Expectations: Liam

For the life of him, Liam Jones cannot figure out why most of the people in Storybrooke don't like Mr. Gold and are even afraid of him.

He understands why his father doesn't really like him. Liam supposes it would be very difficult to forgive someone for cutting your hand off. (He is frustrated that neither his father or Mr. Gold are willing to tell him what the fight was about). But Liam notices that even people that are kind of family to Mr. Gold are still kind of weird and nervous around him, and it makes no sense: Liam thinks that Mr. Gold is the most awesome guy in the entire town, next to his own father of course.

For one thing, he can use magic. So can Liam's mother if he wants to be technical about it, but she hardly ever does and she certainly isn't willing to do it just to entertain him. Mr. Gold is always willing to make objects dance about or summon sweets from the air, or tell stories about funny things he's seen in his life or deals he made long ago that had bizarre consequences. (The most bizarre, he's stated more than once with a bewildered shake of his head, is the one that netted him a wife when all he was looking for was a clean kitchen floor.)

Mr. Gold never yells at him or gets mad that he hangs around with Haylan so much (he's a frequent overnight guest in the Gold household). He's also Henry's grandfather, and since Liam and Henry are brothers Liam thinks that sort of makes Mr. Gold his grandfather too. He's eight-years-old when he finally sees a bit of what makes Mr. Gold so fearsome to other people.

Liam is walking home after running down to the drug store to pick up some things for his mother (he had tried to get out of by telling her to just "use her magic and summon them" and received a lecture on stealing for his trouble). The plastic bag swings from his hand as he cuts back through a narrow alley to get home a little faster. He stops when he sees Lyle Metcalf lounging against the wall at the other end. Lyle has already seen him so Liam can't turn around and leave without looking like a chicken, so he sticks out his chin and continues on his way.

Lyle is only about twenty but he looks older and Liam can't be near him without getting a weird feeling in the pit of his stomach. There's something just…off…about the guy. The adults sense it too, and he's heard his mother say that if they were back in the Enchanted Forest Lyle would probably be rooting for the ogres. But as weird as Lyle is he's never done anything so people tend to leave him alone.

Today as Liam gets near him, his sense of danger goes into overdrive. There's a weird odor around Lyle and when he looks at Liam through greasy brown bangs his eyes are bloodshot and his pupils dilated. He's also twitching a bit. Liam gathers his courage again and attempts to walk by, but Lyle moves to block his path.

"Hey hey, Pretty Boy." Lyle whispers. "What's in the bag, Pretty Boy?"

"Just…stuff. For my Mom. I have to get home." He tries to go around Lyle, but the young man moves again to block his way.

"Stuff…" Lyle seems to taste the word. "I like stuff. Do you like stuff, Pretty Boy?"

"Please. Just let me go." Liam tries not to whimper. He's so, so glad that Haylan isn't with him right now.

"But I just want to be your friend." Lyle steps toward him. "You want to make some money, Pretty Boy? I got something you can do for me. I'll pay you five bucks."

Whatever it is that Lyle wants him to do, Liam is absolutely certain he doesn't want to do it.

"Cause…" And Lyle giggles. "You're gonna do it, Pretty Boy. Do it on your own and I'll pay you. I got to make you, you'll do it for free."

Liam turns and tries to run but Lyle grabs a handful of his jacket and yanks him backwards against Lyle's body, and the unwashed stench causes the boy to gag. Lyle is pulling at his clothing and Liam is crying now and trying to get away and hoping this is all a bad dream and he's going to wake up, wake up right now, any minute…suddenly the hands pawing at him are gone and he sees Lyle go flying through the air and slam up against of the alley wall. Someone is between Liam and Lyle now, walking toward Lyle and shaking with fury, and through his tears Liam sees that it's Mr. Gold.

Lyle, although injured, tries to get up, but the magic knocks him against the wall again. He whimpers and puts his hands up over his face as Gold approaches him. "Please don't kill me. Please don't kill me."

"You're a cockroach." Gold leans down and whispers. "You always have been. Admit it!"

"I'm a cockroach! I'm a cockroach!" Lyle replies frantically.

"The only reason you aren't dead yet is that my wife doesn't want me killing people even if they do deserve it." Gold continues. "Say 'Thank you, Belle''"

"Thank you Belle." Lyle is crying now.

"This is what will happen now." Gold leans closer. "You are going to cross the town line and leave Storybrooke. No one here will miss you. If you attempt to come back into town, you'll turn into the cockroach you just admitted you are. If you ever in your entire life attempt to harm anyone, even once, you'll become a cockroach. Do you understand everything I've said? I'd hate for you to be confused about anything."

"I understand!" The younger man is wailing.

"You have 20 minutes to be gone from Storybrooke. It's a bit of a distance to the town line so you had better start running now."

Lyle scrambles to his feet and with one last, horrified look at Gold he begins to run, getting tangled up in his own legs at first. Gold watches him disappear around the corner, and then spits on the ground. "Good riddance."

Liam is still standing still, shaking. He's stopped crying but the tearstreaks are on his face. Gold approaches him and without a word pulls the little boy against his body into an embrace and Liam buries his face into Gold's chest.

"He's gone, Liam. He won't hurt you or anyone else ever again. I promise."

Liam is young, but he isn't stupid. He watches television and he likes to read and he knows things his parents don't particularly want him to know at his age. "He was gonna…"

"I know, Liam. I know what he was going to do." Gold pulls back and pushes Liam's inky hair out of his eyes.

"How did you know I needed help?"

Gold points to Liam's left ear, which is pierced with a diamond stud. "There's an enchantment on that, similar to what I have on my own children. It lets me know if you're in danger. Remember that I told you to always wear that for good luck?"

Liam forces a smile. "Thank you, Mr. Gold. Don't…don't tell Haylan that I cried, alright?"

"Of course I won't tell him. Did that bastard injure you? Do you need healing?"

"No…" Liam shakes his head. "I just…I just really want my Mom right now." The tears start up again and Gold nods and puts his arm around Liam, and the next moment they are outside of the Jones' house. Emma opens the door before Liam can dig out his key, and she sucks in her breath to see Liam's teary face and the greasy finger-marks on his yellow T-shirt. "Liam? Sweety, what's…" Liam flings himself into her arms with a sob, and she looks up at Gold in confusion. He sees Killian appear behind his wife and invites himself inside.

When Liam is settled on the sofa between both of his anxious parents, Gold reveals what transpired a few minutes ago, including his method of dealing with Lyle. He hopes Hook won't start posturing that Lyle was his to deal with, but he doesn't. He just rubs his son's back, looking almost ready to cry himself.

"Thank you." Emma lets out a huge breath. "I mean, I'd appreciate a head's up next time you enchant his metal, but I won't deny I'm glad you did it. We owe you big time."

Gold shakes his head. "Liam is in my house so often sometimes I forget he's not one of my brood. He's been the best friend Haylan could have ever had, and I promise you that no one will harm a hair on his head as long as I'm able to prevent it."

"Can…" Liam lifts up his head. "Can Haylan come over? And stay the night?"

"If it's alright with your parents, of course." Gold looks as if there is a lot more he wants to say as the Jones' nod in agreement. "I'll go get Haylan and bring him back over. It's up to you how much, if anything, you decide to tell him. But based on my own experiences…it's better when you talk about it. Especially to someone who loves you."

Gold turns to leave and as he goes out the front door he sees Hook hurrying to catch up to him. Gold waits patiently on the front porch as Hook closes the door behind him.

"Truth is…" Hook finally says. "Guess I always assumed if it came down to it, you'd let him die."

"Is it so hard to believe that I can put my feelings toward you aside and care about your son?" Gold sounds mildly offended. "He practically lives in my house, after all. And it would destroy Haylan if anything ever happened to his friend. I meant what I said. The boy is under my protection as long as I'm alive to give it. And since you're probably dying to ask, no, you don't owe me anything for it."

They might never be friends. There's too much there: Milah's desertion, her death, Hook's attempts on Belle's life. Too much to maybe ever really forgive, and they both know it. But they are bonded nevertheless by the fact that they are both fathers. "No one…" Gold's voice goes tight. "Should have to lose their child."

That night in his room, Liam spills the entire story to Haylan, including the fact that he cried. Haylan listens to it, his blue eyes sorrowful as Liam begins to tear up again. When Liam is done talking, Haylan scoots over and put his thin arms around the other boy, and Liam lays his head against Haylan's shoulder, and he feels truly safe for the first time today since he entered the alley.

"I love you, Liam." Haylan whispers. "When I have magic, no one is ever gonna hurt you. I'll kill them, if they try."

They don't see Emma standing in the doorway, having come up to see if they need anything. She's already left a voicemail for Dr. Hopper to have Liam brought in to speak with him tomorrow. But she wants him hold on to his best friend and thinks that maybe, with no offense to Hopper, that Liam is already getting the best therapy in the world.