Regina, Emma, and Henry sat on the beach around a fire pit, each with a long forked stick in hand, roasting marshmallows over the fire. Regina had been against it at first, but upon being reminded by Henry that this was an indulgent moment for them, she grabbed a stick and began roasting. The Mills pair kept their marshmallows a bit away from the fire, so they could slowly roast to an even toasty brown. Unlike Emma, who engulfed her marshmallows in the flames, turning it instantly into a charred mess.
"Really, Miss Swan?" Regina spoke up, scrunching her nose in distaste. "You might as well be eating the coals. How can you stand eating them so burnt?" Emma shrugged.
"Your way takes too long." Emma complained.
"Our way gets better results. Here." Regina stuck another marshmallow on her stick and slowly toasted them to perfection. Henry, having been distracted by his mothers' banter, just barely avoided his perfectly toasted marshmallow falling into the fire. He squished the sticky treat between chocolate and graham crackers and took the first bite. Gooey marshmallow and melted chocolate oozed over the sides of the cracker and coated his face and hands in sticky sugary goodness. Yes, there was nothing quite like the first s'more of the summer.
"Henry, you got marshmallow everywhere." Regina said in a tone that made it sound like he was five years old again.
"That's kinda the point of s'mores, Mom." Henry grinned.
"You're just lucky I have wet wipes with me." Regina said.
"Of course you do." Emma grinned, because leave it to Regina to constantly be in mom mode..
Emma and Regina's marshmallows were soon deemed perfect and their own s'mores were constructed. Emma went into it much like Henry did, getting sticky marshmallow all over her lower face, while Regina tried her best to find an angle that didn't get her sticky like her current company.
"Just bite it, Regina." Emma said once her s'more was swallowed down. "Getting a little messy for a minute won't kill you." Regina could still hear her mother's voice telling her to keep clean, even after all this time, but doing things differently was the point of their summer. Regina took a bite and felt the stickiness coat her lips and chin and cheeks. The treat itself was delicious; she always did have a sweet tooth. That, combined with the salty sea air, the cool breeze, and the warmth of the fire sent a calmness Regina had barely known until recently. Getting the wipes out, Regina cleaned up her face and set the pack aside for the others to use.
This was nice. Her son and her best friend, on the beach enjoying themselves. As she got lost in thought, she noticed Emma's face change from calm to mischievous.
"Hey, Henry." Emma gained his attention and began making kissy faces, moving her sticky face closer to his.
"No!" Henry laughed, leaning away from his blonde mother. He looked to his other mother for help. Regina just watched their antics with an amused shake of her head.
"Mo-om!" Henry voiced in the same tone as Emma just did. Henry made his own kissy faces, but instead of a scared reaction, Regina merely gently held his face still and pulled out a wet wipe to clean his face. "Mom!" Regina smiled, satisfied that she avoided getting sticky once more. At least until she felt sticky lips press a kiss on her left cheek. Her eyes went wide and she looked to Emma who grinned like an idiot.
"Emma!" Regina said, shocked at the fact that Emma kissed her just to get marshmallow on her face. Emma just laughed, looking victorious.
"Haha! Yes!" Emma cheered, her fists pumped into the air in her mirth. Regina rolled her eyes as she wiped her face once more.
Regina reminded them not to eat too much as her two companions started on another s'more.
"And no more sticky kisses!" Regina warned. "It's like getting kisses from a four-year-old again." This then turned into story time, where Regina told stories of Henry when he was a small child. "I don't know why he was always so sticky!" Regina laughed.
Yes, this summer was going to be a great one, all three of them felt it.