The Sheriff walked into her home after a long day of work, mostly consisting of paperwork and trying to keep a certain drunken dwarf from disturbing the peace. She placed her keys in the bowl her wife Insisted on using to keep the house neat and tidy; a desire Regina found particularly hard to achieve considering her wife and son were grade A slobs. She slipped off her boots and threw them onto the shoes rack. She moved lightly into the living room, peeking her head around the corner to check for her son and wife. She slipped her jacket off and threw it on the couch and made a mental note to move it soon, or else her wife would have a fit.
"Henry?" She called out. "Are you home?"
Of course he had to be home, it was 5:00. He couldn't possibly still be in school. And where was Regina? She wouldn't just go out without tell Emma. Something wasn't right and Emma could feel it. She continued to move around the large house, checking in every room on the bottom floor for somebody. Anybody.
"Regina?" No answer.
Now she was starting to get worried. She clutched the gun strapped to her belt and made her way up the spiral staircase.
"Regina? Henry?" She called out again, trying to elicit an answer or any form of movement. She checked her son's bedroom, the bathroom, and the guest room. The last place to check was their bedroom. She gripped the cool metal door knob with one hand and the gun with the other. She opened the door and walked in quietly. She listened for any movement and heard a light rustling from the bathroom.
She made her way towards it and slowed down when she heard retching coming from the other side of the door. Emma furrowed her brow and opened the door. She was automatically filled with concern as she watched her brunette wife lean over the toilet and empty the contents of her stomach with a couple of heaves.
"Oh Regina.." Emma said, immediately kneeling beside her, rubbing small circles onto her wife's back. Regina's usual olive skin tone was much paler and was almost green. She had bags under her eyes and was dressed in one of Emma's sweatshirts and sweatpants. She laid her head down on the toilet seat, trying to cool her searing cheeks.
"What happened honey?" Emma asked.
"I woke up this morning nauseous. So I called in sick. I think it's the stomach virus." Regina closed her eyes and breathed in and out heavily. Emma placed the back of her hand on her wife's forehead and frowned at how hot she was.
"You're burning up Regina.."
"I took my temperature before.. It only read 100.7.."
"Have you gotten any sleep?"
The brunette shook her head. "I tried for a good hour. I just had to keep on running to the bathroom."
Emma nodded, continuing to stroke her wife's back. She brushed her soft dark hair out of her face and leaned in to kiss her shoulder. Regina sat up slowly and leaned back into Emma. They sat there for a few minutes, Regina leaning against Emma's front, eyes closed, breathing softly, and Emma rubbing her wife's back, inhaling the sweet scent of her hair.
"Wana go lay down?" Emma asked.
Regina nodded and Emma wrapped an arm around her waist and tucked her other arm under her knees. She carried the brunette to their bed and laid her down gently. Regina slid herself under the blanket and looked up at Emma with her exhausted brown eyes.
"Lay with me, Em?"
Emma smiled and nodded. She crawled in beside her wife, and almost as a instinct, Regina slid closer to her and rested her head against Emma's chest. Emma wrapped her arms around her wife and listened to her breathing.
"Hey Regina, where's Henry?"
Regina shifted slightly and answered sleepily, "Your parents.. I don't want him to get sick.. You should go too. I'm okay.. You... Don't want to get.. Sick.."
Emma stroked her hair and shook her head. "I'm not leaving you. I'm taking care of you."
She felt Regina smile against her chest and she tightened her grip around her wife. Emma smiled lightly and felt Regina's breathing slow into a soft and steady pace. Before Emma could fall asleep with her sickly wife, she heard Regina mumble something that to this day, three years after their wedding, five years after the curse was broken, still makes Emma Swan-Mills' heart warm. Still makes her tear up a little.
"I love you, Em."
She swallowed and kissed the top of the brunettes head. "I love you too, Regina."
