***Author's Note: HELLO again. So, I just realized as I'm doing a final run-through of this story that I may have possibly miscounted my posting dates. I really want to post the two-part finale chapters the weekend before Christmas which means that I have to post an extra one now or it'll throw off my plan. I'm sure that I won't hear very many complaints although, this chapter is a another sad one so I'm going to apologize ahead of time. I promise though that the last three chapters will be completely worth it. Leave me your thoughts!***
When Ruby gets home from work, she sees that she has a missed call and voicemail from Emma. When she checks it, she finds a very disconcerting message from her best friend. Emma sounds extremely distraught in her message and it makes Ruby feel very uneasy and worried. She quickly returns Emma's call and within seconds of answering the phone, Ruby finds that Emma is indeed very upset. Barely giving herself the time to even slow down to take a breath, Emma is regurgitating what seems to a story about Regina and the bar, but Ruby is not able to understand any of it. "Emma! Calm down, speak slowly, and start again from the beginning. Please, you're giving me whiplash with how fast you are talking right now. I am only getting every other word." She finally says.
Emma audibly takes a deep breath. "Ruby, Regina kissed me."
This stuns Ruby. "Wait, what? When was this?"
"And I'm trying to tell you, I think she regrets doing it." Emma says, her voice cracking.
"Is that what she said?" Ruby asks just because she is thoroughly confused by the fact that Regina would actually initiate a kiss but then turn around and wish that she had not.
"No, but-" Emma starts.
"Okay, Em. Hold up. What did Regina say to you, exactly?" Ruby asks.
Emma takes another deep breath. "She didn't say anything. She kissed me and then she walked away." Emma adds sadly.
"Em, why didn't you just ask her how she felt about it?" Ruby asks as she is getting more irritated with the story and her friend.
"Because I don't need her to tell me to my face how we should just be friends!" Emma responds angrily and she can feel tears start to sting her eyes so she takes a couple more deep breaths to stop herself from breaking down. "I think that I'm going to come home for a while."
"What?! Wait a minute, what are you talking about? What do you mean you're coming home?" Ruby feels herself start to get angry with Emma and her obviously horrible and emotional decision-making.
"I need to get away from here for a while. She keeps calling me and texting me, and asking me if we can talk. I'm pretty sure that I know what she wants to tell me and the thing is, I don't want to just be friends with her, Rubes. I don't even think that I can face her right now. Or ever again." Emma says.
Ruby feels her patience dwindling. "No. Em, you can't just do this shit. You are running again and it doesn't even make any sense to come all the way back here when you don't actually know how Regina feels about what happened. You might think that you do but you haven't even talked to her. And even if she just brushes it off as a one-time deal, you kinda need to know the truth before making any crazy decisions." Ruby tries reasoning with Emma even though she knows that it will more than likely not get her anywhere. She waits for Emma to reply and argue but the line goes quiet. It only takes Ruby a moment to realize that Emma is crying on the other end. "Oh, god. Em..."
"Ruby, don't." Emma says, all the sadness in her voice replaced by complete seriousness. "I don't need a pep talk right now. I just need to get over this and I need you to understand that I can't do that here. I need to just call Regina later and tell her that I need some time off." Emma says, her voice breaking in between shallow breaths.
Finally, Ruby just gives in. "Yeah, okay. Babe, come back if you really need to. You can stay with me for as long as you want. I just...you know what, nevermind all of that. You're right, I wasn't being very supportive and I'm sorry." Ruby says as she realizes that if she is to help fix this, she needs to let Emma believe that she is being as supportive as possible. "Go home and pack or do whatever you need to do and just call me when you're on the road, okay?"
"I'll probably just leave on Christmas morning I don't have to worry about too many people on the road that way." Emma says.
"Yeah, sounds good. I love you. Call me later." Ruby says.
"Love you. And hey. Thanks, Rubes. Thank you for understanding." Emma says.
Ruby sighs. "Of course."
The second Ruby ends the call with Emma, she dials Killian's number. She has not spoken to him since her last night in Seattle even though they still text each other every once in awhile. The holiday season has been so busy, she has not really thought about reaching out to him, not even for updates on her best friend. This predicament however, definitely seems worthy of a telephone call.
The phone rings for longer that she would like but Killian does finally answer. "Hello there, stranger. It's been a while, my friend." He says gleefully.
Ruby decides to skip the small talk. "Seriously, Killian. What the fuck is happening over there?" Ruby says loudly as she is trying to convey her frustration.
"Whoa. What the hell are you talking about?" Killian asks, clearly confused.
"Emma just called me and told me that Regina kissed her?" Ruby asks still stunned by the story.
Killian chuckles. "Oh, yeah. It was great. We caught them under the mistletoe."
Ruby sighs. "No, Killian. Not great."
Killian frowns. "What? What do you mean?"
"Emma is super upset. She thinks that Regina is trying to tell her that whatever happened was a huge mistake. Tell me, where would she get an idea like that?"
"I don't know! Everything seemed fine to me. Emma left the party so early, it's not like I could talk to her about it or anything. And the last couple times I've seen her, she seemed perfectly fine to me." Killian says as he thinks back to the party and the last few days of work.
"UGH. Men are so dumb sometimes! How about Regina? How does she seem?" Ruby asks.
Killian thinks about it for a second. Since the night of the Christmas party, he has noticed that Regina has been keeping to herself a lot. She has been more quiet and seems to stay in the back office more. "I think that she's alright…" He trails off because even he has doubts about it now.
"Are you sure?" Ruby groans. "You know what? You're gonna have to fix this. I'm not there right now or I would fix it myself. So, you're going to have to do it."
"What is it that I have to fix, exactly?" Killian asks.
"Killian, Emma told me earlier that she is coming back to New York." Ruby says flatly.
Killian widens his eyes in shock. "What?"
"Yes. So, please, just fix it!" Ruby reiterates.
This time, Killian agrees without hesitation. "Alright, alright. Well, I'll see Regina tomorrow afternoon. I'll talk to her then." Killian looks up and sees that people have just walked into the bar. "Hey, I have to tend to these people that just walked in. I'll text you with a progress report later."
"Okay. I'll talk to you later. I better hear from you soon." Ruby says before she ends the call and throws her phone off to the side. She lays down on her bed and lets out another frustrated groan. She really hopes that Killian can figure this out before it is too late and Emma is already on her road.
Regina has not heard from Emma for nearly a week. It is not for the lack of trying though because she has called, she has sent text messages, and yet she has not received even one reply. After Emma does not show up the morning after the party, Regina began replaying the events of the evening over and over in her head. Maybe she had misread everything. Or maybe she let Marian get her hopes too high and Emma was just not interested in her as more than just a friend. Either way, she thinks that she has really made a mess of everything.
Regina is laying on the couch with the television on but she is not paying any attention to it. No matter how hard she tries, she still cannot think of anything besides Emma. The look on Emma's face when she pulled away from the kiss, now burned into her brain, is all that she sees every time she shuts her eyes. Because of this, she has not been able to sleep through the night since the party.
She finally decides that she should at least try to lay down more comfortably so she pulls herself up and off of the couch, turns the television off, and goes into the bedroom. Then she turns out the light and gets into her bed. Even though it is not quite eight in the evening, she already feels so exhausted, so she curls herself up hugging a pillow close to her, and shuts her eyes hoping that sleep will overtake her.
Regina awakens suddenly when her cell phone starts ringing. She looks over at the clock on the bedside table to see that it is almost 10:30 pm. She reaches for her phone thinking that it is probably Killian calling but when she sees that it is actually Emma, her heart starts racing. She hesitates only a few seconds longer and answers the phone trying very hard not to sound too nervous. "Hey, Emma." She says, unable to hide the hoarseness in her tired voice.
"Oh, hey, Regina. I hope that I didn't wake you." Emma says hesitantly.
"No, I am still up." Regina lies.
"Oh, good." Emma tries to speak quickly so that Regina does not have time to interrupt her. "I know that this is a very last minute request but I think that I am going to drive back to New York for the holidays. I hate to do this to you and Killian but I am going to need a few weeks off."
Regina frowns. "You're going to drive back to New York?" She asks shakily as she tries to hide her hurt and disappointment.
"Yeah, I know that I could fly but I really liked the drive on my way over here so I just thought that it would be nice to do it again." Emma says trying to think of the best excuse for why she would choose to drive clear across the whole country.
Regina's immediately begins to wonder to herself whether Emma even plans to come back. She closes her eyes tightly trying to stop the urge to start crying. "Yes, of course. Take as long as you'll need. We'll be closed for a whole week anyway." She answers quietly.
"Great. I will probably just stop by the bar when I get back. Or I'll text or call you or something." Emma adds.
Regina takes a breath hoping that Emma will let her apologize. "Emma…"
"Oh hey, Regina, sorry but I really have to go. That's Ruby on the other line." Emma lies. "I'll text you the details when I know them. Thanks again. I'll talk to you later. Bye."
Regina pulls the phone away from her ear and looks down at the ended call that is still displaying one of the pictures of Emma in the leather jacket that she took weeks ago when they were shopping, and when it fades to black, Regina can no longer hold back her tears. She takes a deep breath and wipes away the wetness on her cheeks. Then she lays back down, pulls the covers up over her head, and once again hopes that she can fall back asleep.
Emma, who is currently sitting on the sofa at her condo, sighs before downing the rest of her glass of wine. Then she puts her glass down on the coffee table and calls Ruby to tell her what she has done.
Killian walks into the bar on Christmas Eve to find Regina sitting on top of the back counter obviously lost in thought. He realizes that she does not even notice that he has walked in until he is standing right in front of her. He lightly touches her shoulder and she finally flinches slightly. "Hey, there you are. Where were you just now?"
Regina manages a small smile. "Nowhere in particular. I was just thinking about some things." She jumps off the counter and leans up against it once again staring off.
Killian furrows his brow. He really hates to meddle but he did promise Ruby that he would help fix this. Plus, he cannot stand to see Regina this way. "Thinking about Emma?" He finally asks.
Regina turns towards Killian. She tries to speak but frowns because she genuinely does not know how to answer his question. She has been very good about not bringing up Emma's name in the last week and this just makes trying to forget about her even more difficult. "Emma? No, why would I be thinking about Emma?"
Killian bites the inside of his cheek to keep himself from saying the wrong thing. He decides that he probably should have approached her differently so he just shakes his head and turns away. "Nevermind." He says.
Regina senses that something is wrong and her frown deepens. "Killian, is everything alright?"
After a moment, Killian turns back around. He realizes that he needs to just get this over with and so he sighs and looks Regina in the eyes. "I'm so stupid, Gigi. I can tell that you've been upset about something lately and it wasn't until last night that I realized that it is about Emma. I haven't seen you two anywhere near each other in over a week when up until that party, you were pretty much inseparable. Please just tell me what is wrong. What's happened?"
Regina just stares at him, blinking thoughtfully a few times and after the last time, Killian can see her eyes start to glisten. She looks down at the ground, takes a few breaths and answers him. "I think I screwed everything up. After I kissed her at the party, she hasn't been answering any of my calls or my messages and now she...she is leaving."
"Leaving?" Killian asks trying to hide the fact that he knows this alreayd because Ruby had already mentioned it to him the night before. "What do you mean she's leaving?"
Regina looks up at Killian. "She called me last night and said she needs a few weeks off because she wants to drive back to New York for a visit."
"She's driving?" Killian asks, this time actually surprised. "New York is a long way from here."
"I shouldn't have kissed her, Killian. I misread all the signs and I've ruined everything." Regina says.
"You like her." This comes out more as a statement than a question even though Killian is still expecting Regina to either confirm or deny it.
Regina bites down on her lower lip. She considers lying about it but then again, there is really no use in that anymore so she opts for the truth, which is something she has yet to even admit to herself. "Yes." She says. Then she chuckles but there is no delight in the sound of it. "I like Emma." She sighs. "I didn't think that it was this bad. But, I think I like her a lot."
For the first time since Danielle, Killian sees a part of Regina that she has always tried to hide away. She looks afraid but also hopeful. Killian smiles sadly at her and walks over pulling her in for a hug. It takes a few seconds but he finally feels her relax into his embrace and then hug him back tightly. "You haven't ruined anything. You just need to talk to Emma. Tell her how you feel." He tells her.
Regina tilts her head up so that she can see Killian's face. "How can I do that when she won't give me a chance to. I've wanted to talk to her about everything since that night it happened. And now I won't see her for weeks and that's only if she decides to come back to Seattle." Regina lays her head back on Killian's chest trying to to think about what a mess all of this has turned out to be. "Killian, what if she doesn't come back?"
"It'll all work out. She will come back." He says even though he is unsure of it himself. They stay this way for a while until Killian finally pulls away grabbing ahold of her shoulders. "Hey, look, it's Christmas Eve and you're feeling miserable. Why don't we just close early tonight? Everyone already knows that we'll be closed for the next week. Go home and relax tonight so that you can get an early start to your parents' house in the morning. You look like you could really use a good night's rest."
Regina sighs and nods. "Maybe you're right. I do really just want to be in bed right now."
"Then that's what you should do. Go ahead and take off. I'll clean up and close down." Killian says smiling at her.
Regina hugs him again. "Thank you as always. This really means the world to me. You, really mean the world to me. You know that, right?"
"I'm just gonna tell you what you always tell me-I know that you'd do the same for me. Now, go and get your coat. That wind chill out there will get you." He says.
Regina nods and walks into the back for her coat. She thinks about how at this time just a year ago, she was having dinner at home with Danielle when her girlfriend suddenly dropped down on one knee proposing marriage. It was the happiest day of Regina's life and now, a year later, she can barely even imagine what it felt like to be that happy. For a second, she thinks about Emma again and really wishes that they could be having another movie night or sleepover. Her heart clenches so she forces herself to push all those thoughts away. She puts on her coat and hat, grabs her bag, and turns out the lights of the office.
Killian quickly walks through the bar putting up all the chairs. He checked the sales just a moment ago and it looks like throughout the morning, Regina has only had a few tables. There is probably not much to clean in back either since there were only two food orders. He wants to hurry up and finish closing because he is determined to pay Emma a visit before she packs up and leaves town.
Regina reappears into the dining area fully ready to combat the wintery weather. She walks over to Killian and smiles weakly at him. "Do you want to come over for a little bit? I have your Christmas present at home. Emma and I picked it out together and I don't know why I didn't just bring it here with me today. My mind has been so jumbled all week."
Killian smiles. "I've forgotten to bring yours also. We can always exchange gifts when you get back next week. I actually should use this time to go do some last minute shopping anyway." Killian lies just because he does not want Regina to know that he actually has other plans in mind.
Regina smiles. "Good luck with that. Most places will be closing early."
"Don't I know it." Killian says grinning. "Now, get out of here before it gets colder."
Regina hugs him again. "Merry Christmas, Killian."
Killian hugs her back tightly. "Merry Christmas. Please send my love to your mum and dad."
"Of course." Regina says smiling.
Killian watches as Regina walks down the street to where her car is parked. Then as quickly as possible, he finishes cleaning up the dining area and runs into the back to finish up cleaning the kitchen. To his surprise, he finds that Regina has already cleaned up and turned off all the cooking equipment. He takes one final look around before flipping off all the lights. He puts on his coat, locks the doors, and walks the eight minutes it takes him to get to Emma's place.