2. Working Hard
Many people left their jobs or found new ones when the curse broke. Ruby, she stayed right where she was at her grandmother's diner. She might have said it while she was still cursed, but the feeling rang true: she loved the place. She loved the smell of freshly-poured coffee, the sizzle of the fryers, the pace that could never be predicted, and the fact that she could brighten up a person's day simply by remembering exactly how much butter they liked on their pancakes.
Somehow the diner seemed so much more important now that the curse was broken. It was a comfortable place, an unspoken neutral ground. Even Regina and Gold respected the four walls of the diner.
There was one change to the diner Ruby couldn't help noticing: the customers. There weren't as many as there used to be, at least on the shifts she worked. Ruby didn't think anything of it when she first counted down the drawers, but the pattern persisted to the point where there was no denying that they did more business on her days off. She didn't even need to check the last few months to see when the trend started.
Ruby always jogged through the woods after closing the diner for the night. Nights when the drawer showed her they had great business, she ran a little harder.
She knew she shouldn't feel grateful for that stranger coming into town, but he at least gave everyone something else to focus on. Emma declaring him harmless did little to soothe the anxious masses. There was an atmosphere of uncertainty that hadn't been felt since the curse first broke. Everyone would be looking to Mary Margaret, David and Emma for answers; Ruby had to be ready in case they needed her.
And then there was Belle. She had been understandably guarded when Ruby spoke with her. Ruby knew she shouldn't push, but she yearned for the friendship that started to form between them. Though lately, she found herself yearning for another friendship even more.
It was a strange sensation, having memories of someone and yet only just recently getting to know them. With everyone else, the transition was easier: they'd known each other back in the Enchanted Forest. Victor was from another land altogether. Ruby had known nothing about him before their talk on the docks.
Yet somehow that one talk formed a deep understanding between them.
Her mind kept drifting back to him. Every time the diner's door opened, Ruby's heart jumped and her eyes shot over eagerly. But it never turned out to be Victor. Of course not; he had a lot of work to do at the hospital. Still, Ruby couldn't help feeling disappointed.
When days passed by without him coming by the diner, Ruby decided to take matters into her own hands and bring the diner to him. She also dropped by the library to bring a book for Belle. Of course she was concerned for her friend, but a small part of her was making an excuse so it wouldn't seem like she was dropping by just to see Victor.
Ruby had to roll her eyes at herself. Since when had she been less than confident around anyone, especially men?
She already knew the answer to that question.