Snow's heart drops when she sees her daughter's misty, swollen eyes. All she wants to do is grab Emma in a tight hug and tell her it's okay, but Emma is a grown woman now and she doesn't want that. Snow scoots closer to Emma but not close enough to make her uncomfortable. Emma glances up at her with those beautiful eyes that show how broken she is.
"Talk to me sweetie." She coos gently. She hesitantly reaches out and brushes a stray hair out of Emma's face. Emma lowers her gaze to the pillow and Snow can see the tears starting to fall again.
"I didn't know it still hurt." Emma says so quietly that she can barely hear.
"What still hurt?" Snow prods with as much ease as she can. Her mind is racing while trying to figure out what is hurting her daughter.
"I-I can still remember saying those prayers every night. And the constant pain in the morning when you didn't come." Emma looks up and Snow can tell she is looking for some reaction but she is still confused. Emma looks down again but sits up.
"What do you-" Snow's sentence is interrupted by her own thoughts. A realization. "Annie. The song, you lived it..." Her heart drops and a pit forms in her stomach at the thought of her Emma living in a poor orphanage like the one in the movie. Emma nods her head but smiles despite the tearstains on her cheeks.
"Except I wasn't brave enough to run away, and I didn't get adopted by a rich couple who actually loved me." Emma's confession sends another heart wrenching tingle throughout her body. Snow reaches out and cups Emma's face much like she did earlier that day.
"We love you... I love you." She says with her whole being and desperately wants Emma to know how sincere she is. Emma averts her eyes but stays in her grasp.
"I know- but just listening to the song made everything hurt again. I feel like I still don't have parents and-" She can't take anymore of Emma's rant so she stops her by taking one hand and wiping the tears away.
"You have parents now, and as much as I want to take your pain away from living in an orphanage, I can't." Her voice cracks. Emma finally makes eye contact and she can see her hopeful gaze. "But I have always loved you and always will. So please, sweetie, don't cry." Snow smiles and suddenly realizes she is crying too. Emma nods and adjusts herself so she is leaning on Snow. Snow moves so they can rest on the pillow comfortably. When they finally get settled, Emma's head is resting beneath her chin. She faintly smiles when Emma scoots closer and wraps an arm around her torso. With one arm wrapped tight around Emma's shoulders, her hand automatically makes its way to her daughter's blond hair and she begins to run her fingers through Emma's hair.
A few minutes go by and Snow sits up slightly to peer down at her daughter and is relieved to see that Emma's eyes are closed, and her breathing is even and calm. Someone opens the door and peeks through. Charming smiles at the scene before giving her a questioning gaze.
What happened? He mouths the words to her. Snow shakes her head and continues to gaze at her daughter. Her eyes once again get misty as she looks up at her husband.
She's sleeping. I will tell you later. Charming nods and quietly shuts the door. Her chest is filled with love and she almost bursts when Emma lets out a soft sigh and nestles closer. This is what she has been looking for her whole life. It feels so good being so near Emma. She refuses to let the thought of her missing out on 28 years of this pull her heart down. She can deal with that heartache later. For now, she is going to enjoy the moment and pray it never ends.