troubled teachers

Chapter 16

"So what am I for?" Regina asked.

"A distraction," Emma grinned. "You have no idea how boring it is trailing around after a boy who had no idea what presents to buy for his friends or his cousins. Every year we go to a hundred different shops and he always ends up going to buy something he saw in the first one we entered. I'll need you to keep me sane, ok?"

"So you want to subject me to the same, boring day?" Regina asked.

"Yep," Emma nodded. "Plus it'll be the last time I get to spend any time with you since you're off to your mother's tomorrow."

"Urgh, don't remind me," Regina said.

"Why do you go if you hate it so much?" Emma asked.

"I didn't hate it when Father was alive. I loved it, in fact. Christmas was always so much fun with him. But now it's just me and Mother and the whole day we just mope around, both missing the one person who united us."

"Is there any way you could get out of it?" Emma said. "You know you'd be more than welcome at ours, right?"

"Thanks but I have to go. She'd be on her own otherwise and that's not fair. We may not get on particularly well but she's still my mother. And it might be good for me to get away from here for a bit, away from the memories."

"They're not all bad though, are they?" Emma said, her voice a little nervous.

"No," Regina said softly. "No, I have some very good memories here too."

"For example?"

Regina giggled. Emma beamed at the sound. "Do you want to talk about last night, Emma?"

"Was I subtle about it?" Emma asked.

"Hardly," Regina laughed. "But I want to talk to you too. Another tea? We can go through to the living room."

The women settled on the sofa, ignoring the mess from the party the night before that neither one of them had any inclination to get started on tidying. Emma sipped her drink, waiting for Regina to speak first.

"Any regrets?"

"No!" Emma said at once. "Not at all. Why? Do ... do you have regrets?"

"Not at all," Regina assured. "I'm not saying what happened was expected, far from it, but despite that, I woke up this morning feeling very calm about the whole thing."

"Me too," Emma nodded. "It feels ... right."

Regina smiled her agreement. The expression made her look younger and more vibrant than Emma had ever seen her. It made the blonde want to kiss her again.

"Go ahead," Regina said as if she had read Emma's mind.

Suddenly shy, the younger woman placed her tea carefully on the coffee table before turning back to Regina. She sucked in a breath and slowly leaned forwards.

Regina burst out laughing.

Emma recoiled at once, pushing herself to the far end of the sofa as the laughter continued. She watched, wide eyed, as Regina finally pulled herself together and realised Emma had moved away from her.