It is nearly midnight when Emma Swan's doorbell rings. The tiny apartment in which she rents with her roommate and best friend, Maura Isles, is dimly lit with so many lights, and cars to block the moon, it is rather surprising that it can be seen tonight. Slowly, the blonde is jarred awake, and Maura is stirring in her own bed in the next room over. Who the hell could be at her door this time of night? She rose from the bed and stood up, wincing when her bare feet hit the hardwood floor. Emma flicked on the lights, knowing better than to simply open it immediately. Her brows rose quizzically when she spotted no one there.
"What the hell?" She mumbled under her breath. Finally, the door opened and standing in front of her was a small boy.
"Can I help you?" She asked. "Are you Emma Swan?" "Yeah, why?"
His face lit up and a smile spread across his lips.
"My name's Henry. I'm your son."
And suddenly, everything stopped. Her whole world felt like it was in slow motion until finally, it sped up again, leaving her mouth slightly agape.
This child she'd given up for adoption more than nine years ago, had found her. But how? All of those files were closed. Before the blonde could deny any of this, Henry was already speeding past her and into the apartment.
"Whoa, hey. Kid. Kid! This is ridiculous. I don't have a son."
He stopped with the orange juice, placing it on the counter.
"Ten years ago, did you give up a baby for adoption?"
Of course, she knew the answer.
"Gimme a minute."
God, she needed to catch her breath or smoke some weed. Something to get her nerves under control. Her mind went to Maura. But how would she explain? Did she even need to? Yes. But that, she could do on the way to bring this kid home. The blonde creeped into the medical examiner's room and flicked the light on. Maura mumbled groggily and barely rolled over to look at her.
"Mmm?" She almost inquired, rubbing at her eyes. "Maura, wake up. Something's happened." It only took those words for Maura to become hyper aware and more alert. "What? What's going on?" "I'll explain in the car. Just get dressed." And with that, the golden haired woman sped out of the room and back into the kitchen. "Look, you can't stay, I'm taking you back home." Suddenly, the brunette child who looked far too much like his father, frowned.
"Please don't make me go back there." God, how many times had she seen that look before?
But this-this was different. Henry had been adopted. He had a family. and even if they didn't love him, at least they wanted him.
"You're good, but you're not that good." And then, his pout changed to a smug smirk. "I can just tell the cops, if you call them, that you kidnapped me." How had he known her hand was already heading for the phone? "And they'll believe you because I'm your birth mother." Soon after she spoke, Maura walked out, fully dressed and grabbing her jacket. "Emma, will you please tell me what's-"
The sight of a small child in their apartment threw her off and her brows furrowed. "Who is this?" Maura asked, inching closer to them. "I'm Henry. I'm Emma's son." Emma thought her best friend's eyes would pop out of her skull the admission. "It's okay,, she didn't know I was coming. I kind of surprised her."
The blonde gave Maura an apologetic look, and the medical examiner simply narrowed her eyes. The pair had known each other for three years. Before coming home, and after Emma had gone to work, they'd celebrated Emma's 28th birthday. What a birthday present this was. "Look, I promise to explain in the car." She turned to Henry. "Come home with me," He nearly pleaded. "Where's home?" Storybrooke, Maine."
Neither woman had heard of this town before. Was it possible he was bluffing? No. Emma knew because of her ability to tell when anyone was lying, which she called her super power.
"Storybrooke? Seriously? Alright. But if you try any funny business, I drop you off at the police station in Boston." Henry's face lit up and he nodded.
Boy, would this be a long car ride.