Hello from Virginia! Vacation time, party at the beach time, summertime, all time, my happy time! :)
Virtual brownies to all of you who guessed who our mystery character from the last chapter was. I was surprised at many of your answers, but most of you guessed that it was either Rumpelstiltskin or Jefferson. So, we'll see who was right :) Feel free to reward yourself as you see fit.
Love you guys!
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He had sat there all night and had never once left her side. He had fallen asleep in a chair by her hospital bed. The nurses were in and out every hour, and every hour, they woke him. They would check her vitals and her blood pressure. They would inspect her dressings that they had wrapped around her torso. They would clean and re-bandage the gauze wrapped around her head. It was an exhausting night. And all he could do was wait for her to wake up.
XxX
Belinda opened her eyes to a mottle of deep reds and oranges. She tried to blink to clear her vision, and very slowly, it began to work. Her head was throbbing terribly and she sucked in her breath as she tried to sit up. She called for help, and no sooner had she opened her mouth, did she hear someone shift beside her. She felt a comforting hand on her shoulder as the stranger tried to push her back down onto the bed.
"Easy, easy," said a voice that she didn't recognize. She began to blink harder and faster until her vision had fully returned. She turned her head to face someone that she did not know. Her eyebrows slanted as he reassured her of her safety. "You're in the hospital."
"What happened?" Her voice sounded raspy and dry. The man moved away to get her a cup of water and he held the back of her neck up as he helped her to drink. She swallowed and her throat instantly felt better. "Why am I here?"
He took a seat. "You don't remember anything?"
Belinda was silent as she thought back to the last thing she could remember. She remembered walking the cold streets and crying. Why had she been crying? "I was walking on the sidewalk."
"You went out into the middle of the road and were just standing there. I was driving my car and I saw you too late. I swerved but I didn't miss you entirely. I'm sorry."
She shook her head. "I shouldn't have been standing in the middle of the road. Why was I?"
"I don't know. But..." the man licked his lips somewhat nervously. "Do you remember me?"
"No...should I?" She furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. There was no way she remembered this man. She had never seen his face before.
He just shrugged. Belinda couldn't tell if he was disappointed or not. "I supposed you wouldn't. Bit difficult all of this."
"What's difficult?"
The man just shook his head. "Sorry. Sometimes I forget that people don't remember what I can."
"What can you remember?" Belinda stared at this stranger in confusion. What on earth was he talking about?
"Never mind," came his simple, yet infuriating response, and Belinda was just left to wonder what he could have possibly meant by her not remembering.
"What's your name?" She asked at last.
"Jefferson," the man replied with a large grin as he folded his hands behind his head and leaned back in his chair. "And you are...?"
She smiled in return. "Belinda. Belinda French." His lips twitched for a split second and then his grin returned.
"It's nice to meet you, Belinda."
They heard the door to the room open and both of their heads turned to see who was entering. It was neither a nurse nor a doctor. "Belle?" The newcomer said with a voice full of worry. "I just heard and came as fast as I could." His eyes fell momentarily on Jefferson and they flashed with shock. "You." He said, and his lips were draw into a flat line.
All of a sudden, Belinda's memory returned at the sight of Mr. Gold, and she remembered why she had been standing in the middle of the street last night. He had decided to go entirely insane on her, and he had broken her heart with his most obvious lies of fairytale nonsense. "Hello, Mr. Gold," she said icily. He was the last person she wanted to see right now. She would even be open to seeing Mayor Mills over Robert Gold at the moment.
"Belle, are you alright?" He asked with concern as he approached the foot of her bed. She could see in his eyes just how worried he was for her. She hardened her lips and refused to melt under his soft gaze. She gave a single nod of her head and a curt reply.
"Just fine, thank you. The vehicle only grazed me. This is all just a bit of fuss."
Mr. Gold turned from her and back to Jefferson. "You hit her?"
"It wasn't his fault," Belinda interjected, "I was the idiot standing in the middle of the road."
"Why would you do such a thing?"
She shrugged, but all the while, her eyes never left his. "I don't know. A lot happened last night."
Mr. Gold licked his lips. "Belle – I"
"It really wasn't necessary for you to come all the way down here, Mr. Gold. I can assure you I'm just fine and will heal quickly. Now, if you would please leave. I'm tired." She turned away from him to lay her head on her pillow. She bit back the rage and the tears and the hurt. She ignored him, and thankfully, he understood and she heard him begin to walk towards the door. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see him stop and turn to face Jefferson. His eyes were cold and expressionless as he addressed the man.
"May I have a word with you... in the hall."
Jefferson nodded his head and stood up. He flashed her a quick grin before he left and she mustered up enough will-power to give him just the smallest of smiles. Then, she closed her eyes and tried to sleep.
XxX
The moment the door to her room was closed, Mr. Gold's cool facade was dropped and he turned around to grab Jefferson by the lapels of his trench coat and he pushed him hard against the wall. A quick look to the left and right showed that the corridor was empty, and that they were alone. He leaned in close and snarled. "How dare you hurt her, Hatter!"
"Nice to see you again, too, Dark One," Jefferson scoffed as he pushed Mr. Gold off of him and straightened his collar snidely.
"Dispose with the pleasantries, Jefferson. Why the hell would you do something like that to her?"
"Hey! It wasn't my fault. She was standing in the middle of the road, and it was dark. I swerved to try and miss, but not before I clipped her. There was nothing I could've done!" Mr. Gold scoffed and Jefferson threw his hands into the air in exasperation. "It's not like I wanted to hit her, Rumpelstiltskin!"
Mr. Gold got up close to his face and growled. "Don't say that name out loud. Not here."
Jefferson held up his hands in surrender. "Fine. But, sooner or later, people are going to remember who you are. And they're going to hate you for this curse you created. You sent us all here, and now the Savior's come." Mr. Gold gave him a strange look and Jefferson's lips curved into a manic grin. "Yes, I know all about our dear Miss Swan. Paid her a visit of my own, and it turns out she doesn't know anything. So how is she supposed to break this curse if she doesn't even remember who she is?!"
"I'm working on it," Mr. Gold ground out angrily. "I've been otherwise occupied of late."
"With Belle?" The man's lips tightened. "She doesn't remember you."
"Thanks for stating the obvious, Hatter."
Jefferson was silent for several long seconds as he just watched the man in front of him. "What happened after I left you with her?"
Mr. Gold shrugged his shoulders and replied in a dry, emotionless tone. "I let her go, as you suggested."
"And did she come back like I said she would?" Gold nodded his head and Jefferson gave a triumphant grin. "I told you! Then what?"
"Regina captured her and locked her away." Jefferson's smug smile was wiped off his face as shock took over and his eyes widened. "Regina cast a spell on Belle, impregnating her, and then she sent her back to the castle."
"Oh my God. Why?"
Mr. Gold frowned. "To get to me. So that she could break my heart when Belle left with the child."
"And did Belle leave once the baby was born?"
"No. She gave birth to the baby, but I didn't realize the repercussions. She died."
Jefferson furrowed his brows and crossed his arms. "But she's alive now."
"I didn't say she stayed dead. I managed to revive her."
"How?"
Mr. Gold refused to answer and Jefferson's smug grin returned. "You kissed her...and it worked! That's what happened, right?" Mr. Gold was still silent and the Mad Hatter chuckled. "Then what?"
He shrugged. "Then, the curse struck and she was taken from me. I only found her a couple months back."
"What happened between you two?"
"I told her the truth about everything, and she didn't believe me. That's why she was standing in the middle of the road last night. I broke her heart. She thinks I lied to her. Yet, the ironic thing is, I'm actually telling the truth. And then you hit her with your car." Mr. Gold finished that sentence by baring his teeth in anger.
Jefferson rolled his eyes. "I'm never going to live that one down, am I?!"
"Not on your life."
Jefferson placed a hand on the man's shoulder. "We'll get her to remember, I promise. And whatever help you need in getting Emma to remember, count me in. I've spent far too long in this hell of a world."
"You lost your daughter." It was statement, definitely not a question, and Jefferson nodded sadly.
"I need to be reunited with her, Dark One. Grace needs her father."
"And I need Belle. Not Belinda French. Just Belle."
"We'll get her back. Not even a man like you deserves being separated from the woman he loves." Mr. Gold nodded his head, that was as much of a thank you as Jefferson would ever get, and then silence reigned for several minutes.
Finally, Gold broke it. "Well, I suppose I should go back home. I'm the last person Belinda wants to see right now."
"I'll keep an eye on her," Jefferson promised. He watched as Mr. Gold's lips tightened before he walked away. "But you really kissed her, huh?" He called out in teasing. He was smirking.
"I can still turn you into a snail, Hatter," the man called out in response.
"With what? You have no magic here."
Mr. Gold turned around and grinned smugly. "Perhaps, but there are worse things than being changed into a slimy gastropod." The grin fell from Jefferson's lips as Mr. Gold walked away. "Goodbye for now, Jefferson."
XxX
The phone was ringing and Mr. Gold picked it up and put it to his ear. "Hello?" He asked in a gruff voice, and he visibly tensed when he heard the voice on the other end of the line.
"Ah, Gold. I heard about the little accident this morning. Is our lovely Miss French all right?"
He grimaced. "Miss French is just fine, Regina. Nothing a little time can't heal. If you are so concerned, though, why don't you just go and visit her yourself?" The last thing he wanted was for Regina to be anywhere near Belinda, but why did this witch have to call him?
"I figured that that wasn't necessary. I could just call you and get all of the information I needed."
"Why on earth would you figure that?"
The woman chuckled from the other end of the line. "Oh, cut the crap, Gold. We both know you probably know more about that girl than anyone else. Except for maybe what she's like in bed. Unless you and her actually -"
"What do you want, Regina?" He interrupted harshly. Had she really just gone there?
"You are so hostile, honestly. That girl's done something to you."
"I don't prefer to divulge in my personal life over the phone. Sorry."
She cackled – yes, actually cackled – "Well, I just wanted to let you know that Garrett Stone should be at the hospital within the next hour or so to visit his ex."
"Why would he go there?" His question was filled with the undertones of shock. Had Mr. Stone really chosen not to heed his warning?
"How on earth would I know?" Mr. Gold's lips tightened. She was lying, he could hear it in her tone, plain as day.
"And what would it matter to me, Madame Mayor?"
"Well, that's for you to decide. I just figured you would want to know." Then, without so much as a goodbye, the end of the line clicked as she hung up. Mr. Gold pulled the phone away from his ear in confusion. What on earth was she playing at? He didn't know. But there was one thing he did know. Whether or not Regina was planning something, he needed to get to the hospital and stop Garrett before he could see Belle.
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Thanks to you guys I got more reviews on the last chapter than I've ever gotten before. The response was AMAZING, and I'm so grateful!