A/N: I honestly did not expect people to like this story at all! But I'm glad you guys do, here's another chapter as for the other stories, well. Writer's block is my only excuse.

A/N2: Huge thank you to everyone that read, reviewed, followed and/or favorited!

Dr. Gigi: I know, I come up with the best birthday gifts ;)

Gabriela Dias: I think your question is answered in this chapter, enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Once Upon a Time nor its characters. However, I do own the idea behind this story and the characters that are unknown to the Once fandom, also, mistakes are mine too.

Chapter Two

She's cold and she's cruel,

But she knows what she's doin'

— The Click Five; Just the Girl.

Juliette.

I went back and forth through a list of around a hundred names trying to find the perfect one for my daughter. I loved so many, ones with great meanings and ones, not so much. Maya; was the first one that came to mind. In Hindu philosophy it meant illusion, or at least it's what Google said. And well, as pretty as the name was, it held no actual meaning behind it but I discovered that changing one letter could change the whole meaning. Crazy, right? I changed the Y to an I, and according to Nameberry it meant Mother, and mothers mean a lot so I kept it in my potential baby names list, but I still wasn't sure. So I looked up some more.

Joanna. Leah. Elisa. Hope… But none of them made me go, "Yes! This is exactly what my daughter should be called." None of them felt right.

And then I came across it. Juliette. That was it, fit for a princess. It sounded beautiful and along with the first name I chose, its meaning was perfect.

Juliette Maia Mills. Youthful mother, and weren't I one? Yep, perfect.

By now you know how stressful settling on a name with me could be. I look for perfection and when I don't find it, I change my mind faster than you could blink, and it was annoying. I'll give you that. I went through the same process around two years ago when it came to choosing the name of my bistro. What I thought would be a piece of cake turned out to be the exact opposite. Picking a name for a restaurant was harder than choosing a child's name, even though that was more important.

I went through a lot of suggestions but none pleased me. I tried naming it after the theme I had in mind, homey and rustic. Rustic Baker; nah. Not good enough.

Perhaps after something I loved, fairytales. Happily Ever After Food? No, that was just too stupid, and too long, not to mention, way too cheesy to be elegant.

I wanted something…perfect. Easily for people to find and remember, something that will sound good when I greet my customers, saying—

"Welcome to Juliette's."

"Table for two, please." The man requested, a polite smile curved over his lips. One arm looped around the arm of the blonde standing beside him and the other rested by his side, his hand brushing over his bulging pocket every now and then. A proposal date. How sweet, Regina thought sarcastically. This must've been the third time someone proposes in her bistro this month alone. It was starting to get old.

"Please follow me," she said, stepping back from behind the front-desk to lead them to their table.

This wasn't her job. She was often found back in the kitchen, rarely out greeting high-class customers upon their requests but she had to cover up for her cousin, Ruby, who failed to show up due to a sudden headache (also known as her usual after-Sunday-nights-hangovers.) It wasn't anything new, most certainly not surprising anymore.

...

"Well, doesn't your mom look grumpy today." Mal murmured with amusement, a light chuckle passing through her lips at the sight of her friend frowning her way to seat the joyful pair walking behind her.

"She hates seeing happy couple," Juliette explained.

"You don't say…" Mal drawled, a teasing smirk tugging at the corner of her plump lips.

"I don't understand why she does though," the little brunette sighed, "it's her who refuses to go on dates. Emma sets her up with so many! She ends up using me as an excuse not to go." Juliette half-shrugged, pursing her lips.

Mal chuckled, "That's the Regina I know, she'd always been like that."

"How has she always been?" Juliette asked curiously, perking up at the thought of hearing a story from her mother's childhood. Those were her favorite.

"Wise," Mal told her. "She was always careful, chasing her dreams while we chased the boys." She said, referring to herself and the rest of the small squad they brought together back in high school.

While Regina wasn't the smartest in class, she was the most passionate when it came to certain things that caught her attention. Much like Juliette. It helped her, both financially and mentally, unlike them. She invested her time in learning her craft rather than getting her heart repeatedly broken by pathetic excuses of men.

Mal, for one, had suffered many heartbreaks throughout the years, and one would think she'd learn by now but sadly, she only has eyes for douchebags.

"What else?" Juliette pried.

Mal hummed softly, squinting her eyes as she thought. "Did she tell you about that one time we got kicked out of class? She asked and the nine year old shook her head, eyes wide with excitement. "Well…"

January 7th, 1999.

"Pssst…Malinda," Regina whispered loudly, trying to grasp the attention of her friend sitting two seats away without alarming the teacher. "Mal?" She repeated. Why was she even sitting too far away from her? It's not like the class was packed, half (a few) were absent for no absolute reason.

"What?" Mal whispered back, furrowing her brows slightly.

"I got a new book!" Regina said, grinning. "Wanna write a new story?" She asked, glancing at Miss McLean from the corner of her eyes to ensure she wasn't looking. And she wasn't, thank God.

Mal nodded her head rapidly, a grin mirroring Regina's spread across her face. "But I get to use the pink pen this time."

"Fine," Regina groaned. "But the purple is mine."

"Keep it, I don't like it anyways." Mal shrugged, quietly seating herself by Regina's side. She snatched her friend's pencil-case and was quick to pull out the pens she wanted to use. Settling for the pink one, green and black, and leaving the rest for Regina to choose from. "Do you have something in mind or should we start like we always do?"

"I was thinking maybe Lana could be the daughter of a famous actor whom she never met before and her mother, you know, could just be a normal mom?" Regina suggested, shrugging one shoulder.

"Sounds good, can I give Kristin a brother, or maybe a sister in this story?" Mal asked, receiving a nod from her friend.

They wrote down their ideas, scribbled along the lines of the notebook. Each played their own characters as they always did, living in the world they created. They were careful, passing the notebook back and forth between them whenever Miss McLean would turn her back to them and write on the board, explaining the story about the house by the mango tree, or something like that. None of them really paid much attention to it. They were grinning, quietly snickering at how their story went when—

"Regina and Malinda!"

They gasped in unison, their heads whipped up and their gaze met their teacher's frightening glare.

"I warned you two about this before, stop writing your nonsense in my class!" Miss McLean roared angrily. "Out, right now." She demanded and they hurtled outside, biting down their lower lip in attempt to stop themselves from laughing out loud, more so when Emma, Regina's cousin, looked at them pleadingly while mouthing, "Take me with you."

They jumped at the sound of the door slam shut behind them and stared at one another for a moment before bursting out in a fit of giggles. It never ceased to amuse them how teachers thought kicking them out is a punishment. Really, they only took that time to explore around.

…

A wholeheartedly giggle erupted out of Juliette, her eyes wide with joy. "What happened next?" She asked enthusiastically.

"She came out and told us to get back in, we refused and got sent to the principal's office." Mal chuckled, smiling fondly at the memory. Hers and Regina's name was always on the tongues of the teachers. No, scratch that. It was on the tongue of every worker at that school.

"And mom gets mad at me when I talk to Ava during a lesson." Juliette scoffed. "Do you still have the books? I wanna read them." She declared.

"I don't…" Mal drawled, "But I do think your mom still has them." She said, "Last time I asked, she said she had them kept in a box somewhere."

"She probably lost them then," Juliette heaved out a deep sigh, her shoulders sagging in disappointment. "Mom loses everything."

"I don't lose everything!" Regina butted in, swatting her daughter's arm playfully with the menu she had in hand.

"You lost me at the grocery store!"

"That was once! And you're never going to let me forget about it, won't you?" Juliette shook her head and Regina sighed, rolling her eyes. "Thought so," she murmured. Leaning forward against Mal's chair, she wrapped her arms around her neck and rested her chin atop of her head. "What were you two talking about anyways?"

"The time you and aunt Mal got in trouble for writing stories in class!" Juliette beamed.

"Which class?" Regina sneered.

"McLean's," Mal laughed, drawing a laugh out of the brunette and her daughter too.

…

Malinda. Where do I even start with this lunatic?

I met her in 4th grade and life had never been the same since. It got a thousand time better (and by better I mean crazier.) She's the sister I never had— Oh shit, wait. I do have a sister…Zelena. Good thing she doesn't read my blog or I won't hear the end of this.

Now where was I? Ah, yes. Malinda.

She's Juliette's Godmother, the apple to my pie, the straw to my berry, the smoke to my high…yeah, I just shamelessly quoted some lyrics out a song. But she is! She is all that and more. She made me realize that I don't need a man in my life.

No, you don't understand. If you've seen the mess she was everytime she'd call me at 4 in the morning, crying over one asshole after another. I don't think you'd want to be in a relationship either. But nonetheless, I love her.

Although late, Ruby still managed to show up, spitting a quick apology in Regina's way before sprinting behind the front-desk. The aftermath of a wild night was visible over her pained features. She would grimace at the sudden movements she'd make and hold a hand over her pounding head. Good. Maybe that'll teach her a lesson not to party too hard next time.

Regina kissed her daughter's head and waved goodbye to her friend as she hurried back into the kitchen. She expected it to be a mess without her watching over them but everything seemed to be fine. It was calm. Well, as calm as a restaurant's kitchen could be at least.

"Ashely," Regina called out, receiving a yes, chef in return from the blonde. "Fry me some of the sweet potato wedges please."

"On it," Ashely said, bolting to get the brunette's request done.

Regina turned her attention to her first order of the evening. Chicken tenders for Juliette and a vegan, creamy garlic pasta for Mal. Something she originally invented when her daughter decided to go vegan after spending a night at Malinda's, talking about animals and whatever else the blonde brought up. And she was, for a week that is. She gave in when they walked past McDonalds and begged for some McNuggets. Predictable.

"Which table?" Aurora asked, frowning down at the sweet potato wedges placed infront of her with no note.

"Table two, Juliette's." Regina said, receiving an Oh! from the waitress as she hurried to get the order out, leaving her behind chuckling at how big her smile was. Juliette was adored by them, her employees. She grew up around them. They were her second family as the nine year old would claim. It swelled Regina's heart with joy.

...

Business was slow but again, it was mostly slow on weekdays anyways. There were a few customers though, not many but a good handful of them enjoying her food. Or at least she thought.

"What's this?" Regina frowned, narrowing her eyes at the returned dish.

"Table three, he says the steak is rare." Aurora explained, watching her boss poke around the slab of meat before scoffing.

"It's not rare," Regina glowered. Reaching behind her, she grabbed a neat cut of an uncooked ribeye and shook it infront of the waitress, "This is rare, that—" She motioned her index toward the browned lump on the plate, "is well-done, just as he requested. If I cook it any further it'll be charcoal done."

"What do you want me to do now?" Aurora's brows knitted, her arms folded and tucked over her chest.

"Tell him it's done, and if he argues then ask him if he wants me to cook it some more." Regina answered with a hint of sarcasm the waitress failed to catch. Nothing unusual there. Regina scoffed and watched Aurora head out again, she rolled up her sleeves and puffed out a huff. "Unbelievable."

Not a moment after, the redhead returned, sliding the dish infront of Regina, "Cook it some more, he says."

With disapproval written all over the brunette's face, she grabbed the steak and slapped it back onto the grill again. This wasn't about how she liked it, it wasn't about the right way to eat a steak. It was about satisfying a customer, she reminded herself. And the customer is always right.

"Here, extra well-done." Regina grumbled, shoving the plate toward the laughing waitress.

Finally.

Customers like him (whoever he is) drove Regina crazy. It wasn't about being picky, it was about being overly-picky and never satisfied. She didn't mind adjusting a certain dish to a customer's certain liking. If they were happy with it by the end of the meal, she would be too. But those who weren't are those who anger her.

"This isn't good…"

Regina heard Ashley whisper, she lifted her head up only to find Aurora returning with a grimace on her face and the same goddamn plate in her hand, ready to explain when Regina stopped her. "Don't tell me, still not cooked enough?"

Aurora slowly shook her head. "He said he wanted the meat to be dark, not pink in the slightest."

"Dark?" Regina whispered and in return, the redhead nodded. "I'll show him what dark looks like when I punch a black-eye onto his face— Gimmie that!" She snatched the plate out Aurora's hand and marched out of the kitchen.

"Is…is she on her period again or did something happen on that show she's watching?" Aurora whispered.

"I think both actually," Ashely pursed her lips.

"Good evening, boys." Regina greeted the three men with a false smile plastered over her face. "Which one of you ordered this steak, well-done?"

"That'll be me, milady."

She furrowed her brows. His British accent catching her off guard but what she truly wasn't ready for, was him.

He turned around and looked at her, ocean blue eyes sparkling, a wide smile spread across his face, showing off his dimples. A light stubble covering his chin and cheeks, it was either his style or perhaps he forgot to shave, for the past three days. But those eyes, she'd seen them before.

"Milady?" The man asked, watching her observe him with a slight tilt of her head.

"What's your name?" She eventually asked, her tongue darting out to wet her lips.

"Robin—"

"Locksley?"

"Yes…"

…

And I slapped him…

I know, I shouldn't have but I did. And you must be wondering why I'd slap a costumer of mine. I assure you, it was not because of the steak but if you must know, he's not a regular costumer. He's…Robin Locksley.

The boy I despised in high school, who also just happened to be my kindergarten crush. No, that's not cute if that's what you're thinking. It's embarrassing and blood-boiling. Long story short.

He was the boy that because of him, I spent countless hours running from one end of the school to the other, talking to one person to another and skipping classes for (which by the way, I'm not complaining about that one.) But because of him I didn't enjoy my graduation.

For those who know me, they'd know I suffer from anxiety. Talking infront of a few strangers is hell, let alone a crowd, yet I somehow mustered up the courage and volunteered as a valedictorian. I was asked to speak infront of the principal, my classmates and others who did as well (and by the way, lemme point out that he wasn't there during that,) and I did with a few stutters but I was also praised for what I wrote. And that gave me confidence, it gave me hope.

Wait, let me rephrase that. False hope.

You see, our school went by this rule. One year they choose a valedictorian that's a boy and then the other it's a girl. That year was our turn, the girls but as you can already tell. It's not what happened.

Robin was chosen, how and why? I still don't know but he mispronounced a few words on stage and that was the only thing I would kill to see again. He deserved it.

So now you see why I slapped him? Bottled up anger I guess. And he deserved that too.

Stupid Robin Locksley.

A/N: I hope y'all enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it. Don't forget to leave a review, they make me happy! Also, OQ is endgame here but it'll be semi-slowburn (or just slowburn really, I don't know why I added the semi part.)