The discharge papers were signed, this was really happening she was going home. Emma wasn't there yet, little did the brunette know that the blonde has meticulously cleaned her entire apartment. Just so that Regina could at least feel a little comfortable. Emma was nervous, so nervous that Regina might just change her mind. She slumped down against the wall sitting her head in her hands.
'"You're not going to leave that poor girl waiting at the hospital, are you?" Granny says, Red's grandmother who owned the diner lived right next to Emma.
She could hear sounds of cleaning all day. Sounds that never came from Emma's apartment, not to say that Emma was a slob but she certainly wasn't very neat.
"Oh crap, I'm gonna be late. She probably thinks I'm not coming to get her." Emma says frantically jumping up almost hitting her head.
Before she grabs her keys with a quick wave to granny before she rushes out the door. Getting into her old yellow bug and speeding to the hospital, hoping that she's not too late. Sighing in relief as she walks through the sliding doors of the hospital to find a smiling Regina.
"I'm sorry, I couldn't get here sooner." Emma says apologetically with a lopsided grin on her face.
"It would seem, you're always late my dear. But I love you anyway." Regina says with a deep chuckle.
Emma sighs in relief, letting out a breath she didn't know she had been holding.
"Let's go home." Emma says finally breaking the comfortable silence that had settled in the room.
Regina simply smiles and holds onto Emma's arm, not quite yet trusting herself with walking on hard flooring. They make their way out to the car before Regina's stomach grumbles loudly.
Which prompts Emma to say "Food then home." with a small chuckle.
"Okay sounds good." Regina says cheeks tinting a pink shade as she gets into the bug, with only a single eyebrow raised in protest.
"I'm sorry it's not the best." Emma says for the first time apologizing for her bug.
"You deathtrap is perfectly fine, my dear." Regina teases putting her seatbelt on as Emma starts the car and pulls out of the parking lot.
Emma chuckles and then asks "Remember Ruby?"
"Yeah, I never really got to meet her though." Regina says, trying to find a way to comfortably sit in the seat of the car.
"We're going to eat at her Grandma's diner, it has some really good food. That is if you like french fries and burgers." Emma laughs at the idea of someone not liking those things, before Regina looks to the floor embarrassed.
"Did I say the wrong thing?" Emma asks her laughter quickly stopping at the look on Regina's face.
"I've, I um I've never eaten a burger or fries." Regina says.
"Really? That is the saddest thing I have ever heard." Emma says driving a little bit faster.
"My mother never allowed me such things, for they would make me gain weight." Regina says trying to hide the twinge of sadness buried in her deep voice.
"Oh Gina, sweetie you are so beautiful please don't let the things she said make you think you are any less beautiful." Emma says picking up Regina's hand a placing a gentle kiss on it.
Regina smiles, eyes looking a little glassy as she kisses Emma's cheek.
"Plus." Emma says lifting her shirt a little to reveal her abs "Burgers and fries don't make you fat, take it from me." she adds trying to Regina feel better.
Regina chuckles, before staring at Emma's abs, "You are so beautiful." she says almost quiet enough to not be heard at all.
But Emma hears and pretty soon she is smiling from ear to ear, before reaching for the volume dial on the radio. Turning it up loud enough to be heard, looking to Regina nodding her head towards the radio, asking silently if she wanted to pick the music. Regina shook her head not really knowing any music other than that she dance too. Emma just smiled and flicked through stations landing on one and turning it up with a small smile.
"If I just lay here will you lie with me." Came through the speakers of the old bug, as Emma sang along, to anyone else it would have been considered screeching, but to Regina it was beautiful.
It was beautiful because those words were being sang to her by the person she loved and it was all she had ever hoped for and more. She had given up on fairy tales a very long time ago, but if the car with Emma's singing she earned back a little bit of that hope she once had.
"Would you lie with me and just forget the world." The song ended as they pulled into Granny's diner that looked like it had time hopped from the sixties.
Regina smiled at the laid back look of this place, realizing that she could be herself and not be held to fancy standards. With that newfound knowledge she laid back in her seat and waited quietly for Emma to find a parking spot. When the car finally came to a stop, it took Regina a minute to realize it had. As she slowly took her seat belt of and assured herself that as long as she was with Emma everything would be alright. This was confirmed when Emma was looking through the window smiling at her before opening the door and offering her hand to Regina. Helping her out of the car and holding her hand as they walked into the diner, catching the attention of one woman. Grey hair thrown messily on her head which held a kind face, that was currently smiling right at Regina and Emma. Wiping her hands on her apron before walking over to the pair.
"Hello dear, you must be Regina?" Granny asks a smile playing on her features.
"Yes, it's nice to meet you." Regina pauses trying to figure out if Emma had given her the lady's name.
"Eugene, but everyone just calls me granny." The woman says with a smile offering her hand to Regina.
Regina shakes Granny's hand returning the smile, the warmth from the woman practically radiating through the room. Then Granny does something you would only expect a parent to do she pulls Regina gently to the side.
"I really like you already, but do me a favor if you don't want to be on my bad side." Granny says pausing momentarily so that the words can sink in.
"What do you want me to do?" The question slightly catches Granny of guard, but it makes her smile because she can see just how much Regina loves Emma.
"Well you see Emma is like a second child to me and I don't want her hurt. I want you to promise me that no matter what you will never hurt her." Granny says making her gaze threatening to get her point across even though she knew the girl in front of her wouldn't do such a thing.
The look of shock on Regina's face was enough to prove that "I would never even dream of it." Regina says knowing she couldn't ever hurt Emma.
"Good." Granny says pulling the girl into a hug and then backing up looking back at Regina "She's been through a lot, so you'll have to be patient. But I can see the way she looks at you Regina she loves you more than anyone I have ever seen her love." Granny says to Regina.
Regina smiles happily before going back to Emma, instantly lacing her fingers with Emma's, giving her a small kiss.
"What was that all about?" Emma asks wondering what Granny said to Regina.
"She was simply getting to know me." Regina says.
Emma smiles, knowing that she would get the same lecture Regina just got a little bit later from Granny. Granny was okay with love, but she always made sure to know that they weren't going to hurt each other. This was due to the fact that Ruby's first relationship had been toxic. They found a booth by the the window and sat down on opposite sides, holding hands over the table smiling like dorks. Ruby looked over to her friend and smiled it had been a long time since she had seen Emma so happy and if she was being honest happiness was a good look on Emma.
While Emma was busy getting lost in just holding Regina's hand, the brunette looked around to find Ruby. She had figured that Ruby would be eating with them considering she was Emma's best friend. She was starting to think that Ruby had gotten distracted, when she saw the tall brunette trying to casually steal glances at a woman seated in the booth across from them. Regina smiled at how the waitress tried and failed subtilty. The girl in the booth looked like she was in another world, her nose buried in a book. At least it looked that way until Ruby would look away and the girl would steal glances at Ruby from behind her book. It was quite adorable and it had Regina smiling from ear to ear, she had always been a softy for love stories. Especially ones happening right in front of her.
Granny came over to the table then and placed a basket of fries down and said "I bet Ruby will ask her out in the next day."
Regina chuckles and says "Free french fries for a year, if Ruby asks her out in the next five minutes."
Granny shakes her head accepting the bet, sitting down to watch eying the basket of fries. Regina smirked when about five seconds late the brunette waitress was walking toward the lady with her nose in a book. There was smiling and laughing and then a quick wave good, but it was very clear that Ruby had asked the woman out in three minutes. Having won the bet Regina lunges for the basket of fries with a smug look on her face.
The look on her face diminishing as Emma came and stole the fries right out of her hand "Thank you." she says with a small chuckle heading back to the booth.
"Your welcome." Regina says her annoyance immediately fading at the look on Emma's face.
Emma just smiles and starts to eat the fries, Regina looks away for a minute and when she looks back the basket of fries is empty. Regina chuckles at Emma's eating habits, Granny having walked away about a minute ago.
Once Ruby finally broke out of her daze at the fact that the woman had said yes, she finally came and sat with Emma and Regina. Sitting next to Emma a content smile on her face.
"What's her name?" Regina asks Ruby wanting to get to know the waitress better.
"Her name's Belle." Ruby says her face full of love.
"Well I wish you the best of luck." Regina says reaching out to hold Emma's hand over the table again, now that Emma was back.
Emma smiled from the other side of the table giving her hand a light squeeze. Regina picking up Emma's hand and placing a feather light kiss on her knuckles. Causing Emma to blush slightly squeezing Regina's hand tighter.
"Oh Emma." Ruby says as if she remembers what she was supposed to tell Emma before she had gotten distracted stealing glances at Belle.
"Ya." Emma asked not really fulling interested in the conversation, more interested in getting lost in Regina's chocolate brown eyes.
"Kathryn invited us for dinner tomorrow night, I'm going to bring Belle you should definitely bring Regina." Ruby says motioning to the previously mentioned brunette.
"That sounds great, is that okay with you?" Emma asks facing Regina once more, squeezing her hand gently to let her know that it's okay if she doesn't want to go.
"Yeah of course, but once question. Who is Kathryn?" Regina says her mind instantly jumping to her best friend Kathryn.
"She's the one who saved Henry as a baby and gave him to Ruby." Emma says and that's when Regina remembers the story Emma told her.
"Oh then I would love to meet her." Regina says instantly thankful for what the woman in question had done so many years ago.
Emma just smiles and nods at Ruby to tell her that they will definitely be there, before looking back to Regina. Leaning over the table to place a soft kiss on her lips. The rest of the afternoon at the diner was filled with small talks and stealing quick kisses across the booth. Before Henry woke up from his nap he had been having in the back room of the diner. Running out of the swinging door clutching a small blanket and showing off a toothy grin, that never failed to make Regina smile. His small face filling with joy when he saw the brunette sitting in the booth, with no one next to her. As he raced to the booth pulling himself up, for the booth itself was almost as tall as he way. Plopping down in the seat giving Regina's arm a hug, finding that his arms were too short to give her a normal hug.
"Gina!" The little boy shouts giving her arm another hug, looking up at the table to see if there was any food left.
Squealing in delight when he found that there were fries up there, taking a cautious look around before snatching the fries into his arms. Hiding them under the table, so that his blonde mother across from them couldn't steal the fries. Earning a chuckle from Ruby and Regina and a whine of "Hey those were my fries." from Emma.
"Don't worry dear, I get free fries for a year." Regina says with another smirk knowing that Emma will definitely be jealous of the free fries.
"Really? That's not even fair." Emma whines throwing her head back in the seat with an over exaggerated huff.
"Don't worry my love I'll share." Regina says stealing one of Henry's fries and giving it too Emma adding "See I'm very generous."
"You are so lucky I love you." Emma says quickly snatching the fry out of Regina's hand. Earning her a kiss and an amused chuckle from Regina.
"You're lucky I love you too, you idiot." Regina says reaching over the booth and giving Emma another kiss.