Emma sat at Granny's looking at the weather forecast on her phone while she waited for Henry to get out of school to come and meet her. She scrolled down and what she saw made her pause. Emma had mixed feelings about snow. She had always liked it, was there anyone who disliked snow? But she had never had the chance to make the kinds of happy memories she'd seen exhibited in movies: snowball fights, snowmen, coming inside wet and cold to find hot, fresh cocoa. She had only ever experienced snow as an adult or back when she was in the system. As a child, her foster parents had always been too busy to play in the snow with her, if they had even wanted to at all; and as an adult she had simply stopped caring about it all together.
But now that she had a kid and snow was once again in the forecast, she wondered if that would change. Would Henry still want to play in the snow at this age? Secretly, she hoped that he would. She hated that she had missed so much while he was growing up; building snowmen together was just one more item on a long list. She was jolted from her thoughts by the sound of the bell above the door and she looked up to see Henry heading her way.
"Hey kid! You hungry?"
"Hey mom. Not really but I wouldn't say no to some cocoa."
"Oh, of course. I'll be right back."
Henry sat down while Emma walked over to the counter to order and wait for their drinks. As she headed back, she saw Henry, his eyes glued to his phone. She set the mugs on the table and sat down but as she started to speak, Henry interrupted her.
"Guess what mom? They've already decided to cancel school tomorrow because they're worried about the snow."
"That's great kid. So what do you say we hang out tomorrow then? I don't know. We could build a snowman or something. If you want to that is."
"Um well I was actually wondering if I could go hang out with some friends from school instead, if that's okay with you. The guys want to have a big snowball fight."
"Uh, sure kid. That sounds like a lot of fun."
"I mean, I figured you'd want to spend your day off with Killian anyway."
"Is that so? Well I guess I will. You go have fun. You're spending tonight with Regina right?"
"Oh yeah. And I forgot that she said she was expecting me right after school. I should probably go."
"Yeah you're probably right. I don't want to make her upset with me."
"Alright." he said, finishing the last of his cocoa. "I'll see you later. Bye mom!" he said, rushing out the door.
Well I guess I'll just go home, Emma thought as she grabbed her jacket to head out the door.
The next day Emma sat at home by herself watching the snowflakes fall. She wished Henry had wanted to spend the day with her. She was thinking about all the things they could have done together when she heard a sound at her door. She moved her blanket off of her lap and pushed herself off the couch. She walked to the door and opened it to find Killian standing on the other side.
"Good afternoon Swan."
"Hey Killian." She still had trouble remembering not to call him Hook. He may have gotten his hook back, but that wasn't who he was to her anymore. He was Killian, her Killian.
"Well are you going to let me in Swan?"
"Huh? Oh yeah. Come on in." Damn. That smirk of his sure was distracting.
"So what did you have planned for this afternoon, love?"
"Oh I don't know. I thought I could play out in the snow with Henry but he wanted to hang out with the kids from school instead."
"You can't fault the lad for wanting to spend time with his friends."
"I guess not. It's just that I had been hoping we spend some time together. I missed a lot of snow days in his life, so many chances to make the memories every kid should have."
"Emma, love, you know the lad doesn't hold that against you. He knows you gave him up because you wanted him to have the best life possible, the kind of life that meant being able to play in the snow on days off from school."
"I know that Killian. I just wish that I had some of those memories too."
"Well I may not be Henry, but I'd be happy to try and give you some happy snow day moments."
"Hmm... that does sound like it could be fun."
"Well then, grab your coat and I'll meet you outside."
She did as she was told, rushing to her room to grab her snow gear. She walked out the door, still not wearing her hat or gloves, and was promptly hit by a cold, wet object.
"Bad form, pirate! You can't start a snowball fight without warning your opponent!"
"I never knew there rules to this game, love. I thought it was more of a free for all." His smirk gave him away. Clearly, he did know how to fight fair. He just didn't care.
"You're lying and I know it. And you know what else? I know how to build a really good snowball. You better run!"
They went on like that for a while, chasing each other back and forth around the house until Killian finally lost sight of Emma. He hid behind a tree, peeking out around the side to try and spot her before she found him. But she was quicker than he was and before he could catch his breath, she shoved a handful of snow down the back of his jacket and then ran away as fast as she could.
"Swan! Now THAT is bad form, lass!"
"What's wrong, pirate? Can't you handle it when your opponent plays dirty?" She was laughing so hard she had to stop running and catch her breath.
"You'd better believe that I can. And I know just how to handle you." He smirked and began to run towards her.
She laughed and began to run again but he was too fast for her. He quickly caught up and grabbed her from behind, his arms wrapping tightly around her waist.
"Gotcha!"
"Oh no. And what can I expect now that I've been captured by the infamous Captain Hook?" she teased.
"Oh I've got quite a few plans for you, lass. Starting with this."
He reached his head down and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek.
"Oh is that so, pirate? You know, I don't think I've quite learned my lesson."
"So it would seem. I think I'll have to fix that."
She could hear the smirk in his voice as her turned her around so that she could see it for herself.
"I think that'd be best" she said smiling.
But she didn't wait for him this time. This time she moved in for the kiss first, catching him by surprise. But it wasn't long before he warmed up to the idea.
"So how was this for a nice snow day memory, love?" he said when they finally broke the kiss.
"I couldn't have imagined anything better."
