This idea came up in the most sudden way, and what it was going to be a little draft to post on twitter, developed into a multichapter. It's not my best work, I wrote the whole thing in a rush in one afternoon. But I liked the idea that much to decide to post it here.
I want to post a chapter per day, as they are not very long and the fic fits with Halloween haha. I hope you like it.
1
Storybrooke was a small village in the mountain. Life there was peaceful, it was the typical town in the middle of nowhere where everybody knew their neighbors, and nothing changed. Everything was monotonous. The town travel agencies chose to show in their magazines.
Killian liked to live there. He born there, grew up there and worked there, and even though when he was a teenager, he hated the town, he now appreciated his life there. He had a nice job, his friends, a long beach to take long walks and people who cared for him.
One day, a stranger arrived into town. She wasn´t exactly a stranger, as she used to live there, but moved out to go to college and never came back. Until now, and only because her mother was ill, and she needed to take care of her. She was a beautiful blonde woman whose name was Emma.
The first thing she did after settling down was go to the local diner, Granny's. she remembered the afternoons that she used to spend there with her friends. It was the heart of Storybrooke, and the owner was like everyone´s grandmother. She looked around her, nothing had changed, not even the blue-eyed, black-haired barman of the Rabbit Hole who was standing by the bar waiting for his order. She could have never forgotten him, not even in a million years. They used to go to the same school -not that there was more than one school in that small town-, but he was a couple years older than her. They've never spoken, but he was too hot to not notice him and she used to have a major crush on him.
When he spotted her that same morning, he felt how he lost his breath. He hadn´t thought of her for a long time, but now that she was back and in front of him, all the feelings he used to have were back. The truth is he's always thought she was pretty, but now that she was a grown woman, oh my, she was a goddess.
The next days, that soon turned into months, he noticed she had the same routing. She went for a run though the forest every morning and then to have breakfast at Granny´s. when she was done, she went to her mother´s and they took a walk around town.
Killian always run to her at Granny's. After his night shift at the local club, he always stopped for a cup of coffee before going home to sleep. But what once was a takeaway coffee, it turned into a whole breakfast at the B&B sitting in one of the booths, always behind Emma, looking at the blonde woman. And despite the fact he was always tired and wanted to go home and sleep, there was something in her that told him to stay there, to have breakfast there. She intrigued him. She once was this funny and open person; she would talk to everybody. Killian still remembered the sound of her laugh, it was an angelic sound, and he still could picture the wrinkles that appeared next to her eyes. What happened to her? He died to ask her, but he knew better than do that.
All those days in the cafeteria he would study her. There was something about her that called him, and it wasn´t only her beauty. Emma was surrounded by a mysterious aura. She was so reserved you could say she was shy. She was always alone and even though she had been living for some months in town, she didn't have friends, not even the ones she used to have as a teenager. She only talked when needed and always with a reserved expression, as if expecting for something bad to happen.
One day, after a rough shift at the club he decided he needed to talk to her. He wasn´t feeling good, and maybe a conversation with the woman that used to haunt her dreams would do him any better. They were almost the same age, they'd seen each other in the halls of Storybrooke High when they were teenagers, it was bad form not to talk to her after her return.
"Hello, love" he approached her table with his coffee and his plate with pancakes. She was so focused in the newspaper that she jumped a little. A panicked expression crossed her face, but she tried to hide it "I hope it's okay for me to sit here" she shrugged, but she would rather be alone "aren't you afraid of running in the woods? I've noticed you go there every morning. They say there are wolves, bears and wild animals. There are lots of spooky stories and they say people have disappeared there"
Emma hid a shocked expression "I'm not. I know I'm safe there" she simply said, not giving more explanation. She didn't need to tell him anything more, her fears were only hers. Killian smiled, he also remembered that, she wasn't afraid of anything when she was younger. She used to be so carefree, even reckless sometimes. But he loved that about her, because he used to be the same.
"Maybe you are thinking why some strange dude is talking to you, but worry not, I'm not a stalker"
"I wasn't thinking that, but now maybe am" she interrupted him with a laugh. Oh, that sound, just as how he remembered it.
Killian laughed too, relieved when he saw the tension disappearing from her shoulders.
"The name is Killian. You probably won't remember, but we used to go to the same high school"
"I remember you. The popular guy who always wore leather jackets and had the most awesome motorbike in the whole town. Every kid was jealous of you. Boys wanted to be you and girls wanted to date you" even me, she thought to herself but didn´t dare to say it out loud.
He could have sworn his love for her in that exact moment, but instead he said, "I still have it" She opened her eyes in shock. Not that that bike was old back then, but she remembered how fast he used to ride it, she thought it would have broken ages ago "I can give you a ride sometime"
He expected her to say no but was surprised when she accepted. However, soon after she agreed, that plain expression was back in her face, so he decided not to bother her anymore. One step at a time.
"I don´t want to steal your time, love. See you around"
In his apartment, he changed into some comfortable clothes and retrieved a small box hidden in the top shelf in his closet. He had some photos saved there on his teenage years. He found the one he was looking for. Emma was smiling at him, a younger version of that same goddess. She wore the cheerleader uniform and was smiling to the camera. He remembered cutting that photo from the school paper and keeping it safe in a drawer. He didn´t want anyone finding it. They would think he was a stalker and his tough guy façade would tumble if his friends found he had a crush on her. He used to be so stupid back then.
When Emma walked back home, she had to hide her smile. She couldn't believe he remembered her, that he talked to her. He was her crush when she was a teenager, but he was always with some girl, or too interested in his 'I'm a teenager, I'm so cool for this stuff' facade and at some point, she just lost interest. She knew better than to wait for the most popular guy in the whole town to notice her. Life wasn´t a fairytale, and high school lovers didn´t last. It was better not wasting her time. And soon after that she began dating Neal... major mistake. Just at the thought of him a worried expression replaced the grin. The memories of that relationship were too horrible to be thinking about them, but they were useful to remember not to trust anyone again and not to date.
Despite she enjoyed her time with Killian that morning and that the part of her that still wanted to be a teenager told her not, she couldn't see Killian again. If she did, she knew she would fall for him and that couldn't happen. She liked him, yes, she always had but she had to protect him. He had to be away from her and her secret. And that ride he promised? It couldn't happen.
At home, her mother waited for her lying on the couch, pale face and a painful grimace. Emma was worried, she wasn't doing well. That reminded her that she couldn´t waist her time with stupid teenage drama and she had to focus on her mother and her well-being.
Thanks for reading this. I'll try to post the next chapter tomorrow, but as I still have to re-write some parts and check for any mistakes, I can´t promise anything. But I would love to post a chapter per day to not lose the 'spooky' spirit lol. I hope you like it.