A/N: Here's the next chapter of AGCFSS. As title, I chose Ed Sheeran's Give Me Love because let's be honest, that song is a masterpiece! I'd like to say thank you to the people who left a review and made me smile :) Also thank you to that guest reviewer who corrected me. I felt a bit embarrassed, but you taught me something new. If you enjoyed the chapter or you see a mistake, a review is a great way to let me know ;) I hope you like the chapter!

The thought keeps on repeating itself.

He made her like this.

Whatever he does, his mind keeps on going back to Emma.

"What was that?" Aurora asks, not long after Emma has left.

Killian doesn't know how to answer.

What was that, indeed?

"Killian?"

"I don't know," he answers.

"Tink told me that your date went great. How come she's acting like that?"

"I don't know, Aurora!"

He repeats his previous reply, this time with a more frantic attitude. Killian runs his fingers through his hair as an act of slight despair.

His anger is misplaced and he shouldn't be angry at her. She doesn't even take part in this story.

No, if he should be mad at anyone, it should be himself. He's the one who damned everything.

"I'm sorry, lass. I shouldn't have. I apologize for my little outburst."

Aurora shows him that it's okay.

"I guess she just doesn't want to see me again. I mean that much is quite clear. So I'll give her what she wants."

Disbelief appears on Aurora's face.

"Come on! She came here. Voluntarily. If I wanted to avoid someone, I wouldn't come to their coffeehouse in a city with one on every corner. You need to talk to her. You have her number. Call!"

Aurora really wants him to call, but he knows that the only thing he'd hear is a continuing ring and a voicemail.

"What am I supposed to say then? She doesn't even respond to my texts; I can already tell you that she won't pick up the phone either."

None of the three texts he sent in the past days had gotten a reaction from her.

Did she read them only to immediately throw them in the bin?

It could also be that she didn't even make the effort to read them and that they were directly deleted from existence.

"You do have another option. Talk to her, face to face."

He is so not doing that.

"No, Aurora. I can't just go up to her and ask. Plus, the chances of her returning here are nearly zero."

"Of course you can. It's only a question. You do deserve an answer, Killian. If she tells you that she doesn't want to see you, then you obviously leave her alone. She should have the decency to tell you instead of just ignoring you. She comes in every Monday and Wednesday right?"

Aurora looks at him for an answer.

"Aye," is the only thing she gets to hear. There isn't more to say. She keeps on looking in his eyes, showing him that he needs to listen.
"Okay, so you wait 'till the day after tomorrow and if she drops by, you will see. Possibility one:"

Aurora's index goes up.

"Emma doesn't come, you never see her again and it's over. Possibility two: Emma does come and you talk to her. It's all a big misunderstanding and you fix everything. Possibility three: Emma comes and you talk to her. It's true that she doesn't want to see you again because of this or that reason and it's over."

It sounds so easy when she puts it like that, but he has a feeling that the eventual turnout will be somewhat different from the said case-scenarios. He hopes that possibilities one and three don't happen, but Killian still agrees with Aurora's plan.

He doesn't know a better way to do it.

A client comes in and Aurora takes his order. Killian goes to clear some empty cups off of the table.

After the talk with Aurora, he tries to focus on work and not let the thought of Emma take over.

It does work on Tuesday, but when Wednesday comes, the green eyes and blonde locks constantly play the part of the protagonist in his thoughts.

For the tenth time, he looks at the clock. Time passes by, but it still seems like the clock arrows have quit their job of telling it. Killian thinks that at least ten minutes have passed by since he last looked, but when he glances back, the clock tells another tale.

It's tortuous.

"Killian, relax."

"Sorry, what?"

He turns to her.

"I said relax, she will come. I'm sure of it."

"How can you be sure of it, Tink?"

"I just have a feeling."

"Aurora said the same thing."

Tink dries a cup and places it on the counter.

"That means that we are both going to be right."

Killian is still not convinced.

"How can you know?"

"Killian, she has been coming here for months and each time she coincidentally ended up in your queue. She showed you smiles, that neither Aurora nor I have seen from her, she flirted with you like crazy. You went on a date and were super-duper happy. Need I say more?"

"You are forgetting the fact that there has been a complete radio silence since then," he adds to her reasoning.

"Oh, I know, but she'll come. I'm telling you."

Apparently, Tink's feelings are accurate, because, after about an hour of more doubt, her leather jacket appears in the door opening.

Tink nudges Killian and makes a gesture towards the door to signal him. Emma is a few minutes earlier than she normally is. He looks at her and she seems to be hesitating.

There are significantly fewer people standing in his line than there are in Tink's, but she still goes to stand behind a light-haired man in his employee's line.

He gathers up his courage, ready to say something, but new people appear in Killian's queue before he can. He hurries to finish his orders before she's gone.

"Welcome to "A Cup of Jones" What can I get you?"

Killian rushes but still tries to be a pleasant barista.

A decaf coffee, an espresso, and a jasmine tea.

His hands move fast; his muscle memory takes over.

He hands the last woman in line her cup and sees Emma heading towards the exit. He doesn't want to appear desperate, but that's what he kind of is, to be honest. His mouth shouts before his mind can think.

"Emma."

She keeps on walking, but Killian's sure that she heard him. He tries again.

"Emma!" he says this time, his tone more insisting.

The heads of the customers turn around, looking at him with wonder. She stops right before the door; her shoulders rise as if she is taking a deep breath. She turns around.

The eyes go from him to Emma and Killian decides to move this little scene away from the public and make it more private. He asks Tink.

"Will you be okay out here alone for a while?"

She nods.

"Yeah, don't worry about me. I'll manage."

He knows that she is more than capable of handling the shop on her own, but he merely wanted to double check. His glance goes back to Emma and he addresses her again.

"Could you come with me for a second?"

The reluctance on her face is pronounced and for a second he's certain that she's just going to leave him standing there, in front of the very attentive crowd.

That he has to return to a life without her.

It looks like every stare in the room is focused on her, waiting on her decision.

The entire space is silent and the seconds tick away until she, with an indecipherable mask over face, nods her head as a sign of permission. Her hand leaves the door handle and finds shelter in her pocket. She follows the same route, but in the reversed direction and stops when she feels that she's close enough to him for her to hear what he has to say and far enough to maybe make a run for it.

When he is certain of her willingness and presence, he moves. She trails him behind the counter. The rustle in the café starts again and Tink throws him a small, encouraging smile for support.

They walk in silence.

The breakroom smells delicious. Killian put some pastry in the oven not so long ago and the cinnamon fragrance filled the entire room.

"Would you like to sit?"

She shakes her head. Killian becomes aware of the fact that she hasn't said a word to him.

Gestures.

That's the only way she's talking to him. As if he isn't worthy of the honor of having words spoken to him.

Emma puts the "A Cup of Jones" bag on the table and it reminds Killian of something.

"I know you have to pick up Henry, so I'll make this short."

Even though her face is a blank canvas, he still detects some surprise there. Isn't it quite logical that he knows about her Wednesdays with Henry?

Killian continues speaking, "First of all, I'm sorry that I approached you just now, but I had the feeling that if I didn't, I would regret it. I don't even know why, but I'm apologizing right now. Seemingly I must have misunderstood something. It could also be that I missed something vital on our date or that something happened afterward. You obviously don't want anything to do with me and I'll respect your wishes, but I just want to make sure you are indeed alright and if you're not alright and that's my fault... You could say that I would feel extremely guilty if that was the case. So, I just need to ask you this one thing: Did I do something to upset you?"

He finally looks up at her and sees her mask shatter piece by piece.

"No, Killian. You didn't."

Her voice returns and the words are a melody to his ears. Killian feels the relief in his whole being.

It isn't his fault.

But if it isn't his fault, it must mean that she simply isn't interested in him. The relief is only to a short extent.

He has to say goodbye to her.

"I understand. I'd still like to thank you because I had a grand time. It was nice to meet you."

He stretches out his hand for a handshake. It feels strange. They shared so much of their lives.

A handshake is something for strangers and Emma Swan is no stranger to him. He knows.

He knows about the way she likes her coffee and that she always sprinkles cinnamon over her hot chocolate. Henry is her son and he's a very smart, young adolescent who's aspiring to be a writer. She's a bail bonds person and a very good one because she isn't afraid of a fight and uses her wit.

She had a difficult past but got her life back on trails for Henry and for herself. She's a bloody amazing woman.

It's not like he just knew all of these things, she told him.

Except for the last one, that's his own perception after meeting and getting to know her.

It stings that she opened up if she didn't even enjoy their time together.

Emma grabs his hand and shakes it. He signals toward the door to show her that she can lead the way and they make their way back to the shop. She abruptly stops walking and Killian nearly collides with her. He takes a step backward and she turns around.

"Look, I also had a great time," she admits. "There is no use in pretending I didn't. I just realized that I'm not ready for all of this."

Killian moves his eyebrows into a frown.

"All of what? It was just a date, Swan," he remarks.

"Yes, it was, but I could see in your eyes that it meant more."

She tries to explain and her hands follow.

Her right hand eventually settles just below her neck, forming a new connection between her two collarbones. His attention is drawn there and he sees her pulse right above her hand.

Her heart is beating fast.

Her left hand opens partially when her mouth forms the next word.

"I'm just not dating material. I mean, I can barely handle my job and raising a kid. This is just too much."

While she talks, a self-mocking smile appears on her face. As if she feels that she's failing in some kind of way.

Disappointing her son and making a complete and utter mess of it. He really wants to show her that that isn't the case.

"Say what you must, lass, but you can't tell me that I didn't see the exact same thing in your eyes."

His eyebrows go up. He knows that he's challenging her, but he also knows that what he's saying is true.

Emma exposed herself on their date. Not as the mysterious customer in the coffeehouse or the fierce bail bonds person.

No, she became the soft, caring and loving woman she is. She became Emma.

"You didn't."

He has to admit; she is a stubborn one.

"Emma, I know we haven't known each other for that long, but that doesn't change that I can still read you like an open book."

Killian hears her taking calming breaths. She grumbles something and he can barely make out the words she says.

"Stop it."

He attempts to reason with her, "Look, I'm trying to tell you that I understand."

"It doesn't matter. Whatever happens, I'm going to hurt you. I've already managed to do that and we aren't even together. I don't want to, I really don't, but it's inevitable. I'm just no good. Not for you, not for anyone, not even for Henry. He's stuck with me because I'm his mom. I can't really change anything about that."

This is going too far; Killian has to put a stop to it.

"Emma, what are you saying? Henry is lucky to have you as a mother. You can't say things like that."

He is truly shocked. He knows a thing or two about self-loathing, but Emma has no reason to think this of herself. Anyone can see that the things she's saying are far from the truth.

"You don't know me."

"I'm not claiming that I know every detail, but I still know the essence. You are brilliant and smart. You are a tough lass, but a caring one as well. And I can also tell you that you most definitely haven't ruined anyone's life"

She has cast down her look. He thinks that she isn't listening to what he's saying. It's so important that she hears this. He tries to reason with her.

"Emma-"

"What do you want, Killian?"

Emma looks up and her eyes have a watery edge. Killian is shocked.

Maybe he has gone too far.

"Is this what you want?"

She gestures towards her face and Killian shakes his head.

"You are not convincing me. I know who I am. I've been living with myself for over thirty years. I fuck things up, that's the only thing I am good in. I'm not going to drag anyone into my mess and ruin their lives. I'm just not. It's impossible for me to love someone."

Killian's eyes widen and so do hers when she hears her own words. She hastily grabs the off the table and leaves the break room.

She must be running, because she has disappeared before Killian can comment. He stares at the door, ready to yell after her, but no words come out.

She's gone and he's still standing there, in a cinnamon-scented room.