Part One
"Hello, Madame Mayor. Yes, I know it's late, but you need to get here right away. One of the comatose patients is waking up," someone says as a teenage boy slowly wakes up in a nearby bed. He squints his eyes, despite them being already closed when lights suddenly turn on. After hearing footsteps walk away, he slowly opens his eyes as they adjust themselves to the brightness of the room. With his eyes now open, the boy sees that he's in some sort of hospital. He looks down and sees he's wearing a hospital gown and an oxygen tube in his nose, which he takes out. Next to him, he sees a man who is in the same condition he was just in just minutes ago.
As he's about to get out of the bed, the man who spoke earlier walks back into the room. "Ah, good, you're fully awake now," he says. He grabs a chair and puts it at the side of the bed and sits down, a clipboard in his hands. He holds out one of his hands towards the boy. "My name is Dr. Whale. Can you tell me your name?"
As the boy shook the doctor's hand, he tried to remember what his name was, but nothing came. In fact, he couldn't remember anything at all. He sadly shook his head. "I can't remember," he said.
Dr. Whale wrote something on his clipboard before speaking again. "That's fine. It's most likely a side effect from being in a coma for who knows how long. I'm sure you'll remember soon. Now, I have another question to-"
"Dr. Whale," a voice said cutting Dr. Whale off. A woman's voice this time. She was wearing a business suit, and it, along with her face, made her look like a strict woman. She walked over to Dr. Whale and the boy. "Why couldn't you wait until the morning to tell me about this instead of calling me at one o'clock in the morning?"
"Sorry, but I thought it was urgent that I call, as you told me to do if he woke up," replied Dr. Whale.
"Fine, who is he?" she asked.
"Uh, the thing is, he doesn't remember."
"What?"
"I asked him his name, and he said he doesn't remember. I was about to ask him if there was anything apart from his name that he could remember since he's been in a coma for a long time, but you suddenly showed up."
"Very well. Continue," she said, crossing her arms.
"Thank you," he said, then turned back to the boy. "Is there anything you can remember?" The boy did his best to think of something about his life, but sadly, shook his head again. Dr. Whale wrote something on his clipboard again. "Again, that's fine. Like I said, it's most likely a side effect from the coma. Your memories will come back sooner or later. Hopefully soon. Now, in the morning, I'm going to have you do some simple physical exercises and maybe some hypnosis with Dr. Hopper, our psychiatric, and have him try to get you to remember anything about your life. But, for now, try to get some rest. You may have just woken up, but you could use some rest. If you don't, then you'll basically become a human owl and sleep during the day, and be awake at night. Try to remember anything while you sleep. Good night." He got up and walked to the woman, whom the boy assumed was the 'Madame mayor' the doctor referred to when he was on the phone. They were whispering, so he couldn't tell what they were saying. After they were done, Dr. Whale walked away, while the woman walked over to the boy.
"Well, hello young man. I am Regina Mills, and I am the mayor of this town. I hope you get a good night sleep. When you are released from this hospital, I want to invite you over to my house for dinner, and meet my son. But for now, welcome to Storybrooke." She walked out of the room, leaving the boy to wonder about the town, and his life.
Later that morning, when the sun was up, the boy woke up to find a tray of food on his bed. Feeling his stomach growl, he began eating. He thought it was delicious, even though it was just some pancakes, some scrambled eggs, a couple slices of bacon, and a glass of orange juice.
As he ate, Dr. Whale came back into the room. "You're awake. Good. And I see you're eating. How is the food?" he asked.
"It's delicious," the boy replied, with food in his mouth.
"Good. Now, while you slept, is there anything you remember now?"
The boy nodded, then swallowed the food he had in his mouth before speaking. "I remember my name, but that's all I can remember."
"Well, it's a good start. What's your name?" he said, grabbing his clipboard again.
"My name is Jacob. Jacob Reed," said the boy, smiling at the fact that he remembers something.
"Well, Mr. Reed, I'm glad you remember your name. Now hurry up and finish your breakfast so you can start your physical exercises."
"Thank you, Dr. Whale. Who's going to be my escort?"
"Well let me see," he says as he checks a page on his clipboard. "Ah, here it is. Your escort will be a volunteer named Mary Margaret Blanchard. Now," he stands up, "I shall see you when you get back from your walk. Good day, Mr. Reed." Dr. Whale walks away, leaving Jacob to finish his breakfast.
After several minutes, Jacob finishes eating his breakfast. He takes the empty tray and moves it to the side of his bed. As he stood up, a woman with short hair walked in, carrying a change of clothes. She had a smile on her face as she walked over to Jacob. She set the clothes on the bed and held out her hand. "Hello. I'm Mary Margaret. What's your name?"
Jacob smiled back and shook her hand. "I'm Jacob."
"Nice to meet you, Jacob. I'm your escort for your physical exercises."
"I assumed that. Dr. Whale did mention that."
"I expect so. He is your doctor, after all. I brought you a change of clothes, so that you didn't have to wear that gown forever." She gestured toward the clothes. "The bathroom is down the hall. I'll be waiting right here when you get back."
Smiling, Jacob walked to the bathroom to change into his new pair of clothes, which consisted of a blue, short-sleeved shirt, a pair of black pants, and a pair of white socks. He looked in the mirror and smiled before going back to Mary Margaret. "My, don't you look better in normal clothes."
"Thank you. It feels better to wear them. So, shall we go now?" He asked smiling, eager to walk around.
She smiled back. "I can tell you're eager, so yes, let's go," she said as she started walking away. As she walked, Jacob followed her.
Part Two
A couple weeks after meeting Mary Margaret, Jacob was standing at the checkout counter with Regina, the mayor of Storybrooke, who is with him to sign paperwork Dr. Whale gave her so that Jacob could be released. Since no one has come to claim Jacob, then Dr. Whale is having Regina sign the papers. After she has finished, she takes Jacob to her car and starts driving. "Well, Mr. Reed, you are finally out of the hospital. How do you feel?" She asked him.
"Well, to be honest, since I still don't remember anything other than my name, I don't know. Where are we going?" He asked.
"Well, now that you are no longer a patient in the hospital, you are going to need a place to stay, and I thought that you could stay at Granny's. When Dr. Whale told me that he was going to release you, and since I knew that no one's come for you, and I don't mean that in a bad way, and since you haven't gained anymore memories, I can't exactly send you to the foster care system in Boston, that wouldn't be right, so I thought I would just give you a room at the inn. For free, of course. I'm not going to have Mr. Gold have a 15 year old kid pay with money he doesn't have. So yesterday, I went into town, and bought you some clothes so that the clothes you're currently wearing isn't the only change of clothes you own."
"Thank you, Ms. Mills. I didn't know a mayor could do that."
"That's probably because you don't have any memories. And to answer your question, we are going to Granny's Diner for breakfast. I thought you would like something to eat before I showed your room at the inn."
"Thank you, again. I don't think I'll ever be able to repay you."
"You don't have to. You're just a kid. You shouldn't have to do anything in return. Ah, here we are." She parked the car next to a diner, took off her seatbelt and got out of the car as Jacob followed her inside. He sat down in a seat at the counter next to Regina. While waiting, a young woman with a red streak in her hair, and red lipstick walked over to the two of them and smiled.
"Hello, Mayor Mills. Who's this?" She asked.
"This is Jacob. He actually woke up from a coma a couple weeks ago. He was released from the hospital just this morning. He is going to spend the with me today while Henry is at school," said Regina.
"Well, nice to meet you, Jacob. I'm Ruby. So what can I get you two?"
"I'll just have some pancakes, thank you," said Regina.
"Could I have some scrambled eggs, and some bacon? I also want to try some hot chocolate. I've never had that before," said Jacob
"Really? You've never had hot chocolate before? Ok, is there anything you want with it? How about some cinnamon? I know that Mary Margaret Blanchard and Ms. Mills' son Henry like it," said Ruby.
"Sure. Why not? Thank you," replied Jacob, smiling.
"Sure thing. It'll be ready in a few." Ruby goes to the kitchen to get the food. After about 5 minutes, she comes back out with both of their food, and a mug of hot chocolate sprinkled with cinnamon. She put everything in front of them. "Here you go, you two. Enjoy."
"Thank you, Ruby, I think I'll enjoy it." For the next 15 minutes, Jacob ate his breakfast, which he enjoyed. While he ate, he didn't touch his hot chocolate at all, wanting to save it for last.
"Well? How is it?" asked Ruby when he took a sip of it.
"It's really good. I think I'll be having this a lot from now on," said Jacob, smiling again.
Regina stood up and pulled out her phone. "Excuse me, I have to make a phone call." She walked away into the next room. As soon as she leaves, Ruby comes out and puts an ice cream sundae in front of Jacob.
"It's on the house," she said, smiling and going over to serve other people. Jacob looks at the sundae for a second before eating it. He thought it was delicious, but he got a brain freeze a couple times while eating it.
By the time Regina came back, he had already finished the sundae. When she saw the empty dish that still had a bit of melted ice cream, she asked him, "What's this?"
"It's an ice cream sundae. Ruby gave it to me and said it was on the house."
"Well, that's awfully nice of her. So, are you ready to go?"
"Go where?"
"To the inn, of course, so you can see where you will be staying."
"Oh, right. I forgot. Yeah, I'm ready. And thank you for taking me here."
"You're welcome. Now let's go, we're going this way."
"Aren't we going to take your car?"
"No, this diner and the inn are connected to each other, so there's no need to drive."
"Oh." He followed Regina through the place until they were inside the inn. There, there was an old woman at a desk. When she noticed Regina, she jumped slightly since she didn't notice her there.
"Oh! Madame mayor! What can I do for you?" she asked.
"I'm here for that room I ordered, for Jacob here," she said.
"Of course. Here's the key. Room 2." She handed Regina the key to the room.
"Thank you. Come along, Jacob," she replied, starting to walk to the room. When they arrived, she used the key and unlocked the door and opens it for Jacob to enter. He walks in and sees how big it is.
"Wow. This room is big," he said.
"Really? This is as big as my son's bedroom. If you look in the closet over there, you will find your new clothes."
Jacob goes to the closet and opens it to find his new clothes, like Regina said. On the floor of the closet, he sees a small laundry basket. He closes the closet and goes to lay in his new bed. "This feels more comfortable than the bed at the hospital."
"Well, that's good, I guess. Now, I'm sorry to say this, but I have to go. I have a meeting I have to get to. For now, you can explore the town, and get to know people. I'll be taking my son to dinner at 5 before he has his appointment with Dr. Hopper. Meet me at my office at the town hall before then."
"Ok, bye, Ms. Mills."
"Bye, Jacob." She puts the room key on the dresser, then walks out of the room, leaving Jacob all alone.
Part Three
Later that evening, Jacob was walking towards the town hall, or at least trying to. Since Regina left the inn earlier, he did what she told him to and explored the town so that he could get around easier without having to ask. Eventually, that is. Since it's only his first day, he's not going to memorize his way around in just the span of at least six hours. Right now, he's on some street, looking for someone to help him. He looks up at a sign and reads "Mr. GoldPawnbroker Antiquities Dealer." He sees that the shop is still open, so he opens the door and enters the shop. Looking around, he doesn't see the owner of the ship, who he assumes is Mr. Gold, like the sign said. Walking around, he looks at the various objects. He stops to look at a necklace, which is a small dreamcatcher. He picks it up and looks at it with a small sense of familiarity and with wonder.
"See anything you like?" said a man's voice. Jacob turned around and saw who he assumed was Mr. Gold. "I see you have a bit of interest in that necklace there."
"Uh, yes, actually. It feels strangely familiar even though I still don't have any memories of my life," replied Jacob.
"Well, would you like to have it?"
"I don't have any money."
"You could repay me by working for me. Temporarily, of course. What do you say?"
Jacob thought for a moment before answering, "Yes. I'll do it."
"Well, my dear sir, you are now the owner of that dreamcatcher. You start work on Monday. Is there anything else you need?"
"Yes, um, since I'm sort of still new in town, and I don't know my way around town, could you tell me where the town hall is? Mayor Mills invited me over for dinner tonight, and she told me to meet her at her office first."
"Actually, I can do better. I have a map. Here," he walks over to a drawer and pulls out a folded piece of paper and handed it to Jacob. "I'll let you have that for free. No payment required. Just follow it and you'll be sure to arrive at your destination."
Jacob grabbed the necklace and put it around his neck. "Thank you, Mr. Gold."
"You are welcome. I'll see you on Monday, then."
"Yes, of course." Jacob turned around and exited the shop. He opened up the map and looked at it, trying to find where he was and where the town hall was. After a minute, he managed to see how to get there, so he folded the map back up and put it in his pocket, then started heading towards the town hall again.
He arrives at the town hall about 5 minutes later. He walks into the building and finds Regina's office nearby. He knocks on the door and waits. "Come in," says Regina from inside. He opens the door and walks in. "Ah, Jacob, you're early."
"I wanted to be early so that I didn't get lost," he replied.
"Well, that's good. What's that on your neck?" She points to his new necklace.
"Oh, I got this at Mr. Gold's shop on my way here. He let me have it for free, but he's going to have me work for it temporarily for repayment. I start on Monday."
"Why did you get a necklace?"
"It felt strangely familiar to me even though I still don't have any memories. I only stopped at the shop so I could get directions here, but I saw it and I wanted it, so he let me have it."
"Well that was awfully nice of him."
"Yeah, I guess it was. So, uh, didn't you say that your son would be here?"
"Yes, he's on his way right now. He'll be here any minute."
"And if I'm correct, his name is Henry?"
"Yes, good memory."
"Well, it's not like I have any from before two weeks ago."
"True. Ah, there he is now, behind you. Hi, Henry."
Jacob turned around saw a young boy who looks 10 years old. He already knew that it was Regina's son. From just looking at his face, Jacob thought that Henry looked like as if he didn't want to see her, but that he was doing a good job at not showing it. He decided not to bring it up in front of her.
"Hi, mom. Who's this?" asked Henry.
"This is Jacob, the boy I mentioned to you? The one who woke up from a coma a couple weeks ago?" replied Regina.
"Oh. right. He's older than I imagined."
"That's probably because I didn't say how old he was. Now, are you ready to go?"
"Yes."
"Good. Let's go. You too, Jacob." She stood up from her desk and walked out of the room, with both Henry and Jacob following her.
Several minutes later, they were at Granny's Diner again. Jacob didn't object. He thought the food was great. He and Henry were now sitting across from each other in a booth, with Regina ordering their food. A few more minutes later, she brought them both a plate of hamburgers and fries. Their drink was a couple mugs of hot chocolate with cinnamon. Jacob smiled at that. He was starting to think that hot chocolate is starting to become his new favorite drink.
As they ate, Regina's phone went off again. She stood up and left to answer it. Suddenly, Henry spoke. "You can't trust her."
Jacob almost spit his drink out when he heard that. "Who? Regina?" Henry nodded. "Why?"
"She's evil."
"That's a bit harsh to say about your mother, don't you think?"
"She's not my mom! She adopted me."
"Have you ever met your real parents?" Henry shook his head no. "Then how do you know you're adopted?"
"Because my real mom is the Savior, and she's going to break the Curse."
"What Curse?"
"The one Regina cast."
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
"She's the Evil Queen!"
"As in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs? Henry, that's a fairy-tale."
"But it's true! She cast a curse on everyone in this town and now they don't remember who they are! You too!"
"Ok, there is no way that I can be cursed. I still may not have any memories after waking up from that coma 2 weeks ago, but that doesn't mean I'm cursed."
"That's because you're cursed memories haven't shown up yet."
"Yeah, ok. But I still don't believe that Regina is evil as you say. She seems like a nice woman. Very strict, but nice. She seems to care about you."
"No she doesn't. She doesn't love me."
"If she was the Evil Queen like you said, then why would she adopt a kid if she would never love them? I think she does love you."
"She doesn't, but she's still the Evil Queen."
"Do you have proof?"
As soon as he asked that, Henry reached into his backpack and pulled out a brown book titled "Once Upon a Time." "A book. What's that going to prove?"
"Henry," said Regina, now back from her phone call. Henry quickly put his book away so that she doesn't see it. "I need to go to another meeting tonight. I'll be back late. Jacob, can I trust you to take him to Dr. Hopper and back to my house?"
"Wait, what? We haven't even known each other for a day yet, and you already trust me to looks after your son?"
"I'm as surprised as you are. To me, you have a trustworthy face. So, can you do it?"
"Uh, yeah. Sure."
"Great. Thank you. I'll see you later, Henry." She bent down and kissed his head before leaving the diner. As soon as she was out of sight, Henry pulled his book out.
"I know a way to prove it. I'm going to go to Boston tomorrow and have my real mom come here, and have her break the Curse."
"Wait, what?! Tomorrow? Boston? Alone? You could get kidnapped or something!"
"I don't care! I have to prove that the Curse is real!"
"Henry, please don't go. I only just met you, and I don't wanna have to worry about you, or have Regina blame me for you disappearing. Just promise that you won't go to Boston?"
"Fine. I promise."
"Good, now let's hurry up and finish eating so I can take you to your appointment with Dr. Hopper." Henry silently agreed to that and continued eating. When they finished, they walked to Dr. Hopper's office. "I'll be out here waiting when you're done." Henry went upstairs as Jacob sat down and picked up a book to read. He's heard of it, but he's never read it. He heard that it was a good book, so he decided to read it. The book was Peter Pan.
Later, Jacob was so into the book that he didn't notice Henry standing there. When Henry cleared his throat, Jacob jumped in his seat slightly and puts the book down, keeping note of the page he's on. "Henry, I didn't see you there."
Henry smiled at Jacob. "Obviously. Now are you going to take me home or not?"
END OF PROLOGUE. NEXT TIME: PILOT