Part Six
I toss in bed trying to find a comfortable position to sleep, but the truth is I wouldn't be able to sleep even if my pillow was made of clouds. I look at Emma, her form is stiff in bed. Silent. She must be in deep sleep. Her blonde hair is reflecting the moonlight and I wonder how it would feel like to touch it, to run my fingers down her long blonde hair. I close my eyes and sigh. Those thoughts have no business in my head. Damn her for making me think such things.
I rise from the bed and walk up to the deck. It's cold. So cold. The wind is blowing strong and I'm grateful for that. It will make the ship go faster. I walk to the prow and look out the dark night. The sound of the water crashing against the ship's hull is rhythmic and soothing. The moon is big and bright up in the sky illuminating a patch of water in the dark night. I look ahead and feel my heart squeeze inside my chest. No sight of land. Everywhere is just water and darkness and a patch of light that leads to nowhere.
I think of Henry and feel my eyes fill with tears. Is my boy alone right now? Does he have a bed to sleep in? Did he have dinner? Is he scared? Does he miss me? I close my eyes and let the tears fall down. I love him so much. I'd give up anything for him, including my life.
"Hey" I hear Emma's voice behind me.
"Hi," I say, not turning around as I clean my face from the tears.
"Can't sleep?" Emma asks, standing beside me now.
"No!"
"Yeah, me neither," Emma says and smile "You woke me"
"How could I have done that?" I ask defensibly "I wasn't even in the room"
"And that's exactly what woke me up"
"I don't follow"
"You snore," Emma says "the sound of it helps me sleep"
"I don't snore" I scoff. How dare she?
"It's not like snore, snore," Emma says "You just make this sound when you are sleeping, and I don't know…It's soothing"
"My snore is soothing?" I ask skeptic.
"Crazy, right?" Emma laughs "Why can't you sleep?"
"Henry," I say simply.
"We are going to get him back, Regina," Emma says.
"I know" And I do. I will get my son back.
"Tell me something about him?" Emma asks.
"Like what?"
"From when he was little" Emma says "Anything will do"
"He loved helping me in the kitchen when he was three," I say and instantly smile at the memory "We used to make big breakfast on Sundays and then bake something for later. He loved helping me make chocolate cake. It's his favorite. He would always stick his fingers on the battery and lick it clean"
"I can picture him doing that," Emma says and my heart beats a little faster when I see her smile.
"He tried to surprise me one morning" I continue ignoring the way her smile is making me feel "he woke up early and went straight to the kitchen. I obviously don't know what happened there but I remember waking up with him on top of me covered in flour and chocolate powder. When I walked inside the kitchen there was flour everywhere. And I do mean everywhere"
"Oh boy" Emma laughs "Were you very angry?"
"Oh, I was furious," I say "And then I looked down at his hopeful little face and all my anger faded away. He had made me a chocolate cake and pancakes. But he wasn't allowed to use the stove so, he had to wake me up to cook them"
"That's adorable," Emma says.
"It was. And, to my surprise, his batter was better than mine. The cake and pancakes were delicious"
"Seriously?"
"Yes," I laugh. It really was.
"I bet you wish you had magic to clean all that mess up, hum?"
"I did," I say and laugh. It was hell cleaning that kitchen.
"We need to stay strong if we are going to get him back," Emma says.
"I know"
"We can't keep fighting all the time"
"I'm not sure that's possible, dear,"
"We have to try," Emma says "For Henry"
"For Henry" I agree and look out the sea again.
"We should get some sleep," Emma says "I'm pretty sure it's very late. Or ridiculously early"
"I'm not sure I can right now"
"It's very cold too"
"Do you need to hear me snoring that badly?" I joke.
"Maybe," Emma says sheepishly.
"I need more time alone"
"Okay," Emma says "Goodnight, Regina"
"Goodnight, Emma"
I hear Emma walking away, but I don't turn around. I can't. For some idiotic reason, it's hard to watch her go. This kind of feeling has no place inside me, especially coming from Emma. She made me feel warm. Sharing that memory of Henry with her made me feel warm in a way I haven't feel in a very, very long time. I close my eyes and let the cold wind hit my face. It's welcome. The cold is welcome. I open my eyes and see the dark around me, except for that line the moon insists upon shining. Tiredness suddenly hits my body and I yawn. Emma is right. I should get some sleep.
I turn around and walk back to our room. Emma is curled up in a ball facing the wall. I sit down on the bed and take off my boots but don't bother with the rest of my clothes. I lay down and face the wall and I hear Emma shifting in bed. I know, without looking that her eyes are on me. I feel every little hair on my neck stand up. I close my eyes and images of her leaving the bed and laying down next to me cross my mind. I see her hugging me from behind and them turning me to her, claiming my lips. Her hands travel around my body, touching me everywhere. I see those green orbs of hers looking intensely at me and saying things like God, you are beautiful. I moaned and then I open my eyes. Shit! Did I do that out loud? I stop breathing for a second and pay attention to my surroundings. It's silent. There is only the sound of the water outside. Thank Gods, Emma is sleeping. I guess she didn't need the sound of my snore after all. I close my eyes and force any thoughts of Emma out of my head. For a moment, everything is dark, and not long after that, I feel sleep claiming me for the night.