I'm hoping you guys will like this chapter, this is where the moves will be made part comes in ;)
Was she really doing this? No, no she wouldn't. She couldn't. The last time she had worn a dress was on her last birthday, and she was dressing up for a fake date with a total asshole. This time she was going over to her son's adoptive mother's house, no big deal.
Emma let go of a blue dress hanging in her closet. She decided she only had so many dresses, might as well save them for fancy occasions. She opted for a pair of jeans and tight red spaghetti strap shirt. She put them on and grabbed her favorite red leather jacket before leaving her room and the apartment, heading to Regina's house.
Last night David and Mary Margaret had come home to find Emma and Regina alone in the kitchen, conversing and setting the table for dinner. Regina had rushed out leaving Emma to face her parents alone. She had told them that she was trying to make peace with Regina, and that that was the first night Henry was late. Mary Margaret had been very curious as to Regina's outfit selection in which Emma defended her by saying that she was probably coming from work. Mary Margaret dropped the subject but had been acting kind of distant ever since.
Rain drops gently washed over the windshield as Emma pulled up to Regina's house. She took off her jacket and held it over her head as she pranced up the path before letting herself in, deciding that knocking was too formal since she was expected.
"Regina? I'm here!" Emma called as she made her way to the kitchen, placing her jacket on an end table. "Henry?" She asked the empty hall, since normally he was waiting for her and would have greeted her already.
"Henry is at soccer practice again, I'm so sorry, I was just about to call." Regina responded, stepping out of the kitchen in a tight grey dress with a black belt around her waist.
"Oh no, it's fine. I'm ravished and Mary Margaret hasn't gone grocery shopping in a week. I have nowhere else to eat!" Emma threw her hands up, laughing.
"Alright, well, if you'll make your way into the dining room, dinner is served." Regina smiled as she gestured for Emma to take the lead.
Emma complied and walked past Regina, taking in that familiar fragrance as she passed her. She smelled a little like rain and the trees and the beginning of spring when the flowers start to bud. It had become a comforting smell.
As Emma entered the dining room, she was surprised to find candles lit on the table, illuminating the otherwise dark room. Her stomach rumbled as she noticed the dishes on the table, Regina was serving her favorite meal. The two plates of penne alfredo looked mouthwatering, especially next to two wine glasses.
"Um, wow, I definitely wasn't expecting this." Emma managed to whisper as she took in her surroundings.
"I'm trying to save on electricity. You don't mind a spark or two, do you?" Regina asked, swiping past Emma and taking a seat on the opposite side of the table.
"No, I don't, where is Henry's plate? Won't he be showing up?" Emma asked as she took a seat.
"Oh well he won't be home for another hour so I figured there was no point making a plate for him already, it would just get cold." She smiled, "Why don't you try some, it's a new recipe!"
Emma tentatively tried some; the situations she found herself in sometimes were so bizarre. "It's very good," she whispered, not making eye contact.
"Is something wrong, Emma?" Regina asked between mouthfuls.
"No, it's just, the set up, with the candles and all, this kind of seems like, well, a date." Emma continued to look down at her pasta, cheeks blazing red.
Regina cleared her throat which made Emma squirm in her chair. She shouldn't have said anything; she should have kept her thoughts to herself. Now she had made her hostess uncomfortable, and Regina had been nothing but nice the last few days.
Emma looked up at Regina, ready to apologize, when Regina spoke, "If this makes you uncomfortable, I can turn on the lights, or you can come back in an hour when Henry's home, if you'd like."
"No, no, this is fine. It's more than fine, I shouldn't have said anything. I need to learn to think before I speak." Emma chuckled nervously.
"If this is becoming strange for you-"
"No!" Emma interrupted. "God, this is coming across all wrong. This isn't strange, I mean I guess a little since I used to hate you and now I find myself considering you one of my friends and looking forward to spending time with you, but besides that, this isn't strange at all. I'm sorry I said anything, I guess I was just hoping that," Emma stopped, her eyes bulging and face turning scarlet as she realized where she was going.
"I would say it was a date?" Regina asked, putting down her fork and studying Emma's face, hoping for any sign of a smile but finding no reaction at all, just a blank face, turning white.
Emma stared at Regina, palms sweating and finding herself becoming very hot, it was the damn candles. "You know what? I think I'm just gonna go." Emma scooted out from under the table and got up from her chair.
Regina mimicked her actions, "What? No, don't go." Emma began walking away, to the kitchen and to the front hall. Regina followed, "Emma, I'm sorry, please stay."
Emma shook her head as she continued to speed towards the front door. When she reached the door she swung it open and walked into the rain, leaving Regina at the door.
"Emma, you forgot your jacket!" Regina called, picking up the red leather coat on the table and holding it up.
Emma spun around, her hair sticking to her shoulders as the rain picked up, soaking through her shirt. "Why did you invite me here tonight? Why didn't you cancel? This was about us getting along for Henry's sake, and he isn't even here. Why did you wear that dress last night? Why did you light candles? How did you know penne alfredo was my favorite?" Emma asked, her volume increasing as she listed questions- dazed, confused, and drenched.
"I invited you because I like spending time with you." Regina answered, very calmly, bringing her hands together. "I didn't cancel for the same reason. I wore that dress because I never seem to have a reason to wear it. And I really like that dress. I lit candles because I thought it added a nice effect to the dinner. Henry told me it was your favorite this morning, so I thought it would be a nice surprise."
"What's going on here?" Her chest moved up and down rapidly, out of breath from her bolt out of the house and her questions and the knot she had in her stomach.
"It's up to you." Regina answered, taking a step outside and off the porch, joining Emma in the rain.
"What do you mean, it's up to me?" Emma shook her head, eyebrows furrowing.
"Do you need me to say it?" Regina exclaimed as she stepped closer, meeting Emma in the middle.
"Say what?" Emma stammered.
"Say that I like you." Regina retorted.
To be continued.
