I really enjoyed writing this one! Hope you enjoy reading it!


Regina would see him ever so often. He'd come in with his uniform on; the outfit consisted of tight black pants, a crisp white shirt, black tie and vest, finished off with a black cap with a checkerboard ribbon tied around. It wasn't as though she'd meant to do it, but there was just something about him that made her unable to help herself. It seemed to be inevitable that every time she saw him, she would flirt rather unwittingly. She would do it without even realising. Normally she was the face of professionalism, but over time, he had managed to chip away at her hardened outer shell and thus turned her into the worst flirt.

When she first met him, she had been standing by the nurses' station filling in some paperwork, her dark hair tied back in a high ponytail. A deep frown was etched onto her face as she pondered a set of test results. That was the moment she first heard his rather obnoxious laughter and didn't resist the temptation to roll her eyes at the sound. It was late, and she was nearing the end of a fourteen-hour shift, so she wasn't in the mood for merriment.

"Yes, boss, just a slight knock to the brain box, nothing major. Doc said he'll be fighting fit by tomorrow's shift." The owner of said voice leant against the nurses' station near to where she was standing; his voice was loud as he talked into his phone, speaking as though it wasn't almost midnight.

"Excuse me, Officer," she hissed, "I have patients trying to sleep, and your strident voice is certainly not helping." Regina had made sure that there was enough malice present in her tone to ensure he knew just how annoyed she was.

The man looked up at her, and if he was shocked by her confrontation, he certainly didn't show it. "Boss, I'll keep you informed." He slipped the device into his pocket, and he turned to face her. "People have described my voice in many ways. I don't think strident has ever been one of them," he chuckled. "I'm guessing from the way you said it that it wasn't a compliment."

"Most certainly not," she huffed, her eyes never wavering from her paperwork; she certainly wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of looking at him. She could feel his eyes on her; it was clear that he was still watching her. "What?" She grumbled, pausing in her reading and waiting for him to say something else.

When he didn't reply, her frustration mounted, and she had to look up, her eyes meeting his and widening for a moment at the intensity of his stare. The blue eyes fixed on her made her heart start to beat that much faster, "Officer Daydream. What are you staring at?"

"Nothing, just trying to remember what the hell strident means," he sniggered.

She had to bite her cheek to stop herself from laughing at his words; whoever this man was, he wasn't affected by the way she had spoken to him.

"It means you're way too loud."

"Ah well, I'm sorry about that," he quipped, his voice so low she was surprised that she could even hear him. "Is there anything I can possibly do to make it up to you?"

"Hmm, keep your voice down."

"Yes ma'am."


She saw him more often after that; one of these occasions had been a morning shift. Regina had struggled to get up when her alarm had gone off, which meant that she'd had to forgo her usual morning coffee. When she arrived at the hospital, she'd only had time to shove her curls into their usual high ponytail and apply a little powder. She was on her fifth patient of the morning when he arrived with another cop, trailing a man wearing a prison jumpsuit and a pair of handcuffs.

"So, what have you brought for me today, Officer Daydream?" She asked, eying the bleeding laceration on the prisoner's forehead. He had some gauze already applied, but the wound must have been quite deep; as it was seeping through the bandage.

"Well, good morning to you, Doctor Mills," he smirked, "this one had the silly notion to try and give us the runaround. Unfortunately for him, he managed to injure himself and get caught in the process."

"I see. Bring him through, and I'll take a look at the damage." She nodded at the other officer before leading them towards one of the empty bays, gesturing for them to have the patient lay on the bed. They uncuffed one of his hands and attached it to the rails. "My name is Dr Mills. Am I able to take a quick look at this wound?"

"You can take a look at anything you'd like, doctor." The patient grinned, his eyes trailing over her form, not that she could imagine what was so appealing about the blue scrubs she was currently wearing.

"Less of that, Jones. You sit quietly for the nice doctor now, or you might end up on the wrong side of her, and you don't want that," Locksley chuckled, winking at her playfully.

She rose an eyebrow at him before leaning closer to the patient, carefully peeling back the gauze to assess the injury. The man winced as she removed it and dropped the soiled bandages into a metal kidney dish. "Is this your only wound?" Regina questioned as she began to sanitise the cut, ensuring that any debris was flushed out of the gushing injury.

"I think so, but it wouldn't harm you to double-check the rest of…"

"It's his only wound," Robin huffed, the humour in his tone wavering somewhat, his annoyance aimed towards the patient.

"Very well, you're going to need several stitches as well as some glue to ensure that the wound is properly closed. It shouldn't take more than twenty minutes or so." She moved over to the cupboard to get the things she would need; her stomach rumbled in the process, angry at her for not eating that morning.

"Someone's hungry."

The voice almost made her jump out of her skin. She turned her head to look at Robin, who was now standing right behind her. "For goodness sake," she pressed her hand to her chest, "why are you sneaking up on me?"

"I'm not, I just wanted to talk away from prying ears. Now you didn't answer me before about you being hungry."

"I'm a doctor, Officer Locksley. I don't have time for breakfast."

"That's a little hypocritical of you, considering you probably tell patients all the time that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. I've also told you to call me Robin."

She simply rolled her eyes and grabbed her supplies, "so, how did he manage to get that injury then?"

Robin shook his head, a soft laugh falling from his lips, "well, he was drunk for a start. He was being disorderly in the town centre then broke a shop window. We had to chase him down market street, and he ran straight into a lamppost."

"Ooh, you don't mean the ones on market street that are all fancy?"

"Yep."

"Ouch, he'll certainly be feeling it when he sobers up."

"You bet he will. Anyway, I've got to make a call and update the gaffer, Scarlet will be with the prisoner."

"Very well," she offered him a curt nod before making her way back to the cubicle. The procedure didn't take long, and after fifteen minutes or so, Jones - as Officer Locksley had referred to him - had a very neatly closed wound on his forehead. The man was ready to be discharged, but Locksley still hadn't returned, and she didn't have the patience nor the time to wait for him to show up. "I'll discharge him, and you can wait in the waiting room for your buddy if you'd like."

"Thanks, doc," Scarlet nodded, uncuffing the man from the bed before making sure that both his hands were reattached. The pair made their way out to the waiting room, and Regina followed behind them to grab some discharge papers from the nurses' station.

She was focused on filling in the information when something was dropped down onto the table beside her, and the smell of coffee and food hit her nostrils, making her stomach clench in hunger. Glancing up, she saw that Officer Locksley had been the one to dump the food beside her and was now looking at her with a massive grin plastered on his face. "Your breakfast, milady. I didn't know if you ate meat, so I got you some pastries, and if you do eat meat, there's a bacon and egg sandwich. Also, a latte." He placed the disposable coffee cup down on the counter and gestured to it.

"You seriously went all the way to Granny's to get me breakfast?"

"No biggie, I just blue lighted it there."

Her eyes widened as she stared at him, "you can't be serious, Robin that's…"

"I'm joking," he laughed, "hopefully, this will get you through your shift."

"I think it just might," she smiled softly, not knowing how she should be feeling at that moment. Her insides felt warm just as her cheeks did, she couldn't quite believe that he had done that for her; it wasn't as though they were friends or anything, they'd met on a couple of occasions, but that was all. "Thank you for this. Granny's do the best bacon sandwiches."

"Agreed. Well, I better be getting back to it. See you around."

"Hopefully, you won't be back in my ER causing trouble any time soon," she smirked, handing him the discharge papers belonging to the prisoner.

"Can't make you any promises I'm afraid, Dr Mills."

"Go on, get out," she chuckled, shaking her head at him as he grinned at her, walking with his back towards the patient and nearly bumping into one of the pillars. Regina sniggered to herself and looked down at the bag on the table. He was thoughtful, she would give him that.


The next time the pair ran into each other wasn't at the hospital as it usually was; instead, Regina had been sat at a table outside Granny's nursing a cup of hot chocolate in her hands. It was a cool Autumn morning, but the bustle inside the cafe was too busy for her. She decided that perching outside was the best solution; she was only time-wasting anyway. There was somewhere she had to be in fifteen minutes, but she didn't exactly want to go.

Robin was with a group of friends, and he didn't notice her at first. It was the first time she had seen him without his uniform. Her immediate reaction was to hide discreetly, and he walked past without casting her so much as a glance.

A few minutes later, however, she wasn't so lucky. He came out of the place alone, a coffee in one hand and a paper bag in the other. She wondered why he wasn't staying with his friends, but it wasn't her place to interfere.

"Doctor Mills?"

"Good morning, Officer Daydream," she smirked, bringing her hot chocolate to her lips and taking a small sip, her eyes unwavering from his.

He grinned, leaning against the wall beside her table, "I thought it was you. Shame I haven't been able to come to see you in a while. The station has been busy, but we haven't had any injuries."

"Well, I'm glad to see both your officers and criminals haven't required medical assistance. I assume you are well."

"Always am. How are you doing?"

"I can't complain, thank you."

"You do look different out of your scrubs," he quipped, and she was pretty certain that his eyes raked down her body, almost as though he were checking her out. Instead of the usual blue scrubs, she dressed in a black coat with brass buttons, paired with a red scarf. Underneath her jacket, she wore a crimson shirt tucked into a black skirt with sheer black tights and a pair of black heels. Her hair had been released from its updo, and the strands fell to her shoulders in dark waves.

"I could say the same about you," she hummed. The blue shirt Robin wore matched his eyes, it was paired with casual jeans and a warm looking jacket that flattered him immensely. "So is it a good different or a bad different?" Regina questioned, discreetly checking her watch; she still had ten minutes.

"You always look good."

"Flattery will get you nowhere."

He ignored her statement and dropped down in the vacant seat opposite her, "can I ask why you're here sat outside Granny's in the cold on your own?"

"You can ask, but I won't be promising an answer."

"Always so difficult, aren't you."

"I'm waiting for something."

"Right, let me guess, Halloween?"

Regina rolled her eyes at him, "are you going to keep pestering me until I tell you?"

"Probably, I mean, I don't really have anything else planned for my day apart from going home and eating this ridiculous sized bear claw."

"I'm meeting with my mother," she sighed.

"From the way you just said that I take it you don't quite get along."

"She's a hard woman to talk to. She has high expectations of me and…"

"You're a doctor, I mean surely that must live up to some expectations. Wouldn't any mother be ecstatic that her daughter was a doctor?"

Regina could see the confusion on his face; she didn't talk to many people about the relationship between herself and her mother. They didn't understand what the woman was like. Robin was right about what he said; most mothers would be proud, but being a doctor wasn't enough for Cora Mills to be satisfied with her daughter's achievements. "It's complicated."

"Sounds it. So, is your mother meeting you here?"

"Oh heavens no. I don't think she has ever set foot in Granny's. I should probably be getting going now, we're meeting at the town hall in a couple of minutes."

"The town hall… wait a minute. Mills, your mother isn't Mayor Mills, is she?"

"How did you guess?"

He nodded, a playful glint shining in his eyes, "I don't know why I didn't put it together sooner. You look quite a lot like your mother."

"Hmm, I suppose we do have similar physical traits." She glanced at her watch again; she definitely needed to set off. Feeling a little disappointed that she had to leave Robin's enjoyable company to receive a lecture from her mother, she finished the last of her hot chocolate and stood from her chair. "Well, it was nice talking to you again, but I really must be going now."

"Can I walk with you? I'm heading that way anyway."

"I suppose that wouldn't be a problem if you're heading that way anyway." She hadn't been able to stop her shy smile from forming as she subconsciously tucked a stray strand of her dark hair behind her ear.

They had talked the entire time they were walking to the town hall. It was mainly small talk with Robin making her laugh almost constantly; he had a way of doing that. Just looking at his face made her want to smile. Regina found herself feeling shy once they arrived at their destination, something she certainly wasn't accustomed to. She looked at him with a small smile, "I guess this is where we part ways."

"That's a shame."

"Well, it has been nice talking to you, Officer Locksley."

"Likewise, Doctor Mills."

Regina chuckled and softly shook her head at him, casting him one last glance before slipping through the doors and making her way to her mother's office. The smile his presence had brought with it still on her face.

Unbeknownst to Regina, Robin stood there for a moment after she left him, running his fingers through his hair as he looked at the door she had just disappeared through. After a minute or two, he laughed to himself before heading back in the direction they had just come from, towards his house, which just happened to be in the opposite direction to the town hall.


Regina tapped on the large wooden doors that lead to her mother's office, hearing her mother tell her to come in. "Good morning, mother."

"Regina dear, take a seat."

She offered the older woman a tight smile as she removed her coat and perched on one of the sofas in the black and white office. Her mother sat down in the armchair beside her, dark eyes studying her daughter meticulously. "Have you been eating properly?"

"Of course," Regina nodded, glancing down at herself and wondering what her mother was even talking about. She could never win with her appearance; the woman would always find something to nitpick at.

"Hmm. So, how have you been?"

"Fine, thank you. And you?"

"So, so." Her mother leant back against the white material of the couch, her chin in the air as an awkward silence sat between them. "There's something different about you."

"I don't think so."

"Do you honestly have nothing to tell me? Why must you be so dull, Regina? We meet once a month, and you can't even string together a few sentences to talk about."

"Most of the time, I'm working. I'm sorry my life is so dull for you," Regina sighed. This happened every time they would get together; her mother would admonish her for having nothing interesting to say, and Regina would leave feeling like rubbish.

Cora rose a single eyebrow at her daughter before standing and pouring some of the coffee she had on the side into a mug. "Your father said that he saw you on Tuesday. Seems you had more to say to him than you do to me."

She just had to find something to talk about, anything that would get her mother off her back. "Well, I met with Kathryn Midas at the tennis club last week."

"Go on."

"Fredrick Knight proposed, they are getting married next fall. We will all be invited, I suppose."

"Wonderful, sensible young girl finding herself a husband from a good family. It's a shame that you can't take a page out of her book, darling. You will never find a man when you are in that hospital of yours twenty-four seven."

"I love my work, and I'm not looking for a husband. I…"

"You don't want a family of your own? Regina, what on earth will people say? I cannot have a spinster daughter; that's how rumours begin."

"Mother, I am thirty-one. You can hardly call me a spinster."

"Oh, you're thirty-one now, but before you know it, you'll be reaching the end of your healthy reproduction age. I don't want my grandchildren to be seared from old eggs."

"Oh, mother, for heaven's sake. This is ridiculous," Regina huffed, her frustration was mounting, and she wished that she had never bothered bringing up Kathryn's upcoming nuptials; she should have guessed that it would backfire.

"You're right. At this rate, I won't be getting grandchildren at all."

The younger woman closed her eyes as she tried to control her emotions; she wanted children more than anything, she always had. Ideally, she wanted to find the right partner to have children with, but she had been considering looking into adoption, something she was sure her mother would have a field day with.

"Why can't you find a nice man? It's not as though Storybrooke is barren of young men; there are plenty of potential suitors in town. In fact, I'm sure I can arrange for…"

"You aren't arranging for me to meet anyone."

"Why not? Many of my…"

"Mother, I don't want to meet some preppy, stuck up money man," she hissed, shifting in her seat; she was getting closer to simply walking out.

"What am I going to do with you? You are useless."

Regina's nose burnt as she felt her eyes beginning to well up; she would not allow her mother to see her cry. It couldn't happen. "Well, if I am so useless, I guess I should be going. I have a shift at the hospital this afternoon." She stood from her seat, grabbing her purse and jacket, "goodbye, mother. I hope you stay well." With that, she hurried from the office just as the tears began to slide down her cheeks. What hurt her the most was the idea that her mother might be right; she might never find someone she loved enough to set up a life with.


A month later, she had seen Robin more frequently. The pair had flirted as usual, and Regina found herself becoming more and more attracted to the friendly officer. She couldn't help but be enamoured with him; his smile, his voice, everything about him drew her to him, but she was certain he was just being friendly. There wasn't a chance that he liked her in the same way that she liked him. Why would he?

Despite the conversation with her mother, the older woman had continued to pester Regina on the subject of finding a suitable husband. It had arrived at the point where she was considering taking her mother up on her offer. Maybe it wouldn't hurt her to go along on a date her mother had set up, anything to take her mind off the fact she had found a wonderful man who most likely wasn't interested in her.

One particular day, after seeing Robin at the hospital and flirting with him despite her resolve to distance herself from him, she had weakened. Her mother had texted her saying that she had found a nice young man, a doctor in fact, whom she wished to set her up with. Regina had caved and said okay; she mainly wanted the woman off her case, but at least if the date was awful, they could talk about medicine to fill the time.

Regina had opted for a form-fitting red dress that stopped at her knees, the sleeves were short with small pleats, and the neckline was held together with a button, allowing a section of skin to be on show in an oval cut out. All in all, the dress was conservative and classy. Her dark hair was straightened and flicked out at the bottom, a deep crimson colour painted her lips, and her eyes were smoky and sensual.

She entered the restaurant with an air of hesitation, it was an upmarket Italian place which happened to be one of her favourites in town, she knew that even if the company wasn't good, at least the food would be. Regina approached the waitress, who was waiting to seat people. "Good evening madam, do you have a reservation?"

"Yes, I believe so, reservation for two, it should be under the name…"

"Regina?"

She turned upon hearing her name, seeing a man who was probably three or four years her senior. His hair was light and had definitely been bleached the insipid blonde colour. She rose an eyebrow as she looked him up and down. This was who her mother had set her up with? "Victor?"

"I thought it was you from your mother's description."

He wasn't her type, she knew that straight away, but she could hardly just back out now, she was here, and he had seen her. Instead, she offered him a tight smile as they were led towards their table.

By the time their food arrived, her opinion of the man was cemented even more, and she simply wanted to get up and just go. He was pretentious and bragged about everything. Even though technically, despite their age difference, she outranked him in both experience and qualifications. She had also come to realise that he was very set on talking about himself; she'd hardly had an opportunity to get a word in edgeways. It was becoming difficult to keep a civilised expression on her face; she was bored and irritated, the delicious carbonara in front of her was the only thing keeping her sane.

When the food was gone, she turned to the wine, wondering how long exactly she would have to stay before she'd be able to politely bail on this bore of a date. Regina glanced around, spotting the sign for the toilets and taking her chance to slip away for a moment. "Sorry, I'm just going to the bathroom." She stood from her seat and moved towards the restroom, allowing the polite smile she had been forcing all night to slip.

She was just about to push open the door when a familiar laugh met her ears; she felt her stomach somersault and stopped still, looking around to fish him out of the crowd. It wasn't long before she found him; he was sat at a table for two, leaning back in his chair as he chatted animatedly to a brunette woman. Regina closed her eyes and shook her head. She was so stupid; what a fool she had been for even thinking a man like that could be single. Of course, he was taken. She felt like an idiot for contemplating that the two of them could ever end up together.

Feeling disheartened and embarrassed, she hurried inside the ladies room and rested her hands against the counter, staring at her reflection in the mirror. "So stupid, you are so stupid," she whispered to herself. She needed to get out of there; she wanted to go home before she made an absolute fool out of herself. It had been an awful night, and she just wanted to fall into her bed and sleep.

After splashing a little water on her face in an attempt to calm herself down a bit, she hurried out, intent on paying her half of the bill and dismissing herself. That wasn't to be when she ended up running straight into a server who had been carrying a tray full of drinks, the glasses tipped over, and their contents ended up straight down the front of her dress before the glass shattered on the floor in a loud crash.

Everyone's eyes were on her, and the waitress she had walked into was floundering, apologising as she hurried to grab some napkins. Mortified, Regina hastened towards their table and apologised to Victor before rifling through her purse, throwing her money down and running for the door.

Once she was a little down the road, she dropped down to sit on a wall before retrieving her phone to message her friend to come to get her, then closing her eyes and putting her head in her hands. She couldn't believe what a mess she was; she just hoped that Robin hadn't seen her ridiculous display. What was worse, this would probably get back to her mother, and she would be even more of a disappointment to her.

Regina hadn't been sat there long when she felt a gentle hand on her back, her head shot up, and she met a pair of concerned blue eyes. "Are you okay?" he asked, his accent just as she remembered it from earlier that morning.

"Just a little embarrassed," she sighed, watching as he sat down beside her on the wall, offering her a kind smile. A shudder went through her, and she wasn't sure whether it was from the chill in the early winter air against her damp clothes or their close proximity.

"Cold?"

"Freezing," she nodded, finding that to be the better reason for her shivering. "Why did you follow me? Won't your girlfriend be missing you?"

"Girlfriend?"

"The woman you were with inside."

He chuckled for a moment before shaking his head, "that woman isn't my girlfriend."

"She isn't?"

"No, that's Belle. My sister."

"Your… oh," she looked down at her hands for a moment as they twisted in her lap. "I just assumed." It hadn't even entered her mind that the woman could have been anyone other than his girlfriend. She had jumped to conclusions, and clearly, they were the wrong ones.

"Yeah, I figured that. No, she's my sister, and I don't have a girlfriend anyway in case you were interested," he winked playfully.

"It doesn't matter to me either way," she coyly replied, trying to act as though she didn't really care about his relationship status.

"So, I take it by the fact that asshole of a guy didn't even bother to follow you out of the restaurant; the date didn't go too well."

"It was horrendous, completely awful."

"I'm almost certain that blind dates are always completely awful."

"You're probably right about that," she smiled as they lapsed into a comfortable silence. A little bit of hope had blossomed in her heart when she heard that he was single; maybe there would be a chance for her after all. "I should really be heading home. I'll let you get back to your sister."

"She's probably stolen half my pizza whilst I've been gone."

"You better arrest her for theft then," Regina joked as she stood from the wall, her eyes still fixed on his, "goodnight Robin and thank you for looking out for me."

"Any time, milady," he grinned, "are you okay getting home?"

"Of course, my friend is on her way to get me."

"Would you like me to stay with you until she arrives?"

"Nonsense, get back to your pizza before it goes cold."

"I don't like the idea of you standing out here alone."

"I will be fine, now go."

The look he gave her proved that he wasn't happy about leaving her by herself, but luckily he didn't have to as a yellow car pulled up beside them, and a woman with a head of blonde curls hopped out. "Regina, are you okay? I came as soon as I…" she stopped when she noticed Robin, "hello."

"Hi. Regina, I'll see you around."

She nodded at him and watched as he walked away, glancing back at her every now and then before he disappeared back inside the restaurant.

"What was that? I thought you said that the date went badly; that didn't look bad to me."

The two women climbed into the car, and Regina clipped her seatbelt in place before glancing at her friend, "he wasn't the man I was on a date with, Emma."

"He wasn't?"

"No."

"Then who was he?" the other woman asked in confusion. She was concentrating on the road whilst also looking over at the brunette every now and then.

Regina didn't even know how to reply to that one; who was Robin to her? How could she even begin to describe what they were to each other? He was the guy she was falling helplessly for, but she couldn't let Emma know that; the woman would tease her endlessly for it and most likely try and interfere, something Regina didn't want to happen. "Just someone I've met at the hospital a couple of times. He saw what happened inside and came to check on me."

"You two looked awfully close," Emma smirked, her eyebrows wriggling, "he's cute, I approve."

"It's not like that, Emma."

"Okay, whatever you say," the blonde chuckled, "so what about the actual man you went on a date with?"

"Urgh, he was awful. I don't even want to think about it. Not to mention my favourite dress is probably ruined."

"Well, there's always that other guy. He seemed to really like you."

"Maybe." Regina turned her head to look out of the window. Her brain was well and truly scrambled.


Regina and Robin had bumped into one several times since then; he had even shown up to the hospital one day unannounced with a coffee for her that he had purchased from Granny's cafe. However, she hadn't seen him for a few weeks, but that might have had something to do with the horrendous weather they'd been having. It was a couple of weeks before Christmas, and the snow hadn't stopped falling.

The ER had been busy, mainly with fractures; people were slipping on ice and breaking their bones. It was the same as usual at this time of year. It had been a long day, and she'd potted three arms and four legs, as well as treating other minor injuries. There hadn't been anything major to deal with.

However, that was all about to change. The dreaded red phone began to ring, and all the staff in the ER froze, glancing at each other, trying to gauge who was going to answer the damned thing. Most of them were staring at her in expectation; she shook her head before snatching it from the receiver, listening to the paramedic on the other end of the line.

She clenched her teeth as she took in everything, nodding along as she heard all of the information they would need to prepare for the imminent arrival. "Right, okay, thank you." She placed the phone back in the holder before turning to look at the rest of her staff who were staring at her, waiting for her to relay what she had learnt.

"Come on, Mills. What's going on?"

"We've got a blue light from the town line. RTA coming in asap, two casualties with head injuries, another potential lung collapse," she sighed. They all snapped into action, getting together everything they might need, making sure that the resus bays were ready. Regina was nervous, it was a while since they had any major trauma patients, and her adrenaline was running sky-high.

She'd just come out of the resus bay into the main area just in time for the metal doors to swing open as the paramedics came in, wheeling the patients. "What do we have here?" she asked, hurrying towards the bed and moving alongside them, looking down at the man on the stretcher and immediately noticing the police uniform. A slight hint of worry bloomed in her chest before she looked at his face and realised it wasn't him. What she did see was blood pouring from a laceration to the side of the man's face, clearly coming from where glass from the windshield had hit him.

"This is Graham Humbert. He was the passenger involved in the ETA. He lost consciousness at the scene after receiving a head trauma, but has since come around." Regina nodded as she looked over the list of obs given to her by the paramedic. She turned to her nurse and cleared her throat. "His obs look good, but we'll give him a CT scan, just to be sure. Any other injuries?" she quickly asked, looking past them towards the door, aware that the other two patients were about to be brought in.

"Just whiplash and the injury to his head."

"Okay, Ashley, can you please take over from here. I need to assess the other patients."

"On it doc."

Nervously she waited just before the doors; the first patient wasn't in as bad of a condition as she had first worried he might have been. However, that didn't mean that the others would be as lucky.

The haunting crash of the medical trolly colliding with the metal doors met her ears, and she immediately clapped eyes on the paramedics administering air. "Talk to me," she ordered as she ran over, listening intently to their words as they informed her about the suspected collapsed lung of the man who had been driving the car.

It was only when they arrived in the resus bay, that she looked down, and her heart almost stopped. There he was, lying right in front of her unconscious and completely covered in blood. "Fucking hell."

"Dr Mills?"

She froze, it was as though her entire world had been tipped upside down in one moment. No, no, no, this was not happening. She didn't know if she could do this. She should get someone else to take over, but then again, she was the best, and that was what he needed right now.

"Regina," she felt a hand on her shoulder and turned to see Emma looking at her in concern, her blue scrubs had blood on them, and she was clearly worried. "Hey, snap out of it!"

"Right, yeah."

"Do you need me to take over?"

"No, no, it's okay." She shook her head. His shirt had already been opened when the ambulance crew did their checks, so she shakily placed the stethoscope against his chest, listening intently. The paramedics were right; his left lung had definitely collapsed.

"Regina, he's tachycardic."

"I know! It's a tension pneumothorax. He's going to need a needle decompression," Regina stated, forcing herself to detach from the situation, leaving behind any panic or worry she might be feeling to go into full doctor mode. Before she even had to ask, someone offered her the surgical tool she would need to do it. "Clean the area, please."

The nurse did as instructed, and Regina moved the needle into place, ensuring that it was in the correct position. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to steel herself; she had to do this to save his life. Her hands were still shaking a little, which certainly wasn't ideal when she was about to stab him in the chest with a massive needle.

"Regina, I can…"

She inserted the needle before Emma could finish what she was going to say. There was a sudden rush of air, and she reached for her stethoscope once again, placing it against his chest and listening, releasing a relieved sigh as she heard his lung beginning to fill back up with air. "I need a chest x-ray straight away!" she ordered, turning to look at the paramedics who were still in the room but hanging back. "Is there anything else wrong with him?"

"Probably broken ribs, as you might have guessed, the windscreen smashed the glass and cut him pretty badly."

"Right," she nodded, "thank you for taking care of him."

The pair nodded, seeming quite taken aback by her words; it wasn't often that she thanked them for what they did, and she guessed she should probably do so more often, but this time she was immensely grateful for their efforts.

With that, she hurried along with Robin as the porters moved him towards the x-ray machine; she just hoped that there wasn't any serious damage to his chest that might require an operation. Before they entered the x-ray room, she took his hand in hers and gave it a tight squeeze. She was going to make sure that everything was okay. He would be okay.


The third patient was the driver of the other car, some of the other doctors had taken care of the man. Regina, however, hadn't left Robin's side, she had remained by him whilst he had the x-ray; the scan revealed that the injured lung had been damaged by several of his ribs being broken from the impact against the steering wheel.

Luckily there wasn't any significant damage, and she determined that surgery probably wouldn't be necessary. After the scan, Robin had been moved to a private room, he was still unconscious, and she had hidden away in there with him, watching over him like a hawk. Regina stood beside the bed, carefully cleaning each wound; she cringed at the almost black bruises on his chest, especially when she knew that they would become even worse in the following days.

There was a particularly large laceration down his upper arm, one that had required almost twenty stitches. "What am I going to do with you hey?" Regina whispered, wiping the cuts that covered his face. "You silly idiot." Carefully, she dabbed a particularly nasty gash just below his eye, wincing as she did so and not being able to help the tear that escaped from the corner of her eye. "You scared the hell out of me," she breathed, perching herself on the edge of his bed.

She sat there in silence, a multitude of thoughts running through her mind as she stared at him, watching his face as she waited for him to wake up again. He had an oxygen mask on his face to assist him with his breathing and ensure that there wasn't any unnecessary pressure on his lungs. Regina couldn't stop her hand from brushing across his chest, her fingers gently skimming over his skin as they trembled from the emotions she was going through. "Come on, wake up already," Regina huffed. She had never been a patient woman, but this was almost torture.

"Regina, isn't your shift over?"

Her head turned to the door to see her blonde friend stood there with a concerned look on her face. "You should go home, get some rest. We'll take care of him."

"No, I'm fine," she shook her head, "I want to be here when he comes around."

"You've fallen for this one, haven't you."

Regina looked up at Emma and released a soft sigh, "he's managed to somehow wiggle his way into my heart."

"He's going to be okay, you know. You did a good job with the decompression, and his obs look fine."

"I know that, but I can't relax until I talk to him myself. Have you informed the next of kin?"

"Yeah, his parents are on their way to the hospital and will be here as soon as they can."

"That's good."

"Do you at least want to go change out of your scrubs? I can stay here until you're back."

Regina glanced down at her clothes, they were covered in blood from his wounds, and it made her feel sick just to look at them. She didn't want to leave his side, but he shouldn't have to see her looking like that when he woke up. Reluctantly, she stood from the bed and hurried from the room, darting to her locker to find her change of clothes. She quickly stripped down and changed into straight cut jeans and a lilac shirt, which she half tucked in. After that, she removed her hair from its ponytail and quickly ran her fingers through it before hurrying back to where she had just come from.

He was still asleep when she returned. Emma had kept her word and remained in the room whilst she was gone. "Thanks."

"No problem. I'll catch you later. I'm sure you can handle things from here."

"Yes," Regina nodded, waiting for her friend to leave before perching where she had been before. Reaching out, she very carefully took his hand in hers, running the fingers of her other hand over his upturned palm, carefully tracing the lines that crossed there.

She couldn't have been certain about how long she had been there with him before his hand closed around her fingers, trapping them against his skin and causing her head to shoot up, staring at his face.

Blue eyes stared back at her as he shuffled a little and let out a pained grunt, "don't move." She ordered, standing from the bed meaning to get him a glass of water, but she was stopped, his hand refusing to let go of her own with considerable strength considering the physical trauma his body had been through.

Carefully she leant over him and removed the oxygen mask, with one hand as he still hadn't relinquished his grasp on her other, if anything, it had tightened. "Hi there, Officer Daydream," she whispered with a smile.

"Am I in heaven?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Well, there appears to be a rather gorgeous angel looking down at me," he quipped, a grin forming on his lips.

Regina scoffed and shook her head, "you're an idiot, you know that, right?"

"Oh I think I'm quite aware," he smirked. His voice was hoarse and dry, unlike how it usually was, but he was still as charming as always.

"Let me get you a drink."

"No, just stay. Let me look at you a little longer."

"Now, why would you want to do that?"

"Because you're the most stunning woman I've ever seen in my life."

Her breath caught in her throat when she heard his words, and she could feel herself welling up once again as she looked at him. He was looking at her as though she hung the moon and stars themselves. Had he always looked at her that way, and she hadn't even noticed?

"How are you feeling?" she asked, her doctor head pushing past the emotions she felt to make sure her patient was well.

"Like I've been smacked in the chest with a wrecking ball," he grumbled, his hand squeezing hers a little, "though seeing you is certainly helping cope with that."

"You scared the hell out of me, you know," she whispered, trying to stop herself from crying again by averting her gaze from his face and pressing her tongue against her teeth. "Let me get you some water and I'll see if we can up your pain medication. If you're feeling sore, I can do something about it. Let me just got talk to Doctor Swan and see if..."

"Regina, stop, look at me."

She refused, knowing that if she met his eyes, she would most likely cry, she didn't want him to see that. Didn't want to show her weakness. "I'll be back in a minute." She pulled her hand from his and moved to the other side of the room to pour him some water. He couldn't see her face from that angle, only her back, so she quickly swiped away the unshed tears as she filled the glass before turning and handing it to him. "Here. I'll go find someone about those meds."

"Regina, wait," he grabbed her hand before she could move towards the door, forcing her to turn around. "Don't go."

"I'll be back in just a moment."

"I want to talk to you."

"About what?" Regina asked, her dark eyes trying to gauge anything from his face about where this was going. He seemed serious, and that was so unlike him.

"About us."

"What do you mean us?"

"This thing that we have between us. I know you feel it too." She remained silent, staring at him. What could she say to that? Of course, she was feeling it too. She had been feeling something ever since their eyes first met, even if he had irritated her to no end back then. She had fallen for him irreparably. "Regina."

With a soft sigh, she perched beside him on the bed, reaching out to cup his cheek with her hand. "When your friend came in before you earlier, the first thing I saw was his uniform. I panicked until I saw his face, and then I was so relieved. Then when you…" Her throat was tight, and she shook her head; just thinking about it was so painful. His hand came to her thigh and gave a gentle squeeze of encouragement. "When I saw you on that trolley, I just froze. I was so scared that I was going to lose you before I even had the chance to tell you about how I felt."

"And how do you feel?"

She rose an eyebrow and let out a watery laugh, "are you really going to make me say it?"

"I think I might."

"Mean."

"Come on, I want to hear it."

"I love you," she mumbled under her breath.

"I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that. Can you say it again?"

"Seriously?"

"Come on."

"I love you."

A massive grin bloomed on his face as he tugged her even closer, "that's good to hear because it just so happens that the feeling is much reciprocated."

Her chest swelled with love as she stared down at him, she hadn't been expecting to hear those words.

He loved her.

She had never thought that was possible; she thought she was rather unlovable. That wasn't true, because he loved her, he'd just told her as much, and she couldn't believe it. "You love me?"

"Very much."

The smile that blossomed on her face was unstoppable as she glanced down for a moment before meeting his eyes and moving closer to him, her face only inches away. It was then when she saw a tear roll down his face, she carefully swiped it away. "What is it?" she breathed, stroking his cheek. The happiness that she had seen a minute ago had disappeared, replaced by a troubled expression. "Robin."

"When the perp crashed into the car, and we began to spin, all I could think about was how I hadn't had the chance to tell you how I felt. I tried to regain control of the car, and when we smashed, I saw you." He swallowed heavily as his fingers moved to run through her hair. Wincing a little as he had to reach up, "god, that hurts like a bitch."

"Pain meds, I forgot. I'll go and…" before she could get up to go find some medication, he pulled her forwards so that she partially lost balance and landed half on top of him. "Robin! You'll injure yourself."

He shook his head, tucking her hair behind her ear as a pout formed on his lips. "I think I know something that might make me feel better."

"You do?" she questioned, moistening her bottom lip as she looked at him.

"Hmm."

"What, may I ask, is it that will make you feel better?"

"Something only you can give me."

"You better tell me what it is, hadn't you."

"A kiss from the woman I love."

"Ah, I see," she took a shuddery breath as their faces were mere millimetres apart, "well I guess I could do something about that if…" her words were cut off by his lips pressing against hers. She closed her eyes as they kissed, deepening it as she gasped against his mouth. She couldn't help but melt into him, getting lost in the embrace for a moment before his low groan of pain made her pull back.

"Oh god, I'm sorry, I caught your ribs," she sighed, brushing her fingers ever so lightly against his skin. "I'm going to go get you some pain medication now. I'll be back in a moment," she pressed another soft kiss to his lips before heading for the door. She didn't want to leave him, but she knew that the medication would make him feel much better.


Regina collected the pain killers that Robin would need, and she couldn't wipe the smile off her face. She also grabbed some food from the canteen. She didn't know about Robin, but she was more than a little hungry. She grinned as she walked through the door into his room, "so I got the medication and some food because I am famished and… oh, hello."

He wasn't alone in the room, there was an older couple and the same woman she had seen at the restaurant, the one he said was his sister. "Hello dear," the older lady greeted, "Robin, do you want to introduce us?"

"Yes. Guys, this is Doctor Regina Mills, Regina, these are my parents Caroline and John and my sister Belle."

"Very nice to meet you, my dear. Are you the doctor who took care of our Robin?"

"It's nice to meet you also. I have some meds to administer," she smiled shyly as she moved past his family to add the medication to his IV bag, "they should help with your pain."

"Thanks."

Regina looked from him to his family and began to feel awkward, rather like a spare part. She should probably just leave him to it; she didn't want to get in the way. "Robin, I should be going. I'll come back and…"

"Where are you going?"

"Well, I thought you'd want to spend time with your family and…"

"Don't go. I want you to stay."

"I…"

"Regina, stay. Please."

"Alright," she shrugged her shoulders, finding an empty seat. She felt somewhat like a spare part, but the way Robin kept looking over at her let her know that he wanted her there. Regina sat there, offering little bits to the conversation here and there. After a while, she could tell that Robin was zoning out; he was tired and needed rest.

She didn't want to turf his family out, but if she had been on duty at that moment, she would have done exactly that. She squirmed in her seat, feeling increasingly awkward. She hadn't felt as though she could eat the sandwiches she had bought, and her stomach was complaining at her because of it. Her tummy let out a particular loud gurgle, and she couldn't stop the blush that washed over her cheeks.

Robin chuckled as he looked over to her, "sorry folks, but I'm going to have to call it a night. I'm tired, and I think my girlfriend might be a little hungry," he smirked, winking at her.

"Your… Regina is your girlfriend?" His mother asked, both shock and excitement present in her tone.

"As of about two hours ago, yeah. It's been a long time coming."

Caroline smiled widely as she looked at the doctor. "Well, that is wonderful news. We shall leave you to it. Sleep well my darling boy," the woman pressed a kiss to her son's forehead before moving over to Regina, who stood from her chair.

"It was nice to meet you, Mrs Locksley."

"And you dear. Thank you!" She pulled the brunette into her arms, hugging her. Regina wasn't the most affectionate person, but she felt rude not reciprocating the hug. "Thank you for taking care of our boy."

"You're very welcome."

They said their goodbyes, and by the time they left, Regina had received a hug from all the Locksleys. Once they were alone, Regina turned her head to look at Robin, who seemed ever more tired now they'd left. "Come here you," he husked, opening his arms to her, beckoning her towards him.

She grabbed the bag that held the food and dropped it on the side table before slipping her shoes off and climbing up onto the bed with him, allowing herself to be wrapped in his arms. She closed her eyes and released a soft sigh. "You're exhausted," she whispered, brushing her fingers gently over his chest.

"Hmm, and you're hungry."

"Ravenous more like it."

"Eat then, can't have you getting hangry on me."

"I don't get hangry," Regina laughed, "I can't even nudge you for your rudeness."

He scoffed playfully, "you can't hurt me. I'm injured."

"I got you some food," she told him. Opening the bag, she took out the sandwiches and other snacks, "I don't know if you're hungry or not."

"What did you get?"

"BLT and a croissant," she chuckled, handing them to him.

"Ah, clever."

"Unfortunately, they're not from Granny's, but I can't blue light it there like you did."

"I didn't actually blue light it. I was just joking," he laughed, kissing the side of her head.

"You'll tell me anything, Officer Daydream."

"I would never lie to you, Doctor Mills."

"If I'm your girlfriend, I think it's about time you start calling me Regina."

"If you can call me Robin, I'm sure I can manage," he quipped, a smile playing on his lips as he closed his eyes and allowed his hand to brush softly over her waist, pulling her closer. "God, I need to sleep."

"You should do that," she whispered, turning to look at him in concern, stroking his cheek tenderly. "Are you in any pain? Do you need something before…"

"I'm okay. I think the meds you gave me are working. I don't feel as much pain," he quipped, pressing a kiss to her shoulder as he snuggled closer to her. "Can you stay with me?" Regina pulled out of his arms to allow him to rest against her, his head cushioned on her stomach. She ran her fingers through his hair, scratching her nails gently over his scalp.

"Of course, I promise I'll be here when you wake up. Perks of being a doctor here, they can't kick me out of my own department," Regina chuckled softly. "Go to sleep. I'm not going anywhere."

He fell asleep soon after, and she relaxed against the back of the bed, holding him in her arms. She ate her sandwich in silence, never stopping the movement of her hand in his hair.


Three years later

Regina stood by the nurses' station filling in some paperwork. Her dark hair was tied back in a high ponytail and a deep frown was etched onto her face as she pondered a set of test results. It had been a long shift, and she was ready to go home. Her feet were aching, and she was certainly flagging in her energy.

Loud laughing flooded her ears, and unlike years ago, a large smile formed on her once miserable face. She turned around, biting her bottom lip as she saw him coming down the corridor. She guessed he'd been talking to Emma as the woman was walking off in the opposite direction.

"Hello there," she beamed.

He kissed her lips tenderly before reaching out to place his hands on her stomach, "how are my two favourite girls?"

"We're good. Tired now though," she chuckled, enjoying the feel of his hands rubbing softly over her swollen belly. "She's been active today. I think she especially liked the orange juice I had at lunchtime."

"Aww, has my baby girl got a sweet tooth?" Robin asked.

"It seems so. What are you doing here?"

"I've come to pick you up."

"My shift isn't over for another half…"

"Get your pregnant ass home," Emma quipped as she appeared out of nowhere, snatching the notes from her hands. "You need to rest. Stop overdoing it."

"Thank you, Emma! If you won't take my advice, take the advice of your fellow colleague."

Regina rolled her eyes. As much as she hated to admit it, they both had a point. She was ready to go home; if she carried on for much longer, she didn't think her feet would continue to keep her upright. Her ankles had been swelling quite often, and they were painful now. A bubble bath sounded divine.

"Fine," she relented. "I'll just go and get my things."

Once she changed out of her scrubs and grabbed her purse, she wandered back to where she had left Robin. He was looking out for her and jogged over so she wouldn't have to walk to him when the exit was in the opposite direction. "Ready to go?"

"Hmm," she nodded, humming at the feeling of his arm wrapped around her. He immediately took her bag in his other hand as they began walking towards the doors. His free hand was stroking the side of her stomach, and she couldn't help but smile at it. Ever since she told him she was pregnant, he hadn't stopped touching her belly, he was obsessed with it, and she found it endearing. If anyone else even tried to get close, they would have their hand smacked away so quickly. Only Robin was allowed the honour of touching her stomach, and maybe his mother, mainly because there was no stopping the woman. She was much too excited about her first grandchild.

"Heading home?"

She turned her head, offering a smile to the nurse who was speaking to her. "Yes, good night."

"Good night, Doctor Locksley."

She nodded at the woman before laying her head on her husband's shoulder as he walked her to the car. Regina was married to the most amazing man, and their first baby was on its way soon. Her life was perfect, and she couldn't have asked for anything better.


And there we have it! I hope you enjoyed reading. I had the idea to write a little follow up one shot of Regina telling her mother about Robin and the baby, let me know if you want to read it. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you leave me with your thoughts. :)