A Rose by Any Other Name

Rosalie had felt many emotions in her life, but she had never allowed herself to get close to anyone because she didn’t want to run the risk of feeling the pain of betrayal that she had seen in the eyes of so many people that had come and gone from her life. But she broke her own rule for Emma, she believed in her heart that she was different. Rosalie had gotten up early so that she could have breakfast with Emma and her mother, but when she approached the booth that they were both sitting at, neither one noticed her and for once she was glad for it. Because if they had they would have stopped their conversation and she would have never heard the one thing she never thought she would.

“I kissed Graham last night.”

It was the one thing that Rosalie never thought she would hear Emma say. If she was honest with herself it was probably something that she wouldn’t have said if she knew Rosalie was standing close by.

“Why would you do that?” Rosalie heard Emma’s mother ask her. “I thought Rosalie and Graham were getting closer. That they were starting to feel something for each other.”

“I didn’t want to hurt Rose-” Emma started.

“A little late for that Emma.” Rosalie said as she finally spoke up alerting them to her presence.

Emma’s eyes went to her friend’s face and she saw the tear fall from her eye before Rosalie could wipe it away.

“Rose-”

Before Emma could even get out of the booth, Rosalie was out of the diner and in her car. Driving away from Emma and the pain she caused, Rosalie ended up parking her car outside of the inn that she was still staying at before walking to the bench overlooking the sea. It was the same bench that she had gone to when she had checked herself out of the hospital without a doctors okay. Wiping the tears away, she heard her cell phone ring. Digging it out of her purse she saw that it was Emma calling. Feeling more tears fall as she silently cried, Rosalie ignored the call. She just couldn’t talk to Emma right now even if she wanted to. It hurt too much. Emma had told her that there was nothing going on with her and Graham and she blindly believed her. No more. She couldn’t trust or believe in anyone anymore. Maybe it was time to move on from this town, she knew now that she had overstayed her welcome.

Grabbing her bag, she got off the bench and went back to the Inn. Her time in Storybrooke was over and done with. As soon as she packed up her things and picked a place to go that Emma wouldn’t be able to find, then she would take some time and find out who she truly is. Not Emma’s friend that is from a magical world and the only way for the make believe characters to go home is to believe. No, she wanted a fresh start and that was what she would get. No more lying friends or dishonest men in her life. One would have thought that she would have learned a lesson about men by now, but shockingly, that wasn’t the case. She truly believed that Graham was different from the others, but then she heard what Emma said. They shared a kiss and it hurt to know that if she hadn’t been standing behind her friend there is a good chance that she would never have found out about it.

As soon as she was inside her room at the Inn, Rosalie closed the door and sat down on the bed. For most of her life she had hoped for love, not just for the parents that she didn’t even know but also the love of a man. Things could be bought and replaced, but not love. That was the one thing she really believed in.

Taking a deep breath, Rosalie took her suitcase out and placed it on the foot of the bed before walking over to the dresser. Taking out the skirts and jeans that were stored inside, she went back over to the bed and set them down next to the suitcase. She repeated the process with her shirts, underwear, socks and bras. It didn’t take long to get mostly packed. All she had left was some underwear and a handful of shirts when she heard a loud knock on the door. Closing her eyes, she waited. When the second knock came she opened her eyes, but she wasn’t sure that she wanted to answer the door.

“I know you’re in there Rosalie,” Graham’s voice said through the wood door. “Granny already told me you were here, so please open the door.”

Releasing the soft sigh, Rosalie walked to the door. Opening it just enough to see the man who had been knocking on the door, she looked at him with a blank expression upon her face.

“You don’t look happy to see me.”

“Why should I be?” Rosalie questioned him. “After all I am just some stupid girl that you can pass the time with before you get with Emma.”

“What do you mean?” Graham questioned her.

“What I mean is,” Rosalie said as she looked into his eyes. “I’m not a stupid girl anymore Graham and I don’t intend to be someone’s second choice. I know you and Emma kissed.”

“Emma told you?”

“I heard her tell her mother at the diner. If you wanted it to be a secret you should have asked her not to talk about it in public where anyone can overhear a conversation.”

“May I please come in?” Graham asked her.

“Why?” Rosalie asked. “There really isn’t much to say.”

“Rosalie, please.”

With the roll of her eyes, she opened the door wider and allowed him to come into the room where she wouldn’t be staying for much longer. As he walked in, she closed the door before going back to the bed and continued with packing her clothes.

Looking at the room, Graham couldn’t help notice that all the little things that made it a temporary home for Rosalie were gone. When he looked at her by the bed, that was when he saw the suitcase almost full of clothes. Moving over to the dresser, he opened a drawer and when he looked inside it was bare. He did it again with the remaining drawers and he had the same result with all of them.

“Are you going somewhere?”

“Away.”

“Away?” Graham asked as he came and stood next to her. “Away where?”

“Away from Emma, away from this town,” Rosalie said as she turned and headed to the bathroom. “Away from you.”

“Rosalie, please,” Graham said as he placed his hand on her arm. “I can explain what happened. It didn’t mean anything.”

“Graham, I don’t trust people very often, but you seemed so different then the other people that have come and gone from my life. I guess I should have learned by now, but don’t worry, I won’t stand in your way of being with Emma.”

“You are being difficult Rosalie,” Graham told her. “The only person standing in the way of letting me be with the person I want to be with is you.”

“I just said that I wouldn’t stand in the way of you and Emma-”

“I don’t want Emma!” Graham said as he raised his voice slightly. “I want to be with you!”

“Me?” Rosalie asked, surprise written across her face.

“You are the only one I have feelings for Rosalie,” Graham told her. “Why can’t you believe me?”

“Did you and Emma kiss?”

“What does that-”

“Please answer my question.”

“We shared a kiss, yes.” Graham told her honestly.

“Then you know why I can’t stay here and be here,” Rosalie said as she let out a sigh and placed some of her shirts into the open suitcase. “Obviously there is some sort of feelings going on between the two of you and don’t downplay it because I’m not a moron Graham. But I also won’t stick around and wait for you two to figure it out because that would hurt more than anything and I refuse to set myself up for that.”

“I don’t have feelings for Emma!” Graham said as he felt his control slipping away. “The only one I have feelings for is you! I think I might be falling in love with you.”

Those were not the words that Rosalie ever expected to come out of Graham’s mouth or any man’s mouth when talking about her. Graham used Rosalie’s surprise to his advantage and pulled her into his arms before lowering his mouth until it covered hers. The kiss was soft at first and then the passion between them. Graham moved his hands into Rosalie’s hair. Rosalie had a fleeting moment of trying to get away from Graham, but it just felt so right for her to be in his arms that she didn’t want to move away from him.

When he broke the kiss, Graham didn’t move away from her, instead his lips just moved down to her neck. Her breath caught in her throat as she felt his lips as they moved to her throat. Her hand went into his hair to keep him there as she released a moan of pleasure at what he was making her feel.

The loud knock on the door halted what Graham and Rosalie were about to do. And for that Rosalie was utterly thankful, because if it had gone any further she probably would have had sex with Graham and it would have been a mistake. A big mistake. Breaking away from Graham, she looked at him as another knock sounded on the door. “You people here are very impatient.”

“Rosalie-”

“I think it is time that you left, Graham,” Rosalie told him as she put on the bravest front that she could. “I wish you the best of luck with your life and everything.”

“I won’t be going to Emma,” he informed her as he walked over to the door. “I don’t care how long it takes, I will wait for you to realize what we have is real.”

Opening the door, Rosalie let Graham out before looking at the person waiting in her doorway. Red. The person who had truly been a friend to her since she got into this weird town. Nodding to her friend knowing that she could come in, Rosalie waited before slamming the door. Pressing her back against the door, she slid down it until she was sitting on the floor and that was when she allowed the tears she had been holding back fall down her face.

Dropping her bag, Red walked over and sat down next to the girl. She didn’t say anything, but wrapped her arm around the woman that was obviously feeling hurt. Red didn’t know what exactly was going on, but she understood the need for a friend that could understand and just be there for you. In the enchanted forest, she had Snow White, but here in Storybrooke it looked like so many were pressuring the woman who was crying to believe. But how could she with all the pressure they were piling onto her shoulders?

When Rosalie finally stopped crying, Red offered her a small smile. “Wanna talk about it?”

“You want me to talk about how the one friend I had since I was in foster care kissed the guy I have feelings for when she said that there was nothing going on between them?” Rosalie asked as she shook her head. “I just need to finish packing my stuff up. I told Grams I would be out of here my seven.”

Red watched with confusion when Rosalie mentioned leaving. “Out of here? Where do you plan on going?”

“I don’t know yet,” Rosalie told her honestly. “But I can’t stay here knowing that Emma or Graham could come over at anytime. I need some space and I won’t get it if everyone knows where I am at all times.”

“I know a rent free place that you could stay where only one person would know you are staying there and they wouldn’t tell anyone.”

“People would see my car and realize-”

“Not if it is hidden away.”

“And where is this place?”