A/N: I just wanted to extend a huge thank you to all of my readers, followers, and favoriters! It makes me so happy every time I post a chapter that you guys are there and giving amazing feedback. I hope the story is still as entertaining as it was at the beginning and hope the new twists and turns don't disappoint. Enjoy this chapter, and hopefully a new one will follow soon!
Of course, timing could not be more inopportune, but Regina had a knack for bad timing. If Belle didn't believe she'd have her fired on the spot for whatever it was she had with Mr. Gold, she might have thought Regina had something to do with what just transpired. Hell, she might have anyway – Belle didn't know.
There was just one thing to do, and that was squash her innermost desire to run away, and speak amicably to the woman who stood between Belle and another lifetime of debt repayable by shoddy work in retail.
"Regina," Belle smiled, though she didn't feel it reach anywhere near her eyes, "So sorry, I ran out of Reds," hopefully that was what this was about. Belle could talk her way out of it, even if she'd been missing from the floor for nearly fifteen minutes. This wasn't her normal routine, it could be excused.
The woman waved her hand, dismissing the excuse with her predatory smile, flipping Belle's stomach over on itself. "You look as if you've seen a ghost, Bunny Belle." Belle glanced at her, trying to decipher just what this woman with her blank smile actually wanted from her.
Belle shook her head, breathing in through her nose. "It's a bit hot," Belle pretended to admit, not really sure what Regina was getting out, and not particularly interested in knowing. To avoid Regina's questioning, she would do almost anything – especially if it was going to protect her job, her father, and even that idiot, Gold. He might have just thrown away an opportunity that Belle had just been starting to consider as viable, but she intended to get to the bottom of it. She did not easily give up on the things she wanted.
It appeared, in that way, she and Regina were the same. The woman curled her arm about Belle's shoulder, her perfectly manicured nails digging into her bare flesh, and Belle tensed. "You don't look flushed," she pointed out, and Belle tried not to betray herself. Shrugging, she hoped to deflect the comment as well as get Regina's nails out of her arm.
The woman's grip only tightened.
"It's why I was taking my time. Much cooler back here," Belle finally explained, supplying the words that would hopefully get her out of this situation.
But, Regina had something else in mind. "Well, it's a good thing then – I wanted to talk to you." It was like the kiss of death. How many times had Belle heard that in the past week? It seemed like Regina always wanted something from her. The woman had to know something – she had eyes and ears all over the place, but Belle had assumed she would be more forthcoming with anything she'd heard.
Perhaps, her assumptions were misguided. Maybe Regina was even sneakier than she appeared. This game was definitely edged in Regina's favor – the woman kept her cards close, but Belle was not going to let the disadvantage beat her. "What can I do for you, then?" she asked, hoping to get at least a sliver of information out of this.
"I was circulating on the floor," Regina started, "and stopped by your section – tonight's, and inquired as to how you were doing." Belle raised her eyebrows. She was fairly certain Regina wouldn't stop her for a compliment when she could keep working, so what was there to complain about? "Some of the tables said they were disappointed in how distracted their cigarette bunny seemed. Not quite the… friendly… service they anticipated." She suppressed the urge to point out that she did not have to be overly pleasant for anyone, particularly a round of customers that were not her regulars in a job she did not normally do – but this was not the time to make an argument. Belle just looked at her. "Is there something the matter, Bunny Belle? It's so unlike you to be so… unengaged with our clients."
This was all very bad. Belle's mind was jumping to places she was afraid to consider. What if Regina knew? She was sure she could find out. Maybe she had suspicions and was trying to use Belle to confirm them. She remembered Gold mentioning her connection to his law firm, her associations that could easily create animosity. Additionally, there were the rules – that binding book of paper that could dissolve Belle's hope of helping her father out of debt and changing her own life. "I guess I have a lot on my mind," Belle didn't outright lie.
Sympathy never quite fit Regina well, and her attempt was unsettling at best. Belle didn't' like it, and she was sure, if Regina did indeed have some kind of moral compass, it was furious she was even pretending. "You're not doing your job tonight, Bunny Belle, and right now, you're not convincing me you'll be able to put yourself into it tonight." Sympathy had turned to accusation, and Belle had a choice. She could agree and leave – potentially ending her employment. Or, she could disagree, stay, and play a part she loathed.
If she left now, there was potential to catch Gold at the penthouse. Was that worth losing everything she had worked for?
Belle took a deep breath through her nose, pushing her shoulders back to stand as tall as she could. With as good of a smile as she could force, and nodded resolutely. "I'll do better for the rest of the night, Regina," she promised.
"And if you don't?" Regina challenged with one eyebrow quirked.
Belle licked her bottom lip, "Then you can send me home."
It was probably impossible for Regina to look any more pleased than she already was. The woman is practically the cat who got the cream, and her blood red lips spread into a triumphant smile, eyes still devoid of sincere feelings. But, it was a challenge, and Belle always appreciated the pressure a challenge presented. She had to do well, if not, she was going to suffer more than disappointment this evening. "I'm glad we have an understanding."
Belle was released and all of a sudden, standing alone as Regina turned and her heels clicked down the hallway. It was as though she had never been there, a momentary blip that interrupted her already sour mood and suddenly, through no fault of her own, felt both deflated and energized – a most peculiar combination.
She just had to get going.
Belle started to walk and as she picked up speed down the hall, she decided it was time she put her mind to what she was doing. She needed to do well, and exiting back to the floor, the darkened lights and music were almost a shock, compared to the well lit back halls.
Shaking her head, Belle blinked, readjusting to the dark and took a deep breath – as deep as her corset would allow anyhow, and Belle put on her biggest smile. Despite the feeling of breaking into little pieces, she had to look whole and happy, be winsome and happy, and push the negative thoughts of Gold and his outburst or Regina and her empty face for the rest of her shift.
If she didn't… well, she didn't really have a choice, did she?
Her steps got more confident when she caught sight of Ruby flirting with a table, and glancing over with a questioning look. Belle wasn't going to worry her and shrugged her shoulders, signaling she was just fine.
Belle had to accept the role, of being fine, and maybe later, when Hongrois was driving her home, she could tell him about it. He didn't respond much, but she knew he talked to Mr. Gold, even if she hadn't heard it. It was important that she didn't break now. It would only make Regina happy, and at this point, that was Belle's last intention.
She played her part beautifully though, at least she thought so. She smiled and flirted, even if her heart wasn't in it – and not one patron cared that her eyes were glazed over or that she was looking at his forehead and not his eyes. It wasn't as though anyone she was talking to was really looking at her eyes either. That made avoiding them that much easier.
As she realized how good she was at it, the time passed more quickly – she got the hang of handing out cigarettes, and was even able to ignore it as Marco asked her if he could give her a ride home for the fiftieth time.
She didn't even care that he kept pestering her – when she looked at his forehead, shrugged off his comments, and just said she would get more cigarettes.
The only thing that mattered was making sure no one complained and Regina saw what she wanted to. From her bird's eye view on the stage or chatting with any customer she picked, Belle could feel her eyes trailing her around the club. She knew it was only going to take one mistake before Regina walked up, pretended to smile and pat her shoulder and tell her to go home and sort herself out. Then, maybe she'd offer a short vacation, and excuses – they'd come. Then, she'd get fired.
Every time she felt like rolling her eyes and being nasty, she remembered those angry brown eyes focusing on her – expecting her to make a mistake. Belle never did well meeting people's expectations.
With that motivation, before she knew it, the night was over, and even though she was acting like she didn't have a care in the world, as soon as the club cleared out and the girls were backstage, it felt like a ten thousand pound boulder deposited itself right between her shoulder blades and her head was congested with the plague of questions that were flooding her mind.
It was a blur, as she wiped off her make-up and conversation was happening all around her. She didn't have to put on the face anymore – the one that was smiley and pretending to listen. Sure, it concerned the girls, but it wasn't as though Regina was watching her backstage. If she did, she'd come over with that fake concern and try to get Belle to talk about it – admit her troubles, and effectively use it against her.
It wasn't readily apparent to Belle why she was the one Regina was focused on so intently (perhaps with the exception of Mary Margaret, who endured far more of Regina's outward scrutiny), but Belle endeavored when she was at the club; she wouldn't let Regina see it. She refused to have that woman destroying everything Belle had so readily worked toward.
She had bigger things to worry about; at least until she could prove that what she had heard that night, Mr. Gold's offers, and Regina's hatred were all connected. It seemed remote, but Belle's life had never been one of leisure and coincidence. She was not ready to dismiss a viable theory when it would only make sense that right now the world felt like it was falling apart – only second to the death of her mother, a completely different kind of universal collapse.
Rubbing the last of the make-up off of her face, Belle sighed. It was time to go. Most people had already trickled out, leaving Belle and the last few stragglers. "Why are you here so late?" Ruby asked as she sunk into the chair at the abandoned station next to Belle's.
Leaning her elbows on the table, Belle refused to let her head droop. She fought the urge to let her forehead hit the counter and let Ruby know. It wouldn't help either of them. "Stalling," Belle could tell the truth without being specific. "Dad's probably asleep," also true, "and it's so dark when I get back." That used to be true, anyway.
At Gold's they walked in together, and the lights were on, and Belle never had to worry about stepping too heavily or mistakenly knocking over the lamp because she was so exhausted she couldn't see straight.
Ruby seemed to nod in understanding though. "Gran's the same way," she sympathized, putting her hand on Belle's wrist before giving it a light squeeze. "But come on," she smiled again, "You don't want to stay here all night – regardless of what's waiting at home."
For a seventeen year old, Ruby could be so smart sometimes – so grown up. She was right. Belle couldn't avoid the inevitable by sitting there and grousing. Nodding with resolution, she pushed the chair back and stood from her station. "Can you give me a hand?" She chuckled awkwardly, trying to reach around to unzip her costume.
Ruby, always readily able to offer a hand popped up after her and helped with great speed. "Is everything else okay, Belle?" Ruby asked as she let go of the zipper and moved away. "I know you had kind of a rough night tonight – don't' give me that look – everyone could see it, not just Regina. M&M, Ashley, and I are worried about you."
With the simple, sweet concern Ruby offered, Belle had a hard time not starting to cry as she pulled her simple dress back on and buttoned up. As a social creature with the unfortunate history of having to take care of her father and now deal with this secret little world created, Belle longed to share – she thought she might have gotten a chance to have someone who could have attempted to understand, but Gold had disappointed her.
She couldn't let the girls be disappointed or worry about her, however. They didn't deserve that, and Belle smiled over her shoulder – reminding herself that this was real, that she didn't want to upset them, and to do so would probably start a host of problems she did not even want to add to the extensive list she already had. "I'm fine, really," Belle implored, "I was just very tired, and my father was starting to ask questions today. I feel guilty, lying to him."
Ruby's eyes lit up with sympathy. "Oh Belle, I'm sorry. I know how hard that can be." Perhaps, if Belle were telling the truth, Ruby might actually. Lying to a person like Ruby wasn't easy, but Belle needed to keep things quiet, and the fewer people who knew, the better. So, with that piece of information able to make its way around (as hard as Ruby tried, the girl was not good with secrets), Belle could buy some time. "Do you need someone to walk with?" she asked, always meaning well.
She couldn't risk it though, even if she wanted to, and shook her head. Belle knew that however delusional Gold was being, he wouldn't let her walk home by herself at wee hours of the morning, and Ruby didn't live far – she wouldn't want to send her out of the way. "No, thank you," Belle wrapped her arms around Ruby's shoulders and gave her a hug, "You should get going. You don't want to be too late. I'm going to clean my station then go."
Ruby looked slightly unsettled, but acquiesced without much further discussion, mostly because Belle made it a point to mention her grandmother's sleeping habits and she'd want to get back before she checked on her.
And then, suddenly, Belle was all alone. It was late, she was exhausted, and only a dim light remained on as she swept her things back into the drawers of her station, and she hung up her bunny suit for the evening. Even Minnie, the seamstress had left. She figured Regina might still be there, in her office, but no one else was in the dressing room. The eerie silence and lighting made Belle uncomfortable.
Rushing out, Belle didn't even bother to hit the lights behind her, not wanting to give the darkness an edge over her as she descended the back steps and pushed herself to quickly make it through the alley.
It was the first place she had spent any amount of private time with Gold, where he kissed her dizzy and left her wanting more – so cleverly sneaking his number into her pocket. She was angry at him, she knew that much, for whatever he pulled this evening, and striding through, she tried not to look at the patch of wall that he had pushed her against, that had rubbed rough against her coat, and left her with so much to think about.
Belle did not venture to curse much, but bastard was the appropriate word for him at the moment. She might have chosen a few other choice words, but she was still too much of a lady to even consider them.
Exiting the poorly lit space, Belle moved to the street and sighed in relief as she saw the black Cadillac waiting for her. Pulling her coat tighter around herself, Belle hurried forward, imaging that even if the penthouse was going to be empty and foreign, it was going to present her with a place to sleep and even get in touch with Gold, as much as she didn't want to beg and plead – she did have every intention of finding out just what was going on.
Getting in the car was the first step though, and Belle approached – knowing it was strange that Hongrois was not standing outside, readying himself to open the door for her, as he always did, but perhaps, because she had dawdled for so long, he fell asleep. That presented another set of guilty feelings, and Belle tugged on the back door quietly, hoping that she wouldn't startle him.
As the door opened, the engine revved – perhaps he hadn't been asleep at all! Belle let out a sigh of relief and settled into the seat, putting her bag down and shrugging off her coat. "I'm sorry, Hongrois." She fumbled in attempts to shut the door and smooth out her dress at the same time, "Lost track of time."
When she managed to shut the door, the car immediately pulled from the curb, and Belle lifted her eyes to the rear view mirror. Hongrois' warm, brown eyes did not greet her.
"So glad you could join me, Bunny Belle. I hope the car is to your satisfaction."