A/N: I just want to say thank you all for the wonderful reviews for the last chapter! I was so nervous about that scene, and you all were so nice about it. This chapter is shorter than the last one, but I hope you like it all the same.

Chapter 9: Unfinished Matters

Nick turned in his sleep and the sunlight hit his face, causing him to wake up. He quickly turned his head away from the window, facing the far off wall instead. The first thing he noticed was the tiny painting of a floral garden framed on the wall.

I don't remember having that in my room, he thought with a slight scowl.

As he looked down at the light purple bed sheets, everything suddenly clicked, and his memories from the night before came to him. He was in Belle's room.

Nick sat up, running a hand through his sleep-tangled hair. He remembered coming up to her apartment to give her back her manuscript, and then kissing her. He hadn't known why he did it. It was as if his body were acting against his mind at that moment. Lucky for him, she didn't reject him.

Instead, they had sex.

Nick still couldn't believe it. He never thought their relationship would get that far. Of course, the part of his brain controlled by his libido hoped they would, but his logical side couldn't fathom this. What might have confused him more was Belle's willingness to it.

Did she have a couple of drinks before he got there? If so, he would've felt extremely guilty. Her breathe didn't smell or taste of alcohol, he recalled. She tasted sweet; like the honey she put in her tea. He could still smell her perfume wafting from the bed sheets.

Come to think of it, where was Belle?

He slapped a hand down on the empty space next to him where she was supposed to be. Before he could start panicking, he heard the shower start up in the other room. He sighed in relief, glad she didn't leave him. Then again, this was her apartment.

He thought back again to their time they spent last night. The first time was just simple for him, but it still left a chill in his spine. After their fun on the couch, they continued their fun in the bedroom so they had more room. He closed his eyes, humming in pleasure just thinking about it all. He was tempted to get out of bed and join her in the shower.

He heard his phone ringing from a distance, letting out a frustrated breath when he realized he left it the living room along with the rest of his clothing. He pulled himself out of bed and walked out of the bedroom.

He made his way to the living room, bending over to grab his phone from his pocket. "Hello?" he answered.

"Well aren't you awake early," mocked an all too familiar voice.

"When you call this early Regina, it's hard not to be," he replied smartly. "What do you want?"

"I'm here to see you, of course," he could hear the smirk in her voice.

"Here?"

"Gold, I suggest you get your mind out of dreamland and answer your door."

Shit! Nick should've known she would be making a house call. He had only seen a little of her since Belle had moved in, which was expected since Daniel was home. She only slept with Nick when he was away, and she needed an itch to scratch. "Give me a moment," he told her before hanging up.

He pulled his pants on as quick as he could and slipped his shoes on. As he grabbed his shirt, he remembered Belle who was still in the shower. What would she think of him if he left so early?

A note! he realized. Surely if he left a note she would forgive him, right? Lucky for him, Belle was a writer who had plenty of pens strewn about (Which were in a cup the night before, but... you know). He grabbed one by the table and walked over to the counter where he had left her manuscript. He wrote a quick note on the folder and dashed for the door.

He stopped, his hand frozen on the door knob. She's at your apartment! he scolded himself. Walking to the front door was definitely out. His only way out was through the bathroom which had the fire escape.

Currently where Belle was showering.

At this point, Nick was convinced Fate was punishing him for some unknown reason.

Taking a deep breath, Nick crept towards the bathroom. He slowly opened the door to hear the shower still going. Noting that she couldn't see him, he eased himself through and did his best to close the door without making any noise.

"You say... we got nothing in common... no common ground to start from... and we're falling apart..." he heard Belle sing.

He tip-toed to the window, holding his breath as he pushed it upward. She sang over the noise, thankfully. He swung one leg out the window and crawled out.

He didn't give himself time to relax. He closed the window shut and started dashing down the slanted ladder that led to his apartment. He wrenched his own window open and all but jumped through the opening. He swore when he landed on his knee. He didn't break anything, but it hurt like hell.

He kicked his shoes off and limped towards his bedroom door. He ran the rest of the way and opened the front door to to see Regina on the other side with her arms crossed over her chest.

She took in his appearance with a mixture of confusion, concern, and annoyance. "What did you do? Run a marathon before answering the door?"

Nick leaned against the door, suddenly feeling very tired. "I fell back asleep after you called."

He saw her upper lip twitch. "I was wondering what took so long," she taunted as she walked past him to his couch.

"Please, come in and stay for a bit," he said sarcastically, closing his door.

"You seem very hostile this morning."

"You know I'm not much of a morning person."

"Obviously," her eyes fell onto the coffee table. She reached her hand out to pick up a cat mask; the same one he stole from the Dollar Tree yesterday. "Is this your Halloween costume?" she asked amused.

He bit his lip, not liking her holding that mask. It felt like she was invading on something that was only for him and Belle. He took a deep breath and walked over to the ottoman that sat across from her. "We need to talk."

Regina arched her eyebrow at him. "Oh do we now?" she dropped the mask back onto the table and adjusted herself to sit in a business-like manner. "What do we need to talk about?"

He knotted his fingers together, looking her in the eye. "How do you feel about Daniel?"

She was taken aback by this. "I don't understand-"

"How do you feel about him?" he asked again, slipping into his serious voice.

"I love him," she said after a oment of silence. "Why do you ask?"

He thought his words out carefully before speaking them. "If you love him, then why are you sleeping with me?"

She rolled her eyes at him. "We've had this conversation already," she reminded him. "Daniel goes away a lot, and I get lonely."

Haven't you ever heard of sex toys? he wisely kept that comment to himself, replacing it instead with, "Why not wait it out? Wouldn't that make your reunions more special?"

Regina got that evil look in her eye again; the one where she uses to see past any bullshit he'd ever told her. "You never had a problem with this before," she said matter-of-factly.

"Well, I do now," he muttered, looking everywhere else but at her.

He could feel her smirk. "Is this about the writer girl that you invited to your party?" Before he could ask how she knew about that, she added, "Mal is quite the gossip girl. She said you were staring at her most of the night instead of paying attention to her. She called you rude."

"Do you honestly think I give a fuck about what Mal thinks?" he snapped.

"So it's true, then," she said, unaffected by his tiny outburst. "Nicholas Gold is smitten with another woman." When he didn't say anything, she continued. "I think it's cute, to be honest. It's about time you settled down with someone. You're not getting any younger."

Nick kept his face blank, not sure what to make of her accusations. He wasn't smitten, as she put it. He was very attracted to Belle, but he was a far cry from in love with her... wasn't he? "Regina, whatever you and I have, I want it to end," he finally said.

He wasn't sure what her reaction was going to be. He was half expecting her to get angry, slap him across the face, and storm out. Instead, she didn't move; her face betrayed nothing. "No you don't," she told him.

"Yes, I do," he said, unsettled by her calm demeanor.

"Your girlfriend writes books, does she not?"

"Of course she does," he looked at her oddly.

Regina leaned forward a bit as she began to speak. "Authors go on book tours. They travel everywhere to get publicity for it."

"What is your point?" he asked, already annoyed with her.

A sly smile appeared on her face. "She'll be out of town as much as Daniel is."

"No," he quickly stood up, walking towards the door. "You are not gonna pull that shit with me."

"I'm only telling you the facts," she stood up, but didn't budge. "Also, you forget that I'm paying you to spend time with me."

"I don't need your money," he said smartly, opening the door for her to leave.

"What about your job?" she asked slowly, an evil look in her eyes.

Nick didn't reply to that straight away. He had a feeling she would threaten to fire him if he didn't do everything she wanted. "I'll find a new agent."

She chuckled, then began to take slow steps towards him. "Do you honestly think you're going to find an agent who treats you as well as I do?"

"Yes, I do," he glared at her. He was close to grabbing her arm and throwing her out.

"If that's what you want," she stopped in front of him, running her hand down his arm soothingly. "Let me remind you what you're letting go."

Before he could do anything, her mouth was on his neck; her soft lips caressing the spot she (and Belle) knew made his knees shiver. He bit down on his lower lip as he pushed away from her. "You need to stop," he told her, trying to hold back the moan he almost let out.

She smirked at him. "I told you. You would miss me too much if I left."

"Regina, I'm telling you-"

"What? Are you afraid your girlfriend is going to walk in on us?"

"She's not my girlfriend," he blurted. His chest tightened when he said it, but it was the truth as far as he was concerned. Him and Belle had only spent that one night together, and neither of them mentioned anything about starting a relationship.

From the look on Regina's face, Nick immediately regretted his words. She cupped his cheek and whispered, "Then what's the problem?"

Nick didn't respond. Regina began to kiss him as she closed his apartment door with her other hand.

...

Belle was having a good day. After her shower, she was hoping to make some breakfast for her and Nick, but he had left a note saying something came up and that he would see her later. She figured he must've left in a hurry because he had forgot to grab his boxers, which she had found lying by the couch.

She giggled as she set them aside for her to give back to him later. She had to admit last night was one of the best nights she had had in a long time. Gary wasn't near as accommodating as Nick was, and he was very delicate with her; making her feel special.

She had made herself a short meal of toast and tea and spent the rest of her day writing. By the afternoon, the story she spent two and a half weeks working on was nearly written out. All she had to do was add a few more scenes and edit the grammer. This was the happiest she had felt in forever.

She stopped her writing when she heard the Skype jingle ring form her laptop. She minimized her window to answer the call, and Jefferson's face filled her screen. "Hi!" she smiled at him.

"Hey there!" he greeted back. "Someone seems really happy."

She shrugged, unable to wipe the smile on her face. "Well, today was a good day."

He stared at her a moment, trying to read her expression. She watched his eyes widen and his jaw drop. "You had sex!"

She jumped, blinking a couple of times. "No, I-I didn't..." she stuttered.

Jefferson cocked an eyebrow at her. "Girl, do not try and lie to me." He then added excitedly, "Was it Nick?"

Belle opened her mouth and closed it again. He took her silence as a yes.

"Hey guys!" he called out, turning to a few of the other army guys she saw walking behind him. "They finally did it!"

"Jeff!" she berated him as she saw some of the guys clapping and wolf-whistling. She also could've sworn she heard someone shout "Finally!"

"What? They're happy for you!" Jefferson defended, an innocent smile on his face.

She face-palmed herself. In an attempt to change the subject, she said, "I'm almost done with my book."

He brightened up at that. "That's awesome! You think I'll get the chance to read it when I get home?"

"Of course you will," she grinned. She couldn't wait until December for him to get back. They had already talked about him living with her until he found a steady job, and she was ecstatic to get to spend Christmas with him. "I told Nick that he was the inspiration for the main character," she said.

His expression was thoughtful. "And he was flattered?"

She nodded, refusing to admit how flattered he was. "It was weird. I was so afraid to tell him, and now that he knows... I don't know why I was afraid."

"Of course you didn't," he agreed. "Anyone would be happy enough to find themselves the main character of a book."

She smiled at that. Before she could say anything, a buzzer went off in the background. "No fair," she groaned, knowing that meant he had to leave. "We barely had the chance to talk more."

He shrugged and frowned. "We've been pretty busy over here. I promise we'll talk later, okay?"

"Fine," she grumbled. "I love you."

"I love you, too," he gave her a salute before hanging up.

She exited out of her window, and put her laptop to sleep. She leaned back into the couch, wishing time would fly by quicker. She glanced over and saw Nick's boxers folded on the arm of the couch. She could see that the sun was about to set, and figured Nick would be home by now.

"I'll pay him a visit," she decided.

...

Belle had thought about sneaking through his window and sitting on his bed, waiting for him while wearing something sexy. She went against it thinking it felt too forward, and she didn't want to climb down the fire escape with only a trench coat on.

She grabbed her key, his underwear, and made her way to his place. She could feel the butterflies in her stomach, wondering if they would be having sex again that night. She still couldn't believe they had done it in the first place.

Belle wondered then what it meant now. Were they dating, or were they just friends with benefits? They didn't talk about it during they rendevous, neither of them wanting to think about what would happen the next morning. She had decided that, before they ever did it again, she was going to sit with him and discuss what they were going to do.

She got to his floor, and she could see his door just a few feet away from her. She paused, took a deep breath, and took a step forward.

She stopped when his door opened. Nick was there, but so was Regina. She couldn't move; she was hoping neither of them would see her if she didn't make a sound. She watched as she adjusted the collar of her silk shirt. She look up at Nick with a sly grin and sauntered the opposite side of the hall towards the elevator.

Belle wasn't stupid. She knew what that look meant.

"Nick?" she called just before he could shut his door.

He turned in her direction. She must've looked horrified because he looked nervous. "Hey," he greeted uneasily.

"You had a meeting with Regina?" she did her best to keep her voice steady.

He looked away from her a moment, trying to think of the right thing to say.

"You don't have to lie to me," Belle told him as if she could read his mind. "I should've expected this would happen."

He snapped his head back to look at her again. "What are you talking about?" he asked confused.

She walked towards him this time, and weaved around him to walk into his apartment. She didn't want whoever lived on the floor with him to hear their personal problems. "I know about you and Regina," she admitted once he closed the door.

"How did you find out?" he asked her.

It was her turn to glance away from him. "You remember the day we met? When I tripped down the ladder on your fire escape?"

She quickly looked at him to see his eyes widen. "You were spying one me?" he asked appalled.

"I didn't mean to," she defended. "I really was just taking a walk. I didn't see you two... together," she frowned, trying not to think what she would've done if she ever caught them doing it. "You were in the shower, and I saw her leave some money on your nightstand."

"Why did you lie to me?" he sounded angry.

"You honestly think I'd admit to eavesdropping on you? We had just met! I thought you were going to call the cops on me."

"You still should've told me," he said accusingly.

She shook her head. "Stop trying to change the subject!"

"But I-"

"You just had sex with Regina, didn't you?" she shot back.

He was silent a moment before glaring at her. "What's it to you if I did?"

She felt like he just punched her in the gut. She kept her head held high. "I was curious. After last night, I thought..." she trailed off, not wanting to say it.

He knew though. His features softened, and he took a small step toward her. "You thought we were dating," he confirmed for her.

She nodded uneasily. "I know we didn't talk about it, but I was hoping we would tonight, which is why I came down." She looked down at her hands, realizing she was still holding his boxers. "Also, to give you back these," she held them up for him.

Nick took them from her without a word, tossing them to the side. "We could still talk about it," he said hopefully.

She wished it was that simple, but she knew better. "No, we can't. The fact that you just had sex with Regina shows that you don't want anything more from me."

Nick shook his head. "It's nothing like that. What Regina and I have is purely business."

"Business?" she scoffed. "She's treating you like a prostitute!"

"I don't feel anything for her!"

"Then break it off with her!"

"I tried that already," he admitted desperately, "but she wouldn't hear it."

Belle blinked, not believing what she was hearing. "Then you're a coward," she said simply. "I'm not a fool, Nick. I'm sure you've slept with more women than I could count on one hand. Having sex with me last night may have been just another thing for you, but it meant a lot to me."

"It meant a lot to me, too," he said, his eyes looking sad.

"Obviously," she said sarcastically. "Unless you can prove me wrong, then I don't want to see you anymore."

He looked hurt. His eyes were wide with offense. "Belle, please don't-"

She ignored his pleas. She walked past him to the door, no daring to look back at him as she left. When she closed the door behind her, she heard the sound of something breaking. She kept walking, trying to ignore it as tears started to pour down her face.

A/N: Before you all start coming after me with torches and pitchforks, I must admit this one killed me also. Every cloud has a silver lining... It may take a few chapters to see it, but there is one!

Also, here are the results of the easter eggs I posted in the last chapter! A lot of the fics here can be found on tumblr. I have a tumblr for anyone interested. My username is gingerwhovianrobotskeleton.

1. Stuffed black cat = Avalon from NothingEverLost's "Things in Half Shadows" verse

2. Green and white mugs = thestraggletag's "Addiction"

3. Romance novel = nym's "Bed of Thorns"

4. Apollo bars = the Obvious OUAT/Lost reference

5. Victorian Dolls = Crankynerdgirl's "Pride and Other Poisons"

6. Southern Belle dolls = Nothingeverlost's "Beauty and the Yankee"

7. Sweater with red A's = Rufeepeach's "Rumour Has It"

8. Gold scarf = My oneshot "Knitting Gold"

9. Nick's cat mask = TemporalTeaTime's Cat!Rumpel fics

10. Belle's cat mask = my Cat!Belle fics (which I have posted on tumblr)