Here's a one shot that somehow accidentally turned into a Valentine's Day one shot, and is much longer than I had anticipated! Most is in Emma's POV, with a small tidbit being in Regina and Alice's POV. There's also a lot of Emma and Robyn friendship in this, and I really enjoyed writing that. I've been wanting to write a drivers license fic for quite some time, but could never figure out where to start. Then, I heard an angsty pop punk cover of the song by Halocene and the idea finally popped into my head.
__________
It's the middle of the day in the quiet town of Storybrooke, Maine. It's a chilly February day, but the sun is shining, the birds are chirping and Emma's head is pounding. Leaning against the hood of her beat up yellow Volkswagen Bug, she has many regrets on agreeing to give Little Robyn a driving lesson. Only Robyn isn't so little anymore.
Emma is reminded time and time again how differently time works in other realms. She's only been to the Enchanted Forest two times since Henry graduated high school. She tries to keep her distance. Seeing everyone becomes too overwhelming.
The first time that Emma had visited the Enchanted Forest, Henry had called for her and Regina both. He needed help from them, and with their combined magic, they were able to succeed. He had only been gone for a few months, but he was years older. Emma couldn't believe that Henry was Henry. They hadn't had much time, once Emma told them that she was pregnant. Both Regina and Henry hugged her and basically shooed her as quickly as possible. Before she stepped through the portal, Regina kissed her cheek and told her that she needed to leave for the baby. They hugged one more time.
The second time was for Henry and Ella's wedding. Emma almost hadn't made it in time. By the time she got the invitation, she only had a few days to get there, because of just how fucked up their time works there. It's all too fast. Killian hadn't wanted her to go, of course. But she couldn't miss her son's wedding when she had already missed so much. Again. Except this time, they weren't in the Enchanted Forest; they were in a realm with a name that Emma couldn't remember. A realm where time moved slower.
The third, and actually second and last time that Emma had gone to the Enchanted Forest, the real Enchanted Forest this time, was for Regina's crowning. That day was a whirlwind of emotions for Emma, and she'll never forget it. She met her granddaughter who was somehow ten years old, yet it had only been one year in Storybrooke. Hope was just a few months old. And Henry had...grown into such a handsome man, husband and father. It turns out that they had all been stuck in a curse for an unknown amount of time in Seattle; what they knew as Hyperion Heights. They were so close, yet so far away.
Of course, both of Emma's parents had aged, as had her little brother Neil, who was 15. They hadn't been affected by the curse, because they were visiting New York City for Neil's birthday. More people, more family, that were so close, yet so far away. They hadn't bothered to let Emma know that they were just a day's drive away, and they hadn't visited in a time that someone might need their family the most.
Emma wipes away the tear that was threatening to fall down her cheek, thankful for the aviators that she's wearing. She didn't need anyone to see her red rimmed, bloodshot eyes. She pulls off her blue leather jacket, the one Regina actually hated, deciding it was oddly a little too warm for it in the sun. She adjusts the black beanie on her head and rolls up the sleeves of her gray plaid flannel.
The rattle of a pill bottle catches her attention, and she turns her head to find Robyn grinning at her. The teenager is holding a drink holder in her other hand with two large coffees. Emma could kiss her, and she does, right on the forehead. "You're a saint, kid" Emma says and ruffles the girls hair. It's the fact that Robyn is a few inches shorter than her that makes Emma feel like the adult in this situation.
Still grinning, and squinting from the sun, Robyn says, "Alice said she was spending the day with Hope, so I figured you had quite the night by yourself." She wore a dark green beanie over her dirty blonde braided pigtails. That and the large round glasses on her face made her look younger than 23, but to Emma, she would always be the little six year old who called her Aunt Emmy, but her time in the other realms had turned her into an adult in the blink of an eye.
"Bold of you to assume I was alone," Emma defends with an eyebrow raised. She was very alone with a bottle of wine. Or maybe two. She remembers a lot of crying. She pops the two Advil offered to her into her mouth and takes a very large gulp of her coffee.
Robyn is opening the door to the driver's seat when she says, "Well I know you weren't with a woman. You're holding out for you know who." The grin hasn't disappeared and Emma is once again regretting this.
"Listen kid," Emma climbs into the passenger seat and puts on her seatbelt. "I don't know what you think is going on, but there's nothing. I can promise you that." Not anymore. Or ever, really.
After taking her own large gulp of coffee, Robyn puts her seatbelt on and confidently pushes on the clutch with the toe of her boot and puts the clunker into reverse, and then in first gear. She knows how to drive an automatic, but she wants to impress Alice, even though she's already got the girl. Emma gets it. She really does.
It's only when they've driven down Maine Street and they turn towards the suburbs of Storybrooke, or at least what Emma refers to as the suburbs, that Robyn speaks again. "Aunt Regina told me, ya know."
Emma freezes. The fingers of her left hand stilling from tapping to the music on the radio. "Told you what?"
"You know," Robyn sing songs. "Your dirty little secret."
Emma really likes that song, but that's not the point. She shakes her head. As far as she knows, the only person that knows her secret is herself. And Ruby. Someone else she hasn't seen in what feels like forever. "What secret?" She asks.
Robyn is slowly creeping the bug along Mifflin street, still in first gear, not daring to even go into second, even though she knows that she could. "That you guys slept together," she says casually with a shrug of her shoulders.
Emma practically spits out the coffee in her mouth, but she manages to hold it in, because well, it's really good coffee. It's actually giving her life, at the moment. "We never-" she shrieks. Only in her dreams and fantasies.
Robyn is giggling now and Emma realizes that she's joking. "You should have seen her face! I'm telling Alice about this later."
They come to a stop sign and Emma is laughing with the teenager. Until she starts to sob. They're only a block from Regina's house. Or, what used to be Regina's house. Sometimes Henry uses it on the rare occasion he's in town, and it's currently being used by Robyn and Alice for the time being. Fuck, Emma misses Regina so damn much.
"Whoa, Emma. I... I'm sorry. I was joking."
"I've tried," Emma sobs. "I've tried so fucking hard." Her aviators are on top of her head now, and her hands are shaking as she tries to hold her head in her hands.
"Tried what?" Robyn asks. Her voice is softer now, like when she talks to Hope, and it makes Emma cry harder.
Emma sniffles and thinks for a long while. Is she really going to come clean about all of this? To Regina's niece, of all people? Her son's cousin? "Can we go to the park?"
Robyn doesn't say anything as she shifts the car back into first gear, then second, and finally third. Emma smiles and she can see that Robyn is smiling, too. Their loose strands of hair are flying around their faces as they drive, laughing in the wind. Emma has never been more grateful for the girl next to her. Robyn is a strange mix of her parents, but she got all the right bits and pieces.
Once they've parked, and Robyn pushes in the parking brake with her foot, they get out of the car and find a bench to sit on. The sun feels good on Emma's face, and her head doesn't hurt quite as much. Her eyes are still red and dry from crying, but she knows that won't go away. She sips at her coffee now, trying to think of what to say to the teenager next to her. She's never really had this talk before. Ruby had already known somehow, and said it was something she could smell, which quite frankly, bothered Emma more than anything, but she could laugh about it now.
Emma clears her throat. "I've never told anyone this," she tells the gi- woman sitting next to her on the bench. She throws back the rest of her coffee, suddenly and desperately wishing that it was tequila and sets the cup on the ground. She can see out of the corner of her eye that Robyn has turned her body towards and she's sitting cross-legged. As she stares out at the pond she says, "This is where I fell in love with Regina. For the... sixth time, I think?"
"When was the first?" Robyn asks. There's no judgment in her voice.
A small laugh leaves Emma's body and she begins fidgeting with the ring on her thumb. "The day that Henry brought me to Storybrooke all those years ago."
"The second?"
Emma smiles at the memory this time. "I had a room at Granny's after sleeping in my car for a few days." She still remembers the back pain. "Regina showed up with a basket of apples and tried threatening me into leaving town."
"And you were in your underwear!" Robyn laughed. "According to my mom, that was Aunt Regina flirting."
"Yea, I can believe that," Emma responds, still smiling. She goes on to tell Robyn about the day that Henry fell into the mines and how she got to see the real Regina for the first time. How raw her emotions were and how much she really did love their son.
She tells Robyn about the week that she was gone with Snow and met Mulan, and about the look that Regina had given her when she came back. Emma could have kissed her then and could have confessed her love, but she was a coward. She still is.
Emma tells Robyn about going to Neverland and how Regina had punched Snow in the face, and how she jumped overboard. How they had to share a bed, and- "O.M.G," Robyn squeals. "That's my favorite trope! What happened next?!"
"You want to know what happened with your aunt?" Emma clarifies.
"Well," Robyn sighs. "You're right. But like, was there cuddling? Aunt Regina isn't really a cuddler." She holds up her hands to keep Emma from talking. "Unless you're Henry, Lucy, or any child, really."
Emma knows that she's right. Regina would never put Hope down if they ever met again. Regina hadn't gotten the chance to hold Hope at her crowning. Killian was in the way, as usual. "Yeah," Emma admits. "There was cuddling." There was a lot of cuddling. Even after they had been on the island for a few days and smelled terrible. She tells Robyn about Killian kissing her and how wrong it had felt. She tells her about the journey back home and how once Henry had fallen asleep, Regina found her and kissed her for the first time. It was possessive and passionate, and then they were interrupted by Snow, causing them to part ways for the night.
"So you were lovers," Robyn smiles, propping her hand under her chin, clearly completely invested in this weird story. "I just love a sapphic romance!" And before Emma can interrupt, Robyn starts counting on her fingers as she says, "You've got enemies to lovers, bed sharing, kid sharing, slow burn. Or maybe you're enemies to friends to lovers?"
"She actually gave me this ring," Emma whispers. And just like everything else, she's not sure why she's telling Robyn this. She twists it around and around her thumb until it comes off, and then she flips it over and over between her thumb and index finger. "After Henry's wedding."
"You were there the whole week," Robyn chimes in. "I remember that. My mom kept giving Aunt Regina shit for spending so much time with you."
They had indeed spent a lot of time together. A lot of Emma's time had been spent with Henry and Ella, of course. The four of them went on a few hikes and adventures around the land. Regina had been very adamant about Emma not over exerting herself, as she was a few months pregnant. Which meant that Emma also spent a lot of time in bed. A bed that she shared with Regina, upon the brunette's request. One night Regina had been rubbing Emma's swollen feet and then her sore back, and then they were kissing. A lot.
Emma clears her throat. "Yeah, it was a good week."
"You're so gay and so in love," Robyn tells her with a laugh. "Why haven't either of you made a move? And why did you marry Hook?"
She sure was full of questions, today. Emma leans back on the bench and sighs. "I thought marrying him would make everyone happy, including myself. But apparently the two people who mattered most were upset. I just didn't know until it was too late."
"But you're divorced now, and Hook's gone."
"Yeah, but Regina's spent like...ten years without me? It's too late. Even if she did have feelings, it's been such a long time for her."
A comfortable silence falls between them. Emma watches the ducks in the pond, thinking about all the times she came here with Henry and Regina. She can't wait to bring Hope here when she's a little older; old enough to remember things. She pulls her legs up, resting her chin on her knees.
"...have you thought about finding someone else?" Robyn asks quietly, almost shyly.
Emma turns her head so that she's facing Robyn, her cheek resting on her knees. "How could I ever love someone else?" She's once again thankful for her aviators as her eyes burn with fresh tears. "She sent me a letter once," Emma whispers, now. "After Henry's wedding."
"What did it say?"
Emma closes her eyes and imagines the beautiful handwritten scrawl on a piece of paper. "She said that she knows we're not perfect and we never have been, but she's never felt this way about anyone. She apologized for being gone and said she knows I'll be okay."
Love always & forever,
Regina xoxo
There was more to it, of course, but Emma figures she's already told Robyn too much. How did this conversation even begin and why was it still going on? Emma figured it was a good enough reason to talk to someone about the woman she loves. Something she didn't get to do often. At some point she had stopped talking about how much she missed Regina, certain that her friends were tired of hearing it. Well, only two friends, Ruby and Mulan; sometimes Lily, if she made an appearance. And the occasional times she got drunk at Granny's. Sometimes Emma even felt sorry for them, for the simple fact that they would never know Regina the way that she does.
In the beginning, when Regina had first left, Emma would drive through the suburbs, to Mifflin street, pretending that she was driving home to spiked cider and homemade lasagna. She'd pretend she was driving home to love and to family; the two things that she had found and managed to lose in the blink of an eye.
She still saw Regina all over this now sleepy town. In the cars that drive by, in the flowers that bloom in the spring. She sees Regina in all the places they used to go, and in the sidewalks that they crossed. She still hears Regina's laughter in her car, in the wind, as that gravelly voice calls it a death trap, but Regina gets in the car anyway.
Emma still fucking loves Regina.
"Did you write back?"
Shit. Emma shakes her head and wonders how many times Robyn has repeated herself. "No, there wasn't a return address."
"And you didn't talk about it at her coronation?"
Emma shakes her head. "Didn't have time."
They never had enough time. Emma wasn't at the coronation for very long, anyway. They were at her family's castle, which was weird on its own. She didn't think Regina wanted to be there, and she wasn't sure how Regina even felt about being a queen again. Not that she had ever quit being a queen, but. They had hugged; Regina cooed over Hope, and then Regina was whisked away by someone who wanted to dance with her.
Robyn's phone buzzes and she pulls it out of her pocket. Emma sees her smile brightly and assumes it's a text from Alice. Her thumbs tap on the screen and then she looks up at Emma with bright eyes. "Apparently there's a Valentine's Day dance tonight at the community center. Granny and Gepetto have agreed to babysit all the little ones."
"...and what? You're asking me to be your date?" Emma laughs. "That's a little weird, kid. Even for you. And especially for Alice." Technically, Alice and Hope were half siblings, if DNA was anything to go off of, no matter what version of Killian Jones Alice had gotten in the Wish Realm or in Hyperion Heights. Emma has always had a connection with Alice, since the first time they met. They understand each other. She thinks it has something to do with the whole orphan thing.
Robyn rolls her eyes. "You're right. That is a bit weird. But no, I'm just saying that you can join us. Maybe it'll be good for you to get out of the house and to not get wasted for one night. And to be around people who love you. Alice and I aren't going anywhere, Emmy."
Emma could cry. Again. Fuck, she hated crying. Emotions were stupid and overrated. But Robyn had a point. "I don't get wasted every night," she defends. "Only when you guys offer to watch Hope." She had been drinking more in recent weeks, since the couple had been in town. Alice wanted to get in as much sibling time as possible, and honestly, Emma understands. Robyn has also admitted that it's a bit of a trial run for whenever they have kids.
Suddenly, Emma takes in a sharp, deep breath. The ring on her thumb burns slightly, as it does every now and then. It doesn't burn enough to leave a mark, but just enough for Emma to feel it. It always comes as a surprise, and she's never understood it.
"You ok?" Robyn asks with a gentle hand on Emma's arm.
"Yeah," Emma nods. "Just...forgot to breathe for a second." She rubs her chest with her other hand for a moment, and then asks, "What time's the dance?"
__________
At four o'clock sharp, Alice greets Granny at the mayoral mansion, handing over her adorable baby sister. She's grown so much since the first time Alice met her, and she's started trying to walk. It's literally the cutest thing she's ever seen.
"Aww would you look at that little chunky monkey," Granny coos. "I promise to take good care of her. Her mother will kill me if I don't." She takes Hope from Alice and then says, "Have a great time tonight!"
Alice wishes her well and then she's alone for a few minutes; Just long enough to pick up Hope's toys and any extra messes. Regina will be pissed if anything is out of place.
There's a whooshing sound that Alice has come to recognize and find comfort in. She turns around to find the remnants of purple and green smoke, and then figures of her mother in law and ...aunt in law, appear? Alice isn't sure how the terms work, really, but both Zelena and Regina are standing in front of her.
"That's what you chose to wear?" Alice asks, looking directly at Regina, who's wearing a poofy dress. From photos she's seen, it looks somewhat similar to the one she wore at her coronation.
"I tried to talk her out of it darling," Zelena responds. "But my sweet sister insisted on wearing a dress for our dearest Savior."
Alice shakes her head. "No, this won't do. If you want to wear a dress, it needs to be more modest, and not... showy. Unless you're showing more skin. Emma would love that."
Regina nervously bites her bottom lip and has already wrapped her arms around her stomach. "I might still have something in my closet that she'll like." She hasn't forgotten that way that Emma used to look at her when she wore those tight dresses, or even when she wore a pantsuit. Emma always looked at Regina like she hung the stars in the sky.
"Just don't dress like Roni, dear."
Regina shoots her sister a look of confusion, and she feels a little defensive about it.
"Yeah, Zelena's right," Alice chimes in. "Emma would love it, but Robyn said she's trying to talk Emma into wearing a suit or something."
"We can't both wear suits?"
Zelena rolls her eyes. "Wear whatever you want. Either way, I don't think you'll take our opinions and critiques seriously."
__________
Emma is positive that she's already sweating the second she walks into the community center. Robyn had helped her pick out an outfit before going back to the mansion to get ready with Alice. It wasn't that she was nervous, she just hadn't really been around a lot of people in the last couple of years, since Regina and Henry left.
One of the fairies had greeted her at the door and gave her one of those dumb Hi, my name is___ tags. She wrote her name on it and then went into the bathroom to make sure she wasn't sweating profusely through her white button up; she felt like she was. She took off her navy blue blazer and hung it on a hook before she splashed water on her face, thankful that she talked Robyn out of applying makeup.
Emma looks at herself in the mirror and wonders what the hell she's doing, and how Robyn had talked her into this. Honestly, if it wasn't for the promise of both Robyn and Alice meeting her here, she wouldn't have agreed to come. She turns around and rests against the sink, pulling her phone from the pocket of her matching navy blue slacks. It's 5:28pm, and no texts from either of the girls. This thing started at 5pm, and there was no way that Emma was arriving early.
She decides she's been in the bathroom for too long and finally puts her blazer back on. Once she's back out in the hallway, just before the opening to the larger room of the community center, her phone chimes with a text.
Alice: Hey, Em! Sorry we're running late. We'll be there in 10 <3
Emma: See you soon!
Emma adjusts her ponytail and walks through the streamers covering the doorway to the larger room, where tables and chairs are set up. There's a DJ at the front of the room, and Emma is pretty sure that it's Leroy. She wonders for a second how they got him to come back to Storybrooke for this, and then remembers that the fairies are apparently the hosts and the ones that planned this whole shin-dig. Which is extra weird, because the fairies are also nuns and celebit, but they seem to be trying to get people to hook up.
Interesting.
The room is decorated with pinks and reds and the round tables for seating have candles on them, along with other Valentine's Day related decorations. Her mother would eat this shit up. Emma laughs at the thought and wonders who else might be here. She shoves her hands in her pockets and makes her way over to a long table with refreshments. She doesn't see any alcohol in sight and grabs a glass of water. If Robyn wants her to meet new people, she shouldn't be drinking, anyway.
Plus, she's still the sheriff, so.
Emma looks around and sees a group of five people standing in a corner. It looks like it might be Aurora and Phillip, Anna and Kristoff, and Sneezy. A strange group.
"Hey, Em!"
She turns her attention to the person calling her name and smiles at the familiar face, immediately relaxing. "Hey, Mulan. Did Robyn drag you here, too?" Robyn had been helping off and on at the police station, especially when it came to tracking people; one of the good things she got from her dad. Her and Mulan seemed to be decent friends.
Mulan shrugged. "I suppose you could say that." Emma raised a brow at her friend. Mulan sighed and rolled her eyes. "Fine. She told me that Zelena was going to be here," she muttered.
Emma let out a laugh much louder than she had meant for it to be. "Zelena?" Mulan nodded and looked away from her. "As in the wicked witch? You have the hots for Zelena?!" She laughed again and shook her head. "Damn. I had no idea!"
Mulan took a long sip from her cup and said, "This is why I don't tell you personal things. You laugh at me. At least Ruby had already assumed."
"Yeah," Emma grimaces. "She has a knack for that." She puts her hand on Mulan's shoulder. "Listen, I'm sorry I laughed. I was just surprised. But...now that I think about it, it makes sense." This time, Mulan raises a questioning brow at her and Emma shrugs as she removes her hand. "She's crazy and you're chill. You're opposites and apparently opposites attract, right? I wish you the best of luck, my friend."
That causes Mulan to smile and then she excuses herself to go talk to other friends.
Emma awkwardly stands against a wall and sips on her water until Robyn and Alice find her. "Why aren't you two wearing name tags?" is the first thing she asks.
"We're not single," Alice deadpans and then grins. Emma rolls her eyes.
"Sorry, Emmy," Robyn says with a lopsided grin. "I think we're going to dance for a bit and then grab some food, if you want to join?"
Emma looks around and realizes that the place is filling up quickly. "Go ahead. I'll grab a table." She gets a hug from them both before they go off dancing. Honestly, she's incredibly proud of them both, and she's extremely happy for them. She hopes that she gets invited to their wedding, and that it takes place somewhere where time doesn't move at a million miles a minute.
She finds a table in a corner, farther away from the other tables and the other people. It's near the entrance, in case she decides to leave. Emma laughs at Leroy bobbing his head along to the music he's playing from a laptop and wonders who the hell taught him how to DJ. When he was working at the police station, he could barely work a flip phone.
Couples come and go over the next thirty or so minutes. At some point, Mulan walks past her with a redhead on her arm. She looks back and grins at Emma who gives her a thumbs up. That is so weird, she thinks. But she's happy for them.
The ring on her thumb burns again, and she fiddles with it as she often does. It's a strange thing, the ring. She doesn't know why Regina gave it to her, or when. She had woken up on that last day after Henry's wedding, and it had been there. She felt the burning more than she felt her own magic, but she never really questioned it.
And I'd give up forever to touch you
'Cause I know that you feel me somehow
You're the closest to heaven that I'll ever be
And I don't want to go home right now
The song gets Emma's attention and the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. She takes in a shuddering breath and slowly lets it out. This fucking song. She skipped it any time it came on on a playlist she was listening to, but she couldn't exactly do that, now.
'Cause all I can taste is this moment
And I can breathe is your life
Sooner or later, it's over
I just don't wanna miss you tonight
Maybe if she walked up to the stage, she could threaten Leroy to change it. Or give him some cash, something. Anything.
This song meant too much, and Emma couldn't deal with these feelings. Couldn't deal with the voice she heard singing this song in her head. They never had time, but maybe Emma needed time to move faster. She needed to get over the fact that she would probably never see Regina again. She needed to move on like Robyn said.
And I don't want the world to see me
'Cause I don't think that they'd understand
When everything's made to be broken
I just want you to know who I am
Emma stands in a haste and can feel several sets of eyes on her. She doesn't currently give a shit if she upsets Robyn or Alice at this point. She didn't want to come to this stupid shin-dig in the first place.
A hand reaches out to grab her. "Emma, wait!"
She turns, and holy fucking shit. Her eyes widen. "R... Regina?" She blinks several times, as if that will tell her whether or not any of this is real. "What are you doing here?"
Regina smiles softly at her. "I came to see you. I'm sorry that it's been so long. I've been a coward and not a very good friend."
The woman standing across from her only looks a few years older than she did at the coronation, and Emma wonders what magic she's used, or maybe it has to do with traveling through the different realms. Emma doesn't know if she should be angry or happy.
"Please say something," Regina pleads. She reaches for Emma's hand and Emma lets her.
It dawns on her suddenly that the ring on her thumb burns just a little when Regina is nearby. She's been in Storybrooke several times and hasn't come to see her. Emma looks down at their hands. "Those brats set me up..." she says mostly to herself.
"Glad to see you're putting your sheriff skills to good use," Regina quips.
Emma looks up and meets Regina's eyes, finding that they both have tears in their eyes. Fuck it, Emma thinks. They can talk later, and hash out whatever they need to hash out. Regina is here, standing in front of her. And yeah, she was set up, but for all the right reasons. She takes a step closer, into Regina's space. Regina doesn't back away, and Emma sees her visibly swallow. "Can I kiss you?"
"I thought you'd never ask."
Emma smiles and leans in at the same time as Regina. There are suddenly people cheering all around. They kiss again, and then Regina asks her to dance.
Once they're on the dancefloor, it feels like they're the only ones at this shin-dig. Emma's arms are around Regina's waist, and Regina's arms are around Emma's shoulders. Regina is stroking the back of Emma's neck with her fingers, causing Emma's entire body to light up.
It's two slow songs later that Emma finally takes in Regina's outfit. She's wearing a very tight low cut black dress that goes down to her knees, and heels that could kill someone. And- Emma stops moving, her hands going to the lapels of Regina's jacket. A red leather jacket.
"Is this my jacket?" Emma is sure she sounds more accusatory than she means to. "I thought I lost it!"
Regina nods slowly. "You left it at my house a few months ago. In my study."
Emma stares at her as the gears in her mind slowly turn. Admittedly, she would go to the mansion whenever she knew it wasn't being used. Regina had given her a key several years ago, but when she left for the Enchanted Forest, Regina told Emma that she was still welcomed, whenever she needed to get away. There was a moment when Emma had thought about moving into the mansion for good, but she didn't want to constantly be surrounded by everything Regina, and not the woman herself.
"You were there," Emma says. She remembers a day that she had stopped by the mansion and found a used plate on the kitchen counter with some breadcrumbs, and a coffee cup in the sink. She thought maybe Robyn and Alice had been in town for the night, on their way to another realm, and had forgotten to clean up after themselves. Her ring had burned for a few days at that point, and she had considered taking it off, but never did.
Regina nods and continues rubbing the back of Emma's neck. "I used a spell to make myself invisible. I wanted to talk to you, but I didn't know how to. I'm so sorry."
Emma had had Hope with her that day. They sat on the couch in Regina's study and Emma read to her until she fell asleep. Hope always did enjoy being in Regina's house, just like Emma did. It was home. They had fallen asleep, and then Emma was woken up when her cell phone rang with a call from Mulan, saying she needed help at the station. Emma had left in a hurry and had forgotten her jacket, but she couldn't find it the next time she went back. The gears are turning again, and she can feel Regina's eyes boring into her.
"I didn't spy on you, if that's what you're thinking," Regina breaks her train of thought. "I hid in the pantry." After Emma gives her a confused look, she explains. "It was the closest I could be to you, and to Hope, without you knowing I was there. And without the possibility of you seeing me."
Emma nods in understanding, and then she smiles. "What if I had gone in there for pop tarts?"
"You finished the box the week before. You never noticed that the pantry and fridge were always stocked?"
"I thought it was because other people used the house, and assumed they brought what they needed. Or you know," she shrugs and adds "...magic." Regina laughs and it's the most beautiful sound that Emma has heard in a while.
"You're an idiot, Emma Swan." Regina kisses her and it sparks something in Emma.
"Can I take you home?" She whispers when they break apart.
"Yes, Emma." Regina responds with another kiss as they're whisked away in a cloud of white smoke.
__________
Emma takes them to Regina's bedroom, where she immediately takes off her blazer and starts to unzip Regina's dress. Regina breaks the kiss and presses her palms to Emma's chest. "Emma, slow down. We have plenty of time."
"Do we, Regina? We've never had time for anything." She's crying again, and can feel the tears on her cheeks.
Regina wipes at Emma's tears with the pads of her thumbs. "Yes, dear. We have all the time in the world. I'm not going anywhere. I can't leave you, again."
"What about the other realms?"
"I retired," Regina smiles. "I much prefer being the mayor of the town I created. Plus, I missed you, and I want to get to know Hope. If you'll let me."
Emma responds with a deep and passionate kiss. She slowly finishes unzipping Regina's dress, which falls to the floor. Regina is devastatingly gorgeous in black lace, just as Emma remembers. She walks Regina backwards until she's on the bed and finishes taking off her own shirt. Regina immediately begins unbuckling Emma's belt and slides her slacks down her legs.
"You're so beautiful," Emma says. And she wants to cry again. She knows they need to talk, but they have time. They'll sort things through in the morning. And for the rest of their lives.
"Shut up and make love to me, Emma," is Regina's response.
And well, how is Emma supposed to say no that? So instead she says, "Am I dead?" Because she really can't believe that this is happening.
Regina laughs, "No such luck, idiot."
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Thank you so much for reading! I hope you enjoyed this and would love your feedback <3Happy Valentines Day!