A/N- My muse is apparently on a kick of NOT working on my multi-chaps. Review pretty, pretty please, especially if you think I should do a follow up of Emma's response!

Bold is the song, italics are the letter. Song is What Hurts the Most by Rascal Flatts


They were back in Storybrooke and all Regina could see was Emma and Henry. She couldn't act towards them they way that she wanted to, they still didn't remember who she was to them before the second curse that changed their memories and sent everyone else back to the Enchanted Forest. Well, who she was to Henry, anyway, and who she had wanted to be to Emma. Regardless, she had to do what she planned. She had created something that she swore she would give to the blonde if she ever saw her again or if she were to come across the ability to have it delivered by someone, and she wasn't backing down, memories or not.

"Miss Swan, may I speak with you alone for a moment?" Regina asked Emma when there was finally a break in conversation between Snow and Emma.

"Uh…yeah sure." Regina signaled for the blonde to follow and they walked several feet away from the rest of the group.

"Before…before everything happened, I made a promise to myself that I would give you something. It may not matter much to you, but it does to me and I would really appreciate it if you would take a few minutes when you're alone to give it the attention it deserves."

"Uh…yeah, what is it?" Emma asked, confused. She could tell that the beautiful woman in front of her was conflicted but she couldn't figure out why. She had been told by Hook and the woman that was supposed to be her mother that this woman was Henry's adoptive mother, which still confused her. The brunette pulled out a slim jewel CD case with a blank CD in it and what looked like a note or something, handing it to her.

"It won't take much of your time and I'm sorry to be a burden, but this is something I had to do. I do hope you understand."

"Yes…thank you. I'll uh…I'll take care of it in a bit, I guess."

Regina gave a tight smile and tried to ignore the flutters in her heart.


Later that evening when Henry was asleep and Emma couldn't get over the strangeness of the situation all of these people were telling her about, she decided to pull out the CD case and her laptop. She slid the CD out and opened the letter. She popped her earbuds in to avoid the noise waking Henry, and she flicked on a small lamp so she could read the letter. A soft melody started playing while she read the neat script on the paper.

I can take the rain on the roof of this empty house
That don't bother me
I can take a few tears now and then and just let them out
I'm not afraid to cry every once in a while
Even though going on with you gone still upsets me
There are days every now and again I pretend I'm OK
But that's not what gets me

Dearest Emma,

I don't know what the situation will be when you read this. If you'll know me or remember me. I don't know if you'll be nearby or a realm away, but I have so many words I didn't say to you before the second curse. So many things left not confessed. For starters, let me tell you that I have never met a more stubborn, inconsistent and difficult woman as you. Yet, I find myself crying tears, which I cannot stop nor deny, because of the lack of your presence in my life. At first, I told everyone it was only because I miss Henry, and I so do miss Henry. But he isn't the only loss that I feel.

What hurts the most
Was being so close
And having so much to say
And watching you walk away
And never knowing
What could have been
And not seeing that loving you
Is what I was tryin' to do

I am uncertain what would have transpired between you and I had none of this ever happened, but at the very least we were becoming friends. We saw each other. I saw you as a woman who had been through a terrible childhood so she gave up her child so she wouldn't put a kid through that herself. I saw you as a woman who gave up her heart so that he could have his best chance, and that is a sacrifice that I cannot imagine bearing for the ten years that you bore it for. I don't know how long my separation from Henry will be, I do hope it isn't a lifetime, because it hurts enough as it is. I'm not completely certain how you saw me, but you saved me over and over, we saved each other, it seemed to be our 'thing,' kind of like how your parents always find each other.

It's hard to deal with the pain of losing you everywhere I go
But I'm doin' It
It's hard to force that smile when I see our old friends and I'm alone
Still Harder
Getting up, getting dressed, livin' with this regret
But I know if I could do it over
I would trade give away all the words that I saved in my heart
That I left unspoken

So the words I have to share with you: Emma Swan, I am in love with you. I don't know when it happened. Maybe it was one of the several times we did magic together, maybe it was one of the many times we saved each other's life. Maybe it was in one of our silly and relieved family hugs with Henry. I truly don't know. What I do know is that giving up Henry was one of the two hardest things I've ever had to do in my life…the other being giving up you. I see you everywhere. It's impossible to be around your parents and your friends, because all I want is to ask them how you're doing, but they don't know either, it just seems to be an instinct for me to wonder.

What hurts the most
Is being so close
And having so much to say
And watching you walk away
And never knowing
What could have been
And not seeing that loving you
Is what I was trying to do, oh.

Other than the fact that I love you, there is so much more I never said to you. I think you're a wonderful mother, and I know the memories you have of raising Henry are mine, but when you were in Storybrooke with him, that whole time when you and I wanted nothing but to destroy each other, I saw the ease with him that you had and I was so jealous of it. You are truly a great and good person. You care for people, good or bad, you care for them and you protect them and that is a trait that too few people have. You are smart and sometimes I would wonder if you knew that. Occasionally you would act like you don't, or you would speak in a manner that alluded to a lack of intelligence, but you catch things that other people don't; details and peoples' tells. Most don't know how to look for someone who is fooling them, but you do. And one of my favorite things about you is that you're fiercely loyal and that is an incredible characteristic to have.

What hurts the most
Was being so close
And having so much to say (to say)
And watching you walk away
And never knowing
What could have been
And not seeing that loving you
Is what I was trying to do

Something else I don't think you've been told enough, at least not by someone who truly meant it sincerely, is that you're beautiful. Emma, you are the most beautiful woman I have ever met in my many years of life. Your eyes remind me of the sea when it's stormy outside, how it turns a deep green tinted with a hint of blue. Your hair reminds me of the sun, which is fitting because you are like the sun to me, even though I've always preferred the night because I love the stars, you are the sun because when you are there all of the other stars disappear because your brightness is overpowering. I love when you wear tank tops because you look so comfortable and so at ease that it's easy to relax with you. But I do so love when you dress nicely; because your body deserves the flattery nice clothing gives to it. When you smile, which you don't do often enough, it is the most powerful expression I have ever seen. Your smile is one of those smiles that cannot be ignored or go unreturned. You have that effect on people…but most of all you have that effect on me.

So, Emma Swan, I don't know what position you will be in when you read this, if you will remember me, or if you won't. But I have to let you know that I love you and never will I ever again be able to love another person the way that I love you. And I don't hold you responsible for any of my pain, you never knew how I felt, or maybe you did but I never told you. And I don't expect anything in return; so do not feel obligated to give me anything. No matter what you believe, no matter what anyone tells you, I do love you.

Forever Yours,

Regina