, not to hurt her but to make sure she stayed put. He did not want to lose her once she knew. Knew that her Rumpel was weak and not the man she hoped. He was breathless as he watched her, watched the tears fall down her cheeks. There was sadness in her eyes. Rumpel did not want to see that and closed his eyes, his shoulders slumped making his hands fall from her arms. He waited for her to run.

A silence fell over them for a few minutes. Her warm touch to his face startled Rumpel. He opened his eyes to look at her as his hand pressed against the back of her hand that was touching his face.

"You should have told me." Belle said quietly to him. "It does not matter if I understand or not. I am here for you. I love you more than anything."

"It's my burden, not yours." He told her as he turned his face into her hand, closing his eyes at the touch.

Her other hand came up to touch the other side of his face. "You need to have more faith in me, Rumpel. I am here for you no matter what. We made the promise to rely on the strength of our love. Don't waver from it now."

"I don't want to ruin your happiness." Rumpel confessed, a tear escaping down his cheek.

Belle pulled at his face, making him open his eyes to look at her. "You are my happiness, you idiot!"

"Pfft!" He rolled his eyes at her, not believing her words.

"You have brought so much to my life." She stared at him intently, holding his gaze, and it scared him to see the honesty in her eyes. "I had nothing till you came into my life. I would have been married to Gaston and been miserable." Belle paused to take a deep breath to calm herself. "Yes, we have gone about things in the wrong way and things have happened between us, but we are stronger for them. And, you are so much braver now. You've allowed people to get close to you."

He tried to look away but she refused to let his face out of her hold, as she continued. "Lilly thinks of you as a father now. You take great care of her and Gideon, and you will of this one when they arrive." Belle said to him and nodded to her stomach. "So, I need you to stay with me. Don't go back to the darkness."

Rumpel wiped at his tears as Belle's fingers threaded into his hair to the back of his head, encouraging him to lean towards her. Embracing each other into a hug, the tenderness of her caused Rumpel to break out into more tears, a wave of emotion overwhelming him. No one had ever been there for him. He should have known better that Belle would not be like the rest. She had become a main part of his foundation, a source of power that he drew on to be stronger. A power he found overruled his dark power.

"Now," She whispered into his ear, her breath warm against his ear. "You're going to shower and change. Then you're going to pack for your camping trip."

"I don't…" Belle shushed him. "You're going to spend the weekend with your son, because you always put his happiness first. Then, you're going to come home to me and we're going to pick some baby names."

Rumpel nodded his head into the crook of her neck. "Okay."