Emma Swan held her beautiful newborn baby boy in her arms. She couldn't believe that 12 hours of painful labor could create such a perfect thing. The little baby blinked up at her and smiled, rubbing his eyes with his small fist. "7 pounds, 9 ounces, 22 inches long. Congratulations." The doctor said, wrapping the baby in a soft blue blanket. "Have you thought of a name for him yet?"
"Henry Daniel." Emma answered, kissing her son's forehead. "That's a different name. Very normal compared to some of the other parents. I had a patient that named her daughter Honey Lemon." The doctor chuckled. "I named him after my foster brothers. They helped me get on my feet when I was taken out of the foster system." Emma explained.
"Wonderful. I'll just have you sign this birth certificate here and I'll release you both tomorrow morning." The doctor handed her a piece of paper. Emma wrote down her name and paused when she got to the birth father. She had tried to contact Neal multiple times during her pregnancy through phone calls and e-mails, but he didn't bother to answer her.
So Emma left that spot blank. "We don't need him, do we Henry." She cooed. Henry responded by wrapping his hand around her finger. She didn't sleep that night. Long after Henry had fallen asleep in her arms she held him, humming softly and watching the steady rise and fall of his chest. Her heart felt so full of love, she felt complete now that she had someone who needed her.
"My little Henry. I promise I'll always be there for you. We can make it, you and me." Emma whispered. The baby squirmed in his sleep and Emma quietly read her fairytale book aloud like she used to do when she was pregnant with him.
3 weeks later, Emma was struggling badly on her own. The bills from the hospital piled up on the kitchen counter along with other payments yet to be paid. Henry screamed from his swing, the lullaby music and swaying did nothing to calm him. "Henry, it's okay." Emma shushed him as she nursed a cup of coffee in her hands.
What was she thinking, keeping this baby? She was 18 years old, and she could barely take care of herself. It wasn't fair to Henry to live like this. The blonde picked up the phone to call Neal as a last attempt to get help. She hadn't seen him in almost a year since he left her to go to Canada. "We're sorry, but the number you are trying to reach has been disconnected." The robotic machine answered.
Emma slammed the phone down, causing Henry to scream louder. "I'm sorry, baby." Emma whispered, picking up her son and rocking him. Tears stung her eyes as she began to cry too. "I just don't know how I'm going to make it." Her eyes fell on a piece of paper that was stuck underneath the front door. She picked it up to see eviction notice written in big bold letters.
She had 2 weeks to either pay the money that was due or find another place to live. She didn't have any friends, and her foster brothers had died in a car accident months ago. No one she knew would take in a young girl and a newborn. Looking down at her son, she knew what she had to do.
A week later she was sitting in the waiting room at the Boston orphanage, Henry in her arms and all of his stuff packed in the stroller she brought him in. The only thing she had kept was the blanket that was given to her at the hospital. She watched as a dark-haired woman came in and went up to the front desk.
"My name is Regina Mills. I had an appointment with Greg Collins at 3 o'clock." The woman said. "Take a seat, he will be right with you." The receptionist said. Emma looked back down at Henry as he began to whimper. "It's okay, Henry. Everything is going to be fine, little bug." Emma quieted him down. "My father's name was Henry." The blonde looked up to see the woman had taken a seat across from her.
"I'm Regina Mills." The brunette stuck her hand out for Emma to shake. Emma smiled and shook her hand. "I'm Emma Swan." She introduced herself. "And this is my son Henry Daniel."
"What a beautiful baby. You're so lucky to have him. Are you adopting?" The older woman motioned to the stroller full of baby things. "Um, no. I'm uh, giving him up actually." Tears sprung to her eyes and she patted Henry's back over her shoulder. "I just can't take care of him anymore. His father was never around so I don't have any help there. I can barely take care of myself."
Regina handed her a tissue, a sad expression on her face. "Do you have any family that can help you out?" She asked. Emma shook her head. "No. I grew up in the foster system my whole life until I was emancipated at 17. A year later I had Henry. I thought I could keep him, but it looks like I'm going to have to give him his best chance. And it's not with me."
Regina nodded in sympathy. "So, are you adopting?" Emma asked, trying to change the subject. "I am. I was never able to have kids of my own and I thought it was time to stop living alone." The brunette explained. "You're not married?" Emma asked. "No, I live by myself. I'm actually the mayor of my town called Storybrooke."
"I've never heard of it." Emma said. "It's a really small town that's basically in the middle of a forest. But we have a lovely community of people. It sure would be nice to see some new faces, but we don't get many visitors." Regina said. Emma looked the woman over. She was pristine, definitely the rich type judging by her pantsuit and flawless hairstyle. She was successful, beautiful, kind. She could be the perfect mother for Henry.
"Emma Swan?" The girl looked up to see a social worker come over to the waiting area. "My name is Cara Lambert and I'm the head administrator here. I've got your case on file, and Henry is now added into our system. Is this all of his things?" She pointed to the stroller. "Yes. Everything I bought him is in there. He'll go to a good home, right?" She asked, looking nervously down at her son.
"I will do my best to make sure that happens. Babies are often first choices for people looking to adopt, and your little guy looks like he'll be adopted in no time. I'll just take him here and get him settled in the nursery. Then you'll be free to go." The social worker answered. Emma hesitated handing him over.
Henry looked up at her and smiled, cooing happily. "Can I just, have a minute?" Emma asked quietly. "Of course." The social worker left them alone. "Alright, Henry. You be a good boy for me. I'm sure your new mommy will take care of you and love you a lot. I love you, little bug. And I'm sorry I couldn't take care of you." She started to cry, holding him close.
She inhaled his scent of baby powder and milk, feeling her heart break in two. "Emma?" The blonde looked up to see Regina wiping her eyes with a tissue. "I know you don't know me at all, but I can see how much you love your son. I apologize if this is a bit forward of me, but maybe you would like to come back to Storybrooke with me? My house is much too big for just me. You wouldn't have to give Henry up, and you can stay with me until you get things figured out."
Emma contemplated telling her to go to hell. For all she knew, this woman could be a serial killer or a crazy lunatic. But if she wasn't, Emma could keep Henry and get back on her feet. It was either that or go to a shelter. She'd been to shelters before, and the kinds of people that holed up there were not the kind she wanted Henry to be around.
Regina got up and went to the receptionist desk. She returned a moment later with a file which she handed to the blonde. Emma read through it closely. Storybrooke was, in fact, a real place. Regina had grown up in Maine her whole life and became mayor once her mother passed away. She was 34, single, successful, and even volunteered her time at the animal shelter. She was perfect on paper.
"Miss Swan? Are you ready?" The social worker returned and held out her arms for the baby. "Actually, I think I'm going to keep him." Emma looked over at the brunette. The woman's smile widened as she realized Emma was accepting her offer. "I hope you know what you're doing, Miss Swan. Babies aren't dolls." The social worker said rudely.
"Excuse me." Regina interrupted. The social worker turned towards her. "Are you a mother, Miss-?"
"Lambert. And no, I'm not." The woman answered. Emma looked back and forth between the two women. "Then how would you know that this young lady here isn't fit to be a mother? From what I can see, she has done an excellent job in taking care of her son. So if you don't mind, I'd like to cancel my appointment today." Regina said.
Emma stared at her in shock. Did this stranger really just stand up for her? "My apologies." The social worker said before leaving the two. "Thank you." Emma said. "No problem, dear. I can tell Henry is in good hands with you. Now, do you have a car of your own?"
Emma blushed and looked down. "No, ma'am. I used to but my boyfriend took it. I've been riding the train and walking around town." She answered. "That's alright, my car is big enough for three people. Shall we go get your things?"
An hour later, Emma and Henry's things were loaded up in Regina's car. All of it fit in only 4 boxes, embarrassingly enough, and most of it was Henry's. "I need to pay my landlord and I have some other bills to take care of." Emma shuffled through the stack of mail in her hands before checking her wallet. Not nearly enough, she realized.
Regina took the stack of mail out of her hands. "Don't worry about that, dear. I'll handle it." She said, putting it in her purse. "Oh no, I can't let you do that." Emma stammered. "You can make it up to me later. Right now let's just get the two of you home." The brunette buckled Henry in his car seat, showing Emma how to do it. "You're definitely a natural at this whole mother thing." Emma commented. "I've got a few years on you yet, Emma." Regina smiled and tickled the baby.
Emma climbed in the front seat, taking one last look at her apartment building. Maybe this would be a fresh start for the both of them.