David looks up from the note to smile over at an unsuspecting Regina. They'd been doing research in the library for what seemed like at least half the day, and she is bent over the table, engrossed in a large volume, brow scrunched in deep concentration. David hates that the beginning of their relationship has become shadowed by another of what feels to be a never ending stream of impending world-ending disasters. They'd come to appreciate all the small moments they could find in between, and he nods to himself in satisfaction as he finishes the note. He hopes to brighten her day a bit, break up the feelings of doom that seem to linger over every precious moment recently. He puts the ribbon bookmark back in place and stands, carrying the book across the room and placing it in front of Regina.
"I can't make heads or tails of this section. Maybe you'll have more luck."
She glares at the addition to her already towering stack and then sighs, running a hand through her hair. "I'll take a look at it after I finish this chapter. I just need to close my eyes for a minute, I feel like I'm going cross-eyed." She leans back in her chair and David comes up behind her to place his hands on her shoulders, giving them a light rub.
"We've been at this for a while now. One more hour and we take a break. Non-optional," he adds when she opens her mouth to argue.
Going back to his seat, he picks up the next book, this one something a little easier for him to read, and loses himself in the text. It's nearly twenty minutes later when Regina finally gets around to picking up the large tome, and he's jolted from his reading by a violent whack to the back of his head with the very book he'd handed her.
"What were you thinking?" she shrieks. "Do you have any idea how old this book is? Hundreds of years, David. And you've just defaced it with your cheesy love note."
"It wasn't that cheesy," he defends, rubbing his head where the book had hit him. "And it can't be that precious to you if you go around using it as a weapon. So what if it has a little extra writing in it? I'm sure it doesn't mind."
She raises a scolding eyebrow at him and shakes her head, but he can see the beginnings of a smile.
"There, see? No harm done."
"Belle isn't going to be happy," she tells him.
"What's the likelihood she'd ever look at that specific page?"
She wraps her arms loosely around his neck, bending to give him a quick kiss. "With Belle, those odds are unfortunately high. But we'll worry about that later. Right now, how about you and I take that much needed break? I'm starving."
He hums. "Sounds good to me."
"You go get the car warmed up, I'll be out in a second. There are a few things I want to put away before we go."
"You've got it."
The second she hears the door shut, she flips the book back open and tears the corner containing the note clean out, leaving the actual text of the page still intact. She smiles as she closes it once again and makes her way to the front, tucking the paper safely into her blazer.