A/N: This is a piece of fluffy goodness that I wrote as a birthday gift for the Belle to my Ariel, Sara (aka thesassywitchofthenortheast).
Breakfast in Bed
For Sara
It was the morning of October 23rd, but all Emma wanted to do was sleep. Not because she was tired, but because she was experiencing the worst hangover of her adult life.
The night before, the entire town of Storybrooke descended upon Granny's to celebrate Emma's birthday. She could hardly believe that only four years prior, she was celebrating her 28th birthday by herself, in her Boston apartment with nothing but a cupcake with one miniscule candle as her company…until her doorbell rang, and life as she knew it changed forever.
Now, as she "woke up" from a night celebrating turning 32, she had so much more to family than she knew what to do with: a son who she adored with all her heart; two loving parents who, despite their misgivings, did just want the best for her (even if it wasn't always the smart way to go about it); and she had a boyfriends who cherished every part of her. So why they let her get completely an utterly smashed last night, she would never know.
At least she made it back to her and Killian's apartment ok, no doubt due to his assistance. But at that moment, the sun sneaking into the blinds next to her bed made her hiss. She felt like a vampire with how averse she was to the sunlight. Emma groaned, feeling the pounding in her head as she lifted herself up off her pillow. She needed aspirin badly. As she was about to head to the bathroom to retrieve her relief in the form of a tiny, white pill, she heard footsteps padding on the hardwood floor outside her bedroom.
"Happy Birthday, Swan!"
Killian entered their bedroom, carrying a tray of all of her favorite breakfast foods: a stack of pancakes, scrambled eggs, bacon, and of course, hot cocoa with cinnamon. She also noticed that he had brought with the food two of the pills that she was about to get herself. He had thought of everything, hadn't he?
"Not so loud. My head is throbbing," Emma pleaded; her voice sounding scratchy.
"I'm not surprised, love, considering how much you drank last night. Even I was impressed," Killian said, sounding very proud.
This did not make Emma feel any better. "Oh, god…" she groaned while placing her head in her hands. "How bad was I?"
Killian spoke as he made his way to the bed and placed the tray beside her, "Are we talking before or after you decided to try your hand at karaoke after six tequila shots?"
Six?! No wonder her headache was so intense. Emma and tequila never had a loving relationship. "Does it shock you that I don't even remember that?"
"Not in the slightest. But I made sure that you were taken care of, darling. Your father had enough to deal with, since your mother got absolutely pissed as well."
"Wait a minute…Mary-Margaret, my mother, got drunk?" she said as she swallowed the relief she sought.
Killian laughed, but only so loud as to not make Emma's headache worse. "It's not it hasn't happened before, you know. I seem to recall her telling me about an incident with Whale before the curse was over…"
"Please don't remind me…," Emma pleaded.
Killian simply laughed it off, and continued, "But yes, your mother, along with Regina, seemed to be apologetic drunks. Both of them spent the entire last few hours seeking forgiveness for one another's discretions. It was actually quite entertaining. Your father and Robin probably let it go on longer than it should have."
"Please tell me Henry wasn't there to see any of this?"
"He was not. Your father and Robin took him and Roland over to the loft and Marco watched over them, as well as your brother, before things got too crazy."
"Thank goodness," Emma sighed in relief.
"But I'm sure he would have liked to hear how his mother proposed to me last night…"
"WHAT?!" As much as her headache was starting to fade, the throbbing had not subsided. This information made it slightly worse. "I did what?! And why are you laughing?"
Killian could not stop laughing at Emma's reaction to her drunken escapades. Tears were forming in his eyes, and he struggled to take a full breath. "I'm sorry, love. I just had to tell you. You were just so adorable…and completely pissed. But I turned down the proposal, even though your argument was very convincing." That smirk that appeared on his face made her nervous.
"What exactly was my argument?"
"That if I agreed to marry you, that I could finally say that you had a little captain in you…on a daily basis. But then I thought, how is that different from any other day?" he said, winking at her with his devilish blue eyes. She simply rolled her eyes at him.
"You should probably eat your breakfast, Swan. You don't want it to get cold." He made her sit up against her pillow and placed the tray in her lap. Emma went straight for the pancakes first; she was famished. As she placed a forkful in her mouth, and let the flavor of the maple syrup coat her tongue, her eyes rolled in the back of her head. She was in heaven.
"This is delicious. And exactly what I needed. How is it that you always know?"
"Haven't I always told you that you are an open book to me, love? It's one I definitely enjoy reading."
"You are too much sometimes," she said, smiling, taking another portion of pancakes. "So, who did you get to come in and help you with this?"
"Swan, I can't believe you would accuse me of needing help!" The look of shock did not convince Emma one bit. All she had to do was give him the look, and he said, sighing, "Ok, Henry helped. But I got to flip the pancakes!" All Emma could do was smile. She also noticed something else on the tray that she hadn't before: it was a red velvet box. Curiously, she lifted it up, and asked Killian, "What's this?"
"You think I would bring you birthday breakfast in bed and not remember your gift?"
"You didn't have to…"
"Of course I did, Swan. It is your birthday, after all. And you would've handed me my ass if I didn't. Now open the bloody box, you stubborn woman.." He seemed extremely eager for her to open it, so she grabbed the box and lifted the lid.
Inside the box laid the most beautiful locket she had ever seem. About the size of a half dollar, the gold piece was made to resemble the story book that Henry kept watch over. It even had the same old-fashioned writing on the cover, spelling out "Once Upon a Time" and black engraved lettering.
"Oh, Killian…"
"There's more. Open the book."
She opened the locket, and on each side were two pictures. On the left, she saw a phot of her parents, and each hand an arm around her baby brother. On the right, she saw a photo of Killian and Henry. They had their arms wrapped around each other, grinning from ear to ear. The most important people in her life were now kept in two different story books, one of which now she could keep with her at all times.
"I…don't know what to say…" Emma had to fight back the tears that threatened to escape, but to no avail. One renegade tear fell swiftly down her right cheek. Killian was there immediately to wipe the moisture away.
"It was a storybook that transformed your life four years ago; but you know as well as I do that you also transformed ours—all of ours—and for the better."
Emma smiled through the tears that were now falling at a more rapid pace. She lifted the locket to put it around her neck. She then lifted the piece and turned it so that Killian could see the photos before saying, "You once told me that I was your happy ending, Killian. It was something that I never expected to hear from anyone, considering my life up until four years ago. But this…this is mine. The family that I have: my parents, my brother, Henry, and you: that is my happy ending."
"I just feel honored to be a part of yours, Emma," Killian said.
"Trust me, Captain, your part is bigger than you know."
"You know how to flatter a man, Swan." Captain Innuendo struck again.
"Shut up and kiss me," she said as she tugged the collar on his shirt, like she did when they had their first kiss. "Thank you for my gift. I love it."
"You're most welcome. Happy Birthday, Emma."
