Chapter 2

Finally, Robin had finally driven both Regina and him back home. When Robin saw Regina walk back into her house, he could still tell something was wrong. But what?

Regina took a deep breath. She could finally breathe now that Robin wasn't everywhere she was. Regina knew it was going to be hard to get Robin out of her head, so she decided to go up to her room and play out her frustrations. No one knew this about her, not her parents, not her friends, not even Robin, but she was a singer/songwriter and played the guitar and piano.

Both of her parents were out of the house constantly, so she didn't have to worry about them finding out about her musical talents. This was the one thing she would die if it got out. She didn't want anyone to know she had a passion for music, because she knew she wasn't good enough to make a living out of it.

But, Regina did record her own songs on her laptop and phone, so she was proud of herself for that. Regina sat on her bed after grabbing her guitar and hummed a melody before strumming the chords.

Regina was a self-taught guitarist, and she was a good one too. She knew every note, every chord, every string, everything she needed to accomplish her goal. To record an album by the end of the summer.

Regina let herself be free with the music, and just let go. This was one of the limited ways she could express her deep and meaningful feelings. Regina smiled and started singing one of her favorite covers.

"Lovin' can hurt. Lovin' can mend your soul…. And it's the only thing that I know."

Regina was always a big fan of Ed Sheeran. He's been her favorite artist for years now, and this song fit her perfectly right now. She smiled at the irony.

"And when it gets hard, you know it can get hard sometimes. It is the only thing that makes us feel alive…. We keep this love in a photograph, we make these memories for ourselves, when our eyes are never open, hearts are never broken, times forever frozen still…."

Regina changed the guitar to the main melody and hummed before entering again. She smiled, thinking to the next lyrica ahead.

"So you can keep me inside the pocket of your ripped jeans, holding me closer till our eyes meet, and you won't ever be alone…. Wait for me to come home…." Regina finished strong, then strummed her final chord on the guitar for a dramatic effect. She smiled. Music always put her in a better mood.

While setting her guitar down, the one that was barely hanging on by now (she's had it for at least seven years), her eye was caught on a glimpse of light. She squinted, and then realized it was one of her photos that caught her eye. The one of her and Robin.

Regina carefully crept out of bed to get the picture. When she was back, sitting comfortably on her bed, she held the picture to her face, looking at it for what felt like the millionth time. She rubbed her thumb over the worn out photograph and smiled.

It was her and Robin, about a year ago. It was at her fifteenth birthday party, in her backyard. Regina was on Robin's back, and they were both smiling stupidly. Regina wore a light blue blouse and a pair of washed jean shorts, while Robin had on a t shirt he had got from the school's baseball team, and a worn pair of cargo shorts. They both looked so cute.

Anyone who didn't know them would think they were a couple, but Regina didn't mind. She thought that maybe they would reach that level in their relationship, but apparently not.

The lighting of the picture was perfect. The sun was setting just behind them, and the soft candle glow made an amazing background. Regina smiled. This was absolutely by far her most favorite picture on Earth.

Regina heard the sound of her father's car park in the driveway, and she scrambled. She quickly put away her very used guitar, put back the picture in its place on her desk, and grabbed some boring book from her dresser. She laid down on her bed just before her mother came in the room.

"Hello, Dear." Cora smiled one of her fake smiles. Regina smiled back, wondering what was bothering her mother.

"Hi, Mother." Cora came to sit down on her daughter's bed. When she looked up, she saw her daughter's face was flushed and dried tears were stained on her face.

"You've been crying…" Cora frowned and reached to tuck a piece of Regina's hair back behind her ear. Regina looked down when Cora's hand was away from her face, feeling shy all of a sudden.

"What's wrong?" Cora asked worriedly. Regina took a deep breath and smiled. She shook her head, knowing if she told the truth, her mother would never let her live it down. She was rooting for Regina and Robin as much as Regina was.

"It's nothing." Regina shrugged off, but her mother knew her better than that. This look on Regina's face, it was new. She's never seen it on her face before. She thought about what could have happened, then remembered she went out with Robin earlier with all their friends.

"You look…." Then, the word found Cora's mouth in surprise, "heartbroken." Cora then realized that something must have happened with Robin. She knew her daughter more than likely had a crush on Robin, how could she not? They were basically together twenty four seven.

Regina's head whipped up, shocked her mother would use that word. She stammered, trying to find the right words to explain herself and her stupid feelings.

"What? I, uh, what? Don't, Uh, I don't, I'm not-"

"Honey," Cora stopped her daughter's rambling and grabbed her right hand. Regina finally looked up in her eyes and for a second, Regina thought she saw saw understandment in her mother's eyes.

Regina turned red and tried to hide her face. This was so embarrassing! "What happened?" Cora asked, a little more demanding. Regina took a deep breath and took her hand back from her mother's grasp.

"Everything was perfect Mom. Robin picked me up, we went to the diner, chatted for a little while… And then the dance came up….. Robin said he was going to ask someone to go with him, and he looked straight at me. Mom, I really thought he was gonna ask me." Regina tried not to cry at the memory. It was still sad, knowing Robin, her best friend in the whole world, didn't feel the same. Because he already told her they were just friends.

"Then he said he was going to ask another girl, and I thought I was going to be sick…." Regina admitted slowly. Why was she even telling all of this to her mother? She would just tell her that love was weakness…..

Cora nodded her head, understanding why her daughter was upset. Regina Mills cared for Robin Lockley, and more than a friend. Cora could have called her out, tell her daughter she knew from the very beginning, but now was not the time. But at their wedding? Cora tried not to smile as she pictured a wedding with Regina as the bride and Robin as the groom.

"That must be hard," Cora sighed. Regina wanted to laugh. Hard? Was that what the feeling was? Like your heart was being ripped out of your chest and crushed right in front of you? Yeah, it was one hundred times worse than hard.

"You like him…." Cora stated out loud, to no one in particular. Regina just ducked her head and shrugged it off. Like was definitely not the word. More like…. Love that lasts an entire eternity and you will never stop feeling that way. And then an airplane crashes into the heart and love bleeds out. You'll never get the love back.

"It doesn't matter. It was just a crush." Regina lied. Even though both of them knew Regina was lying, no one said anything about it. Regina didn't want it to come off as though she was heartbroken, so she tried to act cheerful, but it was hard when you were in love with your best friend, who was planning on being with another. Hmph.

"Regina, it's okay if it's more than a crush. You know that, right?" Cora asked gently. Regina didn't want to answer that question because, no, it wasn't okay. Why be in love with someone if the feelings aren't reciprocated? Plus, it didn't matter. Nothing was ever going to happen between her and Robin.

"Well it's a good thing it isn't." Regina didn't want to have this talk with her mother. She didn't want to have this talk with anyone. It bruised her complete soul.

"Honey-"

"How was work?" Regina asked, hoping Cora would drop the subject. Cora frowned, knowing her daughter was trying to change the subject. But this was something that needed to be talked about so it wouldn't eat you up inside. Even if Regina didn't know it yet, she actually did want to talk about it.

"Deep down inside, I think you really do want to talk about it." Cora explained, and Regina sighed. Of course she wanted to talk about it! It was killing her to keep everything pent inside, and she didn't want to take out her pain on anyone else.

"Maybe….. Maybe you're right." Regina gave up pretending. It felt good to be free to talk to her mother like this. Plus, it wouldn't hurt to have a venting session on Robin. She smiled to herself.

"What do you want to talk about?" Cora asked, not wanting to step over boundaries her daughter might have already set. But Regina just shrugged. Where should she start? The very beginning? But where even was that?

"Where do you want to start?" Regina asked. Cora smiled, knowing that they could have talked all night and it wouldn't matter. No matter what, Regina would always care for Robin.

"How about the beginning? So, how did it start?" Regina looked out her window, down to the old apple tree in her front yard. She smiled, imagining where she first realized she loved Robin. Cora followed her eyes, and also smiled when she saw the apple tree.

"Do you remember my birthday party last year?" Regina asked, and Cora smiled for an answer. Regina did too, but she never broke eye contact with the tree. It was the very first place she realized she loved Robin, the first place she met Robin, and the first place she goes to when Robin wants to talk to her in private.

"After hours of talking to all the adults and boring people, me and Robin sneaked away to the apple tree. We were tired of everyone surrounding us, so it was nice when Robin suggested it….. We were just standing there, with the sun setting behind us. Then, out of nowhere, music started playing. Robin held out his hand, and I took it." Regina smiled, closing her eyes, knowing that this was one of her favorite memories.

"Me and Robin danced for what seemed like forever. It was amazing….. And then, everything just seemed to stop. We were looking at each other like we were the only people in the world, and that was the moment I realized I loved him….." Regina let her head down, now thinking of a new memory. It had started off great, but then ended horribly. Should she stop talking? But she couldn't. It felt too good to get everything off her chest and she couldn't stop now.

"You love him?" Cora asked. It was pretty obvious though. Anyone could see it form a mile away. The way they looked at each other, they way they talked to each other, the way they spent every minute of every hour of every day of every year together. They would be the perfect pair.

"Of course I do. It just took me a while to realize it. But it doesn't matter anymore. It's never gonna happen." Regina tore her eyes away from the window and back to her mother. Cora looked confused. Little did she know, Regina was too.

"What do you mean?" Cora asked. Regina started playing with her fingers, not really wanting to answer that, but knew it was best if she did. She took a deep breath. This was a hard memory to replay, but she would be okay.

"About a week after our dance by the apple tree, Robin surprised me by taking me out to the fields by the lake. We drove up there, and sat in his truck, just gazing at the stars. After what felt like forever, I could tell something was bothering him. I asked, and I really wish I hadn't….."

"I'm assuming this was the night you snuck out your window?" Cora smirked, trying to lighten the air, and Regina smiled sheepishly. So that was a definite yes.

"I will never forget what Robin said. He held my hand, looked me straight in the eyes…." Regina took a deep breath before continuing, emotion building up inside of her slowly, "and told me he never wanted to lose me." Regina stared out the window again, playing the moment in her head.

Regina could tell something was bothering Robin. He was stalling, and she just wanted to know what was wrong.

"Regina, can we talk?" Regina was scared. They always talked, but now it was serious. What was he gonna do? What would he say? Regina nodded, too afraid her voice would give out on her.

"I've been thinking, and, I just don't know how to say this….." Regina held her breath, afraid of what her best friend might say. Maybe he needed space, and this was his way of making it up to her for a little while. Or maybe, it was the total opposite. Maybe Robin didn't want any space from her. Maybe he wanted all of her. Regina's heart was secretly beating out of her chest.

"It's okay. You can say it." Regina urged on, almost wanting to scream at him to hurry up so she could have an idea of what was going through his mind at the moment.

Robin held her hand, and looked straight into her chocolate brown eyes. Regina's breath hitched, but if Robin noticed, he didn't say so.

"Regina, I never want to lose you." Regina's whole body froze. What? Oh my god, what was he thinking? Why would he ever lose her? She could see the caution in Robin's eyes, and only wished for him to be comfortable.

"Robin-"

"I can't lose you, Regina. I just can't. Your my best friend, and I don't want anything to happen to us. I need you in my life…. Promise me you will always be my best friend." Regina wanted to cry. She was happy and sad at the same time. Robin always wanted to be in her life. But he just wanted friendship. Regina wanted more than that.

But the look in Robin's eyes clearly told Regina everything she needed to hear. Robin only wanted to be her friend, and if that's what would help him sleep at night, then she would have to suck it up and be there for her friend.

"Regina, you're my best friend, and I wish for nothing more. Please, promise me that we will always be in each other's lives." Regina could tell Robin was worrying about her answer, so she decided to stop his stress, even if it broke her down entirely.

"Robin, I promise I will always be your best friend. Nothing more." That was the night that Robin's heart finally started beating again, and the night Regina's stopped altogether.