Sorry for the wait guys, but here we go! Get ready for a long ass chapter, that's also gonna hit you right in the feels!
So make sure you're comfortable on your couch, under a blanket, preferably with a bowl of popcorn and let's do this!
"Are you serious? I'm gonna be an aunt?" Ruby asked with a big grin after Regina told her that she was pregnant. "Wait, what about your condition, Reg?" Ruby frowned and turned her attention to Regina. She remembered something about Regina telling her and Belle about not being able to ever have kids. They had all planned to adopt babies when they got older. That was when they were still really young.
"The chances for me to conceive were small, and there is also a good chance that I won't carry to term. So if this little one makes it, this will be my little miracle." she shot Emma a loving look "Our little miracle." Regina added with a crooked smile.
"Yepp, you're gonna be an auntie soon, Ruby!" Emma smirked then almost couldn't breathe when Ruby embraced her in a tight hug.
"God, I'm so happy for you guys! Belle is gonna be so happy too, when…" Suddenly the happy smile faded from the redheads face, and she stopped talking. She sat down on her chair again. She had forgotten for a second that Belle was in a coma. "...If she ever wakes up from this fucking coma."
"Hey, hey Rubes, don't talk like that. Of course she's gonna wake up. Okay?" Emma stated trying to cheer her sister up, but Ruby hardly met her eyes.
"Miss Lucas, don't lose hope. She's gonna be okay." Regina added, and at least got Ruby to look at her. "She's gonna wake up, and you're gonna be auntie Belle and auntie Ruby, okay?"
"I guess." Ruby replied and dried her eyes. "And I have such an amazing surprise for her when she wakes up. Aside from this I mean."
"Oh?" Emma asked curiously.
"Well, Belle found out her childhood home was abandoned, and we kinda played with the thought of buying it back and restoring it. So we can live there with our future kids, maybe a dog, and Granny could live there too." Ruby said and both Emma and Regina listened carefully to the redhead's excited words. "Um, well, Belle gets her inheritance when she's 18, but we didn't want to wait til then. Because we didn't want this once in a lifetime opportunity to slip through our fingers…."
"Come to the point, Miss Lucas. You're just rambling." Regina chuckled and took a sip of her water.
"Oh yeah, sorry." Ruby shrugged. "Anyway, we asked Granny if she could loan us money, but you both know granny, she's always one step ahead so…" Ruby started and picked up the packet of paper then showed them. "She bought us the house!"
"That's wonderful Ruby! That house is quite unique!" Regina smiled.
"Yeah, but it needs so much work before it's liveable again, and I promised Belle I would atleast have the library ready when she woke up. I mean I don't have tons of spare time, but one room won't take that long!" Ruby deflated a little "Right?"
"Don't be silly, Ruby. Just make up a plan of how you want the place to look, and I'll hire some workers to do it." Regina replied and Ruby choked on air.
"Reg no, that's too much. I can't accept that."
"You can and you will. I won't take no for an answer." Regina smirked and Emma leaned in close to her sister.
"Don't argue with a pregnant woman Rubes. That's not wise….in my experience anyway." Emma whispered and her sister just laughed.
"Well, I guess you're right." Ruby smiled gently as she nodded in agreement.
Days turned to weeks and weeks turned to months. Belle was still in a coma and Ruby still refused to leave the hospital unless absolutely necessary, but at least she was sleeping in the hospital bed next to Belle. Because she had finally realised it wasn't a good idea to sleep on an armchair.
Belle had been in a coma for almost 5 months now, and even though Ruby tried to stay positive, she was starting to actually realise there was a big possibility that her girlfriend would never wake up.. The thought itself made her cry herself to sleep, but she tried to keep her hope alive. As the days passed, that little flame inside of her was slowly starting to fade.
Granny saw the sadness in her granddaughter's eyes and tried to be by her side as much as she could, but it didn't help much. Ruby didn't even want anyone there at this point. She pushed everyone away. She was hurting too much. Belle was hers and hers alone. Her life. Her heart. Her responsibility. Not even Regina and Emma were there often, because Ruby didn't want them there.
The renovation of Belle and Ruby's house was almost finished. The house looked amazing, and Regina had surprised Ruby with adding a big porch on the front. The redhead had been so happy she couldn't stop crying. She wished Belle could see all this and really hoped she would. Some day.
Then that night came, the night that would turn out to be the worst of Ruby's whole life. One for future nightmares for sure. Ruby was laying on her bed in front of the TV. She had been drifting to sleep on and off the whole day. She had dreamt about Belle's accident, her rage and feelings toward Daniel. About when they went to the sheriff, and how Emma had to wrestle her down to the ground to stop her from taking Granny's bug to go look for Daniel.
When the ambulance came, so did the Sheriff. Ruby refused to let Belle go at first, but understood she had to.
"So Miss Lucas, can you tell me what happened?" Sheriff Graham asked carefully and Ruby stood up. Her pants were covered in Belle's blood.
"It's that bastard, Daniel's fault! Everything!" she growled. She explained what had happened, and as she finished her story, she heard Emma scream her name. Ruby turned around and saw both Emma and Regina running up to her.
"What the hell has happened?" Emma asked, and felt her heart stop for a second, when she saw the blood on her sister's clothes and on the ground.
"Miss French has been rushed to the hospital." the Sheriff explained calmly when Emma embraced her sister in a tight hug.
"Who did this to her?" Regina asked anxiously, even though she had a feeling she knew the answer.
"Who the hell do you think?" Ruby spat disgustedly "Daniel, of course! The same idiot that has been using you as a punching bag!" the words weren't supposed to come out so loud, and Regina froze. The sheriff turned his head towards her and cleared his throat.
"Is that true, Miss Mills? Has Daniel been hitting you?" he asked. Regina shared a look with Emma then with Ruby. Ruby looked sorry. Like she immediately regretted what she said. Regina gave her a reassuring look then sighed.
"Yes" Regina sighed again and bit her lip.
"I recommend both of you, Miss Mills and Miss Lucas, come down to the station with me. This is a serious accusation, and I hope you will press charges against Daniel. He may be a long way away by now, but I know many Sheriffs and officers in the nearby areas." Graham explained and reached for the keys to his car. Regina still stood still and looked unsure about what she was gonna do. Ruby on the other hand, shook her head.
"I'm not going to the station before I've been to the hospital!" Ruby snarled. "I have to know how Belle is doing!"
"Of course! You know where to find me, Miss Lucas." Graham replied and turned his gaze to Regina. "How about you, Miss Mills, are you coming down to the station?"
"Yes, but just...give me a minute, sheriff?" Regina exhaled and Graham nodded. Ruby sat down for a second to collect her thoughts, and she didn't mean to eavesdrop but she could hear both Emma and Regina.
"Should I really press charges against him? Is it worth it? I mean his father is the richest man there is around here, so he can probably flaunt his money and save Daniel from all this." Regina shrugged.
"If you don't want to press charges for your own sake, do it for mine?"Emma spoke honestly "I wish I had been strong enough as a child, and as a teenager, to go to the police and tell them about all the abuse I lived with. But I wasn't. You though, are strong Regina, and Ruby is probably freaking out just like you, and you have each other, okay?" Emma stated and Regina nodded slowly at her.
"I love you." Regina said and pressed her lips against Emma's.
"I love you too." Emma smiled and grabbed Regina's hand as they walked over to the police car where Ruby was standing.
"I'm here for you, Rubes. Okay?" Emma said and embraced Ruby in a tight hug. As they parted Emma's eyes suddenly looked very serious. "Rubes, please promise me you won't do anything stupid like take Granny's car and go on some man hunt, okay?"
"I promise…" Ruby groaned, even though she really didn't mean those words. She stood up and Emma gave her a concerned look.
"Do you want me to follow you to the hospital?" Emma asked carefully.
"No, I'll call Granny so you can go with Regina to the station. I'll see you guys later." Ruby shrugged and started to walk to the hospital. It wasn't that far, but Ruby was anxious and felt drained of energy. She was like a car without enough gas to function.
Granny met Ruby just outside of the hospital's entrance and embraced her in a tight hug. She had been crying too. Ruby noticed when she met her grandmother's red and puffy eyes.
They didn't have to say anything, since Ruby had told her over the phone what had happened. They just walked into the big building and Granny asked where Belle was. Ruby was holding Granny's hand and just hoped all of this was a bad dream. This couldn't be real.
They were told Belle was in a temporary room of the hospital until one became available. As they walked to where she was, Granny saw a glimpse of Dr Whale and screamed after him. He turned around and walked over to them.
"Ah, Mrs. Lucas and Miss Lucas." he greeted with a gentle and careful tone. "I suppose you're here about Belle."
"Where.. Where is my girlfriend?" Ruby asked with a shaking voice. She feared the worst because she knew how much Belle had bled.
Ruby suddenly realized she was still wearing the pants with Belle's blood on them, but she was too upset to care about her appearance. Something she usually always did.
"I recommend you follow me into my office. You two, have a seat. Please?" the doctor said and pointed to the chairs just behind them. Ruby wanted to scream, but snapped back to reality when she felt her grandmother literally push her down into one of the chairs.
"Now, just tell us how Belle is doing Dr. Whale!" Granny growled.
"She's stable for the moment, but it was a close call, because.."
"What do you mean by that?" Ruby asked anxiously and cut him off.
"It means she was lucky. She has lost quite a large amount of blood, and we had to do a emergency operation to…"
"Cut to the fucking point!" Ruby snapped and cut the doctor off yet another time. The redhead was surprised her grandmother didn't tell her to calm down.
"She's in a coma. Even though she's alive, there is a chance she won't ever wake up from it. I'm sorry." The man sighed
Ruby felt her heart stop beating for a moment. She couldn't breathe. She gasped for air and Granny stroke her back.
"Deep breaths Ruby, in and and. Listen to my voice. Breath in, and out. Come on my dear girl." Granny spoke calmly, and after a few minutes Ruby got her breathing under control. Still, she was shaking from what the doctor had told her. She met Granny's eyes and swallowed her tears before she looked back at the doctor.
"I have to see her."
"Of course. Follow me." he replied as he stood and the two followed.
Ruby gasped, yet again, for air. Belle looked so fragile. She was lying in a bed with all kinds of machines attached to her. Ruby broke down and cried like she never had.
"This can't be happening!" Ruby almost screamed. "This can't be happening! It shouldn't be like this. She pushed me away. I'm the one who should have been laying there. Not my Belle! She sacrificed herself for me!" Granny embraced her sobbing granddaughter again, and wished that she could say something that would comfort her, but instead they stood and hugged each other as they cried.
After hours at the hospital Ruby went home to change her clothes. On the way back to the hospital she went to the station. She didn't have energy for it, but she figured it was better to get it over with, and be done with it.
She had thought she would at least feel a bit better after talking with the sheriff, but she didn't. On the contrary, Ruby was more pissed off than she had ever been before. So she had found Granny's extra key to the bug, and was just about to unlock it when she felt someone drag her backwards.
"Ruby, don't!" Emma growled and Ruby turned around to meet her little sister's eyes. This had to be the first time Emma was the one who was looking out for her sister, and not the other way around.
"Why shouldn't I? These stupid charges aren't gonna lead anywhere!" Ruby shot back and pushed Emma away from her. "You and I both know the only thing that means something in this world is money, and Regina's charges would probably go somewhere, but not mine. Daniel is just gonna say she slipped or blame me! He's probably gonna frame me for all of this! Also, what if Belle doesn't wake up! Am I gonna be the one guilty for that? Hell No!" Ruby turned around and opened the car door. Emma groaned and grabbed Ruby by her waist, then easily wrestled her down to the ground. She pressed Ruby's face against the asphalt and the redhead gritted her teeth.
"Swan, for fuck sake! Let me go!" Ruby growled but Emma's grip around her arms only tightened.
"I'm not gonna let you fuck your life up because you're angry as hell right now. You're not even thinking straight, Rubes! Of course you're not gonna be framed as guilty for Belle's accident. Yes, maybe Daniel can get away with it, with all of it, but pressing charges against any kind of abuse isn't unnecessary." Emma said with a calm, yet Stern voice. "Don't act on your feelings, alright? Remember what Granny said?"
Ruby took a deep breath and opened her closed hand, so Emma could take the key to the car from her. Emma smiled at the move and stood up, then helped her sister up on her feet.
"Sorry for freaking out.." Ruby shrugged when she suddenly realised how she had behaved.
"Don't be. You have to do irresponsible stuff like that a whole lot of times more, before you even come close to me." Emma said with a gentle smile, and Ruby just nodded. Emma was probably right and it wasn't like Ruby to do something like this, even if she had quite the temper, but she had never been so afraid to lose Belle before either.
And it didn't make things better that school was starting again, but because the situation was like it was, Ruby had decided to fix it so she would be in homeschooling, and taking her classes and assignments online. Granny had supported her 100 percent. She was just happy Ruby had the energy to finish school. Emma and Regina decided to choose to do the same. They didn't have the time to be in school all day, with everything as it was now. They needed to spend time together as a family. Now more than ever.
Ruby opened her eyes and yawned. There was nothing to see on the tv, as usual. So she was just about to fall asleep again, when suddenly she heard that all the machines connected to Belle started to beep in a way they never had before. It made Ruby snap her eyes open in seconds, and in the same moment the doctor and a couple of nurses ran into the room.
"She's going into cardiac arrest. Get the Defibrillator ready!" Whale barked and one nurse ran to get the machine. Ruby flew up from her bed and ran over to Belle's side, but was immediately pushed away by one of the nurses.
"Sorry ma'am, you have to leave." the nurse stated quickly but Ruby refused to.
"No, I gotta know what's happening with my girlfriend!" Ruby shot back.
"Her heart has stopped!" Dr Whale screamed to the redhead. "Now please, Miss Lucas, leave us!" Ruby nodded with tears in her eyes and as she left the room she heard Dr Whale scream "Clear!"
Regina couldn't sleep. The baby in her stomach was moving around like crazy, so she just laid in Emma's strong arms, and thought about that appointment they had been to a couple of months back. She smiled at the memory and she thought of it often.
"So Miss Mills and Miss Swan, was it?" Dr Tom said in a kind and gentle tone. "Are you ready to see what you're having?"
"Yeah, or at least I am." Emma enthused and received a warm laugh from the doctor.
"Good to hear the girlfriend is so eager, and how about the birth mother, are you ready?"
"Yes, doctor" Regina smiled and he nodded at her then put the cold lubricate on her stomach. Emma's hand slipped into Regina's. For a couple of seconds neither of the two girls breathed. They just looked at the screen in front of them and listened to their baby's heart beat. It was like music to Regina's eyes.
"Well, allow me to introduce you to your son."
"We're having a boy?" Regina asked with tears in her eyes. Emma squeezed her hand and kissed her cheek.
"Oh yes. He's looking as healthy as a little peach." the doctor chuckled and Regina was almost lost in that little monitor where she could see her and Emma's son."So, do you have any names picked out yet, then?"
Emma took Regina totally by surprise, when she answered the doctor's question, because they had actually not talked about names. Both of them had been too scared to name the kid too early, and get attached. Because they were afraid Regina would have a miscarriage.
"Yes. We have the perfect name, doctor." Emma said and winked at Regina before she glanced back to the doctor. "The boy is gonna be named Henry. After Regina's Daddy, who died a couple of years back. I never got the chance to meet him, but this Henry..
I'm gonna spend every awakening minute with."
The minutes felt like years to Ruby. She didn't remember if she called her family or if the hospital had, but soon both Emma and Granny were by her side.
"Ruby, my dear girl." Granny almost whispered and laid her arms around her granddaughter. Ruby broke down and sobbed like she never had in her grandmother's arms. Emma joined in and hugged her sister as well. Regina kept in the background, not wanting to intrude on the family.
"Her heart stopped…" Ruby sobbed. "What if they can't save her…"
Ruby couldn't sit still, she paced back and forth in the hallway while she was crying. They hadn't heard anything about how Belle was doing, or if she was even alive.
Granny eventually got sick of waiting, and had barged into Belle's room without even caring about the nurses who tried to get her to leave. Regina was sitting next to Emma and held her girlfriend's hand.
"Is she gonna be okay?" Emma stuttered and Regina met her eyes.
"I don't know." Regina shrugged sadly. "I hope she'll be okay…..but I don't actually know.."
"I'm sorry Mrs. Lucas, there wasn't anything we could do…" Dr Whale sighed and met the old woman's eyes.
"No. That can't be true! You have to be able to do something! Anything!" Eugenia growled when she felt Ruby's hand take hers.
"I'm sorry, but she's gone." Dr Whale stated somberly. Ruby couldn't believe her ears.
This can't be happening.. This can't be happening! Ruby thought to herself and sat down next to Belle. She gripped her girlfriend's lifeless hand and broke down even more.
"Belle, baby you can't leave me! You can't. I can't live without you!" Ruby said between sobs and laid her head on her chest.
"Let's give her some space." Granny barked and everyone left the room, but Ruby didn't even notice it. She was just looking at Belle's chest and noticed it wasn't moving anymore. Come on baby. Up and down. Up and down. Please.
"Baby, don't leave me. I don't want to live without you. Belle please! Don't go. Please." Ruby cried and practically smashed her head against Belle's chest. She didn't want to let her go.
No. But what could she do? If the doctors said nothing could be done, then… what the hell? She suddenly heard the heart monitor start to beep. She still couldn't believe it. She was too afraid to look up, and see it was just all in her imagination.
Then she heard something she thought she would never hear again. The sound of Belle's beautiful voice. It was like magic to her ears. Ruby raised her head, and saw the eyes of her beloved girlfriend looking back at her. Is this a dream?
"Ruby? What.. Where am I?" Belle coughed, due to her scratchy and dry throat, as she gave ruby a very confused look. "Why am I at the hospital, and why are you crying?"