A/N: Hello Once Upon A Time fandom, I'm sorry if you feel as though I've abandoned you. I kinda fell out of the fandom when Season 7 aired so I've been struggling to write stories for you all. However, I'm slowly finding my way back and I will be starting my rewatch soon so I can finish my WIP in this fandom.

This story was prompted by onceuponaprincessworld on Tumblr probably a year ago now. I just didn't have the idea for the story so I wasn't sure where to go. Well, here it is now! It ended up taking on a mind of its own and we ended up with a drabble that really should have been a one shot, but who is going to complain about longer chapter.

The prompt was: a cs ff au where Emma is Liam's best friend and Killian has feeling for her but he thinks she and his brother are dating until Liam introduce to him Elsa as his girlfriend.

This story was self-betaed with the help of Grammarly. I apologize for any mistakes you may find. They are all my own.

Title: My Brother's Girl
Rating: K
Pairing: Captain Swan, Liam Jones/Emma Swan, Liam Jones/Elsa
Summary: Rumors aren't good for anything other than starting unnecessary drama, but only the truth can set you free.

Come hang out with me on social media if you're interested!

Hope you enjoy! Be sure to let me know what you think!

Love always,
~starr

The two of them went everywhere together. In fact, they spent more time together than best friends typically should. Wherever one would go, the other would be close behind. Emma Swan and Liam Jones were practically inseparable. There had been a rumor that started making its way through town that the two would soon be married, but nothing had ever come of it. No one could confirm that they were, in fact, seeing each other.

Emma couldn't count the number of times she had been asked about her "boyfriend" Liam anymore. The figure was so astronomically high that the feat had become practically impossible. Her response to the questions was starting to become rehearsed, and she could tell that people were losing faith in what she was telling him. However, she couldn't control the thoughts of others.

She and Liam had agreed to just let people think what they want. The pair knew what was truly in their hearts and there was nothing that could be said to prove to either of them that there was something more going on.

Granted, neither could deny that at some point in their long friendship, feelings for the other had started to form. However, they had chosen not to act on the feelings and just let them fade. It wasn't worth losing the friendship that they had. Besides, the emotions were so fleeting that it was almost as though they had never existed in the first place.

Emma was on her way to The Rabbit Hole for a drink after a long day on the job when she encountered the question for the first time that afternoon, from no one other than her own mother, whom she had already corrected countless times.

"Are you on your way to see Liam?" Snow asked, placing a gentle arm around Emma's shoulders as the pair made their way along the sidewalk towards the bar.

"Yes, I'm on my way to The Rabbit Hole where my friend, Liam, bartends," she replied through gritted teeth. She took a deep breath and wrapped her arm around Snow's waist. "Were you interested in joining me?"

"I wouldn't want to impose on a date," Snow replied quickly.

Emma stopped in her path and turned to look at her mother, crossing her arms over her chest. "It's not a date. How many times do I have to tell you that?"

"Don't get upset with me," Snow replied, a pleading smile appearing on her face. "I just want you to be happy, and you already spend so much time with him, I just thought that maybe you two would eventually get together."

"He's seeing someone else, and I'm not interested in him like that," Emma replied, turning on her heel and continuing on her trek to the bar. "We're just friends!"

Shaking her head, she wrapped her arms around her stomach and continued on. Someday people would believe her when she told them that. She didn't want to be with Liam. She had her sights on someone else.

. . . . . . . .

Killian sat at the end of the bar and watched as Liam tossed a few of the bottles around in the air and caught them with ease. Was there anything his brother couldn't do? It seemed that the entire time they were growing up, Killian could never catch up to him, and now as grown adults, he was still falling behind.

The one thing that Liam had that Killian always found himself jealous of was Liam's best friend. Emma had been a part of Liam and Killian's life for so long that it was almost as though she was an added part of the family, but that didn't stop his heart from fluttering and his stomach filling with butterflies anytime she was near. However, sadly for him, it appeared as though he would never get the chance to be with her. She preferred Liam, and after watching him work for a few brief moments, he really couldn't blame her.

"Don't you have a job to get to?"

The voice caught Killian off guard, and it took him a moment to realize that anyone else had joined him at this end of the bar. He looked up and saw Liam standing in front of him with a fresh beer in his hand. Liam was smiling and placed the drink down in front of his brother.

"Would it kill you to announce that you're coming before you scare the piss out of a person?" Killian replied, nodding his head in a thank you for the drink before lifting it to his lips.

"What the fun in that?" Liam replied, shaking his head. "What were you thinking about so deeply? I was beginning to wonder if you were even awake when I came up to you."

Killian shook his head. "Nothing of any great importance. And if you paid any attention to the schedule, you'd know that I worked the night shift last night and slept the morning away, which is why I'm here now and not at a job."

"You know I'm just messing with you right? Spend your afternoons however you like. Especially if it means you're spending money at my bar," Liam replied with a wink.

Killian rolled his eyes and took another swig of the drink. "Well someone has to spend money in this place. It's open at noon but doesn't see a business until after six pm. Have you ever considered changing the hours, mate?"

"Why would the hours need to change?"

Her voice caught them both by surprise. Killian turned to find Emma Swan, Liam's supposed girlfriend, seated in the chair beside him. She was wearing a bright smile like she always did when Liam was around which is why the town talked the way that it did. The jealous pang the Killian felt in his stomach was less than appreciated, but he just pushed the feeling aside and plastered a smile on his face.

"'Ello, Swan," he said, nodding in her general direction. "What brings you to this lovely establishment so early in the afternoon?"

"I was just in the mood for a drink, but don't let me interrupt your conversation. Please feel free to continue your bickering match," she replied, flitting her eyes between the two brothers. "Could I get a whiskey neat?"

"Coming right up," Liam replied, walking away from the pair momentarily.

"We weren't bickering," Killian grumbling, downing the last of his beer and setting the bottle down on the bar. He adjusted himself in the chair so that he was facing her more face on. "What do you see in him?"

"What do I see in -?" Emma furrowed her brow at him for a moment and then shook her head, rolling her eyes in the process before carding a hand through her hair. "We aren't seeing each other!"

"That's not the way it seems to anyone else in this crazy town," Killian replied, shrugging his shoulders and turning back towards the bar. "But continue to tell us all whatever it is you'd like. We can all see the truth."

"You just heard what you called the town, right?" she said, poking him in the arm. "You called the town crazy, which is exactly what you all are if you think that Liam and I are seeing one another."

"Does that mean we're breaking up now? Love, I could've used a little bit more warning," Liam said, placing her drink down on the bar and pouting his lower lip momentarily. He laughed when he noticed Emma rolling her eyes. "You know I'm only teasing you."

"I know you are," Emma sighed, leaning forward and resting her head on the bar top. "But that doesn't stop the rest of the town for making crazy assumptions. Would you please just tell them all so that the silly rumors stop?"

Killian's eyes flitted between Emma and Liam a few moments. He wasn't sure what exactly was going on. Were they having a couples spat or did Liam really have a big secret that he wasn't telling anyone? Was Emma actually available for someone other than Liam to spend time with? These were significant questions that he desperately wanted an answer to, now he just needed to figure out how to get them.

"You know why we haven't made any big announcements," Liam replied, shaking his head as he scrubbed at a nonexistent spot on a piece of glassware he had picked up from behind the bar. "We aren't ready."

"I don't care that you two aren't ready yet. It's been what, almost a year?" Emma asked, narrowing her gaze and shaking her head. "You can't keep it a secret forever, and I don't want to keep being your cover story. I'd like to have a life of my own."

She tucked a stray strand of her hair behind her ear and glanced at Killian out of the corner of her eye. As longa s the entire town thought she was dating Liam, there was no way that she could actually pursue her own feelings for the Jones' brother of her choosing, not that he had noticed her in such a light before. She was starting to wonder if he ever would look at her the way that she had read about in the romance novels and seen in the movies that her mother insisted on introducing her to as she grew up.

"I know you would, and I'm sorry that you aren't able to, but I can't do anything without talking about it," Liam pleaded, half-frowning and half-smiling at her hoping that she would be willing to hold out just a little longer.

"Any chance you can have this conversation before the weekend is over?" Emma asked, downing the last of the drink in her cup and almost slamming the glass down on the bar.

"I can try," he replied. "What you're doing really means a lot to me, you know?"

"I know it does," she replied, pushing her stool away from the bar and taking a step or two away. "I've got some stuff I need to do around town. I'll talk to you both later."

She turned on her heel and made her way for the door. It wasn't so much that she had errands to run, it was just that she needed to get out of there. She could feel herself getting more and more frustrated by not being able to act on her feelings because of someone else's secrets, and she knew that if she didn't leave she'd do something she would regret. Liam would get things sorted out eventually, and everything would finally settle down, and she could live the life she wanted.

As Emma made her way out the door, Killian turned to look at his brother. Obviously, something was going on, and he was damned sure going to get to the bottom of it.

"What are you looking at?" Liam asked, furrowing his brow at Killian and removing the glass from where Emma had left it.

"What the bloody hell was all that about?" Killian replied.

Liam shook his head. "I can't talk about it right now, but I'll be able to tell you soon. Aye?"

Killian thought about it for a moment and nodded his head once. "Aye. Just promise me that you aren't going to hurt her."

"Hurt who?"

"Emma."

"What makes you think I'd ever do anything to hurt her?"

"Whatever secret you're keeping is killing her inside, so whenever you decide to finally tell people what exactly is going on, make sure it doesn't hurt her."

Liam scrunched up his face as he watched Killian slide off the bar stool and take a few steps toward the door. When he was about halfway across the bar, Liam finally found his voice again. "Why are you so worried about me hurting her?"

"Because I care about her," Killian replied, calling back as he made his way out of the bar.

. . . . . . . . .

Group Chat between Emma Swan, Liam Jones, and Killian Jones

Approximately 12:50 PM

LJ: Can you two come to the bar later tonight?

ES: It'll depend on what time. I'm on call tonight.

KJ: I suppose that could be arranged.

LJ: What time works best?

ES: I can swing by around 7:30

LJ: Killian does that work for you?

KJ: Aye. I'll be there.

ES: See you then.

LJ: Thank you both.

. . . . . . . . .

Liam's eyes kept flitting between the clock on the wall and the front door to The Rabbit Hole. 6:55 pm. They would be here any minute, and he could finally tell the truth. He glanced back over his shoulder at the door to the office. She was waiting on the other side for him, and all he wanted to do was shout it to the world how much he cared for her, and now he'd finally be able to do so.

"Deep breath, Jones. Once you tell Killian, you'll be able to share it with the world," he kept reminding himself.

Behind him, he heard the soft creak of his office door. He spun on his heels and saw a pretty blonde head standing in the doorway. He smiled and walked over towards his office, wrapping his arms around his waist and pulling her tight to his chest.

"How much longer do I have to stay in here?" she mumbled into his chest.

"Not much longer, I promise," he replied, kissing the top of her head.

"I really didn't need to come here at a special time to see you two getting sweet on each, Liam. You tell me that you two aren't together, but I come into the bar to see this. I don't need this tonight."

Killian's voice caught him by surprise and by the time Liam turned around to say something, he was already out the door. Liam carded a hand through his hair roughly and took off after his brother with a muttered apology to her in his wake.

"You've got to kidding me," Killian mumbled to himself as he paced back and forth in front of The Rabbit Hole. How could he have been so gullible with this whole thing? They had been lying to him, and the town for so long and now Liam wanted to talk about it after letting him walk in on the two of them. As he paced, he continued to curse under his breath.

"I thought sailors on talked like that on the ship," she said with a laugh coming up beside him.

"Swan?" he asked, furrowing his brow. Now he was baffled. "I thought you were inside."

"Killian," Liam said, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Can we go inside and talk?"

Killian looked between Emma and Liam, nodding his head once. "Aye. Someone needs to tell me what the bloody hell is going on here because none of it makes any sense at the current moment. If Emma is out here, who the hell were you hugging in there?

"just come inside," Liam pleaded. "I promise I will answer any questions you have once we're inside. Please?"

Killian turned to look at Emma, who shrugged and smiled at him. Thinking about it for the briefest of moments, he took a step towards the doors of the bar. "Let's get this over with then."

"Thank you for coming," Liam said, wrapping an arm around Emma's shoulders and squeezing her tightly for a moment before leading her toward the door.

"No problem. Is she really inside?" Emma asked with a laugh.

"Head on in and see for yourself," he replied.

With that being said, they quickly made their way into the building and standing on the other side of the bar was the same head of blonde hair that Killian had seen just moments before when he interrupted Liam's embrace. That indeed confirmed that it couldn't be Emma. There was no way for her to be two places at once.

Hearing the shuffling of feet coming into the bar, she turned slowly to face the trio as they made their way inside. Her smile was bright, and the smile on Liam's face appeared to match it, but that did nothing to sway the uneasy feeling that Killian still felt about the whole situation.

He cautioned a glance at Emma out of the corner of his eye and noticed a similar smile on her face as well. It appeared as though there was an inside joke going on that he hadn't been privy to hearing about before this planned upon meeting. Part of him was frustrated at this, but at the same time, he was just really curious as to what was going on with this whole thing.

Taking a seat at the bar, he continued to stare at the blonde behind the bar as Liam walked up to her and placed a kiss on her cheek. Apparently, this woman was of some importance, and that must have meant that all the crazy rumors flooding around the town weren't true after all. He glanced over at Emma, who had taken up the stool beside him and smiled softly. He couldn't believe how big of an ass he had been about the entire thing.

"Emma, Killian, there's someone I'd like you to meet," Liam announced, slipping his arm around the blonde woman's waist and pulling her close to his side. "This is my girlfriend, Elsa. Elsa, I'd like you to meet my little brother, Killian, and my best friend in the entire world, Emma Swan."

Elsa reached out a hand to Killian first. "It's so nice to finally meet you. I've heard so many stories about you and Liam while you were growing up."

Killian shook her hand and smiled. "It's nice to meet you as well. I haven't heard anything about you." he directed his glare to his brother and narrowed his eyes with a smirk.

"That would be my fault actually," Elsa said, nervously tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "I asked Liam if we could keep our relationship a secret for a while. Although, I never expected it to be almost a year. Things were just going so smoothly, and I didn't want to ruin it by adding any additional stressors to the situation."

"That's quite alright, and even though it may be your fault, I'm going to continue to blame my brother because that's what brothers do," Killian replied, flashing a smile at Liam before turning to face Emma. "So you knew about all of this?"

Emma nodded her head slowly. "I actually introduced them a while back. I knew the kind of girl that Liam liked, and it just so happened that Elsa was the perfect fit for him."

"And I'll be eternally in your debt for introducing us," Liam chimed in, smiling in her general direction. He leaned down and kissed the top of Elsa's head before resting the side of his head against hers.

"I'll cash in on that debt someday," Emma replied with a smirk. "I'm just happy it all worked out for the two of you."

"Me too," Elsa hummed. "We need to catch up though, Swan. I've got lots of secrets to fill you in on about this one over here."

"Oh really?" Emma said excitedly, quirking her head to the side and smiling brightly. "Dinner at Granny's later this week to dish it all out?"

Elsa nodded, and the two burst into a fit of laughter. Both Killian and Liam exchanged a glance and sighed. Neither of them was sure what to expect, especially now that it seemed Elsa was officially added to their little group of friends for the foreseeable future.

"I think we need to have a toast," Liam said, pulling his arm back from around Elsa and making his way over to the wine chest. He looked around for a brief moment before selecting an older bottle of Prosecco. Placing the container on the bar, Liam slid it down the length until Emma reached out and stopped it before it slipped past the three of them. He rummaged around for four clean glasses under the bar before returning to his friends.

"I'll do the honor," Killian said, taking the bottle in his hand and using the back of his hook, he pushed the cork out of the end of the container. It fizzed for a brief moment before Liam had taken it away from Killian and started pouring it into the glasses.

He handed each of them a glass and then raised his to the center of their little circle. "Here's to new adventures with friends, new and old, and to new experiences."

"Here, here!" they echoed, clinking their glasses together and then lifting the glasses to their lips and dowing their drinks.

Tonight would be the first of many adventures spent together, gathered around the bar at The Rabbit Hole and enjoying one another's company.

. . . . . . . . . .

The evening was well behind them, and Emma glanced down at the clock on her phone, noticing just how late the hour had gotten. She was expected to be at the station bright and early the next morning.

"I hate to cut this evening short," she said, pushing back away from the bar and getting down of the stool, "but I have to be up rather early tomorrow morning to help protect the town from danger. I had so much fun, and we need to do it again soon."

"I'll walk you out, Swan," Killian said, jumping down of the stool and walking over to her side, offering his arm as he led her to the door.

Liam laughed and shook his head. "Have a good evening, both of you. I'll talk to you in the morning."

Well, wishes and good nights were bid, and Emma and Killian made their way towards the door. Liam and Elsa stood behind the bar and watched them go, each with a smile upon their faces. Once the two were outside the door, Elsa turned to look at Liam and furrowed her brow.

"Why were you laughing when Killian offered to walk her out?" she asked.

"If my predictions are correct, you'll hear about it in a little less than an hour," Liam replied.

She looked at him and furrowed her brow once again and pursed her lips briefly before shrugging her shoulders and leaning into him.

. . . . . . . . .

"Thanks for walking me out," Emma said, removing her arm from Killian's as she turned to face him before saying good night.

"You're welcome. I wanted to apologize for my joking around about you and Liam," he admitted, carding his hand through his hair. "I was a jealous idiot about the whole thing."

Replaying the words he had just said in her head, Emma cocked her head to the side. "Why were you a jealous idiot? Just a regular one would have done."

"Because I thought you were dating my brother, and I had missed my chance to be with you," he said, lowering his eyes to match hers. "Emma, I've been in love with you since Liam first brought you home for a play date."

"It's about damn time you admitted that," Emma replied, wrapping her arms around his neck and crashing her lips into his. She smiled when she felt his arms wrap around her waist, pulling her close to him.

After a few moments, they slowly pulled back from one another, only to rest their foreheads against each other. Basking in the silence, they each took a few deep breaths.

"You knew how I felt about you?" he whispered.

She nodded her head and tipped it back. "But you were so convinced that I was dating Liam that I knew you'd never believe me if I told you which Jones boy I was actually after the attention of."

"I really am an idiot sometimes, Swan," Killian replied.

"Yes you are," she answered, "but I wouldn't have you any other way."