"Neal," he sighed. "I already told you, I don't want you to set me up with someone."

"Killian, I heard you, but you've been sitting on your butt all day for months! It's time for you to get out and meet someone."

"I don't want to meet anyone right now, I don't think I'm ready yet." He said. "And I don't sit on my butt all day. I still go to work, don't I?"

Neal gave him a sympathetic smile and clasped his shoulders. "Look," he pulled away and grabbed two beers from the fridge and offered one to Killian. "It isn't your fault Milah decided to run off with someone else, alright?"

"It's not about that." Killian gratefully accepts the beer and drank heartily.

"Are you sure?" Neal had a disbelieving look on his face and Killian rolled his eyes.

"Yes!" he said exasperated but then he gave in and sighed heavily. "Alright, maybe it is about that but you can't blame that on me."

"That's what I said!" Neal said as he drank. "Come on, I've known this girl a long time. You're going to like her."

"Neal –"

"Killian." He said seriously. "Listen, if this doesn't work out, I'll back off. Okay? Just go on this one date."

He would be lying if he said that he didn't want to go out and meet someone who made him feel like what he felt when he was with Milah but the truth is, he was scared of getting hurt again. It's been almost a year since he came home to an empty apartment and a note from her saying that she was sorry – but that was it, he didn't even know what went wrong or what he did wrong for her to just leave – she threw away everything they built for two years. After a few months of drowning in his own sorrow, he saw her out and about with another man, a man he recognized as her co-worker; and if that wasn't bad enough, she was also pregnant. Realization hit him all at once – Milah's secret phone calls in the middle of the night, her late night 'working hours', her lack of intimacy with him, her 'I might have eaten something bad last night' vomiting all those mornings – everything made sense now; how could he miss the signs? He wasn't one for confrontations but it was all too much, and he was a bit tipsy to say the least, so he walked up to them and just punched the man – hard – in the face. Milah had the audacity to look guilty, which only made him angrier than he already was. Instead of waiting for her explanation, he simply walked away and ignored Milah's pleas for him to let her talk. He went home that night feeling worse than ever.

He thought long and hard about Neal's offer and he knew he was right about him having to move on from Milah and what happened, so he took a leap of faith. "Alright, I'll meet with your friend." He gave in and Neal gave him a triumphant smile.

"I'll give her a call and I'll let you know the time and place." He said as he put his coat on and grabbed his keys from the counter. "I have to go but I'll see you soon."

Killian stood up to see him off but before he left, he wanted to know one thing. "What's her name?"

"What," Neal scoffed. "Are you going to Google her or something?"

"I'm not going to Google her, Neal." He huffed. "Just tell me her name."

"Emma." He said. "Emma Swan."