Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Once Upon a Time.
Prompted by a post by megan-8 on tumblr: "But what if that page from the book with Robin and Regina slowly starts to change…"
Every Little Thing
- By MegannRosemary
It first changed the day Emma stayed for dinner.
She hadn't planned on it, it just happened.
It happened because of a moment of longing, of ache, when Emma stepped off the porch steps. Away from her.
And then her mouth was opening, words spilling out, calling her back. Inviting her in.
Then Henry was cheering behind her before dashing off to set another place at the table.
There was a flash of surprise across the other woman's features, followed by an eager nod and a smile that swallowed her whole.
Her red leather jacket was tucked in the closet and then she was traipsing down the hall after Regina, accepting a glass of wine and praising the spaghetti.
There was laughter.
Easy conversation.
It was a night that screamed normal, a first glimpse that promised thousands more of the same blissful happiness.
They tucked Henry into bed together, and he wiped the kisses off his forehead one after the other with all the false disgust of a thirteen year old boy.
It was time to say good bye again, with longing and aching, but she let her go. She let her squeeze her arm like she did in a familiar gesture, that was theirs, only theirs. She let those green eyes see into her soul when she reminded her not to stay up too late because she knew, she knew Regina wasn't sleeping. Somehow she knew about the nightmares that plagued her and the restless terror that kept her wide awake into the early morning hours.
Regina sat with a large glass of amber cider, pouring over the pages of the book like she did every night. The pages were crinkled with tears and spilled cider, sticking together as she flipped through to her story.
Her hope.
Robin.
She stared at the glossy paper, that shone beneath the firelight, until her eyes pricked and her feet tucked beneath her had long since fallen asleep.
Then she saw it.
The red jacket.
She was sure he'd been wearing green.
She wracked her brain but the details skittered away. She couldn't be sure, even after all this time, maybe she'd been seeing the wrong thing.
She snapped it shut. Opened it again.
Brought it close to her face, didn't blink. Maybe it was like those books that if you stare long enough the clear picture emerges.
No.
No.
She dropped the book like she'd been burned, and she tried, tried to sleep.
The next day began with a frantic trip to the mall, where she pawed though racks and racks in the men's section, searching for the red coat. She found one, plaid and soft and red.
When she held it to her nose, inhaled. It smelled like store. She imagined how it would smell like Robin, like rain and wood.
She brought it home and hung it in her hall closet alongside her own coats, where it would be ready for him if he returned.
When he returned.
Spring had arrived in Storybrooke, the days grew longer, and the sun rose each day more brilliantly than the day before.
Robin's hair in the image lightened, with each passing day, until it was a brilliant blonde. And she told herself that it meant he was ok, that he was out in the woods (somewhere), the sun bleaching his hair.
And she imagined his wood roughened hands on her skin, strong and steady.
Not Emma's. Definitely not Emma's hands.
It just happened. After she'd come to her office earlier that week, hovering in the doorway with a paper cup in each hand.
"Hey, I uh… I bought you some coffee. I just thought you might be tired this morning, you know with everything."
"Thank you Emma," She took a grateful sip, "Ah, this is perfect how you know?"
"Truth," She smiled sheepishly.
Regina nodded.
"I asked Ruby…But now I know for future reference."
"So there will be a future?" The banter (the flirting?), that just happened too.
"I'd like that."
"I would too. In fact, maybe you'd like to come to dinner again Friday." The invitation came easier this time.
"But isn't that movie night with the kid?"
She'd nodded and had another sip, "You could join us though, if you'd like?"
"That would be awesome."
And that was all until those hands…
She wouldn't imagine those hands.
Shouldn't.
Not after Emma had pulled her feet into her lap while they were watching the movie. Not after the way her thumbs pressed into the arch of her foot. Not when a low moan had escaped from her lips, embarrassing them both.
She tried to forget.
Green eyes staring back at her from the well-worn page.
Not blue.
And maybe it was a trick of the light.
But oh.
Oh.
With a soft thud it clicked into place.
She'd been staring into those green eyes all day.
All day their eyes had met, again and again, sitting side by side in the bleachers.
Panicked glances when Henry's team had been down two points in the first half that quickly replaced by joyous ones when they scored three goals in the first five minutes of the second half.
And the way their gazed locked, when the whistle blew, declaring Henry's team the champions. Their gazes locked and they threw their arms about one another, jumping up and down in wild abandon.
And then again. It had happened again.
She was staring into those eyes, saying goodbye with an ache in her chest, when Emma had pulled her into her arms. Only this time they sank into each other's arms, the curves of their bodies fitting together.
Her skin felt just a little too tight and she couldn't get enough oxygen in her lungs and she never wanted to let go.
When they pulled away those green eyes staring at her were dark and swimming with desire.
The realization scared her.
But also excited her in a way she hadn't felt since Daniel.
Robin was nice, very nice.
But passionate, no.
That night she ran her hands over the cover of the book and dropped it in the drawer beside her bed.
She didn't need to see it tonight.
"You know we've been hanging out for weeks now, I think it's time I took you out on a real date."
"A date?"
"Regina you've lived in this world for more than 30 years, please tell me you know what a date is."
"I do. I'm just surprised."
"You shouldn't, I thought I was pretty obvious in my affection."
"You were, it's just hard for me to believe…still."
She took her hand, laced their fingers together. And there it was, that spark of desire, foreign and absent for so long but now, with Emma, it was good.
"I hope one day you truly believe just how wonderful and how loved you are."
"Thank you." She managed at a whisper.
"So tomorrow night? Please? Don't make me beg."
She had to stand on tiptoes to loop her arms around her neck, to bury her head in her neck. She just held on until her heart stopped racing, until she caught her balance. It was Emma, Emma who caught her off guard and set her spinning, but it was also Emma, Emma who brought her back to earth.
"Is that a yes?" She whispered into her ear, her hands settling at her lower back, holding her close.
"Yes, Emma, Yes. Tomorrow night."
"Awesome."
She kissed her cheek and left with a wave and a wide grin.
Regina closed the door behind her, leaning against it with her hands pressed to her cheek, as if it would keep the kiss with her long after the sounds of Emma's boots on the walkway faded away.
And then it all came tumbling down. She was stepping into her dress the next evening when she caught sight of the framed photo on her bedside table.
Cold washed over her.
How could she forget so quickly?
With a hurried text, she canceled the date.
With trembling fingers she flipped to the page in the book.
And there was Emma's smile staring back at her, it was the graceful curve of her lips that she saw there.
She wanted to smile in return, to hold the book close and revel in the delight it gave her.
But no.
No.
He was almost gone. She struggled to find his face. As much as she was ready, so ready, to fall into a relationship with Emma, to dive in and never look back, she wasn't ready for him to disappear from her life completely. Not tonight, not yet. He was safe, a guarantee if you would, and the future wavered before her with too much uncertainty.
She ignored her frantically vibrating phone, turned it over so she couldn't see it light up with message after message of Emma's disappointment.
Instead she cradled that one photo of her and Robin and Roland in her lap. There they were, a happy family, faces pressed together to squeeze into the frame, smiling widely.
She sat staring long after her bare toes were ice against the carpet and goosebumps rose on her arms.
She stared long and hard until the memory of his smile replaced the one on that page, replaced the one belonging to a certain blonde Sherriff, that was so frequently on her mind these days.
Emma was ever patient with her, refusing to give up. She gave her space, she brought her coffee. They didn't date, per se. They didn't talk about that. No, just about everything else. They continued their talks late into the night, lingering over a bottle of wine or a glass of cider.
She checked the book every day, watched as the lines of the face smoothed out. She struggled a little less every day, the frantic search for his features in the image abated. It wasn't long before she watched they changes with a smile on her face. It was real and it was good and after a while she just stopped fighting.
Then she finally just stopped looking, started living, really living.
They went camping Emma and Henry, Snow and David and baby Neal. They welcomed her into their midst, absolutely and completely. Snow and David shared their secret Enchanted Forest recipe for stuffed mushroom caps. Neal rolled over the first time while she was watching him, and he gave her the biggest gummy grin in surprise.
And Emma.
Emma kissed her for the first time out there, under the stars.
Henry loved camping so much he vowed to sleep in a tent in the back yard for the rest of the summer.
Emma and Regina made good use of the empty house.
Henry was happy enough with the change. Mostly he was happy to be eating Froot Loops every morning with his other mother. Regina didn't have the heart to say no, not when it was summer. So she'd hide her smile behind her coffee mug, watching Emma dump all the orange Froot Loops into Henry's bowl ("they tasted too much like real fruit") and Henry dumped all the blue ones into Emma's ("blue isn't natural").
The town held a movie night in the park and she watched the movie from Emma's arms. The townspeople treated them to curious glances and interested mumbles, but they faded away before the opening credits. It was official in the eyes of the town and she couldn't be happier.
School started and Emma moved in. It was easier than driving across town every day to pick up Henry. That was all. That and the fact that Emma was there all the time as it was.
They had their first real fight one day when Emma left coffee grounds in the sink. It was petty and silly, they yelled and they screamed. It ended not twenty minutes later when Emma told her she loved her for the first time. Regina said it back and they danced in the kitchen until the sun set beyond the tress and Henry came crashing in the back door.
She remembered the book one day in October, when Henry found the red plaid jacket in the closet and asked to borrow it for his Halloween costume.
She smiled when she saw it, the glossy image on the page.
She brought it out later that night when the three of them were settling on the couch to watch a movie.
Beneath the curious glances of Emma and Henry, she flipped to the last page of the book.
"Yes! Mom!" Her son threw his arms around her, "I knew it."
"Regina, did you do this?" The blonde woman beside her stared at the page in wonder, her fingers brushing over the two women in a fierce embrace.
"No, it just happened."
She met her gaze, green eyes piercing. "Regina, I want you to know that it wouldn't change anything, no matter what the book says. I love you. "
"I know. I know, I love you too," Her voice ragged with emotion.
"I'm glad that it agrees though."
"Me too."
And then she let the book fall to the floor, let their lips press together.
Only for a sharp kick to the ribs to have them breaking apart.
"Emma stop kissing Mom and go get the ice cream."
"But do we really need it? Your mom is sweet enough." She punctuated her point with a smacking kiss.
"Gross Ma."
They shoved her unceremoniously onto the floor, with laughter and squeals and mild swearing.
"Okay, okay, I'm going"
She paused at the doorway, turning suddenly, and eyes brimming with unshed tears, "Hey, I really love you guys."
"I love you too, Emma."
"I love you Ma."
A/N: I've been sitting on this since March! But I've just loved the idea so much I had to write it! This is also a slightly different style for me so I'd love to hear what you think : )