"Aye, Storybrooke gets the most busy during the summer because of the attraction of sailing," Killian explains, leaning against the railing. He points toward the row of boats all aligned up behind them. "Some do fishing as well, but never anything too abundant close to shore here. It'll take going out far for them to find any aquatic animals. In most cases, spring time and autumn get a bit of business too, but never as much compared to the bright, sunny days of summer."
"And what of you, Killian? Do you still sail?" Elsa asks.
He exhales from his nose, shaking his head gently. "Not as much as before, Elsa. In fact, the other day was the first day I had set foot on a ship in months."
"For what occasion?"
"I was taking Emma out on a date," he briefly states, shrugging his shoulders, "which was nothing particularly far. Taught her a couple of constellations which were visible enough while we were at it, aye?"
"Yeah, it was a great experience," Emma answers, "gotta admit though, Killian's a good teacher and story teller."
"You were complaining last night about my horrid story!" Killian pouts, his eyebrows knitted together.
She groans, rolling her eyes at him. "Okay look, it lulled me to sleep so I'm grateful for that and just take the compliment before I take it back tonight."
"You two argue about the smallest things." Liam scoffs, barely keeping himself in though because he's about to burst out laughing. "Emma, I apologize for my brother's incompetence as a storyteller, perhaps he should stick to being a deputy around here."
"He should."
Killian wants to think of some snarky comeback, but he doesn't. "I will then."
"You should have seen me and Anna, my sister, when we argued." Elsa shakes her head. "They were always over something dumb, but they always strengthened our bond in the end, so it should apply the same to you two. The more you argue, the more you learn about the other."
"That's a good thing then, we argue a lot," Emma quips, smirking at him.
He pinches the bridge of his nose for a second, trying to take in everything. She's trying to torture him now, turn it all on him, and it's bloody working out. How splendid. "I believe you start most of them, love. Not that I keep track of course, that would just be bloody pathetic on my part." He shoots her a short-lived mocking grin, making her roll her eyes and slap him across the arm. "I probably deserved that," he mutters to himself, unable to contain the smile forming on his face.
Emma sighs and smiles at the couple in front of them. "Alright, I hope you guys enjoyed our rather sidetracked tour of Storybrooke."
"Besides the entertainment between you and Killian, I think we both did enjoy the little tour our town. I like it here; being away from the city and such," Elsa says, looking over at Liam. "Don't you agree?"
Liam nods and smiles warmly. "Aye, that I do."
Killian's phone goes off when he's about to say something, and by the looks of it, he won't get to say any of it. It's a call from David, so he excuses himself from the pack of three others around him to go answer the call. Although with the rambling in his ear about something-something-unfinished-paperwork, Killian groans and tells him he's on his way to go finish whatever the hell David mentioned. Usually, his schedule is never so cramped, and he swears that he finished all possible paperwork already, but perhaps he missed a couple that are apparently significant to whatever Dave requires, so he stuffs the phone back into his pocket with a huff of a hopeless breath, turning around and returning to the three of them casually talking.
"I have to go back to the station," he says, "since Dave needs me to sign off some more bloody sheets of paper that I've apparently not done yet." Sighing, he nods at Liam and Elsa with a smile, but turns back to Emma. "See you tonight, love." He brushes his lips across her cheek for a second, and then he's speeding off back to the station to get the work done. The earlier he's done, the earlier he can go, or, well, at least spend his time doing something else than reading hundreds of words that he never actually pays attention to.
And here's the story of Killian Jones, spinning his chair back and forth in a repetitive manner as he reviews random sheets of paper. Something about property value damage - okay, god maybe he's not paying attention because his mind is constantly circling around Emma, the kisses, then Liam and Elsa being here. A clusterfuck of of life is being served to him at the moment, and he's not really in the brightest of moods to deal with, but when he remember of last night… Narrating a cliché story making her fall asleep, and then just having her next to her putting him to sleep as well…
There's something there, something, and he's dying to know, to understand what the hell he's feeling, because the mutual feeling is falling through the roof. Throwing himself into work usually pushes away those thoughts, diminishes frustration or anger, but today, it's not exactly working out for him the way it usually does. Spending countless hours doing nothing in particular will not even soothe the grinding gears of his busy little brain. With little subtle consideration, and very small bit of association with Robin and Will today, he feels something is wrong, but he can't put his finger on it just yet. Of course, there's another day or longer before Robin and Will make their decision to stay, and that itself is an odd change to his life… again. Everything is changing so drastically at once, he's not sure if he can hide behind his mask of cockiness and jokes before he falls apart with so much dragging him on at once.
It's a desolate place, the station, when it's empty and you're the only person in there occupying it. He's been so used to company for the past couple of days, he's feeling deprived from the usual person or two bothering him aimlessly about something useless, or just having a laugh with others. There's a desperate plea inside of him to just get the work done and over with already. He squints his eyes at the paper, going over the extremely small words - is this like size three font? - to make sure he doesn't mess anything up. Not to his surprise, he yawns, his eyes getting watery as he flips onto the next page in his package of papers stapled together he's holding.
Another hour passes by, and god damn is he happy to have finally finished going over all that pointless paperwork that he regrets never finishing earlier. The clock says it's a little past three in the afternoon, and his feet are asleep and the tingly feeling bothers him. Shaking his foot out, he sighs to release the stress, his shoulders sagging over as his eyes slide closed to try and ring out all possible sounds to nothing but the mere silence surrounding him in an empty, deserted office.
He is dying to just go back to his - wait - Emma's apartment and climbing into bed without a second thought because he's bloody exhausted. Maybe a pint or two of rum can also be involved so he can just forget and numb some pain from the excruciating return of Emma's lips ghosting over his, and the thought of Milah's death frequently visiting his sleep. Except, there's a flaw to his plan - his rum stash is back at his apartment, and he's not going to go back there while Liam is there with Elsa for them to realize that he's still all over his rum on his not-so-good days.
"Earth to Killian," a voices says, pulling him out of his reverie.
At some point, he started snoozing on the job, but thanks to Emma, he's rubbing his face with a grimace, and his mind is foggy and blanked out. "Sorry, love," he grumbles, "was never fond of paperwork and I just spent hours going through some packages."
"We can agree on that. Anyways, I thought I could drop by to check on how you were doing, then maybe go get some food at Granny's with you brother and Elsa if you're up for it."
He doesn't bother contemplating on his choice, he nods agreeingly. "It'd be an honour, Swan. You can head out first, I'll close up."
"You sure?" she questions.
"Aye." He grabs his jacket. "Unless you don't trust me with locking the door which it is a task I am very capable of."
She laughs and shakes her head, looking down at her phone. "Don't be stupid - uh, yeah, just be quick. I'm totally up for some pie today and I'm starving for a good meal today." Her eyebrows furrow in a sense of confusion, but she seems to ignore whatever's bothering her, stuffing the phone back into her back pocket.
"No grilled cheese this time around?" he asks, reaching for the keys on his desk.
"Gotta give a girl a break, besides, grilled cheese is not the ideal food for this time of the day… and I forgot I was supposed to go out before you."
Closely enough, everything turns out to be like a reunion. Killian's arm is casually slung behind on the edge of the booth by the windows. Most of the talk is a little bit about the company and how it's doing, and all this makes him forget the fact that Robin and Will are somewhere around town. The last time he heard from either of them was two days ago, but damn, with so much chaos going on, it difficult for him to keep track of every person coming and going through his life. For two years, only a small handful of people were every a constant reminder in his life, now there's more for now because everyone has somehow decided it's best to scare him or something… something like that, yes.
As much as he desires to continue their conversations while drinking his glass of beer, he notices how Emma's been slightly quieter than usual, and he doesn't see any tension in her posture, but she's just been minding her own business for a lot longer. Unintentional or not, he sighs and puts his beer down, resting his hand on her thigh. When she glances over at him, he smiles reassuringly at her, sending over a silent question that she seems to receive loud and clear. Emma nods and takes his hand in hers, squeezing it gently.
Something's bothering her.
"I'll be right back, I need some fresh air," she mumbles, excusing herself from the table, tearing her hand away from his as she slips out the diner, the jingling of the door an evident indication of her doing so.
"Is she alright?" Elsa asks, glancing between the door and Killian.
He sighs and shrugs. "Overwhelmed perhaps. She… has a hard past, worst than Liam and I when we grew up, so it's difficult for her to fit around other people sometimes, especially the two of you because you're family to me." He slides out of the booth. "I'll go check on her, if I don't return, well, apologies for ditching, but I want her to be okay."
"It's fine, just... go make sure she's fine, little brother." There's a sense of concern in his brother's voice. Are they really putting up such a good act that they're serious for each other? Hot damn.
"Younger brother, Liam, for gods sake," he mutters, turning his back on them and leaving. There's not definite breeze outside, but the temperature is a bit cool during the evening. "Swan!" he yells, seeing her pace back and forth, rubbing her forehead. "What's the matter, love?"
She shakes her head. "Everything's the matter, Killian! I just - watching you so happy with them… having real family like that, it's nice… it's something I've never experienced before because as much as David was a brother to me, I never felt a sense of belonging anywhere." She throws her hands up before it drops back down to her sides, closing her eyes. "I still feel like a child sometimes, to feel wanted and desired, I still question why all the time, but the answer is always the same." He's about to interrupt, but he stays still, his eyes darting around to figure out the pain etched into her face. She concludes, "I've always been so… shortly put, lost."
He doesn't push her toward anything, and that word lost makes him want to cringe because he understands what she's going through. Particularly, all he can do is stand there and let his mind absorb the words so he can create a reply. He pulls her into an embrace, her hands are cold, frozen even, from the chilly evening of the ending of autumn. Her grip on him tightens, as if she's clinging onto him, clutching and holding as if she'll lose him. Fucking hell is the right term for him, because as much as he's acting out on being a fake boyfriend, he sure as hell wishes it could be real sometimes. Only sometimes.
"Swan, it's normal," he murmurs, "you have every right to feel that way, and I'm sorry that with them here it has triggered some feelings of yours. But remember what I told you that night; the stars will always guide you no matter where you are. I'll be the stars to your night sky, love. Just remember you'll never be lost again, nor alone." He rocks back and forth a bit, her following along with his swing. "You'll have me, and from what it seems like, Elsa has taken a good liking to you, along with my brother - and David of course." He sighs into her blonde hair, the colour standing out from the dark veil surrounding them by the crack of night. "We're all family around here, and you sure as hell cannot change that, darling."
He can feel her shaky breath against his neck, the way her hands are around his waist and tight. Killian can nearly feel his face twist into a bit of guilt and pain. All of her insecurities have been laid out in front of her, making her sit in the most vulnerable state possible.
"I needed that. Thanks, Jones," she gratefully thanks, pulling back from him.
"Back to surnames again, Swan?"
She groans and provides him a tight-lipped like smile. "Just let it go."
"Now, you are bloody freezing, let's get back to Granny's, that is unless you'd like to head back to the apartment for tonight?" he asks, taking her hands - yeah, freezing. This woman isn't cold blooded, right? His thumb subconsciously rubs over her forehand, grazing the cold skin, and if it bothers her, she doesn't say anything about it.
"No, no, I don't want to bail on you like a bad friend. Let's go have some fun this time - darts maybe?" she insists, dragging him back toward Granny's. "If you're up for it."
"I'm always up for a challenge, love. You'll come begging me for help once you lose." He's confident, because by recalling the time they had back at the bar, she's good, but she's not good enough to defeat him in a match.
She laughs, opening the door and tugging him inside. "Yeah, no. Begging's a little overboard, the most I'll do is just ask you for advice."
"Whatever you say, Swan," he teases, his eyes shifting over to see Liam and Elsa smiling at them. "Hey, you two want to play us in darts? Last time I recall, you were quite dominant in the game, Liam."
"Have you improved since the last time we played?"
"Perhaps."
Liam grins. "I'm in."
When they all pitch in for a game, Liam gets obliterated, like completely destroyed by Emma, and both Killian and Elsa are pretty much speechless at Liam's lost. But, the stunned silence doesn't last for too long because they all break apart and start laughing. Killian begins to mock his brother's misfortune at losing because from what he can remember, he was always quite the competitive man when it comes to games with any sort of winning or losing.
But, between Killian and Emma, the battle is tight, too tight for comfort. He doesn't know how many times he's nearly dropped the dart out of his hands as his mouth is half-open staring at the progress she's making. And god, it's tense, it's difficult, but he seems to pull through on his last shot which brings him to win just by a little bit. That gives him the pleasure and position for him to make her frustrated and angry again, because she did just lose to him after beating the hell out of Liam. "Perhaps next time," he murmurs next to her ear, and he does catch the way her ears flush into a faint red, and so does her cheeks for that matter.
But as time passes, they all get dreary and need their rest for the next day, especially for the two who'll be out on patrol duty since David had requested himself for a day off to spend with Mary Margaret. Neither Killian nor Emma had the heart to decline him, so taken up on the job, it's late, and they need to get to bed before they pass out. After a rather long bidding of 'good night,' Emma starts yawning a whole lot, but on her defence, so is he.
Understatement to say they're tired, the moment the both of them get into the bedroom, without even flicking on a lamp, they drop to the bed simultaneously and laugh.
"Quite the evening, wasn't it, Swan?"
"Yeah." Yawning, she seemingly pushes herself up to sit properly on the edge of the bed. "Me killing Liam in darts was probably highlight of my day though considering you were speaking so highly about him."
His eyelids slowly close. "He wasn't that horrid back then, perhaps he's lost his touch with the game."
"Or it's just that I'm better."
He chuckles. "Or that."
"Well, I think I'm going to go shower first… please yourself with Netflix or something until it's your turn if you'd like." The bed rises from her getting off of it, but he keeps where he is while he listens to the shuffle of her feet and the ruffle of her getting clothes. "Oh, and if you're hungry - I saw you barely touch food and only drink - you can find yourself something in the cupboards."
"You're being quite generous, love, what's the occasion?"
"No occasion. You're the guest." Then, she's out the bedroom, into the hallway, to the washroom, and in the shower.
It does occur to him that he does need to shower, but he figures it'll be better to do so in the morning considering he's probably going to drop dead from fatigue if he stands under the wave of water blowing over his head anyways. Swiftly changing clothes, he slips into his side of the bed, gets comfy, and immediately falls under a nice slumber to the distant sound of water running, and some crickets from outside.
It's been a couple of days since the last time he's dreamed, and the last time he did dream, he barely could remember what had appeared while he was in such a drowned state. At one point, Milah appears faintly in the distance, only her voice echoing in the edges of his mind because there's a certain other voice that recaptures his attention and sets him free into a world he's never imagined previously. Swan. Although he can depict all the very possible messages going through him at the moment, the serenity and calming environment in this dreamworld of his is rather attractive at the moment. She's taking over his mind slowly but surely, her body, her lips, her voice, her personality - all becoming a part of him in a way he's never anticipated before.
But oh no, it doesn't last for very long. Weather changes rapidly, the sunlight soon being shaded by dark clouds invading the blue sky, local squirrels retreating for shelter, droplets of rain starting to reach the pavement, making it two shades darker than the usual. And well, weather changing is fine with the both of them, but when they're in the car, everything goes to hell in a quick change of events. He loses control of the wheel once the rain starts pouring, drowning them completely on the slippery road. All he knows is that he starts screaming for Emma, and then the next moment, he's awake and in a dark room with Emma's hand on his shoulder, staring into his soul.
It takes him a minute to catch his breath, to remember he's okay and that it was merely a dream - or, well a dream turned nightmare. She doesn't seem to question him about what it's about, and he's grateful she doesn't because he does not want to pick the lock back and explain to her everything that entire situation that had been portrayed in his active little mind. She does say he was screaming for her, and her eyes show a lot more than mere curiosity, but given that she seems to know what he's just gone through, she keeps her peace, kisses his cheek and smiles at him warmly. As simple as it is, he feels a lot more relieved as it is, and between the distance of their bodies, he takes her hand and holds onto it, interlacing his fingers with her before closing his eyes and falling asleep again.
At least this time around he isn't dreaming of something ridiculous and frightening. Losing Emma is not an option, it's not something he'll ever be able to handle because she means more to him than anything in the world nowadays. She's been a constant, and stable friend in his life for the past two years ongoing, letting her go, losing her will reopen a new dark void in his heart. Losing her will mean letting Dave down, letting Mary Margaret down, letting all of Storybrooke down. It's not a risk he's willing to take, and he'll do all he can, put in 110% of an effort to keep her safe, all the while letting her be in control and giving her the space she needs when she requests for it. Besides being stubborn herself, she likes making her own decisions instead of others making it for her, so for once, personal space both mentally and physically will need to be enforced on his part for the sake of her.
The room is no longer dark when he awakens, but from the sounds of it, it appears to be raining outside, and the birds are apparently happy about it. Well, what a day for David to get his break while Emma and Kilian do all the little bits and pieces of not-too-important work around town. When he shifts his head over slightly, Emma is curled up next to him, and fuck, he doesn't have the heart to wake her up. Instead, he carefully slips out of bed to grab some clothes and go take the shower he had missed last night to make up for it. Showers are nice, but they put you in that state where you start thinking about life, or anything for that matter.
In all of his lifetime glory, he's never felt like this before, not with Milah, but with Emma. And sodding hell if he's this smitten over a woman, because he's not having retractions now, not while he's starting to figure out there's maybe something more between them. Perhaps something with light the spark between them soon, whether it be accidental or purposeful, he hopes something can truly bring them together. For once, he doesn't want to stomp out the idea and break the flames into ashes. After seeing her eyes flaring with worry last night, he's not sure he can do that again without seeing something else between them, without having it be a bit more official and real.
Thunder strikes outside, though it's a very distant and muffled sound, covered by the chirps of birds. Even through the flow of the shower water hitting the tub, natures callings are just a force to be reckoned with.
By the time Killian is all cleaned up and out of the washroom, he bumps into Emma and nearly makes her fall back again the wall, but he wraps his arm around her waist on reflex and pulls her against him. "Oh, I'm sorry, love. I should've watched where I was going," he says, though he's glad he stopped there because he's at a lost for words at how close they are to each other.
"It's okay," she huffs out, smiling up at him. "You, uh, look refreshed," she stammers, biting at her lower lip.
He grins, nodding in agreement with her observation. "Clean and fresh." He lets his arm around her go, dropping it back down to his side. "Look, I apologize for waking you up last night, I really hadn't expected to have another sudden run-in like that again."
"Killian, it's fine," she assures him. "If you think I'm going to bother you about it or something, well, I'm not. I used to have nightmares all the time, I still do on certain nights, but I've managed somehow to keep them at a low." She starts pushing him out of the way. "Now move, I need to brush my teeth."
It's as if he feels his face literally drop and relax with the way she assures him that everything will be okay, that nothing will change between them.
It's a new day, he can do this. He can keep his act up.
But for how long?
