#ouatfic

She looks back at her father, gaze hardening, her stomach churning from both disappointment and disbelief. 

- I’ve got to go, she states, making no comment on their conversation about his request. 

- Wendy…

But she’s already spun on her heels and is halfway out the door. She refuses to hear any more of his bullshit. Why would he need her to do that? It’s not like the Red Wolves are struggling.

Are they?

For a second, Wendy halts on the stairs. What if they are? If her father can keep the story behind the Red Wolves’ rivalry with the Lost Ones a secret, who’s to say he can’t keep the Red Wolves’ success – or lack thereof – one too?

Another three beeps, more erratic than the last, snaps her out of her thoughts. That’s right. Car. She’s getting a lift from Tink to the local diner.

Knowing she’s probably wasted at least a minute on her thoughts, she takes longer, quicker strides down the stairs and out the door.

A small green car is parked along the path, directly opposite the front door. A wide, genuine smile stretches across Wendy’s face. Behind the wheel is Tink, of course, and in the back is Lily.

All three of them are grinning as Wendy walks round to the front passenger side and climbs in.

Tink turns to face her.

- Ready? she asks.

- Hell yeah! Wendy exclaims.

Tink’s eyebrows raise.

- Woah! You never say that. What happened?

- I’ll tell you at the diner.

Tink nods and restarts the car, pulling out onto the road.

In a few moments, the girls are off, heading towards the middle of the town where all the most-used shops and businesses are.

Finally, Tink pulls up alongside Granny’s Diner, run by Widow Lucas, who everyone just calls Granny because of her wise, friendly nature, with the help of her granddaughter, Ruby.

The girls climb out of the car and enter the diner, sitting at their usual table on their left by the front window. Wendy takes a seat with her back to the window, Tink and Lily opposite her.

- Alright. We’re here now. So what happened? Tink asks.

Wendy looks over her shoulder at their usual waitress, wondering if now’s a good time to tell them. The waitress, Ruby, looks busy leaning against one of the tables flirtatiously, chatting animatedly with one of the regulars.

Reassured that they won’t get interrupted, Wendy looks back at the girls and explains.

- It’s my dad.

- When isn’t it? Lily scoffs.

Wendy glares at her.

- Continue, Lily says after clearing her throat.

Wendy rolls her eyes but does so all the same.

- Anyway. My dad…he said he had a job for me.

- And you don’t want to do this job? Tink asks.

She shakes her head.

- No, he err…he wants me to seduce Pan and try and get some information out of him about his gang.

Both Tink and Lily gasp.

- He wants to play dirty? asks Lily.

- He’s a gang leader, Lily. He always plays dirty, Wendy states, raising an eyebrow.

- No, but…you know what I mean.

- I didn’t think the Red Wolves needed to sink that low. I thought they were doing well, says Tink, tilting her head in confusion.

- That’s what I thought too. Apparently, we’re not and he feels threatened by Pan. I guess their victory against us that night helped in his decision.

- But…why? Tink asks.

Why you? Why that? Those are the questions she means to ask. Wendy shrugs.

- He saw Pan and I kissing, Tink. He caught us that time in the car park and apparently he caught us again at his event.

Tink’s eyes widen.

- Seriously?

Wendy nods.

- And he wants me to seduce him at his club, the Neverland Spring, tonight.

- Wait…I’m confused. Is there something I missed? Lily pipes up.

Tink and Wendy look at her, nodding; Wendy more embarrassed and Tink more proud.

- Oh, you missed a lot, Lils, Tink says, throwing an arm around her. Our dear friend Wendy here has only gone and started something with daddy dearest’s rival.

It takes a minute, but finally Lily catches on.

- You sly fox! You kissed Pan: gang leader of the Lost Ones, youngest gang leader in years?

- Yes?

- Damn, girl. I wish I was in your shoes. So many girls throw themselves at him but not one has managed to catch his eye…ever.

Wendy’s eyes widen.

- You seem to know him quite well.

- Oh, I don’t. But I’m a model. Anyone who’s anyone in the limelight in the world of celebrities knows who he is. Well, his renowned side anyway. But if you’ve managed to catch his eye…maybe this job is a blessing in disguise. You two might hit it off, ya never know.

- But I don’t know anything about him.

- Well then, we’ll just need to do some investigating, Tink declares.

While she and Lily smirk, Wendy just shakes her head in disbelief.

Just as Tink leans forward, stretching her index finger ready to point to who’ll be doing what, Ruby steps up to their table to take their orders. Two Lattes and one ginger tea.  

Tink makes a noise of disgust at the back of her throat. Lily narrows her eyes at her, daring her.

After jotting down their orders, Ruby struts over to the counter to hand the orders over to Granny.

- How can you drink that?

- I like it. Problem?

- Yeah! I’m just trying to understand something. It has no taste and has a really strong smell. What’s there to like about it?

- You just have less taste buds.

- Guys! Wendy snaps, breaking up the pointless bickering. Can we get back to what we were talking about before ginger tea?

The two girls nod, taken aback by Wendy’s outburst. She hardly ever gets like this in public.

- Thank you. Tink, you were saying…

Tink shakes her head, snapping herself out of her state of shock.

- Right. Lily...

She points her index finger at Lily.

- You find out any small personal details you can. Pan’s favourite colour, what he likes to eat, etcetera.

Lily nods.

- Wendy,

She points at Wendy.

- You do any background research you can since you’re the one going into the lion’s den. As for me…I’ll try and find out what I can about this nightclub of his: the Neverland Spring. Agreed?

- Agreed, Wendy and Lily chorus.

Ruby returns to the table with the girls’ orders.

- Two Lattes and one ginger tea.

Tick tock.

The watch on your wrist moves in an agonizingly slow pace, the pointers hardly even changing their places. Your body is tensed, your mind prepared for everything and hoping that he will come back unharmed at the same time.

Tick tock.

Time is a terrible companion, to be honest. It rushes uncontrollably when you want to savor the moment, and slows down to almost a stop when you want it to move faster. It’s intransigent and incorruptible, deaf to pleas and begging.

Tick tock.

You heave out a sigh, covering your eyes with your palms as you lean against the front desk. The waiting is killing you, not knowing about the events that have just been happening is more than you can handle. You wish you were present there, to see if Rumple was alright, to prevent any harm from coming his way.

But no, he chose to face the Black Fairy alone, telling that she would readily hurt you if that meant swaying Rumple to her side easier.

He couldn’t afford losing you, he’d said. You were too precious to be endangered that way and so he decided that you had to stay in and wait for him to come back.

You understood him but felt bad for hiding from danger while Rumple had to be exposed to it almost all the time. It wasn’t fair, not when he has just started turning to good.

You sense the door being open before you hear the bell above the door and you jerk your head up to watch Rumple as he walks in. He doesn’t seem to be hurt, no fresh cuts or bruises visible.

Apart from clenched jaw and angry expression, your beloved is fine.

You gulp as you stand up and make your way to him only for your hand to be stopped before it can reach his face.

“Rumple?” you pant out, confusion and rejection etched on your face.

“Don’t pretend you care, Y/N.”

His voice is venomous, threatening and you purse your lips as you fold your arms over your chest.

“What did she tell you?”

“Enough for me to finally see with my own eyes,” he snarls when he walks past you, heading to the backroom. You inhale deeply through your nose, trying to not let those false accusations get to you. However, you can already feel a ball of rage blazing in your stomach, a sickening, overwhelming feeling that makes you want to dart out and look for that damned flying pixie and tear her into shreds.

Which you, obviously, cannot do.

After you somewhat calm yourself down, you turn around and slide into the backroom, finding Rumple hovering over the dagger, held in his hands.

“Is that what you really want, Y/N? Not me, but the power?”

“Are you insane?”

“Well, aren’t I?! For not seeing through your tricks?”

“Rumple, what tricks?” you ask sternly, watching as he puts the dagger on the desk. He turns to face you, a cold, emotionless expression on his face, something that he never gave you.

“How could I be so stupid to believe that you would want me for what I am? You only wanted the power, not a man holding it!”

“You sure are stupid if you actually believe in something like that! Have I ever given you a reason to doubt in what I feel for you? Have I not covered you with my own chest!?”

“Yes, because it was Emma who had the dagger, not you!”

It feels like a stab into your heart. The fact that he was so sure about it, that you would be able to feign your love and devotion only to gain his powers, to become the Dark One. Is he really this blind? Can he not see that it’s what the Black Fairy wants?

You let out a shaky exhale as you try to remain composed.

“I loved you when you lost your powers. I loved you when you were broken and imprisoned. I loved you when you had to use your cane-“

“I’m surprised that you didn’t cringe from touching me,” he spits and you bite your tongue, preventing yourself from saying something rash.

“Not once, Rumple, not even once did I stop loving you. I never doubted you. Never judged, always believed that you knew what you were doing. I was there to support you and comfort you. And you are really ready to throw it away after one conversation with your mother?”

“Because she showed me. She opened my eyes.”

“What did she show you? Me, sitting by the bed you’re laying on while you recover?”

“You with the man you were supposed to marry,” he says coldly and a shiver runs down your spine. You didn’t expect that, didn’t realize that the Black Fairy could do such a thing.

“You knew about him,” you whisper defensively and Rumple snorts.

“Oh yes, you just haven’t mentioned that you and him were so close.”

“It was one kiss. Just one.”

“Ah, is that regret I hear in your voice, dearie?”

“He left me, and you know that. He chose another.”

“And so you went to seek revenge, yes?” his voice becomes low, dangerous, as he nears you, as though he’s a predator and you’re his prey. But you’re not afraid – Rumple will never hurt you.

“No, I told you already. I was hurt, but I knew he wasn’t my True Love.”

“Or maybe you wanted to find me to use me, Y/N? To make me let you in and then kill me so that you could be able to punish your loverboy?”

“Don’t do this, Rumple,” you say through gritted teeth and he smirks, unmoved by your watery eyes. Even if you fought with all your might, you wouldn’t stop the tears from falling and you let yourself cry.

You won’t admit it, but you are mourning. Mourning losing Rumple. The Fairy got him, it seems.

“Do what, huh? Break your little pretending heart?”

You grimace, closing your eyes for a moment, and when you open them, you look straight into Rumple’s eyes, not bothering to hide your pain. He has to know how much his words hurt you.

“You’re letting her win. Without a fight. She’s got you in her hands.”

Before Rumplestiltskin can say anything else, you storm out of the room and up the stairs, closing the door behind you loudly, and you fall onto the bed, staring at the ceiling.

You lost him.

_______

You don’t know how long have you been laying still for. You’re too weak to move, and frankly you don’t want to. You’re content with your current position, having rolled onto your side, not facing the door.

It has been quiet downstairs, save for a sound of Rumple hollering and crashing something. You didn’t even flinch.

You were sure that after all you have been through, Rumple won’t question your love. That he’d be convinced that what the two of you had was true. That after all those times you never left his side he’d known that he could count on your devotion and the realness of your feelings. Apparently, one image was enough to destroy it.

It seems that the insecurity and fear of not being loved was still present within him and The Black Fairy used it with an undoubted success.

The night comes to an end, a gentle rays of daylight sneak into the room when the door opens and Rumple quietly slides in.

“Y/N-“

“How dared you believe her? How dared you think, even for a second, that I could pretend it?”

“She tricked me,” he admits with shame and defeat, and you sit up, still not looking at him.

“And have you expected her not to? Were you really that blind?”

“I was. I know it now. And there are no words I can say to fix what I broke but please, forgive me,” he pleads, his steps slow as he makes his way to you, kneeling in front of you.

You gaze at his remorseful face, into his shame-filled eyes and a small smile curls up your lips. He’s back. Your Rumple is back.

“You thought that I wouldn’t have you back, Rumple? We’ve been through worse.”

“That’s true. And it still amazes me, darling.”

“Shouldn’t you be used to it by now?” you chuckle and reach to cup his face into both of your hands.

“You’re saying that I did so many bad things I had to apologize for?”

“Well, you were never a saint, love. But I knew what I was getting into, and I don’t intent to get out, for the record.”

“I’m so sorry, Y/N,” he covers your hands with his and tilts his head to kiss the inside of one of your palms.

“I know, Rumple.”

“And I promise-“

You shake your head and dab his lips with your finger.

“No, don’t promise anything. Actions speak louder than words, Rumple.”

“They sure do,” he smiles fondly at you and hesitantly leans in, giving you time to pull away from the kiss, if you wish to.

Of course, you meet his lips on yours gladly and pull him even closer, the two of you landing on a bed with a soft ‘thud’ and gasps.