Disclaimer: Once Upon a Time does not belong to me! All characters and references to the show belong to ABC and Channel 5
Once Upon a Time: Schools Out! The Third One-Chapter 6
"Belle French, I love you!"
"Ugh!" Belle grunted under the impact of the hug she'd just received, nearly knocking her off her feet and onto the concrete of the campus. Laughing softly in spite of her crushed ribs, she patted the receiving party on the back until she let her go.
"All I did was say yes, Ella!" said Belle, rubbing her sore sides. Ella didn't seem to notice as she was too busy beaming at the small brunette so brightly it threatened to burn her freshly healed skin.
"Exactly!" she exclaimed "You said yes! Oh my God, Belle, you're gonna be a cheerleader!" she grabbed Belle's shoulders and proceeded to jump up and down like a hyper six year old on Christmas Eve. Belle grimaced, already regretting the task she, after a week of considering, had agreed to.
"Yeah, yeah, O.k!" Belle grabbed at her forearms and Ella removed them. She also (thankfully) stopped bouncing, but the smile never left her face.
"Thank-you. Thank-you so much!" she gushed, hands clasped in front of her "First practice is tonight at seven on the football field. Ruby will loan you a uniform"
"A uniform?" Belle repeated, horror surging through her. Oh dear God... "Do I honestly have to wear one of those purple things?!"
Ella's eyes narrowed, her smile fading for the briefest instant "Yes"
Sensing the tone, Belle hastily nodded "O.k! I'm fi...I can deal with that"
As quickly as it had disappeared, Ella's radiant smile was back, and Belle grunted as she was enveloped in another crushing hug.
"Oh I could kiss you!"
Belle grinned "Didn't Ruby tell you? I've been put off dating!" she said with a laugh "And what would Thomas say?"
Ella snorted, pulling away "Are you kidding? If he caught us making out he'd probably think it was his birthday or something!"
Belle nodded "Yeah, probably" she laughed again, and this time Ella joined her.
"This is gonna be great!"
OUAT
"O.k future parents!" trilled Giselle, sitting in a circle of her birthing class members with her usual sunny smile "Today, we're going to do some lovely breathing exercises for when you go into labour. Now, Daddy's" she said to the men, and Snow White couldn't help but cringe for James as she thought of the deer-caught-in-headlights expression she knew he'd be wearing "You get behind the Mommies and support her back"
Shifting on the carpet, Snow White and leaned back while James moved behind her. Unfortunately she moved to fast and nearly fell flat on her back, gasping out a very high pitched "Whoops!" before James caught her. She burst into giggles.
"Sorry!" she laughed, pressing a hand over her mouth. James, who's own hands were preoccupied, had no such luxury, and had to settle for biting his lip while his shoulders shook.
From the centre of the class, they heard Giselle gasp "Oh my goodness! Snow White, are you alright?!"
Her giggles fading, Snow White nodded "Y-yeah, we're fine. I just slipped. Sorry"
"Oh" Giselle looked extremely relieved, and actually put a hand over her heart "You two should be more careful, you know! Pregnancy is a delicate thing!"
Snow White kept the small smile on her face, while on the inside she wanted to tell this frustratingly patronising woman that, despite their young age, they were not morons!
"Yeah" James agreed with Giselle, his voice pleasant but Snow White could feel his fingers dig into her waist "We know that"
"Yeah right"
The statement wasn't directed to them, and wasn't loud by any means. It was as soft as a whisper and was simply the passing of speech from one older woman to another, but Snow White's sharp ears caught it. She kept her face carefully expressionless, but couldn't stop her white cheek's from flushing.
"Ignore them" James whispered in her ear, and she nodded as she leaned back into his arms, following Giselles instructions to take a deep breath through the nose, and out through the mouth, while "You Daddies massage the Mommie's backs, so that way, she unconsciously knows that you're there for her. 'Support' doesn't just mean holding her up, you know!"
As they practiced their breathing, Giselle gracefully walked around the class until she reached Snow White and James, with a graceful sweep of her flowery skirts, she bent until she was eye-level with the young couple, a look of tenderness in her blue eyes.
Alarm bells sounded in Snow White's head automatically.
"How are you two doing?" she asked them sweetly.
"Uh, we're doing O.k" James answered. Snow White nodded along, still breathing.
Giselle's latest smile was full of relief "Oh, that's wonderful! So you're not finding any of this" she gestured to Snow White's protruding belly, which had just passed it's twenty-sixth week of development "Too difficult?"
James shook his head "Nope. We're fine" he said, and Snow White sent her a Thumbs Up, still breathing.
"Are you sure, James?" Giselle persisted "Because if you're confused or unhappy about anything, you know you-both of you" she put a hand on Snow White's knee "Can just come and talk to me, there's no shame in asking for help!"
"Right" James nodded, gently rubbing Snow White's back as he felt her heartbeat quicken and praying that Giselle would leave before her freshly born temper (which was rapidly becoming legendary) got the better of her and the teacher's hand became a bloody stub.
Fortunately for Giselle, she soon left after giving Snow White and James a compassionate look and patting the young girls knee. When, at James' suggestion, they resumed the exercises, her breaths were a lot longer and heavier.
"I know Giselle means well..." Snow White muttered between breaths, quietly so she wouldn't hear her "But I swear to God if she keeps treating us like we're five-"
"I know, Snow" James murmured in her ear, and Snow White leaned into his a little, her breathing coming a little lighter "But hey, it's not like it can get any worse"
"Oh! Class!" called Giselle, and they turned to see her standing beside a T.V that was in a corner of the room "After we've finished our breathing, we're all going to sit around the T.V and watch this birthing video I bought!" with a delighted flourish, she pulled a C.D case with what was clearly a D.V.D inside from the top of the television. Beaming at the class, she held it up in front of her face, giggling happily "That's right, we're all going to watch the miracle that is birth! All together! Isn't it just delightful?"
Twisting her head around, Snow White caught the look of unadulterated horror on her loves face. She almost giggled herself.
OUAT
As the day slowly slipped into night, two teenage girls dressed in the Royals purple and gold cheerleading uniforms sped down the halls of the College. One was holding a wad of bloodied tissue against her nose while the other was profusely apologising:
"Honestly Aurora, I have no idea how it even happened! It was a complete accident!"
"Belle, it's fine!" Aurora Light groaned for the millionth time "Just get me to the nurses office so he can make sure my nose isn't broken!"
Belle whimpered guiltily "I swear, Aurora, I didn't realise I was that close to you, if I had I-"
"For Gods sake, Belle, would you stop?!" Aurora almost snapped, and Belle flinched "Everyone knows it was an accident! I know it was an accident! What possible reason could there be for you punching me in the face?!"
Belle faltered, but thankfully didn't slow her pace "I...I suppose..."
"Exactly, so please stop apologising and take me to the nurse before my nose falls off!"
Soon, they arrived at Nurse Gaius' office, which was tucked away in a corner that was a few doors down from the English Lit lecture halls. Despite the so-called tradition of a nurse being female, Nurse Gaius-who preferred not to be addressed with his job title-was an eighty-two year old man with silver hair that hung to his chin, gnarled fingers and kind eyes. Indeed, when he saw the state Aurora was in, he tutted fondly and pulled her hands away from her face with the kindness of a grandfather.
"Dear, dear" he sighed in his thick English accent, taking Aurora's bloodied nose "You cheerleaders are worse than those footballers sometimes...how did this happen?"
"It was my fault" Belle confessed miserably, and Aurora rolled her eyes in irritation "We were in cheerleading practice and it was my first time doing the new routine...I was standing too close to her and-"
Gaius raised a hand in a say no more motion. A smile teased the corners of his lips and he opened his office door and gestured for Aurora to walk in, which she promptly did.
He then turned back to Belle, a look of kindness on his aged face "Why don't you wait out here, my dear? I shouldn't be too long with her"
"O.k" Belle nodded. She sat down on one of the little plastic chairs outside Gaius' office, her hands clasping over her knee's and her white teeth biting her lip. Gaius looked at her tense frame.
"Listen, it doesn't look too serious. Noses bleed easily, so it's rarely as bad as it looks" he assured her. Belle glanced up at him, she still looked tense, but there was a small, relived smile on her lips.
"Thanks Gaius" she whispered, and with another smile he disappeared into his office.
After five minuets, Belle, while still riddled with guilt over giving Aurora a nosebleed, was really starting to wish she had a book with her or something. Standing up, she started to pace up and down the floor, her sneakered footsteps masking another set of footfalls, so that she didn't realise someone was coming until she heard a gasp of her name:
"Belle?"
With a squeak of surprise, Belle spun around. She could barely contain her surprise when she saw-unbelievably-Rumplestiltskin. He was standing ahead of her, dressed in dark jeans and a dark grey cotton shirt. But it was what he was wearing on his face that intrigued Belle the most. His eyes were insanely wide, and his jaw was clenched as though he was preventing it from falling to the floor.
For a moment Belle wondered what could've provoked such a reaction from him. Then, with a rush of heat that went straight to her face, she remembered the tight, short-skirted cheerleading outfit she was wearing.
"Rumplestiltskin" she said, hoping to God that her face wasn't as red as it felt. He didn't look above her neck.
"Belle..." he said again, and she had to force down a nervous shiver at the dazed tone of his voice sounding "You're...a cheerleader...?" he questioned, finally looking her in the eyes.
"Um, yeah" Belle nodded, running her hands over the uniform. Rumplestiltskin swallowed "A-a girl on the team broke her leg. I'm filling in"
"...as a cheerleader?" he said, as though he couldn't quite believe it. Belle nodded.
"Yep" she confirmed. After a few minuets of awkward silence-something, Belle noticed, was quickly becoming a familiar thing for them-it occurred to her that Rumplestiltskin may have come down here for a reason.
"Why are you seeing Gaius?" she asked. With a guilty smirk, Rumplestiltskin lifted his right hand, and Belle gasped when she saw the bandage.
"What did you do?" she breathed, and Rumplestiltskin shrugged.
"It's a long story" he said vaguely. Belle frowned, wanting to know more, but before she could open her mouth she decided against it. Why should he have to tell her anything? She wasn't his girlfriend anymore.
Rumplestiltskin watched her "So, what about you?"
"Huh?"
"Why are you here, Belle?" he asked, the supposedly innocent question underlayed with genuine concern, like he was worried that she had been hurt. Unbidden, the small piece of her heart that wasn't quite over him tingled.
"Oh...that's a long story, too" she said, sitting back down on the plastic seat. After a moment, Rumplestiltskin joined her on the next chair, slinging his right arm along the back of his it while keeping his eyes on her face, staring her out.
Belle laughed softly "Honestly, Rumple, it's nothing!"
"Hm" he nodded thoughtfully, knowing she wasn't being honest. He leaned forward a little "How about I make you a deal?"
Belle raised an eyebrow "Oh?"
He grinned, leaning back on his seat "I'll tell you mine" he lifted his bandaged hand "If you tell me yours"
He watched her expectantly, waiting for her answer. For what felt like a long time Belle's blue eyes stared back at him, making up her mind but betraying no emotion. If she had her way, no-one would know about what happened to Aurora. But as the entire cheer squad-a squad that was home to some of the biggest gossips in the entire College-had seen the whole thing right in front of their eyes, she knew that would never happen in a million years. So was there really any point in not telling him?
He was still staring at her, not appearing to be in any hurry for her to make up her mind (little did she know, he was actually savouring this rare interaction he had with his ex girlfriend, committing the image of her...in a cheerleading uniform...to memory) and eventually, she sighed. What the hell...?
"Tonight was my first practice as a cheerleader" she told him, and the triumphant spark she saw in his eyes almost made her smile "And Ruby and Ella were taking us through this new routine they're preparing for the Royals game in a few weeks..." she trailed off, her eyes shifting to a spot above Rumplestiltskin's head.
"And?" said Rumplestiltskin, now eager to know the rest of the story. Belle moaned.
"I swear, I didn't do it on purpose!" she blurted out, and Rumplestiltskin's eyes sparkled with glee. She looked down at the ground in guilt "While we were practicing, we had to hold our fists out like we were clutching a sceptre and...I punched Aurora Light in the face" she sighed forlornly, pointing her thumb towards Gaius' office "She's in there now, making sure her nose isn't broken" she looked at Rumplestiltskin awaiting his reaction.
It happened very slowly. First, he blinked, then, the corners of his lips twitched, then he smiled, then chuckled, bit his lip, and then he threw his head back and exploded into laughter "Oh my God!"
"Shut-up!" Belle cried "It just happened, I didn't realise she was as close as she was!"
As he continued to laugh harder, trying in vain to stop, she found herself grinning, unable to help herself despite her guilt. She waited for Rumplestiltskin to straighten up before requesting that he complete their deal. His smile faltered, and suddenly he was the one no longer meeting her eyes.
"I...got a little frustrated over something, last week in Lit" he said after a long pause. Belle frowned.
"Is that the day you walked out on Ms Gohrm?" she asked.
He looked faintly surprised "You know about that?"
"Snow and Ella are in your class"
"Oh. Well, anyway" he continued "I got a phone call in the middle of her class, and what I heard...it drove me to punch the wall. Several times"
"Oh God, Rumple" said Belle, her forehead creasing in sympathy "What was the call about? If you don't mind my asking" she added. Rumplestiltskin looked up at her, his jaw locking. He shook his head.
"That's not important, Belle"
"Rumple, if it wasn't important, then that" she pointed to his right hand "Wouldn't be in a bandage right now. What happened?"
He could've refused to say anything. He could've told her that he didn't have to say anything to her. She wasn't his girlfriend anymore, it wasn't any of her business.
But then again, this was Belle, and for the first time in weeks she was actually talking to him without any...weirdness. He couldn't end that now.
"Bae called me" he admitted, and Belle's eyebrows lifted a little "My parents were having an argument and it got a little...out of control" he suddenly hissed in pain and realised that he'd unknowingly clenched his sore right hand.
"Is, uh, is Baelfire O.k?" Belle asked gently. Stiffly, Rumplestiltskin nodded.
"Yeah. He always is" slowly, he unclenched his hand, ignoring the small prickles of pain "But I might want to stay away from brick walls next time"
"The brick walls should stay away from you" Belle muttered, looking at the bandaged hand. Rumplestiltskin's chuckle of response was cut off when, as though she wasn't even in control of her movements, her left hand trailed up, and the pads of her fingers gently traced the top of his bandage.
Rumplestiltskin's breath caught, and he hardly dared to breathe. Little stabs of pain seared through his knuckles when Belle's fingertips touched them, but they could've been red-hot coals for all he cared. Nothing would make him break this spell. He wasn't going to make a sound.
He shuddered when he fingertips accidentally brushed against his skin, and it was at that moment that Belle appeared to come to her senses. To his immense displeasure, she started to remove her gentle fingers but before they could leave completely, he turned his hand slightly, and gently ran his index finger over the top of her own soft hand.
Quick as a flash, Belle snatched it away, and Rumplestiltskin felt the crushing realisation that, yet again, he had gone a step too far. He opened his mouth to apologise, but the words caught in his throat when he saw something quite different to anger in his eyes.
Shock...mixed with a little confusion, and fear. But strangely enough, the fear didn't seem to be directed at him...
Rumplestiltskin didn't say anything, wanting her to be the one to speak first. Nervously, she licked her lips:
"Rumple-"
"Like I said, it should be fine as long as you treat it with care. Your nose will be quite tender for a few hours but if it starts bleeding again you'll want see a doctor"
Just before Belle could say another word the door to Nurse office opened to reveal Aurora Light being led out by Gaius, a small white band-aid covering the base of her very red nose. Rumplestiltskin coughed.
"O.k, thanks Gaius" she said gratefully. She when she turned to Belle the young brunette shot to her feet, but not before Aurora saw who she had been talking to.
Rumplestiltskin Gold.
"Are you ready to go?" Belle asked, carefully not looking in Rumplestiltskin's direction.
Aurora didn't say anything, but Belle saw the look on her face and could practically hear the cogs working out some sort of gossipy tibit. She nodded.
"Uh, yeah" she said, her blue eyes significantly wider as Belle crossed the floor and started to rapidly lead her away.
But..."Belle"
Belle's feet stiffened on the floor at Rumplestiltskin's call, and Aurora watched eagerly as she turned
"Yes?" she was clearly trying to keep her voice calm, but sadly failing. Aurora's interest peaked, something must have happened!
Still sitting on his plastic chair, the corner of his lip quirked "You're gonna make a great cheerleader"
Belle frowned, unsure if the sentiment was sincere or if he was mocking her "Thank-you" she said eventually responded with and, with Aurora's insanely wide eyes still on her, she led her out of the building.
After she was gone, Rumplestiltskin cast his eyes to the ground, and he wished for the hundredth time he wished that he had the ability to go back in time. Or maybe the ability to erase people's memories...
"Mr Gold?"
Rumplestiltskin's head snapped up. He had quite forgotten that the male nurse was there, still standing outside the office with the door held open. He jerked his head towards the room.
"Would you like to come in?" he asked, watching him carefully. Rumplestiltskin rose out of his seat and was walked towards the old man.
"You know, my boy" Gaius started when he got to the door "Some people find that, often when they loose something, all they need is patience, and if they're lucky what they lost? It will come back to them"
Stopping in front of him, Rumplestiltskin rose his dark eyes to meet his, and Gaius could see that they were more guarded than Fort Knox as he leaned forward:
"What are you talking about?" he growled, and when Gaius didn't respond, he walked into the office "Can we just get my hand seen to, sir? I've got things I need to do"
I bet you do, thought Gaius as he closed the door, I've heard the rumours about you, Rumplestiltskin Gold. You might be seen as a creature of darkness, but I recognise a broken heart when I see one.
OUAT
Two days later on Monday morning Regina found herself running to her locker and ripping the door open. Rapidly piling the books she needed for her third period Science class into her bag, she cursed her failing memory. She could've sworn she left these books in her room, so how the hell did they walk back into her locker?!
"OW!" she hollered as she accidentally slammed her thumb in the door, furiously muttering every curse she could think of as pain throbbed under her skin.
"Wow, that's a foul mouth!" chortled a voice, and Regina slowly turned a hate-filled glare to Jefferson Hatter. He closed the locker next to hers, his own textbooks on Science in his arms "Seriously Regina, wow!"
"Is there a purpose behind you talking to me?" she questioned, slinging her back over her shoulder and already turning her back on him. Undeterred, Jefferson shoved his books into his own bag and skipped forwards until he was next to Regina. As he walked with her, he made a completive face.
"Well, we're going to the same class. Might as well engage in friendly conversation"
"I'm perfectly fine with walking in silence. In fact, I'd prefer it" said Regina, walking a little faster. God, her thumb hurt...
Jefferson pouted and hurried to her side again "What's with the bad mood, Regina?"
"Besides a broken thumb and your incessant nattering in my ear? Nothing" they rounded a corner and came across a blonde freshman girl standing beside a rack of Daily Mirror newsletters. Quick as a flash, Jefferson swiped a copy.
"Hey! You have to pay for that!" squeaked the freshman in outrage. Jefferson ignored her while Regina rolled her eyes, looking around when he made an amused sound. He was holding the newsletter out in front of him, and to Regina's own amusement she saw a photo of Belle French taking up the front page, above her was captioned: Belle French, Reporter Turned Cheerleader Turned Savage!
Beside Belle's picture was a photo of Aurora Light, her nose bright red and bandaged.
"Good God, what happened to her?" said Regina, and Jefferson smirked as he analysed the front page.
"Says here that Belle punched her in the face" he made a satisfied noise "I'm telling you, Regina, this is my kind of woman!"
Regina snorted "Yeah, because the thing you're interested in is her personality!"
"Hey, if it turns out she likes it rough then who am I to complain?" he contradicted, and Regina grimaced.
"You disgust me" she informed him. Jefferson just shrugged, putting the newsletter into his bag "Besides, it's not like you could actually get her to got out with you!"
"Excuse me?" Jefferson responded, sounding like he was having trouble believing his ears. Regina smirked.
"Please, even if you weren't the craziest guy on campus-"
"Why thank-you!"
"-That girl is still hopelessly hung up on Gold. You couldn't even get her to go on a date with you, let alone..." she looked him up and down, taking him in from his velvet hat to his leather boots "...Other things"
Rather than becoming offended, Jefferson's lips split into a wide, toothy smirk "Oh, we'll see about that"
Regina cocked her head "Don't tell me you actually have a plan?" she hissed, her voice lowering as they came up to the Science lecture hall, the outside of which was crowded with students awaiting their lecturer. Jefferson winked.
"I just might have, Regina"
So I'm overlooking my last couple of chapters of The Third One, making sure everything I've written in this one doesn't give cause for confusion, when I noticed something, something that nearly gave me a heart attack. I had written...NO RUMBELLE FOR TWO WHOLE CHAPTERS! *Gasp!* so, after I got over my shock induced coma, I decided to write out a nice long Rumbelle scene and I hope you enjoyed it. Please review!