"I'll have the. . . the. . ." Belle stared down at the menu for only a short moment, then her head popped back up, cheeks blushing. "Just a cheeseburger, Ruby. Thanks."

Regina, passing by, paused next to the table and looked at Belle as Ruby walked away with the menu. It struck her as odd that Belle ordered the same thing all the time. It seemed like she was actually struggling to read. The mayor blinked down at the girl, suddenly unsure of how to say what she was thinking.

"Looks like you might need glasses," she said, as calmly as possible.

"Oh, God, I. . ." Belle blushed brighter, gawking up at the mayor with embarrassment. "Yeah, I've. . . I lost mine. . ."

"You don't have to lie to me," Regina said, startled. "I can always tell when people are lying to me."

"Look, I just don't have health insurance, alright? My eyes are bad and my contacts don't work as well anymore. I need a new prescription, and I don't have health insurance."

Regina burst out laughing and sat down at the table. Such a mundane and simple problem. Was this how the rest of the town lived their lives? Without?

"I'm the mayor, my dear. Anything you need will be yours, if only you ask it of me."

"I would never. . ."

"Never what? Never ask anything of me? Why not? Am I that unapproachable?" She knew the answer was yes and immediately regretted asking the question. But was that how Belle saw her? Unapproachable? Evil, even, like everyone else thought? "Nevermind. Look, it's just sad to see you eat the same thing over and -"

She was cut off by Ruby serving a steaming cheeseburger with a side of pickles and a coke. They both faked a smile, obviously feeling awkward, until Ruby spoke.

"Uh. . . did you. . . are you having anything today, Mayor?" Ruby asked politely, choking down her hatred and trying not to get herself fired. She didn't want to see her dear friend anywhere near the dark one, let alone the evil queen, but somehow she'd managed to befriend them both.

"Yes, actually. I'll have the chicken salad with a side of apple pie, if you don't mind."

"That'll be right out," Ruby answered curtly, turning and hurrying away into the kitchen.

Regina turned back to Belle. "Try the salad, okay? And the pie. Everything at Granny's is good. I promise. Try something new."

"It's really okay. I like cheeseburgers," Belle mumbled.

"In all seriousness, Belle. Can I take you to an optometrist? It's really no imposition. I wear contacts, but you'd look really cute in glasses, and then maybe you'd be able to try out the rest of Granny's menu without feeling embarrassed. You love books so much. . . It must be terrible having such trouble reading."

"It's been a while since I've read a book, yes. . ."

"Please let me help," Regina implored.

A few days later, the two sat in Regina's car, Belle holding a new pair of glasses. "I should have gotten contacts. These look silly."

"They don't," Regina countered. "Put them on."

She did.

"You look beautiful. I like the bookish type."

They both went silent.

"Regina, I'm. . . Rumple. . . He. . ."

"He's never going to be able to love you without letting you down. He's darker than I am. His heart could never truly love another."

"You're wrong," Belle protested. "His heart is pure, deep down. He just has a. . . a layer of blackness around it. . . He's built a shell around it to survive, to keep himself from getting hurt. But it's all coming down now. He's changing."

"I'm changing, too," Regina whispered. "How can he really be what you want? Don't you want someone who can truly sacrifice and care for you? It's been days since I've used magic. Even Henry said he's proud of me."

"And I'm sure he is, Regina. Henry loves you. But you're just not him."

"I understand." They pulled into the driveway and Regina got out of the car. Her hand, shaking a little bit from embarrassment, opened the passenger door to let Belle out.

"Thank you, Regina. Really. I appreciate everything you've done for me."

"Why didn't you just tell Rumplestiltskin you needed new contacts? He would have taken care of you."

"I didn't want to trouble him. He never asked. . . He never noticed."

"Oh."

"Thank you," Belle repeated.

Regina left in silence, pulling out of the driveway with stinging heat washing over her face.

"Regina?" a voice sobbed on the other end of the telephone. The rest of the words were a jumbled mess of noises she couldn't understand.

"I'll come get you," the mayor responded and immediately hung up the phone.

When she pulled into the driveway, she flashed her lights to let the girl know she was there. It took Belle a long time to emerge from the shop, but when she did, Regina could tell she was distressed. Her face was red and her eyes were swollen from crying.

"You don't have to tell me what happened unless you want to."

They drove in silence after the agreement, until they reached the mayor's house. They both got out of the car and went inside, sitting on the couch of Regina's enormous living room. The house was too big for two people, but Regina liked it that way. It reminded her of her loneliness and why she was alone in the first place.

"It's okay," Regina whispered. "It's going to be okay."

To her surprise, the girl collapsed in her arms, still sobbing.

"It was awful," she wailed.

Awkwardly, Regina just placed her hand on the girl's back, unsure of what to do next. She felt the tingle of Belle's soft hair under her fingertips and shuddered, her muscled immediately tensing in protest to the sudden crashing wave of emotion and sensation she felt. Belle melted into her, her chest against Regina's, the girl's arms hanging about her neck.

"I'm so sorry," Regina said, genuinely meaning the words. For some reason, this girl's suffering actually hurt her. She. . . empathized. She truly felt for the first time in years. The first time since. . .

She could feel her heart bleeding from the inside.

"I'm so sorry he hurt you."

"I m-must have d-deserved it," Belle stuttered.

"No, sweetie. No. You couldn't possibly. You didn't do anything wrong. It's him. It's him who hurt you."

Belle went silent, her chest heaving from the stifled sobs. Her fingertips brushed Regina's neck and made the women's skin tingle straight down to her toes. It hurt. It actually hurt to feel, and Regina was repulsed by it, but she didn't pull away. She fought the urge to move away and dared to press two hands against Belle's back. As innocently and platonically as she could, she pressed her lips to the girl's forehead, whispering, "It's going to be alright."

After five days of constant conversation, tears, and even some laughter, Belle awoke in Regina's guest bedroom. She awoke alone.

"Regina?" she called. The silence in the house was stark and loud, and it almost scared her. Something felt wrong.

She got up, buttoned her nightshirt - she'd left it open while she slept - and searched the house. It felt odd to be there alone, awkwardly pacing the halls of someone else's house. She barely knew Regina. Then again, they'd grown close over the past week. Close enough that Belle felt a pang of disappointment that she didn't see the woman that morning.

She showered and got dressed, did her makeup, and brushed her teeth meticulously, annoyed by how uncomfortable the huge empty house made her feel. She was out of place. She sat nervously on the couch, not daring to eat breakfast on her own. It felt wrong to invite herself to Regina's food, even though she'd spent nearly a week living in the house. Twenty minutes later, Regina hurried through the door, holding a gigantic bouquet of pink roses.

"Good grief!" Belle exclaimed. "I felt so strange here on my own. I feel like I'm imposing on you. Who're the flowers for?" She forced a small smile, still feeling rather uncomfortable.

"Why, they're for you, dear. Of course. Who else?"

Belle was speechless.

"You are more than welcome in my house. This can be your home for as long as you need it. What's mine is yours."

Belle blushed and took the flowers, smelling them. She was unable to hold back the smile tugging at her lips. Rumple had never given her flowers before. In a rush of emotion, she stepped close to Regina, their bodies nearly touching, and held the roses to the side. She leaned in, touching their lips together.

"Thank you," she breathed against the softness of her lips. "Thank you."

Regina gasped, unable to swallow the noise that betrayed her emotions. She felt a wave of panic shudder through her like an electric bolt of lightning, like a storm of feeling too wild to subdue.

"I think I might love you, Belle."