Okay, I promise I'll slow down with the updates for a while ;)
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A week and a half ago, when her connection flight Lisbon-Maine finally landed at the airport so she could finally set foot back in good ol' USA, the first thought that crossed through Regina's mind was that she was finally going back to normal.
It made sense; after all she was coming back from an almost two weeks forced vacations in a deserted island where everything from illicit affairs, African smugglers and wild chasing pigs were the common things to rule her days, so going back to what she thought was typical was the logical thing.
Well, it seemed that way and she was hoping for that, she needed that… but apparently she has been wrong in expecting her usually routinely life to be unaffected.
You see, she did get some kind of normalcy if you looked at the fact that she has been sleeping in her own comfortable bed or that she has been having some decent full meals; but overall, looking at the whole picture she still hadn't gotten back to what it used to be and she didn't think she would anytime soon.
Everything was still too messed up right in that moment to call it normal.
To begin things, she needed to point out that there has been some very insistent reporters following her and stalking her in hopes that she would give them the exclusive of the Mayor of Storybrooke's survival story, thing that she didn't plan to do yet… if ever.
To be honest, forgetting that those two weeks after the crash ever happened was all she wanted and if they kept bugging her about it she would never get to that point. Besides, they were just creepy and annoying, especially when all she wanted was to catch up with the two weeks she missed out of her son's life.
But taking the reporters out of the scenario, there was another factor that was not only altering her normalcy but also her peace of mind, and that was the fact that after her mother found out she wasn't dead she decided to visit and stay for a couple of days at her place.
It was bad, and even though the woman claimed she wanted nothing more than to rekindle her relationship with her, Regina just didn't believe her. Especially since she was all excited about how her story would grant her a secure win in the following elections. She was even pushing her to go public with her story so that she could get sympathy from the voters.
So yes, it was messed up and the only good thing that she has been enjoying since coming back was Henry's company; other than that everything just felt out of place. She hasn't even gotten cleared off to work right back and that was also adding to her distress.
She needed the distraction, and she needed it urgently.
True, going back to work opened the possibility that she would run into Robin but that was something that would happen eventually. Trying to postpone it was stretching the inevitable, because sooner or later it was going to happen.
Maybe that was something she needed, because maybe that way she wouldn't have to go to sleep wondering how he was Robin doing. No, that way she would just know.
But no, she couldn't go back to work just yet and she was going to assume that neither could Robin, at least not until they got cleared, but because nobody ever said anything about how she couldn't visit, she ended up that day in The City Hall.
It was a just a visit, she told herself, after all she was the Mayor and she could come and go as she pleased.
Oh, she regretted it as soon as she stepped in because now the employees were all over her and she had to force out a smile while everyone told her how glad they were to have her back.
She felt cornered and smothered as the small crowd that surrounded her kept shooting question after question. It was crazy and definitely not the reception she has been expecting since well, before the accident she was sure nobody there liked her that much.
Maybe her mother was right for a change…
"Is it true that you had to eat lizards? Robin told me that."
At the mention of that name, Regina tilted her head to the side and looked at Belle straight in the eye. She was looking back at her with a big bright smile in her face as if she just asked the most excited question of them all.
"He told you that?"
"Yes, he also said that you were going to kill him if you knew he said that." With a chuckle, she placed her hands on her hips and her eyes grew ten times their size. "Oh, but please don't kill him, we just got him back and you know, it would be bad if you killed him now."
"Yeah, that would be tragic, especially for me."
Now, if the mention of his name caught her attention then imagine how it was like to hear his voice. Yes, cheesy as it sounded her heart halted for ten whole seconds and then it started to beat furiously inside her chest as she slowly turned to him.
As soon as she finally laid her eyes on him she couldn't help but to hold her breath; after all she hasn't seen or even talked to him since the day they got back from Africa and no, even though he worked in the building she hadn't been expecting to see him there that day.
But he was there, standing a few paces away from her as she stared at him.
Forcing herself out of her trance, she obliged her lips to curve into a smile and then she went back to breathing. "Locksley. Didn't expect to see you here. And don't worry, I'm not going to kill you." No, far from that; in fact she kind of wanted to walk to him and kiss him senseless until there was no air in her lungs.
She couldn't put her finger to that sudden urge, she didn't know if it was the half dimple smile on his face or the way he was looking at her that was making her want to go there and kiss him even though everyone was looking.
Of course she didn't do that, she had better sense than that. She wasn't a creature of urges and has always been more of the rational type, and now that she was trying to go back to how things were she needed to remind herself of that.
What happened in the Island had to stay there.
But there were a few things she needed to talk with Robin so walking away from the crowd, she took two steps towards him and brushed a strand of hair behind her ear. "I do however need to have a word with you." As she said that in her businesslike tone, she felt all eyes on her.
Robin pushed the corner of his lips with the tip of his tongue, his eyes glistening. "As you wish, Madame Mayor."
Nodding, she cleared her throat. "My office then." She said and then excusing herself she started walking without even bothering to check if he was following, the sound of her heels against the marble floor suddenly deafening.
Once at her office's entrance, she unlocked it and motioned him to go first, and when he walked in she closed the door.
Robin didn't even give her time to walk in properly and settle in her desk as she has wanted to, what he did was halt on his tracks and turn around so that he could face her.
The smile on his face was no longer there and instead he looked at her somberly. "So I finally get to see you again, and here I was thinking you were going to keep hiding forever."
"I wasn't hiding." She replied, biting on her bottom lip as she looked up to him thoughtfully.
Narrowing his eyes, Robin folded his arms up to his chest and wrinkled his nose. "Really? Well it definitely seemed that way to me, I mean you just disappeared back at the airport."
Lowering her eyes she sighed because she knew what he was talking about; for the last week she hadn't even attempted trying to talk to him and when their flight landed she convinced Emma to get her out of there as soon as she could. She didn't mean it as a way to hide, she was just trying to turn a page in her life and the only way she knew how to was ripping it off.
Back to that time, she has been sure that it was for the best to get as far as she could from him and the way he was making her feel.
But now it was different, now she had him here, so close that she could touch him and as she stood under his intense stare she started wondering why was it that she tried to stay away.
"I thought that was for the best… considering things."
He nodded, his lips twisting and his eyes lowering for a second. He said nothing though, thing that she found odd because if there was something she has come to learn about him it was that he always had something to say."
"I've been thinking about you, you know?" She confessed, venturing to look at him once again. He still wasn't saying anything, but his lips curved into the phantom of a smile and she showed him a smile of her own. "So how have you been?" She asked, noticing how her voice came out too high pitched in the awkward silence that surrounded them.
Without taking his eyes away from her, the man that has been taking over her mind shrugged. "I've been pretty good. Considering things."
Catching on how he used her own words to reply, she nodded. As she did that she was unable to will her eyes away from him as he took hold of her hand to take a look at her wrist. For a few seconds he just inspected the spot where she was bitten and then he let her hand fall to her side.
"I didn't expect you to see you here today."
"And you say that as in, 'if I knew you were going to be here I wouldn't have come?'" He asked, resting one hand against a spot at the wall right above her head and she swallowed hard at the low tone he was using to talk to her.
Shaking her head no, she kept her eyes glued to his as he scanned her face. "Of course not. I would have come because there are a few things I never got to tell you."
"What things? That you liked and miss my excellent culinary skills?"
Regina chewed on her lips; sure, what he just said sounded innocent and even kind of lighthearted, but taking in consideration the dark whispering tone he was using in his talk or the way he was hovering over her, there was no reason for her to respond with a friendly smile.
"Not really," She said resting the weight of her body on her left foot. "I just wanted to thank you. I don't think I would be alive today if it wasn't for all you did for me."
"You don't have to thank me for that."
"Actually I do, and I know-"
Preventing her from going any further than that and catching her off guard, Robin lowered his face and before she could do or say anything his lips were on hers. It all happened very quickly, one moment she was about to thank him for everything, for pulling her out of the plane, for feeding her, for keeping her safe and sane and the next second he was kissing her.
Not only that, but as soon as his lips met hers she automatically closed her eyes and received him, allowing him entrance into her mouth as his tongue slowly but firmly sought for hers. And well, wrong as it may be she couldn't help but to respond to him, feeling as if her body was melting against him as his arm circled her waist to hold her to him.
Now, this was not how she wanted things to turn to, she went there as a way to distract her mind and she ended up making out with her auditor, in her office. She wasn't even attempting to stop him; instead she encouraged him even more by grabbing the leather jacket he had on to pull him nearer as her other hand went to cradle the back of his head.
It was actually kind of scary how easy it was for him to make her resolution crumble; he just came, took a hold of the foundations that held all her determination in place and shook it up real nice until it all started to fall apart on her. How silly of her to think she had a chance to fight him off.
Before he kissed her and made her forget about everything but the feeling of his lips on hers, she was totally determined that she needed to stay away from him and there she was now, letting the man kiss her senseless while she did absolutely nothing to stop him.
Quite the contrary, instead of pushing him away like she knew she should do she was actually holding him close to her while kissing him back; but that was not all, the really bad part came with the following statement; she would be lying if she said that she wanted him to stop.
It was wrong, she was very aware of that and she didn't know what was with her; her thing with Robin was not supposed to carry on outside the Island, she didn't want it to carry on. But then again, to be completely honest she had to admit that he has been the most predominant thought in her mind as of late.
Now it was this; with just that kiss he was settling a fire deep within her very existence that was burning her all over. The way he kissed her, the way his hands felt against her hips and… wow just the way his body pressed to hers to hold her in place was too much for the weakness of her flesh.
But it was wrong so moving her hand from the back of his head to his shoulder, she forced her lips to break away from his and with her eyes tightly shut she shook her head no. "Robin… you know we can't."
"We can't what?" His voice was a low dark whisper against her lips and while he asked her that she felt how his hands slid to her lower back to pull her closer to him. "Kiss? Because if that's it I have two words for you, too late."
Detecting the smugness in his voice and not liking it, she opened her eyes and arched an eyebrow. He knew she was weak for him and she didn't want him to have any kind of control over her. "You know we can't do this. I am the Mayor and you work auditing me for the central government."
"And what makes you think I care about that?"
Blinking her eyes rapidly, she scoffed and locked her eyes to his. God, how she had missed those eyes… but that was not what she should focus now; no what she needed to focus was in what he said. Was he out of his mind?
"Then you clearly lost your wits. I haven't though, and I do care." After saying that she cleared her throat. "Last thing I need is for people to know about what happened."
"Oh so you want me to be your dirty little secret now, is that… is that what you want? To keep quiet and pretend nothing ever happened?"
Laughing bitterly she rolled her eyes. "Well I sure as hell don't want to announce it in the next town's meeting."
Didn't he get that people knowing was going to cost them both their jobs? He had a kid and he even told her how he needed to provide for him so no, she wasn't going to let him do that.
There were a lot of ways she could end up screwing his life and making him be out of work was just going to be the first one, if she allowed it, that was.
"Look, I would just really appreciate it if you kept what happened between us private. Last thing we need is to make it public."
He snorted. "I wasn't going to make it public, it's not my style." He let the words sink in before continuing. "And I can get why you want to cut things here, Regina, I really do. I'm not that dense. But you know… the least you could have done was come clear with me long ago and tell me this straight to my face instead of bailing out and hiding."
"I told you I wasn't hiding; and going our separate ways was for the best."
"The best for who, for you? Did it ever crossed your mind to at least give a heads up because trust me, last thing I expected was for you to start ghosting me."
"Oh come on." She said and soon after she tried to walk away from him. But he was holding her close and he was not letting her go. "We are done talking now, let me go."
"How-" He began to say and because her eyes were glued to his face she saw how he halted for a second to lick his lips. "How do you do this, getting to act so cold and detached after all we went through?"
For some reason that bothered her and tilting her head to him she breathed out. "You know what, screw you, Robin. You don't know anything about me so don't you start making conclusions about how I am. What happened in the island didn't mean anything, it just happened and that's it. Now we are back to normal so let's just move on." After that spilled out of her mouth, she pushed him out of her way and tried to flee the scene.
But before she could reach the door handle he grabbed her by the arm and swirled her around. Before she knew it he was trapping her against the door.
"It meant nothing you say, is that what you really think?" He asked and the question was not kind, he was mad. She could hear the anger in his voice and she could feel it in the way his eyes looked at her.
"Let me go." She hissed, swallowing down very hard and refusing to take her eyes away from his. She kind of wanted to take back what she said though and explain herself better, because in all fairness of the truth, what happened back at the island meant a lot to her… more than he could ever imagine.
But she didn't say anything and for the longest while they remained like that, Regina pressed against a wall while her eyes dueled with his in a battle that neither one wanted to lose. But then he finally shook his head and let go of her.
"You know what, bugger this."
With that said, he took a step back as if to leave and Regina took that moment to close her eyes and take a deep breath.
"Robin. I don't want to be at odds with you, I really don't."
Running a hand through his hair, he scoffed. "You really have a great way of showing it."
Opening her eyes and searching for his him, she swallowed hard down. "I'm sorry."
He shrugged. "Don't be, we were clearly on different pages. It was my mistake for thinking otherwise. I'm crystal clear now so… don't sweat it. Now if you excuse me, Madame Mayor."
With that said he turned around and walked away. For a minute that felt like an eternity, she just kept in place, watching him go… and the farther he got, the more she felt like reaching out to him.
But she didn't… she just let him go.
TBC