Sorry to keep you all waiting for this one.

"Have you been crying?" Ruby asked, the moment Emma slid into the car.

"I don't wanna talk about it," Emma sniffed. She'd cried most of the flight home, to the worry of the passenger next to her. And all the way to the airport in New Jersey, to the dismay of the cab driver.

Ruby put the car in to park before turning in her seat to face her friend. "I'm not moving this car until you tell me what's happened."

Emma took a deep breath, in an attempt to clear her mind a little, before she began her story. "Killian kissed me."

"He did?" Ruby yelled. "Why the hell are you crying over that? Isn't that a good thing?"

"Well it would have been if he hadn't kicked me out of his room and told me he never wanted to see me again after," Emma snapped back.

"Wait, what?" Ruby's face darkened. "Did he use you for sex?"

"No, of course not," Emma scoffed. "We never even got that far."

"So why did he throw you out? I've kissed you before, Ems, you're not that bad at it."

Emma hated that the tears were already spilling over at just the thought of what had happened. "I told him about Neal," she whispered.

"Why would you do that?"

"Why wouldn't I?" she countered. "I'm not that person, Ruby. I don't want to start a relationship with someone on a lie and I certainly don't want to be a cheater."

"Oh Ems," Ruby sighed, reaching out to hug her friend awkwardly over the console of the car. "I'm so sorry."

"I didn't think he'd take it so badly," she sobbed. "He didn't even give me a chance to explain everything."

"Have you tried messaging him?" Ruby asked, running a soothing hand through her friend's hair. "Maybe leave it in a message so he can read it when he's calmed down?"

Emma pulled back with a start, her eyes brightening. "Why didn't I think of that?" she asked, pulling her phone out and hurrying to switch it on. Those few moments it took to load up seemed to drag out forever.

When she pulled up her messenger app, she'd wished Ruby had never made the suggestion.

"He blocked me," she stated, the emotion and colour once more draining from her face, before she threw herself back into her friend's arms. Ruby held her until Emma finally stopped shaking and her sobs quietened down.

"So, what are you going to tell Neal?" she asked, when they were back on the road.

"I'm gonna tell him the truth and hope that he doesn't kick me out."

"Okay, it's your home. He can't kick you out. But you could ask him to leave," Ruby hedged.

"Why would I do that?"

"Emma, if Killian hadn't asked you to leave that day, what would you have done?"

Emma sat back in her seat as she thought through Ruby's question. She knew she never would have allowed things to progress past a kiss. She didn't want to hurt Neal that way. But she'd be lying if she said she hadn't been interested in seeing where things with Killian could have gone.

"What does it matter?" she finally huffed. "Killian doesn't ever want to see me again. Hell, he even told me that if I go to any more conventions after Vegas he'll have me kicked out. So it's a moot point."

"He said what now?" Ruby asked, turning her head to look at Emma.

"He said he'd have security remove me," she sulked. "Keep your eyes on the damned road."

Ruby rolled said eyes once before turning back to the road. "I meant about Vegas, Emma. He said after Vegas?"

"Yeah," she agreed, not really sure where her friend was going with this.

"Why after Vegas? Why not at Vegas?" Ruby pushed.

"I guess he thought I'd already booked and paid for the convention. But he doesn't need to worry. I'm not going."

"Oh yes you are," Ruby instructed. "Vegas is your chance to explain things to him Emma. To make him understand why you didn't tell him about Neal. You have to go."

"What's the point?" Emma demanded. "It's not like he's gonna give me any time to talk to him. He's already blocked me on Facebook. He's probably gonna change his hotel and everything else too."

"Make it happen, Emma. Even if you have to beg him for a minute of his time in photo ops. If you want him, you need to make him understand."

"And what if I don't want him? I have Neal. I have a good life without Killian Jones in it." Emma's heart broke a little at the thought.

"I don't think you'd look like that if you didn't want him," was Ruby's only reply.

"Are you gonna be okay?" Ruby asked, as Emma climbed out of the car.

"Yeah. I'll be fine."

"Do you know what you're gonna do?" she pressed.

"Not yet. But I'll let you know when I do," Emma assured her, leaning in to hug her friend. "Thanks for everything, Ruby."

"Love you, Ems."

She climbed the stairs to her apartment slowly, her mind already racing. Emma really hoped Neal wouldn't be at home just yet. She needed time to think and that would be better done without him around.

Unfortunately, luck was not on her side, and as soon as she pushed open the door, she came face-to-face with Neal and his friends, hogging the sofa in the lounge as they watched some kind of sport on TV. There were dirty dishes in the kitchen and the lounge was littered with empty bottles and cans.

"Oh, hey Ems," Neal called pushing up from the sofa and making his way over to her. He leaned down to press a kiss to her lips but Emma turned her head slightly, so he caught her cheek. She wasn't yet ready to forget to feel of Killian's lips pressed against her own. "Everything okay?" he asked, pulling back with a frown.

"Yeah." Emma did her best to plaster on a fake smile. "Just not feeling well. I think I caught something. I'm just gonna go and lie down for a while."

"Okay." Neal didn't look terribly convinced, but he didn't say anything as he watched Emma retreat to their bedroom.

Once inside, she changed into something comfy and threw herself into bed, hoping to get some sleep.

When Emma woke again, it was dark outside and the apartment was quiet. She made her way softly out into the lounge to find Neal alone, watching TV. He'd tidied up since she'd first returned, taking all of the empty bottles and cans out and even washing the dirty dishes. Emma was grateful for that.

"How are you feeling?" he asked, looking up and away from the screen.

"Better," she admitted. Sleep really had helped her feel a little more human.

Neal hummed his acknowledgement of her answer but didn't say anything else until Emma had a mug of hot cocoa in her hands and was curled up on the sofa. "You wanna watch your show?" he asked.

"Huh?" Emma wasn't sure if she was more confused about the show or the fact that he was even making the offer to begin with.

"That show you're always banging on about. Wasn't it on Sunday night? Do you wanna watch it?"

Emma did.

She really did.

But she knew she wouldn't be able to handle seeing Killian on her screen again without breaking down. And she wasn't ready to explain the reason why to Neal.

"No, not tonight," she sighed. "I'll watch it when I'm feeling better."

Neal raised a brow in Emma's direction but said nothing else. Instead he just passed her the remote so she could settle on an old sitcom rerun for the two of them to watch.

They were three episodes into a Scrubs marathon when Emma suddenly mumbled, "I kissed another man."

"Huh?" Neal asked.

"I kissed someone else this weekend," Emma repeated, a little louder.

"Another guy?" Neal picked up the remote and shut the TV off, turning to face Emma fully.

"Yeah," she admitted, quietly. It wasn't exactly something she was proud of.

"Were you drunk or something?"

"I'd had a couple but I knew what I was doing, if that's what you're asking?"

Neal remained silent for the longest time, before he picked the remote back up and turned the TV on again.

"Is that it?" Emma asked, her voice rising. "End of conversation?"

"You didn't sleep with him, right?" Emma nodded her agreement before Neal continued, "Then yeah, end of conversation. We all make mistakes, Em."

"Mistakes?" she seethed. "How many mistakes have you made in our relationship?"

"A couple," Neal shrugged. "You know what it's like when you've had a few drinks. But as long as you didn't have sex with the guy, it's okay."

Emma's jaw dropped in disbelief. "How many are a couple?" she asked again, her tone hardening.

Neal looked over to where she was sat, taking in her tense posture before he replied. "Why are you making such a big deal out of this?" he asked. "You were the one who just confessed to kissing another guy while you were supposed to be out shopping for a wedding dress. Do you see me getting angry?"

"You should be," Emma replied. "Because I'm fuming. How dare you kiss other women when you're supposed to be engaged to me?"

"You wanna play that game, Ems? Fine. How dare you kiss another guy while shopping for a dress for our wedding?"

Emma was so hurt and angry at that moment that she spoke before she really had a chance to think it through. "I wasn't shopping for a dress for our wedding. I was at a Fairytales convention in New Jersey."

The silence that blanketed the room was loaded. For a long moment, nobody said anything, Emma still reeling from the realization that her fiancé wasn't as faithful as she had thought, and Neal still absorbing the bomb she'd dropped.

"A Fairytales convention?" he finally asked. "One of those places you can meet that guy you lust all over?" At Emma's sheepish nod he continued, "And how fucking much did you spend on that?"

"None of your business," she snapped.

"Of course it's my business. I wanna know how much of our money you've wasted meeting this guy. I mean, I assume he's the reason you went."

"It's not your money," she yelled back. "It's mine. All your money comes from your father. It's my money that pays our bills and my money to waste at conventions if I choose too."

"Conventions?" Neal asked, his tone now deadly calm.

"Yeah, that's what they're called," Emma sassed back.

"I know. I just wanted to know why you choose to use the plural in that sentence." Realization dawned over Emma's face just as Neal asked, "How many have you been to?"

"Two," she sighed. "I've been to two."

"Of course you have. What, hoping your dear Captain Hook will see you enough to fall in love you with?" The mocking tone his voice adapted had Emma seeing red once more.

"How do you know it's not him I kissed?"

"Please," Neal laughed. "Like he'd ever be interested in someone like you. Dream on, Ems."

As he turned to face away from her once more, Emma's red haze cleared just enough for her to utter the words, "Get out."

"What?" he asked, turning back to face her.

"I said get out," she replied, standing from the sofa to make her way over to the front door. "Get out of my home."

"Our home," Neal amended.

"My home," she snapped back. "I paid for it. It's mine. Now get the hell out." She wrenched open the front door and Neal sighed, looking between it and Emma's face before he finally stood, and made his way over to her.

"Fine, have it your way," he told her. "I'll be at my dad's when you're ready to apologize."

Emma truly hoped that the door had hit him on the ass as she slammed it shut behind him.

Thanks for reading.