#mxssindependent

[baegelfirecassidy-blog]

You be sweet and I'll be grateful (Emma and Neal)

After a couple days Neal was deemed in good enough health to leave the hospital. There were, of course, stipulations - take pain medicines as needed, take antibiotics (as a precaution), follow up with a doctor, rest, and no heavy lifting until the ribs healed up. Those were all things he could deal with. He'd had worse instructions.

  He left in the same clothes he'd been admitted in. Thankfully, the staff at the hospital laundered them; they did not smell like a wharf at all. However, these were also the same clothes as he'd worn on his date with Emma so off to the bed and breakfast he went. Neal knew waiting for August to pick him up probably would have been a better idea, but he didn't feel like waiting for a ride.

  Once in the room, he stripped from his clothes, showered in fifteen minutes, and stepped out again. As he dried, he couldn't help finger the tattoo on his side. With a sigh, he tossed the towel into the hamper and donned jeans, boots, a dark-gray t-shirt with a matching hoodie. Slipping his jacket on, he first went to the jewelers and asked if his swan coin cold be made into a pendant to put on a necklace. Relieved that could, he then went to Granny's and ordered potato salad, onion rings and French fries, grilled cheese, and baked beans. Not one to wait, he then walked next door to buy 29 chocolate cupcakes (one to grow on).

  Food and present in order, he headed to the hardware store where he rented a speaker to hook up to his ipod, Singin' in the Rain, and a projector. He also bought a basket and fleece blanket. Lugging all of the stuff down the street probably looked awkward - to say the least (did a projector count as heavy lifting?).

  Finding Emma's car, he managed to pop the trunk and load the blanket, projector, movie, and speaker into the car. Taking the basket, he brought it back to Granny's (all the while picking up the large order of cupcakes) and packed the food into it. Back to the car he went and this time he picked the lock to the passenger side. With the door opened up, he put the food stuffs in the backseat and headed to the jewelers.

  Luck was with him. The pendant was finished and he selected a chain to put it on and asked for it to be gift-wrapped. With all that done and present hiding in his pocket, Neal stopped by the flower shop, bought a dozen sunflowers, and headed to the station.

  "You know your car is really easy to break in to. I did it...two or three times," he quipped with a grin. "These are for you. Oh....What monster plays tricks on Halloween?"

@mxssindependent

[baegelfirecassidy-blog]

Day One (Emma and Neal)

At some point he drifted off into a medicine-induced sleep. The same beeping and purring of machines as well as the whine of florescent lights woke him as before. Having his bicep squeezed by the BP cuff also roused him from slumber. Staring groggy at the oxygen thingy, the electrode wires, and the IV's, Neal contemplated pulling them all out. He didn't

 Still in a lot of pain, Neal chose to not move.  He wanted water to cool his burning throat. He wanted pain medicine for his concussed skull and broken ribs and Neal figured he was attached to a pump, but he couldn't find the button to administer the medicine. So, the man just stayed put and focused on the tray in front of him.

 Someone brought stuff for him to stomach down. But how could anyone stand eating Jell-o or broth? Both things sounded as unappetizing as a slug. The tea provided with the meal would be no better either. Neal wasn't hungry. He wasn't sure what he was though.

 Hearing commotion outside his room, his eyes roamed over to the door. Being that it was closed, he couldn't hear anything. It sounded like an argument, the squeak of shoes, or a bull had been set free in the hallway. Alarmed, but intrigued he waited to see what would happen next.

mxssindependent

[baegelfirecassidy-blog]

Dinner Date - Neal and Emma

mxssindependent

Dressed to the nines (if clean jeans and a sage-green sweater with a hooded jacket was to the nines), he showed up at the Blanchard loft with a couple bags in each hand and dozen sunflowers settled in the crook of his arm.  It was five 'til seven and that meant he was a few minutes early. Would Emma mind?

 Kicking the door, Neal used that as a way to knock. His hands were too full to do anything more. Roast, mushrooms, garlic, onions, salt, pepper, pasta, broccoli, cheese, wine, red velvet cupcakes from that bakery around the corner, Independence Day and Moulin Rouge on DVD. Crud, I forgot the cream for the sauce. Maybe Emma will have some, he thought while waiting.

 Was earliness a good thing in this household or did the Blanchard residence prefer a little bit of tardiness? He was okay with either, really. Neal just didn't want to intrude or make a bad impression. Granted, he made about the worst first impression he could have chosen to make, but that was in the past.

 Neal nibbled on the bottom of his lip. What if Emma wanted those five extra minutes to get ready? He didn't know here and he sure didn't know what her routines were. Maybe Emma loved getting fancy for her dates. Maybe he should leave and come back in a few minutes. "What do I do? I could always go get the cream," he bemoaned.

[baegelfirecassidy-blog]

First Steps (Neal and Emma)

Fuming - that was an interesting word in the English language. It's root (fume) could be both a noun and a verb. A fuming person could be either fumigating a place, emitting gas, surrounded by an acrid smell, or in a fit of anger. In all frankness, Neal never understood how one word could have so many different uses or even why a word should. But, today, Cassidy understood.

 August Booth, that twig kindling of a man, brought him to this godforsaken town when he knew two things about him. One, he hated small towns in which the only form of entertainment was either a pool hall that closed at 10 PM or a little dive of a restaurant. And two, Neal didn't want to be in a 1,000 mile radius of his father.

  In one fell swoop, August accomplished both. Neal could possibly have  tolerated the smallness of this town for the few days they planned on staying. He'd even enjoyed himself the first night; that Granny sure had some nice beds and great bacon. But any chances of  having redeeming qualities were thrown out the preverbal window when Neal spotted none other than Rumplestiltskin striding into the diner and ordering a hamburger.  

 The sight of watching his quaff father eat the sandwich almost made him laugh. Something about the picture just seemed surreal. Shock waned within a few second. Anger replaced shock. Fuming replaced anger. He would have left the diner that moment, but the grilled cheese and onion rings were too good, thus he scarfed them down and exited the establishment (all the while forking August with the bill.

 Getting out of Storybrooke became the goal. He wanted to leave within the hour so Neal didn't even go pick up his stuff. Instead, he walked the streets in attempts to find some wheels. Of course August decided to hide not only the motorcycle's keys, but the whole bloody machine.

 It looked liked hotwiring a car would be his only chance. Not really what he wanted to do this lovely afternoon, but desperation called. It didn't take him too long to find a suitable car - an old, yellow bug that didn't really look to be in use. With a glance around, Neal stooped beside the volkswagon and fished his lock-picking kit from his pocket. With as steady of hands as this fuming man could, he worked at the lock all the while wondering if smoke rolled from his ears. Gods Neal was mad.

mxssindependent

[bellethelionheart-blog]

The First Step || Belle & Emma

She had told Killian she couldn’t keep herself cooped up like that. She’d spent what life she remembers in a small cell, without memories at all. Not knowing who she was or why she was there. Now he was keeping her locked up again- in a different way. She was restless. She was bored.... and she’d decided to go for a walk in the town. Just lunch, that was all. She wasn’t even sneaking off the ship- he was gone on a few errands. So she just left, however what she hadn’t thought of, far too caught up in looking around the town- was that she had no idea where anything was. No idea even how to get back... She did find the library though... boarded up it looked so sad. She peered in the window, wishing she could go inside. However,, her stomach rumbled and drew her away before she spent too much time day dreaming about running the library.

So she set off to find something to eat, wandering for a little bit before she finally decided it’d be best to ask someone. She wanted to be back on the ship before Killian got back. Spotting a blonde woman who seemed like she might be friendly enough, Belle walked over to her. “Uhm- Hi....” She bit laughed a bit nervously... She hadn’t spoken to anyone other than Killian for over a year now. Those in the asylum never really spoke to her. She was a patient, and didn’t attend therapy or get medication. Now she knew why. She knew it was because she wasn’t insane. Just knew too much. But that didn’t matter- she was out, and the past was in the past. "Do you, do you know where I could find something to eat? I’m afraid I’ve gotten myself lost...”