Author's Note: Here's the second chapter of the story! I hope it's peaked your interest so far. I don't know how often I'll be able to update, but I'll do my best to get these chapters to you guys whenever I can. My workload is usually unpredictable, but since we're nearing the holidays, things have slowed down, but they'll probably pick right back up after New Year's Day.
Happy reading!
Emma Swan walked confidently down the hallways of her old high school, taking a moment to stop and look at the glass cases that held so many reminders of what she still considered to be some of the best years of her life. She smiled to herself as she saw the picture of herself running after a soccer ball, concentration etched on her face as she prepared to make the kick that won her team their first national championship in over twenty years.
She took a deep breath as she glanced at the other objects in the cases before she continued towards one of the classrooms that she'd once spent a lot of time in as a student. She slowed down as she reached the doorway, smiling as she caught sight of a little boy sitting in one of the desks, his tongue poking out to the side in concentration as he switched crayons without looking up. "They grow up so fast."
"Auntie Emma!" The boy shouted out in excitement as soon as he heard the woman's voice. Emma laughed as she watched him hop out of his seat and rush towards her, his work quickly forgotten.
"Rolo! When did you start high school?" Emma asked him in mock-concern, her face scrunching up as she pretended to remember something from long ago. "I could've sworn it was only yesterday that you, your mommy, and I purchased everything you needed for kindergarten."
"That was yesterday, Auntie Emma." The boy said in an exasperated tone, as Emma turned to look at her sister-in-law and best friend who was sitting at the front of the classroom watching their interaction. "I'm only five."
She couldn't help but laugh as she let her fingers play with the younger boy's unruly hair. "Make sure you don't grow up too fast, buddy." She told him as she grabbed him into her arms and lifted him up, planting noisy kisses to his cheeks as he giggled and tried to push her away. She set him down carefully and watched as he ran back to his desk, sat in his chair, and picked up his crayon to continue working. "What are you drawing?"
"You can't see it yet!" He scolded her, sending a small glare her way to make sure that she didn't think about peeking at his work. "It's not ready!" He told her seriously.
"Don't worry, buddy." Emma told him gently, a small sigh escaping her lips as she rolled her eyes. "I understand that better than anyone."
"I take it you're still struggling."
"That's an understatement." Emma muttered just loudly enough for Marian to hear her. She rubbed her neck with one hand as she set the other one on her waist. "I can't even get myself to start, but I really don't want to talk about that right now. How's everything going in here? Is everything ready for the new school year?"
"Almost."
"Is there anything I can do to help?" Emma asked her as she looked around, keeping an eye out for anything that was left to set up that she could take care of.
"Not really. Have you decided if you're going to take the coaching position yet?"
Emma laughed somewhat humorlessly. "There's nothing I'd love more than to coach the girls' soccer team this season, but I have a lot going on and I don't know if it'd be smart of me to add anything else to my list of Things to Do when I'm already struggling to get through the first thing on my list." She said as she scratched at the back of her head with the hand that she'd placed on her neck before letting both of her hands fall to her sides.
"Hey, you don't have to make a decision now." Marian told her as she got up and made her way around her desk to where Emma was standing. "I'm sure that you'll make the right choice for yourself when the time comes."
"I hope your right." Emma told her with a sigh. "Are you still dropping Roland off at my house this afternoon?" She asked as she shook herself out of her bad mood, smiling as she thought about another afternoon spent with the adorable little boy.
"Only if that's still okay with you."
"It's more than okay! You know how much I love spending time with my favorite nephew." Emma told her with a smile, laughing when Roland spoke.
"I'm your only nephew." He told her matter-of-factly.
Marian joined in her laughter, shaking her head as she watched her son continue to work on his drawing without giving them a second glance.
"He's such a little smart-ass." Emma muttered quietly enough so that Roland wouldn't overhear her.
"Oh, shut up." Marian said, smacking her playful in the stomach as they both laughed. "I'll take credit for him being book-smart, but as for him being a 'smart-ass,' yeah, that's from your side of the family."
"Are you calling me a smart-ass?" Emma asked as she placed her hand over her heart, a mock-wounded expression on her face.
"Well, you are rather fluent in sarcasm."
"Me? Sarcastic?" Emma asked, a mischievous grin on her face. "Never."
Marian snorted. "You're worse than Robin."
"Maybe." Emma conceded with a nod of her head. "But I'm also better looking." She said with a wink before she turned around and started walking away, laughter bubbling in her throat as she went. "I'll see you guys later!" She shouted over her shoulder as she walked out of the classroom, Marian's own laughter and Roland's goodbye following behind her.
Emma groaned as she bent down, letting her forehead rest on the keys and random notes filled the air, leaving behind a haunting sound. She'd been trying to get a start on the first song of her newest album, but any moment of inspiration she'd felt was fleeting at best and it always left her feeling frustrated with herself. "I suck." She muttered to herself as she laid her cheek on the ivory keys in defeat. She'd been at this for over an hour and she had nothing to show for it except blank sheet music.
She startled slightly when her phone rang, and she pulled herself away from her piano somewhat reluctantly, already knowing who she'd find on the other line without having to look at the screen.
"Hello?" Emma said, her hesitation making it sound more like a question than a greeting.
"Please, tell me you're currently working through some of the best bars you've ever written." The voice on the other end of the line said as soon as she'd answered.
"Heh."
"If not the best bars you've written, at least a bunch of passable ones?"
"I've played a few notes…" Emma admitted somewhat reluctantly.
"Uh huh…" The voice on the other end urged her to continue with a hint of excitement in their tone.
"And then I didn't lift my forehead of the keys and they eventually stopped playing on their own."
"Emma." They sighed. "I'm not trying to pressure you, but you're the one who put herself on a deadline, and you're the one who's struggling to meet it. If this isn't working for you, you have to let me know."
"I'm just struggling to find my inspiration, but I don't want to move the deadline any more than I already have. You've already done too much to help me."
"I think you should consider setting up a meeting with the studio. You don't have to make a decision today, but-"
"Uh, Lily?" Emma asked, holding her phone at arm's length. "I can't really hear you!"
"Emma? Can you hear me?"
"I'm going through a tunnel!"
"Emma Swan!" Emma quickly hung up the phone, grimacing at the thought of how upset her producer was surely going be with her the next time that they spoke.
"Well, no time to think about my impending death now. I have an excitable five-year-old to get the house ready for." She muttered to herself as she walked out of her music room and into the living room to get everything in order before Marian came by to drop Roland off.
"Okay, mommy, I'm ready to go!" Roland shouted as he ran into the living room with his backpack shuffling on his small shoulders with every step that he took.
"Whoa, buddy, why are you in such a rush to leave?" Emma asked with a pout on her lips. "I thought we were having fun together."
"We were, Auntie Emma, but my daddy get home tomorrow morning and I want to make sure I'm asleep early."
"He's not Santa Claus, Roly." She told him, the laughter that had been bubbling in her throat finally escaping as she saw him roll his eyes at her.
"I know that, but he's bring us postcards from grandma and grandpa!" He told her as he bounced in place.
"Oh, yeah!" Emma exclaimed, genuinely matching his excitement. "Do you remember where they are now, buddy?" She asked him, turning her head slightly to smile at Marian who was standing off to the side watching their interaction with an amused smile on her face.
"Yeah, they're visiting Ireland!"
"That's right, buddy!"
"Well, my mommy and I have to go now."
"Are you sure you want to leave now?" Emma asked him as she bent down to give him a tight hug that he reciprocated wholeheartedly.
"Not really, but you should be writing music anyway."
Emma glared at Marian who had snorted as soon as she heard her son's words. "Did you put him up to this?"
"No, that one's all him." Marian told her, a proud smile on her face that had Emma's own lips quirking upward. "And he's right."
"Yeah, I know." Emma said with a sigh. "I'll see you guys tomorrow."
"Good night, Auntie Emma! Love you!"
"Love you too, bud. Good night, Marian."
"Good night, Em."
Emma watched as they made their way to Marian's car, waiting until they'd settled themselves in and backed out of her driveway before she closed the door and made her way into her bedroom, grabbing her phone as she went.
She only allowed herself to hesitate for a few seconds before she pressed the call button. She started speaking as soon as she heard the click alerting her that the call had been answered on the other end. "Look, I know that you want to start yelling at me and you have every reason to, but I wanted you to know that I'm sorry. I know that I'm cutting it close to the deadline, and that you have people that you have to answer to, and I haven't been making it any easier on you."
"I remember the first time I listened to it and how excited I was to meet the creative mind behind the music."
"Lily, I…"
"It's been three years, and I wouldn't be worried if I had some reassurance that you were composing, but I don't have that because you're not."
Emma sat down on her bed feeling like the weight of the world had fallen onto her shoulders. "I know, and I'm sorry, but I don't know what to do." Her voice sounded pathetic to her own ears.
"Maybe you should consider accepting the coaching position that you were offered." Lily told her with a sigh. "I'll talk to you tomorrow."
"Okay." Emma said, her throat closing up as she tried to get that one word out.
"Good night, Emma."
"Good night."