No notes this time, other than thank you for the support!

Hugs,

M.

It was a beautiful autumn day, perfect to be outside: kids were playing and teenager girls were enjoying the last sun rays before the cold winter days that they had ahead and adults were enjoying a cup of coffee while they gossiped their neighbors. Everyone was relaxing. Everyone, that is, except Emma Swan-Nolan.

"Regina!" Emma said ringing the bell more times that it was socially acceptable, "Come on,"

"Jesus, Emma!" the blonde could hear Regina as she walked towards the door. When the brunette opened the door, the blonde didn't even wait to be invited in, she walked pass by Regina and started speaking.

"So, homecoming is tonight. And I have nothing to wear," the blonde explained quickly. "Would you lend me one of your super sexy and super short dresses?"

"Why do you want to look sexy?" Regina asked confused as she closed the door, "I thought you were going to the dance with Graham, who, and I quote you: 'Is like the big brother I never had'," the brunette added.

Ever since Emma and Graham hit puberty, Regina had bothered Emma, telling her that she would end up married to Graham. Which annoyed the shit out of Emma, since she really didn't like him like that. She loved him, that part was true, but she was not in love with him, and she was sure she'll never be.

"I am going with Graham, but I don't want to impress him," the blonde replied.

"Does this have to do with the guy that gave you and Ollie the ride back home last week?" Regina guessed, and then she smiled when Emma blushed slightly at the question.

"No," she replied dryly, but her body language had sold her out. Emma didn't know why, but ever since Killian had appeared on her life, she had the need to prove herself to him. As stupid as that sounded. She had even enrolled sailing as an extra curricular activity to be with him. She didn't even like him, so why did she go to those extents? that's how pathetic she had become

"Ok," Regina replied with a smirk "let's go and see if we find you a dress to not impress that new guy in town,"

"Killian," Emma said, now hiding her emotions "His name is Killian,"

Regina felt the urge to reply something like 'and you don't want to impress him'. How many times had Emma bothered her, specially when it came to her ex-boyfriends?. But the brunette decided to stay quiet, after all, she was the grown up in this relation.

"I have a new dress," Regina said while they walked up the stairs towards her room. "It'll suit you perfectly, I think,"

After her parents got divorced, Regina's father kept most of their properties because the prenupt clearly stated that if one of the spouses cheated, the other one would keep 80% of their belongings and bank accounts. Her father, however didn't leave Cora on the streets, he gave her the small, but expensive, apartment they owned near the city's centre - it was definitely more that what she deserved. The mansion, and everything else owned by Henry Mills, passed to Regina after he died few years ago.

Regina didn't like the mansion, it was far too big for her, but she couldn't find a buyer and there was no point on buying or renting a smaller place to live if she already had one. It was what her father used to tell her: "Regina, the first and most important rule of management and saving is 'Everything I've got, is what I haven't spent'". It didn't make to her when she was younger, but now that she was in charge of her bank accounts, she had realized how true her father's words were.

"I was planning to wear it for my high school reunion," the brunette said taking it out from the closet, "but I won't go,"

"Why not?" Emma asked, but she didn't let Regina answer, because as soon as she saw the dress she screamed excited "OMG! That's the prettiest dress I've ever seen!"

With Regina's help, Emma put the dress on. The dress' skirt was made of a dark purple fabric that looked like chiffon but was thicker. At the height of her waist, there was a belt made of purple and black stones of irregular shape and sizes. From the belt a V-shaped patch (decorated in the same manner as the belt) raised up to her collar bones, covering her boobs. The remaining of the upper part was made of a transparent net fabric which made her skin visible to the word.

"You look ravishing," Regina commented. "And older,"

"I know," Emma whispered, she was in shock. In this dress, she looked as old as Regina.

"And I'm sure your parents won't approve of you wearing this."

The happiest day on Emma's life was the day when she reached Regina's height, it meant that she could wear anything that Regina owned, which were way cooler than the clothes Emma's mother allowed her to wear.

"I don't care about them," Emma said in her normal confident voice, "but, are you sure you don't mind me using this dress? It looks pretty expensive,"

The brunette shook her head. "It looks better on you, anyway" Regina said with a smile, "Consider it a coming back present,"

"Shouldn't that be from me to you? Since you are the one coming back..." Emma raised an eyebrow and smiled.

"When did you become a smart-ass?"

"When these girls grew," Emma pointed at her boobs and did a little dance. Regina laughed out-loud. Her baby Emma had indeed grow up, and into a beautiful woman.

"Just one more thing," Regina walked towards her closet and came back with a beautiful bracelet. She put it on Emma's hands and turned the younger girl so they could both see the blonde's reflection on the mirror. "I'm sure you will take Killian's breath away,"

"I'm not doing it for him!" Emma protested and moved away from Regina.

"Suuuure," the brunette teased her and unzipped the dress.

With the dress unzipped, Emma entered the bathroom and changed into her normal clothes. The blonde stared at the dress, she had never wore something so pretty. Trailing her finger over the stones, she remembered why Regina had bought the dress on the first place.

"So, why aren't you going to your high school reunion?" Emma asked placing the dress over Regina's bed "I thought you were dying to go and meet with your friends,"

The brunette studied the dress and stayed quiet for a while. Emma knew that when Regina didn't reply right away, there was something going on: something involving a lot of feelings.

Regina was not like Emma. Emma was an open book that everyone could read, and when someone couldn't read her, she would just scream it to their faces; but Regina was a whole different story, when her parents divorced she built a wall - more like a labyrinth - around her, and she rarely let someone in. As a kid, Emma didn't really realize that her friend was shutting everyone out, but not that she was older and she really wanted to help Regina, she had to dig to get some kind of information.

"Regina?" Emma leaned to face Regina, it was when she realized that Regina's eyes were completely lost somewhere. Anywhere but in the conversation. Emma placed her hand over Regina's thigh, and the brunette jolted at the contact.

"Yes?" she asked coming back to the conversation.

"The reunion?"

"Oh, it's nothing. I'll have my period and I don't feel like going," Emma raised an eyebrow, that was the lamest excuse that Regina had ever invented. "Ok, fine," Regina admitted after a while "Daniel is coming, and I haven't seen him since ... " she trailed off

Since she broke up with him and didn't reply to any of his calls. Since she broke his heart and didn't even give him a reason why. Since she just shut him out of his life with no explanations after they dated for almost two years. It hadn't been his fault, it had all been Regina's fault. It had been her parents' fault, their divorce had destroyed her life. Breaking up with Daniel was Regina's biggest regret, Emma knew that.

"I didn't know he was back in town," Emma said. After they broke up, Daniel didn't want to spend another day in Storybrooke, he didn't even finish high school before leaving. He found a student exchange and went far away.

"I saw him the other day,"

"And...?" Emma said, digging for more information.

"I heard that he settled down, that all his dreams came true,"

"Wow, straight from an Adele song," Emma said in a joking tone, and a small smile appeared on Regina's face. "I'm sure he'll be happy to see you,"

"Yeah, the girl who hurt him so bad that made him move to another state or country, wherever he went,"

"Well, if he's life is so perfect as you heard," Emma tried reasoning with her "I'm sure he won't hold a grudge,"

"I won't go, Emma," Regina said in a tone that made it clear that she wouldn't change her mind about it,

"Fine," the blonde decided to drop the topic, Regina always got upset when they talked about Daniel. She checked the time on her phone "I have to go or I'll be late to my soccer practice, but can I come back later to dress and do my make up?"

"Sure," Regina replied with a smile. She loved being Emma's faux-older sister "Bring Ruby too if she feels like,"

"Will do," Emma said running down the stairs.

She rushed into her car, an old yellow Volkswagen, and started the engine. She would invite Ruby to Regina's later, if she didn't hurry up, she'll be late; and as the team's captain, that was a luxury she couldn't afford.