Hey everyone, here's the new chapter as promised! As always reviews will be more than welcome. I hope you like it!

Regina woke up with a start that Monday morning. She looked around herself not sure where she was or what was happening. She finally remembered she was in a hotel room in New York City and that she had been roused from her heavy slumber by the ringing of her phone.

She found it in her bag by the door and smiled at the name displayed on it.

"Good morning", she picked up.

"Oh my god! Regina, are you ok? What happened? I've called you like 7 times!" Mary Margaret's voice was high-pitched, and she seemed close to hyperventilation.

"7 times!? Why?"

"What do you mean why? You always answer your phone, and we said we would talk every day. And I hadn't heard anything from you yesterday and then suddenly I worried and I called and then you weren't picking up and I started panicking and I've just been calling every 20 minutes for the last hour and a half - what happened? Are you ok? Where are you? Do you need..."

"Mary Margaret please calm down!" Regina interrupted. "I'm perfectly alright, dear. I'm sorry I forgot to call yesterday and I didn't answer earlier because I simply didn't hear my phone."

With a deep sigh of relief MM continued in a much calmer tone, "Oh great! Well I mean I'd rather you hadn't forgotten me yesterday, but I'm so glad you're not dead that I'll let it slide just for this time. Why couldn't you hear your phone by the way? Wait a second...", the school teacher added suddenly, "Can you say something real quick?"

Regina rolled her eyes, "You've decided to let me speak for a change?"

"Ha!", Mary Margaret exclaimed, "You were sleeping!"

"And?"

"And it's 11 AM madam mayor!" The young woman giggled. "You slept in!" She paused, then with a gasp of realization, "Oh my god! You went out last night! Didn't you?"

Regina smiled, remembering the previous night.

After they had paid for their lunch Regina had expected Emma and her would part ways but was delighted when the young blonde suggested they visit the public library. They had laughed along the way - the blonde pointing out amusing street signs or curious pigeon behavior - and giggled once inside, attracting many a reproachful gaze. They had whispered sharing titles of books they liked and giggled some more when they simultaneously pointed at a copy of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Their fun was cut short when a severe woman approached them and without a word showed them the door. Slightly ashamed they had left the building and found themselves back on the streets.

They looked at each other and Regina hesitated. She realized she didn't want the day to end. She wanted to stay with Emma, to visit other places, to walk, to talk, to eat with her again, ... But would the young woman want that too? For a few seconds Regina wondered, her eyes fixed on the blonde's, less and less aware of the outside world. Something was building in her chest, something that seemed too strong, too real. Finally breaking the silence, Regina had spurted out "Would you like to take a walk?" At the exact same time Emma had asked "Wanna go to the park?"

So they had walked down to Washington Square Park, sat on a bench for a while then continued down to Soho, not really noticing anything outside each other. They had walked around the neighborhood, down to Tribeca then finally emerged out onto Pier 25 and the Hudson River as the sun set. Regina was stunned. The colors, the light, the water, the fresh breeze. It was intoxicating. She had turned her head to share that thought with Emma but her words never came. She was now gazing at a scene infinitely more beautiful. The blonde was bathed in the remaining light of the day, the sunset's colors dancing in her eyes and her hair was blowing here and there in the soft breeze. She had joined the elements, and they had welcomed her happily, wrapping around her with care.

"Regina? Regina, are you still there?" Mary Margaret's voice tore Regina from the memory.

"Sorry dear? Yes. Yes I'm still there."

"I asked if you went out last night. So did you?"

"Not really. I just had a long day and came back to the room a bit later than expected"

"Oh...", her friend answered, sounding disappointed, "But you had a good time?"

"I did." Regina smiled. "I had great company..."

"Company?!" Mary Margaret shrieked and then stammered out a flurry of questions faster than she had time to complete them, "Who...? How...? When...?"

Regina chuckled. "Well when you forced", she emphasized the word jokingly, "me to go out the other night I decided the hotel bar would be far enough for me and I sat at the bar. A minute later a man offered me a drink", Mary Margaret gasped envisioning a charming gentleman with a heart of gold, "But as he was an extremely arrogant, entitled and self-imbued cretin, I turned it down immediately." Regina smirked imagining her friend's shocked expression. "Anyway the bartender approved of my reaction and made me a drink - which was delicious - and we talked, and then she ended up inviting me to visit the Met with her and her friend the next day. And I said yes."

"You made a friend! That's wonderful, Regina!" Mary Margaret seemed to be brimming with pride.

"Isn't it just, mother?" Regina asked ironically, "And I also brushed my teeth and combed my hair."

"Ha ha. I only meant that it's great that you're meeting new people who you like and can share things with."

Regina rolled her eyes, "That still sounds exactly like what my mother would say, but thank you dear, I'm also glad I met Emma."

"Ooh Emma! That's such a nice name! But so, how was the museum with Emma and her friend? And don't think I forgot about the late night and sleeping in situation - I still want to find out about that too!"

"Well the friend couldn't make it in the end so it was just with Emma and it was lovely. We had such a nice time we decided to have lunch together, and then we visited the public library, but we were laughing so hard that we were asked to leave. So we just walked around the city the rest of the afternoon, and we watched the sunset." The image of the blonde on the pier came back to Regina. She continued, with a sigh, "It was... breathtaking."

A few seconds passed by in silence then Mary Margaret cut in, "And then?"

Snapped out of her daydreaming, Regina blushed and quickly told her friend about the end of her day with Emma. How they had bought a slice of pizza (or 2 in the case of the blonde) and eaten them on a bench by the water. How she had started feeling cold and Emma offered her her red leather jacket and how, as the night darkened and Emma saw Regina shiver under the jacket, the beautiful blonde had suggested hailing a cab and given her her number.

"That does sound like a lovely evening, Regina" Mary Margaret said, "Are you planning to see Emma again today?"