**Slight break from my other story. This will be short only 3 or 4 chapters long. Takes place about 11 months after season 3 finale. Hook and Emma were together for a while, they didn't break up or anything but Emma's been pushing him away as well as her parents. Don't forget to review, want to know what you guys think!***

Why?

Chapter 1

"Have a fun weekend!" Emma hugged her son Henry and handed him his backpack. She was dropping him off at Regina's for the weekend. They were all at a good place with Regina but she hated sharing Henry. Henry was her whole world and watching him hug Regina only made her heart burn with envy. Regina had his early years and she hated that. But it was her choice, she chose to give him away.

Henry waved goodbye and went inside with his other mom and Emma just stood there for a few moments just feeling empty inside.

Their apartment they shared with her new found parents and baby brother were a few blocks away so she just walked Henry to Regina's. It was a nice evening and she wasn't ready to go back home yet. Ever since she and Hook watched her parents meet, and watched her mother die she never missed her parents more. And she'd been realizing how much needed them. Eleven months had passed and she was slowly starting to put the same old walls up again, she was subtly pulling away from them. She decided to take a stroll through the park first. It was a nice evening and she needed to be alone with her thoughts.

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25 Years Ago

The yelling was hurting her ears. She held her baby blanket over her face as she cried. The only thing she had from her parents, her most prized possession meant everything to her. The only connection she had to her parents. Growing up in a group home was never a home at all, the grownups were always yelling at each other and always yelling at the kids. Like every night Emma just laid there crying imagining who her parents were and dreaming of them coming to get her. Every night she thought up a different scenario, it was the only thing that would distract her from her circumstance. She imagined her dad a firefighter, her mom a nurse. She imagined Mike and Carol Brady as her parents. Every scenario she could think of. They were all she wanted, she could never understand why they gave her up. Something must have been wrong with her, why else would they have sent her away? All these thoughts were thoughts 7 year old girls shouldn't be thinking about. She even wished on a star every night wishing they would come for her, she promised to be a good girl in return.

A hand touched her shoulder which made her jump from the fetal position she was lying in. She pulled her blanket from her face and saw one of the other girls that lived there. She was older than Emma, about 13. She sat on the edge of Emma's bed. She smiled. "I'm getting adopted. I'm getting a new family tomorrow."

Emma sniffled and rubbed her eyes, that were all red from crying so much. Why was she telling Emma this? Emma wanted a family too. Why couldn't she get adopted?

"I want you to have this." She handed Emma a picture book. "It's called Snow White and the seven dwarves. Whenever I felt lonely or sad or scared I would pull this book out. It reminded me there's always hope. And I held onto that hope and now I'm getting a family so I don't need it anymore. You should hold onto hope too. You will have a family too one day."

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Present Day

Emma walked by the site where Henry's old castle used to be. She reminisced about the times she would meet him there, it was their special place where they would brainstorm for Operation Cobra. Henry had grown so much since then. He was so small back then now he was only about a head shorter than Emma.

She kept walking and came to the playground Regina built after tearing down Henry's castle. It was so modern looking. She liked Henry's castle better. She stood still in her tracks when she realized two familiar people pushing an infant in a swing. They were facing the other way so they didn't know she was there so she stood watching them.

Her parents were giggling as they were pushing baby Neal in the swing. It was total family bliss. Neal was giggling too. She couldn't help but imagine herself as a baby at the park with her parents. Would they be having as much fun with her? Would they be giggling? Would they be just as happy being a family with her?

They stopped pushing the swing and Snow picked up Neal kissing him on the cheek. He was growing fast too. His hair was growing in a bit, dirty blonde just a shade or two darker than Emma's but his face looked a lot like Snow's. Charming put his hand on his son's head and smiled then they looked up and saw Emma.

"Emma." Snow smiled and walked over to her. "You got our text?"

"Oh... uh no. Did you text me?" Emma pulled out her phone and opened the text:

Hey, taking Neal to the park. Love it if u could join us after u drop off Henry. Mom xoxo

"I was just just going for a walk, it's so nice out."

"Yeah we thought the same thing." Her dad smiled at her.

"Neal looks like he's having fun." Emma smiled at her brother.

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25 Years Ago

Emma stood with the other children watching the older girl drive away with her new parents. It always seemed like other kids were coming and going. They would get adopted but Emma just had to watch everytime. The other kids scattered after the car drove away but Emma just stood there a few moments. Then she pulled out the storybook from her backpack and sat on the step starting to look at it. The evil queen was scary the first time she read through it but after about the third time through Emma thought she seemed sad and hurt. But still she didn't like her going after Snow White. She kept staring at the pictures of Snow White. There was something warm about her, it was like something inside of Emma wanted her. Wanted her badly. Every night since then Emma would pull out that book and look through it instead of crying. It became her new distraction from all the noise. She would keep coming back to the pictures of Snow White and the last few pictures of Prince Charming waking her up with true love's first kiss. She carried it everywhere she went. And she started building something up inside her heart, something she didn't have before then: hope.

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Present Day

Emma slept in till 9am the next morning. She didn't sleep very well that night. She couldn't get her mind to shut down. She kept feeling like she was going to cry but it was like the river inside her dried right up and nothing would come out. She went downstairs to the kitchen and saw Charming and Snow on the floor with Neal. "Good morn-"

"He's doing it, he's doing it!" Emma looked over and Neal was taking his first steps from Charming to Snow. But Emma wasn't looking at her brother. She was looking at her mom and dad's faces it was utter joy and excitement. The look of proud loving parents. Neal walked right into Snow's arms then dropped Snow scooped him up hugging him tight and kissed his forehead and Charming hugged both of them. When they pulled out of their hug Emma was gone.

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Archie poured a cup of coffee and handed it to Emma. "What is it you'd like to talk about?"

"I just... I... I'm not good at this. Only person I've ever confided in before is my mother. But I can't right now... she's happy."

"Happy because of your little brother?" Archie sat down across from Emma.

"Yeah."

"Does this make you feel threatened?"

"Threatened by a little baby? No. I love him."

"You can still love someone and feel jealous of them. It's just what you do with your jealousy, you can handle it with love by dealing with it and letting it go or you can take the other route. Tell me, what do you see when you see your parents with your brother?"

"I see... everything I never had." Her voice cracked at the end of the sentence. "He took his first steps this morning... the look on their faces... why couldn't it have been me? Why?"

Archie nodded. "And you'd been holding all this in this passed year?"

"I just... I feel like I'm alone again, sitting in the front row just watching what I'll never have. And Henry and Killian... I just I feel like it's all going to come crashing down. I've let all these people into my life and I'm just going to lose them and I'll be what I've always been just a lost little girl who doesn't matter."

"Emma, you do matter. We would still be cursed if it weren't for you. I know for a fact your parents love you and wanted you. They still want you."

"I don't know... I think Neal gives them everything they want."

"I was there... The Blue Fairy called everyone together to tell your parents about the wardrobe. They didn't want to send you through they did it so you could have a life. If you were cursed you would have stayed a baby forever and you wouldn't have grown up to break the curse. The selfish thing would have been to keep you. She would have her baby but it would have never grown, you wouldn't have had a chance at a life. Plus the queen was out to kill you because you were the saviour."

"It isn't fair. I wanted them. I needed them. I was all alone in the world. And when I had Henry, I was scared. I wanted my mother there with me." Archie handed her a kleenex for the tears that were finally coming.

"Emma, you can't dwell on the past. You'll only miss what's happening right now. I know it hurts you but don't miss out now. You have your parents, your son, your brother, and Hook. You're not alone anymore. Don't push them away." He took a sip of his coffee. "My suggestion to you is spend time with each of your parents separately. One on one. Not when you're fighting for your lives just plan a fun activity away from all that."

"I don't know, I don't want to take them away from Neal."

"You're not. You're both their children and they love you equally. I want that to be your application this week. Spend one on one with your parents then come see me again next week to follow up. Get to know your parents more, find out what you mean to them."

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Emma ordered 3 hot chocolates with cinnamon plus 3 donuts to go from Granny's. She paid for the food and drinks and headed for the door but then she bumped into Hook and the hot chocolates fell on the floor causing a spill. They both bent down to pick it up. Emma looked into his eyes.

"Pardon me, love. I'll clean it up."

"No it's ok, I've got it." They both cleaned it up and Ruby gave her 3 more hot chocolates.

"Here, I'll carry it for you. May I walk with you?"
Emma nodded and smiled slightly.

"Heading home?"

"Yeah. Henry's with Regina this weekend. Taking hot chocolate home to my parents."

"I miss you my love."
"I miss you too Killian."

"Then why are you pushing me away?"

"I just... need some time. That's all."

"But we were going so well Swan. We were getting close."

They approached the apartment building. "I can't do this right now... Thanks for walking me home." She took the hot chocolates from him then went inside.

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25 Years Ago

Emma was reading through Snow White one more time before leaving for school one morning. She was sitting on the front door step waiting for the bus. She was lost in the book looking at Snow White's picture when all of a sudden a hand ripped the book from her hands. "Hey that's mine!" She tried taking it back from her foster father.

"You missed that damn school bus! Because you were reading this." He started ripping it up.

"No please don't..." She started crying.

"Stop crying, that is all you ever do. You need to toughen up." He threw the ripped book into the garbage can next to the house then lit a match and threw it on top of the book. Now I'm stuck with you all day because you missed the bus." He grabbed her ear and pulled her inside. He pulled her into the kitchen and opened the cupboard door under the sink. He grabbed a toothbrush and threw it at her. "Now clean. It better be spotless after I finish watching my show."

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Present Day

Before opening the door to the apartment Emma pulled out her cell phone. There were a few voice messages and text messages from David and Snow wondering what was wrong. Emma took a deep breath then walked inside. Snow had her phone to her ear trying to get a hold of Emma and David was in the other room with Neal. Snow put her phone down and ran over to hug Emma. "Are you okay? We got worried when you left without saying goodbye."

"Yeah I'm fine now..." Snow started to pull away but Emma clung on tighter.

"What's wrong Emma?"

Emma finally let go and looked in her mother's eyes. "Can we spend the rest of the day together. Just the two of us?"

Snow started smiling ear to ear. "I would love that."