Warmth is swallowing her whole, but she's content, she's happy. She rests her head back, her neck rolling to the side to admire the stunning grin that consumes his entire face and persuades her heart to skip merrily along. He reaches and she doesn't necessarily feel the contact, but she sees the way he grins as he brings her knuckles to his lips and presses a gentle kiss. He lingers, his eyes drifting away from whatever lies ahead to meet her gaze and flash her one wink.

She feels so utterly loved and she knows her heart is full.

She blinks, her eyes trailing back to find out what's ahead, but everything in her line of vision is black. So pitch-black that a haunting, eerie sensation crawls down her spine and demands that all the little hairs on the back of her neck stand to attention. Her heart starts racing and she knows something is wrong. Something is so terribly wrong and she's screaming at herself to stop the madness. Get out.

The sound of crunching glass echoes all around her...

No...

No...

Get out!

Her body jerks so violently, her eyes spring wide open and her hands fling out to brace her fall, but she isn't falling. She's blinking rapidly against darkness, her body scrambling up in bed and she doesn't even recognize the agonizing scream that's ripping from her own throat and attacking the walls.

"Regina, I'm here," her mother's voice coos, but she is so disoriented, she hasn't a clue as to where the woman is or where the hell she is for that matter. "It's alright, darling, it was only a dream. It's all over. You're safe, in your room," she vows and that's when Regina feels the warmth enveloping her, along with the comforting touch of her mother's loving embrace.

"Momma, I-" she can't catch her breath, she's struggling to inhale one simple breath and her heart is raging so painfully in her chest, she is sure it's going to burst right through her sternum.

"I know, dear. It's alright. I promise you're safe."

Her mind allows her mother's words to wrap her up tight and keep her safe from the demons taunting her from the nightmare. She inhales sharply, breathing in her mother's perfume and forcing her heart to calm back down.

Once she can finally breathe again, Cora pulls her face to meet her gaze. She's wearing a depressing frown as she wipes away Regina's tears, her own eyes wet.

"Regina darling, these nightmares are becoming more frequent now. Are you sure you don't remember them?" Cora gently asks, knowing Regina is going to clam up like she usually does after every night terror.

"I don't," she mutters, curling her fingers around her mother's wrists and easing her away.

But she remembers. All too well. These nightmares are terrorizing her now, lingering in the shadows beneath her bed for the moment she drifts off to dreamland to torment her. Every night, it's the same thing; his playful smile, the kissing of knuckles and then comes the sound of shattering glass, but that's as far as her mind allows the memories to come back to her.

Truthfully, she doesn't know what's worse; not remembering the accident and what actually happened to her husband or remembering and having that horrific memory burned into her mind?

"Maybe you should consider seeing someone to discuss these nightmares? I have a feeling it has to do with the accident," Cora sweetly whispers into the night, brushing Regina's damp locks away from that angry gash still trying to heal near her temple.

"I-I just don't know if I want to dig deeper. I don't know if I want to remember what happened," her shaky voice admits and she sounds so foreign to her own ears. She sounds so utterly broken, nothing like her usual, in control tone.

She hates it.

"I understand that, but honey, you can't keep living like this. You cannot possibly survive suffering through nightmares, night after night."

"I know," she sadly whispers, attempting to discreetly wipe away the tears that are freely cascading down her cheeks without her consent.

Cora sighs heavily, knowing damn well how stubborn her daughter is and she will only agree to something when it's on her terms. "Would you like me to stay in here with you?" She kindly offers, like she has been doing every night she stays over.

Her mother and sister have taken it upon themselves to rotate sleeping at her house and she honestly doesn't know if she's thankful or humiliated. She has always been independent and strong-willed, but this accident broke her in ways she never imagined and she's definitely not the same woman she once was.

Regina doesn't answer her mother, instead, she slips down into the cool bedding, tugs the comforter to her chin and prays that those nightmares don't find her. Her mother scoots down as well, silently, knowing her daughter will want space, but needs her presence as support.

She lies there, her mind racing, recalling those dreadful memories that possess her dreams at night. She knows her brain is trying to remember the accident, but she isn't sure if her mind is subconsciously trying to reject them or she really can't recall because of how hard she smacked her head against the car while it rolled. She doesn't want to share the reoccurring dream with her mother or sister, maybe it makes it too real or maybe she knows they will push her to seek help, either way, she's not ready to share.

She isn't sure how long she lies awake for, but her mother is softly snoring beside her. She's wide awake though, antsy, like she could go run a mile, even her toes are bouncing beneath the comforter. She sighs heavily and reaches for her phone on the nightstand.

It's after three in the morning, but she needs a distraction from that eerie sensation slithering down her spine like a snake trudging through the sticky mud. Her thumb moves all on its own, opening her emails like it knows what she needs to calm her erratic heart.

And relief washes over her when she finds a stranger's name in her inbox. She clicks without a moment of hesitation.

Hey Regina,

I wanted to start off by saying, I am so sorry for your loss. I can only imagine what you must be going through. To be honest, I'm kind of surprised you would even want to meet me, but I'm up for it, if you are.

It's not really a good idea if I'm in overly crowded places right now, I'm supposed to wait three months. We can pick a restaurant, when it's not so busy to meet, but it would have to be in two weeks. That will be two months since my operation and I will feel more comfortable out in public and so will my mom and she won't show up with masks and spray you down with disinfectant. You will be able to meet the real me, not all confined in bubble wrap. Lol

I'm not sure where you are from, but I'm in Manhattan. I know a great little diner that my friend's grandma owns, where we can meet and have some privacy to talk. Let me know what you think. In two weeks I'm allowed to drive again, (yay!), so I could always come to you, if you want. I'll talk to you soon!

-Emma

And yes, it's absolutely absurd, but her stomach does this little happy dance just from the simple lol and yay, that Emma had thrown into the email. The casualness of informalities, somehow, persuades Regina's mind to relax just the slightest.

She isn't aware, but the corner of her mouth is deepening and she is smirking back at the glow from her phone in the dead of the night. The woman that has her husband's heart agreed to meet with her and her heart stretches from hibernation and flutters it's wings at the glimpse of a hopeful tomorrow.

She quickly types out a reply, places her phone near her pillow and for once, since she woke up in this new reality, she falls asleep peacefully without the worries of any horrific dreams.

XXXX

"Well hello, darling. Did you sleep well?" Cora amusingly questions over the rim of her coffee mug.

Regina runs her fingers through her messy bedhead as her sleepy feet drag her into the kitchen. She slides onto the stool at the island and wraps her robe more protectively around her body. She inhales the warming aroma of fresh coffee, but her heart is still moping around and forcing a pout upon her lips.

"Regina?"

"Hmmm?"

"Did you sleep well?" Her mother interrogates again, settling her mug down on the counter to inspect every detail of her face for any signs of deceit.

"Before the nightmare? Or after, when I couldn't fall asleep until hours later?" She flatly replies, uncharacteristically slumping her cheek upon her palm.

"Well, this morning when I woke up, you seemed to be in a very peaceful and deep sleep."

"Yeah," she lazily agrees, "this morning I was able to sleep soundly."

And she can't help the way her mind automatically wanders back to the email she found in the middle of the night from the woman who holds her husband's heart. Instantly, her chest loosens and she is able to steal a calming breath of fresh air.

"Well, that's a step in the right direction." Regina simply shrugs noncommittally. Cora abruptly spins around on her heels and begins preparing her daughter a cup of coffee, but Regina knows her mother all too well and she knows the older woman is distracting herself as she works up the courage to say whatever is ringing in her head. "Have you thought about when you might be returning to work-"

"Mother-"

"Just hear me out," Cora hastily interrupts the rejection as she whirls around and sets a steaming mug down in front of her. "I'm not insinuating that you need to go back any time soon. I'm just wondering if you have taken time to consider when that might be."

"I-I don't know," she murmurs, avoiding eye contact like it's one of her damn nightmares standing before her. She carefully blows on her coffee and takes a sip, hating how it doesn't warm up her bones like it used to.

Nothing in this world is the same as it once was. Without Naveen around, the world around her is depressingly dull, not one splash of color to brighten her dreary mood. Even something as simple as food tastes bland to her and seems to always make her stomach turn in revulsion.

She hates it here.

"Regina," and by the gentle and cautious tone, she is sure she isn't going to care for her mother's choice of words. "You can take as much time as you need, but the firm isn't going to be able to run on its own. I know you have people there that you can trust, but dear, your company is without both of its owners at the moment."

"I am well aware, mother," she growls and from the formality, Cora knows her daughter is pushing her away, commanding that she better back off.

Neither Cora or Regina have ever been able to back away from an argument though.

"I'm sure Kathryn can step in until you return-"

"And if I don't," Regina defiantly rebuttals, provoking Cora's jaw to come unhinged.

"I beg your pardon."

"If I don't," she repeats, thrusting her chin in the air to assert her power...or stubbornness. "What if I decide that I don't want to return to work? Maybe I cannot stomach the thought of walking back into that firm without my husband by my side. Maybe I should simply sell the company and move on."

"Regina," her mother gasps, reaching across the island to hold her hand and stop all those awful ideas recklessly spewing from her mouth. "You are one of the top lawyers in New York, you built a very successful firm with Naveen and now you want to just throw it all away?"

Her jaw flexes as her cruel words are tossed back in her face, persuading those persistent tears to fill her eyes once again. She clenches her teeth from the sinking feeling in her stomach, but she finds the courage to admit her true feelings.

"I don't want it. I don't want any of it without Naveen by my side. We built that company together. Without him...I don't want any part of it," she breathlessly whispers, her voice quivering as the realization washes over her and she finally faces how she truly feels.

"Honey, you're still grieving, you've been through Hell. Don't make any rash decisions while you are still healing, mentally and physically," Cora urges, but Regina knows in her heart, she cannot possibly be the woman she once was without her husband by her side.

"And what if I don't ever heal from this? What if I can never find the courage to move on and I always feel this emptiness torturing me from inside?" She coldly replies as her vision blurs and the anger she has been carrying around with her sparks. It burns hot and violent through her veins and she cannot stop her body from reacting so negatively.

"Regina-"

"No, no," she snaps, slamming her palms against the marble counter and welcoming the sting to distract her mind from the burn in her heart. "You have no idea what I am going through. You, nor Zelena can possibly fathom what it's like to lose the love of your life and not recall the moment. You have no idea what it's like to live in a house that was once surrounded with you husband's life, and now feels like living in his tomb." She abruptly stands, her knees trembling viciously, but she needs to release this rage eating away at her until there is nothing left. "This is my life now and I have to figure out how to continue living when I don't want to," and she swallows thickly from her own confession that causes her mother to flinch. "You can't-you can't just push me to move on or go back to work-"

"Honey, I am not trying to push you-"

"I don't want to hear it, mother," she growls, running her shaking fingers through her hair in a lame attempt to calm herself back down, but it's pointless. Her entire body is involuntary trembling. "You could never understand what I am going through."

And with that, she storms off toward her bedroom, to hide away under the covers, leaving her mother behind to viciously spin in the tornado of emotions she has left in her wake.

XXXX

"What's up, Smirkles?" David cheerfully questions the moment he pops up in her doorway, ready for their routine workout in the basement.

"Smirkles?" Emma repeats, quickly setting her phone aside to meet his amused gaze.

"Yeah," he chuckles, pushing off the wall and entering her room. "You have been smirking at your phone all morning," he declares, playfully poking at her cheek. "Smirkles."

She rolls her eyes and swats him away immediately just as her mother pops her head in, swallowed whole by the tightest workout gear imaginable.

"Is she still smirking? It's so good to see that smile again," Mary Margret chimes in as well, so disgustingly perky.

"I am not smirking," Emma firmly demands, but her hand is reaching for her phone once again, eager to reply to Regina's email from last night.

"Then why can't your mouth stop digging deep into your cheeks, creating that adorable dimple?" Her dad continues with his teasing, poking at said dimple.

"Stop," she exasperates. "It's not like that. I'm just...I am kind of intrigued to meet my donor's wife. Along with nervous, anxious...kinda nauseous," she grumbles, her thumb absentmindedly sweeping across the device.

"I think it's going to be a positive experience for you," Mary Margret acknowledges. "I truly believe it will help you move on from the guilt."

"I know," she breathes out heavily, hoping to release all the worries that have been crushing upon her chest as of lately.

"Alright," her dad excitedly says, slapping his hand upon her shoulder, "time for our workout. Let's get rid of some of this anxious energy, alright?"

"Yeah. Sure. Just give me a minute, okay? I need to reply to the woman. I don't want to leave her hanging, you know?"

"Of course," her mother quickly responds. "We will meet you downstairs," she declares, dragging her husband away, who is still beaming so brightly from finally seeing a smile upon his daughter's face.

Once her bedroom door clicks shut and she is granted some privacy, she immediately unlocks her phone. Regina's email is right there, waiting for her once again.

Dear Emma,

Thank you for the sentiment, but there is no need to apologize. This isn't your fault. I'm sure most people wouldn't want to meet in person, I know Naveen's family is against the idea. However, my situation is a bit unique and I will happily go further into detail when we meet.

I am in Brooklyn, which is only about a forty-five minute drive to Manhattan, so I can come to you. Please just send the restaurant you would like to meet at, along with the time and date. I want you to feel comfortable and I wouldn't want you to risk your health, so please pick a time when you know the restaurant will be quieter.

Speak to you soon.

Best Regards,

Regina Mills

Emma grins again, not completely aware of the action that is happily dancing across her face, but it's there. There is something about Regina's emails that pump adrenaline through her system and make her feel more alive than she has in years. She can't quite comprehend the feeling just yet, but she chalks up the sensation as to hope. Hope that she will learn all about Naveen. Hope that Regina will assure her that she shouldn't feel guilty for begging for a heart and that she isn't angry at her for ending up with her husband's. She needs confirmation from Regina that everything is okay and there are no hard feelings.

She needs...something to help stop the guilt weighing her down every damn day.