I Never Agreed To This
Tinkerbell was happy for Regina. She finally chose the path of love and it paid off for her. Regina was glowing and that is all Tinkerbell wanted. However, just because Regina was happy it didn't mean her friend could try to set her up on a date.
Tinkerbell looked at Regina like she was crazy when she first suggested it. Fairies didn't do dates but Regina reminded her that they were in a different world and she needs a life. Furthermore, the person she suggested she go out with puzzled her even more.
"No Regina," Tinkerbell stomping a foot on the carpet in Regina's bedroom. "It is never going to work."
Regina cocked her head to side giving a smile Tinkerbell didn't like. "I said the same thing but I was wrong. You never know unless you put yourself out there."
Tinkerbell shook her head no furiously. "I'm the one who is supposed to find true love for other people. It's against the rules for me to fall in love."
Regina put her hands on her hips. "Who cares? What is Blue going to say? She wants to get back on your good side. Besides, she's not your best friend. You're going on the date."
"But Regina," she whined. "Neal. Why would you set me up with Neal?"
"What's wrong with Neal?" Regina questioned.
"There's nothing wrong with Neal. It's just-I've known him since he was a boy. It's awkward," she explained.
"Only if you make it awkward. You're both attractive and more importantly, single. Those are perfect reasons for you two to date," Regina argued.
Not all the way convinced Tinkerbell asked for another reason. Why was Regina so invested in this?
"And also because Henry wants his father to be happy. Since Emma is with the pirate, Henry wants Neal to have a second chance," Regina further explained.
Tinkerbell smiled. "I appreciate the thought but I don't want the responsibility. I mean, I have no idea what I would even be doing."
"Just be yourself," Regina said.
"Did that work for you?" Tinkerbell asked.
"I'm a different case," Regina joked.
"Then what am I? I'm not doing this and no matter what reason you give out I refuse," Tinkerbell said moving toward the door. Regina used her magic to hold Tinkerbell's feet to the floor.
"Regina," Tinkerbell gritted. "Let me go."
"Not until you agree to this. One date and if it goes wrong, then you never have to do this again," Regina said.
"The second option is that I force you to go on a date the old fashioned way," Regina said pointing to Tinkerbell's chest.
"Really? You would control me. That's just cruel," Tinkerbell said. Regina smirked and nodded.
"Fine. I'll do it. Let me go," she demanded. Regina waved her hand and Tinkerbell felt her feet loosen. "I wonder why I'm still your friend."
"You wouldn't know what to do without me," Regina teased as she wrapped her arm around her friend's shoulder.
"Particularly in this case," Tinkerbell muttered.
"Trust me. You'll have a good time. Neal isn't some womanizer who thinks he can charm his way into anyone's bed nor is he a manipulator. He's just a good guy."
Tinkerbell winced.
"What?" Regina asked.
"There's another reason…Hook," she said. "If Neal and I were to ever to become a thing, I don't want him finding out."
Regina's eyes widened. "You didn't. You and Hook," she said taking a step back to look at her.
"I know. I know. It was in Neverland and we…you know," she tried explaining. Regina burst out laughing. "Not funny Regina," she hissed.
"Yes it is. The innocent fairy is not so innocent," Regina teased. She stopped laughing after a minute. "I admit Hook has tried to charm me but I had other things on my mind. I'm glad I didn't do anything with him."
Tinkerbell sat on the edge of Regina's bed. "Neal already lost Emma to Hook. I don't want him to think-
"He won't think anything. You two were a long time ago and it didn't mean anything," Regina said. "Whatever happened or didn't happen on Neverland doesn't matter to this situation."
"What if I really screw this up?" Tinkerbell asked softly. Regina sat next to her.
"You won't for the umpteenth time. Now, we are going to go shopping," she replied. "Can't go on a date looking like a slob."
Regina grabbed her purse and Tinkerbell's hand dragging her down the stairs. They were in the foyer when Robin walked through the front door.
"Hi," he greeted. "Where are you two lovely ladies going?"
"Shopping," Regina said pecking Robin on the cheek. Robin nodded his head before settling his eyes on Tinkerbell who still looked reluctant.
"Have a good time," he said. Tinkerbell shot him a deadly glare.
Tinkerbell was overwhelmed to say the least. Regina only wanted the best clothes for Tinkerbell. She tried on so many outfits the whole trip was beginning to be a blur. She finally settled on a strapless black dress that she felt comfortable to wear.
"We got the dress and shoes. Now it's time for the hair," she said.
Tinkerbell put her hands to her hair. "What's wrong with it?"
"Nothing. It will just look better down with this type of dress," Regina stated. "It's going to be perfect."
Tinkerbell watched in amazement as her hair seemed to transform on its own. "This is- I don't even have words right now."
Regina chuckled. "You look gorgeous."
They went back to Regina's house where they locked themselves in her bedroom until Neal arrived.
Neal was nervous to say the least. He spent so much time pining after Emma only to get rejected at the end. He made up in his mind that he needed a fresh start. What he didn't foresee was him holding a bouquet of flowers for Tink and meeting her in front of Regina's house. It took a lot of pleading from Henry to get him to agree to this date.
Date. Maybe it was the label which was making him nervous. No, he wasn't going to call it a date. It was him taking out an old friend. One that helped in Neverland so many nights. He could do this. He rang the doorbell.
Robin answered with a grin on his face. "You got me flowers. You shouldn't have."
"Shut up," he said. "They're not for you," he said walking through the door.
"You wound me," Robin teased. "I thought we were friends."
"We won't be if you keep irritating me," he said.
Robin chuckled. "You're nervous. Perfectly understandable. It's the first date with a beautiful woman."
"I'm not nervous," he said trying to cover.
Robin gave him an amused look. "I'll go get them. They've been locked up there all afternoon."
Robin knocked on the door signaling Neal was downstairs. He heard muffled voices and waited for permission to come in. He walked in to see Regina putting the finishing touches on Tinkerbell.
"You look lovely Tink," he said genuinely.
"Do you really think so or are you just saying that because Regina is standing here?" Tinkerbell asked.
"Well, if I weren't already spoken for, I would definitely knock down your door to see you," Robin said. Tinkerbell smirked.
"I'll accept that," she said. She looked at Regina. "This is really it?"
"Yep," she responded. Robin held out his hand for Tinkerbell to take.
Neal was surprised to say the least when he saw her come down the stairs. Her hair was in loose curls and her dress fit her well.
They stood there awkwardly for a second until Neal handed Tinkerbell the flowers. "These are for you." A bouquet of white flowers invaded her line of sight.
"Thank you," she said taking them. She handed them off to Regina who went into the kitchen. Robin walked out of the room as well.
"Um, you look nice," Tinkerbell complimented.
"Not as good as you," he said instantly thinking how corny he sounded. He noticed the red color rise in her cheeks.
Regina and Robin's footsteps interrupted the silence. "Neal, I expect you to treat my friend with the utmost care and respect. Otherwise you have to deal with me," Regina said.
Tinkerbell closed her eyes briefly wishing to leave the mansion quickly. "Shall we go now?" Tinkerbell asked.
Neal briefly nodded to the couple before leading his date to the door. All the while he was hoping nothing disastrous would happen.
"Do you think they will make it?" Robin asked as he put his arm around her waist.
"I hope so," Regina said.
The drive was silent with only the radio playing some old tune neither of them were paying attention to. Both were afraid of what could happen. Tinkerbell looked out the window watching the buildings pass her by.
Neal glanced over thinking this shouldn't be so hard. It wasn't with Emma. He sighed. This was not the time to be thinking about his ex. He needed to pull himself to together.
Another five minutes passed and they pulled up to a restaurant. He was grateful this town actually had a nice one. It wasn't Granny's and it wasn't The Rabbit Hole. He got out of the car walking to the other side to let Tinkerbell out.
"What is this place?" she asked. "I've never noticed this before."
"It's an Italian restaurant," he said. "Just happened to come across it one day."
They walked into the restaurant and were seated in the corner by the window. The waiter gave them their menus and left them alone for a few minutes.
Tinkerbell put down her menu feeling the need to address the awkwardness between them. "Do you want to be here?"
Neal slowly put down his menu. "Of course I do. What makes you think otherwise?"
"Neal, this isn't us. We've barely had a full conversation from Regina's to here. I know it's awkward because of Neverland. I don't want to waste your time," she said.
Neal took her hand in his. "You're not wasting my time. I enjoy your company. It's just we got roped into this and I don't think I'm ready to be dating again."
Tinkerbell nodded. "Emma."
"Yes," he answered honestly. "Look, we don't have to talk about her."
"It's okay. She was your true love and now she's with Hook," she said softly. "I get it. I understand that you aren't willing to go down this road anytime soon."
He gave a tight smile. "I'm sorry. This isn't what you deserve. How about we stop talking about Emma and Hook?"
"That's fine," she said. She picked up the menu and he did the same thankful for the breather. He didn't need to get himself worked up over things he couldn't control.
The waiter came and took their orders.
"So how is Henry doing?" she asked.
"Great. It's hard to imagine him being a teenager. If only my teenage years were simple as is. Even with all this fairytale stuff, it's still much simpler than mine ever was."
"You got through it," she said.
"With the help of a fairy," he replied. She playfully rolled her eyes.
"I don't know how much help I was. I was pretty much angry for most of those years," she refuted.
"Trust me. You were helping me when I would get depressed and lonely. There were many days when you were my lifeline. I never understood why you helped me when there were so many other boys to look after."
"They never came to me. I always knew you were special. I had a feeling you would be the one to escape the island," Tinkerbell stated. "When you came back I was surprised and then troubled. Then I saw what all of you would do for Henry and you proved how much you love your son. I admired that."
"He's an easy one to love," he said. He leaned over the table. "I can't imagine life without him now."
"He's lucky to have you," she said.
Their food arrived and they ate hearing their utensils clink against the plates.
"So how do you like Storybrooke?" he asked.
"Without all the craziness…it's fine," she said. He laughed a bit. "What's so funny?"
"This town will never run out of crazy. You might as well get used to it," he teased.
She chuckled. "Pan, Zelena…I don't even want to think of what is next. Anyway, Storybrooke has its charm. I just hate I can't cross over the town line. There's a whole world out there."
He tilted his head to the side. "Maybe one day I can take you over it. I'm sure my father would be happy to come up with something. Where would you like to go?"
"I don't know. Perhaps New York," she said.
"New York it is," he said and noticed how her eyes lit up at the prospect. He found himself thinking he could get used to seeing this side of her.
"What about you? Where else would you like to go?" she inquired.
"Australia," he answered. "Maybe we can go there too."
"Would you really like to travel with me?" she asked.
"Of course if it means seeing you smile like you are now," he said. She shook her head in amusement.
"Then I suggest you get ready to take me to a lot of places," she joked.
"Already demanding," he teased. She shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly.
After dinner they walked on the beach. His jacket was wrapped around her shoulders. She stopped to look at the moon.
"It's a beautiful night," she commented. "I spent so many nights just gazing at it wishing I could live on it. Anything was better than Neverland."
"Well, living on the moon is quite difficult but at least you're not stuck on an island with Pan," he said standing behind her. She leaned back into his chest not really thinking about it. He smiled a bit at how comfortable she became with him within the last two hours.
"Thank you for not bailing on me," she said suddenly. "I nearly let you go earlier tonight."
"I wasn't going anywhere. It would be rude and more importantly, I meant what I said. I do enjoy your company," he said into her ear. She shivered a bit at hearing his voice so directly.
"Are you still cold?" he asked. She moved away from him creating a little distance.
"No," she said as she walked forward. He fell in line with her and they stood inches apart from each other.
They arrived at his vehicle and he let her in. He wasn't sure where he should drop her off at.
"Regina's," she said sensing his uncertainty.
They walked up the driveway and faced each other. "Tonight was lovely Neal. I hope to do this again sometime."
"I had a good time too and I hope we will do this again too. In the meantime I can make preparations for our trip around the world," he said.
She laughed softly. "You do that."
Neal reached out to move some hair out of her face so he could kiss her cheek. Tinkerbell saw him coming and turned her head. Neal was surprised when she kissed him and he didn't respond.
She pulled back realizing her mistake. A look of mortification crossed her features. "I'm so sorry. I thought you were going to kiss me when you-forget this just happened."
Instead of being angry like she thought he would be, he only smiled as he leaned down to kiss her again. He let his forehead rest against hers. "You have nothing to apologize for."
They stood there until they saw the light porch come on. They backed away from each other. "I think that's my cue to go in." She took off his jacket and handed it to him.
"Keep it," he said. "I have plenty of other ones at home."
"See you later Neal," she said.
"See you later Tink," he said as she walked into the house.
Regina was the first one Tinkerbell saw as she rounded the corner. She smiled seeing her friend in bliss. "The date went well I presume."
"It did. I guess I owe you one," she said following Regina into the study.
"No you don't. How did everything go?" Regina asked.
"Kind of awkward at first. He took me to some Italian restaurant," she started to explain.
"I knew that restaurant would be good for something," Regina interrupted.
"Anyway, we talked a little about Neverland and then we talked about Henry. He loves his son so much," she said.
"I know," Regina said. "And what else?"
"We took a walk on the beach and then came back here. Then I accidentally kissed him."
"How-
"But then he kissed me again before you rudely interrupted," Tinkerbell said pretending to be mad.
Regina was too excited for words. She simply hugged her friend. "I told you."
"Yeah. Yeah."
"And to think you were putting up such a fuss earlier. What a difference a few hours make," Regina observed.
"You're going to rub this in my face, aren't you?"
"Every chance I get," Regina said. "It's only fair."
Regina led Tinkerbell to the guest bedroom. She laid on the bed and noticed the moon. She smiled and wondered what Neal was doing.
Neal looked at the moon and a smile crept on this face. His date turned out well and to think he almost backed out of it. He had no idea what was going to come next but whatever it was he was ready to face it.
Author's Note: Not sure if I should leave this as a one shot. Should I continue this story for a few more chapters?