A night to remember

Storybrooke was slowly becoming more and more lively, almost as if it were a town, which were created in…normal conditions. Truth was, there were too many new people and they needed something to do with themselves in town- yes, most of those people, who came here after the curse broke and the border was finally 'open', had quirky little personalities. Some of them simply couldn't find a place in the bigger more normal world, so they came here. Others, searched for the 'thrill of living in such an extraordinary little town', cited as they said.

"I'll be celebrating my 27th birthday in this… Uh, new club around the corner and I would love for you to come."

Really?! Regina rolled her eyes in a slightly annoyed manner, her back facing Henry, who seemed to very excited about this whole idea.

"I really don't feel like engaging in such…" The stunning brunette narrowed her eyes, trying to find a word that wouldn't offend Emma. Because ever since they came back from Neverland, their relationship had turned into something different- the two women no longer had problems in spending time together, they didn't need to fight over Henry like before, and Emma Swan had definitely changed. Yes, it was quite the change when it came to her interactions with Regina- the blonde always tried to act calmly and…even softly when it came to the former Queen. In fact, they were all slowly becoming one big supportive family. And Mills had no objections against it so far, but this… This was a bit too much for her. "I apologise, but I really don't think I will come."

Finally turning around to face her son, the mayor noticed the disappointment in his eyes- the boy seemed to fancy the idea of his mothers spending time together more than anything.

With another roll of the eyes and a heavy sigh, Regina rushed to say before Emma could even answer.

"Fine, come pick us up at 11. Sharp."

And she hung up, deciding that she really didn't need Emma's cheerful little comments about her decision right now.

Henry, hearing the change in plans, beamed and quickly walked over to his mother, giving her a big teddy-bear hug.

"It'll be great, mom, don't worry."

The woman wrapped her arms around her son's body to return the warm embrace and exhaled deeply- she'd always wanted him to be happy, put his needs at first, and this time was no different.

The two women, followed by their son, walked into the loud club, the sound Regina's high heels echoing around before the wave of music hit them. Swan raised a hand, offering a bright smile, to greet Mary and David, who had already found their spot among the crowd of people.

"Yes, I can already tell that was a brilliant idea, Miss Swan."

The brunette said annoyedly upon noticing how many people there were in this small place, and using that familiar "Miss Swan" itself meant that she was definitely not pleased and unhappy with the sheriff.

"What did you say?" Emma almost needed to scream as the loudness dulled Regina's previous words.

The former Queen gritted her teeth in growing intolerance to this whole idea, but leaned forward to whisper in the blonde's ear. And she wanted to say something mean, oh, believe me, she did, but suddenly her senses got overwhelmed by that sweet soft aroma that came from those golden locks of Charming's daughter. It smelled like… Fresh strawberries, like this magical summer and Mills found herself wanting to… run her fingers through her hair. Realising she'd been too quiet for a while now, the brunette simply pulled Emma by the arm and led her to a distant secluded booth.

"So, it's not that bad, huh?" Emma said with a playful smile, curled up on her rosy lips, deciding it was her time to tease. The two women and their son, which definitely didn't belong here, were now sitting in that same booth, but were leading small casual conversations over a few glasses of strong, but fine whisky, as the music here seemed to be lower.

"If being with some peasants, complete strangers to our town, without any self-control over what they do in a one-two-drinks state, then yes. It is great fun."

Regina said with a mocking smile, but the amusement inside of her was growing. Never did the Queen imagine she'd be spending a whole night with Emma Swan. Especially not in that place.

"Very funny, Regina, very funny."

Swan shook her head in playful annoyance, a few golden curls spreading over her shoulders freely, which caused Regina to get…distracted. Again. Damn, the Saviour and her perfection of a hair.

It was past midnight and the quantity of alcohol in both women's blood was growing by the hour. And so were the talks, the playful comments, the usual teasing between these two, and…Henry's sleepiness. A small yawn was elicited from his lips and he tried to hide it, not wanting to leave the party, but he was quickly caught.

"Henry, dear, I really think we should get David to drive you home." The brunette moved over to him, a hand reaching to motherly brush his hair as she looked at her son. "It's way past your bed time…" The sentence trailed off as Emma shifted over to Henry's other side, giving him a slight nudge. "Come on, kid, you know you want to slip inside your warm bed and sleep."

The boy elicited a small chuckle upon hearing those words, but he was quite disappointed of his own self for not managing to stay up later. However, he agreed- it would be a complete disaster, ending with him falling asleep on his comfortable spot, if he stayed.

"I'll take him to David."

Emma said, offering a warm smile to Regina, who had moved back to her spot, one leg crossed over the other as her hands rested in her lap.

"Fine." She only said as the blonde walked away, in search of her parents.

Swan had definitely taken her time with coming back and the brunette was now over the edge of pure boredom. Yes, it was no longer annoyance, ignorance or even anger. This whole place was so ridiculous that it made her bored. To death.

"Excuse me, pretty lady, what are you drinking?"

A bit of a stumbling man suddenly came in view and walked in unstable movements towards the brunette, crashing his body on the spot next to her.

Eyeing him with unbelieving eyes, Regina answered coldly.

"This spot is taken, Mr… Whoever you are." Giving him another look of disapproval, the woman shifted away from him.

"As far as I can see, you have been sitting here for almost an hour now. So, whoever was with you, clearly isn't returning." The man spoke, occasionally raising the bottle of beer he was holding in his right hand and, again, moved closer to her.

"Every single word that came out of your mouth was pointless and unneeded."

Mills replied with a clenched jaw and shot him a deadly look, hoping it would make him go away. Oh, how she wanted to use her magic on him, make him disappear with a single movement of her dainty hand.

"Come on now, baby, don't be too hard on me."

And so, it seemed like there were two explanations to the guy's not arrogant behaviour- a) he was too drunk to realise that he was being unwanted b) he was stupid enough to address a Queen in such a disrespectful way.

Standing up sharply, but with her usual graciousness and elegance, the woman pointed with her hand towards the far exit door. The whisky in her blood was making it hard for her to control her magic, even though she knew what disastrous consequences there would be if she did use it.

"Out, now."

The man only smirked challengingly at her words, his arrogance and self-confidence growing stronger by the minute, and stood up as well, stepping closer and saying, a hand reaching to touch Regina's cheek.

"I ain't le…"

However, his sentence was abruptly interrupted as a strong hand grabbed his shoulder, pulling him back.

"I believe there is some other place you need to be."

Emma's voice rang in Regina's ears and she couldn't quite believe what she was seeing.

The guy turned around with an amused expression and was about to say something, but the blonde managed to outrun him.

"I meant, now." She underlined the last words, her fists clenching as she was expecting the usual reply of a drunken man.

Regina froze on her spot, her brown eyes simply following every single thing that happened.

"Well, well…" The man eyed the blonde up and down in a rather…filthy way, and said deviously. "Too bad you weren't on her spot 'cause I am sure I would've got lucky with you, missy."

Mills' lips almost parted upon hearing that extremely offensive comment, coming from the drunkard, but before she could do anything, yes, the brunette had decided she no longer cared what would happen if she used her strong magic, something different took place. Emma's strong fist met the guy's face in a quick, but tough punch. In fact, the man was so not expecting it that he faltered and almost fell on top of Regina, but she was skillfully pulled away by the blonde's hand. Yes, Emma Swan had been in similar situations many times before and she was well aware of what to do and what to expect.

Soon, the security came and took care of the guy as the two women headed out- both agreeing it was time to go.

Whistling like men did, Swan managed to catch the attention of the first cab that came in sight.

"To Storybrooke, Maine, please."

The blonde said and, after hearing a "Hop in.", opened the car door for Regina- the sheriff's politeness towards the woman was in fact an indirect way to say 'Thank you for coming to this ridiculous party of mine.'. Of course, she was a stubborn woman and she would never admit something like that.

With a gracious nod of the head, the brunette slid inside, realizing that her movements were no longer that coordinated due to the many glasses she'd had not a while ago. The alcohol in her veins seemed to be burning up just now.

"Emma…" Mills said quietly, but in soft velvety tone. She needed to say something about what happened earlier. Because…yes, she was truly grateful. "Thank you for getting rid of that idiot at the club." Of course, the brunette was never giving away gratitude that easily, so she quickly added in. "Though, please, next time don't be so ridiculously slow at coming back. And put some ice on that hand of yours once you get home."

And in that moment something quite unexpected happened and Regina couldn't even react. Emma's hand had taken hers, giving it a light squeeze as the following simple, yet said in such a pleasantly soothing way, two words were said.

"You're welcome."

And the two women spent the rest of the short trip back home looking at each other, Regina's dark orbs locked with Emma's sapphire ones. And the blonde's hand never moved away nor did the brunette want it to be moved away.

"And we're here, ladies." The cab driver almost startled the women and Regina quickly pulled her hand away, running it through her dark locks as she delicately cleared her throat. Emma shook her head a bit, getting rid of the thoughts that were suddenly running through her mind, and took out a few bucks to pay the guy for the transport.

"Good night."

The man said with a polite smile and drove away as Swan and Mills began walking towards the front door of the mansion.

"I think you need to lay down. Or even better, sleep."

Emma concluded upon noticing Regina's tired expression and reddened cheeks, kissed by the strong alcohol.

"I am fine… I rea…"

But the brunette suddenly raised a hand to her forehead, feeling overwhelming dizziness- damn that whisky. Why didn't she have her favourite apple cider?

"Oookay."

Swan almost hummed as she rushed to take a hold of Regina's arm, leading her directly upstairs.

As they entered the mayor's bedroom, the sheriff's eyes widened with a knowing surprise, if that was even possible. Regina Mills was always a woman of style and she definitely had a great sense of luxury- that royal king-sized bed, the black and silver colour of the interior and walls were the definite proof of that.

Helping her lay down after Mills had managed to take off her coat, Emma offered a soft smile as she sat by the end of the bed, glancing down at the beautiful brunette.

"Just drink more liquids tomorrow and try to grab a healthy snack in the morning and you'll be fine."

Regina's expression had become perfectly calm and even warm as she offered a small nod of the head, her gratitude for the other woman growing.

"I hope you won't hold all the things I have to thank you for against me, Miss Swan." She said a bit teasingly, but it was definitely not sharp or harmful like it sometimes could be.

With the tiniest of chuckles, Emma said.

"Nah, don't worry, I am not that type of a person." Winking, she decided it was a good idea to take off Regina's fashionable pair of high heels and cover her with a warm blanket. Surprisingly, the brunette showed no objections to that, but simply let herself be treated by the Saviour.

"Well…" Emma was now standing up, arms crossed in front of her chest. "I think my job here is done and I can go." She should go. She knew she couldn't stay even if, out of the blue, this was her desire. To lay down next to that beautiful, sometimes extremely maddening and annoying, but with the biggest of hearts, woman and just…Hold her in her arms until the sun showed up above the horizon. Realising she'd lost her sense of reality, the blonde shook her head and, fixing her jacket, turned around, ready to go.

"Please, stay." The two unbelievable words slipped from Regina's cherry lips in a quiet, tired, but somehow genuine tone as the brunette reached to take the sheriff's hand, her thumb brushing over the soft skin.

Swan closed her eyes, a pained expression crossing over her features as she gulped heavily through the easily formed lump in her throat. 'It's all because of that whisky, Emma.' She thought to self, desperately fighting /not/ to actually stay. Because, Swan might have had a few drinks herself, but she was definitely not drunk. And whatever she was feeling for the former Queen, it didn't start just tonight and she knew that eventually it would come to the surface.

"Regina, I…" She began hesitantly, slowly turning around to face the other woman. Sadly, it was too late as the brunette seemed to have fallen asleep.

With a deep sigh, Emma let to go of her hand and simply stared at Regina for a moment- gods, how could anybody look so…flawless? A small soft smile found its way on Swan's lips and she slowly leaned down to place a delicate kiss atop of Regina's forehead, afraid that kissing those irresistibly soft-looking lips would wake her up and ruin whatever was happening. The savior then whispered, letting those butterflies in her stomach free.

"I love you."

And Emma Swan slowly headed towards the door, glancing over the gorgeous brunette for the last time before exiting the room.

Not wanting to leave the other woman in her current state, the sheriff took a seat on the couch in the living room downstairs, pouring herself a glass of water, and decided to take a night shift at Regina Mills' mansion, keeping a watchful eye for any unwanted guests.

Though the only scary part was that those three words came out so naturally that Swan wanted to say them again.