Senior Year

Chapter 17

"Why did you ask me here?" I ask irritated. He doesn't have any right to bring up my past, our past!

"The court gave me custody, he's coming to live with me, until he graduates that is."

"He's coming here?" I ask in shock. Tears forming in my eyes, but I fight them back. "He's getting out of juvie?"

"Yes he is, at the end of the month he's being released," Gold answers. The end of the month, that's about two weeks. It feels like a weight, a weight I've felt for 11 months, has been lifted. He's getting out.

"He's 18 in a few months, then he can get away from you,"

"Not exactly Emma, he needs to stay under my roof until he graduates, it's part of his parole."

"Why are you telling me all of this? We don't even talk anymore," I say trying to not let my breath get caught in my throat.

"He talks about you a lot, he asked me to give you a heads up. That's all Emma, you can go now," Mr. Gold says trying to dismiss me, as if he didn't just turn my world upside-down. I sit there in complete shock. Neal's getting out, and he's stuck with this man.

"He was on the streets you know, after his mother died, he was on his own," I tell him angrily. Neal lived in his car, he didn't have a home, not since his dad left him and his mother.

"I know that now, I've been searching for him for a long time."

"Maybe you shouldn't have left in the first place," I say and get up to leave.

"It's my biggest regret," I hear Mr. Gold say as I'm walking away. That doesn't make it ok, not to Neal, not to me.

~ / ~ / ~ / ~ / ~

Flashback- Emma and Neal 1 year ago

Portland, Oregon

"Tallahassee," I smile at the place my finger landed on the map.

"We have a winner," Neal smiles back at me, and pulls me into a kiss.

"Is it near a beach?" I ask giddy with excitement. We are planning the future, our future.

"It's Florida, everything's near a beach," our lips lock again.

"Ok then Tallahassee it is," I smiled wrapping my arms around his neck.

"Tallahassee it is,"

"Are you sure. Is this what you really want?" I ask him sincerely. We are both alone, and the foster placement I'm at right now won't last much longer. We can do this. We can be happy someplace new, start a new life.

"What I want is you," he assures me, and we kiss.

"When?" I ask.

"Soon, babe, we just need some funds. Can't drive across the country with just pocket change," he jokes.

"We're going to have to get to work," I say. Neal stealing food from convenience stores wasn't going to cut it anymore. He puts his arms around me, and pulls me in closer.

"We can do this Emma, we just have to be creative that's all. We already have the car," He says gesturing to his yellow beetle, which he stole before I ever knew him. "I love you."

"I love you too," I smile at him. He's the only person ever who I've said I love you too, and he's the only person to ever say it to me. And I do, I really love him. I need this to work out, even if I need to get a little creative to give us a kick start, and I think I know a way to do that.

~ / ~ / ~ / ~ / ~

Present Day

(Emma's POV)

Before going back to class I go to the bathroom to catch my breath. With all this talk of Neal I'm just reminded of how screwed up my life is, and how no one knows me, not all of me. Neal is the acceptation, he knows me, he knows all of me, well he did. I thought he was the one, and then all of a sudden it fell apart. Life got in the way, and I got my heart broken.

Killian is different. He doesn't know that part of me, our relationship isn't revolved around being an orphan. Of course our relationship also isn't completely traditional, I'll give you that, but we just gel well. I think I might be falling in love with Killian, and Neal being brought back into my life is another stark reminder of why I keep my walls up. I don't want to feel that kind of pain again.

Ugh I wanted to leave my past in the past, but now it's coming back to haunt me.

A/N

Ok so Neal has been introduced! In most of the fan fictions I've read Neal is a bad guy so I wanted to try something different, plus I miss Neal in the show so it's nice to write about him. I hope you enjoyed!