AN: So, here's the thing...

When I get the idea to write something it's normally starts with one scene or conversation, or sometimes just a feeling. I had a "feeling" that I wanted to write about, and was going to write a short one-shot... Well, the short one-shot based on one feeling turned into a monster over 15,000 words long. It's finished, but I thought I'd split it into two parts. I'll probably publish the second part tomorrow night.

Staring at all of the options laid out on the bed, Emma sighed and ran her fingers through her hair. 'Can't I just wear jeans?' she asked, spreading her hands helplessly. 'I even brought a pretty top that you might approve of.'

Ruby grinned at her, shaking her head. 'Nope. No jeans!' Grabbing a dress from her bed, Ruby tossed it to her. 'Try this.'

Emma held it up against herself and turned to look in the mirror hanging over Ruby's wardrobe door. 'Really?' she asked, raising her eyebrows. The whole thing was practically made out of blue sequins.

'All right, fine,' Ruby said, sounding anything but agreeable. 'What about this one? It's sexy, but still safe.' Safe could have meant a potato sack from the despairing tone she used.

Picking up the dress, Emma gave it a once over before deciding to try it on. Pulling her tank top over her head and kicking off her jeans, she undid the zipper at the back and put her arms through. 'I don't know why you're making such a big deal about tonight,' she said, raising her voice a little so Ruby could hear her as she pulled the dress over her head.

'Yes you do.' When the dress was sitting on her properly Ruby grabbed her by the shoulders and spun her around to do up the zipper for her. 'Jeff and his friends might just be having boys drinks 'cause Mum and Dad are away, but we are celebrating.'

Celebrating. Right. 'I still don't think this is really the right thing to celebrate, Ruby.'

Ruby turned her back around and gave her a warning look. 'What better thing to celebrate? I know break ups aren't usually a good thing, but your freedom here is a great thing. We are celebrating the brilliant next chapter of your life.' Ruby grabbed their glasses from her dresser and handed Emma hers, clinking them together. 'Who needs men when you've got friends like we do, right?'

Emma couldn't help it, she laughed. 'Right, until you meet a cute guy that you want to set me up with and start asking me how I can possibly cope without some man candy in my life.'

Ruby grinned back at her. 'Don't worry about that for now. Tonight is all about "yay for freedom Emma". I'll have a man to set you up with by tomorrow, you can count on it.'

Rolling her eyes, Emma turned back around to study herself in the mirror. The dress still wasn't something that she'd normally wear, but Ruby was right - why not put in a bit of extra effort tonight? It had been too long since she'd just had a good time with her friends, rather than being held down and held back by Neal, and now that he was out of the picture she'd be damned if she wasn't going to enjoy it.

She'd broken up with him two weeks ago, but it should have been long before that. The fight had been about this very party in fact. Ruby and Jefferson were throwing an - admittedly small - party because their parents were away for the weekend, and Neal hadn't wanted her to go because he was going to be out of town. And because he couldn't go, she couldn't either. It's not you I don't trust, Emma, it's everyone else.

That had been the final straw to a long list of grievances that she'd kept quiet for far too long, and she'd told him that she didn't want anything to do with him anymore. The only part of her that hurt was the wish that he'd at least tried to fight for her, but most of her was just relieved. Ruby was right: it was time to celebrate.

She was right about the dress too, she thought, smoothing her hands down the front. It was tamer than the others but still sexy, a dark pink number that showed just the right amount of leg and cleavage for a feel-good night. Smiling, she turned back to her friend. 'Fine, I'll wear this one. But you have to promise not to let me turn into too much of a drunken mess while I'm wearing this,' she warned her.

Ruby laughed, settling her own dress over her hips. It was a lot shorter than hers, but if anyone had the legs to pull it off, Ruby Lucas did. 'I'm planning to get you so messy that you won't even remember tonight!'

Making their way into the kitchen, Emma sat on a stool at the breakfast bar beside Alice, Jefferson's girlfriend, while Ruby starting grabbing things from the fridge and the cupboards. Alice smiled at them brightly. 'You two look great,' she said.

'Right back at ya,' Ruby said, winking at her. 'What's Jeff doing?'

Alice rolled her eyes. 'I swear, your brother takes longer to get ready than I do. People will be here soon!' she yelled, craning her neck in the general direction of Jefferson's room. They heard a muffled grumble in return and the three of them laughed.

Ruby began mixing things into a punch, grabbing a ladle and stirring it through. Alice turned toward Emma. 'I heard about you and Neal. Are you okay?'

She knew that her heart was in the right place, but she really didn't want to be thinking about Neal all night. Ruby had emptied half a bottle of vodka into the mixture, but Emma took the bottle from her as she was screwing the lid back on and tipped it over the bowl. 'We're celebrating,' she said pointedly as she emptied the bottle. She returned the grin that Ruby was giving her and started to ladle the mixture into three cups.

Jefferson joined them in the kitchen, rolling his eyes at their punch and pouring himself a whiskey, and when their friends started to arrive they moved into the lounge room. As everyone set to chatting and catching up, Emma looked around at the group surrounding her and felt pretty damned lucky. Mary Margaret and David, who had been together for years, and Aurora and Philip, who were newer but just as much in love. Along with Ruby, they had known each other all through high school, and up until graduation they had all been practically inseparable. Things had changed in the last few months - without school every day to keep them together, she'd found it harder and harder to find time to see them, until she'd practically given up on everybody but Ruby, who hadn't let her push her away.

Ruby was talking excitedly to Mary Margaret, telling her about a promotion at work a few days ago, but she when Emma's hand grabbed hers and squeezed it tightly she turned and squeezed it back, giving her a warm smile. As much as this was a night for fun, Emma had a feeling that she was probably going to be having a few emotional moments. If it wasn't for Ruby, it was very likely that Emma would have been a lot more lonely when she'd finally found the courage to break it off with Neal.

Maybe it wouldn't have been so bad, though, she thought, looking around again at everyone else. Although it had been a few months since they'd had more than a passing conversation, no one seemed to be giving her a hard time for distancing herself. It was like no time had passed at all.

Ruby turned away from Mary Margaret and leaned over to whisper in her ear. 'Stop worrying. They understand. We're all just happy to have you back.'

How was it that the woman knew exactly what she was thinking? 'Thanks,' Emma whispered back, and Ruby returned to her conversation.

Emma was just starting to feel pleasantly tipsy when she looked around, frowning at the people around her. Making her way to the other side of the room, she sat down beside Alice, leaning forward to look at Jefferson. 'Where are all your friends, Jeff?' she asked, smiling to let him know that she was teasing. 'You can't count Victor, because he's spent more time talking to Ruby than you,' she pointed out, nodding over to where Ruby sat practically in her boyfriends lap. Jefferson made a big show of hating that his best friend was dating his little sister, but everyone knew Victor was smitten and treated Ruby like a princess.

Jefferson pulled a sad face at her teasing. 'Graham txt me ten minutes ago to tell me they were on their way.' Glancing away from her, he smirked and stood up, dropping his glass onto the side table. 'And speak of the devil...'

Emma followed his gaze and watched Graham walk into the room, holding his hands up in front of him. 'It's all right, it's all right,' he said. 'I'm here now, you can start the party now.'

A communal groan filled the room but Emma couldn't help but laugh. Jefferson just rolled his eyes. 'Took you long enough,' he grumbled. 'I've been accused of having no friends,' he said, sounding overly hurt and pointing his thumb at Emma.

'Well, you don't,' Graham said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. 'We're just here for the drinks.'

He disappeared into the kitchen, and Emma frowned at the doorway. Jefferson had said that they were on their way, and Graham said we were just here for the drinks. Normally it was just Victor, Graham and Alice that joined them, unless...

Another tall, dark haired Irishman appeared in the doorway, drink already in hand, but it wasn't Graham. Emma barely noticed as Jefferson stood up and the two men gave each other a quick one-armed hug. 'It's good to see you, Killian,' Jefferson said warmly.

'KILLIAN!'

Emma jumped slightly at Ruby's shriek as she jumped up and literally ran toward Killian, throwing her arms around him and making him fall back a few steps from her momentum. Jefferson grabbed Killian's drink quickly out of his hand before it spilled everywhere, some liquid already sloshing over the edge of the glass. 'Hello to you too, love,' Killian said, lifting her off the ground a little as he hugged her tightly, before letting her down and holding her at arm's length. 'Did you miss me?'

Ruby responded by punching his arm. 'Why didn't you tell me you were coming home? Why didn't you tell me?' she demanded, turning to stare Jefferson down.

'Last minute decision,' Killian said, shrugging lightly, then led her back over to where Victor was sitting, sinking into the couch beside him.

Realizing just how much she needed a drink and that her cup was empty, Emma went quickly to the kitchen, smiling and greeting Graham as he walked past her on his way out. As soon as she was alone she tore the fridge open, quickly pouring a drink before downing it in one go. Refilling it again, she closed the fridge and leaned back against the counter.

Why did Jefferson's friends have to be so damned attractive?

She'd expected Graham to be there, and had looked forward to seeing him - he was always friendly to her, and sometimes flirty when Neal hadn't been around. He had been the main reason for Neal's protectiveness; he'd had a big problem with the fact that she got on so well with Graham, and that he was good-looking and single.

He had had an even bigger problem with Killian, and she knew that Killian had returned the sentiment in kind, but Killian had never said anything directly to her about the subject. When Graham's cousin had left for Ireland a little over a year ago to visit family, Neal's protectiveness had eased... for a little while, anyway.

She never would have dared tell Neal about the ridiculously huge crush she'd had for Killian since Graham had introduced him to the group and he'd become fast friends with Jefferson a few years ago.

She didn't know why it flustered her so much that he was here, but she was determined to work it into her favour. She took another moment to settle herself. She knew better than to think that either Graham or Killian would consider her as anything more than a kid sister at best, but at least there were two hot, single men here for her to flirt with, and she knew that she'd get back what she gave in kind, at least from Graham. She could at least use them to boost her ego.

Returning to the lounge room, Emma found a seat next to Mary Margaret and joined in her conversation with Aurora, asking them about everything they'd been up to over the last few months but deflecting most of the questions about herself. Someone had put some music on and when one of her favourites came on Emma let herself get a little lost in the music.

After a minute or so she realized that she wasn't staring off at nothing like she usually did, but staring at Ruby and the men sitting with her on the other side of the room. Killian was talking to them animatedly, gesturing as he was telling them no doubt about his time in Ireland. As he was talking he looked up and their eyes met. He paused in what he was saying and smiled at her before turning back to the others and continuing his story.

Normally Emma would have stayed on this side of the room, happily talking with the girls and David and Philip, and normally she wouldn't have minded. But she found herself embracing Ruby's insistence for fun, and she was almost ashamed to acknowledge that if Neal had been here she wouldn't even have considered going to chat to the boys.

So, of course, that's what she wanted to do.

Grabbing her drink, she walked over to the other side of the room and slid an arm around Ruby's waist, welcoming hers around her own. Apparently Killian had found work in a pub while he'd been in Ireland and was telling them about it. Emma kept quiet, having missed the start of the story, but when he finished he turned to her and Ruby, his trademark smirk on his face. 'I'm sorry to bore you lasses with adult talk. You'll see what it's like in a few years.'

The other men snickered and she elbowed the closest one to her, Jefferson. 'Shut up, you lot,' she said, trying to get him in the ribs but he caught her arm.

Ruby had crossed her arms and was glaring daggers at Killian. 'You can hardly talk, mister. You're still several drinks behind the rest of us tonight.'

Shrugging, he brought his glass to his lips and took a mouthful. 'We were late. I came with Graham, blame him.'

Graham looked so indignant that Emma couldn't help but laugh. 'You can't blame me! Not only did I pick you up from the airport today, but I had to wait for you to pretty yourself up. Seriously, I've never known someone how takes that long in the shower. I should have just left you at home,' he grumbled.

'Ah, so it's not just Jeff that takes longer to get ready than a girl,' Emma teased. Jeff poked his tongue out at her. 'And you think we're the children?' she scoffed.

'This still doesn't change the fact that you've got catching up to do,' Ruby pointed out, directing the conversation back to where she wanted it. A grin slowly took over her face. 'I think it's been far too long since we've played a game of pool, don't you, Jeff?'

Emma felt her competitive side catch a light at the mention. 'What's so interesting about a game of pool that gives you that look?' Philip asked warily, coming up to join them.

'We play it like doubles but with a bigger group,' Victor explained. 'So to make the game move quicker, instead of taking an extra shot for any reason, the other team takes a drink. How many shot glasses do you have?' he asked Jefferson.

'Enough,' Ruby said quickly.

Killian crossed his arms. 'You know that for this to get me drunker than you, my team has to lose,' he told her.

'I know,' she said. 'That's why I'm having Emma on my team. Girls versus boys.'

Killian's eyes flickered toward Emma curiously, then back to Ruby, who he smirked at. 'Men, darling.'

Ruby raised her chin defiantly. 'I said what I meant.'

Laughing, he picked up his drink and stopped leaning on the back of the couch. 'All right then. Is the table still in the same room?'

As Victor and Graham informed the others of their required participation and herded them into the next room, Emma and Ruby went to find enough shot glasses. Killian had followed them into the kitchen and was looking through the bottles collected on the counter. 'So what are we shotting, then?'

'Well since Emma put all of the vodka in the punch, probably not that,' Ruby said, giving Emma a teasing look as she went to the fridge to refill both of their drinks. Emma opened the cupboard and began pulling down shot glasses. There were only six that she could see, and she needed... ten? No, eleven. She knew Ruby had more, so she stood on her tiptoes and reached up into the cupboard, finding another two. Who put small glasses on a top shelf, seriously?

'Want some?' she heard Ruby ask, and she looked up to see her offering some of their punch to Killian.

'I'll try it first,' he said warily, taking her cup and taking a sip.

Biting her lip, she hoisted herself up onto the counter, kneeling on the surface for the gain in height. She still couldn't quite see, but she could feel a few shot glasses with the tips of her fingers.

'Not bad,' she heard Killian say.

She heard another drink being poured. 'So what happened?' Ruby asked bluntly.

There was silence for a few seconds, and Emma stilled her movements. She knew that Killian pretty much saw Ruby as the younger sister that he'd never had, and that Ruby returned the sentiment, and she didn't want to intrude on what she assumed from the heavy pause was going to be a serious topic. Especially since she was kneeling rather comically on the kitchen counter, suddenly trying to pretend she was invisible.

'I told you. I just missed home.'

'I thought that Ireland was your home.'

'No. It used to be. Not anymore.'

There was another long pause. Emma's arm began to ache from holding it up, so she closed her fingers around a shot glass and slowly lowered it down to place it on the counter. If she grabbed them one at a time, and slowly...

'Is it because of what happened with Milah?'

A heavy sigh. 'No, Ruby, it's not,' Killian said tiredly. 'We broke up a long time ago.'

'Jefferson only told me about it last week.'

'I know, because I told him not to. I don't want a big deal made about it.'

'Killian, if you've come home because you need to heal -'

'I stayed there because I needed to heal, okay Ruby?' He was starting to sound angry, but Emma heard him take a deep breath and when he spoke again he sounded calmer. 'I'm home because I'm better, love. I've done angry, I've done bitter, but I'm home now because I'm ready to get on with my life. And because I know you way too well, I'll begrudgingly talk to you about it in more detail later, but not while I'm trying to enjoy myself with friends I haven't seen for over a year.'

There was some movement, then silence, then footsteps leaving the kitchen. Taking a deep breath, Emma realized that she was a little unsettled by what she'd heard. She felt like she'd intruded on a close family matter, but surely they hadn't just plain forgotten she was there. She was about to reach for the last shot glass that she needed when an arm appeared beside her, reaching past her to grab what she'd been looking for. 'If you need help, love, all you have to do is ask.'

Emma gasped and jumped in surprise, bumping her head on the cabinet door. She thought he'd left with Ruby. She closed her eyes and her hands went to her head, groaning slightly in pain and embarrassment, then jumped slightly again when strong hands grabbed her around her waist and twisted her around so that she was sitting on the edge of the counter, her legs dangling over the edge. 'Let me look,' he said quietly, pulling her hands away from her head.

She kept her eyes closed as she felt his fingers running across her temple, pushing her hair back gently. When his examination stopped and his hand went to her chin, lifting her head slightly, she reluctantly opened her eyes, nervous about what she would see.

He was standing so close to her, his hip pressing against the side of her thigh, one hand still on her waist while the other rested under her chin. Damn it, when did the air get so thick?

Her lips parted slightly as she stared into his concerned eyes. 'Are you okay, Emma?'

His words startled her out of her reverie and she blinked hard, taking in a deep breath. 'Yeah. Yeah, it wasn't hard. Just... mortified,' she said, grimacing in embarrassment.

Killian chucked and stepped away from her, and the air returned to the room. 'Maybe I have more catching up to do than I thought,' he joked, helping her down from the counter.

Glaring at him, she straightened her dress quickly and ran her hand through her hair, hoping it hadn't messed too badly. 'What are we drinking?' she asked, stacking the shot glasses inside each other so she could carry them all at once. Then she saw the cup of punch that Ruby had left for her on the breakfast bar and turned her glare to that. She didn't want to make two trips.

'Tequila, since apparently you used all of the vodka,' he teased her, grabbing a bottle of amber liquid and picking up both his glass and hers with his other hand, heading toward the kitchen door.

'Um, thanks,' she said, a little surprised, as she followed him out of the room. Then she noticed that his cup held punch too, and she remembered what he'd just said. 'Hey, if you drink all of our punch then you have to offer up your whiskey once it's gone!'

'Deal,' he said, looking over his shoulder and waggling his eyebrows at her as they passed through the lounge room and headed down the hall to the games room.

Emma considered him silently as she followed him the rest of the way. He'd gone from serious and annoyed with Ruby to warm and teasing with her in a matter of seconds, and the worry in his eyes when he'd looked her over had been genuine. Not that the concern had really surprised her - they'd known each other a long time, even if it was only through Jefferson and Ruby - but she could swear that his teasing had bordered on flirting...

Before she entered the games room she took a deep breath, making herself straighten her thoughts. It was a nice fantasy to think that he'd care for her, that his flirting would mean something, but she'd known him long enough to know that he flirted with everyone, including every other woman here. And that suited her agenda for tonight perfectly, didn't it? Fun, celebration, freedom.

Walking around the room, she made everyone take a shot glass, and Killian followed after her, filling each glass up. 'Rules are simple,' Jefferson said loudly, explaining for Philip's benefit - everyone else here had played this game many times before. 'Girls have a turn, boys have a turn, repeat. Because it can get pretty messy, I don't particularly care if each person in the team goes in order, as long as everyone gets a chance. If you get a ball down, everyone on the other team has a shot for each ball sunk. If you don't hit anything or the ball goes off the table, or anything else, everyone on your team has a shot. If you pocket the black ball before you're supposed to, your team finishes their drink. The overall losing team finishes their drink.'

Philip shrugged. 'Simple enough.'

Killian gave her back her own drink once he'd topped up her shot glass and set the bottle of tequila on the table, then insisted on breaking as Jefferson fussed over the position of the triangle. When he bent over the table, lining up his cue, Emma swallowed hard, quite enjoying the view that his tight jeans gave while he was in that position. This game was a fantastic idea.

Before taking the shot, he paused and looked up at Ruby, who was standing on the other side of the room. 'You do remember that I've been working in a pub for the last year,' he said, winking, then took his shot.

'Fuck,' Ruby said, echoing Emma's thoughts.

He pocketed four bloody balls with his break.

Straightening, Killian held out the cue, not looking as David took it from him. He glanced at the table, then grinned smugly around the room. 'Looks like we're bigs,' he said, waggling his eyebrows suggestively. 'Come on, ladies, drink up.'

Emma exchanged annoyed glances with the other girls before throwing her first shot back, grimacing as the tequila burned her throat. Aurora gasped next to her. 'No lemon?' she asked weakly.

She heard a familiar chuckle beside her, then Killian's warm hand was holding hers steady as her shot glass was being refilled. 'Toughen up, princess,' Philip teased her.

After their second shot Jefferson disappeared and came back with another bottle of tequila, and then Killian stayed between herself and Aurora, filling their glasses up twice more. She pulled a face at him after she'd taken her forth shot, and he backed off to put the bottle down. 'Let's get on with it,' she said, taking a cue from the wall and holding it out to Ruby.

Emma was content to sit back and let the others have a go first, happy to watch the game. She'd found a seat on a stool next to a table that had her sitting with her side pressed quite comfortably against Graham's. She didn't deny that it felt pretty good to have some new male contact, innocent though it was, and he'd always made her laugh.

Thankfully most of the other girls could play reasonably well, and only Mary Margaret pocketed the white ball, causing the girls to all take a drink at the humour of the men. Although they did hold their own aside from that. After a while Killian took the cue from Victor, who had just taken a turn, and moved to stand in front of Emma. 'Ruby made it sound like you had some serious skill, Swan. Your turn.'

'You can't pick who goes next, Killian,' Ruby complained, trying to take the cue from him.

He pulled it out of her reach, holding it out to Emma and looking down at her challengingly.

As she stood up, Emma regretted leaving it so long before taking a turn. She'd had a stupid amount of shots already, as well as still drinking her punch, and she was feeling pretty unsteady on her feet. She was normally pretty good at pool, having played quite a bit since she spent a fair amount of time at Ruby's house, but the problem was that when she was drunk, she either played brilliantly, or terribly, with no middle ground. And although she probably wouldn't call herself really drunk yet, she was well on her way there.

Eyeing the spread, she picked the ball she wanted to go for and found her position at the table, standing opposite Killian. She pulled her arm back to take the shot, then glanced up quickly, feeling his eyes on her.

His expression made her freeze. He was staring at her so intently that it made her breath catch in her throat... until she realized that he wasn't looking at her face. Glancing down surreptitiously, she noticed with horror just how much of a view he was getting of her breasts as she leaned over the table. Fair enough, she'd been checking out his ass before in the same position, but he wasn't even trying to hide it! Looking up at him again, she felt a hot blush spreading up her neck at the smirk that he was giving her. And then he winked!

Blowing her breath out carefully, she tried to focus on the game and took her shot... and skewed the ball, knocking it gently into a striped ball.

A groan filled the room at the same time as the boys started laughing. Killian's smirk just widened. 'Emma, you were supposed to be our secret weapon!' Ruby whined, grabbing her by the shoulders and shaking her comically. 'You were supposed to kick their asses for us!'

'Drink up, ladies,' Graham said cheerfully, holding out a shot glass in each hand. Emma glared at him then snatched one from him, downing it quickly.

She shoved the cue into his hand and pushed him toward the table. 'Shut up and take a turn, Humbert.'

Graham walked over to the table, looking over the table with a grin on his face. There were only a few of their balls left on the table, and Emma knew that if something didn't change soon, they'd be the losers. The fiercely competitive side of her roared to life again, fuelled by the buzz from the shots, and as Graham began to line himself up, she forced her shot glass into Ruby's hand, grinning at her, then walked casually over to stand next to Mary Margaret, across the table from where Graham was. If Killian enjoyed an eyeful so much, then surely Graham would too. She saw Killian's eyes on her again and this time she winked at him, then leaned smoothly on the edge of the table, careful that where she put her elbow wouldn't physically interfere with the game play.

She made sure that her breasts rested on her lower arm in a way that would push them up slightly, and turned her head to talk to Mary Margaret for a few seconds. Her friend clearly saw through her charade, however, since she was trying to subdue a fit of giggles as she attempted to answer Emma's question. She glanced at Ruby, who was laughing outright at her, clutching Victor's arm, then at Killian, who chuckled then mouthed something at her that looked like vixen, before she looked back to Graham, trying her best to look innocent.

The poor man's eyes were wide, and she saw his throat move as he swallowed hard. 'That isn't fair,' he said hoarsely.

'Take the shot, Graham,' she said, keeping her voice low and hopefully seductive. If anyone hadn't been laughing before they were now, and Emma felt the corners of her lips twitch upwards as her control wavered.

'Cheater,' he muttered, before taking his shot.

He hit the wrong ball, sending a small one down a pocket, followed by the white ball.

'Yes!' Straightening up, she hi-fived Mary Margaret before picking up a bottle and a shot glass and walking over to Graham, who pouted at her.

'Cheater,' he said again, but he grinned after a moment, clinking his shot glass against the bottle before downing it.

Turning around, she found Killian standing in front of her, holding out his glass. 'Now I understand what your skills are, Swan,' he said as she filled his glass. 'Distraction.'

You started it. 'I have skills,' she protested loudly, poking him hard in the chest. He raised his eyebrow at her, and she realized that she must be bloody drunk, because she was finding that incredibly sexy...

'Emma has skills,' Mary Margaret said, coming to stand next to her, her hands on her hips. 'Take another shot,' she said, holding out the cue.

'She just had a shot!' Victor protested, then huffed as Ruby's elbow collided with his stomach.

'If none of the ladies have a problem with it, I don't see why not,' Jefferson said, sharing a smile with Emma. He knew how well she could play - normally, anyway - and she thought that he probably wanted to see the smirk ripped from Killian's face as much as she did. When all of the other girls nodded their assent, Emma took the cue and turned toward the table, walking slowly around it until she found the position she needed.

Bending over the table, she made herself really focus. When she'd been drinking she had to concentrate harder to find the right spot, but that sometimes worked in her favour. As her eyes skimmed over the balls, she was about to line up her shot when she noticed something about how some of the other balls were lined up.

Returning to the other side of the table, she eyed it from her new point of view and decided to take the risk. Lining herself up again, she was grateful that she didn't have Killian distracting her by staring down her top this time, until she realized the view he must be getting from standing behind her. She wondered exactly how much leg she was showing while she was bent over like this, but pushed down the desire to run her hand down the back of her dress to check. Swallowing, she forced him out of her mind, forced everything out of her mind, and took the shot.

One ball down, two, three.

When the balls stopped moving, she spun around, grinning, and took a little bow in Killian's direction. 'Skill,' she said simply, as the girls clapped at her with mock-seriousness.

He spread his hands in surrender, nodding his head to her, and she walked back over to take a seat next to Alice, letting someone else organize the three shots each for the men.

The rest of the game went a little slower. Emma let the other girls play, and although they hit the right balls each time, not a lot went in. The boys fared about the same, but after her show of dominance, she was content with whichever way the game went. Looking around at how much fun everyone was having, she felt more than content - she felt good. She felt included in a way that she hadn't in a long time, carefree and fun.

She wished Neal could see her now. Staring down at her drink, she wondered what he was doing. He was in Boston for the weekend, she knew, working hard for a promotion that he'd been going after for what felt like forever.

Shit. Should she have waited until after his trip? She had absolutely no idea how he felt about the split, hadn't spoken to him since then, but nobody liked being broken up with, surely. Was he miserable? Had she ruined his chance this weekend?

Here she was, having the most fun she'd had in years, and he could be struggling.

And there it was.

Yep, right there.

Guilt.

Taking her drink, she slipped out quietly, not looking at anyone as she fled the room. She stopped in the kitchen quickly, refilling her drink with shaking hands, knowing that she'd need it, before ducking out into the backyard.

Kicking her shoes off, Emma found her way to the bench in the middle of the small garden, working by memory more than sight before her eyes adjusted to the night. The cold air felt heavenly on her hot skin and down her tight throat, and she threw her head back, squeezing her eyes shut, determined not to let any tears fall. She fought hard to keep control, breathing slowly and deliberately.

After a few minutes she heard the back door slide open. 'Emma?' Jefferson called out softy.

'Yeah,' she answered quietly, knowing he'd be able to hear her. The door slid shut again and she heard footsteps on the concrete before his feet hit the grass. Her eyes had adjusted to the dark enough that she could see him approaching, and she was glad that he hadn't turned the outside light on - for some reason, the darkness was welcoming, peaceful.

He sat down beside her, holding out a shot glass. She laughed softly. 'Just one?'

'Yep. You guys won, even without you there to cheat for your team.'

She smiled faintly at him and took the shot glass, leaning her head against him. His arm moved around her shoulders and she leant her head against his. 'Normally people don't offer drinks to the drunk, upset girl,' she told him lightly, studying the liquid.

He was quiet for a moment. 'You're not upset because you're drunk. You're having fun because you're drunk, and you're sad because you're lonely. More alcohol means more fun, equals less lonely. As you're honorary big brother, I call it my job to cheer you up.'

His words warming her, she took the shot, then put the glass on the bench next to her. 'I'm not lonely,' she told him quietly, relaxing into the feel of him rubbing her arm. It was cool outside, but not cold, and she knew he meant it for the comfort. 'I am having fun, and that's the problem. I should be feeling more lonely, shouldn't I? Everyone's been so good to me. And I don't miss him. I feel sorry for him, but I don't miss him. I think that makes me a horrible person.'

Jefferson was silent for a few minutes, then gave her a quick squeeze. 'You shouldn't feel bad, Emma. I wouldn't normally try and tell you what to do, not with something like this, but breaking up with Neal was the right thing to do. The fact that you're having so much fun tonight is only a testament to that, and he had plenty of time to realize that he should be treating you better. You're better than he is, and now you can find someone who can show that to you.'

Smiling up at him, she rolled her eyes playfully. 'Great, are you going to try and set me up with someone, too?'

He grinned back at her. 'Let me guess. Ruby's already offered?'

'How did you know?'

They sat in silence for a little while longer, then Jefferson let her go and stood up. 'If you need some more time, take what you need. But I think you should come back inside and spend some time with your friends. We're all here for you.' He held his hand out to her.

She eyed it for a minute. She'd gotten so used to feeling like a loner when she was with Neal but Jefferson, and everyone else tonight, was showing her that she didn't have to live like that. She put her hand in his, letting him pull her to her feet, and followed him toward the house. She bent to pick up her shoes but stumbled and almost fell over, so she decided to leave them for tomorrow and followed Jefferson inside.

AN: Well? Things get more interesting in part 2, including the reason I wrote this. I'll probably post it tonight or tomorrow night, I just have to read through it and edit it.