She stared at the the piece of paper that was taped to the wall of the cell. How he had managed to get it in there, she had no clue.

Oh right, he had stolen the keys. She should have know.

She walked up to the cell, squinting to see the smaller writing on the note.

'Hey, buddy.
I know you'll see this because you always follow Emma to work.
Bonus points for always watching out for her. You're a good kid.
Your mom and I aren't doing too well at the moment, but I'll be back.
I promise.
Just for now, I think it's better that I stay away.
I have some things that I need to sort out with myself, some things that nobody else is capable of fixing.
Try to find it in your heart to forgive me, because I swear I'll come back.
And we'll pick up right where we left off.
Don't think any of this is your fault.
You're the best son that I could ever ask for.
Just do me a favor and watch out for Emma, please.
You're the only one I trust to do it right.'

There was something else she couldn't read, in the tiniest hand writing she had ever seen. She backed away from the door of the cell, rubbing her forehead with disbelief. He was trying to fix himself, for her? No way in hell. For Henry, definitely. She wanted so badly to believe it, but handing this note off to Henry was going to be one of the hardest things she ever had to do.

There was no guarantee that Neal was going to come back.. For her or for Henry.

xxx

"Why'd you let our daughter walk out that door?" Charming asked, setting the bag of grilled cheese on the counter.

"She missed Henry. I wasn't going to keep her from him," Snow informed him, crossing her fingers behind her back.

Charming rose an eyebrow at her response, struggling to believe what she had just said.

"So you let her just.. Go to Regina's house without us?"

"Regina wouldn't do anything to Emma while Henry was around. Plus, even though we're her parents doesn't mean we have to follow her around everywhere," Snow reminded him.

Well that was a quick comeback.

Too quick.

"So Emma is going to go spend time with Regina. On purpose," David said, trying to make sense of the story.

"With Henry," Snow corrected him.

"She never voluntarily just strolls her way over to Regina's house."

David had never been more confused in his entire life.

He grabbed the bag of grilled cheese off the counter and made his way to the table, setting Snow's in front of her before grabbing his own. She didn't touch it. Something was up.

"Where'd she really go?" Charming asked, his tone aggitated.

"I don't know," She responded, her eyes tearing up.

"She's running," He realized, darting out the door before Snow could say another word.

xxx

'Henry and Evangeline, Daddy loves you.' Were the last lines of the letter.

He had known, Neal had known and he had left anyways.

She was curled up in a ball in the corner of the jail cell, sobbing so loudly that she was sure everyone in Storybrooke could hear her.

The 10 pregnancy tests were in the bathroom trash, every single last one of them reading positive, and she had never felt so panic stricken in her entire life.

Emma's world had been destroyed in a matter of minutes.

She had managed to pick the lock on the cell, but it took every ounce of rage inside her to do it. And now, she had crashed and burned in the corner, not even wanting to get back up.

Not even caring what happened to her next.

xxx

Neal didn't know how she was going to react.

But he could only imagine the look on her face.

And he wanted so badly to get into his car and drive to Storybrooke right now, to scoop her in his arms and tell her everything was going to be okay.

But he couldn't, not with the chance that he was going to just leave again.

He needed to get help, and now.

And he knew just the person to call.

xxx

Charming's stomach dropped at the sight of her.

There was a pile of Emma Swan in the corner of the cell. She was a mess, mumbling something about Neal and rose petals and apologizing. Her hand gripped a piece of paper that she wouldn't let go of. Her facial expression was blank, and he never once saw her blink.

"Emma," He called out, slowly making his way into the cell. "What happened?"

She didn't respond, but the look on her face said it all. She shuttered at his touch, curling herself into a tighter ball than she had been in before.

"Come on, honey. Daddy's here," He told her, scooping her up in his arms. She was shaking, cold to the touch from the concrete flooring.

Seeing her like this had him on the verge of tears. His arms shook but he couldn't help it. He was so afraid of what was happening to his baby girl. She was mentally exhausted, but he didn't know what had gotten her to this point. Had Regina stopped her from seeing Henry? If that was the case, Charming was never going to let Regina hear the end of it. Ever.

A literal puddle of tears were on the floor where Emma had been just seconds earlier, and Charming let his own fall at the sight of it. He left the station, slowly making his way down the sidewalk to their apartment.

"Can you tell me what happened?" He asked sympathetically.

"Neal," She mumbled, not moving an inch in his grasp.

He was furious, noticing his steps quickening with each thought of what he would do when he saw Neal Cassidy again.

He carried Emma all the way to her bed, lying her down as gently has he could. He sat on the edge of her bed, rubbing her back in slow circles. She didn't move an inch. She just stared at the wall ahead of her, tears pouring onto her pillow case.

"Emma," Charming whined, rubbing his eyes before any tears could escape.

"Give her time," Snow told him, as she leaned on the doorway of the bedroom.

He dropped his head in his hands, sighing to himself. He felt so helpless. There was nothing he could do. He turned to get up when he felt Emma's touch on his arm.

"Dad," Emma sobbed, making eye contact with him for the first time since he'd rescued her.

Emma sat up, and when she realized where she was she starting crying even more than she had been just a few miments ago. She didn't remember how she got here, but she knew that her father's embrace was awaiting her. She needed that more than anything right now. He let her tears stain his shirt as he kissed the top of her head over and over, hoping that somehow it would take all her pain away.

But it wouldn't. The side effects of Neal Cassidy were just starting to kick in.