Later that afternoon, Belle stopped by Dr. Hopper's office. Belle sat on one side of the couch with her legs extended across the remainder of it, and Archie took his place in the chair by her feet that was angled towards her face.
Archie was the first to speak. "Honestly, Belle, I'm surprised that you haven't been here earlier. You have been through so much lately. I figured you would be need to talk to someone, eventually."
She admitted, "I know it's not good. But I've been trying to suppress all these feelings that I've been having. Until now, it's been easier to do that than to really face how I feel. When I begin talking about all of this, it seems real, and I don't want it to be real. I want this all to just be a bad dream."
He shook his head in acknowledgement. "I can't imagine how you feel right now."
Belle looked down towards her lap. "I feel I might have made a mistake."
"Banishing Rumplestiltskin might have been hard, but you did what you thought was right." he said, trying to reassure her.
Ashamed, he confessed, "Well, that's not what I was talking about, but now I'm regretting it."
Confused by what she meant, he asked her, "What are you referring to, then?"
Quietly, she replied, "I slept with Will Scarlet."
Archie was completely taken aback by this. "You slept with Will Scarlet? Like you…"
Belle cut him off, "Yes."
"Wow, um...I'm not judging or anything, but doesn't it seem kind of soon to be jumping into a relationship like that?"
She shook her head in agreement. "That's kind of how I feel. Since Rumple left, I really wanted to try to find myself. Will said something to me the other night that I'm a lot more like Lacey than I thought. I'm not saying it's Will's fault, but he put this idea in my head that maybe, deep down, I'm not this careful, shy woman. That I am more carefree and willing to take chances."
"And by the sounds of it, that really isn't who you are."
Belle agreed. "Exactly. But I don't know what to do about it? I can't just tell Will that I think I took things way too fast. I mean, last night was...really, um...good, but it didn't feel the same as it did with Rumple. I know he can never come back, and I don't know why I'm holding onto these feelings for someone that I'll never see again."
Archie questioned her thoughts. "How do you know you'll never see him again? I know it seems impossible, but haven't you said that before, like when he went to Neverland with the intent of never coming back?"
"Yes, and that's my other concern. What happens if he does come back? I don't know what I would say to him. I'm so angry with him for what he did to me. How he tricked me, played me, made me believe that he actually loved me. But, part of me is worried that if he comes back and I tell him about Will, that he will never forgive me. That I ruined every chance that we could get back together."
"After everything you just said, do you really want to get back together with him? I feel he's the one that owes you an apology." Archie strongly stated.
"I know, but I've loved him for so long. I'm not sure I'll ever be able to get over him. When I left my father's kingdom with him, I could tell there was a deep evil rooted in him. But, when I kissed him, I really thought that there was some part of him that could love me. But after all of this, I don't know anymore. He told me that he loved me, and I guess I never really gave him a chance to explain himself before I banished him, but he's lied about so many things...I don't know what to believe any more."
He tried to pry more into her thoughts. "So you don't want to get back together with him?"
Tears began to run down her face. "I think part of me still loves him. I want to ask him why he put me through all of this, why he lied to me, and why he doesn't love me the way he made me think he did. More than anything, I want answers. I want to know why."
"I understand you've been through a lot, that you've been deeply hurt. But, you have to prepare yourself that you might never get answers to your questions. You may never know why he did what he did to you." he said, trying to be honest, yet consoling.
"I know, but I'll always wish I knew why." she responded as she whipped her tears from her eyes.
"If you want my opinion, if you ever face the Dark One again, I'm sure after all the times you forgave him, he'll forgive you."
"Even so, what do I tell Will?"
"Tell him how you feel. If he's a true gentleman, he'll understand. And if I recall, Mr. Scarlet has lost a love as well. He will accept your decision."
"You really think so?"
"I do, yes. And if it would make you feel better, how about after you talk to him, you call me and we can set up another appointment."
"Thank you, Archie." She got up from the couch, grabbed her jacket, and looked back before she left. "You've really helped me, more than you know."
Archie smiled. "You're welcome, Belle. I look forward to our next meeting. And good luck with Will."
Belle left and Archie snapped his fingers and Rumplestiltskin appeared in his place. He got up and opened the coat closet where he had Archie tied up and removed the bandana that was around Archie's mouth. "Well, Dr. Hopper, thank you for keeping quiet so I could talk to my wife."
"Gold, I don't understand. If you want to get her back, why guide her towards Will?"
"I love Belle, very much. I'd do anything to make her happy. I've hurt her more than I could ever make up for. She told me, when I was disguised as Killian, that Will makes her smile. I'm beginning to realize that I may never get her back, but that doesn't mean I'm going to stop trying. And now, thanks to your...assistance, I now know what she wants from me. And if I proved those answers to her, maybe she'll open up her heart to me once again."
"But you've hurt her so…"
Rumple angrily cut him off, "You don't need to remind me how much I've hurt my wife."
"I'm sorry. I'm just trying to understand how you think if you keep lying to her that you'll get her back. You just heard how hurt she is by the lies you told her. Why would you keep deceiving her? And what do you want from me, exactly?"
"First of all, my intentions are my own. And what I want is for you to drink this forgetting potion. I can't have you telling people what I'm up to." He reached into his suit pocket and pulled out a small vial that contained a purple potion. He tilted Archie's head back and forced him to drink the potion. Before Archie could comprehend what happened, Rumplestilskin had disappeared from his sight.