Captain Swan - Set My Soul On Fire

Chapter 11

Emma lets out a laden breath as she ties the apron around her waist, getting ready for her shift at Granny’s. Knowing soon she won’t be able to reach behind to tie her own apron because she’ll be too pregnant, kind of depresses her. She’s only in her second trimester, but she already feels like a beached whale, regardless of how small she appears to other people. She can’t wait to have this little bean, and not just because she feels miserable, but because she can’t wait to hold and cradle and sing her baby lullabies.

Scanning the diner, she notices her friends are sitting at their usual table, except for Ruby, since she’s scheduled to work tonight. Though being on the clock hasn’t ever stopped her from sitting with her friends before. 

Emma wasn’t even supposed to work tonight because it’s Wednesday, which means she was supposed to go to youth group, but she decided she needed the extra money instead, so she picked up a few extra shifts.

Her heart is heavy as she makes her way over to the table, grabbing her notepad and pulling out a pen from her apron pocket. “Hey, guys,” she greets with a friendly smile. “The usual, today?”

Will nods. “Burger with fries and my regular milkshake.”

“As always,” she teases, scribbling down his order. 

Robin has his arm around Regina’s shoulders, and as usual, Emma is envious of them and their relationship. As usual, she has to desperately refrain from asking them how Killian is. She so badly wants to ask, but chews on her tongue when she feels the urge.

She misses the times when Killian would come in with them, or when he just came to visit Emma during her shift. She misses escaping to the restroom to make out with him. She misses how flushed he made her, how breathless she felt afterward. 

She misses him.  

She misses them.

Walking away from Killian was the biggest mistake she’s ever made. She can’t stop thinking about him, can’t stop wondering whether being with him would’ve worked out because not being with him is definitely not working out. Not being with him freaking sucks. 

“How’s the little bean?” Robin asks after Emma takes their orders.

She places her free hand on her pregnant belly and laughs when she feels the familiar light flutter inside, something akin to butterflies. “Right now, kicking me.” 

“Does it hurt?” Will asks, his features etched with concern.

She shakes her head. “No, it just feels like the little one’s knocking on my insides, but it’s gentle, like a tap.”

“When do you find out the gender?” Regina asks curiously. 

“During my next appointment on Friday.”

“What do you think you’re having?”

Emma shrugs and laughs at all the questions, but she should be used to them by now. Everyone’s always inquiring about the baby—people from church, school, work, pretty much everyone who knows she’s pregnant. “Not sure, but my mom thinks I’m having a girl because of my morning sickness. When she was pregnant with me, she was sick during her entire pregnancy, and when she had Leo, her morning sickness was pretty mild.”

“Ha! Told you it would be a lass!” Will shouts, pointing at Regina.

Emma furrows her brows in confusion. “I just said I don’t know for sure yet. That’s only my mother’s theory.”

Robin shakes his head. “Don’t mind him. He’s just excited to find out the gender because we all put twenty bucks in the pot.”

Emma arches a brow. “You bet on the gender of my baby?”