When Emma was silent, Regina said, through her tears, "I love you. I'm so sorry."
"Stop fucking saying that!" her wife screamed, grabbing the lamp on the nightstand, tearing the plug from the wall, and smashing it on the floor. "This is too fucking much!"
"I know. I know. I just-"
"I can't fucking trust you anymore. I just can't."
With that, Emma went into the bathroom and leaned over the toilet, violently heaving out the small amount of breakfast she'd eaten. Once she flushed it, she stood in front of the mirror, staring at the red mark on her cheek, then looked down, turned the faucet on, and splashed her face with water. When she opened the medicine cabinet to look for another dose of ibuprofen, what she found made her stomach turn even more forcefully.
"Regina-" Emma called out.
When her wife, still crying, appeared in the doorway, Emma held out the completely full bottle of the woman's medication, tears steaming down her own cheeks now.
"What the fuck is this?" the blonde hissed as her lover took the bottle from her.
"W-What... I..."
"It's fucking full, Regina. From two fucking months ago!"
"I... I thought I was okay... I felt better... I... I didn't realize-"
"I can't fucking believe this! The doctor fucking told you not to go off the medication until you touched base with him at your next appointment, which isn't for another two months!"
"I know... I just... I hated... The side-effects... My sex drive just... I just wanted to-"
"I can't fucking believe this shit!"
"Emma, I'm sorry! If I'd known I was going to-"
"To what, Regina? Hit our fucking kid? Then you would have kept taking them?"
"Yes!" the brunette cried, reaching out for Emma's hands. "I-"
"Don't you fucking touch me," her lover hissed. "You make me sick."
"Emma," Regina sobbed. "Please, forgive me."
"I can't. I honestly just can't."
Back at Ruby's apartment, they'd set Henry and Amelia up in the spare room, and Emma sat on the couch between her two friends.
"I don't know what to do," she sighed. "I don't want to take her kids away from her, but I can't... I can't let them get hurt again."
"Well..." Belle started. "You said she stopped taking her meds, right?"
"Yeah..."
"Maybe if she goes back on them, she'll be alright."
"That doesn't matter, Belle!" Ruby cried. "She fucking hit Henry! I don't care if she gets better! That doesn't change what happened!"
"Listen, Ruby, I know you're upset about this, but this isn't about us. It's about-"
"Henry. It's about Henry and Amelia."
Emma nodded, then hung her head in her hands.
"Maybe what's best for Henry and Mia is to have both of their moms healthy," Belle slowly suggested.
At this, the blonde lifted her head and looked at her friend, asking, "You think she can change? You think they could be safe with her?"
"All I know," the brunette told her, "is that she never hurt Henry before or during her pregnancy, or while she was taking her medication, that she's remorseful about it now, and that this all only happened after she stopped taking the pills."
"Belle!" the woman's lover cut in. "That's not an excuse!"
"But it's a logical explanation. The question is, Emma... Can you accept what happened and move on, or is this the last straw for you? If Regina really does get better, could you forgive her?"
"I don't know," Emma sighed, resting her head on Belle's shoulder. "I really don't know."
"I think that's what you need to think about. And Ruby... stop trying to push her one way or the other. This is her decision to make. And we're going to be here to support her and the kids no matter what. Isn't that right?"
"Yeah," Ruby grumbled. "I still hate that bitch, though."
"Ruby!" Belle snapped. "That's enough! You're not helping Emma by acting like this!"
"It's okay, Belle," the blonde said slowly. "She's just trying to take care of me and the kids. I know she loves us both and she just wants us safe and happy. It's hard to hear what she's trying to say, but she's got valid points too. I think it's going to take me a while to decide what to do next, and I think I'm gonna need some space away from her for a while. I don't know how long, but I know it's going to take time."
"And we'll be right here through everything," her friend assured her, kissing her on the cheek and wrapping her arm around her shoulders in a gesture of support.
Ruby did the same, but sighed softly as she shut her eyes and tried to stifle her protests.
