Flynn was determined not to die in Rapunzel's tower.
Even though it was determined to kill him.
"Ok," he said, slowly pacing around the room, scratching his chin, "we need to find a way to open the door."
Rapunzel nodded once. "Yes."
"Before your tower grows weak again and Gothel comes back and tries to kill us."
"Yes."
"But it will be easier to try and open the door when the tower is weaker, but then we'll have to deal with Gothel."
"Yes."
Flynn let his hands drop to his side. "That's just great. We're screwed."
"We're not screwed. We just have to be clever about this. We've only tried using our hands to open the doors and windows. Maybe we need something stronger."
"Ok. Like what?"
She glanced around the room, her eyes settling on something. A small smile formed on her lips. "I think I have an idea." Running across the room, she grabbed a guitar leaning against the wall. "I was never very good."
She handed it to him. Flynn knew exactly what to do.
He walked right over to the door and banged it against the wood.
The door didn't open.
It only succeeded in making the guitar break in half.
He tossed it on the ground. "Well, that didn't work."
"Maybe we need to try those doors." She pointed to the ones on the large balcony window at the front of the tower. "Maybe we can get those open."
"But how will that help us? In case you hadn't noticed, Blondie, it's a long way to the bottom. We have nothing to scale down. Shouldn't we be focusing our efforts on the door?"
"But if we have those doors open" – she pointed at the window – "then at least we'll have fresh air in here and we won't suffocate. Sure, Gothel will still try and kill us but we can handle her."
He placed his hands on her arms. "Listen. Blondie, I'm not trying to be mean when I say this, but you do tend to have a habit of freezing up when Gothel is around. And I need you on your A-game."
Her shoulders deflated as she sighed. "You're right. Gothel is my weakness. I guess I haven't properly dealt with what I went through with her."
"And who could blame you? What she put you through was torture."
Rapunzel's eyes darkened. "Well, there is someone who would blame me."
"What are you talking about?"
She pulled away from him, giving him a tight smile. "It's not important right now. Besides, if we get through this, you'll see it for yourself soon enough."
He really wanted to know but could tell it was a touchy subject for her, so it would have to wait. It would just give him something to fight for. Beyond, you know, fighting for both his and Rapunzel's lives.
Rapunzel walked over to the balcony doors. "Try hitting it with the frying pan. At least that's sturdy."
He picked it up and swung it as hard as he could at the doors.
Once again – nothing.
Not even a damn dent.
A sudden anger washed over him. Was it really this hard to open a freaking door? He hit it again with the pan. And again. And again.
Each time nothing happened.
The only thing he was accomplishing was tiring himself out.
"Eugene, stop. It's ok."
"No," he growled. "I can't give up. We'll die if I give up."
He tried one more time.
"My flower, what do you think you're doing? Do you honestly think you can escape this tower?" Gothel's voice rang out through the room.
The frying pan hit the wood…
…and made a dent.
Both of them gasped.
Rapunzel had been right. When the tower got weaker, that was their chance. But it also meant dealing with Gothel again.
"Can you distract her?" he asked, getting ready to swing the pan again.
Rapunzel nodded, even though she looked uncertain. "I'll try."
He leaned over and gave her a small kiss. "You can do this. I believe in you."
Her eyes widened. "No has ever believed in me before."
Flynn knew he was ready to tell her he loved her but right as he opened his mouth to say the words, something hard hit him in the back. "Oh," he groaned, bending over.
Gothel was there, holding onto a chess board. "Oh, good. He stopped talking." She tossed the board to the side. "Now, Rapunzel, let's talk."
Rapunzel backed away as fast as she could. "Talk about what?" She glanced over at Eugene. He was ok, just banged up. He was getting back up now.
"About how you keep disobeying me," Gothel said, advancing towards her.
"I'm only disobeying you because you're not my real mother."
Gothel stopped in her tracks. "Who raised you? Who fed you? Who bathed you? Who made sure you were safe?"
"No." She slowly shook her head. "You only raised me because you kidnapped me. You only fed me because you didn't want me to die. You only bathed me because you would complain every time I smelled slightly bad. And you only made sure I was 'safe' because you didn't want anyone finding out that you kidnapped me. I was never safe here, Mother. Not once."
"I'm not the bad guy, Rapunzel. I never hit you. I only loved you."
"You abused me. Mentally and emotionally. I was never safe here for that reason. And you can't even see it."
Eugene hit the door hard with the frying pan. It made another dent.
Gothel's face contorted into anger as she whirled around to face him. "You are not going to leave!" She ran straight for him. Eugene began hitting the door harder and faster.
Rapunzel knew she needed to do something.
She grabbed the broken pieces of the guitar off the ground and whacked Gothel on the back with it. She stumbled and fell to the ground. Eugene didn't stop once with the frying pan against the door.
Gothel rolled onto her back. "What do you think you're doing?"
"I'm stopping you from stopping me," she said.
"And how are you going to do that?"
"By distracting you. Catch me if you can, Mother." She took off running. With a growl, Gothel followed.
Rapunzel ran up the stairs, feeling Gothel right on her back. She just needed to distract her long enough so Eugene could get the doors open.
Right when she reached her bedroom, Gothel pulled on her hair, making her gasp. Rapunzel whirled around and shoved her dead mother back. But that didn't stop Gothel for long. She came running right back and pushed Rapunzel so hard, her back slammed into her dresser. Rapunzel knew she'd have a bruise there.
Before she could even react, Gothel was upon her. They fell to the floor, each of them trying to get the upper hand. Rapunzel gasped when Gothel got on top of her and slipped her hands around her throat.
"Eugene!" she called out as best as she could. Gothel was too strong. Rapunzel was pushing and scratching and trying to get Gothel off of her but her mother wasn't going anywhere.
Blackness formed at the edge of her vision. No. She couldn't let Gothel win. She had to keep fighting.
But it was getting harder and harder to breath.
"You're going to stay with me here forever," Gothel snarled, "even in death." She tightened her hands around Rapunzel's neck.
Rapunzel tried fighting but Gothel was too strong.
Until she heard footsteps running up behind Gothel. There was Eugene. He slammed the frying pan against Gothel's head. She fell to the ground, letting Rapunzel go.
Taking in a ragged breath, Rapunzel sat up. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry."
"It's ok," Eugene said, helping her stand and dropping the frying pan to the ground.
"The doors. We need to go open them."
Eugene sighed and nodded towards the floor. "I think it's too late, Blondie. Gothel is gone again."
She turned to look. Gothel was gone. Where once was her mother, now there was only the purple rug in her room.
Rapunzel slumped against Eugene. "I'm so sorry. We didn't get the doors open in time."
"We still have" – he checked his watch – "eighteen hours to go. We have time. I managed to dent the doors though which is a good sign. If I just keep at it, eventually they'll open."
"But you can only do it while Gothel is here. That's when the tower is weaker."
"I know." He hugged her close to him. "We'll figure it out."
"I messed it up for us," she whispered against his neck. "You had to come save me because I couldn't fight Gothel long enough."
"Rapunzel, if it meant saving you, I'd do it again in a heartbeat."
"But if we don't get out of here, then we'll both die."
He tightened his arms around her. "If you die then… I'm not sure how I'm going to keep going on from that." There was a far-off look in his eyes, like he was remembering something. He eventually glanced back down at her and smiled. "So, saving you is top priority to me. I can't do this on my own, Blondie. I need you."
"I need you too. You're right. We can only do this together."
"Yeah, so stop blaming yourself. You did nothing wrong. Going against the woman who held you captive for eighteen years is not an easy task. I'm proud of you."
She ducked her chin. "You're just saying that."
"I'm not. I may have been an orphan growing up without parents to love me, but I was never abused by anyone. I can't imagine what that's like." He cupped her cheek. "So when I say I'm proud of you, I am proud of you."
Tears began to form in her eyes. "Oh, Eugene. You're so sweet. It makes my heart sing."
He smiled. "No one's ever told me I make their heart sing."
"Get used to it because that's how you make you feel."
"You make me feel alive," he said. "Happy." A pause. "Loved."
"You make me feel all those things too."
She didn't even realize that their faces were getting closer and closer as they spoke until they kissed.
It started off simple and sweet but the longer they kissed, it turned into something more passionate. More… desperate.
Rapunzel let herself just feel with Eugene. Feel the way his lips pressed into hers. Feel the way his hands clutched her waist. Feel the way his body fit so well with her own.
She didn't even feel nervous as they fell onto her bed, still kissing each other.
Eugene rolled her onto her back, hovering over her. She found it so considerate he made sure she could still breathe. He was always considerate when it came to her.
Even when they first met and she didn't know who he was, he was still incredibly sweet. Now, she understood why. He had spent so much time with her that it was both a blessing and a curse.
A blessing because he already knew her. Knew her quirks, her past, her insecurities. But also a curse because he knew versions of her from her future that were much more confident.
It also meant there would come a day she'd be in the exact same position – she would know him but he wouldn't know her.
Eugene kissed her hard as his hands tightened on her waist. She tentatively placed her hands on his chest, feeling his heartbeat under her palm. His heart was going a mile a minute. She knew hers was as well.
She tried not to blush when his hand reached down to grab her thigh. Her dress rode up around her hip, exposing her underwear. No one had ever seen her like this. No one had ever touched her like this.
She only had her first kiss with Eugene just a few weeks ago. Her very first kiss ever.
Rapunzel wasn't sure how far they were going but Eugene didn't show any interest in stopping any time soon. His hand squeezed her thigh, making her jump. He chuckled as he kissed down her neck. Her only choice was to sigh and let her head drop back. Nothing had ever felt this good.
Eugene began to kiss down her body, his hands bunching her dress up around her waist. When he reached her underwear, her entire body felt like it was going to explode.
"Eugene? What are you doing?"
"Showing you how much I care for you." His fingers slipped under the rim of her underwear. She shivered at the touch.
But when he began sliding her underwear down, she knew she had to say something.
"Eugene, wait."
He paused, staring up at her. "If you're teasing me, Blondie, now is not a good time."
"No." She sat up, pushing her dress back down. He pulled back. "I'm just not sure how far we're going."
His eyes softened. "I want to have sex with you, Rapunzel. I want to touch you all over. Kiss you all over," he added in a deeper voice. It made her body tingle.
"I… like the sound of that," she admitted.
"Good. Then lay back and let me continue." He gave her a soft kiss on the lips.
"Eugene, you do know that… I'm a virgin, right?"
That made him really pull back. "What did you say?"
She ducked her head, her face on fire. "I'm a virgin." She could feel him looking at her. When she finally worked up the courage to glance back up, she saw that Eugene, instead of looking shocked or disgusted, had a smug look on his face. "Eugene? Why do you look like the cat that ate the canary?"
"Because I am." He leaned back in and gave her a lingering kiss. "It is wrong of me to admit that I like that I'll be your first?"
"Who says you're going to be my first? I never said we were going to have sex."
He grabbed her around the waist, peppering kisses along her jaw, making her laugh out loud and lean her back on the bed. "You're torturing me, Blondie. Pure torture." He sat up slightly, staring down at her with a soft expression. "I'd be honored to be your first, Rapunzel. If you want to. We don't have to do anything you don't want to do."
"No," she said, feeling breathless. "I want to. I'm just nervous. What if I'm not good at it?"
"You're good at everything."
"Not guitar," she pointed out.
"Well, except that." He pushed a piece of her hair out of her face. "I don't want you to worry. I just want you to be yourself. Besides, I know what to do. And when I say that, I mean I know what you like."
"Are you… are you saying you've had sex with my future self?"
"That's exactly what I'm saying."
She let out a fast breath. "Ok. I'm not sure how to feel about that."
"I wasn't either when I had sex with you for the first time. Honestly, I felt jealous about my future self – that he got to experience what I hadn't yet. But now, here I am. And I've realized just how utterly stupid I was being."
She laughed. "You're not stupid, Eugene. And it's not that I feel jealous of my future selves. I just don't want you to be disappointed."
"With you, Blondie? I could never." He kissed her for a moment. Her body began to melt into the bed, the tension leaving her. When he pulled back, he gave her a soft smile. "So, what do you say? You want to have your first time with the famous Flynn Rider?" He gave her a cheeky grin.
She placed her hand on his cheek. "No." He frowned but she continued speaking before he could. "I want to have sex with the non-famous Eugene Fitzherbert I know and care for."
He let out a shuddering breath. "Then… that's what you'll get."
Their lips met in a heated kiss. Rapunzel felt much more at ease now that they had talked about everything. She clutched his back, bringing him in even closer. Their bodies were completely touching. Not even air could get between them.
She gasped as Eugene kissed down her throat. He was just as passionate as before but now there was a tenderness that made her heart sing.
He took his time kissing down her chest, his lips lingering over one of her breasts before moving to the other. She had never felt this special before. This beautiful. Gothel had made her doubt herself so many times but with Eugene, he always made her feel so reassured.
"I want to touch you too," she said, pulling his face back up to hers. They kissed while she pressed her hands against his chest. Eugene took his jacket and shirt off. When she saw his bare chest, her body thrummed with desire. He was so handsome it almost hurt.
Eugene held still as she drew her fingers across his chest. The only sound that he was affected by her touch was his hitched breath. She smiled up at him, which made him smile back.
He took her hand and kissed it before leaning back over her. "I need to touch more of you."
"Ok," she whispered, placing her arms over her head. "Then touch me, Eugene."
His eyes darkened as he slipped off her dress. She felt so exposed in nothing but her bra and underwear but the way Eugene was staring down at her, there was no doubt in her mind that this was the only place he wanted to be.
Eugene spread his fingers across her stomach and waist, making her tickle. She laughed a little. "Is this funny to you?" he asked, lifting an eyebrow.
"It tickles."
"Well, I hope this doesn't tickle." He kissed along her stomach, sending goosebumps over her skin.
"It doesn't tickle," she said, her voice breathless.
"Then what does it feel like?" The way his lips pressed into her skin made her body light on fire.
"Like I'm burning for you."
He quickly reached around her body and took off her bra, tossing it across the room. She gasped as he wrapped his arms around her, pressing his bare chest to her bare chest, and kissing her with wild abandon.
Rapunzel thought she might die from the throbbing sensation between her legs. It was too much in the best way possible.
Eugene's arms were so strong as she ran her hands over them. She felt so safe within them.
Feeling brave, she touched the edge of his pants. "I want to see more of you," she whispered against his lips.
"Yes, ma'am."
She giggled as he gave her a wink. "Eugene, I'm being serious."
"And so am I." He sat up and took his pants off, leaving behind only his underwear. The sight of him almost naked left her breathless.
He leaned back on top of her, skin to skin again. She shuddered when he roamed his hands down her body until they reached the waistband of her underwear. He kept his eyes glued to hers as he slowly – so slowly – pulled it down her legs, his fingers brushing her skin. It was only once he tossed her underwear to the ground that he looked between her legs.
She fought the urge to close them. In fact, Eugene opened them wider, giving her nothing to hide behind. But she didn't need to hide, she reminded herself. Eugene cared for her. He would never judge her.
"You're perfect, Rapunzel," he said, meeting her gaze again.
She gasped when he drew a finger along the sensitive skin of her inner thigh, so close to her center. Still keeping his eyes on her, Eugene finally touched that sensitive spot between her legs. A soft moan escaped her as her legs clamped shut at the sensation.
"Sorry," she squeaked.
"You have nothing to be sorry for." He opened her legs back up. "Just lay back and feel. Trust me."
"I do."
Then Eugene really showed her the meaning of pleasure.
His finger rubbed against her bundle of nerves, spending spikes of intense arousal through her. Her legs were already trembling from his touch. Eugene, while being gentle, showed her no mercy. He continued to rub her.
Her hips began to gradually move, matching the pace of his hand. When he pressed his palm over her entire center, she cried out. It felt amazing.
Sweat was beading on her brow. Her heart was pounding. Her body was on the verge of… something. And her mind was a whirlwind of mess – between the mixture of pleasure and desire coursing through her, she couldn't even think straight.
"Eugene," she gasped out as she felt that something building inside her. She was trying to relax and just feel but the sensation was intimidating. It was like she wanted to let go and yet she wanted to keep it within herself.
"That's it," he murmured. "You're close, Rapunzel. Just let go."
"I'm not sure."
"Trust me. You want to let go." His fingers ran over her folds, pressing down harder. She moaned lightly at the touch. Her eyes didn't even want to stay open, it was too intense. "Let go, Rapunzel. Let go."
With Eugene's words guiding her, she finally let go.
The sensation that washed over her was intense and electric. She gasped, no words coming out. It was the best thing she had ever felt.
She had read about orgasms before but had never experienced one. Her curiosity had gotten the better of her in the past and she had tried touching herself but nothing ever happened. She usually got distracted with other things to learn or other places to visit or other people to save.
But now, she was fully present. It was her and Eugene, after all.
"Wow," was all she could say.
He smiled, looking way too smug with himself. "Ready for more?"
She nodded, lost for words.
Eugene stood up and slipped his underwear off. His erection was on full display. She blushed – she couldn't help it. But despite her sudden shyness, she was still full of curiosity.
"Can I touch you?" she whispered, pointing at his penis.
It was Eugene's time to look lost for words. "Of course."
She sat up and gently wrapped her hand around his length. It was a lot softer than she had imagined. Eugene kept making little moans every time she moved her hand up and down so she knew she was doing something right.
"Rapunzel, stop." He moved her hand away.
Now she wasn't so sure of herself. "Do you not like it?"
"Like it? Blondie, I love it. But I want to have sex with you and I might not last long enough to do that if you keep touching me."
"Oh. Oh. I understand."
He kissed her for a moment. "Lay back."
She did. Eugene lay on top of her, settling between her legs. Her skin was prickled with goosebumps. Her heart was beating so fast. Her breath was coming out in pants.
But despite all of that, she felt beautiful. There wasn't any way she couldn't – not with how Eugene was looking down at her.
"Ready?" he asked, pressing his erection against her entrance.
That throbbing sensation was back in full swing. "I'm ready." She wrapped her arms around his back, pulling him closer to her. He kissed her as he moved his hips forward.
Then, he was slipping inside of her. At first, there was a pressure – a resistance – but then she relaxed and he was able to move further into her. The little bit of pain that was there made her cry out and accidently bite Eugene's lip.
"Sorry," she whispered.
"You don't need to be sorry." He was smiling as he kissed her again, which just helped her to relax even further.
Once he was fully settled within her, he began to move his hips around in a circular motion. She gasped as a pleasurable sensation hit her every time he moved. Her fingers dug into his back. He kissed her harder.
She loved being this close to him. Skin to skin. Lips to lips. Heart to heart. Eugene made her feel loved, even if he hadn't told her that. She just knew.
He grabbed her right thigh, bringing her leg higher around his hip. This slightly new position allowed him to move deeper inside of her.
"Oh," she moaned softly as he kissed along her jaw and neck. His gentle thrusts were full of patience, allowing her body to get adjusted. Even though she hadn't known him for long, she knew she was falling in love with him. Everything was right about this moment between them. Nothing could ruin it.
"Rapunzel," he groaned into her neck, increasing his pace. She clutched him tighter. "Fuck." His curse word made her blush. It made her feel sexy in a way she had never felt before. She was always cute and pretty and beautiful. Never sexy.
Of course, Gothel made her feel terribly ugly so that was an additional pain she had to overcome.
She pushed Gothel from her mind though. Now was not the time. She just wanted to be present with Eugene and enjoy the moment.
Bringing his face back up to hers, she kissed him with all her might. They moaned together as their bodies moved in perfect rhythm. She wrapped both her legs tighter around his waist. Eugene gripped her closer as sis breath came out fast. She knew hers was as well.
That warm sensation in her core was back. She knew she was close again.
Kissing Eugene harder, she infused all of her emotion into it. Her desire for him. Her trust in him. And most importantly, her love for him.
"Oh!" she cried out as she came again.
Eugene was right behind her, groaning against her neck. She was thanking her lucky stars she was on birth control. The Academy made sure all their female operatives were, just in case. It made traveling the galaxy easier when you didn't have to worry about getting pregnant.
Of course, Rapunzel was never worried about that.
Not until she met Eugene, that was.
Now, she was glad for it.
She knew she wanted to be a mom someday but that day was long away.
They held each other for a moment as their bodies calmed down.
Eugene gently pulled out of her and flopped onto the bed. "That was… damn, Blondie. Even for your first time you were perfect. You're so good at everything."
She snuggled into his side. "I'm not perfect at everything. You just help me feel confident enough to be."
He smiled down at her before giving her a lingering kiss. "That's one way to pass the time while we wait for your tower to kill us."
"Don't make me laugh," she said, even though she was laughing.
"So, how was it? Your first time?"
"All I could ever ask for."
"You sure know how to make a man feel good." He kissed her forehead.
"You know how to make a woman feel good." She immediately felt embarrassed saying that.
Eugene dropped his head back and laugh. "I should hope so since I've had sex with you before."
"I guess that's one perk about us going in opposite directions."
"Always optimistic," he said.
"I try to be."
They laid in each other's arms for a while, neither one speaking.
"What's going to happen after we each meet each other for the first time?" she asked. "What are we going to do without each other?"
His arms tightened around her. "I don't have an answer to that question. It's not something I like to think much about."
"Then let's not worry." She smiled up at him. "We need to focus on getting out of here first."
"Agreed." He paused. "While I want to stay in bed with you forever, I really don't want your dead mother finding us like this. Maybe we should get dressed."
"Good idea."
As she got dressed again, Rapunzel felt a sudden wooziness hit her. She stumbled.
"Rapunzel?" Eugene asked, rushing to her side. He only had his pants on and his shirtless chest was distracting.
She pushed those thoughts aside. "I'm ok," she told him. "I felt lightheaded for a moment. The air is getting thinner."
He checked his watch and blanched. "How do we only have an hour left? Time doesn't move that fast."
"In a place like this, it does." She slumped onto the bed, struggling to take in a large breath. "My tower isn't… exactly in time. It's out of time which means the rules of Time don't always apply to it. Time can move as slow or fast as it wants to."
"That would have been good information to have earlier."
"I was hoping it wouldn't happen but it has. We're running out of time, Eugene. If we don't get out in the next hour, we'll suffocate in here."
"But we have to wait for Gothel to show back up," he reminded her.
"Then your prayers have been answered," Gothel said, appearing right in front of them. She jabbed her hand forward towards Eugene's stomach in a fast movement. So fast, Rapunzel couldn't process what just happened.
Eugene grunted and fell to his knees.
Gothel stepped back. That was when Rapunzel saw the knife in Gothel's hand – covered in blood. Eugene's blood.
"Eugene!" Rapunzel knelt beside him. He was clutching his stomach and groaning.
"Would you believe that was the second time I've been stabbed in the gut?"
"Don't make a joke right now." She turned to her mother. "What did you do?"
Gothel shrugged. "I did what I had to. He was going to take you away from me. But now we can remain in the tower together. Forever."
"How could you do this? He'll die!"
Eugene gripped her arm, his fingers bloody. "Rapunzel, it's ok. Your tower will heal me. It did before."
She slowly shook her head. "No. It won't. It's fixing itself. Rebooting. It doesn't have healing powers at the moment. It can't save you, Eugene."
He slumped onto his back. "Well that's just great." He looked up at her. "Rapunzel, you have to get that door open. We have to get out of here."
"How? Gothel will stop me."
"Leave that to me. Just run. Now!"
She did as he instructed. If there was any chance of saving him, it was getting out of this tower.
She heard Gothel scream behind her and when she looked back, she saw that Eugene had managed the strength to grab Gothel and fight her to the ground. That's what Rapunzel needed. She had to focus on opening the doors and Gothel couldn't distract her.
Grabbing the frying pan off the ground, she used the opportunity Eugene gave her to run downstairs and back into the main tower room. Then she began hitting the doors with all her might.
Eugene had done a good job making huge indents into them. But she wasn't as physically strong. It would take her a lot longer and time was speeding up. The clock on her wall said they only had a half-hour left now before all the air in the tower would be gone. She could already tell how thin the air was. It was making it hard to breathe.
But she wouldn't give up. Not for Eugene.
And not for herself.
She hit the doors with everything she had left in her. They just needed to break open. "Come on!" she screamed. "Come on!"
Footsteps came down the stairs.
Gothel.
"You will not leave this tower!" Gothel shouted at her. Eugene slumped down the stairs after Gothel. He was still alive at least but he wouldn't be for long. A trail of blood was following him.
Rapunzel focused her resolve and beat the door with the frying pan. She could do this. She had to.
Gothel slammed into her, knocking them both to the ground. Rapunzel didn't even think. She just slammed the frying pan against Gothel's head. Gothel screeched and fell to the side. Using momentum, Rapunzel jumped back up and hit the doors again.
"You can't do this," Gothel whined, clutching her head.
Eugene was on his knees now but he was still crawling closer. Trying to get to her.
"You can't leave me." Gothel's words sent something ablaze within her.
Gothel guilt tripped her so many times into staying within the tower. Rapunzel could have left sooner. If she had, then maybe she could have found her parents. But instead, she was still stuck looking for them without an end in sight.
Gothel ruined her life. Gothel hurt her. Gothel kidnapped her. Gothel abused her.
She was done listening to Gothel.
With one last scream, she slammed the pan against the doors.
They swung wide open with a blasting creak, wood splinters flying everywhere. Fresh air spilled in. Rapunzel sucked in a breath. She could breathe again.
"No!" Gothel screamed. "You can't leave."
Rapunzel looked over the balcony. It was a long drop to the bottom. There was no way she could climb down. No way Eugene could climb down – not in his hurt state.
But there was someone she could get rid of.
Gothel came running right at her but this time, Rapunzel was ready.
"You can't leave," Gothel said again.
Rapunzel grabbed her dead mother by the arms. "I already left." Then, with a burst of strength, she pushed Gothel over the edge.
Her screams faded from earshot the longer she went down.
Rapunzel didn't need to watch her mother die again. She knew Gothel was gone for good.
But there was still one problem.
Eugene.
She rushed over to him where he was lying on the ground, propped up against the wall. "You'll be ok." She checked his wound. It was bad.
"Rapunzel, I think…" He coughed. "I think this might be it for me."
"No! You can't die. Not when I still need more time with you. Think about all the time my future self will get. That needs to happen."
"You told me yourself." He sucked in a ragged breath. "Time doesn't play by normal rules. Anyone can die at any time."
"No. You're not dying today, Eugene Fitzherbert. You're not."
He clasped her hand. "I think I am."
"We just have to wait it out. My tower will heal itself. Look." She nodded at the clock. "It's almost time. Just one more minute. Then it will be fine and it will heal you. You can wait a minute longer, right?"
"Yes. For you."
She tightened her grip on his hand. "No. For you." She looked back and forth between Eugene and the clock. It was almost time. Almost time.
Time.
She let out a relieved sigh when the minute was over…
But nothing changed.
The tower didn't reboot. Eugene was still hurt.
"I don't understand," she said, "I don't understand."
"Rapunzel, it's ok."
"No it's not." Tears slipped down her face. "No it's not. You're supposed to be ok. You can't die."
"As long as you live, I'll be happy. You've changed my life, Rapunzel. You were my new dream. My new everything." His eyes closed.
"No!" She grabbed his face and gently shook him. "Eugene, no!"
Her tower began to shake. It was violent and chaotic.
Eugene's eyes snapped back open but he wasn't healed. He was still dying. "What's going on?" His voice was so weak she could barely hear him.
"I don't know."
Her tower shook faster. Rapunzel stumbled over onto her hip, trying to brace herself on the ground.
Then it dawned on her.
"Eugene, I know what we need to do. My tower shut down because we went against Time. We tried traveling together. It's not going to fully reboot with the two of us in here. I need to leave and let you stay. If you're in here when the tower turns back on, it will heal you. But I need to leave. I… can't exist."
"What do you mean?"
"If my future self was with you when you tried time-traveling together, then she's still somewhere… out there. Out of time. The only way to fix it is by leaving the tower, let it turn back on, let it heal you, and then you need to leave. I will show back up. My future self will. But I'll… be gone. There's only one way to do it."
"How?"
"I need… I need to throw myself over the tower."
He tried sitting up but couldn't. "You'll die."
"No. Well, in a way. But I'll making space for my future self to come back and to fix the timeline. So, I won't really be dead."
"You don't know that."
"You're right. I don't. But we messed with Time. One of has to fix it. I'm going to fix it."
He grabbed her arm. "You said one of us has to fix it. So, I can fix it too?"
She hesitated, knowing where his mind was going. "Yes, but Eugene-,"
"No buts. If I can fix it, I will. I'm the one who suggested we travel together. I'm the one who got us into this mess." He coughed. "I'll be the one to fix it."
"No. You're not dying for me."
"And you're not dying for me. Not again."
She frowned. What did he mean by that?
"I'm already dying, Rapunzel. You can't stop me." He managed to push himself up to standing, even though it was clearly a struggle.
"And you can't stop me. I'm going over." She ran over to the balcony.
"Let me say goodbye, at least." He stumbled over to her, fighting to stay upright. Grabbing her face, he gave her a rough, passionate kiss. "I never told you before but I love you, Rapunzel. I love you."
She gasped. "Eugene."
"And because I love you, I'm going to save you this time." He pushed her away from the balcony, causing her to fall onto the floor.
She knew what he was doing. "Eugene, don't!"
But he was already climbing over the balcony. With one last look at her, he let go and fell.
Rapunzel rushed to the edge and looked down, expecting to see Eugene's body on the ground.
Except… there was nothing. He wasn't there.
Her tower stopped shaking, which made her stumble. She felt something inside her gut, like something course correcting itself. Time. Time was fixing itself.
Like a blast, she was pushed off her feet by an invisible force and landed on her back. She stared up at the ceiling in shock. Her tower looked the same but now it was back up and running.
She sat up and looked around. The energy in her tower was back. The ability to heal, to time travel, all of it. The tower had fixed itself.
When she looked down at herself, she jerked. She wasn't wearing the summer dress she just had on. She was wearing an 1880s style dress.
And then her memories came back.
Her and Eugene trying to time travel together. It didn't work. She was sent to some void space, not really remembering it. She just… didn't exist for a moment.
But now she was back. She had her memories of her time with Eugene in her tower. Gothel. Having sex for the first time.
She also had her memories of being with Eugene in Tombstone, Arizona. Wyatt and Jasper.
Time had righted itself.
Which meant she could only hope that Eugene had survived when he fell out of the tower. There was only one way to know if things were back to normal.
She looked at her computer to check if anyone needed her help. 1925, Chicago. Something strange was going on. All she wanted to do was stay behind and wait to see if Eugene showed up but there was no use waiting. Someone needed her help again.
She pushed the button to go and could only hope she'd run into Eugene along the way.
Until Saturday!