After some time spent on the floor with Regina, rocking away his torment, she had managed to drag him back up onto his feet and had taken him to the window to see his daughter. Rumpel leant heavily against the large window, spying over babies in their plastic tubs on the other side. The only one that drew his attention was the plastic tub that was to one side, a nurse hovering nearby, tending to the small baby. He could see that they had monitors and tubes attached to his baby girl, looking so small in her tub compared to the others in the room.
He let a heavy sigh out and shifted on his feet, trying to get closer to the glass to get a better look, as a hand laid onto his back. Turning his head reluctantly from the window, he briefly smiled and then teared up quickly at the sight of Gideon beside him. Rumpel grabbed at his son and hugged him tightly, fighting to hold back the tears as he clung to the closest thing he had to Belle. They still had not been to get him. It felt like it was taking eternity to get her settled into her room.
Gideon clutched at his father as he said. "I'm so sorry."
"You haven't got anything to be sorry about, son." Rumpel whispered into his son's ear, his fingers digging into his son.
Another hand touched Rumpel's shoulder. Dragging himself from his son, he looked over his son's arm to see Lilly beside him, her eyes watering with more tears. Her cheeks showed signs that she had already been crying.
"I'm so sorry, Rumpel." She managed to say before bursting out crying.
He pulled her into their hug, burrowing himself into their comfort, and said to her. "It's okay."
Lilly lifted her head from his chest to look at him as she spoke. "It's my fault. I suggest we go out for the night. Belle had said that she didn't feel right, but I persuaded her anyway. We were in Grannies and then Zelena had come in." At hearing Zelena's name, Rumpel's grip on them tightened, bunching their clothing into his fists. "She came over and started on Belle."
"What do you mean started on my mother? Physically?" Gideon questioned, his eyebrows hunched over his eyes as his own darkness grew inside of him.
"No, not physically." Lilly shook her head at Gideon's questions, her eyes never wavering from Rumpel. "She was winding Belle up. Telling her what happened at the club. Describing Rumpel talking to that women."
"But she already knew." Rumpel added, scrunching his eyebrows down.
"Yes, so when Belle didn't seem bother by that. Zelena started to go on about how she had gotten you to do things." Lilly said and paused to look deep into Rumpel's eyes. "Things she had made you do to her. Describing how you had kissed her neck and forced her onto the kitchen table and had sex with her on it."
"What!" Rumpel pushed them away, his anger flaring. "I never had sex with her! Never!"
Lilly grabbed Rumpel's hands. "It's okay. Belle said that. But that didn't stop Belle losing her temper and giving Zelena what for."
"Lilly." Gideon urged, his arm moved around her shoulders to give her confidence. "Tell us."
Nodding her head, Lilly continued. "She told Zelena how she was just jealous that Rumpel had chosen her and that he had never been interested in her. Zelena was about to say something, but Belle shouted at her that Zelena was just jealous because there was no man in Storybrooke that would come near her and that she ought to skulk off back to her farm house and leave you two alone."
"And?" Rumpel mumbled at her, his hands tightening around Lilly's.
"Zelena left after that." Lilly said. "After she sat back down, she said she didn't feel right and then she was screaming. Belle was in so much pain. I didn't know what to do, but Grannie sorted it out. She called the ambulance and kept Belle calm."
Stroking his hand down the side of Lilly's face, Rumpel tried to smile at her. "You did your best, Lilly. At least you were with her. I am so grateful that you were with her."
"I didn't do anything! The only thing I did was put Belle in the position to be stressed out by Zelena. It's all my fault!" Lilly bowed her head after she spoke, her tears falling to the floor.
"Oh, sweetie." Rumpel swept her up into her hug, his hand stroking the back of her head. "I could not have asked more of you. It could have happened no matter where you were."
Gideon rubbed his hand over Lilly's back. "Babe, it not your fault."
"Rumpel." Someone called to him.
Peering pass Gideon when he stepped aside, there was a nurse standing near the now open doorway to the baby room. "Would you like to come and meet your daughter?"
He nodded his head eagerly at the nurse and unwrapped himself from Lilly to walk pass the two of them to the nurse that waited for him. She gestured for him to follow him into the small room and closed the door behind him, locking them into the room.
"You need to put on a gown and wash your hands here." The nurse indicated towards the gowns that were hanging up and the sink near the door that entered the baby room. He did not respond. Rumpel simply followed her instructions and grabbed a gown off the hook, putting it on before washing his hands. She waited by the door, ready to open it whilst he was drying his hands. He threw the paper towel away and stood waiting patiently, a small feeling of butterflies in his stomach.
"Don't be alarmed by the monitors and tubes. She's holding her own at the moment. She's a fighter." The nurse told him as she opened the door.
Rumpel was surprised when he chuckled, saying to the nurse. "She's like her mother already."
The room was quiet apart from the odd sound from the babies that lay in the plastic tubs. Rumpel's attention was held by the tub that contained their daughter. He was aware that Lilly and Gideon were watching him through the window as he neared his daughter. Tilting his head to one side to see her at a better angle, he stopped beside her tub and looked down at her. 'She's so beautiful' he thought to himself.
Rumpel crouched to bring himself closer to her, watching her over the edge of the plastic tub. She had wires connected to her, disappearing under her blanket, and a tube that went up her tiny noise. His brow scrunched as he watched her, disbelieving that something so precious had a part of his darkness in it. Rumpel's children were such amazements, all of them so strong, far from the coward of their father.
"You can touch her." The nurse said to him. Rumpel briefly looked to the nurse for clarification and received a nod from the woman. Slowly reaching his finger out, he lightly touched the back of his daughter's hand, her skin was so smooth and warm against his finger. The warmth of touching her reminded him of Belle.
Rumpel gasped when the small hand grabbed at his finger, her little fingers holding onto his large finger. He froze in case he hurt her and held his breath, watching her delicate little frame take control of him, just like her mother did. A small smile crept over his face, but it did not stop the tears cascading down his cheeks as he watched his innocent daughter.
"Rumpel." Someone called to him but he ignored them, hypnotised by his daughter. He was fascinated by the grip she had on his finger, her tiny fingers pressing on his large finger. In that moment, he knew that he was in trouble. Not only did her mother have him under her thumb, but he also knew that his daughter had him around her little finger. He would do anything for her.
A squeeze at his shoulder pulled him away from his daughter, making him look up to see Dr Whale. "You can see Belle now."
Rumpel nodded his head at the doctor and stood to tower over his daughter. He silently refused to pull his finger from her grip. But he knew as much as he was desperate to stay there with her, he was dying inside to see Belle. Carefully prying his finger from her grip, Rumpel smiled at his daughter and bent down to place a very gentle kiss on her forehead. He stroke her forehead where he had kissed her and then unwillingly left.
Following Dr Whale through the door, he removed the gown to leave in the entryway to the baby room and then tailed Dr Whale back into the main corridor where Gideon and Lilly were waited. Dr Whale was keeping a pace and Rumpel trailed after him, shrugging at Gideon and Lilly as they left them behind. He stayed close behind Dr Whale and climbed the stairs to the next floor, nearly bumping into Dr Whale when they reached the next landing.
Walking down the corridor, Dr Whale stopped in front of a door and held his hand on the doorknob. "She probably won't make any sense if she wakes up. We've given her something to keep her calm and drowsy."
"Okay." Rumpel responded and then reached for Dr Whale's hand as the other man went to push the door open. "Thank you."
Rumpel took Dr Whale aback, making the other man pause. "It's my job."
"Thank you anyway. You don't know how much this means to me." Rumpel affirmed and then pushed the door out of the other man's grasp.
Entering the room, the only sound in the room was the bleeping coming from the monitor beside Belle's bed. She lay in the bed so still it scared Rumpel. Belle was always so lively, even when she was ill it was hard to keep her bed ridden so she could rest. She was always so strong, but she looked so weak and small in the hospital bed.
Rumpel shifted awkwardly towards the chair beside Belle's bedside and sat down into the plastic chair. The colour was gone from her cheeks. They were always so rosy. She was always so full of life. He scraped the chair closer to her bed and reached for her hand that lay beside her. Her skin was cool to his touch. It pained him not to feel her usual warmth. Clasping her hand in his, he held her hand towards his face and kissed the back of her hand. She was so still. There was no flicker on her face that she felt it. He felt so alone in her room.
