A/N: Things are about to take a very twisted turn. I hope you all are prepared. And just for you, I have decided to make this an extra long chapter. Enjoy it and let me know your reaction to it all.

Kisses.

"Cora? Care to explain?" Regina said, pushing Robin back a few feet and crossing her arms.

Cora shrugged, "I missed my little girl?"

"Cut to the chase, Cora. What's the real reason you're here?" Regina spit out as she pulled the envelope from Cora's pocket and threw it to the ground.

Cora sighed and gave Regina the stare that was so molded into her mind, "Well don't just stand there, you foolish child! Pick that up."

Regina was so stunned that her body froze. She couldn't feel anything and she was about as scared as they could come. Her mother snapped at her and Regina immediately fell to the floor and scrambled to pick up the dispersed money. It took her a few seconds to straighten it out and order them like they were supposed to be. Her mother just stood there and stared at her, wide eyed and arms crossed.

"Why are you here?" she said to her mother, and then continued to herself, "You can't be."

Regina looked down at the paper where she had the scribbled address and checked the street, and let out a shallow breath. She was scared. Robin grabbed her back because he could sense her fear.

"Well, we haven't seen each other in quite some time, have we?" her mother folded her hands and gave a little smile, "I guess we could use this as some time to catch up?"

Regina was surprised. In all her life, in her entire 27 years of life, her mother wanted nothing to do with her, but all of sudden, she wanted to 'catch up'?

Nothing was making sense.

Her mother gave her a slightly annoyed look, and from what Regina remembered, that look was something you didn't want mess with. Regina let out a long sigh and rubbed her eyes, "I guess so, maybe there's something redeemable in you."

"Well, let's get a move on it then." her mother stepped aside and invited Regina and Robin inside the building, which was dark and seemed quite lonely.

From the looks of it, the place was fit for a villain. It had grey walls in every room, that was complemented by the off white carpeting. There were only a few windows, not many electronics, and only two doors, one in the front and one in the back. There were no doors to get into each room, only the small opening in the walls where a door would usually be placed. There was little to no furniture in each room and Regina could only conjure up one good thing about it all: it smelt like apples.

"You've grown up, I see." her mother sat down on the single couch in the dimmed living room, and waited for Regina to reply.

Regina nodded and looked around. She decided to stand, "Yes, I grew up, I helped around the house, got an internship at 19, and am now a successful, independent woman."

She wanted to impress her mother, and also wanted to make her jealous. Jealous of the life she never had. Jealous of the life she chose to leave.

"You took care of your father?" her mother said, surprised.

"Some one had to after you left," Regina scoffed at her mother, but soon regretted it, "Why did you do that anyway?"

"My dear Regina," her mother started with, she called her over to sit next to her. Robin hesitantly let her do so, but Regina was intrigued for an answer. Her mother started to play with Regina's hair and spoke, "I wasn't ready. Robin dear, why don't you go fix us some drinks?"

Robin raised an eyebrow as he eyed Regina. She told him to follow her mother's demand. Robin left the room.

Regina was so stuck in the past, she began to remember the times that her mother used to braid her hair at the end of each night, so she could get up early and ride her horse without the hassle of her hair flying in her face. She smiled to herself as her mother continued, "I wasn't ready for a family. Once your father and I were told about having you, I went on a downward spiral."

Regina turned to her mother and started to see the woman she used to be, the one who used to love her, the one who used to play with her, before something had clicked inside of her and made her leave.

Cora was no angel. She had done bad things in the past, which she had never told Regina, or her husband for that matter. She had loans to pay off, she had crimes to hide from, and worst of all, she had a belief that love was weakness. She did love Regina, once, when she was very little. She would run around the yard with her and maybe play a game of hide and seek or two if they had time. Cora would give Regina lessons on riding horses, or maybe make her a surprise batch of pancakes for breakfast. Then something just happened. Out of nowhere. Cora started coming home late every night. She wouldn't tell her husband where she had been, and when she did, it was always 'at the store'. Regina, being the adventurous little girl she was, grew more and more curious of her mother's disappearance, and one day, she followed her.

Cora never went to any store. Not once. Regina had seen her meet up with some guy, who was tall and strong. He had a higher voice for a man. She had never heard Cora call him anything by Mister, which she thought was safe to assume was his name. Regina had seen them kiss once or twice, and that's when she ran. She had concluded that Cora was seeing other men, because she no longer loved Regina and her father. She no longer wanted to be with them - to be their family.

Five days later, Regina woke up early and found a note lying on the table that stated:

Regina and Henry,

I couldn't do it. Thanks for what you gave me but I had to go my own way.

Cora

"You left us, your home, your family. You left your only daughter." Regina stood up from the couch and stared at Cora.

"That was so long ago, can't you get over it?" Cora said, standing up and facing Regina.

Now that the conversation about the past had started, Regina started to feel more and more unsafe in that building, especially since Robin had not yet come back from fixing them drinks.

"You could have told Daddy that you were seeing other men, you didn't have to leave and pretend 'you couldn't handle it'." Regina said, stepping away from her mother.

"How do you know I was seeing other men?" Cora said, completely surprised.

"I saw you, with Mister, was it?" Regina said, backing up against the door. Cora thought a moment and then let out an, ah.

"Mister?"

Regina nodded.

"You mean as in Mr. Gold?" Cora asked.

"Oh my," Regina said, backing up, "You must be joking."

"My dear, why do you think he hired you? Why do you think he promoted you? Why do you think he recommended you to work with Robin?" Cora said, slowly walking towards Regina. Regina tried to back away from her, but she was already as close as she could get to the door. The only other solution was running outside.

"No. You, this, him, it can't be." Regina tried to resist the obvious.

Cora nodded and said, "But it is."

"Shit, tell me you're lying." Regina said.

"Watch your profanity, Regina Marie." Cora said.

Regina froze at the sound of her middle name, "Don't say that. You have no right to tell me what I can and can't do anymore. You lost that privilege when you left Daddy and I."

Cora rolled her eyes pushed her towards the wall until she was backed up all the way against it, "I do and will always have power over you, Regina. I was being a courteous mother by getting Robin to pay me so I could keep Gold restrained."

"Gold would never hurt me."

"Believe what you want, but believing doesn't make it true. I've seen the darker side of him, and it's not something you want to be on," she said, "But, by my knowledge, you already are on that side, aren't you?"

Regina stayed silent as she saw Robin coming back not the room. He dropped the glasses and ran toward her, "Cora, what the hell?"

"Just a little mother-daughter talk, that's all." she said as she backed away from Regina and looked back at her, "I warned you."

"Stay out of my life." Regina said as Robin grabbed her hand and pulled her to the door.

Cora muttered as the two made their way out of the door, "You'll wish you never said that."

"That woman is insane." Robin said as he rushed Regina to his car, "We'll leave your car here and come get it tomorrow morning. You're coming home with me."

"Robin, relax. She can't do anything to me," Regina said as she stopped in the middle of the street.

Robin shook his head and looked at her with hopeful eyes, "I don't care if she can or can't. I just care that you're with me either way."

Regina smiled and rolled her eyes as he continued to drag her to his car and put her in the passenger seat. He started the car and drove out of the parking lot quickly. She let her hand fall onto his as she looked over to him, "Thank you for being concerned, Robin."

He nodded, "Of course, I always-"

"But, if she does anything, you need to stay out of it. This is my fight, not yours."

His mouth dropped before he shook his head and turned away from her, not saying another word for the rest of the drive. When they got to his house, he helped her out, but still didn't speak to her. He got himself a bottle of wine and headed into his room, without making eye contact with her.

She shook her head as she hung her coat and kicked off her heels. She knew that he was hurt because she didn't want his help, but she couldn't risk him getting hurt. Robin meant everything to her, and Cora would go to any and every length to get what she wanted. Regina sighed and poured herself a glass of water before making her way up the stairs and to the guest room across the hallway from Robin's bathroom. The door to his bathroom was cracked open. She saw him standing in front of the mirror, staring at himself, hurt and yet determined. He ran his fingers through his hair and took the towel from around his neck, throwing it in the hamper. Within the next second, he turned and met her gaze, holding it for a good minute and then coming into the hallway. He looked to the floor and then back up to her eyes, letting even more awkward silence fill the air, before he opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off by her words.

"I appreciate your concern, I really do," she said as she looked down to the floor, "I actually value it since I've never had someone care for me so much since my father. But I can't risk you getting hurt. I don't know what I'd do without you beside me, Robin. Letting you in on this is like dooming myself to hell, and damning you to destruction. I can't do that, I just can't."

He nodded and rubbed his chin before bringing her chin up so that their gazes met once more, "I understand. Come on, don't sleep alone in the guest room."

Regina pursed her lips and nodded reluctantly before following him into his room. She went into his drawer and grabbed a t-shirt and sweatpants for quickly changing into it and getting into his bed. He first just looked at her before he came close and wrapped his arms around her cold body, holding her close to his body and kissing her forehead.

Regina woke up at 4AM. She slipped out of Robin's grasp and grabbed her clothes on the way to the bathroom. In a few minutes, she was dressed and fixing her hair before applying a new coat of makeup and running down the stairs to her jacket and shoes. It was still dark out and probably freezing. She zipped her jacket and put her heels on before stealing a scarf from his coat closet and heading out the front door to his car. Again, she found herself deceiving everything she had promised him, and stealing his car to go and meet Gold.

She parked in the back parking lot and ran inside, rushing to Belle and begging, "Please let me see him. I know he doesn't want to see me, but, surprisingly, I need him."

"I don't really care about what you need, Regina." Belle sassed as she continued typing, "Is that all?"

"Belle, please. I'll do anything." Regina said as Gold's office door opened and Gold stepped outside, eyeing her down.

"Miss Mills? What are you doing here?" he said.

"We need to talk. Now." Regina said as she came up to him and pushed him into his office, kicking the door shut behind her and locking in in one motion.

He laughed, "If you wanted me alone, you could have just asked. I mean, we both know just exactly how much fun we both had when we-"

Her eyes widened as she shook her head, "No, thank you. Not after what I just found out."

"And what would that be, dearie?"

Regina paused and then laughed at him, "You slept with my mother."

Gold froze and stared at Regina.

"And me," Regina laughed, "I guess we Mills women have something going for us. That you want to use us and sleep with us to get what you want?"

"Regina, it isn't like that." he said, "It was never like that."

"I really don't want to talk about it, Gold, really don't want to." she said with a disgusted face, "I'm here for one reason and it's not to talk about how you and my mother had sex, possibly at the same time we did. That's just a nightmare on its own."

He raised his hands in a surrender motion as a smiled creeped up on his face and he sat down on his office couch. Regina flattened the nonexistent wrinkles on her skirt and stepped toward him before sighing, "I think there is a possibility that my mother will snap and go for Robin."

"What makes you think that?" Gold smirked at her.

"Why are you smirking? You know something," she said, coming to him, "Tell me."

He shook his head, "Client confidentiality. No can do."

She kneeled onto the couch and grabbed his collar, pulling him toward her, "Gold, I swear, if you don't tell me, I'll-"

"You'll destroy me?" he smirked, "I could use some of your destruction methods about now."

She pushed him back onto the couch and paced around his office, "If you have anything to do with my mother's plan, Gold, I will kill you."

He shook his head, "All I can say is that I would watch your and Robin's backs. That's it."

"Are you kidding me?"

"You can leave now." Gold said as he stood up.

Regina's mouth dropped, "Tell me what she is planning, Gold."

"You have nothing to offer me, dearie." he said as he unlocked the door and opened it, "Now get out."

She rolled her eyes and strutted out of his office and to Robin's car, quickly driving out of the parking lot and back to Robin's house before Robin's alarm went off at 7AM.

"Good morning, beautiful," Robin hummed as he grabbed Regina's waist and kissed her temple. She opened her eyes, even though she wasn't really sleeping, and turned to him before yawning. With a smile, she rubbed their noses together before staring at him.

"Morning."

Robin laid a light kiss on her lips before she turned around and stared at the wall. His hand rubbed her stomach as he sighed contently, "How was your sleep?"

Her eyes widened, "Very well, and yours?"

"Terrible," he said, "I had a bad feeling and was twisting and turning all night."

"Oh, I'm sorry." She said as she moved back to his body and continued to stare at the wall.

"Are you alright?"

She nodded, "Yes, of course. You want pancakes or French toast?"

He sat up and rubbed his eyes, "As much as I'd love to sit and eat breakfast with you, I have a meeting with Will in about an hour. I better get to the shower."

She pouted as he kissed her lips once more and stood from the bed, making his way to the bathroom and showering.

When he was gone, Regina let out a long sigh and shook her head. Secrets weren't the key to a healthy relationship. In fact, secrets were what broke them.

Regina grabbed her clothes and changed quickly before walking into the bathroom and saying, "Robin, love?"

He stuck his head out of the shower, "Yep?"

"I'm going to go get a coffee, you want anything?" She said.

He shook his head, "No, it's quite alright. I won't be here when you get back. Take the mustang; I'll take the lamborghini. See you at work later."

She nodded and left the bathroom. After making her way down the stairs, she grabbed her jacket and purse before pulling on her shoes, and then ran to the mustang.

She drove fast down the roads. She was anxious, scared, nervous, confused. She was overwhelmed with anything and everything. She came to a short stop at a red light, almost getting hit by the car behind her and the cars coming at her from the opposite side, because she wasn't paying attention. Her body jerked forward, her head hitting the steering wheel and her vision blacking out completely.

"Daddy, why would she leave?" Regina pouted in his arms. She was only nine. She had lost her mother, her best friend, the only one that understood her. She had lost the one person that taught her how to ride, that kept her braids unknotted, that baked her those surprise batches of pancakes. She had lost her mother.

Henry rubbed her back and hushed her cries, "Sometimes, people just aren't ready for a family."

"Does she not love me?" Regina said.

"No, no, Regina. Your mother loves you very much. More than you will ever know."

Regina continued to cry, "Then why did she leave me?"

Before he could answer, Regina ran out of his arms and up the stairs. She locked herself in her room and began to stare at herself in the mirror. In a few seconds, she found a pair of scissors from her art drawer and took them in her hand. She walked back over to her mirror and gave herself a disgusted expression before grabbing her long braids and cutting them off at her shoulder. She wanted nothing to do with her mother, nothing to remind her that she had left.

Daddy was sick. How could her mother just get up and leave one day? How was it so easy to leave a man who was practically dying more and more each day?

Regina was nine. How was it easy to leave behind a young girl who just wanted to ride her horses and paint her art? How could her mother not look back?

She cried as she dropped her braids to the floor, covering her mouth and throwing the scissors onto her bed. Regina had never felt so broken. She had never felt so unwanted.

She had never felt unloved.

"Regina Mills, can you open your eyes? Can you hear me at all?"

At the age of 16, she had taken up a part-time job down at the corner store. It was a few streets away from their home, so it was easy for her to get to and fro there. She worked every night, trying to salvage any funds she could to add to her father's medication bills. Her grades were going down drastically and her free time was dying down to a mere hour a day.

"Miss Mills, can you stay for a minute?" Her teacher said. She nodded reluctantly as the rest of the students filed out of the classroom, the last closing the door and leaving her alone with her teacher.

"Can we make this quick? I have somewhere to be-"

"Regina, honey. I know how you're living. I know that you are working tons of hours. I understand the conditions in which you are living under, but I need you to understand that your education is extremely important." Her teacher said.

She nodded, "I know. I'm trying. I have to go, sorry."

Regina would rush home and quickly change, eating whatever leftovers there were from the previous night, then leave again to go work. She usually got home around 10pm every night, would kiss her father goodnight, and head to bed. She did her homework on the bus the next morning.

"Regina? Please, wake up. Don't leave me."

She ran through the house and hugged her father tightly, "I'm back from college, Daddy."

He laughed and then let out a cough, "I'm very proud of you, Regina. And your mother would be, too."

"Let's not mention her, okay? How are you feeling?"

"Tell me about it, honey." He said, ignoring her.

She smiled and sat down next to him, "I got this job at Gold Corporations and it's really good, I'm really getting the hang of it. Plus, I met this guy, Daniel, at school and we've been hanging out. I hope he can meet you sometime."

"That's wonderful," Henry said.

She raised her eyebrow and stared at him, "What's wrong? You're acting weird."

"Oh, no. I'm fine." He said.

"You're lying. Tell me what's wrong, Daddy."

He sighed and took her hands in his, "I went to the doctors last week. They told me that I have a high percentage of passing away unless I get a certain surgery-"

"Then get the surgery-"

"It's not that easy," he said, "It's tons of money that we really don't have."

She took her hands away to wipe away the tears that were forming in her eyes, "You can have everything I've saved."

"It's not enough, Regina. I guess it's just my time-"

"Don't speak like that, Daddy. I'll get the money. You aren't leaving me, too." She said as she stood and put her jacket on.

He sent her a smile before nodding and watching her leave the house, with a scent of determination, anger, and yes, vulnerability.

"Regina!"

Her eyes blinked open as she looked around and her vision slowly cleared up. She saw the red and blue flashing light as she squinted and then made eye contact with familiar blue eyes.

"Oh my god, thank you," he pulled her into his embrace and kissed her forehead, "Please don't ever scare me like that ever again."

"What happened?" She said as she looked down to her shirt and saw the stains of blood, "Where am I?"

A paramedic came over to them and bent down in front of the two, "You were in an accident. Fortunately, your injuries aren't too bad, just some cuts and bruises that will heal before you know it."

"But I was at a red light. I wasn't even driving. What-"

"A drunk teenager came by, at the speed of 125mph, and hit the back of your car. You crashed into the incoming traffic," the paramedic said, "Fortunately for you, the person driving toward you noticed before it was too late. You could have been dead."

"It's a sign, you know. It's something saying you're supposed to still be here," another paramedic said to her, "Don't waste it."

Regina's eyes widened as she hugged Robin again, who still had not let her go since the moment she woke. He squeezed her hand and kept kissing her forehead, hushing his own pleads and cries. He looked at her with watery eyes and cocked his head to the side, "Where were you going? The cafe is right by my house, nowhere near here."

"I'm not sure," she looked around and gave him a confused look, "I think I was just driving. I needed to time away from it all. What time is it?"

"9:30. You were unconscious for about a half hour. I got here as soon as I could, but-"

"But what?" She said.

He sighed and shook his head, "They called your first relative before me, that's why I was here so late. I was called by your relative."

"Cora is here?"

He nodded as he shifted to the side, letting Regina see Cora, who was pacing back and forth on the phone. Cora turned her head and stared at Regina. She hung up her call and stored her phone in her purse before coming toward the two.

Robin stood up and stopped her a few feet from Regina, "I don't know what you're up to, but this is a serious matter. I don't need her heart hurting when her body clearly is."

"I'm her mother, move aside." Cora said as she bent down in front of Regina, "Now is that how you get my attention? You drive all crazy, get in an accident, and almost die at the hands of that man?"

Regina scooted back a little and crossed her arms, "That man has a name. It's Robin, and I love him. You don't need to be here if it's such a hassle."

Cora rolled her eyes, "Love is weakness, Regina."

Regina rolled her eyes and then looked towards Robin, who was talking to a paramedic, "I'm stronger than ever, Cora. Love is strength."

"How are you even my child? Was it Henry who brought you up this way? Has he ruined all possibilities of your future? Where the hell is he anyway? Fooling around with younger girls?" Cora said as she stood up.

Regina stood up and her face grew red, "My father, your husband, the one you left to die so you could have fun on your own time, he's gone. He's dead, Cora. I was the one who got stuck working the awful hours, I was the one who paid for his medication and his surgeries, I was the one he could count on. But I let him down. I couldn't do it anymore; I couldn't live like that. I tried everything I could. When the last surgery bill came, hell broke. You want to know what I did to get that money?"

"Regina, calm down. You're making a scene-"

"I will not calm down, this is my life. I choose what I do. Let me finish my damn sentence for once," she said.

Cora rolled her eyes and snapped at her, "Then finish, I have things to do and people to see. This isn't worth my time."

"I slept with Gold," Regina said, "I slept with him to get the couple thousand I needed for Daddy's surgery. And you know what really sucks? He still died."

"You slept with Gold? That son of bitch-"

Regina started to walk away, "That's not the point. What I'm saying is that I did everything in my power for those I love and you, you just walked away from it."

"Regina Marie Mills, get your ass back over here." Cora said, fuming.

Regina ignored her and got into Robin's lamborghini before Robin followed her and they drove away, leaving Cora alone by the ambulance.

Robin got an ice pack from his freezer and brought it over to her, holding it to her head and frowning, "Regina, I-"

"I know," she sighed and caressed his cheek, "I'm sorry. I won't do it again, please, just don't worry so much about me."

"I have to worry about you." He said.

She shook her head, "I can't have you worrying about me, Robin. It's not going to happen again, just forget about it."

She hopped off the counter and stepped away from him, sending him a longing gaze and then turning away and walking up the stairs.

Robin sighed as he walked out of the kitchen, through the hallway, and into his office room. He sat down on the swivel chair and spun around to his desk, grabbing a key from under his desk lamp. Then, he unlocked the bottom right drawer and grabbed the small box that had been sitting there for some time.

In a matter of minutes, Robin was up the stairs and knocking on the guest room door.

"What is it, Robin?" Regina said as she sighed and turned to him. He came next to her and sat down, grabbing her hand and sighing.

He looked at her eyes, big and beautiful, "I won't ever stop worrying about you."

"Robin-"

"Please, let me finish," he said.

She nodded.

He smiled, "I will never stop worrying, I care too much to stop. At the thought of you ever leaving me, has my stomach in knots and my heart in pieces. I can't think of a world without you in it."

Her eyes grew watery.

"In these past few months that I've known you, that you've worked for me, that we've been together, I've learned so many things: how to be the better man, how to fix my mistakes, how to fall in love. I've learned that everything comes with consequences and that everything isn't simple. But above it all, I've learned how to truly love someone," he said, turning to her and putting his one hand in his pocket, "I can't stop caring or worrying or being there for you because I love you."

"I love you too," she whispered.

Robin stood from the bed and got down on one knee, taking the small box out of his pocket and flicking it open, revealing a big diamond that sparkled as much as her eyes were, and said, "Please, let me worry. Let me care. Let me love you, Regina. I promise no harm will come your way; your every wish will be my command; I'll love you to my last dying day. Please let me be the man that can worry about you, that can care about you. Let me be the one to love you now and forever."

Her mouth dropped at the sight of the diamond and at his words, her eyes grew even more watery, and she held a longing gaze with him as he spoke again, "Marry me; be mine."

A/N: HOLY COW WHAT THE HOLD UP HUH A PROPOSAL?! I hope you enjoy the way I did it. I know that there are obviously more extravagant ways to propose, but this was a more meaningful way of doing it. Appreciate it, because it's a loving moment that will most likely be destroyed sooner or later. Review, please.

XOXOX