A/N: Happy Sunday peeps!
"Regina, how are you?"
The brunette ignored the psychologist who had just stepped out of her office as the harried mother rushed by, Henry several steps behind her. In the events of the past couple of hours, Regina appeared to have forgotten her son's spectacular fall in the playground a few days earlier. Belle pulled the door of her office closed, locked it and set off after Regina who was now disappearing into the front of the building. Hurrying after his mother, Henry's small hand reached for the rapidly closing door.
"I've got it, sweetie," Belle said, catching the door herself before it snapped on his fingers.
"Mom's angry," he informed the woman now gently steering him through the door. "She shouted at Marian. Mom told me I'm not allowed to shout. Daddy used to shout at us but Mom said it wasn't nice."
"No, shouting isn't nice, is it?" Belle agreed, a quick scan of the reception area letting her know that Regina must be in Emma's office. An exclamation which a six-year-old shouldn't hear confirmed that suspicious and she coaxed Henry towards the ajar door.
Inside, Emma was on her feet, an iPad clutched in her hands. Regina was pacing back and forth, fingers running through frazzled hair. Mulan was sat in a chair, looking a little stunned.
"Hey, is everything ok?" Belle asked, moving further into the room.
"No," Emma replied simply.
"Henry, how did you connect the iPad to the Wi-Fi?" Regina asked, rounding on her son.
The boy leaned back into Belle's legs, aware that his mother was upset and suddenly worrying that her anger might be his fault. He didn't like it when his mom was angry with him. "With the password," he reasoned. "Me and Roland wanted to play a new game. All my old ones are boring."
"Yes, but where did you find the password?"
"I asked Ruby."
"Shit," Emma all but yelled, slamming the iPad down onto the table.
Henry's eyes went wide. That was a bad word. And also, Emma was not being careful with his things. If you borrowed something which wasn't yours, it was important to be respectful of it and make sure you don't break it. His mom taught him that. So why was Emma being so mean to his iPad?
"You asked Ruby last night?"
Henry looked back at his mother and nodded. "Yeah."
"What did you ask her?"
"I was polite," Henry protested. "I think I said 'please'." In hindsight, Henry wasn't sure he had said please but he knew his mom would have wanted him to so without Ruby around to contradict him, maybe he could stop his mother looking mad if he used his best manners.
"And she just gave you the Wi-Fi password?" Emma asked.
"No, she typed it in for us. She was looking at her phone too."
"Seriously?" Emma asked, incredulity on her features. "Jesus, I knew she shouldn't have come back to work. I've got to fire her now."
"Woah, what?" Mulan protested. "You're going to fire Ruby?" Out of all the staff at the shelter, Ruby was the person Mulan most enjoyed spending time with on shift and outside of work too, whenever their schedules allowed it.
"I have to. She violated our security policy. She put everyone here in danger," Emma pointed out. "She's the reason everything happened this morning."
"That's not true," Mulan argued. "Ruby isn't responsible for the actions of a nutjob with a gun."
"She's responsible for him turning up here in the first place. He must have been tracking the iPad, monitoring its connectivity. The moment the Wi-Fi was connected, he would have been able to track where the signal was coming from, assuming he had the right equipment to do so. If Ruby hadn't been so careless, none of this would have happened."
"What happened?" Henry asked, thoroughly confused about the entire conversation. "Mom, are you mad at me?"
Regina crouched down in front of her son. "No, sweetie. I'm not mad. I'm sorry, it's been a very difficult day. But you did know that you weren't supposed to connect to the Wi-Fi. I did tell you that, didn't I?"
"Yeah but my games were boring," Henry pouted. "I just wanted to get a fun new one. Can I have my iPad now?"
"No, not yet," Emma replied. "I'm afraid we'll need to keep this for a while." She knew the police would be able to use the device to establish a timeline of events. Which would be necessary, assuming charges were brought against Leo. "Belle, you've got some games in your office though, right? Could you maybe play something with Henry for a bit? Henry, your mom and I will come and join you as soon as the pizza arrives."
Henry's eyes lit up at that suggestion. He had forgotten about the pizza, what with all the shouting and confusion. Agreeing to forego his iPad for the moment, in lieu of playing games with Belle and eating pizza with his mom and Emma, he willingly left the office.
Once the three of them were alone, Emma sank back down into her chair, hands covering her face. "I'm so sorry."
The words were mumbled but Regina understood them. Circling the desk, she knelt beside the blonde, arm draped around her back. Without a word, Mulan left, pulling the door closed behind her to give the two women a little privacy.
"I'm sorry, Regina. This is all my fault."
"No, it's not," Regina soothed. "And didn't you just blame Ruby? Not that I'm in agreement with that either but why are you suddenly taking the blame yourself?"
"Because I allowed her to come back to work," Emma reasoned. "I knew it was too soon. I knew she wasn't ready. Her grandmother died four days ago. Of course she wasn't ready to be at work. This morning, she mentioned that the hospital had called and then said something about funeral arrangements. That's what she should be doing, not manning a post of immense responsibility. I put you all in danger by allowing her to come back. And now, thanks to my mistake, I have to fire my best friend."
Abruptly, the blonde stood up. Pushing her chair backwards, she walked around Regina and started to walk up and down her office. The room wasn't large and she could only fit in a few paces before turning around. The action wasn't unfamiliar. She often walked up and down; it was supposed to be calming. Regina watched, unsure what to say.
Emma needed the silence. She needed the time to try and understand and organise her thoughts. The mystery as to how Leo had found them had been solved, with remarkable ease. Technology, the development of tools designed to make their lives more convenient, simpler, easier, had become dangerous. There was a reason why she insisted all shelter residents get new phones before connecting to the Wi-Fi. It prevented this sort of tracking, or stalking, depending on your view.
Her staff knew the rules. No guest was given the Wi-Fi password without receiving extensive training on how to avoid their digital activity allowing them to be traced. The women complied, understanding that the recommendations, although somewhat restrictive, kept them safe. Teenager children too were under strict instructions as to how they could and couldn't use the internet. Again, they understood why. But what about the younger children?
Emma hadn't had an iPad as a child. They hadn't existed. She had got her first mobile phone at fourteen and it had been used solely for calling her parents and playing snake. Now toddlers had tablets for watching videos and playing games. Children had smart phones and spent their afternoons and weekends WhatsApping each other. Instagram and Facebook's minimum age restriction was regularly ignored and pre-teens lapped up the addictive nature of social media. It hadn't occurred to Emma, foolishly, that the younger children in the shelter could be security risks.
No, she thought to herself, hand slamming into the wall. Regina flinched. One, two, three, four, five, pause. This wasn't Henry's fault. One, two, three, four, five, pause. It was Ruby's. One, two, three, four, five, pause. She should have known better. One, two, three, four, five, pause. She did know better. One, two, three, four, five, pause. No matter what she was going through, there was no excuse for her stupidity and carelessness. Emma turned on the spot and grabbed her purse from the desk. As she leaned over, she winced.
"Are you ok?"
"Bruised," Emma muttered, not wanting to remind Regina that her soon to be ex-husband had crushed her into the sidewalk a few hours earlier. "I'll be back later. Here's some money for the pizza." She pulled out several bills and passed them to Regina.
"Where are you going?"
"To speak to Ruby."
"Are you going to fire her?"
"Yes," Emma nodded. "And scream at her, probably. I know it's not very mature but I'm very angry at her. I don't think I'll be able to stop the screams, even if I count."
"Count?"
"I count. I count from one to five and then pause to calm myself down. Sometimes I only have to do it once or twice. Sometimes I do it lots. It usually works. But I don't think it will today."
"Oh, ok. Can I come with you?"
Emma shook her head. "No, stay here. Stay with Henry. Can you apologise to him for me? I didn't mean to scare him and I didn't mean to say a bad word in front of him. Will he repeat that?"
"Probably but it's something he's heard before. It was a favourite of Leo's. As was fuck. The food I cooked him was often 'shit' and he didn't give a 'fuck' about why it was late on the table."
"I hate that man," Emma seethed, hearing another example of how Leo's mistreated her girlfriend and hadn't appreciated the wonderful woman he had been lucky enough to spend a decade of his life with. And not a moment longer, if Emma had anything to say about it. That man was never coming near Regina nor Henry again.
"Yeah, I hate him too."
Emma hesitated then leaned down to kiss Regina, who was now stood beside her desk. "I love you though," she said as the kiss ended. "And I'd do anything to keep you safe."
"Including firing your best friend?"
"That won't keep you safe," Emma pointed out. "The damage has already been done. But it's irrelevant. Ruby violated the terms of her contract. Her actions led to today's events, even if it was Leo who was holding the gun. Had Ruby not been so thoughtless and careless, Leo wouldn't have found you. She deserves to be fired. I can't let this slide."
"Leo would have found us one way or another," Regina sighed, voicing for the first time something she had been feeling for weeks. "I think I've always known that he'd reappear. Leo is not the sort of man to take his wife's disappearance as just another event and move on with his life. He was always going to find me."
"And Ruby facilitated that. Unintentionally, but it was her carelessness which led to what's happened. I have to end her contract."
"Emma, she just lost her grandmother."
The blonde's lips set in a firm line. "I know. And it's my fault she's in this position. It was my mistake to allow her to come back to work. As her manager, I'm responsible for that. But she claimed she was fine, she claimed she was ready. She insisted she was ready to take on all of the responsibilities which this job entails by turning up to work. Yes, I shouldn't have let her. But I did. And she made a mistake. At the end of the day, it's a fireable offence."
"Fireable? As in, you don't have to fire her?"
"Do you not want me to? She's the reason Leo found you, Regina. Why are you sticking up for her?"
"Because I like Ruby. She made a mistake, fine. We all do stupid things sometimes. But is it worth ruining someone's career over?"
"And if I had died?" Emma shot back. Regina swallowed. "Would you feel the same way if Leo had shot me?"
Hesitantly, Regina shook her head. "No, I guess I wouldn't. But you didn't die, Emma. You're right here." She reached up to cup Emma's cheeks, reminding the blonde that she was fine, that Regina herself was alive, that Henry was unharmed.
Emma gazed down into those chocolate brown orbs, so filled with myriad emotions after the weight of the day's events that she couldn't decipher any of them. Emma always struggled to read people's faces, even when she knew the person as well as she knew Regina. But right now, her mind was racing too fast for her to focus. She placed a final kiss to Regina's upturned lips and stepped away.
"I'll be back later," she said, swinging her purse onto her shoulder and turning to the door. Regina followed her, watching the blonde as she crossed the reception and left the building.
"Has she gone to speak to Ruby?" Mulan asked.
Regina nodded. "I tried to talk her out of it. She needs to calm down, have a clear head."
"You can't talk Emma out of anything, once she sets her mind to it," Mulan advised. "But Ruby doesn't deserve to be fired, not after the week she's had."
"I know," Regina sighed. "I did tell Emma that. Her staff are all amazing and she shouldn't let Ruby go from the team. Thanks for this morning, by the way. I'm sorry I was such a mess."
"The woman you love was in danger," Mulan reasoned. "I get it. And I'm happy for the both of you, by the way. Emma's always been private about her personal life but I know she likes to be in a committed relationship and she hasn't had someone making her happy in a while. Even with all the drama going on, I can see she's happy with you. And you also deserve someone who respects you. Unlike …"
Regina didn't need the counsellor to tell her what a disrespectful prick her ex-husband was. She smiled her thanks at Mulan and handed over the money which Emma left, asking her to pass it to the pizza delivery people who were due any moment. Regina couldn't wait though. She needed to hug her son. Again. And apologise for shouting at him. He had no way of knowing how his actions had impacted their lives that day.
The door of their apartment bounced off the wall as Emma pushed it open violently. Springing back off the dented plaster, the heavy wood almost hit Emma in the face as she strode into the apartment, calling out her flatmate's name. Then she stopped. Spinning on the spot, she turned and slammed the door shut, sliding the bolt across, then open, then across, then open again. Ritual done, she resumed her march towards Ruby's bedroom.
Just before she arrived, the door opened and the tousle-haired woman emerged into the hallway, yawning.
"What's going on?" she asked as she saw Emma standing right before her.
"You gave Henry Mills the password to our Wi-Fi," Emma bellowed. Yep, the counting she had done on the way home hadn't worked.
"What?" Ruby frowned, peering bleary-eyed into Emma's angry features.
One, two, three, four, five, pause. One, two, three, four, five, pause. Forcing herself to calm down a little so she could at least explain herself, Emma took a steadying breath. One, two, three, four, five, pause. "Last night," Emma gritted out. "You put the Wi-Fi password into Henry's iPad. Regina's husband tracked the signal. He turned up at the shelter to take Regina."
"Shit, is she ok?"
"She's fine. I stopped him. He held me at gunpoint."
"Fuck, are you ok?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. Except my back is sore from when he landed on top of me after he was shot by the police."
"Oh my god. Is he dead?"
"No, but he's in surgery. Because of you, Ruby. What the fuck happened last night?"
Ruby's face, already drained of colour as she listened to the events, crumpled at the harsh question. Emma rarely swore and Ruby could tell the woman was fuming. "I don't know," she whispered. "I can't really remember. It's all a bit blurry after I got that call from the hospital about Granny's body."
"You shouldn't have come back," Emma snapped. "You weren't ready."
"I … no, I guess I wasn't. Is Regina ok? Is Henry ok?"
"Not really. Henry doesn't know what's happened and Regina is waiting to hear if Leo's going to die or not. I guess then she'll be telling him that his father is either dead or going to prison for holding me hostage. So, no, they're not ok. Because of your actions, Ruby."
Tears sparkled in Ruby's eyes at the words. She loved working at the shelter and she took pride in her job, particularly in her role of making sure the women felt safe. She'd failed.
"I'm sorry," she murmured. "I didn't mean to put anyone in danger."
"Yeah, well, you did. Your mistake could have been fatal. It still might be. If Leo dies, his death is on you."
The words triggered the tears to begin spilling down Ruby's cheeks. She knew Leo had been abusive to Regina and Henry and had just learned that he had held her best friend at gunpoint. But the man didn't deserve to die. The accusation that Ruby's actions may lead to his death was a punch to the gut.
"I'm sorry, it won't happen again," Ruby sobbed.
"No, it won't. Because you're fired."
Ruby took several steps backwards into her bedroom, sitting down on the edge of her unmade bed in the dusky room. "Wh-what?"
"You're fired. You violated your contract. You put the women in the shelter in danger through your actions. I'm terminating your contract, effective immediately."
"Emma, come on. You don't have to do this. It was a mistake. Mistakes happen. I've said I'm sorry. I'll apologise to Regina. I'll take responsibility and go on additional training courses or whatever you need but please don't fire me."
"There is no training course for not handing out Wi-Fi passwords, Ruby," the blonde pointed out, now leaning on the doorframe. "That was a stupid mistake and one I would not stand for, regardless of who made it. It's a fireable offence and that's what I'm doing."
The nonchalant way in which her friend delivered the life-changing news sparked a little flurry of indignation. Ruby understood that Emma sometimes struggled to sympathise with other people's emotions but even for the blonde, this was callous.
"You're seriously firing me? After all the shit I've been through this week?"
"I'm sorry for your granny, Ruby. I've said that many times and I mean it. And I'm also sorry that I agreed to let you come back to work in the shelter. You clearly weren't ready and it was my mistake to put you on shift last night. But you claimed you wanted to come back, you claimed you were ready. You clearly weren't and your grief led to a distraction which has caused one of our women to be in danger."
"Your girlfriend," Ruby pointed out.
"Regina is not relevant to this. If you had put any of the women in danger, I would be reacting the same way."
"Really? So you're saying the fact that your new girlfriend was the one whose husband turned up has nothing to do with this complete over reaction? Would you do the same if it were Kathryn? Or Marian?"
Emma's features darkened and she stepped into the room, turning on the light so she could more clearly see her friend. The bedroom, she noticed, was a mess. Dirty plates were stacked on the bedside table, a shaft of light from the poorly drawn curtains captured the dust floating in the air. The window needed to be opened. Several loads of laundry needed to be done. It was pathetic, really. Sad. Emma forced herself to calm slightly before speaking. One, two, three, four, five, pause. One, two, three, four, five, pause.
"Never question my professional integrity," she hissed. "I am committed to keeping every single woman and child in that shelter safe. I would do whatever it takes to make sure that the men they are hiding from can't find them. That's the job. I don't discriminate between them and you damn well know that. Just because Regina and I are in a relationship doesn't mean I reacted differently to if any other psychopathic husband had turned up outside. With a gun, Ruby. I could have been killed today. Your actions could have led to my death."
Those words hit home too and fresh tears streamed down pale cheeks, the defiance which had briefly flared up dying away once more.
"Emma, I'm so sorry. It will never happen again. But please give me a second chance. Please don't fire me. I need this job. I love this job and you know I'm great at it. I fucked up yesterday, I know that. And yes, it was too soon to be back. But I was just hurting so badly, sitting here all day and I needed to focus my mind on something else. I can see now that I wasn't ready and my mistake was huge. You're right, you could fire me. It's within your right but I'm begging you not to. Emma, I need this job. I need the shelter. I've got nothing left in my life right now except work. I won't come back until you say I'm ready but please give me a second chance."
The blonde appraised the sobbing woman before her. She had seen Ruby cry more this week than throughout their friendship, she realised. The woman was distraught and clearly wracked with guilt. As she should be. It was her fault. But sat on the edge of her bed, tear-streaked face, red eyes, lank hair … Emma felt a sliver of compassion for the woman whose actions had been the catalyst for the day's terrible events.
"I'm entitled to fire you."
"I know."
"You made a mistake which should never have been made."
"I know."
"It put the lives of everyone in the shelter at risk, including mine."
"I know."
"You shouldn't have come back to the shelter."
"I know."
"You're not ready to be at work."
"I know."
There was a pause. Emma looked down into her friend's face, trying to make her decision. She didn't want to fire Ruby. She loved worked with the redhead. But she also didn't want to be seen as going easy on the woman just because they were such close friends. Ruby had made a fireable mistake; that was a fact. There were reasons for the mistake, sure. But those reasons didn't justify it, didn't negate the irresponsible nature of her actions.
But she was good at her job, most of the time. The women loved her. She had built up great rapport and trust with her women. The children loved her too. She worked hard, always willing to cover additional shifts in the face of staff shortages. And, whether Emma liked it or not, Ruby's friendships was one of the reasons she had been able to move out of her foster parents' house and live independently. She had helped her navigate the world, developed her self-sufficiency and boosted her self-confidence. She owed a lot to Ruby; patient, caring, funny, compassionate Ruby. Her decision was made.
"I'm sending you on a refresher course for our security training. You'll be required to attend it before you return."
There was a long pause, and then, "so does that mean I'm not fired?"
Emma sighed. "You're on probation. Six months. One mistake and you're out. You're not coming back until Belle's signed you off as ready for work. We'll get the paperwork done next week. I've got to get back to the shelter. Just, get some sleep, do what you need to for your granny and we'll talk later. I'll be back after the end of the shift."
"Thank you," Ruby breathed out. "Thank you, Emma. You don't know how much this means to me."
"Yes, I do," Emma replied. "I know you love your job. And you're good at it, most of the time. I didn't want to lose you from my team so if you can show me that you're committed to turning this around, I'm willing to give you a second chance."
"Thank you. Can you apologise to Regina for me?"
"I will, but you'll need to do that yourself when you next see her."
Ruby nodded her understanding. "Of course."
With that, Emma turned on the spot and retreated out of the apartment. When she heard the front door close, Ruby flopped backwards onto her bed and allowed fresh tears to fall.
A/N: I know some of you wanted Ruby to be fired and I do agree that it's a fireable offence. But I wanted Emma to have the challenge of battling with what her autism tells her is right and how she feels about her friend. I hope I did a decent job of showing this!