Killian Jones arrived in Maine the night before the wedding. It was late when his plane touched down and he knew he should go straight to sleep, there was an early start in the morning, but he just couldn't seem to drift off. His eyes kept going to the countdown on his wrist, it was nearing zero. When his timer beeped at midnight, telling him that it was the day he'd meet the woman who was supposed to be the love of his life, he gave up all hope of sleeping. He was too keyed up. 12 days wasn't enough time for him to be even remotely ready.

The thought of meeting a woman that he couldn't care for was filling him with dread. He'd never wanted to be anyone's soulmate after Milah, he hadn't wanted the responsibility of being told he was the only person who could make them happy. Who would complete them. It was too much pressure for him to take. So he changed back into his jeans, threw on his jacket, and went to the roof of the hotel where he could look out over the bay. Something about water always made him feel better and he hoped tonight would not be the exception.

He didn't turn when he heard footsteps coming up the stairs. He assumed whoever it was would leave him alone, he wasn't in the mood for company. Killian ignored whoever it was as he continued to stare at the horizon. Feeling the sea breeze was doing wonders for his mental state.

"Killian?" His heart stopped when he heard his name being called. He knew that voice. It was the same voice he'd been trying to get out of his head for the past two weeks. And now she was here. All hope of being faithful to his soulmate would be gone the second he looked into her eyes again. But he couldn't help himself. He turned slowly, mentally preparing himself for the sight of her. When their eyes met, he forgot about how conflicted he was. He forgot about all the troubles that had been following him for the past weeks. He forgot about Milah.

Then he noticed the beeping sounding in the night sky. He saw the shock on her face as she looked at him. And he realized what was happening. This woman in front of him was his soulmate. This beautiful woman was the one he was meant for. And he didn't know what else to do other than walk towards her and pull her into his arms.

She was stiff at first, but he felt her relax into him. Her own arms came up to hold him closer. They could figure everything out later. For now, she was in his arms. He'd been dying to hold her from the moment they'd met. And it was everything he'd known it would be.

Killian realized that they were both crying. If it was from happiness or not he couldn't tell but he still had no desire to let her go. They were clutching each other for dear life at this point.

"How is this possible?" he heard her whisper into his chest, "you said…"

"She never got her timer." Killian let those words hang in the air as he pulled back to look at Emma Swan. His soulmate.

/

Her mind was racing. This shouldn't be possible. Killian already had met his match. You don't get another soulmate. That wasn't how it worked. But then there he was pulling her into his arms. She'd wanted to be there since the moment she'd met him but had never allowed herself. She had somehow known, from the very beginning, that the second he was holding her, she would never want to leave.

Emma gave into the feeling he was providing. She wrapped her arms around him and held. And it felt… right. Like safety and home and warmth and … like love. She'd always told herself that the physical and the emotional were two separate categories. But just being here with him, having his arms wrapped around her, made her rethink everything. There was something so comforting about being there with him that she finally let go of her strangle hold on her emotions. She let all the confusion and doubt come pouring out in the form of tears. She buried her face in his chest and realized that she wasn't the only one crying.

When her emotions had calmed a bit she asked him how this could happen. How he could be with her when Milah was already gone. When he answered she thought back through their conversations about his timer. He'd never said they were matched. She'd just assumed that a blank timer had meant death.

She didn't know how long they'd been standing there when she finally pulled back from his grasp. Giving one last squeeze before she went.

"Are you ready to talk about this?" his voice was quiet but she could hear the conflicting emotions surging through it. She had the immediate instinct to run. It was only the uncertainty in his eyes that made her stay. He was as scared as she was. She nodded at him briefly and saw a small smile appear on his face. It wasn't his usual smirk, but something far more innocent. Far more boy-ish. And far less confident. She let him take her hand and he led her over to the edge of the roof, letting go as they reached the railing. He didn't look at her then, choosing instead to stare at the bay. She followed suit. It was just easier this way.

Neither of them spoke right away. They just continued to stare at the water in a comfortable silence. Emma knows that her mind should be racing, that she should be nervous. But she just can't find it in herself to care. Being around him is comfortable. It had been a long time since she'd felt like this. If she ever really had.

"What do you want to do, Swan?" Killian asked softly, not looking at her as he spoke.

"I'm not uprooting my life for you," Emma replied, a hint of anger creeping into her voice.

"I never asked you to. You have the lad to worry about."

"Henry," he looked over at her. She didn't turn to face him but she still saw the confusion in his eyes. "My son. His name is Henry."

"Ah, how does he feel about all of this?" Killian went back to looking out at the bay.

"He's excited," Emma smiled at remembering just how true that was, "he thinks I've been lonely."

"I think I have to agree with the lad," he glanced over at her, "I'm not saying I can fix that, love." He added before she could get upset.

"Maybe you're right," she sighed. "But that doesn't mean I'm ready to do anything about it. I have friends and a life."

"I know, love." Emma tilted her head to better see him. There was something sad in his expression that made her want to reach out and comfort him. But at the same time she was scared to touch him. This was all so new and she didn't want to make him any promises that she wouldn't be able to keep. She knew enough that she didn't want to hurt him.

/

Killian needed time and he could tell that Emma did to. It wasn't every day that you found out the person you'd met twice in a pub was your soulmate. He wasn't about to push her into anything. Did he want to be with her? Yes. But he knew she was scared. She'd told him enough about her past that he understood why. Even if he didn't think he'd leave her, and even though their timers said they were meant to be, Killian still wasn't sure. He hadn't had a relationship since Milah. He didn't know if he remembered how. And if he knew anything about Emma Swan, it was that she needed stability. Not something that worked well with his job.

"Why don't we resume this conversation tomorrow, love?" He said after a few minutes of silence. He was jet lagged and she looked exhausted. It was not the time to be making potentially life changing decisions. Emma just nodded, still looking out over the horizon. Killian shot her a small smile before making his way back down to his hotel room.

"Wait," her voice was quiet as she called out to him. He turned around and saw the confusion on her face. "Please, can we not tell anyone about this yet? I don't want everyone to get involved before we even know."

"Of course, love." Killian wanted to go over and pull her back into his arms. To brush away all of her doubts but he knew that wouldn't help. Right now, at least, Emma needed time. And he needed some sleep and some time to sort out this situation.

He considered finding his brother. Liam and Elsa were staying in the same hotel after all, but he decided that he wasn't quite ready to talk about. He fell into a fitful sleep, haunted by those piercing green eyes. And he awoke feeling more certain than he had in years. He could not let Emma Swan get away from him. Not because any piece of technology told him to, nothing as blasé as that. No, he couldn't let her get away because he knew he would regret it for the rest of his life. Even though he had only met her thrice, he felt like he'd known her forever.

She made him feel like he could be more than the broken husk of a man that Milah had left behind. Emma Swan made him hope again. And he wanted more than anything to be able to give her the same feeling. So he would talk to her today. He would let her know that he wasn't going anywhere. That he would work to provide the stability she needs.

He dressed quickly for the day, determined to find Emma before the wedding began. His plan was foiled by a knock at his hotel room door and the boisterous voice of his elder brother demanding he come out and socialize.

All through breakfast, Killian was tempted to tell Liam and Elsa about Emma but he knew that she wouldn't appreciate it. He'd promised to keep it between them for now, and it was bad form to break your word.

"So, brother," Liam put his hand on Killian's shoulder, "any ideas about who your one is yet?"

Killian nearly chocked on his coffee. He took a moment to steel his nerves before replying. "Isn't it supposed to be a surprise?"

"Well little brother," Liam began.

"Younger brother," Killian corrected, sending a glare in the direction of his teasing sibling.

"Little brother," Liam gave him the famous Jones smirk, "there's still fun in guessing. Robin could probably tell you if it's another one of the guests."

"I am not taking the groom away from Regina on her wedding day. From what I gather, she was upset enough that my timer chose today without me rubbing her face in it."

Liam's reply was cut off by a group of their school mates descending upon them.

"Well if it isn't the other lucky mate!" Will Scarlett clapped Killian on the shoulder, "heard through the grapevine that Killian here finally has a working timer." Killian focused on the overcooked eggs in front of him. He wasn't really ready to discuss the timer in front of everyone yet.

"Did you hear that it's t-day for him?" Liam asked the group with a proud grin. "My little brother is growing up so fast." He wiped away a fake tear as he spoke.

"Well I bet bridezilla is skipping with joy that you'll find love at her wedding," Scarlett chuckled. Killian just nodded, ready to get away.

"Oh stop teasing him," Elsa cut in, seeming to sense that something was amiss when Killian didn't respond. "Isn't it time for you groomsmen to go anyway?" She shot a disapproving look at the group. "I'm sure holding up the wedding will do wonders for Regina's good graces," she added with a sarcastic tone. Killian shot her a thankful look before pushing away from the table.

"I'll see you guys there," he mumbled as he left the dining area. He hoped to see Swan on the way out, but she was nowhere in sight. It was probably better that way. He didn't think she'd be a fan of an audience to their talk.

/

Emma woke up late. She groaned as she looked at the clock on her bedside table only to realize she had half an hour to make herself pretty and get her ass to the wedding. Regina would kill her if she was late. There were probably instructions for the doors to the hall to be locked to prevent stragglers. She ignored her grumbling stomach as she threw on the dress she'd hung up the night before. Her friends had chosen nearly everything about her outfit, insisting she look perfect for meeting her soulmate. Little did they know that she met him last night wearing an oversized sweatshirt and leggings. But that didn't mean she wasn't going to look nice now.

Emma rationalized to herself that there would be a lot of wedding photos and Regina would kill her if she didn't look the part. She ignored the part of her brain that said she wanted Killian to see what she looked like when she was dressed up.

She was thankful for all the practice she had doing makeup. Since it was easier to catch a perp who was attracted to her, she'd learned long ago what to do to make herself look good. And she was fast at it too. She didn't have enough time to curl her hair so she just pulled it back into a bun. It looked good enough and she didn't really have time to change it.

She made it into the chapel mere minutes before the wedding started. She scanned the crowd, telling herself she wasn't looking for Killian Jones. That got harder to deny when she felt the pang of disappointment upon not finding his scruffy face. She slipped in the back row, David was up at the front and she wasn't going to disturb anyone by trying to find seating by him.

Emma had barely sat down when the ceremony began. She looked up to see Killian Jones walking down the aisle with Regina's half-sister on his arm. As their eyes met, she was glad they'd encountered each other the night before. Regina would kill her if their timers went off right before she walked down the aisle. Emma gave him a nod and a small smile and felt her heart flutter when she saw how his face lit up. She wasn't a school girl but she couldn't stop the light blush from covering her cheeks as he turned back to the task at hand. She was acting like this was her first crush!

She found her eyes following him down the aisle. She would be embarrassed but damn that man cleaned up well. And she wasn't going to deny that his ass looked amazing in his suit pants. She was never really one for weddings so she didn't feel bad that she couldn't pay attention to the ceremony. Instead, she watched Killian Jones. God he was attractive. She'd never seen him in daylight before and the dim pub lighting did not do him justice. She watched as he looked on at the groom, Robin.

Killian's whole face was lit with joy as he watched his friend get married to the woman he loved. And the emotion in his eyes triggered something in Emma. She knew that if she ever let Killian Jones in, he could destroy her.