"Mom?"

Following the sound of her son's voice as he whispered softly in her ear, the brunette woman known as Regina Mills hummed, her chin tipping up the slightest bit.

In her still sleepy state, it was a huge effort to do something as simple as that, so in the same way she tried it, she gave up, falling back into the comforts of her pillow, a low growl stuck at the back of her throat.

"Mom, can I ask you something?"

As soon as the question was put out there in the form of her son's sweet voice, Regina tried to open her eyes. It was another futile attempt, because as soon as the intense rays of the morning sun hit her sensitive eyesight, she winced and closed them again.

It was too early to be waking up on her day off anyway, so instead of making yet another attempt, her hand slid across the mattress, searching blindly until she found the boy's head.

Once within her reach, she started to lazily run her fingers through his curls.

"Roland… it's too early, let's sleep a bit more."

"It's ten in the morning,"

Crap, Regina thought… as she definitely overslept…

Roland knew this, so with no apparent plans of letting her go back to sleep, he sighed.

"If I go with dad, and grandma is out of town with her friends, what are you going to do here all alone?"

Regina had been half asleep when Roland sneaked into her bed and laid by her side, and her predicament hadn't changed much, but even with her brain all fogged, she just had to smile at the question.

Roland… at a tender age of eight, her son already liked to act as if she was the one who needed to be taken care of. And yeah, she had told him many many times that he didn't need to worry about her like that, but at the same time, she found moments like this to be completely adorable.

That was her boy, sweet, caring and God, she loved him so much for it. But yeah, he shouldn't be worrying about trivial details like his mother spending a holiday on her own.

He was a kid, one full of life, and she needed him to be at ease sometimes.

"Why, I'm going to do what all moms do when they have so much time alone. I'm going wild… and just stay here all day long, being lazy and watching Netflix. It's going to be so good."

"But it's Thanksgiving," Roland added with a click of his tongue, grabbing Regina's chin in his hand. "You can't be alone on Thanksgiving."

Biting down the need to grin, Regina moved her hand to her son's cheek. He didn't know this, but she had been looking forward to this. It wasn't everyday that she had the house all to herself and well, she needed to take these little moments and enjoy the hell out of them.

She was tired, the last couple of weeks had been brutal at work and screw it, the fact that Cora wasn't going to be there to ruin another Thanksgiving was a treat in itself. So yeah, she was taking this rare moment alone as a win and running with it.

"I'm going to be okay, baby, I promise," she said, wanting to reassure Roland.

"But what are you going to eat?"

Was he really asking her that? Snorting, Regina opened her eyes, finding Roland and his warm stare way too close. He didn't look too happy, so wanting to appease him, she threw an arm around him.

She brought him closer like that, pressing his small frame against her so that she could tickle him. "I'll call Uber Eats and stuff my face with sushi or something."

Now, on any other occasion, her son would either giggle or protest at her action, but this time, Roland was apparently too worried to act as he usually did. He just hid his face into the crook of her neck and snuggled closer.

"I'm going to stay here with you."

Pressing a hand to his back and rubbing up and down, Regina breathed into his scent, her heart swelling with so much love. Yes, she would like to have Roland there with her, but so did Robin. It was his turn to have their son for Thanksgiving and she wasn't going to change plans last minute just because she didn't have anyone else to be with…

Plus, she had work the next day, and that meant that she needed Robin to stay with Roland. It wouldn't be fair if she just used him for what was convenient for her, so no… she wasn't going to let Roland stay.

"Honey, you've been looking forward to this long weekend with tour dad for so long, so no… you'll go with him, and you're going to have a blast, okay?"

"But–"

"Shh, no buts. You're not going to waste the fancy dinner Marian is probably cooking for you, now will you?" Regina mumbled, kissing his temple and hugging him hard.

"Marian doesn't cook."

"What?" Regina blurted out loud in fake surprise. Of course she knew this already, but she was going to take every chance life threw at her to send little jabs at her ex's current girlfriend. Sure, the woman wasn't going to find out, but that wasn't going to take away from her enjoyment. "Now what are you going to eat?"

Slapping his forehead a bit too dramatically, Roland chuckled. "Dad says he and aunt Ruby will make it a no-turkey day. They will cook everything but that."

Shaking her head because she was sure that was Ruby's idea, Regina breathed in. "Well, that sounds like fun, and we don't want you to miss it, right? So go and brush your teeth before your dad comes to pick you up. He told me he was going to come by early."

"I already brushed my teeth."

Of course he did...

"Well, I haven't, so let me go and do that."

Shaking his head, Roland clung to her neck. He giggled as he did that, so Regina was going to assume his mood improved a little. "No, I'm gonna stay here until he comes."

"Oh, is that how it's going to be? Well okay then..." Without giving Roland any time to react, Regina swirled him around, pinning his back to the mattress. Once she had him there, she started to tickle him.

"Mom! No!" Trying to wriggle himself free, Roland guffawed, twisting and turning wildly. Regina laughed along the way, only stopping for a few seconds to let him breathe.

"Are you going to let me brush my teeth now?" she asked at some point, the muscles of her face aching with so much effort.

Roland, who was apparently in a silly mood now, shook his head frantically. "No."

Arching both eyebrows, Regina chuckled, her fingers wriggling. "No? Are you sure?"

Before Roland could reply, the doorbell rang, interrupting their moment.

Robin… she thought at once.

True, the man knew better than to step into that porch on any other day, but just the previous night she had texted him, letting him know he could come and pick Roland right by their door. Cora wasn't going to be there, so this time her mom going all intense on him wasn't going to be a problem.

Now he was there, and for reasons she couldn't quite comprehend, she started to feel a little antsy.

What could she say? Despite their current situation, having him there brought so many memories into her mind.

It was a bittersweet thing, because even though some of those memories were good, a hell of a lot more were bad. Like… she couldn't remember the last time he had been at that door, but she was damn sure Cora had chasen him away…

Fortunately, that wasn't going to happen now, so sitting on her heels over the mattress, she helped Roland sit up. "Well look at this, someone has been just saved by the bell."

"Is that my dad?" Without waiting for a reply, Roland jumped to his feet and ran out of her room.

Yes, there was no denying that Cora wasn't there and everybody was making the best out of that situation, because if his grandmother had been there, Roland wouldn't dare run inside the house like that.

Sighing because it was a shame her mom was always making everyone's life so miserable, Regina ran a hand through her messy morning hair, trying to gather her wits a little. When that was done, she marched straight into the bathroom.

She tried to be quick about her business, brushing her teeth in a hurry just because she didn't want to make Robin wait too long. But at the same time, she had to make herself a bit more presentable before facing him and well, given how she just woke up, that was definitely going to take some time.

True, it wasn't like she wanted to impress him or anything like that, but she'd be damned if she ever stepped in front of him looking a mess.

It was a matter of principles, this was her ex for crying out loud, and she wasn't going to let him see her looking anything less than perfect.

Never!

Well… at least not willingly.

However, this time looking her best was going to be a bit tricky. She just woke up, so it wasn't like she could walk out looking ready to kill.

It was actually a complicated thing, because even though she was set on looking good, she didn't want him to suspect she was going through so much effort on his behalf. That meant that she had to settle for a fresh natural look… something that looked effortless.

Lucky for her, her hair wasn't looking so out of control and yup, playing around with Roland had left a healthy flush in her cheeks. Add to that the glint in her eye, the glow doing a beauty routine last night left in her and voila, she was ready.

That was how she left her room, feeling confident about her appearances, and glad that Cora wasn't there.

Now, she found the two Locksleys by the main entrance, Roland talking nonstop and Robin just listening, hands on his hips, eyes down and over his son, and a genuine smile taking over his features.

Looking at them like that made her smile as well, especially because they were so engrossed with each other that neither one of them realized she made it downstairs.

Unfortunately, she couldn't stand there watching them forever, so folding her arms up to her chest, she cleared her throat.

"Roland, don't keep your father by the door, where are your manners?"

"Sorry!" Roland yelped, slapping a hand to his face before bursting into one of his giggling fits.

Looking up and straight at her, Robin's smile got a bit wider.

That right there made Regina hold her breath for the good part of the next few seconds, because damn him, how come he could look so good while just standing there?

From the simplicity of his jeans and sneakers, going to that blue t-shirt that brought the color of his eyes out, and finishing with the way his hair was being swept by the breeze coming through the open door, he was the epitome of perfection.

Seeing him like that left no doubt of why she fell so hard for him when she was barely a girl…

"It's alright." Robin said, interrupting her thoughts. "Just walking up that porch is an improvement."

Humming, Regina rolled her eyes, hoping he didn't catch her slipping on dry so horribly.

She didn't think he did, or else he would be smirking at her in that Robin way she used to love and now tried to evade.

But just in case, she decided to do what she always did whenever she fell down that memory hole and started to muse about the man Robin has became: she dismissed it and attempted to move on.

That's why she said the following thing, her tone a bit cutting and detached. "I know. Roland, honey, go and pack your stuff so your father doesn't have to wait so long. Please and thank you."

As if nothing in the world was amiss, Roland swirled around and smiled brightly. "Okay!"

With that he was gone, leaving Regina feeling a bit awkward under Robin's gaze.

She tried to ignore the sensation, but at some point she ended up yielding and looking at him. "What?"

Not minding the way she almost barked the question at him, Robin just smiled. "So, Roland was telling me that you are going to spend the day here all alone,"

Groaning because… ugh, Robin didn't need to find out she had no life other than her son, Regina closed her eyes for a second. "Yeah… I'm just… I'm going to chill and you know, catch up with some stuff."

Robin arched an eyebrow, his eyes digging deep into hers. It was unnerving. "Like Netflix?"

Lifting a hand defensively, Regina breathed in. "Okay, I don't know what that little tattletale told you, but I swear it's not as pathetic as it sounds."

Biting the corner of his lips, Robin scoffed. He took one step forward while doing so, closing the distance between them.

The movement made her feel trapped between him and the stairs, even if there was still a good distance separating them.

"You know you can join us, right? Ruby planned a whole banquet for just a few of us and it's not like we are going to eat all of it. If you come, you will help with the cause of not wasting much food and you know… it will definitely make Roland feel more at ease. Two birds, one stone."

Unable to help it, Regina snorted. She knew Robin was being nice and that Roland probably chewed his ear off about this, but the last thing she wanted in this world was to eat a Thanksgiving dinner at the same table as Marian.

Everyone knew the woman hated her guts, and she wasn't up for another uncomfortable encounter with her.

"That sounds lovely, really, but I kind of want to keep my head attached to my body a while longer."

Scrunching his nose, Robin frowned. "Okay… that's a nice thing to know, I guess. But I just don't see what it has to do with you coming to dinner with us."

His low tone made Regina swallow on dry because… was he flirting with her?

Nah, he wouldn't. So once again trying to dismiss whatever it was that he made her feel, she clicked her tongue and decided to cut straight to the chase.

"I'm talking about your girlfriend. I don't think she would appreciate it if I joined your thanksgiving dinner. You know I'm not her favorite person in this town, and I don't want to end up with a puddin facial on her behalf."

Despite her serious tone, Robin laughed, the sound echoing all around. That right there sent another wave of flashbacks straight into her memories, because how many times had she sneaked a sixteen year old Robin into that house?

She couldn't remember the exact number, but there were a lot, and he had always ended up laughing like that.

She could almost see them in her mind's eye, Robin being carefree while a much younger version of herself covered his mouth so that Cora wouldn't hear him…

"First of all, we are not going to have puddin anywhere near that table, and second, Marian won't be there. It will be just Ruby, Mulan, Little John and us. I'm staying at my parents' for the time being, so it will be there."

"Oh–"

Now that was interesting. Did they break up? Roland never mentioned that..

But then again, he said for the time being so that could mean a lot of things. Maybe she was out of town, maybe their apartment was being remodeled and she refused to stay at his parent's house, or maybe she was just ill.

It could be anything, so she was not going to speculate… much.

"You know," he chuckled, moving his eyes away from her and settling them at some point upstairs. "I don't know why, but I have the distinct feeling that your mum is going to come out of nowhere and start cussing me out."

Regina blew out a breath, and despite her best effort to keep a straight face, her lips curved slightly to the right. "Maybe because she did it so many times."

Actually, she had a very specific memory in her head, and it was of Cora catching them making out in her room. It was how her mother found out she had a boyfriend and God, the scene she made still made her ears burn bright red.

But that was something she didn't want to bring up at that moment…

"I know," Moving his eyes back to her, Robin smiled, his dimples in full display.

It was crazy, but the way his eyes shone made her think that maybe he was remembering that night and the things they did, and that was not a territory she wanted them to remember.

They had been two idiots in love back then, and very careless, and with him so close and Roland still up in his room packing his bag, falling into those memories felt so damn dangerous.

It was stupid because she knew that getting swallowed in those feelings of the past would be a mistake, but still, those blue eyes of his digging into hers made her feel unable to look anywhere else.

"Come and have dinner with us. Roland would love to have you there and you'd still have the entire day to do whatever it is that you planned to do, yes?"

Running a hand through her hair, Regina pursed her lips. "I don't know, Robin."

"It's Thanksgiving, Regina, you can't just stay here alone. Besides, Little John would love to see you, so what do you say? It would be like the good old times."

Taking in consideration that the good old times left her pregnant at seventeen, Regina wasn't sure if that was the best argument…

Still, when it was time to reply, she was betrayed by the same wild impulse that made her say yes to Robin that first time he invited her out.

"I'm going to think about it, okay? But just because I haven't seen Little John in forever."

"Alright," Robin smiled, clearly satisfied with her answer.

"Just don't tell him, or Roland, because I may end up not going and I don't want them to wait in vain."

The sparkle in his eye told her that he wasn't buying her act of playing difficult… the asshole, but what could she do?

"Okay. Sounds fair. But just so you know, we won't be having turkey."

"Is that supposed to win me over?"

"According to Roland, yes. He said you were going to have sushi."

"That little tell-it-all! Okay, so in the extremely dim chance that I go, should I bring something?"

"We are covered in all fronts, so getting your ass there will be enough."

At his words, Regina narrowed her eyes. He was being playful, and this struck her as very telling.

That was why she needed to push a bit more, as she wanted to know a very important detail before making a definitive decision. "Are you sure this won't be a problem with Marian?"

Twisting his lips, Robin lifted his shoulders, then he let them fall back in place. "We broke up a few weeks ago so no, this won't be a problem."

Okay… she thought, remembering that the last time they broke up, it was only for a couple of weeks, so this time apart actually didn't mean much.

They were probably going to be back together before Christmas anyway.

Not like that mattered. What he was offering was just dinner, with three more adults and a child, so how bad could it turn, right?

Well, she was about to find out…

TBC…?