Hey everyone! So, this is the first outtake from the missing years between "I Won't Let Go" and "Where The Heart Is" (which I hope will be up soon). As I said, this is a mix of my own ideas of what went on during this time and prompts you guys send in. I know I got a few people saying there are things they really wished they could've seen, so I'll be including that.

This was a prompt sent to me by kermitleigh17 on Tumblr: Emma goes to prom and David is having some trouble admitting that his baby girl is growing up. Complete with an interaction including: "You can let go now daddy." "I'll never let go Princess." This takes place just a few months after Neal's adoption and Emma is 16.

The Nolan family sat in their usual booth at Granny's. The waitress set a grilled cheese sandwich and onion rings in front of Emma, causing Mary to wince a bit.

"Emma, would it kill you to get something else?" She asked.

"Yes, it would," Emma said, grinning as she took a bite of the gooey sandwich.

David chuckled. "Come on, Em. Even your brother's eating his vegetables." He pointed to a near 2-year-old Neal, who was enjoying the cut up broccoli that had been placed in front of him.

Emma made a face. "Um, because he's 2 and he's yet to try the magnificence that is this sandwich." She cut up a tiny bit and held it up to the toddler's mouth. Neal opened and took a bite, instantly smiling.

"Yummy!" He declared.

Mary shook her head while Emma pumped her fist in the air. "Eat your broccoli Nealy, then you can have more of your chicken nuggets."

A few minutes later, Baelfire was walking in front of their table. Emma looked up at him, smiling. Nearly a year later and they were still going strong as ever.

"Hi Baelfire," Mary said. "Would you like to join us?"

"Thanks, but I just came in because I saw Emma and I had to talk to her about something."

"I'll be right back," Emma said, placing her napkin down on the table and following her boyfriend out of the diner.

David raised an eyebrow, looking over at his wife. "What was that about?"

Mary shrugged. "I don't know. I'm surprised they're not texting each other about whatever it is."

David watched as Emma and Bae talked outside for a few minutes. He pulled something from his pocket and Emma smiled brightly, kissing him. David made a face.

"Must they do that in public?"

Mary craned her neck to look and chuckled. "It's better than doing it in the dark." David rolled his eyes. "Oh come on, I thought you like him."

"I don't like when he kisses her, I never will."

Emma came back into the diner a little later. She practically melted into the booth as she leaned back, nearly forgetting about the cheesy meal before her.

"So, what'd he want to talk to you about?"

"Oh, he just wanted to ask me to something."

"A date?" David inquired further, sipping his drink.

"No. Prom."

David nearly choked on the straw. Mary reached over, patting him on the back and he let it settle. Emma raised an eyebrow.

"You okay there, Dad?" She asked.

"Fine…but you can't go to prom."

"Why not?"

"You're a sophomore."

"And Bae's a junior," Emma reminded him. "All the juniors get their own prom."

"Oh. But…Lily and Ruby aren't going."

"Lily probably is. She's been seeing one of Bae's other friends."

Mary just beamed at her daughter. "This is so exciting, sweets! We'll have to go dress shopping soon." She saw the face Emma made. "Oh come on, I know you hate dresses, but it's prom."

"I know, I know, just one of the downfalls to it."

David stared at Emma for a minute. Prom wasn't something he had been expecting from her. He knew she was dating Bae, but he hadn't put two and two together. Prom was for older high school kids, something they did to celebrate being towards the end of high school. His own school only had a prom for the seniors. He remembered loving it because it meant he was that much closer to adulthood, ready to be done with high school forever.

He bit his lip as he watched Emma finish up her dinner. She was 16. He had known her nearly 4 years but it felt like a lifetime. He couldn't even remember a time when he wasn't Emma's dad. Now here she was, 16 and heading off to prom for the first time. She was growing up, she'd be looking at colleges come that time the following year. Soon, she'd be leaving the nest. He knew Emma was ready, she could take on any challenge that life gave her.

It was him that wasn't ready, not to let go at least. He was so used to taking care of her, being there for her. The truth was, she was getting older and one day she wasn't going to need him anymore.

The thought scared him shitless.

Mary could tell something was off with her husband as the night went on, he was definitely out of it. The final straw was when he was reading a bedtime story to Neal. It was one they read every night and he got some of the words wrong. Luckily, their son was too young to notice. Mary waited outside the door, watching him tuck Neal into his crib and give him a kiss before he came into the hallway.

"What's wrong, David?" She asked as he shut the door.

"Huh?"

"You've been acting weird all night."

"No."

Mary raised an eyebrow. "You really want to play this game?"

David sighed, leading her into their bedroom. He knew there was no sense in arguing with her. Mary was right, she knew him better than anyone else. "Emma's going to prom."

"David, if this is about Bae, it's almost been a year…"

"It's not about him. I would feel the same if it were any guy. And if you tell Emma this, I'll deny it, but he's not that bad."

Mary smirked. "Secret's safe with me. But if it's not him, then what?"

"It's just…she's growing up really fast."

Mary's smirk faded and she smiled sympathetically. Together, the two sat down on the bed and she took his hand.

"She is," she said.

"It's weird, because we've only ever known her as a teenager, but to me, she's just my little girl."

Mary nodded. "I feel the same way."

"So, I'm not alone here?"

She shook her head. "Definitely not. I hate how quickly she's grown up too. I've been helping my seniors get ready for graduation and I keep thinking that in a couple of years, that'll be our daughter."

David let out a deep breath. "Don't remind me."

"Then I remember, she's a good kid. Yeah, she's stubborn and she gets into trouble, but she's street smart. Between her past and our influence, she's going to be fine. She's going to be ready for all of this."

"But what if I'm not?"

Mary leaned into him, resting her head on his shoulder. "I guess that's just something we'll have to adjust to."

He nodded, wrapping his arm around her. He wasn't sure how he was going to do it. He knew he should just live in the moment, but it was hard with Emma growing up before his very eyes. He couldn't be prouder of her, a part of him just wanted to hang onto that little girl that showed up on his doorstep nearly 4 years prior.

"She'll always be our little girl, you know."

"She better be."

"We just have to work on letting go."

"I guess we do," David mumbled.

A few weeks later, David waited downstairs with everyone else. Neal and Gideon were playing together in the playpen, the former loving his "Baby Giddy". Ralph was sitting on the couch, his cane tapping the floor every few minutes. Belle was fussing over Bae's tie for about the millionth time. The teenager was wearing a black tux, his tie was red to match Emma's dress.

David shifted in place, he hadn't said much since the Golds arrived. It wasn't him being rude, Belle was just going on and on about how excited she was. Ralph simply smiled over at the boys, who were probably going to be the best of friends growing up.

Mary suddenly came down the stairs, her camera in hand. She looked like she had already been crying.

"I don't really need to make an entrance," Emma could be heard mumbling just a bit too loudly. A few moments later, she made her way down the stairs. Her hair had been curled even more for the occasion and fell loose around her shoulders. Lately, she had been wearing her glasses more but had put her contacts back in. The makeup made different facial features pop out more than usual.

Her dress was red on top with some simple beading and the bottom was white. David noticed that under the dress, she was wearing red converse. That kept the tears at bay as he smiled. Only his Emma.

She did look grown up, much different than she had when she went to the homecoming dance just a couple of years ago. She almost looked like a princess going to a ball. She made her way over to Bae, who was grinning brightly at her.

"You look…I mean…you're always beautiful, but…"

"You can say it, I'm stunning," Emma replied with a smirk.

Everyone else laughed, Bae included as he slipped the corsage onto her wrist. Emma kissed his cheek and let her mom take a million pictures. Finally, she turned to her dad.

"You look beautiful," he told her.

"Thanks," she smiled. "I guess I'll see you later?"

David nodded and she wrapped her arms around him, giving him a big hug. He tightened his grip on her, cradling the back of her head. The two stood in the hug for a few minutes until she patted his back.

"You can let go now daddy," she whispered.

David smiled a bit. "I'll never let go, Princess," he mumbled in return. Suddenly, he felt her grip on him tighten and it was as if she understood. Eventually, she pulled off and kissed his cheek.

"Love you."

"Love you, too."

The group gathered at the door, watching Emma and Bae head for Gold's Cadillac, which he was letting the teens borrow for the night. Mary slipped her hand into David's as Bae pulled out of the drive. They would get better at letting go, one step at a time.

I hope you all enjoyed it. I do have another one in mind from around this time when Emma gets her learner's permit and her bug. As I said, hopefully "Where The Heart Is" will be up very soon. In the meantime, of course let me know what you guys want to see, whether in this story or the upcoming one. Until next time, friends. =)