A/N: First off, I absolutely loved this idea for a one-shot. I want to thank NinaGold for requesting this a few one-shots back. That being said, I thought it would be easier if I base this in Storybrooke rather than the Enchanted Forest. So it's kind of a Rose AU one-shot. I hope everyone likes it.
Many thanks to NinaGold, Grace5231973, Prisoner of Azkaban711, belle, AbbieT, orthankg1, CharlotteAshmore, crazykat77, and CocoRocks for their awesome reviews.
Let Her Go
Shortly before seven in the morning, just as the golden rays of sunlight filtered over the floorboards, Rumpel cracked open the door to his daughter's bedroom. It was a little chilly inside and all he could see of Rose was the curled outline of her small body under the covers, the blankets tucked up to her cheek. Quietly he made his way to her bed, pushed aside the overhanging pink netting, and sat down on the edge. Rose's eyelids squeezed tighter, but she didn't stir.
Gods, he disliked the idea of waking her up. She was so tiny and precious, her skin glowing in the sunshine, her hand forming a fist under her chin, her pink lips parted as her breath went in and out peacefully.
Gently, he touched her shoulder and shook it, urging her awake.
"Rose? Honey? Time to get up," he whispered, shaking her shoulder a little harder when she didn't respond.
Her mouth closed and a low mmm buzzed in her throat. Clinging to the bliss of sleep, she buried her face deeper in her pillow. He brushed the messy spirals of dark hair out of her face, thinking about how hard it would be for Belle to drag a brush through it.
"Rosie...it's the first day of school, remember? If you get up now, you can have chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast."
The bribery worked.
Rose's body stretched to full-length under the blankets and her eyelids snapped apart, rewarding him with the sight of those two smiling sapphires he adored. A grin covered her face, her belly rumbling for chocolate chip pancakes. Luckily, Belle was on her way to whipping them up. Even now, the delicious aroma of melted chocolate floated up the stairs and teased his nose.
"I knew that would do the trick," he said and bent down to give her a kiss on the forehead.
Picking her up, he carried her downstairs, where her mother was waiting with breakfast. She was equally beautiful, clad in little more than his white dress shirt from yesterday, her hair framing her face in gorgeous ringlets, her cheeks warmed by a healthy pink blush. Walking up behind her, he pressed a kiss to her neck.
"Morning, sweetheart," he said in her ear. Belle smiled and turned away from the stove to return his kiss. She did the same to Rose, wishing her good morning.
Belle had already picked out Rose's dress the night before and it hung over the back of a chair in the kitchen. Rumpel eased his daughter onto a chair and Belle placed a plate of pancakes in front of her, the pancakes sliced into dozens of easy-to-eat pieces. Chocolate chips rained over the plate, melting into the pancakes.
Even Rumpel moaned hungrily.
"Don't worry. I have enough left over for you," Belle said and set down a second plate of pancakes on the table. Rumpel practically wolfed them down, the chocolate exploding over his tongue. There was nothing quite like Belle's cooking. Rose seemed to agree, though more chocolate got on her face and hands than in her mouth.
He couldn't believe it was her first day of school. He'd been anticipating and dreading this day for weeks. Snow had reassured him time and again that everything would be alright, that Rose would be happy when she got the chance to make new friends.
Belle told him the same, but it didn't stop him from worrying. This was his baby girl they were talking about. For several hours, he would be without her. What if something happened? What if she fell down and scraped her knee? What if some foolish boy pulled on her braids or pushed her in the mud?
What if she needed him?
All of those concerns he had shared with Belle during their nights together before they fell asleep. Each time she responded with a soft kiss and a promise that Rose would be okay. It was only kindergarten. How bad could it be?
Deep down, he knew she was right. It was his fatherly instincts at work, filling him with a sense of duty to protect Rose at all times.
Too soon, Belle was lifting Rose into her arms and carrying her into the living room to get her changed into her dress. Rumpel helped by depositing the plates in the sink and wetting a paper towel to wash Rose's face and hands.
Rumpel was the one to braid Rose's hair, twisting and handling the strands as carefully as he would the straw for his spinning wheel. Rose sat in his lap and didn't cry out once. He tied the ends of her braids with blue ribbons that matched her eyes.
Then she was up and running about, her braids flying behind her. Excited laughter echoed through the house and in his ears. Belle playfully scooped Rose up and planted multiple kisses on her face, gushing about how beautiful she was.
Those little boys had better stay away from his little girl. Whether she came home in tears or with a story of a kiss, he would hunt down the parents belonging to those boys and give them an earful.
"Are you ready?" Belle asked with forced cheerfulness after she was done getting Rose's brand new white shoes on her squirming feet. Rumpel was set to bring her to school before heading to his shop.
"Yup," Rose chirped, smacking her lips together. Rumpel felt an emotional tightness inside his chest as he carried Rose out to the car and strapped her in her seat.
I'm not.
...
Rumpel was too aware of Rose's small hand in his as he brought her into the school and navigated his way to the kindergarten classroom. His heart melted when Rose began singing to herself, as she often liked to do.
Even though the classroom was bright, the walls papered with suns, rainbows, and stars, he got a dreadful feeling. Snow was there, in hopes of making this transition easier. She had decided to continue teaching at Henry's level and he saved a distrustful look for the kindergarten teacher across the room.
"Hello, Rose. You look so pretty this morning," she greeted kindly, taking ahold of Rose's other hand. Rose liked Snow enough to give her one of her ear-to-ear smiles. Rose was never particularly shy toward anyone, but she only gave that smile to certain people. To him, Snow said: "She'll have fun. I'll give you two a minute alone, so you can say goodbye."
Snow wandered off to help the kindergarten teacher greet the other young children and parents that were filling the room. Her words bit harshly into his brain, like a pair of wickedly sharp vampire teeth sucking him dry.
So you can say goodbye.
He didn't want to say goodbye. Not yet, not ever.
Drawing in a breath, blinking back warm tears he didn't know were coming, he put Rose on her feet. He knelt down by her side to kiss her goodbye.
"You'll be fine," he said to her, though he knew he was only trying to convince himself. He tapped her nose just to hear her shriek with laughter. "You're going to make new friends and learn new things...you probably won't even miss me."
It was a sad truth he refused to accept. Her shiny blue eyes flew over everything in the classroom, inspecting her new surroundings. She seemed most interested in the other children that were saying goodbye to their parents.
When it was time for him to leave, he found that her hand was still caught in his. Nearly all the parents had filed out now after tucking their kids' jackets into new cubbies and wiping their own tears from their eyes. The kindergarten teacher kept sneaking him glances, most likely wondering when he would let go.
"Are you gonna stay, Papa?" Rose asked innocently.
Rumpel guided her into his arms and embraced her, cradling her head. Suddenly he understood why Charming did the same so often to Emma: he longed for time to stop and for his daughter to be that little girl again. He struggled to hold himself together and fought off the urge to take her home with him then and there.
This was the best thing for her.
"No, sweetheart," he murmured. "I'm afraid I can't stay. Play nicely with the other children and have fun. I'll be here to pick you up this afternoon. Promise."
Giving her one last kiss on the cheek, he forced himself to stand up and entrust her into the care of the kindergarten teacher. Snow accompanied him out of the classroom, as she had her own class to teach in a few minutes. While they walked, she offered him a fresh tissue from her pocket, but he declined with a quick shake of the head.
If he started now, he feared he would never stop. The last thing he wanted was Snow to go home that night and tell Charming how he'd been crying on her shoulder.
"I know how you feel. It is so difficult to leave your child behind, even if it's in school," Snow commented, her voice brimming with sympathy. Even though she never experienced this with Emma, her second child was starting second grade this year. Neal.
"If anything happens-" He warned, but Snow placed a comforting hand on his arm.
"You'll be the first to know," she vowed. He glanced back at the classroom, having doubts for the umpteenth time that morning. "How long have we known each other, Rumpel? I was hoping you would be able to trust me by now."
His gaze returned to Snow and it was not exactly friendly. Full of fire, Snow did not cower. Instead she boldly held his gaze until he thought he might be the one to blink first.
"There are exceptions. My daughter being one of them." After what happened to Bae, he never wanted to risk anything happening to Rose. It was with an increasingly heavy heart that he left Snow's side and walked out of the building.
When he was turning the key in the ignition, the tears built up to the breaking point and they overflowed, shaking him violently with each sob. This was precisely how it felt when a heart broke in two.
...
Three o'clock couldn't come fast enough.
In his shop, Rumpel had trouble keeping his mind busy. He went through the contracts in his desk, though there was really no need. He dusted the counters and antiques until they sparkled. He even climbed up on a ladder and removed the guitars and paintings from the wall to dust them, too.
By the time noon rolled around, he was reduced to kicking his feet up behind his desk and doodling restlessly on an old napkin. A bunch of roses in black ink.
Thankfully, he was briefly distracted when Belle visited with lunch. When she asked how it went with dropping Rose off, he almost burst into tears over his sandwich. Belle stroked his back and coaxed away his anxiety. He felt even more lonely when Belle went back to her library.
At three o'clock sharp, he stepped into the kindergarten classroom. The moment that Rose looked up and noticed him, she raced into his arms. He gladly swept her up and held her tightly. He was relieved to see an enormous smile on her face.
All the way to the diner, where they were planning to meet Belle for an early dinner, Rose filled his ears with nonstop tales of excitement about her first day. He started to panic when the name Adam kept popping up, a boy that apparently shared his animal crackers with her, but there was no mention of pushing, braid-tugging, or kisses.
When they reached the diner, Rose relayed the same stories to Belle, often becoming louder than the rest of the jabber in the diner. Across the table, Belle clasped his hand, rubbing it soothingly.
"What did I tell you?" Rose was perfectly fine.
"I know," he sighed, watching his daughter scribble in a coloring book that Granny had generously provided. "It'll be your turn tomorrow."
...