Y'all are amazing with all the reviews you gave me on the last update, which is actually what motivated me to get this chapter up so soon! Thank you all so much for the love :) I look forward to reviews for this chapter, too. Also, a note for guests I can't answer in messages, this is and will remain an Evil Charming story, I know there's angst and drama, but in order for the story to go in the direction I have planned, there are things that need to happen, so I hope you will all bear with the story through the hard parts. There will be good stuff to come. Soon. Anyway, let me know what you guys think.
David leaned against the wall outside her door, rubbing his hand over his face. That look in her eyes had nearly broken him, no matter how briefly she'd allowed it to show. He hated being another person to hurt her; he was supposed to be her friend, really her only friend here. Without Henry beside her, she didn't really have anyone aside from him, but he needed to fix things with Snow. She was his wife, and also having his baby, just as Regina was. There was no way to do right by everyone in this situation, and it was exhausting him.
After a moment of hearing nothing but silence from her room, he walked to the room he'd been using since Snow had kicked him out of theirs. He rummaged through, gathering his clothes and the few things he'd brought with him to make it more comfortable. It wasn't much at all, and he bundled it all in a sheet to make the load easier to carry. Walking down the corridor to the wing of the castle that his and Snow's room was in, he looked into each common room as he passed, hoping to see his wife in one of them. He didn't want to run into her in their room yet; he wanted to be alone. He needed a few hours to think, to just be himself without pressure from anyone.
He heard her voice through the closed door of Red's room, so David hurried past it, dropping his sheet of things just inside their joined room, and then he headed out of the castle and down to the stables. Sneaking in, after making sure no one had seen him, he pulled the door shut and leaned against one of the stalls.
"You all right?"
David's head shot up, looking for the source of the voice. He saw Robin Hood sitting on a stack of hay bales just inside the doors opposite the ones he'd entered. "Ah, sure."
"That doesn't look like the face of a man who is." Robin got up, walking closer to him and leaning against the stall beside him. "Want to talk about it?"
"I-" Shaking his head and dropping it back against the stall door, David sighed. "I don't know. It's not really something I can work out by talking about."
The other man nodded, holding out a flask. "Would you like a drink, then? Sometimes it's nice to take the edge off."
"Alcohol will just muddle things more."
"On the contrary," Robin answered. "I've often said that alcohol makes us brave enough to say or do the things we would not allow ourselves to do sober."
David nodded slowly. "I've heard that. In our other world, back in Storybrooke, their world had a saying like that, something like 'the drunk mind speaks the sober heart' or something."
"So?" Robin tilted the flask in his direction, offering it to him once more.
Taking it, David swigged the liquid, hissing at the hit of it in his throat. "I'm going to be a father."
"So I've heard."
"Two times over. I mean, I'm already a father, but I didn't get to do much there. Emma was an adult by time I finally got to really meet her, and then half the time it was just constantly about fighting villains and going on quests, trying to beat the bad things so we could live a normal life. It wasn't even a year that I knew she was my daughter and actually got to try to know her, so it's different. Now I have to do it for two babies, with two different women."
Robin simply nodded, allowing the prince to keep his flask and watching him take another drink. "It is quite a predicament."
"I'm scared enough of being a father, I don't know how to do right by either of them."
"The babies, or the women?"
"Snow's my wife, I have to stay with her."
Robin nodded tilting his head and nodding. "It's code, right?"
David sighed, blowing out a heavy breath. "Yeah. I never thought I'd be the guy that would cheat, and then I did. And again. And at some point I just stopped feeling bad about it, at least until I had to tell Snow I'd gotten Regina pregnant, too. And then when Snow asked me to leave, it was practically… it felt like a pass." He held up his hand, stopping Robin from saying anything. "I know it wasn't, I'm not stupid enough to actually think that. But I used it as an excuse to be okay."
"You and your wife seemed happy at the ball."
"We were. That's the thing, though, when I'm with Snow, and we're not fighting or trying to defeat some evil, it's good, you know, it's really good."
Robin took his flask, sipping from it himself. "Sounds like there's more to that."
"Regina is impossible. She can be cruel, she has a sharp tongue and a harsh temper. She has these walls she puts up to keep everyone out, and she can be so cold because of it, keeps herself at a distance, you know? She pushes people away. And she let me in. Maybe not all the way, but enough to see some of the deeper parts of her that she doesn't let anyone else see."
"Mm." Robin pressed his lips together, folding his arms over his chest. "So what is it about Regina that draws you in, if you love your wife?"
"I don't feel like a fake prince with her. I always thought I'd save the world, or at least do something to change it a little bit. I never thought the only thing I would do is kiss a princess from her eternal slumber. And Snow, she wants all these things from me, excitement and the desire to rule a kingdom and its people, but Regina doesn't want any of that from me. She doesn't want anything from me. She knows I was a shepherd and that's enough for her, I don't need to be a prince or unflawed."
"I can see the appeal of that." Robin nodded, taking another drink and offering the flask back to David. "But how do you decide? Do you do the honorable thing and stay with your wife, or do you go with the woman who makes you feel a bit more like yourself?"
David groaned. "I just need to focus on fixing things with my wife, I only wish that didn't also mean leaving Regina alone without anyone on her side."
"And you still love you wife?"
"Of course I do! We're just different than we used to be. We grew in different ways. But she's my true love. I lost my way, but she's forgiven me, and that she was even willing to do so…"
Robin nodded. "Sounds like you know what you need to do."
David nodded, too, rubbing his hand over his face again. "Then why is it so hard?"
"Because it seems as though you and Regina have a camaraderie that you no longer share with your wife. You're the father of her child, too, surely your wife knows you can't just abandon a child because of its other parent."
"Perhaps not." He had nothing else to say in that moment, so the men drank in silence, and after a while, David excused himself so he could be alone.
He eventually made his way back to the castle, heading to the chambers he'd once again be sharing with Snow. She was there already, dressed for bed, and it wasn't until then that he'd noticed just how long he'd wandered the castle grounds after leaving Robin in the stables. His head wasn't any clearer than it had been before he'd gone down there. Sure, he knew what the right thing to do was, but somehow it still felt… wrong. It felt wrong leaving Regina with no one, and he hoped both women would accept him remaining friends with her, because he couldn't abandon her. And he didn't want to raise a child with so much hostility surrounding them.
Snow looked at him expectantly as he climbed into the bed after changing. Sighing in exhaustion, he pulled her close and closed his eyes, ready to sleep. His brain was too fuzzy from drinking for much talking anyway, and she seemed to accept his silence as she settled in beside him.
The next morning after breakfast, David went to the library when Snow had gone off with Red to do whatever they were going to do, search for berries or whatever it was they got up to, he didn't know. Regina was there, as he'd expected she would be, but she said nothing to him, merely looking up from the book she was reading, only to return her gaze nearly immediately to the page her fingers were holding. He sighed, sitting down across from her at the table and taking one of the books from her pile to look through. They read in silence for an hour, and David had considered saying something several times, but each time decided against it and continued reading instead. Finally, Regina cleared her throat, and his head shot up, eyes finding hers instantly.
"What do you want, David? Shouldn't you be with your wife?"
"I'm helping you search for a way to protect our child. Or to get us back to Storybrooke, whichever comes up first."
"I figured you and Snow would be off picking flowers for her to weave into her hair and skipping along while holding hands and singing songs about love," she countered dryly.
Rolling his eyes, David tapped the book with his index finger. "Regina, stop. I didn't mean to hurt you, and I'd like to remain your friend. However, if you don't want to be mine, I understand, and I don't blame you, but in case you've forgotten, there's a fifty percent chance Zelena wants your child, and a fifty percent chance she wants Snow's, but there is a one hundred percent chance she wants mine. There is a very real possibility that I am going to lose one of my children, and the other isn't going to be a replacement, so don't even go there." He held up one hand, stopping her from saying whatever harsh words she could think up. "So I'm going to do research with you, as I have plenty of times, until we figure something out."
She eyed him, seemingly accepting his words. All she gave was a nod, though, then she returned to her book, and he to his. This time, only mere minutes passed before she spoke again. "You didn't hurt me, by the way. You don't have the ability to hurt me."
David sighed again, biting his tongue to keep from responding in kind. He knew she was pushing him away, putting the walls back up that she'd allowed him past. "Okay."
Even if he'd wanted to respond further, he wouldn't have had the chance; the door opened quickly, and Snow barged in, looking guilty when she saw David and Regina simply sitting at the table with books in front of them.
"Oh, David… I wasn't expecting to find you here," Snow stated, her voice higher than usual.
Regina rolled her eyes. "Yes, you did."
"I'm sorry?" Snow tilted her head, a fake smile plastered on her face.
Standing, Regina rounded the table and stood in front of the other woman. "Yes, you did. You just didn't expect him to be doing something as innocent as reading a book," she taunted. "Did you expect to find him fucking me on the table? And what then? Did you want to watch? Did you want to catch him in the act to make him feel oh, so guilty about it? Trust me, he already does. He regrets fucking me, he regrets getting me pregnant, so you can just move on with your stupid little game." Her lip curled into a snarl, her eyes narrowing.
The younger woman stammered, her cheeks turning pink. "What do you want with him Regina? Why him? Why did you have to try to take my husband? What, I was responsible for you losing your love, so you had to try to take mine?"
David stood, moving to stand to their sides. "Neither of you need to be arguing right now."
"Shut up, David!" both women yelled, Regina raising one hand to his face and Snow turning to glare at him. He raised his hands and took a step back.
"I don't want your stupid husband, Snow. I wasn't trying to get revenge. He was a warm body, willing, well, more than willing, and entirely unavailable, which meant I wouldn't have to worry about feelings or him getting attached to me." She chuckled darkly, leaning ever so slightly towards Snow. "Besides, he's a good fuck. A bit too… pretty, but god, that body… you really are a lucky woman. You've gotten everything you've ever wanted. What a dream life. Oh I suppose you probably didn't want your husband to cheat, but hey, at least he's here and alive, with a beating heart that wasn't ripped out by his mother because a stupid little girl couldn't keep her mouth shut!" The last of her words came out in little more than a growl, and Regina gripped Snow's chin in her hand. "Not everything is about you, Princess."
Then, with a wave of her hand and two clouds of purple smoke, Snow and David were suddenly in their room.
"Goddamnit!" David shouted, throwing his hands in the air.
Snow watched him for a minute, brow furrowed lips pursed. Finally, she took a step toward him and took his hand. "David, why can't you stay away from her?"
He shook his head, clenching his jaw. "This has nothing to do with her, Snow. It has everything to do with my child!"
"Our baby is going to be fine."
"Ours, probably, yes, but mine with Regina? No, probably not." David pulled his hand from hers and scrubbed his palm over the back of his head. "I get that what I did was wrong, and I get that you're angry with me despite being willing to forgive me, but that is still my child, too! You may not care what happens to that baby, but I do. And if you aren't going to help me find a way to stop Zelena, or as least not stand in my way while I search, then step aside!" he hissed, turning and backing out of the room, slamming the door shut behind him.