AN: Casually leans back and waits for the moment your hearts shatter ;)

AU of the season four finale in which the darkness stayed in the Sorcerers Hat and Emma runs away, only to return four years later with a surprise.

Also, totally didn't listen to the saddest&cutest instrumentals I could find(including ouat songs) while typing this. I would do no such thing! Never would I ever. That's just ridiculous.

Anyways, this is similar to the season 13 finale of NCIS, as that episode is where I got this idea from. There will be mentions of flashback scenes from season 5 and some lines will be borrowed, but this is in no way like season 5. Slight quote parallels from that episode, too. Daddy Killian feels, as well as grieving, well, everyone feels. There are brief mentions of the finale and I changed a bit of a scene up that was shown on screen. You'll know it when you read it!

Be sure to leave a review and maybe rate!


Four years. Four years had passed since anyone had seen or heard of Emma Swan's name. Four years since Storybrooke had last had a villain in town. Four years since they'd come back from the alternate universe that Rumplestiltskin had created. Four years since the darkness had been destroyed following his death. Four years since Emma had fled Storybrooke, the continuous saving taking a toll on both her body and stress levels. Four years since Killian Jones had kissed or been with the woman he loved. One year since her parents gave up hope of ever finding her. One week since Henry, too, had lost hope. Two years since Regina Mills and Robin Locksley became married. But, most importantly, three years since Emma Swan discovered a terrifying truth shortly after she left Storybrooke and its problems behind her.

Fast forward four years, and here she is, driving down the same road used to lead to the town. The same road Rumple used to put a tie on to mark 100 yards from the line. She rove the same yellow bug that she had had since she was 18. Since Neal gave it to her after she got out of prison. She couldn't help the sad smile that etched onto her face at the fond memories they'd created. Sure, Emma loved him, but not love loved him. She loved him for what they'd created together. But Emma did still love Killian. She glanced back at the luggage she'd packed and couldn't help the tear that slowly slid down her cheek. She's coming home. Where she belongs. Not to mention, she has a surprise with her.

A giggle coming from her right causes her to turn in that direction, and Emma quickly tickled the three year old's tummy to get him to laugh. His giggle turned into a screaming laughter that made Emma chuckle to herself.

"You like that?" she teased, tickling him even more. Looking back at the road, she saw they were nearly on top of the border. Emma slowed the car down, put it to a halt. She got out of the car, opened the door for her son to get out, and handed him her phone. She gave him a stern face so that he knew she was being serious. "Listen, I need you to stay outside of the car just until I say it's safe." Emma knew she hadn't been in Storybrooke in a long time, and if her body reacted badly to her crossing back into a land with magic after three years, she did not want the child in the car with her. She was not going to risk his safety. "If anything happens…"

"Call 9-1-1," he squeaked, knowing the drill.

"If something happens," she adds, "come towards me before you make the call and when you do, ask for David Nolan and tell him there's been an accident. Tell him to come to the town line."

"So 'Come to town line! There is problem with mommy?'" he questioned.

Emma smiled at him. "Yeah, kid," she whispered. "Just like that. They'll know what to do." Thinking quickly, Emma quickly grabbed their luggage and set it on the ground. Thankfully, it wasn't much, but it was just enough that the child could carry it across the border. "Also be sure to bring this," she gestured to the bag, "with you, okay?"

He nodded his head, a sad look on his face. "Why you think bad happen, mommy?" he questioned, genuinely serious.

"You wouldn't understand…" she trailed off at the look he gave her. His father made the exact same face to her numerous times. It was one that said, 'uh, no, tell me. You're not getting out of this.' It was also the same look she had given Killian when he tried to brush off his and Ursula's past. "Fine," she consented with a groan. "You remember how I told you about those magical people?" He nodded enthusiastically, his eyes lighting up with sudden glee. He loved when she told him about the adventures and stories, even though he was too young to truly understand them. "Well, the place we're entering has magic. And I don't know how…" Emma groped for the right words. "My body might have a bad reaction."

He once again nodded in understanding. For a near three year old, he sure did comprehend things very easily. He knew when to be serious and when it was appropriate to be silly and goof off. Flynn Eugene Swan was a very intelligent person. Emma gave him a half smile, picked him up by his armpits and wrapped him into a tight hug. He returned the squeeze with as much strength as his small body could muster. "I love you, Flynn," she whispered into his ear. She also only ever called him by his real name when she was being dead-serious.

If at all even possible, he hugged her harder and replied with, "I love you, too, mom."

She put him down after a minute and gazed into his face, wanting to memorize every single detail. Emma had a gut feeling that something was going to happen, and if she was correct about that, she wanted his face to be the last thing she were to ever see.

So Emma memorized the ocean blue eyes that were always a painstaking reminder of what she'd left behind. The oh-so intelligent posture that was similar to Henry's. The unwavering hope and faith gene passed down from her parents. Giving him a quick kiss to the forehead, Emma got back into the car, made sure he was on the side of the road, and drove forwards.

The moment she crossed the line, her suspicions were confirmed. It felt as if something was burrowing itself under her skin and crawling up and down her body. The feeling belonged to magic rushing back to her. Emma lost control of the car, spun the wheel a few times, felt her shoulder slam into the window from the sudden push and felt the bug flip. On the third flip, Emma's head viciously slammed into the window and it burst. She could feel a red, sticky substance rolling down her face and she could've sworn she heard a screech that sounded like, "MOMMY," before her body succumbed to unconsciousness.


Killian, David and Snow were all at the station when David received a call. They'd been discussing setting up a plan to catch a sly thief that had robbed from the Game of Thorns. David pulled out his phone on the second ring, saw no caller ID, answered the phone and put it on speaker. "David Nolan, what's up?"

Several sobs replied to the question. "M-M-MOMMY!" the person finally managed to say. Everyone widened their eyes at hearing such a high-pitched voice, presumably a young child, call the police.

"What's going on?" he quickly questioned, his voice laced with concern. "Where are you? What's happened?"

Another pause. What they thought of the child dropping the phone was actually Flynn trying to remember what his mother had told him. "Come to town line," he finally said with a shaking voice. "There is problem with her!" The kid broke off with a sob before speaking again. "Car upside down. She no come out."

Killian spoke into the phone. "We'll be right over with an ambulance, okay?" he said with a glance at David. The question was directed to both the kid as much as David. He shook his head, mouthed, 'I need you to watch her' and used Snow's phone to call the ambulance. Killian rolled his eyes at being asked to watch David's wife just to make sure she didn't try to follow.

"You two keep working on that plan, I'll be right back once this gets cleaned up."

He came back over an hour later, a look of sheer anguish and despair written all across his face. Snow and Killian were still working out a strategy and were too caught up in their thinking to notice the prince entering the station.

Killian began to mumble to the princess. "Maybe if we make your loft appear empty, they could go in and-"

"Hook," David's hoarse voice called out.

"In a minute," he replied. "Anyways-"

"Killian!" David exclaimed this time. He froze, knowing that the prince only ever used his real name when something serious, bad, or both happened. He looked at him and instantly knew something was wrong. It had to be about whatever the child had been crying about. He glanced down and was confused when he saw a suitcase dangling from David's arms. "We found Emma," he managed to choke out.

Pure joy began to overwhelm the former pirate at hearing the words. It didn't click to him that she could be what was wrong. "Really? Where is she? I want to see her!" Killian strutted towards the door and called out, "Swan!"

A shake of David's head froze Killian in his spot, about one stride away from leaving the office. Images flashed in his mind as he relived the moment that he arrived at the town line. The flipped over yellow bug, the child screaming for his mother. The broken window with glass littering the pavement. David felt himself shudder as he once again saw Emma, unconscious with a giant gash in her head and a shard of the glass protruding from her stomach. She was already gone by the time they managed to pry the door open to pull her out. He would always remember the once beautiful and lush golden hair stained with blood. The bottom of the imfamous red jacket an even darke shade of red. "She didn't make it, Killian."

Killian froze in his spot, unable to believe what he just heard. This had to be some trick of the ears. If he just took a few more steps, he was certain he'd see her standing outside. He was certain she'd run up to him and engulf him in a bear hug. She couldn't just be gone. But the look on David's face told him the truth. The Savior, the mother of Henry, the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming, Killian Jones' true love, was dead. He stumbled backwards, into the glass wall with the office that was once Emma's. Sliding down to the floor, Killian cupped his mouth with his hand and allowed his eyes to water. He looked up at Snow and saw that she wasn't faring any better than he.

"Are you certain?" A simple nod answered him.

"That's not all," David added. Killian looked up at him, not ready for any more bad news. David turned around and signaled to some unknown visitor. "It's okay, you can come in," the prince gently cooed. Hesitantly, a small child walked in. Piercing blue eyes instantly caught Killian's and he almost gasped at the resemblance the kid had of Emma. He glanced up at the prince, who mouthed, "This is Flynn. He's Emma's son."

Ouch. There went another stab to his heart. Emma had moved on. Despite this, he once more looked at a grief stricken face and for some reason, pulled the child into a hug. "Is mommy going on vacation? To get help? They people who came?" Killian felt another piece of his heart shatter.

"Yeah, lad. Just… a really long vacation," he said, unwilling to bluntly say, 'no, she's dead.'

He looked up at Emma's parents and said, "I'll take him for the night. Let him calm down a little bit." David nodded in agreement and set the bag down.

"Here are their things. In case you want to look through them." With that, Killian left the station, with Flynn in his arms and the bag in his hook, and headed for the house he had bought a while back in case Emma ever came home.


After Killian put Flynn to sleep, he went downstairs and opened the suitcase. The first thing he noticed was a diary sitting on top of a bunch of clothes. Reaching for it, he let out a shaky sigh, grasped it, and read the title. It said 'My journal for my family.' He closed his eyes for a few moments before gathering the courage to open the journal to the first page.

"6/12/13

Killian, it's been a month since I've left you and my family behind but I can't come home. Fighting so many villains with such little time to relax and left my body heal is taking a toll on me. I don't know if I could do it again. There's just too much fear of losing any of my loved ones, including you, to the villain. Seeing my dad kill you in the alternate reality just pushed my desire to leave. There is no way I could've asked you to come with me. You've already sacrificed enough for me. Your ship, your life… now you don't have to anymore. I hope you all understand why I left and don't come searching for me. I don't want to be found. Regina deserves her happy ending as well, that's why Henry isn't with me. Gods, I hope he understands. My parents can now be what they've always wanted to be - parents. Baby Neal will become an amazing young man, I can feel it. Killian, please don't think that me leaving is because of you. In fact, if anything, it was to protect you.

I'm sorry but I can't let you all pay for my curse of being the savior. Deep down, you know I'm right. So please, promise me you'll move on and find happiness and help Henry grow into the best man he can be. That's enough for me. To leave knowing the family I always wanted is safe.

I love you all forever,

Emma"

Killian wiped his face to clear away the few tears he had shed upon reading the letter. Based off of the way she wrote the note, it appeared that she intended on sending it to Storybrooke. Another tear slipped down his cheek as he flipped to the next page.

"7/23/13

Killian… I'm pregnant. With your child. Remember the night we got back to reality? Well, that did the trick. It has to be your child. I've been with no one else in a very long time. Since before the first curse broke. Oh gods, I'm terrified, Killian. What if you don't want it? What if you don't want a child? I can't come back. I can't have my heart broken again if you cast me and the baby out. I'm so sorry.

-Emma"

He dropped the journal and cupped his mouth. Flynn is his kid. His and Emma's. He knew he should be happy that she didn't move on after all, but couldn't help but feel betrayed that she thought he'd abandon her. He'd promised her that he wouldn't let her down. Too busy with his own thoughts, he didn't hear the sound of the door opening and five sets of footsteps walk into the living room and pause behind his position on the couch. He didn't notice that they, too, were reading the journal from behind his shoulder.

"2/30/14

Flynn Eugene Swan was born on August(oh, the irony) 13th, 2014 at 5:04am. It's been hard, staying away from everyone and keeping Flynn away from you, Killian. I just… There's so much I'd have to answer to if I came back. Besides, a new villain would probably enter town. Can't put you all through that. You deserve your happy endings, not watch them nearly be obliterated. We're currently in Boston, but we're leaving in another week or two. Duty calls. He sure is hard work, though. Between crying during the nighttime and all day, it's not easy to get any sleep. Especially when you're working as a bail bondsperson.

Is all well with everyone? No new villains, correct?

Missing you,

Emma"

He slowly closed the book. It was already past midnight and he was exhausted. What he did here was a strangled sob behind him. Turning around, Killian saw Henry clinging to Robin and Regina, as well as Snow clinging onto David. They all stared at each other as he realized that they'd been reading over his shoulder. Robin opened his mouth to speak, but Killian cut him off.

"He doesn't even know," he breathed out in disbelief. "He doesn't know I'm his father." A brief pause. "Leave. Please. I need time to grasp all of this…"


The following morning, Flynn woke up at six in the morning, causing his father to wake up as well. For a moment, Killian thought he was dreaming until everything from last night hit him like a wave. Emma was dead. He had a son with Emma. Flynn didn't know the truth.

Seeming that the infant didn't know his mother was actually dead, and jumped on Killian's stomach and screamed, "Show me around town! Show me around town! Pllllleeeeeeaaaaaaaasssssseeeeeee!" With a groan, Killian consented by tickling Flynn's stomach, making him squeal with laughter.

Killian flashed a devilish smirk and asked, "Does that tickle?" A shake of Flynn's head said no, so Killian started gently poking at his sides. Flynn squirmed, struggling not to giggle.

After a moment, Flynn spoke. "Mommy does this everyday, too. When she come back?"

Not wanting to destroy the child's innocence, he replied as gently as possible. "One day, Flynn, you, too, with go on vacation and then you will see her again. Everyone will eventually go on vacation to see her."

"I understand," he responded, deflated for a moment. His face lit up. "Can we get ice cream?"

"Aye," he responded, winking at him. "The great Captain Hook buying ice cream for a kid!"

Flynn gave a smile that lasted from ear to ear. He leaned across the table and grabbed the hook, looking at it in fascination. "Mommy played Peter Pan a lot. But she said 'don't be afraid, Flynn.' She said, 'this is a false story.' every night she read me stories. Princes and princesses. My favorite is about the Pirate and the Princess. She always had this look in her eye. Why was that?"

"Your mother was telling you her story." He glanced at the ground where the suitcase was and saw a corner of a picture frame sticking out of the open bag. He leaned down to grasp it and pulled it up. It was a picture Snow had taken after they came back from the alternate reality. When Emma pushed the two of them onto the bed and he told her that he was a survivor. Snow had crept upstairs and snapped a photo when their foreheads were touching. It was taken perfectly. Their eyes spoke of the love they had for each other and they both had the biggest grins on that they'd ever had. It was when they shared their first(and last) 'I love yous' to each other. It was also the same night that they slept together.

Flynn caught sight of the photo and pointed at Emma. "Mommy," he stated. Then he pointed at the one of Killian. "Daddy." He squinted at the picture and looked at Killian again, comparing the faces. "DADDY!" he screamed while looking at him. Flynn wrapped his arms around Killian's neck, who quickly grasped hold of the child's body and returned the hug. He felt his heart swell. Emma had told Flynn who his father was after all.

A stray tear slipped down his face. "It appears so."

Flynn pulled away and looked Killian in the eyes. "I asked about you two days ago. About my Daddy. She said to pack my stuff. She said we were leaving the city to meet you."


"6/14/16

Killian, hey. It's been awhile since I've written to you. Flynn has been doing great considering we've been bouncing around the country a lot. I must say, Ocean City is probably my new favorite city in America. You'd probably like it. Flynn certainly does. He's turning one soon, and… oh, I miss you. But I can't come back. I can't just lay it on you that you have a son and force you to take care on him. That's not fair for you. You already act as a fatherly figure for Henry. It's just… now there's nothing left to do but just… oh, I miss everyone. Maybe we'll see each other again some day. For the time being though, I have to stay on the move.

Thinking of you,

Emma"

After showing Flynn around town, he stopped by at the loft so he could say his goodbyes to Emma. Snow opened the door with a five year old Neal in her arms. Her eyes were brimmed red and reflected sadness, but he understood that she didn't want to break the news to her son so she pretended to be okay.

"Hey," he mumbled. "I know I don't have any right to ask this, but could you watch this little guy," he gestured to the sleeping child on his shoulders. "For a little while? I want… I'd like to say my goodbyes to Emma before the funeral, you know?"

Snow gave him a smile of reassurance. "Go ahead. David and I will let Neal and Flynn play together. It'd do them both good to play with someone around their age."

"Yeah, you're probably right," he absentmindedly agreed. "I'll be back in an hour to pick him up-"

David interrupted him from the living room. "Take as long as you need. We all know you two were true love."

Killian turned around and walked away, his head hanging and silently tears rolling down his cheek. He still couldn't believe that she was gone. Just like that. No more dates, no more kisses, no more quiet talks at the beach where they shared their past with the other. No more Emma Swan.

He thought back to his fondest memory of her. It was at the beach and they were on a quiet date. No one knew they were there. They'd agreed to not tell anyone so they could just relax and not have to worry about the potential of a villain coming into town. It was also during the nine weeks of pure bliss in which there were no new villains, though at the time they didn't know that they wouldn't have needed to be sneaky.


Emma was the first to break the calming silence that had settled between the couple. "I'm sick of having my life decided for me," she admitted.

"What do you mean, my love?" he questioned. She looked at him and the look he was seeing in her emerald gaze was that of the angry, abused teenager he had seen when they were climbing the beanstalk. The look of a Lost Girl.

"It's just… Rumplefreakingstiltskin just had to use some potion to make me the cure to a curse that he created. I mean, what gave him the right to do that!? He told me that I was just used to break the first curse. One freaking curse all so he could find Neal. I can't really fault him for that, but it was not worth all the shit I had to go through throughout my childhood."

To prove her point, she turned her back towards him and pulled up her shirt. He gasped at the scar that ran from the top of her right shoulder down to the bottom of the left side of her back. She answered his question before he even had a chance to ask it.

"I was thirteen at the time and I was with an abusive foster father who drank until he was drunk every night and would smoke cigarettes. One day, after we ate dinner that I had had to make, I accidently dropped the plates on the ground and it broke. My hands were slippery from the water when it happened. Well the bastard wouldn't accept my apology…" Emma shuddered as she thought back to that moment before continuing. "He tied my hands to the table to I couldn't run, got a steak knife, and, well, you can see what happened. Every night for ten days he'd reopen the wound, punishing me for what he considered a crime. Some wounds never fully heal."

Killian didn't respond. She was about to pull the shirt down and see if he ran away after seeing how broken she was, when she felt a featherlight finger trace the scar. She flinched at first, simply due to the PTSD she's had to deal with whenever someone touches her back and she can't see them, before she relaxed her body and let him feel it. He stopped at her spinal cord and she felt his finger land on another spot. Again, she flinched, but this time it was at the memory itself. He was looking at a burn mark between her shoulder blades. Feeling behind her, she grasp the bra strap and lifted it so he could see the whole array of circular burns.

"The same man," she whispered so quietly that he could barely hear her. A small tear rolled down her cheek. "I ran into him one day when I was reentering the house. It was nighttime, so I should've been in my room at that point, but I'd snuck out to look at the stars. He tied me to the table again but this time I was on top of it and flat on my stomach, arms and legs tightly tied to the table legs. He lit a cigarette and just pushed it onto my back, letting it burn for minutes on end. He did it six times, Killian. Six. I was only thirteen. I was in those rebellious teenage years. I already didn't care what happened to me. You learn pretty quickly that you're just a meal-ticket, but this particular man… he enjoyed watching me suffer. Just as he pleasured himself every other night. He would rape me until I was on the verge of passing out. He only stopped because he wanted me to feel the agony. Do you have any idea how hard it is to pretend everything's okay when you just lose your will to live? I wanted it to end. The pain. He used me until he was sick of me, which was only for two months and then he put me back."

Killian lowered her shirt and turned Emma so that she was facing him and gave her a sad smile. "Aye. You think I had it easy? When I was a young lad, my father sold Liam and me into slavery just so he could try to escape for the crimes he committed. When you're a slave, you need to learn your place very quickly. Liam and I were a little on the slow side." Taking off his jacket, Killian pulled up the left side of his shirt so she could see the massive burn mark. "They branded us. Whippings were for when you were slow, meaning don't be that last to finish. We were young at the time, so we were usually last."

He grasped her hand with his and rubbed soothing circles on it. "I know you view those as weakness," he added, referring to her scar and burns. "But I see them as a sign of strength. You went through so much but look at where you are now. You fought and you won that battle. As I've said before, I've yet to see you fail, love."

Emma stared deeply into his eyes, and slowly leaned forwards until their foreheads were touching. Both flickered their eyes closed and met in the middle for a passionate yet sweet kiss. Killian flicked his tongue against her lip and she granted him access, both exploring each other's mouths before they broke apart, panting heavily. However, a smile remained tangled on both of their faces.


Killian snapped out of his vision and found himself sitting with his back resting against the fence outside of Granny's. He didn't even realize that he'd walked there, he was too caught up in his own memory to notice. He couldn't do this. Not yet. Unbeknownst to him, what had seemed like a mere five minute long memory actually had him out of it for two hours. It was noon by the time he worked his way back to the Charming's loft to pick little Flynn up. When he arrived, the infant was quick to run into his arms.

"Daddy," he squeaked as Killian picked him up and twirled him around.

"Yeah, kid," he responded as he set Flynn back down. He remained kneeled so he could look him in the eyes. "How would you like to go sailing today?" He ignore the questioning looks of Snow and David staring at him behind Flynn's back. "I'll call and see if your older brother would like to join us." He did so and Henry agreed, wanting to meet his brother.

"YAY! YAY!" he shrieked, bouncing up and down.

David signaled that they wanted to talk to him, from the journal entries that he'd read, Flynn was a smart kid and would listen to what he was about to tell him. "Hey, Flynn, why don't you go wait for me outside and then we'll walk there and I'll tell you some stories?"

Flynn grinned and immediately ran out of the apartment.

"Whatever you're going to say, say it," he sighed after he closed the door. He just wanted to spend some time with Flynn and Henry.

Snow spoke. "As you know, her funeral is tomorrow. What are you possibly going to tell Flynn?"

"I know it's tomorrow. I'm going to tell him exactly what I've already told him," he snapped. "I'll say that we're sending her off on her vacation. But that's not what you wanted to talk about, is it? There's something else." They glanced at each other but didn't say anything. "Spit it out!"

"We know that you're planning on leaving," she snapped back with just as much ferocity as he had. His face paled. "We've seen that look in your eyes. Tell us where and why."

"Flynn and I will be going to Ocean City," he replied. "I understand that cities have a lot of traffic, but I know how to drive those land vessels. Emma wrote in one of her journals that Flynn loved it there. I owe it to her…" he trailed off, losing himself to his own thoughts.


"7/15/17

Killian, he keeps asking about you. Well, about his father. I haven't told him your name, but I've shown him that picture of us from a few days before I ran away. When I was sitting on your lap. So at least he knows what you look like. Today, though, something inside me broke. I told him, 'No more questions about your father. We're going to meet him, kid.' I've never seen a kid look so happy in his or her life. Even happier than when Henry found out that I'd decided to stay in Storybrooke the day after my 28th birthday. I'm working my way back to you, babe!

Seeing you tomorrow,

Emma"

Everyone stood still as a statue, their eyes all leaking tears as they stared at the casket that was being lowered into the ground. Flynn wasn't crying as much as the others simply due to the fact that he didn't truly comprehend what was happening.

"We're sending your mother off on her vacation," his father had told him when he'd asked why they had to dress up.

No one had spoken for her, either because they wanted to do it in private, had already said their goodbyes, or because they couldn't bring themselves to. Killian and Henry were crying the hardest and they told people to leave them alone when they tried to offer support. Almost everyone is Storybrooke had shown up for the funeral. Including the imp himself. He felt the most guilty for pushing Emma to her breaking point four years ago. He'd been so obsessed with his lust for power that he was blinded as to the anguish he'd been bringing to the Savoir. So he blamed himself for her death. If he'd never been stupid and caused himself to be banished by Belle, none of this would have happened.

When the service was over, he put and hand on his old enemy's shoulder and gave it a comforting squeeze before walking away. It wasn't long before father and son were the only ones left standing over the freshly placed dirt.

"Flynn, why don't you go wait for me in Emma - your mother's car? I'll be there in a few minutes," Killian asked his son. They'd already packed their bags to leave town for the ocean. For how long, Killian didn't know, but he'd told everyone at Granny's the previous night and they'd all understood. Even Henry had and the handsome young man even gave him a hug. Flynn said, "okay, Daddy," and went as fast as his little legs could take him to the car.

He heaved a heavy sigh before speaking. "I know I should be happy that you're not in any pain anymore, but I can't help but be angry with you. You didn't have faith in me that I would want Flynn. Was it because of all the pain you'd gone through in your life? Had you been scared of yet another rejection? I thought we'd promised each other to see the best, but it looks as if your walls broke it. I can't blame you for that. You've been through too much in your life to deserve this fate. Fate is cruel. I had planned our future together before you left in May. I was planning on proposing in December," he broke off and a sob shook his shoulders. "But now I'll never know if you would've been willing to take that next step with me because you're gone.

"I read your journal and I'm almost positive you would've agreed. And now there's nothing left to do but just… I have to let you go. For the boy's sake and for your own. So to help me let go, I'm taking him to Ocean City so I can see what you saw in the place. It has to be a slow process, and I can't do that here in Storybrooke. I have loved you for longer than you ever realized, and will continue to do so until my last breath. We will meet again one day, Emma Swan. But until then, I must raise our son and your other son to be the best men they can possibly be."

With that, he quickly wrote something on the final page of the notebook, set it on the ground and walked towards the bug. As the car roared to life and he drove away, the gust of wind blew the notebook open. Written on the final page were five words:

"7/18/17

Emma, we buried you today."