"Henry!" Emma called out again, her voice desperate and pleading. Henry stopped short just at the front gate and even though it was dark outside and she was standing on the front steps, she could see his body shaking. "Henry, stop!"
She ran towards him as she saw him reach to pull the gate open. She wrapped her arms around him tightly, walking backwards towards the front door even with him kicking and shoving at her, trying in vain to get her to let go.
"Henry!" Emma gasped as he elbowed her hard in the stomach and still she didn't let him go. "Please, stop."
"Let me go!"
"No."
Henry grunted and struggled to get out of her hold and while she wasn't nearly as strong as she'd been before she'd been shot, she was still stronger than her eleven year old son. Despite being shroud in darkness, she worried that the neighbours or passerby's might fall witness to Henry's meltdown and she was not about to air her personal, dirty laundry outside of the privacy of her home.
"Henry, please, come inside—"
"Let me go, Mom!"
"Kid, please, I'm begging you," Emma pleaded with him, her hold not loosening. "Let's just go back inside—"
"I don't want to!"
His screaming voice pierced not just her ears, but her heart and she shook her head, tired of Henry refusing to listen to her, tired of begging, just beyond exhausted and not in any mood to deal with his breakdown on the front walkway. Despite the fact that she hadn't picked him up for a few years, she got a better hold on his body and hoisted him up into her arms, moving quickly back to the house.
Henry was squirming by the time she managed to kick the door shut behind her and she dropped him to his feet, both of them panting heavily. Henry shook his head as he rubbed his fists against his tear-filled eyes. He frowned at her, deeper so, and Emma knew he was not only upset, he was angry too.
She didn't stop him from running up the stairs to his room, already wincing before she heard him slam the door shut behind him. She half expected Regina to storm up after him, scold him for slamming the door again, just like the last time. Instead, Regina walked over to her and wrapped her arms around Emma's tired body.
"Just give him a moment," Regina said gently. "Let him cool down and then you need to go up there and talk to him."
"I don't know if I'm…strong enough."
"You are strong enough, darling."
"Maybe strong wasn't the right word. Brave," she sighed. "I don't think I'm brave enough to have that conversation with him right now."
"I don't think you have much of a choice, Emma. You have no idea what he had overheard or how he feels about what he did hear. You need to talk to him."
"Can you come—"
"No, Emma, you need to talk to him about this because he needs to hear it from you whether he wants to or not," Regina said sharply. She placed a reassuring kiss on her cheek before gently pushing her in the direction of the stairs. "You can do this, darling."
"What do I—"
"You need to explain what happened that night. You need to be honest about who his father is—was. Everything."
Emma nodded and took a deep breath, hesitating at first but she began the slow ascent up the stairs, taking each step carefully as she tried to gather as much emotional strength as she could before she reached Henry's bedroom.
Since before Henry was born, she had dreaded this very moment, but nothing could have prepared her for him overhearing her conversation with Regina, having him believe that his father was a terrible man who had raped his mother and was the very reason he was there, here and now. She couldn't let him believe that not for any longer than he already did for the last handful of minutes.
She took a deep breath as she turned the doorknob, the door sticking in the frame a little from the force of Henry slamming it shut mere minutes before. Henry laid on his bed on his stomach and he had his face buried into his pillow. The moment she shut the door quietly behind her, his head shot up and he stared straight at her.
"Go away, Mom!"
"We need to talk."
"I don't want to!" Henry cried and he shook his head at her. "Get out of my room!"
Emma shook her head and slowly made her way to the foot of the bed and she sat down, her heart feeling like it was breaking as Henry scrambled to get off the bed, it fairly clear that he didn't want to be anywhere close to her right then. He stood at the window, his palms flat on the windowsill and his body trembled as he tried to keep the tears inside.
"Henry, I—"
"So, I am a bastard child then?" Henry asked, keeping his back to her. "I was a mistake."
"No, Henry, you—"
"I heard you! That's exactly what you said, Mom!" Henry said, turning to face her, his face red, his eyes filled with tears that trickled down his cheeks. "I heard you say that!"
Emma breathed shakily as she tried to keep herself together. She had never intended for Henry to overhear that conversation, for him to learn about his father that way or the fact that she had been date raped and that was the very same night he had been conceived and the night that ultimately had broken her and Regina apart the first time.
"There are a lot of reasons why I never told you about…your father, Henry," Emma said softly, watching as he turned his back to her again. "I didn't know him. We weren't friends. Regina and I were together that summer and it'd been one of the best three months of my life. I was eighteen and in love with the most amazing woman. I saw myself spending the rest of my life with her."
"Then why—"
"Can you just let me talk, kid?" Emma sighed in frustration and Henry just shrugged his shoulders, his hands flat on the windowsill. "We had a fight that day and for some reason I let Ruby talk me into going to that party, thinking it'd help me just forget that Regina and I had been fighting earlier that day. I wasn't thinking clearly and we started drinking. That night is still very unclear to me, but…"
Emma shakily inhaled, wanting to tell him, but also not wanting to tell him too many details of that night because he was still far too young to understand what had happened and how and why.
"He was drugged too," she continued after a minute. "He didn't rape me intentionally because he didn't know what he was doing either. A few days after that party, Regina and I broke up and shortly after that I found out that I was pregnant with you."
"Why did you break up?"
"Because I didn't tell her what had happened and she didn't know the whole story, she wouldn't listen to me. She knew before I went to tell her what had happened. She was angry and hurt and she pushed me out of her life. She didn't want to have anything to do with me after that."
"That's what you wrote in those letters?" Henry asked softly, moving away from the window to sit next to her. "You explained what had happened that night in those letters you gave her last summer, didn't you?"
"Yeah, kid, I did, but it didn't matter because twelve years ago, after numerous attempts to try to get her to listen to me, to talk to me, she was just gone and I had no idea where she was or how to find her."
"And my father?"
"I saw him once after that night. He came to explain what had happened at that party, tried to apologize, but I couldn't stand to face him."
"Does he know about me?" Henry asked, the faintest sound of hope in his voice made Emma physically flinch. "Mom, does he know about me, that he has a son?"
"No," Emma said softly and she ran her hand over the top of Henry's head. "I never told him I was pregnant with you or that I was keeping you."
"Y-you weren't going to keep me?"
Emma wrapped her arms around him tightly. How could he think of such a thing?
"Henry, of course I was going to keep you. Turns out that keeping you was the best decision I'd ever made in my life," Emma said with a tearful smile. "You are my whole life, kid, you are my heart and my soul. My baby boy."
"Do you know where he is now?" Henry asked quietly. "My d—father, I mean?"
"Henry—"
"What if I wanted to meet him?"
"He's not your father, not the way you're thinking. He'll never be someone you call dad."
"He's just a sperm donor," Henry spit back her earlier words. "And I'm just a mistake."
"No, Henry, you're not a mistake."
"I want to meet him."
"You can't!"
"Why not?" Henry asked as he recoiled from Emma, yet stayed sitting next to her on the edge of the bed. "Why can't I meet him?"
"Because he died a few years ago," Emma whispered.
"Oh."
They sat in silence together for a while after that, the emotions that had risen between both of them rather exhausting in itself. Emma had never wanted Henry to find out about his father that way, she never wanted him to think that he was a mistake and nothing more than a bastard child whose father didn't even know he existed.
Henry moved to wrap his arms around her as the two of them laid back near the edge of the bed together. Emma just held him in a way she hadn't held him in a very long time. She thought back to the day they thought that Vinnie had taken him because he hadn't shown up at school, at how terrified she'd felt just thinking that she'd never see her son again. She thought back to before he stopped thinking it was gross whenever she and Regina kissed, at all the little temper tantrums he'd thrown too, and the stubborn way he refused to leave the apartment in New York City the day they moved to Storybrooke.
Nothing else mattered more to her than keeping her son happy and healthy and safe. Right now he was feeling vulnerable and was still very upset about the things he had overheard. She wasn't even going to scold him for the fact that he'd been eavesdropping, she felt like she couldn't do that to him right now.
"How did he die?" Henry asked after they'd lain in silence for quite some time.
"I don't know exactly, but all I do know is that he died a few years ago in a car crash."
"Oh," Henry's face fell. "That sounds horrible. It is horrible."
"I know."
"I'll never get to meet him now," Henry sighed softly, his voice suddenly sounding very tired. "I'll never know who my father really is."
"You could ask David about him the next time you see him."
"David knew him?" Henry asked, lifting his head from Emma's shoulder. Upon her nod, she could see his eyes light up a little. "Is that why he and Mary Margaret called their baby Neal? After him?"
"Yes."
Emma was being careful with her words because they were both going through a lot emotionally and it had already been a very long day for her to begin with. Henry just smiled at her, dropping a kiss to her cheek.
"I'm sorry, Mom," Henry whispered. "I'm sorry for getting so upset."
"You had every right to be upset, kid."
"I'm sorry."
"Come here," Emma sighed as she pulled him closer to her, not letting go of him, keeping him close to her in a tight embrace. "I would've told you about him one day, you know that, right?"
"When?"
"I don't know, when I thought you were ready and could understand."
"I understand now."
"I guess I wasn't brave enough, kid," she frowned. "I dreaded the day you found out about your father, about how you came to be. It's a lot to take in and understand. It's just—it's something I don't like to talk about or remember."
"Because you lost Regina?"
Emma nodded slightly. "Yeah, because I lost her, because my life was truly headed in an unknown direction, but you know what, kid?"
"What?"
"It all worked out, didn't it?"
"Yeah," Henry smiled. "It did work out, Mom, and you're wrong."
"About what?" Emma asked, confused.
"You are brave," he whispered and he placed a hand over her scar on her chest, visible just under the cut of her tank top. "You survived. You held on. You're stronger than you think you are, Mommy."
"Because I love you, kid, I couldn't give up. Not when I have the worlds greatest son."
"I love you too," Henry smiled and he nuzzled his face into her neck and hair. "I love you more than anything in the whole world."
"You better, kid," Emma chuckled softly, feeling the strain of the heavy emotions just flutter away as they shared a small little moment as mother and son. "Is there anything you want to ask me about?"
"No. Not right now."
Emma sighed and kissed the side of his head gently. They both sat up as Regina knocked on the door and gently eased it open. Emma smiled over at her, nodding that it was okay for her to come in. She smiled right back and came in with a cup of hot cocoa, complete with whipped cream and cinnamon, just the way Henry loved it.
"I thought you could use something to help soothe your soul, dear," Regina smiled lovingly down at him as she gently eased the mug into his hands once he'd sat up on the edge of the bed.
"Thank you," Henry smiled at her and he looked over at Emma as she slipped off the bed and stood by Regina. "Can you two go? I'm really tired and I kind of would like to be alone now if that's okay?"
"Of course, kid," Emma nodded, not even going to try to understand how he felt because she had never been in his shoes before, not with this kind of situation anyway. "I love you. Make sure you bring that mug down once you finish and before you go to sleep, okay?"
"Okay, I love you too, Ma," he smiled and he stood, leaning up to kiss Regina on the cheek softly. "I love you, Mom."
"And I love you too, Henry."
Regina dipped her head down to place a light kiss on his forehead before she pinched at his nose with a smile. Emma reached out for her hand and they left Henry's room together. Regina stopped her just at the top of the stairs and pulled her in for a loving, tender kiss.
"Judging by Henry's demeanour, I take it the talk went well?"
"As well as it could've gone," Emma replied with a shrug. "I'm gonna get another beer, are you coming?"
Regina nodded and allowed Emma to lead the way down the stairs. They were kissing again as soon as they reached the kitchen, but it wasn't one of those kisses that led to them desperately trying to fuck each other on the island countertop. The way that Regina moved against her told Emma one thing, she was in the mood to dance. Emma loved those moments, unlike the one they had last where she had to practically beg her to dance with her. When Regina listened to the music she loved the most, dancing with her was one of the most thrilling and exotic things Emma had ever experienced.
When they parted from their kiss, Emma grinned at her salaciously, delivering once last kiss to her lips before they parted, Emma grabbing a cold beer out of the fridge and Regina selecting a bottle to open from the wine rack before she poured herself a glass. Without a word, Regina took Emma's hand in her own and led her into the study, leaving the door open. She let go of Emma's hand and moved to the stereo, moving her hips subtly to whatever music she was hearing in her head, completely mesmerizing Emma.
As the music began to fill the air, Emma recognized it as one of the mixed CD's Regina loved to listen to most of all out of every album she owned. The music Regina loved was slowly growing on Emma and she'd found herself listening to one of mixed CD's Regina hadn't noticed was missing in her car—at least she had before the engine died on her completely. But most of all, she loved to spend hours swaying with Regina to the music, sometimes making love with it playing in the background.
Emma placed her barely touched bottle of beer on the table where the cider sat in the decanter and she sauntered up to Regina, wrapping her arms around her from behind as they both started to move to the sultry beat the filled the room. Emma reached for the glass in Regina's left hand, moving with her and reached out to place the glass on the bookshelf before placing a hand on her jaw gently and kissed her cheek with a smile slipping out past her lips as she felt Regina lean back further into her.
Emma spun her around with a flourish and she grasped onto her hands, their hands rising just over Emma's shoulders. She trailed her palms down the length of Regina's arms, their eyes locked in a heavy, heady gaze.
The way they fell into a rhythm together reminded Emma so much of the many times this happened, in bed, naked, while bringing each other over the edge, over and over again. Her hands smoothed down Regina's back, down over the swell of her ass, pulling her in closer as their hips moved fluidly to the beat.
The heaviness of the day all but fluttered away as they lost themselves in one another. The song changed, the beat a little quicker than the last and they never lost their rhythm, changing it to follow the addicting base and drum beats as it flowed through the room and around them.
Their lips met with ease, the kiss slow yet deep, eliciting throaty moans from them both, neither letting up moving their hips to the beat of the music. Emma just barely was able to resist the urge to slip a thigh between Regina's legs, opting on instead to move her right hand from her supple ass, over her hips, up her side, her fingers stroking out over the soft material of her shirt, fingers skipping over the underside of her breast. As tempting as it truly was, she slipped her hand to rest between Regina's shoulder blades, her tongue just devouring her completely.
"We better have these songs playing during the reception," Emma whispered, her lips just a hairsbreadth apart. "Because I love dancing with you like this."
"Mmm," Regina hummed, rolling her hips a little harder against Emma's in a way that sent a surge of thrumming arousal through her very core. "We should do it more often, darling, because I love the way you move with me. Against me."
Emma surged forward, kissing her again, her heart fluttering at the way that Regina sighed against her lips. She sighed into the kiss because it felt like it had been forever since they had moments just like this.
Nothing could convey the emotions that rippled through her body in that very moment, but Regina seemed to know, their kiss slowly turning into something far more tender than it had been mere moments ago.
"Three more weeks," Emma whispered against Regina's lips. "Three. More. Weeks."
"Yes, darling, three more weeks," Regina smiled, more at ease about it more so than before. "I cannot simply wait to be your wife."
"I can't wait either, Mrs. Swan-Mills."
"Not until we file the paper—"
"Shh," Emma laughed as she placed a single finger over Regina's lips. "We'll get there when we get there, okay? Let's just focus on the wedding first, okay?"
Just as they were about to kiss again, the unmistakeable sounds of Henry's footsteps echoed louder than the music as he rushed towards them both, throwing his arms around them quite suddenly, all but breaking their moment while another unfolded.
"Henry!"
"Kid!"
"Moms, I love you," he said in a rush, wrapping his arms around them both tighter, ever so. "I don't—it doesn't matter who my father is, I have you," he said to Emma and then turned to Regina, smiling widely at her. "And I have you too. I wouldn't want anything else right now other than having two mom's who love me as much as I love you both. You," he paused as he allowed just a few small tears to fall, "you are all the family I'll ever need, all I'll ever want."
Emma wrapped an arm around her son, their son, just as Regina did and she stared at Regina, the emotion in her eyes pulling Emma in deeply. They had come such a long way, together and as a family since last summer, and Emma was ever so grateful that Regina had given her a second chance, that they had been able to reconcile and have what they had before and more.
They shared a small, chase kiss, both all too aware of the eleven year old boy still holding on to them both. Henry leaned up on his toes once they parted, kissing each of them on the cheek before he slipped out of the embrace. He smiled at both of them before he gave a little wave and slipped out of the study, closing the door behind him.
Emma wrapped her arms more firmly around Regina, both of them letting out a quiet laugh as she spun them around, both wobbling for a moment before finding their footing once again and they moved to the beat of the music fluidly, their lips meeting in a heated, loving kiss.
Despite everything else, it all came back down to small moments like this, and for that Emma was eternally grateful that she knew just what unconditional love truly felt like.
After a week without any word or sighting of her mother back in Storybrooke, it hadn't left Regina any less on an edge, but she submerged herself in paperwork and the wedding, her time between both veering more towards the wedding, the paperwork piling up on the far left corner of her desk. Things were moving more smoothly with the wedding and thanks to Kathryn and Ruby, the invitation fiasco had been resolved and all the attending guests had been contacted about the change in the date, each one confirming that they still would be attending. It left Regina with one less thing to worry about.
"Next week we can go over all the material," Kathryn said as she looked over her notebook and the check list that she had inside. "I've confirmed with the rental company that the tables and chairs will be delivered and set up next Thursday morning."
Regina nodded, stabbing at her salad with her fork and taking a bite. "They are aware that we have two distinct themes for the tablecloth's and chair coverings, yes?"
"I double and triple checked with them," Kathryn replied with a nod. "White for the rehearsal dinner, white, red, and black for the wedding itself."
"And the flowers?"
"I called Maurice this morning. He said he'll deliver the flowers early Saturday morning. I'll be meeting him there to make sure everything is set up exactly as you want it to be."
Regina smiled. Everything was falling in to place and with the wedding less than two weeks away, she had expected the stress level to rise, but it had lessened once she let Kathryn help her more, giving her the reins to all but take over the last minute preparations that were needed.
Kathryn slid a piece of paper across the desk. "This is from the caterer," she said and she pointed to the spot at the bottom of the page. "They just need a signature confirming your approval of the final menu. I can run it over to them this afternoon."
Regina scanned over both the menu for the rehearsal dinner and the one for the reception. The caterer's were also providing hor d'oeuvres during the cocktail hour that would be held between the ceremony and the reception, just a way for the guests to mingle while they had their wedding pictures done.
Satisfied with the final menu, with very little changes made to the hor d'oeuvres that would be served, she signed her name on the dotted line on the bottom, grinning as she slid the paper back over to Kathryn and placed her pen down on the glass.
"This is getting really exciting, isn't it?"
"Yes," Regina laughed, stabbing her fork into her salad container. "Quite exciting."
"You're getting married."
"I am."
Their laughter filled her office, bouncing off the walls, enveloping them in happiness and love. Regina could not have asked for a better friend than someone like Kathryn Nolan, who had always been there for her, through thick and thin, who had always had her back, who had always kept her secrets, and who had always told her how it is, no holds barred.
After the laughter died down, the finished off their lunch and Regina informed Shane to continue to hold her calls, just wanting some one on one time with Kathryn since it had felt like far too long since they'd spent some time just the two of them. Any time they had seen each other since Emma had moved to Storybrooke had been the odd lunch or coffee date, and any other time either Emma or Ruby or both of them were there too.
They moved from her desk to sit on the sofa, Regina pouring them each a small glass of cider to sip while they chatted. They talked more about the wedding, just the small details that were left to cover, but those could wait until the last minute. Regina, however, had been rather curious about her and Ruby lately. She knew they were fairly serious now, but they hadn't really talked about it for quite some time..
"So," Regina said as she crossed her legs towards Kathryn. "How are things with Ruby? Good, I gather?"
"Wonderful," Kathryn grinned. "Honestly, if you would've told me a year ago that I would end up dating a woman, I would've laughed it off, claiming to be straighter that a straight line, but you know what? Sexuality is fluid and sometimes all it takes is finding the right one, the one that can make you feel in ways no one else ever could."
"I do know that feeling rather well."
"I'm really happy with her," Kathryn continued. "I'm in love with her."
"Have you told her?"
"No, I have not. It's not too soon, is it?"
"Does it feel right?" Regina asked and upon Kathryn's nod, she continued. "As long as it feels right and true, there is no such thing as too soon. It wasn't long after Emma and I started dating that we knew we were in love with each other. How long have you felt that way about Ruby?"
"Since she moved to Storybrooke and we were able to spend more time together."
"Do you think that she feels the same way?"
"I'm not sure. When we're alone together, we talk sometimes but not about how we feel, well not that way, in other ways we do," Kathryn tittered and Regina chuckled throatily as she shook her head. "God, I can't wait to see her in her tux."
"You've already seen her in her tuxedo, we were with them when they went to the final fitting because they wanted our approval, remember?"
"I guarantee you it will not be the same as seeing either wearing it next Saturday."
"I suppose you are right, dear," Regina chuckled. "Now, tell me more about this party you and Ruby have planned for Emma and I."
Kathryn's eyes perked up and she clapped her hands excitedly together. "So, we have the Rabbit Hole booked from ten until three. Open bar. It's not your traditional bachelorette party of course, at least half of the guests that are attending the wedding are coming," she said with a small smile. "We have booked you and Emma a car with a driver to take you home, so neither of you have to worry about not enjoying yourselves."
"It certain sounds like you've thought of everything. I also hope you adhered to my wishes about not having a stripper of any sort."
"There are going to be a few surprises, but we didn't hire some stripper or exotic dancer. I did take your wishes into consideration, dear," Kathryn replied. "And trust me when I tell you that one of these surprises is something that you are definitely going to love."
"What of the dress code?"
"It's the Rabbit Hole, Regina, and it's a party!"
"We will be dressed for the rehearsal—"
"You two are going home after that," Kathryn continued, pointing to each finger as she listed off what they had planned for that evening. "Granny will take Henry for the night, that she already agreed to just as long as he comes with her to the Diner the next morning and helps her open up. Two, you and Emma are going to change into something cute and adorable, maybe something sexy, maybe something matching."
"Kathryn, if you tell me that you've picked our outfits out—"
"Oh relax, Ruby wanted to but I wouldn't let her go that far," Kathryn chuckled. "Three, the car will pick you up at five to ten so you'll be able to make a grand entrance because all the guests had been instructed to arrive at ten to ten."
"What is point four, dear?"
"We got you two sashes."
"Sashes?" Regina asked with a quirked eyebrow. "And pray tell, what do they say?"
"Bride One and Bride Two," Kathryn said and she held up a hand to stop Regina from saying a word. "It's kind of tradition, Regina. We may or may not have gotten you tiara's as well."
"And you expect me to wear such tacky things?"
"They aren't tacky!" Kathryn exclaimed, mildly offended. "Besides," she smirked as she reached for her glass of cider, "Emma will wear them and you know you can't say no to her because they were her idea."
"Oh."
"Not to worry, she'll never hear it from me that you thought so before finding out it was her idea. Ruby and I ordered them, she has no idea what they say or look like. They're red, so you might want to wear something that isn't going to clash."
"Right, of course," Regina said with a nod. "You really won't tell her?"
"Regina, since when have I ever spilled any of our secrets?"
"You told Ruby about the syrup incident!" Regina exclaimed with wide eyes. "You weren't supposed to tell anyone about that!"
"Oops?" Kathryn chuckled, not a shred of remorse in her voice or showing in her eyes. "Look, while yes it was terribly embarrassing at the time, you seemed to be unfazed by it that morning from what I can recall. And another thing, it was more Emma that was embarrassed by the whole thing, not you."
"That is not the point!" Regina said and she huffed with a shake of her head. "Anyway, is there anything else about this party that I need to be aware of, dear?"
"Just be ready to have the time of your life. It's going to be amazing!"
"Of course," Regina smirked. "You are certainly more excited about it than I and it's my bachelorette party. And Emma's."
"Well, get excited!" Kathryn laughed and they raised their glasses to one another, toasting before drinking back the last of the cider they had in their glass.
