As time crept on the two women continued to exchange letters here and there. Emma enjoyed coming home from long days of work to a letter from Regina. It was not everyday, but the days she did were always the best.
It became a routine. She'd come home, Henry in tow, make dinner, or heat dinner per se, hang out with Henry, and then after he went to bed she'd open Regina's letter.
Finally Emma asked for Regina to send more lists of things about her, she took in consideration that in the foreseeable future that the letters weren't going to come to a halt. How could they when she would look forward to the letters so much.
Regina sits at the Public Gardens, while Emma sat out on her dock. Both continuities are warmer and Spring finally set in.
After she reads Emma's letter, Regina begins to prepare a list. She has no idea what the other woman really wanted to know. She feels one dimensional most days. She is a doctor, and that's what she dedicates her time to. She really has no friends, except Kathryn, the nurse from work that she gets coffee with occasionally.
Regina sighs.
She puts the pen to paper and began to write, "I love classical music. Occasionally I will listen to some classic rock, but that is rare. I love red wine and coffee. Cuban coffee is my favorite. I read a lot as well. My favorite book is by Jane Austin. I love dogs and small children. I love working in peds. The job is tiresome but still it is rewarding at the end of the day."
Emma smiled and looked out over the lake. She sighed and looked down at a blank sheet of paper and mumbled to herself, "Great. Now it's my turn."
Emma knew there were plenty things she could list, but her kid was the at the very top. He was literally her life. She dedicated everything to him. Her job second.
Emma shook herself from her thoughts ans laughed to herself. She knew exactly what to write.
"I enjoy long walks on the beach, going on picnics on sun filled days, holding hands into the sunset…."
Regina couldn't hold back the laughter. It was clear that Emma was a charmer. She continues reading what Emma really did enjoy.
"I love dogs too. I love nature and hiking. I love to workout and run. Henry keeps me pretty active. He's still in the 'I worship mom phase,'so he keeps me pretty occupied. On the other side of things, my job keeps me pretty tied up. Not that there are lots of crimes here, as you may know, but it's a small town and little things happen. Like last week when Old Lady Belmont's cat ran up a tree. I love a good cold beer at the end of the day and I don't read much, but I do read to Henry. We just finished The Call of The Wild. We have officially moved onto 1000 Leagues Under the Sea. As you can tell he keeps me busy."
Regina can almost envision the lake house now filled with a small family playing outside, making messy dinners in the small kitchen, the toys strung across the floors. Regina feels a warm sensation across her body, maybe it is the warm breeze, or maybe it is the warmth and joy she felt Emma share with her son.
Regina responds, "I forgot one, I love the lake house. It's my favorite place I have ever lived."
"How did you live here again?" Emma inquired.
Regina reclines back in bed and responds, "I moved in for a while after med school, it was a gift from an ex. Long story short, he found someone who was no longer in need of the place. It was perfect for me. I worked myself too hard in school and need an escape from life. I worked outside town at the community hospital. It wasn't anything fancy, just a resting point before I went for the big leagues. The place looked different than what I grew up staying at. I think it had something to do with it literally being in the water with open windows all around. The view everyday was breathtaking. I would stay up reading a lot and watch the sunrise. Just beautiful."
Emma nodded her head and leaned back in her own bed, responding with a slight laugh. "No I totally get it. It's like every time you come home it's like embarking on a voyage." Emma winces slightly. "Sorry if that's pretentious."
Regina is now walking out of a patients room and pulls out her latest note from Emma. She walks down the corridor of the East wing with a smile on her face and bumps in the Dr. Whale.
"Regina, its nice to see you this morning. I have been meaning to catch up with you. Can I interest you with dinner tomorrow evening? I was thinking afterwards we could go to First Night at the Museum of Fine Arts. They will be serving fine wine."
Regina smiles and looks down at the note in her hand. If only Emma was in the here and now.
"Sorry Dr. Whale I already have plans. Maybe take…. Ruby?" The blonde man's mouth opens to say something and before he can entertain Regina with a response she is gone.
Regina leans in on a counter at the nurses station responding to Emma's note, "Don't apologize. You can be pretentious. You can be anything you want to be."
Regina is distracted by the nurse down the hall. It was Kathryn's birthday and they were having a small celebration with cake and balloons. Kathryn smiles at her from off in the distance waving for her to come join.
Inside the station, Emma was digging through her filing cabinet trying to locate a lost file from the previous week. Regina's last letter was on display on her desk when her no good deputy came in.
"I brought you lunch, Sheriff Swan." He sat the greasy food bag on her desk, "Oh look, another one of these letters you fancy. Who is they guy anyways?" Before Emma could jump up to stop the man from helping himself he picked up the letter and began to read.
"Swan, do you have a thing for this lady?" Emma snatched the prized letter from the man's hands and grabbed her lunch before exiting the station.
A few weeks have passed and Regina is outside waiting for her train as she looks down at her buzzing phone. She hardly answers unidentified numbers, but this once she decides to answer, "Hello?"
She hears nothing. Her heart is racing. She truly had hoped Emma found her in the future, which is unlikely, but she let her guard down. "Emma?"
The person on the other line finally responds, "What? No its Graham. Must have a bad connection. Sorry I said hello. Listen…"
Regina's demeanour changes immediately. She stiffens and her lips form a straight line. She looks down at her feet and paces awaiting the train. "I don't want you to be mad that I called. I just wanted to know if you wanted to get dinner Friday night. I am visiting the city and just thought that maybe you would want to catch up for old times sake."
Regina stops pacing. "It is not that easy Graham…." She continues to yell into the phone at the man. She hangs up the phone, huffs, and realizes that she just missed her train. "Great."
The next day another doctor convinces her to take their shift. Regina is used to working long hours. Later that night she sees Ruby in the locker room changing.
Regina can sense something is wrong with the brunette, she isn't acting liker her normal self.
"What's wrong dear? Anything I can do to help?"
The tall brunette looks up, "It's nothing." She wipes a few tears from her face.
Regina responds, "Trouble in paradise?"
The brunette nods, "Yeah, I guess. Something like that."
Regina overhears the young girl on her phone, "Look I am doing everything I can. I realize it's 6:30. Can he stay any longer for the after school program?... Right I understand. No.. I will be right there… Thanks."
Regina watches the young girl slam her locker door shut, punch it once, and then turn to leave. Something is not right with her.
After a few minutes Regina finds herself sitting alone. It had been a long few days. Her head is pounding and all she wants to do is go home and sleep.
A week passed after that and Regina had worked more hours than she had since med school. She has massive black bags under eyes and her hair had not been washed in two days, which was not to Regina's standards. Finally making it home for a few days off, she pulls out Emma's most recent letter, "Where have you been stranger? I am starting to worry about you."
Regina is relaxing in a hot tub filled to the rim with bubbles, Mozart in the background, and a wine glass in hand. She reads the letter again. She sighs and dries off her hands to respond.
"Sorry I have worked extra hours this week. I pulled several doubles. I worked 32 hours straight a few nights ago and took a nap for 4 hours in the on call room and then worked another 32 hours straight. I am drained, so I haven't been able to pull myself away. I can't recall the last time I looked outside and saw a damn tree. It normally isn't that bad till I stop and breathe for a minute. I wonder what the hell I am doing in such a gray city when I once lived in the lake house with that view. The trees were the best there."
The next day Emma finished reading Regina's letter and looked out of her window. She got a bright idea and dropped her son off at Grannys. She went to the local landscape business and picked up the exact same tree that was in the yard at the lake house. She put the small twiggy tree in her car and drove into Boston.
On Regina's way home that night there is a huge thunderstorm. Of course the weatherman failed to predict that, shocker, so naturally she doesn't have her umbrella. During the short distance between her train stop and her front door the rain started coming down hard. Regina runs towards the front doors to her building, and incidentally her shoe gets caught in a crack in the sidewalk. Consequently, all of her things fly out of her hands. She bends down picking up everything and readjusting her shoe.
Emma pulled up in front of 665 Washington St. and pulled out the small tree. Shovel in hand she marched to the front entrance and found a good spot and started hacking away at the dirt. Emma positioned the tree's base in the hole she had dug and began to put the dirt back in. She stepped back with a shovel leaning against her side and smiled and thought, "Hopefully this little guy makes it through the time-space continuum."
Regina growls in frustration noticing her shoe is broken, still bent over. She begins to stand up when she hears an intense crack of thunder. The rain no longer is pelting her in the face. She looks up, mesmerized, at a tree. Not just any tree. It was one from the lake house. All worry and frustration over her shoe was forgotten. She grins and laughs and says, "Emma..." She sighs, realizing what had happened. "Thank you!"
On the weekends Emma did her best to dedicate time to her son. One thing she was against was giving Henry video games. She wanted him to play outside and have a strong imagination to be able to entertain himself.
A lot of times she would walk into his room and his soldiers, action figures, and other figurines would be lined up in battle. He, on warmer days, would play outside with Lady and roll around in the grass and chase her around the yard.
Emma would play tag with Henry and Lady. Nothing was more fun than chasing him around. The kid always had a smile on his face.
Today was exceptionally nice and Henry and Emma were sitting outside on the dock fishing together when Emma overheard a car coming up the driveway. Her son passed his fishing rod over to Emma and ran to greet the dark haired woman.
She stepped out of the car and studied the now obviously taller boy. Before she knew it her body was nearly knocked over by the force of his body impacting her. "RUBY!"
She smiled. She missed that little munchkin. "Henry! I have missed you so much! I see you and mom are fishing! Can I join?"
Henry grabbed the young boy's hand and dragged the taller woman towards the dock. "Hey Emma. I decided to come visit you guys. Give myself a mental break from school."
"Aw Ruby, you are always welcome here. You are basically family. Remember when we spent the summers here in high school? Granny hated the open windows. She always complained about my dad's design choices."
"I can hear her now, 'There is no privacy in this place. What was your father thinking.' Anyways, when did your dad design it again?"
"Just before I was born. It was supposed to be a getaway for all of us before my mom died. After she died he never came back. It was meant for her. She loved the lake. She used to tell me that it was her favorite place on Earth. Hence why we only every came here with the supervision of Granny. Poor old man lost his life the day she passed. My mom always said they were soul mates."
"I'm sorry Em. I know you had a difficult time after she died."
"I guess that's life. You know, I'm glad Henry wont have to ever deal with that. Neal is gone, but he won't have to deal with knowing him and then handle him leaving. It's better this way."
Ruby studied the blonde woman, "It doesn't have to be that way you know. Your dad left, but not everyone leaves. I know you don't want Henry to deal with that kind of loss. I guess, what I am trying to say, is that you need to allow yourself to let love in again."
They sat in silence as they looked out over the water. Henry was over at the end of the dock reeling his line in to reattach a new worm. Of course it was not a real worm, but the kid could never make his mind up on what color to pick.
Emma eyed her son and smiled she thought, "How did I end up so lucky with him?"
A few days have passed and Regina is at home sitting at her desk going through a few old files. One was dated "5:30 to NYC." The date was exactly two years ago in two days. She pulls out a piece of paper and writes, "Emma, let's test something. When I was in med school I took a trip to NYC from South Station. When I was in the station I left a gift from my father on one of the benches. See if you can find if for me. I wont tell you what it is. That I will leave a mystery. I think you will know it when you see it. This is your mission if you choose to accept?"
Two days later, Emma finally arrived to the station and rushed in and looked for the 5:30 bus to NYC. She walked over to the terminal and looked around. She then realized Regina would be there, but not once did she know what the woman looked like.
A sea of people were rushing around Emma boarding the bus. Nearly everyone was boarded, but one couple. The woman had long black hair. She was tiny. Maybe 5'4. Definitely shorter than she was. The man was handsome. He was laughing at the girl in his arms and turned to hand her luggage. She leaned in for one more kiss and jumped onto the bus.
Just then Emma realized that the woman left something on the bench. She rushed over. "Persuasion, by Jane Austin." This had to be Regina's book. She looked up and the bus had not moved yet. Emma ran towards the windows and that's when she caught the woman's eyes. She held up the book and the bus took off.
Emma caught the glimpse of her mystery woman. She was beautiful and stunning. The bus now gone from view a man appeared, "Miss you can not be out here. Please come back inside and wait with everyone else."
Emma frowned. Her heart hurt. She had never felt so let down before. Honestly, though, what did she expect?
The next day Regina gets off of her shift and drives straight to the Cape. All day she could not wait to get to the mailbox to see if Emma found her book.
When she opens the mailbox inside was not a book, but a note. "What are you plans for July 4th?"
"Fireworks. I go every year in Boston. Why, are you asking me out on a date?"
Emma laughed. "No. I just thought.. I don't know. Maybe we could do something together for once."
Regina smiles, "You do realize I will be two years ahead?"
"Thanks captain obvious I think I am aware."
"Well since we are doing this fourth of July together I will leave something for you and Henry in the mailbox before you go. Don't forget to check it!"
"My my my, mysterious are we? I promise to not forget."
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
The whole morning was a complete shit show. Henry woke up with a sore throat and sneezed his head off. After taking some cold medicine the kid perked right up. Still, Emma was always so careful with Henry and always insisted on keeping him in bed on mornings like this.
By 10 am he was back to his usual self. She figured by keeping him on the medicine and adding some fluids he should be fine.
Lady got loose and tore around town right before lunch. It took Emma a solid hour to track her down and get her home. The dog literally loved to play chase too much.
It was mid afternoon by the time Emma finally was able to shower and do her hair. She picked out her normal jeggings with a red tank top. Henry found a flag shirt earlier in the week that he insisted on wearing. He even attempted to get Emma to buy a matching tee. That, however, would happen over her dead body. The whole twin thing was not her style.
It was time fore them to head to Boston, and Emma finally finished spraying Henry down with bug spray, as well as herself. Afterwards, Henry rolled the blue cooler out to the car full of snacks and drinks for their ride.
Emma walked to the mailbox and pulled out a package and a small envelop that was labeled, "Open me first."
The package was bulky, and of course Emma shook it to see what surprise would be. Regina was smart enough to pack the object tight enough that it was next to impossible to figure out what it was.
"Emma, inside the package is a camera. I want you to take Henry around town and take pictures of your trip, or record snippets of your day together. I truly wish we could spend the day together, but with this we, in some way, can." Emma opened the packaged and pulled out a tiny canon digital camera. Unfortunately there were no pictures on the memory card.
Emma looked up and saw Henry running around the yard. Emma smiled and turned the camera on video and yelled out to her son, "Henry, wave at the camera, and say Happy Fourth of July 2012!"
Henry laughed and did as he was told, a bit eccentric about it with his added jumps in the air and laughter, but he was 4. What would someone expect? It was cute.
On the way into Boston Henry took about 20 selfies and a few videos of himself singing along to music on the radio. Emma laughed at her son. He was so wired on seeing fireworks.
Henry and Emma pulled up in the city and started to walk through a mass of people. Henry was hand in hand with Emma and they cut the corner around a building.
Night has fallen and Regina moves in the same direction around the same corner in her time.
Emma and Henry stopped at a street side vendor and got greasy hot dogs with tons of mustard and ketchup. Henry's is piled high with relish and chili too. Emma reached into her back pocket and had the small man at the hot dog stand take their picture with their greasy dogs. A few candid ones, which included Henry's chili getting all over his face and shirt.
Emma was constantly thinking of Regina and what she was doing this very second. After Henry and her made a few rounds to different shops he turned to her and said, "Mom do you like someone? You are acting like you like someone. At least that is what Granny and Ruby think. You are always daydreaming."
Emma opened her mouth to deny what her son had asked, but the exact opposite happened, "Yeah, kid I do like someone. It is complicated and far beyond your time champ, but her name is Regina."
The fireworks show started Henry was on Emma's shoulders as they watched the sparks of light fade out over the water. The entire time she and Henry watched the show she could not help, but to wonder, "what it would be like with Regina by our side. Would Henry take to her?"
A sweet older couple took their picture watching the fireworks. Henry was of course on her shoulders for the entire event. Right before they got into the car to head home Henry pulled out the camera and turned it on video and said, "Mom come over here we need to take one last video." Emma walked over and leaned down to be on her son's level.
"What do you want the video to be of?"
Henry smiled and started the video, "Hi Reginaaaaa! Hope you had a good fourth of July like me and mom. She likes you a lot…."
Emma's eyes bugged out of her head. "Henry…"
"Its true…. It's like she has you under some spell…." The little boy giggled as the video continued to record. Emma reached in and tickled his sides capturing the camera in the process and turning it off.
Later that night the drive home had put Henry to sleep in the back of the bug. She pulled the car up to the walk way and jumped out. She closed her door gently and put a note in the mailbox for Regina. She walked back to the car and pulled out her sleeping son.
That evening Regina leaves Boston and drives out to the Cape to see if there are any notes left for her. To her surprise there is.
She pulls out a note that read, "I wish you were with us tonight. I am sure your fireworks were better than mine. They tend to get better each year."
Regina leans against the mailbox and wonders what it would be like to be with Emma. She begins to write back, "That would have made a perfect 4th of July. By any chance did you see what I left at the station?"
Regina turns the red flag up and turns to leave. Before she could get back in her car she noticed the flag drop back down. "Emma is here?"
Regina runs out of the car and waits for the flag to pop back up. Within seconds it does just that and she pulls out the note, "Can I keep it for a little while? I want to read it. You said she was your favorite author. Oh, and who was that guy you were with?"
Emma saw the flag go down and stopped. Regina was there too. She waited and then the flag went back up. She opened the mailbox and pulled out a new note that read, "That would be Graham. We were engaged."
The pair stood at the mailbox in two different continuum's waiting for the flag to move up and down.
"You had a fiance? Why did you not mention that?"
"You never told me about your love life? I know you have Henry, so I assumed you too have a past relationship that was of some significance."
"No. Not really. I don't really have a love life. I swore it away after what happened with Henry's father. It is safe to assume that things did not work out with…. Graham?"
"Yes dear. It is safe to assume things did not work out."
"Regina, when I saw you at the train station… I never thought you… God… You were beautiful."
Regina blushes, "I don't think its fair that you saw me and I never saw you. That year I had a bad hair phase and… questionable fashion. I blame it on med school. Tell me, Emma, when do I get my camera back." She smirked wondering when one of them would bring it up. Guess it had to be her.
Emma leaned against the mailbox for support. It was late, but she knew should could sit here for hours with this mysterious woman. In her back pocket was the camera. She wondered if she should delete that last video. Was it too much? Emma looked back at the mailbox and finally decided to drop it in with a note.
The flag pops back up and Regina pulls out the letter that read, "Wait till tonight to watch/ see the pictures. I wish you were with us tonight."
Regina feels a surge of emotions hits her like a brick wall. How had this person come into her life and manage to turn it upside down? Regina bites her lip and looks down at her phone, and then back to the piece of paper.
"Call me on July 4th, 2014 at 2:05." It was now 2:04.
The clock on her phone changes. Nothing happened. She notices the flag is down, but it is now 2:06 and she has not heard from the blonde.
Emma stood there hoping her future self called Regina. She waited and turned to the mailbox and wrote to Regina. "Well? Are you talking to me?"
Regina opens the flap and reads and re-reads the note. She feels let down. She hates that she felt so vulnerable to someone she has never encountered. The last thing she wants is for Emma to feel bad.
"I should get back to Boston. I really liked this… whatever this is. I can't wait for the surprises on this camera that you two left for me. Till next time, Emma."
Emma stood there unaware of how she felt about what Regina had said. Did she, or did she not call her? Regardless, the note was bitter sweet. She liked it too, whatever it was, and more importantly Regina now had a piece of her to take home.