(I'm very sorry that I haven't updated in a long time! College life is demanding, I had to help make costumes and be a dresser for a musical called, Children of Eden; I also have been moving into a new house that was built back in 1914 and it kinda reminds me of the inside of Mr. Gold's house. I'm also on the hunt for a new job that pays me better because apparently you need money to survive in this world. Crazy, right? Anyway, my spare time has been severely reduced and I wish I could say that the updates will be flowing regularly but I can't. I can't even give you a estimation of when my next update will be. I hope you enjoy this chapter though. Oh! N this chapter another fairytale character is introduced! Let's see if you can guess who!)
[Every time I thought about Morgan going to the school with Mr. Gold, I kept hearing 'New Perspective' by Panic! At the Disco playing in my head. So I suggest listening to that when Morgan and Gold swing by the school. The other songs in this chapter are; 'Pour Some Sugar on Me' by Def Leppard, 'Uptown Girl' by Billy Joel, and 'Brick By Boring Brick' by Paramore.]
Chapter Ten
New Surroundings
Mr. Gold checked his pocket watch and glanced up at the stairs. He'd been up since seven-thirty and had planned on leaving the house before nine with Morgan. It was nine o'clock now and she hadn't come down from her room. He waited ten more minutes.
When Morgan still failed to show he sighed and trudged up the stairs, crossing the hall to Morgan's room. He opened the door and let out another sigh when he saw that the young teenager was still asleep in bed.
"Morgan," he called, limping to the side of her bed. When he saw the girl had her iPod's ear buds in her ears he knew she couldn't hear him. Morgan's blue iPod was lying right beside her pillow. Mr. Gold picked it up, intending to stop the music but he paused. A familiar, imp-like smirk took over his face as he looked at the sleeping girl and ran his thumb over the two buttons that controlled the iPod's volume.
Gold checked what song was playing on the iPod screen to see if his little stunt would work. The song title caused his right eyebrow to twitch upward. "'Pour Some Sugar on Me'?" he quietly read aloud. He had never heard of it, but judging by the album's cover art it promised to be loud.
"Time to waken up, Morgan."
Mr. Gold mashed his thumb on the volume button and soon the lyrics could be heard blasting through the ear buds.
"Pour some sugar on me!
Ooh, in the name of love!
Pour some sugar on me!
C'mon, fire me up;
Pour your sugar on me
Oh, I can't get enough!"
Morgan violently swatted the air and lurched up from the mattress. She yanked the ear buds out of her ears making the rest of the song more audible.
"I'm hot, sticky, sweet
From my head to my feet; yeah!"
Morgan looked up at his face with blurry, confused eyes, and blinked. Her eyes followed the ear bud cord from her hand to the iPod resting in Mr. Gold's palm. She glared and snatched the device away from him.
"Listen! Red light, yellow light, greena-light, go!
Crazy little woman in a one man show!
Mirror queen-!"
Morgan clicked the iPod off and let her head fall limply into her hands. Mr. Gold cleared his throat and she tiredly peeked up at him.
"Is that really an appropriate song for you to be listening to?" he asked, partially teasing.
"'It should take you four seconds to walk out that door; I'll give you two'," Morgan thought, thinking of Audrey Hepburn's line from Breakfast at Tiffany's.
Mr. Gold's teasing manner went away and a more serious look replaced the amusement. "Now maybe I didn't make myself clear last night when I said I wanted to get an early start? Maybe the term 'early' means two different things to the both of us? But when I say 'early', I mean before nine o'clock. Are we on the same page now?"
Morgan lifted one hand from her face and pointed a finger towards the door. You didn't have to know sign language to understand what she was telling Mr. Gold. "Out!"
Mr. Gold went out the door, closing it behind him so Morgan could get dressed in private. A smirk kept twitching at his lips as Morgan's reaction to his wake up call replayed over and over in his mind. He had let his true self have his fun for the day… well… for the morning at least.
He headed for the stairs but paused, glancing back at Morgan's door with a perplexed look on his face. "'Pour some sugar on me'?" he repeated. Was that really where this world's music was at? Mr. Gold shook his head and carefully made his way down the steps.
….
"Morgaaaan!" Ruby squealed when Morgan and Mr. Gold walked into the diner. Her heels clicked loudly on the floor as she quickly trotted over and wrapped her arms around the red-head. Ruby pointedly ignored Mr. Gold as she gave Morgan a great big bear-hug. He stepped aside to avoid being bumped into.
"Geez, Ruby. You saw me last night," Morgan couldn't help but think.
Ruby held her out at arm's length. "You're alive!" She then proceeded to pull Morgan into another hug.
Morgan caught Mr. Gold roll his eyes. "Did you expect me to eat her, Miss Ruby?" he asked with as much sarcasm as possible.
"Ruby," one of the other waitresses called.
Ruby shot the other girl a look and gave Morgan's shoulder a squeeze. "I'll be right back," she promised, and hurried over to help the other waitress.
"Apparently your friend thinks even lower of me than I thought," Gold remarked as Morgan slid into the chair opposite of his at a table. Morgan's face crinkled in embarrassment but she kept her eyes on the table.
"What will ya be havin' for breakfast?" Mr. Gold asked, his Scottish brogue heavy on his words.
Morgan finally did meet his gaze and she began to sign to him, only to stop mid-way when she remembered he wasn't familiar to sign language. She then moved to reach for her messenger bag for her board and realized she still didn't have it with her.
Mr. Gold immediately knew what Morgan had been reaching for. "We'll stop by your house and gather your belongings after breakfast. You don't need to be inconvenienced without your board any longer."
Morgan nodded her thanks.
Ruby caught one waitress, Courtney, heading over to Morgan's table to serve them. She hurried over and grabbed Courtney by the back of her shirt, pulling her away and jumping ahead. No way was she going to give up the opportunity to talk to Morgan now. Who knew how often she'd get to see her now? Mr. Gold might keep Morgan on a tight leash and never let her out to see friends like that story about the old witch locking up Rapunzel in a tower! Courtney only blinked and moved on to another table, letting Ruby take this one.
"What will you be having Mr. Gold?" Ruby asked, no smile on her face whatsoever.
"Coffee, eggs, toast. I'm really not that hungry today."
Ruby scribbled it down and turned to Morgan. The smile she had denied Gold suddenly broke out for Morgan. Gold nearly did a double take when he saw the difference in her face expression.
"The usual, Morgan?"
Morgan nodded.
"Right. Two grilled cheese sandwiches, scrambled eggs, some sausages as an extra side, toast with apple butter, and a glass of orange juice."
"My, someone has an appetite," Gold chuckled.
Morgan gave Ruby an exaggerated thumb up, nodding her head in approval. Ruby's smiled widened, revealing her glimmering white teeth. "Okay. I'll be right back with those drinks." She turned and 'click, click, clicked' her way to the opening in the wall that let the waitresses communicate with the cook and she clipped the order slip in its proper place for him to see.
Morgan watched as Ruby hurried to pour the drinks and walk as fast as possible back to her and Mr. Gold's table. It made Morgan want to bury her face in her arms and laugh. Instead, Morgan picked some lint off the sleeve of her turquoise blue hoodie and sucked in her lips to keep from smiling in front of Mr. Gold.
Ruby set their drinks down in front of them.
"Thank you, Ruby," Mr. Gold said and lifted his coffee mug to his lips. He paused mid-way when he saw Ruby hadn't moved from her spot. "Ahem," he coughed.
Ruby gave Morgan a hesitant glance but the girl tilted her head in a way that said, "It's okay. Go on."
Ruby sighed and moved away, obviously put off that she wasn't going to be able to hear anything. But that wasn't going to stop her from trying to overhear snippets whenever she passed their table.
Silence governed the table once the waitress had gone and it made Morgan fidget. She could make out the lyrics to the song playing on the junk box behind her at the far end of the diner.
"She'll see I'm not so tough Uptown girl
Just because
I'm in love with an uptown girl
You know I've seen her in her uptown world
She's getting tired of her high class toys
And all her presents from her uptown boys
She's got a choice;
You know I can't afford to buy her pearls
But maybe someday when my ship comes in
She'll understand what kind of guy I've been
And then I'll win…"
Morgan tapped out the beat with her right index finger against the table top. She peeked up at Mr. Gold to see if it was annoying him. Her brows furrowed when she couldn't read his expression.
"Man, he's got a mean poker face when he's not smirking suspiciously," she thought.
Eventually she stopped tapping and slumped unlady-like in her chair. This breakfast was going to go down in The History Book of Most Awkward Moments. It would probably be listed right underneath the car ride with Mr. Gold to the diner. After getting over the surprise of finding out Mr. Gold did indeed own a car, Morgan was hit with another shocker. The man didn't listen to music while he drove. None whatsoever! It was extreme torture to Morgan who always had to have music playing.
Morgan nearly clapped when Ruby arrived with their food. She mouthed, "Thank you," to the waitress and Ruby responded with a mouthed, "You're welcome," in return.
They didn't linger in the diner after they had finished their meal. Mr. Gold immediately stood and smoothed his suit free of wrinkles. Ruby made a frustrated face when she realized she wouldn't get to talk to Morgan as Mr. Gold paid the bill. Morgan waved good-bye to her friend and followed Mr. Gold out of the diner.
….
When they pulled up in the drive way, Morgan felt as if her heart was in a vice grip. She didn't think it would be painful to walk inside the house she'd grown up in, but it was. Each room brought memories she had shared with her father.
They went straight to Morgan's room, Mr. Gold opening the door for her. Having him in her room was extremely uncomfortable. It almost felt violating.
"Well, I suppose we should start packing your clothes first. Pack what you need and we'll come for the rest later," Gold suggested. He picked up a red duffle bag from the floor and it was promptly snatched out of his hand by Morgan. She hugged it tightly to her chest and gave Mr. Gold a blank look.
Gold's hand fell limply at his side. "Yes… well… I'll leave you to it."
Morgan nodded, keeping her eyes trained to the floor boards. She waited until the rhythmic thud of Mr. Gold's cane faded as he left the room. Morgan dashed towards the door and slammed it closed. Slowly, Morgan unfolded her arms and set the duffle bag on the bed, unzipping it open. With a deep sigh Morgan went to the radio on her dresser and flipped it on.
….
Mr. Gold flinched at the loud sound of Morgan's door slamming closed. He was just stepping off the last of the stairs when he heard the music coming loud and clear from Morgan's room.
"She lives in a fairy tale Keep your feet on the ground Well go get your shovel
Somewhere too far for us to find
Forgotten the taste and smell
Of a world that she's left behind
It's all about the exposure, the lens, I told her
The angles are all wrong now
She's ripping wings off of butterflies
When your head's in the clouds
And we'll dig a deep hole
To bury the castle, bury the castle!
Go get your shovel
And we'll dig a deep hole
To bury the castle, bury the castle!
Ba-da ba ba-da ba ba-da!"
Gold had to suppress a laugh at some of the lyrics he heard coming from upstairs. Considering Morgan was part of a fairytale. Gold wet his lips and continued walking through the house, pausing to look at pictures on the wall of Tyron and Morgan.He focused on the photos. There was one picture that really grabbed his attention. Picking it up for closer inspection, gold's brown eyes took in the two faces smiling back at him. Morgan and her mother, Athena; Monica in this world. 'Monica' meaning 'wise counselor'. How fitting since she was named after the goddess of wisdom.
Morgan faired after her mother. Athena was where she got her red hair but it was far more bright and vibrant than her mother's. Both shared similar facial structure. The one thing really different between the two of them was that Morgan had blue eyes and Athena had hazel green.
Gold must have been staring at the photo for a long time; he was startled by the sound of Morgan's door opening and her footsteps thumping on the floor. He put the picture down and limped to the stairwell. Morgan was at the very top, lugging her red duffle bag on her shoulder.
"Are you ready, my dear?"
Morgan shook her head and slid the bag's strap her shoulder and tossed the bag down the stairs. It landed with a loud thud a foot away from Gold's left leg. He glanced up from the bag at Morgan's retreating back. His fingers tightening around the handle of his cane. Now Morgan was just being plain rude. He flexed his hand to release the tension, debating on what course of action to take. The loud music blaring from her room wasn't making matters any better; a different song this time.
Morgan appeared later with another bag, but this one had wheels and a handle. She walked down the stairs with it this time. It must have contained something other than clothes.
"Is that enough to last you for now?"
Morgan ignored him and moved to walk past Gold. A vice-like grip clamped around her wrist, stopping Morgan from going any further. Morgan fearfully met Mr. Gold's eyes; he stared into her own with a stern glare. "You may be a mute, dearie, but I still expect an answer. A simple head nod will suffice."
Morgan took a moment to swallow before nodding.
"That's better." Gold released Morgan's wrist and she quickly hurried out the door, leaving behind her duffle bag. Gold regretted his actions. It had been a little harsh, but the girl wasn't going to think she could treat him like that. Gold grunted as he bent over and picked up Morgan's forgotten bag and carried it to the car.
….
"We'll visit your father after we stop by the school and pick up your assignments. I imagine you'll want time to adjust to the situation before going back."
Morgan just nodded as Gold drove them in the direction of the high-school. It wasn't very far from the middle school where Henry Mills went. As they drew nearer to the school, Morgan felt herself slowly slouch further and further into her seat. She was not looking forward to this. People already ostracized her because she was mute and the daughter of a fisherman. How would the student body treat her once they found out who her new guardian was?
The car pulled in to the parking lot and Gold switched off the engine. He and Morgan climbed out of the car and closed their doors. He paused when he saw Morgan not move away from the vehicle. Her gaze was fixed on the school. She had the same look on her face when she had been sitting in Emma's car outside of Gold's house. Something was keeping her from going inside.
Gold walked around to be next to Morgan's side. "is something wrong?" he asked.
Morgan blinked and looked at him as if she'd just been woken from a dream. She shoved her hands into the pockets of her hoodie and let her shoulders slump as she walked towards the building. Gold followed her without much difficulty.
The moment they entered, the bell rang to signal a class change. Morgan braced herself for the oncoming rush of bodies that invaded the halls. The stares began then. Mr. Gold was a feared man throughout the town and here he was walking Morgan into the school. Whispers were passed along and more attention was drawn to Morgan and Gold. Morgan kept her head low and her hands stayed in her pockets as she pushed through the crowd to her first class. Mr. Gold didn't have to do much pushing, the students and teachers parted whenever he got close to them.
The duo went from class to class, Gold explaining the situation to the teacher and Morgan keeping her head low, ignoring the stares of other students. Once they reached Mr. Gull's history class, Morgan finally brought herself to look up. Mr. Gull's eyes filled with sympathy and he shared a glance with her.
"Uh… yes, I'll uh, I'll just hand those assignments right over." He opened the drawer to his desk and shuffled through the papers. "Oh, uh… I don't have them printed out yet. It would take a little bit of time for me to print them out right now and-."
"We're in a bit of a rush at the moment, so maybe you could have a student in her class bring the assignments to her."
"You mean… at your home?"
"Yes. I thought I had made that part very clear?"
"Well, um…" Mr. Gull looked at his students. "Would anyone be willing to bring Morgan's classwork to her after school?"
It wasn't a surprise when no one immediately raised their hand. Morgan and Florence shared the same history class, but he wasn't there. Morgan wished he was. She wanted to see him. After a slight pause, a hand was raised in the back. Mr. Gull smiled and nodded. "Miss Lily Scarlett, are you volunteering?"
Lily Scarlett stood up from the very back desk in the left corner of the room. She appeared to be much older than the rest of the students. She had long black hair and grey eyes and a very pretty face. She wore a red hair band and sported a red shirt with intricate rose designs splayed along the front. She also wore a white skirt that reached her knees and black boots that came up to mid-calf.
"Yes, Mr. Gull. I'll be happy to."
Mr. Gold's eyes narrowed ever so slightly as he gazed at Lily; as if he were trying to recall seeing her before.
"Miss Scarlett is a college student that has been monitoring many of the teachers here to help her get a feel for the career of a teacher. Eh, what subject are you wanting to teach?"
"Zoology."
The only reaction Gold gave was an imperceptible twitch of his left eyebrow as he smiled at Lily Scarlett. "That's quite a field to teach."
"Thank you."
Morgan and Lily made eye contact. Lily smiled gently at her. "I hope six o'clock isn't too late for me to stop by? I have a few errands to run after I'm through here."
"Six is just fine, Miss Rose."
"It's Lily."
"Yes, of course," Gold responded with a faint smile. He nodded and touched Morgan by the elbow, signaling to move on. Once they were out of the room, Gold shut the door and asked if that was the last of her classes.
"One more," Morgan mouthed as she held up her index finger. She turned to lead the way and ended up bumping smack into Florence who had been late to class. They stared at each other in silence once it registered who the other one was. Florence immediately pulled Morgan into a hug.
"Ruby told me what happened," he explained. Morgan tried to swallow back the tears but she found herself too tired to keep it up. Mr. Gold walked a respectful distance away when he saw the beginnings of Morgan's sobs.
Florence stroked Morgan's hair and let her cry on his shoulder. Her tears fell on his yellow sweatshirt, creating dark spots against the fabric. Once Morgan gained control of her tears, she and Florence signed to one another for a good few minutes until the bell for next class rang.
"Morgan," Gold called. "We need to be moving along."
"How are you holding up with him?" Florence signed, not daring to whisper in case Gold heard him or could read lips.
"So far… it's too soon to tell," Morgan responded.
"Morgan," Gold called again.
Florence hugged his friend and watched her leave with Mr. Gold. "What a nightmare," he whispered.
…
They could hear the choir singing the moment they entered the music hall. The choir room was located at the very end. Morgan could make out what song the choir was singing.
"Seasons of love
Seasons of love!"
Morgan opened the door and Gold followed behind. Mr. Crabtree was at the piano with his back to them, occasionally giving a directive gesture while still playing the keys. All eyes, but Mr. Crabtree, turned to see who walked through the door and the atmosphere immediately changed. The singing began to dwindle until it came to a complete stop and the only noise to be heard was the piano and Mr. Gold's cane tapping on the floor.
Mr. Crabtree's face screwed up in confusion as to why his choir had stopped singing. "What is da problem?" he asked the students, oblivious to the stares being directed behind him.
"I'm sorry to disrupt your practice, sir. But I'm afraid Morgan needs to know her assignments."
Mr. Crabtree turned and lifted his eyebrows once he recognized Mr. Gold. "And… uh… why is dat?" he asked.
Mr. Gold went over the same explanation he'd given all the teachers. Murmurs erupted the moment he mention Morgan now lived with him. Morgan winced. The man could have had the decency to speak to her teachers in private instead of humiliating her in front of all the students she had classes with. And the worst student of all was smiling maliciously at her from her seat in the front row. Vanessa's violet eyes seemed to be laughing at Morgan.
Morgan looked away, training her eyes on the ground, tuning out every sound. She nearly jumped when Mr. Gold touched her elbow.
"Morgan?"
She looked to see he had nudged her elbow with a music folder and was waiting for her to take it. Morgan quickly took it, clutching it to her chest and swiftly left the room; leaving the searing stares of the students behind.
(I'm sorry it ends so awkwardly and that once again there was no fairytale part in it. Story Brooke is just coming to me easier. I hope this wasn't too big of a disappointment. Also, as you've noticed by now, I use a lot of music/songs in this story due to Ariel's life revolving so much around music. So I'm asking you, Dear Readers, whether or not you have any song suggestions for me to listen to or use for this story? Please let me know what you think and you can either leave me a suggestion in a review or a private message. I love you all so much! *blows a kiss* Until next time!)