Hey, guys. Before I start, like I said, I skipped ahead because nothing of importance really happens before Gold finds them. Everything else is really just fluff. So, here we go.

Not much happened over the past months, except for Neal asking Tamara to marry him. The idea did not sit well with Rose and would rather that not happen. Rose's inner self assure her that it was supposed to happen and she shouldn't worry about it. She didn't say anything else other than the wedding won't happen. That put Rose at ease a bit, but she still didn't like it.

Rose's school got out early because one of the kids pulled the fire alarm. Nothing happened, but they sent everyone home anyway. Unfortunately for Rose, Neal couldn't pick her up at the time, so he asked Tamara to bring her home and stay with her until he got back. The car ride to the apartment was uncomfortable to say the least. In Tamara's mind, Rose actually liked her. It was hard to pretend so.

"So, how was your day? You know, before the false alarm." Rose gritted her teeth and smiled.

"It was good. We learned how to the twelve times tables. The teachers said we could probably get to thirteen tomorrow."

"Wow. That's great. Most kids don't get that far until at least first grade."

"Yep." Rose nodded and looked out the window, trying to avoid any further conversation. Before Tamara could ask another question, her cell phone started ringing. Rose let out a quiet sigh of relief. Tamara turned on her blue tooth.

"Hello?...Oh, hey Neal...Yeah, I just picked her up...Oh, really?...Alright...No problem. There's actually somewhere I need to be in a while...Will do...Okay. See you later." She hung up. "That was Neal. He said he finished up early and he's home."

"Okay." On the inside, Rose was cheering she didn't have to spend any more time with Tamara than she had to. After a few more minutes of uncomfortable silence, they finally pulled up in front of the apartment. Rose immediately jumped out of the car. "Okay. Thanks for the ride! Bye!"

She shut the door and ran into the building. She used her key to unlock the gate and went upstairs, not realizing she didn't close it all the way. After walking up a number of stairs, she finally made it to their floor and room. Unlocking the door, she walked in announcing her presence.

"Neal! I'm home!" There was no response. After locking the door behind her, she looked around. She didn't see him. "Neal?"

Still nothing. He said he was home. Where was he? Rose then noticed the window was open. Not thinking much of it, she over and closed it so the heat wouldn't get out. Maybe he had to run out to get something. He usually forgot things every now and again. Putting her bag down, she went over to the refrigerator and took out a container of cut up strawberries. Since she didn't have any homework, or at least the teachers didn't get the chance to hand out any, she hopped on Neal's bed and turned on the television. She wondered what was on that time of day.

After not seeing anything new, she settled for a rerun of My Little Pony. Rose then thought about Neal. Wouldn't he say something before Tamara dropped her off? She grabbed the phone from the dresser and dialed Neal's cell phone number. It rang and rang and rang until it went to voice mail. It wasn't like Neal not to answer his phone. She was starting to get worried. Where was he? What was he doing? Why didn't he answer his phone? The situation was familiar. Too familiar. That feeling of uncertainty. That feeling that something happened to someone she loved. That feeling that they might not come back. That dreaded feeling of be left alone. She's felt all of these before.

Rose was unaware of the glowing of her locket or the shaking of the objects around her. She was too worried. Too upset. Too...lost. She didn't want to think about what would happen if Neal never came back. She couldn't bare to go through that again. Wait...again? When did it happen the first time?

"Where's Papa?" That voice. It was her own. Papa...her papa. "What if Papa never comes back?"

That's right. Back in her first life. Her papa, something happened to him. "I just want Papa back."

But...it wasn't just her papa. It was her mama too. "Mama!" "No! I don't wanna go without you!"

"You have to, sweetheart. I promise it won't be forever, but you need to go now!" She remembered it all. She was separated from both of her parents back then. She was left in the care of others. They took care of her. But, if Neal didn't come back, who would take care of her then? Her thoughts were interrupted by a voice outside of the door. Not being able to make it out, she assumed it was Neal. A wave a relief came over her as she got up and ran to the door. Getting closer, she heard another voice she didn't recognize. There were voices of a man and woman. Neither of which she knew. She then heard the lock jiggle. They were trying to get in.

Panic washed over her once again. What should she do? No had ever tried to break in before. Her first thought was to get out through the fire escape. Before she could get to the window, she heard the click of the door. It was too late. She did the next best thing and locked herself in the bathroom. She sat in the bathtub behind the shower curtain and did her best to stay quiet. She then heard the voice inside the apartment. They were too muffled to make out, but she could tell there was a least three of them.

Her heart jumped when she heard the doorknob jiggle. She begged that they wouldn't come in. After a couple more jiggles, it stopped. Whoever tried to open the door must have given up and walked away. What did they want? Who were they? What were they looking for? She didn't care if they found it or not. She just wanted them gone. She really wished Neal was with her. He would know what to do. Her locket once again began to emit a low glow that went unnoticed. There was suddenly yelling between a man and woman. Objects around the bathroom slightly shook and threatened to come alive at any moment. She couldn't make out a lot of it, but she did hear one thing accompanied by a loud crash.

"We had a deal! A deal! No one! No one breaks deals with me!" There was another loud crash with a familiar voice.

"Hey!" It was Neal. "Leave her alone."