So there's going to be mistakes. Ignore them

Enjoy this really long overdue chapter :)

Chapter 10 Kiss Away The Nightmares

Her arm was killing her and Emma hoped to God that it wasn't infected. Maybe she should let it heal completely before attempting to heal it again. It's been two days and so far she's had nothing to show for. She couldn't even heal a scratch and it frustrated her to no end.

The slash on her arm was covered with a bandage and she sat at her desk in the station, lost in thought and rubbing her arm. She wore a long sleeve shirt to cover the bandages. She was lucky nobody has noticed them or Regina for that matter. The former Queen would put an end to it. Emma had no doubts about that.

It was then that she had heard David's footsteps in the hall. She stopped rubbing the bandage and proceeded to look busy with the court documents she had been staring at for the last hour. They were only a week away to Carter's court day. He was out on bail for the moment and Emma could only hope his punishment would fit the crime. Maybe life in their asylum turned prison below the hospital would finally give him some kind of remorse for his actions.

"That paperwork isn't going to fill itself out," David's voice sounded in the room and she looked up, meeting his concerned gaze. The hand that had been absentmindedly rubbing her bandage covered arm stopped. She placed her hand on the desk and wondered if David had noticed.

"I can't get my mind off of it," she explained and he sat on the car infront of her desk.

"He'll get the punishment he deserves," he reassured her.

"And if he doesn't?" she asked, her voice shaking because she could still see the hatred in people's eyes the moment they see their former Queen. Many still want Regina dead no matter how many times she saved this town. Many still wanted her to pay… to suffer. And many will side with the man who almost took her life. They had no way of knowing if this trial will be fair.

He could walk out free for all they knew and that was what worried Emma the most.

"Then I'll throw him in the asylum myself if he ever hurts her again," David replied protectively. Emma gave him an affectionate smile, appreciating his support and then he mentioned, "Regina seemed to be taking the upcoming trial date pretty well."

She wasn't. Emma knew Regina wasn't doing so good. She wouldn't talk about it. She was shutting away her feelings and acting like she was just fine when really the upcoming trial was eating away at her. Just like Emma, Regina was terrified that Carter would walk away free.

"She's not," Emma told him and he looked at her in confusion.

"Did she say something?"

"No and that's the point. She won't talk about it."

"Have you tried getting her to talk about it?" he asked and Emma shook her head.

"I just got her to trust me, to let me in, and bringing this up might make her shut down."

"Or maybe it could make her open up?" David pushed. "She trusts you Emma and you might be the only one that can get her to talk to you and not get pushed away in the process."

"You really think this could work?"

"You got her to trust you, didn't you?"

David's words sunk in. He was right. If she could gain Regina's trust then surely she could get the brunette to open up and just talk. It might not happen tonight or even tomorrow but it will happen because this court day was fast approaching and Regina couldn't keep pretending she was fine.

She watched Regina all throughout dinner, trying to figure out a way to bring up the trial. She was deep in thought, barely eating or even joining in on the light dinner conversations. She was nervous but determined all at once. It wasn't until Regina stood and took her empty plate to the kitchen did the conflicted thoughts in her head cease for just a moment. She watched her, a smile on her lips because Regina had made walking to the kitchen look so effortless as if she could see. The brunette was getting better at moving around without assistance. Now it was mostly the pain in her fractured ribs than the loss of sight holding her back from certain tasks.

Henry followed his mother with his own plate and Emma realized dinner was over. David was gathering the dishes while Snow went to go feed Neal.

"You don't have to talk to her tonight," he said. He had noticed his daughter checking out during dinner if the barely touched food was anything to go by.

"I know," she said. "I'm just figuring out what to say first."

"Hey, it'll be ok," he offered her a smile and squeezed her shoulder on the way to the kitchen.

Could only hope it will, she thought with a sigh and stood with her own full plate.

She walked into the kitchen to see Regina drying each dish Henry handed to her after he washed them. David continued to bring the serving dishes in from the table and started putting the leftovers away.

Just by the way Regina was standing she could see her ribs were hurting. She wrapped her plate and put it in the fridge before making a bag of ice and wrapping it in a towel. She approached the brunette from behind and gently lifted her shirt and placed the ice on her ribs where the bruises were the most black. Regina flinched at the sudden contact, but relaxed when Emma took her hand and placed it on the ice pack, holding it against her throbbing ribs.

"Emma?"

"Go lie down," she said softly. "I could help Henry."

"I'm fine," she protested, stubborn as usual and Emma decided to let her have this one. She didn't want Regina's defenses going up too soon. She wanted to have that talk tonight otherwise she'll just keep putting it off. Besides she and Henry were almost done.

"Meet me in the bathroom?" she asked and Regina nodded, moving the ice onto the counter when Henry handed her another dish to dry. She walked out of the kitchen and went into the bathroom, gathering the first aid kit and fresh bandages she kept in the small corner cabinet.

After she prepared all of the necessary materials she needed, she stood in front of the mirror, staring at her reflection. She needed to gather her thoughts. She was so damn nervous she could hardly think. Regina made her nervous… When did that happen? Emma didn't know.

Her palms gripped the sink as she leaned her weight against it. She closed her eyes, trying to calm her racing her heart. It wasn't until she heard Regina coming in did she finally open her eyes.

She heavily sat on the edge of the tub, her hand holding the ice pack in place under her shirt.

"Do you want to take the meds tonight?" she asked, giving Regina a choice since she knew how much she hated taking the pain meds. Emma trusted her enough to give in when the pain became too unbearable.

"Maybe."

At least she was considering it.

Emma grabbed her materials and approached her. She peeled back the bandage on the side of her temple first. The stiches looked better and the bruising seemed to finally go down. Regina didn't seem to be favoring it anymore, not as much as her ribs or the stiches on her abdomen from the surgery. That meant the headaches were getting less and less.

When she was done she knelt down and started to change the bandages on the incision Whale had made to stop the internal bleeding in her belly. The bruising was still horrific but the stiches seemed to be healing quite nicely. Regina had claimed she felt more soreness than pain there. The fractured ribs and bruised chest bone were still the problem, the cause of the excruciating pain she felt each day. It would take at least six more weeks until they're completely healed.

"Emma, what is it?" Regina asked, reaching down and lifting Emma's chin. She looked right at her even if she couldn't actually see her. For a moment Emma really believed she could. The intensity of those brown eyes as they focused on her made her swallow the sudden lump in her throat.

"I want to talk to you about… about something," she struggled to get the words out. She took both of Regina's hands in hers. "The trial is next week."

Regina tensed and Emma felt it. She could see it in her shoulders. In the way she pulled her hands away and the way her sightless eyes turned away from the voice infront of her.

"I told you before, you might have to testify," she continued, determined to finish what she started. "You haven't said a word about it."

"There's nothing to say," Regina replied testily, abruptly getting to her feet and Emma was forced to get up and step back.

"Regina!"

"What do you want from me!" she snapped. "To turn into some weak crying traumatized victim?"

"No of course not," Emma said softly. "I just want to know what's going on in that head of yours. You've been quiet and I'm worried."

"Well don't be," Regina's voice finally soften and the hostile tension surrounding her disappeared and turned into anxiousness. Regina fidgeted with her hands, suddenly feeling so vulnerable. Emma moved forward, wanting to reach out and comfort her but held herself back. She didn't want to make the other woman more uncomfortable than she already was.

"I'm not... exactly ok," she continued, struggling with her words. "I don't want to face him, but I will because that's who I am. I can't let him think he defeated me. I'm not the person I was before the crash, but that doesn't mean I can't get back to who I was. I'm trying, Emma. I really am even if I can't talk to you about it."

Those words were raw and Regina's eyes searched the room, not knowing where the other woman was standing. Not knowing what Emma was thinking. God, she wished she could see her. She wished she could see those expressive green eyes and be able to know what Emma thought about the words that had just tumbled out of her mouth.

She flinched the moment she felt warm hands taking hers and she relaxed the moment she realized it was Emma. She felt her smoothing the stray strands of dark hair away from her face and Regina's skin tingled at the soft touch.

"I just want to make sure you know you're not alone in this."

"I know I'm not," she whispered, her voice trembling. Emma's comforting touches and close proximity made her heart beat faster in her chest. She couldn't see her, but she could feel her. It was as if she was breathing in the other woman's presence, her sweet scent wafting all around her. Warmth radiating from the body before her to the warm hands holding hers.

It was quiet for a moment that seemed like a lifetime to Regina. Emma was just simply looking at her, her head filled with memories of the past. Of the way they hated each other until they somehow found a way to be friends. She thought of the crippling fear in her chest the moment she saw Regina trapped in that car, almost on the brink of death. They came a long away and they still had bumpy road ahead of them.

What Regina couldn't see was the pride and love shinning in those green eyes she's missed so much.

"Ready for bed?" Emma asked, the tension from their argument finally leaving the room.

Regina nodded and Emma let Regina lead the way.

Regina didn't know when she had allowed this sort intimacy to pass between them, but she had fallen asleep with Emma holding her. They didn't say a word to each other after their talk in the bathroom. They got ready for bed in a comfortable silence and when Regina got under the covers, she felt Emma's arms pulling her close and she didn't stop her. She fell asleep in the younger woman's warm embrace.

And then she started dreaming.

She dreamed of blood. The bright lights of Carter's car as he headed straight for her. She felt crushed metal pinning her to her seat. She heard her own screams and her vision growing darker and darker. Her head was throbbing, searing pain washing over her and she couldn't breathe.

She saw Emma. Those green eyes and red leather jacket she would never get to see again.

"Regina!"

She could hear herself sobbing. She could feel herself struggling but she was paralyzed all the same. She was an outsider looking in. Pain erupted from her abdomen, warm liquid oozing down her skin.

It wasn't until strong arms lifted her up did her eyes finally snap open.

In her mind she could see a dimly lit room. She could see Henry standing before her and Emma sitting up, holding her against her. What she really saw was nothing but darkness. She buried her face into Emma's shoulder, unable to stop the shuddering panicked sobs from racking her body.

"I'm here. I'm here, I got you," Emma said softly, holding her tightly against her. "It was a nightmare. It was just a nightmare, you're safe."

"Ma, she's bleeding," Henry's panicked voice sounded from somewhere beside her. He was standing by the bed.

"Wake up your grandparents," she told him. "Tell them to call the hospital."

When Henry's rushed heavy footsteps disappeared down the stairs, Emma gently moved Regina back, a warm hand lifting the hem of her shirt. She tore her stiches open, she knew she did. She could feel the blood streaming down from the wound.

"Emma," she whispered through uneven breaths. She couldn't breathe, she couldn't focus. Pain radiated from her belly. She flinched the moment she felt Emma placing something soft against the wound.

"Breathe," Emma whispered into her ear.

"I was in the car," she cried.

"I know, but it was just a nightmare," she tried soothing the hysterical brunette. "You're safe now. I need you to breathe."

She slowed her breathing, calming herself until her chest became lighter and she could think more clearly. The pain washed over her, stronger now that she was focused. She let out a cry of pain, her hand shooting up to where Emma held a cloth over her wound.

"I know it hurts," she said. "We need to get you to the hospital."

She let Emma guide her off the bed

It wasn't until she felt the cold night air hitting her face, did she truly start to panic again. She refused to be carried down the stairs and so David and Emma slowly helped her down and out of the apartment building. Snow stayed with Neal and as hard as it was, Henry too. He refused to be left behind but Emma put her foot down. She couldn't have Henry seeing his mother bleeding out and she knew Regina didn't want that either.

Regina couldn't get into the car. Her nightmare was still so fresh in her mind.

"Emma I can't," she said, her voice full of fear and her body shaking against David's. He held her up while Emma had let go to open the door of her bug.

"Regina," she said, taking Regina's face in her palms so that she'd know exactly where Emma was standing. "We need to get you to the hospital before you bleed out. You said you trusted me."

"I do," she replied, her voice shaking and her body leaning heavily into David. Her breathing was labored and Emma could see the pain washing over her entire being. "I'm just… I can't…" She couldn't get the words out. She couldn't admit that she was terrified of getting into another car so soon after her nightmare. Emma sensed this. She knew exactly what Regina was trying to tell her.

"I know you're scared," she said softly. "I know how scary it is to get back in another car. I know you could do this." She was pleading with the brunette. Hoping she would get into the car because the rag Regina was still holding against her abdomen was soaking with crimson liquid. She was losing more and more blood by the minute.

"Ok but you drive, please," Regina whispered and Emma let out a shaky breath of relief.

When they got to the hospital, nurses right away transferred Regina from David and Emma's hold and onto a gurney. They rushed her into a private room where Dr. Whale was giving orders and preparing to redo Regina's stiches.

The door was opened and instead of following David to the waiting room she kept her eyes on Whale. She could see him in the distance from her spot in the middle of the ER floor, his expression annoyed and he didn't even try to hide it. The bastard.

She moved closer until she was practically standing outside the door. She wasn't supposed to be here. No one said a word and she guessed it was because she was both the sheriff and the savior in this town.

Regina was deathly pale as she lied there with nurses hovering over her and connecting her to an IV of blood. She's lost so much and had become disoriented on the way here. Her sightless eyes stared straight up at the ceiling.

Whale pushed her shirt up and removed the rag that had been lying on top of her wound. He sneered in disgust and Emma could see the impatience in his cold blue eyes. He roughly sterilized the damaged incisions and started to get to work. The way he treated Regina, it was like she was one of his experiments and not a breathing and clearly terrified human being.

"I thought I told you to take it easy," he snapped at the shaking woman. Regina couldn't snipe back at him and he clearly took advantage.

"And I thought I told you to do your damn job without crossing that line. She is your patient and no one else to you in this moment!" Emma couldn't help but make her presence known. Hot anger surged through her and Whale looked up at her. Surprise and then annoyance flickered in his icy gaze.

"You're not supposed to be here," he told her hostilely. She stared him down. Her fiery green gaze holding icy blue.

"After this I want another doctor. You're not touching her again."

Hours later Emma found herself sitting beside a hospital bed with nothing but the sound of monitors and Regina's steady breathing to keep her company. She held the sleeping brunette's hand in hers, suddenly feeling the adrenaline from the night's events wear off. She was exhausted but she fought the pull of sleep. She was going to watch over Regina until morning when the sedatives wore off and she knew for sure she was going to be ok.

David came into the room, cups of coffee in his hands.

"I spoke to the dean of medicine. Whale is off Regina's case and he's in the process of assigning Regina a new doctor."

"Thank you," she said, her voice hoarse. She was too tired to deal with Whale and David thankfully stepped in. He handed her a cup and she gratefully took a sip, the aroma filling her senses. It was exactly what she needed right now.

David slumped onto the couch at the other side of the room. He took a sip of his own coffee. Dealing with doctors and deans who could care less for the former Queen really took its toll and despite the much needed caffeine, he too was exhausted.

"She was just so out of it," Emma continued, images of Regina's fearful sightless eyes flashing through her mind. The way Whale had roughly handled the wound. The way he had spoken to the trembling woman still made her blood boil. "Whale had the audacity to take advantage and treat her as if it was her fault she was bleeding out on his gurney."

"He better not be hanging around when she wakes up, otherwise I won't even try to stop her from roasting him with those fireballs," David said and Emma snorted at the image he created in her head. Regina was going to be furious if she remembered the way Whale treated her and Emma wasn't even going to try to save the bastard from the fiery wrath of a once Evil Queen.

"Hey," she said, suddenly becoming serious as she took in her father's exhausted appearance. "Why don't you go home to Snow? I'll stay here with Regina."

"Emma no, we could take turns keeping watch. You need to sleep."

"You've done enough," she said, noticing the blood staining David's shirt.

Regina's blood.

"Ok," he said, trying to reason with her. "How about I take first watch so that you could be here when she wakes up."

"You're not taking no for an answer, huh," she asked and David shook his head. He stood, going over to her and pulling her up to her feet.

"Go home and get some sleep," he said softly.

"Dad…" she protested and his heart broke in his chest because his grown daughter was pleading for him to let her stay. She was tired and stubborn and he knew she wouldn't rest until she saw for herself that Regina was awake and ok.

"She's safe. I won't leave her side," he reassured her and she finally relented with a sigh.

"Ok," she said. "I'll be back in a few hours and please, please don't leave the room. I still don't trust some of the townspeople when Regina's concerned."

He gave her his word and soon enough she was back at home, reassuring both Snow and Henry that Regina was ok and then jumping into a hot shower. She stood under the spray, the water cascading through her hair and down her back. She knew she wouldn't be able to sleep. Not with the memories of Regina lying bloody on that gurney once again.

It was the whispering that had brought her back to consciousness. That and the steady beeping of the monitors. At first Regina couldn't remember what happened or why she was lying on a hospital bed. It wasn't until the room became silent with heavy footsteps disappearing down the hall did a warm hand gently take her own.

Emma.

And then she remembered. She remembered the nightmare and the feeling of pain as her stiches tore open. She remembered Emma holding her.

"Regina?"

Her eyes fluttered open and for a moment she expected to see those green orbs staring back at her. She could only imagine them as she was met with the same darkness she was destined to wake up to everyday now.

"Hey, how do you feel?" Emma asked and the hand that was squeezing hers pulled away and was now caressing her cheek, tilting her face just a bit so that she knew exactly where Emma was.

Her abdomen was numb and her head was woozy and of course she wouldn't admit it. Not after last night.

"Sleepy," she said instead, closing her eyes and snuggling deeper into her pillow. She heard Emma's breathy affectionate chuckle. Emma was trying to hide it but she could sense the exhaustion radiating from the younger woman.

"Lie with me," she whispered and Emma didn't need to be told twice. She heard the sound of boots being kicked off and then the bed behind her dipped. Warm arms pulled her close. Regina turned in the embrace so that she could face Emma.

That was when it happened.

Regina didn't even get a second to comprehend it because warm lips were suddenly pressing into her own. She stiffened for just a moment, unsure of how to respond but then her body reacted and she kissed back.

She was scared but she wanted this. Her heart was pounding in her chest and kissing blindly only seemed to heighten her senses. She could taste and feel Emma all around her. Her scent was all she was breathing in and god Regina never felt this safe. She never felt this kind of unconditional love. Not since Daniel.

When they finally pulled away, their foreheads touched, their lips so close they could feel each other's breaths.

"Regina I need more," Emma whispered. "I want to be more than friends."

Regina was the one to pull away. Her heart was still pounding and it felt like it was going to burst out of her chest. She started to panic and the walls that Emma had managed to tear down were threatening to go back up. It wasn't until she felt Emma taking her face in her hands and placing a sweet kiss on her forehead did she allow herself to calm down. To knock those walls back down and let Emma into her fragile bruised heart.

"Don't shut down on me please," she whispered, her hands shaking and Regina managed to ground herself and her fear all for the beautiful woman in front of her.

"How long have you felt this way?" Regina asked, moving Emma's hands from her face and kissing her knuckles. She heard her take a calming breath and she realized how scared Emma was for her actions. For that kiss and that heartfelt confession.

"A while now," she murmured, suddenly embarrassed and Regina couldn't help the quiet chuckle from escaping her lips. All her fear and panic that she felt just moments ago were gone and right now in this moment all that mattered was kissing the woman that meant so much more than a friend to her. Emma was always more, even when they hated each other.

Regina reached out, taking Emma's face into her hands and then tracing her features until her fingers brushed against her lips. Her only fear now was misjudging the distance between them.

She trusted her instincts.

She leaned in and kissed her.