Hello again! Soooo, things are going to come to a head in the next chapter and it will likely be the last one (aside from maybe an epilogue) and I wanted to give you a heads up to prepare. Thank you soooo much for sticking with me on this story. I have a good portion of the next chapter finished so please let me know what you think of this one! Your reviews/interest makes me want to update faster. You may even see another update soon (this week?) if you want one. Let me know! ;) xoxo
David glanced at the wall clock above the chalkboard menu at Granny's diner and groaned inwardly. With a renewed sense of urgency, he picked up his beer mug and finished the glass as the door bells began to jingle with traffic consistently. He'd forgotten today was Granny's 30th Anniversary celebration and thanks to the amount of alcohol he'd already had that afternoon, he'd be stuck here for the festivities.
The week following his breakup with Mary Margaret had been exhausting, to say the least. She had refused to leave the loft and her moods went from being convinced they could work through the affair to enraged fits that had him dodging every piece of China they owned. Luckily Henry had been at Storybrooke's End of Summer camp for most of the week and at Emma's with Charlie for the rest of it, effectively keeping him clueless to the marital discord between his dad and stepmom.
Regina had messaged David to let him know Henry was going home with Charlie after camp and he had to refrain from snapping on her over it. Any other time Regina would insist that their son had spent too many nights away and needed to come home, but of course she didn't now. He was sure that she was being more lenient with their son so she could have alone time with Robin. The thoughts made his blood boil and he quickly caught Ruby's attention to ask for another beer he probably didn't need.
The diner had started to feel like home for the weekend after he'd quietly rented out a room at Granny's bed and breakfast. She'd given him the one with entry in the alleyway so he could stay discreetly and avoid the rumors for now. He didn't want to be back at the loft with Mary Margaret and she had refused to leave, so he stayed away while the dust settled and he decided what to do next.
He let out a breath of aggravation over the thought of Regina showing up tonight. She and Robin would likely be coming together and he had to manage to keep his cool somehow. News would get out soon about he and Mary Margaret's split and he didn't want Regina to think it was about her. Not after he was stupid enough to think she'd give him another chance when she was busy getting back with Robin. His pride would never allow him to admit wanting her back when she clearly didn't reciprocate the feeling.
The doorbell jingled and he didn't even need to look back to know it was Regina. He forced himself not to glance that way as he heard the familiar sound of heels clicking in his direction. That was her walk. His frame tensed as he leaned against the bar, keeping his gaze on the beer mug in his hand.
"Long time no see."
He heard her voice greet him and he pretended he didn't already know she was there, glancing up with a nod and a forced smile, "Hey."
Her greeting was light but her expression was more questioning than it was humorous. She looked at him curiously, as if she didn't know why they hadn't seen or spoken to each other in weeks. Like she didn't get back with her boyfriend the second they got home from a weekend where David felt they had reconnected.
Regina's brows furrowed during their moment of silence, visibly gearing up for a lecture after she analyzed his demeanor. "Are you drunk?"
"Excuse me?" David raised an eyebrow incredulously, sitting up straighter on his barstool.
She shifted on her heels, jaw clenching to hold back her words while Ruby brought her a bourbon and she paid her. Regina finally spoke when the waitress left them and they were alone at the corner of the bar once more.
"It's 5pm. Emma is bringing Henry here with them at any minute. Since when did you get drunk around your son?"
"Henry hasn't been here, so technically-" He replied sarcastically with a shrug before rolling his eyes when he saw her stiffen with anger, "Oh come on, Regina. I had the afternoon off. I'm not drunk. I'll be fine around Henry. He'll never know the difference."
"I know you. I know your face when you're drunk and I know how you talk when you're drunk," She snapped quietly so that the townspeople filling the restaurant wouldn't notice, "Is this the example you want to set for your nine year old son?"
"Give me a break," David shook his head and laughed mirthlessly, "I'm sorry I'm not living up to your unreasonably high standards."
"What the hell has gotten into you-" Regina glared at him as the door bell jingled loudly again, causing them both to glance up from their heated conversation to see Robin appear in the diner. He smiled at them and waved when he spotted Regina, making David nearly break the handle off of his beer mug.
"Oh thank god," David smiled sarcastically and sat his mug down, getting out his wallet for cash to pay his tab. "At least Robin's here. Now there's a role model for Henry."
"You're being an asshole," Regina grit out, her own posture tense as she reached for her her bourbon.
"Don't worry, I'm on my way out," He smiled as he stood from his stool, "I wouldn't want my son to find me unconscious on the floor in a puddle of my own vomit. Oh wait, I'm not actually an alcoholic-" David referenced his own father's actions, something he'd told Regina about years ago. She knew he had firsthand experience with an alcoholic father and would never put Henry in that situation. How dare she accuse him of being unsuitable to be around their son?
"David, I didn't mean that you-" She began to reply, obviously catching the resentment in his tone.
"Save it," He glared back at her, seeing Robin approaching in his peripheral. He had to get out of there before he was forced to speak to him or it would not end well. David turned quickly and pushed his way through the mingling people, avoiding crossing paths with the other man.
"Everything okay?" Robin raised an eyebrow as he made his way up beside Regina at the bar, "That looked tense."
"Just your typical interaction between exes," Regina let out a breath and finished her drink, "When does it get easier?"
"When you aren't in love with them anymore," Robin smiled weakly and reached out to pat her forearm in a comforting gesture.
"That clearly isn't his problem."
"I wasn't talking about David, Regina."
"Shit," She muttered with a sigh and looked up at Robin, defeated by her predicament.
"Yep," He replied without skipping a beat, looking back at her knowingly. "Wanna drink about it?"
"Yep."
"Do you mind watching where you're going?"
"Sorry-" David huffed after slamming into someone and looked down to see Mary Margaret glaring back at him. Great.
"What's gotten you so riled up in there?" His wife looked at him suspiciously before her gaze shifted and she clocked Regina and Robin through Granny's diner window. "Uh oh. Did Regina change her mind? Do you have a little competition?"
David swallowed his anger and forced a sarcastic smile. "Regina doesn't even know I told you, so you can save your goading. She's back with Robin."
"Awww, David," Mary Margaret feigned a sad expression before bursting into laughter, "Wait did you leave me for her, only to find out she's back with Robin? Oh my god. Karma works fast doesn't it?!"
"Well at least you're getting some entertainment out of it, huh?" He shook his head, "I don't care if she marries the bastard. It doesn't mean you and I are staying together."
"Oh, really?" Mary Margaret grew serious again and studied him for a moment, "And where exactly do you plan to go?"
"I'm going to get a place of my own-" He shrugged.
"With what money?" She crossed her arms and challenged him with a raised brow, "Your name is on our apartment lease. You're responsible for the rent and I certainly don't make enough to move out and rent alone."
"We can sort this out in divorce court then-" David threatened.
"And in the mean time? Divorces can take a while David, especially the messy ones."
"I'll rent a room at Granny's."
"That's almost as expensive as a second rent. Not to mention they're all single rooms. Do you really think your stuck up wife is going to let you have your son living in a hotel with you?" Mary Margaret questioned him with a smug smile and he wanted to grab her and shake her.
Anger coursed through him at the fact she had backed him into a corner. His stomach clenched at the accuracy of her argument which only irritated him more. Regina had just lectured him about his questionable fathering skills. She'd never let Henry live in a hotel room for months and survive on greasy diner food.
"Fuck you," He shook his head, feeling too angry and defeated to come up with any other response.
"I think we both know you need to come back to the apartment. That way you can still see your son...and Regina will never find out that you actually thought two of you were getting back together," She smiled innocently but the threat was evident in her expression. If he didn't go back then she would make his life hell. She'd drag out their divorce purposefully and tell Regina he had been foolish enough to think she'd take him back.
He clenched his jaw, not wanting her to think she'd gotten what she wanted. "Even if I come back to the apartment it does not mean we are together. Do you hear me?"
"Whatever you want to tell yourself, husband."
"Are you excited about your first day back to school?" Regina smiled at her sleepy-eyed son in the passenger seat before glancing back ahead as she pulled out of her driveway. He had been a bear to wake up this morning and they were running late. His last days of summer had been spent at camp and with friends, making the reality of an early morning and structured school day seem harsh to the nine-year-old.
"I guess," He mumbled a little, lifting his chin in an attempt to keep from dozing.
"Fourth grade, almost to middle school now," Regina attempted to carry on conversation, suppressing a laugh as he sighed in response. She was an early bird but Henry acted like his father in the mornings. Grumpy and quiet until they'd fully woken.
"But I'll always be your baby-" He replied as if he'd heard the phrase a million times. He probably had. "I know, I know. You tell me every time I have a birthday or start school...or when you and dad had too much wine on date nights and you'd come home and tuck me in."
Regina heard the amusement in Henry's voice, letting out a laugh as her mouth dropped in shock, "I had missed you!"
"You would only be gone for an evening," Henry smirked back and turned to look at her mischievously. "Dad would always have to remind you not to smother me. It was definitely the wine."
"You little-" She grinned and reached out to rough up his hair affectionately when he laughed.
Her heart threatened to burst at the familiar side of her son she was seeing again. He seemed to have let go of the resentment he'd had towards her and even acted appreciative at times. Maybe he was seeing that living with his Dad wasn't going to be the vacation he thought it'd be.
"Right, we're here," Regina sighed and pulled up to the curb in front of his elementary school. "I'll get your suitcase. Your Dad said to put it in Mary Margaret's classroom until the end of the day and he's coming to pick you up, okay?"
"Okay," Henry nodded as he opened the passenger door to get out. She swore she saw a hint of hesitation in his expression but he had turned too quickly for her to be sure. He was missing the usual excitement he had about getting back to his Dad's for the week. Or maybe he was just tired.
"If you've forgotten anything or you want to talk just call me, okay?" Regina raised an eyebrow at him as she made her way to the back of the car where Henry waited. He remained silent and simply nodded as she popped the trunk and reached for his suitcase. "Here you go. You need help getting it in?"
"No, I've got it," Henry nodded and pulled the handle up from his suitcase when she set it on the ground.
"Oh right, big fourth grader now," She smirked playfully and ran a hand over his hair, fixing the few pieces she had disheveled earlier.
"Moooom," He groaned, suppressing a smile before glancing around to see if any of his peers were outside to notice.
"I know, I know-" Regina pulled her hand back with a slight laugh, ignoring the twinge in her heart. He was approaching the age that any affection from his mother in front of his friends felt like the end of the world to him. She couldn't take it personally.
"Bye, Mom," Henry mumbled before leaning in and taking her by surprise, wrapping his arms around her waist in a hug and muttering into her sweater, "See you this weekend."
"Bye, Henry," She swallowed the lump in her throat and watched him with a watery smile when he grabbed his suitcase and sprinted for the school. Henry hadn't initiated a hug with her for months and the mother in her was elated that their connection was still there. Everyone had told her it was just a phase, but for someone who had worked so hard to become a mother, disconnect between she and her child felt unbearable.
Her mood was instantly brighter and she felt a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. Despite her failed marriage and her non-existent love life, she still had her son and that was the most important thing. Being a mother to Henry could be enough for her and she would focus on that moving forward. She would always miss her family being together, but this was the new normal now.
"Regina," A voice brought her from her thoughts as she gazed toward the school and her mood spoiled considerably when she saw who it belonged to. Mary Margaret stood in front of her with the fake innocent smile that always masked her manipulating demeanor.
"Mary Margaret," She forced a smile, reaching out to shut her trunk abruptly, "Can I help you?"
"I know-" Her hands clasped in front of her buttoned cardigan as she looked up at her, fake smile slowly dissolving.
"Know what-" Regina rolled her eyes and turned to walk back around her car, "I don't have time for this, I have a meeting-"
"I know you and David have been sleeping together-"
Regina's feet stopped moving before her brain could catch up, the physical reaction giving herself away to the truth of the other woman's statement. She stood at the end of her car, turning around to face the other woman slowly, "How did you-"
"He told me everything," Mary Margaret stepped up to her and Regina had to stop herself from stepping back. She wouldn't let the pint sized woman intimidate her.
"Why would David tell you anything-" Regina narrowed her eyes, shoulders tensing and chin tilting up. She refused to show any guilt in front of her. David wouldn't purposely out them to his wife and she wondered if it was a trap. Maybe Mary Margaret had read their old texts and was trying to get her to admit it. There was no logical reason David would give up that information freely, especially since he appeared to be making it work with her.
"Guilt, I assume," Mary Margaret shrugged matter-of-factly and locked eyes with her, "He admitted it to me when you got back from your weekend at his parents. He said that you two have never truly stopped seeing each other."
Regina's blood ran cold and panic bubbled up in her stomach, "That still doesn't make any sense-"
"Is it that hard to believe he actually loves me, Regina?" Her head tilted to the side and eyes narrowed, "I'm sorry to break it to you, but he does. He apologized to me for everything and begged for me to stay so that we could work through this..."
There it was. What Regina had known since the moment they got back and he had disappeared from her life. She had known he went back to his wife but the confirmation made her stomach threaten to spill it's contents. She stared back at the other woman, scrambling for some sort of snarky response but she had nothing. If she opened her mouth she'd throw up or cry.
"He said that he realized over that weekend that whatever feelings left between the two of you was gone, at least for him," Mary Margaret continued, brows drawing together as she feigned sadness for her, "I see he must not of explained it to you...I'm sorry I had to be the one to tell you this. He really should've told you himself. Although one of my conditions for staying was that he have as little contact with you as possible, so he must be really making the effort to keep his word to me."
"Is that what you want? A husband that's cheated and gone behind your back for your entire marriage?" Regina grit through her teeth, finding her backbone after a few moments. Mary Margaret may of thought she won, but she wasn't going to tuck her tail and run like a scorned other woman.
"At least I still have a husband," Mary Margaret pressed her lips together, "I will admit I was devastated to find out what had been going on, but David was just as devastated while telling me. It's not going to happen over night but I know I can eventually forgive him. He's trying to hard and isn't that all that matters at the end of the day? He's fighting for our marriage, for us. He's not just walking away like he did from you-"
"You bitch-" Regina growled, stepping forward to throttle the woman before she could think twice.
"Mom!" Henry's shout startled her back and she looked up to see him running down the school steps, "I forgot my backpack-"
"Henry-" She forced a smile and watched him, mind still spinning from what she'd just been told. "It's, uh- it's in the backseat."
"Got it-" He nodded, opening the back passenger door and grabbing it before shuffling it onto his back.
"Come on, Henry, we better get inside-" Mary Margaret smiled sweetly and put a hand on his backpack before looking at her with the same syrup-sweet expression, "Say goodbye to Regina."
"Henry's finally asleep," David muttered on his way back down from Henry's loft, seeing Mary Margaret still in the kitchen. He rounded the stairs and went into their room, grabbing his blanket and pillow from the bed to bring back out to the couch. The sofa was uncomfortable as hell but he had refused to sleep anywhere else since coming back to the apartment.
"Really, David? Don't you think you're being a little dramatic," His wife rolled her eyes and stirred a mug of tea at the counter, watching him begin to make his bed, "I mean I was the one who was cheated on but you're the one demanding you sleep on the couch? Don't you think that's a little backwards?"
"I told you, as far as I am concerned, we're not together anymore," He mumbled, his constant state of irritation lately making him easy to provoke. "Just because you won't move out of the apartment that's in my name does not mean we are making it work, or whatever fucked up story you're telling yourself."
"You know what I don't get?" Her voice was higher pitched now, making hi aware that she was irritated and gearing up for an argument, "Any man in your position would be begging his wife for a second chance after finding out the woman they planned to leave for was with another man."
"Who says I left you for Regina?" He asked sarcastically, straightening up to look at her, "Maybe I left you because of you."
"Nice try, but you're the one who said it. You love her and you always will," She mocked him and took a sip of her tea, holding it with both hands as she made her way into the living room area, "You were ready to pack your bags and move back into your old life. That is until you found out she was back with Robin."
"Like I told you, I don't care if they're back together," He lied through his teeth, glaring back at her as her smugness shown through her otherwise placid expression. "It's not going to make me come back to you."
"It's a shame, really. We get along so well when she's not in the picture," Mary Margaret shrugged, "Here you are, sleeping on a couch that makes your back hurt. Keeping up appearances for your son. Not sleeping with your wife OR your mistress. All while she's probably in your old bed with her new boyfriend at this very minute having another sleepless night, if you know what i mean."
"Shut up," David felt anger bubble in his chest and he threw his pillow down onto the touch, turning his back to her to try to ignore her. She was pushing his buttons on purpose and he was rising to it helplessly.
"...I'm not the one who said, she did," Mary Margaret chuckled, "Well, she didn't use those exact words. But she did apologize for being late and said she overslept...I think we're all grown enough to know what that means."
"I said shut the fuck up, Mary Margaret!" He barked and spun back around to face her. "I don't want to be with you. What part of that don't you understand?! Why are you still here?!"
"Because you deserve to be miserable like I have been!" She snapped back at them now, both of them forgetting the volume of their voices, "You really think that you can tell me you've been sleeping with your ex-wife and then leave? You made a vow to me!"
"I want a divorce!" He threw his hands up in the air, "I don't want you!"
"I know, you want Regina and you always have!" She mocked sarcastically, "But she doesn't want you, David! You can't have her and you don't deserve your freedom. You don't deserve to just throw away our marriage and live like a bachelor. You don't deserve to be happy or free again when you've wasted nearly two years of my life!"
"So what do you want to do, Mary Margaret? Both of us live in misery until death do us part?"
Mary Margaret smiled back at them, neither one of them noticing the boy watching them from the loft, "Now you're starting to catch on, sweetie."