I do not own Once Upon a Time.

Hi everyone, I'm back! Feels so good to be posting again. Life has been crazy, my 8 month old is at the clingy stage and I am her best friend. Also back at the office full time. And working on my second original book.

But I had to get back to the world of Once because it makes me so happy.

Amelia is back, slightly different from other versions but it's her. I hope you enjoy this story.

Amelia Dalton tapped the cigarette pack in her hand and leaned against the brick wall. She breathed deeply and closed her eyes. The cold Maine air with a hint of saltness felt good on her face. Once again, she was covered in someone else's blood, but she had signed up for this when she became a doctor.

"You know those will kill you?" Came a voice from the shadows.

A grin crossed her face. "Tell me something that won't."

"Water."

"I could drown."

Belle shook her head. "Seriously? I thought you quit."

"I did, but holding the pack calms me. Haven't smoked in years."

"Well, good for you. I need you to come back inside. Jekyll and Whale have their hands full."

"Amelia, take curtain two." Jekyll called out to her.

"On it." She called back and pushed the curtain out of the way.

"Hello, love."

She cursed under her breath. "Killian." Of all the regular patients that came through the doors of the hospital, Killian was the most annoying. "What's the damage today?" She asked before checking the chart.

"All the important parts still work. And with your magical fingers, I'll be as good as new in no time."

"Shoulder out of the socket and a scratch on the forehead, nothing serious." She read his file. "What were you doing this time?"

"It's a thrilling tale actually…" Killian started but stopped to let out a blood curling yell.

"I don't care about the thrilling tale, I just needed you distracted while I popped this shoulder back in. And now about this scratch…" Amelia wheeled over a small cart. She worked in silence, but Killian's voice filled the room. She had learned years ago to block out the sound of his voice. It still hurt too much.

Twenty minutes later, Amelia leaned back to examine her work. "You are lucky it wasn't deep, would have left a scar. Not that you seem to mind scars."

"Most women find them attractive."

"I just see sloppy medical work or a klutzy person. Or both. Alright, put this cream on the stitches twice a day and it should be gone in two weeks." She handed over a small box.

"You could come over and do it yourself. I wouldn't object."

She rolled her eyes but smiled. "You are a big boy, you can take care of yourself."

He got out of the bed. "Your loss Amelia. If you don't need me here anymore, I need to get back to the men. They can't be without their fearless leader for too long." He attempted to pull his leather jacket on but the soreness stopped him.

"Right, a munity would be terrible. I thought you were getting out of that life?" She asked, trying to hide the concern in her voice.

"Out of the gang life? One day, for the right reason. Why do you care so much?"

Amelia only stared up at him without an answer. There were some words she didn't want to say out loud.

Killian didn't know what to do with the silence and took it as a hint to leave. He saluted her and sauntered towards the front door.

Amelia shook her head and sat down to fill out the chart. Suddenly she smelled coffee.

"You are a life-saver." She said and looked up.

Neal grinned and handed her the hot large beverage. "Coming from a doctor, that is a high compliment."

"You on break from the store or done for the day?"

"Dinner break, I work until closing today. Boss keep changing the schedule. It's hard to keep track. Really hard to plan for anything fun." He leaned in and kissed her cheek.

"I know. Both of our schedules are a little crazy. Hoping the weekend is clear for something fun and relaxing."

"Saw Killian leave as I was coming in. Was he flirting with you, again?" Neal asked.

Amelia heard the anger in his voice. "Yes, but it's fine."

"How is it fine? You aren't single. Most of the women he flirts with aren't single. Shocked no one, including you, hasn't punched him."

"If a woman punched him, I never treated the black eye. Neal, towards me, it's harmless. It's his coping mechanism."

"He's still coping? It's been two years." Amelia raised her eyebrows at him, almost in shock. "I'm sorry, I take that back. There's no time limit on grief."

"We were all there when she died. It nearly broke him. I had him on surveillance for a month afterwards. I thought he would try to follow her." Amelia choked on her words.

"You still think about her." Neal observed.

"I think about the patient I lost."

"You did everything you could." He squeezed her hand. "You did your best."

"Then why do I feel like my best wasn't good enough?" She whispered more to herself than him.

Reviews please, very curious to know what you think. Sadly I will not be posting regular updates, just whenever I have time.