A/N: Hey! This is just a little 4-chapter thing I've worked on. It's sort of inspired by the book 'One Day', with each of the chapters focusing on a different day across a year.
Hope you Enjoy!
The October after the defeat of the wicked witch of the west and the restoration of Henry's memories, Emma Swan had begun to settle back into her old routine as Storybrooke's sheriff. Such a small town and no immediate threat of dark magic meant that her job was relatively straightforward, and most days were spent sat behind her desk wishing away the hours until she could return to her home - a new apartment with Henry. This particular day, however, was different than most.
It was Emma's birthday; the anniversary of the day she first arrived in this town, and the day she first met Henry. The day that she used to dread had became a day to look forward to, and she seemed to spend most of the day with her head absent-mindedly in her hands, sneaking glances at the clock every few minutes or so to see when she could leave for her party at Granny's.
At around 1pm, however, the door to the sheriff's station opened. Emma sighed, and stretched her neck a little after lifting it from the desk.
"I'm glad to see you take your sheriff's duties so seriously." Emma recognised the voice immediately as belonging to Regina, and shifted in her chair so she was sat up straight. While their relationship had grown significantly in the past months, so much so that she considered them friends, the presence of the woman still made her tense.
"Regina. What can I do for you?" Emma extended politely, frowning as she spotted a small box in Regina's hand.
"Happy birthday." Regina ignored the question, placing the box down in front of Emma. She opened it to find a small red velvet cupcake inside, and was a little taken aback by it.
"..Thanks. That's kind of you." Emma was suspicious of the woman's intentions; sure that there was a ton of paperwork heading her way shortly. The sight of the cupcake, however, took Emma back to her birthday a couple of years before, and her wish to spend her birthday with someone. This one was no different, and she found herself itching to ask the mayor to stay for a while.
"Do you want to stay for a while? We can split the cupcake." Emma suggested, smiling at her son's other mother.
"I'm not so sure that's a good idea.."
"Come on, if we can share a son we can sure as hell share a cupcake." Regina snorted slightly at Emma's comment, and the sound was so foreign to the blonde that she decided that her new goal was to elicit it from Regina regularly.
"Very well, dear." Regina sat on the chair on the opposite side of the desk, and watched as Emma split the cupcake in half before placing her section into her mouth in one piece. "Must you eat so greedily? You act as if you've never tasted food in your life." Regina scoffed at Emma, hiding a smile as Emma's tongue peeked out from between her lips to lick a piece of icing on the corner of her mouth.
"It's not greedy, it's polite! I'm showing my appreciation." Emma insisted, laughing as Regina ate her cupcake so daintily you'd think she was at dinner with the president. "I'm sorry, Madame Mayor, would you like a knife and fork?" Emma teased, as Regina raised a miniscule piece of cupcake to her mouth.
"Pardon me for having manners. I have always held the opinion that you should remain polite and courteous when eating with others."
"Well, thanks for the consideration, but still. It would be nice to see you relax a little for once." Emma insisted, shrugging. "How did you remember? That it was my birthday, I mean."
"Of course I remember. It was the day that…" Regina trailed off. Hers and Emma's new-found friendship rested on the basis that neither of them brought up it's tempestuous beginnings. "Of course I remember." She diverted the topic.
"It's cool of you, though. Sort of unexpected." Emma realised she was travelling into unknown territory and looked down, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear.
"I was thinking yesterday." Regina began, appearing to mirror Emma's slight nerves. "About the first time we met. You mentioned how you had wished to not be alone on your birthday, and I thought about you being here by yourself all day. It's remarkable, isn't it, the things that stay with you." Regina attempted to cover up the significance that that particular conversation held for her, and how she had spent her birthdays with almost the exact same sentiment growing up with her mother.
Emma was speechless. Even with her relationships with her family, and the new-found acceptance with them she had been craving for all of her life, the thought of people caring about her and doing things just for her still seemed impossible. "But you… hated me back then."
"I didn't hate you, dear. Truthfully, I was jealous. I felt threatened about your relationship with Henry, with ours being as fractious as it was at the time, and I thought that anger was the best way to deal with it. I've never been one to accept potential rejection well." Regina had a hopeless smile on her face, biting her lip to hide the pain that this conversation was causing her. "My relationship with Henry was so wrought, and all other things aside, I was concerned that he would want to leave me for you."
"And then you let him."
"Some things, Miss Swan, are out of our control. Unstoppable. To force yourself into thinking you can somehow change the inevitable, or prolong its outcome is… a mistake. Nobody can control it, not even me." Regina smiled again. "I did what I had to do. For Henry's sake, and for yours."
"Even at the cost of your own happiness?"
"I'm sure you're aware that I've changed of late, Miss Swan. There is nothing on this earth I value more than the happiness of my child, and… his family. My own happiness should be an afterthought, as it shall be from now on." Regina ended with a tone of resilience, with which Emma rose from her chair and went to sit on the edge of her desk next to Regina.
"You're still doing it, aren't you? You need to allow yourself to be happy, Regina."
"I've never really had much of a chance to, have I?" Regina's face fell, and looked to be on the cusp of crumpling.
"Well, today is a new day." Emma raised the tone of the conversation, "And as your sheriff, it is my personal duty to ensure the well-being of my town's inhabitants." Emma gave a mock-salute, eliciting a chuckle from Regina. "Seriously though, thank you. The fact that you remembered… just thank you." Emma placed one hand on Regina's arm, and gave it a slight squeeze.
"You're welcome, dear."
"You're coming tonight, right?" Emma changed the topic, removing her hand from Regina's arm and returning to her seat on the other side of her desk.
"Oh, I'm not sure.." Regina hesitated; the feeling that she didn't belong with the Charmings' was still resonant, and abundantly clear the more time she spent with them.
"Come on, you have to. It's my birthday wish." Emma smiled at the woman.
"Very well, if you insist." Regina pretended not to be flattered, and swiftly changed the topic of conversation to an anecdote about Henry.