Emma slept as any intern should when they managed to catch a break: like a rock. Or like a mummy, should she not make so much noise. Yes, Emma Swan snored, a knowledge Regina never thought she'd acquire. And Regina… just laid in bed for a couple moments, until her world wasn't spinning anymore, either from booze or other… activities.

She stared at the stars and the moon neon stickers on the ceiling, though the light from the real moon outside lightened the room and made the fake one no longer shine. It was such a weird feeling to stare down and capture all the details of a bedroom that wasn't hers, of a sheet that also wasn't her 1000-thread-count Egyptian-cotton, and to be naked bellow that worn light-green not Egyptian sheet. How long had it been since she laid naked on a bed? Too long.

Regina remembered the feelings of having the light touch of fabric above and below her, and a satisfaction and a tranquility that filled everything else. It was not just the sex, was it? That she didn't have with Robin long before he cheated on her. It was the quietude that didn't scream at her that she was alone. The serenity of laying naked because she was too peaceful and languid to put on clothes after the sex.

Emma Swan. It had been good. No. More than good, almost an out of body experience that released her in more ways than one. She could still feel sexy, aroused, she could move and be moved by somebody else. She could be touched without a care in the world. Sure, there was not some, but a lot of bitterness inside of her, the pain that Robin caused and a surprised sensation, because she never thought she'd feel so hurt by anyone, and not by him, surely. But Emma Swan helped. It was madness, but she helped.

It was a one-night stand, assuredly. Regina couldn't sleep with her again, it had served its purpose. She was freer now, she was lighter… and Emma was an intern, for Christ's sake. A hot intern that could do so much with her hands and mouth, a daring intern that made her wet and panting and begging for… an intern! Regina was not Mal, sure she shouldn't… although it had been such a great experience, and should it be anyone else she wouldn't mind repeating, but…

She couldn't be long in Emma's apartment, this she was certain of. Sleeping with an intern was bad enough, sleeping in, though, was intolerable.

So, with more effort than she'd mind admitting, she gathered her things, her car keys in Emma's jeans – that the woman had wisely taken away from her, and she had her own stroke of a genius to even remember that. She tried her best to not roam around, to hover or anything that would make the situation even more difficult, but, as she searched for the apartment keys, she caught a glimpse of a photograph. Emma, a very young blonde girl, around seventeen or eighteen years of age, holding this tiny baby that looked just like a cute, so cute, wrinkled knee.

It was Henry.

A nagging feeling pressured the bottom of her head, and it could be the hangover, but it seemed more like a memory trying to make its way up. Regina blinked, welcoming it instead of pushing it away. Her eyes traveled to the woman sleeping, no blankets or covers to hide her modesty, and Regina had thought she'd seen Emma. She surely touched every inch of that body she could put her hands on, but what really caught Regina's attention now was a scar, a scar just below her ribcage.

A light bulb went on inside her head, and she almost stumbled backwards. Her fingers touched her temples and memories of distant, happier times filled her mind. She approached Emma slowly, one step and then two. Regina looked closer at the scar, but what was playing in front of her were scenes from a past she had so buried in, she never thought it would come out like this.

Emma's scar didn't look like a gunshot wound, but a surgical one. It had not been done by a plastic surgeon, but a general surgeon, or a surgery intern.

Could it be?

It couldn't be, right?

Emma wasn't, couldn't be that angry pregnant teenager girl that got shot and ended up on Storybrooke Hospital when Regina was an intern herself. The girl she gave the big news to, cared for, wished for the better.

She just couldn't.

Regina had to see it through. She had to know, it was pivotal that she knew.

She would go to the hospital and… what?

What good would it do to know? What traumas would it awake? Would it awake Regina?

God, she was just so different back then. What if Emma was the teenager that she came to like and care in so little time, that had her talking family with Daniel and… Regina couldn't go forward. Except she had to. Maybe this Emma wasn't the Emma from her youth. Maybe that whole fuss was for nothing.

She showered in the hospital; there was no time to waste because she had to find out before she changed her mind altogether about it. Regina entered the place reeking of sex and alcohol, an incredible sight for anyone who knew her or her reputation, but she didn't even bother to glance at whoever had the nerve of staring. Regina showered there, got herself in clean clothes and then there she was.

"What do you mean it is not in the system?" She inquired the unsuspected new nurse on the computer. "It has to be! It happened here! We don't just burn charts. You are having us confounded with some dump place you've worked before coming here."

"I- I can check it for you," The girl stuttered.

"Yes, you go do that." Regina huffed, propping her elbows on the counter, very much aggravated by this whole nonsense. What a thought. What a mess. She didn't need mess right now, she needed… what did she need?

Anyway, the nurse scurried off quickly enough.

"I'm sorry, when was it that you said it happened?" An even younger nurse, if that was possible, asked her.

"Ten to eleven years ago. The name of the patient is Emma, she was a teenager admitted with a gunshot on the abdomen, and had a gastrointestinal perforation," She recited, almost amazed at how the details came to her so easily.

"We are still digitizing some old charts, and maybe we didn't get to those yet. But I know where it is," The girl added quickly after seeing Regina's face. "I'll go check too."

"Why are you scaring all the nurses here? I thought you liked them," Katherine appeared by her side, like she was summoned by the God of young inexperienced nurses.

"Well, dear, that does not concern you," She answered, trying not to bark at her friend, though it was proving to be difficult at the moment.

Katherine raised one eyebrow at her.

"Alright, just remember that they are the ones that keep this hospital running, and if there is a nurse strike I'll be personally blaming you."

Regina scoffed. "Go check on some premature babies and let me be."

"Well, they are much cuter than you," Katherine pointed out before leaving. Regina didn't fight, because that was a given.

Almost on the spot, New Nurse #2 appeared with an old chart in hands.

"What is your name again?" Regina asked, accepting the chart.

"Belle."

"Well, Belle, you seem competent enough." She was about to look at the chart when she turned her head a bit. "You nurses are not thinking about a strike, are you?"

The girl smiled, a happy and sweet smile that didn't sit well with Regina, because Belle was just one of those happy shining people. "No, Dr. Mills."

"Good." She said before turning on her heels, chart clutched close to her chest.

She walked into the doctor's lounge, where she spent the next half an hour looking at a chart that couldn't possibly be fooling her. The date of birth of that Emma Swan was the same as the current Emma Swan; the name, likewise; the blood type, a match.

There was no way the chart told her anything different than: she screwed that angry, pregnant teenager girl from ten years ago.

Shit.

~SQ~

The elevator arrived with a soft ping and Ruby held the door while gesturing all of them inside. "Come on, don't make me late, I don't want the Evil Queen on my ass today," She pressed as Killian took his sweet time at the hall mirror.

"I can't believe we're on her service today," August groaned, stepping inside. "I'm not wearing the right cologne for how much that woman makes me sweat. It won't hold, I know it won't."

"Maybe once in your life you'll smell like a man, mate," Killian suggested.

"The eyeliner guy is talking gender roles?" Mulan said under her breath.

"Not about gender - this dude smells like an air-freshener."

"I'll have you know Azarro is a very expensive fragrance-"

Emma snorted and rolled her eyes as the so-called men went on with their bantering. Ruby gave her an amused glance and leaned in to dust some invisible hair from the blonde's shoulder. "Are you alright?" She asked softly. "You've been awfully quiet."

"Yeah, I'm cool."

"I know Dr. Mills has been pretty hard on you before…"

She was pretty hard the other night, Emma thought smugly. But the amusement fainted quickly when the elevator reached the third floor.

"I'm gonna be alright," She assured, and Ruby smiled as they made their way out.

Regina had sneaked out of the apartment while Emma was still fast asleep, which was probably for the best, if she were being honest. The intern had never been very good at pillow talk, and she felt a little desperate about facing Dr. Mills even before she opened her eyes in the morning.

Then she found nobody there. Only this faint scent on the sheets.

Emma wanted to blame it on the booze, but she wasn't that wasted. Maybe, if she had been, she wouldn't have such vivid memories. It hadn't been about the alcohol - it had been about loneliness, what was so sad to think about, so pathetic. Then it had been about nothing at all but them; Regina's mouth and hands and breasts and eyes. It had been about a dream Emma had long ago buried deep down - this dream that she, too, could have something as precious and as pretty as the woman she met at the hospital when she was a teenager.

In the end of the day, though, none of it mattered. Mills sneaked out, and it wasn't as if Emma had her phone to ask her if she made it home safe. Or ask her for a coffee to cure the hangover, or anything. Not that Emma would. She wouldn't. Because in the end of the day, that shit could never happen again. It didn't matter how vivid were the memories.

She had worked too hard to throw everything out of the window now. Henry was counting on her, Neal was counting on her, Emma counted on herself. There was no way in the world she'd jeopardize her career by sleeping with an attending, with her boss! There was only one way it could possibly go: south. Regina hadn't earned the title of Evil Queen for no reason; she was fast to enrage, slow to forget. Hadn't Emma witnessed that already? One night of steamy sex wasn't about to change things for the best, but any misstep now could really make it worse.

All this was crystal clear on her mind, yet the sight of Dr. Mills leaning over the balcony to retrieve a tablet made her stomach lurch. She came so fast the first time, Emma wasn't even really trying yet, just fumbling, discovering her body, and then-

"Oh, well, better late than never, I suppose they say?" She remarked, throwing them a casual glare. Emma checked her watch discreetly: they were two minutes late.

The group of interns exchanged glances, trying to nudge one another to answer, but before they came to a decision, Mills turned on her heels and started down the hallway. Not a glance spared to the uneasy intern at the back of the group. "I assume you are all familiarized with my patients' charts."

"Of course, Dr. Mills," Mulan said promptly.

Of course not was probably the honest answer for the rest of them. It was crazy hard to acknowledge all of the cases on the surgical program in time for the rounds, but they usually kind of managed it, working extra hours in advance of their specialty weeks. But even though they had been on Cardiothoracic service for a few days, they were only acquainted with Dr. Hatter's patients, or any other Cardiothoracic attending or fellow other than Dr. Mills, really, because the woman wasn't a fan of bringing interns to her rounds - it had never happened in the three months they were working there.

So nope, they were not familiarized. They were fucked.

"Good morning, Ms. Davies," Dr. Mills greeted, making the young adult on the bed avert her eyes from the phone.

"You've brought a crowd." The girl eyed them carefully, and God help her if it didn't linger on Killian.

"They are surgery interns, and they will accompany in rounds today."

"They look a little scared."

"Word of your terrible temper must have reached them," Mills replied easily, eyes roaming the girl's chart on the tablet, missing the grin she earned. "How have you been lately?"

"You know, the food here still sucks. And my heart is still falling apart."

"It's not falling apart on my watch." Regina assured, putting the tablet down before approaching the bed. She checked the girl's vitals swiftly, replying to the light provocations with humor and grins she rarely spent with others. Then she turned to the interns.

"Carol Davies is twenty-one years old, and was born with a congenital heart condition that causes four structural defects of the heart. She had three heart surgeries before the age of five, and is schedule to have the fourth in a couple of days to replace a heart valve. Who can tell me what is this condition?"

Mulan's hand shot up faster than a bullet, and August's followed a heartbeat later; Emma took a moment to realize she too knew the answer to that one, and belatedly - and without hope - she raised her hand as well.

"Dr. Swan." Mills pointed to her absently. Emma stopped, taken by surprise, then cleared her throat to disguise.

"Is it… Tetralogy of Fallot?"

"Are you asking me?"

"It's Tetralogy of Fallot, Dr. Mills."

The woman nodded curtly, her eyes meeting Emma's for a moment, shining dark. "And what are these defects?" Hands shot up again, all of them now.

"I call them Shit #1, Shit #2, Shit #3 and Shit #4," The patient ventured, grabbing her phone back.

"Unfortunately, this is less than academically acceptable," Dr. Mills said.

"Snobs."

Regina grinned. "Go on, Dr. Swan."

"Pulmonary stenosis," Emma said quickly, as if some of the others would steal her chance if she didn't. "Overriding aorta, ventricular septal defect, and right ventricular hypertrophy," She finished, then turned slightly to Carol Davies. "Though I think you named them pretty well yourself."

"Thank you!"

"That's correct," Mills consented, not even glaring at the intern for the joke. "Well done."

Emma blinked. Well done? Well done? She couldn't be more surprised if Dr. Mills had given her a hug and a kiss on the forehead. The intern didn't need to look around to apprehend the looks of surprise and wonder on the face of her crew, and her cheeks grew warm and red.

"Th-thanks," She whispered.

"Before the nineties, around twenty percent of babies born with Tetralogy of Fallot couldn't make it," She went on, professoral now.

"I'm so lucky to be part of Generation Z," Carol sighed.

"Indeed you are," The attending nodded. "Because it gave Professor Robert Anderson time to develop his studies and map the anatomy of heart defects." She turned to them again. "I don't suppose one of you could tell me about his subsequent MD thesis that today allows thousands of babies to have healthy lives?"

The hard swallow was almost unison. Not even Mulan raised her bullet hand. Dr. Mills glanced at them lightly, one eyebrow just barely arched, as if she really didn't expect any of them to know, as if she was only making sure they were aware of how little and inexperienced they were. Then her eyes met Emma's again, dark and hard and challenging as always, but not belligerent anymore, somehow. Still they brought out of her this desperate need of being worthy, a sheer fear of disappointing, as if Regina's opinion of her was the one that truly mattered. It was stupid and Emma hated herself for it, hands closing in fists by her sides - but still her brain reacted like magic, pulling to the surface a faint memory of a complex study about congenital heart defects.

She raised her hand hesitantly, and Mills cocked her head. "Dr. Swan?"

"The thesis was about the anatomic origins of the electrical impulses of the heart?" The doubtful tone was unintentional, and she followed it with everything else she remembered. "One of the risks of cardiac surgery is short-circuiting the electrical pathways in the heart, which produces heart block. His research clarified the location of electrical pathways due to holes surgeons were finding in the heart as a result of congenital defects. Because of it, now doctors know better how to diagnose and how to put the stitches during heart surgeries," She said, barely taking a breath. There was a short silence.

"Well, I'm impressed," Carol Davies cheered. Emma pressed her lips, refusing to avert her eyes from the attending stare.

"Dr. Swan, perhaps you'd like to assist me in Ms. Davies surgery tomorrow?" She said at last. It wasn't really a question. She turned to the patient again. "I'll come by later, Carol. Please, don't flirt with the nurses again."

"Why? Am I making them uncomfortable?"

"No, just insufferably cheerful," Mills huffed, before saying goodbye.

Uncomfortable and cheerful. I think I know how they feel.

~SQ~

"What. The. Fuck. Was that?" Ruby said, eyes full of wonder.

"Man, the Evil Queen must have had some heart for breakfast and was really satisfied," August replied. The elevator stopped at the first floor, and they took the way to the cafeteria without even mentioning it.

"She must've had some ass," Killian grinned.

"You're gross," Emma grumbled, hoping the heat wouldn't crawl up her neck and reach her cheeks.

"Why am I gross? I'm just saying. The woman needed to let out some steam, and I'm not the only one to think so."

"Why every time a man doesn't like a woman's attitude he blames it on the lack of sex?" Mulan ventured, and Emma raised her hand to give her a high five.

"And she was just doing her job. It wasn't like she invited us for lunch or asked about our feelings."

"Might as well," August said. "I've never seem Dr. Mills that friendly. I mean, I'm not even stinking. Am I?" He raised his arm and shoved his armpit into Mulan's face, making the girl punch him in the ribs so he'd lower his arm again to block the blow. "Ouch!"

"I don't need a close up of your sweaty pit," She complained, then straightened her jacket. "But you still smell nice."

"See?!"

They entered the line to grab sandwiches and sodas, lowering their voices to a murmur now that there were other people around. "I heard she's married to this really hot dude." Ruby started.

"Is he a doctor too?" August asked.

Ruby shook her head. "No, it's like a fireman or something. Sexy, isn't it?"

"How do you even know this?" Emma crossed her arms.

"I'm friends with the nurses? And they know everything."

"Friends? Is it how millenials are calling it now?"

"Shut up, Killian," Ruby replied, her eyes barely flying up to meet Emma's before averting again. He offered her a lopsided grin.

"What? I'm just saying…"

"Saying what?" The girl hissed. "At least I'm not the one whoring myself up to an attending only to get to hold suction in some lame surgeries."

"I am not whoring myself! It's consensual se-"

"When you get compensated by your services in bed-"

"Guys, come on," Mulan interrupted, resting a calming hand on Ruby's arm. "We're all grown-ups here, right?"

The discussion died down easily enough. They weren't a particularly quarrelsome lot; they spent way too much time together for that. Ruby's anger rarely lasted more than a few seconds, and Killian shrugged things off with a toss of his hair. Mulan wasn't one to get upset, like ever, and August was just the goofiest of them. Honestly, it was what Emma liked the most about them. She wished she felt the same, but the truth was harder to admit - once she got angry and bothered, it lasted, it simmered, until it overcame her.

She stood silently in line as the conversation moved to lighter subjects, but all the time there was this tight ball of fire in the pit of her stomach, and her hands balled into fists without her being aware of it. Ruby tried to make eye contact once, her cheeks a little flushed, and mouthed "You ok?". The blonde nodded in what she hoped was a reassuring manner. So Killian had insinuated Ruby slept with the nurses. Wow. Big news.

Yes, they had had a moment the week before. Maybe they had been walking towards something, but pretty slowly. Maybe it would still happen, maybe they'd avert paths. Ruby sleeping with the nurses - or with anyone else - wasn't going to be a reason why. Emma wasn't a hypocrite. And that was not what was bothering her.

At least I'm not the one whoring myself up to an attending, she had said. Emma's guts clenched. They'd all joke about it, tease Killian all the time about his infamous affair with Dr. Draco, then they'd dismiss it, pretend it was just for the provocation, that they didn't care that much - but they did. And Killian was a man, what was an attenuating, if Emma was being honest. Killian was a man, and he came from an Ivy League school, and he had family money and nothing much to prove. Still, the other interns would whisper behind his back - not them, they were kind of loyal, even to him -, but the other groups, they'd whisper. And in the end of the day, weren't they right? Jesus.

Emma had been so careless to do something like that, to flirt with an attending in a bar, to lead her home, to sleep with her without a moment to consider the consequences. That was old Emma behavior, stupid Emma behavior. She couldn't even think of what her friends would say if they found out about it. If they knew the ass the Evil Queen had had was hers.

Her cheeks flared up harder, and she forced herself to take a deep, slow breath. They weren't going to find out. They weren't. She was pretty sure Regina Mills wasn't going to spill, and Emma certainly wouldn't mention it to anyone.

And in the meantime, you get to assist her on a surgery.

Shit. That was a good thing! A good thing, not something to feel so ashamed about. Emma had earned that because she knew all the answers, because she took a true interest in cardiology, because she tried so fucking hard!

And yet.

Dr. Mills had never treated her like this before; not even when they were on the OR together. She could be diligent, and a competent teacher, but she wasn't polite, she wasn't supportive. Things had changed. But why?

Maybe she wants your intern ass again.

No, she didn't. She didn't. Right? That night had been a fluke. They were both feeling like crap and held on to each other to navigate those awful hours before dawn. So maybe it had been a remarkable fluke, a four-orgasms-straight fluke, but still. Emma wasn't going to let this stain her path. She wanted to be a good doctor, the best she could ever be. She wanted to deserve it, to give her all to succeed, but not like this.

She didn't want to be anyone's favorite. She didn't want people whispering about her in the hallways, insinuating her main talent was outside of the OR.

There was no way in hell she'd let Regina Mills demean her like this.

~SQ~

"I mustn't be dead, then."

Regina smirked, and damn her if she didn't breathe a little more relieved. The surgery went fine, obviously, but still. They were always bound to have those patients who they grew more attached to.

She knew Carol since she was a child with a witty mouth, then an insufferable teenager and now… well, a still insufferable, witty-mouthed, loveable adult.

"Ms. Davies, aren't you a ray of sunshine," She shot back, smiling fully at the girl and checking her vitals and her motor response, then carefully uncovering her gown to take a closer look at the scar.

The girl scoffed, her voice a little raspy from the anesthesia.

"You learn to be a little pragmatist when you're born with a rare heart disease, I tell you."

"I don't doubt it," She conceded, touching lightly the skin around the scarred tissue on her chest. "All went fine, Carol. Impeccable job was performed at your heart today, I assure you."

"I expected no less," The patient reached for her hand, and her usually amused eyes were a little tired on the corners. "Thanks."

"Come on now," Regina squeezed her hand. "I don't suppose we have reason for seeing you at least for the next ten years."

Carol smiled for a moment.

"Like I've put some breast implants and need to come back to replace it."

"Something like that, yes. But I did such a beautiful work on your scar, Dr. Draco could never," Regina joked.

Carol let out a laugh, "Because you managed to save my life, I won't tell that to Mal. You know how sensitive she is."

"Indeed," Regina covered the girl back. "But tell me, how are you?"

"Oh, sore here and there, like someone cut into my heart… but great."

Regina hummed, trying to suppress her smile, "Carol, you know the drill. I believe I can discharge you in three days this time if you behave yourself."

"Scout's honor," She said solemnly.

Regina stared at her, unimpressed, "You are not a scout."

The patient rolled her eyes, "I'll be good. As long as you clear me to have a burger as soon as possible."

Regina blinked, because that day was not an ordinary one, when she bantered back and forth with Carol, was it? She tried to busy herself as much as she could, and tried to act as if nothing had happened, but still, that silly comment from her patient was enough to let her guard open.

When she fled Emma's apartment before dawn break, she thought she was taking the high road. Maybe she was just running, as she tended to do - afraid of what would happen if she stayed, if she let herself feel good for a little longer. That was such a naive plan, to try to outrun the consequences of her deeds.

Emma Swan was a part of her past, a long-forgotten part that had found way into the present. Now the gate was open, and it was exhausting just to guard the memories from coming rushing out.

"Baby? What baby?" Emma had asked, and what little color she had on her cheeks vanished. Regina realized in a moment her mistake. They panicked together for a split second, then she closed the door again and approached the bed. She talked to Emma in what she hoped to be a soothing voice, but the girl grew agitated until she was screaming at Regina's face there was no way in fucking hell she was pregnant.

Jesus. It hadn't been fun.

Regina walked out feeling a little weak on the knees; she knew she hadn't delivered any happy news to that girl, and she wanted to stay around to check on her later. Talk about her options. Help, if she could.

She went about her day, what back then consisted on following her resident around the hospital, competing for attention, begging for surgeries. Regina had no idea at what point it had hit her, she didn't acknowledge the thought taking shape in the back of her mind. When it came to her, it was ready, more of a fact than a suspicion.

Fuck. I'm pregnant.

She was almost a week late on her period, and her boobs had been feeling sore - what until then she considered a symptom of PMS, so she was just waiting for it to happen any day now. But it wasn't going to happen, because she had changed pills the month before, and she made Daniel promise they'd wear condoms until her body adjusted, but then there was that night at Ursula's, and he said I'll pull out, and she let him, of course she let him. He did pull out, but… oh my God, she was a fucking doctor, it was embarrassing. They were definitely telling people they planned that baby!

Because, although she was trembling as she waited the stick to become blue, she knew Daniel would hold her tight and laugh into her hair when she told him. They would work things out so Regina didn't have to stop her studies, and her internship would be over by the time the baby was born, so that was good. She could wait to start her residency a little later, but in the end it would be alright. It would all be alright.

But it hadn't been alright. Nothing had been alright. And although Regina had meant to stay in touch, a few days after Emma Swan was out of the hospital her own life turned upside down, and thoughts of that little teenage girl disappeared from her mind. Emma Swan and her unwanted pregnancy, her hard grins and serious eyes vanished in the hurricane that ravished Regina's life.

And now she was back. Life was so tricky, so cruel, sometimes. The girl that had all odds against her turned out fine. She had this beautiful, smart, easy-going son, and she had gone through med-school, forged a strong relationship with her baby's father. She turned her life around, as Regina descended into a bitter, skeptical, permanent state. Regina had been mean, called her mediocre, refused to teach her.

And still, Emma just had to know all the answers, always raising to the challenge. And in the OR, too, all she needed was guidance and a little opportunity. The girl was a raw talent, her attentive eyes and steady hands following Regina's every command. Quick-witted, focused, if a little stubborn, when it came to absorb knowledge and techniques. She had that instinct. She had it.

It was clear Swan hadn't had a superb education, as she didn't have the best record, but she had what it took.

Regina's heart ached a little.

She had to help Emma. She owed her that, in a way. She wanted that. She wanted to cut the rough diamond that was Emma Swan. Regina lost so much in life and was losing even now, if she were to be honest… so she couldn't lose that opportunity. She wouldn't waste the chance to be better, to make better, to give Emma, Henry… better.

She came to a decision.

She would mentor Emma. She would mentor Emma and nothing more.

"Hey, where were you just now?" Carol called her.

"I'm sorry," Regina said, avoiding Carol's curious gaze. "You reminded me of a patient from when I was an intern."

"What, full of charm and personality?"

Regina hesitated before breaking into a smile, "You could say that, I believe. She had just woken from a stomach surgery and one of her first concerns were if she could eat burgers," Regina told her, to Carol's delight.

"I keep telling you this is an important part!"

"So you do," Regina checked her monitor one last time before ringing for the nurse to instruct her. "I'll go call your mother now, she went home to bring you some new stock of clean clothes."

"I was wondering where she was, never leaving my bed to let me breathe, that crazy woman. I hope she took a nap during the surgery."

"Only in your wild dreams," Regina retorted. "But don't worry, I sent my intern to keep her updated every hour."

"Thanks for that. Anyway, how was the scared girl who answered your whole interrogation?"

"She was… quite something."

~SQ~

Emma Swan waited rather impatiently when Regina stepped out of the room. Propped on the nurse's desk counter, the intern kept one eye on a tablet and one at the room's door. As soon as she spotted the attending closing the passage behind her, she straightened herself and laid the tablet down.

The girl probably wanted to check on Carol for herself, but had been smart enough to wait to do so after Regina ended her consultation. She hated being followed around like a shadow, and after the violent waves of emotions that had been tossing her around for the last few days, it would be nice to get away from Emma Swan for a bit.

Unfortunately, it seemed she wasn't so lucky.

"Hey," Emma said, approaching the doctor as she motioned to leave the floor. "Can we talk?"

Regina snorted under her breath, then gestured to the door. "She is alright, Dr. Swan. You can go in and see for yourself now. We've done a good job."

The intern shifted in place, looking uncomfortable. "I do want to see her, if you don't mind… But it's not about that."

Dr. Mills stared at her for a moment, trying to practice patience, for a chance. "Alright. What is it, then?"

Emma looked around, wetting her lips. "Can we go somewhere else, so we can have a word alone?"

Oh, this was not good. Regina opened her mouth to argue, but Emma had already turned around and walked to the hallway, as if she was sure of being followed. The nerve! This is all on you - between taking her to bed and treating her like a puppy all day, what did you expect?

Dr. Swan halted as they reached a back corridor, where only maintenance employees passed back and forth. Then, after a moment of deliberation, she opened the door to an empty on call room.

"What was so important that you needed 'a word alone', Dr. Swan?" Regina asked in an uninterested manner, trying not to flinch at the sound of the door closing behind them. God, she hoped the girl wasn't having any funny ideas about where they stood.

"I-you see," Emma took a breath like she was trying to to gather her nerve. "It was very nice working with you today, and I learned so much…"

"So I performed my tedious, but mandatory job of teaching the new ducklings and you learned. Everyone is happy. I have to go now, you seem like you don't know just how busy I am." Regina turned to leave, but Emma held her forearm.

This was also not good. In the last few days she had learned a little too much about Emma's hands - how warm they were, how attentive, and also how elegant they looked on latex gloves, how firm they could be. They weren't firm now, they were hesitant; the touch too light to be compared to the ones they had exchanged at that messy apartment. Cold fingers, too. She was nervous, but still the grip remained.

"Excuse me?" Regina said, shooting the intern an offended look.

"Sorry, I-" Emma let go of her arm. "But what I meant to say is that you can't treat me different."

Regina narrowed her eyes. "I was under the impression that I was just doing my job."

"But-"

"And that was all that was, Dr. Swan." The line was final and she was ready to leave again, so Emma jumped in front of her, provoked by the whole theatricality of the affair.

"I just mean, it's not because we slept together that I want you to treat me different. I'm not… I didn't do it to get in your favor, so don't demean me by thinking so."

Regina glared at her with that very disapproving look she have perfected so well, but, before she could say any more, Emma was adamant in proving she understood it all wrong.

"You already got me to bed, spare the extra effort. Treat me like you would teach any intern." Then she took a step back, because Regina looked - no, she was - absolutely fuming.

"First, when taking a moment to reminisce that little detail, do so lowly," Dr. Mills hissed. "In a second thought, don't reminisce at all." Emma raised her hands, but Regina was talking – hissing again. "I would never be so unethical. I don't - and won't ever - treat you different, sleeping with you or not," She practically spat the last part.

"Great, because it's not like this is happening again," Emma said it out of spite, crossing her arms in front of her chest. Regina closed her hands into fists. They were not intern and attending now, just two women who had shared too much with too little consideration for what came next. And although Emma's words traced a line in the sand, they were both instantly remembered they had crossed those boundaries not so long ago. Memories were still fresh, and the room was still dark and empty. So it would be a lie, a big fat lie, to say it never crossed Regina's mind to give in again, to use Emma to get in that peaceful state of mind where the world narrowed down to two people.

It crossed her mind.

But fast.

"I wasn't planning of telling you that, Dr. Swan, but you are so impossible…" She paused to take a breath. "I know you were a patient in this hospital, around ten years ago. You arrived with an abdominal laceration caused by a gunshot and had to go through surgery. Now, I understand you probably don't recall, but I…"

"Was an intern here," Emma whispered. The color had all but drained from her face.

"You do remember."

Emma's mouth was pale, and her green eyes of pure crystal were starting to water, but Regina knew she would never weep. She hadn't weeped as a teenager, she hadn't wavered as an intern, and she wasn't about to.

"Of course I remember. You told me about Henry, we talked about my options."

Somehow, that hurt her even more. It pained her that she acted the way she did and during the whole time Emma knew, and never said anything. "Yes," She said eventually, "So what I did today, or rather, what I would like to do, is to offer you the opportunity of being mentored by me on your medical journey here. I have noticed you have quite a knack for Cardiology."

"How is this not treating me different?" Emma replied. Regina threw her hands in the air in aggravation.

"Look, Dr. Swan. I couldn't care less about what happened the other night. I'm only offering you to be a mentor. Help instead of harm."

"Well, here's a life tip: do it for everyone. You said it yourself it is your job."

"Pay attention, now. I might recall the angry teenager you were, and I might appreciate how things have turned out for you, even respect that, but don't mistake me for the loving doctor who was tending you as a patient. I am your boss here, and you will show me some respect!"

Emma stood silent for a moment, her cheeks now growing red. It took a toll on her to remain quiet, gulping down the indignation her whole body expressed. But she did it. And Regina was satisfied - to a point.

"I can help you navigate through the faster road where you've never been and never, up until this point, had the chance to be." She paused, staring serious as ever at Emma's eyes. "If you want to take this opportunity or not… that is entirely up to you." But before Emma could say anything, she was leaving, she couldn't stay any longer in that confrontation. She reached for the doorknob, and before opening, Regina sentenced: "And rest assured that what we did indeed is not happening again."

Then she was out.

~SQ~

I'm proud to announce that this fanfic is no longer in the refrigerator! Yey!

Hope you still remember and enjoy it!

A long update of the day after and the expected moment Regina realized she's met Emma before and...

well, the rest is yet to be revealed.

Let me know what are your thoughts on this - you know, if it was worthwhile and stuff.