I don't own Once Upon A Time
Gold was in his office, which was open for business just as one would imagine it to be on any normal day. However, if it was possible to read the intent and aura of a place, and if one could, they would certainly give the store a wide berth.
It had been a day and a night since he'd discovered Belle's betrayal. She'd been the only person he'd ever truly opened himself up to, and less than a week passed before she exploited what she'd learned. He was angry; his chest hurt when he thought of it, but more than that he felt...
Liberated.
Yes, he decided - he felt liberated. He could finally allow himself to unleash the cruelty he knew was always lurking just beneath the surface. And not only that but he could unleash it on the person whom was the source of his pain this time.
She'd fucking asked for it.
He began tapping his pencil against the papers on his desk quickly in an uncharacteristic display of impatience. Typically he made a point of keeping any displays of weakness to himself, but he was alone now - and really, who the fuck cared? All the years of practiced self control now just seemed like the universe's joke on him.
He'd already made arrangements for the court to deliver the paper's he'd arranged to the library. It hadn't taken long for him to find a weak spot for the lovely little librarian. In fact, he'd found half a dozen ways to exploit her in only the last thirty hours or so. Non of which could be traced back to him - but she would know. That was the point, wasn't it?
As much as he never wanted to see that woman again, he was, he admitted to himself - waiting for her. She would get those paper's from the court, and rightly draw the conclusion of who had put them in motion, and come to confront him...
Gold broke the pencil between his fingers and thumb. The point of this was to hurt Belle, not to bring her to him.
He heard the chime for the front door, and took a few deep breaths, straightening his jacket. He was glad of it, sedentary anxiety wasn't really his style per se, and he needed to blow off a little steam. It was far too early for Belle to have closed up at the library, and whomever it was on the other side of the curtain was about to get a very bad deal indeed.
But he was surprised.
There she stood, in the center of his shop, in her hands a familiar looking legal packet.
"Miss French, do what do I owe this dubious pleasure?" He braced his hands on the gold topped cane in front of him.
"You want to shut down the library?" Her voice was soft, not angry as he had expected, but almost as though she were on the verge of tears. As if for some reason she hadn't expected this.
"I'm afraid you have me at a loss, dearie. I've no idea what you're talking about."
She strode towards him from her previous stand just inside the entrance and held out the papers to him. He resisted the urge to take a step back, and instead accepted them from her, pretending to read through them as though he wasn't already familiar with the contents.
"It appears as though you didn't get the proper permits to renovate a government owned building." He perused a few more pages, thumbing through the papers. After a moment he handed them back to her. "Apply for the permits, then. If you're looking for the courthouse I'm afraid you've come to the wrong place - it's two blocks over." His gaze he thought was appropriately unfeeling as he held the pages to her.
"I mean to, but they've told me to cease and desist construction until I obtain them - and that the library is not fit for public use until they are done. I have to close it."
He looked away from her, and sighed
"Miss French, I really do believe you should be taking this up with a government official. It has nothing to do with me."
"Doesn't it?" she stared at him "I'm not an idiot, Mr. Gold - your name might not be on these documents, but they have your intent all over them. You said you would show me how fearsome you are, and you've robbed me both of my livelihood and town of it's learning center in a single afternoon. Congratulations." She was now less on the verge of tears, and sounded so matter of fact that it annoyed him - as though she were scolding him.
"I'm afraid your reprimand is misplaced - this was obviously your own oversight in your eagerness to spend the the money given to the library as quickly as possible."
"Hmm." she tilted her head, regarding him silently for a moment. "You know, Mr. Gold - it's amazing to imagine what you might accomplish if you ever decided to use your powers for good." With that she turned and walked out, slamming the door behind her, the bell jingling brightly in her wake.
He just stood there for a few moments, knuckles white as he clenched the side of the display cabinet. The confrontation had gone far differently than he'd anticipated. He stood for a moment, then reached out and grabbed an antique doll on display at the register next to him - flinging it against the far wall, displacing several other objects. He walked over, toeing the ceramic remains that now littered the floor, half a face, unshattered, one blue eye staring up at him dolefully. He lifted a foot and crushed the remainder of the face under his heel. Satisfied, he walked away.
Belle began working part time at her father's flower shop, while she looked for other work elsewhere. Gold could have done something to keep her from finding a job. He could have threatened to raise the rent of anyone who hired her, or blackmail them in a more subversive manner, but he refrained. He'd already gone the route of taking her job, and using the same trick twice without any particular end in mind was, to put it frankly, boring. He would give her time to feel settled, feel safe, before he revealed his next move.
Weeks went by, and from what he'd heard she did find a job as a secretary to the local psychologist. She no longer walked to work via Granny's of course, it not being near that area. Some days he would find himself looking out the pawn shop window to the area they used to meet, and talk, and he found that a feeling of regret stole over him. That in turn only sparked an anger even deeper inside him. It was time to act again. He reached for the phone, picked it up, and dialed a number from memory.
"Hello, Mr. French? I'd like to speak with you about your rental agreement."
This time, Gold finally got the reaction he'd been looking for. She stormed into his shop, all heat and fury, slamming her hands on the counter in front of her causing the display to shake.
"Miss, French? To what do I owe the pleasure this time?" his tone was much more jovial that it had been on their previous meeting.
"How dare you, you bastard!" she hissed, her whole posture exuding tension. Gold was fairly certain she was on the verge of slapping him.
"And what grievance is it you have with me this time?" He tried not to smile, really, but she was making it difficult - he was enjoying this so much.
"You're shutting down my father's store! Why? No, don't tell me - closing down the library wasn't enough revenge for you, now you need to go after the people close to me?"
"Tsk. It's just business dear. It no longer makes sense for me to keep renting to your da in such a prime location when other's would be willing to pay more."
"Oh, right because Storybrook, Maine has such a booming economy." she rolled her eyes. "Just admit it, Ewan, you're doing this because you think I betrayed you."
"Don't call me that." he growled, staring until she visibly flinched. "This is between your father and me. Men's business - nothing to do with you. Run along."
"No it isn't. This is between us." She returned his stare. "At least be enough of a man to focus your anger where it should be and stop using other people as human shields."
"But I'm no man - I'm a monster, remember?" His comment was droll, but on the inside Gold felt incredibly still, and lost, not sure which way to take this fight from here.
"No, you're not. You're a coward."
"I'm not." He snarled, fully aware how juvenile his response sounded.
"Really? I happen to think you're afraid of people getting close to you because it means you might have to actually face your own problems."
"Careful, dearie." His voice was soft.
"All I did was try to make an effort to help you connect with your family. I wasn't betraying you - maybe I overstepped my boundaries..."
"Maybe?" he rose an eyebrow, moving out from behind the counter.
"...but what you've done to me far outweighs anything I did." she continued stubbornly, crossing her arms over her chest.
"Only you're conveniently forgetting one simple detail. You asked me to let go - to show you what a monster I am." He spread his arms out "Well, here I am. And now you're not happy with the results of your wish. How surprising."
"I didn't think you'd go so low as bringing my family into it." she huffed.
"Then perhaps you should have been more specific with your request. 'Oh sir, show me your worst, but do kindly leave out anyone or anything I care about.' " He mocked. She clenched her jaw.
"What is it you want?"
"Pardon?" He blinked
"I may not have known you for long, but everything I've heard about you leads me to believe you're not a man who does anything without purpose. So I'll ask again: What do you want from me? What would it take to get you to stop this?"
He considered momentarily.
"And what could you possibly have to offer, Miss French? I'm simply finding joy in fulfilling your request, and no longer trying to convince you I'm someone I'm not."
"So you want me to tell you I think you're a monster - to verify this twisted opinion you have of yourself, and you'll stop?"
"I might continue anyway - just for fun." He smiled, winking. Her eyes drifted to the floor, her inner thoughts clouding her expression. He could tell she was trying to think of what to say next.
"Just tell me one thing... why try to convince me?"
"Be more specific, precious."
"Why try to convince me you're a better person? Why make the effort if you're just a monster?"
His mind raced. He'd never expected her to question his motives. He'd been a hundred and ten percent sure that any word she spoke to him would be only to declare her unadulterated hate after the actions he'd taken. Gold could only think of one thing to say that might finally put her off, even though somewhere deep inside the thought of finally doing so made him a little bit sick.
"Every man has physical needs, dearie. You're very attractive, and seemed as though you might have been gullible enough to buy my act. Bravo for seeing through me. I suppose I'll have to go back to paying for it, now." He expected her to storm out, perhaps throw one of the myriad of things that would make very satisfactory crack against the wall or even his own person. What he didn't expect was her to stand there, considering his answer like it was a puzzle she was trying to solve.
"I see. I knew you would say something arrogant and off putting. I think" she nodded "I think I can work with this, though." Looking up at him through her lashes, she stepped forward, well within his personal space. He refused to step away. She might get the impression that he cared what she did.
Then Belle was kissing him, and Mr. Gold stopped thinking. Shock stole over him briefly. This was not among the reactions he'd expected from the petite librarian, but he found he couldn't bring himself to protest. Belle was in his arms again, and over the past weeks he'd desperately been trying to convince himself that it would never, could never happen again.
All the arguments he'd made to himself melted away in the heat of their embrace. There was just Belle - and he allowed himself this moment to forget everything and everyone else.
Then she pulled away.
"I don't think..." she said, slightly breathless "that you're a monster. But I do think that you're never going to find it in yourself to be anything but an unimaginable bastard. So I'm here to tell you that you win."
"Pardon?" He blinked.
"Me and my father are leaving town. The flower shop was really the only thing holding us here, and now we can go home. I suppose I should thank you." she waved a hand dismissively.
"You're... leaving?" He articulated slowly, as though trying to understand words spoken in an foreign tongue.
"Yes. And don't worry about me saying anything about your past to people. Nobody outside this little town even cares." She turned on her heel, and walked calmly out the door, as though she'd just finished running an errand. She walked down the street and around the corner, at last out of his sight.
And suddenly Mr. Gold knew what he wanted.
He'd only been to Dr. Hopper's office on the first of every month to collect the rent - so it was no surprise when the doctor asked him in a confused tone if that was the reason for his visit today.
"I'd actually like a word with Belle."
"Oh, I see." Gold could see that this did not alleviate the doctor's confusion in the least. "I'm afraid she went for an early lunch. I can tell her you stopped by."
"Not at all" He took a step in the direction of one of the office chairs and sat down "I can wait."
"Oh. Well... of course. By all means. Can I get you anything?"
"No thank you." Gold was almost cheerful, thinking of what was about to transpire. "I'm sure it won't be long."
"Right, well... If you change your mind, just knock. I'm simply doing paperwork." With that the doctor retreated behind the second door in the room, surely relieved that Gold's business today did not concern him.
It was, in fact, nearly another 45 minutes before Belle showed back up to the office. Barreling though the door, she looked livid, and stopped short when she saw him sitting there. He rose to meet her.
"You." She spat, as though she didn't even want to dirty her lips with his name.
"I take it you've spoken with your father." he replied calmly.
"Of course I spoke with my father!" she snapped "When he woke up to find his van stolen this morning I was the second person he called after the police!"
"Unnecessary. The van hasn't been stolen. Merely repossessed." His tone was dismissive.
"So I gathered. Convenient that you waited until now to call in the loan he had with you."
"Well, when discovering he was going to leave town without settling with me, I knew I needed to act quickly. Thank you for the heads up, dearie." He smirked.
Belle made a sound of inarticulate rage and lunged at him. He let go of his cane and caught her wrists securely in his hands, only stumbling slightly.
"Now now, there's no need to over react, love." She glared daggers at him, but he merely smiled.
"What is going on out here?" Doctor Hopper emerged from his study, a look of concern on his face that began to blossom into panic when he saw them. "Belle, are you ok?"
She didn't answer immediately, and the doctor moved closer to them, as though to physically intervene. Before he could act on any noble intent though, Belle pulled away from Gold, and he let her.
"No. Everything is fine." her tone making it clear that everything was indeed not fine. "Doctor Hopper, can I have a few minutes alone with Mr. Gold?"
"Of course." The good doctor seemed both hesitant and eager to leave, disappearing once again behind the door he'd only just emerged from, a refugee in his own office.
"No wonder you weren't at your shop." Belle said shortly, stepping further away and around to the other side of her desk, putting it between them.
"You came to visit? You should have called, we could have coordinated lunch."
"Don't be an asshole." she stated bluntly. "Why are you even here?"
"Well, it seems to me that you and your father must find yourself a bit inconvenienced. Awfully hard to move out of town with no form of transportation." Belle gave him a no shit look, but just continued to glare, so he pressed forward. "While I had to take action to preserve my investment, I don't think of myself as unreasonable." Belle laughed at that, but it was humorless.
"Not unreasonable? We might have to agree to disagree on that respect."
"I have a proposal for you." He reached into his pocket, pulling out an envelope. "Something that would allow for your father to get his life and business back." He held the letter to her, and she snatched it away, opening the envelope and taking out the papers.
"You suddenly want to make a deal?"
"Yes." He replied simply.
"Hmm." She narrowed her eyes at him, then looked down at the papers, her eyes shifting back and forth quickly as she scanned the papers, then widened as she reached the end of the page. She sat down heavily, turning the page, continuing to read the document. When she was done, she looked up at him.
"Is this a joke?" She asked, her voice filled with disbelief.
"Not a joke at all - you asked me what I wanted." he reminded her "And I've decided."
Belle just shook her head mutely, staring down at the pages in front of her.
"Belle - will you be my wife?"