Hey guys, thanks for the reviews! For those of you who are curious to see how Regina and Emma got together, this chapter has the flashbacks! Enjoy chapter 10 :)
As Emma drove down the deserted highway, she couldn't stop herself from squealing internally. Something about the night had made her giddy as a teenager in love. Stop it, Swan, she thought to herself. This is ridiculous. But then the butterflies in her stomach began to take wing. You've been down this road, remember? In her attempt to rid herself of this panging excitement brought on by thoughts of Regina, she only made herself remember their love. She smiled fondly at the memory.
It had been a week since she'd been on the brunette's doorstep. Just a week ago, Regina's desire for having no confusion between the two of them had guided Emma into a state of denial. And Emma chose to define her state of denial with frequent nights of drinking into a state of blacking out. And those frequent nights defined her hung-over mornings by making her quite the rude, boisterous Sheriff that the Mayor hated. Emma, oblivious to this, simply noted the Mayor's presence in the diner that morning, but went on pretending that she didn't matter. She sat a few booths behind the group of young women, who were laughing and crying in joy. Obviously it was a post drinking night breakfast.
"So, guys, I have to tell you something," Belle said as the girls started to settle down. "Promise you won't laugh?"
"Emma will be the only asshole laughing," Ruby said, after poking the blonde who was still chuckling over the story of Ruby's conquest from the previous night.
"Never gets old," Emma let out, taking a gulp of her coffee. "Go on, Belle. I won't laugh."
"Okay, well," she cleared her throat. "I know that I love Rumple….but…"
"But what?" Snow asked.
Belle looked distressed. "I think I…I might be gay, guys."
Snow put her arm around Belle, patting her back, as the others reassured her that it was okay to be unsure. Belle buried her face in her hands, feeling conflicted. Ruby, who had moved to comfort Belle, had caught the glance of a certain brunette, a few tables down. She and Emma knew she could hear every word.
"It's alright, Belle," Emma said, touching her hand. "Once you figure this all out, hell, I'd be glad to date ya!"
Belle smiled, appreciating the gesture. The rest of the girls laughed as Emma playfully continued to flirt. Ruby was the only one who took notice when the other table's occupant got up and left the establishment, seemingly upset. After a few minutes, she pulled Emma aside, pointing her toward the door.
"Are you a fucking idiot?" Ruby asked.
"What?! No!" Emma defended herself, "Come off it, Rubes, I know you have a thing for her. I was just joking."
"I'm not talking about me and Belle!" Ruby howled. "I'm talking about her!" She pointed to the Mercedes parked across the street. Emma looked over to see the brunette sitting in her car with her head in her hands.
"What of it?" Emma asked, her tone seeping in a condescending, snarky chauvinism that made Ruby smack her across the face.
"Ouch!"
"That's what you get for being oblivious to what's right in front of you!"
"She doesn't want me!" Emma retorted back.
"And what makes you so sure?"
"What makes you unsure?"
Ruby sighed. She knew Emma was a bit thick, but these were the times that made her wonder if her friend was also a masochist. "The way she stares at you. The way she argues with you. The way she walks in the diner every morning at eight o'clock because she knows that's when you pick up your bear claw. The way she looks sad every time you're with a girl…"
Emma scratched her head. Ruby simply raised her eyebrows. "Need I go on?"
Emma just shook her head slowly as her bulky armor fell to the ground. She had no need to lie anymore and pretend to be some cocky, arrogant savior who was immune to hurt feelings. She looked up to her best friend, utterly dumbfounded.
"What do I do, Rubes?"
Ruby cocked her head, gesturing toward the car. "Go get her before it's too late."
Emma wasn't the only one drifting in thoughts of the past. Regina sat paralyzed on her front porch, reminiscing of the same occasions. She laughed out loud a bit, making the wine in her glass swirl, as she thought about Emma trying to ask her out. The Savior thought she was as smooth as her charming father. But Regina saw through the façade right away.
Emma's stupidity had grown to new lengths. How blind was she?—Regina thought, as she sat in her car across from the diner. Sure, she hadn't corrected the blonde in her rambling on the front porch. She hadn't told her that Neverland actually did mean something to her and that she'd really like to explore it further. No, as soon as she heard Emma dismiss it, she went along, knowing full well that the Charming daughter would only hurt her. Love is weakness. Love is weakness, but who was she kidding? She was already weak at the knees with no savior to catch her when she fell.
Her head jolted up from its position in the palm of her hand when she felt a tap on the window. Regina looked up only to see Emma, standing there with that dumb look on her face.
"Can I help you, Sheriff?" Regina asked, as she rolled down her window.
"Uh, yeah," Emma said, stumbling on her words, playing with her fingers. "What are you doing tomorrow?"
Regina scowled. "What business is it of yours?"
"None," Emma stood back in defense, "but then again, I was wondering, if you're around…maybe…?"
"Maybe what?"
Emma just blurted it out. "Maybe you'd like to go out with me?" She took a deep breath in relief after letting the words exit her mouth.
Regina dropped her mouth open momentarily in shock. "I thought Belle was more your type?" she asked with a smile.
"I was just trying to make her feel okay…you know," Emma answered, "about being gay. If she's gay."
Regina smiled. She thought to herself again. Love is weakness. But when has avoiding it ever given her strength?
Emma was about to walk away. Clearly, the mayor's silence had indicated she'd made a fool of herself. But as she turned, she heard her name. Her first name.
"Emma," Regina called her back. She turned around to see the most remarkable sight. The brunette's eyes were teary and glossy. But there was no sign of anger. Instead, the corners of her mouth were turned upward in a beautiful smile. "I thought you'd never ask."
Emma laughed at herself while she merged onto another stretch of darkened highway. What did Regina see in her?—she wondered. She was callous toward the woman, naïve, and simply stupid. But, as she brushed the hair back from her face, the other hand gripping the wheel, she remembered one thing: she had her father's charm.
"Fuck!" Emma screamed as she walked in the apartment. Snow instantly set her tea down as Charming came out from the bedroom.
"What's wrong, Emma?" Snow asked.
After taking a few deep breaths, Emma calmed herself enough to speak. "I just asked Regina out."
David rolled his eyes. "Well, that more than sufficiently answers what's wrong."
"I thought you liked her?" Snow asked her panicking daughter.
"I do!"
"So what'd the problem?"
As she had told her mother back earlier in their friendship, she only went as far as one nighters with romantic prospects. Emma Swan didn't date. She wasn't good at it. And now, when it really mattered, she was freaking out.
"How exactly can I even attempt to impress a former queen with a first date?" she asked, sounding incredibly defeated.
Her parents just looked at each other and started laughing. At this, Emma only grew frustrated. They weren't taking her seriously.
"Guys, really," she pleaded, "I'm fucked."
"No, you're not," David said, as he put his hand on her shoulder. "When's the date?"
"Tomorrow night," Emma answered.
"Did you set a specific time yet?" he asked.
"Not yet," Emma said. "Why?"
Charming laughed to himself. "I think I have an idea."
Regina smiled at the warmth she felt in the pit of her stomach. She was fairly certain that the sensation wasn't from the wine. She felt her cheeks blush as she recalled her first date with Emma. Despite Emma's certainty that the queen had been wined and dined by her adoring lovers, the truth was really quite the opposite. Daniel had been the only person to truly have affection for her. And their dates were nothing more but stolen kisses in-between riding lessons and tea. The truth was Emma was the first person to do anything romantic for her.
She received a text message from the blonde alerting her that she'd pick her up at 3:30. She thought that was awful early for dinner, but maybe the blonde had thought coffee would be a more appropriate first date. She waited at home, shortly after picking up Henry from school. But the blonde never came.
By the time six o'clock rolled around, she checked her phone one more time before giving up. She figured she had better fix dinner for her and Henry, as she would be dining in tonight. Regina groaned to herself as she cooked up a simple sauce. She should have never let her guard down. Of course Emma was going to let her down. Maybe it was some kind of joke to her.
"Weren't you supposed to go out with Emma?" Henry asked as his mother dished him a plate.
She gave him a glare. "I guess Ms. Swan has more important things to do," she answered, trying her best to sound as if the rejection didn't hurt.
But her son saw through her mask. "Maybe something came up?"
"There's such a thing as a phone, dear," she answered, as she served herself.
"I'm sure she'll call," he said. "She really likes you."
She looked to her son. "Really? She told you this?"
"She didn't have to," he smiled.
After cleaning up the meal and having a few glasses of wine, she tucked in her son and decided to head to bed early. It was best that this day end as soon as possible. She would start the day brand new, purging all of her feelings for Emma. Regina sighed heavily into her pillow and drifted off.
She didn't know how soon her new day would begin.
She woke to the sound of her phone ringing. She fumbled a bit, reaching for it in the dark, and finally picked up.
"Hello?"
"Regina," Emma said. "Are you ready?"
"Miss Swan, do you have any idea what time it is?! Ready for what?" she groaned into the phone.
"Um, it's three-thirty," Emma answered. "We have a date?"
There was a momentary pause before Emma spoke again. "I did say A.M. in the text. I double checked."
Regina scrolled through her messages with the blonde on speaker phone, sure that she was delusional. But there, in plain text, it said 3:30 A.M. And she had agreed.
"That you did," Regina answered, "I must have overlooked the A.M. part."
Emma laughed into the phone such that it came through as a muffled sound. "Yeah, I was surprised when you didn't question the time. Listen, since you got confused, and you sound tired, we can reschedule…"
"I will do no such thing," Regina said, cutting the blonde off. When she made a commitment, she stuck to it. "Give me ten minutes and I'll be ready."