Author's Note: This is an AU modern college story, with a focus on Emma finding a sense of home at college and a romance with a certain "pirate." There is no curse, no magic, and some characters and relationships may not appear at all. Oh, also, I don't own "Once Upon A Time."
Chapter 1:
Emma squinted in reaction to the glare of the sun reflecting off the snow. She shifted the duffle bag on her shoulder as the taxi pulled away from the curb. Maine. In January. What had she been thinking?
"Hi there!" a voice shouted as an unidentifiable blur whizzed past her on a bike.
Emma waved suspiciously. What was it with people being all friendly in this state? She sighed as she looked around her at the quaint buildings and snow covered trees. It was indeed the picturesque campus depicted in the brochure sent to her the previous November. It had been an odd chance of luck that a former foster kid from Oregon would be offered a full scholarship to tiny Storybrooke University in Maine. It could not have come at a better time. She was in the middle of the semester at community college after failing out of her freshman year at Portland University. Nothing quite ruins a GPA like thinking you're pregnant and having your boyfriend tell you that you're on your own and oh yea, he had been cheating on you for most of the relationship.
And so now here she was, mid-way through what should have been her sophomore year of college, starting over once again. After 18 years in foster care and group homes, it was nothing unusual. Luckily, between taking pre-session, 2 regular sessions, and post-session in the summer and maxing out at 21 credits in the fall semester, she had managed to catch up to be considered at sophomore status. She even earned a 3.7 GPA. After Neal's betrayal and abandonment, she channeled all of her anger and time into her education. Sure, it meant she had no social life but people had never offered much anyway. School was going to be her way out of the crappy existence that had always defined her life. And so, when the scholarship offer came, she jumped, even if it was across the country and ridiculously freezing.
With a mental note to invest in a warmer jacket, she hoisted her other bag onto her shoulder and began to wander around campus. When she finally found Emmett Hall, the sun was setting and ushering in the darkness that was so familiar in early evening hours of the winter months. Once inside, she easily found Room 104. She paused and took a deep breath, fearing the worst before pushing the door open. She was greeted by the site of a gorgeous brunette in a tiny skirt and stomach-bearing shirt...apparently oblivious or immune to the climate outside.
"Hi! You must be my new roomie. I'm Ruby. Thank God, you look normal. My last roommate slept all day and did internet role-playing games all night. I have crap luck...last year's roommate thought she was a vampire. I mean, RPatz is hot, but it's not worth it to be so pale. I should know. Anyway, I should shut up now..."
"Wow, OK, Hi. I'm Emma."
"Sorry, I know I can be overwhelming. Just tell me if I ever get too much."
"Will do," Emma chuckled as she tossed her bags on the empty bed.
A petite girl with a pixie haircut suddenly appeared in the doorway.
"You're here! Welcome! I'm Mary-Margaret, your floor RA."
"Thanks, nice to meet you."
"Are you OK in here? Anything I can help with?"
"Nah, I've got it covered."
Mary-Margaret peered past Emma and noticed her tattered bags on the bed.
"Is that all you have?"
"Oh, yea, well I'm a minimalist," Emma responded, glancing away and absent-mindedly running her hand along her new desk.
If Mary-Margaret noticed her sudden vagueness, she didn't call her on it, which made Emma like her automatically. Emma was well aware of her trust issues with people (for good reason) and was grateful for people who respected that and let her do things in her own time.
"I am so sorry, Emma, to run out on your first night, but I have a date with this guy Victor and we've been dancing around something forever."
"Totally fine, Ruby. You don't have to babysit me. Saturday before classes start...go out while you can."
"Thanks, babe," Ruby shouted as she bounced out of the room. "See you later...or maybe tomorrow..."
"Be safe...," Mary-Margaret called after her nervously and Emma suspected it wasn't the first time the RA attempted in vain to guide Emma's new roommate.
"So," Mary-Margaret turned to her with a smile. "Are you sure you don't need anything?"
"Nope," Emma answered, wanting to keep the conversation short. She knew how to fend for herself and she would figure out this place on her own too.
"Alright, well, welcome to Storybrooke."
A few hours later, Emma had unpacked her clothes and the few mementos she had gathered over the years. Her most recent stay was in a cheap motel during her time at community college, so she didn't have much in terms of housewares.
A muffled sound came at the door and Emma protectively yanked the door open to see who was encroaching on her space.
Mary-Margaret jumped back in surprise.
"I'm sorry, I didn't get a chance to hang this before you arrived."
Emma glanced at the door to see a decorative mask like someone would wear to a masquerade, bearing her name. She hadn't noticed earlier a similar one with Ruby's name that must have been on the door already.
"Did you make that?"
"Of course, it's all part of what I do here. That way you always know when you're home."
Emma averted the eye contact. Home was a tough notion for her. She didn't want to be rude though.
"Well, thanks," she said with hesitation that expressed gratitude but that the conversation was at an end.
Mary-Margaret turned to leave, clearly picking up on her new resident's coldness, but then changed her mind and reached down for a bag at her feet.
"I don't want to be presumptuous but I noticed your bags were small and thought you might need to borrow these for little while."
Emma took the bag and glancing inside saw sheets and what appeared to be a crocheted blanket. She was startled, which threw off her usual stoicism. Looking down, her eyes became hot with the unshed tears that she desperately tried to hide from her new RA.
Mary-Margaret reached out a hand to touch her arm but pulled back at Emma's embarrassment.
"If you ever need anything, my door is always open. Especially tonight-I'm the on-duty RA. I'm just a few doors down...108."
Emma just nodded and the pixie brunette replied with a small smile.
Emma closed the door gently behind her. She liked the girl, but the kindness was unfair. She had gotten used to a world where people were only out for themselves and didn't stick around. She didn't trust Mary-Margaret, but the difference from everyone else previously was that she felt bad about that fact.
Hours later, she tossed and turned in her new bed. She had decided to use the sheets and blanket...it didn't make sense not to. Ruby wasn't home and she got the impression that she would not be back until the early morning hours. She was tired but too unnerved to sleep. She knew this new place could be the opportunity to do something different, to be different, but past experience was holding her back. Her silent contemplation was interrupted by the sound of singing in the hallway. Glancing at the clock, 1:30 AM, she wasn't necessarily surprised to hear noise in a college dorm, but this sounded like just one person, rather than a drunken crowd.
She got out of bed, forgoing her sweatshirt despite the cold but slipping on a pair of ratty slippers, and peered into the hallway. A few doors down, outside of Mary-Margaret's room, sat a guy with tousled brown hair and a scruffy face. His eyes were closed as he slumped against the wall with his chin to his chest, but he continued to half-sing, half-mumble the same phrase repeatedly.
"Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me..."
Oh yea, had she forgotten to mention that he was dressed like a pirate?
"Excuse me, some of us are trying to sleep," she announced with perhaps a bit more irritation than necessary.
His eyes remained closed and she wondered if he was asleep. She moved closer until he startled her with a response.
"Sorry, lass, but sleep is for the old. We're young. You shouldn't be in bed on a Saturday night...unless, of course it's for more pleasurable reasons than sleep."
She was taken aback by his British accent, which sounded far too appealing considering it was coming from a drunk college kid dressed like a pirate.
"Well, it's my first night, so try not to be such an asshole and..."
She trailed off as the pirate opened his eyes at her curse and trailed them up her body until meeting her eyes.
"Well, hello there, love," the pirate said, touching his lower lip with his index finger.
When his eyes were raking across her body, she became highly aware of her decision to remain in her tank top rather than taking the 3 seconds to pull on her sweatshirt. At this moment, however, all she could contemplate was the unfairness of those blue eyes and their likely ability to soften anyone's frustration.
Emma realized she hadn't spoken and that their eye contact was lasting far longer than it should between strangers. She looked away and shifted herself back a step.
"Why are you here?"
The drunk pirate's eyes closed again and he mumbled something about keys and a roommate. Emma sighed, unsure of what to do until finally deciding to knock on Mary-Margaret's door despite the late hour.
"Emma! Is everything OK?"
I'm fine, but, um, you have a pirate outside your door mumbling about a lost key and I don't know what to do with him. And wow, never thought I would say that sentence."
Mary-Margaret wiped the sleep from her eyes with confusion, but then an attractive guy popped up behind her. Emma couldn't help but quirk an eyebrow. She did not expect this from a girl that seemed more like Sister Mary Margaret than a college student.
"Sorry, the pirate belongs to me. I'm David, Mary-Margaret's boyfriend, and this drunkard is my roommate."
The pirate opened one eye lazily as David helped him to stand and leaned him against the door frame.
"Really, Kill" Mary-Margaret chastised him in a tone that couldn't help but betray some sense of affection despite his behavior. "It's Emma's first night and look at the impression you've given her of us."
Emma smiled softly as she noticed Killian's facial expression change, clearly guilty to have disappointed Mary-Margaret. He stood taller and directed an apologetic face to the RA, which softened her own expression. Emma felt unnecessary for a moment but then he suddenly reached for her hand, which automatically pulled her closer to him. She wanted to put more space between them but was paralyzed by those piercing blue eyes locked with her own. He slowly lifted their entwined hands to his mouth and gently kissed her knuckles, never breaking eye contact.
"Sincerest apologies, milady."
Emma sputtered a non-response as Killian released her and then turned to David with a slight smirk.
"Yea, don't think she meant hit on her instead, Kill."
"Sorry, mate," Killian replied to him, glancing back at Emma with a quick wink. "Couldn't help it...can you blame me?"
"OK, let's get you inside before you traumatize my new resident any further," Mary-Margaret said, spurning David to playfully push the pirate into Mary-Maragret's room.
"I am so sorry," she said, turning back to Emma. "I swear we are normal people. I told him not to go to that Pirates & Wenches party thrown by Chi Psi..."
"Just glad to hear that's not his normal attire."
"Anyway, we really are sorry he woke you up. He will apologize later."
Emma laughed. She could tell that although Mary-Margaret was a sweetheart, she didn't let the guys in her life get away with anything.
"I'm sure he will, but really, it's fine."
Mary-Margaret smiled and closed the door softly. Emma shivered as she walked back to her room, unsure if due to the cold or the memory of the tickle of the pirate's scruff and heat of his lips against the back of her hand. As she climbed into bed, she shook the latter notion out of her head. It was her first night here and already she felt the potential that her carefully-constructed walls might crumble in this place, something that she simply could not afford.