Regina's heart might've actually fallen into her stomach. Emma was standing there holding a container of something and shifting uncomfortably on her toes. It was dead quiet for too long but Regina took deep breath and walked towards her girlfriend. The closer she got the more she could the worry in Emma's eyes. She didn't stop until their toes were practically touching and Emma had to look up at her.
Regina had such a conflicted gaze, as she tried to form words. So Emma started.
"Are you alright?" Emma looked her over. Regina let out a deep shaky breath and her shoulders dropped.
"No I-. Come with me." Regina rushed out and then all but dragged Emma around the corner and down the hall to her office.
"Regina?" Emma called her name as she frantically rummaged through the bottom drawer in her desk before she pulled out a bottle of dark whiskey. "Regina, hey."
Emma put down her keys and the container as Regina was taking a long sip of the dark liquid. Emma walked over and gently took it away from.
"Alright. Alright. Give this to me." Emma screwed the top and put it on the desk. She rubbed the woman's back as she coughed and hissed from the burn.
Regina got herself under control eventually and Emma wrapped one arm around her as she rubbed her back. Regina wrapped her arm around the blondes neck and pulled her in front of her chest, melting into the warm embrace. Emma had her face buried into Regina's neck with her arms wrapped under shoulders, and she just held her tight. Regina melted more into the embrace and closed her eyes, Emma could hear her heart beating so rapidly against her ear.
"How are you hugging me like this after what you just heard?" Regina sighed
"Because I love you." Emma simply put it. "And I don't know what I just heard but...I give great hugs and you looked like you really needed one." she shrugged and held her tighter.
Regina was quiet for a minute and Emma felt her breathing getting heavier.
"How can I have a child, Emma?...A 9 year old child." Regina slumped against her.
"I think you know how making a baby works." Emma teased and Regina scuffed and shook her head. "No I'm sorry." she quickly moved as Regina was about to pull away.
Emma kept a tight grip and pulled her head back to look at her face, and her heart pulled. Regina had tears in her eyes and looked so defeated, Emma rose up on her toes and wrapped her arms around her neck.
"It will be alright Regina." Emma gave her a slight grin and kissed her cheek and over her nose, across to her other cheek. "I'm hoping that it will be at least."
Regina placed her chin on her shoulder and sighed.
"So that's Mallory huh?" Emma asked.
"Yes...I was working after you all went back home and she showed up at the door...My mother told me she'd run into her a few weeks ago. She gave her my number because Mallory asked for it, she didn't know we weren't on good terms...This number started calling a few days ago but whenever I answered no one spoke. So I blocked the number...Turns out it was her...and now she's here." Regina pulled away and sighed.
Regina ran a hand over her face and groaned, "And now apparently I have a child."
Emma walked them over to the couch Regina had in her office and sat down, patting the seat for the woman to join her.
"What are you going to do?" Emma asked and Regina looked lost for words.
"I-I don't know. I haven't seen her in years and now she shows up claiming she had my child. Things were finally going good, I was fine! I am happy here with you and Henry and Harleigh. I don't want a child by someone else! I wanted your-" Regina stopped herself and slowed down, closing her eyes.
Emma stayed quiet, she was smiling on the inside though, if Regina didn't stop she was sure she was going to tell her she wanted her baby.
"Did you use condoms with her? Or was she on birth control?...Are you going to get a DNA test?" she asked.
Regina thought about it...She and Mal always used condoms. There was one time when she woke from a night of drinking that she woke up and Mallory was in her bed. But there was a high possibility that Mal was sleeping around with other people when they were. Before she answered a voice spoke up from near the entrance of the room.
"She looks just like you, there's no need for one." Mallory was standing in the doorway, her hands in the pocket of her long coat.
Regina and Emma both turned their attention to her.
"Why are you back here?" Regina groaned.
"You two have been back here for a while. I was just going to tell you I was leaving." Mallory rolled her eyes.
"There were other people you slept with at the University." Regina pointed out.
"Yes but you were the last one, and the only one for while. We didn't use a condom every time Regina... Lily has this full head dark brown hair and her eyes are brown, this golden brown and she looks just like you I can't stress that enough. If you want a DNA test I will gladly have one done." Mallory sighed.
"Good because I do." Regina scuffed. "I wasn't thinking before but yes I do. You can't just show up at my door claiming I have a child by you."
"I should let you both talk in private. I'm just going to head back ho-" Emma was looking at Regina and went to get up but Regina stopped her.
"No! Stay." Regina panicked and grabbed her wrist, Emma couldn't leave now. "If you can I mean...do you have to go check on-"
"I can stay." Emma nodded and put her hand over the one gripping her wrist. Her dad had come over so she wanted to bring Regina some food. She just didn't know this is what she'd be walking into.
Mallory looked at the exchange and mentally rolled her eyes and she sighed.
"I understand your hostility towards me, Regina but Lily doesn't deserve it. She's got your temper that's for sure...The DNA test would only prove that she is yours, and when it does you're going to need to make a decision on whether or not you want to be in her life."
"If you had even given me the chance I would have been there from the very beginning." Regina hissed and shot up. "This would've been handle 9 years ago."
Emma was just sitting there with her hands on her knees, looking up at them both.
"I'm not the only one at fault here, you need to remember that. I tried..." Mallory sighed. "Look we're staying at the B&B in town-"
"We?! She's here? In Storybrooke?" Regina asked.
"She's 9! I can't leave her alone, while I'm over 3,000 miles across the country. School was already out for her." Mallory reasoned. "She's with my friend Belle and her son right now."
Regina sighed and pinched the bridge of nose with her hand on her hip. Mallory looked her up and down and then turned her attention to Emma.
"I'm Mallory by the way...If she hadn't mentioned that."
"Uum Yeah... I know, we went to school together." Emma nodded. "Emma. Emma Swan."
Mallory looked over her face, she did recognize the blonde, but she never really associated herself with the lower class man. Belle told her that Regina had been dating someone recently when she saw her earlier. She didn't expect to find this woman though, she was beautiful definitely not what she had been in high school if she thinks about it real hard.
She and Emma had many similarities in looks Mallory just had blue eyes and fuller lips, maybe a longer face, and her hair was straight while Emma's was curly and wavy, but they looked like they could be related if anyone didn't know. Mallory looked her over, Emma was skinny and had a young look and a baby face while Mallory still looked older but good, real good. At 31, she had this fresh but aged look to her face, like she had been through some things, she actually looked like a lawyer in an all mens law firm. (Think of Mal's actress Kristen in 1997 when she was actually 31 in Romy and Michele's High School Reunion, that's how she looks.)
Mallory came here to finally tell Regina about their child, and possibly win Regina back, have a family together. With Emma in the way she couldn't do that, she internally rolled her eyes. But she wasn't one to back down very easily, her husband had cheated on her and had a child by some whore she absolutely hated. So she divorced him and she hasn't been with any one in about a year, but she knew if she tried hard enough she could get Regina back. They had enough history and she knew now there was no way she would deny their child.
Regina had her hands on her hips and ran a hand through her hair, put her weight on one hip.
"You can meet Lily and we can have the test done as soon as you want." Mallory reasoned.
"This isn't just some quick meet and greet, Mallory, this is my life you're barging into. And what about Lily's life?! What if the test comes back and she isn't mine huh? What then?! You have her believing I'm her mother when there's a good chance that I'm not. And you come here and spring this on me! Did you even look into someone else possibly being her father?! If she isn't mine what are you going to do then?" Regina shouted.
"Regina I know that she is. There was no one else I'd even had unprotected sex with." Mallory scuffed, well as far as she remembered, she thought. "Believe me when I say, I didn't want to come here. But you left me no choice when you blocked me... I figured this was better than hearing it over the phone." Mallory sighed and shrugged.
"...How long are you in town for?" Regina finally relented after a while.
"For however long we need to be. I'm prepared to leave whenever I need to."
Regina sighed and tapped her foot, she looked down at it and looked down at Emma who was starring at her hands. Emma looked up at her and gave her a slight grin, she reached out and touched Regina's thigh.
Regina wanted to scream, she just got Emma and the kids and they were happy.
"Tomorrow then." Regina concluded and look back up at Mallory.
"Tomorrow what?" The blonde asked.
"I will call to make and appointment at the hospital and tomorrow we will go in to have every possible test done to prove if what you're telling me is true." Regina clarified, "I'm not sure how long the results will take however."
Mallory nodded her head along, "And do you want to meet her before hand?" she added.
"I-..." Regina didn't know if she was ready for that.
"What about breakfast?" Emma voice popped in from beside her, she looked down at her and gave her a sad smile.
"Breakfast at Granny's? Will 8 o'clock work?" Regina turned back to Mallory. There wasn't ever going to be a time were she was ready, but better to just get it over with she thought.
"And will you be there, Ms. Swan?" Mallory asked with a hint of sass and Emma's eyes switched over to her while her ears perked.
"I...We always go there for breakfast so I imagine I will be." Emma arched her brow.
"Why do ask?" Regina questioned.
"Because I care about who to have around my daughter. It's best to open one door at a time." Mallory reasoned.
Regina scrunched her nose and shook her head, "Will you bring her to breakfast or not, Mallory? If not then I will schedule the appointment as early as I can." she huffed.
"Yes." Mallory sighed and agreed. "8 o'clock tomorrow morning. We will be there."
Mallory left after that and Regina closed the door, pressing her back against it. She closed her eyes and frowned, slowly sliding down the door until she hit the ground. Emma came around holding her container and saw Regina sat down there.
Emma walked over and joined her, pulling Regina into her arms. Regina's head was in her lap and she was softly shuddering from her silent tears. Emma just ran her fingers through her hair and rubbed her back, Regina was slowly having another panic attack. She mumbled something but Emma didn't hear what she'd said.
"What did say?" Emma leaned down.
"You're going to leave me." Regina sighed harshly.
Emma realized that she must be panicking again, she twisted and sat Regina up, placing her hand on her cheek.
"No! Why would you even think that Regina?" Emma made her keep eye contact.
"Because! This is crazy, this wasn't supposed to happen...we were supposed to fine! I was ok. We were happy." Regina cried. "You can't leave me."
"Baby...We are still fine. And we are still happy. I'm still happy with you Regina. I'm still here, I'm not going to leave you." Emma straighten her back against the wall and pulled the crying brunette into her lap.
She hadn't ever seen Regina cry except for the time they first watched the tapes of her father. Emma wrapped her arms around Regina's waist and pulled her close, Regina wrapped in her arms around Emma's neck and buried her face in it.
"You're right that this wasn't supposed to happen at least not like this. It should've happened a long time ago...but lucky 20 years hasn't gone by and you still didn't know." Emma tried to reason.
Regina just continued to cry and when she stopped, Emma pulled back to look at her face. Regina's eyes were puffy and she looked conflicted again, like so many things were running through her mind at once.
Emma leaned in and kissed her on the lips gently, Regina melted into the kiss and got impossibly closer, as close as she could get to Emma and the comfort she was providing. They pulled back to catch their breaths and Regina laid her forehead down on Emma's.
"I love you...please don't leave me." Regina looked at her down at her.
"You won't ever have to worry about that, Regina. Alright? I love you too." Emma shook her head and kissed her lips again.
Emma stayed with her and they laid cuddled up together on the couch, Regina's head was on her chest. This was such a life changing experience, things could be good now but there was no definite answer on later.
If anything Emma had more reason to fear that Regina would be the one to leave her.