Title: a bit of air

AUTHOR: obisgirl
Rating: PG-13 (crack! fic, drama)
Characters: Belle, Mr. Gold

Summary: It's been weeks since Gold and Emma freed Belle from the hospital. Now, she wants to be able to go out and explore Storybrooke, but her first outing with her lover, doesn't go the way she had hoped it would.

Spoilers: After my fic, "What's In a Name?"
Disclaimer: Once Upon a Time characters are property of Disney and Adam Horowitz, Edward Kitsis. This fanfic is for pure entertainment.

Three weeks, that's how long it had been since Mr. Gold and Emma rescued her from the hospital. In those three weeks, Belle spent a lot of time, reacquainting herself with her lost love and becoming more familiar with his rather large estate.

She knew where everything was and quickly became familiar with his daily routine; he usually awoke before her, mostly to prepare breakfast for her later. Sometimes, they would catch each other before he would have to leave to go to his shop. Gold rarely came home for lunch so Belle would be alone, by herself, most of the day.

Gold's house always felt warmer when he was there with her but when she was alone, it felt different; empty. Belle spent years locked up and alone; to be in the same position but in a different environment, even with someone she was comfortable with, was unsettling.

Gold suspected something was bothering her during dinner, mostly because she kept fidgeting and seemed distracted.

"Belle?" he asked.

She nearly jumped, looking curiously at him and blushing slightly. "Oh sorry," she said.

"Is something bothering you, love?"

She smiled, shaking her head. "No, I'm fine,"

Gold pressed his hands together, studying her, "You realize that you're a very bad liar, Belle," he said, "I know something is bothering you. It's all right, you can tell me,"

Belle hesitated a moment, then folded her napkin, setting it away, looking plainly at him, "First of all, I don't want to sound ungrateful and I can understand why you're very protective of me but..."

"But...?"

"This is your home, Rumple and it only feels warm when you're here with me," she said, causing him to smile thoughtfully at her, "but most of the time, you're not. I'm here alone all day and...I feel..."

"Lonely? Abandoned?" he finished.

"Isolated," Belle corrected, reaching over to entangle her hand with his across the table, "I know it's changed out there because of the Queen's curse but I'd rather explore this new land then be locked away, again," she explained.

Gold sighed, rubbing his chin. He knew he was overly protective of her (and for good reason) but he also understood her desire for more freedom than what she was allowed. Furthermore, he knew he couldn't keep hidden away forever; Belle was always an adventurous spirit. That's one of the reasons he loved her so much.

"All right," he conceded and Belle's face lit up.

"I'll take you with me to my shop, tomorrow,"

"And then?" she asked.

"Bring you home?" Gold finished.

Belle frowned. "And that's it?" she cried. "Darling, I don't think you understand my request..."

Mr. Gold shrugged, "You need a bit of air?"

"More than a bit of air!" Belle exclaimed, "I need to do something to keep myself busy when you're not here...I need to be useful...I need..."

"A job?" He finished, "If you need something to do, you can work with me at my shop,"

Working at her lover's shop wasn't exactly what she had in mind, but at least she would be outside and be with him. "That would suffice," she supposed.

Gold smiled back. "Very well then, you can join me tomorrow," he said.

Belle was terribly miserable, leaning against one of the glass cases in Gold's pawnshop. They went to the shop around 7:30 a.m. and opened at 8. Gold instructed her to dust off a few things, while he set about re-arranging some things. Around 9 am, she finished dusting and started helping him rearranging, taking note of the different objects in the store.

Most of them she recognized, like the pair or marionettes; other things, not so much.

It wasn't until around 11:30, that Belle started to get fidgety again. Between then and noon, Belle felt like screaming.

From the time they opened, no one came into the shop. At all.

"So, is it like this every day?" she asked.

Gold smiled at her. "Mostly, yes," he mused, "Why? What did you think it was like?"

Belle shrugged. "I don't know...I mean...does anyone come to see you?"

"When they need something," Gold continued, fully understanding her frustration. After all, it was like this every day for the past 28 years. Nothing ever changed until Henry brought Emma to town.

"C'mon," he soothed, "I'll close shop for lunch, and we can get a bite at Granny's,"

Belle smiled sourly.

Granny's Diner was nice but not very busy; a tall brunette woman, wearing the tightest short shorts and high heels and red lipsticks and incredibly too much make-up, came by to take their order. Belle ordered a soup and salad, and Gold a sandwich. She smiled brightly at Belle, glanced at Gold and then promptly left the table.

It wasn't until after she left that a big 'O' formed on Belle's lips and she looked at Rumple. "Was that?" she cried.

"Yes, it was," he said.

"She's ...nothing like her other world counterpart, less clothes than her usual outfit," Belle mused, "but she's still with Granny, so not everyone is separated from each other,"

Gold sighed. "Ruby's always been that, it drives Granny crazy,"

"I can see why," Belle reasoned, "All these people, they have no idea..."

"Henry does, Regina's adopted son," he said, "The sheriff is his biological mother,"

"Emma," she remembered, "How does she fit into the scheme of things?"

Gold only grinned, his eyes telling her he knew exactly how Emma fit but he wasn't at liberty to say anything at the moment. Belle would have to wait until later.

Ruby came back awhile later with their orders, she smiled at them and was about to leave again when she turned around and looked at Belle. "You're new here, aren't you?" she asked.

Belle glanced at Gold and then to Ruby. "I am, yes," she confirmed, "I'm Isabelle,"

"Isabelle, that's a pretty name," Ruby complimented, "If you ever need a shopping buddy, I know all the best spots in town,"

Belle blushed and Ruby smiled, leaving them alone.

Mr. Gold was barely able to touch his sandwich throughout much of lunch, since Belle kept on talking and asking him questions, faster than he was able to answer them; which was a drastic change since the first week she first arrived at his home and barely said a word.

The one moment he didn't have to worry about Belle's questions, Emma walked in. She spotted them and came over.

"Sheriff Swan," Gold greeted.

Emma looked at Belle. "You finally talked him into letting you outside. Good," she observed, "How do you like your first outing so far?"

She sighed, "A bit over whelming but exciting at the same time," she said, "I never properly thanked you, Sheriff Swan, for your part in my rescue. Thank you,"

"No problem, anything to up one on Regina," Emma whispered, and started to walk away when a thought occurred to her. "Henry mentioned that you might be interested in a little bookstore on Main Street,"

Emma was not wrong in her assumption as Belle's face lit up in excitement. She had read through every book in Mr. Gold's house and was excited to read something new. Gold laughed to himself, observing her reaction.

"Thank you, Sheriff Swan," she said.

"Call me, Emma, please. I'll see you both later,"

Mr. Gold took Belle to the said bookstore promptly after lunch; it was a small space but the fact that it was small, made it an intimate setting and quiet enough, you didn't have to worry about many distractions. Belle felt like she was going to cry, so happy and at ease around the books; she didn't even notice Gold leave her side and talk quietly with the bookstore owner about a small matter.

He came back awhile later, joined by the bookstore owner. Belle looked curiously at them, blushing.

"Oh sorry," she said.

"No need to apologize miss," the owner, an elderly man mused, "Mr. Gold tells me you have an obsession with books and am perhaps, looking for a job too?"

Belle's face turned redder. "I'm new in town, Mister?"

"George," he said, "I am in need of an assistant to take care of the store when I'm busy working in the back. The job is yours, if you want it?"

Belle smiled excitedly; Gold couldn't help but smile himself, happy to see her smile.

Belle couldn't contain her joy as she left the store with Gold, her arm locked through his. As soon as they were a safe distance away from the store, she couldn't help herself. She cornered him against a wall and kissed him.

"Thank you," she whispered, kissing him again. "You didn't have to talk to the owner on my behalf..."

Gold smiled, running his thumb on her cheek. "I could see today that you weren't exactly thrilled to be working in my shop; I don't blame you. 28 years, I worked in that shop and rarely anyone comes in to buy anything. It's more of a museum than a shop. And it's true about what I said before, the only time people come in there is when they need something," he explained, "And Belle, above everything, all I want is your happiness, love,"

She kissed him again. "Thank you," she said again, leaning in closer, "If you don't have to go back to your shop right now, maybe I can thank you more properly at home?"

"I would like that very much, love," he mused, "but I do need to go back. I will walk you back to the house though,"

Belle once again locked her arm through his; smiling as she did so, walking with him down Main Street to their home. It was then Belle realized that Storybrooke was her home.

And now, she had a place in it.

The End