"I'm going to go out tonight," Henry announced at one of the dinners with his moms.
Regina raised an eyebrow at his son as she sliced the chicken, "You are?"
Henry played with the vegetables in his plates and lowered his gaze to hide the red in his cheeks, "I'm going to the fair with Violet."
"So a date?" Emma asked, knowing it would make him uncomfortable.
"No, we're just…going to the fair."
Emma smiled and nodded, "So a fair date."
Henry rolled his eyes and looked at Regina who was quieter than he thought she would be, "So, can I go?"
She smiled and nodded, "Sure Henry. Just don't come home late, okay?"
The boy nodded and stood up, picking up his plates, and took them to the kitchen before rushing upstairs to get ready. When he disappeared, Emma turned to Regina and raised an eyebrow, "That was easy. I didn't think you would be so cool about that."
Regina stood up as well, picked up the plates swiftly and looked at Emma, "I hope you're in the mood for a fair, Swan. We are going as well."
As she said that, she disappeared through the kitchen door and Emma, jaw dropped, had to rush to keep up with her, "What do you mean?"
"You thought I would let Henry go that easily? He's going to a place with many dark places with her girlfriend. I'm not stupid."
Emma wrinkled her nose, "Gross. He's only 14, Regina."
The Mayor put her glass in the dishwasher and then stood up, "He's got Internet."
"And apparently so do you."
Regina rolled her eyes, "I'll keep my distance. I'll just go to make sure everything goes okay."
"He doesn't need a guardian angel," Emma argued.
Regina crossed her arms and before she spoke, they heard Henry saying goodbye from the stairs followed by the door slamming shut. "I'm going. Are you?"
Emma bit her lip and stared at her before finally throwing her hands in the air, "Fine. Let me grab my jacket."
"Henry would name this with some sort of animal name, like Operation Penguin."
They were walking through the fair, following Henry at a safe distance, and against Regina's warning, Emma had already bought a cotton candy.
"Why Penguin?"
Emma shrugged and ate the last piece of cotton candy, "I don't know. It's the first animal I associated to love. They mate for life and declare their love by searching the smoothest rock and presenting it to the one they like."
"I'm concerned about how much you know about penguins."
They saw Henry buying tickets for the Horror House and entering with Violet, holding hands. Emma nudged Regina and nodded towards them right before the door closed behind them.
"Let's go," Regina said walking towards it.
"Seriously? Are you not gonna let him breathe?"
Regina turned to Emma and raised an eyebrow, "Do I sense fear in you voice, Swan?"
Emma rolled her eyes and puffed her chest, "Fear? Me? Please." And without waiting for her partner in crime to join, she bought two tickets for the house.
Since there was no line, they entered almost right away and they stepped into the darkness after the door closed behind them. When it did, Regina felt Emma's back going rigid and leaned in to whisper; she was surprised by how close she was to Emma so as she leaned in, her lips lightly brushed Emma's ear.
"If it's too much for you just say it. We still have time to go back."
Emma turned to face her and felt Regina's breathing close to her face, "Are you going to stand the all day or shall we go in?"
They both stared without seeing each other in the darkness until a scream from far away broke the silence and made Emma jump. Regina straightened her back and didn't bother to hide the smile as she went forward. They found a door in front of them and it led them to a room with more light. There was a chandelier swinging softly, making the room look terrifying with the shadows it made.
Emma and Regina walked through the corridor, passing by restaurant tables covered by ripped white cloths. The cutlery was scattered around he floor as if someone had thrown them away in a rage. They could hear classic music and at the end of the corridor, to the left, there was a table, the only one that was organized and clean, and someone sitting on the chair with his back to them.
Emma touched Regina's arm and nodded to him. They walked by the table slowly, staring at him, and when they thought they were out of reach, a hand fell on Regina's shoulder. She shivered and jumped, letting out a cry. The fake hand of the mannequin fell loosely and Emma looked at Regina. Her eyes were wide open and, as she realised Emma was looking at her, she cleared her throat and fixed her shirt, feigning calm.
"Let's keep going."
"You sure you want to go on? You seem pretty scared," Emma joked.
They went through the next door and arrived to a hospital room. Lots of beds surrounded the corridor, full of people groaning and screaming. The couple walked slowly, watching the patients in case one of them jumped on them. And it did. A young girl pounced on Emma and grabbed her arms, grunting. Another one followed her and pounced on Regina and so all the patients started to come closer.
Emma turned to run but saw Regina standing still between hands that tried to reach for her, so she grabbed her hand and pulled until they crossed the next door.
They stopped to catch their breaths, letting go of her hands. Emma placed her on Regina's back, "Are you okay? You were like paralyzed in there."
The Mayor shook her head, "It's okay. I just didn't expect that."
Emma turned to take in the next room and she found herself in an old, wooden house. To her left there were stairs leading to the next floor, where someone was screaming. To her right, a door that led to a living room opened and closed. She gazed over at Regina and raised an eyebrow.
"Are you going to lose it in this room too?"
Regina rolled her eyes and punched her arm, "Shut up."
Emma smiled and both of them walked through the corridor. Suddenly, the door opened wide and a ghost jumped out of it, flying towards them. However, they reached the door before it could touch them. When they closed it, silence took over and they only saw a little boy with his back to them. His hair was almost white and he was sitting on the floor. When they stepped forward, he started to hum a children's song, and they both shivered.
It wasn't until they were right behind him when he asked in an innocent tone, "Wanna play with me?"
Emma and Regina looked at each other. They couldn't go though the door because he was blocking the way. Then, he asked again, and this time Emma swallowed and answered, "…yes?"
Suddenly he jumped towards them, flashing big fans and red eyes. Regina cursed under her breath. He ran between them and disappeared in the darkness. They shared a look and kept going.
A strong smell of damp was waiting for them in the next room and soon they saw zombies approaching to them. They ran to the next door but, in a turn, they met a bunch of zombies in the way.
"I didn't sign up for a steeplechase," Regina complained.
"C'mon. I race you," Emma answered before running towards the zombies.
Without a second thought, Regina ran after her and away from the zombies. She then realised she was smiling, almost laughing, listening to Emma yelling she wouldn't catch her. She would have never thought she would be inside a Horror House, racing her girlfriend while dodging zombies.
Regina stopped as she thought that. Girlfriend? While she caught her breath, she saw Emma dodging another zombie while she laughed. Yeah, sure, they spent time together now because of Henry, and yes she had fun with Emma, and yes she felt comfortable with her. And yes, she was pretty. Regina placed her hands on her hips and breathed, "Fuck."
At the end of the corridor, Emma yelled, "You're going to lose, you coward!"
Regina shook her head and ran as fast as she could. So fast she didn't have time to slow down when she reached the door and pushed Emma through it. They tripped and Regina grabbed Emma's arms to keep balanced. She looked up and saw the sheriff looked down at her with a smile, making Regina's heart skip a beat. Well, fuck.
"Careful, Flash. You almost run over me."
Regina stood up and smiled nervously.
Evil laughter welcomed them to the next room: a witch house. Over their head, some witches flew in their brooms and, on the corridor's sides, others threw all kind of weird things in large cauldrons. Emma and Regina walked more relaxed now but then the witches started to splash water and to throw confetti at them. Emma grabbed Regina's hand and pulled again, leaving the room between confetti and laughter. When they crossed the door, they stopped to get some air. In the next room, a light blinked and when Emma saw Regina, she laughed at her.
"You look like a rainbow."
"Have you taken a look at yourself?" Regina reached for a confetti Emma had on her hair, but the light blinked and, in the dark, Regina's fingers brushed her cheek softly. The light blinked again and her eyes met Emma's, who swallowed. They stood still and suddenly Emma looked down at Regina's lips before the light blinked off again. Without realising it, Regina leaned in and before the light turned on again, Emma closed the distance that kept their lips apart.
Regina felt Emma's soft lips against hers and her heart skipped a beat. Through closed eyes, they felt the light going on and off. She got lost in the kiss and they didn't even realise the robot grunting and jumping a few steps ahead of them.
When they finally separated, Regina stared at Emma, whose cheeks were now red.
"Sorry, it just—it was an impulse."
Regina shook her head and breathed, still trying to understand what had happened.
"You don't have to apologize."
They walked to the door and exited the Horror House with a shy smile on their faces.
"That was wild. The house I mean, not the…you know, kiss," Emma fumbled.
Regina nodded as they walked, "It was."
"The kiss was really good too though."
The Mayor looked at Emma and smiled. They arrived to a booth where they displayed pictures taken in the last corridor of the house, and when Regina found theirs, she blushed wildly. It had captured their kiss. She didn't have time to say anything before she heard a familiar voice behind them.
"Ew moms, get a room," Henry joked before walking away with Violet.