Thank you so much for reading, and here's some more fluffy feels and a tiny bit of angst to make up for the lack of CS in the last night's episode. Without furter ado, enjoy!

Emma and Killian fall into a pattern; she drops by his shop every morning on the way to work to tell him good morning and get a kiss and a flower, and depending on the amount of orders they either have lunch together or Killian comes over after he closes the shop for the day.

Now that Emma is slightly less afraid of driving, Killian takes her home with him on Saturdays and they spend the day among the flowers or curled in front of the fire, talking and kissing until they are both breathless and Emma announces that it's time for her to go home.

Killian is infinitely patient with her but sometimes Emma wonders if it would be better if he wasn't, if he tried pushing her at least a little, but she suspects that he's not ready for any greater intimacy either; his fake hand stays firmly attached at all times, but no matter how well he tries to hide his discomfort, Emma always knows when he's in pain.

Today he's lying with his head on her lap, her arm resting across his chest, the pendants of his necklace cradled in her hand; it's snowing outside and Emma smiles to herself because her father is going to be so exasperated once he finally arrives, escaping the snowy Stockholm for more of the same.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Killian asks and slides his fingers gently over her forearm, lifting her hand to his lips and kissing the tattoo on her wrist before pressing her palm against his heart.

"I'm happy", she tells him and ducks her head, her fingertips exploring the now-familiar lines of Killian's face; she feels the upward tilt of his mouth and wonders how did she ever get to be this lucky.

"Because of the snow or because of me?" Killian asks and she can tell that he's wiggling his eyebrows, his brow lifting under the heel of her palm.

"Because of both", she tells him truthfully and leans down to give him a sideways kiss.

Killian smiles against her lips and Emma realizes that it's getting harder and harder telling him goodnight, her visits becoming longer with every passing day.

Elsa keeps saying that she's going to be her maid of honor and although Emma laughs it off, she keeps getting this weird feeling that Killian is the one.

When he pulls away abruptly and sits up, his back to her and her hand settling on his shoulder, she can tell that his arm is bothering him even though he assures her that everything is alright.

"Killian, come on. I might be blind, but I'm not stupid."

"I don't think you're stupid", he says softly and she feels his muscles bunch briefly underneath her fingers before he relaxes again.

"Then don't try telling me that you're okay."

"I'm sorry", Killian says and shifts back around, then leans against the back of the couch and sighs, his hand caressing Emma's knee almost absentmindedly.

"You don't have to pretend with me", she tells him softly, wishing he wouldn't always sit her on his right and keep her far from his injury.

There's no time like the present to dissuade him from doing that, so Emma stands up and carefully edges all around the couch before she sits on Killian's bad side.

"What are you doing?" Killian asks when she slides her hand down his arm, her fingers settling in the crook of his elbow.

"I want to help you", Emma says and waits patiently for him to get used to the idea, wishing she could find the words to tell him that she doesn't mind his missing hand without sounding like she's minimizing his pain.

"It'll pass, love", he says softly and brushes her hair behind her shoulders, then cups the back of her head in his hand and pulls her in for a kiss.

"You always do this", she pouts, their faces lingering close, her hand shifting lower until he captures it with his and entwines their fingers.

"Do what?"

"Try to distract me", she says and he kisses her again before he tells her that he's trying to distract himself too.

"It helps me when I have something else to focus on."

"Am I a good distraction, then?" Emma asks and presses a line of kisses against the fine line of his jaw before nibbling gently on his earlobe.

"Sometimes even too good", he gasps and she grins, enjoying the effect she's got on him a little too much considering the fact that she doesn't have any intention on sleeping over.

At least not yet, because the very idea of waking up in a strange bed makes her a little bit panicky.

"I should get going", she says and Killian groans, but pulls away and goes to get her coat, then holds it out for her as she puts her arms into the sleeves in a well-practiced move that neither of them has to think about.

The ride home is quiet but Emma's hand is in Killian's and her heart hardly even races anymore, although she doubts she's ever going to enjoy the feeling of hurtling through a dark tunnel she gets every time they take a ride.

Killian pulls into the parking lot and turns off the engine, but he doesn't make a move to leave the car and open Emma's door like he does every time he drives her home, so she waits patiently, her thumb tracing his tattoo in an attempt to soothe him and help him open up to her.

"Would you like to go to the opera with me next Tuesday?" He asks and Emma frowns, completely thrown for a loop.

"Why?"

"I thought maybe you were tired of us always being at my shop or my house", Killian says and he sounds so earnest that she doesn't have the heart to tell him no, even though she had always thought that people who went to the opera were incredibly snobby.

"I would love to go to the opera with you, but I don't mind staying home", Emma tells him and leans over the gear shift to give him a kiss.

"Thank you."

"For what?"

"I know you're not too thrilled about new places", Killian says and Emma smiles to herself because she had thought she was hiding it well.

"That transparent?"

"You're quite an open book to me, love", Killian says and kisses her forehead, then escorts her up to her apartment where they take another twenty minutes to say goodnight.

Killian feels like a cross between a waiter and a penguin but he tells himself that Emma is going to appreciate that he went all out even if she won't be able to see it; her hands will tell her that he's wearing a proper tuxedo complete with a bow-tie, a starched shirt and a wool coat currently thrown over his arm.

Not to mention his better prosthetic, the one that chafes as all Hell but looks and feels almost like a real hand.

The door of Emma's apartment opens and reveals a pretty dark-haired woman with a pixie haircut and bright eyes that look so much like Emma's that it's impossible for her to be anybody but her mother.

"You must be Killian", she says and offers her hand to shake, but he's holding Emma's flower and he doesn't want to crush it by holding it in the crook of his arm so he holds the stem between his teeth and takes Mary Margaret's hand.

Emma's mother gives him a kind smile and precedes him into the living room, announcing his presence to her daughter.

"You're just in time", Emma says and Killian gapes a little, staring at the vision in front of him and momentarily forgetting everything including his name.

The dress Emma is wearing is red and knee-length, flaring a little at the end and revealing just enough cleavage to make Killian's mouth go dry; there are gentle curls framing her face and for the first time since he'd met her, Emma is wearing heels, making her almost as tall as he is.

"Killian?" She asks uncertainly and it's only then that he finds his voice, discarding his coat on the arm of the sofa on his way to her before he slips the red rose in her hand.

"You look stunning, love", he tells her and rearranges her curls on her shoulder, her smile warming up his heart and her kiss coloring his cheeks because her mother is standing two feet away watching them.

"Turn here; I'm taking a picture for dad", she says and Emma laughs, telling her that it's not her prom night. "Please?"

"Alright with you?" Emma asks Killian and he turns her toward Mary Margaret's phone, his arm around her waist and his lips against her ear when he tells her it is.

They manage to escape the apartment ten minutes later, Emma's hand on Killian's arm because she had decided to leave her cane at home; he's well aware how much faith she's putting in him and he intends to do everything in his power not to make her regret it.

"What are you wearing?" Emma asks him in the car and he would really like to let her feel for herself but the very thought of her hand exploring his body makes him feel too hot and he really doesn't want to crash his truck with Emma in it.

"A tux."

"No wonder mom said you look like James Bond", Emma says and Killian snorts because he absolutely doesn't look anything like Agent 007.

"She's just being nice to me."

"I don't think so", Emma says and he wonders when did the two of them manage to discuss him without being overheard.

"I feel like a penguin", he tells her because he wants to hear her laugh; it has quickly become his favorite sound in the world.

"My mom is pretty trustworthy, so I'm sure you look good", Emma says and he slants a look her way, her head turning toward him as if she senses it. "I don't call her that to her face."

"It wouldn't be a bad thing if you did", he tells her softly and she nods to herself, but they don't discuss it further because they've reached the Opera House and he's too busy getting Emma safely across the little square and up the stairs.

"I knew there was a reason I didn't wear heels", she says when they finally enter the building and Killian wishes he had insisted she take the cane, but he understands why she didn't; for one night she wanted to be just like everybody else.

His better prosthetic is proof that he wanted the same even at the cost of suffering quite a lot of pain, but he's starting to realize that they should both just accept that they aren't like everybody else, and that it's okay.

"Just hold onto me, love. I won't let you trip", he tells her and Emma lets him guide her first to the coat check and then to their seats on the balcony, her hand searching for his as soon as they are settled.

"You have to tell me everything that happens", Emma says and he assures her that he won't leave out one detail, and when the lights dim and the music starts, he keeps true to his word, whispering against her ear and describing what action there is even though his eyes keep straying to her face.

She's so completely focused on the opera, her head canted to the side and her eyes closed, a tiny frown creasing her forehead when she realizes why he had chosen this particular one.

Iolanta is blind but she does not know it until she meets Vaudémont and he explains lights and colors to her.

"This thing better not have a tragic ending", Emma whispers and squeezes Killian's hand tighter, sitting on the edge of her seat until the end, tears rolling down her cheeks when Killian tells her that Ioanta was cured and that she's finally free to marry Vaudémont.

"I am sorry, Swan. I didn't want it to make you cry", Killian says but Emma shakes her head and smiles, embracing him tightly and telling him that it was beautiful.

"He loved her and wanted to marry her even when she will still blind."

"I know", he says because he really does, because he loves Emma so much he can't imagine ever loving anybody else.

Killian and Emma sit on the balcony holding hands until most of the people clear out, his eyes riveted on her face because her tears have been replaced with a smile and it seems that he did good tonight.

"Thank you for tonight, Killian", Emma tells him half an hour later when he walks her to her door, her fingers holding onto the edges of his bow-tie as he kisses her in response. "I have to tell you one thing, though."

"You can tell me anything."

"I won't get better. My vision isn't going to return", she says, and his stomach drops because he never wanted her to think he was hoping for that; the thought hadn't even crossed his mind.

"I won't grow a hand either", he tells her, thumbing at the dent on her chin and looking right at her eyes even though she can't look back at him and never will.

"Your hand jokes are ridiculous", she says with a chuckle and he smiles because her eyes are sparkling and she doesn't look wistful anymore.

"We both know you love them anyway."

"Yes, I do", Emma says and Killian closes his eyes, losing himself in her kiss.

Sometimes, you don't need eyes to see, and you especially don't need them to feel.

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