Chapter 31

Emma, Neal, and Henry head downstairs, closing their apartment door for the last time. David is just closing the back of the moving van and turns to the small family on the street. He smiles at them sympathetically and pulls all of them in for a hug.

"Moving is never easy… I know that for a fact."

Emma gives a weak smile and rubs her hand over her stomach. "It's time to start anew." She pulls her jacket over her growing child and zips it up. It's a tight fit considering how big her daughter is becoming.

She then heads over to her bug, which Killian is driving. The back is almost completely stuffed to the brim with stuff, leaving only a little room for Henry to sit. Neal goes for his own car, while David, his own truck. Once in the passenger seat, Killian leans over and kisses Emma on the cheek. She turns and meets his lips.

"Are you all right, Love?" he asks once they break apart.

"Just sad," she explains. "It's like leaving a part of me behind."

"It will always be there Swan. And hopefully, now, a new family can move-in and create new memories like you, Henry, and Neal had…" He understood completely as to why she was sad, after all, he left Ireland when he was only five and never saw his homeland again. No matter how beneficial the move was for them, it was still sad… a home is where they create memories, where they felt safe, where they felt loved…

"I hope so…" she says quietly.

"Besides, we have our own memories to make…" he smiles, putting his hand on her stomach. The two kiss once more before the moving van honks the horn, indicating they had to get moving. Killian puts the bug in gear and drives across the snow-covered parking lot. Emma and Henry stare longingly at the building, memories flowing through their heads before the car makes a turn and it vanishes completely.

…

"Come on Will," Robin groans. He throws his half-naked roommate out of bed by flipping the sheets from under him. Mr. Scarlett lands on the floor with a thump but continues to snore, face in the dingy carpet, one foot still on the bed. He sleeps in his tightie whities, an empty rum bottle next to his bed.

"How drunk can one man be?" the personal trainer groans.

Robin cranks the volume on his phone and puts it next to Will on the floor. The dark-haired man doesn't even stir. He goes to the kitchen to get a glass of water and throws it in his roommate's face. The sleeping slob merely rolls over and mutters something in his sleep.

He then smirks, knowing exactly what will get him up.

He grabs Will's phone from the nightstand and pretends to open it.

"Hey Ana," he says, loudly that he's sure the lazy bum on the floor can hear it. He walks out of the room and continues to raise his voice louder and louder during this pretend conversation. "Yeah, he's asleep again. Yes, he did get drunk last night. I know. We are supposed to help Killian move today. What's that? Really? Your ex-boyfriend texted you… and what did he say ab…"

Robin never has to finish his sentence because Will is off the floor and out of his room, trying to grab the phone. He hides the smile of satisfaction as his idiot roommate fumble to put the phone to his ear.

"Ana…? Ana, what happened? What did Lewis say…"

Will glares at his snickering roommate, "That was a dirty trick mate."

"It was the only way to get you off your lazy ass."

"Why must you torment me so?"

"Did you forget that we're helping Killian and Emma move in today?"

"Forget… no… wanted to forget, yes,"

"Come on, of all the favours you've asked of Killian… you owe him enough to help him move in with his girlfriend."

"It's not my problem," Will grunts, going to the kitchen in his underwear for something to eat. He finds fresh food and goes for a bag of grapes. Robin grabs them from him.

"What the hell?!"

"This stuff is not for you, it's for Kil and Emma."

"Why the hell did you buy all this good stuff for them?"

"So, they can save some money on groceries and feed Henry. The woman is also pregnant and needs good food for the baby."

"Why must we insist that we make a big deal out of this, it's a baby, all it'll do is eat and burp all day, and it's a new house, it's a building with windows…?"

"It also shows a sign of maturity. Something you lack a lot of," Robin grumbles, putting the food back in the fridge. He then begins searching the cupboards. "Where is your cooler?"

"Why?"

"To put the food in you dolt, it'll spoil by the time we're done unpacking if we don't refrigerate it."

Will sighs angrily, his stomach growls and his head pounds from the alleged hangover he had. He goes to the tap and sticks his head underneath it, drinking as much water as he can. Robin finds the cooler and puts all the good food into it. He can't help but smile. Not only was his best friend moving out, although he'd prefer if Will was the one leaving, not Kil, he'd also get to see Regina again. It had been awhile since they reconciled, and the dates were as frequent as they could manage, but with their clashing schedules, it was becoming harder to see each other for even coffee. Fortunately, helping his friends move into a new house, was the perfect excuse to get off work and see his beloved again. He hadn't quite admitted it to himself yet, but he thinks he's falling in love with her. Her dark eyes seem to always be full of love and compassion, her presence lighting up every room she entered and his heart soared over the moon when she kissed him. He was still working out custody with Marian, but both agreed that each parent deserved equal time with Roland. And just because he was getting divorced, doesn't mean he can start fresh with this new woman. He thought about her all the time and almost felt lost when they weren't together.

"Now put some pants on and get ready to go."

Will opens his mouth to protest, but Robin shoves some discarded clothes at him.

"Come on, you need the exercise. Besides, Ana's away on business, isn't she?"

The half-naked roommate opens his mouth but then closes it again. He knows there's no getting out of this. He stomps towards the bathroom to take a shower.

"Also Kil asked us to bring these boxes with us, as soon as you're done, I'm going to need a hand," his mate calls from down the hall.

Mr. Scarlett just groans again before turning on the water.

He lets out a shriek of pain with the icy water hitting his hot skin.

"Also, I used up all the hot water this morning," Robin calls with a smirk.

…

"There it is," Emma whispers as they pull up next to the white picket fence surrounding the house. It's windows stare blankly at them, like eyes, with nothing to show any indication of light and the gray paint blends almost seamlessly into the afternoon sky. The yard is covered with snow at the porch swing next to the door rocks gently back and forth in the winter breeze. The SOLD sign stands next to their car. Emma is slightly emotional, hardly believing that this was now her home… their home. The dark roof shelters it from the snow and there's a tree in the corner of the yard, perfect for making a swing for Henry in the spring. In the distance, they can hear the ships of the Boston Harbour honking their horns at one another as they passed by.

"It's beautiful Love," Killian says.

"I just can't believe it's ours," she sighs in wonder.

"It looks kind of haunted…" Henry remarks.

"It doesn't look like much now, but soon it will be filled with life," Emma says optimistically.

"Well, let's get moving then," the docks man says, stopping the car, and getting out. Emma feels the weight of the key in her pocket. She gets out into the bitterly cold weather and goes up the path to their new home. She fumbles to find the key to the white door, holding her breath in anticipation and anxiety.

She opens the door into the front foyer. The stairs are directly in front of her and there's a door that leads into the unfinished basement. Closer to, right in front of her is what will be the living room, devoid of anything except the fireplace and to the left is the dining room and kitchen, fully stocked with appliances. She takes in the scene before imagining the place filled with their things. She can picture her and Killian in the kitchen making breakfast each morning, cuddling to one another. Henry sitting at the dining room table, doing his homework, the three and then four of them huddled together on the couch to watch a movie. She can see the late nights, walking their daughter up and down the upstairs or feeding her in front of a roaring fire. Her eyes fill with tears, thinking this might be some dream. Some confusing, but beautiful dream.

Noises erupt behind her and she can see the moving van, David's truck, Neal's, Regina's, Elsa's, Aurora's, Ruby's cars lining the front of their new home. She sighs quietly to herself before going outside. She can see Killian and Henry already hard at work unloading the yellow Volkswagon. She smiles to herself, walking down the path to help.

"Okay, let's bring the stuff in."