Chapter 7
As the sun slowly rose and peeked through the windows of the bedroom Emma opened her eyes. She looks over to see Mary Margaret still fast asleep. She takes in a deep breath and lets it out slowly. Yesterday had been a long and emotional day for everyone. Sleep had done a lot to ease the tension but suddenly she remembered, He didn't leave.
She sits up in bed and looks out towards the living room. She gives one more quick glance over at Mary Margaret and decides she would like the chance to speak to Charming on her own. She slowly and quietly crawls out of the bed and tiptoes to the far end of the apartment to where the man occupies the small couch.
He still seems to be sleeping. She decides to sit on the small end table across from him and watches him sleeping. It gave her some time to think of what it was she wanted and needed to say to him. She wanted to apologize first and foremost but she also wanted the chance to understand him.
His suddenly sharp intake of breath startled her from her thoughts. She looks to his face and watches as his eyes slowly flutter open to meet her expectant gaze. "Emma?" he groggily whispers. He sits up slowly, touching his feet down to the floor properly.
"Hey." She whispers in response. "Um..." She shakes her head not sure where to begin.
"Emma I'm sorry." He blurts out.
"No, I'm sorry." She halfheartedly offers. "I was acting like a child throwing a tantrum. I didn't give you a chance to get in a word edgewise."
"Emma..." He sighs. "You..." He shut his eyes trying to gather his courage to proceed. "You owe me no apology... not in the least..." She starts to shake her head at him and opens her mouth to protest but he puts a hand up. "No no... just hear me out."
She gives him a curt nod and he continues. "It is true. I did want to go back to our world. I did in fact think that leaving you behind was best seeing as how this is the only world you have ever known but I was foolish to think I could actually go through with it. You were right." He pauses for a moment giving her an earnest smile. "I was trying to run away from... well they weren't exactly problems... they were more like challenges I was not expecting to face."
He sits up taller and gives a quick glace about the room before he leans forward, clasping his hands together. "When we were first told of the curse and how it might be broken I can tell you that the furthest thing from my mind was what would happen when I came to see you again after that twenty eight years had come to pass. The thought never occurred to me that I would find myself in a world where you had grown up learning to defend yourself, learning to cope without... well not without me but without both your mother and I."
Emma slightly slouches where she still sits on that end table. She gives him a sad smile but waits for him to continue. "Then when Anton told us that we might be able to go back I felt a little relieved and suddenly I wanted that to happen as quickly as it could. I wanted to leave before you got back. I wanted to leave you knowing that things would be fine because you didn't need me. You didn't need us to take care of you. I mean look at all you've done without us. Look at how you've grown up. You... you're nothing I expected you to be. You turned out better than I could ever have imagined." His eyes tear as he has never been one to hide his emotions.
Emma reflected the same tear-filled eyes at hearing these words but grimaces before she shares her own thoughts with him. "Just because I don't need you to take care of me... that doesn't mean I don't need you in my life." She manages to say just above a whisper. "I mean I almost gave up looking for you both and here you are. I don't want you to go. I don't want to be without you both now. I was mad at you for trying to leave me behind. I mean I know why you did it the first time but..." She shuts her eyes trying to hold in those tears. She breathes in deeply and releases it in a sigh. "When Mary Margaret finally told me about all this magic bean nonsense I just thought, why didn't anyone ask me if I want to go? I mean I don't want to... but I would rather go somewhere I don't want to be than be without you again. If you both really want to go back then..."
"No Emma... no..." He shuffles off the couch to kneel down in front of her taking one of her hands in his before he continues to speak in a rush. "My mind is made up. I am not going to run away. Not from your mother. Not from Henry. Not from you. I'm sorry that I even thought about leaving. I'm not leaving you. I will not leave any of you behind. I belong where my family is. We stick together and that's final." He says smiling up at her, the tears flowing freely from his bright eyes.
Emma laughs through her own tears and slowly bends down to wrap her arms around him. Surprised by this he doesn't react right away but when he finally reaches up to wrap his arms around her his eyes meet those of his wife who was now standing in the living room with happy tears streaming down her smiling face.
