A/N: Thank you to those of you who left a review on the last chapter. You guys inspire me to keep writing! I hope everyone is doing well and please let me know what you think of the next chapter!
~ Chapter 109 ~
The sound of Emma's ringtone sounded throughout the apartment. It had been a little over a week since Snow and David had arrived in Boston. They had both been to the hospital to test their compatibility with Regina, and everyone had been waiting for the results a little impatiently.
"Sorry," Emma said to Snow and Regina, interrupting their conversation. She jumped up from the couch and rushed off towards her and Regina's room where the phone had been left.
Snow and Regina heard a breathless "hello", but everything after that was muffled.
Not long afterwards, Emma returned to the living room almost as if she were in a daze.
"What is it?" Regina asked.
Emma was still on the phone and didn't respond. Instead she just reached for Regina's hand and squeezed it gently. She sat down beside the brunette and pulled her close with one arm. "Thank you so much, I'm giving the phone to Regina now."
Regina looked uncertainly at Emma. "Who is it?" She whispered, reaching for the cell phone.
"Dr. Montgomery." Emma responded. "Don't worry. It's not bad news."
Regina didn't look convinced as she raised the phone to her ear. "Hello?" She looked away from Snow and Emma as she listened.
"Emma what's going on?" Snow asked in a hushed voice.
"They found a match." Emma beamed, barely able to contain her excitement.
Snow gasped and then looked back towards Regina, whose reaction was far more reserved than Emma's.
"Thank you so much for calling." Regina said into the phone. "We'll discuss everything together here and I'll call you back once we've decided." There was a brief pause before Regina said, "thank you, you too."
Once Regina had ended the call and handed the phone back to Emma, the two of them just stared at each other a little speechless for a few moments.
"Will somebody please tell me what's happening?" Snow's voice interrupted eagerly. "Did David's and my test results come back? Regina, the hospital found a match for you?!"
Regina broke her gaze away from Emma's to turn towards Snow. "Yes. In fact, they found two."
"David and I are both a match?!"
"No." Regina shook her head. "But you are Snow."
"I am?" Snow's smile widened. "That's wonderful! But wait… if not David then who is the second match?"
Regina sighed, sharing a smile with Emma. "Before I left the hospital, Emma and I joined a paired donor program. They found a patient from Maryland with whom Emma is a match, and whose would-be donor is a match for me."
"Wow," Snow whispered, sinking back into the couch cushions as the news washed over her. "Both matches were found at the same time?"
"Dr. Montgomery was given the news of each at the same time, but our compatibility with the other pair was discovered earlier this morning."
"Oh this is such great news." Snow responded, but then she noticed the lack of celebration on her stepmother's face. "Wait, this is great news right?"
Regina shook her head a little, looking away.
"Regina if you're worried I no longer want to donate then don't worry. I stand by what I promised before. You don't have to do the paired donation if you don't want to."
"Mary Margaret's right." Emma said, rubbing Regina's arm. "If you'd prefer taking the donation from someone you know, there is nothing wrong with not doing the paired donation. But if you do want to do the paired donation, I'm still on board with it. We'll do whatever you're most comfortable with."
Regina gave a soft, joyless laugh. "In my perfect scenario neither of you would have to donate to anyone."
Emma grinned. "Okay, but that's not an option." She responded lightly. "Why don't you think it over for a while? I'm sure you don't have to decide right this second."
Regina nodded. "I suppose I just wasn't expecting to have options. I thought it would be a miracle to find one match, let alone two."
Emma's smile widened. "I can't wait to see the look on Henry's face when he finds out. When are he and David supposed to be back?"
"Not for a few hours." Snow responded. "The movie they're seeing hasn't even started yet. Should I call David and tell them to come back early?"
"No don't do that." Regina answered. "I'm sure they're having a wonderful time. Besides, I'd like some time to think without Henry bouncing off the walls around us."
Emma chuckled. "I still can't believe this. This is amazing."
Regina nodded. "Amazing." She repeated quietly, not smiling.
...
It was the next morning and Regina still hadn't made a decision regarding her donor. When David and Henry had returned the evening before, they had both congratulated her, but she still didn't share in the enthusiasm of everyone else. David had taken Henry out again so the apartment would be a little quieter, but it didn't seem to be helping Regina choose.
Snow was making herself a tea in the kitchen when Emma trudged tiredly into the room.
"How is she?" Snow asked softly, looking in the direction of the living room.
"Not great," Emma said quietly. "For some reason this is taking one hell of a toll on her emotions. I called Montgomery about it because it seems to be getting worse. The doctor said that Regina's reaction is more or less normal, that this is a really important decision so of course it would be difficult for her. But I told her that I don't think this is normal. Regina's barely moved all day. Montgomery said maybe it could be a side effect of one of her medications."
"But she wasn't like this before we got the news was she? Wouldn't you have noticed if she seemed depressed?"
"I don't know, maybe not. She was never exactly happy but maybe I didn't realize just how upset she was. You know how she gets, she doesn't always like to talk about how she's feeling."
"But I'm sure you would have noticed something. Maybe this really is just too much at once." Snow said sympathetically.
Emma folded her arms, frowning. "Was the health care like really traumatic in your world or something? Could this have something to do with that? Because I feel like since this all started, getting Regina to accept treatment has been like pulling teeth."
"Health care in the Enchanted Forest… was practically nonexistent compared to what this world has to offer." Snow responded grimly. "There were apothecaries and doctors of course, but the treatments they could provide were nowhere near as advanced as they are here. If something like this had happened back home, Regina would probably have already died."
Emma nodded, biting her lip. "I'll go see again if she's ready to talk yet."
The blonde walked into the living room where Regina was lying on the couch under a blanket. Regina had it bunched up in front of her and was hugging it to her torso.
Emma quietly came to sit down beside her, and Regina looked sideways at her briefly before closing her eyes.
"The hospital needs a response Regina. They need to know what to tell that other family."
A tear slipped from Regina's eye.
"Regina I can't help if you don't talk to me." Emma said softly. "Are you afraid of having the surgery? Is that what's wrong?"
Regina sighed, rolling over a little so she could look up at the other woman."Emma how am I supposed to make a choice like this?"
"What do you mean?"
"I can't choose between you and your mother."
"But why? You don't have to worry about us. We both want to help you, and now that we know we both can, shouldn't it be a relief that you have options? Before we had no way of saving you and now we have two. This is a good thing Regina."
Regina swallowed uncomfortably, shaking her head as she sat up. "But Emma if I had a choice, I wouldn't let either of you donate to me. I don't like the risk it poses to you."
Emma breathed a heavy sigh, but there was a light look in her eyes. "You're not still on about that are you?" She asked softly. "We've been over this so many times. The risks are like, nonexistent." Regina took a breath and was about to retaliate but Emma quickly cut her off. "And please don't bring up magic again. You know I don't want us to get trapped in Storybrooke if we go back. And now that the barrier is down on the border, people could actually follow us out of town if they see us. I know everything is supposed to be calmer there now but I still don't know who we can actually trust."
Regina breathed a disheartened sigh. "But I can't make this decision. What happens if I were to pick one of you, and then that person ends up getting sick a few years down the road?"
"You can't think like that. Mary Margaret and I will be fine."
Snow came around the side of the couch and took a seat too. "Regina, if you decide to take the donation from me then at least it's coming from someone in the family, from someone you know. Would that at all make it easier?"
Regina gave Snow a small appreciative smile. "It would." She replied honestly, blinking back tears.
"Then would you please just let me be your donor? I really hate seeing you torturing yourself over this decision."
Regina's eyes wandered as she thought. "Snow… there is so much more to it. If I do choose you, then that other family has to be told they've lost their donor." Regina looked guiltily up at Emma.
"Regina that's not your responsibility to worry about." Emma said softly. "What matters here is what you want, and what you are comfortable with."
Regina sniffled, looking at Snow again. "But these other people… this other pair? One of them is probably going through what I'm going through. And if there is an opportunity for two people to be saved rather than just me, shouldn't I go with that option?"
"The hospital could find another pair to match them with, you never know what could happen." Emma responded.
"Or maybe the program won't find another donor and someone will lose someone they care about." Regina replied.
Emma nodded, at a loss for what to say. "What do you want to do then?" She asked, barely above a whisper.
Regina hugged herself, turning away from Emma. She was quiet for a few moments and Emma and Snow shared a nervous look. "Can you two decide for me? I don't want to feel I'm pressuring either of you into this."
Emma felt a pang in her heart. "No." She responded firmly. "We'll support you no matter what you choose, but the decision has to be yours."
Regina breathed a heavy sigh, curling closer to the back of the couch. "In that case I need some more time." She said, sounding a little hurt.
"Okay." Emma bit her lip, glancing back at her mother. "Do you want me to stay? Or would you rather be alone?"
"Alone I think." Regina responded.
Emma felt her heart sink a little. "Okay. You know where to find us if you need anything."
"Thank you," Regina said softly, before lying down and resting her head back on her pillow.
Emma reached forward and put a comforting hand on the other woman's shoulder. "Remember, don't do what you think is best for anyone else, do what you think is best for you. Snow and I are both more than willing to do this for you. Don't worry about hurting our feelings and don't think that picking one of us means you care more about the other one. We know this isn't an easy decision but like I said, we're behind you no matter what you choose. We both just want you to get better Regina. Okay?"
Regina made a small noise that sounded like a sob. She nodded her thanks.
…
A little over an hour later, Emma heard Regina softly calling her name.
"Hey," Emma said, coming to stand beside Regina where she was looking out the window.
"I think I'm going to go with the paired donor option." Regina said, still looking out over the city.
Emma nodded. "Okay." She said in soft resolution. "But Regina tell me the truth, you're not just making this decision because of that other pair are you? Because as bad as this sounds, you do need to consider what's best for you too."
Regina shook her head. "That's part of it but it's not the only reason. Emma… if Snow goes through with the transplant and anything happens to her, Storybrooke doesn't have a proper doctor anymore. Well, unless Dr. Whale is let out of jail."
"Which is never going to happen."
Regina nodded, giving the blonde a tiny smile. "And what happens if one day, Snow needs medical attention, but the barrier around Storybrooke has gone back up and there are no doctors there who are able to treat her? I don't want her to have to go through what happened to me." Regina took Emma's hand, looking down towards it. "But Emma, please don't think that means I'd rather you be in the hospital over her. It's just–"
"A complicated situation, I know." Emma agreed softly. "Regina, I think this is the right decision."
The brunette looked up at her in surprise. "You do?"
"Yeah. I'd rather it be me instead of my mom. And like you said, I can go to a hospital anywhere but she may not always have that option. I was prepared to do this for you a few weeks ago and I still am. I want to do this. But… are you sure you would rather take a donation from a stranger over Mary Margaret?"
Regina gave a small nod. "I think if someone else's life can be saved too then it's the right path to take."
"Okay. Do you want me to call the hospital and tell them?"
Regina shook her head softly. "It's okay, I should do it. Thank you Emma. Really."
Emma raised one shoulder in a shrug. "Hey, don't thank me yet. I might still have to go through some screenings and stuff, but I have a good feeling about it."
"You do?" Regina's eyes brightened hopefully.
"Yeah, I do. You're going to get this transplant Regina. You're going to be okay."
Regina smiled, nodding in agreement and looking relieved. She stepped forward and drew Emma into a long, affectionate hug.
Emma pressed her lips to Regina's temple and then the two shared a soft kiss. They adjusted their position so they could both look out over the city, but remain in each others embrace. They both felt more optimistic than either of them had been in months.
...
A/N: Thank you for reading, please don't forget to review. Take care xx