Coffee To Go: Chapter Four

I don't own Once Upon A Time.

Please enjoy.

I left Regina's office with – and I will gladly admit it – a little skip to my walk. Michael, her secretary, waved me to him and he grinned up at me with a little twinkle.

"So," he asked, eager for gossip. "How did it go?" I just grinned at him and smiled, shaking my head. "Oh come on. You won't tell me anything?" I shook my head again and he sighed. "Boring."

"Yes, I am, but on the bright side I will bring you coffee every time I bring Regina coffee." He perked up at that and rattled off a complex coffee order that I committed to memory – large cappuccino, double pump of caramel, extra foam, chocolate top – and when he was done I frowned.

"I don't think they have a Starbucks here. And I don't think Granny's does that kind of coffee."

Michael sighed. "We don't and they don't. I just wanted to see if you would go to any great lengths for me." I frowned. "No? Fine. Then one milk and two sugars for me."

I smiled. "Got it. Thank you, Michael!" And, despite his crestfallen behaviour that I wouldn't drive thirty miles out of my way to find a Starbucks for him, he waved me off quite happily. Nice guy.

I checked my watch then and swore under my breath. It was just past three – I had to pick Henry up at half past. I sprinted back to my car and tapped my fingers impatiently on the steering wheel at every red light. "Come on!" I yelled. "There is no one there! The street is empty." Still the red light didn't shift and I sighed.

Henry was waiting patiently with Mary Margaret when I arrived, one minute late. He looked up at me and threw himself at my legs. I left him there; his arms wrapped around my left leg so I just stumped my way over to his teacher, dragging him behind me.

"Hi, Mary Margaret," I started. The perky grade school teacher interrupted me immediately.

"Oh, please, call me MM. All my friends do."

I paused. Blinked. Blinked again. "Ah, alright." Were we friends? I had only met the woman this morning? She seemed nice enough though and it wasn't like I anticipated the urge to punch her would arise any time soon, so I accepted the statement and nodded. "Well thanks for waiting with Henry, MM, I really appreciate it."

"I didn't mind." Her beaming face told me she did in fact not mind in the slightest. "Henry is a great kid." Henry looked up at his name and I laid a hand on his head.

"Yeah. He is." Henry hugged my leg and I smoothed his hair down. A little warmth, one I frequently associate with Henry, flashed in my chest. It was nice to hear someone else acknowledge Henry, to hear that they thought he was as wonderful as I did. "Um – same time tomorrow?" I asked the teacher and she nodded enthusiastically. "Great thanks bye."

Henry tugged himself up from the ground and placed both of his little hands in mine. "Mamma." He yanked on my arm. "Up." And his voice was so serious that I obeyed instantly, hauling him off the ground and turning so that he lay, clinging my back. I piggy-backed him down the street and listened to his excited chatter.

"And Miss Blanchy has a cat and his name is Mr Whiskers-"

"Whiskers?" I interjected. "Why would she name him that?" I was glad that he couldn't see my face because there was no way that I could hide my smile.

Henry smacked me lightly on the head. "Mamma! His name is Mr Whiskers because he's a boy cat and because kitties have whiskers. You're so silly." I jogged a little, jostling him, in retribution but it just made him giggle and clutch me tighter. "And Mr Whiskers is super cute and he let me pat him and then we had lunch and Miss Blanchy let me have a jelly cup and two sandwiches and we read a book about some birdies and then we played a game of tiggy and I tagged four people and-"

And so it went for the entire walk home. Henry chattered happily about his day and I nodded along, beaming. My kid was happy. He was happy and everything was working out just superbly. How could I not be happy? It was just past four when we ambled up the stairs to Graham's apartment and Henry, his speech coming in stops and starts, began to sag. I easily manoeuvred him to his bed and closed the door quietly. I knew that he would come to get me when he was hungry.

I set myself up at Graham's dinner table – our dinner table now that I'm sharing the rent, I suppose – and pull out all the paper work with my name on it. Graham had clearly dropped it off sometime today. I sighed and pulled out my glasses. Better get to work.

I'm not sure how long it was before Henry came to find me but I heard his feet clattering down the stairs and when I turned around to face him, he was holding out a blanket to me and a sheet of paper.

"Mamma," he murmured. "Make them for me."

"Magic word, Henry?"

He pouted and sighed. "Abracadabra make them for me?"

I smiled at my son, eyes rolling at his audacity, but took the blanket and paper from him. "Okay, hop up here for me." I pat the table and Henry clambered up eagerly. I scrutinised him, turning his face this way and that, and then nodded. "Yeah, that's perfect Henry." With a few quick movements, the blanket was around his shoulders and knotted carefully around his neck loosely. Then, folded swiftly, a paper crown sat on Henry's head (it was actually a pirate hat but it was the only kind of hat that I could make). "Happy now?"

He nodded and, taking my hand, led me to the kitchen. He raised his hands above his head and I hoisted him onto the counter before handing him a wooden spoon.

With Henry in his customary place as King of the kitchen, I shuffled and banged and slammed my way through all of Graham's drawers and cupboards looking for spaghetti. Victoriously holding it aloft, we cheered and set about making our dinner.

"Mamma?" Henry asked about ten minutes into our dinner making journey. I turned to look at him so he knew I was listening. "Why are you so happy?"

I tilted my head to consider the question. After a moment, I recognised the feeling of my face smiling and heard a very faint humming. I was very happy. "Well, because you're happy," I answered him immediately. And it's true. I mean, it's definitely a large part of why I'm happy. Just…not all of it.

"Uhuh." Oh no – the kid inherited my cynicism. Blast. "And?" He pulled the word out, fixing me with a no-nonsense stare. I surrendered to his superior interrogating skills with a sigh and a shake of my head.

"You're so clever, Henry. I can't hide anything from you." He nodded. "I made a friend today." Okay, so it maybe wasn't the most accurate way to describe Regina because she hadn't been very friendly at all but it was the only way I could think of to describe her to my five-year-old.

"A friend?" he asked slowly.

"Yep."

"Who?" Henry sounded angry and, when I looked up from the pasta at him, he looked angry as well. I blinked in surprise. Henry was never angry.

"Her name is Regina," I told him. "What's wrong, kid?"

Henry's lower lip jutted out instantly and he frowned. "I thought I was your friend, mamma."

"You are," I laughed. "But I made another friend today."

"I'm sorry!" he wailed suddenly. "I'll be a better friend!" I blinked again in shock before I reacted. My hand came up to switch the stove to off in a quick movement. The next moment, I found myself in front of Henry. I scooped him up into my arms and felt his little arms wind around my neck and his legs clutch my waist tightly.

"Oh Henry," I shushed, "you've done nothing wrong. Nothing at all." From his increased cries and wails, that obviously didn't soothe him in the slightest. "You're the best friend in the world," I rushed to tell him. "You are. Shh shh it's okay." I began to walk us around the apartment in the hope that the movement would calm him. I kissed his temple lovingly, lingering there for a moment, and his sobs slowed and hitched as he breathed through them.

"Why d'you want 'nother friend for?" he asked, question muffled from where he was leaning into my neck. I rubbed his back and laughed a little.

"It's not like I went looking for her, Henry," I teased him. "It was a surprise." Let me just say – that is the understatement of the century. "Making friends is like…it's like being given a present. I didn't know that I would meet her today and I certainly didn't plan for it to happen."

Henry hugged my neck and I waited for him to talk. "Do you like 'Gina more than me?" he asked finally, pulling back so he could stare into my eyes. He searched mine for answer, little lower lip still trembling dramatically.

I felt a wide, beaming smile take over my face. My arms tightened again around Henry and I spun us around until he squealed with delight. "Henry," I laughed, "you are my most perfect thing. I could never ever ever love anyone more than I love you. Not in a hundred thousand million bajillion years." And with that, I planted a smacking kiss on his forehead. He squealed again, this time in indignation, and demanded that I place him back on the counter.

"Food now, mamma. I'm hungry."

"Sure, kid." I lowered him to his kitchen throne and he swept up his wooden spoon again. I shuffled back into place and – oh thank god – the spaghetti was salvageable. "Hey, Henry, don't even worry about this. You'll make friends at school on Monday and you'll come home to tell me all about them, okay? You won't even need me."

"I made a friend today, mamma," Henry corrected. He was focused on waving his wooden spoon violently, slashing, I supposed, at hordes of enemies. He certainly didn't think about his next words. "Her name is Grace and I love her and I'll marry her one day."

I paused in my stirring of the pasta. I considered Henry for a moment, wondering if his day had been more like mine that I'd expected. "How do you know that?"

Henry shrugged. "'Cause I know. And we're gonna be the bestest friends ever!" He beamed at me and I smiled back. He rarely looked so enthusiastic and I could just see the gap where one of his teeth had fallen out.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes." He nodded emphatically.

"Okay then. Maybe we can have her over for a play date then?"

Henry considered that idea for a long moment before nodding. "Okay. Is dinner ready yet? I'm hungry."

"Yeah kid. Almost."

Cuteness in next chapter, lovelies (between Emma and Regina. Hopefully. I'm working on it). Please review and as always happy reading, readers :)