"You're sure you're ready to introduce me to your family?" Alice asked, still sitting in the passenger's seat of Margot's car, playing with the lace on her shirt.
Margot smiled and kissed her head. "Of course I am. It's been almost a year after all. It's time for you to meet them. They'll love you, I promise. My family is super accepting, don't worry. None of them are anything like your mom."
Alice shivered a little at the memory of introducing Margot to her mother. It hadn't ended well, and she and Margot had been traveling Europe trying to forget the tantrum her mother had thrown. Despite Margot's assurance that her family was going to be more accepting of their relationship, Alice still felt a bit uneasy.
"Are you okay?" Margot asked with a small frown.
Alice nodded. "Yes. I trust you, Margot. With my life."
Margot looked out the window and smiled as a car pulled up behind them. "That's my mom. I'll be right back. I'll wave to you when I'm ready." With that, she hopped out of the car and ran up to her mother, leaving the door open so Alice could hear their conversation.
"I had no idea you'd be home. If you'd called ahead of time I would have been home by the time you got back. I hope you haven't been waiting too long," Margot's mother said with a smile.
"No, not too long at all. Traffic was a nightmare getting through Augusta or we would have been here sooner."
"'We'? Margot, who is 'we'?"
Margot's cheeks flushed a brilliant pink, before she waved Alice over. With a bright smile and a bounce in her step, Alice hopped out of the car and waved.
"Mom… this is Alice Jones. My girlfriend."
The mother paused for a moment, looking at the pair of them together, before giving the women a warm smile. "Oh. Oh Margot I'm so happy for you! Hello Alice. My name's Zelena. Welcome to Storybrooke."
Alice gave Zelena a relieved look. "It's so nice to meet you Zelena. Margot told me so much about you and Storybrooke that I just had to come with her when she said she was ready to come home."
And to get away from my crazy mother.
Chuckling, Zelena shook her head. "That's my daughter for you, wanderlust has her heart, but it looks like you've managed to fight it off. But Margot," she said, her tone turning urgent as she looked at her again, "it really is a good thing you've come home. I don't know if my message got through, but Bobby's been in the hospital for a week now. He was in the abandoned mines and got trapped."
Margot's face fell. "What? Oh no! I should get to the hospital right away."
"I'll take you. Here darling, get your things in the house and we'll go. Alice… would you like to come with us?"
Alice was surprised at the question. "I – me? I dunno, that seems like something you guys should do by yourelves. Trust me. I can even make dinner if you want. Though… it'd only be marmalade sandwiches but – "
"Alice, I want you there. If it's as bad as Mom says, I'm going to want you there with me. Besides, I'm sure the family wouldn't mind meeting you, even if it is under this set of circumstances," Margot said softly. "You might be the thing they need to cheer up somewhat."
"You think so?"
"I do."
"Well… alright then," Alice said with a weak smile.
Soon enough, Zelena was leading Margot and Alice down the hall to Bobby's hospital room, where two adults, whom Alice could only assume were his parents.
"Aunt Mary? Uncle David?" Margot said softly.
"Hm? Oh! Margot! Zelena, you didn't tell us she was home," Mary-Margaret said with a small smile as she stood and embraced her.
Zelena smiled. "It was a surprise to me too, Mary-Margaret. You know I would've told you otherwise. And she brought someone along with her, I hope that's okay."
Alice shuffled nervously as she looked at the pair. Maybe it was a bad idea for her to come right now…
"Oh – no, of course it's fine. We trust her," the dark-haired woman said as she rose from her chair. "My name is Mary-Margaret Nolan, and this is my husband David. And, you are?"
"My name is Alice. Alice Jones. It's nice to meet you both. I'm sorry it isn't under the best circumstances though," Alice said with a shy smile and she shook both of their hands. "I'm Margot's girlfriend."
"It's a pleasure, Alice. Welcome to Storybrooke," David said. "If there's anything you need, feel free to find me at the sheriff's station. I'm the seriff."
Alice gave David a bright smile, lighting up at the mention of a sheriff. "Oh! My papa's a detective in Seattle! I think you'd really like him!"
David smiled. "Is he now? Always nice to hear of another police officer."
Alice nodded, before looking at the boy in the bed and biting her lip. "So… this is your son, right? What happened?"
"Storybrooke was a mining community when it was first founded, but we eventually closed them down. Despite how well-sealed the mines were, teenagers always managed to find a way inside. We'd hoped, with David being the sheriff and being at every rescue, that our kids would know better than to go down there but…" Mary-Margaret explained with a resigned shrug. "The mine shaft he was in began to collapse, so there was a lot of dust that got into his lungs. We're hoping the damage isn't permanent."
She could only stare at Mary-Margaret. "Oh – I'm so sorry, Mary-Margaret. I hope he gets better soon."
"Thank you Alice. It was so nice of you to come."
"Can I ask another question?"
"Of course; I have nothing to hide."
"Are you and Zelena sisters? Margot talked about all of you but, no offense, you don't look all that much like Zelena," Alice asked. She was insanely curious about that fact, despite knowing that it could be a little offensive, and she inwardly kicked herself for saying it out loud to a woman whose son was laying in a hospital bed.
To Alice's surprise, Mary-Margaret actually chuckled softly and shook her head. "No, Zelena and I aren't sisters. The story is a little more complicated than that. See – "
Mary-Margaret was cut off from her story at the sudden sound of choking. Robert Nolan's eyes were wide open, and he coughed around the tube in his throat.
"Doctor Whale!" David screamed, and Alice stepped out of the room with wide eyes to give the family some privacy as a doctor and several nurses raced by her.
"Well, this is going much better than it did with my mother!" She thought, pleased with how things were turning out. "Despite something happening with Bobby, of course. I hope he's okay. That sounded bad…"
She paused when she saw a pair of men walking down the hallway. Was that…? No, it couldn't be.
Could it?
"Bae?" she said with wide eyes as she looked at one of the men.
Neither man seemed to pay much attention, with one of them turning and walking down another hallway.
Huh.
"Hello to you too!" the second man said, waving to her. Briefly, Alice was confused, wondering when she'd greeted him, until she realized that 'hey' started a lot like 'Bae'.
Alice cleared her throat. "Yes, hello. Are you going to visit Robert?"
"I am," he replied. "Come with a card from the fire station and everything. You were visiting him too, I assume? I don't recognize you though."
"Oh – I'm Alice. I'm Margot Mills' girlfriend," Alice replied with a small smile. "I came here with her."
"Pleasure to meet you Alice. I'm Ali. Margot huh? I didn't realize she was back in town. Anyway, are they accepting visitors?"
Alice could only shrug. "I dunno. He started coughing and the doctor and nurses ran in so I stepped outside. I don't know what happened after that."
Ali frowned. "Oh geez. I'll go check. Thanks. And it was nice to meet you again."
"You too Ali!" Alice said in a chipper tone, continuing down the hallway, a spring in her step. She glanced down the hallway the man that she'd seen with Ali disappear down. She didn't see him again though, which caused a small frown appear on her face. Why did he seem to be so familiar, despite the distance they'd had?
Ah, well. Maybe she was wrong. That happened sometimes. Instead of dwelling on it, Alice paused in front of a vending machine, glancing through the options.
"Would you like anything, Alice?"
She started, looking over to find Zelena next to her.
"Oh – I don't know. I'm just browsing," Alice said.
"You look like you're deep in thought. Is everything okay?"
Alice shrugged. "Well, yes or no? I'm not too sure actually. Ali, that man that just went into Bobby's room? There was someone else with him."
Zelena frowned. "Was there? Ali was the only one to come inside…"
"Yeah, but that's because the other guy walked down another hallway. I would just shrug it off since maybe he's here to visit someone else but… I don't know, Zelena, if I didn't know any better, I'd say he looked a lot like my cousin before he ran away…"
She didn't notice the look in Zelena's eyes, quickly masked by a face of concern. "Your cousin ran away? Well… you know Alice, I'm a private investigator, if you'd like, I can help you find him. Why don't you tell me all about him?"
Alice beamed at the woman. "Thank you Zelena, that would be amazing!"
Neal felt his hands shaking as he ducked down a far hallway from where his intended destination. Shit. Shit. What the hell was Alice doing here? Why was she here?
More importantly, what was he going to do?
Tugging at his hair, Neal exhaled slowly. Dammit all. As much as he'd liked hanging around Alice before he'd run away from home, he really didn't want her to blow things for him right now. Looking around, Neal dropped into a free chair in the small lounge he'd found and put his phone to his ear.
"Neal, honey, what's the matter?" Eudora's voice came from the other end of the line.
"Mama…" he breathed, keeping his eyes peeled for anyone that could be coming near. "I need some advice. Badly."
"Of course, what is it?"
"It's my cousin. My stepfather's niece. She's here in town. I haven't seen him since I ran away from them and… I don't want her to recognize me."
"So let me guess, you ran down another street so she wouldn't see you or talk to you?" she guessed with a small hum. "Thus making her more suspicious if she had any to begin with?"
"Well, I…"
"Neal… you know you're going to have to tell your daddy you're there soon, right?"
"I know, Mama. But I'm still trying to find information on him before I tell him I'm here," Neal sighed. "He seems shady, like Mom and Killian would say."
"That doesn't mean they're right about everything regarding him. You know that."
"I know…"
"Besides, maybe you can recruit her to help keep your secret. You told me she was the only one out of your family that you trusted in the end. I'm sure you can trust her now, Neal. And remember, if you ever want to come home…"
"I know. I can go back to New Orleans."
Eudora chuckled an affirm. "You should come back soon though. I'm sure Tiana would love to see you back home. And we could really use your help at the restaurant."
He laughed softly. "I'll see what time off I can get, mama. I promise."
"Of course. I wouldn't want to take you away from your work, honey. Call me soon, okay?"
"I will. Bye, Mama."
Neal ended the call, feeling slightly calmer now that he'd spoken with Eudora. Maybe she was right. Maybe letting Alice in on his plans wouldn't be such a terrible idea.
He just hoped she wasn't too suspicious of him already.
A few days later, Neal found himself sitting at the counter at Granny's.
"Did you want anything else, Neal?" Emma asked with a smile as she slid over his plate of food. "Maybe some mayo so you can make that ketchup-mayo stuff you seem so keen on?"
He laughed. "You actually remembered that? But yeah, sure, I'd love some, if it isn't too much trouble."
"Not at all. It's my pleasure."
He laughed. "Wow, you're really working for a big tip aren't you?" he teased.
"Well, you know, cars are expensive. And I might be planning a trip with some of my friends and I want a little spending money," she hummed in response.
His brow raised as she slid a small thing of mayo over to him. "A trip, huh? Where are you going?"
Emma beamed. "My friends and I are planning to head to New Orleans actually. For spring break. I'd love to be able to go over the winter break but with Hanukkah, Christmas, and New Years in December, it's a bit hectic."
Neal smiled, stirring the ketchup and mayo together. "New Orleans, really? That's ironic. If you want me to give you some good, local places to go to just let me know. Those are the best places to be, not necessarily the tourist traps."
"Really? That'd be great! Thanks Neal!"
"Course, any time."
"I get off at five if you want to come by the farm and talk about it."
He blinked in surprise. "Uh. Are you sure? Aren't your parents going to be busy with Robert and everything?"
She waved off the worry. "My parents won't mind. Besides, Bobby's actually doing better, so they've relaxed a lot in the last few days. He woke up! And the doctors say his levels are going back to normal! It's really amazing, even if I still want to kill him for scaring us like that in the first place."
"I can't say I blame you," Neal replied with a small laugh and taking out his phone to check the time. "Alright. I'll hang out here at 5:00 and you can show me the way."
"See you tonight," Emma said with a small wink and a giggle that had Neal's heart beating just a little bit faster.
Neal nodded as she wandered off to check on some of the tables, and began eat until the door opened, and Alice walked in, holding hands with another woman.
He hid a smile behind his glass and nodded to Alice once when he caught her staring.
"Is that you, Bae?" she murmured, leaning against the stool next to him.
He glanced around, making sure no one was around before answering. "Yes. It's been a long time, Alice."
"Where have you been? Do you know how worried we've been about you?" Alice whispered. "Why did you do that, Bae? Why did you leave?"
Neal exhaled. "Please, don't call me that. I go by Neal now. I'm here to figure out my past."
"What?"
"My dad and everything. Alice, please don't tell anyone. You're the only one I trusted before I ran away. I'm trusting you again with this."
Alice's eyes got wide. "I – yes, okay. I'll keep your secret. I promise. I won't even tell Papa you're here. I'm just… I'm just so glad to see you B – Neal. I'm so glad you're okay."
Neal smiled at her and squeezed her shoulder. "I'm glad to see you too, Alice. I missed you."
"Alice! You ready to sit down?"
Alice looked over and grinned at the woman that had called her, nodding. "Be right there!" With another glance at Neal, she whispered "girlfriend", before heading over to the booth where the other woman waited.
Neal leaned against the counter with a smile. Damn, he was glad to have an ally in this town.
"This must be a bit of a culture shock for you, huh?" Emma asked as they made their way up to the large farmhouse later that evening. "Coming from New Orleans and all."
Neal nodded. "Yeah, kinda. What's your dad even farm, anyway?"
"Vegetables, mostly. But we have sheep and a couple cows. You'd never guess that Dad's such a country boy when you see him in action, but he really is."
He chuckled. "Well it's a nice farm. I'm sure my sister would be in awe of the fresh produce here. She loves to cook."
"You have a sister?"
"Yeah, Tiana. She's the one that encouraged me to come here, actually."
"What, was she that desperate to get rid of you?" she teased, pushing the front door open. "Mom, Dad, I'm home!"
"Hey sweetheart. Your dad took Eva to the hospital to visit Bobby," Mary-Margaret said as she appeared from what Neal could only assume was the dining room. "Oh? Who is this?"
"I'm Neal Cassidy. I just arrived in town a couple of weeks ago. I'm a firefighter. Emma asked me here to help her plan her trip to New Orleans."
She smiled. "Oh yes, of course. Regina mentioned you the other day when she was over. It's so nice to finally meet you. I'm Mary-Margaret, the principal of the elementary school. I'm sure you're tired of hearing this, but thank you for helping to save my son."
"All part of the job, ma'am. It's nice to meet you too. I've heard a lot about you from the guys at the station," he said politely.
Mary-Margaret laughed lightly. "Oh I'm sure. Alright, I'll let you guys plan the trip Emma. But Neal? Just make sure they're safe?"
He nodded, taking a seat at the table with Emma. "Of course I will. I promise."
They were left alone, Emma pulling out a piece of paper and a pen. "Okay! Spill all the details about New Orleans."
So he did, and the dining room was filled with laughter, their chairs slowly getting closer and closer, their cheeks flushing pink at the shared charge in the room.
Finally, Neal decided to do something about it. "Hey uh – Emma… did you maybe wanna go to the Fireman's Ball with me? It's coming up soon and I really don't know what I'm doing."
Emma looked up at him and grinned. "I'd like that Neal. I'd like that a lot."
While he couldn't have imagined that this was where the night would go, Neal had to admit, he didn't exactly mind, and he returned to Granny's that night with a clear head and a spring in his step.
He may not have had much information on his dad yet, but he wouldn't complain that someone had caught his eye.