7
~ Once In a Lifetime ~
You were there for me
I was there for you
We were meant to be
Now we're fallin' in love
Finally fallin' in love…
Chicago – Once In a Lifetime
The Enchanted Forest
Years earlier…
"Rise and shine, my lady! It's another beautiful day…" Jiminy whispered in Marie's ear as he flew above her. She groaned and buried her face deeper into her pillow. "Come on, Marie! Today's not a day for sleeping in. It's a day to be out in the fresh air and sun."
"Oh, all right," she mumbled and sat up. "Do you always get up this early?"
"Always."
"Well you can't stay in here while I get dressed! Now shoo…out in the hall with you!" she cried and waved him away.
"What kind of cricket do you take me for? I don't peek in at women while they're dressing. It's indecent!" He shook his head and flew out into the hall, using one of the statues as his perch while he waited for her.
Belle came down the hall sweeping the floor and stopped when she saw him. "Good morning Jiminy," she greeted. "What are you doing out here?"
"Marie is dressing and a bit cross with me since I woke her up early."
Belle giggled. "I forgot to warn you about that. She doesn't like to get up any earlier than eight."
"All right, come on you crazy insect. You've gotten me up, now what do you want to do?" Marie asked when she came out of the room. The worst of her illness was over but Rumple advised her that if she did go outside, she was not to be out there long or she risked another relapse as she had the day Charming showed up and she and Belle chased him out of the castle with the broom.
"Are you going to be cross with me all morning?" he demanded. "It doesn't become you."
Truth be told, she didn't like staying angry with him now. She spent most of the week in bed sick, miserable and missing her daughter terribly but he was always finding ways to bring a smile to her face with his stories about the Charmings and little adventures he had with his friend Geppetto.
She patted her shoulder and he flew onto it then she took him out to the gardens, loving the scent of the red roses that bloomed there. Jiminy flew off her shoulder and down to the roses and took one off the vine by biting into it. It fell on the bench beside her.
"Jiminy….that's so sweet of you…thank you," she said softly as she picked it up and sniffed it.
"Now that's the smile I was looking for."
She laughed. "You won't let me be unhappy for a moment, will you?"
"No."
"Why?"
Because you're even more beautiful when you smile and if I were human again I'd bring you a dozen roses every day just so I could see you smile.
"You deserve to be happy, Marie…that's all," he said shyly.
But you're not human and you can't be, not right now. It's too dangerous. Any day now Cora will cast her curse and take you all away…and the only way you can protect yourself and her is to stay as you are and try not to get too close.
They had to try to get into Cora's vault one more time. Too much was at stake now to let the curse be cast and once again he was willing to die to stop it if that was what it took. She was worth dying for.
"I have my daughter, my family and a few friends….what more do I need?"
You need a man who will love you more than anything else in the world. I can be that for you. I want to be that for you! And I know I'll love your daughter too if I get to meet her!
"You don't think you need anything else? What about love?"
"Love's for everyone else…not me," she said sadly. "I thought I was in love once…but he died."
"You can love again. You just have to believe in it, in yourself."
And in me.
"No, Jiminy…love's not for me. It never will be."
"What if someone proved to you it would be? Would you take the chance?"
"Why are you asking me this?"
"Because I think that's what is missing in your life…a man to love you…and a father for your daughter."
Now why can't a MAN treat me like this? Marie thought bitterly. She despised insects yet this one acted like he was still a human being and if he were one she could even fall in love with him. Could it be possible HE was the man she would meet in the new land? No, it was too much to hope for.
"Well I won't find him here…if I ever will so there's no sense thinking about it!" she cried.
His face fell. "What do you mean?"
"Rumple….he said in another land I would find a man who would love me and Gisella….but it's too much to hope for," she sobbed.
"Will you excuse me for a moment?" Jiminy asked and took flight. He flew into the open window of Rumple's lab and perched himself on the table, glaring at the sorcerer. "What kind of game are you playing, Rumplestiltskin?" he demanded angrily.
"Whatever do you mean dearie?"
"You know exactly what I mean! Are you enjoying this…watching me get my heart broken and dashing Marie's hopes when I've never felt this way before in my life and she's been so disappointed by love?"
"Jiminy, what has you so upset?"
"Did you or did you not tell Marie she would meet her true love in another land?"
"It's what I've Seen Jiminy." He set a Seeing Globe on the table and concentrated, letting his vision appear in it. "That man is Marie's true love. Recognize him, dearie?"
Jiminy peered into the globe feeling as if a weight had been lifted off his chest. "It's me…." he whispered. "I'm…older than I was before I was changed…but it's me!"
"I had no doubt of it, cricket. But the course of true love never does run smooth…and there will be many challenges you'll face in this new land."
"I don't care. I'd walk through fire for her if I had to!"
"It may not come to that but I See good times and bad ones ahead for you. You'll have to fight hard for your happy ending…maybe the hardest of all of us because of your interference in Cora's curse."
Rumple glanced down at the scar on the cricket's back where one of his wings had been badly burned after a failed break in attempt at Cora's vault. Rumple tried to repair the damage as best he could but the scar remained and he could not fly for long distances without needing to rest.
"I don't care. She's worth it to me," Jiminy insisted.
Rumple smiled. "So…if Fate is kind, someday we'll be family."
"I'd like that. If you'll excuse me, I'll go see if Marie is all right."
"Go on. Cherish what time you have. It will not be long now…"
Not if I have anything to say about it, Jiminy thought. It was risky, but he was going to try to convince Regina to break into the vault one last time. If they could stop the first curse, the second one would fail as well.
As he flew down the hall, he noticed that the door to her bedroom was ajar. When he entered he saw her standing in front of the uncovered mirror.
"Marie! No!" he cried. "Cover it!"
"Jiminy, it's just a mirror."
"No…you don't understand…SHE spies through mirrors. You've got to cover it!"
They heard laughter on the other side of the glass. "So cricket…I've found your weakness after all."
Cora's image appeared in the glass. Marie backed away in fear. "RUMPLESTILTSKIN!" she screamed.
"Stay away from her!" Jiminy snarled.
"If I cannot crush YOUR heart, I'll crush HERS!" The Queen Mother smiled evilly as several vines came out of the glass and wrapped themselves around Marie and lifted her off the floor. Jiminy flew over to her and was knocked to the floor by one of the vines.
"Jiminy, help me!" Marie pleaded, the vines squeezing her tight, making it difficult to breathe.
"Let her go!" Jiminy hissed as he struggled to get up. Another vine pinned him to the floor.
"I don't think so, dearie!" Rumple hissed from the doorway and threw an energy ball at the mirror, shattering it. The vines vanished and Marie fell to the floor beside the cricket.
"What did I do?" Marie sobbed.
"It's all right, you didn't know…" Jiminy soothed.
"Marie!" Belle cried and ran into the room, seeing her sister on the floor bleeding from where the thorny vines cut into her skin. "What happened?"
"I….uncovered one of the mirrors…and the Queen Mother….attacked me!"
"Why?"
"It's my fault….she hurt her because of me!" Jiminy moaned.
"No…not your fault…you told me to cover the mirror up and I didn't listen…"
"Come on, dearie, let's get you into bed." Rumple said gently and picked her up, laying her down. He waved his hand over her arms and her cuts were healed.
"I'm fine…"
"No you're not. You've had a terrifying ordeal and need to sleep. We'll wake you later. Come on, Jiminy."
"Can't you stay?" she asked, taking the cricket by surprise.
"Marie, it's not proper for me to…"
"I'd feel safer if you were here," she insisted. "Just to watch over me."
Rumple and Belle looked at each other and smiled. Then the sorcerer waved his hand and a small bed appeared on the nightstand. "That should be comfortable enough for you Jiminy but if it isn't let me know."
"It's fine and your son made me a bed I was quite comfortable in too."
"Well you can use that one to nap downstairs then."
"Call us if you need anything," Belle said softly and closed the door behind them.
"I'm sorry, Marie."
"Why are you apologizing?"
"You were attacked because of me."
"And I told you I'm the one at fault. I uncovered the mirror and I should not have." She patted the empty space on her pillow. He hopped onto it. It was then that she noticed the scar on his back. "W…What happened to you?"
"Cora…she attacked me after we tried to break into her vault to steal back Regina's fiancé's heart."
"Regina…she helped you with this?"
"Yes. She is not as evil as everyone believes but as long as Cora holds her fiancé and her father hostage, she will have a much more difficult time holding onto her humanity. If she loses it completely, it will not bode well for any of us."
She felt horrible for poking fun at him when he first came to the castle. "You have trouble flying because of what she did, don't you?"
He nodded. "I have to stop and rest more often than before."
"I was awful to you the day we met," she said regretfully.
"You didn't know. It's not something I talk about often."
"There's a lot you don't talk about. You made me comfortable enough to talk to you about things I don't to anyone but Belle but you don't share much about yourself."
He sighed. "There isn't much I enjoyed about my life before I became a cricket. My parents were…thieves and con artists and they taught me all their tricks. I wanted to do something else it's just I never had the courage to leave. Instead I sought out a magician by the name of Magnus…who was an even better con artist. He told me what he gave me was a sleeping potion…it was a transformation potion. My parents were going to Geppetto's house to pull a con on them and…they switched the placebo they had for the potion I had…and Geppetto's parents were turned into dolls!"
Marie gasped. "What did you do?"
"I was horrified….I called on the Blue Fairy for help and she said there was nothing she could do. She suggested I make amends by helping Geppetto through his life…and I chose to do so as a cricket because we both loved to sit out and listen to them. Rumple told me it was possible had Geppetto kissed his parents with true love's kiss, they could've changed back."
"So you've spent all this time as a cricket when a simple kiss could have fixed the problem?" Marie asked angrily. "You've made other peoples' lives better yet denied yourself a chance at happiness. Don't you think you deserve it?"
I didn't have a reason to…until now.
"Helping people does make me happy."
"What about love?" she asked. "If you were human again, would you want that? A family of your own?"
The only family I could ever want is the one we would build together. You, me, your daughter and any other children we would have.
It was what he wanted to say but lacked the courage to for fear she would laugh. He was after all, still a cricket.
"That would be possible if I were human again but with this curse coming….Rumple feels it's safer to stay as I am."
"Maybe…if we see each other again in this new land….we'll both have the happiness we want…"
Now more than ever, Jiminy was determined to stop those curses from destroying all their lives.
His heart ached the day she left. He sat on one of the statues, saying nothing as she bid her farewells to her family, thinking it was best if they parted in silence but he'd forgotten how feisty she was.
"Weren't you going to say goodbye?"
"Not goodbye, fair lady. But . .. until we meet again. Because someday . . . I think we will."
"You've been a wonderful friend to me, Jiminy..."
"You too, Marie . . ."
She gave him a smile and stepped into the waiting coach.
"I must be going now too," he said sadly.
"You will see her again, Jiminy." Belle vowed.
"Yes, I believe I will."
He would see to it.
Though he had to stop and rest several times, he reached Regina's castle before nightfall. The queen was shocked to see him. She grabbed him, placed him on her shoulder and teleported to the woods so that their conversation couldn't be heard.
"We have to try to get into that vault one more time," he said firmly.
"Jiminy, it's too dangerous! Look what she did to you the last time we tried. And now that she knows about your Marie, she will use her against you."
"I can't give up…WE can't give up! Not now. Not when there's too much at stake. Regina, please…I love her…I can't bear the thought of living a life without her!"
"Is she worth dying for because that is what will happen if we're caught."
"YES!"
"I'm sorry Jiminy…I can't…all I can do is give you your best chance." Her hands sparkled with magic. The cricket felt himself floating in the air.
"Regina, don't do this!"
"I have to! You'll find her again, Jiminy, I promise you will."
"You have to stop this! You're the only one who can now!"
"I wish I was strong enough to stop it…I'm just not…" sobbed the queen. Then she stood up. "A pure spirit that knows true love can break any curse….the Dark Curse is meant for the savior to break but the Curse of the Broken Hearted…you can break. You're the only one who can now."
"What do you mean?"
"Find Marie in the new land! Once you bind yourself to her heart and soul in marriage…you'll be free…we all will…" she said through her tears. "Goodbye Jiminy…and thank you for being my friend…even if it was for a brief time."
"Regina, don't let her destroy you!"
She already suspected it was too late for her. But she had one last card to play. Her mother was not going to the new land with her.
Jiminy landed beside a lake in the Infinite Forest. He knew there was no way to escape it other than magic. He flew onto a tree stump and sat down. Then he felt something cold brush against his back and turned around to find a Dalmatian standing behind him.
Why so sad, Jiminy Cricket? it asked him.
"How do you know who I am?"
Everything in this realm knows who you are…and what you used to be.
"Then you know what troubles me. We're all going to be taken away from this land…away from those we love because of Cora and her curse. I was banished here because I wanted to stop it. Why are you here?"
The dog snorted. I wanted to be a companion for the queen but the Queen Mother didn't approve. The queen sent me here for my safety. My name is Pongo.
"I'm sorry, Pongo."
The dog sat down and rested its head on its paws. It's all right. At least I know I won't be alone once this damn curse hits.
It was a small comfort for both of them.
The present
Even while she was fighting a constant battle to keep her husband in bed until he recovered his strength, Belle pulled her sister into the living room to ask her how her date went.
"Oh Belle it was wonderful! He was wonderful!" Marie said softly.
"Now some things that I saw and heard prior to this are starting to make sense. The night the first curse was broken I met up with you to talk to you and you were holding a pair of glasses like a security blanket, the same glasses Archie wears and he was the one that mob threatened to tie to a tree but he made sure you got home safely first."
"Yes."
"How long before that did you actually meet him?"
"I'm not sure. The dwarves dragged him to the club to try to get him to go out more but he wasn't comfortable and was probably ready to bolt out the door when Zelena had her silicone specials in his face."
Belle cringed. "That bitch! Can't leave OUR men alone, can she?"
"She makes fun of him but Sella has thrown water on her twice hoping it would melt her. Unfortunately it doesn't work."
"Damn…but enough about her. I want to know everything about last night!"
"I don't know how to describe it Belle! He was so sweet and kind, like he always is…but last night…he was a bit more…passionate…and when he touched me...I could have incinerated on the spot. Now, it was just his hand on my cheek and my shoulder, simple gestures but they meant so much."
"Sometimes that's all it takes."
"But it wasn't just how he touched me that made my heart pound Belle; it was the things he said too. Like that line from Romeo and Juliet about how I teach the torches to burn bright…me? Then he said he didn't see me as a ruined woman and were that coming from any other man, I would've scoffed at it but not him. And he said he would have beaten up Gaston for me even though that brute is twice his size. But I suppose we were still a bit hesitant to let how we truly felt about each other known until…"
"Until what? Don't you leave me hanging, Marie Bordreaux!"
"We were discussing the movie McLintock….his favorite actor is John Wayne and I said how much I liked the wife in it. He said I was a fiery thing and that he wouldn't spank me or try to tame me…"
"And..?"
"I said maybe I wanted him to and….he kissed me!"
"I knew it!" Belle cried happily and hugged her.
"Belle, if I'd known he could kiss like that…I would have had him do it months ago. My gods…where has he been all my life? I even asked him that and he said nowhere he wanted to be. He doesn't talk much about his life before he became a cricket so I'm assuming it wasn't pleasant."
"It wasn't but I'll leave that up to him to tell you. So he kissed you …once?"
"No…four times. Once in the kitchen, once in the living room…until the sirens went off, once on my hand and once on the lips again before he left last night."
"Marie I am so happy for you! How many times did I tell you that a relationship with this 'friend' of yours was just what you needed? Look at you! You're practically glowing and that's just from one date and with a man you've been head over heels in love with for months! And don't sit there and tell me you're not in love with him because I know you."
"Last night…after he went home…he called me. He forgot to ask me where I wanted to meet for lunch today to discuss being his office manager."
Belle smirked. "Oh, of course that was the main reason! Well, where does he want to go?"
"Ratatouille."
"That's the finest restaurant in town run by Anton Ego…remember how he used to be the town's food critic until Granny got him fired from The Mirror for a rather nasty review he gave on one of her dishes? The chef he hired is someone named Remy but no one ever sees him. They do, however think he is the best gourmet cook in Storybrooke but I think Rumple could put him to shame."
So could Archie, Marie thought. "I'm a bit nervous about how people will react seeing us together in public but he's not. I don't want to ruin his reputation which was why it took us so long to finally have a date instead of meeting as friends."
Belle grinned. "I will warn you: if he shows up at Ratatouille looking as handsome as he did last night, you'd better invest in a broom to beat the women off, Marie. Even I was astounded by how different he looked!"
"Oh I will and before he said good night….he told me he loved me."
"If you let him say that and just sat there like a lump on a log, Marie Bordreaux I am taking the broom to you!"
"No…hearing him say it made me brave enough to say it. I love him, Belle and oh you have no idea what I was thinking all night during our date! I want to spend the rest of my life with him…how I want him to be the father Sella wants…and maybe have a baby of our own…"
"Now you have the chance to make that come true, Marie. Don't let it go."
"I don't want to, Belle but I'm afraid something will come along and ruin it."
Like Gaston.
He wasn't coming around again; making her suspect he had a new girlfriend. She felt sorry for the poor woman, whoever she was and wondered if she lived in fear of him sometimes too.
"Don't let anything come between you, Marie," Belle advised. "You remember what happened when Zelena came to the castle. She almost drove a wedge between Rumple and me and he finally realized he wanted to be with me after she poisoned me. Archie loves you enough that he's willing to fight for you and if you love him enough, you'll fight for him too."
Marie hugged her. "I will. Now….I have no idea what to wear on this date."
"Come on. We'll find something in my closet. I won't be able to fit into half of it for a while anyway."
"…How do they feel?"
Archie squinted. "Odd...very odd but at least I don't have to worry about them sliding down my nose all the time."
His new contact lenses didn't just make him feel different…he looked different. He stood in front of the mirror in his optometrist's office, barely recognizing the man staring back at him and he didn't mind at all. Though he looked different on the outside, he was still the same inside. That would never change and now he had the chance to have the family he always wanted. It wasn't going to be easy but he wouldn't give up. The scar on his back was proof enough that he was willing to fight to the death for something he believed in.
"If you experience any changes in your eyesight let me know and we'll change your prescription."
"I will. Thank you, Doctor."
He pulled into the Gold's driveway shortly after eleven. He knocked on the door once before Gisella opened it. "Hi Archie!" she cried. "You're not wearin' your glasses anymore!"
"No, Princess I'm not."
"You get those things ya put in your eyeballs?"
He chuckled. "They're contacts, Sella and yes, I got those to help me see."
"Good cause you leave your glasses layin around when you fall asleep at our house. I almost stepped on 'em once."
"Oh, so have I. Where's your mommy?"
"Getting herself all pretty for you with Auntie Belle," the child said with a grin. "You wanna watch Barney with me til she comes down?"
She doesn't need to, he thought. She'll always be beautiful to me even when we're both older with a head full of gray hair and wrinkles.
"All right." He couldn't help remembering how Rumple compared one of the ties he picked out at the shop the other day to the dinosaur's tail. He knew nothing about the show and asked Gisella to explain who the characters were and what it was about.
"You watch this a lot?"
"Uh-huh. I learn some stuff from it too. Archie, if you're dating Mommy, that make you my daddy now?"
I wish it did, he thought. "The only way I could be your daddy is to marry your mommy."
"So why don'cha marry her?"
"Princess, real life isn't like in the fairy tales. I love your mommy very much, don't get me wrong, and I would like to marry her but we need to spend a little more time alone getting to know each other better first. That's what dating is," he explained.
"So I gotta do that if I want to get married?" she asked.
Hopefully not for a LONG time and any boy who wants to date MY daughter better be ready to prove he's worthy of her or else he won't coming within a mile of her!
"Yes, but you're too little to be thinking about that now."
"Yeah but I'm not too little to be thinkin about replacin my bad daddy with you cause you do everything a good daddy's 'sposta do!"
He hugged her. "I don't know all that much about being one…but I try…" he murmured.
Neither of them was aware Belle was listening to their conversation as she loaded a tray with items to take up to Rumple while he stayed in bed, a wide smiled on her lips. She agreed whole heartedly with her niece, Archie was the kind of father Gisella needed…and the kind of man her sister needed. She marched up the stairs to share the good news with her husband. Operation True Love was going well.
Marie glanced at the clock on her nightstand and panicked. It was almost eleven-thirty and she didn't have her shoes on yet! She jumped off the bed and raced downstairs to the living room. Archie was sitting on the sofa with Gisella watching one of her Barney videos. Today he was wearing a grey Armani suit with a blue silk tie that was almost the same shade as his eyes with a pair of Gucci loafers but the biggest difference was that he was not wearing his glasses. Yet even with those few changes, he was still the same man she'd fallen in love with.
"Hi Mommy! Me n'Archie were watchin Barney."
"I see that…" Marie whispered, unable to tear her eyes away from her date.
The moment he saw her walk into the living room, he lost the capacity for words. She was as stunning in a white Chanel suit as she had been in her black gown the night before with her long brown hair in a twist.
"You look….wonderful…" he said softly.
"So do you."
He stood up and walked over to her, raising her hand to his lips and kissed it. "Shall we go, my lady?"
"Ummm…Mommy…you don't have your shoes on!" Gisella giggled, pointing to Marie's feet.
"I…oh!" she cried and looked down to see that she wasn't. "Archie, I'm so sorry…I'll go get them."
He chuckled. "That's something I would do. It's fine, darling…they'll hold our table."
She raced up the stairs, her face scarlet and nearly knocked Bae over.
"Whoa! Where's the fire, Aunt Marie!" he joked.
"I cannot believe it…I almost went to lunch without my shoes on!" she cried and ran into the bedroom. The teenager laughed, shook his head and went downstairs, equally stunned when he saw Archie.
"Double whoa! Archie, where's your glasses…and you look like Papa dressed like that!"
"Well…your father gave me a bit of fashion advice…"
"And I'm pleased that you actually paid attention Hopper," Rumple said as he limped into the room. "Good combination with the suit and tie."
Bae scowled at him. "Papa, you're gonna get the broom to your butt if Mama catches you outta bed again!" he warned.
"I already know he's out of bed because I told him to be…just long enough to see Archie and Marie off," Belle said when she entered the living room with her sister at her side. "You two have a good time."
"Where are you taking her, Archie?" Rumple asked him.
"Ratatouille."
"Ah…Ego's place. Good choice. I'm planning on taking Belle there for the evening myself once the baby's born."
"I've got something even better. Let's do it some night…the four of us?" Belle suggested.
"That'll be fine with me," Archie said with a smile. "What do you think, Marie?"
"I'd like that."
"I'll bring her back sometime this afternoon."
"Better be before dark Hopper or I'll be waiting with the cane to beat your ass!" Rumple teased.
"Rumple! I'm a bit old for you to be beating my boyfriend up for bringing me home late!" Marie cried.
"Well since your father's not here, I'll be doing his job for him."
Marie rolled her eyes. "How do you put up with him, Belle?"
"I know how to soften him up," she replied with a smirk. "Now get going or they'll give your table away."
The couple gave Gisella a hug and kiss goodbye and drove into town.
Mouths dropped and heads turned the moment Archie stepped out of his car in the elegant restaurant's parking lot then opened the door for his companion. No one recognized the beautiful woman on his arm but one thing was for certain based on their body language, they were more than friends.
"Oh my God….is that Doctor Hopper?" Baroness De Varge exclaimed to her friend Solange.
"Yes it is…but who is that woman with him?"
"I don't know but my gods…I never knew he was so handsome….someone must've given him a makeover!"
"There's only one other man in town who dresses like that and it's Mr. Gold and if he gave him the makeover, there are lot of women in this town who will be thanking him."
"He won't look at any of us…not with her on his arm…she's beautiful!"
"That's Marie Bordreaux….Belle's half-sister," Kat explained as she walked past them with Becky.
"Why do they always get the good ones!" Solange complained. The two teenagers laughed.
"Doctor Hopper, good afternoon! And this must be Mademioselle Bordeaux," the maître'd greeted the couple.
"Hello Linguine."
"Linguine…you're kidding, aren't you?" Marie asked him. "Is there a Collette and Remy the rat?"
"Yes, there is and Remy is one of the finest cooks in all the realms," Linguine boasted, escorting the couple to their table and handing them their menus. Several people were staring at them, whispering but they ignored it.
"Marie, I know you were Belle's lady-in-waiting but did you do anything here that would help you figure out how to manage my schedule?"
"I used to manage all of Belle's social appointments so yes."
"Well, once we get back to the office you can decide what you want to do."
She arched an eyebrow. "Do I still have a mess to clean up?"
"No…ahhh…Rumple fixed my filing cabinets."
His desk however, was still cluttered because he'd been looking for something earlier that morning and forgot to clean it up. He would do that while Marie decided where she wanted her desk to be.
The waitress brought over their orders but she was too occupied staring at Archie and his new look that she tripped and splattered garlic sauce all over the front of his suit.
"Oh my God! Doctor Hopper, I am so sorry!" she cried.
"Oh, it's all right," he said softly. "It was an accident."
Marie grinned behind her napkin. She would've done the same thing were they not dating.
"Jeanette, what have you done?" Anton Ego demanded coldly when he approached the table.
"It was an accident. Can happen to anyone," Archie said nonchalantly to diffuse the man's temper.
"I insist you send me the dry cleaning bill."
"No, no…I'll take care of it."
"I really am sorry," Jeannie whimpered.
"I know…don't worry yourself sick over it."
Oh Gods….he could talk a woman out of her clothes if he put his mind to it… Marie thought wickedly then blushed. Why on earth am I thinking like that about him…he's not like those other men who enjoy doing that! Stop it, Marie!
Fortunately there were no other incidents and they were able to enjoy the rest of their lunch in peace. They drove back to the office so that Archie could change and Marie wanted to get started organizing everything.
"I'll just be a few minutes," he said and went into the bathroom. He always kept a change of clothes in the office but his old ones were thrown out by Rumple along with ten trash bags filled with anything else the sorcerer didn't think he'd need.
"Archie!" Marie yelled.
"What?" he asked frantically when he emerged from the bathroom with his tie loose around his neck and he'd forgotten to button his shirt completely because he was worried something happened to her.
She was standing beside his desk with his notepad in her hands, scowling. "THIS is how you keep track of your appointments? On a notepad?"
"Umm…yes."
She slapped it down on his desk. "Not anymore. Are you maxed out on your credit?"
"No, why?"
"Because we're going shopping. If I'm going to work here as your office manager I want a better way to keep track of your appointments Doctor and a notepad isn't going to cut it!"
"Good God, Marie, the way you were carrying on like that I thought you'd fallen or something. Scared me half to death!"
"Well, the condition of this office scares me half to death. It's going to take me weeks to get it all straight!" She indicated the cluttered desk.
He threw up his hands. "I think I'm going to regret this! All right, let's get going."
"Like that?" She pointed to his shirt, the partial sight of his bare chest making her blush. She'd already seen a glimpse of his back when he showed everyone the horrible scar from Cora's attack.
He's not the first man you've seen half undressed. Why is it making you so nervous?
Unlike those other men who considered themselves God's gift to women, Archie was modest when it came to his physical appearance. It was a refreshing change. She so wanted this relationship to last because after all these years, she finally found the man who had everything she wanted.
"Oh! I'm sorry about that!" he turned his back and finished buttoning his shirt and fixed his tie, his own face a deep shade of crimson.
Hopper! What are you doing, parading around half naked for? Do you want to give her the wrong impression? That's one way to do it. You're not like those other men who would thinking they could add another notch on their headboards.
When they returned from their shopping trip he felt like he'd spent a fortune that would never be paid off in his lifetime and he felt like his ears were going to fall off from the sound scolding she'd given him. She had him purchase two laptops, one for her and one for him to use in the office, pagers, electronic organizers and all new furniture. The interior design firm would start remodeling the following morning. They spent the rest of the afternoon getting all of his appointments logged into both the computers and the organizers.
"Now what are you doing?" he asked when she was on the phone with someone. She covered the mouthpiece with her hand. "I'm talking to the answering service."
"The what?"
"Answering service. Most doctors in private practice use one. Archie, you can't be in the office twenty-four hours a day and you need to have a bit more privacy when it comes to your patients."
"I do…I don't discuss their issues with others!"
"I don't mean it like that. I mean YOU need more privacy. If your patients need to reach you during the day they should be calling the office and after hours they can call the answering service and have you paged if it's an emergency."
"And how much is this going to cost me?" he demanded.
She handed him a printout the contract. "You can afford it…the payment comes out of your bank account in the middle of the month." She turned on his laptop and pulled up a spreadsheet. "You've built yourself up quite a nest egg over twenty-eight years, Doctor Hopper."
"You know what my life was like during the curse…didn't get out much…except with you and Geppetto…"
"Also have you looked at this or were you just going to ignore it?" She held up a piece of paper. "This is a letter dated weeks ago from two doctors from our land wanting to become part of your practice!"
"What?"
She scowled and handed it to him. "With all the patients you have you can use the help!"
He sat down in his recliner and read through the letter. "I suppose I should give them a call but there's not enough room in this office for three doctors, Marie. We'll have to renovate even more."
"Well if we knock down a few walls we can. I doubt Rumple would mind. In fact, he'd probably do it himself if it means avoiding you turning this place into a hoarder's paradise again." She pulled up a chair beside him while he called the number on the letter and turned on the speakerphone.
"Hello?"
"Am I speaking with Doctor Harker? Doctor Mina Harker?"
"You are. May I ask who is calling?"
"Doctor Hopper. I'm sorry it's taken me so long to respond to your letter."
"Oh, that's all right. Jack and I figured you were busy since the first curse has been broken."
"Doctor Harker, how were you and your partner not affected by the curse?"
"We…ahhhh….left our land before it was cast but we found out about it from others who outran it. We agreed that once the curse was broken we'd find where everyone was sent and offer our services. It looks like you could use our help because you're the only psychologist in the town."
"He is….and he has more patients than time," Marie spoke up.
"Marie!" he cried.
Mina laughed. "You must be Mrs. Hopper."
Not yet but maybe someday…
"No, I'm his office manager…and his girlfriend." Marie answered.
Archie was relieved they were only on speakerphone so Mina Harker couldn't see him blushing.
"We can fly into town to meet with you tomorrow if that's all right with you, Doctor Hopper."
"That'll be fine. We're ahhh….having some remodeling done in the office so it'll be a bit noisy."
"Oh, we won't mind. Until tomorrow then?"
"Tomorrow it is. We'll see you then."
She thought they were going to go back to his apartment when they left the office that day but to her surprise he turned down the road that led to the Foxtrot.
"Why are we going there?"
"So you can tell that poor excuse of a boss you have that you're not going back in person," he said.
Sly was coming out of his office when he saw her standing in the hallway with Archie beside her. "Where the hell have you been, Marie? Go get your ass changed. You have a show to do."
"No she doesn't," Archie spoke up. Several of the other dancers came out of their dressing rooms to see what was going on.
"You shut up, cricket. She works for me and when I tell her to do something, she does it! Move your ass, Electra!"
"I'm not doing anything you say anymore Sly. I quit!" she shouted loud enough for everyone to hear.
"What're you gonna be his little whore now?" Zelena sneered, pointing to Archie. Several other women were glaring at the couple, Ashley Boyd included.
"Of course YOU would think that, Zelena because that's what you are to him…and a few other men in this town!" Marie retorted.
"He's just using you to get a piece of ass, that's all" snarled Sly. "You'll be back!"
"I beg your pardon?" Archie asked angrily, his grip tightening on his umbrella. "Would you like to repeat that?"
And then you'll either be missing an eye or have your teeth knocked down your throat! No one says such trash to MY girlfriend!
Marie glared at her former employer. "He respects me, which is more than I can say for you and every other pig that comes into this place and if I had a choice between coming back here and scrubbing toilets with a toothbrush, I think I'd rather scrub toilets. Come on, Archie…let's go."
He couldn't have been more proud of her.
She only wished she could be so brave with Gaston.
"You tell him honey!" hooted Arista. "R…E…S…P…E…C…T find out what it means to me!"
"You shut your ass up and get on stage, Arista!" barked Sly. She sauntered into the main room with a smirk on her face and the men started cheering.
"Let's go, Marie. He can't tell you what to do anymore," Archie said softly. He took her hand and escorted her out of the club.
While Marie met with the contractors at the office later on Archie met with the realtor to complete the closing on the house he bought a month earlier. It was a Dutch Colonial with four bedrooms, two bathrooms, a second floor deck and in ground swimming pool. He saw the house one day while he was walking with Pongo and thought it would be perfect for his family.
Jumping the gun a bit, aren't you Hopper? You just started dating openly.
He knew in his heart he wasn't…that sooner or later Marie and Gisella would be living in that house with him and Pongo. He couldn't wait to show it to them.
"Where are we going, Archie?" Marie asked him after they picked up Gisella from school that day.
"It's a surprise," he said with a smile and turned down the street, stopping the car in front of the house.
"That's a lovely house Archie but it's been sold," Marie said.
"I know," he said softly and held up the key.
"You bought it? That's a big house for one man and a dog!"
"I know but….the apartment was getting a bit too small…and besides…it has a pool so Gisella can come over and swim in the summertime. Do you want to go in and take a look?"
"Oh, why not?"
Archie hung back with Gisella who was smiling. "You want us to live here when you an Mommy get married, don'cha?"
"Yes I do, Princess but only when your mommy feels she's ready."
"I hope she hurries up. I really want you to be my daddy."
"I do too, Princess…more than you know…" he murmured. As much as I want Marie to be my wife.
"Can we see the pool?"
"Of course." He took her hand and escorted her out to the backyard. Marie was already waiting for them.
"Why don't you move in this weekend so we can help you?" she suggested.
"I am. Geppetto and August are going to help too and Regina and Henry said they would stop by. I really don't have that much to pack up as far as personal items go and not much furniture either."
"No, but you will with a house that size."
They went back to her apartment to have dinner together. Gisella was excited to help Archie move into his new house and was even more excited thinking about the day when she and her mother could move in with him and they would finally be a family.
