It took a while before Regina's tears had been reduced to a level where she was capable of actually saying anything. And the first thing she said was that she wanted to go home.

Henry begged her to stay. He wanted both her and Emma to stay overnight, but Regina rejected that. She didn't want to stay in the house. Not after what had just occurred. At some point while she and Henry were negotiating, Cora Mills' grey Aston Martin suddenly sped away from the house. None of them had seen her come out of the house, and Henry growled that she probably had snuck out the backdoor.

"Quiero ir a casa," Regina mumbled and looked at Emma.

Henry squeezed his daughter's hands softly, said something in Spanish Emma couldn't recognize followed by a: "por favor, Cielo."

But Regina shook her head. "No, solo quiero irme a casa."

Henry squeezed her hands again. "Then promise me that you will call me tomorrow morning."

"Okay," Regina said meekly and hung her head. The gesture sort of reminded Emma of a dog who had just taken a beating, and Emma had to bite the inside of her cheek to stifle a growl. And the urge to follow Cora Mills and murder her.

Henry pulled Regina in for a hug and kissed her forehead. Whispered in her ear, but despite how quietly he was talking, Emma could still hear what he was saying: "Es tu decisión, Reggie."

Emma knew enough Spanish to know what that meant, and when she bit the inside of her cheek again it was to not weep of sheer relief when Henry Mills kissed his daughter's forehead and gently said: "yours and yours alone, Cielo. Your mother and her strong opinions cannot coerce you into making a decision that isn't right for you, remember that. And you have my support. Completely and always. Remember that."

"Te quiero, papi," Regina sniffled.

"Yo también te quiero," Henry said softly and brought his forehead to Regina's for a moment. "Estoy aquí para ti. Lo que sea que necesites."

That made Regina hiccup slightly again, and as Henry hugged her once more, he looked at Emma over her shoulder. "I'm terribly sorry about this, Emma. Cora can be very..."

"Yeah," Emma said. "Don't worry about me, though, Henry. I'm not the one who just..." she couldn't finish the sentence.

Regina made a sound that probably should represent a strangled laughter. "Are YOU ready to head back to my place, querida?"

"I am," Emma confirmed with a slight smile.

And so they bid Henry goodnight. Regina kissed his cheek and Emma was given a hug. They headed inside the car, buckled their seatbelts and then took off.

But they had only made it around the corner when Regina pulled over. "We'll continue in a moment," she said quickly. "I just need a second to-"

"I get it. You don't have to explain anything to me," Emma said gently, ignoring the way the seatbelt dug into her as she leaned in and kissed Regina's cheek. "Just take your time, sweetheart."

"I'm sorry for bolting out of the house like that," Regina said quietly. "I shouldn't have left you there, but I was just so-" she let out a sobbing sound. "She gets to me, Emma! She always gets to me!"

"It's okay," Emma said quickly and pecked Regina's cheek again. Her skin was salty on Emma's lips. Emma was quite literally kissing her tears away. "Staying behind those extra five seconds meant that I got to hear your dad kick your mom out of the house."

Regina's head snapped up and she raised an eyebrow. "He did that?"

"Yeah, he basically told her to piss off and not ever come back," Emma told her girlfriend. "Okay, maybe not in those exact words, but the meaning behind it was definitely the same. And I might have said something to her too."

"You did? What did you say?" Regina asked a bit nasally. Like you would speak when your nostrils are blocked.

"Uhh... I might have said that she ought to be ashamed of herself," Emma admitted and quickly checked herself. Did she feel guilty for saying that to Regina's mother?

Nah. She didn't.

Regina chuckled hoarsely as she opened the glovebox and found a couple of tissues. "That was very brave of you," she said. "I can't imagine her being very happy about that."

"She wasn't," Emma said and decided not to tell Regina that Cora had called their relationship 'a sin'. Regina was upset enough already.

"And good for my dad," Regina continued. "He has never asked her to buzz off before. Not even when he found out that she was cheating." She blew her nose and made a face. "I'm a complete mess."

"No you're not."

Regina ignored that and let out an unamused chuckle. "Well, that was my mother. Delightful, isn't she?"

"Definitely in a league of her own!" Emma growled.

Regina chuckled hoarsely once more. "God, she's worse than Norman Bates when he's dressed as his mother!"

It was Emma's turn to chuckle lightly.

"It's funny, really," Regina continued and grabbed a new tissue to dab underneath her eyes. "Every time I takes charge of my life and think that I have things figured out, my mother pops up and convinces me that I haven't got a clue what I'm doing."

"Well, that's simply not true!"

"Do you think she's right though?" Regina asked and her voice dropped to a whisper. "Is this something I'll regret every day for the rest of my life?"

"The decision is yours and she has no right question it. She should have been there for you instead. Supported you unconditionally. That's what mothers should do for their children."

"Sí, that's what mother's should," Regina repeated and sniffled slightly. "Es mi vida."

"You're right. It is." Emma gave her hand a little squeeze.

"I don't understand where all this grandmother-stuff is suddenly coming from," Regina continued. "The only interest mother took in me was when she wanted me to act and look like a little princess. She wasn't... she never wanted to play with me or hug or kiss me or any of that. She never saw me. She never had any interest in being a mother to be. Not even when I was a baby. Why should it be any different with my baby?"

Emma said nothing. The words stuck in her throat when she realized that Regina had just said "my baby".

"Alessandra and Sofía's baby," Regina corrected and shook her head. "Dios mio, she has a way of confusing me sometimes!" she sighed heavily. "I hate her. Does that sound terrible?"

"No," Emma said truthfully. "She's a very difficult person to love."

"Probably because she doesn't love herself or some philosophical bullshit like that," Regina as she checked her appearance in the mirror and used a finger to wipe underneath her right eye where her mascara had ran. "I can't remember ever seeing her happy. Not once. I've spent so much time on worrying why that is. Or why I have never seen her show affection towards my dad..." she shook her head again. "I wonder why she's even still in Spain? She was supposed to have gone to New York a week ago. Maybe she postponed it because she thought she was going to play grandma-" she snorted unamused. "Oh, well. At least Cora isn't my problem. Not anymore."

"Regina-"

"You heard her, querida," Regina gently interrupted and gave Emma's hand a little pat. "She cut me off. That's not something she has done before. But I think that's for the best. We'll never see eye to eye. I'll do far better without her in my life. The only person I feel sorry for in this is my dad. He hates when we argue."

"He did some pretty good arguing himself tonight," Emma said. "He told her that if he lost you, he would never forgive her."

Regina chuckled wetly. "My sweet dad. He could never loose me. I'll make sure to tell him that when I talk to him tomorrow." She gave another slight chuckle. "Good thing I didn't tell Cora that the baby's parents is a gay couple. She would probably have gotten a heart attack."

"Probably, yeah," Emma said and noted that Regina had called her mother "Cora" a second time now. Emma had a feeling that it probably was a permanent thing now. No more 'Mother'. Just plain Cora. No emotion. No familiarity. Just an anonymous name.

"We should get going," Regina said and squared her shoulders slightly.

"Are you sure you're ready?" Emma asked gently and cupped Regina's cheek. "We can wait a little longer. There's no rush at all."

"I want to go home. Before one of the neighbors gets nosy," Regina said dryly.

Emma nodded a little and kept her eyes on Regina as she started the car and steered it down the road. All the things that had been said tonight swirled around in Emma's mind, and the more she thought about it, the angrier with Cora Mills she got.

"Why are you giving me such an angry look?" Regina asked and sounded insecure.

"Sorry," Emma said quickly. "I am definitely not angry with you. Never. I was just thinking about something that makes me angry."

"And what was that?"

"The fact that your mo- Cora did so many terrible things to you when you were younger... sending you to bed without supper... bring you down when you wanted to do something different with your life... take Daniela away from you and turn you away when you came out as bisexual."

"Querida," Regina said gently and shot Emma a quick sideway glance. "It's so long ago now. And I'm sorry I said all of that in front of you. I wish I hadn't, but whenever Cora and I are in the same room, I tend to run my mouth. The anger just comes bubbling and I can't control it."

"And I'm glad you couldn't," Emma said firmly. "Life is not always rainbows and butterflies, and there's no reason for us to pretend that it is. I mean, I had literally been screwed over by my fiancé when we met." She gave a little chuckle.

Regina chuckled too. "At least I'm free of her now. I'm free to live my life how I want. Unplanned pregnancy and no ring on my finger and all..."

"Yeah, she seemed pretty focused on that," Emma half-growled.

"Sí, Cora is nothing if not traditional. If I had a ring on my finger, it would at least have taken away some of the shame in getting pregnant on a whim..." Regina snorted and shook her head, but her eyes still looked a bit misty. "Let's get home. I'm absolutely beat."

"Me, too," Emma said and goofily added: "I'll carry you to bed when we get back."

Regina smiled, and that was exactly the reaction Emma had hoped for. "There it is," she said softly. "That elusive, yet satisfied smile I think about every time I close my eyes."

"You do NOT think about me every time you close your eyes," Regina mumbled and blushed a little.

"Yes, I do," Emma said firmly, gently leaning over so she could touch Regina's cheek. Still a bit moist. The tears hadn't dried completely. Or perhaps it was fresh tears. "It's okay to be upset about this, sweetheart."

"I'm not upset," Regina said, and she sounded so unconvincing it could have been funny had the situation been any different.

"Yes, you are. I know what you're thinking. And it's Cora who has a problem. Not you."

Regina ignored that. "You do not know what I'm thinking," she said instead.

"Sure I do. With you, I always know."

Regina's next smile was a bit more wobbly. But she held her head high and stared straight out of the window. Driving a bit faster. Emma had a feeling that she wanted to go home as quickly as possible, and the blonde more than understood that. Regina's childhood home was definitely beautiful and lavish and everything, but it was obvious that it didn't hold very good memories for Regina. At least not when it came to Regina's mother. Her dad on the other hand... he had basically filled every inch of the wall with pictures of Regina. He adored her, and Emma knew that he would support her no matter what. The picture of a teenage Regina with braces on her teeth suddenly popped up in Emma's mind, and she chuckled softly to herself.

"¿Qué?" Regina asked. "Is there a joke? Because if there is, I could really need a laugh right now."

"No, sorry, there's no joke. I was just thinking about that picture of you when you were thirteen."

Regina groaned. "I've tried to make him take that picture down a million times!"

"You looked so cute with braces on your teeth," Emma said warmly. "I loved it. I loved seeing all the pictures. Including the one of your grandmother. You do look a lot like her."

"Maybe I can ask daddy to bring the album the next time," Regina mused.

"That could be fun. I would love to see more pictures of her."

Regina smiled a little. "I'll ask him when I talk to him tomorrow."

"Awesome!"

When they came back to Regina's apartment, they pretty much went to bed right away. Emma tried to coax Regina into eating something, because she hadn't had a lot to eat for dinner and she had barely touched the cheesecake her dad had served for her, but Regina rejected it. She said that she wasn't hungry, and Emma chose not to push the subject. Regina had already been pushed plenty tonight.

She wasn't sleeping either. She said that she was tired, but when they went to bed and she had curled up in a ball like she always did, Emma knew a hundred percent that Regina wasn't asleep. She spooned the younger woman to let her know that she was there if she needed to talk, but Regina remained silent.

Emma fought valiantly to stay awake long enough to start a conversation, to say something that would bring Regina out of her silent-mode but unfortunately, she ended up dozing off. She simply couldn't stay awake. So much had happened tonight. Anger tended to make Emma incredibly sleepy, and lords knows that she had been angry tonight. Very, very angry. Her state of post-anger tiredness and the feeling of Regina's warm, warm body next to her own was simply too much. Even though Emma struggled to stay awake, there was nothing she could do when she felt herself growing heavier and heavier, warmer and warmer.

She conked off as though she had been shot dead. With her body shaped so it enveloped Regina's smaller one, and a hand on the side of Regina's growing belly...

When she woke up again, Regina's bedroom was completely dark, and Emma could only faintly see the contour of Regina's "ball-like" shape. And right now, that ball like shape was laying several inches away from Emma's. Emma's lips pursed when she realized that her hand wasn't on Regina's belly anymore. And her heart broke a little bit when realizing that Regina seemed to be shaking under the blankets.

She reached out and put a hand on Regina's shoulder. "Hey, are you awake?"

"Sí," Regina mumbled, voice rough and trembling.

"Are you upset?" Emma asked gently.

"N-no," Regina whispered, and the came out as a sob.

Emma's stomach dropped- She didn't want to think about how long Regina had been laying awake and silently crying in the darkness. "Come here," she said softly, sliding closer to Regina so she could envelope her in her arms. "God, come here, you! Don't lie there and cry, beautiful girl." She took Regina in her arms and pressed a kiss to the top of her head.

Regina openly sniffled now. "M-maybe you should go back to Maine."

"What?!" Emma hissed. "No fucking way!"

"I want you to be happy here," Regina whispered. "I want it to be a good time for us, and this is ruining everything. My drama is always ruining-"

"Okay, stop," Emma said gently but firmly. "It's like what we talked about. Life isn't always rainbows and butterflies. And I'm your girlfriend. Not a holiday fling. I'm here for all of it. Not just the fun stuff."

Regina sniffled. "Maybe Cora's right, though. Maybe I don't have the first clue about what I'm doing. Maybe I AM running away from my responsibility-"

"Stop it! That's just her being in your head, sweetheart. You have every clue about what you're doing. You're handling this with a maturity most people wouldn't have the surplus to muster, but you're doing it. Because you're smart and sensible and taking control over your life, so don't let her make you think otherwise!"

Regina chuckled wetly. "She has managed to make me feel like a 1950's girl who has gotten in trouble and has to live with the shame of being unmarried and without a ring on my finger."

Emma laughed along with her, but nevertheless gave her a squeeze. "You're not in trouble, and there's nothing to be ashamed of."

"Keep telling me that," Regina half-joked. "Convince me that Cora isn't right."

"She isn't. I am. At all times."

Regina chuckled again. "At all times?"

"Yep. I'm always right no matter what," Emma joked.

Another chuckle. "I'm not so sure about that, querida."

"You're right. Agreeing to marry Neal was a huge no-no," Emma grinned. "But except for that, I'm always right."

Regina's chuckles turned into a genuine laugh now, and Emma gently turned her around, so they were face to face. She brought her forehead to Regina's for a moment. "How come you always smell so good?"

"Special talent?" Regina suggested with a small grin.

"You have many special talents, beautiful girl."

"Sí. And getting in trouble and making drama is one of-"

"Nope." Emma silenced her girlfriend by pressing a small kiss to her lips. "You're not in trouble, and you're not creating drama. Shush."

"YOU shush," Regina laughed against Emma's lips.

"Rude," Emma teased. "Should I smack you for that?"

Even in the darkness, she could see how Regina blushed. "Shut up," she mumbled.

Emma clicked her tongue jokingly, but her movements were nothing but gentle as she swiped a finger over Regina's still wet cheeks.

"Hormones," Regina said and grimaced. "I thought I was done crying about tonight, but apparently not."

Emma placed two small kisses on each of Regina's cheeks. "There's a special place in hell for people who upsets pregnant women," she growled, pulling Regina a little closer so her face was almost buried in Emma's tanktop.

Regina chuckled muffled against her shirt. "You smell good too. Of cinnamon."

"Well, that's not too bad, is it?"

"No. It definitely is not. I love the smell of cinnamon."

"I'll remember to spray a little extra perfume on the shirt you stole before I leave."

"I don't wanna talk about you leaving right now," Regina mumbled.

"Fair enough. I don't wanna talk about that either." Emma gently cupped the back of Regina's head and brought her other hand up so she could brush her fingers through Regina's soft tresses.

Regina made a sort of purring sound and a slurred: "feels nice", and Emma chuckled and kept up the hair-playing until she felt Regina's body going limp against her own. Finally, Regina could the sleep her body needed lots of these days.

Emma too fell asleep. With her fingers in Regina's hair and dreaming that she gave Cora a good shaking...

When she woke up the next morning, it was to Regina sitting up in bed and being on the phone. From her gentle tone and her smiles, Emma quickly deduced that she was talking to her dad. Emma sleepily lifted her head and placed a kiss on the only part of Regina she could reach from this position. Which happened to be her right ankle.

Regina giggled a little and immediately excused it in the phone. Whatever her dad replied had to be funny, because she giggled lightly once more.

Emma sat up in bed and rubbed her eyes. Pushed her hair away from her face, and by the time she could see the world again, Regina was done being on the phone.

"Daddy sends his love," she told Emma. "He called to apologize on Mo- Cora's behalf. Which was sweet but not quite the same as if she had told me herself. But she'll never do that." Regina put the phone down and stretched her arms above her head. "Mmm! I think I've slept funny." She yawned and rubbed her face.

Emma held her tongue. Regina had slept funny for sure. She had even talked in her sleep. Something about her mother. Something about a ring on her finger. Emma hadn't been able to decipher all of it.

"And he also called to ask me to come and live in the house through the rest of the pregnancy," Regina continued and interrupted Emma's train of thoughts.

"Oh," Emma said surprised and touched at Henry's gesture. Regina so obviously had his full support, and he wanted her close. He wanted to look after her. "And what did you say?"

"I said no," Regina replied. "It may sound harsh, but daddy has his own life. I know that he would love having me there, and I know we could have lots of fun together, we always do, but he's finally free of my mother. He's not gonna start that freedom by worrying about me. That's not how I want his new start to go." she sighed. "He offered me money too. Which I also turned down. Maybe that was stupid, but I want to prove that I can do this. Cora made it sound like I was incapable of taking control of my own life, and I guess I want to prove her wrong."

"I get it," Emma nodded. "But please promise me that you WILL tell either me or your dad if you ever need something."

"Daddy said the same," Regina chuckled. "He wants to hire me to work at his restaurant. He called it an 'ordinary job', but I bet he would come up with some not-quite-real work that isn't straining for me. I think he said: 'remember to rest' at least a million times," she chuckled again. "Isn't he sweet?"

"He is," Emma nodded. "And he and I agrees on many things. Mainly the part where we're worried sick that you should strain yourself."

"I'll take care of myself," Regina said softly. "I promise. Anyway, daddy would like to stop by before you go back to Maine. I told him that would be okay, and it is, isn't it?" she rubbed the back of her neck and chuckled a little as she added: "him and that photo album."

"Of course," Emma assured. "I adore your father, sweetheart. And I'd like the chance to talk to him without...Cora interfering."

"I think he felt the same way," Regina said and looked a tad thoughtful before perking up and smirking at Emma: "are you ready to go to El Rastro?"

"Are you sure you feel up for that?" Emma blurted before she could stop herself.

"Por supuesto," Regina said lightly. "I've been looking forward to churros all night! Come on, querida! Get out of bed."

Emma grinned as she climbed out of bed. There was that excitement she so adored. Regina was clearly determined to bounce back from Cora's "attack" last night, and Emma was more than willing to help her with it. But she was also very willing to be there if Regina got upset again. It was in no way necessary for Regina to feign being happy if she really was upset about what had happened. She was allowed to be upset. Anyone, pregnant or not would be upset after having received such a verbal lashing from their own mother. There were those murderous thoughts about Cora again, and Emma tried her best to banish them from her mind as she watched Regina potter around in the kitchen.

"Shouldn't you be taking a shower, slowpoke?" Regina teased, and Emma nodded, smiled and pulled herself together.

"I should," she agreed and slipped an arm around Regina, pressing a quick kiss to her temple.

"Go on then," Regina half-chuckled and gave Emma a little nudge. "Off you pop."

"Yes, ma'am," Emma joked, giving Regina another little squeeze before sauntering into the bathroom. She chuckled when hearing Regina scold her in Spanish. Emma didn't know what she was saying, but it was still amusing, nevertheless.

While Emma showered, Regina made breakfast, and by the time the blonde was done and stepped out of the shower, the smell of bacon came before anything else. Emma sniffed appreciatingly into the air and followed her instinct. And the smell. She forgot all about clothes and towels and just wandered back to the kitchen. With her hair dripping all over, and not to mention... Stark naked.

Regina choked ungracefully on her tea and spluttered. "¡Oh Dios mío! Okay. I was not expecting that."

"You've made bacon!" Emma exclaimed. Food was still the most important thing in the world. Especially if that food happened to be bacon.

"Sí. Not that it's in anyway important right now, but yes. I...did," Regina said halfheartedly and seemed to be trailing off completely. She definitely had a hard time keeping her eyes on Emma's face. Her gaze kept dropping a little lower.

Emma grinned. "Something on your mind honey?" she didn't mind Regina's wandering eyes one bit. She found it to be ridiculously hot. Regina always got a particular look in her dark eyes. Emma could have written poetry about that look. And those eyes.

"Sí. My hormones are raging, and I wish I had the energy to do something about it!" Regina complained and muttered under her breath about her missing sex drive and how annoying she found it to be.

Emma grinned again. "I've got plenty of time, sweetheart. In fact I've got all the time in the world when it comes to that. And you."

"Good to know. In the meantime, could you just... put something on? I keep choking on my tea."

"Fine. I'll get dressed," Emma surrendered with a grin.

"Hurry."

Emma laughed all the way to the bathroom and even more so when she heard Regina yell: "you shouldn't be rattling a pregnant woman like that!" after her. Emma felt very satisfied. She hadn't exactly planned on appearing naked in the kitchen, but the look on Regina's face had been entirely worth it. Walking around naked was something she could actually do here in Regina's apartment. There were no one else around to get shocked. But maybe Emma should time it a little better, so she didn't end up accidentally making Regina choke. Emma had no interest in accidentally murdering her girlfriend. Still chuckling to herself, Emma slipped on her bra and panties and then pulled the yellow sundress over her head. Wearing something so light as this dress almost felt strange after freezing her ass off in Storybrooke. The warmth was one of the many things Emma so appreciated about Spain.

"Querida? Your bacon is getting cold!"

"Be right there," Emma assured and smiled. And that was another thing she appreciated about Spain. She wandered back to the kitchen where Regina seemed very relieved that she had gotten dressed. But her cheeks were still a bit pink, though. Emma liked it. And she liked the fact that Regina was eating breakfast. She had been a little worried last night when Regina didn't want to eat.

"Bottoms up," Regina quipped as she popped the prenatal vitamin inside her mouth and downed it with half a glass of water.

Emma chuckled softly. It was obvious that Regina was feeling better than she did last night. That was something else to be relieved about.

Once they had breakfast and Regina had showered and gotten dressed, they left the apartment and hopped into Regina's car to drive to El Rastro. Regina was behind the wheel again. She was wearing a purple halter neck dress and a pair of big sunglasses. And of course she was wearing purple flowers in her hair. She looked amazing. Like a beautiful, exotic jewel, and Emma silently wondered how it was possible to fall more and more in love with each day passing. Everything that Cora had said last night was complete and utter bullshit. To imply that Emma couldn't be in love because she hadn't known Regina that long was ridiculous. Emma was in love and very much, thank you. It didn't matter that she had known Regina less than six months. It didn't make her feelings less true. You couldn't exactly chose how quick or how slow you fell in love. Emma thought of her own mother. She had fallen in love with Emma's father on the second date. And according to him, he had been ready to propose to her on the third date. Emma found that to be exceptionally cute. So old fashioned and fairytale-esque. And to imagine that her parents had been married for thirty years. Thirty years and still as in love as ever. That was pretty amazing. Her parents constantly said I love you to each other, always showed affection. Hand-holding across the table or kissing in the kitchen when making dinner together. The kissing thing always used to bother Emma when she was younger, but now she found to be admirable. Imagine to have been married for thirty years and still be completely besotted with one another. That was actually one hell of an achievement.

"Penny for your thoughts, querida?" Regina asked softly and gave Emma's hand a little pat. "You alright?"

"Mmm, I'm fine. I'm with you," Emma said simply.

Regina laughed. "That's awfully mushy of you."

"You bring out the mushy in me," Emma teased.

Regina shook her head, and Emma was sure she was rolling her eyes behind the sunglasses.

"It's a beautiful day," Emma commented. It was indeed. The sun was shining from a clear blue sky, and there was only a light breeze.

"It is," Regina agreed. "Must be because you've come to Spain."

"Look who's going mushy now," Emma laughed and gave Regina's bare knee a little squeeze.

"I'm allowed. I'm pregnant. I'm full of hormones. You however have no excuse whatsoever," Regina pointed out and grinned wickedly.

"Sympathy hormones?" Emma suggested. "Is that a worthy excuse?"

"No. Not even in the slightest," Regina giggled. "But I'll take it anyway. Because you're awfully sweet..."

"And sexy too, right?" Emma asked innocently.

"Yes, dear," Regina said a tad overbearingly. "I'm trying to drive and not think about your naked body while drive. And you're not helping at all."

"Sorry not sorry," Emma said with a smirk as she reached across to give Regina's knee another little squeeze.

"If I crash the car, I'll blame you," Regina threatened. "Imagine the statement I'll give the police: 'I crashed the car because mi novia wouldn't shut up about how sexy she is."

"Maybe you'd even get out scout-free if you used that excuse," Emma grinned and felt a warmth spread rapidly in her chest. She liked being Regina's 'novia'. She liked it a lot. "Does that make you mi chica?" she softly asked Regina.

Regina showed off her white teeth in a broad grin. "It absolutely does, querida. I am definitely your chica."

"Hmm, what else are you? Emma joked. "Mi... princesa, perhaps?"

Regina laughed at her.

"Or... Mi reina?" Emma suggested. "Yeah, that's almost better, isn't it?"

"Very fitting," Regina agreed with a slight headshake.

"And what else is there?" Emma drawled. "Mi sirenita, perhaps?"

Regina spluttered slightly. "Your little mermaid?"

"Yeah. From when we swam together!"

"Oh. Well, I suppose that makes sense. Ish."

"How about... mi Corazon?" Emma suggested.

"That's very sweet, preciosa."

"Or maybe I'll just call you Hot Ass from now on."

Regina laughed so hard the car almost swayed a little on the road. "Em-ma Swan!" she scolded. "Do not make me crash this car!"

"Sorry," Emma said innocently while snickering satisfied to herself. Hot Ass WAS a good name for Regina.

El Rastro was exactly like Emma remembered it. Big, noisy, warm and packed with people. Here you could buy everything. From clothes to antiquities. New stuff, old stuff. Handbags and figures. Jewelry and food. Stalls were you could buy coffee. Stalls were you could buy colorful scarves and even shoes.

"You think those would suit me?" Regina joked as they passed a stall that sold ridiculously large sunglasses.

"Maybe," Emma chuckled. "Try on a pair."

Regina tried to refuse, but Emma was entirely too convincing, so Regina ended up sighing and then trading her own sunglasses for a pair that was ridiculously big.

"Nice," Emma grinned. "Can I take a picture of you?"

"No!" Regina huffed, quickly slipping off the sunglasses and lowly muttering that they were terrible.

Emma laughed at that and slipped an arm around Regina's waist as they slowly made their way through the crowd. "Where do you wanna go first? To get some churros?"

"No!" Regina protested. "We've just had breakfast, for crying out loud! Am I really that bad when it comes to food?"

"No. Of course you're not. Not at all. I just don't want you to go hungry."

Regina rolled her eyes. "I swear to god, you'll be partially responsible when I end up looking like a whale."

Emma gave her waist a little squeeze. "So we'll start with a little exploring first, yeah?"

"Good plan."

Emma and Regina casually strolled around and looked at all the little stalls. Emma found a T-shirt with a grinning cow and bought it right on the spot.

"I'm not gonna ask to borrow THAT," Regina said with a grin.

"It's for my dad," Emma laughed. "I guarantee you he's going to love it."

"Perhaps. But is your mom?"

"No, probably not." They both laughed at that and Regina shook her head a little. Emma got her T-shirt in a nice yellow bag and then they continued onwards. But it didn't take long before they stopped again. This time by a stall selling scarves. Regina tampered with a baby blue scarf that had the same texture as whipped cream and clearly considered whether to buy it or not. She decided on not to, though. Said that there were other things she'd rather want. Emma asked her what those things were and smiled when Regina said "plane tickets to Maine. Lots of them". Emma agreed with her, that was far more important than a new scarf.

Selfies were taken, obviously. Emma never could resist taking pictures of Regina, and she wouldn't hear of it when Regina claimed that her eyes and nose were "all red" from crying last night.

"Bull," Emma said simply. "You look perfect. You always do. Now smile for the dickie bird."

Regina made a face at the expression but nevertheless smiled. Emma took the picture and uploaded it to Instagram with the caption 'El Rastro with mi chica.' That made Regina laugh and call her an idiot. And never had an insult sounded cuter.

Emma smiled as she and Regina made their way through the crowd and looked at all the little stalls. She still had an draped around Regina's waist, and she wasn't planning on moving it away anytime soon. She liked walking around like this. Blue sky. Spanish sunshine. The smell of churros. And her 'chica' right by her side. Life couldn't be better.

"Ruby just commented on the picture. Called us 'super cute'," Emma happily informed her girlfriend.

"How sweet," Regina said warmly. "I wonder when she'll post the first picture of her and Belle?"

"Ooooh, good question," Emma praised and felt every bit like a sly fox as she quickly send Ruby a message and asked her just that. She was surprised that Ruby had managed to tear herself away from Belle long enough to comment on the picture.

"So, churros now?" Emma asked and gave Regina's waist a little squeeze.

"Sí," Regina replied darkly and looked like she had just admitted defeat.

But there was no defeat about it, really. Emma wanted churros too. Which she happily admitted, and Regina looked a little less defeated then. But still muttered: "And I bet you won't gain from it at all. But me? I'm just going to continue to look-"

"More and more beautiful. Yes. Absolutely," Emma cut her off. "Come on, beautiful girl. Let's go and have some churros."

"Lead the way, querida."

Emma did exactly that. She elegantly steered Regina over to the churros stall. Regina had her churros with chocolate sauce, and no kidding, she looked positively aroused at the first bite. Emma had more tact than to tell her that, but suddenly she was the one who was choking when eating.

Regina gave her a funny look. "You alright?"

"Yeah. Oh yeah. Just fine," Emma squeaked. "The churros good?"

"Sí, they're wonderful!"

Emma felt utterly tempted to say something stupid like 'yeah, I bet', but she held back and suffocated a chuckle. Instead she dug into her own cornet of churros. Regina was right, they were wonderful. Absolutely mouthwatering. And so was Regina. Especially when showing excitement over food. Emma did so appreciate how much Regina loved food. But it was a little hard not to start drooling when Regina licked chocolate off her bottom lip.

With the churros eaten, Emma and Regina continued their casual stroll around the market. A larger crowd had started to gather. There were many children. Bigger ones, toddlers and tiny babies in strollers or in their parents' arms. It was impossible for Emma to not notice that Regina seemed to shoot glances whenever she passed a stroller or a baby in their parents' arms. And it was impossible not to notice that she seemed to touch her belly immediately afterwards. It didn't look like a deliberate act. Her hand just sort of wandered unintentionally to her belly.

Emma didn't comment on it or ask Regina what she was thinking. There was a good chance that Regina didn't know that either. It wouldn't be fair to ask her to put a name to all the feelings that had to be swirling around in her mind from time to time. But Emma was willing to bet everything she owned that Cora was still in Regina's head and making a mess to some degree.

"¡Oh mira!" Regina exclaimed and interrupted Emma's musings.

"What am I supposed to look at, beautiful girl?" Emma half-chuckled.

"That!" Regina said and sounded positively excited as she pointed to the jewelry stall they had just passed.

Emma followed the pointing finger and chuckled when she spotted the rings on display. However impossible it sounded, Regina had found...

"-A swan ring!" Regina laughed. "That is both ridiculous and perfect! You have to try it on, querida."

The elderly man who owned the stall smiled and took out the ring so Emma could try it on. The ring was made of silver and was literally formed as a swan wrapping around your finger. It was actually pretty cute, but unfortunately...

"-It doesn't fit me," Emma pouted when she had tried to slide the ring on all five of her fingers several times. Either the ring was too small or her fingers too big because the ring didn't even fit on her pinky. And that probably would have ridiculous anyway.

"Oh no," Regina said. "That's a shame. It would have been fun if it fitted you, querida. A swan for a Swan."

"It would have been fun," Emma agreed. "But-" she was suddenly hit with a flash of inspiration. "I've got a better idea."

"You do?" Regina frowned. "And what's that? I don't think they have a bigger size. Unfortunately."

"No-no-no," Emma chuckled. "I don't need a bigger size. It's not that kind of idea. Give me your hand."

Regina looked adorably confused as she willingly gave Emma her left hand.

Emma smiled at her girlfriend and hoped that this wouldn't make her freak out. Then she carefully slid the ring onto Regina's left ring finger. A bit too formal, perhaps, but the ring was too small to fit her middle and index finger. The thumb wasn't an option either, and it would just slide right off her pinky finger. In hindsight, perhaps she could have put it on Regina's right ring finger, but she didn't think of that.

"Oh," Regina breathed. "Well, that is... a different idea."

"It is," Emma softly agreed. "But do you think it's a good one too? We can just take it off if you don't like it."

"No, I... I do like it," Regina said almost sheepishly. "Now it'll feel like I have you with me even when you're not here."

"That you can. It looks good on you. And guess what?"

"What?"

Emma grinned broadly. "There's a ring on your finger."

Regina laughed bubbly. "There sure is, querida."

"So if Cora ever shows up and gives you a hard time about that, you can just show her your left hand and tell her to cram it!"

Regina laughed again. "She'll find something to complain about for sure. The shape or the fact that it's not made of gold or some Mierda like that."

"Well, maybe I'll turn it into gold someday..."

Regina's eyebrows shot up towards her hairline and she tilted her head as she asked: "What?"

Emma just chuckled and kissed her cheek. "I said what I said."

Regina seemed stunned but definitely not unhappy about Emma's statement. Emma kissed her cheek again, told the seller that they would take the ring and then paid for it. As she slid the money over to the elderly man, he said: "¿No arrodillado?"

"Huh?" Emma asked, but before she could ask the man to elaborate, Regina had tugged her along. Emma studied her pink cheeks and asked: "did you hear what that man said?"

"No."

Emma scoffed. "Cute. You're lying. You totally know what he said, don't you?"

"No..." Regina said innocently, cheeks pinkening deeper.

"You do!" Emma said firmly. "And now you won't tell me! That's not fair!"

Regina just mumbled something, but Emma refused to back down. "Tell me what he said? Pleeeaaase?"

"It doesn't matter."

"Sure it does! Your cheeks are all pink! Anything that makes your cheeks pink is very important to me. Now please tell me what he said? Please? Please, please, please? Pretty plea-"

"Shut up," Regina interrupted and rolled her dark eyes. "I'll tell you, okay?"

Emma waited a tad impatiently.

Regina's cheeks went from pink to dark red as she said: "he... He wanted to know why you, uhh... why you didn't go down on one knee."

"Oh. Ohhhh!" Emma grinned broadly when she realized exactly what that meant. "Well, I could totally do that. Right in the middle of this flea market. Make the whole thing go viral. Should I do that?"

"¡Dios no!" Regina laughed. "As sweet and silly as that would be, I don't think that would be ideal."

"You might have a point," Emma chuckled, slipping an arm around Regina again. "But you know, maybe someday..."

"Don't make promises you cannot keep."

"I'm not. I'm just saying that maybe, perhaps... someday," Emma said conspiratorially and gave Regina a kiss on her cheek.

"Eres tan tonta," Regina said with a slight click of her tongue.

"But you think I'm pretty cute and loves me like crazy anyway, right?"

Regina smiled beamingly. "Sí. Very much so."

To Be Continued...

Spanish translations:

Quiero ir a casa= I want to go home.

No, solo quiero irme a casa= No, I just wanna go home.

Te quiero, papi= I love you, daddy.

Yo también te quiero= I love you too.

Estoy aquí para ti. Lo que sea que necesites= I'm here for you. Whatever you need.

Es mi vida= It's my life.

Por supuesto= Of course

mi chica= my girl.

Mi princesa= my princess.

Mi reina= my queen.

Mi Corazon= my heart.

¡Oh mira!= Oh look!

¿No arrodillado?= not kneeling?

Eres tan tonta= You're so silly.