As tragic as it was to hear Malcolm say those things to Rumple, sadly selfishness doesn’t disqualify people from have a kid. Any fool can reproduce, yet not everyone is really cut out to be a parent. It’s a sad truism that many parents walk out on their families everyday, as Milha did, because they’re “bored” and no longer want to be a parent. Some people really view having a family as more of a burden than a blessing, which is tragic, and has lasting repercussions, as we see down through the generations of ‘Stiltskin men. Rumple has lasting daddy issues which meant he abandoned his own son. Now it’s up to Neal to help break that cycle by being a present father in Henry’s life so that Henry doesn’t repeat that nasty habit of abandonment with his own children one day.
"That’s how you know you’ve really got a home. When you leave it, there’s this feeling that you can’t shake. You just miss it." Neal Cassidy