dakota1979: your suggestion is noted

Caroline-Angel: your suggestion is also noted (you guys have brilliant ideas)

littlefrecklesonmyface: haha don't worry this is going to be a slow burn

Listhefan: nope this not going to last just during the week in Granny's, I have other plans for them! :D

Guys! I just wanna share with you all that Lana favorited and retweeted a drawing I made for her and right now I'm just the happiest person in the world! If you wanna check it out, you can go to my twitter, my user name is cagilarel. Yay!


The cartoon character on TV screamed in glee and Roland who was lying on his stomach on the bed with his head supported on his arms let out a contagious laugh. Oblivious to him there was a thick tension surrounding the room with Regina standing by the window, pretending to look out and Robin in the bathroom, stalling by doing God knows what. After the events of earlier Regina was quick to avoid him, occupying herself with dressing Roland and so focused that she acted like that was the only purpose of her life. When the boy raided her with questions, curious to why she had been so cheery just moments ago but now seemed so serious and stressed, she replied with short answers, assuring him that nothing was wrong.

However now she was standing by the window, careful not to go further into the room as she quietly observed the people walking by the small building. She felt trapped, absolutely and utterly trapped as her mind desperately tried to find an explanation for what had just happened. Surely it was his fault, he had initiated everything. 'But you're the one who started it!' her brain screamed at her as she closed her eyes in horror upon recollection of the events and cringed in embarrassment.

How stupid she had been and now she was afraid to look him in the eye. It had all happened over a strange and idiotic whim, her endless obsession with trying to get him to notice her which she thought was a result of her hormones. She was a woman after all and he was a man, a rather good looking one, who happened to be in the close proximity of her lately and her body was taking it for granted. It was wrong, absolutely wrong. Especially after they had promised that nothing would happen between them. Of course her mind sometimes drifted off to having a one night stand with him, all the excessive sexual tension rendering her more tired with each day as she sometimes let her mind wander, curious to what it would be like to feel him inside of her as he pounded her over and over again, but then she would snap out of her thoughts, embarrassed on the behalf of her mind as she desperately tried to hide the blush that crept up her cheeks.

Sometimes he would look at her in such a way that it made her wonder what would happen if she were to lean over and place an open mouthed sloppy kiss on his half parted lips. What would he do? Would he push her away with a disgusted look on his face? Or would he kiss her right back like she has never been kissed before?

All these thoughts floated in her head but for her, one thing was certain. What she was feeling for Robin was nothing more than a simple and stupid infatuation and it would certainly go away once she gave in to her desires and slept with him. Not that that was going to happen, she was sure of it. Nevertheless she thought about it from time to time and taught herself to be content with just the idea of it, and nothing more.

Robin on the other hand was passing time in the bathroom, half afraid to come out in the open and face her. Now Roland was acting like some sort of a barrier between them and he was grateful for it. But deep down he knew he had to face her sooner or later besides if he didn't take the first step, he sure as hell knew she wasn't going to. So taking a deep breath and giving himself a one last look over in the mirror, he gathered his courage and stepped out of the bathroom.

When he did, the first thing his eyes spotted was his son, laying on the bed and watching TV, then his eyes danced around the room and stopped when he found her by the window, tensed up upon hearing him leave the bathroom. She desperately tried to keep her attention on the window, no longer watching the people passing by but intently observing the stains on the glass formed by dust, dirt and rain.

Her body became more alert with his every step towards her as she tried to hide how stressed out she actually was. Because she knew he was coming to confront her, coming to ask her what the hell was that all about back there and she couldn't find the courage in herself to go through that conversation.

He was halfway across the room now and she tried to seem calm but in reality she was having trouble controlling her rapid breathing and racing heart. She could feel him coming closer, she could almost feel his breath on her neck, she could feel…

"Regina."

She gasped and turned around to quickly that she stumbled and her back hit the window behind her. His hand instinctively shot up to her arm as his fingers slightly grazed the skin on her bare arm, worrying for a moment that she would fall. He was there to catch her and she hated that. He had startled her and she hated that also.

Once he decided that she was steady on her feet, he immediately dropped his hand. Physical contact was the last thing they needed at that point.

"Regina." He repeated one more time after a beat of silence.

"Yes."

She wanted to take another step back, away from him but window was blocking her so sighing, another desperate attempt to control her breathing, she crossed her arms in front of her in a defensive state as she prepped her mind for her answer to the question he was about to ask, 'What the hell were you doing?'.
I don't know.
I was just caught up in the moment.
I wanted to kiss you.

"I'm sorry about your husband and how he treated you."

She froze. Of all the things that she imagined him say over their brief and tension filled encounter, this was the least of it. Raising her eyebrows, she stared at him with her lips slightly parted as she made sure if he really meant what he said. He had apparently because there he was, standing in front of her in silence and giving her a warm smile.

She quickly closed her mouth and tried to form the words.

"Thank you." After a beat, she added. "Although you don't need to apologize. I t wasn't your fault."

"I know but if you want to talk about it, I'm here."

It was a peace offering. He was silently proposing to leave the awkward moment behind and move on.

He wanted to be her friend.

She didn't know what to think about that. Part of her was angry. Here she was worrying about the change in their relationship, their actions earlier and their almost kiss, but he seemed content with it, almost as if he had forgotten. It made press her lips together tightly and her nostrils flared in anger as she eyes him carefully up and down.
How dare he change the subject when this is all I think about?

"I don't need your sympathy, thief." She spat out, her voice sharp enough to cut through glass.

Upon hearing her answer, Robin felt like he was punched in the stomach. The infamous nickname was back. Taking a step back, he replied harshly.

"Fine."

"Fine." She said right back.

As the two of them stood there, arms crossed in front of them and stared each other like five year olds, the actual five year old in the room tore his gaze away from the TV and addressed them.

"Regina, can I stay here tonight? Uncle Will snores."

The atmosphere changed immediately when the little boy spoke and the Regina sizing Robin up for a coffin was gone only to be replaced with the mother Regina who was now giving him a soft smile.

"Of course you can, sweetheart."

Robin just rolled his eyes and scoffed at her change of heart. Has she always been able to change her emotions quickly or was he the reason forthis haywire?

After responding him, she gave Robin a one last look and walked over to Roland, determined to ignore him for the rest of the night.

#

Regina didn't disappoint. Hours passed and she was still with Roland, talking to him, playing with him like he was the only person in the room. Stealing one of her books, Robin tried to pass the time by reading, he even left the room at some point to have a drink with Little John at the bar and when he got back nothing had changed and Regina was still with Roland on the bed, pretending to be very interested in the cartoon they were watching. Unlike him, she didn't even turn to cast him a side glance as she pretended to be very focused on the TV.

So that was how they had spent their evening and now Robin was in the bathroom, brushing his teeth as he watched the pair from the mirror, sitting happily on the bed wrapped in blankets. He had left the door ajar on purpose, wanting to spy on them and now all he saw was his son cuddled up to Regina, listening intently to the story she was telling him. He had tried joining them a couple of times earlier but they had ignored him, being so wrapped up in their conversation and Robin had accepted his fate. It was practically impossible to get in between them. So he opted for watching them from a distance and smiled softly at how cute they looked both in their pajamas, sleepy and overall happy.

When he was done in the bathroom, he stepped out and closed the door behind him. Casting them one more glance and deciding that they wouldn't want to be disturbed, he crossed the room and grabbed the old blanket that had accompanied him during his first night here and spread it on the floor. Mentally preparing himself to another night of sleeping on the hardwood floor, he slowly lowered himself to the ground, but as soon as his back hit the floor, he heard his son speak.

"Regina, why is papa sleeping on the floor?"

His words startled them both as they froze, not knowing what to do or say. Regina turned to him, her eyes wide with alarm and Robin thought that was the first time she acknowledged him that night.

"He's not honey, he is sleeping here with us."

"I am?"

"Of course you are." And she gave him such a look that it told him to shut up and get into bed.

For a second he didn't know what to say. Yes, he had slept in the bed with her before but as far as he was concerned that was a one time thing and now she was asking him again. Well, at least for Roland's sake.

When his eyes met Roland's and saw him looking at him with hope and curiosity, he decided to nod and comply before crossing the room and getting into the other side of the bed.

This was good. They had Roland in between them and this time he was sure nothing awkward would happen. Not that he didn't want it, he wanted more than anything to run his hands over her body while she slept but it was the look she gave him after that discouraged him. She always seemed panicked and alarmed, and he hated being the cause of that. So staying away from her was logical, at least for her own good.

When he slipped under the covers and turned to her almost instinctively, Regina quickly averted her gaze and looked at Roland.

"Now it's time for you to go to sleep." She addressed him, the warm smile back in her features.

"But you didn't finish your story! Did everyone live happily ever after?" the boy asked curiously, his eyes filled with excitement.

The first answer that came to Regina's mind was no, no one lives happily ever after. Throughout most of her adult life she had clung to that thought, knowing it's what was true. Happily ever afters do not exist, not even in the world they were from. Something almost always happened. But upon seeing the look on Roland's face, she decided not to crash his hopes and altered her answer.

"That's for you to find out tomorrow if you go to sleep."

Postponing the answer was not the best choice but that was all she could come up with given that she didn't want to lie, especially being under the pressure of the boy's father staring at her intently. Did he think that she wouldn't notice?

"Okay, goodnight Regina!" he said and placed a kiss on the woman's cheek which made Robin's heart stopped beating for a second or two. He tried to remember the last time his son was this close to a woman, another mother figure. He couldn't come up with an answer.

After that Roland was fast asleep, curled up to his father's side much to his surprise. He would have guessed he'd be with Regina instead but cherishing the only moment he had with him throughout the whole day, he wrapped an arm around him and closed his eyes himself but the tossing and turning on Regina's part did not go unnoticed by him.

#

Regina was restless, she wasn't sleepy at all. She shouldn't have been there, she should have been all alone in her big house, crying herself to sleep like she did almost every night. That's what villains deserved. She should not have been in a bed with a loving father and son, the latter asking her for bedtime stories. People like her did not deserve to be loved but the look on Robin's face every time they made eye contact stated otherwise. No matter how much they bickered and bantered, there was something in his face that she couldn't quite place. It was almost as if he was looking at her the way Daniel had all those years ago but she quickly shut off the thought, after all it had been years since someone looked at her like that and she was surely mistaken. But when he teased her, it wasn't disgust she saw in him, it was admiration and it brought a blush to her cheeks.

She turned to her side and faced the father and son, both sleeping peacefully next to her. Her eyes roamed over Robin's body, as she thanked God that he was actually wearing a sleeveless shirt to bed and that he wasn't half naked. But she couldn't take her eyes off of him anyways, watching his features, the lines on his face and around his eyes which became even more visible every time he laughed. She smiled at the thought.

He was breathing softly and she was sure that he was asleep so when he spoke quietly, eyes still closed, it startled her.

"You can't sleep." It was a statement, not a question.

"No."

He opened his eyes and looked at her.

"What are you thinking about?" he whispered, not wanting to wake his son.

"Nothing in particular." She lied, she was thinking about him.

"I see." The last thing he wanted to do was to pressure her.

After a brief silence he spoke again.

"You don't believe in happily ever afters?"

"Do you?"

"I…" her question had caught him off guard but it wasn't long before he added.

"Yes."

"Seriously?" she raised her eyebrows.

"Yeah, I have my son with me and someday I will grow old with him by my side." He said, looking at the ceiling. "But that seems hard to believe now since you're stealing him away from me." He added with a smile.

Regina paused. She had no idea her interaction with his son would affect him. And he was right, she shouldn't have done that, shouldn't have gotten involved in the boy's life without permission. Suddenly she felt guilty.

"Oh God Robin, I'm sorry-"

"Don't be. I like it." He interrupted her and turned his head to find her looking at him with a surprised expression.

"You do?"

"Roland likes you and God knows he needs a mother figure in his life, and you're giving that to him. He is happy and that makes me happy."

She couldn't answer so instead she simply nodded and closed her eyes, but she knew she wasn't going to sleep anytime soon. So before she could stop herself, the thought that had been bothering her for hours, slipped out of her lips in the form of words.

"About earlier…"

Robin froze. She was referring to their almost kiss.

"We don't have to talk about it." He quickly said, not because the subject bothered him but because he knew it bothered her.

"I know but I feel like… I feel like I should explain myself."

"It wasn't entirely your fault. We were both caught up in the moment."

"It's not going to happen again." She replied, not informing him but assuring herself.

"Okay." His voice came out barely above a whisper and she felt like she detected a hint of disappointment.

The silence that surrounded them was a bit uncomfortable, but not awkward, both of them expecting the other one to say something but not quite sure if they had gone to sleep or not. All Regina could hear was the sound of his breathing and the thumping of her heart. The absence of sound was slowly lulling her to sleep and she was feeling the peace in the moment, the calmness of it numbing her slowly. Just as her eyes were about to flutter close, she heard him speak.

"I like how you smell."

"Excuse me?" she opened her eyes wider but her voice was still not above a whisper.

"Earlier, when we were uhm… close. Is it jasmine?"

"I wasn't wearing any perfume." She informed him, her lips curving into a smile and she was glad that he couldn't see it in the darkness.

"Oh…"

"Goodnight." She said and closed her eyes, determined to go to sleep this time.

There was another silence before he whispered again.

"So that's your own scent?"

"Go to sleep, Robin."

"Do you think I can smell it again, just to make sure?"

"You wanna smell me in the middle of the night?" her eyes shot open and as she stared at him, with her eyebrows raised.

"You make it sound so ridiculous."

"That's because it is."

"So can I?"

She let out a sigh before making her decision, which she thought was completely rushed but she didn't care, and answered.

"Maybe later."

With that she closed her eyes and let sleep take over, the faint goodnight coming from him bringing a smile to her lips.

#

Regina woke up to an annoying sound of someone talking, presumably coming from the TV. Squeezing her eyes closed and not wanting to wake up from her peaceful slumber just yet, she moaned in protest and snuggled deep into her pillow. From beside her, she heard someone speak, voice hoarse.

"Roland turn that thing off, we're trying to sleep."

Regina hummed in agreement but she suddenly froze. She didn't just hear that someone speak, she had felt the vibrations… in her pillow. And said pillow seemed to be moving.

In a matter of seconds, her eyes shot open and she lifted her head slightly, the bright light coming from the window making her squint as she drew her brows together. When her eyes were finally coming to focus and the last remnants of her sleep faded away, she turned her head and looked at the source of the voice.

Robin.

Frowning, her eyes gazed at their current situation.

His arms were around her, of course… Why wasn't she surprised?

Finding the power in herself and still feeling a bit sleepy, she tried to wake him, her hand coming up to his upper abdomen as she shook him slightly.

"Robin…"

"Hmm…

"Robin." She shook him even harder which caused him to tighten his grip around her waist.

"What…"

"Wake up!" with that the hand she was using to shake him out of his sleep, raised and came to hit him hard on the abdomen.

"Ow!" his eyes cracked open as he absent mindedly brought his hand to cover hers so she couldn't hit him again.

"Why are you incapable of sleeping without touching me?" she complained but making no moves to leave his embrace.

Smiling slightly and looking around, his eyes finally settled on hers and he answered.

"As far as I'm concerned, this is my side of the bed."

Regina froze before slowly turning her head to observe the position they were in. He was right, they were on his side of the bed and she was clinging to him like a damn koala.

"So you're the one who can't sleep without touching me, your majesty." His words came out coated with sarcasm and she had to close her eyes to avoid eye contact.

When she opened them and found him giving her a sheepish smile, she sighed and untangled herself from him and left the bed to go to the bathroom. On her way there, she cast a glance at Roland who was sitting on the edge of the bed, having woken up way earlier than them, and watching TV.

She could still feel his touch around her body, burning her skin. She had to admit, she did miss the warmth of him when she left the bed, but not wanting to admit that little fact even to herself, she brushed off the thought and closed the door behind her. At least she thought she did…

Once she met the silence of the bathroom, she let out a long sigh and made her way to the sink, stopping in front of it to look at herself long and hard on the mirror. Leaning in closer, she observed the wrinkles around her eyes and the slightly darker skin under them. She couldn't get a good night's sleep, waking up in the middle of it a couple of times to check on Roland.

Closing her eyes, she reached for the faucet and let the cold water run as she soaked her hands under it, letting it calm her. Her fingers played in the water as she splashed it around her wrists, and she enjoyed the feeling as it cooled her. The serenity that the water provided was overwhelming but when she opened her eyes, it wasn't only herself she saw in the mirror, it was him too, watching her from the half open door.

When they made eye contact through the mirror, she felt a shiver go down her spine and without being able to stop herself, she gathered some water in her palm and lifted her hand to her neck, allowing the cool water to splash her collarbone. She could see him taking a sharp breath at the view before him as the droplets of water ran down from her neck and chest, rendering her skin shiny as they made their way towards the edge of her nightgown and wetted it. With the flimsy material clinging to her chest, she never once broke off their eye contact as she did it one more time, lips slightly parted and she watched his reaction.

Suddenly he was inside the bathroom and he closed the door after him and it was her turn to gasp and watch his every move from the mirror. He walked towards her and when he was close enough and she could feel the warmth radiating from him, he spoke in an almost predatory, low voice.

"You owe me a sniff."

Her mind couldn't find time to comprehend what was happening as both of his hands made their way towards her waist and he firmly grabbed her hips, pulling her to him.

Her back hit his chest and it was harsher than she expected so she couldn't stop the moan that escaped her lips. His hands left her hips only to find her hair as he first ran his fingers through it, like he had been craving to do that for a very long time, and moved it aside, exposing the bare, slightly wet skin of her neck to him. Without thinking, she tilted her head to the side, giving him better access as she relaxed into his chest, anticipating his next move.

He first looked at her and gauged her reaction, and saw her lean into his arms and breathe slowly without making a single move. She was accepting it.

She was allowing him to touch her.

His fingers came to caress the hollow of her neck, barely grazing over it but it was enough to send shivers down her spine. He looked ahead of him and saw her reflection in the mirror. For a second they made eye contact and he saw desire in her eyes, something he wasn't expecting to see. But before he could look any further, she closed her eyes and bit her lower lip.

Robin didn't dare to waste any more time as he leaned down and breathed her in. There it was; her scent, the one he had smelled earlier and couldn't get enough of. But this time he knew better. It wasn't any perfume he was smelling, no, it was pure Regina and it awakened emotions in him that he thought had died with Marian. It was rich and feminine, and not being able to stop himself, he took another breath before placing the softest of kisses on her skin. He felt her tremble in his arms but didn't dare to lift his head.

Regina was dying, she couldn't move. She had no idea a touch, his touch could make her knees go weak and make her heart beat like it was going to burst out of her chest. She needed to stop this, to protect herself but she couldn't find the power in herself.

They were so close. She knew if she turned her head even just a bit, there were going to be merely inches between them. And then what was going to stop her from feeling his lips on hers? If she just turned her head…

So she did.


Don't kill me. I love you all.