Author's note: Oneshot. Based on some of the promo pics for ep 3x12.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything.
His whole plan of magically showing up at her door and getting her to remember? Epic failure. Hook toyed with the black leather glove concealing his hook as he leaned up against the wall of a nondescript building.
All around him, New Yorkers streamed past him, on their way to dates, movies, dinners, or home. All had a place to be and people to be with. All except for him.
What was he to do now? After his failed attempt at getting her to remember, resulting in an injury that caused him to walk around funny for several hours, he'd wandered around aimlessly. He had that potion hidden in the depths of his leather coat, of course, but for that to work he had to get her to take it willingly. And he knew that she would not hesitate to kick him again the next time she saw him, let alone consume a strange beverage.
He'd forgotten how defensive she was. If it wasn't so incredibly frustrating, it was kind of sexy.
For about a year he'd dreamed about this moment, the moment where he'd see his swan for the first time. He'd envisioned what would happen. She'd inevitably be confused and likely angry, of course, but once he got her to believe and remember he'd hoped that she'd realized how he felt about her and that she felt the same.
What an incredibly stupid fantasy that had been.
"Hey buddy." Someone poked their head out of a window next to the wall Hook was leaning against. "No loitering." He pointed to a sign.
Hook hadn't the slightest clue what this loitering meant, but he could guess. "Sorry, mate." He apologized, his feet already finding their way down the packed street.
He supposed that he could try again tomorrow. His hand reached into his pocket and fingered the small, folded, intricately colored bills that Regina had given him. Something that the people in this world called money. Before he left, Mary Margaret, David, and Neal had told everything they knew about this world. Neal had even given him the address of his old apartment and offered it to Hook, who had a feeling that if the Dark One's son had known what Hook had been planning to do as soon as he saw Emma he wouldn't have been so generous.
Having decided to try and find Neal's apartment, he set off down the street with a renewed purpose. After a good night's sleep he would try again tomorrow. He would not give up until he succeeded.
Until Emma was his.
Hook looked up at the numbers on the green signs and then frowned down at the slip of paper in his hand; he couldn't tell if he was nearing Neal's building or not. He was something of an expert navigator, having traveled all the realms, explored countless regions, crossed the seven seas without so much as a scratch on his precious ship. But navigating the streets of New York City was an endeavor that proved to be more difficult than it seemed.
As he passed by what appeared to be a type of eating area like Granny's, although much fancier, as he could see through the huge windows that the people sat at tables with white coverings and wore what he surmised to be this world's version of formal wear, he briefly considered going in and asking for directions, though a part of him refused. Asking for directions would be admitting weakness and Captain Hook was anything but weak.
However, as he continued walking he realized that he was just circling the block over and over. He found himself back in front of the same eating place that he'd passed by earlier. Barely containing a grunt of frustration he'd decided to go in and ask for assistance when something made him stop short.
Or someone, to be specific. It couldn't be...could it? It wasn't possible.
Oh but it was. Sitting at a table about three feet from the window was her. Her open, relaxed expression was a far cry from the defensive, cynical one he'd seen this morning. Her hair was curled in a way that he'd never seen yet immediately loved, and she wore a tight black dress that made him feel things he hadn't felt in a while.
Worst of all was the man seated across the table from her. Hook immediately sized him up; small frame, light brown hair, narrow face. He knew he could quite easily take that man in a fight, and he had to physically restrain himself from charging in and doing so.
Maybe he was just some stranger who decided to sit in the empty chair. Or perhaps some client. Yes, that had to be it. Because the alternative was too painful to consider.
But the longer Hook stood there he knew that he was just lying to himself. As he watched the man reach across the table and take her hand he felt something seize his insides. The man said something and made her laugh. Though he couldn't hear it, he envisioned what it would sound like. Her green eyes sparkled as she conversed with the man.
He knew in this moment that this man was no friend. He'd seen this exact expression of total and complete rapture on Milah's face when they spoke, and again on Mary Margaret's when she was around David.
It was such a foreign concept, seeing Emma so happy and relaxed around someone. She never let her guard down, not around anyone except maybe Henry. She was almost like a completely different person, a far cry from the woman he'd known.
Hook took a deep breath. All right, so she had a lover. Regina did say that she'd given her a new life, and this man was just a part of it Part of her fake, implanted memories. He'd been through so much, he could surely work around this. All he had to do was get to her believe and realize that whatever she felt for this man wasn't real.
Of course, this did nothing to soothe the fire he felt burning him alive inside.
But then the unimaginable happened. A sharply dressed man brought over a fancy looking dish in a glass container. Her expression shifted as she took in the dish from one of excitement to surprise, her eyes widening.
Hook was about to ask himself why she was surprised, but then he got his answer as the man reached over and picked up a small, circular silver object that sparkled in the light. A ring. He realized a second later.
Suddenly he felt as though the wind had been knocked out of him. He couldn't breathe, couldn't move. The man shifted out of his chair and got down on one knee, holding the ring out to Emma, who's eyes were as wide as the dish that had been placed on the table.
No, no, no. He thought wildly. Don't do it.
But of course she couldn't hear him as she nodded. As her lips formed a word he never knew could cause him so much pain, that sent a bullet of anguish through his heart.
Yes.
It was like looking at a train wreck, he wanted so badly to tear his eyes away but found that he couldn't do so. Numbly he watched as the man slid the ring onto Emma's finger. Watched as her face slowly filled with elation. Watched as the man pressed his lips against hers, as everyone in the restaurant erupted into cheers so loud he could hear them from his position outside.
Hook stumbled away from the window. He could bear to see no more. She was bloody fucking engaged. As if forgetting all about him wasn't enough, she'd replaced him. Found someone else, someone that she clearly loved.
He sank down onto the ground. He was pretty certain that something was eating him alive inside, and his head pounded so loudly he could barely hear the voices of the people around him. What had just happened? That couldn't be real. He refused to believe so.
But he knew in his heart that what he'd seen had been real. That his beloved Swan was now betrothed to someone else. She would marry, perhaps have more children, and form the family she'd never had but always wanted.
She would be happy.
So...what was the point? She would never believe him now, and even if he did somehow miraculously get her to believe she would never want to come with him. Because now she had a good life, one free of all the drama that her previous life had contained.
How could he drag her away from her new life, back to one full of pain and worry? That would devastate her to realize that it was all just a sham. She clearly didn't need her parents or him or Neal or anyone back in the Enchanted Forest.
And above all, he had no right to do so. He had always been just a person in her life. Bore no real significance unlike her parents or even Neal.
Because in the end, he knew that she had never been his. And now she would never get the chance to be.
Author's note: I hope the actual ep won't end like this but hey it's fun to imagine. Thanks for reading hope you enjoyed. Review?