Chapter 15 A Step Towards Friendship
Emma was worried for the rest of the weekend. She didn't hear from Regina at all or see Henry. She had a feeling something happened Saturday afternoon, so when Monday came, she decided to stop by campus during Regina's lunch hour. Of course, thanks to the perks of the station being located at city hall, she was able to discreetly check Leopold's schedule in case Regina was meeting him for lunch. Luckily she found out he was having back to back meetings straight through the afternoon, and figured Regina wasn't expected to join him as usual. So she left the station and drove to Storybrooke Community College.
Just as she entered Regina's lecture hall, the students had already been dismissed and were exiting. As she carefully walked through them, she could see Regina sitting at her desk, talking to several students that were blocking her view. It wasn't until she came closer then they finally moved, and she froze right in front of her desk. Regina looked up at her in surprise, not saying a word as the last of the students exited the room and left them alone.
Her bottom lip was split, and bruised, and Emma clenched her fist, her shock turning to full blown rage. It looked as if he punched her in the mouth. She could see she had covered most of it with make up, but Emma could see right through it.
"Emma…" Regina whispered, her voice cutting through her frozen shock and she forced herself to speak.
"Do… Do you want to get coffee?" she asked, her voice shaking with so much anger, it absolutely killed her that she couldn't just end this now and confront the bastard. Regina nodded, her hands shook as she put her things away and grabbed the keys from the desk drawer. She stood, and just before she could walk past Emma, she stopped her, putting a hand on her forearm and looking into her dark apprehensive eyes.
Her gaze fell to her lips, and she gently brought a hand up between them to cup her chin and raise it so she could look at the wound. She could feel her own body trembling with the overwhelming emotions of anger and despair surging through her.
"Emma… Don't… Let's just go have coffee," she pleaded, her voice shaking and Emma could hear the threatening sound of a sob she was fighting to keep in. She released her chin, and took a step back.
"Ok," she nodded, and then let her lead her out of the classroom. Regina locked the door and they walked to the campus cafe in silence. Emma could feel how nervous she was, and she was completely surprised that this was the same woman that had fought so hard for Henry, and was now shaking beside her and radiating with anxiety.
The cafe was busy, and the back table that Regina usually chose was occupied. So they took their coffee and sandwiches and sat at a table away from the door. Regina was extremely uncomfortable without being able to see who was walking in and out. Her eyes were wandering, and Emma could see a hint of fear in them.
"Do you want to go back to your room?" Emma asked, sipping her coffee.
"That's not necessary," she shook her head and took a careful bite of her sandwich. Emma could see the subtle pained expression on her face when the sandwich irritated her wounded lip. Emma frowned, her anger raising once more and she had to force herself to stay calm. She knew Leopold had done something when he had shown up at the loft, and now here Regina was with the evidence right on her face. She wanted to punch him in the mouth!
"What did you say to Henry?" Regina suddenly asked, distracting her from her dark thoughts.
"What?" she asked, completely missing the question.
"Henry… What did you say to him?" Regina asked. "He's starting to open up to me again. We haven't really talked, but he's not ignoring me anymore."
Emma smiled, proud that Henry was finally starting to talk to her again. Maybe with time, he could even start to forgive her, and realize she wasn't some evil queen from a fairytale book, that she was just his mother.
"I guess I made him realize you're still his mom, and not just some fairytale character in a book."
"Well, thank you," she said with a small subtle smile.
"Can I ask you something?" she asked. "If you're uncomfortable, you don't have to answer."
Regina nodded, sipping her coffee and putting it down.
"Why did you take so long to tell him he was adopted?"
Regina frowned and Emma could feel her cheeks heating up. It was such a loaded question, but she couldn't help but wonder why Regina never told Henry the truth.
"I…" she trailed off, as if she were having trouble explaining her reasons, and then in a quick second, her eyes went from uncertainty to guarded, almost hostile. "I don't need to explain myself to you," she hissed, surprising Emma on how quick she became defensive.
"You're right," she replied, keeping her tone calm so Regina's anger didn't escalate. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked in the first place."
Regina just looked at her, the hostility in her eyes dying as she regarded her with a look of uncertainty.
"Regina?" Emma continued. "I wasn't trying to question you or anything. I was just curious."
"Of course," she sighed. "I apologize for my rudeness."
"It's ok," she said carefully, wondering if Regina was usually this defensive, or if it was because she had asked such a sensitive question.
"No," she sighed, her voice full of remorse. "It's not ok. I shouldn't have snapped. I'm sorry."
Emma smiled, appreciating the apology, but she was starting to see the emotional damage that came with living in an abusive marriage. She couldn't trust easily, and Emma could tell there was a deep anger inside of her that tended to come out from time to time. She wondered where it stemmed from. She was emotionally closed off and defensive, and so far Emma had only seen glimpses of the woman behind all the walls.
"Perhaps one day I could answer your question," she said softly, giving her a small hesitant smile.
Something in Emma warmed at those words because it was a promise that Regina wanted to trust her. She wanted to be friends, and it would take work to get there. Growing up in foster care, Emma more than understood how hard it was to trust people. She understood how easy it was to just push them away before they could get too close. She had a feeling Regina was trying not to push her away and couldn't help but lash out when she got too scared.
"Well until then, let's get to know each other a little better," she said, deviating from the adoption topic. She internally kicked herself. It was too soon to be asking questions like that. "Why don't you ask me something? Anything?"
Regina scoffed, sipping her coffee and putting it down. "This isn't a date."
Emma felt herself blush at the word date. In another world, maybe she would have considered dating Regina. After all, she was gorgeous, and brilliant, and underneath the hostility Emma knew she had a good heart. She was just afraid of letting people in. If she wasn't married and stuck in an abusive relationship, she would have definitely asked her out by now. She wondered if the brunette was into women. She knew she had a boyfriend in high school before marrying Leopold and that was it.
"No," Emma agreed. "But it's a step towards friendship right? Come one, I know you're curious about my past."
Regina tilted her head, regarding her for a moment. Emma hoped she wouldn't ask anything too heavy, but even if she did, she would try her best to open up to her. She wanted to show her she trusted her enough to be honest.
"Where did you get the hideous yellow volkswagen?" she asked and Emma nearly choked on the bite of the sandwich she had just taken.
"That's what you want to know?" she asked.
Regina nodded.
"I… uh… stole it," she mumbled, embarrassed about how she acquired the old car.
"Speak up, Miss Swan," Regina chastised.
"I stole it!" she exclaimed in a hushed whisper so no one could hear them. Regina smirked and despite her embarrassment, she was glad to have put that glimmer of amusement in her eyes.
"Why am I not surprised," she stated smugly, taking a bite of her sandwich and then wincing from her injury. Emma frowned at that, her attention once again on the elephant in the room.
"Regina…" Her tone was serious this time. "We need to talk about that," she nodded towards her injured lip.
"There's nothing to talk about." Her gaze was fixated on her half eaten sandwich. She sounded detached suddenly, but Emma knew they couldn't just keep ignoring this. Part of Regina learning to trust Emma, was also learning to trust her with the domestic violence she was facing.
"Ok," she nodded, knowing better than to push her. "But when you're ready, you know you could trust me with this. I won't confront him. I won't do anything that will get you hurt. As much as I'd like to give him a taste of his own medicine and throw his ass in jail, I won't." Not yet at least.
Regina seemed to consider her words for a moment. She finally directed her gaze at her, looking at her with sudden fearful eyes. Emma was shocked at the amount of emotion she was showing her suddenly. The bell on the door rang and Regina immediately snapped her head around to try and see who walked in.
"Regina," she tried getting her attention. She noticed her hands started shaking again. "He's at the office."
"Right," she mumbled, turning back around and distracting herself by sipping her coffee. Her hands still shook as she set the cup down and Emma itched to reach out and calm them. She knew better than to touch her right now, especially when Regina barely trusted her.
"Hey, do you want to ask me another question?" she asked, hoping the distraction would calm her. Regina looked at her with a searching gaze, and for a moment Emma felt like she was seeing right through her. She suddenly felt a sense of vulnerability as dark eyes bore into her.
"Why are you trying so hard to be my friend?" she asked. "I understand part of it is for Henry… but I was terrible to you in the beginning. It can't just be about building trust for his sake, could it?"
Emma gave her a small assuring smile, not at all surprised at the question because there were times where she asked herself the exact same thing. Why was she trying so hard to earn Regina's trust? Especially when they had fought so hard to push the other away. The reason had to go beyond Henry, and even beyond the desire to help her.
"I guess I just see a part of myself in you," she softly admitted, her eyes downcasting a bit out of shyness.
"In what way?"
"Your fire…" She felt her cheeks grow warm at the admission. "You fight so hard for Henry. It was everything I ever dreamed of for him… and for myself growing up. To have someone love you so much they're afraid of losing you."
"You didn't have that growing up?"
"I was in foster care," Emma admitted. "I never found my parents or got adopted. When I gave up Henry, I was terrified of him ending up in the system, but the moment they told me they had found a family, I couldn't take his chance for happiness away. His best chance wasn't with me at the time, it was with you."
Regina's eyes shined at the heartfelt admission, and Emma realized in embarrassment just how much she had opened up to her without realizing it.
"I'm sorry," she chuckled, wiping her eyes and trying to hide the fact that her eyes had grown a bit teary. "I don't mean to dump all that on you."
"My mother was hard on me," she shared, surprising Emma at the admission. Regina was usually closed off and didn't normally open up, especially about anything that had to do with her past. She knew only bits and pieces of her childhood, from what she learned with Mary Margaret. "She held on to me too tightly. I worked so hard for her love and approval, and even now, I never got it. I think that's why I tend to hold on to Henry. I don't ever want him to feel what she made me feel, worthless."
"She doesn't know what she lost," Emma said, reaching out this time, sliding her hand across the table to squeeze hers. She was relieved when Regina didn't pull away. Instead, she squeezed back and gave her a small smile of her own
Regina was a bit overwhelmed since her lunch with Emma. She hadn't expected her to open up so much. Despite what she already knew from Sydney, it was heartbreaking listening to Emma admit that she never got adopted; that she never got to have a family, and had given up her own son so that he could have what she had dreamed of. She had trusted her enough to break down her walls for a minute and let her see the vulnerability in those green eyes. She didn't know what came over her to share a piece of her own childhood. Perhaps she was just starting to learn to trust her… She wasn't sure, but she knew Emma made her feel safe enough in that moment to confide in her.
She was working on dinner, standing by the island and chopping vegetables, when the sound of the doorbell interrupted her from her musings. She wasn't expecting anyone, so she put the knife down and went to go answer the door. She looked out the peephole to see Sheriff Graham standing there. She frowned in confusion, wondering why he was here as she opened the door.
"Good evening, Regina," he nodded in greeting. "Leopold asked me to stop by to discuss some important matters."
"Of course, come on in," she said, stepping aside and letting him into the foyer. "He's in his office." She shut the door behind him. "Could I offer you a drink?"
"No thank you," he said, and then before heading to the study, he stopped and regarded her for a moment.
"Do you know what this is about?" he asked. "He just told me to come see him and I was in the middle of patrol."
Regina scoffed. It was just like her husband to make everyone drop what they're doing for his own benefit.
"No, I don't. In fact he's been shut away in there since he came home."
"That can't mean anything good," he grumbled, and then his eyes swept over her. Not in a creepy perverted way, but in a way that made her bristle. He was checking for injuries. His eyes settled on her wounded lip. He was about to reach out and take her chin to get a better look but she immediately stepped back, her skin prickling from the thought of having him touch her, even if his intentions were out of concern.
"Sorry," he apologized, his hand falling to his side. "I can take a look at it if you like, maybe clean it?"
"No," she said a little too harshly. "Don't keep him waiting."
She left him standing in the foyer, not caring to see his reaction. She went into the guest bathroom standing in front of the mirror and holding on to the edge of the sink to calm her anger. She wasn't sure why her temper flared so quickly with him. Maybe it was the fact that he thinks he could just put his hands on her like she was just something he needed to fix every time he came over to the mansion. She looked at her reflection, glaring at the bruised woman staring back at her.
Her chin was bruised, a dark purple underneath her makeup. Her bottom lip was swollen still with an angry split down the middle. His ring had caught it, and she hoped it wouldn't leave another scar. All day, people kept looking at it. Her colleagues, her students, Graham, and even Henry. Emma was the only person whose eyes didn't linger on it too long, or made her feel like she was some kind of caged animal to be stared at. Emma was concerned, she was angry, but she didn't look at her with pity like the others. Since she had confronted her about the abuse, she's never once looked at her with pity.
She reapplied some makeup, trying to cover it up as much as she could. It was useless when its dark edges peeked through already, but she just felt a bit more safe as if applying a mask over her face so no one could see. Her make up became heavier over the years, somehow becoming a security blanket.
When she was satisfied with her work, she exited the bathroom and approached the study, curious as to what they were discussing. The door was opened just by a crack. She knew better, and she knew the risks of getting caught, but she was curious and couldn't stop herself from taking off her heels and silently approaching the door. She stayed as still as possible and quietly listened to their slightly muffled voices through the cracked open door.
To her surprise, they were discussing Emma Swan.
"You hired an ex-convict," Leopold said, his tone calm but she could hear the hidden anger in his tone. "Don't you do background checks?"
"Her records were sealed pretty tight," Graham said and she could hear the sounds of shuffling papers. Was he looking through the file Sydney procured? "She did tell me she was in prison for theft and that she was framed."
"And you hired her anyway?"
"She has experience, which is more than I can say for the applicants you send my way. I need a deputy. I can't run the station alone just because you don't want anyone finding out about…"
"Fire her," Leopold cut him off.
"What!?"
"Fire her and then I'll find someone adequate for the job."
"And by adequate you mean someone who will cover up your abuse to Regina?" he snapped angrily and Regina was surprised he had it in him. "That's what this is about isn't it? Emma is suspicious and you're trying to get rid of her."
"I'm only thinking about the safety of my people," he denied. "I can't have an ex-convict in the sheriff's station. How will that look if this information gets out? Fire her or I'll personally do it myself."
Regina didn't stick around any longer. She rushed back into the guest bathroom before Graham could find her outside eavesdropping on their conversation. She needed to warn Emma. Her husband had no right to fire her based on her background, especially if her records had been sealed.
She locked the door, and pulled her phone from her blazer pocket. She thought about calling her but it was too risky so she settled for texting.
Emma? I hope I'm not disturbing you, but there's something urgent I need to warn you about.
She sent the text, watching the status turn to send. She hoped Emma didn't take too long to respond. She wasn't sure if she'll be able to get away long enough to text her later. Luckily the status of her text turned to Read and soon enough a new message appeared.
Of course you're not. What's so urgent? Should I be worried?
Graham is here talking with Leopold in his study and I was listening to their conversation. Sydney dug up files from when he wrote that article of you crashing the sign. Leopold knows that you were in jail. He's going to fire you because of it. Graham is refusing to go through with it, but he doesn't get a say with Leopold as his boss. The only reason he is making an issue out of this is because he knows you're onto him about the abuse. He's trying to get rid of you, and your history is his alibi.
Emma took a little longer to reply and Regina guessed she was probably reeling from the shock.
He can't do that! Can he?
No Emma! But here's what you can do… The town charter states that an election can be held by the citizens. He could only appoint a candidate. If you win, he has no say. Challenge him!
And if he dismisses me?!
He's having a meeting with the town committee tomorrow at noon. Challenge him in front of them and he won't have a choice but to go through with the election.
Regina? A text finally came through after several long moments.
Miss Swan…
Why are you helping me? This could have been the perfect opportunity to get me to leave town.
She was right. If she was still that same hostile woman that wanted to get rid of her since the day she stepped into Storybrooke, she would have sat back and watched her burn. She wouldn't have cared. She would have basked in her relief as the yellow bug drove over the town line forever. Now… Now she didn't want Emma to leave, and not just for Henry's sake, but for her own. She had grown to care about the woman she swore she'd destroy.
"Regina!"
Leopold was calling for her, so she quickly deleted every single text and shoved the phone back into her blazer pocket. She stepped out of the bathroom to find him right outside. Graham was nowhere around and she guessed he must have left.
"What were you doing in there?" he asked, his dark eyes narrowing in suspicion.
"I was um… fixing my makeup," she lied. "The bruises were showing through."
He nodded, seemingly accepting that answer.
"Go finish dinner," he dismissed her.
Emma spent the evening anxious about being fired from her job. She had finally found something she liked. She loved working at the station, despite her boss covering up domestic violence. She also knew if she lost her job, she would lose the advantage of helping Regina. When the time came, her deputy badge would come in handy. She was angry that Leopold had uncovered a sealed juvenile record. She wasn't sure how Sydney got it, but she was sure it was illegal.
Regina didn't seem to be shocked about her time in jail, and she wondered if she had already known. She was actually surprised that the brunette was helping her, when she couldn't stand her in the beginning. Regina didn't answer her text. She assumed it was either she didn't know how to answer the question, or she physically couldn't because her husband was around. Either way, she planned to ask her the next time they see each other.
Sure enough, hours after Regina's warning, Emma got the call from Graham. He fired her on claims of a criminal background. She didn't have the energy to fight him, and accepted it for now. Besides, she had a committee meeting to crash tomorrow. Graham was a puppet and it was no use fighting him.
She had the music turned up, an opened bottle of Jameson and a toaster she had thrown across the room and was now trying to fix. Mary Margaret walked in after her date with David.
"Emma!" she shouted over the music, approaching her from where she stood in the kitchen nook. Mary Margaret sat on the bar stool, facing her as she turned down the radio. "What did the toaster ever do to you?"
"I got fired," she dropped the toaster and screwdriver and took a sip from the bottle.
"What happened?"
"Sydney uncovered my juvie records and Leopold used it as an excuse to have me fired. He's trying to run me out of the station."
"So what now?" she asked, shocked at the turn of events.
"Well Regina was the one to warn me. She said he couldn't do that and that I need to run as a candidate in an election. I'm going to crash the committee meeting tomorrow so he has no choice but to go through with it."
"Regina helped you?"
"She overheard him and Graham."
"Do you know what this means?" she smiled and Emma looked at her in confusion. "Regina is starting to trust you."
"How?"
"Think about it Emma. She wanted to get rid of you at first. This was the perfect opportunity, but she warned you instead. She wants you to stay in Storybrooke. Of course she probably can't admit it yet. She's too stubborn."
"I mean we did make some kind of progress at lunch today. She mentioned Cora."
"You see!" she squealed in delight. "It's working. Keep earning her trust, get your job back, and once the station is free from my father's leash, we'd be closer to saving her."
"What are we going to do about Graham? Even if I get my job back, he's still Leopold's puppet."
"Maybe we should do some digging on our own?" she asked. "Maybe if we figure out why he's covering for him, we could convince him to do the right thing for once."
The Jameson was making her head swim. She wasn't in the mood to be doing any investigating tonight. All she kept thinking about was Regina, and how she was starting to trust her.
"Perhaps," she nodded, grabbing the bottle and then moving towards the door. "Let's worry about it later. I'm going up to the roof to clear my head." She slipped on her jacket and boots and walked out.
She spent a good while sitting on the bench and letting the alcohol warm her up. Her eyes were fixated out over the small town, but she wasn't really seeing it. Her mind was full of dark eyes and red lips; And what it meant for Regina to warn her the way she did today. She really was starting to trust her. She was starting to see the woman behind the hostility; She was starting to see the fear she hid so well. Coming here had started out as a mission to make sure her son was safe. Now it had turned into making sure his mother was safe too.
Her phone vibrated in her jacket pocket, startling her from her thoughts. She nearly dropped the bottle in her attempt to pull the phone out. It was Regina and she couldn't stop the huge smile from gracing her lips, a warmth settling in her chest just at the image of her name.
Henry would miss you.
She wondered if it was just Henry that would miss her? She wondered if Mary Margaret was right and Regina was just too stubborn to admit her true feelings.
Thank you for what you did.
Thank me when you win the election ?
Did she really just send a winking emoji? She nearly just spit out the sip of Jameson she had just taken.
In what way? Her cheeks burned the minute she sent it and realized how it sounded. The alcohol was making her flirty. Regina took a while to answer back, and Emma thought she blew it until the phone finally vibrated.
Leopold has a work trip next month, well after the election. You can take me out to dinner, as a friend.
We're friends now? She was smiling again.
Don't make me repeat myself.
So how long will he be gone? She was excited at the chance of spending time with her and Henry without the risk of Leopold seeing them together. She wondered if Regina would be different, less fearful, and more fiery.
Just a weekend. He'll be checking up on me and tracking my phone more than usual. So I still have to be careful. He'll also have Sydney keeping an eye on me.
Eww, that creepy lawyer newspaper guy who's always looking at you? The few times she had seen Sydney around Regina she didn't miss the way his eyes discreetly swept over her each time her husband wasn't looking. It made her angry and she got a sense of trepidation from him.
He's hardly a lawyer! Emma could practically hear the scoff in her words.
Maybe we could cause a town diversion that will distract him all weekend?
Like what?
I don't know. A story he can't resist?
Leave it to me. I'll get rid of him.
Stop scheming! Emma found herself laughing out loud as she hit send.
Don't you want to get rid of him?
Distract him, not get rid of him! Lol! 😂
(Regina sends a pleading face emoji)
Stop looking at me like that! Emma laughed again. Regina was being so adorable, her heart felt like it might burst. Just like it felt when Regina admitted they were friends.
Ok, fine.
Will I see you at the committee meeting tomorrow?
Probably not, but meet me at campus after? I'd like to hear all about it.
Deal!
I have to go. Good Night, Emma.
Good Night! 😊
Emma slid her phone into her pocket, suddenly missing the brunette. She hoped she didn't have to go because of Leopold. Although she had a bad feeling, it was exactly why she abruptly ended their conversation.
She sighed, taking a drink from the bottle of Jameson and stared up into the night sky.
