I actually posted this chapter when I said I would! Now you won't have to wait any longer to see Regina's reaction!

I'm really excited for where this story is heading and I cannot thank you awesome readers enough.

Also, a big shout out to my reviewers. I love seeing what you guys think, what you speculate. I will always try and do my best to never disappoint you :)


Chapter 7 - Captivating Me

The room was silent and Emma could feel the thick air fill her lungs as she inhales deeply, holding her breath as she waits for Regina to reply. She had just told the brunette the one thing that could change everything between them; the one thing that was a matter of acceptance or rejection. And the silence was killing Emma, really killing her. She opens her eyes that had been shut tightly in a way to brace herself for the ultimate rejection, looking over at Regina who's smiling softly at her.

Emma furrows her eyebrow, confused as she tries to read the expression on Regina's face. Regina continues stroking her thumb over the back of Emma's hand, squeezing it gently when their eyes lock.

"Say something please." Emma barely whispers as her neck cranes to keep her eyes locked with Regina's.

A soft hand settles on Emma's cheek, olive skin contrasting against pale skin. Regina just stares deeply into Emma's green eyes as she leans forward and delicately places a kiss on Emma's lips. It was their first kiss and while Regina knew it was a little spur of the moment and probably caught the blonde off guard, it said everything she couldn't at this exact moment. And Regina knew that she couldn't just stare silently at Emma, she needed to do something to let Emma know that she was okay with the news. A little shocked, of course, and very curious. But perfectly fine and accepting of Emma's condition.

That kiss is exactly what she needed.

She pulls away, her cheeks flushed red as she ducks her head, doe eyes staring up at Emma. "Is that what you were so afraid of telling me?"

Emma sits there, dumbfounded, as she nods her head. "Yes. What did you think it was?"

"I don't know... that you were dying, or something along those lines." Regina shudders at the thought.

"So, you're...?" Emma pauses, and Regina nods.

"I'm perfectly okay with it." Regina smiles at Emma with pride. Emma had been terrified of telling Regina about her condition, but she did and Regina couldn't have been prouder of the blonde for sharing something like that with her.

Emma takes her lower lip between her teeth as she thinks. Regina hadn't run, she had said she was okay it. But so was Lily when they first started dating and well, Emma knows all too well how that ended.

She is not Lily. She is NOT Lily. Emma repeats the mantra over and over again in her mind.

"I like you, Emma, and I accept all of who you are, okay?" Regina reassures as she notices the nervous shift in the blonde. "I don't even know how to describe it, you just- you captivate me."

Emma breathes out a nervous chuckle, nodding her head in agreement. "I could say the same for you. I was so terrified of telling you because I thought you'd be like... that you'd run away."

"I'm not that easy to get rid of, Swan." Regina jokes as she rests her head on the blonde's shoulder. "Thank you for telling me. I know it must have been hard for you."

"Oh gosh, hard doesn't even begin to describe it." Emma replies, not realizing how much emphasis she put on the word 'hard'. She can feel Regina laughing at the context, her body convulsing with fits of giggles into Emma's side when Emma finally gets it. "Oh. I guess that was the wrong choice of words."

Regina pulls her head away from Emma, noticing her cheeks flushed red in embarrassment. "Aww, come on, Emma. It was kind of funny."

"You know, I think I'm just so used to Ruby making 'hard' jokes that it didn't even phase me." Emma chuckles and Regina is trying her best to stifle a laugh because she can totally see Ruby making penis jokes at Emma's expense.

"I can see that." Regina says as her head once again finds its place on Emma's shoulder. Her hands dart out and grab Emma's, absentmindedly playing with the blonde's fingers. "So about that second date..."

"Oh, right!" Emma remembers that she and Regina had talked about a second date. "I, uh, I got nothing as of right now. I kind of wanted to tell you about my condition before letting anything progress... since it's, you know, important."

"It is very important, it is who you are. But, uhm, can I take the reigns on this one? I want to do something special for you." Regina asks as she interlocks her fingers with Emma's.

Emma can feel her heart explode into thousands of tiny butterflies at Regina's comment. Not only had Regina taken the news well, she wanted to do something for Emma. Something to prove to Emma that Regina thought she was special and Emma's heart swelled with adoration at the fact. "Uh, yeah. This one is all yours."

"Excellent!" Regina exclaims happily as she lifts her head off of Emma's shoulder. She glances slightly at the clock on the wall and realizes it's late. She sighs softly as she looks back at Emma. "I should get going. I have to work tomorrow."

Emma nods in understanding. She knew Regina had a busy work day planned, mainly because her mom may have mentioned something. She can sense the hesitation in Regina's voice, though, and she smiles widely at the fact that Regina didn't want to leave. But Emma knew it was for the best that the woman got her sleep. She sure as hell knows she needs it, too, after draining all of her energy trying to muster up the courage to tell Regina about her condition.

"I'll walk you to the door." Emma says sweetly as she stands from the couch. She extends her hand and Regina graciously takes it. She pulls Regina up from the couch, and continues holding her hand all the way to the door. Emma unlocks it, and moves Regina in front of her. "I'll see you soon."

Regina nods, leaning forward and capturing Emma's lips again. Emma hums into the kiss, feeling Regina's hand cup her cheek as she pulls her insanely close. Regina feels a spark surge between them and could swear she hears fireworks in the background of her mind blasting off. She pulls away, breathless and blushing. Her hand instantly moves to touch her still tingling lips as she shyly looks at Emma. "Yes, you will."


"I mean who could be so heartless!?" Regina blows up as she tells Kathryn what Lily had done to Emma. "It's one thing to leave someone because you no longer love them, but to leave them because of something they can't change!? Absolutely ridiculous. I can't believe Emma and my sister dated that- that DRAGON!"

"Dragon, huh? That's a new one."

"She's a fire breathing bitch! She destroys everything in her path. Let's not forget what she did to Zelena." Regina growls out, her blood boiling.

"Okay, can we just forget about Lily!? She's in the past. I want to talk about what's going on with you and Emma." Kathryn groans as she sips her wine.

Regina breathes heavily, calming down. She nods and sits next to Kathryn on the couch. "We're dating, I think."

"And that's something you want?" Kathryn questions.

"Why are you acting weird? You're the one who set me up!"

Kathryn sighs. "I know, I just want to make sure you're really okay with everything that has come to light."

"I mean, I fucking hate what Lily did to Emma because it's caused Emma to be really skeptical about everything, but I'm okay with everything else. I really like her, Kat." Regina admits.

"And you're cool with the whole... penis thing?" Kathryn cautiously asks and Regina shoots daggers at her best friend. "Don't give me that look, Regina. I'm not judging her at all! I just want you to understand what this could mean."

"And what could this possibly mean, Kathryn Abigail Nolan?" Regina huffs out.

"I just want you to understand that, you know, Emma could technically get you pregnant..." Kathryn says with the best of intentions.

Okay, so maybe Regina hadn't thought THAT far ahead and the thought kind of does scare her a bit. Not that she'd be scared of ever having a kid in the future, but Kathryn was just warning her of the potential risk. And Regina had no idea what Emma's stance on kids was, yet. They were barely dating as is. But she knew that whatever life had in store for them, they'd have to be prepared and take all the precautions to avoid that from happening too soon.

"Okay, so she can. I'll get put on birth control and if it ever comes to that, we'll use protection." Regina answers confidently. "I'm not going to run away from her because there's that risk. I like Emma."

"Alright, I just wanted to make sure you knew what you were getting into."

"I understand, but her condition is not going to make me feel any differently towards her. It just means she so much more special." Regina smiles and Kathryn just rolls her eyes.

"How big is it?" Kathryn wonders out loud.

"I don't know! For god's sake, Kat. I didn't ask to see it!" Regina gasps, slapping her best friend on the arm. "Okay, well I may have seen a small preview when she was wearing sweatpants. If it was what I saw, then she seems rather well endowed. But you know what they say about grey sweatpants."

"Oh god, no. You cannot base her dick size off a dumb Twitter trend." Kathryn chuckles.

"Whatever. The size of her penis makes no difference to me, Kat. Because regardless of its size, I want to continue seeing Emma. She's sweet and understanding. I just want her to see herself the way I do."

"God, you're sappy. I almost regret setting you up." Kathryn gags.

"You brought this on yourself for trying to set me up in the first place." Regina retaliates.

"Yeah, yeah. I know."


Ruby stands in an aisle of the grocery store looking over all of the options. After Emma had excitedly told her that she told Regina about her condition and that the brunette had accepted her and wanted to continue seeing her, Ruby knew she'd have to help Emma take all the extra precautions.

Especially when it came to sex.

Ruby knew Emma was a little subpar in that department, mostly having been scared to sleep with anyone due to her penis, but now that she had Regina, Ruby expects them to be banging like rabbits soon enough. And Ruby wanted her best friend to be safe.

A clerk comes by and asks if she needs help and Ruby nods her head.

"Yeah, so my best friend is kind of embarrassed when it comes to buying condoms, so I'm like trying to figure out what the best option for them is." Ruby states bluntly and the clerks eyes widen. "Like okay, so how does this work? I'm confused about the sizes. What's the difference between the regular sized and the large sized?"

"Uh, well... most men go for the larger size when, uh, they're very well endowed. Above average in length and girth. The larger condom provides more comfort or something." The clerk replies nervously.

Ruby raises an eyebrow. She had no idea what 'average' was. And she had no idea if Emma was above average. She remembers asking Emma how big it was, once, out of curiosity, but as a lady-lover, Ruby had no idea what to make of the size Emma had shared with her.

"So, Ashley..." Ruby says as she reads the name tag on the clerk. "What exactly is an average sized penis?"

"Oh, uhm..." Ashley stutters out nervously. "Like 5 1/2 inches?"

"Interesting." Ruby ponders as she continues looking at the boxes of condoms. "Okay, so what's the difference in all of these types of condoms? Like what the hell does 'Bareskin' or 'Ecstasy' mean?"

Ashley stares uncomfortably around the store, hoping there were no other customers around to hear them talk about protection.

"Bareskin is a thinner condom, meaning that it'll 'feel like nothing's there'." Ashley uses air quotes. "And the Ecstasy condoms have some sort of stimulating lubricant that's supposed to make it feel better, I guess."

"Oh." Ruby says as she concentrates on the boxes. "They make textured condoms!? Flavored!? What the fuck is spermicidal lubricant? Oh my god, who knew condom shopping would be so fucking HARD!?"

Ashley stifles a laugh and Ruby notices her slip up. She chuckles before grabbing a random box from the shelf, knowing that trying to figure out all of the different kinds was just too much effort. Emma was just going to have to deal with whatever Ruby bought. "Thanks for your help, Ashley."

"Uh, yeah! No problem!"


"Thanks again for doing a shoot for us, Emma." Mary-Margaret says sweetly as Emma goes to leave her office.

"Of course, mom." Emma nods, placing her hand on the door handle. She presses down on it and the door slowly opens.

"Emma, wait!" Mary-Margaret calls out and Emma turns back around to face her mom. "Can we talk for a second?"

"Oh, uh, sure." Emma shrugs her shoulder, closing the door and sitting down across from her mom. "What's up?"

"I just wanted to know how you're doing..." Mary-Margaret states as she stares at her daughter. David had told her that Emma had come over freaking out about telling Regina about her condition. And Mary-Margaret was curious as to how it went, if Emma had even shared that part of her with Regina. Though, she's pretty sure she did or Emma wouldn't look so damn vibrant.

"I'm great!" Emma says honestly. "Things are... really looking up."

Mary-Margaret smiles as she watches Emma grin widely. She hadn't seen her daughter this happy in a long time, and now she was radiating with happiness. It absolutely melted her mother's heart.

"I'm so glad, Emma." Mary-Margaret replies, walking around her desk to hug Emma. "It makes me so happy to see you smiling genuinely for once."

Emma groans, laughing. She knew her mom could be somewhat embarrassing at some times, but she was being all mushy and to Emma, that was worse. "Okay, okay! Mom, stop hugging me!"

Mary-Margaret lets go of Emma, playfully pushing her shoulder. "Hey! You are never too old for me to hug you!"

Emma chuckles, rolling her eyes. "Whatever, mom."

"You love me." Mary-Margaret smiles and Emma nods.

"Yeah, yeah. I know I do." Emma replies as she stands up. "I need to go, though. Ruby wants to go to lunch or something."

"Alright, Emma. I'll see you later?" Mary-Margaret asks.

"Yeah, of course." Emma smiles as she opens the door. "I'll call you!"

Emma closes the door and starts speed walking down the hallway. She turns the corner sharply, bumping into someone. The person drops a bunch of paperwork in their hands and Emma is instantly on the ground picking it up, apologizing profusely.

"I'm so sorry." Emma spurts out as she picks up the papers. She looks up and sees Regina smiling at her goofily. "Oh, hey."

"Wow, Swan. Did think I'd run into you here." Regina jokes as Emma stands up and hands her the papers she knocked out of her hands.

"Running into people is what I do best." Emma replies, chuckling.

"I thought photography was what you did best." Regina smirks playfully.

"It's a close second." Emma smiles happily. "How are you?"

"I'm good, just about to go show a house. You?"

"I'm great! Just got done shooting a house with my mom. Now I got to go see what Ruby wants. Something about 'lunch and needing to talk'." Emma says while using air quotes. "Knowing Ruby it'll be something absolutely ridiculous."

"She definitely is an interesting one." Regina agrees. "Are you busy Friday night?"

"Oh, uh... let me check." Emma thinks while pulling out her phone. She opens the calendar which Ruby syncs all of their photoshoots and jobs to (she even goes as far as color coding them), and checks Friday. She had a shoot with Victoria's Secret that day, but notices she's done with work after that. "I am free after 4:00pm."

"Perfect!" Regina beams as she smiles widely at Emma. "Would you accompany me for our second date afterwards?"

Emma steps forward and grabs Regina's hands, giving them a light, reassuring squeeze. "I'd love to."


"Rubes!?" Emma yells through the condo when she gets home. "Hey, I'm sorry I'm late! I got caught up at the office."

She hears rustling from the bedroom and out comes Ruby wrapped in a bathrobe, hair wild and a surprised expression on her face. "Oh, hey Em!"

"Why do you look like you...? Oh god! I walked in on something didn't I?" Emma gags as she shields her eyes.

"Uh, sort of..." Ruby replies, biting her lip.

"THEN WHY DID YOU TELL ME TO COME HOME FOR LUNCH!?" Emma reprimands.

"Because I figured you would have run into Regina at the office and spend a good hour talking to her! I thought it would have bought me some time." Ruby defends.

Emma just shakes her head profusely. "Oh god, Rubes. That is not a definitive measurement for sexy time!"

"I'm sorry!" Ruby whines. "But can we like talk later when there's not someone in my bed, you know?"

"Got it. I'm just going to... I'll be at the gym." Emma rushes out before exiting the condo. She pulls her phone out and clicks on Regina's name as she gets into her car.

Emma: I am scarred for life.

Regina: What happened!?

E: let's just say, I practically walked in on Ruby getting it on. I'm so embarrassed.

R: Didn't she say she wanted to have lunch with you though?

E: YES! But she figured I'd be like super late because I'd get held up talking to you at the office.

R: And she thought it would buy her some time. Haha, I got to hand it to her, she's ballsy.

E: she's not the only one -laughing emoji-

E: I'm sorry, I couldn't resist.

R: Very funny, Swan. Ever look into a career as a comedian?

E: you know, I haven't. But I'd obviously be good at it ;)

R: Being full of yourself again? Haha

E: the word you used was 'cocky' ;)

R: And now I regret every moment of it -.-

Emma chuckles as she pulls up to the gym, reading Regina's text over again. She liked how easy it was for her to joke around about her condition with the brunette as if they had been doing so their whole lives. Emma's never felt so comfortable around a person she was interested in as much as she felt around Regina. There was something about her that made Emma feel so lightweight and free. She doesn't even think she felt this way with Lily, and she took up two years of Emma's time. Regina has only taken up two and a half weeks.

"Damn." Emma mutters out as she texts Regina letting her know she was going to work out. Regina just replies with a simple 'have fun' with a winky face, and Emma can feel the heat spreading throughout her body. She definitely needed to cool down.

"Oh boy, do I have it bad."


Next chapter = second date!
Also, I am so glad I brought back Ruby and her humor. She's always up to something ;)