Chapter 8: Fate or Coincidence?

For several minutes Neal didn't say anything as he and Emma stood outside on the deck. Emma let him fume for as long as he needed. She thought of what he must be thinking, how freaked out he was. Emma wondered when the last time it had been that he'd seen magic been used. He most likely had been here in this world since he was fourteen so it had to have been over a decade at least.

Neal brought his hands to his lips and then back down.

"What was that!" he finally said.

"You know exactly what that was," said Emma.

"You have magic," Neal said with a deep sigh.

"Yeah," Emma said shrugging it off as if it were no big deal.

Neal shook his head, "So you're just like him."

"I am nothing like your father," Emma shot back. "I was born this way. I didn't go seeking out the power the way he or Cora or Regina did."

"What do you mean you were born like this?"

"Come on Neal, it's not that hard to figure out. True love is the most powerful love there is and I was a result of that. Emma shrugged, "I don't know maybe you were right to leave me like you did."

"I was trying to get you home how many times do I have to tell you that?"

"I don't care what your reasons were. I'm exactly the very thing you were running away from."

"Emma, I didn't mean-,"

Emma looked down. "You know it's kind of ironic isn't it: the boy who was running from magic ran into the most powerful magic of all and had a kid with her."

Neal took a deep breath allowing himself to calm down. "You think it's a coincidence," Neal asked.

"I don't know, you still believe it was fate?"

Neal dug his hands into his pockets. "When you put it the way you just did maybe it was."

Emma shot him a glance and tensed, "I can't believe that."

"Why?"

"Because then it means our story hasn't ended yet and I have to believe it ended the day you walked out otherwise all of this is just too hard."

"Maybe our story hasn't ended," Neal said to her. "You found me remember?"

"Not intentionally," Emma said not liking how personal this conversation had turned.

"Maybe that's the point. Things are different now but isn't it possible to think we belong in each other's lives? Can't you at least believe that?"

Emma wanted to say something. To say that despite all of her anger and resentment she had toward him and despite how long it would take to forgive him that yes she did want him in her life, after all these years she still wanted that at least. Maybe not romantically but she could at least see herself agreeing to some sort of mutuality but she couldn't even force the cliff notes version of all that out of her.

"I have to check on Gold," she said. "If he's doing better we'll check on the earliest flight out of here."

"And Henry," Neal asked.

"I'm not leaving him here with you."

"I know that but we have to figure out something."

"I won't have him go back and forth. Some parents do that with their kids and that's fine but Storybrooke is home for him, it has been for his entire life and I'm not going to have him uprooted."

"Is there more to it than that?"

"Of course there is, you want to hear me say it?"

"Yeah I do."

"Fine, I don't trust you alone with him. You two just met and leaving him alone with you is not something I'm ready for."

"You left him alone with me last night."

"For several hours," Emma counteracted. "It's different when it's a few days or the weekend or whatever."

"Okay fair enough well how about this: what if I move to Storybrooke?"

"You're serious?"

"What, I could do it. I told you that I wouldn't do to Henry what Gold did to me and I meant it. I'll do whatever I have to for him and if that means leaving then I will. You moved from Boston and it worked for you right?"

"Yeah but Neal I can't ask you to do that. It was easy for me to leave because I didn't have a life in Boston. You have a job and a fiancé. She might not like this."

"Maybe not but we have to put Henry first right?"

"Right," Emma said agreeing with him.

"And you want me in his life at least?"

"Yeah but-,"

"Then it's done. The three of you can leave whenever you're ready even if that's today. I'll take a few days and meet you down there once I get things squared here."

"There's no changing your mind is there?"

"Not when it comes to our son."

Our son. Emma didn't like to admit that she liked the way that sounded.

"Okay," Emma said deciding it was best not to fight him on this any longer. "You should probably be the one to tell Henry. I think he'd like the news if it came from you."

Neal smiled at Emma and she smiled in return.