"What do you suppose that she is like?"
"Huh? Sorry, what?" Emma said, quickly snapping out of it. She had been a little lost in thoughts for a moment.
"Lilith," Regina clarified. "What do you think she's like?"
"Well…." Emma pulled the coat a little tighter around herself. "I can't say for sure, but I hope that she's nice."
"Sí," Regina nodded. "She better be. Otherwise we're out of there. Right?"
"Right," Emma confirmed, once again happy to be included in the sentence.
Three days had gone by since the strange and slightly tense meeting with Cora and Malaina, and Regina had been a bit more forthcoming. She had been upset about Malaina having a daughter who came in the apartment. After coming back to the hotel, Regina had spoken a lot about how hurt she felt about that. How much it felt like Cora had been trying to replace her. Even though it hadn't been Cora's intention. They had stayed up half the night and talked about it. At three o'clock, Emma had called the reception and had ordered a tub of pistachio ice cream for them. Well, mostly for Regina. She was the one who was upset. She was the one who needed the ice cream the most. And when the ice cream had arrived, Regina had actually smiled at Emma and her voice had been all soft when she said: 'thank you. That was sweet'. It had fueled Emma's hope for the future once again. Regina did not hate her. That much was obvious. She wasn't angry nor did she hate Emma's guts. She was simply hesitant about fully letting Emma in, and Emma understood that. She recognized that this wasn't Regina punishing her. It was Regina taking a step back and giving Emma the chance to gain her trust again.
They weren't in that dangerously dark place they had been in when Regina came back to the hotel. They weren't on the brink of breaking up. That wasn't where this was heading. It was a rough patch, but Emma fully believed that they could work through it. That she could mend things like Regina was allowing her to do. By not going home, by choosing to stay in New York, she too was willing to give this another shot.
And tonight they were on their way to meet 'the mysterious Lilith' as Regina had dubbed her. They were meeting in Cora and Malaina's apartment. Cora and Malaina would not be present for this meeting. Regina had requested that. She wanted the chance to get a closer look at her 'stepsister' without anyone else interfering. At least not Cora and Malaina. She had asked Emma to come with her. Another thing Emma was absolutely fucking thrilled about. Regina was still leaning on her in difficult situations. Regina had stayed up with her half the night and just talked. It had been almost like in the good old days before Emma fucked up.
Things could go back to normal. Emma was sure of that.
"Oh, there's an Uber," Regina said, once again pulling Emma out of her thoughts.
"Oh yeah!" Emma quickly raised an arm in the hope to make the Uber come their way. And she was in luck. Soon the Uber stopped right by them.
"I don't know how you do it," Regina muttered as Emma opened the car door for her.
"Do what?" Emma asked. Immediately concerned that she fucked up again.
"Summon an Uber just like that," Regina answered and gave a small chuckle. "Must be some sort of magical ability you have."
"Oh," Emma chuckled too. "Maybe it is. But hey, that's not the worst magical ability to have, is it?"
"It sure isn't," Regina agreed, huffing slightly as she positioned herself on the backseat. "Oh, dios, I can barely fit inside a car anymore!"
"I think you might be exaggerating a little bit," Emma said with another soft chuckle as she elegantly positioned Regina's crutches, so they weren't poking at anything or sticking up in a way that disturbed the driver.
"Give it another month or two, and you might have to hire a private jet to transport me around," Regina said glumly, leaning forward and giving the driver the address.
"You got it," the driver said cheerfully.
Off they went, but Regina kept shifting and couldn't seem to get comfortable no matter how she positioned herself. She winced and clenched her jaw and was very clearly uncomfortable.
"Is there anything I can do?" Emma asked quietly.
"I don't know, maybe," Regina said strained. "There's a spot on my back that's really killing me today. It's just on my lower back. Do you think you can reach it?"
"I can try," Emma said and forced the smile back. Smiling right now would be entirely inappropriate. But she was secretly very, very happy that Regina was asking for her help!
"That's all I'm asking," Regina groaned, shifting so she was leaning forward slightly.
"Lemme give it a shot," Emma said, wedging her hand in between the backseat and Regina. She managed to wiggle her hand down to Regina's lower back and then angled it in a way, so she was pressing it into Regina's lower back. "Just there?"
"Ouch!"
"Oh god, I'm sorry!" Emma exclaimed, quickly pulling her hand back.
"No, no, no," Regina said quickly. "It's good. You found the place. Please do it again. It helped!"
"Okay…" Emma felt very doubtful about it, but she nevertheless pressed her fingers against the spot on Regina's lower back again.
Regina muttered 'ouch' again, but at the same time she shifted so her back was pressing against Emma's fingers.
"Is it helping?" Emma asked and wished that they hadn't been in an Uber. Had Regina been sitting in a chair or on the bed, it would have been a little easier to find the tender spot.
"Sí, it is," Regina said. "Thanks."
"You're welcome." Emma continued the slightly awkward type of message while silently acknowledging that this was the closest, she had been to Regina ever since messing up.
"I think that's enough," Regina said after a moment. "I don't want to crush your hand or anything."
"You're not," Emma said but nonetheless removed her hand on Regina's request. "Are you really sure it did any good?"
"Sí. I think it's less tender now," Regina replied and adjusted so she was leaning back against the car seat again. "Yes. Definitely less tender."
"Awesome," Emma smiled. "Glad to have helped."
Regina gave a little smile in return. Then frowned slightly. "I wonder how everything will go today."
"Are you nervous?" Emma guessed.
"Maybe a little," Regina shrugged slightly, hands drifting to her belly and cradling it gently. "I was not prepared to get a 'stepsister' or whatever the hell I'm supposed to call her. Obviously, I know that she isn't, but since her mom and Cora is…." She gestured vaguely with her free hand. "I'm guessing she'll be around a lot, and it would be good if we could get along."
"And why wouldn't you?" Emma asked softly.
Regina shrugged again. "Maybe she won't like me."
Emma scoffed. "That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard. You're awesome. If she doesn't like you, she's the one with the problem and not you."
That had Regina smiling slightly again. But then she grew serious. "Cora and Malaina has been together for a long time. And I haven't been around, but Lilith have. What have they told her? What reason have they given her for my absence? I assume she knows about my existence. What if they have told her that I disapprove or-"
"They haven't," Emma firmly interrupted and spontaneously reached out and took Regina's free hand. "They HAVEN'T. That's the silliest thing I've ever heard. I promise you, Lilith isn't gonna think anything bad about you. Everything is gonna be fine, I know it will."
"You're very reassuring." It was said entirely without sarcasm. Regina clearly appreciated Emma's attempts at soothing her. "I don't know why I'm so anxious about this," she continued. "I think I'm more anxious about this than I was about meeting Cora and Malaina. Isn't that ridiculous?"
"No," Emma said softly. "No, I don't think it is. I think it's pretty understandable, actually."
"It hurts," Regina said plainly, and for a moment Emma foolishly thought that Regina meant that she was in physical pain. But then Regina continued: "knowing that she's been on the sideline all along while I wasn't allowed because Cora was so busy hushing the whole thing up. I think that really sucks. And it still feels like she was replacing me with another daughter."
Emma didn't say anything. Just squeezed Regina's hand gently to show her that she was there. She fully understood why Regina felt shoved aside and replaced. She hoped that the mysterious Lilith would turn out to be nice. And more importantly, that she didn't have some sort of wrong opinion of Regina.
"I'm just rambling," Regina said and clearly tried to chuckle. "Just ignore me." With that, she gently withdrew her hand from Emma's grasp and let that settle on her belly as well.
Emma wasn't planning on ignoring her. But she was planning on respecting Regina's decision not to talk about this anymore. "Hey, I was wondering," she said instead. "Maybe we could hit Starbucks on the way home? Have some hot chocolate and a slice of that chocolate pie you talked about?"
"Oh, yes!" Regina's eyes gleamed with excitement and joy. "I'd like that very much!"
"Great. It's da- deal, then," Emma said and winced. She had almost said 'date' instead of 'deal'. Oops. But it was so easy to forget how things currently were when Regina was communicating so openly and acting like she had before Emma fucked up. This was good, but Emma knew that she still should proceed with caution. Things didn't just fix themselves in a manner of days. That was important to remember.
"I can't wait," Regina said, sounding like she meant it. "I'm so hungry."
Emma chuckled warmly, because honestly, when wasn't Regina hungry?
Regina laughed with her, and god it felt so good to sit and laugh together. Just like they always did.
"How long before we're there?" Regina asked quietly. "I think Blueberry is using my bladder as a squeeze toy. Again."
"We're only a few minutes away now," Emma replied.
"Thank god. This is starting to feel like torture," Regina said simply and shifted again. "Why is growing a tiny person such hard work?"
"I have no idea," Emma said and tried not to melt at the way Regina had said 'tiny person'. That was the sweetest thing ever!
Emma's prediction was correct. They were indeed there a few minutes later. As soon as they had thanked and paid the Uber driver, Regina declared that she couldn't possibly wait another moment.
"Do you think everything will fall apart if we're a couple of minutes late?" she asked Emma and glanced towards the nearby café. "I really need to go…"
"Then go," Emma urged her. "Nobody will mind if we're a little late. And if they do, well, I'll be happy to tell them all about the hardships of pregnancy…"
Regina chuckled. "I'd like to see that. I'll be right back." And with that, she stalked off into the café. To borrow the bathroom.
Emma waited outside. Once again thinking about how utterly normal this was. Well not the meeting-Cora's-secret-girlfriends-daughter thing, but the rest of it. The conversation, their jokes, THAT was all so very normal. Emma could live with sleeping in the spare-bed if this was what she got in return. Regina talking. Regina smiling. Regina laughing. Regina not rejecting her touches and not immediately yanking her hand away.
Regina's forgiveness was something she had to earn, and it felt as though she was well on the way to do just that. But she wasn't being cocky. She was simply being optimistic.
About five minutes later, Regina came out of the café and apologized for having taken so long. "I accidentally looked a little too long at a chocolate chip cookie and ended up arguing with myself about whether I should buy it or not." She chuckled exasperated and shook her head. "I can clearly only think with my stomach today."
"Baby is hungry," Emma said warmly and resisted the urge to reach out and touch Regina's bump. She was yet to be allowed to do that, and she wasn't about to take a silly risk just because she couldn't resist.
"Baby is always hungry," Regina rolled her eyes. She looked back at the café. "I should go back and get that chocolate chip cookie…."
Emma couldn't hold a chuckle back.
"No," Regina said firmly. "No. ¡No, absolutamente no! We're going to Starbucks later. I can have cake then. End of story."
"The struggle is real," Emma quipped.
Regina smiled. "Sí. La lucha es muy real. Anyway, let's go and meet my 'stepsister'."
"No cookie?" Emma asked. Just to check. She wanted to be sure. And if Regina really did want the cookie, she would be more than happy to dash back to the café and buy the cookie for Regina.
"No cookie," Regina said firmly. "Come on. Let's get going." She positioned her crutches and began limping towards the building where Cora and Malaina resided.
In the elevator, both of them waited in silence as the elevator slowly brought them up to the fifth floor. The only thing breaking the silence was Regina's rumbling stomach.
Emma frowned. "Didn't you get enough breakfast?"
Regina shrugged. "I'll never get enough food. If I was to eat until full, I would never be doing anything except eating."
"Oh," Emma chuckled a little. "Maybe we should order two pies instead of one when we get to Starbucks?"
She had meant it as a joke, but Regina pursed her lips slightly. "Te diré algo, puede que no sea una mala idea ..."
Regina was all about food today. Well. Emma would be happy to buy Regina as many pies as she wanted.
The elevator doors opened, and Emma followed Regina out in the hallway.
Regina straightened her posture. And winced slightly in the process. "Okay," she said, lifting her chin. "Let's do this thing."
"It'll be fine," Emma softly promised. "And if not, I'll kick her ass,"
Regina laughed. "I believe that. You can be quite the angry bull when you want to."
"Says the woman who threatened Robin with a beer bottle."
Regina shrugged. "I thought he was going to punch me or something."
Emma's jaw clenched. "If he had done that, I would have ripped off his balls and shoved them down his throat!"
Regina laughed again. "Dios mio, Emma! Don't make me sympathize with Robin. That sounds absolutely terrible. And for whatever reason, I don't doubt that you would be capable of doing that."
"Anything for you," Emma said simply.
Regina's smile became a bit more thoughtful. A tiny wrinkle appeared between her eyebrows. She tugged a lock of hair behind her ear.
Emma didn't ask what she was thinking about. And she was definitely not thinking about how badly she wanted to kiss Regina. She held back a scoff. Who was she kidding, of COURSE she was thinking about wanting to kiss Regina. She hadn't thought of much else since their argument. She had naively imagined how a kiss would solve everything. How she would take Regina in her arms and kiss her and poof, everything would be back to normal. She knew it wouldn't, though. She wasn't that stupid. But it was an advanced form of torture, to long for something you couldn't have. Not unlike the way she had been feeling when she first met Regina and stupidly convinced herself that Regina was 'too young'. Pff. THAT had definitely been stupid. Regina had proved that when she kissed Emma in the swimming pool that day…
Oh god, the swimming pool. Emma's flashed with the memories of Regina suddenly-
A sharp sound penetrated Emma's lovely memory of her first kiss with Regina. It was the sound of Regina knocking on Malaina Drake's apartment door. When Regina looked at her over her shoulder, Emma was quick to smile. And give the impression that she definitely had not gotten lost in memories. She had barely gotten the chance to collect herself before the door was opened. By Cora. She was in a long moss green tunic and a pair of grey leggings. Her hair was down and her makeup light, and Regina's jaw dropped.
Emma understood why. Cora Mills was basically the queen of tidy suits and buns so tight it practically gave her a facelift, and yet here she was, wearing a tunic and leggings and with her hair down. Casual clothing. It was hard to imagine that this was the same woman as the one Emma had met at Henry's.
"Regina," Cora greeted and flashed Regina a hesitant smile.
"Hola," Regina said slightly stiffly.
"Come on in," Cora said, voice slightly tight (nervous again?) "Lily hasn't arrived yet, but she should be right here."
"Alright," Regina elegantly hobbled over the threshold.
Emma trailed behind her and smiled as she helped Regina out of the coat. Regina was wearing her dress with the large bow just above the waist and the skirt that fanned out. She had worn that dress when they went to Granny's. They had danced a lot that night. It had been a wonderful evening. Emma hoped there would be other nights like that.
Once Regina's coat was hanging on the coat rack, Emma took off her own coat. She was not wearing her battle dress tonight. Instead she had chosen a pair of jeans and one of her usual white tanktops. She had considered it for a while and had reached the conclusion that she did not need to pull out the big stops when meeting Malaina's daughter. So she had gone for a simpler outfit.
But perhaps that 'simple' outfit wasn't so simple when it came to it. It only lasted a split second, but Emma was certain she saw Regina's eyes roam up and down her body. Just for a moment. But it was enough. Warm spread through Emma's body from head to toe. Regina had not looked at her like that since before….
If this wasn't hope, Emma didn't know what was.
Regina cleared her throat and pushed a lock of hair behind her ear. "I think I need to sit down. My back hurts."
"Yes, of course," Emma said, quickly snapping out of it. She tried shaking the feeling as she followed Regina into the living room where Cora and Malaina were sitting in the couch. They were holding hands. But only until they spotted Regina and Emma coming into the living room.
"Hello again," Malaina said and flashed them a smile.
"Hola," Regina greeted her and gave a little nod.
"Lily should be here in a moment. I am sorry she's running late."
"It's alright. I'm not in a hurry," Regina said, limping over to the nearest chair and sitting down.
"Is there anything you'd like?" Malaina offered. "Some tea or…"
"No, I'm good," Regina said formally, clearly still a bit on the fence about Malaina. "Alright. But just say the word."
"I will," Regina assured. She winced slightly as she re-adjusted in the chair.
"Is… everything alright?" Cora asked carefully.
"Sí," Regina said. "I'm fine. Just backache."
"Ah," Cora nodded. "Is the baby very active?"
"Only all the time," Regina sighed. "Sometimes I can't sleep because of it."
"Oh yes, I remember that," Cora said, fidgeting slightly with her hands in her lap. "I had terrible backaches too when I was pregnant."
"Mmm. Perhaps it runs in the family," Regina quipped.
Cora chuckled (and surprised the hell out of Emma by doing so!) "yes, perhaps it does. Has it been an…. An easy pregnancy until now?"
"Well…." Regina turned her head and glanced at Emma. "I was pretty nauseous, wasn't I?"
"You were," Emma confirmed.
"But apart from that, things has been pretty breezy," Regina continued. "Lots of activity. To be honest, I'm starting to get a bit tired of being pregnant. Which is pretty bad because I still have some way to go."
"When you first reach week 30, the last bit of time will fly by," Cora said, flashing Regina a little smile.
"I hope you're right," Regina leaned back on the chair and winced again.
"Are you sure you're okay?" Emma asked quietly.
She was met by a smile. "Sí. It's just a bit of Braxton Hicks."
"Okay." Emma bit back her concern and reminded herself that Braxton Hicks was not dangerous. It was normal. Totally normal. Nothing at all to be worried about.
A sort of awkward silence fell between them. Cora looked like she wanted to say a lot, but didn't know how to say it. Malaina was focused on Cora. She had taken her hand again, Emma noticed.
Regina was absentmindedly rubbing her belly. Then 'chasing' something with the tip of her finger. Or rather chasing someone. Blueberry. Emma wondered if Regina had found a tiny little foot. Or perhaps a hand. She was itching to ask. Or better still, touch. Just once. Sometimes she wondered what was harder. Not being able to kiss Regina… Or not being able to touch her belly. Both things had been so incredibly important to her, and although Regina had started to slowly open up again, Emma still was too afraid to ask about the baby. What Regina had said that night about the baby. How she couldn't have a baby with someone she didn't trust. Did she still feel like that?
Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard the front door open. Then a female voice called: "mom? You here?"
Malaina shot up immediately and disappeared into the hallway to greet her daughter. Emma clearly heard Lily ask: "are they here yet?"
Regina tilted her head slightly to the left.
"They're here," Malaina confirmed. "In the living room."
"Oh, shoot, I'm sorry I'm running late," Lily said. There was a moment of silence. Then she chuckled. "You look a bit peaky, mom."
Malaina's answer to that drowned as Lily came striding into the living room. She greeted Cora with a comfortable familiarity that Emma knew rubbed Regina the wrong way. Then Lily turned to them.
"Hi," she said, smiling. "I'm Lily."
"Hello," Regina said a tad stiffly.
"Hi," Emma echoed Lily's greeting while taking a closer look at Malaina's daughter. Her first impression of Lily was that she just as well could have been Regina's biological sister. They looked very alike with their dark hair and brown eyes. Lily was wearing jeans and a grey sweatshirt, and her hair had been piled up on her head in a bun. She was still smiling as she came over to Regina and extended her hand out towards her.
Regina grabbed one of her crutches and half-stood from the chair as she shook Lily's hand once.
"Oh. Damn," Lily said, chuckling slightly. "You really ARE pregnant. Like…. Actually pregnant."
Emma frowned. Exactly what was that supposed to mean?
"Sí," Regina said stiffly. "I am really pregnant."
Okay, this was so NOT a good beginning, Emma thought. Lily's comment- whether it was meant as a joke or just genuine surprise- had caused Regina to scowl slightly and her dark eyes were flickering in that dangerous matter Emma had been exposed to once. Making a pregnant woman angry was not the smartest idea.
Cora opened her mouth to say something, but Malaina put a hand on her arm. Then she cleared her throat and said: "well, I believe this is our cue to leave, Cora." She stood from the couch, but Cora seemed reluctant to follow.
"Cora," Malaina said softly. "Come on. Let's go for a walk. Let our daughters get to know each other."
Cora didn't seem overly interested in leaving, but she still followed Malaina into the hallway. It couldn't have been much longer than ten seconds before she poked her head back inside the living room. Looking at Regina, she asked: "will you… Will you still be here when we get back?"
"Sí," Regina replied. "I think so."
"Good." Was all Cora said. But she smiled. Then she and Malaina left the apartment. Now it was just Emma, Regina and Lily left.
Lily unceremoniously sat down on the couch. She looked questioningly at Regina. Then winced. "Oh, shit. What I said before- I didn't mean anything by it. I was honestly just surprised."
"It's alright," Regina said graciously, and Emma thought to herself that the nickname La Reina was very fitting for her.
"Soooo," Lily shifted and elegantly crossed her ankles. "How far along are you in the, uhh…. Baby-making process?"
One of Regina's eyebrows rose. "The 'baby-making process' is pretty much over already."
Emma honestly didn't know whether to laugh or cringe.
Lily made a face. "Shit. Sorry. Didn't mean it like that."
"I'm twenty five weeks along."
"And how many months is that?" Lily frowned. "Sorry, I don't really speak… baby language."
"It's six months. And honestly, I don't speak baby-language either. But I do my best."
Lily turned her attention to Emma. "You're Emma…. Swan, right?"
"Yep, that's right. I'm Regina's…." Emma's mouth snapped shut. Exactly what was she supposed to say now? What was she allowed to call herself?
"Girlfriend," Regina finished the sentence without batting an eye. "Emma is my girlfriend."
Emma's shoulders settled in their normal position. Oh, what a wonderful word that was!
"Yeah, I know," Lily half-chuckled. "Cora's already told me about you."
"I see," Regina said tonelessly. "And she told you about my pregnancy too, apparently. I wonder if there's anything she hasn't told you."
"Yeah, she hasn't told me what happened to your foot," Lily said and glanced down at Regina's cast-incased foot.
"Oh," Regina followed her gaze. "The baby's father's wife pushed me down a flight of stairs."
"Holy…" Lily's eyes widened slightly. "What a bitch!"
Regina shrugged. "Sí, I guess you could say that. So, Lily- or do you prefer Lilith?"
"Lily's fine. Mom only ever calls me 'Lilith' when I'm trouble. Which is a lot, but that's beside the point."
Emma was sure she saw a little smile lurk in the corner of Regina's mouth.
"I was just wondering what Cora has told you about me," Regina continued. "I mean, has she given a reason as to why you and I haven't met until now?"
"Well, honestly…" Lily leaned forward slightly. "I think Cora has been both miserable and terrified."
"Terrified of what?" Regina sighed deeply and shook her head. "Me? That's ridiculous. I'm bisexual. And pregnant. Why should I judge her choices?"
"Why indeed," Lily flicked a lock of her dark hair behind her ear. "I happened to overhear a conversation between her and my mom once, and Cora rambled on about how terrified she was about you choosing your dad or whatever..."
"I chose my dad because Cora was an ice queen of an excuse for a mother," Regina said dryly. "It has nothing to do with her being gay. She needs to stop hiding behind that apology."
Emma silently agreed with that. Cora had to step up her game and properly realize how much she had screwed up when Regina was younger.
"It's a shitty thing," Lily said simply, flashing Regina a look of sympathy. "What they've done to you. My mom and yours. It isn't right."
"I believe Cora is the mastermind behind it," Regina said and rolled her eyes.
"Maybe, but my mom isn't totally innocent either," Lily scoffed. "I mean, she has been nagging your mom a few times to make her come clean to you, but apart from that, she's pretty useless around your mom…" Lily chuckled softly.
"Is she?" Regina raised an eyebrow. "Sorry, but I can't really imagine Cora making anyone useless in the good way."
That had Lily tilting her head. "Wow. She has really put you through the wringer, hasn't she?"
"Yes," Regina said simply. "In ways that makes it very hard to imagine having any kind of relationship with her in the future, but…" she cleared her throat and shifted slightly. "I'm giving it one last shot."
"I think that's pretty great," Lily said and smiled slightly at Regina. "If you want my opinion, the whole sneaking around thing is ridiculous. I've told mom that a million times. Hell, I've even been threatening to go to Spain and find you-" she chuckled. "I was so curious about you."
Regina chuckled too. "Well, I can assure you, I'm not that special."
"Disagree," Emma said quietly and made Regina smile a little.
"But of course mom begged me not to do that," Lily continued and rolled her eyes. "She gave me a whole lecture about it being Cora's decision when to tell you and what not. As I said, completely useless…"
"Are they in love?" Regina asked a bit out of blue. She even looked slightly surprised herself.
"Oh yeah," Lily snickered. "Absolutely. Totally. Sometimes maybe even a bit too much if you know what I mean…"
"I don't," Regina said and shrugged slightly. "I've never seen Cora be 'in love' with anyone."
"Oh," Lily's face fell slightly.
"Don't get me wrong, I'm happy for her," Regina said quickly. "And your mom seems like a nice person and all. But Cora has made things unnecessarily complicated when all she had to do was to sit me down for a talk. That would literally have been enough." She sighed. "Do you see them a lot?"
"Well, I live pretty close by, so yeah, I do," Lily replied and looked a bit uncomfortable.
"Una familia feliz," Regina muttered just like the last time.
"No," Lily said quickly. "I mean, yes, but not like that. Definitely not. I have never tried to replace you or anything. I get why it must feel like that, but seriously, I haven't. I'm the one who has been bashing them in the heads about you. Because I thought the way they handled things was screwed up."
Regina tilted her head slightly. "Well… I appreciate that. Thanks."
"You're welcome."
"So…." Regina leaned to the side, most likely to take some of the pressure off of her back and ended up nudging Emma in the process. "Oops. Sorry about that."
"It's alright," Emma said with a smile.
"How about your dad?" Regina continued. "Does he live nearby too?"
"I've no idea," Lily half-laughed. "Mom had me with a donor."
"Oh. Sí, that makes sense. I did have some trouble with fitting you into the picture."
"Yeah, no, mom wanted a kid, but she didn't want a husband."
"Right." Regina's voice grew tight again, and Emma spontaneously reached out and touched her arm because she could see that Regina was thinking about her own father who was back in Spain and had no idea of the drama that was transpiring in New York.
Lily had clearly noticed it too. Her face fell. "Sorry," she said. "That did so not come out the right way."
"It's fine," Regina sighed. "I just can't help but feel sorry for my dad. We're very close and I don't like to keep things from him. I think he deserves to know the truth too. But unfortunately, that's not up to me. Cora is the only one who can make that decision."
"Maybe she will?" Lily suggested. "Maybe she'll come to realize that if the world doesn't come to an end because you know the truth, the world won't come to an end if your dad knows it too?"
Regina gave a sort of half-snort. "Boy, Cora must be very different around you. Around here. I can tell that she is. Just the clothes she was wearing today… I don't think I've ever seen her look that casual."
"Must be a complete culture shock for you," Lily said sympathetically.
"It is," Regina nodded. "Definitely." She adjusted in the chair again. "So, what are you doing when you're not here?"
"I go to college," Lily replied. "So I'm basically pretending to be an adult while simultaneously going to bed too late and waking up too early and spending the day in a complete daze."
Emma laughed. Lily was quite funny, really. Had a great sense of humor. She hoped that Regina and Lily could learn to get along. Emma had a feeling that they could. Once the shock had worn off.
"What are you studying then?" Regina asked. She looked amused too.
"Art," Lily said, leaning back in the couch and flicking a lock of hair away from her face.
"Oh, I see. Planning on following in your mom's footsteps?"
"No," Lily chuckled. "Definitely not. The whole gallery thing worked out for her, but I've always found it to be a bit… dry. No, I'd rather be the one doing the artsy thing. I wanna be a ceramic artist."
"Really? That sounds great," Regina smiled genuinely at that. "Very interesting."
"Thank you. That's what I've been trying to tell my mom who's worried because it's 'not a steady choice of career' and bla, bla, bla…" Lily rolled her eyes. "What about you? You're a flamenco dancer, right?"
"I was," Regina replied. "Before Blueberry-" she rubbed her belly again. "Made it difficult. I also worked at a bar, but I can't really serve the customers with a broken ankle, so I guess I'm not really doing anything at the moment."
"Uhmm, you're literally creating life," Lily pointed out and nodded towards Regina's belly. "The last time I checked, that's a pretty important job. I can't wash my clothes without having to call my mom and ask her for advice on with detergents to use, and I still come home for dinner every Sunday, and meanwhile you're pregnant and having a baby and living a totally adult life. And you're only a year older than me."
It was clear to see that Regina appreciated that. She smiled as she said: "the whole baby thing wasn't planned, though. But I'm rolling with it." She laughed and so did Lily. It was quite the sisterly moment, really.
Emma thought to herself that this was interesting, hearing Regina interact with someone her age. Her voice became just a tad lighter. Her language less advanced. Regina truly became twenty years old when talking to someone her age, and Emma thought that that was a good thing. Sometimes it was easy to forget how young Regina was. She was always acting so maturely (that damned thirty five year old second persona), and had a lot of 'adult' responsibility. It was a joy to watch her laugh freely. Once again, she hoped that this wouldn't be the last time Regina hung out with Lily. She had a feeling that the two of them could develop a great almost-sisterly relationship over time.
"So, what's Spain like?" Lily asked curiously. "I've only been there once or twice as a kid. Where do you live? Madrid, right? What's your apartment like? I wanna know everything!"
Emma leaned back and listened as Regina went into great details when telling Lily all about Spain and her apartment and her gigs as a flamenco dancer.
Lily soaked all of it up. "Wow," she said. "I've seen never flamenco dancing before. I'd love to see that sometimes."
Regina turned to Emma. "Don't you have a recording on your phone?"
"One or two," Emma quipped as she wrestled her phone out of her pocket. She had more than one or two videos of Regina dancing. She opened her folder and scrolled back until she found what she was looking for. Not a video, but a photo. One of those she had transferred from her camera and onto her phone to use it for her lock screen. "Here she is in full costume," Emma said proudly as she turned the screen towards Lily so she could see the picture.
"Emma!" Regina protested.
"What, you look great," Emma said firmly. She wasn't nervous that she had overstepped. She could hear that Regina was pleased.
"Wow," Lily repeated, and Emma could only agree with that. In the picture, Regina was on stage with her arms gracefully raised above her head. She was wearing her red flamenco dress. The one with the tight bodice and dramatic, ruffled skirt. Her hair was slicked back, and the bun held together with a red rose, and her eye makeup completed the look. Plus, the look in her eyes in the picture was definitely one for the books. The look in Regina's eyes was one that oozed pride, faint amusement and… sexiness. There was no other way to describe it.
"Okay, but that is like… a really, really great picture of you," Lily said.
"Emma is a photographer," Regina said simply and flashed Emma a smile.
"But it's the motive that makes the picture," Emma said firmly. "Not how skilled you are with a camera…."
"That went well," Regina said as they walked down the street. "The thing with Cora is fucked up, but I like Lily. She seems very down to earth."
"She does," Emma agreed. "And it was my impression that she wanted to hang out with you again."
"I want to hang out with her too," Regina nodded. "We'll have to arrange that before we go home."
"Mmm," Emma smiled.
It was five minutes since they had parted ways with Lily and Cora and Malaina who had come home in the middle of Regina and Lily's talk. Perhaps Cora's presence was part of the reason why Regina had decided that it was time to take off, but she had shaken Cora's hand and smiled a little at Malaina. And when Cora hesitantly had asked her if she would be interested in coming back, Regina's answer had been: "sí, perhaps. I would like to talk some more with my new 'stepsister'". Lily had grinned at that, and the two of them had exchanged phone numbers with the promise of staying in touch.
"Lily is definitely an addition I'm happy about," Regina continued, carefully maneuvering her crutches around one of the puddles. "Cora and Malaina's relationship I support. The lies and sneaking around, not so much. But I choose to believe that she genuinely regrets that…"
"I'm sure she does," Emma said softly. Cora had to. Emma definitely was regretting her own part in this drama.
"I wish she would tell daddy, though," Regina sighed. "It's not right that he's the only one who doesn't know what's going on. Part of me wants to tell him, but that wouldn't be very nice to Cora…"
"You are honestly too good to be true," Emma blurted out. Regina owed Cora absolutely nothing and it would have made perfect sense if Regina chose to tell her father about everything. And yet she didn't. And yet she chose to protect Cora.
Regina scoffed. "I don't know about that. But it wouldn't be right of me to out Cora to my dad. That's a talk she has to initiate with him. And I hope that she will. Maybe I should talk to her about that. The next time I see her. But for now…" she abruptly stopped and looked up at Emma. Flashed her a hopeful smile. "Starbucks?"
Emma laughed and dared taking Regina's elbow and squeezing it gently. "You got it. Starbucks it is. Lead the way."
Regina did just that. And she did it while laughing…..
To Be Continued…